The hidden criminals

There isn’t any doubt that illicit drug dealing, prostitution, rape, burglary, assault, murder, and the like are all crimes, of which it seems that the most impoverished communities in America are the location for an abundance of these crimes.  Yet, though tragic that this is, what seems to be unacknowledged is the salient fact that crimes committed have an awful lot to do with those who are ill-educated, impoverished, lack opportunity, suffer from being in dysfunctional families, lack monetary assets, lack good and valued mentors, and aren’t in safe and sound communities.  In other words, those who make up what we consider to be ghettos are typically not going to graduate to becoming good and upstanding citizens because where they live isn’t conducive to that desired outcome.

 Here though is the rub which is that America is in aggregate the richest nation in the world, which one would reasonably translate into being a nation in which poverty of all sorts would be absolutely minimized, but it isn’t.  instead, the ghetto and communities that are similar to ghettos presents an opportunity for those that lack a good moral compass to exploit those that are disadvantaged by cheating the residents, for example, in the selling price of the homes in the neighborhood, and the interest rate so effected, or in the rent so extracted, or in their failure to repair what needs to be repaired; and the government far too often doesn’t help through its benign neglect, by, for instance, not repairing the roads, or the streetlights, or gathering rubbish, or by the usage of police as an enforcing force as opposed to serving and protecting, and so forth.

 So too, open and safe spaces for children to congregate on and around seldom exist in our impoverished communities.  Regrettably, the public schools located in these areas aren’t really functional schools in the sense of educating the students who attend them, but rather serve more as places to get food and then to simply serve as babysitters to the students who are not challenged to learn.  Apparently, nobody cares if they do learn, as they graduate from one class year to the next without ever becoming even functionally literate.

 Those that see exploitation as a way and means to profit, don’t mind ghettos at all, because the benefits that incur to those that are residents of such, are easy enough to exploit because, for instance, those that get food stamps, want something other than just food in order to fulfill some of their needs and wants, which signifies that food stamps are sold at a discount, and thus traded from one party to another, with the buyer of such receiving the better end of the deal.  Additionally, those who purposely structure loans for cars, furniture and other items, with sky-high interest rates, do so with the sure knowledge that the consumer doesn’t really understand interest rates or finance, and hence is an easy target to pluck.

 In sum, the hidden criminals are all those who enrich themselves at the expense of those who live in trying circumstances, understanding well that the law won’t come after them, because they have all the accouterments of what a law-abiding citizen typically has, whereas those who are impoverished and don’t look or act the part do not.

"Betcha can't eat just one"

The thing about junk food is the proprietors of these foods, truly have it down to a science, which is one of the salient reasons why so many are obese in this nation, because quite frankly, salty, fatty snack foods that taste good to our palate, are not only incredibly tasty to most people, but because it also increases dopamine, encourages us to eat more than one chip easily, and for most people, signifies that they not only can’t eat just one, but would not ever desire to limit themselves to eating only one.

 It would be one thing when it came to junk food, if this was just an occasional indulgence that most of us are susceptible to, but because it was just occasional, it signified that overall, it was not going to trouble our health.  Unfortunately, junk food seems not only habitual because of the taste and dopamine increase, but also it is an easy snack to feel very comfortable with, because there isn’t anything that we need to do, such as cooking or refrigeration, or much of anything, other than to open our mouths, which plenty of people do, day in and day out.

 While it has to be admitted that adding warnings onto junk foods, stating that eating such foods may be detrimental to one’s health, this probably wouldn’t change a thing.  However, what this government could do would be to emphasize that junk food should be eaten in moderation and to the degree that it could influence the public, it should put forth substitutes to salty, fatty snacks, which would be a better choice for the general public as a courtesy to the people.

 Look, it has to be admitted that if junk food wasn’t all that bad for people’s health, that pretty much nothing would need to be changed, but the health of Americans is seriously trending in the wrong direction, so that, it is the role of government to step in to do something constructive about the food choices that we make, and to allow people to understand the harm of certain foods that are consistently eaten and what that does to the body.  After all, there was a time when cigarette smoking and the advertising that went with it were part and parcel of how smoking was sold to Americans, but at a certain point, a stand was made that smoking should be seen as something ill-advised, which ended up reducing the smoking rate in America by a considerable amount.

 How serious America should get about fatty, salty junk foods is something that should be taken under advisement, because as it stands, people really can’t eat just one, and because they can’t stop themselves at an appropriate stopping point, there needs to be an accounting and a reckoning as to whether or not, we should continue along the same path, that has contributed to Americans being unhealthy or whether we ought to consider amending such for the betterment of the people.

The jury system gives power to the people

As much as we want to believe that the government that governs us is a representative government, it has to be admitted that in many cases, those who are our representatives don’t seem to be beholden to the people at all.  That is to say, those that are our legislative representatives seem to be on a level that the people are not on and therefore it seems that our voice doesn’t really matter to them, and that in short, we find that politicians and our representatives are very good at saying and promising certain things that would be beneficial for the people, but somehow never get around to actually accomplishing those things, instead they appear to be deceptive and unforthcoming to what the people actually need and want.

 The one thing though that is in the people’s control, is our jury system which is effected for trials of all sorts, and is not only enshrined in our constitution but is also effectively part and parcel of the way that those that have been charged with a crime or offense, are fairly judged, because those that make up the juries, are truly the people, and therefore should be able to better relate to the circumstances of what is being judged, which makes for the opportunity to weigh in on those matters that matter to the community and therefore to have the opportunity to have their fair say.

 Indeed, as much as this government might want to divert from the jury system, which it actually does through the incredible amount of plea bargaining so processed, at the end of the day, jury trials are the right of the accused, and those so accused have got to feel that win, lose, or draw, that a jury decision in the present day, in which juries are not supposed to be all one color, or all one particular segment of the community, but rather to be a fair representation of those that make up that community, would seem to be about as fair as one could expect to find, when hoping that one’s peers would determine guilt or innocence.

 The bottom line is that for most Americans, just having one vote, doesn’t really amount to much, and except for community hearings in which the public is permitted to have a voice, but limited to just a few minutes, represents about the only time when they would feel that their voice actually matters, except for their participation as a member of the jury, which is why those that are called to jury duty ought to really want to participate in a trial, for not only because this will give them real knowledge of how trials are conducted, but also it will for a certainty, provide them with the opportunity to make a judgment in which that judgment makes a material difference to the trial at hand, and ought therefore to be seen as a very strong representation of the people having agency and power, which is demonstrated by the jury decision collectively so rendered.

Professional athletes and the need for financial acumen

When we look at the general public, we find that a significant portion of those who are financially inept, ignorant, or naïve about financial transactions of just about all types is disappointingly high.  One would think that the education that students obtain throughout their schooling years would include a decent amount of time discussing and understanding financial transactions, such as interest rates, student loans, credit cards, mortgages, bills, and so on, but in actuality, this seldom occurs.

 Not too surprisingly, those who lack a good financial understanding of investments, taxes, budgeting, and the management of money are going to be quite susceptible to being taken advantage of by those who delight in finding an easy and vulnerable target that they can exploit for their own personal advantage.  Indeed, when it comes to professional athletes in which there are a significant amount of those athletes that come from trying economic circumstances and by definition, are young, makes for a perfect storm for those that desire to take advantage of them, and consequently there are plenty of athletes that have had gross earnings in the millions upon millions of dollars over their professional sports careers, but end up eventually becoming broke, which is a real shame.

 To the credit of these sports franchises and leagues, there are financial advisors available for players to lean upon, but as much as this may help, it probably doesn’t go far enough, in the sense while players should have agency over their earnings and their financial decisions, it needs to be acknowledged that having an experience financial advisor constantly available who does not judge how a player spends their money, but is there to assist players in making good, prudent and sound decisions must definitely has its place, because in today’s sports world, some of the earnings of these players are so high, that there is a real need to see that players make and are assisted in making good financial decisions so that they can enjoy the fruits of their labor, after they have retired and moved on to other things.

 This signifies that all of the major sports leagues need to actually take a full accounting of all their players to the best of their ability to ascertain as to whether particular financial pitfalls seem to come up rather commonly that players suffer from and then to push forth programs that will help to fix and to alleviate those bad outcomes. All of this necessitates these sports franchises and leagues actually digging deep into their player’s financial activities.  No doubt, players would be concerned about the neutrality of such an investigation and should have the option of opting in or opting out, in addition to the fact that those looking into the financial affairs of professional athletes should not be beholden to the owners, but rather should be held to mandated fiduciary responsibilities that necessitate that they keep confidential what should be confidential, and that their overall objective is to benefit the player and their welfare, above all.

Reincarnation and enough is enough

There are plenty of people who live in Western nations who somehow believe that we get just one life, and from there we are judged, with our destination to be either Heaven or hell.  Of course, there are plenty of others who believe that when we die, it’s simply over, and our existence completely ends.  Neither of these positions is right, and for those who have an active and thinking mind and are intent upon utilizing their mind to contemplate about that which should be of utmost importance, they will recognize that the pattern that we see on earth actually involves endless cycles of birth, death, and rebirth, which signifies that this is applicable in our incarnation here.  To wit, that each of us will be born here, do whatever that it is that we do and accomplish, and then our physical body will die, leaving us with the sure knowledge that we have an eternal soul, and thus the opportunity to incarnate back on earth, to prove our mettle, or for those advanced souls serve as a source to bring enlightenment to those who are in darkness.

 The thing about reincarnation is that whether or not our life is completely blessed or a horror show, there comes a point when enough is enough, perhaps because all we are doing is repetitive, or we no longer are learning or accomplishing great deeds, met some tragedy, or we simply have run out of energy, having run our race.  In any event, whether or not we absolutely love our life as it is, or despise it, all of us will have to depart, thereupon providing us with a fresh start for our new incarnation, which should be seen as a complete blessing for those who have made plenty of mistakes and thus seek a pathway for redemption.  It should also come as a relief for those who have stopped growing, so that they will get an opportunity to advance even further on their journey to that which originated them in the first place.  Even those who are completely self-satisfied will depart, and while they might have regrets, they need to recognize that complacency isn’t good enough for what we are meant to do, which is to be a positive aid to others, by helping to bring light to those in darkness, and comfort to those who are suffering.

 In this world, it needs to be acknowledged that we are, to a great extent, in school, structured to advance from one grade to the next, but not everyone graduates, and some even regress.  So too, the accomplishments that we have achieved will, for some of us, reach their apex, signifying that we need a new classroom, or else we cannot continue with our journey.  So then, wherever we are at the completion of one life, we will be provided with the new opportunity that will best fit the challenges that we need to meet and surpass, which is why we come back here, again and again, and why we need to finish one life so that we can move on to the next.  This journey, therefore, necessitates reincarnation, so that we will have the capacity to take on the aura and persona of that which will resonate positively through the eons of time, without end.

Baby boomers and their senior discounts

The wealthiest generation is the baby boomers, and considering that the latest baby boomer was born in 1964, it signifies that pretty much all baby boomers are considered to be senior citizens, in which it’s common for age 55 to be considered a senior citizen, with other ages of 60, 62, and finally 65 to be the highest end of what is defined as a senior citizen.

 The thing about being a senior citizen is that there are private enterprises that will extend discounts for those who are of that age at department stores, restaurants, movies, theatres, museums, dentists, and pretty much any business that is trying to incentivize those who are senior citizens to spend some of their wealth at their particular establishment.  Additionally, the government has programs such as Medicare and Social Security that phase in those who are 65 or even a bit younger to take advantage of those important programs.  Finally, some States offer a property tax discount for senior citizens if they choose to opt out of paying school taxes, under the impression that senior citizens have no schoolchildren who would be attending primary or secondary education.

 Look, it has to be admitted that just about everyone appreciates a discount, whether or not they are actually in need of one, and therefore, where there are discounts available, those in the know are pretty much going to take advantage of them.  The thing is though that people such as the baby boomers range from the super wealthy to those that are truly struggling, and the way that these discounts are structured, they don’t take into account income or wealth, but simply age, which signifies that while there are those seniors that could certainly use every single discount that comes their way, there are also those seniors that have more than enough already.

 So too, it has to be admitted by governmental as well as private businesses, that senior citizen discounts and things of that ilk are, by definition, discriminatory.  That is to say, only senior citizens can take advantage of these discounts, which would seem to imply that money that is being saved through those discounts by those senior citizens has got to be made up by other people instead, which, when we consider that the baby boomers are incredibly wealthy to begin with, seems rather unfair.  Of course, it is argued, that private enterprise should be permitted to structure their business in whatever manner that increases their revenue and respective profit,  which certainly seems reasonable, but it does come at a cost to those that aren’t senior citizens, whether admitted to or not.

 In sum, it would seem that the general purpose of senior discounts and programs of all types earmarked for seniors was in acknowledgment that those who have retired and are on a fixed income might need a helping hand and also as a way for this country to show appreciation and respect for seniors, but in consideration, that seniors in actuality, in aggregate, have all the money, already, would reflect that there probably needs to be a reevaluation of such.

Satan as adversary

A significant portion of people define Satan as simply being evil, or the agent of evil, and thus to be avoided at all costs. While it’s okay to see Satan as being evil, a better definition really comes from studying the Hebrew word satan, which translates to adversary, or it could also be read as accuser or opponent.   So then, those that see Satan as being their adversary, have a better concept of what Satan really is, which isn’t evil in and of itself, but rather it is more appropriate to see Satan as one’s opponent which makes a lot more sense, because this world is structured in a way in which we will be challenged and we will be tested, of which, some agent needs to instigate those challenges against us, best known as Satan.

 Indeed, there are far too many people who really don’t want to test themselves in any sort of battlefield, perhaps because they are already satisfied with the way that their life already is, or perhaps because they fear they will lose or come up short, or aren’t prepared.  Yet, the only true way to determine as to whether or not we have learned our lessons well is to see them applied in all sorts of conditions, which necessitates that we need to have some sort of adversary, because there are far too many people that profess that they are this or that in regards to how good and generous they are, but when push comes to shove, they crumble, because they don’t have the proper constitution and lack the resolution to make a stand where a stand needs to be made.

 This means that we all ought to welcome the challenges that come to us in life, as our fair opportunity to prove our mettle in battle, and those who are prepared and thus meet what needs to be met are the very same that are going to be victorious in that which will truly define who and what they really are. Further to the point, all of us need to meet our challenges, and should not and cannot expect that the battles that are meant for us to face should be faced by someone else on our behalf.  While it’s fair to lean upon another, there comes that time when each of us must stand upon our own two feet, or else the test cannot conceivably be passed, but will remain incomplete and unfinished.

 All of the above doesn’t mean that we should look for trouble, but rather signifies that we ought to be prepared for trouble that comes in all sizes, shapes, and forms, of which, we owe it to our Creator to prove that we have taken out talents and put them to good use, and the way that we demonstrate that is not just in our good deeds, and selfless actions, but also in the courage to fight those that are our adversaries and to defeat them, thus proving that we have been tested, and thus are worthy of that which beckons us back to our eternal home.

“We will find you… And we will kill you”

The above creed was spoken by the Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, in 2025, regarding foreign South American drug cartels in speedboats, allegedly on the way to the United States who are supposedly known to be carrying illicit drugs of such a quantity that every boat permanently interdicted by the United States was targeted for the killing of those aboard because in doing so “25,000 Americans …lives are saved,”  through the deliberate killing of these designated foreign terrorist organizations.

 To believe that 25,000 lives are saved from the killing of each targeted speedboat that is alleged to be filled with illicit drugs is the height of stupidity, for if this were true, then the amount of drug overdoses and other associated things regarding the drug trade in America would have seen a reduction of the deaths from such, approaching zero, which isn’t the case at all.  Additionally, Hegseth proclaims that those who are on the speedboats heading toward America are exactly identified and known, including what they are carrying, which begs the question that if this were really true, then that information should be provided to the appropriate international judicial organization as well as to the legislature branch of America to actually verify the veracity of such, so that legitimate action that is in conformance with international laws and norms could be applied, especially in consideration that because the Secretary of War has declared that all those that are on these illicit drug speedboat are known, and seeing that speedboats will eventually reach their destination unless interdicted beforehand, signifies that this can be verified when that destination is reached.

 So too, what seems to have been dismissed with this disgusting creed, about finding and killing, is that this country is bound by a Constitution as well as it must adhere to international laws that it is a signatory to, and thereby cannot be above the law.  Further to the point, this country has proclaimed itself as the beacon of liberty, freedom, and equal justice for all, but the deliberate and premeditated killing of those who have been designated, without any real proof, as foreign terrorist organizations falls seriously outside those constraints and thereby those that perpetuate this type of violent belief are themselves the most unpatriotic of citizens, and should themselves be held to account at the highest level of governance for their behavior which is unbecoming of what this country stands for.

 This country should stand on the very principles of its founding, and when it does not, it does so to the disgrace of all those who sacrificed their blood, sweat, and tears to help create and to uphold this country’s values.  Those who are fixated on finding bad actors have their place and their purpose, but within that finding, they need to adhere to international law, and to forswear from the unnecessary taking of lives of those who may or may not be guilty of anything, and thereby deserve to be accorded the respect of the law, fairly applied.

The need to get beyond the binary good and bad

It’s very disappointing that even at the highest levels of governance or of religion, we find that there are those proselytizers who desire to break the world down and the people that make up that world, as either good or bad, with no nuance or anything in between.  This then makes for the true tragedy of the day, of those that believe that they are good and further to the point, believe that they have an inherent duty to rid the world of those that are bad, as if life and the rules of life can be broken down into an incredibly simplistic structure that thereby justifies whatever the side which was labeled itself as good, believes is legitimate to do so as to rid the world of bad.

 Look, the bottom line is that as much as some people want to believe or insist that you believe with them that they are good, the reality is that there are way too many people who believe that they are good and doing good, but really aren’t doing good in a lot of cases, and in the most critical of cases are often doing wrong.  So too, those that we label as bad, are seldom bad all the time, and to the point, there are probably reasons why some people do things which are considered to be bad which should be properly examined so as to see if there is a reasonable way that this can be corrected, as opposed to a desire to eradicate all those who are considered to be bad, without taking into consideration, that people are subject to change, and in a lot of cases, should be provided with the room and option to change.

 For a certainty, there are many issues with the labeling of someone or something as being bad, which we find that the very first one is that it seems that those that are labeled bad, thereby permits those that are considered to be good to wreak all sorts of havoc upon the bad people, as if by this punishment this somehow resolves the issue, but it never really does, because the root of the problem or issue is never dealt with.  A far better mindset when it comes to those that are behaving badly is to find out what it is that semes to be the proximate cause of that behavior and by doing so, there may be constructive things that can be done to alleviate the troubles that are occurring while also setting the stage so that the foundation they rest upon is improved, thereby helping the situation as compared to simply desiring to eliminate the problem without bothering to understand what created it to begin with.

 Indeed, every one of us has legitimate needs, which signifies that the better that we are in creating the construct which does a better job of fulfilling those needs for as many as possible, will make for a society that is more cohesive and wholesome as compared to a simple desire to stamp out bad that we see, which is often done through punitive measures, without taking into proper consideration, that for the grace of God, that could be us.  All of us need to do a better job of comprehending that we are all equally created by God, and thereby equally entitled to our unalienable rights, which will thus help us to better understand that aiding and helping those who are hurting and needful will make for a better society.

The owners own the sportswriters of legacy media

When it comes to players in major professional sports leagues versus the owners of those franchises, we clearly have a division between those who labor as compared to those who are the capitalistic owners of these teams.  One might think that when it comes to sports writing in major media, as well as sports commentary that we watch on television, there would be an interest in those who are sportswriters to write and speak of all those things that would pique the ears and eyes of viewers.  What we find, though, is that while there are plenty of articles that discuss athletes' misbehavior, their salaries, and other foibles that they might have, it seems like the same sort of inquiry is seldom directed against the owners and their foibles, in addition to asking questions such as how they got their wealth, where they spend their money, taxes, and so on.  In other words, for every article telling us how much a player makes, there is nary an article telling us how much an owner makes from his ownership or is worth, as if the gloves are off when it comes to most athletes, but kid gloves are on for owners, which isn’t fair, it isn’t good reporting, and clearly shows that the hand of sportswriters is prejudiced in favor of the owners, and not of the players.

 This is not to say that there aren’t favorable articles about players, because there are, but rather there seems to be an unseemly amount of focus on the money that athletes make and their personal lives, without the same sort of concern being directed against the owners, of which, since the owners have lived much longer lives, one would think that there would be a whole lot of information that could be divulged about owners, but seldom is divulged, such as in their sweetheart deals for stadiums, their lucrative tax breaks and benefits, and the value of their sports franchise.

 Indeed, it has to be taken into consideration that sportswriters for legacy media work for corporate interests that, at the highest management level, have a lot more in common with the owners of sports franchises than they ever would have with players.  In fact, owners and the owners of legacy media may know each other and even congregate in the same places, so there is often an unwritten rule that those who are like-minded elites aren’t going to expose one another, but rather prefer to concentrate on the players, who are ever-changing and interchangeable, anyway.  This thus signifies that sportswriters have an agenda that they must honor, which seems to be that all is fair when it comes to players and their salaries, along with any legal matters pending for them, but for the owners, to pretty much be hands off, and about the only time that an owner gets into public trouble, is when some other non-legacy organization finds out something about the owner that is derogatory, and then legacy media from a strategic standpoint has to write something in response to this, not so much to inform the public, but rather to control the narrative.

 In short, mainstream sportswriters aren’t interested in investigating owners because it isn’t permitted, but all’s fair when it comes to players, and especially their income and bad behavior.

Government: What should it be good for?

For those who bother to read the preamble to our Constitution, it clearly states that the government, under the consent of the governed, has a duty to “promote the general Welfare” of the people.  This is something that our politicians, legislators, and the Commander in Chief of these United States need to keep first and foremost in their minds, because how society judges its government should have just about everything to do with how that government has helped and aided the people in making the society that they are integral members of, better and more fruitful.  This signifies that, to the extent the government does not competently perform its duties to the people, it ought to be held accountable by those people for failing to fulfill its main function.

 So then, quite obviously, what government should be good for is making the lives of the people to be better than it would be without such government and whenever that government consistently fails to do what it ought to do, then the people do have the right to replace or amend such, because the bottom line is that the main function of any good government, is to be beneficial to the people, especially in consideration that the people are taxed as their obligation to that government, which means that their monies so extracted should be prudently utilized for the greater good of the people.

 Indeed, any legitimate government needs to answer to the people by being forthcoming regarding the issues of the day, which signifies that the government needs to be far more transparent and open to the people, and far less obtuse and secretive.  That is to say, the less the people know about what is really going on behind closed doors of the government, the less that the people have a say or input in what their government is actually doing on their alleged behalf, and further to the point, it’s hard to hold accountable that which the general public is not even cognizant of.

 There isn’t any doubt that we need governance in order to have a well-functioning society, but not all governance is good governance, because there are plenty of governments that essentially run over the people, by the injustices so displayed in their court of laws, as well as the policing arm of the state demanding obedience from the people, and thus silencing dissent.  So too, our representatives need to actually represent the people as opposed to being beholden to those with money, position, and status who have essentially bought what they want, at the expense of the people.

 In fairness to the people, there should be a periodic true reckoning of whether or not the people are in actuality, receiving fair beneficence from the government that has an inherent responsibility to them, or whether the government has essentially been captured by private actors for the expressed benefit of those elites, and therefore the people aren’t receiving the good that they are entitled to and have faithfully paid for.

Incarceration needs to be totally reevaluated

The fact that America locks up so many of its own, and in comparison to Western European nations, thereby represents a true outlier as to what to do constructively about crime, should be seen, therefore, not only as an embarrassment, but also a reflection that America is not nearly as freedom and liberty-loving as it claims to be.

 While it could be argued, that violent crimes of all colors should necessitate the locking up of the perpetrator, it could also be argued that even in these sorts of cases, there might be viable diversion programs that would be sensible in getting to the root of the problem, but even if violence, mandates incarceration, we find that a significant amount of those so locked up, are locked up for “victimless crimes” such as substance abuse, prostitution, vagrancy, and the like. Further, there are those “white collar criminals” who are locked up and could probably be dealt with in a way and manner in which their communications are restricted and monitored, with an obligation to pay back those they have ripped off.

 Basically, it has to be said, that incarceration should not be the default of how we deal with people that have committed crimes, not only because incarceration as currently structured in so many ways, does a poor job of rehabilitating or fixing what needs to be fixed, but also because of the ongoing expense that is incurred.  This signifies that we ought to look at solutions that utilize the monies so devoted to the carceral state in a way that is not only more innovative but also cheaper in the funding, so needed, while also providing a better chance that the criminal will mend their ways by addressing that which will help to resolve or mitigate their situation.

 Look, if this country believes the best way to deal with crime is punishment and nothing else, then it truly doesn’t need to change a thing.  On the other hand, if this nation believes that it ought to at least investigate what could be done as an alternative to incarceration, then it needs to take up programs to do that very thing.  Further to the point, this nation should admit that a significant amount of crime is committed by those who have come from dysfunctional families, are ill-educated, and have a dearth of opportunity to consider.  This thus reflects that the structure of the society that we are all members of, should not only be studied, but that we ought to do something constructive to help those that are the most vulnerable, because those that see no future, and realistically have no future, because their skillset is suspect or completely lacking are the very same that are going to make trouble for society, and the best way to alleviate trouble is to figure out what causes it, and then do something productive about it, as opposed to locking people up, under the mistaken belief that this resolves the problem, rather than admitting that all this does is put it out of sight.

The United States and the chance of lasting peace that got away

The so-called “cold war” between the United States and the Soviet Union, lasted nearly 45 years, of which when those fifteen countries that were formerly part of the Soviet Union, became independent from the Soviet Union in the period of 1990 to 1991, this presented to America a terrific opportunity for America and Russia to bury the hatchet and to thereby not only ease the tension of a possible nuclear war, but also to ally themselves with one another, as was done, during the darkest days of World War II.  Instead, this opportunity was missed, and must be to the lasting regret of both nations. However, it has to be admitted, this construct is the clear preference of the military-industrial-technology complex that this nation devotes hundreds and hundreds of billions of dollars to, yearly, thus enervating the social safety net for millions of Americans, all because this nation at its highest level was somehow unable to come to a lasting peace or even to embrace a friendly alliance with Russia.

 To believe, somehow, that because Russia’s governance is different from ours, or that the way that their economy is operated is not fully in line with capitalism, thereby signifies that we can’t be at peace with them, is contradicted by the very fact that America has solid relationship with plenty of nations that are autocratic, repressive, and no respecter of the civil rights of their own citizens.  In other words, the opportunity to turn swords into plowshares with Russia was clearly missed, and this should be seen as a betrayal of the citizens of these nations, if not also of the world at large.

 Indeed, governments come and go, as do empires and unions of nations, which thereby signifies that when the world changes, those that are paying attention need to see this as a true opportunity to help make this world a better and a safer place, because countries such as the United States and Russia have historically spent an inordinate amount of monies on military affairs, which doesn’t benefit humanity, while also making the world less safe, as well.

 We ought to think that since America believes it is so great, because it is a beacon of freedom and opportunity for all, that we, of all countries, would make it to be our point to do everything reasonable within our power to help make this world to be safer, by the recognition that warfare should be an absolute last resort, and thereby replaced by sensibility and diplomacy as contrasted to insisting that Russia is somehow a true viable threat to world peace, when in actuality, Russia doesn’t have the power to hold a candle to the United States, and further to the point, has absolutely no interest in doing so.

 In sum, the American public has been bamboozled into believing that its way of life is under constant assault, from all sorts of bad actors that simply won’t stand to accept our prosperity and freedom, when in actuality this isn’t the case at all, never has been the case, and never will be the case, and until America changes its tune and learns to be far less bellicose, the world will continue to be in danger of a worldwide conflagration, due mainly to America’s intransigence.

Where have all our heroes gone?

Although we are a quarter of the way through the 21st century, there just doesn’t seem to be any real heroes developing in the United States; whereas back in the 20th century, there was a multitude of heroes, such as:

               Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr: A great civil rights leader

              Helen Keller: An inspiring advocate for those with disabilities

              Dr. Jonas Salk: An innovator and developer of the polio vaccine

              Bishop Fulton Sheen: Renowned religious author and Emmy Award winner

              Eleanor Roosevelt: A powerful advocate of civil rights and women’s rights

              Daniel Ellsberg: Courageous whistleblower of the illuminating Pentagon Papers

 The list above could go on and on, because the 20th century had a significant number of people who were pioneers in civil rights, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, transparency in government, fairness and equality for all, justice, governmental safety net, social security, and enforced protections for minorities.

 When we look at the 21st century, we find that the attention of so many Americans seems to have devolved into just their personal cares, such as we see for those who spend an inordinate amount of time tethered to social media, as compared to engaging themselves in the real world and doing something of substance, instead.  So too, far too many Americans not only don’t know their history, but, when it comes to those they admire, are somehow fixated on just great athletes or actors or super-successful CEOs, as if these alone are our best and brightest.

 Indeed, we seem to live in a modern-day construct in which communities aren’t as healthy as they could be, because there aren’t enough people who are intimately involved in their community, and typically don’t feel any obligation to volunteer or to engage in community affairs of the day, which weakens communities because people don’t seem to understand that in organized numbers there is power, and in order to effect change, people need to join together, or else the powers that be, will simply continue to rule the roost, which might be okay, if all was well, but it is not.

 The reason why we need heroes is that not only do we need someone or something that will encourage us to get involved, but also because our heroes represent people that we can try to emulate, by conforming and adhering to what they are doing and saying, while also doing our fair part to bring meaningful change, because in the absence of the people, relating with the heroes of the day, nothing of worth actually gets accomplished.

 Perhaps it could be said that it isn’t so much that we need recognized heroes, but rather what we need is more of us to get engaged in activities which are going to be beneficial to the society that we are a part of, thereby making those that perform such on behalf of the people, to be people that we admire as our unsung heroes, because in the end, being a hero has a lot to do with basically accomplishing what ought to be done, by sacrificing something of our personal time to work for the greater good of society, as our valued and necessary contribution to it.

None of us is mistake-free

It’s good to want to achieve a perfect score, but a lot of times those perfect scores are achieved within a construct in which it’s fairly reasonable for a student who studies and applies themselves to get a perfect score.   In the real world, perfect scores are well-nigh impossible to achieve, even under the best of circumstances, not only because there are too many things occurring that are out of our control, but because the nuances of what is being accomplished don’t lend themselves to perfection, though they will lend themselves to achieving what needs to be achieved at a competent and sustainable level.

 Those that don’t ever want to make a mistake or pride themselves of the belief that they never make mistakes, are the same that pretty much aren’t going to do much of anything, other than just sit on their rearends and just exist, for those that don’t venture much of anything at all, are the same that aren’t going to make many mistakes, because they aren’t doing anything that risks them making a mistake.  On the other hand, those who diligently apply themselves to the task at hand, in their personal and professional lives, will make mistakes, of which the object of the exercise is to learn from those mistakes so that they can become better and more knowledgeable at what they are trying to achieve.  After all, whenever we push ourselves into unknown territory, or areas that we are not proficient in, mistakes are going to be an inevitable part of the learning process, but through the lessons learnt from those mistakes, we will progress to the point that those previous mistakes don’t really matter, because we have overcome them.

 Indeed, to progress in life, we need to grow into the skillset that we must learn to master, and doing so, will result along the way, of making mistakes, of wrong turns, and even setbacks, but those that persist and have a reasonable plan of action, are determined, and are relentless in the achieving of their goals, will work through their mistakes to get to where they need to be.

 So too, it is frustrating when we fail, but the lesson to learn from failing is not to give up, but rather to dust ourselves off and to do what we need to do to either overcome such, or when faced with a daunting task in which we simply aren’t qualified, to find something else that is a better fit for us, for there is never any shame in the trying, though there is shame in those that simply quit without investigating whether there is something else that could be achieved, even if it represents what appears to be a lesser goal, for one of the things that we need to remember is that the most important part of life is the journey, and that as part of that journey, mistakes will be made, adjustments will be made, knowledge will be gain, and obstacles will be overcome, all with the general understanding that everything that we are challenged with, is there for our ultimate benefit, because it will help us to become a better and a more self-satisfied person.

Before there was Hiroshima or Nagasaki, there was the firebombing of Tokyo

While most Americans are quite familiar with the fact that the United States of America dropped two devastating atomic bombs on Japan in August of 1945, they are far less familiar with the firebombing of Tokyo, accomplished five months previously, in March of 1945, of which it is estimated that there were 100,00 deaths, upon this major city filled not with military officers or armaments, but with civilians.

 To believe, somehow that the deliberate and premeditated killing of civilians at an industrial scale is somehow acceptable and therefore not a clearcut war crime is not to understand that warfare necessitates some degree of rules that are abided by all parties, and the wanton killing of unarmed civilians for no greater purpose other than to put the “fear of the wrath of God” into them is a chilling type of inhumane mindset.  Remember this well, military officers have a definite chain of command which necessitates that several of the highest officers in this land, in addition to the Commander in Chief, somehow saw fit to permit this air bombing with incendiary cluster bombs, with the sure knowledge that this would create an incredible conflagration, which it duly did, and subsequently killed 100,000 people, along with a significant amount of property damage.

 So too, it’s easier to commit this type of action, when the propaganda so being disseminated at that time, made it seem as if Japanese were subhuman, and by virtue of designating the Japanese as being lesser than, it thus made it far easier to kill that which wasn’t considered to be fully human, though, of course, Japanese are just as human as any other race within this world.

 The one thing that can be said about bombing, precision or not, is that the destructive power of bombs is often quite impressive. To the degree that bombing is a necessary act to destroy enemy military infrastructure and/or military troops has its place, but it should not be used on civilians, or in areas in which civilians are prominent, because, quite frankly, war is supposed to be about military forces engaging one another, and not about unnecessary and unwarranted taking of lives of civilians, especially when we consider that the firepower of modern day’s armaments has never been exceeded in the history of humankind, which signifies that there is an inherent responsibility to demonstrate restraint, for those that do not, winners or losers, should be held to account for wrong and unnecessary acts, for the sake of the good and future of humanity.

 Instead, what we so find is that it is the victors that do all the judging after a war, in which their crimes aren’t even typically recognized as crimes, but rather, the losing side is the one to suffer the general opprobrium and penalties which are duly imposed upon them, seemingly saying to the general public, that it’s okay to commit war crimes as long as you win, because the only thing that really matters is winning, no matter the ethical and moral cost that will have to be paid at some future date, somehow and somewhere.

The need for a new Kefauver Committee

We find that way back in 1950-1951 Congress held televised hearings investigating organized crime, and while there have been subsequent committees and in fact today we have the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations which deals with many things, including organized crime, it has to be admitted that when the general public is questioned about organized crime and the naming of any individuals that come to mind, they typically can’t come up with a single American name of such in the 21st century, but rely on names such as Al Capone and John Gotti from yesteryear.  Look, we live in an age of the information superhighway, along with a high level of domestic monitoring of our communications of all sorts, which thus would seem to signify that never has so much actionable information been available to be acted upon, but there doesn’t seem to be much that is being robustly done that addresses the scourge of organize crime, which begs the question as to whether this nation believes that organized crime is simply a non-entity because it seems as if the powers that be, treats it that way.

 The fact of the matter is that there is so much illicit activity happening within America’s borders, such as with illicit drug manufacturing, its transportation, and its distribution, that it doesn’t seem possible that this nation doesn’t know who some of the biggest players involved in this trade are within America, and never seems to make it to be its point to do something constructive about it, through the usage of RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations) Act, or through the usage of the IRS for all the money being illicitly made but undeclared and hence a form of serious tax evasion.

 So too, the point of having hearings addressing organized crime is not to simply embarrass particular players within such a milieu, but to see that justice is done, because not doing so, sends the wrong message to Americans, and especially impressionable Americans, that apparently it’s okay to break the law, and to undercut the good values of America, because it seems as if those that have the power to do something constructive about it are unwilling to do that very thing.

 The one thing that can be said about organized crime in all of its many facets, is that those that are involved directly or indirectly in it do not desire to be exposed, because not only is publicity bad for their business and their image, but it puts a face upon the crimes that are being committed and the next sensible step thereby to implement would be to indict as many as possible at the highest levels of organized crime by bringing appropriate charges against them, whether it be criminal, perjury, or taxation related.

 There does come that point, where those in governance have a responsibility to the people of this nation, of which one of those responsibilities is to see to it that illicit activities that are well- organized and well-funded, face the music of what they have done and continue to do, because that’s the right thing to do and is also necessary for the continual safety and happiness of the people.

Sensible tariffs

There is no doubt that tariffs, properly considered and thought about, have their place. Still, it has to be recognized that this is one of those things in which tariffs imposed on a certain country and its specific goods may prompt a countermove by that same country on our domestically produced goods intended for export, and so on.  In other words, tariffs are always a two-way street, unless one country can just impose its will upon another, which may well result in some future form of blowback. In reality, the best tariffs are going to start with the foundation that a conversation needs to occur between the respective countries and businesses so that something sensible can be agreed upon, which makes for the best structure of tariffs.

 Also, when it comes to tariffs it needs to be recognized that there are going to be winners and there are going to be losers, from an export/import business perspective, so then a conscious decision needs to be made as what a given country’s priorities are when it comes to tariffs, of which, a reasonable viewpoint would be to see that tariffs are minimized for the basics and essentials of life, which thus benefits those that have the least amount of flexibility when it comes to where they expend their money, and thus this signifies that high tariffs are best imposed upon items which are seen as luxury or non-essentials in which those that have the capital can continue to buy these goods, but will do so at a higher price.  In other words, it’s a mistake to hurt the pocketbook of those who are most vulnerable, but rather it is best to impact the pocketbook of those who have that discretionary income to purchase those high-value items, should that still be their desire.

 Additionally, the imposing of tariffs should necessitate that the legislative arm of the state has its fair say, so that both sides of the political aisle can weigh in on where and how much tariffs ought to be while also taking into account that a serious conversation should be made with foreign nations in consideration of those tariffs which are being contemplated upon; in addition to the important point, that tariffs ideally should not be imposed without warning, but should have plenty of warning, so that all involved parties have time to adjust to how the rules of the road are changing.  So too, tariffs that are imposed willy-nilly, that are here today, then gone tomorrow, and then back the next day, and change from one percentage to another percentage on a daily basis, or simply on a whim, should never be permitted, because it isn’t fair to any party and businesses need to know where they stand or else they won’t be able to properly prioritize what they should or should not be working upon. 

 To the degree that tariffs help to protect domestic industries definitely has its place, and thereby imposing tariffs on certain foreign goods has its purpose, but all of this needs to be carefully thought through, which necessitates communication with all pertinent parties, which is not only sensible but also represents the right thing to do.

What are we fighting for?

Each time that America insists upon going to war, declared or undeclared, it needs to not only ask the question as to what America is fighting for, but after it is all said and done, it needs to answer the question as to whether or not America achieved what it set out to achieve.  This question and corresponding answer are absolutely paramount, especially with a nation that has the audacity to determine that its required budget for military affairs should be $1.5 trillion, which quite obviously means that those who are its citizens are going to get a whole lot less when it comes to any sort of safety net, education, infrastructure, healthcare, and so on. 

 The reality of America and its wars is pretty darn clear, of which it could be said that since the end of World War II, there has not been a single war in which whatever objective America professed to have in mind was actually achieved, and in many a case, was not only not close to being achieved, but actually made the situation worse.

 To believe somehow that America is fighting for freedom and democracy throughout the world is an absolute lie that has no foundation behind it whatsoever.  There isn’t a single country since the aftermath of World War II that America has helped to secure freedom and democracy, which clearly makes the point that America isn’t fighting for freedom or democracy at all.  Rather, America seems to be fighting for the glory of its empire, but doesn’t have the integrity to admit to this, perhaps because the American public would not be all that supportive of such a huge amount of money being devoted to that empire, which benefits the few and well placed, while hurting the common people of this nation, thereby contributing to our present day, civil unrest.

 Those who will not examine what did or did not occur from a fight, which cost this country blood, sweat, tears, and money, are the same who have their heads in the sand.  So too, those that keep insisting that the only way to resolve conflict is with the sword are the same who will continue to support this same sort of mindset when it comes to their own population, whenever they are not behaving in the manner that it so desires, which definitely undercuts freedom, democracy, and just about all the good that this nation was founded upon.

 Indeed, today’s warrior mindset, in which America believes that diplomacy has no place, because that necessitates conversation, compromise, and concern for the other, signifies that America’s only true belief is might is right, and thereby America will fight first and ask questions later, of which, in the end, it doesn’t even care about the answers, as long as the other side, submits, or if things aren’t going well, America gives up, because the cost is too high, and then makes it to be its point to find someone else to fight with, ad nauseam.

The infrastructure of the illicit drug trade in America

We read from the RAND corporation report that “Spending on cannabis, cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine by Americans reached nearly $150 billion in 2016,” which surely means that this number has increased even more to account for illicit opiates as well as fentanyl.  The sheer size of this number should be deeply disturbing to all Americans, but even more so, it signifies that for all this illicit drug business to be occurring within America, this necessitates a robust infrastructure for these illicit businesses, which isn’t discussed or thought about nearly enough.

 When we look at an orthodox American business, we recognize that for that business to reach sales of just 1 billion dollars, it will require real estate, security, computers, personnel, transportation, logistics, data storage, accountants, lawyers, salespeople, management, inventory, and banking.  All of these very things are also necessary for the illicit drug trade and even more so, because illicit drugs operate outside the law, but nevertheless still require things that all companies of a certain size need in order to operate, be efficient, and grow.  This thus signifies the rather obvious point, that whether transactions are done with cash, or cash like instruments that banking is going to be required to be involved with all the money that is coming in and going out, wittingly or unwittingly, but still involved in the drug trade, which means that whatever controls that are currently in place to monitor such are doing an incredibly poor job of catching much of anything.  So too, while the United States has plenty of law enforcement personnel, it just seems rather obvious that certain of those law officers have been compromised in one way or another, or else there would be a much more serious interdiction of drugs coming to America and being distributed throughout America.  The bottom line is that whatever is being done at present sure isn’t that effective, because just about any illicit drug is easily obtainable within just about any city in America, without exception.

 The one thing that we know for a certainty is that sums of $150 billion just can’t be hidden and what this nation really needs to do a far better job of accomplishing, is to follow the money, because all those transactions are going somewhere to something, again and again, of which, there doesn’t seem to be the type of serious interdiction that should be accomplished, actually occurring.  Additionally, America has some very high-budgeted secret agencies, such as the FBI, the CIA, and the NSA, which one would think would have their finger on the pulse of the drug trade, but rather, it seems like these agencies, regrettably, either aren’t doing their job well and competently, are quite possibly, are compromised and even aiders and abettors of the illicit drug trade, for their own ulterior motives, typically justified under the mistaken belief that if it is only the underclass of America, suffering from this drug scourge, it’s no big deal.

 All of the above would indicate one important belief: America hasn’t done nearly enough to eliminate or to rein in substantially this drug flow in America, which begs the question as to why, because the volume and monies are so large, it seems as if the powers that be aren’t even really trying, which is rather suspicious.