Why I like Vicious comments

 Great piece of writing that captures the conflicting dualities of balancing the need for freedom of expression and the need for civility and decorum. Everyone has experienced the idiot online that hijacks a good conversation or blog with wild rants filed with vitrol and hate. Who needs it? We do. It's the price we pay for freedom. We should get together and either let these fools know how we feel or maybe just ignore them since some people seem just to be fishing for a fight. We have always had this problem, just with advent of the Internet and the anonymousness that it provides has made these morons more of a headache. We just need to have on-line monitors filtering out these mental cases.

World Citizenship, it's possible, it's the future!

 World citizenship, it has that fuzzy warm hollow pipe dream feel to it, don't you think? Like it's  supposed offspring World Peace, it's got that no way in hell of really ever happening feel to it. Singing Kumbiaya and group hugs never cured any large ill, anyway, anywhere, anyhow. So why waste time talking, debating, and writing on such a topic? Because it's inevitable, that's why. Mankind's economic interests are bringing every corner of this world closer to one another exponentially. The Global Economy is smashing down walls that have separated regions and cultures for eons. Regardless of ones country, religion, culture and beliefs we all have the same basic wants and needs. We all want to be safe, happy, healthy, with a good job/family, and lots of freedoms. It's universal. We all share 97% of the exact same genes. What we have in common is far more than what we don't.  Imagine how much safer the world would be if people thought of  themselves as Global Citizens first, and citizens of their respective countries second. We would have far less war mongering nationalism if people made this shift in their paradigm.  The United States of America, the largest economy in the history of the world, spends over 20% of our annual GDP on defense. Imagine what we could do with those resources. Pay of the debt and lower taxes, to just name a few. All humans are made up of the same hopes, wants, and dreams. What we have separating us is our countries borders, religion, language, cultures, customs, and most of all history. Start with metaphorically tearing down all the countries in the world walls and maybe we'll start getting along for real. We have more in common than not and most of all, it's in everyone economic interest. 

Generation Y -Lured to the Devil with an Apple

 Being a generation-Xer, I see generation Y people better than they see themselves. Yeah yeah, on the surface they appear to be a little bit more together than us. They get along and work together better. Their expectations of the world are more realistic. They seem to communicate better with much more ease and savvy. They also are also extremely dependant on modern technology. If a blackout occurred, most of them would not know what to do, let alone function. They would probably just stand there, wide eyed, head cocked sideways, perplexed, staring at their phone. Modern technology for gen Y is not various tools to be utilized for various functions and reasons, but instead a crutch that is perceived as an absolute by the minute necessity. Various technological devices are now seen as a way of life not a tool. Generation Y folks are the fattest Americans ever! No kidding, imagine that. All those video games and the Internet and the youngins' don't go outside to exercise any more. They don't connect face to face as much anymore either. They also are not getting outside to connect with nature and God. This disconnect with nature has more far reaching implications than one might imagine.  Therefore, technology is the devil's new right hand!




(the above was written in style of tongue and cheek and meant to be received that way)

The Lies We Lie and the Webs We Do Weave

We all lie all the time. We lie to the government, to our bosses, to our children, to our spouses, and most of all to ourselves. We do this by many ways and means. Let's take a look at a few of them.

The White Lie-aka the relationship saver- This type of lie makes the world go round. It facilitates the most basic but profound social transaction, being nice/polite. Go ahead and tell the absolute truth all day and see what happens. You will experience one human land mine after another resulting in unemployment, divorce, and utter loneliness. Sure, be my guest and tell your lover she looks fat in that dress, tell your boss how you want it done from here on in, tell your child what that word really means, tell your professor how much you love extra assignments, tell that judge/cop what justice should really look like.
Go ahead and try it sometime. It's not just a little white lie folks, but rather the foundation of civility in modern society today!

Facades- We all project things about ourselves that can be anything from exaggerations to bold face lies. These are our the masks we wear to be accepted or in hope of being like and respected.
this can be anything from pretending you have another occupation, acting like we are nicer/harder then we really are, to claiming false accomplishments, claiming to know famous or influential people.

Ignoring the facts- This is a self-defense mechanisms people unawareingly use to stop information from getting in their head that might contradict or undermine their current value system. People unfortunately seek out information and opinions that mirror their own instead of letting the information itself lead them to an independent conclusion, not a pre-determined one.

Deflecting- A wise man once said " when it comes to blame, it is far better to give than receive."
This is a great one for both home and office. When someone shoots you an insult or accusation, just don't automatically go on the defensive and try to explain or deny it away. No, just deflect it and spin it on to someone else, hell anyone else. This is a mandatory lie along with white lies deemed necessary for any conventional modern relationship to be successful.

Omission- This isn't really lying, is it? You did not directly tell a lie, but it is deceptive either way. If you omit something important in a business transaction, you can be liable for lack of disclosure. Omitting is lying no matter how hard one rationalizes.

Stereotypes- It is a type of lie that lumps everyone of a certain group together with a less than flattering label. People do this to harm other people via rumor and oversimplification. Even if some of the themes are basically true, you can't lump all people together in wide sweeping generalized statements usually meant to slander.

Group Think- This happens to people who follow other people's ideas, dogmas, or doctrines. Especially in cults, churches, and over authoritarian organizations. But, it can be found in families, peer groups of any sort, Schools, and the work place. It is when you ignore all opposing information to the groups philosophy.

Delusion- When one's imagination starts to supersede reality. This one scares me a little bit. Let's not just ignore the facts, deflect, or present a false facade but rather alter and twist reality into something more of your liking, scary. The best examples of this today are religious fanatics of any persuasion.

Dismissal- The ultimate insult really. Your ideas are so stupid or absurd that they are not even acknowledged. One can tear down an idea or the person expressing it in a infinite amount of ways. But, what is far worse then any of that? The notion that the idea or person is so wrong that it/they are not even addressed but simultaneously invalidated.

Rant 2- Polictical Apathy in America

The fact that most Americans think our country is great but less than half even bother to vote is a national disgrace. We can not have a properly functioning Democracy without active participation from the vast majority of it's citizens. People expect too much from our political system and leaders. They want instant change. This instant change should reflect all or most of what they want to see happen. Such as simple shoot from the hip solutions to solve complex problems. Not taking part is not the answer. I  believe every American that doesn't vote in two consecutive national elections should be manditorily flown and dropped off at the tip of South America. Once they walk back, they'll appreciate America!

I'll scream if I hear " Not A Problem " from one more retail clerk!

It's 2011 and if you walk up to any cashier or clerk and ask any random question you will likely hear the same frigging response 99% of the time," NOT A PROBLEM !" How about a simple yes, O.K., or sure would do nicely. It is not the response itself but how many times you hear it over and over again. Regardless of the situation, prodacall, common sense etc. the kneejerk reaction is put into effect. Unrelated questions get the same response. When I ask what time it is and get back "not a problem" and an empty stare. Which way is the bathroom? Are you still serving breakfast? Can I speak with the manager? Things that deserve a simple answer instead get a simplton's paradigm. Folks, yes, no, and let me go find out for you are still part of our collective vocabulary. Let's try to use them a bit more...O.K?

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