The misallocation of billions upon the defense budget

For fiscal year 2022, the overall national defense budget for America weighs in at an astonishing $752 billion.  This is in an era in which the United States has no Congressional declared war, and of which, there isn’t a single nation, or consortium of nations that are even contemplating, let alone actively pursuing, some sort of organized military attack upon the United States of America. The United States spends an inordinate amount of time, insisting that this nation needs to be defended at all costs, from all enemies, foreign and domestic, in which, there is in actuality, no nation intent upon bringing war upon America, and there isn’t any good reason to believe that this will change anytime soon; for in truth, America is about as safe from foreign military attacks as any country of its size can actually be.  The fact of the matter is that sensibility demands that the defense budget should be slashed considerably and those monies so saved would therefore be of more value being spent on necessary infrastructure as well as on a more robust safety net for those that are disadvantaged, neglected, and destitute.

Nothing that is ever built, whether that be for the military or for a given company, is going to last through the vagaries and sands of time, forever.  That is to say, military equipment so being manufactured, has not only a finite shelf life, as well as also necessitating constant maintenance, upkeep and training; but in today’s hi-technology world, fighter jets, aircraft carriers, missiles, and the like, are subject to becoming outdated within a relatively short amount of time.  This thus signifies that billion upon billions of dollars are being spent on armaments and military equipment, that not only weren’t necessary to begin with, but have no significant meaningful purpose or worth, after a decade or two.

Additionally, there is the major issue that those that are part of the military-industrial-technology complex, can’t go in to the government with a straight face to ask for more money, and more armaments, unless they are able to build some sort of case, dubious or not, of why they need even more money, more equipment, and just plain more.  Further to the point, those in the military aren’t real interested in just sitting on their hands all day, but rather they prefer to be involved in foreign affairs and disputes, of one sort or another, in order to somewhat justify all the billions so being spent on these armaments.

So then, when billions are being spent on the military-industrial-technology complex, there is for those so involved in such, as well as the actuators of this, an imperative to find areas of the world that necessitate the intervention of American muscle, as well as the need to constantly sell the narrative to the American people, that there are all sorts of “bad” actors that have it in for America, because these bad people are jealous-hearted and hateful.  This is, in reality, a whole lot of hooey, of which the biggest losers of all these billions being spent exclusively on the military, are the peoples of America, who are, in effect, cheated out of a decent life, or even hope, in this the richest nation ever known in the world.

We are meant to be at one with God

Life in this world isn’t nearly as complicated or as unfair as some people like to believe.  Further, life for a certainty is never without purpose; for our very existence has purpose, and always will have. Those then that do not take the time to examine their own life, or care not to, are always going to therefore find it problematic to achieve the things that are most meaningful to accomplish in life. Of course, just because a given person understands what life is really all about doesn’t mean that they will necessarily be able to stay on the straight and narrow pathway that they need to be on; for life is often full of detours, misdirection, and one’s free will inconveniently asserting itself in inappropriate ways, that thereby signifies that there are obstacles to overcome for just about everyone.

The reason that life really isn’t all that complicated is the salient fact that we are never living right, whenever we are out of harmony with the good attributes of God.  That is to say, God represents in so many ways, patience, empathy, justice, love, forgiveness, and knowledge – of which, to the degree that we can conduct ourselves in a way that does justice to each one of us being an actual child of God, the better the result is going to be for our self, as well as for others.

Those, on the other hand, that get out of lockstep with God, perhaps because they desire strongly to assert their ego, their dominance, and their way, and thereby to impress their will upon others, may for a time, derive some sort of satisfaction from such; but in the end, they will inevitably burn out and have little to show for themselves, except some experience, some regrets, and not much more.  Yet, fear not, for God does not ever give up on any soul, ever.  Sure, in this world, things may appear hopeless for some, but some basic scrutiny of how this world operates, will typically clue people in, that life is actually cyclical, for it has its seasons; so that those that are out-of-step in where they need to be at the present time, can try, and try again, until they do succeed.

The greatest music in the world, is that of a symphony, in which each instrument has its necessary purpose, place and time, and the conductor of such, makes sure that the sound so produced, is in synchronicity as well as being in perfect harmony.  Each of us is different, for the very reason, that each of us has a different role to play; for our collective role is that together, we can be in harmony to therefore create that masterpiece symphony for that which first created us.  That is why this world consists of millions upon millions of people, because the task at hand, is for each of us to do our part, so that collectively we will become that which we were meant to be; a collective harmonic symphony and therefore at one with God.

When we dehumanize others, we dehumanize our own selves

There are plenty of people that in times of conflict, strife, anger, dismay, or when they are enthralled to their own ego, end up actually belittling themselves by seeing others as something “less than.”  Once, we begin down that slippery slope, that we are the superior and the other is the inferior, then everything evil that we could possibly conceive of, becomes all that much easier to do.  So then, whenever we dehumanize another, labeling them as something that makes them the equivalency of vermin, or subhuman in some way, our capacity for abusing them, rises to unspeakable levels.  On the other hand, those that validate others, even those that they have had vociferous disagreements with, by recognizing that those others are also free agents, as well, and are thereby entitled to their own opinions and proclivities, we are staying true to that which we are, in essence; for each of us is part of the same human race, and it is our foremost duty to uphold that, especially when we are tempted to invalidate such.

Everything that we do and say, reflects upon us, good or bad.  So therefore, it is not possible to be a “devil” in one aspect of our life, without that adversely affecting the whole of our character.  This thus signifies that whenever we dehumanize another, whether big or small, we have by that very action, dehumanize a part of our own self, because how we actually interact with other human beings, is a true reflection of who and what we are about. So then, all those that have some reasonable semblance of a good conscience, know when they have done something that is unbecoming of how we should interrelate one with another, and knowing this, they not only make amends for such, but also make it their point to be more diligent as well as considerate about their behavior, in the future.  Then there are those others, who are fairly rational, almost all of the time, of which, there are those instances, perhaps when they have been denied something that they really wanted, in which their temper gets the better of them, and they therefore strike out against another, in a manner, in which, they dehumanize the other, mercilessly; yet, somehow, they aren’t able to recognize that their bad demeanor, demonstrates clearly their own personal inhumanity.

There are all sorts of reasons to hate or to despise a particular person, but more than likely none of these reasons, when we care to take the proper time to reflect and fairly ponder upon such, is actually legitimate.  Further to the point, somebody sensible needs to keep their head, when everybody else about them, appears to be losing theirs, for civilizations both rise and fall; and those civilizations that rise, do so only because there are enough sensible people that treat each other with justice, respect, and love, that thereby helps to keep things going on a steady course; and when civilizations fall, it’s primarily the destructive tendencies of humankind, which finds a way to dehumanize one another, so as to do terrible things to them, and then justify such, which, in the end, does not ever work out.

Today’s corporations and the mistake of perpetuity

Public corporations in America, are corporations, artificially created by state apparatus, that are considered to be perpetual entities.  Most people, don’t seem all that concerned about this, but recognize that Apple, as of December of 2021, has a market capitalization of over $2.8 trillion, and has cash on hand of over $200 billion.  Those numbers in and of themselves, are absolutely staggering, and though corporations are made up of human managers, executives, and workers; each of those human elements is replaceable, and given enough time each of these humans will be replaced by another; and having been replaced, we find that the corporation itself, will still remain in operation, in perpetuity, because unlike human beings, the corporation is essentially immortal.

While there probably are lots of great and sound reasons, why corporations should and need to be perpetual, there are, as might be imagined, many great and sound reasons, why corporations should not be perpetual. The problem with perpetuity when it comes to a for-profit corporation, is that the stock market is a very unforgiving place; for those that invest in equities, primarily want their investment, to make them money; and that typically means that the underlying corporation so owned, needs to both grow its business, as well as to grow its profits, year in and year out. This thus signifies that as large as a company might grow in regards to sales, profits, and market capitalization, the investors of that stock, need this to keep on growing; and because the highly paid executives at these corporations are well aware of this, there is going to be more than a strong tendency to do whatever it so takes in order to increase that company’s sales, profits, and market capitalization, forever.

As multi-national corporations get ever bigger, their sheer size, gives them an incredible amount of undue influence upon public policy; and further to the point, those with a lot at stake, aren’t going to go down quietly when they don’t get their way.  Rather, they are going to stay focused upon doing what they need to do in order to keep as well as to extend their power, thereby essentially necessitating that they will in one way or another, co-opt or corrupt government, or the government will have to co-opt or dismantle them.

What good governance so represents as well as its inherent duties to the general welfare of the people, is not the same directive as a corporation which is primarily driven by profit, above all.  These two entities, then, while having some objectives in common, are also going to be at odds one with another, and even rivals in some respects.  When that government, of, for, and by the people, somehow, idly sits by, permitting these mega-corporations to get ever more powerful and ever bigger, each and every year, thereby reaping more and more money from the pockets of those that conduct business with them, then it seems that, in effect, this isn’t a government of, for, and by the people, at all; but rather there is a shadow government, run primarily by these mega-corporations and their enablers of such, that are running the show, caring not a whit whether what they do or don’t do is good for the whole of the nation,  but rather just concentrating on the only thing that really matters, which is getting that money.

For the love of money: Lynching and internment

There are many of the favored race in America, that can’t stand losing, and don’t like to play fair.  So then, when some other race, considered to be inferior to that favored race, is somehow able to outproduce them, make more money than them, own more land than them, or own a better business than them, some of those of that favored race, are going to take exception to such, and thereby are only too willing to take the law into their own hands.

The narrative that America likes to propagate, is that the blacks so lynched, were lynched primarily because they were accused of having ravished white women, or something very similar to that; on the other hand, in regards to the Japanese that were interned at the beginning of World War II, these Japanese families, found themselves, based solely upon their race and nothing more, being rounded up by governmental forces and thereby forcefully removed from their own homes and businesses, in order to be relocated into distant internment camps, against their will, because they were seen as being a clear and present danger to national security, even though, they were American citizens.  The full truth in regards to these matters is far more nuanced and far more complicated than most will admit to; of which, in reality, a meaningful amount of those so lynched, as well as the more compelling reason of why Japanese were interned, really comes down to money, and the lust for ill-gotten gain by the favored race.

Those that are minorities, have it hard enough trying to get ahead in this country, but even when they have every disadvantage thrown at them, there are still going to be some of them that are able to rise above their given circumstances to actually become successful, primarily through their dedicated hard work and strong efforts.  To see this, happen then, for some of those of the favored race, is going to be a distinctly “hard pill to swallow,” because those of that favored race that have not been successful, and that therefore resent the success of that which they believe is inferior to them, is going to be considered by them, as unacceptable.  Further to the point, when there are a significant number of those of the favored race that feel the same way about this, or can be riled up to believe such, the end result is surely going to be some sort of injustice, which is exactly what lynching and internment so represents.

There are lots of people, that just want the money, or the position, or the power, simply because they believe that they have an implicit right to it; and when they find that their desire for what they believe that they are born to have, is in the hands of an unfavored party, then they are going to do whatever needs to be done to rectify the situation to their favor; for their numbers, their weapons, and the justice, so of, is pretty much all on their side, or if not, will be, with some heated persuasion.

As they say, when in doubt, “follow the money,” and by doing so, one will find, far more often than expected, that behind all the hue and cry about keeping this person in their place, or similar; is that, in the end, it’s really about the money, and always was.

America exported $175 billion in arms exports in 2020

As reported by state.gov, America exported $175 billion in armaments in 2020, of which, as reported by bbc.com, “The US has increased its global share of arms exports to 37%.”  Since, America, consistently runs a national trade deficit, it is somewhat comforting to know that at least in arms sales, it more than holds its own.  Then again, it could be strongly argued, that armaments are probably not the type of sales, that America needs or should be leading the category of; for arm sales, in reality, are destructive of both infrastructure as well as of human life, in which there most definitively is a strong correlation between arm purchases, civil unrest, and wars.  Further to the point, monies spent on armaments, are by definition, money that could have been spent on education, infrastructure, housing, food, and the like.  In fact, many oppressive countries like to purchase armaments of all types, because those that have arms, often are able to use such against their own people, if necessary, in order to maintain their power.

On the other hand, the exportation of food, healthcare, medicine, general machinery, vehicles, and the like, commonly serve the good purpose of helping in the aid of the importing country and its people.  Additionally, since America desires so strongly to represent itself as a vibrant democracy, of freedom and opportunity, as well as fairness and justice, one would have a tendency to believe that America would like to represent itself on the world stage as that which believes that the power of good deeds and right actions, should take precedence over the power of violence and conquest; but based upon its own arms exports, this doesn’t seem to be the actual case.

Those that wonder why there is so much warring, civil unrest, and overall violence in this world, should recognize that much of today’s modern weaponry arsenal, have made it abundantly easier for that party which controls such, to use that weaponry in a way that can be extremely destructive and chillingly effective, against those that would stand in their way, whether that be within one’s borders or across one’s borders.  Quite unfortunately, the killing machines of today, don’t necessarily need a lot of manpower, but rather they just need to be directed to where they are perceived to be best deployed, and the results thereof are often devastatingly effective.

Those that would applaud the killing of the enemy, as defined by that who did the killing, or the destruction of infrastructure, as reasoned by the destroyer of such; are living in a construct which believes that might is right, or if not, they don’t really care.To believe, that those that receive armaments are going to somehow always be responsible with them, is a non-starter for the United States, because no matter what words or reasoning is so used, the reality is that America cares for nothing other than the sales so made, and the money so received.That is, as long as profits are satisfactory, and the trade is legal, all is to the good; however, for those that believe that the arc of the universe bends towards justice, there will surely be a heavy price to pay.

The government overwhelmingly favors big corporations

The American dream consists of the opportunity to become something of substance, based on one’s merit, drive, determination, persistence, and desire.  It is hard to picture anything that fits the epitome of the American dream, more than those that are able to through their strong efforts and good planning, become self-sufficient and successful, without having had to cheat or to deceive their fellow citizens or government.  In other words, they have played by the rules, fair and square, and have accomplished meaningful things, which have been of benefit both for them, as well as for others.

Yet, hard-working individuals as well as many of its smaller enterprises, within America, seem to be treated as the “red-headed stepchild”; with no one of real power bothering to champion their cause.  Rather, the preference for the government, at the highest levels, is clearly one in which the tax benefits, the zoning laws, wages, union activity, access to credit, and overall favoritism is specifically directed to the biggest and most profitable corporations, above all.  Clearly, that isn’t fair, but the reality is that firstly, many of those that work in government, are conflicted, at best; and some are outright corrupt.  That type of construct, thereby, is very beneficial for big corporations and ripe for exploitation, for these mega-corporations often have a lot of money, or if not, good access to such; along with their propensity to make grandiose promises about increased employment positions if they get this or that from the government.  Secondly, we find far too often, that when it comes to governmental employees, at some of the highest levels, that truly the “fox is guarding the henhouse;” for large corporations, know that there isn’t much that could conceivably be more effective, then having one of theirs, leave private enterprise, only to put on their governmental rules and regulations hat, or procurement hat, which pretty much “games” the system for their benefit.

So too, politicians have a limited amount of time available to deal with their constituents, so that it therefore makes logical sense that those politicians have a much stronger desire to deal with the biggest of the biggest players because the quid pro quo, that invariably occurs, in these types of negotiations, is often going to work out a lot better for those governmental representatives as well as those corporations; as opposed to ignoring the biggest and most powerful players around and instead prioritizing “mom and pop” enterprises.  Additionally, it’s a lot easier for the government and its representatives to have a limited number of focal points that need to be addressed, rather than all sorts of small enterprises, each having their own particular agenda, that needs attending to.  Therefore, for the government, it not only believes that bigger is better; but they also make sure that their policies reflect that belief, in all relevant aspects with those big businesses.

So then, in short, it’s not a fair fight.  The big guy has every single advantage in their favor; from the laws set to satisfy their needs, as well as procurement contracts so written in a manner that these contracts can only be won by a particular favored big business, to tax write-offs, including both income as well as property tax abatement, to all sorts of leverage and influence upon governmental officials and legislature, so that clearly then, big business and government, go hand-in-glove.  This then is the primary reason why the wealth of the nation gets ever more unequal, because the general public has a government, that plays favorites, thereby advantaging the elites at the expense of that general public.

The State Constitutions became the basis for the United States Constitution

In 1775, there were no State Constitutions in America, whatsoever.  At that time and place, each of what ended up becoming a State, were all legally still colonies of Great Britain, with a charter by Great Britain so having been provided to each one of those colonies.   However, as those colonies united in a common cause which thereby became known as the American War of Independence, it became common sense that each one of those colonies, would proclaim themselves instead as an individual State, under the aegis thereof of a State Constitution which thereby made them sovereign to that State, and no longer colonial subjects to Great Britain.  It was those State Constitutions, that in many respects, formed the necessary foundation for the subsequent Constitution of these United States. Of course, without a successful revolution, those State Constitutions would thereby have become null and void.

Governments, don’t just happen overnight; but rather they have to have some sort of prevailing document, that serves the purpose of thereby creating that government which in sound principle has a legislative branch, an executive branch and a judicial branch; each with its particular form and function, so needed in order to conduct good governance.  Further to the point, legitimate governments, are answerable to the people; of which, the personages so representing the people should be elected by the people or be appointed by upstanding members of that community, and each of those representatives needs to be held accountable to those people.  Additionally, another important reason why State Constitutions were so created and written, besides to break free from Great Britain, and besides the need to outline the point and purpose of that government, was for that Constitution to also make their case to the people, at large; so that the people would therefore see the advantages of this new form of government, over that previous government, so enforced upon them, without the people’s fair representation, which therefore signified that previous government’s failure to value the people and their unalienable rights.

So too, those State Constitutions sent a very loud and clear signal to Great Britain, that those that were previously colonists to that empire, were no longer subservient to that domain.  This meant that those that were “sitting on the fence,” so to speak, would have to make a conscious choice as to which side that they were now on; and those that did not countenance revolution with Great Britain, perhaps because of the benefits that they were receiving by working in conjunction with such, would themselves by that loyalty, had made their choice, with consequences, so of.  For a certainty, Great Britain, was aware that they had a “problem” in America, and while there was still a fair amount of influential people, on both sides, that thought that there might be some sort of accommodation that could satisfy, both parties, the reality was, that the die had been cast, and that therefore there could only be one winner.  So, Great Britain put together a fearsome naval force, to take back what they felt was theirs to take, and in their failure of that objective, those thirteen States became united, so known today, as the United States of America.

The real deal in the new world

At the formation of the United States, there were thirteen colonies; of which, each of those colonies had been actuated by royal charter to become a given colony in America.  This thus signified, that those that sailed the “ocean blue” to America, in the vast majority of cases, did so under the aegis of the King of England, under the conditions of each charter, so of; along with having to be in conformance with the sponsorship of the entity that was the primary financier of the voyage, to begin with.  In other words, not just anybody could sail to America, and not just any religion could be a part of America, and further to the point, those that had their way prepaid by an investor or a consortium of investors, so of, had a duty to pay back that investment with products that would be of tradeable usage for them, such as gold, furs, tobacco, or other assorted goods.

A lot of people want to believe that those that founded this country and thereby settled this nation, all came here for religious freedom.  While that is true to a significant extent, that isn’t the entire truth, for many people that came here, came for the opportunity and new hope that America so represented, along with the knowledge that those that were far way were therefore “out of sight” which also effectively meant being “out of mind.”  In fact, to the crown and to the investors of these trips, one could say, the most important thing that they so desired from America, was profit, above all; though, of course, they also desired loyalty, as well.

None of those that came to America, had it easy, for they were to a very large extent, upon their arrival, on their own; and until such a time when they became a vibrant community, whether they lived or died, whether they prospered or suffered, was left to their own individual hard work, luck, pluck, and the elements that they had to contend with.  Still, many people were up for the challenge, perhaps because they did not fully understand what they would truly have to come up against; or perhaps because they knew that Great Britain offered nothing but hopelessness for them; whereas, America represented instead, freedom and opportunity.

America was a colony of Great Britain, of which the purpose of any colony, including America, was profit, as well as the strategic advantages of having territory that could be a launching pad for even more territory and thereby additional profit.After all, this was a day and age, in which conquest of the other, equated to tribute so being made to that which was the victor and therefore more riches and more power to those that were well-placed to receive such.Many of those that voyaged to America, suffered; even onto death, whether on the transport or when they got there.For those, that survived and subsequently thrived, they deserve all the credit and respect in the world.Additionally, for those that specifically came here for religious freedom, they found it; and they still have it

Superrich sports owners that don’t want to own their sports stadiums

The NFL is an exceedingly successful sport, and those owners of the NFL teams, are all incredibly wealthy.   In fact, most people aren’t really able to fathom just how rich that these sports owners are, of which the top fifteen of NFL franchise owners as reported by cbssports.com are all multi-billionaires.  Be that as it may, to the uninitiated, it might seem rather strange, though, that most sports owners, purposefully have no interest in owning their own sports stadium; of which, there are significant reasons for this.  The first reason, is the fact that stadiums cost an awful lot of money to build, and in a sport which plays so few games in a given year, such as perhaps just ten or so home games, as in the NFL, this thus means that the stadium, unless those that own it, can come up with a plethora of other events, sits empty most of the time; therefore, signifying that there probably is not going to be any viable way in which a modern-day sports stadium is going to be profitable for the owner of such, ever.  The second point that NFL owners are quite cognizant of, is because they don’t own a super-expensive and unmovable fixture as in the actual stadium, they therefore can utilize their moveable sports franchise as leverage with different cities, so that if they don’t get what they so want, whether it be cheaper rent, or renovations, or this or that, then they can effectively move their franchise to another city that will be more accommodating.

In the present day, the business of sports ownership involves making money in every way so possible, which includes ticket sales, advertising, marketing, media rights, licensing, and sponsorships. If, those sports owners, actually believed that owning a sports stadium, would somehow be profitable for them, then for a certainty, they would own that.  The fact that they are wont specifically not to do that, reflects, correctly, that the sucker in this context, are those cities; who along with their taxpayers, are the ones that are stuck paying for a stadium, come what may.  What we find, though, oftentimes, is that a stadium build is projected by a given city council as being a net positive from not only a city image standpoint, but also in regards to the additional employment, created; in addition, to the out-of-towners that arrive for events, and of course the revenues from rent and other peripheral things, related to the stadium; but alas, those projections seldom match up to the reality of what the real numbers actually are for the sports stadium owner.

If cities, were smarter, they wouldn’t ever want to own a sports stadium, without also owning the sports franchise, itself.  What we have instead, is a situation, in which the sports franchise owner has seemingly all of the advantages and none of the disadvantages; and the sports stadium owner, is therefore put into the unenviable situation in which they don’t have any sort of leverage, at all.  Further to the point, when it comes to a stadium and the art of the deal, so of; the city council is typically negotiating against a billionaire, and most of the time in that sort of situation, that city council is going to be seriously outclassed and seriously outplayed.

Police officers are not social workers

There is a huge subset of the population, that isn’t doing well, from a mental standpoint, from an employment standpoint, and from a community standpoint.  While there are myriad ways for communities to deal with the indigent and the mentally/emotionally challenged; far too often the police get involved because, for instance, some neighbor or business has contacted the police about someone’s erratic behavior or similar.  The problem that thereby occurs when an officer of the law engages with someone that is unstable or out-of-sorts, is that, because police officers have enough on their hands to begin with, they are, more times than not, aren’t going to thereby put on their “social worker” hat, because they aren’t social workers; and further to the point, doing so, isn’t going to provide them with any benefit from those that they directly report to, who are primarily looking for their policing officers to bring them ticketing offenses, arrests, or something else of meaningful substance through their contact reports.

Additionally, police officers are known for demanding compliance with their commands, and those that aren’t right in their head, emotions, or in their life, aren’t going to be the type of people that do well with that, or even to truly understand the consequences of non-obedience to that which is demanding their cooperation or compliance, so of.  So then, what happens, more often than is necessary, is that someone that would be far better served by social worker assistance, is instead dealt with by the police, in a manner, in which they get ticketed, arrested, or both, which does little or nothing to rectify the situation, but simply takes instead a “disturbance” off of the street.

It’s unfair to expect police officers to be social workers, and therefore to have police officers be the primary responder to that which is more of a social issue is something that should rather be more appropriately re-directed to actual social workers.  This would presuppose that both police officers and social workers need to have better coordination between the two, so that those that need social assistance can be assisted by those that are professionals in that field in a timely manner.  This also means that the government needs to do a better job of educating the general public that the appropriate place to call a problem or a disturbance into, is not necessarily always going to be 911.

It should be clearly kept in mind, that police officers are very good at what they are supposed to do; and those that are social and healthcare workers are very good at what they are supposed to do.  Therefore, to expect police officers to be good social workers, and to expect social workers to be good at policing, is not something that is going to occur.  Those that aren’t doing well mentally or emotionally, are typically going to receive better care and help from a qualified healthcare professional, and usually they don’t need to be dealt with by law enforcement.  The type of patience, understanding, and empathy that those that are struggling to get their mind and emotions right with, is best dealt with by those that are well suited for that, not police officers.

Conscription, freedom, and imprisonment

At the present time, the United States does not have any enforced conscription provisions, in effect, for its military branches; mainly because despite the enormous size of its domestic military, it has been able to successfully recruit enough citizens to become members of it.  That though has not always been the case, as there have been numerous instances of conscription being utilized, such as in the Civil War, World Wars I and II, and the Vietnam war.  Not only has conscription been part and parcel of how America has historically geared up for war, but it has also, in order to get its citizens to comply, come with some rather stern penalties for those that evade, ignore, or actively work against the draft, with incarceration being the most common form of said punishment.  Again, it must be noted, those that have been subsequently incarcerated for their failure to allow themselves to be conscripted, have committed the crime of, for example, evasion, desertion, the ignoring of, or of actively working against that draft; which demonstrates in principle, how important it is for this government that those that are legally compelled to be conscripted, duly comply.

It could be theorized that the main reason why there isn’t more pushback from the general public in regards to the wars that America insists upon conducting all throughout the world at the present time, is mainly because of the salient fact, that no citizen in America is currently being conscripted to fight in any of those wars.  If, on the other hand, America was to somehow come up short in the manpower so needed to fight their wars, and brought back conscription, the number of protests and vociferous negative response from the people would probably take the form of the likes that had not been seen since the Vietnam War; especially if the war so necessitating such mandated recruitment, failed to win over the general public, in any meaningful way.

Still, that said, conscription in America is probably not going to come around again anytime soon, for America has a rather large underclass of young citizens, that are ill-educated, living in dilapidated circumstances, with poor infrastructure and with correspondingly poor prospects, who see the joining into the military as one of the few viable options that will put them in a good place, so they willingly sign up.  Yet, having signed up, these recruits, perhaps focus too much on the positives of military service, while discounting and dismissing the negatives, too much; for to be a soldier, is to risk one’s own life and limb, as well as also one’s mind and well-being, for the killing of others, and the destruction of infrastructure; which can bring with such, the corresponding heaviness of knowing that one was a participant, directly or indirectly, with that which brings some degree of regret.

At the present time, America has the luxury of being able to conduct wars, both large and small, all over the world, because it has enough voluntary personnel, the money, and the equipment to do exactly that, without having to resort to conscription; of which, conscription, in and of itself, if it was to be reinstated, would serve as the focal rallying point for a multitude of others that see war as more often something far less than honorable, appropriate, or even, often times, necessary.

“The Jury shall be the Judges of Law, as well as of fact”

A lot of people aren’t really interested in serving on criminal juries, but perhaps if more people were aware of this clause as quoted above, which some States have, as so written, for instance, in the Constitution of Maryland; perhaps more citizens would have a stronger desire to be part of judging their peers, for they also are provided with the incumbent power to judge as to whether or not a given law is just or not.  The problem that a lot of people can’t seem to get their heads around is that, the legitimacy of whether a given law is constitutional should never just be in the hands of a particular judge, or even with a court of nine Supreme judges; for that therefore means that only the judicial branch may determine what is or is not constitutional, and therefore that makes their judgment superior to the legislative or executive branches or the people, even when that judgment is in error; so demonstrated on numerous cases by Supreme Court decisions being subsequently overturned by another Supreme Court tribunal having adjudicated such at a later date and time. Further to the point, is that the law is often slow to amend itself to the changes of the time; and of which laws so written that had their supposed place, time, and purpose, sometimes, no longer have their legitimacy or have maintained such, at the present time.

What could be fairer than a jury of one’s peers, being permitted to peak behind the curtain, so that they can use their minds and their experiences in the real world, in a manner in which they so determined, firstly as to whether the law as written and interpreted is within the legitimacy of a particular case, and thereby appropriately and fairly being utilized.  After all, this country is a body politic, so created for the general welfare of, for, and by the people.  The reason that criminal cases are judged in front of a jury of one’s peers, is because the people are meant to render their informed judgment as to not only the facts and exigencies of a particular case, but also as to whether the law in that case is reasonable and of good purpose.

To be a jury means to be collectively a judge of something of import, which is something that should be taken seriously; for we owe that as an important responsibility to our fellow denizens.  To therefore have a jury only to decide exclusively as to the given guilt of a person, but not to have a say upon the law itself, seems to be a disservice to the person so being tried.  Those that make up a given society, consist of all of the people, which includes the rich, the middle class, and the poor, well-educated to poorly educated; of which, these people have each have had different life experiences; whereas those that write the law, and are the typical arbiters of the law, are more often from a different milieu with a different mindset, then the people, as a whole.   So then, as the Constitution of Maryland has written, the people shall be the judges of the law, for it is imperative that for this to be truly a government, of, for, and by the people that such should fairly reflect the whole community, rather than a subset, so of.

You are in control of yourself

A lot of people want to blame other people, or their particular circumstances, for some of the most troubling aspects of their lives.  While it is possible to play the “blame game” and perhaps even to get some sort of begrudging satisfaction from having done so; it in the end, isn’t going to actually serve to resolve the real issues that need to be addressed more forthrightly.  In point of fact, we are in control of our thoughts, our actions, and our reactions, to all that we are involved with.  Those then, that recognize that even in the most difficult of circumstances, that they still are sovereign within their own person, have fundamentally recognized that they are indeed free to choose, what they will or won’t do, even when the choices to such, have been reduced to a bare minimum.

In this world, each of us is going to be tested, again and again; of which, the very point of such tests is to “flesh out” our true character, so of.  This thus signifies that rather than seeing barriers and obstacles in our pathway as being always something that is undesirable or unfair; that we are better served by seeing such as an opportunity for us to test our mettle against these impediments, in which through our good planning and good efforts we are able to eventually successfully overcome them, one way or another, sooner or later.  After all, where is the drama in a movie, when the protagonist simply wins what they so desire at the beginning of that movie, without having had to exert themselves, or face difficulties, whatsoever?

So too, there are plenty of people that like to brag upon their own character, as being superior to this person or to that; of which, the only fair test to such braggadocio is to see how they react in those circumstances in which everything is not going their way.  Then, of course, there are those others that complain about how unfair life is, of which, oftentimes such gripping has its place; but somehow when presented with an avenue which will allow them to successfully extricate themselves from their self-pity, they somehow aren’t able to grasp that this is indeed their time to shine and therefore to prove their merit.

Since none of us are gods, there is a seemingly endless multitude of things that not only do we not control, but that we have little or no influence upon.  This thus means, that try as we might when we swim against the tide, we know for a certainty that our struggle to get to where we desire to go to, is often going to be arduous; but that just makes the prize, so of, so much more glorious and meaningful when we achieve such.  So too, we need to realize that when we slip and fall, or can’t successfully figure certain things out, or are dealt with unfairly and unjustly by society, that we shouldn’t give up; but rather we should react in a way that we are true to who we really are; for those that will not break, when suffering through an ill fate, are those that therefore have demonstrated the resiliency of that which is the master of their own self.

In a global world, capital is King

There is no doubt and absolutely no debate, that the “elites” of society, as well as the biggest multinational corporations throughout the world, have never had it better than what is so occurring at the present time.  This is somewhat surprising, because unlike in previous generations, the amount of information available to the general public as well as the literacy rate throughout the world is fairly high.  Additionally, the most significant countries in the world, ostensibly have free elections, so determined by a democratic vote.  Yet, despite all of this, and despite the fact that the world in aggregate has never been wealthier, it is the elites, and the multinational corporations that have the lion’s share of that wealth, along with its incumbent power, and the trend is for those that already have it all, to have even more.

The biggest issue in regards to capital is that in a world in which protectionism and thereby tariffs has been seriously reduced and “free trade” in all of its many facets, has been embraced -- is that those with meaningful capital assets are no longer precluded or limited to utilizing that capital only within the borders of their home base, but rather they are permitted to cross borders and go into nations with their capital for business or investment enterprise choices and have subsequently done so in spades.  Within a construct, in which governmental agencies and tax authorities seemingly often don’t care to get meaningfully involved in where that capital so goes, and of which, they also don’t seem to give a hoot about prioritizing domestic employment in any of its many forms; it then is no surprise that those that seek profit, above all else, are going to take their capital to those countries in which the labor compensation rates are low, labor protection laws are non-existent or eviscerated, and often too, the environment laws are lax, because within that construct, the road to good profits, is abundant.

The main reason why domestic labor unions in America have seen their power with private enterprise, regressed back to where it was at the beginning of the 20th century, and of which labor is catered to by neither of the major political parties, is that the elite and the multinational corporations effectively own the show; through their mighty influence, money, and control of the narrative that favors their viewpoint, as always being legitimate and valid.  Another way of looking at this, is to understand that corporate stock prices, are influenced by the continual growth of a given corporation along with its corresponding profits; and those corporations that do not avail themselves of deliberately seeking the lowest labor point, as well as the lowest overall price point locality to conduct their business, have done an injustice to the authority vested in them by their corporate board, as well as imprudently enervating the implicit power that monetary capital, in and itself, represents.

Those that somehow believe that the superrich as well as the superrich corporations are somehow constrained by some sort of moral or ethical code which thereby stipulates that they have an inherent responsibility to first to do right by the whole of their domestic constituents are sadly delusional.   Those of the superrich, absolutely love this “brave new world” in which they can ignore the common people of their own domestic land, while effortlessly exploiting, directly or indirectly, developing nations for their own insatiable greed, all apparently, without end.

There was a time when matrimonial pledges were taken very seriously

Nowadays, marriages are done by some people at the drop of a dime, or without any real meaningful thought process, or for no particular valid reason, and the subsequent divorce for these frivolous type marriages, is not something wholly unexpected; basically, putting the lie to till “death do us part.”  Then, there are those other marriages that are a very big deal, well planned out and suitable; and of which, marriage thereby still remains for a significant number of couples, one of the most important days of their lives; though virtually none of this is at the level that a matrimonial pledge itself was, back in the 19th century and before.

In earlier times, a given male who made a pledge to a female to get married, had, in fact, made a solemn commitment, of which, if subsequently he was unable to fulfill that sacred obligation, there were serious consequences that would be appropriately dealt with in due time.  It has to be remembered, that females got married at a much younger age, back then, so time most definitely was of the essence; in addition, to the fact that courtship, itself, was a ritual with written and unwritten rules, so that when a couple pledged to get married to one another, this essentially meant that they were not to be interfered with by any other party; for that commitment, was in so many words, sacrosanct, and thereby one very short step from the actual marriage celebration, itself.

So then, given those conditions, and the fact that some people, invariably, got “cold feet” or had second thoughts, or were scoundrels; it would be well to remember that this then was not one of those situations, in which, some sort of simple apology would do; for a female betrothed to her man, of which, she was essentially “off the market” for any extended period of time, was hurt, first and foremost by the fact that she didn’t actually get married. So too, there was the material fact that having lost a significant portion of her limited time as good marriage material, her perceived value by other potential suitors was damaged, and left her susceptible to being labeled as an “old maid;” along with the salient fact that she might now be seen, rightly or wrongly, as damaged goods; as if she was no longer considered to be pure, unblemished, or virginal.

Young women, so betrothed, in which, that marriage subsequently did not occur, were typically not going to be subsequently perceived as being of more value by others; though, there were exceptions to that; but rather, typically were wont to being perceived by worthy suitors as being “suspect,” at least at a minimum, on a subconscious level.  After all, many people, are not thrilled to being thought of as the second or the alternative choice when it comes to a marriage.  So too, all the preplanning and arrangements so made by the families of the parties to that marriage, would all be for naught, which further served to muddy the waters.  This was indeed a time when a man’s word was his sacred bond, as was the woman’s acceptance of such, in return.  Today, that isn’t really the case; though, it’s hard to see that as actually being progress.

The Declaration of Independence and slavery

The word “slavery” does not appear in the Declaration of Independence, in which that seminal document expresses the egalitarian belief that “…that all men are created equal;” of which, this then is contradicted by the fact that the slavery of human beings was most definitely of existence and of persistence, to some degree, large or small, directly or indirectly, in all of those thirteen colonies, and thereby subsequently left unaddressed by that Declaration of Independence.

The Declaration of Independence was written by Thomas Jefferson, of which it was then reviewed by John Adams and Benjamin Franklin, before being submitted to the Continental Congress in June of 1776.  What most people don’t know is that Jefferson actually did address slavery in that document, so written in a way that the blame for such was laid upon the feet of King George III of Great Britain.  So then, when the complaints in regards to the injuries, usurpations, and tyranny committed by the King against the colonists, was written by Jefferson, part of the long clause he wrote addressing slavery, said the following: “He has waged cruel war against human nature itself, violating its most sacred rights of life and liberty in the persons of a distant people who never offended him, captivating & carrying them into slavery in another hemisphere or to incur miserable death in their transportation thither.”

This thus signifies that in actuality the biggest flaw and contradiction of that Declaration of Independence, was actually directly addressed by its author; yet, as we know today, this clause did not make it into the final rendition of that Declaration of Independence.  It is important to acknowledge, that representatives of all thirteen colonies, totaling fifty-six men, eventually signed that Declaration, but not until that time in which particular clauses to that Declaration, were amended, removed, or modified.  This thus meant that those that were the biggest proponents of slavery, either because they benefited directly from slave labor, or benefited through the profit and trafficking so of, would not countenance a clause that vilified that peculiar institution, but rather desired to see it, effectively ignored.

So indeed, the slave masters and slave sympathizers were triumphant in winning their way on what became the Declaration of Independence.  It must be stated that by the Continental Congress not forthrightly addressing the enslavement of their fellow human beings, who had been forcefully taken and stolen from their distant homeland, so that a very few could profit from their uncompensated labor; and of which these enslaved peoples had no rights to which the white man was bound to respect; this thereby meant that legally, slaves were considered to be by American jurisprudence chattel property, which was a horrible and tragic wrong.

The thing about committees is that often times, compromises have to be made; but there are those special times in regards to certain subjects, of which, some of these specific subjects, fundamentally, cannot be compromised, because to do so, undercuts the very meaning as well as the justification of the very principles of that document, so being debated upon.   This was one of those times, and those so gathered together into one body politic, failed in their highest duty, to answer correctly to their Creator, as well as to recognize that, quite obviously, unalienable rights, were rights that applied to all men as well as to all women.  That failure, and the subsequent bloody Civil War, that inevitably came, has, even to this day, not yet, cleansed clean what that Declaration of Independence, was really supposed to represent and to be.

Compliance and resistance

Each of us, initially, is born to be compliant; which certainly makes sense for a child’s safety and for its proper guidance, for most parents are determined to do right by their offspring, who are dependent upon their parents and other good folks, for their general welfare and upbringing; in which, these parents typically have the best interests of their children, in mind.  At some point, though, each of us is no longer a dependent child, and further to the point, not everything ask of us, should unquestionably be complied with.  There is indeed, a higher code, even higher than respect for one’s parents, and it is to that code, that all sensible people must answer to.

There are plenty of people, governments, and organizations, that do not care for those that resist their commands, but what of it?  Those that so desire easy compliance, and preferably unquestioned obedience at all times, are the very entities that seem to be seeking and desiring to deal with human beings as something akin to an automaton.  Rather, each of us is an independent agent, eligible to join together in common cause with others of like mind, or not.  Additionally, those that want us to do this or to do that, should at least be able to list sensible reasons for why this should be done, as well as to demonstrate their integrity, by themselves being willing to perform their part in the actions so desired or requested.

There are far too many organizations, that have their priorities, fundamentally wrong.   That is to say, some of them, believe that they exist pretty much solely to make profits and to augment their turf, above all else -- no matter the cost to humanity, the environment, societies, or anything else of import.   People and entities that have this particular mindset, are going to desire compliance, and will see those that work with them, or work for them, as nothing much more than cogs in their machine; of which, typically that machine is subservient to those very few at the top.

Within any society, when there are just an essential few that seemingly own or control it all, they quite clearly do not care for any dissent; for having it all, they really don’t want to change a thing.  On the other hand, all those that have nothing much more than the crumbs off of the table, from those that behave as if they are their betters, or their masters; don’t have any real good reason to be compliant, and should, despite the risks and troubles, thereof, resist the injustice of their present situation.

Each person needs to wake up, and to recognize that in the absence of an actual paradise, that abject compliance to what has not worked previously, is not going to work at the present time, either. It is only those that resist, of that which is worth resisting, that human progress continues to be made. Our societies, so created ostensibly for the betterment and the general welfare of the people, need to be held accountable to their given purpose; which is why resistance to that which is wrong, followed by worthy actions so made for the improvement of society in whole, should be the noble call of all those that are fully awake.

King George III and the Declaration of Independence

Most everyone is quite familiar with the Declaration of Independence, and especially the clause “…that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”  Yet, somehow, forgotten within the skeins of time, is the fact that the majority of the words of that Declaration of Independence actually comes after that noble Declaration, which thereby consists of a list of some detailed twenty-seven complaints that the colonists had against King George III.

One might ask, why did the colonists even bother with the complaints; of which, the correct answer to that is that at the time of the Declaration of Independence, the colonists were British subjects, and therefore under the aegis of King George III, signifying that if they really so wished to declared their independence, that they truly did need to make a valid case to the world as to the reasons, so of.  After all, if those colonists were hoping to get material aid, including military assistance from historic enemies of Great Britain, it would behoove them to be able to have a compelling story to sell to the outside world.

Additionally, it was important to convince fellow colonists, that the proposed rebellion against Great Britain, was indeed a worthy and necessary objective; of which, the reasons for such, made not only eminent sense for the well-being of those colonists, but that tellingly that these reasons were not going to be successfully resolved, except through independence by those colonists, now formed into a United States, as opposed to agreeing to some sort of middling middle ground, compromise, or something else of less than satisfactory ilk with Great Britain.

In truth, the colonists wished to draw the line in the sand, and pretty much wanted to make it quite clear to their fellow colonists, that they were either for independence, or for their continual dependency upon a distant country; of which, that country, as signified through the list of twenty-seven complaints, didn’t have their best interests in mind.  Further to the point, this was a day and age, in which self-governance, by, for, and of the people, didn’t exist on any meaningful level in any country of significance, of which, the colonists needed to come across as organized, perceptive, adept, and coordinated.  This was a time when Kings were the type of entity, that needed to be properly vilified on a level that neutral parties would recognize as being reasonable within the context of those complaints, so that a cry for independence, would be met with a vociferous positive response, both internally as well as externally.

We should remember well, that all those that are in rebellion against a King, have for a certainty, thrown down the gauntlet; and most Kings do not take kindly to any sort of rebellion, or revolt against their authority, in which those that so pledge their honor, their lives, and their fortunes to do so, aren’t just writing words; they are, in fact, pledging those very things.  While posterity may have forgotten about the importance of those twenty-seven complaints so made by those colonists specifically against their king; it was those complaints that built the justification for their Declaration of Independence, and the end result is what so still exists today, the United States of America.

Vagrancy laws

Basically, to be a vagrant, is to be without visible means of support, or homeless, or idle.  Because of the noble Constitutional fightback against these vagrancy laws, of which it was argued that these laws were primarily being utilized by the police as a “catch-all” offense, which in its effect, was purposely vague and discriminatory against those of the underclass and un-championed, it has subsequently been replaced for the most part by charges such as disorderly conduct, or other charges within this same general domain as the modern-day equivalency. 

The reason why vagrancy laws are so unfair, is that it criminalizes those that are homeless, or jobless, or without apparent means of support, and presupposes that these people are a menace to society; as opposed to being seen as people that society has at least some sort of obligation to try to be of assistance to.  Further to the point, vagrancy laws were abused, especially in the Southern States as a way to take those that were formerly enslaved and to work them as unpaid labor for either private enterprise or governmental jobs, so done, as a means to unfairly profit from that free labor and as a way to keep those of color, subservient to the favored class.

In general, it should never be a crime to be poor; yet, the laws often seemed to be structured in a manner in which those that are ill-educated, unfavored, discriminated against, the poor, and the disadvantaged, are deliberately targeted in a way in which they are treated as the refuse of their country; for no good purpose, other than to permit the policing state of the nation, to sing their own praises about how they are cleaning up and making safer the streets of America, thereby, making America great again; though, the streets that these policing authorities primarily concentrate upon, are not tread by anyone other than those that are downtrodden to begin with.

Somehow, this country is ashamed of its poor and wishes to the best of its ability, to shutter such away; as opposed to being proactive and actually doing something about the structural inequalities that this country represents the epitome of.  Each child so born into this nation, has an inborn desire to be something of merit, of which, it is the structure of this nation, that steals the dreams of these innocent children, and thereby criminalizes them for being born poor into impoverished neighborhoods, with dilapidated infrastructure, no job opportunities, few mentors of worth, and schools that are a national disgrace.

This country doesn’t need vagrancy laws, rather it needs to have the courage to actually live up to its creed to be a land of meritocracy, of equality, and of justice for all.   It is the construct of America as it currently is, that inexorably destroys bit by bit, the very people that need most the aid and succor of this the richest nation that the world has ever known.  Most everyone at some stage in life has needed a helping hand; of which, regrettably in America too often when the poor and disadvantaged reach out for such, the response in return by state apparatus is to put the cuffs on them.