When your electricity is shut off

In this modern age, having electricity isn’t ever going to be seen as a luxury, but rather it is always going to be seen as absolutely mandatory.  Yet, as important as electricity is for everybody, not everybody has the money so needed to pay their bills always on time, and further to the point, unexpected expenses can absolutely wreak havoc on a family’s budget.  Therefore, there are those people who fall behind on their electricity bill, not because it has not been prioritized, but more to do with not having enough capital to pay all their bills.  Regrettably, for those that fall behind on their bills, the turning off of a family’s electricity is something that utility companies have the right to do, and is, in many places, set at just 45 days from the original due date.  No doubt, the turning off of electricity, thus makes the turning back on of such the highest priority, which in effect, simply means robbing Peter to pay Paul.

 It would seem that since utilities are regulated, that there should be more consideration for folks who have fallen behind on their electricity payments, so that they would not have to have their electricity turned off completely, as opposed to that being the case for those who are past due by a mere 45 days.  While utility companies can fall back on stating that they provided fair notice of what they were going to do, that isn’t the issue.  What the issue is, is that the turning off of electricity seriously changes the living conditions within the residence, and doesn’t take into fair account that people aren’t necessarily irresponsible, but simply don’t have the funds to pay their bill at that time.  This signifies that rather than electricity being turned off completely, there should be a policy that electricity would be reduced to just eight hours a day, for ninety days, until the bill got current, and if that did not occur, then all power would be turned off.

 Look, it has to be said, if the basic attitude is the law is the law, and that’s it;  this doesn’t seem to take into consideration the vital importance of electricity, along with fact, that sooner or later in most cases, the electricity company is going to get whatever monies are owed to it, anyway, because once a given family fails to make good on their electricity bill, and they subsequently apply to get electricity in the future, they won’t be able to do so, because of their previous delinquency.  So too, while there are exceptions made that electricity has to be kept on for very cold winter days or very hot summer days, depending on the rules of a given utility, which does show consideration, it isn’t going to be enough for those who still lack the funds.

 Additionally, every business has a contingency for delinquencies, of which some of those delinquencies are not going to ever be paid, but because these businesses have so many accounts, they can successfully still make a reasonable profit, anyway.  To believe, somehow, that the best policy is to shut off power for those who haven’t paid their bills, within 45 days of their due date, seems to be the type of policy that should be amended, because electricity is fundamentally important.  To not do so would seem to reflect that profit trumps reasonable accommodation.

What to do about dog poop

As they say, dogs are humankind’s best friend, and since they are living and breathing animals, they have a constant need to eat and to subsequently defecate.  At the present time, dog owners seem to be doing a much better job of picking up after their animal, when their dog has pooped, of which, the default for many a person is that they then put that waste matter into a plastic bag and sometime later into a trash can.  Regrettably, while this does remove the dog poop, which typically may contain parasites and bacteria, the bottom line is that we find that at our waste landfill facilities, this disposal of dog poop, is not going to successfully decompose, which seems like the wrong result for people that are being considerate, especially in consideration that they really do desire to do the right thing.

 A better solution, to help take care of dog poop, which would be better for the environment and more sustainable would be to deposit dog poop into a compost bin, of which people might have the space to have one situated in their backyard, or there could be compost bins located at parks along with other areas of interest that people tend to walk their dogs at.  Indeed, using a compost bin thus permits dog waste to break down eventually into organic matter, which can subsequently be used in soil as an additive, and thus makes for a better solution to a problem that needs a sensible solution, as opposed to simply depositing such into trash receptacles.

 As in anything, how much dog owners get into doing this type of thing, firstly comes down to their being educated about the importance of this, along with providing them also with alternative ways to deal better with dog waste, that they may not be currently aware of, or are better suited for the area of the country that they live in.  For a certainty, it was a great leap forward for the cleanliness and thereby the health of society when indoor plumbing came into play, so that it would certainly behoove the powers that be to desire to do the same sort of thing for the millions of dog owners that America has, so that they can contribute better to keeping our environment clean.

 Indeed, the health of people, along with the environment, should be something that everyone buys into, because this is where we live and congregate, so that every action that we take collectively that is sensible and helps to make society better and healthier is something that is well worth our while in doing.  Additionally, many people desire to do the right thing but simply may not have the knowledge to do so, and thereby would appreciate learning more about viable options to help do their part to keep their neighborhood clean.  So too, in order to effect meaningful change, there needs to be not only proper dissemination of pertinent information, but also a buy-in by the general public, that good dog owners compost their dog’s waste, as their obligation to the society that they are a good member of.

Have courage

Aristotle tells us that “Courage is the first of human qualities because it is the quality which guarantees the others.”  Indeed, when we think of positive characteristics such as integrity, justice, and honor, it is courage that provides us with that ever present help for us to do that which needs to be done, or to make that stand where a stand needs to be made, because those that know what the right thing is to do, but have not the courage to act upon their belief, have betrayed who and what they should be to give in to their cowardice.

 To be courageous is no easy task, especially when doing so, risks exposing us to possible public shaming, or when we are opposed by forces that could hurt us, but we need to be cognizant that every time that we have a choice to be courageous but fail to do so, we have given in to injustice or a wrong, as a personal convenience, because we do not wish to expose ourselves to the possible negative consequences of being courageous.  While this may well be the case, it isn’t what we were meant to be or to do, for those who believe firmly in the right because it is right, but will not defend that right, when it is being assailed by others, lack both courage and integrity.

 That said, a wise person understands that not every situation calls for courage at that immediate time and place, because we know that there are certain situations in which discretion and prudence will overrule an action which, while courageous in its principle, is unwise given the circumstances presented to us.  In other words, a brave person recognizes that there are going to be those times when we must bite our tongue, because the outcome is not going to be helpful right then and there, and further, they recognize that not every negative action needs an immediate response.

 Additionally, it is courage that we are impressed to demonstrate whenever we are placed in the unenviable position of answering a difficult probing question or are facing taking an action that we know for a certainty is going to make somebody in authority or someone that we respect, upset.  But when we do not dare to do the right thing, because we are worried about how others will respond, then we have sacrificed our sovereignty for the sake of getting along, and in addition, we have strengthened that which deserves no further strength by having failed to challenge such.

 Those who are courageous are the best of human beings, because these are the people who are willing to sacrifice themselves for the greater good, because they recognize that through their sacrifice that they are helping to make society a better place for their courageous actions taken within it -- for all those then that have a voice but will not use it appropriately when called upon, or those that need to take action where action must be taken, but fail to do so, these may be good people, but what they are not, is courageous, and there is a world of difference between the two, for when you have not found something worth fighting for, you haven’t found anything worth living for, either.

All our modern conveniences make us “richer” than Kings were back in the day

There are those types of statements that might seem logical or to make sense, but when examined, just aren’t all that sensible.  For instance, we will have heard of stories of our grandparents or great grandparents that they didn’t have access to indoor plumbing or television or the internet or to cell phones, and the impression that we are given is that they must have therefore been poor and dissatisfied; whereas, the truth of the matter is that it would be more appropriate to judge their position in society by comparing them with the same types of people in that day and age. So too, when we turn the clock back to earlier times, there is a need to recognize that when everyone else also doesn’t have indoor plumbing, or air conditioning, or electricity, then we are, for all intents and purposes, on the same wavelength that they are on, which means we are about the same in regards to our living conditions.  Therefore, to believe somehow because we have modern conveniences that we are therefore in better shape than even Kings were back in medieval times is to read the tea leaves wrong, because power is power, and those that have power, despite their lack of modern conveniences are always going to be in a lot better position to have a quality life, then someone who simply has a cell phone and not much else.

 It is a shame whenever there are articles written, pretty much stating that the poor in America shouldn’t complain so much about their lot in life, because they have ready access to food, shelter, transportation, heat, as well as entertainment at the control of their fingers.  Sure, all these accouterments have their place as well as their value, but when we look at and compare ourselves to others, and see that we are leagues behind what other people have achieved and thereby own, it isn’t going to give those who lack much satisfaction.  Indeed, we live within a construct in which our happiness, to a certain extent, is how we favorably compare to others of the same general background as well as to those that we admire, and when we recognize that we are far, far behind, we aren’t going to feel much satisfaction that we have a smart phone, as compared to grandma simply having had a house phone.

 In every society, there are classes of people, and the division of those people has everything to do with what their class position is in that society, as well as the accouterments that they have accumulated or have exclusive right to.  In today’s world, the poor may well indeed have conveniences that didn’t even exist back then, which makes their life more comfortable than it would have been years and years ago, but how we measure our success or lack thereof in life has everything to do with whether or not our position and achievements in life are that which is respected by our peers, or whether we are seen as having failed to make good, where there is plenty of good to have been made.

Regarding wealth, the bottom half of America is dominated by the top half

For anyone with eyes to see, there is a stark contrast between those who have it all, as compared to those who have nothing at all.  In fact, Visual Capitalist tells us that as of the 3rd Quarter of 2024, that the top 50% of Americans held around $156 trillion in wealth, as contrasted to those in the bottom half, which had a mere $3.9 trillion in wealth.  In other words, when we look at the difference in wealth between the top half and the bottom half, it isn’t something along the lines of a ratio of 10:1, which would be bad enough, but rather it is at a ratio of 40:1 which is a staggering difference, demonstrating that this is literally a world of difference between these two factions, in this the supposed land of opportunity, equality and fairness.

 To the degree that legislative and taxation laws have been passed to help level the playing field in America, the upshot of these laws is that they have not been effective enough, and a strong conclusion could be made, that those that own all the wealth in America, are incredibly adept at doing what they do in order to circumvent paying their fair share, whatsoever.  Further to the point, the great equalizer and the primary purpose of taxation as exercised in the United States, is for the general welfare of the population as well as for a redistribution of that wealth, to help uplift those that are most in need of such assistance; but we can readily see that this is not actually working well to its purpose, which is why fundamental changes need to be made to our laws as exercised, to see that those that have more than enough, are taxed in a way and manner that those with nothing, have an opportunity to get a foothold into the American dream.

 This type of income and wealth inequality bespeaks a general unfairness in America, in which some are simply born into wealth and privilege, and many are not.  In a nation that is supposedly a strong believer in meritocracy, along with the belief that it has a duty to promote the general welfare of this nation, it has to be noted, that this is not being accomplished at even close to the level that it needs to be at, which is why we see so much civil unrest, because those that feel that they have not been provided with a fair chance, are wont to display their disappointment in the unfair cards dealt to them, through ill behavior that represents such frustration.

 To all those though who believe that America is an equal opportunity country, especially in the sense that those who are successful deserve fully the fruits of their labor, they need to comprehend better that such a high wealth disparity isn’t healthy for a nation, because it serves as a distinct division between the citizens of this nation, making for a society that isn’t comfortable with one another, and undercuts democratic institutions because the change that those that lack want to see occur, not only doesn’t ever come to fruition, but it never will come to such.

Can you be anything when you are treated as if you are nothing?

How we treat others and how we are perceived go a long way towards our success or failure in life, for those that are well supported have that important backstop that will help them in times of trouble; whereas, those that are not supported or are actively dismissed as being “garbage” lack that backstop and because they don’t have that emotional support available for them are susceptible to not only falling, but basically they are lacking the support system that they can lean upon to get back up.

 Indeed, how we are treated at a young age helps to build our character, and when that treatment is overwhelmingly negative, it often serves to break our spirit.  In truth, all of us are initially born with the same basic outlook on life, in which, it takes societal members about the same amount of energy to be there for someone as it does to treat someone as if they are irrelevant, of which, the difference in the outcome of these is often quite stark, for those that are supported well, are the type that also will be provided with second chances and empathy – as opposed to those that are ill-supported who don’t get a second chance because they have already been negatively labeled, and are dealt with via indifference or much worse.

 We are told that each of us can be anything that we put our heart and mind to, and while this is never literally true, what makes it a truism, is that because of the openness and opportunity within America at its best,  bespeaks that we are not buttonholed into being only this or that, or limited in our dreams or aspirations, but because this is the land of opportunity, with plenty of prime examples of people that have made good from trying circumstances, we know for a certainty, that we too can have that type of success and acclaim, with the unfortunate exception of those that have been deliberately discarded as trash, and have had the hope sucked out of their persona.

 The greatest sin that society can do to its own is to destroy the dreams that people have, before they ever even get the chance to dream their dreams, based upon their surface characteristics, or from a rush to judgment, or where they come from, and so on.  It has to be said that the greatest obligation that this governance has to its people is to provide them with a fair chance to prove themselves in our public educational facilities, in which, the foundation of those schools must be structured to leave nobody behind, as well as to be a sanctuary for those that come from difficult circumstances.  We are obligated to hold the youthful hands of all those that need to be validated so that they know that they are indeed of value, and to thereupon give them the necessary support so that they know that they are cherished by the society that they are a member of, for when we do not, we have done so to our harm, for to close the door on those that are most vulnerable, demonstrates that we have forsaken our obligation to those that are the most defenseless and in need of a champion.

Exploitation and extermination

As much as people want to believe that everyone has fair access to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, or if not currently having fair access to these things, they are on track to get such -- we find though that history is replete with plenty of cases in which noble governmental words are spoken and written, but in reality when it is all said and done the actual conditions of those societies professing high ideals typically fall far short of achieving what is meant to be achieved, with fairness and justice for all, equally applied.

 Indeed, there are winners and losers in society, of which, those in the most powerful positions of society and governance are the very same that determine the effective rule of law, and to thereby prioritize what will or will not occur or be dealt with per their preference, and whenever there is civil unrest, to utilize effectively the policing arm of the state to keep those that would rebel, in check.

 The upshot of all this is that because so many Western nations are beholden to capitalistic principles, these very principles, in effect, supersede and trump appropriate ethical and fair treatment of all citizens.  Indeed, there is always some enclave of citizens who are going to be exploited, which is why we find that in the United States that there are millions of people who labor and work hard at their job, but are essentially not provided with a living wage in return.  Thereby signifying that in America, which is the wealthiest nation in the world, the exploitation of its own people is the norm, so that those who control the levers of that power can personally benefit from the application of that exploitation.

 For a certainty, in absence of such exploitation, one would think that the field would thereby get ever more level based upon the principles of the Constitution, but in actuality because those in power, are often fixated on increasing their wealth and power, this means that when they are somehow precluded from exploiting others, that they have a distinct tendency to see those that will not personally benefit them as an annoyance and an obstacle, that thereby must be eliminated, signifying that those particular people need to be neutralized or eradicated.

 For example, the reason why our prisons are filled with essentially ill-educated and impoverished people is mainly because those who wish to exploit them find that they are not conducive to that exploitation, because they won’t permit themselves to be underpaid for dead-end work that will not get them ever any semblance of the American dream, so then these citizens are rounded up and incarcerated because they won’t be obedient to the powers that be.  Additionally, the reason why this governance expends a lot of money on gain-of-function research diseases is because those that have vulnerable immune systems or are very aged are the very people that cost the government a lot of money, without providing any utility in return to corporations or the government, signifying that a ruthless decision is thereby made that to eradicate that which cannot be exploited, is good for business, and thereby good for America.  This means that all those who cannot be exploited are often going to be incarcerated, killed, or expelled, through one means or another, which helps the bottom line of businesses and eases the burden on the government.

When the colonists become independent of their parent nation

America famously declared its independence from Great Britain in 1776, and was ultimately successful in asserting that independence, though they had to fight a successful revolutionary war to obtain such.  This thus signified that those that were previously under the rule of a Monarch, namely King George III, as well as under a parliament that they had no direct representation in, were now a separate, independent, and sovereign nation, which meant that the future success of those colonists, and the benefits thereof, were thereby in the full control of what became the United States of America, signifying that the British Empire would no longer be able to impose its will upon America, of which, because a significant percentage of those colonists hailed from the British empire, meant the permanent loss of what had once been colonists loyal to the British Empire, but were loyal no more.

 Indeed, it is one thing to fight a war of aggression against another nation, and to lose that war, but that isn't the same thing as fighting a war against one's own colonists, and losing that war; because in actuality, the war of the British Empire against its own colonists, should be more appropriately described as a civil war, because each of the parties before that war were an integral part of the same empire, and to lose part of an empire, is entirely different thing than a war made for conquest and for the obtainment of booty, thereby signifying the indignity that the British Empire had to swallow of their erstwhile colonists of the British Empire, somehow being able to defeat that British Empire, and further to declare their independence from such, was seen as something intolerable by the British, especially considering all the previous support provided by the British Empire to help make the colonists successful..

 This is why, we find that those that have an empire, typically keep a very tight grip on those that are in positions of authority within any colony of theirs, so that the empire is not undermined by colonists that are not aligned or loyal to the empire, of which that empire has aided and abetted the colonists in their growth and productivity.  For a certainty, the successful independence of those that were the colonists over their parent country, is something that should never have happened, because to agitate for such independence, is traitorous, subject thereby to the penalties of such, which typically would be death, so that those of the colonists that risked their lives and their wealth, gambled in a serious game, in which, they took on the greatest empire of that day and age, and were victorious.

 The lesson therefore of those that desire to be an empire, is pretty clear and obvious, which is that those who are designated outside of their domestic nation to be in high positions of authority and power on behalf of that empire, need to be carefully monitored by the home office, in which, also the colonists thereof, need to be not only observed but also manipulated as needed, because to do anything less, opens the door to revolution, and revolutions are very bad for business as well as the sustainability of empire building.

The “step-up in basis” should be eliminated

As they say, there are only two things certain in life, death and taxes, of which the apparent point of the “step-up in basis” is to circumvent taxes, indefinitely, which is not only very bad tax policy but unfair to the general public in whole.  Basically, what the “step-up in basis” represents is that for those that have material assets such as represented by equities and bonds, that upon the death of this personage, the inheritor of that asset, will be stepped up to the fair market value of those assets at the date of the death of the deceased.  What this means, therefore, is that no matter how much paper profit the dearly departed has accumulated, which could be in the billions of dollars, the recipient of those assets has no accumulated tax liability because their tax basis has been readjusted to the value of these material assets at death.

 Look, there isn't any doubt that the only conceivable champions of this step-up basis, could only be those that believe that dynastic wealth is something that they deeply desire because either they want to receive such themselves, or they want the capability to pass on that wealth to family members without having that accumulated wealth to be fairly taxed.  Indeed, to permit those that are no longer among the living, to pass on their wealth at a stepped-up basis will only increase wealth inequality, and will undercut not only our progressive tax code, but will undercut the belief that this should be a country that champions meritocracy as compared to being a country that is an enabler of dynastic wealth, to its own ultimate undoing.

 While it is true that nobody happily pays taxes, it has to be said that taxes must be paid, or else there will come that reckoning in which the national debt so incurred cannot be properly serviced and thus the fiscal house of cards collapses. This signifies that the stepped-up basis needs to be seriously amended and thereby to become consistent with what those that are alive are obligated to pay, whenever they sell their assets, and hence upon one's death, taxes should be assessed at a rate consistent with what the selling, or the transfer of those assets, would have represented.

 The bottom line is this nation permits those that live here, the opportunity to earn and to make as much money as they are capable of, subject to taxation as authorized by governmental authorities, which they are obligated to pay to that nation which hosts them, and when those that have accumulated massive assets are no longer in this world, then those assets need to be fairly taxed, for whenever they are not, this makes for a nation in which inheritance trumps labor, which is the type of construct that undermines democracy and enhances plutocracy, in its stead, which is not consistent to what this nation was founded upon or its purpose in being; which is why the stepped-up basis should not only be eliminated, but also why the stepped-up basis policy in fundamentally unamerican.

Towards the New Concorde air service

For whatever reason, people have a tendency to believe that history tells us that civilization gets ever more advanced, generation after generation, but the reality is that isn't true at all.  Instead, a more honest and nuanced view of history would show that in some areas of civilization, there is great progress being made, and in other areas, a disappointing regression.  When it comes to air travel, never have so many traveled through the air than at the present time, but the actual airplanes that take these passengers to their destination of choice have not had a quantum leap in their design for quite a while, but rather seem to rely on incremental improvements, or not even that, for in some significant cases, there is an expressed desire to simply pack in as many people as possible on certain airlines in order to increase revenue. So too, when it comes to the speed of aircraft, the normal cruising speed of such, is about 515 mph, which perhaps sounds impressive, but the fact that we had an airline, the Concorde, that began its service in 1976, with a normal cruising speed of 1350 mph, would seem to imply that there is room for major improvement when it comes to airline speed, especially for transnational travel, that seems to have been effectively ignored.  After all, despite whatever bells and whistles a given airplane might now have, most people aren't all that comfortable on an airplane, especially when that flight is of long duration, so it would seem that there would be a ready market for an airline service that was significantly faster than anyone else, but that does not currently exist, presently.

 While there are a lot of reasons why the Concorde airline went out of business, that isn't germane to why something akin to the Concorde could not thereby be rethought and redeveloped, because there would seem to be plenty of business people as well as serious travelers with money on their hands that would desire to get to their destination significantly faster and would be willing to pay a premium for such, but this option doesn't even exist.

 Indeed, as it has been said, “build it and they will come,” but the fact of the matter is that no current airline company appears willing to build such, though they should probably take a serious look at doing so.  After all, to believe that those that engineer airplanes aren't any sharper or aren't able to take advantage of today's computers and materials to build an airplane that is faster, smoother, and at a reasonable cost, seems to say that we are regressing and not progressing, because the bottom line is that when people discuss their vacation or their international business meeting they typically get right to the heart of the matter, which is what they did and accomplished when they were at their point of interest, which signifies that airlines represent a means to an end, which should thereby take into serious account the amount of time spent in that air travel and what these airlines could do to reduce such.

So you think you know what you look like

We live in an age of mirrors, which is a very handy device, used routinely by virtually everyone to check out how they look from just about every conceivable angle and typically used as an aid to put on makeup, shave, comb, and just about anything in which the person so viewing desires to see how they look.  However, what a lot of people don't consciously pay attention to is that what we are seeing in the mirror is a reflection of how we appear. That is to say, the image that is in front of us truly reflects essentially a reverse image flipped from right to left, which is not what we really look like.  In other words, what we are looking at in a mirror is a reflection of our person, which means that it does not represent a true view of us.  We know this by simply taking any object with printed text on it and having it face the mirror, in which that text is now reversed, and therefore, unreadable.  This is thus the image that we see of ourselves in front of a mirror, which is a reverse image of who and what we are, which is not the same image that people see of us –signifying that we do not ever see ourselves as we really are, whenever we look at our reflection in the mirror.

 No doubt, we are so used to viewing ourselves with a mirror that the fact that this is a reflection doesn't really bother us, especially since anything that we need to do when in front of the mirror, we are absolutely competent to accomplish.  Yet, it has to be said, that to live a life in which we never once see ourselves as others see us, seems to be something that many a person might well want to rectify, and truth be told, this can be done, utilizing two right-angle mirrors which are joined together and thus purposely designed to do exactly that.  This means that rather than the photos that we have which catches us in a moment in time, as we actually do look to the other, we now have the capacity when using these right-angle mirrors to see our image as it is, in real time, which thus provides us with our look, as we actually are, as viewed by other people.

 Indeed, it has to be taken into serious consideration that because we naturally view everyone that we see as they really are, that logically we should want to view ourselves in the same way, because this would make that perspective to be consistent to how we actually look to other people. While it is true that we do not have the capability to step outside our body so as to view ourselves from a true 3-D perspective, it just seems reasonable for people that care about their presentation to have the ready option to see how they look as they are perceived by others, rather than to rely consistently on a reflection of themselves which other people do not ever perceive.

Too young to understand college debt but old enough to attend college

There are myriad things that this nation doesn't do a good enough job in explaining well to High School students, in which, one of those seminal important items to comprehend for students is that incurring a large amount of collegiate debt, should probably be best avoided or strategically circumvented best done through the utilization of various strategies.  That is to say, in attending a four-year college, we find that for many students they could incur well over $100,000 in debt during their time there, for the expense of tuition, fees, and student housing, in which, there also isn't any guarantee that they will subsequently graduate with a degree or even find gainful employment with their degree in a job that is consistent with their major.  In other words, very young adults are signing up to pay an incredibly large amount of money, at an impressionable young age, of which, this in its effect upon them, may not be beneficial for them, or for society, whatsoever.

  This would seem to imply that besides all the education being taught and learned upon subjects of import in High Schools throughout America, that there needs to be for a certainty, courses that directly address college tuition and thereby the importance of trying to mitigate those costs through scholarships and grants, with a thorough examination of the tuition costs of various pertinent four-year universities, to thereby come up with a plan of action that will be suited for a particular student.

 No doubt, those that are only Juniors in High School, may not really know what they desire to study or to be, which is why, it is vital that the better part of valor, is to provide these students with different collegiate avenues that they could pursue, and the need for them to peruse with talented administrators within their High School to determine what seems to be the most sensible pathway for them.  Further to the point, for those who are trying to earn a scholastic scholarship, there needs to be an unequivocal understanding of what needs to be achieved to get a specific scholarship, so these students have a clear and obvious target to concentrate upon.

 Importantly, the comparison of colleges that are being considered, should take into full account the anticipated cost of attending that college, brought to the attention of students through spreadsheets that not only show the estimated cost of a particular college and the comparisons of such, but also breaks out how much that tuition will cost that student to pay back and the amount of time so needed to pay that student loan back, and why this needs to be a very important consideration in the selection of a favored college institution, because in the scheme of things, money matters, and those that don't pay attention to the collegiate financial debt that they are legally obligated to, are the very same that may well live to regret not having taken that time, when it was there to be taken.

 When it comes to colleges, the allure of such, may well overcome being sensible about the financial aspect, which could easily lead to regret, for in this nation, substantial debt to attend a good college, seems to be something that this governance doesn't mind burdening its young students with, which means those that are well prepared will do far better than those that are essentially clueless or credulous.

“Pay attention to what they tell you to forget”

The poet Muriel Rukeyser tells us that we need to “Pay attention to what they tell you to forget.” These are very wise words that far more people need to ponder upon, for that which we are told to forget may indeed be that which we need to remember instead.  Look, it has to be said, that we find that not only do many leaders of society, desire compliance to their expectations from the public, but also the governance of that society typically has a strong tendency to want the population to conform to the expectations of that time as directed by that governance, of which, part of getting that conformance, is to bend or change the narrative to reflect that rather than to believe in our own thoughts and to remember the past of what we have seen with our very eyes, we should, instead, push that aside, and remember what our supposed superiors claim we need to remember in the way that they desire that we remember it as being, and thereby forget what they believe we should not retain in our memory, and for a certainty, to not disseminate such previous orthodoxies to others.

 Indeed, part of manipulating anybody is to make them to doubt the validity of what they believe as being pertinent or correct, and to replace such with a different construct,  which replaces our memory with something else, to thus change fundamentally what we previously knew to be true, to that which is, often at best, a distortion of the truth, or an outright fabrication.  The objective by those that are in authority is to change history to favor their dishonest or distorted version, and to make all other versions not only to be irrelevant, but seem to be for those that will not relinquish such beliefs or memories, to make those people to be, in essence, in need of reform or viewed as an enemy of the state.

 The people who remember the past as it was are the same who keep those who would desire to erase or distort that past, honest.  This signifies that each of us has a sacred duty to remember the past, not only to keep those that would change it, in check, but also as our way to demonstrate tribute to those that were part of that past but are no longer in this world, as our obligation and duty to do right by those that were part of our upbringing, as in mentors, family, and friends.  We, are collectively, the guardians of the past,  of which previous events of import, good and bad, are meant to be remembered, not only for any inspiration and wisdom that may have be imparted or learned, but also as a way and means to keep those that have unkept promises to correct or to acknowledge those previous misdeeds, so as to hold them to their word, for those that will not remember their needful history, are the very ones that must relive the same mistakes of the past, until they are rectified, and in doing this, they will not forget.

It is evil that brings sorrow

The regret and sorrow that so many people feel from time-to-time typically has everything to do with the actions that they have done to others, which in its effect, are readily categorized as evil, because it has either hurt the other, or taken advantage of the other or are clearly bad acts that are not becoming of someone of good character. In other words, as much as we might temporarily delight in our bad actions which may have produced for us, at the moment, something that we desired or wished for, the end result after further reflection, or from the aftereffects of such, is ultimately going to be sorrow for having done it, for given into an action that we should have had the integrity of character to not perform.

Whenever we are provided with the opportunity to perform good actions, but instead revert to performing actions which we pretty much know are evil because there are entirely self-serving or morally wrong, but insist that we have to do this, there is going to be for a certainty, a reckoning, and that reckoning, will bring consequences. That is to say, to believe somehow that the doing of that which is wrong will not ultimately be reflected in how we are viewed and how we are judged is the type of fundamental mistake that brings sorrow.

The things that we regret most are always going to be those things that we should have done, or could have done, but did not do, and because we did not do what we were meant to do, we feel disappointment for doing wrong. This signifies that those who play the short term, enjoying their sins at the expense of being virtuous for the long term, are going to find that this choice, freely made, has exacted a price, and that price will be paid, sooner or later.

The best way to overcome evil is always going to be to do good, of which, each decision that we make day-by-day reflects whether or not we are progressing to the only brightly lit destination that matters, in which there will be no regret, or whether we are stepping ever further into darkness, in which our successful escape will require a renewed effort to make good by doing right.

So then, the sorrow and regret that we experience in our being, is only going to be overcome by our proactive actions done for the betterment of the society that we are a member of, which will mitigate what has occurred, to be replaced by good deeds, done for the right reasons, to overcome evil with that good. That which is evil is the opposite of that which we were meant to express in our actions, and because we have done the wrong thing, we are unable to rise to the level so necessary to have peace of mind and peace of our being, signifying that the sorrow that we wish to be relieved of, requires our concentrated effort and discipline to stay on the straight and narrow path and not to deviate in our sacred mission to not only do the right thing but to be the right thing, as well.

Those that toil and those that appear not to toil

For those that work outside with their hands and tools, laboring on this and that, the work that they are accomplishing is pretty much clear and obvious to anyone that is paying attention to them; but we do so find, that the prevalence of what has been designated as blue-collar work by humans is domestically in steep decline, superseded by many a person that utilizes different tools such as a computer, their intelligence, and their knowhow, -- all done typically in a white-collar office environment to accomplish that particular labor. The difference between the two is also the difference between the visibility that the general public sees through the accomplishments of blue-collar work, such as roads, utilities, and goods distribution; whereas, for white-collar work, the general public knows that they are doing something to get paid, but typically don’t know what that works involves or accomplishes.

So too, there seems to be a rather stark difference between those who labor hard in the blue-collar force and what accouterments and material assets that they eventually accumulate, as compared to hi-end white-collar workers, who have numerous examples of those who have a multitude of accouterments and material assets through the work that they do. This leads to not so much an envy issue between one to the other, but more of a fairness issue, in which, vital blue-collar workers don’t seem to appreciate that certain white-collar workers seemingly don’t produce much of anything, but rather they seem to be adept at working the financial angles to make money, or are middlemen that do whatever that they do, or add whatever value that they add, while extracting profit from doing so, in which, the bottom line is that it seems that some of the most financially successful people in America, don’t actually produce or create anything of merit, but instead extract profit and money through their cleverness or adroitness, fair or foul.

It would seem that one way for a nation to bring more fairness to the people, if it was to prioritize such, would be to place those that labor with their hands in a lower tax bracket than those that are either passive investors, such as in stocks or other equities, as well as subjecting those that are able to exploit inefficiencies in various financial markets throughout the world to be in a higher tax bracket, for making their living upon that. In other words, the compensation that people get should reflect how and where that money is made, and those that are producing things that are of utility in one form or another should see their businesses and labor taxed at a lower rate, as compared to those sophisticated entities and people that don’t produce anything, but are skilled at exploiting vulnerabilities that permit them to profit, through the inefficiencies or lack of sophistication that other people and entities are vulnerable to.

Indeed, the fact that hedge fund managers can “earn” billions in one fiscal year should be a clarion call that not all is right, because the money that they have made comes at the expense of someone or some entity which is in the bigger picture, always going to be, unfair, unless dealt with forthrightly by government so as to help level the playing field, through a higher tax rate on them.

Our challenges are our opportunity to grow

There are far too many people who seemingly want the easy life, in which everything goes their way and therefore they never have any pressing or stressful problems to deal with at all. While this might seem like a sort of paradise to have, it is, first of all, not typically going to ever be the actual case in the real world, and further to the point, this scenario won’t encourage us to call upon ourselves to exert or to accomplish what we should be devoting our conscious efforts to, so that we can thereby become a better person.

The reason why our life typically presents important challenges to us, expected or unexpected, welcomed or unwelcomed, is to give us the opportunity to deal with what we have to deal with, in which, the object of the exercise isn’t so much to immediately conquer what lies in front of us, for we may not yet have the maturity or the tools to do so, but rather as an abiding objective that we are meant to eventually overcome, with the sure knowledge that by doing so, we make ourselves to be that person who has positively grown through this experience.

Indeed, those that may have at one time been way ahead of us in development, insight, and accomplishments, will if they insist upon resting on their laurels or simply just resting, be the type of people that will be surpassed by those that keep on pushing on, where such pushing is warranted, for the race that each of us has to run, is not a race that is over and done with, at a very young age, but continues throughout our life, with the understanding that the more that we apply ourselves to needful things, the closer we will get to the destination that we are meant to be at.

We are challenged, not to break us, but rather as our fair opportunity to unlock the potential that each of us has, but may not intuitively recognize. So too, the mistakes that we make are there for us to learn from, so that, given the same sorts of circumstances again, we can subsequently overcome what previously stymied us. We must, as a given, take what we have been blessed with, and utilize those skills as well as others that we have developed to make the sort of progress which helps to not only improve our character, but also helps make society a better place for our good participation in it.

In this world, we will be tested, and those who refuse to take the test are the very same who will not grow, for they are wont to simply exist, as compared to understanding the importance of being focused upon growth, because without a plan, without effort, and without determination, it isn’t possible to break through to the level that we need to be at, because valued awards are not just handed out willy-nilly, but they are earned, through the blood, sweat, and tears of those that will not give up until they have fairly earned the prize that they have fairly won through their concentrated exertions.

The baby boomers' favorite cheating site is Facebook

There are those who live in the past, and wish that they could change the past, or simply dwell upon the past, and then there are those who have advanced beyond such thoughts, and recognized the past as being past.  For all those who went to school and still occasionally think about this or that schoolmate from a true friend perspective, it has to be said that  Facebook or Google search are legitimate places to search for these former acquaintances or friends in order to reconnect.  However, when that search really isn’t about renewing an old friendship but is more along the lines of desiring to connect with someone for secretive extracurricular activities, and the person so searching or the person being searched for, already has an established relationship with someone else, this is surely wrong, and to the degree that Facebook enables this to occur, quite unfortunate.

 The thing about Facebook is that many a person with an account, has “friends” that first of all aren’t really friends, and further to the point aren’t really friends of friends, either; but Facebook permits just about anyone to search for just about anyone through a “friend request” or suggests to the user somebody who may or may not be a legitimate friend for them, based on some commonality, perceived or otherwise.  While this might be considered to be a great feature, because it permits people to reconnect, or to perhaps actually become friends, or provides a person with the semblance of a friend; it also has its inherent dangers, of which, the biggest danger is the one in which, those that want to cheat, and figured in their mind that their chances are better with someone that they at least used to know through school, or work, now have a clear pathway to do so.  In other words, Facebook enables people who would not ever get together to get together, and thereby to upset established personal relationships -- though truth be told, in fairness, it could be said that Facebook also helps to connect people who could be friends to be platonic friends.

 The problem with the Facebook app is that most relationships are going to have their ups and downs, of which, when somebody is down for whatever reason, they might get tempted to do or try things. We find that for baby boomers, once the kids are out of the house, and they are pretty much retired, it could be that the basic feeling for some of those people is that their life has become so routine and thereby predictable, that they are looking for a spark or something to rekindle their emotions, and of which, Facebook essentially permits people that have an itch to scratch that itch.

So too, there are those people that begin something with some seemingly harmless flirtation, only to find that it becomes something far beyond such flirtation, and to the degree this happens, represents the betrayal of one’s relationship with one’s significant other, which can easily become the prevailing reason for the fall of a relationship that has stood the test of time, basically because Facebook has created a viable pathway that can be utilized quite adeptly to do this very thing, wittingly or not.

Sagging pants that lack belts

There are things in life that don’t seem to make any logical sense, such as the youthful males who prefer to wear their pants too big for them without a belt, causing the pants to sag below their buttocks and expose their underwear. It is understood that this behavior, first originated via our prison system, in which many of these incarceration facilities do not permit inmates to wear a belt, for the danger that belt might bring to their own self or to someone else – in addition to the salient fact that the sizes of the pants being worn in prison, are somewhat limited, so that, as a matter of course, there were going to be prisoners that had pants that would have a tendency to sag, which they thereupon wore as a badge of honor.

Not too surprisingly, certain youthful males in conventional society, decided that they would embrace that look as their way of saying to the society that they don’t feel cares correctly for them nor provides them with an abundance of good opportunities or fairness, that this is their way of expressing their disdain for those that consider themselves to be their betters, or who seemingly know better.

The problem, though, with taking the sagging pants to its limit, so that every time that a person steps out, they have to step out with sagging pants, is that there are very valid reasons why a belt should be used, at least, occasionally. For instance, those that are walking to the local convenience store or a friend’s house, and have one hand on a cell phone and another grasping their soda, they are going to have to free up one of their hands, in order to keep their pants up, because once pants sag below one’s buttocks, it is very easy for those pants to sag all the way down to one’s ankles, which is a very bad look and might well be considered to be indecent exposure. The other reason someone should consider using a belt is that whenever the distance to be traveled is more than a few blocks, it becomes tiresome and looks awkward to have to keep one hand on one’s pants to hold them up, when a belt has been designed to do just that.

So too, those that are prone to trouble or susceptible to trouble being around them, should probably recognize that running with your pants sagging down is not going to be every efficient, and thereby those that aren’t able to run well when running is called for, are the very same, that are going to be more vulnerable to a bad act happening to them, mainly because they aren’t wearing their clothes properly. So then, it is one thing to present oneself in a certain manner, and to pose that way, and it’s an entirely different thing to in all situations, keep those pants sagging, when the better part of valor would be to make needful changes where those changes need to be made, especially in consideration that older family members would probably appreciate less disdain, and more respect from the younger generation.

It is vital to present your best self to others

In a country like America, many people live here who come from diverse backgrounds, indicating that we, as a nation, have a multitude of creeds and ethnicities within our borders. Not too surprisingly, many a person is prone to making judgments of another, based on their surface characteristics, such as an accent, or the color of the skin, or their faith, and of which some of these snap judgments are going to be positive and some are going to be negative. For those then that are not receiving the benefit of the doubt and thereby are being judged negatively based on those surface characteristics, this can be really frustrating for them, because they believe, rightly, that they should be judged by the content of their character, and not, for instance, by their skin color or their faith. This is why it is wrong for certain segments of any population, to be adjudged to all be bad people, primarily because there are notable examples within that segment of the population, that have those same surface conditions that have performed bad acts, as if somehow, just because somebody has the same faith as ourselves, or the same skin color, that all others that are similar are therefore suspect, as well.

This would seem to suggest that those that are unfavored, for whatever reason, have a notable interest in thereby doing what they can to try to change the narrative to a more positive image as well as to conduct their lives in a way and manner that they are considered to be upstanding citizens, because by doing so, they help to turn the tide to a more favorable opinion of the conclave that they are considered to be a part of. Indeed, opinions are subject to change, and one of the ways those opinions do change is for those that are held in low regard to prove by their actions and by their achievements that they are not the negative attributes that are being accorded to them, best demonstrated by performing good deeds consistently.

So too, this signifies that those as a class that are suffering from undue prejudice, should have an abiding interest to impress upon those that are similar to them in those surface characteristics, that as a group, they need to do more to demonstrate and to prove that how they have been painted, is not consistent with who and what they really are, best demonstrated by not only impressive achievements from some, but also an acceptable baseline by all which demonstrates that they are vital and good members of society. After all, whenever we are judged as a people through our surface characteristics, of which, the default view by the general society is negative, we have to realize that this judgment is subject to being in a state of flux, in which those that are held in low respect are subsequently replaced by others of low regard, and those then, that make it their point to understand that as many of their kind that can get on board, to better themselves, will help to change the opinion of others, which will not only be better for one’s self, but also better for those that have been labeled as being the undesirable sort.

Behind closed doors

Doors are part and parcel of this modern age, meant to provide us not only with privacy, where such privacy is warranted, but also to segregate us from curiosity seekers and also the outside world, so that we are not living our lives in the full view of the public at all times, but instead this permits ourselves to be about our personal business and our lives without undue interference or observation from those that should not be permitted or don’t have our expressed authorization to have such a view.

 Yet, because of social media, our cell phones, as well as other sophisticated devices that know our whereabouts at all times, and can listen to not only our commands, but also can simply listen in without us knowing that we are being monitored, signifies that what we do behind closed doors has for a certainty, been compromised.  This means, especially for those that are the uninitiated or are not that sophisticated, that never has so much actionable information about us is now essentially being disseminated to agents and entities both known and unknown, of which, such information is so extensive that what we believe is private or should be private about our personal business, is actually also held in the hands of those that may not only not have our best interests in mind, but regrettably this also has been transferred or sold to other agencies that provides them with the opportunity to take advantage of us, or even to compromise us.

 To believe that in this day and age a closed door, means that nobody other than those that are with us behind that close door, knows our most personal business, should no longer be the default view, because so much of what we do is being recorded and stored, by the very instruments that we utilize each and every day, of which, because this is the case, permits those that have access to that information, to know details about us, that permits them to know us intimately, along therefore with often knowing our foibles and most prominent failures, as well.

 To no longer have the safety and security that a closed door represents makes us to be vulnerable to those who desire to use this information in a way and manner that could easily hurt us or compromise us, and since information is power, the fact that we do not control that information being dispersed about us, makes us vulnerable to those that have that information, as well as placing us in the unenviable situation in which those that have such information about us, have the capability of using adverse information against us, whenever it suits their interests, and thereby ultimately to our lasting regret.

 Indeed, there was a time when a closed door represented our way of dividing ourselves from the world, in order to have private time with our friends, family, and thoughts.  Nowadays, while we may still have the physical closed door, we have inadvertently or advertently let in that which monitors us to such a degree that our life is now an open book, for better or for much, much worse.