"I’ve learned that making a living is not the same thing as making a life"

The above quote comes from the incomparable Maya Angelou, and because it represents profound wisdom, it is therefore something that deserves our contemplation upon.  For instance, America is in many respects, a highly competitive capitalistic country, in which, each day we are inundated with all sorts of advertisements, come-ons, and enticements that encourage us to spend our time seeking, as well as ultimately spending our money upon material things, for the message of that medium, is that these material things, will bring us happiness.

Therefore, a significant part of the incentive for those that are making a real living, is the indoctrinated belief of the need to have certain material things in order to therefore be satisfied and happy.  Yet, despite the fact that never have so many had so much, the amount of happiness and satisfaction in America, is actually not that high in which, as reported by time.com, in 2017, "only 33% of Americans surveyed said they were happy."

So then, as important as it may seem to be to make a good living, such will not, in and of itself, necessarily produce satisfaction and happiness. Perhaps this is so, because material things, even material things of the highest and nicest quality, are in the end, not going to be something that ever will successfully substitute for our innate need for good human interaction and companionship.  That is to say, those that actually do make a good life, get their priorities correct, and understand that life isn’t really about keeping up with the Joneses, but rather life is actually about meaningful relationships with other people, that involve real commitments in time, compassion, giving, caring, and sincere concern.

Far too many people get far too involved in the making of money, or in the advancement of their career; or for others, they get far too involved into drugs that dull their minds and their senses; so that when these people finally find the time to reflect upon their life, and to clearly look upon the status of who and what they really are, and especially in reference to who and what they really could and ought to be, they will often come to the realization that they actually have their priorities wrong, no matter, their good intent that they may have had in the first place.

It is important to have a balanced life, so that, it is often a mistake in focusing upon a particular goal, if in so doing, this apparently necessitates the marginalization of those that we are closest to, in order to achieve that goal, for this is then going to be ultimately perceived as a pyrrhic achievement.  Because when we have trivialized and upset the very people that we are closest to and care for the most, and somehow, don't even really know these people at a level which is actually meaningful or insightful, we have sacrificed what is immeasurable for something that is ultimately transitory and not nearly as highly valued as our perception or ambition, so thought.

Those that have made a good life, as compared to those that have exclusively made a good living, are separated by a chasm, which represents on the one hand all those that have found true and lasting fulfillment by being that good neighbor and being that good friend, as opposed to all those others that though surrounded by nice material things that supposedly represent a good life, actually have not made a good life, and aren’t likely to ever have one.

Civil war and the supposed eradication of slavery

At the time that the Declaration of Independence was written, slavery was legal in the colonies.  So too, at the time that the Constitution to these United States was written and thereupon ratified by those States, slavery was a legal institution.  That did not mean at that time, that the intent of the Founders of this great nation, was for slavery to exist forever, but rather slavery was considered to be an institution that would have to be dealt with at a later time, of which the United States Congress so did.  In fact, the "Act to Prohibit the Importation of Slaves" was passed in 1807, with its implementation being January 1, 1808, of which, by virtue of eliminating the importation of slaves, the thought was that over time, slavery would, perhaps, die a natural death.  It did not.

In fact, slavery continued to exist as an institution in the States, and the division between those that embraced slavery and those that did not, became to be clearly demarked inexorably between the Northern and Southern States.  Upon Abraham Lincoln's election in 1860, and despite the fact that Lincoln had made it clear that he did not believe that he had the Constitutional power to eradicate slavery, the South, took it upon itself, to secede from this union of States, and thereupon wrote its own Constitution. 

The Southern Constitution, unlike the United States Constitution, utilized the words Negro as well as slave and slavery, and that Southern Constitution made it clear, that unlike historical revisionists propagating the so-called "lost cause" of the South, that the real reason for the Southern rebellion is contained within the words of that Southern Constitution, in which that Constitution, so states, "No bill of attainder, ex post facto law, or law denying or impairing the right of property in negro slaves shall be passed."  Additionally, it so states, "In all such territory the institution of negro slavery, as it now exists in the Confederate States, shall be recognized and protected be Congress and by the Territorial government."  The Southern Constitution was written and ratified primarily as the official means to defend and to uphold the institution of slavery, and the rebellion of the Southern States was a rebellion to protect and uphold that institution of slavery.

So then, because slavery was the root cause of the rebellion, and that rebellion was subsequently put down by a great cost in the lives of the people of these United States, over four long, bitter, and bloody years, it became mandatory for these United States to see that the aftermath of the union becoming the United States once again, that slavery in any of its many forms and manifestations, would be eradicated completely from this nation, never to raise its ugly head, again.  Unfortunately, despite important Constitution Amendments so passed, it did not.

Regrettably, slavery in the form of another name, did come back to the Southern States, and alas, rather than all people of all faiths and colors, being accorded the same respect and equal protection of the law, and provided with equal opportunity within this nation, as well as the enfranchisement of the vote for all people, this did not occur and was for decades upon decades, in many respects a dead letter, and still is, even today.  Therefore, this nation needs to resolve to take the full measure to eradicate the last vestiges of this slavery, and further needs to make good to all those that have been historically oppressed and are still oppressed, and have been so oppressed, for way, way too long.

The day after the day that will live on in infamy

On December 7, 1941, the empire of Japan launched a surprise attack upon Pearl Harbor, the event that directly led to the FDR's speech and thereby the Congressional declaration of war against that empire, of which, most Americans, are quite aware of this seminal event.  On the other hand, most people are somewhat or nearly completely unaware, that in the early morning hours of December 8, 1941, the empire of Japan led yet another very successful and devastating attack upon the United States, in particular, its commonwealth of the Philippines, and further, the empire of Japan followed up their aerial bombardment with ground troops to thereby conquer and to take over this commonwealth, of which, the empire of Japan was successful in so doing.  One reason why this should matter a heck of a lot more to Americans, then it apparently does historically, is that according to Wikipedia.org, "In 1939, a census of the Philippines was taken and determined that it had a population of 16,000,303;" of which, this compares to a population of the territory of Hawaii as of 1939, of just 470,000 peoples.   In addition, because Filipinos were legally U.S. nationals, this meant that as U.S. nationals that they were permitted to live and work anywhere in the United States without restriction, and additionally were eligible to apply for citizenship.  In other words, when the empire of Japan conquered the Philippines, they conquered the U.S. nationals of America in the Philippines, as well as defeating the United States troops, so stationed in the Philippines.

So that, during World War II, it can and should be stated, that just over 16 million U.S. nationals were under the control and domain of the empire of Japan, and it was not until September 2, 1945, after many such battles and bloody fighting, that the empire of Japan officially surrendered to the United States so that the Philippines once more was ruled as a commonwealth of the United States.  In fact, as reported by ww2db.com, it is estimated that the Philippines' people suffered 57,000 military casualties, and an astonishing 900,000 civilian deaths; numbers which indicate the stunning tragedy of this part of the Pacific war.

In 1946, the Philippines achieved its long desired independence from the United States, so that, Filipinos were no longer U.S. nationals, and hence no longer permitted the rights of U.S. nationals; additionally, those that were born during the time that the Philippines was a commonwealth of the United States, were not legally "grandfathered" into still being classified as a U.S. national.  Nevertheless, at the time of the attack by the empire of Japan, and during the battles between that empire and the United States, all those having been born within the Philippines, were U.S. nationals, and therefore their deaths were deaths of U.S. nationals, indicating that as reported by nationalwarIImuseum.org, that the USA not only suffered a combined total of 418,500 military and civilian deaths in World War II; but in reality, suffered through its commonwealth of the Philippines, nearly one million more that died, making the initial surprise attack upon the Philippines, not only as a day that should live forever on in infamy; but also that its bloody and cruel aftermath should be properly seen as a tragedy and an atrocity, of proportions not readily known or recognized to these United States.

Inequality, unfairness, injustice and crime

For the most part, those that preach the loudest about the need for "law and order" are the ones that have in their possession material goods of value, as well as being the ones that are living lives that they value and therefore are well worth protecting.  So then, these people, that have material things of worth, and are part of good families and have strong familial relationships, do not want to risk what they already have, and subsequently, are quite willing in many cases to sacrifice some of their freedom and liberty to protect what is their own, without really taking into account the impact of their so-called sacrifice, and thereby their ignoring or casting aside of others that are not fairing well.

In the scheme of things, it would be fair to say, that in a land in which all are impoverished, such a land would not have a particular high amount of crime, and certainly would not have much property crime, such as burglary, robbery, or larceny, because when the people own virtually nothing and have no property, there is nothing to take or steal.  It then follows that in a land in which all have about equal amounts, of which none seem to have much more than another, such a land as that, would also not suffer much property crime, because each already has about the same as the other.  On the other hand, in a land of great inequality in wealth and income, in which some of these people, perhaps a significant percentage of these people are living lives of lack and impoverishment, and further are suffering from ill-education, poor healthcare, lack of opportunity as well as lack of employment, and are born within dysfunctional families, as well as being powerless, and are suffering from systemic prejudice, such a land as that would essentially breed criminals, because those that have nothing, especially when they are surrounded by abundance and wealth, that is often within their eyesight or earshot and may, in fact, be just outside their broken down neighborhoods, these people are going to have a very strong tendency to want to do something about such great disparity.

Not too surprisingly, those that live in an enclave of hopeless poverty, but are clearly aware that there exists nearby a sea of absolute prosperity, are going to more often than not, get what they can get, from those that have, irrespective of the consequences or penalties so enforced.  Further to the point, those that have experienced from their beginning, the injustice of a system that protects and benefits those that have at the expense of those that have not; and further that writes and enforces laws that increases inequality between what are supposed to be peoples that are equally created; as well as hearing rulers constantly speaking of fairness but are unfair in action to that principle; are going to create the very conditions that make for criminal activity, for even the dogs of the very prosperous live under much better conditions, than them.

Those that complain the loudest about crime and incivility, should recognize first, that crime is the obvious result of any society that will not effectively address within its institutions and structure its own systemic inequality, unfairness, and injustice.    Therefore, until such a time, as these very things are vigorously addressed and ameliorated, then crime will continue on its present path, for to believe that a society can be whole that is effectively separate and unequal, is pure madness.

Troubled relationships often come from thwarted desires

We live in societies as well as being intimately involved with our families, in which in all of these things, various relationships are developed.  Of those relationships, whether personal, professional, or a combination thereof, each person has an obligation to understand the validity of the other person or group of persons, as opposed to running roughshod over others.  That is to say, for a healthy relationship to be developed, each person must be accorded respect, consideration, and empathy.   To the degree that this is both done and truly believed in, the better the chances that relationship will be satisfactory and beneficial for all parties.

Unfortunately, life has its troubles, its stresses, and its frustrations, so that even the best of people, may not feel that they always have the time to really listen to the other, especially when they need to talk or express their own feelings at that moment; and further when they believe that enough of the weight of the world is already resting upon their shoulders.  Therefore, it is not unusual for one person to be up in arms about something in which, the other person who has their own concerns and troubles on their mind, simply isn't really there; all of which leads to a rather anemic give and take, in which neither party is actively listening to the other.

That is to say, in any troubled relationship, such is usually started through the lack of good communication, and thereby often leads to the inevitable miscommunication between the parties, one to the other.  So then, when one person in particular, feels that they are being effectively ignored or marginalized or misunderstood, then that person often begins to breed resentment towards the other, especially when they believe that the relationship deserves the upmost attention and concern by the other party, which apparently is not being displayed.

So then, when those that deeply desire to have strong and healthy relationships with others, discover that or believe strongly that in their analysis, neither of these is actually occurring, such will often build frustration within that person.  Of which, this frustration will compound upon itself, leading that person to dwell almost exclusively upon their own wants, desires, and what they believe should be occurring, resulting often in the two-way communication window rapidly closing, and consequently being replaced instead with one person's ego, which apparently will broker no dissent.

This thus means that the poor communication, begets the troubled relationship, of which because at least one person's ego is frustrated in its desires, then the relationship has effectively devolved into a contest and a confrontation of egos, which is toxic to that relationship.  Therefore, all those that are frustrated in their relationships, in order to regain a healthy and viable relationship, must thrust their egos and thereby their thwarted desires into the back seat, and instead concentrate on the first order of things, which is a good and open communication channel, which thereby validates the other person and their concerns, in the recognition, that each party has intrinsic worth and value, that each therefore should be entitled to a voice and a corresponding audience, so as to create the needed harmony which is indicative of a healthy relationship.

Utility companies and the indigent

In the book "Evicted" it is estimated that one in five poor renting families receive a disconnect notice from their utility company in a typical year.  Such a disconnect notice for gas, water, or electricity can have catastrophic effects upon the residents of a home, depending upon their health, the weather conditions,  ages, and other assorted relevant factors in which the loss of gas, water, or electricity often places an undue burden and substantial physical risks upon those that are living within that home.

In most cases, public utilities are regulated by either Federal, State, city, or county governmental offices in which the mission of those utilities should include the mandate that the deliberate shutting off of such service to the users, should be only done under the most pressing of circumstances, for the very health and quality of life of those without gas, water, or electricity is quite obviously adversely impacted when such has been enacted.

In all situations before such a utility is shut off, the consumer should be provided as per law and within a timely manner, with a written list of all known resources available (governmental, organizational or charitable) to that consumer so as to provide assistance to them, when they are in a financial bind that precludes them from the making of an on-time payment.  Additionally, in conjunction with these assistance programs, as a matter of course, utility companies should be required to keep utility services on, for anybody that makes even a small subset of the payment due, so that a given consumer has time to make amends for delinquent or late payments.

Further, as public utilities, the additional burden of late fees, penalties, disconnect fees, deposits, service connect fees, and so on and so forth, should always be structured in a manner that all of these penalties and fees should and must be minimized to the consumer, as opposed to these being piled on, therefore creating even more of a burden upon those that are unable to make their payments on time or for the amount so due.  That is to say, when a consumer has already demonstrated that they have a great difficulty in making their payment, the adding-on of additional fees and penalties is not going to be beneficial for that situation, and thereby should always be the exception and not the rule.

Basically, utilities because of their monopoly positions have an obligation that their first order of business is to see that they provide fair and reliable service to all consumers.  Their second order of business should be to see that all of their bills, fees, and penalties are structured in a manner that is fair and equable to those consumers.  Their third order of business is to work with those consumers that are having problems with the payment of those bills, in conjunction with other governmental as well as charitable organizations to address these concerns.

The fact of the matter is that regulated utility companies should be structured in such a manner, that the deliberate shutting off of service to anyone at anytime should ultimately be approved only by a truly independent citizen review board, so that, far less poor people would suffer far less outages, that currently is the case.

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) from modern war is karma

The taking of another human life is not the natural order of things, for if it was, there would first of all be far less human life on this planet, and further to the point, the murder of another human being, would not be considered by law to be a heinous crime subject to its appropriate punishment so done.  The United States has taken upon itself to be the world's policeman, and hence from there, sticks its nose into all sorts of affairs, of which some of these affairs, apparently necessitate war.

The problem that America has with the present order of things, is unlike wars such as World War I or World War II, which had soldiers on both sides of the war, armed against each other in protracted battles, of one side facing the other; is that today's wars, in so many ways, involved opponents that are not easily discerned, hit and run tactics, and those that make it their point to engage American soldiers not in the open field of battle and thereby far away from civilian centers, but deliberately do so within civilian parameters, and utilize even the guise of civilian garb, as necessary, for the element of surprise and chaos.

That is to say, American soldiers are to a very great extent unsure of who, what, and where the enemy is, and therefore are "on edge" in regards to their point of attack and their tactics to engage the enemy.  Further, to the point, when everyone within a given area, could be the enemy, or in consortium with the enemy, or converted by the enemy, then that makes most everyone that American soldiers see, as potential enemy combatants.  This thus means, that in engaging the enemy, Americans are going to have a much higher tendency of killing as well as harming people that are wholly innocent of the affair, because when American soldiers are not certain as to the clear identity or intention of the opponent, decisions will be made, of which some of those decisions, will result in lethal action.

Not too surprisingly, for many American soldiers, the taking of another person's life in battle can be rather traumatic emotionally and psychologically, especially when in the aftermath of such an engagement, when the heat of the moment has dissipated, they feel that some of those that have been killed or harmed, were probably not the real enemy at all, but rather were civilians caught in the crossfire of such action. 

A soldier with a conscience will be bothered with such, because such a soldier knows that there is a world of difference, between justifying the killing of an enemy soldier, as troubling and as traumatic as that may be, in comparison to the killing of a non-combatant, especially if such a killing was done deliberately via the fog of war.  This thus means, that those that have engaged in the most unnatural of brotherly acts, of taking the life of another, especially of someone that is innocent, will thereby frequently suffer the consequences of stress, confusion, doubt, and regret, for the unnatural taking of the life of another human being, is a burden that lays most uneasy upon he who has performed this act.

Capital punishment and white-collar crime

There are all sorts of crimes committed in the United States, each and every day, of which, only a very few, and in particular heinous crimes, typically involving either murder directly or through one's deliberate actions, thereby causing the death of others, such as in terrorist actions, that entice the prosecution to request the death penalty for those egregious crimes.   So then, it can be said, that those that are convicted of certain murders as well as special circumstances that cause the death of others, can be and have been sentenced to death.

On the other hand, there are those crimes, known as white-collar crimes, in which these crimes aren't based on the illegal use of physical force but rather are typically financial crimes of malfeasance or purposefulness that cheats or steals from another, whether that be an individual, a collection of individuals, or a company.   These white-collar crimes can be especially pernicious and destructive, in which particular individuals or companies can be harmed so greatly by that white-collar crime, that they ultimately must go bankrupt, or lose their homes, or their livelihood, and may indeed have this lead to family breakups, depression, or suicide.

At the present time, white-collar criminals are treated in a manner in which some are able to circumvent imprisonment entirely by the paying of a fine, or through a combination of a monetary fine and probation; although some do suffer the indignity of incarceration as well as revocation of licensing in their profession, as applicable.  In point of fact, white-collar criminals despite some of them causing millions upon millions of dollars of harm and destruction, do not suffer to the degree that, for instance, first-degree murderers do, for they haven't killed anyone, though it could be argued that especially pernicious financial crimes that have eviscerated individuals or corporations are arguably worse than death for those that are left with nothing.

We find that theglobalist.com, states that, "the U.S. Office of Management and Budget puts the value of a human life in the range of $7 million to $9 million."  So that, as insurance companies are wont to do, in regards to accidents and deaths, unexpected or not, the human person is accorded to it, a general monetary value.   So then, if we were to take $10 million as being the fair worth of the life of a human being, then it could be said that those that commit financial crimes of at least $10 million dollars have in effect, committed a crime that is the equivalency of taking a person's life.  Additionally, the reality of the situation is that people need money to live, and so those innocent parties that have been dramatically harmed financially through outside criminal activities have most definitely been damaged to the degree that their life is worse off than it would have been had they not suffered that ill effect.

It therefore thus follows, that those that commit financial crimes of $10 million or more, should be subject to capital punishment, and those that have well exceeded that threshold, should as a matter of course, be executed.  Not only would this punishment more appropriately fit the crime in whole, but it would also be in accordance with establishing that white-collar criminals should be held accountable to the ultimate penalty, in order to deter them from committing such crime.

The aftermath of the Civil war and the right to vote

During our Civil war of 1861-1865, the North defeated the South, and in the aftermath of that war, there were three absolutely critical Amendments (the 13th through 15th) to our Constitution that were passed by the legislative branches of Congress and subsequently were ratified by the States.  The 13th Amendment was ratified in 1865, whereas the 14th Amendment was ratified in 1868, and the 15th Amendment was ratified in 1870.  In point of fact, none of these Amendments were ratified while Lincoln was still alive, as two were ratified during the Johnson Administration, and the last was ratified during the Grant Administration.  Each of these Amendments was critical to our republic, of which the 13th Amendment, abolished slavery; the 14th Amendment stipulated that African Americans were American citizens, and the 15th Amendment provided the right to vote to all male Americans, including those previously enslaved.

If, America, at that time, had lived up to the letter of the law of each of these Amendments, than America would have torn asunder from its heritage of permitting the destructive and inhumane institution of slavery and would have instead lived up to its Declaration of Independence, that all men are created equally.  This would have meant that America, in the 19th Century, had the opportunity to provide to all of its citizens, the same rights that each are entitled to, regardless of their race, or their class, of which, the immediate aftermath of the Civil War, actually saw some African Americans democratically elected from the Southern States into the Congress of the United States.

Unfortunately, despite the 13th through 15th Amendments, the South would essentially return to the planter class, which were the instigators of the Civil war, and they would once again take over the reins of governance within those States, and those that were enfranchised by the 15th Amendment, would lose that very right and having lost that right to vote, as well as being precluded by violence or through the bastardization of the law of that State from voting, the African American would lose their place at the table of this republic, and therefore despite the victory of the North in the Civil war, would have, in effect, none of the benefits of that war, won.

So then, it can be said, that laws on the book, even Constitutional law, which are unequivocal, are of no effect, if the people that are in the political, justice, and economic control of that community or State, do not permit such, and are not thereby stopped by Federal power in so doing.  This thus means that the winning of a war, even of a Civil war, does not mean, in and of itself, that change will occur, if the conditions within those communities and States are fundamentally placed back into the previous power structure, which in all practicality thereby supersedes the Amendments so written.

Those that have the right to vote, can effect change, and from that change, can aid in the implementation of the conditions to have this country live up to its lofty Amendments.  When, that right to vote, is circumvented or taken away especially from those previously disenfranchised, then within a very short while, those that have returned to power, can simply ignore those laws that get in their way, so that those that have lost via war, have won via their control of the ballot and the law as implemented within their domain. 

This thus means, that within the United States, the laws so written for the benefit of mankind as a whole, in order for them to be implemented and in effect for all, that each of us must not only exercise their right to vote, but also must make sure that all that are entitled to the enfranchisement of that vote have that vote, and that ultimately those implementing and exercising the law, are doing so for the benefit of and by the people, or all will be as if it was not.

The importance of focused commitment

Most everyone has goals of some sort or another, of which, some of those people will go on to achieve those goals, whereas many others will not, and some will simply lose track of their goals for they never truly formulated such within their minds.  In point of fact, people are capable of achieving astonishing feats if they are committed to doing so, and thereupon focus their attention on those feats, to the exclusion of most everything else, in order to achieve exactly that.

That is to say, our minds and bodies are obedient to our wishes, subject to the limitations of our abilities, so that those that those that wish to be great athletes, for example, but have poor hand to eye coordination, are more than likely, not going to succeed, because their physical capabilities preclude them from doing so, though they may deeply desire to be such.  So too, those that wish to be medical doctors, but have a strong aversion to blood as well as the studying of biology, are probably not made of the right stuff to be a good medical doctor.  So that, the limitations that our minds and bodies have are a relevant factor towards our success, of which, a conscientious student should take careful note of. 

Still, it is remarkable how much progress a given person can and will make, if they find a subject of study that interests them greatly, and then determine to give their absolute best effort in mastering such a subject, and thereby make the conscious determination to do just that.  For it is in the committing to a singular goal and then the determination to keep one's eyes on the prize, that will allow dedicated students to make real headway and thereby to progress through the necessary steps as well as the necessary levels in order to achieve their worthwhile goals.

This doesn’t mean that those that commit to a given life goal or task, will not have to face setbacks and failures of one sort of another, for these impediments are not only possible but probable; however, those that have that focused commitment will see these instead as barriers to be overcome as opposed to barriers that will stop them in their tracks, never to progress again.  It is through their dedicated commitment, that high achievers will not quit, because they are not intimidated by complications, errors, and obstacles, that others will often fall back from, but rather they will renew their determination to break through such, and if necessary, will do so brick by brick, for they have risked mightily to become what it is that they have made that commitment to.

Those that are committed to their goals do not see adversity as something to be feared but rather as a challenge to be conquered.  After all, if what they were achieving was easy for most everyone to do, then such would not be a worthy goal to commit to, for the object of the exercise, is to be successful in a career or a life goal that not only has real meaning to them, but represents an achievement that requires true blood, sweat and tears, of which having done so, they have accomplished what could only have been accomplished by determined focus and immeasurable commitment.

"And that we are all responsible to all for all"

The above quotation comes from The Brothers Karamazov, written by Fyodor Dostoyevsky.  It is something that all need to make conscious note of, because each of us has not only a responsibility for our own self, but has an obligation and duty to take appropriate concern for others and their lives; for no man is an island unto himself, but rather, we are in whole a community of people, living here within a social construct, that necessitates that each of us has a responsibility to that community to do right by it, and to do as much right as we can for it.

That is to say, to be destructive is a very easy thing to be, for to tear things down and to wantonly criticize, is the type of easy road that cares not for another, and cares not for the consequences of such negative and ruinous actions.  On the other hand, to build things up, is something that is going to take forethought, as well as good execution, and an abiding belief in the desire to help to create institutions and foundations that are well grounded and therefore will have a very good chance of standing the test of time; even time, beyond our physical presence. 

All those that look upon life as some sort of zero-sum society, and therefore make it their point to lead their lives in a manner in which they will do what they need to do to get ahead of others, are people that have placed themselves into a scenario in which they must win and others must lose, in order for them to achieve some sort of satisfaction in their life.  While it can be said that this is indeed a way to look upon this world, especially for those that see the world as being primarily capitalistic and competitive, that is not going to be an institution that will be longstanding, for those that are forever stepped upon, abused, and exploited, will in many respects, not be willing participants in such a game, and will, at some point or another, rise up to assert themselves, again and again and again.

The far more satisfying way to look upon society is to see each member of that society as having equal validity and from that acknowledgment, understanding that each then is entitled to their fair share of the fruits of that society.  This does not mean that each is equally entitled to the same share of those fruits, for each of us has different talents, abilities, throughput, and desires; in addition to the fact that some make bad and disastrous decisions, some are destructive, and some are rebellious; but rather indicates that we have an obligation and responsibility to be fair and open in all of our interactions, and to see to it that justice is fairly and openly applied.

All of us have been created by the same Creator, and all are equally loved by our Creator; so then, to subdivide ourselves into cliques and clubs, of winners and losers, of the exploiters and the exploited, is to lose sight of the most important thing, that we are all brothers and sisters, and to not do right and to not be responsible to our family, is irresponsible, flawed, uncivil, and represents the purgatory that we currently exist in.

Our Civil war has still not ended

History teaches us that our Civil war was from the period of 1861-1865, and subsequently ended at the Appomattox Court House; but this really just represents the ending of the military engagements between the two sides.  While it is true that each State that rebelled against this Union of States, are now once again conjoined into the United States; what is also true is that this bloody and destructive war, that cost the lives of an estimated 624,000 soldiers in battle, and had a monetary cost as estimated by civilwarhome.com, of $6,190,000,000 -- is that the Emancipation Proclamation, as well as the 13th though 15th Amendments to our Constitution, have never, not even until this day, been fully and fairly implemented.

That is to say, the 13th Amendment abolished slavery, but that Amendment did not abolished the replacement of such with, at best, second class citizenship for those previously enslaved, as well as the reconstitution of a system involving landless blacks being pressed into service by the white plantation class into doing the same sort of menial labor as they did previously while enslaved.  So too, the 14th and 15th Amendments, guaranteed to all citizens equal protection under the law, as well as the enfranchisement of the vote, respectively; but even today, these Amendments are effectively put to the sword, by the fact that blacks in so many communities are still segregated into impoverished and dilapidated neighborhoods, and denied fair opportunity as well as good schools, and often are exploited by those that are in power.  So too, many blacks are consistently denied equal protection under the law, of which, we can see this played out by the overwhelming amount of crime and punishment that blacks suffer to the exclusion of the powered class, that does not.  Additionally, despite the 15th Amendment, and the subsequent Voting Rights Act of 1965, blacks are denied the vote or essentially precluded from voting for all sorts of dubious reasons, so that the powers within those jurisdictions are able to well maintain their dominance.

In all of these things, the blood and sacrifice of so many that gave their devoted best to reunite the peoples of this union under the banner of true freedom, in the conscious recognition that all are created equal, and that all are thereby entitled to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, have instead seen that in so many ways, these brave men that gave their last dying breath to this great republic, still have not had this unfinished work, yet advanced in a manner in which their noble deaths have not been made but in vain.

While the physical battles of this war have long been over, the enduring tragedy is that the Civil war in so many respects, has not lived up to its noble and lofty ambitions as expressed by the Emancipation Proclamation, and the 13th - 15th Amendments.  The South that rose up against their National Government, in defense of the institution of slavery, somehow, despite their defeat, was thereupon able to resurrect slavery in everything but its actual name -- has still not seen their ruinous mindset completely vanquished.  So then, until such a time as when America becomes a country that provides opportunity, fairness, and justice in a manner in which accommodates all, and especially takes into consideration those that have been historically denied what was theirs as per its Constitution and its Declaration of Independence, then America, still battles against itself in the Civil War that has not yet ended.

Crime, the system, and punishment

The United States has too much crime, and though such crime has actually been in decline since 1991, the amount of people that commit crime as well as the amount of people punished for such crime, are substantially higher than any other western nation.  One would think, that in the world's richest nation, that this seemingly intractable problem of crime along with its incumbent punishment, would be something that America, which represents being the industry leader in so many different positive areas of contribution and progress, would have resolved such, or at least be in the processing of making meaningful resolution to, but that isn't the case.

All of the above, would presuppose that the current status of the criminal justice system in America, is clearly not working, and therefore, it is high time to throw out the old and to develop instead a system that will be constructive in creating a nation, of far less crime, victimhood, and punishment.  The first step in making progress in America is the conscious recognition that the more unequal a society is in income, opportunity, and advancement, then the much more significant likelihood that such a country will have issues with crime.  This makes eminent sense, in that envy and jealousy are the banes of human existence, and when those that have little or nothing, suffer from the onslaught of all the material benefits that others have in apparent boundless abundance, such will breed discontent, and from that discontent, crime.

So too, cities and communities that are wholly unequal in the sense of the infrastructure of those communities, in which some live in areas of beautiful parks, no crime, good schools, and stable households; whereas others exist in the very opposite of those things, with dilapidated parks, plenty of crime, horrible schools, and dysfunctional households.  This would indicate that those that live under stressful and trying conditions are quite obviously going to have a very strong tendency to not overcome the environment that they are part of; so that, it would behoove this government to ameliorate the social conditions of what the poor and disadvantaged have to contend with on a daily basis, and by doing so, the result would be more hope, progress, and success.

While America prides itself on its adversarial judicial system, in which the vigorous prosecution of crimes must face off against the resolute defensive counsel, the truth of the matter is that most people accused of crimes, never have their day in court, and never face their adversaries, but are browbeaten into submitting to a plea bargain, instead.  On the other hand, those with plenty of capital are actually able to afford a zealous defense, and from that, assure themselves of a result that will be far more palatable, so that in America, one gets all the justice that one can pay for.

If and when America aggressively pursues the very things that create the basis of crime, which substantially consists of low opportunity and no hope neighborhoods, ill-education, dysfunctional and failing families, a minimum wage which is not a living wage, as well as justice unequally applied, then America will continue to play its zero-sum game of crime and punishment; never resolving the core of the problem which is right in front of their face, of which inequality, unfairness, and injustice, are the witches' brew of crime.

Childbirth and abortion

We live in a modern age, in which never has it been easier for women to take control of their bodies and to therefore decide consciously whether they wish to take the chance of getting impregnated or not.  That is to say, there are a multitude of birth control options available to women that are engaging in sex, such as those involving medically approved devices that can be inserted into their vagina, chemical pills or chemical shots that can be taken to preclude pregnancy, and a variety of other ways and means, in which plannedparenthood.org lists a total of eighteen different ways to preclude an unintended pregnancy.  All of these choices are readily available, in addition to the fact that men can do their part to prevent pregnancy by wearing a condom or having a vasectomy. Additionally, for those that have engaged in sex without having taken appropriate precautions, there is a pill available for those that have had unprotected sex to preclude getting pregnant if taken within 72 hours of such activity.

Yet, despite all of these above choices, of which almost all women are quite readily aware of, there were as reported by cdc.gov, in 2015, the statistic in America that "… the abortion ratio was 188 abortions per 1,000 live births."   While this ratio trend has been declining, the amount of abortions per live births is still a ratio that is higher than what it really ought to be, especially when we take into consideration the experience of childbirth in comparison to an abortion, which are obviously quite diametrically different. That is to say, despite the travails of childbirth labor and the pains so involved, most women actually appreciate and enjoy giving birth to their child, and are only too happy to share their newborn birth story with others, as well as to post such on social media, and overall they see such as an event to be well celebrated. On the other hand, though most abortions are physically not very painful but rather akin to some discomfiture, most women that are willing to share their abortion story, typically do so in a manner of confidentiality, and certainly do not wittingly post their abortion story on social media.

So then, childbirth and abortion are quite obviously two divergently different stories, of which one is celebrating the beginning of new life, and the other one, most definitely is not.  So too, stories of joy and happiness are the stories that we love to tell again and again; whereas stories of tragedy and agony are the stories that typically haunt and bedevil us.

This thus means that those believing that women should and must have a choice, especially in consideration that it is, after all, their body -- have both a responsibility as well as an obligation to first make a prudent choice; for they are the ultimately going to be the only ones that are on the frontline of having to deal with the situation for what it is, and they are the ones therefore that will have to live with that decision, whatever it may be, for better or for worse, forever.

So then, it makes eminent sense that the correlation between sex and pregnancy must be something that should be ingrained upon the minds of all those that are sexually active, for unprotected sex has definite consequences -- even of birth and death; of which, those that are clear about what they are desiring to achieve or to avoid in the first place and act accordingly, are going to often find more serenity and peace than those that are not.

The desire to be liked and valued

Almost everyone, without exception, wants to be liked and to be valued, especially by those people that are most important to them.  After all, this world is a rather lonely place without human companionship and the respect of one's peers.  That said, for some people, being liked seems to come naturally to them, whereas for others it is much more of a struggle.  While there may be many reasons why this is so, fundamentally the main reason is that those that are likeable typically present themselves and behave in a manner which is likeable, and those that do not, find it more problematic to be likeable.

That is to say, since most every life presents at various times: challenges, troubles, pain, and sorrow to at least some degree; people therefore have a natural tendency to gravitate to those that make them feel better about their own life and their own situation, in contrast to all those that are seemingly narrow-minded, argumentative, and uncaring.  So that, the first part of being liked and valued, is treating people with the appropriate attention and concentration that demonstrates that one is actually concerned about another, as compared to being just about one's own self or displaying a blithe unconcern.

So then, for example, it isn't fair to expect that one's own selfish and bad behavior will not have meaningful consequences in how we are perceived by other people.  So that, when we are all about our own self, to the exclusion of all others, then one might expect that selfish person to be rather emotionally lonely, since that person has deliberately created a construct in which they are really just about what is in it for their own self.  On the other hand, those that sincerely care about other people and are able to demonstrate that in their actions and behaviors, are going to be seen as of value to other people, because most people appreciate having someone that they can count on as well as to lean on; especially in consideration that life, in many respects, necessitates cooperation and cohesion.

Additionally, everyone that is liked by others appreciates such, because it validates them as a person of value.  So then, it can be stated, that those that are valued, in almost all cases, have a far better self-image as opposed to those that perceived themselves as not being valued, or aren't really sure of their value.  Yet, as in most everything, such is not static, but is always subject to the whims and changes of everyday life; for those that believe that they can simply rely on their past behavior or to be defined just by their past, without taking into account the present or the future, will find that their image is subject to change, for better or for worse.

We are who we are, by the things that we do day-by-day, and should we find that we are not so happy with what we appear to be, then it is our own responsibility to change such.  The change that we should desire to make, is the change that will help make our relationships better; and that change often involves behaving in a heartfelt manner that shows that we truly care about others and by doing our part to make things better for them, we will, far more often than not, be valued and liked.

Urban revitalization

There are plenty of urban areas in major cities in need of revitalization, of which, ideally done, this can be done in a way to benefit the people and to specifically benefit the poorest and most disadvantaged that live in those decaying communities and areas.  However, in many cases, private enterprise, banking enterprises, court systems, and specific governmental agencies, don't see the poor and disadvantaged that live in urban blight as people to be helped and aided in a responsible way, but rather see these people, that are often without an effective voice, as people of no consequence and therefore to be discarded, whether voluntarily or through court action; so that these areas of the community can then be reclaimed not as places of safety and opportunity for those that have been the denizens of them, but rather to be for those that have taken them, and for the benefit of those particular people that have displaced the  poor and themselves are the beneficiaries from the monies spent and from the noticeable improvements and revitalization of that community.

After all, when those in the know, consider urban blight and the remediation of this, they look upon what they desire to accomplish as being far easier to accomplish, if the people that will be noticeably impacted, have no voice, and therefore will not have the ready capacity to stall such progress via civil action or lawsuits.  That is to say, urban areas are carefully and minutely studied, in a manner in which those that wish to redevelop it are not interested in having to deal with situations in which they will have to overcome a lot of community protests or people "pushback" and will definitely amend their plans in such a manner so that those that are least able to fight back, are the ones that will be specifically targeted, and in particular, they prefer to deal with areas of urban blight in which the voice of people have either been completely or nearly completely compromised or of no consequence.

Not too surprisingly, more often than not, it is the poor people and typically minorities that are thereby forced from and evicted from their homes and communities, so that the "necessary" progress of the community can be made, all of which has been sold to the general public as a necessary action in order to bring change, as well as being a requisite for the greater good.  After all, the renewal and the revitalization of areas previously suffering from urban decay and hopelessness, and replacing such with the modernity of awesome infrastructure easily appears to be the type of community improvement that most everyone would agree is good. 

However, the displacement of real people and community businesses that have been historically denied everything, but have nevertheless stayed the course, and to thereby provide these with nothing in return, except for minimal promises and anemic commitments, means exactly what it appears to mean, which is the deliberate taking from those that have nothing, and the forceful removal of these people via a trail of tears into some other area of blight and hopelessness; so that those  that take over the revitalized urban area, are the true beneficiaries of such, and those that were its erstwhile residents, are cast aside as so much wretched refuse, not worthy of consideration or concern.

Housing, in comparison of the baby boomer generation v. the millennial generation

One significant part of the American dream is to own one's own house, of which, taking somebody born in 1955, and therefore a baby boomer, and having them purchase a home in 1987, we find that as listed by the census.gov that the median price of that home in 1987 would have been $104,500.  On the other hand, taking somebody born in 1985, and therefore a millennial, and having them purchase a home in 2017, we find that as listed by the census.gov that the median price of that home would have been $323,100, or an increase in the price of the home of 209.19%.

Obviously, during that interim the income and salaries of those employed have also risen, but so significantly have some of the costs that the millennial generation must deal with such as their far higher student loan and tuition costs, healthcare costs, gasoline and vehicle costs, insurance costs of all sorts, and accessories such as cell phones, the internet, streaming devices, and other modern inventions that simply didn’t exist in 1987.  While there have been some consumer items that have not advanced much in regards to inflation, the main component of a house that has come down, is the mortgage interest cost, which has in recent times been at near historic lows, and is most definitely a very meaningful factor in the overall cost of a given home.

However, another factor adversely affecting the ability of the millennial generation to purchase a home is their confidence in their employment status, of which, the era of stable and secure employment with a given employer, has become far more precarious than it was a generation before them, and in recognition of that insecurity, some of those that can currently afford a home, are less reluctant to pursue that avenue, especially when they have so much other debt and obligations to attend to.

Additionally, the marriage rate of Americans has declined significantly since 1987, and in an era in which it never has been more important to have a dual income in order to afford a house, the fact that less people are married lends itself to less people being able to purchase their own home.  While it is true that a couple need not be married in order to be a couple, the situation in which two people that are together, but are not married, makes the process, and the terms and conditions of purchasing a home, much more problematic, for the paperwork, legal ownership, and negotiations involved.

All of the above factors are meaningful reasons why the millennial generation does not own homes at even close to the percentage rate that the baby boomer generation does.  This certainly does not indicate that the millennial generation is foolish for having not done so; but more correctly indicates that they in comparison to the baby boomer generation, lack more often the monetary capacity to prudently purchase a home, and that the decision to do so, is far more problematic for those of their generation, in contrast to the baby boomer generation; for the millennial generation has expenses, debts, and the price of homes which are all higher to contend with, and their job security as well as their inflation adjusted household income have suffered, so that the result is that they don't buy what they really cannot afford.

Can't make bail and in jail

According to statista.com, "There were over 10.5 million arrests for all offenses in the United States in 2017."  This means that those arrested, were for all practical purposes, no longer free and therefore no longer able to self-determine what they would do on a given day; which essentially means, that the obligations that each person so arrested would have to normally attend to, such as childcare, pets, bills, work, and school, would not be able to be performed while in the state of being arrested, leading in many instances to a very rapid downward spiral in the credibility, employability, and responsibility of that individual.

One might think, because being arrested is so traumatic, not just for the pending charges so made, but also for the basic needs and responsibilities that each adult must attend to, that as a matter of principle, the justice system of the United States of America -- in which it must be stated that per American jurisprudence all those first arrested are presumed to be innocent, would therefore make it their point to process and to release as soon as possible, all those arrested for crimes that would not necessitate the undue imprisonment of those that have been convicted of nothing.   Unfortunately, the wheels of justice in America are excruciatingly slow.

All of this is especially disconcerting, in consideration that the Sixth Amendment to our Constitution, stipulates that "…the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial…" of which it must be stated that all those that are currently incarcerated but have not been convicted or even necessarily had the formal charges made against them, must wonder exactly what the word "speedy" actually means.  Additionally, America, has an inordinate amount of people that are arrested that are thereby subject to some amount of monetary bail, in which, as reported by vox.com, "99% of the total jail growth from 1999 to 2014 was in the detention of people who are legally innocent," or in other words, are non-convicted but incarcerated in jail, for being unable to meet their monetary bail amount.  This clearly means that in America, there is a fundamental difference between how justice is served to those without money or ready access to money, as opposed to all those that do have money or ready access to money; for monetary bail, by its very nature, is as simple as if you got the money for that bail, you are released, and if you do not, you are jailed, pending your "speedy" trial.

America should be greatly shamed over all those that are jailed but have not yet been convicted of a crime, and should thereby resolve to make it their principle to see that all those that are currently jailed but non-convicted are released immediately so that they can try to regain normalcy to their lives, before such is effectively ruined or destroyed by their having been arrested, but not having been even convicted.   While it is true that some of those arrested, especially those arrested for heinous and violent crimes should be subject to more strict rules in regards to their being freed, the object of the exercise should be to look at all those that are arrested, as being placed into a way station so as to process those so arrested, and then release them forthrightly pending their "speedy" trial.   After all, innocent upon proven guilty, should actually mean: freedom until conviction.

Poverty and relative poverty

Poverty can be defined in numerous ways, of which, some people believe that those that are truly impoverished are only the ones sorely lacking in such basics as food, healthcare, housing, education, reliable electricity, and so forth.  So then, it thus follows that the most impoverished peopled in the world are, by that definition, those that live within societies in which those things are hard to come by, and therefore are truly impoverished.

On the other hand, poverty can and should be looked at from a relative perspective, so that, in western nations, one would expect that these countries would first of all, have very few people living in abject poverty, simply because of the sheer size of the wealth within that country.  So that, for instance, as reported by fortune.com, the USA has a grand total of an astonishing 41.6% of the global personal wealth, which would presuppose to the uninitiated, that certainly this would mean that there is no poverty in the United States, whatsoever.  Rather, the USA in 2012, as reported by vox.com, found that "17.9 percent of Americans lived on less than half the median income, after taking taxes and transfers into account;" whereas, in Denmark, that percentage was just 5.4 percent.

This signifies that in America, despite having by far the most wealth in aggregate, and despite the fact that the per capita GDP of America is greater than Denmark, has on percentage terms more than three times the amount of people living on less than half the median income than Denmark, and therefore have far more people suffering from being relatively impoverished.  While some pundits are quick to point out that those that are impoverished in America, frequently, still have reliable access to food, healthcare, housing, education, and electricity, what they do not so frequently mention, though, is that the quality of all of these things, are sorely lacking for those that live in poverty.

Additionally, perceptions do matter to people, so that, in a country in which citizens are bombarded constantly with advertisements and social media posts of all types night and day about the super-wealth of America, those that suffer from the lack of good nutritional food, good education, good housing and safe neighborhoods, as well as good and affordable healthcare, are not only living lives of a lower quality and are disadvantaged, but they most certainly in comparison to their fellow Americans, are not only living in relative poverty to them, but are forced to eat crow, day in and day out.

Further to the point, the United States, is an incredibly unequal society, of which, visibly, one not only sees that inequality in any major metropolis, but this is further demonstrated by the fact that the Gini coefficient for America is considerably higher than virtually any other nation, demonstrating the vast chasm between those that have and those have not in this country.  Not too surprisingly, the poor in America, suffering from the lack of so many essentials, as well as the unfairness of their plight, are frustrated in their lot.

This thus means, that though the poor in America do have so much more than those lacking in the basic necessities of life, such as what we find in developing nations; what the poor and impoverished do not have in America, is much respect, compounded by the fact, that the blame for not having that respect and success is placed upon their shoulders, for, after all, America is in theory, the land of opportunity. So then, America effectively blames the poor for being poor, and until such time, as America recognizes its complicity in this unfortunate situation, America though perceived as being rich, is in spirit, very, very poor.

Vox Populi, Vox Dei

Vox Populi, Vox Dei is Latin for "the voice of the people is the voice of God."  A motto such as this, one might think, should be the motto of the United States, or what was then known as the colonies, for within its Declaration of Independence, we are told that "...all men are created equal," in which each person is endowed with certain unalienable rights, and that to secure those rights, governments are instituted amongst mankind, deriving their just powers from the consent of those so governed.  These are the essential words of that Declaration of Independence; yet, the current government that rules this land, for all practical purposes is for a certainty not the voice of the people, and therefore is not the voice of God.

The error within the government that we currently have, reverts back to its failure to understand that first of all, we are all created equally by the hand of God; which presupposes to all those governments that existed at the time of the inception of this country and many that so exist today, that rather than the misguided belief in the divine right of Kings, the colonies believed that its power should be a dispersed power fairly and equally applied throughout its population, so that fairness, equality, and egalitarianism would reign throughout its land.  Additionally, the colonies believed it was wrong that any people should be controlled by one hand that ruled them all; all being done, without the colonies being provided with any legislative representation, or any consent by those people.

Further, the colonies believed that the power to tax was a form of control and coercion upon the population as a whole, in which, in absence of the people's influence upon the nature and extent of such taxation, that taxation was not legitimate; and therefore the most appropriate measure to oppose or to protest such taxation was to do so in a forthright way, subject even to arrest or civil warfare.  The people of the colonies, at that time, believed that their voice should be heard and further, they believed this so thoroughly, that they were willing to risk their very lives, their livelihood, and their honor to fight for the right to be a free and independent country, subject only to a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.

While the revolution of the colonies was successful in the sense that they threw off the chains of British governance and domination, through their grit and determination, in which, the colonies were able to thereby be united into one body politic, the follow-through into today's America, would seem to indicate that the governance of this country is most definitely not the voice of the people but rather is in so many ways and forms, actually the voice of the very few and the very privileged, of which those that rule the people today, behave in a manner that demonstrates that this government cares not for the voice of the people.

All this is to the shame of what America could and should actually be, for when the people's voice is silenced, and replaced instead with a bastardization of what America was founded upon, then our unalienable rights have been torn asunder from us, and so too, the true voice of God has been dismissed and replaced with tyranny, instead.