Advertisements

Category Archives: Sameness

It sucks, doesn’t it?

23 Saturday Jun 2018

Posted by in Change, Dingleberries, Ego, Emotional Intelligence, Environment, Fear, Hate, Human, Indivisible, Islam, Love, Male superiority, Middle Way, Open mind, Politics, Race, Revolution, Sameness, Trump-Hole, Women

≈ Leave a comment

So, news reports have said that members of the Trump administration have been denied service in, and chased out of, businesses they thought they had the right to frequent as a normal customer. It’s completely unfair.

And I hear they’re also having trouble finding dates, or keeping them when they do. People are just walking out in the middle of dates when they find out someone works for the administration. It’s just rude.

No one likes to be judged by others. Especially not before they even get a chance to know you. And something personal, like where you work or what you believe in, shouldn’t affect what restaurant you’re allowed to eat in… Right?

Advertisements

There’s a whole lot more to suicide prevention

15 Friday Jun 2018

Posted by in Compassion, Depression, Emotional Intelligence, Fear, Love, Mental Health, Middle Way, Sameness, Spirituality, Suicide

≈ Leave a comment

This one was tough to put into words, even more so in writing.

You know, I’m glad that people are shocked and motivated to raise awareness about suicide since the passing of Anthony Bordain, and Kate Spade. Similar concerns erupted around Robin Williams suicide a few years ago too. But unfortunately, it’s very likely that these concerns will have to get voiced again, and again, since this problem isn’t going away anytime soon.

Awareness is a good thing, but in and of itself, it’s not very practical. Compassion, and awareness need to be paired with action to show their real effectiveness. Don’t misunderstand me, I’m not saying awareness is useless. I mean, it sure beats some of our other bright ideas, like ‘life’s a beach’ T-shirts, truck balls, and Budweiser mirrors, but it is only awareness after all.

Suicidal ideations don’t usually just come out of nowhere. Usually those kinds of thoughts are like an old friend that has quietly whispered never ending doubts into your ear for many years. And it’s not usually a threatening voice either. In fact, to the some sufferers it’s a very reassuring one, because it’s the only one that offers anything resembling relief, however final it may be. While the idea of suicide may seem a tad drastic at first, with constant nudging from that voice, it begins to lose that feeling of being such an “extreme act”.

It should be universally understood that someone is no longer functioning normally when they are willing to conclude that everyone they care about (and who cares about them) would be better off if they were no longer alive. It should be, but it isn’t. Instead, people confuse depression with sadness, in much the same way a very vocal minority confuses climate with weather.

For the sufferer, anything that interferes with their ability to wallow in their own thoughts, gets jettisoned quickly. The passage of time is only relevant to how long it’s been since their last bout. For years the voice has been convincing them how minor their death will be, that everyone is better off, and how it has always been an option. And the more they listen, the more powerful it becomes, just like Hyde did to Dr. Jeckyl.

If you know someone is struggling, you need to reach out to them. Think for a second about how willing you are to reach out when you’re feeling down… a lot of us would just like crawl back to bed, at the very least. So take a few minutes out of your day to talk with them and catch up. Make sure to stay in touch with them, because a huge part of the problem is the almost total inability to ask for help!

If we know someone who might actually need help, we should encourage them to talk to their doctor or seek another form of help. We should keep in touch with them, and follow up. We need more human contact, we’re all beginning to realize how much of that we’ve given up for our phoneputers. And I’m probably guiltier of it than most.

I’d love to wrap this up in a nice bow that tells everyone how we can fix it. Yeah… that’s not how this works. Helping people can be inconvenient sometimes, but we aren’t going to solve some of our more ‘human’ problems without getting right in there and showing that we give a shit.

Love and Sacrifice

19 Saturday May 2018

Posted by in Brain Droppings, Emotional Intelligence, Love, Memorial, Middle Way, Open mind, Patriotism, Sameness

≈ Leave a comment

So I’m sitting here watching some of the royal wedding stuff, when they show both William and Harry walking along in uniform. And while I don’t totally ‘get’ royalty, I quickly grasped something completely different from this scene.

It occurred to me that, traditionally the British Monarchy has always laid their lives on the line for their country and crown. In fact, Prince Harry actively fought in Afghanistan through two tours, and was considered a high value target to the enemy. That is as real as it gets. And that is also a sacrifice that many of us understand all too well.

And while Americans like to think we are so much more advanced because we are no longer tied to those barbaric royal traditions, everything is not what it seems.

Sure, we famously spearheaded the ideas of the democracy. We developed radical ideas, such as, we would now trust in our citizenry to defend and run the country. We were no longer willing to trust some out-of-touch royal bum-sniffer, so removed from the struggles of daily life, that they have no clue as to what their subjects have to go through in their daily lives to survive. And worse yet, the same out of touch rulers think it’s only proper that they pass on this power to their clueless heirs.

Except, that’s not really what’s happening, is it?

Instead, as I watch Prince Harry gets married in his military uniform, I can intuitively conclude that this prince who is all the way over in Great Britain has far more in common with everyday people, than President Bone Spurs ever could, or even wants to. Because in America, political power will always get you out of military service, if you don’t want to go.

It seems as though our “representative government” went off the rails somewhere along the way. Instead, this morning millions of Americans spent the early hours of the day, fantasizing that they were somewhere, and maybe even someone else, at least for a few hours.

Here’s what I don’t get…

18 Friday May 2018

Posted by in Change, Conspiracies, Dingleberries, Guns, Hate, Human, Indivisible, Making Sense of Guns, Middle Way, Open mind, Patriotism, Politics, Revolution, Sameness, Terrorism, Trump-Hole

≈ Leave a comment

Let’s say that the entire Russia thing turns out to be a big misunderstanding. And, let’s assume then that Donald Trump gets re-elected and serves two full terms, resigning peacefully after a normal, democratic election. mmmmmmkay?

So at some point during those years there will have been midterm elections that likely flip the House and the Senate, since that isn’t entirely unlikely in American politics.

Still with me?

Now, during the last year of Trump’s presidency a Supreme Court justice dies suddenly. What would happen if Democrats decided to not even hold a vote on a Supreme Court appointee? Even if Trump decided to put forth a candidate that both parties could agree on. Someone like Merrick Garland. And what happens if the Democrats in charge said ‘no’, and dug in their heels further?

And what if, let’s say, a Bernie Sanders type candidate is elected as President after Donald Trump. Let’s call him Barney Summers.

Suddenly Barney begins to rapidly use Executive Orders to do things like: “Once a year we will now have an “Open Border Day” along our southern border. And during that day, anyone who shows up with the all of their paperwork filled out, gets instant status as a United States citizen.

Also, President Barney Summers begins to appoint every progressive activist he knows. People who have longed to get on the inside to regulate and straighten out all of the government programs that they’ve been protesting against for decades. Suddenly coal companies are required to shell out hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines and upgrades if they want to remain in business. Corporate executives who had previously taken golden parachutes after tanking their company, and fleecing American consumers, are retroactively prosecuted, fined, and jailed for their crimes.

The military is suddenly required to justify every purchase they want to make…And to do so, must get three separate quotes from different vendors, all to be reviewed by the citizens. Meanwhile, public education finally gets an unfettered budget, allowing the entire system to be rebuilt in the image of far more successful European educational models, which would now include funding every citizen being allowed to obtain a 4 year degree at a community college. All of this would be paid for by the taxes that the Defense Department were not able to justify needing anymore.

Or, what if they Defense Department gets quietly defunded and dismantled, in much the same way the State Department is currently being subjected to?

Police in various states begin to pull over, arrest, and abuse, primarily white men who are identified as posing a threat to our nation’s security. The evidence used to justify these threats is based on superficial things like, gun racks in their vehicles, and various bumper stickers that identify them by their political leanings.

Also, during this time, legislation is passed that bans any and all Americans from purchasing, or possessing, all forms of assault weapons. The President begins to label that entire industry as “The Lying Gun Lobby”, and drives changes that make it legal to sue the weapons dealers and manufacturers, on behalf of anyone killed or harmed by their products.

I think you can see where I am going with this, so here are my questions:

Just exactly how loud do you think the voices would be in the Republican party then?

Would people like Paul Ryan be okay if the new Speaker of the House refused to listen to the opposition, or even allow any dissenting ideas onto The Floor for a vote?

Do you think they would be able to recognize even a little bit of the irony that they were suffering through?

Just a thought experiment for you, on this beautiful May weekend.

Grope Grope Grab Grab

22 Wednesday Nov 2017

Posted by in Dingleberries, Emotional Intelligence, First Amendment, Human, Male superiority, Middle Way, Open mind, Politics, Sameness, Sex, Trump-Hole, Women

≈ Leave a comment

So lately, with all of the sex assault allegations firing off in every direction, taking down politicians left and right (yes, I know it extends far beyond politics), it has me thinking… I’m sure what I’m about to say will piss a few people off, but here goes.

For one thing, it’s absolutely wonderful that we are finally in a place where victims of this kind of abuse can finally feel confident enough to tell their story with far less fear of reprisal. It’s been a long time coming.

What is also amazing is how the victims are finally getting the benefit of the doubt, right out of the gate. The phrase, “I believe the women” is now being spoken by anyone who wants to enjoy any sort of public life in the future.

But, I also found myself thinking about the fact that, in politics, people play dirty. I’m not saying anyone is in these cases, but just for a second, imagine what the perfect political weapon would be. It would have to be the ability to make accusations of wrongdoing that’ll get judged long before they get proven.

Now, before anyone loses their shit on me, I want to make sure to say that I feel every accusation I have heard recently has been completely credible.

But, just imagine what you could do with that kind of weapon. Aim it at someone, and you could get a perfect hit (and resignation), every time! And by the time an investigation was done and we found out the truth, it wouldn’t matter because your political enemy would still be gone. And you would still get your special election, and a really good chance to plop your candidate in the newly vacated seat.

The court of public opinion has suddenly increased exponentially in power because of social media. And with it, the possibility that we can completely undermine the legal standard of due process. “Innocent until proven guilty”, would become afterthought. Again, that isn’t the case right now. But, I could see it happening if we aren’t careful.

It would be great if there was an easier, more expeditious way to prove guilt. But, alas, it’s not like some guy guy running for president is going to openly admit popping a Tic Tac, and then grabbing women by the crotch.

Here We Go Again…

09 Thursday Nov 2017

Posted by in Change, Dingleberries, Emotional Intelligence, Middle Way, Patriotism, Politics, Sameness, Trump-Hole

≈ Leave a comment

So, it looks like the political pendulum has started to swing the other way again.

One year ago, the American voters (with the help of a few Russians) elected Donald Trump, and a flurry of other Republicans, into public office. It was a knee-jerk response to the election of Barack Obama, and a herd of Democrats, eight years earlier.

Usually what happens after a “correction” like this, is that the winning party sings the praises of the founding father’s wisdom. And for a little while they use phrases like “mandate by the people”, and proclaim that “the American voters spoke loud and clear”, regardless how little they won by.

The truth is, the collective voting public in America are about as decisive as a squirrel with a speeding car bearing down on it.

If you’re a Democrat you are probably really excited about the election results. And no doubt there are strategists out there already planning ways to leverage this small window to get things done before the pendulum swings the other way. Good, right?

No! That’s exactly the problem right now. The idea that you have to get enough of “your people” in office to overcome the opposition is the real enemy of democracy.

If we lose the ability to compromise, then the logical result will be a constantly imbalanced, and impotent system. And while that may seem okay if you agree with the person in power, it also means that you will also again be “the opposition” soon enough.

If you get people upset enough, they will continue to make emotional decisions when they need to make rational ones. And we will be right back here in another four to eight years.

Dandelion Break

30 Saturday Sep 2017

Posted by in Conspiracies, Dingleberries, Environment, First Amendment, Hate, Human, Male superiority, Middle Way, Patriotism, Politics, Race, Sameness, Terrorism, Trump-Hole

≈ Leave a comment

I tried to start an entry describing what I learned as a Boy Scout about respect for the American Flag. It was going to mention the flag worshippers out there who put the flag sticking up from the bed of pickup truck and drive around until it’s in tatters. Or better yet, how they constantly wear some form of the flag on their hat, or shirt. I was even going to mention the other people that put their confederate flag right next to the stars and stripes, usually on the wrong side… anyway, I never finished that post, I got distracted. Besides, it’s not like pointing out someone’s ignorance will make them reflect on their contradictory ways.

My distraction was about the (not-so) emergency response to Irma in Puerto Rico, and the fact that the President of the United States is ignoring the suffering of millions of U.S. citizens. But then Donald Trump began to bash the mayor of San Juan for criticizing him for doing nothing as the second level of destruction hits the island. Things like cholera, and the problems that come out of simply ignoring and not treating people for things that are so completely treatable… there is no excuse. Especially if you are more worried about upsetting the shareholders of shipping companies, than you are of human lives. And so neither of these topics got their own post.

You see there was this whole “drain the swamp” thing that was begging to be brought up as Tom Price came under fire for chartering private flights on the taxpayer’s dollar. But then he said he would pay the people back for his seat on these flights. He chartered the whole thing, but he was only going to pay us back for the seat he sat in. I was going to point out that the $50,000 he planned on giving back, was a fraction of the estimated $1M it actually cost for all of the charters. But then he resigned/was fired. And so, I began to comb through the stories of corruption and excess, that is coming out of this administration lately, but I got overwhelmed again.

You see, there’s some weird thing happening in Cuba with sonic attacks on U.S diplomats, and people are getting very sick. No one knows why, and what little is left of our State Department, isn’t saying anything. But even if they did, it wouldn’t stop the renewed fears that are reminiscent of the Cold War. You see, North Korea isn’t going to back down. Threatening nuclear war is all they have. But our president seems to think he can bluff them like some cement contractor from New Jersey. And that would be bad enough, but Trump will do anything to not lose face. That includes using “fire and fury like the world has never seen”, on a country that is about as much a match to us militarily, as I am to a 6 year old kid in arm wrestling.

I didn’t write about any of that either because the CEO of Equifax just retired after overseeing a massive data breach that has affected just about every American. Apparently this buttmunch was allowed to gracefully walk away with a $90M golden parachute. Even though, I guarantee you he’s the kind of guy who would fire his immigrant Guatemalan gardener for trimming the hydrangeas too unevenly.

So, as you can see I was going to write about all of these things, as well as a dozen more. But, I got overwhelmed. So, like Opus, I just need a dandelion break.

The Work

27 Wednesday Sep 2017

Posted by in Buddhism, Compassion, Ego, Environment, Human, Meditation, Mental Health, Middle Way, Open mind, Sameness, Spirituality

≈ Leave a comment

“I like walking around cities better than in the countryside. I’m happy the trees are there, I just don’t need to see them, that’s all. I’m serious. I much prefer cities. Let’s face it, it’s actually better that we leave the trees alone; let them get along with doing their job without human interference. Cities, though: they’re full of people, and they’re the ones who need us. But we feel the opposite. As soon as we see all those people crowding the streets, filling the buildings, driving the cars, we feel aversion for them. We want to run away into the trees! It should be the other way around – at least, that’s how bodhisattvas would feel. The more people the better! Grist for their mill.”

– Venerable Robina Courtin

Declare The Pennies On Your Eyes

20 Wednesday Sep 2017

Posted by in Compassion, Conspiracies, Depression, Meditation, Middle Way, Open mind, Patriotism, Politics, Sameness, Spirituality

≈ Leave a comment

At the age of 50 years old, I have contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars to the United States government. I’m sure someone knows how much precisely, but I don’t. However, I do know it’s somewhere between a crap-ton and a shitload. My taxes have funded untold amounts of unnecessary military expenditures (and probably some necessary ones, there is no way to tell). Senators, Congressmen, and an endless string lackeys  (some, I assume, were used by good people) have feasted and traveled on my dime. There has been boondoggles, pork projects, and tit for tat bargains stretching off as far as the eye can see, all on my taxes… and yours too.

For most of my life I have been told that I will likely never benefit from any of the money I’m required to pay into Social Security. I guess because someone else needed it, or something. They weren’t supposed to take it, but they did… and no one stopped them. Of course, if I get frustrated and stop “contributing” I will surely go to jail. And I still won’t ever see those benefits.

There are towns across the country with crumbling roads, poisoned water, and bridges that are more rust than metal. The bridges get upgraded less and less these days, instead they are triaged more and more. That comes out of my taxes too. And like most things, it costs more to repair this stuff than it does to maintain it, but that’s the next guy’s problem, right?

I work for a public school system, a target for any fiscal conservative. Therefore, pay increases have finally reversed direction from job performance. The same can be said for workplace morale, and parental indignation… or even staff payroll, and district budgets. Somehow this is supposed to prove that public education doesn’t work… yeah, I don’t get it either. Raises are hard to come by these days, unless you’re in Congress. Congress has never failed to give themselves decent raise, or three. 

Soon Mitch McConnell and a whole bunch of politicians will vote as one (one political party, that is), to get rid of healthcare coverage for lots of people. Why? Good question. I can give you a dozen answers, all somewhat correct. But the truth is, that it’s what they been told/asked/threatened/bribed/want to do. They have also been given strict talking points by the same people who have told/asked/threatened/bribed/want them to vote this way. These talking points help them explain to you why you unconsciously want them to get rid of your actual healthcare, in favor of a really great conceptual one. And no, if they take away your healthcare, they won’t give any of the money back. Get real. And yes, you will still be required to pay the taxes for it.

So, lately I have been trying to avoid blogging about politics. It’s just too easy to wonk about this stuff, no matter where you stand politically. But, because so many people are overwhelmed, worried and anxious about losing their healthcare, this blog entry is actually doubling as a post about mental health.

Suffering is an option. An option we elect each time we read, or watch the news about politics, and the healthcare debate. But it doesn’t need to be that way.

Meditation is a wonderful tool that you can use to get perspective on these things. If you’re reading this, feel free to let me know if you think a simple beginners guide to meditation would be helpful for you. And once you learn it, they can’t tax it!