It seems likely that the supreme court will overturn Obamacare by a vote of five to four. Thus, Obamacare will become unconstitutional, because a law is unconstitutional if the highest court says it it, by whatever margin of vote.
And so be it. No complaints. We simply verify once again whether the american people want socialized health insurance, or not, and move on to a new plan.
Evidently, a majority of the american people do indeed want socialistic health insurance, especially when it isn't called "socialism." (the words "socialism" and 'liberalism" have been effectively demonized by the conservative mainstream media).
If Obamacare is indeed ruled unconstitutional, will we be hearing conservatives complaining that the supreme court has "legislated from the bench"? Probably not. Courts which overturn laws favored by conservatives have committed the grievious sin of legislating from the bench.
Doubtless, conservatives will not use the same argument in this case. They should, for the sake of integrity, but chances are they won't. Of course, no court in this country has ever legislated anything, but try telling conservatives that..
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of the Truthless Reconciler. Thanks!
Saturday, March 31, 2012
Friday, March 30, 2012
Habit
"Habit is our only comfort. We dislike doing without even those unpleasant things to which we have become accustomed." --- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832)
It is well known that people who have lived in prison for decades seldom want to be released.Equally ovservable is the fact that people who have exercised regularly for decades do not wish to cease, and those who have ceased for months do not wish to resume, or at least, become sluggish in doing so.
Each year the Pike's Peak marathon attracts hundreds of enthusiastic participants. They run thirteen miles to the top, and thirteen back down. A good friend of mine decided to run to the top only, doing a half marathon. (I think I would have chosen to do the half marathon starting at the top.)
As he neared the top, he sat down on a boulder to take a break, exhausted. A few minutes later, quite by chance, a friend of his came running by. He said to my friend "if you don't get up and get moving soon, you never will." Realizing the truth of this, my friend promptly got up and got going. He told me that when he arrived at the top, he started crying. He just couldn't help it.
Currently my mother and I are in a similar state. She's 91 years old. I don't have an excuse. Her spring allergies are making her feel sluggish, and she has for several weeks stayed away from her aquacise class at the local YMCA swimming pool. The other ladies are starting to wonder where she went. Recently her strength and energy have been returning - but still, no return to the pool. I sense that she has become content with her exercise free life.
Eight months ago I badly strained a hamstring while running. After a 25 year running career, I have been inactive since last summer. Recently, however, the hammy has improved, and I can put in time on my stationary bike without pain. But, day after day, the bike beckons, and I turn away. Will I ever run again? Will I ever do anything for exerise again? Stay tuned.
I just hope I beat my mother back to the gym, and that when I do, I don't cry.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler.Thanks!
It is well known that people who have lived in prison for decades seldom want to be released.Equally ovservable is the fact that people who have exercised regularly for decades do not wish to cease, and those who have ceased for months do not wish to resume, or at least, become sluggish in doing so.
Each year the Pike's Peak marathon attracts hundreds of enthusiastic participants. They run thirteen miles to the top, and thirteen back down. A good friend of mine decided to run to the top only, doing a half marathon. (I think I would have chosen to do the half marathon starting at the top.)
As he neared the top, he sat down on a boulder to take a break, exhausted. A few minutes later, quite by chance, a friend of his came running by. He said to my friend "if you don't get up and get moving soon, you never will." Realizing the truth of this, my friend promptly got up and got going. He told me that when he arrived at the top, he started crying. He just couldn't help it.
Currently my mother and I are in a similar state. She's 91 years old. I don't have an excuse. Her spring allergies are making her feel sluggish, and she has for several weeks stayed away from her aquacise class at the local YMCA swimming pool. The other ladies are starting to wonder where she went. Recently her strength and energy have been returning - but still, no return to the pool. I sense that she has become content with her exercise free life.
Eight months ago I badly strained a hamstring while running. After a 25 year running career, I have been inactive since last summer. Recently, however, the hammy has improved, and I can put in time on my stationary bike without pain. But, day after day, the bike beckons, and I turn away. Will I ever run again? Will I ever do anything for exerise again? Stay tuned.
I just hope I beat my mother back to the gym, and that when I do, I don't cry.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler.Thanks!
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Dog Eat Dog
The Chinese have a long history of eating dog meat. Every year approximately half a million dogs are butchered and eaten in China. I once had a friend from Shanghai who was amazed at how well Americans treat their pets.
He once said "This (america) is the loneliest country in the world..You americans care more about your dogs and cats than you do each other." He also remarked: "In america you take your dog for a walk. In china, we put dog in the wok!" Never underestimate oriental wit.
My only response was "you got that right." And of course, he did. We americans care much more about our pets than we do our neighbors, and surveys indicate that about ten per cent of all people claim that they prefer dogs to other people.
My chinese friend eventually moved from our small town to Chicago, because he wanted to be around more people, but he was disappointed; even Chicago seemed like a small, and lonely town to him. I haven't heard form him in years. By now perhaps he has learned how to be lonely and happy, like the rest of us americans.
Things are changing in China. More and more chinese are actually getting dogs as pets, and treating them like a member of the family, in good american fashion. Increasing urbanization, increasing per capita wealth, and changing cultural values are possibly responsible for this.
There is a growing community of "dog's rights" activists in China, groups of people who assemble for the purpose of liberating dogs from the oven. Trucks filled with dogs in small cramped cages are stopped on the road, and gangs of dog lovers either forcibly liberate the animals, or buy them in order to save them and give them out as pets.
Within the near future dogmeat may be a thing of the past in china. Meanwhile, I hope my friend from Shanghai is doing Ok in Chicago. He's a nice guy. Who knows, by now, he may even have gotten a dog, to alleviate his loneliness the american way. Let's just hope that when he gets the munchies, he has a convenience store or taco bell nearby, or maybe a fast food chinese drive thru...
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless rceconciler.Thanks!
He once said "This (america) is the loneliest country in the world..You americans care more about your dogs and cats than you do each other." He also remarked: "In america you take your dog for a walk. In china, we put dog in the wok!" Never underestimate oriental wit.
My only response was "you got that right." And of course, he did. We americans care much more about our pets than we do our neighbors, and surveys indicate that about ten per cent of all people claim that they prefer dogs to other people.
My chinese friend eventually moved from our small town to Chicago, because he wanted to be around more people, but he was disappointed; even Chicago seemed like a small, and lonely town to him. I haven't heard form him in years. By now perhaps he has learned how to be lonely and happy, like the rest of us americans.
Things are changing in China. More and more chinese are actually getting dogs as pets, and treating them like a member of the family, in good american fashion. Increasing urbanization, increasing per capita wealth, and changing cultural values are possibly responsible for this.
There is a growing community of "dog's rights" activists in China, groups of people who assemble for the purpose of liberating dogs from the oven. Trucks filled with dogs in small cramped cages are stopped on the road, and gangs of dog lovers either forcibly liberate the animals, or buy them in order to save them and give them out as pets.
Within the near future dogmeat may be a thing of the past in china. Meanwhile, I hope my friend from Shanghai is doing Ok in Chicago. He's a nice guy. Who knows, by now, he may even have gotten a dog, to alleviate his loneliness the american way. Let's just hope that when he gets the munchies, he has a convenience store or taco bell nearby, or maybe a fast food chinese drive thru...
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless rceconciler.Thanks!
The National Security State
When we realize that the United States of America is simultaneously a democracy, a republic, an empire, and a national security police state, we turn to the question: what is the national security state?
It began as the National Security Act of 1947, which created the National Security Council, which in January 1950 produced a blue print for a new kind of country. Thus, 1950 can be considered the beginning of the american national security state we have today.
It is entirely different from anything that went before. Always before, the U.S. armed itself when war beckoned, and disarmed during peace time, and invested its resources in internal improvements, building roads, and so forth. (Now, our roads crumble, but we remain militarily strong.)
The actual national security document, declassified in 1975, known as NSC-68, commmitted the U.S., and still commits us, essentially, to the following program.
First, never negotiate in good faith with the Soviet Union, and blame the cold war on the Soviets. This could not last forever, but it served its purpose well; it convinced the american people that danger was at the door. By the time the Soviet empire crumbled and Russia was exposed as the third world country it has always been, the national security apparatus was firmly in place, untouchable.
Second, build up an immense nuclear and hydrogen bomb arsonal, and a huge permanently standing conventional armed force. Third, tax the american workers to pay for it, while mobilizing the attitude of the american people to support the new permanent military industrial complex, wherein the corporations get the huge military procurement contracts then pay for the election of political leaders who support and further the security state.
The tragedy is that the United States was the wealthiest nation on earth for at least a decade following world war two. Military spending, which has dominated our policy ever since WWII, has resulted in a nation which can no longer afford to repair its crumbling infrastructure, or meet our educational and health care needs, and is barely in the top twenty in per capita prosperity among the nations of the world.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler.Thanks!
It began as the National Security Act of 1947, which created the National Security Council, which in January 1950 produced a blue print for a new kind of country. Thus, 1950 can be considered the beginning of the american national security state we have today.
It is entirely different from anything that went before. Always before, the U.S. armed itself when war beckoned, and disarmed during peace time, and invested its resources in internal improvements, building roads, and so forth. (Now, our roads crumble, but we remain militarily strong.)
The actual national security document, declassified in 1975, known as NSC-68, commmitted the U.S., and still commits us, essentially, to the following program.
First, never negotiate in good faith with the Soviet Union, and blame the cold war on the Soviets. This could not last forever, but it served its purpose well; it convinced the american people that danger was at the door. By the time the Soviet empire crumbled and Russia was exposed as the third world country it has always been, the national security apparatus was firmly in place, untouchable.
Second, build up an immense nuclear and hydrogen bomb arsonal, and a huge permanently standing conventional armed force. Third, tax the american workers to pay for it, while mobilizing the attitude of the american people to support the new permanent military industrial complex, wherein the corporations get the huge military procurement contracts then pay for the election of political leaders who support and further the security state.
The tragedy is that the United States was the wealthiest nation on earth for at least a decade following world war two. Military spending, which has dominated our policy ever since WWII, has resulted in a nation which can no longer afford to repair its crumbling infrastructure, or meet our educational and health care needs, and is barely in the top twenty in per capita prosperity among the nations of the world.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler.Thanks!
National Security
We are accustomed to describing the american political system as a "democracy", but when we dig a little deeper we conclude that it is in fact a representative democracy, a "republic".
Keep digging, and we see the vast amount of influence, military, political , and economic, that the United States exerts globally, and we amend our description further, and begin to use the term "empire."
Keep digging. When you get to the bottom, you might be shocked. What you discover is that the U.S.A. is a national security military/police state, permanently preparing for war or waging war, gradually curtailing the civil liberties of its citizens in the name of "national security".
My favortie president, Harry Truman, can be arguably viewed as somewhat of a monster, it pains me to say, the creator of our national security state. First, he dropped two entirely needless atomic bombs on Japan, then, in 1947, signed into law the "National Security Act", which placed the american military and economy on a permanent wartime status.
Semper fi, indeed. Repulbican senator Arthur Vendenberg of Michigan said to Truman "If you're going to spend all this money on the military, you had better scare the hell out of the American people". Which is exactly what he proceded to do, with endless declarations about the atheistic communist Russians waiting at our borders.
Welcome to the american national security state, where we put people like Martha Stewart in prison, along with people who use the wrong drugs, or have the wrong sexual activities.Our wars of aggression will stop only when the american people have been bled to bloodless turnipdom, and the one percent is sated with power and wealth, in a hollow shell of a dying country.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of TheTruthless Reconciler.Thanks!
Keep digging, and we see the vast amount of influence, military, political , and economic, that the United States exerts globally, and we amend our description further, and begin to use the term "empire."
Keep digging. When you get to the bottom, you might be shocked. What you discover is that the U.S.A. is a national security military/police state, permanently preparing for war or waging war, gradually curtailing the civil liberties of its citizens in the name of "national security".
My favortie president, Harry Truman, can be arguably viewed as somewhat of a monster, it pains me to say, the creator of our national security state. First, he dropped two entirely needless atomic bombs on Japan, then, in 1947, signed into law the "National Security Act", which placed the american military and economy on a permanent wartime status.
Semper fi, indeed. Repulbican senator Arthur Vendenberg of Michigan said to Truman "If you're going to spend all this money on the military, you had better scare the hell out of the American people". Which is exactly what he proceded to do, with endless declarations about the atheistic communist Russians waiting at our borders.
Welcome to the american national security state, where we put people like Martha Stewart in prison, along with people who use the wrong drugs, or have the wrong sexual activities.Our wars of aggression will stop only when the american people have been bled to bloodless turnipdom, and the one percent is sated with power and wealth, in a hollow shell of a dying country.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of TheTruthless Reconciler.Thanks!
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Conservatism Speaks!
The Truthless Reconciler claims to be open minded, but why is everything liberal? Why does the TR talk about the 99%, but not the 1%? The top one percent, the filthy rich people, are not all bad. Consider Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, whom you claim to admire. Tax the wealthy, punish success, discourage people from trying to be successful.
Greed is good. We need to cultivate a society in which people compete like wild animals for everything, including jobs, money, water, food - everything. It makes people tougher, stronger, better.
Conservatism, rather then liberalism, is the answer, the way to go. Tradition is the best guide, and, yes, we should maintain the same religion that we have had for two thousand years, it makes more sense than ever.
Capitalism and Christianity go perfectly well together. Jesus did not say government should confiscate people's wealth and give it to people who are failures, because the "producers", the "achievers", know best how to reinvest their wealth in the community; the government does not know best.
Socialism is for weenie dogs, and people who want to confiscate other people's money, and redistribute it to the poor. Let the poor go get jobs!
Thank you, Truthless Reconciler, for allowing this brief appearance of conservatism in The Truthless Reconciler, and we conservatives hope there will be more opportunity for us to express our conservative point of view in the TR in the future. Thanks!
by Billy "pruning" Shears, guest writer.
Editor's Note: The Truthless Reconciler is indeed dedicated to openmindedness, and constantly tries to get conservatives to write. Perhaps we will now enjoy more success in this attempt.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
Greed is good. We need to cultivate a society in which people compete like wild animals for everything, including jobs, money, water, food - everything. It makes people tougher, stronger, better.
Conservatism, rather then liberalism, is the answer, the way to go. Tradition is the best guide, and, yes, we should maintain the same religion that we have had for two thousand years, it makes more sense than ever.
Capitalism and Christianity go perfectly well together. Jesus did not say government should confiscate people's wealth and give it to people who are failures, because the "producers", the "achievers", know best how to reinvest their wealth in the community; the government does not know best.
Socialism is for weenie dogs, and people who want to confiscate other people's money, and redistribute it to the poor. Let the poor go get jobs!
Thank you, Truthless Reconciler, for allowing this brief appearance of conservatism in The Truthless Reconciler, and we conservatives hope there will be more opportunity for us to express our conservative point of view in the TR in the future. Thanks!
by Billy "pruning" Shears, guest writer.
Editor's Note: The Truthless Reconciler is indeed dedicated to openmindedness, and constantly tries to get conservatives to write. Perhaps we will now enjoy more success in this attempt.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
Corruption
Once again congress is "considering" eliminating the huge tax breaks the big oil companies get, and once again it is destined not to happen. Big "oil" companies are really big "fuel" companies, but, we choose to call them "oil" companies. So be it. By any name, a rose....
Companies like Chevron, Exxon-Mobile, and Conoco-Philips receive huge tax breaks because they give large amounts of money to the politicians who vote for them - it could be called "bribery"...
The five biggest U.S. fuel companies combined make upwards of two hundred billion in profit each year, and they pay billions less in federal taxes than other companies of somilar size do, and indeed, overall, including subsidies and corporate writes offs, many of the largest compenies in america, like General Electric, end up payning virtually no taxes.
...the republicans, who must be receiving more campaign contribution/bribery money from the fuel companies, are particularly adamant about not ending the tax break bribery pay off.
Their reasons are phony, of course. They use cliches like "don't punish successful businesses, reward them". And, "without these corporate tax subsidies gas prices will go up dramatically", which most economists say is false.
American politicians tend to be in the pockets of the one percent, and situations such as this will only fuel the fires of the Occupy Wall Street movement, which has not gone away, but merely hibernated for the winter.
Davy Crockett said "it is my belief that congress ought to at least occasionally legislate for the poor." "Occasionally " might be the best we can hope for, since the poor don't, can't bribe and buy elected politicians.
Thomas Jefferson said : "If the people become inattentive to the affairs of government, the legislators and magistrates will divide society into two classes: wolves, and sheep."
We the people became innatentitve decades ago. And thus divided we are, into wolves and sheep. This fact is not an advocation of class warfare, but rather, a description of it.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler!Thanks!
Companies like Chevron, Exxon-Mobile, and Conoco-Philips receive huge tax breaks because they give large amounts of money to the politicians who vote for them - it could be called "bribery"...
The five biggest U.S. fuel companies combined make upwards of two hundred billion in profit each year, and they pay billions less in federal taxes than other companies of somilar size do, and indeed, overall, including subsidies and corporate writes offs, many of the largest compenies in america, like General Electric, end up payning virtually no taxes.
...the republicans, who must be receiving more campaign contribution/bribery money from the fuel companies, are particularly adamant about not ending the tax break bribery pay off.
Their reasons are phony, of course. They use cliches like "don't punish successful businesses, reward them". And, "without these corporate tax subsidies gas prices will go up dramatically", which most economists say is false.
American politicians tend to be in the pockets of the one percent, and situations such as this will only fuel the fires of the Occupy Wall Street movement, which has not gone away, but merely hibernated for the winter.
Davy Crockett said "it is my belief that congress ought to at least occasionally legislate for the poor." "Occasionally " might be the best we can hope for, since the poor don't, can't bribe and buy elected politicians.
Thomas Jefferson said : "If the people become inattentive to the affairs of government, the legislators and magistrates will divide society into two classes: wolves, and sheep."
We the people became innatentitve decades ago. And thus divided we are, into wolves and sheep. This fact is not an advocation of class warfare, but rather, a description of it.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler!Thanks!
Matter of Opinion
Obviously, whether a law is constitutional in america is strictly a matter of opinion, in most cases. Supreme Court decisions are more often five four than nine zero. And so it is with this Obama care issue, which, it begins to appear, is, in the opinion of at least four or five justices, un.
Which really ought not vex supporters of socialized health care. Because there will be socialized health care in america, sooner or later, its just a matter of when. There is indeed a reason why the europeans have it; namely, there would now be rioting in the streets of every major european city without it.
Free market health care, like free market economics, tends to benefit the few, while keeping the many in somewhat less favorable and more precarious economic circumstances. We don't all have to be equal economically, but we do need to be equal in terms of access to quality health care.
Both capitalism and socialism work, when society makes them work. Neither is anywhere near perfect, and they work best when working together, as they do, to a degree, in america. Truly, there is no logic in condemning either as inherently evil, or elevating either to the status of a religion..
Fundamentally, socialism is cooperation, and capitalism is competition. All forms of life are pretty much always doing one, or the other, or both, usually both.
We can all agree that competition and cooperation both work well, under the proper circumstances. What are the proper circumstances? Let the great debate proceed!
Please scroll down for the other atticles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler!Thanks!
Which really ought not vex supporters of socialized health care. Because there will be socialized health care in america, sooner or later, its just a matter of when. There is indeed a reason why the europeans have it; namely, there would now be rioting in the streets of every major european city without it.
Free market health care, like free market economics, tends to benefit the few, while keeping the many in somewhat less favorable and more precarious economic circumstances. We don't all have to be equal economically, but we do need to be equal in terms of access to quality health care.
Both capitalism and socialism work, when society makes them work. Neither is anywhere near perfect, and they work best when working together, as they do, to a degree, in america. Truly, there is no logic in condemning either as inherently evil, or elevating either to the status of a religion..
Fundamentally, socialism is cooperation, and capitalism is competition. All forms of life are pretty much always doing one, or the other, or both, usually both.
We can all agree that competition and cooperation both work well, under the proper circumstances. What are the proper circumstances? Let the great debate proceed!
Please scroll down for the other atticles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler!Thanks!
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
What to Make, What to Buy
In 1950 Albert Einstein, referring to America, said "the men who possess real power in this country have no intention of ending the cold war." Einstein had come to america in 1933, fleeing Hitler, and by 1950, having lived in america nearly two decades, and being a smart guy, had things pretty well figured out.
As early as 1950 it is unlikely that even Gore Vidal understood fully that the cold war was an invention of the american corporate cartel. Few, if any, did. Some, including Vidal, argue that every war the U.S. has fought since world war two, from Korea to Iraq, has been an exercise in american corporate-based imperialism, to make the world safe for american market expansion.
This is debatable. One must remember that in many of these wars, including Korea and Iraq, the U.S. was part of a United Nations coalition (led by the U.S.). There is no arguing, however, that all these wars have cost a great deal of money, with people paying for the huge amount of materiele rewuired to fight wars.
Who pays, and who receives payment? Working americans pay for it all, and large corporations are paid to produce all that is needed for war, using workers to do so. Corporate ownership seems to be the place to be. American politicians are in turn elected by corporate money, who then form foreign policy, such as the cold war, which benefits the people who pay to elect the politicians.
How or if any of this benefits the mass of american workers is subject to speculation. One could ask if the workers would have been better off had they been manufacturing not tanks, bombs, warplanes, and warships, but items they would want to have in their homes.
A great arrangement for the corporate owners, if not the workers.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
As early as 1950 it is unlikely that even Gore Vidal understood fully that the cold war was an invention of the american corporate cartel. Few, if any, did. Some, including Vidal, argue that every war the U.S. has fought since world war two, from Korea to Iraq, has been an exercise in american corporate-based imperialism, to make the world safe for american market expansion.
This is debatable. One must remember that in many of these wars, including Korea and Iraq, the U.S. was part of a United Nations coalition (led by the U.S.). There is no arguing, however, that all these wars have cost a great deal of money, with people paying for the huge amount of materiele rewuired to fight wars.
Who pays, and who receives payment? Working americans pay for it all, and large corporations are paid to produce all that is needed for war, using workers to do so. Corporate ownership seems to be the place to be. American politicians are in turn elected by corporate money, who then form foreign policy, such as the cold war, which benefits the people who pay to elect the politicians.
How or if any of this benefits the mass of american workers is subject to speculation. One could ask if the workers would have been better off had they been manufacturing not tanks, bombs, warplanes, and warships, but items they would want to have in their homes.
A great arrangement for the corporate owners, if not the workers.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
Monday, March 26, 2012
Offers and Scams
I tend to regard everything I see on the internet as a scam. I'm not sure why. Maybe its because I've been warned many times that this is indeed the case, maybe its because every day my email box fills up with what appear to me to be scams.
The variety is amazing, but tends to fall into three main categories: job offers, money offers, and sex offers. The job offers always involve working from home on your computer, and the ad seems very personal and friendly, upbeat and exciting, but it turns out to be nothing but a promotion for a job which they never seem to get to.
Don't these job offers end up with them asking you to send money to purchase some kind of program? Just what ARE all these work from home on computer jobs? Can anyone tell me???
The money offers usually say something like "You may be eligible for $500!" Or:... "click here to receive $1500!"..I always just delete those emails, as well as the job offers that never say what the job is.
The most interesting category of online scams is the sex scam. The pattern is this: email arrives from a beautiful young lady who writes with broken english, lives in another country, s has no kids, has never been married, and is looking for a serious long term relationship, has seen your profile, and honestly believes you are the man for her, and if interested please email her at such and such email address.
These come all the time, as do samples of the other two categories. The girls are the only ones to whom I respond, but, infrequently I swear.. I guess I want sex more than i want free money or a job (though I want both, greatly).
Am I correct in assuming that all of these emails are scams? Oh my god, what if they're not, and I am throwing away huge money making online job opportunities, thousands of dollars of free money, and girls galore! With my luck, that's exactly what's happening.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler!Thanks!
The variety is amazing, but tends to fall into three main categories: job offers, money offers, and sex offers. The job offers always involve working from home on your computer, and the ad seems very personal and friendly, upbeat and exciting, but it turns out to be nothing but a promotion for a job which they never seem to get to.
Don't these job offers end up with them asking you to send money to purchase some kind of program? Just what ARE all these work from home on computer jobs? Can anyone tell me???
The money offers usually say something like "You may be eligible for $500!" Or:... "click here to receive $1500!"..I always just delete those emails, as well as the job offers that never say what the job is.
The most interesting category of online scams is the sex scam. The pattern is this: email arrives from a beautiful young lady who writes with broken english, lives in another country, s has no kids, has never been married, and is looking for a serious long term relationship, has seen your profile, and honestly believes you are the man for her, and if interested please email her at such and such email address.
These come all the time, as do samples of the other two categories. The girls are the only ones to whom I respond, but, infrequently I swear.. I guess I want sex more than i want free money or a job (though I want both, greatly).
Am I correct in assuming that all of these emails are scams? Oh my god, what if they're not, and I am throwing away huge money making online job opportunities, thousands of dollars of free money, and girls galore! With my luck, that's exactly what's happening.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler!Thanks!
Wonders and Scandals
The AOL front page, among the jungle of celebrities and scandals, had a top ten list "best planets outside the solar system for colonization".
Normally these top ten lists hold no interest for me; who cares about the top ten cities for vacations or the top ten most beautiful celebrities? Really, anybody? But who could resist this one? The top ten planets for possible colonization, ranked in order of suitability for human habitation?
That's too far out to ignore. And sure enough, there they were, all ten of them, with info about distance from earth, revolutionary period around their star, and surface temperature range. That's about it. It didn't list size of planet, or chemical make up of atmosphere., unfortunately.
Presumably all ten planets are roughly the size of earth; planets too large, due to their gravity, wouldn't any more be suited to human colonization than a woman too large is considered a candidate for beauty pageantry. Of course, gravity is objective, beauty, subjective.
And I assume the actual physical appearance of these far away planets is still unknown to us - for now. But how amazing, that with our new telescopes we are now not only spotting new planets all over the galaxy, but planets which are somewhat like the earth!
And its only just beginning. Over the next few years bigger and better telescopes will find more and more planets, we will find out more about these planets; and heaven only knows what wondrous discoveries lay beyond.
Hell, we might eventually even be able to observe advanced aliens walking around on their own world, while they (the aliens) and our government deny their presence on earth!
This is already the most exciting thing the human race has ever done, no argument, and it will only get more exciting. WE'll just have to hope that the American media, and the internet, can see their way to telling us about it as it continues to happen, mixed in with the celebrities, the glamour, and the sensational scandals.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler!Thanks!
Normally these top ten lists hold no interest for me; who cares about the top ten cities for vacations or the top ten most beautiful celebrities? Really, anybody? But who could resist this one? The top ten planets for possible colonization, ranked in order of suitability for human habitation?
That's too far out to ignore. And sure enough, there they were, all ten of them, with info about distance from earth, revolutionary period around their star, and surface temperature range. That's about it. It didn't list size of planet, or chemical make up of atmosphere., unfortunately.
Presumably all ten planets are roughly the size of earth; planets too large, due to their gravity, wouldn't any more be suited to human colonization than a woman too large is considered a candidate for beauty pageantry. Of course, gravity is objective, beauty, subjective.
And I assume the actual physical appearance of these far away planets is still unknown to us - for now. But how amazing, that with our new telescopes we are now not only spotting new planets all over the galaxy, but planets which are somewhat like the earth!
And its only just beginning. Over the next few years bigger and better telescopes will find more and more planets, we will find out more about these planets; and heaven only knows what wondrous discoveries lay beyond.
Hell, we might eventually even be able to observe advanced aliens walking around on their own world, while they (the aliens) and our government deny their presence on earth!
This is already the most exciting thing the human race has ever done, no argument, and it will only get more exciting. WE'll just have to hope that the American media, and the internet, can see their way to telling us about it as it continues to happen, mixed in with the celebrities, the glamour, and the sensational scandals.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler!Thanks!
Missile Coercion
The latest in the ongoing North Korean saga is that they plan to test fire a long range missile, and the United States, the Chinese, and the Russians don't want them to. This brings to mind all kinds of questions.
Is it really going to possible to prevent any nation from firing test missiles if it is determined to do so? Obviously, over the years, many nations have already done so, numerous times. Among those nations are, of course, China, the United States, and Russia.
Is it a good idea, good for global peace and security, for some nations to have long range missile capability, and for others to not? Or, would the world be better off if nobody had such missiles, or would it be better off if everyone did?
If you were a North Korean political leader, wouldn't you be tempted to agree to refrain from all further missile activity, if the United States, China, Russia, and all other countries likewise agree?
President Obama, speaking in South Korea, assured the North Koreans that the United States has no ill intent towards them, as indicated by american food being sent to north korean mothers and babies. When one has thousands of nuclear bombs and missiles, one can sound prefectly magnanimous, while demanding that one's foe remain weaker than one.
The countries which created the modern nuclear bomb and missile mess are the very countries which now so persistently attempt to control the bomb and missile programs of other countries, determining which nations may and may not join the club. How human. The club members tend to omit mention of their own future plans, as if, by having had bomb and missile capability for a long time, they are somehow exempt from elimination consideration, because...why?
Because they, particulalry the United States, have "earned" the right to maintain such weapons due to their proven track record of wise weaponry stewardship, or because they by their very possesson of said weapons, have the power to dictate terms to those who don't?
How comforting to know that our world leaders can so deftly blur the distinction between geo-political wisdom, and coercion.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
Is it really going to possible to prevent any nation from firing test missiles if it is determined to do so? Obviously, over the years, many nations have already done so, numerous times. Among those nations are, of course, China, the United States, and Russia.
Is it a good idea, good for global peace and security, for some nations to have long range missile capability, and for others to not? Or, would the world be better off if nobody had such missiles, or would it be better off if everyone did?
If you were a North Korean political leader, wouldn't you be tempted to agree to refrain from all further missile activity, if the United States, China, Russia, and all other countries likewise agree?
President Obama, speaking in South Korea, assured the North Koreans that the United States has no ill intent towards them, as indicated by american food being sent to north korean mothers and babies. When one has thousands of nuclear bombs and missiles, one can sound prefectly magnanimous, while demanding that one's foe remain weaker than one.
The countries which created the modern nuclear bomb and missile mess are the very countries which now so persistently attempt to control the bomb and missile programs of other countries, determining which nations may and may not join the club. How human. The club members tend to omit mention of their own future plans, as if, by having had bomb and missile capability for a long time, they are somehow exempt from elimination consideration, because...why?
Because they, particulalry the United States, have "earned" the right to maintain such weapons due to their proven track record of wise weaponry stewardship, or because they by their very possesson of said weapons, have the power to dictate terms to those who don't?
How comforting to know that our world leaders can so deftly blur the distinction between geo-political wisdom, and coercion.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
Sunday, March 25, 2012
The Price of Murder
Perhaps the american soldier who killed 16 Afghan civilians should never have been in that country.He had seen three tours of duty in Iraq, had been wounded, and evidently did not want to go to Afghanistan.
After what he went through what he did in Iraq, he probably should have been sent to wherever he wanted to go, which might have been home. The United States is paying $50,000.00 to each family for each person killed, which can and must be seen as a nice geture on the part of the americans.
In american law, wrongful death seems to result frequently in cash payments, notwhithstanding widespread belief in the concept that human life is priceless. WE must not make the mistake of thinking that there is any funadmemtal difference between these sixteen murders, and all the rest of the murders which have taken place in Afghanistan in recent years.
Every death in war is a murder. The death of a volunteer prosfessional soldier at the hands of another volunteer professional soldier is, flatly, murder. We humans murdered over one hundred million of each other during the last century, despite the teachings of Christ, and other teachers of wisdom.
May we as a global culture some day find all murders in all wars to be as disgusting and reprehensible as that of the sixteen civilians in Afghanistan.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
After what he went through what he did in Iraq, he probably should have been sent to wherever he wanted to go, which might have been home. The United States is paying $50,000.00 to each family for each person killed, which can and must be seen as a nice geture on the part of the americans.
In american law, wrongful death seems to result frequently in cash payments, notwhithstanding widespread belief in the concept that human life is priceless. WE must not make the mistake of thinking that there is any funadmemtal difference between these sixteen murders, and all the rest of the murders which have taken place in Afghanistan in recent years.
Every death in war is a murder. The death of a volunteer prosfessional soldier at the hands of another volunteer professional soldier is, flatly, murder. We humans murdered over one hundred million of each other during the last century, despite the teachings of Christ, and other teachers of wisdom.
May we as a global culture some day find all murders in all wars to be as disgusting and reprehensible as that of the sixteen civilians in Afghanistan.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
Saturday, March 24, 2012
Cultural Conquest
President Andrew Jackson did not like indians. Like most European-americans of his day, he regarded them as heathen, unchristian savages, He wanted to appear noble, magnanimous, and generous, so he adopted a paternalistic, condescending attitue towards native americans, pretending to think of them as childlike barbarians, fundamentally good, but needing guidance.
For their part, the indians were generally terrified of Old Hickory, and nicknamed him "sharp knife", in deference to Jackson's brutality in battle. For many years the Cherokees in Oklahoma refused to accept twenty dollar bills, because of Jackson's image on them.
The underlying truth is, of course, that Andrew Jackson hated Indians. And why not? During his life, everybody in the United States, basically, hated indians, particularly on the western frontier, where pioneers feared the indians, and their local military superiority.
Jackson was one of these people, an indian fearing/hating pioneer. And that's exactly what Davy Crockett should have been; and indian fearing/hating pioneer. But Davy went a little bit deeper, thought about it a little bit, which Davy Crockett, despite his lack of formal education, was prone to do. Look deeper, think deeper.
After fighting the Indians, under General Jackson, Davy ended up admiring them, and understanding that they were human beings. And in this, during his time, he was practically alone. Many Northeasterners, Bostonians, New Yorkers, and such, also supported the indian cause, but, of course, it was easy to do that in New York or Boston.
Not so easy in the wilds of 1820 Tennessee. Because of Andrew Jackson, the indians were herded across the mississippi into oklahoma reservations, and america in its present from became possible.
But what if america had done what crockett wanted; to honor treaties promising indian ownership of georgia, and other places, forever? what if amierica had honored treaties with the indians, instead of indian giving?
eventually, probably the same thing that happened anyway, only a bit more slowly; a gradual europeanization of american culture, and a gradual absorption of native culture into european, with a fair amount of residual, token, native culture, like we have today in the U.S.
One way or aonther, there was never any question the Europeans were going to conquer and domindate the western hemisphere. Just seems like they coulda done it a little nicer.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler!Thanks!
For their part, the indians were generally terrified of Old Hickory, and nicknamed him "sharp knife", in deference to Jackson's brutality in battle. For many years the Cherokees in Oklahoma refused to accept twenty dollar bills, because of Jackson's image on them.
The underlying truth is, of course, that Andrew Jackson hated Indians. And why not? During his life, everybody in the United States, basically, hated indians, particularly on the western frontier, where pioneers feared the indians, and their local military superiority.
Jackson was one of these people, an indian fearing/hating pioneer. And that's exactly what Davy Crockett should have been; and indian fearing/hating pioneer. But Davy went a little bit deeper, thought about it a little bit, which Davy Crockett, despite his lack of formal education, was prone to do. Look deeper, think deeper.
After fighting the Indians, under General Jackson, Davy ended up admiring them, and understanding that they were human beings. And in this, during his time, he was practically alone. Many Northeasterners, Bostonians, New Yorkers, and such, also supported the indian cause, but, of course, it was easy to do that in New York or Boston.
Not so easy in the wilds of 1820 Tennessee. Because of Andrew Jackson, the indians were herded across the mississippi into oklahoma reservations, and america in its present from became possible.
But what if america had done what crockett wanted; to honor treaties promising indian ownership of georgia, and other places, forever? what if amierica had honored treaties with the indians, instead of indian giving?
eventually, probably the same thing that happened anyway, only a bit more slowly; a gradual europeanization of american culture, and a gradual absorption of native culture into european, with a fair amount of residual, token, native culture, like we have today in the U.S.
One way or aonther, there was never any question the Europeans were going to conquer and domindate the western hemisphere. Just seems like they coulda done it a little nicer.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler!Thanks!
Friday, March 23, 2012
Survival
As you approach senior citizenship, things change. All the experiences and memories and thoughts pile up over the years, making us what we are, and what we later become. You start to think about what will happen after you are gone. I seem to have a sort of bias in favor of human existence continuing beyong this, my lifetime.
That is, it becomes increasingly important to me to believe that, after my demise in this form, humanity, in this plane of existence, will not only continue, but continue somewhat happily. By "happily", I mean a world relatively free from material want, despair, etc.
I was born in 1955. What will happen in 2055? If I aint around to find out, I want to believe that whatever happens will be progress for homo sapiens. Ultimate ethnocentricity. I,a human being, loyal to the human species, in a universe filled with billions of species. And trust me, the universe, this galaxy, is filled with an incredible variety of life forms.
We baby bomers are aging and fading fast. So be it. We've had our shot. I want to believe that after I am dead humanity will conquer hunger, poverty, war, violence, disease....(you know the list as well as I.)...
...and create and build a perpetually evolving but sufficiently stable human culture to endure for millions, yes millions..of years. For that's how long it takes to be a successful species in this galaxy, let alone this universe.
Colonizing the moon and Mars, and developing interstallar flight is essential for long term human survival, and quite possible. But first, we must somehow make it to the year 2013...
That is, it becomes increasingly important to me to believe that, after my demise in this form, humanity, in this plane of existence, will not only continue, but continue somewhat happily. By "happily", I mean a world relatively free from material want, despair, etc.
I was born in 1955. What will happen in 2055? If I aint around to find out, I want to believe that whatever happens will be progress for homo sapiens. Ultimate ethnocentricity. I,a human being, loyal to the human species, in a universe filled with billions of species. And trust me, the universe, this galaxy, is filled with an incredible variety of life forms.
We baby bomers are aging and fading fast. So be it. We've had our shot. I want to believe that after I am dead humanity will conquer hunger, poverty, war, violence, disease....(you know the list as well as I.)...
...and create and build a perpetually evolving but sufficiently stable human culture to endure for millions, yes millions..of years. For that's how long it takes to be a successful species in this galaxy, let alone this universe.
Colonizing the moon and Mars, and developing interstallar flight is essential for long term human survival, and quite possible. But first, we must somehow make it to the year 2013...
Atheist Alert!
The atheists are coming! The atheists are coming! But no need to bolt your doors and lock your kids in the closet, for verily, rumors of atheist immorality are greatly...fabricated.
The event in Washington D.C. is being touted as a woodstock for atheists, and what a healthy event , at least in theory, it is. This is the most overlooked group against which intolerance has been systematically directed.
It may be that the United States is the most strongly christian country in the world, notwithstanding the fact that adherants of thousands of religions live in america. Throughout Europe and the world in general membership in the christian church is dwindling; the catholic pedophile-priesthood controversy cannot be helping membership in latin america.
There are strong signs that christianity is disappearing, though it may never disappear entirely. Over the several thousand year history of humanity, many religions have evolved into being , evolved and grown for thousands of years, and then slowly evolved out of existence. This seems to be the normal pattern. Religions, like whole civilizations, seem to be mortal.
Atheism, meanwhile, is on the rise, perhaps nurtured by the overwhelimng technological world in which we live, which is predicated on science, of course, rather than religion.Perhaps we are entering the "age of reason", or perhaps it started in the eigtheenth century, and is ongoing and growing..
Religiosity seems to be a fundamental human need. It is possible that humanity will become so well educated scientifically that religiosity will no longer be a fundamental need, or that science itself will become the new religion, serving this unremovable need?
For right now christianity and islam remain powerful forces in the world, and they are both more hostile to atheists than they are to homosexuals, and that's goin' some. This is the reason for the atheist rally in DC: to damand equality and respect.
Perhaps some forms of religiosity are better than others. If anything, there is a good deal of evidence that atheists are superior, intellectually, attitudinally, behavorially. Atheists tend not to condemn others who differ from themselves, tend to be more tolerant, which arguably is a superior behavioral trait. Let's just call everybody of all faiths equal, and split the difference.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler!Thanks!
The event in Washington D.C. is being touted as a woodstock for atheists, and what a healthy event , at least in theory, it is. This is the most overlooked group against which intolerance has been systematically directed.
It may be that the United States is the most strongly christian country in the world, notwithstanding the fact that adherants of thousands of religions live in america. Throughout Europe and the world in general membership in the christian church is dwindling; the catholic pedophile-priesthood controversy cannot be helping membership in latin america.
There are strong signs that christianity is disappearing, though it may never disappear entirely. Over the several thousand year history of humanity, many religions have evolved into being , evolved and grown for thousands of years, and then slowly evolved out of existence. This seems to be the normal pattern. Religions, like whole civilizations, seem to be mortal.
Atheism, meanwhile, is on the rise, perhaps nurtured by the overwhelimng technological world in which we live, which is predicated on science, of course, rather than religion.Perhaps we are entering the "age of reason", or perhaps it started in the eigtheenth century, and is ongoing and growing..
Religiosity seems to be a fundamental human need. It is possible that humanity will become so well educated scientifically that religiosity will no longer be a fundamental need, or that science itself will become the new religion, serving this unremovable need?
For right now christianity and islam remain powerful forces in the world, and they are both more hostile to atheists than they are to homosexuals, and that's goin' some. This is the reason for the atheist rally in DC: to damand equality and respect.
Perhaps some forms of religiosity are better than others. If anything, there is a good deal of evidence that atheists are superior, intellectually, attitudinally, behavorially. Atheists tend not to condemn others who differ from themselves, tend to be more tolerant, which arguably is a superior behavioral trait. Let's just call everybody of all faiths equal, and split the difference.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler!Thanks!
Thursday, March 22, 2012
Sexual Mores
Social mores, sexual mores. Every person has opinions about sex, and so does every country, every society, every culture. Contemporary american sexual mores seem to be in a perpetual state of contradiction and turmoil.
Every century is different, of course. The nineteenth century, known as the "victorian" period, was a time of extremely conservative sexual values, attitudes, mores, in the western world. Sex was sinful. Sleek curvy piano legs were covered with cloth, as were female bodies, head to toe.
The eighteenth century had relatively promiscuous, and after the excesses of the French revolutionary period society seemed to recoil in horror to a more modest approach to life. A hundred years later world war one had the opposite effect. The great wart ended the Victorian age, along with Victorian prudishness.
The roaring twenties, with the liberation of women's right to look sexy, was a reaction to, a rebellion against, a nightmare.. during the Victorian era sexual mores seem to have been most influenced by the church.
Today, the church remains a strong influence, but enter another powerful player: corporate capitalism and mass marketing. It seems strange how sharply christian and capitalist values differ, and yet the large number of people who embrace both as gospel.
Today we are torn between two worlds, sexually, the christian, and the capitalist. They advocate opposite approaches to sex. The capitalist approach seems to be prevailing, but the jury is still out. Perhaps world war three will push the world away from sexual exploitation, and back to sexual suppression.
American culture is a confusing quagmire of latter day victorian values, and corporate sexual exploitation and promiscuity.
Perhaps, in another hundred years, people will be making love in public. The only certainty is that the situation will be far different, one way or another, than now.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
Every century is different, of course. The nineteenth century, known as the "victorian" period, was a time of extremely conservative sexual values, attitudes, mores, in the western world. Sex was sinful. Sleek curvy piano legs were covered with cloth, as were female bodies, head to toe.
The eighteenth century had relatively promiscuous, and after the excesses of the French revolutionary period society seemed to recoil in horror to a more modest approach to life. A hundred years later world war one had the opposite effect. The great wart ended the Victorian age, along with Victorian prudishness.
The roaring twenties, with the liberation of women's right to look sexy, was a reaction to, a rebellion against, a nightmare.. during the Victorian era sexual mores seem to have been most influenced by the church.
Today, the church remains a strong influence, but enter another powerful player: corporate capitalism and mass marketing. It seems strange how sharply christian and capitalist values differ, and yet the large number of people who embrace both as gospel.
Today we are torn between two worlds, sexually, the christian, and the capitalist. They advocate opposite approaches to sex. The capitalist approach seems to be prevailing, but the jury is still out. Perhaps world war three will push the world away from sexual exploitation, and back to sexual suppression.
American culture is a confusing quagmire of latter day victorian values, and corporate sexual exploitation and promiscuity.
Perhaps, in another hundred years, people will be making love in public. The only certainty is that the situation will be far different, one way or another, than now.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
Expansive Thinking
President Obama, probably at least partly in response to polls, is now talking big about drilling for oil, and building oil pipelines.
Bear in mind that Obama has always maintained a very environmentally protective, conservation minded, anti consumption attidude about energy and resources in general. And good for him.
However, he surely realizes that, for now, we must have oil, and since it will be dug up somewhere, it might as well be dug up here (in America). Again, good for him. So Obama wants to be be pro prosperity and pro environment, simultaneously.
And really, doesn't everybody? Limbaugh is all over Obama for trying to gain political support with his policies, as if there is something unusual about doing so. AS if we all don't curry favor among our fellows. Limbaugh thinks its hypocritcal for Obama to be so pro environment, and willing to use government regulations to protect the environment, while claiming to be in favor of economic growth and prosperity.
Limbaugh is a sympton of the illness which infects american culture; conflict and dispute and negativity, simply for the sake of conflict and dispute and negativity, simply to get attention, to stimulate hormones. You gotta give credit to Rush, though. At least he hasn't called the president a "slut". At least, not yet.
It would be just as easy for Rush to proclaim "good for Obama! He's finally coming around to the conservative viewpoint with regard to domestic oil production, while remaining committed to environmental health, like everybody else!"
But no, that wouldn't be as exciting or fun, to praise, instead of denigrate.
My liberals friends are just as bad. They hate Limbaugh because....
...partly because he is conservative, and just about every liberal I know, bless their hearts, has a negative attitude about conservatism, across the board. And, until recently, so did I. But now I have found a better way, and it includes tolerance, understanding,inclusiveness,openmindedness, and conciliation.
Neither liberalism nor conservatism is good, or bad.
If you are a liberal, listen to Limbaugh, or some other representative conservative. Then, steal whatever good ideals you hear, unabashedly. By so doing you will prevail, by drawing a circle around your ideological opponents. Regard them as contributors (to you), rather than opponents.
AS popular as Rush is, he could be much more popular, were he but more ideologically expansive, and generous.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
Bear in mind that Obama has always maintained a very environmentally protective, conservation minded, anti consumption attidude about energy and resources in general. And good for him.
However, he surely realizes that, for now, we must have oil, and since it will be dug up somewhere, it might as well be dug up here (in America). Again, good for him. So Obama wants to be be pro prosperity and pro environment, simultaneously.
And really, doesn't everybody? Limbaugh is all over Obama for trying to gain political support with his policies, as if there is something unusual about doing so. AS if we all don't curry favor among our fellows. Limbaugh thinks its hypocritcal for Obama to be so pro environment, and willing to use government regulations to protect the environment, while claiming to be in favor of economic growth and prosperity.
Limbaugh is a sympton of the illness which infects american culture; conflict and dispute and negativity, simply for the sake of conflict and dispute and negativity, simply to get attention, to stimulate hormones. You gotta give credit to Rush, though. At least he hasn't called the president a "slut". At least, not yet.
It would be just as easy for Rush to proclaim "good for Obama! He's finally coming around to the conservative viewpoint with regard to domestic oil production, while remaining committed to environmental health, like everybody else!"
But no, that wouldn't be as exciting or fun, to praise, instead of denigrate.
My liberals friends are just as bad. They hate Limbaugh because....
...partly because he is conservative, and just about every liberal I know, bless their hearts, has a negative attitude about conservatism, across the board. And, until recently, so did I. But now I have found a better way, and it includes tolerance, understanding,inclusiveness,openmindedness, and conciliation.
Neither liberalism nor conservatism is good, or bad.
If you are a liberal, listen to Limbaugh, or some other representative conservative. Then, steal whatever good ideals you hear, unabashedly. By so doing you will prevail, by drawing a circle around your ideological opponents. Regard them as contributors (to you), rather than opponents.
AS popular as Rush is, he could be much more popular, were he but more ideologically expansive, and generous.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
INformation
My creative writing professor told us almost forty years ago that there were one million writers in america wanting to be published, and that forty thousand new books every year were being published. That was in the mid nineteen seventies. Heaven only knows what the numbers are now. Now, of course, everybody who wants to be be published, IS published! All Hail to the Internet!
It may be that every human art form shall experience a glorious renaissance onna counta technology. We could fill the entire universe with human babies, just doing what we do best, combined with the mathematical law of exponential compounding. Could we do the same with books on micro chips? Let's try! Start writing your books, everyone.
Maybe a billion books on micro chip could be stored in a space the size of a paperback, but even so, we'll run out of room for books on this planet, which is one reason why the human species should expand its domain to other planets. The moon, as an orbiting library.
WE should perhaps bear in mind the possibility that the human species , in order to survive long term, must either expand, or stabilize, which can easily lead to stagnation.
Our organic bodies will be replaced by pure energy, eventually, after passing through the machine phase, so living space will not be a problem for us, but it will be a problem for our information. Perhaps "this" universe is nothing other than a huge amount of stored information.
The computers will enter our bodies at our invitation, then become our bodies. Oops, I just dropped the library of congress on the floor, somewhere...
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler. Thanks!
It may be that every human art form shall experience a glorious renaissance onna counta technology. We could fill the entire universe with human babies, just doing what we do best, combined with the mathematical law of exponential compounding. Could we do the same with books on micro chips? Let's try! Start writing your books, everyone.
Maybe a billion books on micro chip could be stored in a space the size of a paperback, but even so, we'll run out of room for books on this planet, which is one reason why the human species should expand its domain to other planets. The moon, as an orbiting library.
WE should perhaps bear in mind the possibility that the human species , in order to survive long term, must either expand, or stabilize, which can easily lead to stagnation.
Our organic bodies will be replaced by pure energy, eventually, after passing through the machine phase, so living space will not be a problem for us, but it will be a problem for our information. Perhaps "this" universe is nothing other than a huge amount of stored information.
The computers will enter our bodies at our invitation, then become our bodies. Oops, I just dropped the library of congress on the floor, somewhere...
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler. Thanks!
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Chameleon Accountability
Just when you think the republican presidential campaign can't possibly become any more entertaining or humorous, it does. During a TV interview one of Romney's top aides was asked if perhaps his candidate had become too conservative during the primaries to appeal to moderate undecided voters during the general election campaign against Obama.
He replied that there is no problem, since his candidate will simply press reset, reinvent himself anew for the campaign against Obama, like shaking an Etch A Sketch and then drawing a new picture.
Santorum and Gingrich are all over it, handing out Etch A Sketches to members of the media. (Everyone should have one; its a great toy.) Newt handed one to a child, and said now the child is qualified to run for president. Rick had helpers handing out mock Etch A Sketches at campaign events.
Newt and Rick are not going to let this Etch A Sketch scandal go. Trust me on this. They are going to rip into it, cling to it, bring it up, over and over again. It might be Mitt's worst gaff yet, out of a long and entertaining, and humorous series of verbal faux pas.
And who knows how many more there are to come? Hell, Mitt might just be getting started! One can scarcely imagine how potentially entertaining he might become in a debate with Obama...
I got my first Etch A Sketch sometime in the early to mid nineteen sixties, when I was a kid. I spent hours enjoying it. My mom gave me another one, as a kind of joke gift, just a few years ago. I enjoyed it for awhile, then gave it to a disabled child. Etch A Sketch is the greatest toy on the planet. If you've never had one, you need to get one.
So now the great secret is out. Political candidates, always pretending to be genuine, sincere, and honest, are in reality a pre planned packaged commodity. How surprising. As if we didn't already know, or sense.
The ironic thing is the fact that of course the Romney aide was simply telling the truth, about his candidate, about any candidate. They all do that; they present whatever image works during the primary campaign, then switch to a new image during the general presidential race. All of them do it.
Obama and Hillary Clinton fell all over themselves trying to be more liberal than each other during the 2008 democratic primary race. After Obama won the democratec nomination, and started running against McCain in the general election campaign, he moved steadily towards the middle, and has stayed there ever since...
Romney's aide made a big mistake in admitting it. In this world, if you tell the truth, you pay a high price. AS Goethe said "we resist the truth simply because we would perish if we accepted it."
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler.Thanks!
He replied that there is no problem, since his candidate will simply press reset, reinvent himself anew for the campaign against Obama, like shaking an Etch A Sketch and then drawing a new picture.
Santorum and Gingrich are all over it, handing out Etch A Sketches to members of the media. (Everyone should have one; its a great toy.) Newt handed one to a child, and said now the child is qualified to run for president. Rick had helpers handing out mock Etch A Sketches at campaign events.
Newt and Rick are not going to let this Etch A Sketch scandal go. Trust me on this. They are going to rip into it, cling to it, bring it up, over and over again. It might be Mitt's worst gaff yet, out of a long and entertaining, and humorous series of verbal faux pas.
And who knows how many more there are to come? Hell, Mitt might just be getting started! One can scarcely imagine how potentially entertaining he might become in a debate with Obama...
I got my first Etch A Sketch sometime in the early to mid nineteen sixties, when I was a kid. I spent hours enjoying it. My mom gave me another one, as a kind of joke gift, just a few years ago. I enjoyed it for awhile, then gave it to a disabled child. Etch A Sketch is the greatest toy on the planet. If you've never had one, you need to get one.
So now the great secret is out. Political candidates, always pretending to be genuine, sincere, and honest, are in reality a pre planned packaged commodity. How surprising. As if we didn't already know, or sense.
The ironic thing is the fact that of course the Romney aide was simply telling the truth, about his candidate, about any candidate. They all do that; they present whatever image works during the primary campaign, then switch to a new image during the general presidential race. All of them do it.
Obama and Hillary Clinton fell all over themselves trying to be more liberal than each other during the 2008 democratic primary race. After Obama won the democratec nomination, and started running against McCain in the general election campaign, he moved steadily towards the middle, and has stayed there ever since...
Romney's aide made a big mistake in admitting it. In this world, if you tell the truth, you pay a high price. AS Goethe said "we resist the truth simply because we would perish if we accepted it."
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler.Thanks!
Dream Jobs
What are all the politicians talking about? Jobs, among other things.
Today on Yahoo’s home page, there is a story about the 8 easiest jobs on the planet, including professional sleeper (testing hotel beds), chocolate taste tester, mansion sitter, and TV watcher. I am qualified for all these jobs, so why can’t I find one? Actually, I shouldn’t complain. One of my part time jobs is teaching tennis to kids. I love it so it doesn’t feel like work.
Confucius said, “Find a job you enjoy and you’ll never work a day in your life.”
Dream jobs do exist. So one day after a particularly bad day at work, I checked out the employment website at the college I attend part time, in hopes of finding a dream job on campus.
There were only a few positions posted, none of which I was qualified for, and most specifically, a part time position for nude models in the art department. Although the listing called for all body types, the only qualification I could actually perform is: “Must be able to…sit or recline without moving for at least 30 minutes at a time.” Please, no offense intended to the models or our fine art department. Being an artist is a dream job.
Then I checked my local newspaper want ads and among the small number of jobs listed, none met my definition of dream job. Certainly everyone’s definition of “dream job” is different.
The Wall Street Journal reported the best and worst jobs in the U.S.
On the flip side, there are multiple websites that list dream jobs. Some are one-of-a-kind jobs, like the man whose sense of smell was so good that he turned it into a lucrative career in the fragrance industry. The dream job lists at least provide inspiration.
The job market is actually improving. The recovery has been slow but it seems a lot of people were content to live on unemployment for the maximum time, rather than accept a job they didn’t want. The Yahoo article did mention that the easiest jobs are the hardest to find. I can’t compete with all the unemployed people with masters degrees fighting over minimum wage jobs right now anyway, so I will use this time while I’m still in college to apply for dream jobs such as restaurant critic, BMW test driver, travel writer, movie critic, or back-up singer for The Grateful Dead, and hope that my resume never finds its way to my college art department.
### annie
Our Revolutionary World
There is a revolution happening, even as we speak. Maybe the year 2012 will be remembered as a period of uniquely great change, or, maybe, just maybe, our current rapid rate of change is destined to become a permanent part of the human landscape, though its hard to imagine how.
How much faster can humanity change? And for how long? Our life spans are lengthening dramatically, our physical size is increasing rapidly, our level of education, largely due to computers and the genaral increase in human knowledge, is rising rapidly as well.
Change is cyclical. Football players won't keep getting bigger n bigger, forever. Likewise, the human population won't keep growing, and human life spans lengthening, indefinitely.
If aliens are watching us, as I suspect they are, they surely find us fascinating. How could they not? After all, in the blink of an eye the human species has evolved from the stone age into the computer age, amazing technological advance in a remarkably short period of time.
That, if nothing else about us, should be sufficient to attract extraterrestrial attention. We are obviously highly intelligent, creative, complicated, and fascinating creatures. At least, we are to me, and, I suspect, to everyone else.
We are, in a word, worth preserving, and for the sake of argument let us assume that we, but only we, can preserve ourselves.
The human population has more than doubled in the past 40 years, nations like China and Russia have utterly remade themselves, politically and economically, much to their credit, and medical, agricultural, and computer sciences are exploding with new knowledge.
Its fun to watch. It makes one want to live a long time. A friend of mine swallowd a bottle of aspirin in 1975, when he was 22, but then panickily eliminated the poison from his system when he suddenly realized that he wanted to stick around just to see what would happen next.
He's still around, and I'm glad he is. A lot has happened since 1975.
When I was a kid, in the nineteen sixties, I thought that in the twenty first century I would be flying in my car, or maybe visiting the moon or Mars, all the while conversing on my wrist watch. Space flight was an american passion during the nineteen sixties, and computers were on the verge of becoming the passion they are today.
I also thought I would be living in a paradise world which had eliminated hunger, poverty, disease, and war.
Everyone who has ever tried to predict the future has been wrong, way wrong, dead wrong, with all due respect to Nostradamus, Edgar Casey, and our current fine crop of future forecastors.
Oh, many people have made predictions which turned out to be remarkably accurate, and it seems plausible that there are ways of sensing the future - but accurately and clearly presenting the future in great accuracy and detail, in a comprehensive manner - that seems beyond human capabilities, at least, currently...
But the revolution, the frantic rate of change in this world that we see every day...wherever it leads us, it will be to places we can't even imagine now, but will arrive at soon enough. We only know two things: that the future is ours to shape, and that there are many options.
by Bob Bond
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
How much faster can humanity change? And for how long? Our life spans are lengthening dramatically, our physical size is increasing rapidly, our level of education, largely due to computers and the genaral increase in human knowledge, is rising rapidly as well.
Change is cyclical. Football players won't keep getting bigger n bigger, forever. Likewise, the human population won't keep growing, and human life spans lengthening, indefinitely.
If aliens are watching us, as I suspect they are, they surely find us fascinating. How could they not? After all, in the blink of an eye the human species has evolved from the stone age into the computer age, amazing technological advance in a remarkably short period of time.
That, if nothing else about us, should be sufficient to attract extraterrestrial attention. We are obviously highly intelligent, creative, complicated, and fascinating creatures. At least, we are to me, and, I suspect, to everyone else.
We are, in a word, worth preserving, and for the sake of argument let us assume that we, but only we, can preserve ourselves.
The human population has more than doubled in the past 40 years, nations like China and Russia have utterly remade themselves, politically and economically, much to their credit, and medical, agricultural, and computer sciences are exploding with new knowledge.
Its fun to watch. It makes one want to live a long time. A friend of mine swallowd a bottle of aspirin in 1975, when he was 22, but then panickily eliminated the poison from his system when he suddenly realized that he wanted to stick around just to see what would happen next.
He's still around, and I'm glad he is. A lot has happened since 1975.
When I was a kid, in the nineteen sixties, I thought that in the twenty first century I would be flying in my car, or maybe visiting the moon or Mars, all the while conversing on my wrist watch. Space flight was an american passion during the nineteen sixties, and computers were on the verge of becoming the passion they are today.
I also thought I would be living in a paradise world which had eliminated hunger, poverty, disease, and war.
Everyone who has ever tried to predict the future has been wrong, way wrong, dead wrong, with all due respect to Nostradamus, Edgar Casey, and our current fine crop of future forecastors.
Oh, many people have made predictions which turned out to be remarkably accurate, and it seems plausible that there are ways of sensing the future - but accurately and clearly presenting the future in great accuracy and detail, in a comprehensive manner - that seems beyond human capabilities, at least, currently...
But the revolution, the frantic rate of change in this world that we see every day...wherever it leads us, it will be to places we can't even imagine now, but will arrive at soon enough. We only know two things: that the future is ours to shape, and that there are many options.
by Bob Bond
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
Economic Inequality, and Cultural Evolution
There's a growing income gap in America, not merely between the rich and the poor, but between the super rich and everyone else.
The super wealthy are getting much wealthier, and everyone else's incomes are practically stagnant. The richest 10% of americans account for about half of the nation's wealth, helped in large part by public policy, including deregulation of the financial sector.
The richest 400 americans pay an 18% income tax rate. Candidate Mitt Romney pays about 15%. This is largely due to tax cuts for the wealthy enacted by recent administrations and congresses, including the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy in 2003.
In 1976, the percentage of national income going to the top 1% was 9%. Thirty years later, in 2006, the same percentage of the american population was taking in 24% of the national income.
There is now more wealth in the top 1% than in the bottom 90%. For several decades the american middle class has been shrinking, some moving into the upper class, most moving down, into the poor, working, pay check to pay check class.
Shrinking labor unions under an adverse and hostile cultural environment, and deregulation of the large scale investment industry have combined to widen the gap between rich and poor.
All this is verifiable fact, not liberal propaganda. To what extent can this continue, without destroying civilization? The modern world is too educated to accept feudalism. Only democracy and economic equality will do now, as witnessed by current events in the Arab world, and the growing atmosphere of protest in america and europe.
Just at there ought to be a balance between central authority, local government, and individual liberty, there ought to be a balance between economic regulation, cooperation, and individual economic freedom.
Grotesque economic, political, and social inequality has characterized human history, as have violence and enslavement. But now, in the era of the internet, the seeds of cultural evolution are being sown, as humanity begins to demand a better system.
by Tx Trumbo and Bob Bond
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
The super wealthy are getting much wealthier, and everyone else's incomes are practically stagnant. The richest 10% of americans account for about half of the nation's wealth, helped in large part by public policy, including deregulation of the financial sector.
The richest 400 americans pay an 18% income tax rate. Candidate Mitt Romney pays about 15%. This is largely due to tax cuts for the wealthy enacted by recent administrations and congresses, including the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy in 2003.
In 1976, the percentage of national income going to the top 1% was 9%. Thirty years later, in 2006, the same percentage of the american population was taking in 24% of the national income.
There is now more wealth in the top 1% than in the bottom 90%. For several decades the american middle class has been shrinking, some moving into the upper class, most moving down, into the poor, working, pay check to pay check class.
Shrinking labor unions under an adverse and hostile cultural environment, and deregulation of the large scale investment industry have combined to widen the gap between rich and poor.
All this is verifiable fact, not liberal propaganda. To what extent can this continue, without destroying civilization? The modern world is too educated to accept feudalism. Only democracy and economic equality will do now, as witnessed by current events in the Arab world, and the growing atmosphere of protest in america and europe.
Just at there ought to be a balance between central authority, local government, and individual liberty, there ought to be a balance between economic regulation, cooperation, and individual economic freedom.
Grotesque economic, political, and social inequality has characterized human history, as have violence and enslavement. But now, in the era of the internet, the seeds of cultural evolution are being sown, as humanity begins to demand a better system.
by Tx Trumbo and Bob Bond
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Conciliation
Rancor and discord, to a certain point, is a good thing in a democracy. We must air our views. The United States of America has been a perpetual argument since the day it was born, because it has always believed, deep down, that everybody has a right to be heard.
It seems worse now than ever. After all, Ronald Reagan and Tip O'Neil used to have drinks together. But really, it aint all that bad. There is a fundamental , underlying spirit of harmony in america. Though I am a left wing socialistic liberal, I am a "Limbaugh liberal", in that, I listen to Rush. Not every day, but some.
None of my many liberal friends listens to Rush Limbaugh, or even gives him credit for being human. I , alone of all liberals I know, listens to Rush with an open mind, trying to understand and appreciate. Its hard, especially when Rush seems to do nothing but attack liberals, rather than explaining and expousing conservatism.
But I keep listening, to broaden myself, to learn, to reconcile...
The fundamentals of conservatism: opportunity, freedom, love of country, traditional values; these one need not oppose, to be liberal..
If one is a liberal one can, in fact, abstractly reconcile conservatism within the same framework, merely by regarding conservatism as the foundation upon which liberalism is later added, expanding, augmenting, improving.
Rush spends too much time dogging liberalism, instead of explaining conservatism, which he does best. He'd be even more popular than he is now if he would change his attitude towards liberalism, and concede that it isn't inherently evil, any more than conservatism.
Liberals would be better off if they would accept the fundamental truth of conservatism, and simply insist that a bit more is needed.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler!Thanks!
It seems worse now than ever. After all, Ronald Reagan and Tip O'Neil used to have drinks together. But really, it aint all that bad. There is a fundamental , underlying spirit of harmony in america. Though I am a left wing socialistic liberal, I am a "Limbaugh liberal", in that, I listen to Rush. Not every day, but some.
None of my many liberal friends listens to Rush Limbaugh, or even gives him credit for being human. I , alone of all liberals I know, listens to Rush with an open mind, trying to understand and appreciate. Its hard, especially when Rush seems to do nothing but attack liberals, rather than explaining and expousing conservatism.
But I keep listening, to broaden myself, to learn, to reconcile...
The fundamentals of conservatism: opportunity, freedom, love of country, traditional values; these one need not oppose, to be liberal..
If one is a liberal one can, in fact, abstractly reconcile conservatism within the same framework, merely by regarding conservatism as the foundation upon which liberalism is later added, expanding, augmenting, improving.
Rush spends too much time dogging liberalism, instead of explaining conservatism, which he does best. He'd be even more popular than he is now if he would change his attitude towards liberalism, and concede that it isn't inherently evil, any more than conservatism.
Liberals would be better off if they would accept the fundamental truth of conservatism, and simply insist that a bit more is needed.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler!Thanks!
Heros
Hero worship is something all humas tend to do, even though the wisest among us, often the heros themselves, advise against it. Maybe human nature needs heros, and maybe we can learn to see the hero in us all.
Three of mine are Einstein, Crockett, and Truman. Three dead white men. Need some women in their, and maybe a little color too. Maybe somebody living....and maybe somebody who aint american...hmmm....
OK, let's try Bill Gates and Warren Buffet. What great guys! Perfect examples of corporate capitalism and investing gone right. Mighty strange heros for a socialist such as myself. Maybe I'm just plain open minded.
Obviously, a hero can be either rich or poor in my criteria. But I need to establish for myself some female heros, and some non American...
Buffet and Gates are great because they are giving away most of their money to improve the lives of as many other people as possible. They made their money by doing what they loved, and doing it well. The older they get, the wiser they get, and the more generous and loving toward humanity.
Einstein, Crockett, and Truman never had a dime between them, although Einstein never tried to. Buffet and Gates are just the opposite. A strange pantheon of heros.
Can you imagine such a thing! Liberals and conservatives seeing each other's point of view, and tolerating, accepting, agreeing! Less sexy than bashing and attacking, but more productive, and, really, more realistic.
Several years ago , as thousands of protesters raised hell outside a G8, (now G20) meeting, Gates said something like : " I may be wrong, but what I think what they (the protesters) are trying to say is: how can we create systems which better distribute the wealth and prosperity of the world?"
Gates was right, of course. Entirely correct. And open minded to boot.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
Three of mine are Einstein, Crockett, and Truman. Three dead white men. Need some women in their, and maybe a little color too. Maybe somebody living....and maybe somebody who aint american...hmmm....
OK, let's try Bill Gates and Warren Buffet. What great guys! Perfect examples of corporate capitalism and investing gone right. Mighty strange heros for a socialist such as myself. Maybe I'm just plain open minded.
Obviously, a hero can be either rich or poor in my criteria. But I need to establish for myself some female heros, and some non American...
Buffet and Gates are great because they are giving away most of their money to improve the lives of as many other people as possible. They made their money by doing what they loved, and doing it well. The older they get, the wiser they get, and the more generous and loving toward humanity.
Einstein, Crockett, and Truman never had a dime between them, although Einstein never tried to. Buffet and Gates are just the opposite. A strange pantheon of heros.
Can you imagine such a thing! Liberals and conservatives seeing each other's point of view, and tolerating, accepting, agreeing! Less sexy than bashing and attacking, but more productive, and, really, more realistic.
Several years ago , as thousands of protesters raised hell outside a G8, (now G20) meeting, Gates said something like : " I may be wrong, but what I think what they (the protesters) are trying to say is: how can we create systems which better distribute the wealth and prosperity of the world?"
Gates was right, of course. Entirely correct. And open minded to boot.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
Mind Games
Sometimes a situation is just too juicy to avoid commenting on. On the AOL homepage was a headline, something to the effect : "Obama reportedly blames FOX News for Moslem rumor".
Surely Obama understands that anyone accusing him of being a Moslem is only trying to make trouble, and has no concern or interest in the truth.
Evidently there is a new book coming out, surprisingly, something to the effect "How Obama dealt with those mean conservatives over at Fox Television". It must have been written by someone who had the president's assistance, sitting and talking. Amazing, that the president, any president, has the time to ghost write books and attend multiple campaign fund raisers in a single day.
Of course, everybody writes, or speaks, books these days, and that's probably a good thing...as long as we don't have to read them. Thousands of books are being written every day. The more the merrier. Now, let's make sure we beam 'em all out into space...
...just in case the human species fails to survive long term, we want the universe to know that we once existed...don't we?
The "blame" for the rumor that Obama is a Moslem goes to anybody who believes it, which nobody does, not Fox news, for heavens sake. Since nobody really believes Obama is a secret Moslem, no blame is to be attached for anything, anywhere. Case closed!
Talking about whether Obama is a closet Moslem relieves us of any obligaton to talk about other matters, such as the 49 million Americans without health insurance, or the national bankruptcy thingie.
Enough substance. Back to the Kardashians!
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
Surely Obama understands that anyone accusing him of being a Moslem is only trying to make trouble, and has no concern or interest in the truth.
Evidently there is a new book coming out, surprisingly, something to the effect "How Obama dealt with those mean conservatives over at Fox Television". It must have been written by someone who had the president's assistance, sitting and talking. Amazing, that the president, any president, has the time to ghost write books and attend multiple campaign fund raisers in a single day.
Of course, everybody writes, or speaks, books these days, and that's probably a good thing...as long as we don't have to read them. Thousands of books are being written every day. The more the merrier. Now, let's make sure we beam 'em all out into space...
...just in case the human species fails to survive long term, we want the universe to know that we once existed...don't we?
The "blame" for the rumor that Obama is a Moslem goes to anybody who believes it, which nobody does, not Fox news, for heavens sake. Since nobody really believes Obama is a secret Moslem, no blame is to be attached for anything, anywhere. Case closed!
Talking about whether Obama is a closet Moslem relieves us of any obligaton to talk about other matters, such as the 49 million Americans without health insurance, or the national bankruptcy thingie.
Enough substance. Back to the Kardashians!
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
Monday, March 19, 2012
Prosperity
Three American companies, in the wake of the recent great recession, are doing quite well. Apple, Google, and Microsoft all have an enormous amount of money, 40 or 50 billion.
Of the three, only Microsoft felt anything remotely resembling a recession. Apple has sold 37 million I Phones recently; they hardly know what to do with all this profit.
One proposed plan is to pay a dividend to shareholders. The shareholders are doubtless saying "its about time". Three successful corporations, stellar examples of corporate capitalism...but what about everybody else?
Must the American economy ceaselessly swing like a pendulum back and forth between prosperity and depression? Volatile as life/ nature is, does it have to be that volatile? One would think that, considering the genius of our corporate based economic system, there would be greater economic stability, and more general and sustained prosperity.
But, alas...whoever the lowest paid employees of these companies are, perhaps they should be the first in line to share company profits. The shareholders are doing pretty well already, and the board members even better.
An economic system in which teachers make a mere fraction of what entertainers make is obviously ill. Totally privitazed education would only make matters worse, for in america, entertainment is truly valued more than education, sadly.
IN the great pyramid of the american economic system, the current base is broad, and low. Hence, we have a huge poor working class in this country. In a country as wealthy as America, should the working class be poor at all, much less universally poor?
This is the point the Occupy Wall Street movement is trying to make; and it isn't finished...
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
Of the three, only Microsoft felt anything remotely resembling a recession. Apple has sold 37 million I Phones recently; they hardly know what to do with all this profit.
One proposed plan is to pay a dividend to shareholders. The shareholders are doubtless saying "its about time". Three successful corporations, stellar examples of corporate capitalism...but what about everybody else?
Must the American economy ceaselessly swing like a pendulum back and forth between prosperity and depression? Volatile as life/ nature is, does it have to be that volatile? One would think that, considering the genius of our corporate based economic system, there would be greater economic stability, and more general and sustained prosperity.
But, alas...whoever the lowest paid employees of these companies are, perhaps they should be the first in line to share company profits. The shareholders are doing pretty well already, and the board members even better.
An economic system in which teachers make a mere fraction of what entertainers make is obviously ill. Totally privitazed education would only make matters worse, for in america, entertainment is truly valued more than education, sadly.
IN the great pyramid of the american economic system, the current base is broad, and low. Hence, we have a huge poor working class in this country. In a country as wealthy as America, should the working class be poor at all, much less universally poor?
This is the point the Occupy Wall Street movement is trying to make; and it isn't finished...
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
Saturday, March 17, 2012
"At Risk" Society
We, as a country, are not really prepared to eradicate poverty. We accept without question the millions of low wage jobs with few benefits and real chance of real advancement. The children of these low wage workers pay the price.
For millions of "at risk" American students this is the hand they are dealt. We talk about the achievement gap and the racial gap but neglect to face the gap of wealth, income, and power, which, of course, infects the lives of our school age children.
These students have original, blessed, and wonderful spirits and minds. But they come from homes with little disposable income and low literacy rates. There is no money for books, computers, extracurricular activities.
Many live in housing that is inadequate, poorly constructed, overcrowded, lacking green space, and dangerous. They cannot afford the cost of college. They will work in retail, restaurants, and factories, or in construction.
Many are already doing this during their high school years. They are smart enough to know their work is undervalued and underpaid. They have seen their parents toil for low wages for years. Their situation, experience, motivation, and available choices are not the same as children from middle or upper income families.
We are all victims of an economic system which relegates millions to low wage jobs, low income, low living standards, poverty, exclusion. We must fix this.
by Tx Trumbo
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
For millions of "at risk" American students this is the hand they are dealt. We talk about the achievement gap and the racial gap but neglect to face the gap of wealth, income, and power, which, of course, infects the lives of our school age children.
These students have original, blessed, and wonderful spirits and minds. But they come from homes with little disposable income and low literacy rates. There is no money for books, computers, extracurricular activities.
Many live in housing that is inadequate, poorly constructed, overcrowded, lacking green space, and dangerous. They cannot afford the cost of college. They will work in retail, restaurants, and factories, or in construction.
Many are already doing this during their high school years. They are smart enough to know their work is undervalued and underpaid. They have seen their parents toil for low wages for years. Their situation, experience, motivation, and available choices are not the same as children from middle or upper income families.
We are all victims of an economic system which relegates millions to low wage jobs, low income, low living standards, poverty, exclusion. We must fix this.
by Tx Trumbo
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Sports Reform
The Truthless Reconciler has not often ventured into the world of sports, but since social commentary and analysis is the prime function of this site, such venture seems warranted.
We should consider changing the culture of our favorite sport, football. Once upon a time football involved blocking and tackling. Now, it involves hitting. Violence for its own sake, in a violence for its own sake culture.
Division One collegiate athletics is out of contol, because it makes huge money, and the universities are all willing to do whatever it takes, moral or no, legal or no, to ensure the continued income of big money. Meanwhile, the athletes are ruthlessly expolited, instead of educated.
Major league baseball is a travesty, with every player waering his uniform however he wants to, and nobody with enough backbone or power to make them wear the uniform properly. Nothing wrong with necklaces and earrings. But if one player on the team wears a gold necklace, so should everybody on the team wear a gold necklace. Socks up, or socks down, everybody the same, none of this individual preference crap.
And of course, professional athletes are paid a million times more than first grade teachers, which is a reflection of a corrupt society with corrupt values, reflected in its corrupt economic system.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
We should consider changing the culture of our favorite sport, football. Once upon a time football involved blocking and tackling. Now, it involves hitting. Violence for its own sake, in a violence for its own sake culture.
Division One collegiate athletics is out of contol, because it makes huge money, and the universities are all willing to do whatever it takes, moral or no, legal or no, to ensure the continued income of big money. Meanwhile, the athletes are ruthlessly expolited, instead of educated.
Major league baseball is a travesty, with every player waering his uniform however he wants to, and nobody with enough backbone or power to make them wear the uniform properly. Nothing wrong with necklaces and earrings. But if one player on the team wears a gold necklace, so should everybody on the team wear a gold necklace. Socks up, or socks down, everybody the same, none of this individual preference crap.
And of course, professional athletes are paid a million times more than first grade teachers, which is a reflection of a corrupt society with corrupt values, reflected in its corrupt economic system.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Moneychanger Madness
Too long we've been political rubes. Teachers just got a $100 raise at my school, with a note that said we have no right to question anything about it because less than half of us belong to the union.
My colleagues work so hard, are so committed to their kids and profession and content area. But, like most Americans, we're politically inert, feeling like someone else is looking out for our best interests.
Wrong! We'll have to learn how to fight here, because the wealthiest have gained great power and leverage and know exactly how to fight. We're behind the curve. We've let democracy down, by not being committed to each other and being a more out for ourselves nation.
Time to return to compassion and giving and loving and equality. World billionaires, 2011, break two records, total number (1210), anc combined wealth (4.5 trillion),
the botton 90% have hardly incresed wealth at all since 1980, while the wealthiest few have seen drastic increase in their wealth.
Our economic/financial/fiscal sickness is the result of allowing the evil political machine to run a game on us, and our spiritual recklessness is apparent. We must change.
by Tx Trumbo
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My colleagues work so hard, are so committed to their kids and profession and content area. But, like most Americans, we're politically inert, feeling like someone else is looking out for our best interests.
Wrong! We'll have to learn how to fight here, because the wealthiest have gained great power and leverage and know exactly how to fight. We're behind the curve. We've let democracy down, by not being committed to each other and being a more out for ourselves nation.
Time to return to compassion and giving and loving and equality. World billionaires, 2011, break two records, total number (1210), anc combined wealth (4.5 trillion),
the botton 90% have hardly incresed wealth at all since 1980, while the wealthiest few have seen drastic increase in their wealth.
Our economic/financial/fiscal sickness is the result of allowing the evil political machine to run a game on us, and our spiritual recklessness is apparent. We must change.
by Tx Trumbo
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Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Blame pt. II
So now, some high faluten hot shot from Penn State University, a member of the Board of Regents, or some such, is good enough to explain to us that the problem with Joe Paterno, and the reason he was fired, was his "lack of leadership".
You many recall Paterno's lack of leadership consisted of reporting to his immediate superior, the athletic director, rather than to the police, when an assistant coach reported to Paterno that he had witnessed Jerry Sandusky sexually abusing a child.
Peterno reported to his immediate superior, not the police. Follow the chain of command, they always tell you.
Then, to save their high paid collective butts, the AD. University President, and the Board of Regents made Paterno the scape goat.
The Board of Regents ended up making everybody except themselves the scapegoat, including the A.D. and the president.. Maybe they got it backwards. After all, they, the Board of Regents, is the body ultimately in charge of the University, or any Universiry.
I'm surprised that the high paid people didn't make the custodians responsible.
While we're at it, let's make all of us responsible.
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You many recall Paterno's lack of leadership consisted of reporting to his immediate superior, the athletic director, rather than to the police, when an assistant coach reported to Paterno that he had witnessed Jerry Sandusky sexually abusing a child.
Peterno reported to his immediate superior, not the police. Follow the chain of command, they always tell you.
Then, to save their high paid collective butts, the AD. University President, and the Board of Regents made Paterno the scape goat.
The Board of Regents ended up making everybody except themselves the scapegoat, including the A.D. and the president.. Maybe they got it backwards. After all, they, the Board of Regents, is the body ultimately in charge of the University, or any Universiry.
I'm surprised that the high paid people didn't make the custodians responsible.
While we're at it, let's make all of us responsible.
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Monday, March 12, 2012
Blame
It somehow seems safe to assume that the American soldier who calmly left his base, killed 16 Afghani people, then calmly returned to his base is mentally ill. He might not be, but it still seems safe to assume that he is. Which, of course, is certainly no excuse for anything, but it may be a reason.
And so now the Taliban swears revenge against...what?.. Who?
The entire United States? Why of course. And doubtless the overall attitude towards the United States on the part of the Afghani people is now extremely negative, as it apparanely is in the case of Afghanistan President Karzai.
World opinion is not likely to be too great either.
Well then so be it. Maybe its what America deserves, for all the war its made.
America deserves to be judged on it foreign policy, but do the actions of a single idiot merit condemning all 305 million American people? Surely not.
You probably couldn't find more than a handful of Americans, if that many, who find this occurance anything other than utterly vile and reprehensible, and tragic.
The world might do well to remember that. Yes, judge the United States on her behavior, of which there is plenty available. But not on th actions of a single sick person.
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And so now the Taliban swears revenge against...what?.. Who?
The entire United States? Why of course. And doubtless the overall attitude towards the United States on the part of the Afghani people is now extremely negative, as it apparanely is in the case of Afghanistan President Karzai.
World opinion is not likely to be too great either.
Well then so be it. Maybe its what America deserves, for all the war its made.
America deserves to be judged on it foreign policy, but do the actions of a single idiot merit condemning all 305 million American people? Surely not.
You probably couldn't find more than a handful of Americans, if that many, who find this occurance anything other than utterly vile and reprehensible, and tragic.
The world might do well to remember that. Yes, judge the United States on her behavior, of which there is plenty available. But not on th actions of a single sick person.
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Pecking Orders
Sometimes you just don't want to accept the truth, which can be defined as "verifiable reality".The truth often seems to contradict what we already believe, or would like to believe, about the world, or our place in it.
It is verifiable that some people are "better looking" than others, in the sense that, some people are more sexually, physically attractive than others. The criteria for determining this appears to be partly subjective, and partly objective.
Although beauty is truly in the eye of the beholder, scientific research has demonstrated that there are indeed certain identifiable universal, objective standards of beauty. Youth or age is an objective measurement, but people respond to it subjectively, though in general youth seems to have the edge for attractiveness.
A ratio os 5 to 1, or 10 to 1; these things are purely objective, and all humans seem to respond to them is the same way. It is fascinating that a person with nose to eyes distance apart ratio with a certain mathematical relationship everyone considers beautiful, while a ration just a bit larger, or smaller, evokes universal repulsion. No one is sure why this is so, only that it is so.
It is tempting, quite tempting, to allege that attractive women are less friendly than their unattractive counterparts. There is empirical research which seems to indicate this. As if less attractive women cannot afford the luxury of aloofness, of being hard to get, high priced.
How we rank in the great pecking order of society impacts every aspect of our lives, doubtless yet another clever natural device of some sort. Pecking orders. Can't live with 'em, can't live without 'em.
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It is verifiable that some people are "better looking" than others, in the sense that, some people are more sexually, physically attractive than others. The criteria for determining this appears to be partly subjective, and partly objective.
Although beauty is truly in the eye of the beholder, scientific research has demonstrated that there are indeed certain identifiable universal, objective standards of beauty. Youth or age is an objective measurement, but people respond to it subjectively, though in general youth seems to have the edge for attractiveness.
A ratio os 5 to 1, or 10 to 1; these things are purely objective, and all humans seem to respond to them is the same way. It is fascinating that a person with nose to eyes distance apart ratio with a certain mathematical relationship everyone considers beautiful, while a ration just a bit larger, or smaller, evokes universal repulsion. No one is sure why this is so, only that it is so.
It is tempting, quite tempting, to allege that attractive women are less friendly than their unattractive counterparts. There is empirical research which seems to indicate this. As if less attractive women cannot afford the luxury of aloofness, of being hard to get, high priced.
How we rank in the great pecking order of society impacts every aspect of our lives, doubtless yet another clever natural device of some sort. Pecking orders. Can't live with 'em, can't live without 'em.
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Friday, March 9, 2012
MALE CONTRACEPTION
Over the years of my adulthood I have followed the development and implications of male contraception and today I would like to share with you the most technically informative web site I have found on the subject to date,
The Male Contraception Information Project..
There are many diverse moral, cultural, economic and legal implications of male contraception but changes are coming soon, with or without expressed individual positions on the subject. The huge potential profits for international pharmaceutical companies are driving the research and development of male contraception supported by the governments of China, India and the United States of America.
by Jim Hosp
Male contraception is an important, indeed vital issue to humanity at the present time, because global population, and issues related to it, are the most pressing questions facing us. How many people do we want to live on this planet at any given time? We will soon be required to provide an answer to this question, or nature will...B B
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by Jim Hosp
Male contraception is an important, indeed vital issue to humanity at the present time, because global population, and issues related to it, are the most pressing questions facing us. How many people do we want to live on this planet at any given time? We will soon be required to provide an answer to this question, or nature will...B B
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Imagine
WE talk about reforming our schools, reforming our economic system, our society as a whole, because we realize that reform, change, is absolutely necessary. Its necessary because there are too many people living in poverty, too many people living in obscene levels of materialism, too many wars, too much violence.
And this is worldwide, for all time, yesterday, and today. And, seemingly, alarmingly, tomorrow, in all probability.
And at times it seems that we humans make progress, but that there is always much more progress desperately needing implementation. As writer Arthur C. Clarke said:
......"Imagine that you're an intelligent extraterrestrial, concerned only with verifiable truths. You discover a species that has divided itself into thousands - or millions - of tribal groups holding an incredible variety of beliefs about the origin of the universe and the way to behave in it.
Although many of them have ideas in common, even when there's a ninety-nine percent overlap, the remaining one percent's enough to set them killing and torturing each other, over trivial points of doctrine, utterly meaningless to outsiders.
How to account for such irrational behavior? Lucretius hit it on the nail when he said that religion was the by product of fear - a reaction to a mysterious and often hostile universe.
For much of human prehistory, it may have been a necessary evil,, - but why was it so much more evil than necessary - and why did it survive when it was no longer necessary?".......
With this mentality, this mindset, the mindset of humanity which engenders what Clarke was talking about, how is real social progress ever going to be possible?
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And this is worldwide, for all time, yesterday, and today. And, seemingly, alarmingly, tomorrow, in all probability.
And at times it seems that we humans make progress, but that there is always much more progress desperately needing implementation. As writer Arthur C. Clarke said:
......"Imagine that you're an intelligent extraterrestrial, concerned only with verifiable truths. You discover a species that has divided itself into thousands - or millions - of tribal groups holding an incredible variety of beliefs about the origin of the universe and the way to behave in it.
Although many of them have ideas in common, even when there's a ninety-nine percent overlap, the remaining one percent's enough to set them killing and torturing each other, over trivial points of doctrine, utterly meaningless to outsiders.
How to account for such irrational behavior? Lucretius hit it on the nail when he said that religion was the by product of fear - a reaction to a mysterious and often hostile universe.
For much of human prehistory, it may have been a necessary evil,, - but why was it so much more evil than necessary - and why did it survive when it was no longer necessary?".......
With this mentality, this mindset, the mindset of humanity which engenders what Clarke was talking about, how is real social progress ever going to be possible?
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Thursday, March 8, 2012
Aristocracy of Inequality of Inequity in U.S.
We're all about the top tier here, at least since Reagan, and probably since George III. Eigth graders in New York have to go through a crazy complicated admissions process to see where they're accepted for high school.
Parents fighting like wolves (who wouldn't?) to get their kid in the best school. We're so unequal here, economically, that nobody really wants their kid going to the schools in the ghetto, with more poverty, crime, gangs, drugs, and less hope, chances, facilities, and safety.
America? Separate and unequal. And we want to rake the teachers over the coals? Over test scores? Fraudulent patriots and their ruse of caring for each and every child.
Really? Gosh, Where's the anger and committment to end poverty and economic disparities? Nowhere, man. We pick on the small fry, afraid of the master. Afraid of the real deal. Politically impotent, yet anger directing towards the small fry. You lie. We lie.
--by Tx Trumbo, from his book "Who's the Teacher now?"
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Parents fighting like wolves (who wouldn't?) to get their kid in the best school. We're so unequal here, economically, that nobody really wants their kid going to the schools in the ghetto, with more poverty, crime, gangs, drugs, and less hope, chances, facilities, and safety.
America? Separate and unequal. And we want to rake the teachers over the coals? Over test scores? Fraudulent patriots and their ruse of caring for each and every child.
Really? Gosh, Where's the anger and committment to end poverty and economic disparities? Nowhere, man. We pick on the small fry, afraid of the master. Afraid of the real deal. Politically impotent, yet anger directing towards the small fry. You lie. We lie.
--by Tx Trumbo, from his book "Who's the Teacher now?"
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Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Real Reasons
Americans have been complaining about american public schools since...well, since I was in school, over forty years ago. Back then the charge against the young people was ignorance and apathy; we didn't know anything, and we didn't care about anything, except our own pleasure and happiness.
Well, to a certain point, that was true, and still is. But it turns out that those in the baby boomer generation who protested the Viet Nam war and showed their disdain for the status quo society by refusing to conform to it; well, they were right. We know that now, in restrospect.
Forty years later, the complaints about the young continue apace, most coming from those of us who were once the subject of such complaints. Sweet revenge...
Whats refreshing about author and educator Tx Trumbo in his book "Who's the Teacher Now?", is that he doesn't try to lay all of society's problems at the feet of the under eighteen crowd and their teachers inside the cloistered confines of america's public schools, as does everyone else.
Instead, he puts the blame squarely where it belongs; on mainstream american society. We don't need better teachers, and more standardized testing, and more accountability and oversight, what we need, says Trumbo, is a better, more child friendly culture, in which to nurture and raise healthy, well educated children.
"We rank higher in education that we do in most economic indicators, worldwide. So, why all the hubbab about failing schools, bad teachers, and irresponsible parenting?
Well, because it is so much easier finding scapegoats than admitting our society is failing us a a whole. Our citizens have longer working hours, shorter vacations, and fewer benefits than most of the industrialized world; this negatively affects family structure, cohesion, and relations within the larger society.
Does this system value children?"
Trumbo asserts that an economic system, such as that in america, which rewards lavishly the few while exploiting the many cannot possibly value children, because children are the recipients of this widespread poverty and inequality. Something to think about...
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Well, to a certain point, that was true, and still is. But it turns out that those in the baby boomer generation who protested the Viet Nam war and showed their disdain for the status quo society by refusing to conform to it; well, they were right. We know that now, in restrospect.
Forty years later, the complaints about the young continue apace, most coming from those of us who were once the subject of such complaints. Sweet revenge...
Whats refreshing about author and educator Tx Trumbo in his book "Who's the Teacher Now?", is that he doesn't try to lay all of society's problems at the feet of the under eighteen crowd and their teachers inside the cloistered confines of america's public schools, as does everyone else.
Instead, he puts the blame squarely where it belongs; on mainstream american society. We don't need better teachers, and more standardized testing, and more accountability and oversight, what we need, says Trumbo, is a better, more child friendly culture, in which to nurture and raise healthy, well educated children.
"We rank higher in education that we do in most economic indicators, worldwide. So, why all the hubbab about failing schools, bad teachers, and irresponsible parenting?
Well, because it is so much easier finding scapegoats than admitting our society is failing us a a whole. Our citizens have longer working hours, shorter vacations, and fewer benefits than most of the industrialized world; this negatively affects family structure, cohesion, and relations within the larger society.
Does this system value children?"
Trumbo asserts that an economic system, such as that in america, which rewards lavishly the few while exploiting the many cannot possibly value children, because children are the recipients of this widespread poverty and inequality. Something to think about...
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of "the Truthless Reconciler". Thanks!
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
A Bombs & America
Evrybody knows how to build an atomic bomb. There are many books on the subject, easily available; any graduate student in physics can tell you how to build an atomic bomb.
The problem is getting the materials, equipment, and machinary necessary to actually assemble one, or more than one. It is actually rather hard to believe that any modern nation wanting to have atomic bombs hasn't already built them, including Iran.
It would not be surprising to discover that Iran indeed has bombs, and the launching systems capable of delivering them to, say, Israel. If the Israelis strike Iran, Iran may strike back, harder than expected.
Wouldn't it be obvious to any neutral observer that the solution lies not in bullying Iran to remain non nuclear, but rather in eliminating all atomic bombs and hydrogen bombs from the face of the planet? Shouldn't those issues, Iran, and worldwide nuclear disarmament, be linked?
The United States behaves as if it has the God given right to maintain thousands of atomic bombs, and to simultaneously dictate which other nations may own them. And, of course, the U.S. does indeed have that right, because, truly, might makes right, and America has the military might.
But not the moral right. The United States really has no moral right whatever to dictate anything to anybody concerning atomic bombs, considering it own destructive history. But, as long as america has the right of military might, it is good that America uses that might-right to urge non members of the nuclear club to not join, so far.
One hopes that Amreica never starts arming the world with atomic bombs, like it has small arms, military aircraft, and artillary.
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The problem is getting the materials, equipment, and machinary necessary to actually assemble one, or more than one. It is actually rather hard to believe that any modern nation wanting to have atomic bombs hasn't already built them, including Iran.
It would not be surprising to discover that Iran indeed has bombs, and the launching systems capable of delivering them to, say, Israel. If the Israelis strike Iran, Iran may strike back, harder than expected.
Wouldn't it be obvious to any neutral observer that the solution lies not in bullying Iran to remain non nuclear, but rather in eliminating all atomic bombs and hydrogen bombs from the face of the planet? Shouldn't those issues, Iran, and worldwide nuclear disarmament, be linked?
The United States behaves as if it has the God given right to maintain thousands of atomic bombs, and to simultaneously dictate which other nations may own them. And, of course, the U.S. does indeed have that right, because, truly, might makes right, and America has the military might.
But not the moral right. The United States really has no moral right whatever to dictate anything to anybody concerning atomic bombs, considering it own destructive history. But, as long as america has the right of military might, it is good that America uses that might-right to urge non members of the nuclear club to not join, so far.
One hopes that Amreica never starts arming the world with atomic bombs, like it has small arms, military aircraft, and artillary.
Please scroll down for the other articles in today's issue of The Truthless Reconciler! Thanks!
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