RNC – Senator McCain

I really haven’t paid too much to speeches made by any candidates.  Usually, I figure they are blowing smoke because they want to get elected or re-elected.  I have occasionally listened to parts of speeches because there are times where they say the complete opposite of what I would like to see.  Those I usually take to heart.  Recently, things like raising taxes, centralized, government health care, and other similar items discussed by Obama has raised enough red flags to me that I really don’t want him to be president.

For a while, I wasn’t real happy with Senator McCain.  In one Primary debate, he discussed the horrors of torture and made a big deal about the other candidates lack of commitment on allowing or disallowing torture.  Then, when it was voted to ban all torture, he actually voted against the ban.  I saw a double standard there that I didn’t like.

Last night, watching the RNC, I was not extremely impressed with many of the speakers.  Cindy McCain was pretty good but the main event was the speech by Senator McCain.  It started out a bit slow as though his whole platform was “Palin for VP” and “I’m a former POW.”  As the speech progressed, he actually started to get into policy and shaking up the establishment of not only Washington but of the Republican Party as well.  I actually got excited about the changes to be made including sending money to countries that don’t like us that much, independence on foreign oil, the use of American energy resources as well as the development of renewable energy, and working with community colleges to make educating adults more affordable just to name a few.

The only thing I could think of is the line by Will Smith in “Independence Day” where he and Jeff Goldblum’s character were discussing the alien space craft.  Jeff said, “Do you really think you can pilot that thing?”  Will said, “Can you do all that s**t you just said?”  I feel the same way about last nights speech.  If he can follow through with what he said, we will be on the right track.  If its just smoke, well that’s another story.

Texas ROCKS!!!!

Not sure if anyone has seen this story but I think Texas has the right idea. They are well within their rights to execute criminals that commit crimes in their state. This guy raped and murdered 2 teenage girls and should have been put to death. Everyone is upset because he is a Mexican national and not a US citizen. They are upset that he wasn’t given rights to the Mexican Consul and that the international courts said to retry him. Even President Bush told Texas to stay the execution per the international court and the Supreme Court said that the President had overstepped his boundaries to do so.

Texas thumbed its nose at the world and said, “We are doing it OUR way!!!!” How AWESOME FOR TEXAS. Here is my questions:

Did Jose Medellin consult the Mexican Consul before raping and murdering these teenagers? Did the girls get a fair shake through the international courts? Where were these same organizations when they were being raped and murdered? Mexico actually promotes illegal immigration.

This should send a message to the world. Come to our country and commit crimes, you will PAY FOR IT!!! Stay out of our affairs.

Remember back in the 90’s, Michael Fay? He was the kid who went on a vandalism spree, was caught and caned. He committed a crime in Singapore and is therefore subject to their laws. That’s the way it should be. If you commit a crime in any area, you should be subject to the laws of that local area. No one should be able to save you the punishment of that area. If you commit a crime where the local law allows the death penalty, you should be put to death even if your country doesn’t allow that penalty. Just like Michael Fay; commit a crime where they allow caning and get caned even if your country doesn’t subscribe to that form of punishment.

Way to go TEXAS!!!!

I don’t know that I’m ready for this…..

I’ve always known some things.  I’m not sure how I’ve known things, I just have.  Part of it is the nightmares.  For as long as I could remember, I’ve always had nightmares about things.  They usually become deja-vu moments when I remember that I’ve already had a certain discussion or that some events had transpired previously for me.  Sometimes the dreams are so vivid that I struggle to know they are still dreams.  Sometimes they seem so much like real life.

I’m not a mystic and I usually don’t talk about this because I don’t want people to think I’m crazy and I never know which are dreams and which are premonitions.  I’m still skeptical and I’m having the dang things.

I’ve always been tapped into a certain idea that my life was pre-planned in a way.  That I had specific tasks to complete.  I don’t know what those tasks are but I know they need to be completed.  I have some general ideas from actions in dreams and little things that catch my eye.  I find that sometimes there is something tapping you on the shoulder when you need to pay attention to something.  Quite often, these things seem trivial until you start to put the pieces together.

Right now, I don’t like the look of the puzzle.  The presidential race, oil prices, state of the economy… These are all things playing into the hand of some of the dreams that I had hoped were false.  Over the past few years, I have seen certain things as though looking into the future and seeing a bleak, destroyed area but being amazed that it still existed as I sat there.

Today, I got some fairly disturbing news that I really don’t want to repeat.  They are to impossible to believe and are not being circulated in main-stream media.  Basically, they aren’t front page items but there are some sources that are valid sources that are reporting these items.  It is getting really scary.

I’m not one that likes the doom-and-gloom but I seem to be drawn to it.  I don’t want to be but I am.  I really don’t like what I’m seeing.  I don’t like the direction life is going.

I was once told that God has a plan for me.  That I’d been chosen.  Not really for anything big but something necessary.  I’m not sure what that is but I wish I knew.  I wish I had the answer and it would make it easier to prepare but yet, I don’t.

I hope that my premonitions are true because I can’t fathom them being right.   I can’t comprehend the life we are headed for in the near future if we don’t wake up and stop it.  As more things are confirmed, I will post them but be ready for anything.  Don’t go hog wild because you don’t know what is coming (neither do I) but I will post more when I know more…. Be Prepared as the scouts say.

Writ of Habeas Corpus – for detainees?

Talk about a touchy subject.  I have listened to several people discuss the Supreme Court ruling that enemy combatants are allowed a writ of Habeas Corpus.  This basically means that they cannot be detained indefinitely without being charged for a crime and having the evidence against them presented.

A lot of people are upset about this ruling because detainees are considered terrorists and should not be extended rights such as this.

By extending these rights, we are not saying that someone is innocent or guilty, it just means that you need to charge them and punish them accordingly.  This keeps the government in check by not allowing them to round up as many as they want or who they want without charging them with a crime.  If there is not enough evidence or they cannot prove their guilt, the government needs to release them.

I understand that people are upset because most of these people have vowed to kill Americans and America’s allies, however, the detainees may not be those people.  Think back to the Salem witch trials or the Red Scare of the 50’s (look up McCarthyism.)

The Supreme Court ruling, to me, does a couple of things.  First, it shows that the “inalienable rights” that our founding fathers talked about are for everyone.  The Declaration states that “all men are created equal, with certain unalienable rights.”

If they are guilty, charge them.  Present evidence, have a ruling, sentence them.  Cut and dry, simple.

By allowing the military or Federal government to hold them indefinitely without charging them is against our own beliefs, regardless of whether they are US citizens or not.  Prior to the Supreme Court ruling, given the Patriot Act, an American citizen could be shipped to Guantanamo Bay and held indefinitely as a terrorist or enemy combatant.

The US has taken it upon itself to promote democracy throughout the world and have backed up that desire to see democracy spread with military might.  We go into countries that have not known democracy and tell them that they should be like us.  We extend certain rights to our criminal population because of the laws that we live by.  Here we are, as a model for the rest of the world, and we tell these people that we won’t honor our own code of ethics.

Are we 100% sure that the detainees in the American military detention facilities are terrorists?  How do we know?  I’m not sure they should be taken to courts presided over by American Federal judges, but they should be judged by their peers.  They should have evidence presented to support their detention.  Because they fit the profile or we believe they should be there, doesn’t mean that they should be there.

The court decision basically forces the government to prove that these individuals are terrorists and are a threat.  If they are innocent, they should be released.

How long does she have, Doc?

I can’t believe that we are really doing this to ourselves.  Do you realize that our choices for president are very reminiscent of picking the last two players for dodge ball in elementary school?  You know that neither are going to amount to much but you have to pick one.

I was supportive of John McCain but after finding out that he did a flip-flop, I’m a bit on the upset side with him.  I watched a couple of clips of the Presidential primaries where he basically attacked Mitt Romney, who really isn’t a favorite of mine anyway, but attacked him for not giving a valid yes-no answer to prisoner interrogation tactics that involved torture.  The actual method of torture being discussed was waterboarding.   If you aren’t familiar with waterboarding, Google it and you will get a very good idea.

Well, I was in John’s corner up until I found out that after his little outburst that he voted against a measure that would make torture tactics like waterboarding illegal.  How can you denounce something as pure evil and then turn around and support it?  He may not have come out in total support but this is one of those, “If your not with us, your against us” type things.  If you don’t vote against it, YOU VOTE FOR IT!!!!!

Then we have Obama and anyone who has watched any of this circus, we already know.  If you don’t, Youtube is a very good source of Obama clips.  I’m not entirely sure why he’s popular.  No offense, but he’s an idiot.  I guess there was some offense there but that was the nicest way I could put it.

Some reports are showing that we are already in trouble.  If Obama gets elected and gets to enact any of his economical policies, we may as well as learn Chinese so we can speak with our new landlords.  I’m a conservative, if you haven’t figured that out but am really getting to a point where I’m opting out of the Republican party.  There is just no sense to the political party system any longer and it has really become a fiasco.  Lawyers are running our country and we all know the rumors about lawyers.  They are so honest, aren’t they?

So, the question needs to be asked.  Given the current economic climate, housing prices in the basement (figuratively), unemployment on the rise and, oh ya, $4/gal gas, any idea how long it will be before we see a complete governmental collapse of the US?  Not that we couldn’t have stopped it.  All it took was for us to lift our heads and pay attention a little.

I don’t want to be a doomsdayer but look around.  We aren’t in the happiest of spots.  We are in a recession that is 2 steps away from being a full-blown depression.  We are in a war against terrorists that look a lot like regular middle-easterners.  We have a government that can’t keep together (referring to Scott McClellan – Google search…), we have a president that has lied to the public and then lied about lying.  We have enemies that are chomping at the bit for a chance at the title.  We have a border that couldn’t keep out a foreigner in a wheel chair being slowed down by 400 lbs. or marijuana.  We support illegal aliens who have killed and/or raped offering them amnesty while we tell the victims family to go to hell.

So, how long does our country have, really?

Gun Control

One thing that really gets a good, heated argument among people around the world is gun control.  This is a very heated debate especially with the 2nd amendment of the Bill of Rights.  People have even gone so far as to try to reinterpret the 2nd amendment to limit gun control.

Guns are a very useful tool for various reasons.  The can provide us with entertainment.  They can be used to kill animals in the use of food and clothing.  They can even be used in defense.  Guns are a necessary part of our planet at the time.  Look anywhere in the world and you realize that they are everywhere.

Some would have gun control restrictions placed on the US and its citizens because of how lethal they are.  There is no doubt that some guns are used for evil purposes.  The US is in a war currently where guns are a primary source of control.  They are used by both sides of the war to stop the other side.

The arguments surrounding the control of guns on American soil are truly insignificant when you consider several factors.

If everyone that owned guns did so with great care and respect and within the boundaries of the laws, there would be very little issue surrounding the use and sale of guns.  It is when guns get in the hands of criminals that problems happen.  You cannot stop the guns getting into the hands of criminals unless you remove every single gun from the planet.  This is just not possible.  As long as there are guns, they will find their way into the hands of criminals.

When you place laws and restrictions on guns, the people that you are disarming are the average citizen that would use care and respect.  When you disarm them, you make them subject to the criminal element we discussed earlier.  If a criminal knows that there are no guns in a house or around a house, and they have a gun, they have little to fear.

Now it is true that some guns find their way into the hands of kids who may accidentally shoot their friend or sibling.  It has happened and it is sad.  This is not a case to take away guns.  These are very rare considering the number of guns owned in the US.  Something that is more harmful to kids is a house fire but we do not get rid of electricity, candles or matches.

As citizens, we should be armed if for nothing more than to say, “I have a gun and I will use it.”  This will prevent a lot of issues.  Recently, a house was broken into and the father shot and killed while the two perpetrators got away.  What would have been different had the father been armed?  Would the assailants have stayed away?  Would the criminals be dead while the father lived?

We, as a worldly society, are very violent creatures.  There is not a day that goes by where a lot of people die because of violent acts or wars.  Some of these acts do not involve guns at all but yet, they still happen.  By allowing citizens to carry guns, offering training, you even out the tables a bit for criminals who, if they don’t have a gun, do have a knife, club or other instrument used to intimidate and get what they want.  How is the little, old lady to stand up to the big, burly giant of a man that wants her purse?  She can’t wrestle him down to the ground and beat him.  What about the single female that is accosted by men to rape her.  In the first case, give him the purse, no problem.  What about the second?  Allow them to have their way?  I don’t think so.

We need to understand as a society, we aren’t all that grown up.  We are a bunch of thieving, conniving, bunch of low life’s for the most part.  Even the good parts of our citizenry will take advantage when they can.  Doubt that, look at the number of lawsuits currently.  Check out daytime television and look at all the judge-advocate shows on television.   This may not represent the majority of the population but it is a very good sampling.

Look at places where there have been disaster.  Katrina is a very good litmus test.  Social order breaks down and people turn to looting and rioting.  How many different crimes were committed because there were no police or social order.  There are numerous cases.  Even to this day, there are still people who are taking advantage of others because of Katrina.  Look at the riots in LA.  There are places all over the US, let alone the world, where the breakdown of social order causes all of the “law-abiding” citizens to take what they can.

I think our politicians and advocate groups underestimate the value of inanimate objects.  The phrase “Guns don’t kill people, people kill people” is an accurate statement.  If you take away the guns, they will use knives, clubs, etc.  There will still be violence, it will just take other forms and does.

Some might argue that, as I have eluded to previously, that if you take guns away, criminal activity will increase because criminals either (a) have guns and citizens don’t; or (b) aren’t as afraid of committing crimes because they can not be shot.  You could argue either way on this argument but lets put it this way, why find out?  Every argument for or against this scenario is speculative.  Those that argue stating that crime will not increase may be in for a shock and once you’ve opened Pandora’s box, you can’t put it back.

I think we need to look at the bigger picture.  We get tunnel vision thinking that one thing is going to change everything.  You can take guns away, and the only people you will disarm are going to be the law-abiding citizens.  Criminals will still have guns and, since we have such a global economy, they will be able to get guns anywhere.

More on Texas

I’m not really happy about a report I heard this morning on the radio regarding the polygamist women and children and the things that Texas is currently doing.  It is rather upsetting.

The report stated that the Texas officials herded the women with children into a room.  They then asked the women to continue to another room without children to receive further information.  Once the women were inside, they read them an official statement basically that they were taking the kids away.

No offense, but that was entirely wrong.  I’m not saying that the polygamists are right, but the sins of a few are not the sins of all.  In cases of religious polygamy, most women are as much a victim as the children.  There are those within compounds that do awful things like having sex with 16-year olds when they are 50 but that doesn’t mean that all are guilty of it.

Texas needs to be more sympathetic to the rights of these women as parents and, if there is a case of abuse, deal with that case not just a blanket policy for all.

Besides, here is where if Texas is going to concentrate so much effort on prosecuting criminals, why not deal with the illegal immigrant issue?  There are groups and organization and even parts of the government that protect these illegal immigrants.  Why is that?  They are criminals.  How can I say such things?  Let’s look at it like this….

A “criminal” is anyone who breaks the law.  There are misdemeanor criminals and felons.  They are all considered criminals at varying degrees and are prosecuted as such.  Going to fast?  Get a speeding ticket and pay a fine.  Rob a bank?  Go to jail.  But yet, there are thousands of criminals just because they cross a border to a country that they don’t belong.  That’s one law broken.  Then they assume another persons identity to get social security numbers and the like.  That’s more laws broken.  THEN those paid under the table don’t pay taxes.  That’s even more laws broken.

I think most of these governments are hypocrites.  I have seen families in need that cannot get welfare to help them through some tough times but yet, if you are here illegally, we will give you the world.

I may not agree with the lifestyle of the polygamist sects, but I do think that they should be looked at individually instead of labeled and persecuted because of that label.  I don’t think that the government should take kids from their mothers unless they can prove that the mothers are unfit.  From all of the pictures I’ve seen, these kids look healthy and while some may be suffering from abuse, those that don’t abuse their kids should not be persecuted for it.

Bad Form Texas!!!!

Parenthood

I’m a little more than disturbed because of a news story regarding 8 teenagers that have been arrested for beating another teen so that they could post on YouTube.  Depending on the report, the motive of putting this on YouTube may or may not have been the driving force but it definitely was one of the motives for this attack.  Other reports suggest that the 8 acted in a retaliation against Victoria Lindsay because she threatened them on her MySpace account.

This brings up so many areas to discuss that I don’t think it can all be covered in this blog.  One of which is what kind of values do we have as a society that we would commit such crimes as this to post onto a website for “shock” factor?  This is not a necessarily unique thought.  Shock videos seem to be all the rage but to premeditate such an attack as this for that reason?

Another area is the home values being taught to these children.  There are so many instances where we are not succeeding in the homes to teach these kids any type of value.  A review of the news shows this.  Kids are disrespectful.  They lack any motivation for anything that will contribute to the society as a whole.  They want everything handed to them and are unwilling to work for anything they are given.  They lie, cheat, steal, and act as though we just owe them the world.  Where is the failure?

This action should serve as a wake up call that something needs to change.  If this goes unchallenged in all of our communities, it will snowball out of control.  Many uncreative individuals will copycat this in some way because once its been done, it will be repeated.

I feel for all of the kids involved but mostly I feel for their parents.  Actually, I’m a bit mixed on that as well.  I couldn’t imagine what is going through their minds and hearts right now but I also think that there are bigger home issues here that need to be addressed.   If their lives are so horrible that they have to resort to this as “fun”, maybe the parents should be taking a more interested approach to their kids’ lives.

I can’t say that all kids will turn out perfect but if you, as a parent, aren’t doing everything you can to help them integrate into society, you probably shouldn’t be a parent.  I’m not saying that you should be totally focused on their lives as to forget about your own, but so many kids are neglected even though they may be in the same room.  Just because you are around them, doesn’t mean that you are a good parent.  Providing food, clothing and shelter are not enough.  You need to be intimately involved with their lives.  Talk to them, let them talk to you.  Be honest with them, answer their questions.  Know what they are doing in school, know their friends, don’t be afraid to implement yourself into their lives.

Granted, there is some tact that needs to be shown.  Kids need their privacy but there are limits.  You are responsible for them as parents.  Take that responsibility and work with them to help mold their lives.  Give them opportunities to scrape their knees but be close by with the bandage, peroxide and a hug.  You may not do everything right but if you are trying they will notice.

Be humble.  Know that you can screw up and its OK but let your kids know that you do screw up.  Be humble enough to apologize.

When I started this, I didn’t realize that it would be about parenthood but I do think that is a big problem in our society.  We don’t parent.  We don’t entwine ourselves with our children’s lives enough to know what they are doing.  I’ll admit that I have issues with some of the things my oldest daughter does and says.  I place limits on here but I don’t try to control her.  I try to work with her and when I need to be tough, I am.  When I need to back off, I do (most of the time.)  Its important to be an authority in their lives but its also important to be personal with them.

There are a lot of things about parenthood that I can post here.  I’m no expert but I know what works for me and my kids.  Sometimes I do good, sometimes I totally screw it up.  My kids aren’t perfect and each day is a struggle between child and parent but we manage fairly well.

I hope that, if you are a parent, you will evaluate your relationship with your children to see if you are aware enough to know what your kids are up to.  If you aren’t intimate in their lives, don’t be surprised when they do something like this.

Polygamy

I’ve been watching a show called Big Love starring Bill Paxton.  The show follows Bill Henrickson (Paxton) as he tries to make a living for his family consisting of 3 wives and various children.  This is a very thin rope as he is the owner of a chain of home improvement stores and very much in the public eye.  He is linked to the UEB compound (a fictional group) which he has to balance because he is constantly fighting against them but is also married to one of the prophet’s daughters.

His first wife did not grow up in a polygamous environment but her family is mainstream LDS and, as a result of her “apostasy”, have disowned her.  Many who find out about their lifestyle look down upon them as they practice what is considered a foul lifestyle.

It is quite an interesting show.

This blog is not to promote polygamy or this show but what I have discovered as I have watched this series.  I do not desire to practice polygamy nor do I want it for anyone in my family but I have come to various conclusions during this show.

As is promoted in the news with Warren Jeff, the Green’s, and the Kingston’s, polygamy is a very dirty, disgusting, and deplorable practice.  I don’t think that some of the practices from any of these are unique around the world.  Arranged marriages have been a part of many cultures.   Marrying one’s young daughter to an older man is also not unique nor is having more than one spouse.   Throughout the world, these practices have been in various societies.

I start to think about those that would look down upon this practice as an abomination and, given that if the Green’s and Kingston’s were the definition of polygamy, that would be correct.  In a truer sense, polygamy could be a good and useful practice and may have its place in our society at some points.

I think I might do another blog where I expound on that theory but what I want to address is our perception of that practice compared to some practices.  First, I think that any forced marriage, singular or plural, is awful.  A marriage should be consentual by both parties.  Given that as a first rule for any type of marriage, you can eliminate the underage, wife-swapping practices of the FLDS.  You can also eliminate the “God-told- me-I-should-marry-you-to-someone-old-enough-to-be-your-father” prophets.

If you put that in context and allow plural marriages based upon a mutual respect and consent by all parties involved, it becomes something that can be respectable.  Now I don’t say that easily but when you compare the current practices in our society, it is actually more desirable than other.  How, you say?

Think about what we allow in our country right now.  First, and above all is the monogamous marriage.  This is desirable above all.  To define this type of marriage would be that you marry and have sexual relations with one (and only one) partner of the opposite sex for all your life.  You never divorce, you don’t have any pre-marital relations with anyone else, you don’t stray.

Another type of relationship in our country is the long-term but not permanent relationship.  This could be boyfriend/girlfriend or marriage that ends in divorce and remarriage.  One-night stands, and casual sexual partners is yet another.  One type at the top of the controversy list is gay marriage.

Given all of the other types, polygamy isn’t so bad if it is as consentual.  Would you rather have a man marry one woman, knock up his mistress and have a divorce, remarrying yet another woman and having kids with her?  How is that better than consentual polygamy?  Its not.  Actually, it could be worse.  This guy would probably have the gall to look down on consentual polygamists.  Where’s the sense in that?

I’m not saying we should all practice polygamy but I think we need to put things in perspective.  Someone who may have multiple casual sexual partners (either at the same time or in a series) is, in my opinion, worse than a consentual polygamist.  Why?  In the case of the characters of Big Love, Bill wants to love and support his 3 wives.  While sex is a definite benefit, it is not necessarily the driving force.  He accepts all responsibilities of having 3 wives, raising children, etc.  He is not the dead-beat father that we have such an abundance of but is owning his responsibilities.

If we were to rid the world of the deplorable religious zealots that practice polygamy the way we happen to see on the news, and see more of the consentual type, polygamy could be a “respectable” practice.  I put it in quotes because it would be respectable compared to the current dead-beat father, one night stand, multiple divorce, lifestyle that we have grown accustomed to currently.

I don’t want to practice polygamy because I can barely handle one wife and couldn’t imagine trying to deal with 2 or 3 of them.  I think we just need to put a few things in perspective.  I’m not saying we should legalize polygamy but we shouldn’t look down on it so when we have just as many other deplorable relationship practices that we are “OK” with because it happens everyday.  Casual sex, pre-marital sex, divorce, extra-marital affairs; these are other deplorable practices and given the context of polygamy, I don’t think polygamy should be as detested as it is or we should detest it all.

Why this blog?

I’m not entirely 100% sure where this blog will end up but there are a few things that I would like to mention.  I am a very passionate person and have a lot of things that I would like to do which usually get placed to the side for the things I have to do.  There are several things that have made me really stop and take stock a bit recently and I wanted to share.  Some might feel the same way and feel a comaraderie while it may spark a bit of interest in others.  Still, the third group will look at this and it won’t really make too much of a difference.

First, I would like to start that, regardless of what my posts state, I am not convinced that the world is going to end soon or that our country is going to start singing another countries national anthem.  Our country is in debt to other countries and if they decide to “foreclose”, there will be issues.  We, as a nation, won’t stand for that but that is a different subject.

I don’t believe for one minute that we, as American’s should be complacent.  Once we become complacent, as we are now, we stand to lose a lot.  This doesn’t mean that we should always be on edge, but we should keep an eye on what is going on around us in the bigger picture.  Give up American Idol for one night and watch the news.  See what is going on in your country and states.

The other thing is that we make sure we are self-reliant.  I, as well as many others have stated that we need to regain skills we have lost over the last century.  We have become extravagant on many fronts.   We live paycheck-to-paycheck.  Not many of us could survive beyond a couple of days in our homes and most would panic if the power was out for longer than a couple of hours.

Most of us, because of our lifestyles, could not survive beyond 30 days if we suffered a layoff or something else that kept us from getting a paycheck.  There are no savings, there are no food stores, there is nothing that will protect us in case of some disaster.

At this point, I should define disaster because most people think of the “act of God” type events when the word disaster is mentioned.  A disaster is anything that can potentially cause conflict or a disruption of normal, defined living arrangements.  Disasters can be acts of God as we saw with Katrina.  Disasters could be something as severe and global as a complete breakdown in civil order to something to something as local as losing one’s job.  Each of these produce different results.  A disaster could be something as simple as the power going out for a couple of hours.  What if the disaster were as minuscule as the shipment of strawberries being sunk in the ocean or spread all over the highway because of an accident?  What about not being able to get things because the gas prices are too high and the truckers are on strike?  You can imagine a whole slew of “What if’s” but the important thing is that the result is the same to various degrees; normal life changes in one way or another.

It is up to each of us to prepare for the best and the worst.  With some of my posts, they are extreme.  That is to provide the safety net in case something large does happen.  No one can predict when an earthquake will strike.  In the Salt Lake Valley, we have a major fault line not more than 5-7 miles from my house that will eventually provide a very large and very damaging earthquake.  It could happen in 5 minutes or in 5 centuries.  It will happen but when, we have no idea.

When we are prepared for the worst of things to happen, we are prepared for everything in between.  If something does happen, we will not panic because we have prepared ourselves for such events.

This doesn’t mean that we should let it consume all of our time, energy, and resources.  It means that we should make plans to make sure immediate needs are taken care of.  Take time to learn different skills.  By keeping in shape and preparing, we are insuring ourselves against problems.  Then, we take the rest of our time and enjoy life.

Some of my posts are very dramatic in these respects and you will see more in the future.  I don’t plan on stopping them but they are my way of keeping that information or requirements at the forefront of my mind to make sure I am not putting them on the “ignore” list.  I still take the time to read books to the kids, watch movies, go on outings like Lagoon or the Zoo or just read a book.

I enjoy my time writing these posts.  I sometimes like the emotional outburst it provides.  It affords me an opportunity to rant and rave and when I’m done, I then have the opportunity to address the situations that have arisen to cause the outburst.  Some posts are political, religious and controversial.  That is what this blog is all about.   This is where I express my most extreme views or cause the most amount of ruckus.

But I also like the debate, the time to learn new things and, on occasion, I have changed my view on things.  That is not because I am wishy-washy, but because my views are ever changing.  As new information is presented, it is added to what I have and then a new opinion is calculated.  If I had all the facts up front or could predict how things would turn out with 100% accuracy, I would be less likely to change my opinion but as an imperfect being with limited knowledge, I do reserve that right to change my opinion and not be sorry for doing so.

Anyway, I really enjoyed this.  I wasn’t sure where I was going to end up so I didn’t start with a title.  Not exactly sure what to title it but maybe….