When everything is a secret, the people are not free

In his Gettysburg address, Abraham Lincoln, said, “…that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”  Yet, is what Lincoln so said at that time and place, still true by what we know and understand is happening with our present-day governance?  That is to say, is this actually a government, of, by, and for the people, or it is more accurate to state that this is a government that is overly secretive, surveils its people constantly, consistently lies to the people, especially when that lie is considered to be necessary by that governance for the protection or the convenience of the powerful and the elite, and is the general population, ever truly treated as an entity, deserving to know the truth of important and relevant matters?

When any government, is permitted at its sole discretion to keep a vast number of secrets from the general population, of which, those secrets, hidden agendas, hidden agencies, and hidden power structures, are not available for public purview or oversight, then the people, by definition, are not free.  No doubt, any government worth its salt, has a need to keep some of its affairs, from the public eye, but even of these prudent secrets, there needs to be representatives of the people, that have full and complete access to that of which, though it can’t be discussed with the general public, allows these representatives, if so necessary, to do their good part in standing in as a responsible agent for the people in the defense of their unalienable rights, and fairness, thereof.

To believe, that somehow the government, on our supposed behalf, is always and forever doing the right thing, in all the actions so secretly taken domestically as well as overseas, is to be far too gullible.  Rather, it is important that governments operate, to the furthest extent so possible, as agencies that are auditable, accessible, and transparent in the duties that they so perform on behalf of its citizenry.  After all, how is it possible for the public to property access whether that government is or is not, behaving and acting in a manner that is responsible, ethical, and consistent with the very principles of its Constitution without such public oversight?

So too, it must be acknowledged that those that are up to no good, are the very same ones that have to be secretive, opaque, and deceptive in what they are actually doing, so they will therefore not be exposed for who and what they really are.  Thereby, to believe then, that all the secrets so held by the government are always and forever necessary in order to protect the homeland, and things of that ilk, is simply not something that is actually plausible.  Rather, the government has a very strong tendency, especially when they are knowingly contemplating and performing actions that are inimical to the very Constitutional principles that they have sworn to uphold and to defend, to keep such as a secret, and will therefore go to great lengths to keep it that way, typically under the guise of national security, and thereupon look at all those that desire to be enlightened about what is really going on, under the name of the people, as unpatriotic; when it is that government, and its actuators, that are themselves, guilty of such.

The unequal application of property taxes

All those that own their own domicile, are responsible for the payment of property taxes upon that property, each and every year.  Those that are renters, may seem to have “no dog in this fight,” but in fact, because their landlord pays property taxes on that rental property, we do so find, that renters, in an indirect way, also pay property taxes, because when expenses for landlords go up, the renters are the ones that are going to have to basically foot that bill as well.

In America, there are those rules, and then there are those exceptions to those rules, along with also special deals so done through the legislative arm of the city or county, with or without public oversight.  That is to say, one might think that property so own, such as certain corporate buildings, churches, schools, hospitals, non-profits, and the like, all are subject to property taxes, but in fact, this typically isn’t true, whatsoever.  For the most part, though not always, non-profits, schools, universities, museums, foundations, religious institutions, and credit unions, are often not subject to property taxes, and some of these organizations sit in very desirable locations, of a considerable size, of which this particular piece of property, may be worth millions upon millions of dollars, but is somehow legally not subject to a property tax.  Additionally, there are public companies, that because of their size, strength, and influence, for instance, as in a Walmart or Amazon, that are able through a “negotiation” to reduce or to eliminate property taxes, in return for bringing jobs into a community.  The fact that corporations that make billions in profit, have even the audacity to ask for a reduction in their property taxes, should be seen as galling to the average citizen.

The reason for property taxes, in the first place, is primarily for the city and/or county government, to collect funds so necessary for police and fire personnel, for schools, for parks, as well as for necessary infrastructure so needed within the community.  Those that are excluded from the paying of property taxes, or have had their property taxes negotiated down in return for jobs and the like, or are senior citizens, and have thereby availed themselves of having their school portion of their property taxes removed, means that all those others, that are not subject to those exemptions, are going to have to pay for those that have not paid their full or fair share.

While there may be good reasons why so many companies and organizations are exempt from the paying of property taxes, a very strong argument could be made and should be made, that those that are exempt or have had favors bestowed upon them for a reduction of their taxes, should in many a case, be subject to paying their fair share.  After all, nobody really wants to pay property taxes, to begin with -- so to believe, somehow, that it is just fine to charge your average homeowner the full freight of those property taxes, but somehow, for example, a university with an endowment in the millions or possibly the billions of dollars nothing at all, is grossly unfair.  In the nature of things, property taxes are what a good citizenry has a responsibility to pay their fair share of, in order to have the accouterments of a good and vibrant community environment, and those that do not pay their fair share, are essentially riding on the backs of all those that do.

Agricultural Child Labor law exemptions

There are rules and then there are exceptions to those rules, of which, it is the height of hypocrisy in this modern day and age that children should have to suffer unduly from some of these exemptions to what should be good rules, which clearly instead have been structured in a way, in which profit and the greed so of, rules over the child’s welfare.  While, it certainly makes sense, that on a small family farm, (of which, the very existence of small family farms is in steep decline), that the work so needed to sustain that farm, will often necessitate the aid of the children of that family; but this has little or nothing to do with the Federal law, that so declares, that children as young as twelve years old, are eligible to work as many hours as they so desire, seven days a week, as long as such does not interfere with their attendance to school, as well as these children also having received parental consent to work.

Not too surprisingly, a huge swath of those so performing the back breaking work for others of agricultural and farming duties, are pretty much people that don’t have a lot of good options available to them, along with them typically not readily understanding their legal rights, and of which, those that are parents, are going to, in absence of anything of substance or merit for their children to attend to, be okay with their children working in the fields as well, because they often need and desire the additional income from such labor, as well as having an abiding desire to keep their children in close proximity to them.

Further to the harm, though, that these children suffer from, in regards to having them labor at such a young age in agricultural and farming duties, is the fact that the pay so legally required to be provided to them, is subject to minimum wage laws which permits the contractor for a period of time to pay a “youth minimum wage,” if they so are inclined to.  Additionally, children’s bodies and brains are still in the process of developing, and by virtue of the fact, that within a lot of these industries there are all sorts of hazards involved, including the tools of the trade, as well as noxious chemicals, makes such work especially pernicious and dangerous for young children.  So too, the fact of the matter is, that children are far easier to exploit and to take advantage of, then are adults.

While, it is true, that most parents have the best interests of their children, at heart, they are also susceptible to doing what they so have to do, in order to make some sort of a living; and when the wages and the hours so being paid and devoted to, do not allow these parents any real semblance of a decent life, they are going to, perhaps reluctantly, have a strong tendency to utilize their children as additional labor to help make ends meet.  That companies that employ these people have an abiding desire to exploit them and to take advantage of them, is unquestionable; that said, though, what is especially disappointing, is that the Federal government, apparently has no real desire to protect those that are its youngest and its most vulnerable, but instead, believes they should be sacrificed to profit, above all.

The United Colonies of America

This nation, per its Declaration of Independence, is known as the United States of America; yet, before such Declaration was ever made or contemplated upon, each of what we now call States, were known as colonies, and specifically these thirteen were colonies of Great Britain.  That is to say, America, was colonized by Great Britain, into thirteen distinct colonies; for the governance of America, was controlled by the hand of Great Britain, and so ruled by such, until America’s armed revolution, so declared, was made, in order to fight for its national independence. 

History tells us that all those countries that are known as colonies or previously were colonies, are countries, in which they are or were controlled by some other nation that is or was distant and distinct from that colonial territory, and typically such governance is or was administered for the benefit of that master nation.  On the other hand, a true nation, or those States within a nation, is self-governing, and therefore answers to their own internal governance, subject to its national government, and thereby to none other.

So then, the reason why America is not known as the United Colonies of America, is by virtue of the fact, that it threw off the chains of such subservience to Great Britain, in order to claim its independence from same.  Still, as might be imagined, it is one thing to make a declaration, and it is another thing, to change the thinking of those that are its inhabitants to understand and to comprehend that they no longer would be colonists, but rather, they would be, if such a revolution was successful, citizens of their own independent nation, instead.

This thus signifies, that to be a colonist, even under the most benign features of foreign control, is to be not sovereign in the affairs of the state or even of one’s personal affairs.  So too, the legitimate complaint so made in regards to being taxed or having to suffer from being burdened by involuntary servitude in the defense of that nation which is the colonial power, without having any native representation of the who, what, and the why of such taxation or servitude, is to know for a certainty, that one’s community and therefore one’s city is not a sovereign entity, but subservient to that master nation.

Those then that fought most nobly for the freedom of this nation, were all those that preferred to be the masters of their own fate, and were thereby willing to relinquish the incumbent advantages of having a powerful nation that protected them well from foreign attacks; along with having the knowledge that there was a strong possibility that the present commerce so successfully engaged with that master nation, which was also, in fact, its primary trade partner, would probably be negatively impacted, from this revolution of independence. 

We so find, then, that those that were the colonists back in that day and time, recognized well, that the only possible hope of that revolution so succeeding, in conjunction with that seminal Declaration so declared, would be if those colonists joined together, under the flag of thirteen States, so fighting for their sovereignty as a united and independent people.

“The commonwealth requires the education of the people as the safeguard of order and liberty”

These words so written above are inscribed upon the Boston Public Library McKim building.  Yet, we so read that in 2018, that when 15-year-old students were tested by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), that the USA ranked 11th out of 79 countries in science, and was 30th in math.  The bottom line is that it is clearly obvious that America does not lead the world in the educational achievements of its citizens, and in consideration, that America, has long known and long believed in the value as well as the necessity of that good education, of which its governance devotes, at least on a budgetary basis, an exceedingly high amount of monetary funds upon the educating of its population, that the result, thereof, is incredibly dispiriting.

Whatever that it is, that America has been so doing in regards to the teaching of its citizenry, this has clearly not  been working very well, and therefore, the end result is what we so see in the present time; which is, despite the fact that America represents in actuality, a nation that has a massive amount of great wealth as well as an impressive status within the world; that it also has a population that is poorly prepared to be the guardians of and protectors of our Constitutional rights and duties, and therefore this nation has failed in its function to educate its citizens well – thereby leaving it bereft of a solid safeguard to its civil order, as well as, leaving us weakened as upholders of responsible liberty.

We so live in a modern age, in which those that lack knowledge and the good application so of, makes those people vulnerable to being stuck in fields of employment that do not compensate them well, or provide for them a reliable means of advancement; and further because of that lack of competent knowledge in regards to mathematics, as well as in basic literacy, leaves those people to be constantly susceptible to being exploited when it comes to typical transactions of business of all types, as well as suffering from the disadvantage of poor comprehension of contracts and things of that sort, which pretty much leaves them at a huge disadvantage in getting the best out of their particular life.

So too, those that are poorly educated aren’t going to be appropriately prepared to understand well their obligations to civil society, of which, such obligations, lie far beyond just the rights that each one of us is fairly entitled to, but also involves our duties to the state in order to secure those rights, along with the good understanding that those that are well informed and engaged, make for a citizenry that is ever alert to that of which so occurs within their community, so that an informed response can so be made by those that are parties to that society, when such is necessary or appropriate.

In life, we so find, that those that are its most educated, along with being well positioned, are almost always those that dominate those others that are ill-educated, poorly connected, and ignorant.  Additionally, no matter how well written a good Constitution is, it can be easily subverted when the general population is too lazy, poorly educated, uninvolved, uninformed, disengaged, and sorely lacking in the very skills so needed in order to collectively respond in a responsible manner to defend the safeguards of that civil order, which provided them with that precious liberty in the first place.

“Quiet the mind, and the soul will speak”

The above quotation comes from the wisdom of Ma Jaya Sati Bhagavati.  Those of us that live in a world that seems to be so busy, and seemingly are constantly preoccupied about this or that, or caught up in trying to get done what so needs to be done, often don’t have the time or the inclination to thereby take the necessary time to quiet the mind, so that we can therefore take in the calmness of that still, quiet voice, within.

No doubt, each of us is busy with our lives and our inherent obligations in one way or another; yet, it must be said that each of us also finds the time, through habit, or exhaustion, to rest our body and our conscious mind, through the sleep that we so get each and every evening.  So too, no matter how busy we may be, each of us also finds the time to replenish our physical body with the food and nutrients so necessary to sustain it.  This thus signifies, that basically, each of us, at some point, during our day, does actually have the time, and should thereby take the time to quiet our mind, to thereby allow our conscious mind to take therefore the back seat, so that our soul can thus speak to us.

After all, it will be to our lasting regret, if we so find out, at the 11th hour, or even beyond, that so much of what we concentrated upon or worried about, was not nearly as important or as vital as our mind was so telling us; but rather, in actuality, we would have been far better served by tapping into that which is beyond time and space -- in addition to it also being that soft but insistent voice of reason, sensibility, spirituality and wisdom.  Each of us may so believe that we know what we need to know in order to do what we should be doing in this world, but in actuality, too often, what we so view and perceive is through a looking glass that distorts the bigger picture, so that we are thus unable to grasp or to see, what it is that we really need to concentrate our efforts upon, thereby leading to the regret of having not seen what we needed to see with full illumination and without distortion.

What we get out of life has an awful lot to do with the effort that we put into the tasks, ideals, and activities that we so do.  While there is something to be said about all those that are constantly busy, there is also something to be said, about those, that question the why of our existence, and thereby are determined to find the answer to that most important question.  Those people that are the most calm, serene, and even-minded, are almost always the same people that have learned how to quiet their mind, which not only gives them a better perspective as to the meaning of their existence and thereby the purpose behind it; but also allows them to listen to that wise voice, which at all times has our best interests in mind, and always helps to keep us focused upon that of which, enlightens and therefore liberates us.

The need to belong to one another

Humankind is meant to have companionship, and if this was not true, then there wouldn’t be any good point or reason for us to form personal or community relationships.  The fact that we have an innate desire as well as a need to belong one to another, is indicative, that we are meant to grow and to join together, with one another.  Of course, that doesn’t necessarily mean that aloneness and solitude, has no place, whatsoever; for indeed, there are those times in which we need to reset our mind, as well as to contemplate upon those things that necessitate the quietness and the stillness of the mind, but this should never be done to the absolute exclusion of any other human company, or for any unnatural amount of time.

As it has been said, birds of a feather flock together, and we indeed are those “birds;” of which, therefore, it is an abiding principle that we should not only seek out the company of those that we have an affinity for, but also, we have a need to reach beyond our own comfort zone, so as to “break bread” with those, that may seem different, but are often, in reality, people that have a lot of commonalities with fundamentally who and what we too actually represent.

The true test of anyone, is how good they are at being able to successfully do their part in making society, a better place for their participation in it, and thereby to help make those communities, a better place for those that are its inhabitants.  So too, those that only live for themselves, aren’t doing themselves any favors, for if it is always about selfishness and the feeding of one’s own ego, then those that one congregates with, are going to be far less inclined to feel any real obligation to do much of anything for the other, because that particular street seemingly only runs one-way, which leaves no room for the validity or the importance of the other.

Additionally, there are those inevitable times of trouble and heartache for just about everyone, in which, those that feel that they do not belong to anyone else or to anything else, do not therefore have anyone or anything to lean upon in their times, of greatest trial; and for that lack, they may so find it very difficult therefore to successfully pick themselves up.  After all, there are those times, when virtually all of us, need a helping hand, and that helping hand is only going to come forth from someone or some organization that is answering what they believe to be a noble calling, and thereby a sacred obligation, which in its effect, upholds our duty of belongingness.

We are meant to belong one to another, for this world was never constructed to be a competition in any way, form, or manner; but has always, since its inception, been a construct so set up to give us the opportunity to join together in a common cause, which thereby guides us to the place that we were always meant to be, so done through our acknowledgement that we do indeed, belong to one another and always will.

How rich is North America?

North America primarily consists of Canada, the United States, and Mexico.  In regards to Canada, their average income per capita is pretty much on the same level as the United States.  However, when it comes to Mexico, their per capita income is perhaps about 1/3rd of what the United States, so represents, which seems quite paltry, until such is compared to the world, at large, in which case, Mexico’s aggregate wealth is actually not really that bad.

We find that North America represents about 4.73% of the total population in the world, but we read per the Credit Suisse global wealth report, that for 2020, North America, had close to 33% of the entire world’s personal household wealth, which represents a ratio of wealth to population of nearly 7x.  That is to say, North America’s population is, on average, 7 times wealthier than what the average wealth is so represented for the world, at large.  Not too surprisingly, this means in virtually every category, if not every single one, that North America has the richest, the wealthiest, and therefore the most money and material assets than any other continent, in which their closest competitor in this, is the European continent which comes up second in personal household wealth.

Those that are American, pretty much know all of what has been stated above, but herein lies the rub, for that continent which is the wealthiest, along with it also being the most powerful in the world, finds that it somehow still has not been able to fully alleviate poverty within its own shores.  That is to say, we find that in North America, as estimated by census.gov that is has an official poverty rate of 11.4%.  So then, for all those that sell the lie, that a rising tide, lifts all boats, this clearly is not the case at all, especially, when it comes to wealth distribution.  Further to the point, the disparity between those that have it all, as compared to all those have little or nothing, is ever-increasing, which doesn’t make a whole lot of sense, especially in this the modern age of social services, welfare, and a governance which is large enough, and seemingly powerful enough, along with it also having access to plenty of credit and tools to avail itself of, so as to do a far better job in taking care of those that are its most vulnerable.

How fair or justified that it is that North America has so much more wealth, than its population so represents, is not an easy question to answer; but suffice to say, that North Americans are not seven times smarter, nor do they work seven times harder, or do much of anything, seven times better than the world, at large.  This would seem to signify that a meaningful percentage of the wealth in North America, seems to have come forth, from North Americans basically exploiting and manipulating their advantages over weaker nations, peoples, and companies, throughout the world, along with it also having a very big stick that North Americans are prone to use or threaten to use against others.  In short, North Americans are in aggregate, very rich, and for those that have that money and those assets, life is exceedingly comfortable; of which, many a North American believes that they deserve such or have fairly earn such, which may not really be all that true.

The ugly Americans

The United States has some sort of presence in just about every country, in regards to things such as an embassy, a consulate, or in an awful lot of countries, the presence of actual United States troops.  Those that are part of that military, so authorized to be within a foreign sovereign nation, are typically going to be dealt with in a way and manner that is consistent with the power and influence of that American military within the confines of that foreign nation.  That is to say, overseas military personnel, that commit crimes against the foreign population, are going to, for the most part, though, certainly not always, be subject mainly to the applicable military codes, laws, and regulations, for criminal behavior besmirching the American uniform by those military personnel -- as contrasted to having to suffer through a foreign court of law.  So then, for all those soldiers that are stationed in foreign lands, that thereby commit crimes, there is probably a fairly good chance, that whatever punishment be meted out, will be consistent more with United States military codes, as compared to these soldiers having to suffer the fate of being punished through that foreign nation’s judicial system, which is, in virtually every case, beneficial for that soldier so accused and adjudged.

Then, there are all the other people, that travel around the world, and somehow get themselves in some sort of legal trouble.   Because so many Americans seem to believe that the whole world, bends to every law and dictate of America, a lot of these people, at least, initially, will not be overly concerned about being arrested and thereby being put into some cell, for they often believe, that by the simple virtue of their being an American citizen, that their country, right or wrong, will always have their back.  That is, for many people, a fallacy, for just being American is not a perpetual “get out of jail card” – which always works, no matter how egregious the offense; of which, we so find, in actuality, that many a country is not really interested in treating American citizens, with just kid gloves.

Many Americans want to believe that no matter where they are in the world, that they are always and forever above foreign laws and customs, but this is in actuality, the fatal mistake of having an American-centric view, and none else.  The reality is that different countries have different ways of dealing with criminals, of which, in some of these countries, the rule of law, the judicial system, the rights of the accused, and so on and so forth, are diametrically different than the United States.  This thus signifies, that those that become the “ugly Americans” abroad, are going to find themselves having to face the music for their misbehavior, of which, while the American embassy, the consulate, the press, and those with power and influence, may so play an important part in the resolution of such; we do so find, for those that cross the line -- that foreign countries are permitted to resolve what they so consider to be crimes within their nation, consistent to the policies of that nation, and do not need to ask permission from America, to do so.

The law and the arrest or sanction of those that have committed no real crime

The policing arm of the state, often consists of a somewhat thankless task, in which, those that perform such, are damned if they do, and damned if they don’t.  A case in point, is those types of situations, in which, some good member of the public is complaining about some perceived to be public nuisance, or a situation in which there is a fair amount of people congregating together with what appears to be no good purpose, or somebody that doesn’t smell right or look right, and/or that is considered to be in the wrong neighborhood.  In all of these situations, the reality of it is, that these particular people that are out in the public, are often perceived by the orthodox aspects of law enforcement, to be an inconvenience that needs to be dealt with in a forthright manner.  Since, in most cases, these inconvenient people haven’t actually committed a crime against another person or property, laws have been subsequently written and interpreted as such, which pretty much makes undesirable public behavior, a crime.  That is to say, the whole reason why laws, that deal with vagrancy, loitering, public nuisance, and disturbing the peace, actually exist, is to provide the pretext to arrest people, so that they can thereby be removed from the street and housed instead, in a jail or holding pen, for some period of time, with a charge so made against them, that may or may not stick.

What those that actuate the policing arm of the state, do not like, is to have those that do their dirty work, to ever have to work within a vacuum, in which, these police officers, can’t seem to find a code or a law that is applicable to what is so happening in front of them, and hence aren’t able to effectively deal with such.  So then, laws are so written, that are vague enough but with some specificity to them, to cover just about any scenario in which somebody in public, that needs to be placed under arrest or forcefully moved, is going to in some way, form, or manner, be in violation of some statue dealing with, for instance, being a public nuisance, or disturbing the peace, and the like. 

The bottom line, is that the powerful people that run the show, just want to have problems that are annoying or have been brought to their attention by busybodies and the like, dealt with in a way and manner that it has been taken care of, if not forever, at least for the moment.  So then, in truth, people that are out in public, even when they are obeying every conceivable law, and are being more than civil, are, always in danger of being forcefully dealt with by the policing arm of the state, when those particular people are essentially, as viewed by those in authority, in the wrong place at the wrong time.  These unfortunate people, then, will thereby be subject to being arrested or forcefully removed, as seems most appropriate to those doing the enforcing, of which, those police officers need not worry a whit, about proving that these people have committed a crime, for rather these officers have always the necessary charges to draw upon so as to do that which they have been instructed to do. 

The misapplication of will

Each of us has unalienable rights, of which one of those rights, is that we have been so gifted by God with free will.  That of which we call free will, means exactly what it so implies; signifying that we are free to do or attempt to do whatever that is that we so will.  After all, it must be taken into fair consideration, that any sentient being so created, that has imposed limitations upon their will, is by definition, not free.  So then, we are provided with that free will, to enable us to be and to thereby make decisions, that are ours to own, for better or for worse.

That said, all the troubles that we so encounter in this material experience, as well as those of experiences beyond this world, lay at the feet of our misapplication of will.  After all, those that err in judgment, in action, and in thought, cannot reasonably expect that all will be well when they try to reunite with that which is perfection, itself.  Of course, having free will, for even those with the best of intentions, invariably means that errors will be made, advertent or inadvertent; of which, the resolution for such, must be to correct those wrongs, by doing good, and thus making up for those misdeeds by right thinking and by lending a helping hand to others.

So then, the sin that we so create, is really a reflection of a free will, gone wrong.  This thus signifies that we need to control our will in a way and manner, that is consistent with our desire to love our neighbor as our self, and thereby to be just and fair in all that we say and do.  This indicates that the incumbent burden that each of us thereby so ends up carrying, is obviously consistent to that individual and their will; so that, those that are slow learners, or refuse to learn via their mistakes, will invariably have to address and to re-address their faults, again and again, until they so get it right.  There are, no shortcuts to heaven, for heaven, is a meritocracy, of which sincere repentance, while certainly having its place, is not the be-all and end-all of how we achieve heaven; for, in reality, we do not go to heaven, but rather we, through our rightful actions, grow or earn our way into heaven.

Again, we are free will agents, in which, many a person, finds that having the power of that free will, is to a certain extent, godlike.  But gods, we are not, for the only god worth worshipping, is not going to be a god of error and ego, but only one of perfection and justice.  This indicates that the very best homage that we can ever provide to that which first created us, is to be circumspect in our usage of that free will, and further to the thought, to do the right thing, consistently; so as to prove that God’s trust and confidence in us, was never misplaced.  Those then that successfully do this, have fairly earned that which was always theirs to be had, by birthright.

The dual purpose of colleges needs to be in synchronicity

Plenty of people attend colleges, of which, those colleges so attended, typically have necessary and mandatory courses that they are so trying to educate their students with, of which, each of those colleges have specific expectations of what needs to be accomplished by their students in order to graduate with a particular degree.  Some of these colleges do an outstanding job in such, whereas other colleges, seem to serve their students, very poorly.  In just about every case, though, colleges necessitate from their students, a commitment of four years, or so many college courses successfully completed – along also with a payment in-kind for that privilege of being educated, which ranges from free to something quite astronomical.

The very first thing that a reasonable person typically believes, is that the students so attending college, in conjunction with the college that they are so attending, should be in absolute synchronicity in regards to what the very purpose of that college education best represents.  In fact, actually, there is often a disconnect between student expectations and what the college provosts believe that their inherent duty is to their students.  For instance, many college presidents, have a very strong tendency to believe that the over abiding purpose of a college education is to make for a better, and thereby a more informed and a more complete citizen, by virtue of those students learning a variety of valid things in various fields, that broadens their horizon and their perspective, and thereby serves to keep them engaged in a pursuit of lifelong learning, along with these students understanding well the value of thinking for themselves, and in short, an expectation by that college that those students will thereby apply that knowledge for the benefit of society and its improvement.  On the other hand, there is many a student, that believes the primary purpose of a college education, if not the only purpose, is to get some degree, that will ultimately provide them with the “calling card” so needed to achieve employment in a field that compensates them at a level, that makes the whole experience of having attended that college, to have been worthwhile.

Obviously, there is value in both of these collegiate purposes, for we live in a real world, which does necessitate and therefore expects, that each of us must understand well the need and basically the requirement that we have to secure a livelihood, in order to thus successfully navigate ourselves through this material world.  So too, while so many of us speak of our rights, and of our freedom; it is critical to understand that those rights and freedom, come with a sacred obligation from each of us, to do our good part to help make this society a better place for our having being here; which thereby signifies that we need to put our desire to make a good living, in some sort of perspective, that recognizes that we also  need to understand our role in society; for we are ultimately, one nation, united under the construct that we are here to do our part to help promote the general welfare of this nation, including the tranquility of same, with liberty and justice for all. 

The drugging of America

In 1971, President Nixon declared a war on drugs, of which, this war continues until this very day, more than fifty years later.  So then, the only possible conclusion that a reasonable person could arrive at is that any war that has taken longer than five decades, and still has not been successfully resolved, is obviously a war in which the battlers of such, have fundamentally lost or have gotten all of it so very wrong; of which, no doubt, there has to be sensible explanation for such a failure, especially in a nation as powerful as America.

We live in a day and age in which never have so many people done and continue to do so many drugs; consisting of illicit, licit, or the combination, thereof.  A case in point, is that any country that is short-sighted enough, or greedy enough, to actually believe that it should be legal or acceptable to advertise powerful medicinal drugs to the general public, so that those that are its most susceptible, will thus find themselves prone to self-diagnosing themselves in a way and manner in which they believe that to resolve whatever appears to be troubling them, is through some prescribed miracle drug, is almost certainly way off course.  So too, any country that has declared a war on illicit drugs, of which, virtually any damn fool, on any given day, and at any hour, can find whatever illicit drug that they so desire to indulge in, relatively easily, has clearly ceded that war to their avowed enemy

.

There isn’t any debate that America has a serious drug abuse problem, both licit and illicit, of which, the question should be asked, as to how come this drug abuse problem has gotten progressively worse, over time, despite the billions upon billions of dollars expended to resolve such.  The correct answer mainly lies at the feet of the greed and corruption of those that are supposed to be our noble defenders of law, capitalism, and justice.  That is to say, for instance, law enforcement officials are often compromised in the mission that they are supposed to accomplished; to wit, the concentration of that law enforcement is almost always upon those that are small-time players in the drug trade, and almost never against the actual big actuators and players, so of.  Additionally, powerful interests desire to see American minds and bodies, constantly addled, because there is plenty of profit in the selling of both licit as well as illicit substances, with incumbent gross margins, that are absolutely gargantuan, in comparison to legitimate business enterprises.  Also, whenever a fairly large proportion of the population is kept pacified through their drug choice, this is obviously going to create a situation, in which the few and well positioned, are going to be able to successfully exploit such and thereby profit greatly upon that general population’s Achilles heel.

While people do take drugs for a lot of reasons, such as for sleep and relaxation, for pain remediation, for pleasure, and for anxiety relief; all of this drug usage, takes an inevitable toll on people, especially when such is done via self-medicating, or through prescription medicine so prescribed, by someone in authority that is more concerned about their personal monetary benefit, as opposed to actually considering helping the patient, in whole.     So then, the drugging of Americans is not happenstance; rather it is deliberate, aided and abetted by those that desire to slowly and inexorably drain the lifeblood out of their fellow citizens, for their own personal benefit, of which, this government, despite what it says, continues to be absolutely complicit in this whole sordid affair. 

Those that do all of the talking and none of the listening

In life, there are going to come those troubling times, for just about everyone, at some point and at some place, of which, some of those people are going to be much better prepared than others to deal with what has to be dealt with.  When it comes to praying and petitions to our Good Lord, there are plenty of people, that pray, each and every day, though many of those people are prone to praying in a rote-like manner, but nevertheless they are consistent in such and thereby they are at least touching base with God on some level; then there are those that don’t pray a lot, but when they do, they really mean it; and finally there are those that absolutely do not pray, ever; until they are placed into a very trying circumstance, in which case they do!

The thing about prayer and our petitions to God, and then the subsequent answer to our prayers, or lack thereof, is that many people have the concept of such, all so very wrong.  It could be argued, and probably should be argued, that when it comes to wisdom, none of us, holds a candle to our omniscient God; which presupposes that those that pray for this or for that, are usually and basically offtrack, for God knows what we need, better than we do; which so indicates that a better form of prayer, or possibly the only sensible form of prayer, is simply to pray for God to help us and to guide us in the making of good decisions and of being a good person, of which, thereby, we subsequently so desire that God’s will be done in and through us.

Yet, our self-centeredness for so many of us, precludes us from successfully surrendering our sovereignty to our God.  That is to say, we believe that God should listen to us, and that God should therefore always respond positively to our requests.  That doesn’t make a whole lot of sense, from a lot of different perspectives, and especially from the perspective that of which we have often prayed for, has a strong tendency in hindsight, to be something that was actually selfish, self-serving, immoral, or just plain wrong.  That said, though, there are plenty of prayers so made, that are of the category of just desiring to be healed of some pain or hurt, or said specifically on behalf of one of our family members, or for the attainment of job security, and so on and so forth, which obviously seems both reasonable as well as being prudent, in form.

Still, none of us really needs to spend an inordinate amount of time on our knees making petitions to God of what we believe we should want or desire on behalf of our own self or of others; but rather, we should instead quiet our mind and our spirit, so as to be open to the hearing of God’s voice, because God is forever trying to communicate to us, and this would be better accomplished, if only we would stop doing all of the talking, and actually learn to listen to that quiet, still voice of pure wisdom and beneficence, instead.

Housing for all

Although America is capitalistic in structure, it also has governmental interests known as public utilities that are socialistic in structure.  That is to say, things that we take for granted, such as water and electricity are typically provided to us via a public utility, which is regulated on behalf of the people, for the expressed benefit of those people.  Obviously when it comes to water and electricity, there is a necessary large monetary investment in infrastructure, in order to best accomplish such; of which, if this was instead, solely in the hands of private enterprise, those private enterprise operators would subsequently then have the power to charge,in essence, whatever price that they so desired, for having control of that market, to the detriment of all those that essentially need water and electricity in order to have some semblance of a decent life.

When it comes to housing, and ultimately the affordability of housing, there are a fair amount of options and programs, public as well as private, so available, of which, people with enough money and/or good credit, can purchase their own home, or those with fair credit and a decent income stream, are pretty much unrestricted in the renting of or even the possible purchase of a home; but then, when we ultimately get down to those that are our most vulnerable, of which, these people are often not credit worthy, and typically are also income impoverished, we thus have this construct in which these people, numbering in the millions, do not have the ready means to even afford to rent anything of decent quality, and therefore are dependent upon governmental resources in regards to rent subsidies or vouchers, or for their access to public housing, or else they will end up being reduced to or left to catching what catch can, with dilapidated and undesirable housing choices, if that.

For those that truly believe that the government has already done more than enough, in regards to housing, for the most disadvantaged, then it need not change a thing; for in reality, America seems to be on a pathway of less individual ownership of housing structures, and more ownership by private enterprise, for the express purpose of those so investing in such, to make a profit, and thereby to extract more money from those that must rent their place of residence. In consideration, though, of fellow Americans, the only responsible action that this government should take, is to make a conscious choice, that a significant amount of housing stock in this nation, should best be seen as a public resource that needs to be regulated, and therefore affordable, for the very people, that do not have the individual resources to buy their own.

Any nation of any real means, that does not take care of its own people, in regards to seeing that each of its people, is backstopped by its government, so as to have fair access to food, healthcare, clean water, employment, education, and a home to live in, is a government that has failed to be a good servant and a good steward to its people.  Therefore, this government, needs to stand up, and to do the right thing, by treating the housing market that it has a responsibility for, as a national utility that needs to be properly regulated, and of acceptable quality, so that those that are its most vulnerable and needful, actually, have a decent place to call home.

Senseless killings and humankind's continual lack of civility

Those that live in western nations, believe fully that they hold the moral high ground, and can list all sorts of reasons of why this is so; such as, in regards to their social programs, modern healthcare, upholding of individual human rights, arts, freedom, education, charity, opportunity, as well as equal justice, under the law.  No doubt, there is a lot of justifiable truth for this sort of belief and sentiment, for there are plenty of good organizations, good people, and good governance, that humankind should rightly be proud to be an integral part of.  That said, though, there are fundamental flaws in the belief that humankind is so civilized, demonstrated in the actions, so taken by people as well as their governance that displays anything but that civility, time and time, again.

While we might want to believe that all disputes, domestic as well as foreign, between individuals as well as governments, are always successfully resolved through treaties, trials, civil discussions and conversations; the fact of the matter is, that far too often, disputes are dealt with through various forms of injustice, of which, most of those forms, involve some degree of violence so done upon the person or the infrastructure of the other.

In truth, that nation, that prides itself as being the "leader of the free world," is quite obviously on a moral scale, anything but.  Rather, America can be, and is often, a very hostile nation, to its own people, to immigrants, to the poor and dispossessed, and is especially ill-disposed when dealing with any recalcitrant nation, that will not bend to America's desires.  The peace that America offers, is consistently only that peace that comes at the edge of their very sharp sword; of which, beyond the niceties so avowed, the reality is that America is best described as having the cloak of humanity, with the striking power of a very powerful and violent savage.

So then, we only need to look at the history of the United States, to learn its true character, of which, its diplomacy, both domestically as well as internationally, is to talk a pretty good game, and then when things do not go per its dictates, to resolve to hurt, kill, cheat, disown, and to destroy that which has the temerity to block its "manifest destiny."  Those that believe that we are all so civilized, seem to have rather conveniently forgotten that the harming, the destroying, and the killing of others that we do not agree with or hate, is clearly not a civilized or responsible response, but rather is in keeping with those from a more barbaric age.

If humankind truly desires to advance to an actual civilized age, the very first thing that they need to do, is to put down all of their weapons, so as to truly turn their swords into plowshares; as opposed to some sick belief that somehow might makes right, which is basically the law of the jungle or of primitive man.   While humankind has progressed in so many ways, the contradiction of that progress, is visible to every one of us.  Those then, that insist that the only solution to a particular thorny problem is to keep on killing one another, are by those bad actions, suppressing their humanity, in order to feed their barbarism, which is why this world is in the mess that it is in. This thus signifies that we are worlds away from living a true peace on earth, and thereby goodwill to all.

Hurting people often end up hurting other people

There are a lot of people that get hurt in one way or another by someone else or some institution, whether physically, emotionally, or through myriad other means of abuse. Whether or not someone deserves to be hurt, is situation specific; but in general, hurting another person, whether emotionally or physically, is something that should be sparingly used against another person, and only to the degree that it is necessary; because to go further than that is a form of cruelty, that typically breeds resentment, revenge, and retribution, in one form or another.

Each one of us, carries some degree of hurt or disappointment within our psyche, of which, some of these hurting people, can never successfully shake themselves free of that shame and hurt; whereas, others, who are, for instance, gifted at compartmentalizing such, or negating such, through various activities and via good control of their mind and their emotions, are able to keep that which disappoints them or hurts them, at bay.  Regrettably, there are those people that when hurt, that almost without thinking, strike back, instantly; as compared to those others, that though hurt, will shake it off and put it aside, and thereby go back to their tasks at hand; of which, at some latter point, they may or may not address that hurt that they have felt.

As in most things in life, it is always easier to be destructive as compared to being constructive; for it is much easier to knock something or somebody down, as compared to building something or somebody up.  So too, the problem with hurting another, is that seldom does the person doing that hurting, actually care to think through what the consequence of that hurtful action will mean to the other person.  That is to say, hurtful actions, do not simply end, but rather they have a strong tendency to create a downhill cascading effect; in which, the person so hurt, will often seek out somebody or something vulnerable to hurt in return, in order to regain for themselves, some degree of sovereignty, as well as of self-respect.

This thus signifies that in most actions, that there is going to be some sort of corresponding reaction; and when the initial action so taken is hurtful, we so find, that people that have been hurt, are often going to end up hurting somebody else, and then that somebody is going to hurt somebody else, and so on and so forth.  So too, most people while growing up and maturing, typically learn things of significance from those that that are their elders, or those that are their mentors, or from people of respect; and when those very people do hurtful things, then the lesson so learned logically is that it’s okay to hurt somebody else, as opposed to trying to reason things out, or having a discussion or a conversation, or simply to let something that could be let go, let go.

This world is full of hurting people, of which, we can add to that hurt by unnecessarily hurting others, as well, or we can help to ameliorate that hurt, by taking into consideration that none of us are perfect, that all of us have erred, and that to be the bigger person, sometimes does necessitate walking away or ignoring those things that don’t really necessitate a negative response to; for rather, it’s better to help a person that is hurting, than to add to or to create more woes, instead.

The reason why God created us

There are a lot of questions that we should desire to know the answer to; of which, some of those questions are going to be of the nature, that we can't even begin to formulate them, until we have reached a certain stage of maturity and wisdom.  So too, when those questions come to us, if we are observant and conscientious, we are going to do our level best to not only find the answer to such, but to also make sure to diligently apply that answer to that which we so do in our life.

One of those questions, that we need the answer to, is not only the why of our existence, but, in particular, the why of the reason of our creation by God.  Perhaps that question cannot be answer in its totality, because of the limitations of our mind that thereby precludes us from a full comprehension of God; but nevertheless, this is a question, that deserves our serious contemplation of.

So then, with the understanding that we can't know for a certainty of that answer, in its totality, we can still logically speculate, that God created humankind partly for the purpose of testing the character of such creation in a free will environment; in which, in a sense, God cheated a bit, by making sure to place within the essence of each one of us, the innate desire to not only remember that we are God's good creation, but also to have inside of us an instinct to know that our souls would never find complete rest and solace until we were once again re-joined in harmony with our Creator.

That is why, therefore, that so many of us, are unsatisifed and dissatisfied with some aspect of our lives, because we know that somehow that no matter how satisfying we may so feel on a given day, that often that sense of whole satisfaction is fleeting, as if we are forever trying to catch mercury; whereas, what we really should be trying to catch, is something that is always going to be there and specifically be there for us, through thick and thin -- because this essential essence was always meant for just us.

So then, we each have a precious treasure map, contained within our psyche, that thereby pings us day in and day out, to search for that treasure, so available to each one of us, of which, we must, in order to succeed in that search, tellingly readdress our minds so as to meaningfully turn away from those constant distractions of modern life, to thereby hear the still, small voice within.  That voice, never yells, but it is persistent, because that voice cares about us, and will never relinquish its desire to see that which was freely created by its hand, joyfully returned to the bosom of its Creator.

This world that we currently live in, seems to be so real to us; but it truly only exists as a valued proving ground for those that exist here, to thus challenge the character of God's creation, to therby prove its mettle, and by succesfully doing so, to become that which they were always meant to be, God's co-creators,worthy therefore of being an integral part of the light that never goes out.

“We and They”

The above is the title of a famous poem by the incomparable, Rudyard Kipling, of which, the significance and the meaning of this poem, back when it was written, in the era of colonialism by Western European powers, is just as apt in its message and form as it was back then.  For, far too often, we are inclined as a people to devolve into a version of tribalism, in which, those that are of the same sort of milieu and mindset are the “we;” whereas, those others that would appear to be so different, or unfavored, or unpopular, are therefore the “they;” of which, never shall the twain ever meet, so as to join together into one body politic, or one community.

So then, in a mindset in which the world, or a nation, or a city, or a community, or even a family, is subdivided into two opposing sides, of which, those on the one side believe that they hold the moral high ground and are entitled; whereas, those on the other side, feel either equally entitled to such as well, or believe that they are misunderstood or marginalized, then the only possible result is going to be one of conflict, discord, and disharmony.  This thus signifies, to a very meaningful extent, why there is so much war; whether that be between one nation against another, or a civil war within a given nation -- as well as the salient fact that in long established countries, such as America, that there is at the present time a disappointingly high number of domestic disturbances, civil unrest, and crime.

Those then, that cannot get pass their own self-imposed tribal identity to become more inclusive to others, or at least have the courtesy and maturity to be more tolerant of the right of other people to live their lives via the autonomy of their own being, as well as of their own self-determination, don’t seem to understand that a us vs. them type of mentality, is never going to make for a just and satisfying community.  Each of us needs to do a better job, as well as to be more determined, that we will not be destructive and hurtful in what we so say and do, but rather we should take it upon our shoulders, to step up to the plate, and to thereby be the “repairer of the breach,” so that each of us can thus better see the unalienable rights of the other, and hence our collective duty to be part of the process, to make out of many, one.

All of the troubles of this world, can be laid at the feet of all those, that are unable to see or to believe that each one of us has been gifted with the same unalienable rights; of which, in essence, no one person is superior or inferior to the other.  Further, we need to take to heart, that we actually are all in this together, and therefore that there never was a they, for we are all equal creations of the One, and not of the many.

“Face the sunshine, and your shadow will fall behind you”

While the above quotation, with slightly different wording, has been attributed to Walt Whitman, as well as to Helen Keller, it seems to be from a newspaper in West Virginia, from 1862.  No matter the origin, though, its sentiment, is profound; for each of us, is going to invariably have some dark days in our life, of which, those that are made up of the right stuff, are going to have the right perspective along with the wherewithal to overcome such, or if not, to deal with such in a manner that is forthright; whereas, those that are made of lesser stuff, will be subject to being overwhelmed, or will find themselves unable to navigate successfully on what should be their next move, for that lack of good light.

Remember this well, those that operate in the shadows, typically are those that are up to no good, for that which necessitates shadows in order to accomplish what they are up to, are those, that do not wish to be exposed or to be cleansed by the powerful disinfectant of natural sunlight.   Further, we do so find, that some people see the glass as half full and some see that same glass as being half empty; while, in truth, they are both right, and perhaps too, each is justified in their outlook; the truth of the matter is that those that are more optimistic are the same people that are inclined to face the sunshine, and thereby to put their problems, doubts, and troubles, behind them, or at least not allowed such to overwhelmed them or to compromise them, and those that are not so optimistic, are more inclined not to.

What we so find, is that within any given situation, no matter how apparently bleak or dangerous it so appears, there is almost always a pathway of escape, or a way to resolve such; or if not, each of us has the capacity to deal with what so has to be dealt with in a way and manner that upholds us as free will individuals, that are sovereign agents in our own life.  Indeed, not everything is going to go our way, and not every rosy outlook is actually justified; but then again, not everything that appears to be impossible, immovable, or insolvable, is actually that way, either.  Those then, that face the sunshine, so as to better see what puzzles them be illuminated by that good light, are going to be in a far better position to overcome that which needs to be overcome, then those that despair of such, in darkness.

Each of us is gifted with mind, body, and spirit; of which, it is important that our mind be developed in a way and manner in which we have the right mindset so as to best deal with the complexities and nuances of our life, as well as to interact competently and positively with the society that we live within.  Those then, that step out of the darkness of their doubts, to thereby embrace the situation and the scenario as it so presents itself, are those that will put that which should be left behind, in its proper place, which is behind them, or off to the side.