I keep hearing about religion in politics.
Perhaps if religion is going to play such a large role in our political thinking and decision that we should stop the illusion of separation of church and state, eliminate the non-profit tax-exempt status and treat them like any other big-business special-interest lobby?
Think of all the children we could feed, educate, house, and healing with the additional revenue.
Thoughts?
I just saw a story on problems in the criminal justice system.
I thought the biggest problems in the criminal justice system were the criminals.
If they stopped committing crimes we wouldn’t have to have a systems to deal with them and we could take the money and spend it on feeding, educaing, housing, and healing so many children.
Thoughts?
I have never been a big fan of people sueing people.
Ultimately, we all pay.
If you sue the government, its the tax payer who pay. You and me.
If you sue big business, its the consumer who pays. You and me.
If you sue an insurance company, its the policy holders who pay. You and me.
If you sue a medical professional, its the patients who pay. You and me.
So the cost of people sueing people comes down to you and me.
Maybe we should have a class action suite against those people who sue people so we can get some of our money back.
Its a thought.
I am not a big fan of HOPE. Usually its a passive emotion/thought that gets us to sit around and wait for something to happen. But, talking about the benefits of living in utter hopelessness will have to wait for another day.
Today, its all about being politically incorrect. Its about the HOPE scholarships. Don’t get me wrong, I am all in favor of helping people.
The HOPE scharlarship was a gift. Because of economica times, they are looking at cutting back on the gift given. Because students in the past have received this gift, current students feel they are entitled to the same gift. So maybe we shouldn’t give gifts to begin with.
Anyway, the HOPE scholarships is somehow linked to the hope of winning the Lottery. So to protest cuts in the HOPE scholarship some people are suggesting a boycott of the lottery. Which means there will be even less funds available to give as gifts to students. So to protest what you don’t get, you make sure there is less of it to give. Some solutions actually perpetuate the problems they are trying to solve. Go figure.
But it did make me think. Lets tie all gifts/assistance to taxes on junk food, tobacco, and alcohol as well as the lottery. Then in protest when the gift is inenvitably cut, people we eat healthier, have fewer health problems, committ less crimes and have less accidents, and stop gambling.
Maybe there is some HOPE left in the world.
Thoughts?
Sorry its been a while since I was really blogging. Things have been busy. That’s and explanation and not an excuse. This being one of them.
The things that still gets to me is how most people think that everything is about them. I wished I still had the ego arrogance to beleive that the universe centered around me and what I wanted. But I don’t and my life goes better because of it.
Another thing that offten hits me is addiction. Name one long term benefit that ever came from the use of intoxicants? Now, how many long term problems you can that come from the use of intoxicants? Exactly!
And while I am at it, how come we all know that in these economics we need to cut back and that means that not everything we have been used to will continue to be available. Yet, we don’t want those cuts to come to us. There have to come somewhere don’t they?
I’ll try to begin ranting more often. I have several New Year directions I want to travel. (one of them is becoming even more of a cumputer geek)
I know its not poltically correct (which means it must have some truth to it) but I am curious: How many children could we protect, house, feed, educate, or give medical treatment to if religion was no longer tax exempt?
BrokenRiceBowl.com
An Aikikai cult?
Interesting opinions from someone I don’t know, never met or talked to, much less trained with.
IMHO, personally and professionally, it sound like more than the rice bowl is broken. Doesn’t it?
I am honored and humbled to be in such good company.
We already know that the justice system doesn’t seem to work. By that I mean that its about offender’s rights and not about justice.
I remember seeing Richie Haven comment on the beginning of the old Superman series. “And he fights for truth, justice, and the American way.” Haven said, “I thought truth and justice was the American way.” No they appear to be different.
So if I am to be judged by a jury of my peers, and all my peers are also criminals, where’s the justice?
Perhaps I need to be held responsible and accountable to a jury of my victims. After all, they know me best. They are the ones who have had direct experience and paid the natural cause and effect consequences for my choices. So what it a murderer had to be judged by a jury of the victim’s family? What if rapist had to be judged my rape victims? What if robbers had to be judged by victims of robbery?
Judgment and punishment show no direct relationship to recidivism, re-offense.
Empathy, remorse and shame does.
So perhaps instead of being judged by our peers, sentenced by judges, and then torn between strictly punishment and isolation to keep society safe and a humanistic approach that accepts explanations as excuses and doesn’t hold people responsible and accountable, we need to think outside the either/or box.
Perhaps we need to be judged by a jury of our victims?
Perhaps we need to extend the jury and the criminal defendant pool?
Lets have as jury members a representative of our society, since our tax dollars are spent on people who commit crime. It cost us a lot of money to take care of people who do not positively contribute or participate in the society they hold hostage. You and I pay for their choices. We are indirectly and directly their victims. Let me have say in what should be done. Perhaps this is why I never get picked for jury duty.
Perhaps, if crime (along with that I include child abuse, domestic violence, sexual assaults, and addiction) runs in families and communities, perhaps they need to be held responsible and accountable too. We are victims of the rules and roles they provide that is imitated and identified with by the youth. Perhaps instead of letting the criminal offs because of these influences, the influences should also be named and held responsible and accountable. We are their victims. We should have a say.
Judged by a jury of your victims.
If you can’t do the time, don’t do the crime. If you do not want to be judged by a jury of your victims, you already know that what you are about to do is wrong. Don’t do it. Please don’t do it. If in doubt, send my an e-mail and I will gladly tell you what I think about your plan of action.
Think about it, if you were judged by a jury of your victims, would that change you heart and mind. Perhaps having empathy, connectedness, and compassion fo our victims would prevent us from creating them?
I did a talk for a friend on NLP (NeuroLinguistic Programming). They cut it down and offered this introduction on YouTube. Thought I’d share it with you.
Just finished the book and watched the lecture.
YouTube – Randy Pausch Last Lecture: Achieving Your Childhood Dreams
Say no more.
