Favorable zoning for those who are privileged

The very first thing that must be acknowledged is that cities, city planning commissions, governmental representatives, local politicians, justice departments, police policies, and influential corporations, are all interconnected together, and thereby how areas of a city are subsequently zone for this, and not zone for that, fundamentally comes down to the fact that all those on the inside and who thus are connected, primarily get what they want, and those who are not, clearly don't even have a seat of influence at the table of where those decisions are made, and thereby are effectively dismissed and ignored. 

This is why, to no real surprise, that the best areas of town, are the parts of the community, that have good schools, good parks, libraries, playgrounds, financial institutions, and all the accouterments that come with desirable communities, of which those communities are often times, majority white; and if not, majority white, then a fair reflection of the power structure within that particular city.  On the other hand, those communities that have an oversupply of strip clubs, liquor stores, and questionable businesses, such as low-end department stores, cash loan stores, along with disreputable motels, bad schools, and the lack of good accouterments are typically in that part of town, which is known as being the low-income, minority part of town.  Further to the point, zoning laws, really "game" the system, in which the good parts of communities, preclude disreputable businesses such as strip clubs and pool halls, or industrial businesses and the like from being in their area.  On the other hand, the minority part of town, as bad as it already has it, is subject to being rather conveniently zoned for non-desirable commercial and industrial businesses, of which those businesses are prone to pollute the surrounding environment, which clearly is not healthy for those denizens that live within those areas.

While it is true that people are freely entitled to move to wherever it is that they so desire, that freedom to move really comes down to those that have the assets and the means to actually make that move; so that, truth be told, the reason that so many minorities live in non-desirable, and unhealthy neighborhoods is that typically that is about the only kind of place that they can reasonably afford.   This thus signifies that the structure of communities are not fair in their conception or in their implementation, and that the divide that one sees between those enclaves that have everything, as compared to those others, that have so little, has an awful lot to do with it being by design, and not happenstance.

Clearly, this is unfair, and what makes it even more unfair, is that those that are privileged, can if they so desire, go enter the seedier parts of towns, to transact whatever business that they so desire to do, and then return to their safety of their good neighborhood; whereas, those on the wrong side of town, find that they are often harassed, unwanted, and unappreciated in the finer parts of town; and must at the end of the day, return to that which they would, all things being equal, prefer to leave, if they could.

So then, while there is indeed plenty of wealth in America, it is fair to say, it's that type of wealth that is very concentrated and thereby all so good for those that have it; in contrast to those that lack, who are essentially trapped and zoned into decrepit and unsafe areas of absolute abject poverty.

To believe is not the same as to be what it is that you should be

The preaching in far too many mainstream religions is far too frequently an easy on the ears type of sermon, of words so spoken which imply that there are indeed shortcuts to Heaven, or if not those exact words, forgiveness and acceptance, thereof, for those that believe; and therefore the receipt of, so it would seem, that eternal "get out of jail" card.  No matter the exact words so said, or the beliefs so held, even those that are true and sincere to that so spoken, the truth of the matter always rises above the conveniences of a soft religious faith, especially that creed which asks little or nothing from its parishioners, and apparently demands nothing of substance from them in their actions, except to believe, as well as often a corresponding deposit of some coinage, for assurance, of such.

But it must be asked, though, to believe in what?  To believe that our savior Christ took our sins, upon Himself, and that therefore it so follows that it matters not what we do on a given day, or what we have done in the past, as long as we believe in His redemption of us, that we therefore are thus assured of a place in Heaven with God.  It would seem, though, that with this type of belief, that this would reflect that every day and every hour of every day in some corner of this world, or even within our own hearts, Christ is being crucified, again and again and again, into perpetuity; and that it so signifies that by us doing little or nothing of real merit or worth, and thereby not correcting our own behavior, that we have not done our sacred duty to make this world a better place by our actions and by our deeds, which we should be doing in the here and now for the betterment of our community and our people, so that we are, in essence, good for something.

This means that to simply believe in Christ, and what Christ so represents is never going to be good enough; for those that have the right kind of belief, must take it upon their shoulders to recognize that they have an inherent moral obligation, to demonstrate their faithfulness to that belief, by living their life in such a manner that Christ is known, by who and what we really are, and through the thoughts and thereby the decisions, so of, we do so make.  What each one of us accomplishes, matters; and what we need to accomplish foremost is to successfully throw off all that which cripples us from becoming what we were always meant to be, which consists of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and the demonstration of self-control, all done on behalf of those that we congregate with, day-by-day.

Those that profess that they are Christian, but fail to live the good attributes of being a Christian,  are not Christian, despite whatever words or belief that they so espouse.  Of course, none of us are perfect, but the difference between someone that knows Christ as compared to someone who just has that soft belief in Christ, is that the former is willing to die, if need be, or to sacrifice their selfishness as required, to thereby do what needs to be done and will risk themselves for the betterment of the good cause; whereas the later, when instructed to rise up and to do their duty for their faith, will just pretend that they haven't heard that small still voice, believing that they won't be held accountable for such, when, in fact, that was the true test of their belief.

The continuing racism of American immigration policies

As reported by usatoday.com, there is a significant amount of illegal immigration that has occurred within America of which it is estimated that as of 2017, 4.9 million of these immigrants originated from Mexico, another 1.9 million from Central America, 1.45 million from Asia, 775,000 million from South America, 475,000 from the Caribbean, and just 400,000 from Europe; of which these Europeans could be rightly considered to be the first "illegal immigrants" to America, and thereafter the many thousands upon thousands that came soon after them, were almost exclusively European, in origin. 

So that, for better or for worse, when the Founding Fathers are pictured, they are pictured as exclusively being white Europeans, of which, this is mainly true.  That said, in recent years, the perception of an all-white America has progressed to taking into fair consideration, a multitude of other cultural backgrounds, religions, and environments; yet, to a very large extent, the power, the politics, the corporations, and the fallback perception of America is still, even today, primarily a white vision.

When it comes to illegal immigration, unauthorized aliens, and the like, this is one of those topics which commonly invokes an awful rise out of a considerable percentage of people; some of it with some justification, some of it not, but really what it comes down to, more than anything else, is racism, pure and simple, under the bogus guise of the necessity to protect and to secure our borders.  In other words, all this talk about illegal immigration and the all the complaints thereof, is at its core, a prejudice against the people so crossing those borders, of whom the majority are of color, and that typically do not speak English as their first language, as well as not favoring the look of our Founding Fathers.

The bottom line is that if those so crossing our borders from Mexico, Central America, Asia, South American and the Caribbean, were primarily white, blue-eyed, blond hair fine looking males and females, the golden door of America, so of, would be absolutely wide open, and the inscription upon the Statue of Liberty would be saying something akin to "Give me your strong, good looking, blonde, blue-eye people, so deserving to breathe free, of which we warmly welcome all of them with open arms upon our vibrant shores of promise and prosperity." 

As much as the narrative about illegal immigration from those that claim to be strongly opposed to such, alleges as their reason things such as national security, job security, fairness and the like, the reality of the situation has far more to do with the color of the skin and the perception thereof of those crossing our borders, who are wrongly portrayed as being almost exclusively "rapists, criminals, drug mules, and animals," as having been so described as such by the highest level of government of these United States.

The fact of the matter is that the prevailing attitude of far too many of the representatives of this government, is racist against those that they feel do not belong within this country, of which the illegality of their immigration is just the cover that they so use to manifest their blatant racial discrimination; for if those so crossing our borders were primarily white, blue-eye, healthy, good looking blonds, those very same representatives would not be able to contain their joy or hold back their appreciation of those immigrants so coming to America.

Automatic machines are the economic equivalency to uncompensated labor

Those that control the means of production are always interested in increasing their profits, and if they can do so by decreasing their risk that dealing with human beings can definitely be for them, they are going to gravitate to those machines over people, and thereby it so follows that employers need not have to continue down that road of exploiting real human beings.  To the degree that machines replicate what use to be in fit and function, pretty much uncompensated labor -- that labor is thereby freed from having been placed into a situation in which they have essentially been working without getting fair compensation, or compelled by necessity to do what they have been doing, in order to survive.  After all, those that have few options will take what they can take in order to just live.

In regards to those that still remain in historical positions of weakness and lack the real ability to make a substantial change in their life, the fact that automatic machines are able to do the work that might indeed had been their personal burden to bear; perhaps then sets up a situation in which those that are the power brokers of that governance will actually see the usefulness of taking those people that previously were left behind, forsaken, forgotten, and exploited, so as to thereby give them a chance to get something of substance, out of life.  After all, if a given enterprise does not need to use what is essentially slavery by another name, than the opportunity for growth for those that have been considered to be something less than equal or of lesser value, should thereby commence.

We find that in a world in which there is a certain percentage of people that are all about making money by any means that they can do so, who thereby discover that with the advance of modern machinery that they don't have to create their empire by ruthlessly exploiting other people, then it therefore provides an opportunity for civilizations to become more livable for far more people; for those that are constantly oppressed are going to be people that are going to strike back, directly or indirectly in a multitude of ways, forever; and of which, the overall effect of that construct is dysfunctional and counter-productive for the very purpose of why civilizations were created in the first place, which is for the betterment of all of mankind.

This signifies, that the best way to look upon this hi-technology age, in which never have so many automated machines been able to do those jobs that previously had necessitated endless repetition and mindless tasks being so done day-by-day by humans is to recognize that this type of task work is definitely in decline.  So that, it so follows that this modern machinery has formed the real basis for the replacement of the historical usage of mankind as beasts of burden, which, thereby provides the symbolic lifting of those chains that have held back far too many people, from being able to fully develop and to utilize their minds so as to thereby improve themselves as well as their society.

This means that machines are truly meant to do what they do, and those so previously treated as machines are clearly meant to be treated instead as cognitive humans, worthy of our respect and deserving of our dignity.

The second oldest republic in the Western Hemisphere and America's late recognition of

The second oldest republic in the Western Hemisphere is Haiti.  A country that had to fight France over a bloody twelve year period in order to achieve its independence in 1804; and then after achieving that independence, Haiti so determined that it was in their best interests to pay reparations to France for that costly war, in order to get in return, diplomatic recognition as well as the opportunity to open up trade agreements with other nations that they previously were precluded from having those trade agreements with.

One might think that the United States, would have been, first in line to extend their aid as well as their diplomatic recognition to Haiti, as Haiti was not only a republic but also a sister country of the Western Hemisphere, but in reality, the diplomatic recognition of Haiti by America, was something that was never going to happen, because this country was so unseemly beholden to Southern interests and Southern affairs; and of which, those of that persuasion, would never willingly give their recognition to a country, that had violently overthrown European whites, so as to become a nation governed by Haitian blacks.

This thus signified that administration after administration, simply ignored Haiti, as an independent nation, and it was not until the Lincoln administration, that Haiti was recognized by the United States in 1862.  Unfortunately, that recognition though being a meaningful step in the right direction, did not bring the hope for value of having the United States as a trade partner, of which, therefore since those benefits were thus lacking, this thus led Haiti to eventually find more solace in having Germany as their premier trade partner; however, when World War I so commenced, the United States thereupon made it their point to effectively take over Haiti via military force so as to force German investment and interference out, and thus it remained that way for nearly twenty years, through United States military rule.

It would seem sensible that the United States would not only favor sister republics, but would given its own troubled history in regards to blacks, that it would do its level best to see that it provided thereby real material aid to Haiti, to help therefore in its development and to demonstrate to the world, that the United States believes in actually living up to its own credo, of freedom, justice, and political rights applicable to all.

Yet, the reality of the situation is that Haiti is a troubled country, of immense poverty, problems, and issues, of which, though the United States has made a continuous effort to be of assistance, this hasn't in effect done much of anything to help materially improve upon the sad fact that Haiti is still the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, even though that Western Hemisphere also happens to have the richest country in the world.  While, there isn't anything that can be done about America's late recognition of the sovereignty of Haiti, what still can be done, though, is to see that America does more of substance to help Haiti, if for nothing more than to make reparation for its own past racial sins.

Everything is bigger in America

Having a home to live in is pretty much a requirement in any modern civilization, and in America, those homes are bigger in size as well as in rooms thereof, than any other country.  For instance, as reported by oecd.org, in their table entitled, "Average number of rooms per household member by tenure, 2018 or latest year available" indicates that the United States is the true outlier of all other countries in comparison, with an incredible "3.8 rooms per household member."  It must be recognized, though, that when it comes to rooms, these represent all of the rooms in a given home, such as the "kitchen-room", the dining room, the living room, the laundry room, the "den-room", each bathroom, and of course, each bedroom.  So that, in an American home consisting of three bedrooms and two bathrooms, there are probably a total of nine rooms, altogether, for that home.

One might think that with all of those rooms, and with all of that space, that America would therefore be the paradise of places to live in.  No doubt, it is a paradise for those few that are at the very top of heap, that have so much abundance, that they often don't seem to even consciously recognize how good that they have it.  So too, those so representing the upper class as well as much of the middle class also typically have plenty of room to enjoy their lives.  However, once we drop down to the lower middle class, and the lower class, while they too may be in housing structures that contain a lot of rooms, in comparison to other countries of the same income demographic, the quality of those rooms, the quality of the housing stock, the quality of the area that they live in, and the overall quality itself of where they are at, is not even close to being at the same level for those that have the best of the best.  In other words, while it might indeed feel good to have space to stretch out one's legs, that in and of itself, is not necessarily a fair reflection that those that have more room in their housing structure, are necessarily in a good place, or that they are happier than people in other countries, such as Japan or South Korea, in which housing space is at a far higher premium.  This so indicates that though everything in America, seems to be bigger, it does not necessarily translate into that bigger is always indeed, better.

So that, America has plenty of housing space, but this doesn't tell the complete story, for based upon the amount of poverty that it so suffers from, and thereof the lack of good opportunity, the lack of good education, and the lack of safety so contained within certain enclaves of American cities; clearly indicates that the troubles that are contained within America, aren't really a reflection of the overcrowding within those enclaves, but reflects more accurately the hopelessness and the corresponding lack of investment within that given situation; which may well be exacerbated by the fact that often just a couple of miles away, it is quite clear to the naked eye, just how good everything else for fortunate others so appears to be.

So then, while having plenty of room to live has its place, that in and of itself is not the cure-all for what so troubles America, for what troubles America is its inability to clearly understand that what makes for a good life for all, is an infrastructure that lives to this credo, that all of mankind is created equal, and thereby good governance consists of providing a fair opportunity for all of those people, to therefore have an actual seat at the table of hope, equity, and fairness.

Gone too soon?

This world has been fortunate enough to have great avatars, great prophets, and great visionaries that have helped greatly to make this world and civilization better because of their actions, wisdom, and insight.  However, in many cases, a significant portion of these invaluable personages have left us, through foul means or not, way too soon, and it seems often times that those that thereby replace such, are hopelessly outclassed and not really properly prepared to take on what needs to be taken on; but yet, the world and civilization just keeps on keeping on and in many aspects, progressing, nevertheless.

While it makes sense to admire those that are clearly of immense personal value, it is a mistake to believe that our collective role should ever simply be just one of admiration, as opposed to our real collective role, which should be to boldly take the baton of those that have led us and to therefore not only continue the race, but to finish it, well.  So then, the real reason why those that are our heroes, leave us, seemingly before their time, is so that we will not forever be stuck in some sort of mode of "hero worship", but recognize that each one of us has inside of us, hero qualities that need to be developed and utilized.

While it is nice to ride the coattails of those that have coattails worth riding, the bottom line is that each one of us, without exception, will at some point, have to stand up upon our own two feet, whether united with others of like mind, or by our self, in order to do our part to help effect the change that will thereby assist in making our civilization better.  This signifies that the courage that we admire in others, as well as the wisdom that we so desire to have, are the very attributes that we need to make the effort to become, as well.

Every good and loving parent wants their children to not only be good for something, but also to achieve meaningful things; so that it follows that those parents want their children to the extent so possible, to exceed their own achievements, whether such is done when they are still physically present upon this earth or not.  This so signifies that when we as a people suffer deeply from the great loss of those great men and women taken from us before their time, that we owe it to our heroes, that  when we subsequently too get knocked down, that we keep on getting back up so as to continue onward upon our chosen path.

Life is really about growth, and in particular, the positive growth of our character, of which, we demonstrate this growth best by courageously facing the obstacles that we come across, and through our successful overcoming of those obstacles, we prove our mettle.  While, we may not be successful the first time, or the second, or not even the third, we will, given enough time, and enough determination, overcome that which precludes us from the promised land so promised to everyone, who is faithful to that cause, which is to rise above all that is wrong, so as to successfully embrace all that is right.

Justice, the majority and mob rule

There are plenty of people that really do believe that what so the majority would have, is what so should be done.  However, in a Constitutional republic, the very purpose of that structure of that Constitution, is to make that government, of, by, and for the people subservient to the highest law of the land, which is its Constitution; and of which that Constitution makes it clear that each citizen of these United States is thereby entitled to avail themselves of the full and complete rights of that Constitution, and in particular, the Amendments to it.  This signifies that this then is not a government of simplistic majority rule, and certainly this is never to be a government of mob rule, but rather our government is structured as a government by Constitutional rule, of which, therefore it so follows, that even those in the most extreme minority positions, that is, of even just one, are protected by that Constitution from the ill effects of a majority rule run amok, or even worse, mob rule.

The very purpose of good governance is for the people to gather together into one body politic, so as to create a union of people that expressly have joined together as one, in order to protect, defend, and to propagate a form of government, so created to be of benefit for those people.  This thus signifies that when it comes to justice, that good governance requires that it thereby comes to the aid of those that are suffering from the ill effects of their Constitutional rights being unfairly wrested away from them, for whatever reasons that such has occurred, and that those that have had their Constitutional rights trampled upon, or upended, are entitled to have their fair day in court so as to rectify such through appropriate adjudication, thereof.

So then, it is quite clear that while there are times when the majority does properly rule, as in the election ballots of all types, and the votes so subsequently tabulated, of which each one of those votes is equally weighed; this does not signify that the majority is therefore the ultimate ruler of this nation.  Rather, the point of a written Constitution, and Constitutional law, is to preclude the majority from deciding on their own initiative, as to what that majority will or will not permit per their whim.  Instead, we have a justice system so created so as to interpret the laws that have been passed, and further, to adjudicate as to whether a particular law as written and interpreted is or is not constitutional.

In point of fact, as much as some people may find this disconcerting, the principle behind Constitutional law is never about doing all that can be done to assure that the majority gets its way, every single time; but rather it is to see that justice is accomplished in a manner, in which, whether popular or unpopular, that the justice so being rendered is consistent with the principles of that Constitution, and that further that this justice is fair, universal, and equally applied.

The law of the jungle and our government

The whole point of any good and legitimate government is for that government to remove forthwith any remnant of the law of the jungle, and therefore to represent in principle, instead, a government which applies its fair laws equally to all; and in particular is structured in a way in which the government therefore is the strong protector of the people's right to fair justice, equality, and opportunity.  In other words, good governance is that which is no respecter of persons, but rather is the respecter of the law, fairly and equally applied to all, so that there is no separate favoritism displayed for certain classes or races, nor is their prejudice so displayed against other classes or races, but rather each person stands upon their own merits; of which the law as applied to everyone, is done so in a manner in keeping with that governance, that thereby provides to all the people, the fundamental rights of that Constitution.

So, in form and structure, the very point of why people thereby bond together into one body politic, is so that the weakest and the most vulnerable of that collective people, are thereby provided with the exact same rights, immunities, and privileges that the richest and most powerful are able to avail themselves of.  That is to say, the achievements and the position of members of any society are invariably going to differ in ways, large and small, and of which those that are its most vulnerable, and are typically in the weakest of those positions, should therefore still be accorded the same rights that all of its citizens have, so that they are therefore protected from being exploited, abused, and denied that which is unalienable to them.

So then, the measure of good governance, is never exclusively about how the rich and the most powerful are doing with their given achievements, inheritances, and accomplishments; but rather that governance is measured by the efforts so being made in order to benefit and to be of assistance to those that have the least, and are the most exposed to the unanticipated vagaries of life.  After all, as one country united, it is important for that country to be able to represent itself as that beacon of liberty, freedom, opportunity, and equality, by demonstrating such in the livelihood and accomplishments of the whole of its population.

This thus signifies, that any country that professes and sentimentalizes its great virtues, but of which, the reality of the situation for its people in whole, demonstrates something diametrically different -- represents therefore a country that is not living up to its own founding documents, no matter how uplifting and inspiring those words are.  For how a people live, reflects the reality of the situation, and in those cases, in which, good governance has been seemingly replaced, by a scenario in which the high and mighty rule the roost, and therefore a significant swath of the population, are left with little or nothing, and of which those people are unable to avail themselves upon the very principles of that governance -- is demonstrative that in actuality the law of the jungle, effectively so rules.

Information fiduciaries

In this modern era of big tech, there are a few companies that pretty much dominant their respective market space, such as Facebook and Google, though there are other companies that also rule their own space, just as well.  A multitude of these technology companies make it part and parcel of their business model to collect and thereby to categorize and to analyze all sorts of data upon the individuals that utilize their services.  No doubt, as it currently stands there are Terms and Conditions so imposed upon the users of these tech sites, that seemingly permits these tech companies to do what they currently do, but that in and of itself, does not mean that this is a practice that should be left as it is.

In fact, businesses the world over often have a fiduciary duty, expressed or implied, to those that utilize their services, such as in banking and finance, in which the fiduciary duty of those institutions is to do right by their clients and not to abuse the privileges so granted to them, for their own selfish desires, abuse, or self-aggrandizement.  This thus signifies that in a world in which information about specific individuals has a monetary value for those so collecting and correlating that information, that to thereby sell such to third parties for a price, in one form or another, is typically going to be seen as being anathema to those individuals.  In other words, a fairer construct would impose upon these information collectors, a fiduciary duty to do right as well as to be transparent to their users in regards to the information so obtained, and consequently what these companies are or are not permitted to do with such.

In order for there to be trust from one entity to another, there has to be in place, something that is structured fairly to ensure that trust; so that, for example, those seeking medical attention, who so disclose to their doctor their illicit drug usage while suffering from a medical problem should not therefore subsequently be arrested for substance abuse, as part and parcel of having received that necessary medical attention.  In other words, in those situations in which we fully disclose vital information, in order to receive, for instance, appropriate medical help, we typically would not desire that the responsible party obtaining that information, would thereupon sell such or embarrasses us by virtue of having and thereby divulging in one form or another, this actionable information, especially when such is done without our outright foreknowledge and explicit permission to do so.

To the degree that information about each one of us, helps to make products better or services that we use, of more value -- so much the better, but it does not necessarily follow that individuals would thereby desire that information so aggregated on them personally should subsequently be done so in a manner in which one's implicit right to privacy as well as discretion would essentially be violated against what one would wish to see disclosed in public; let alone marketed to unauthorized third parties.  This thus signifies that the information that is reaped by technology companies from our online activities should not be seen as essentially being available for others at a price, but rather such should be treated with the appropriate fiduciary care that a responsible company should justly adhere to.

Bread and wisdom

There are all sorts of things that people in today's modern world think that they have a real need of; but what we really need does not necessarily correlate to what we have pictured in our mind as things that we have to have; for in fact, the list of what we really need is far more reasonable and attainable, not only for ourselves, but in actuality, for the world, at large. 

In this world, each one of us has a physical body, of which that physical body absolutely has its necessary needs, of which, the most basic summary of such, consists of our need to have fair access to food, water, shelter, cleanliness, as well as the necessity of rest.  To take it a bit further, bodies should live under the conditions of which the air is clean, the environment is devoid of any dangerous pollutants, the neighborhood is safe, and the opportunity to work as well as the advancement thereof, so as to therefore provide and to sustain one's life and one's family is fairly abundant.  In conjunction with those physical and work needs so being met, each one of us has a responsibility to build upon the generations that have come before us, so that we are thereby able to learn from the errors so made, previously; and therefore as a civilization, to evolve ourselves ever higher, generation by generation, as compared to repeating the errors of the past, or even worse, devolving our societies through misapplication and selfish greed.

This so indicates that the foundation of any good civilization, begins first with the necessity that our physical needs be reasonably met, and further that we apply ourselves diligently to not only our work, but in the improving of our minds, so that through that wisdom, properly applied, each succeeding generation, can go further than the one so preceding it.  Additionally, beyond the physical and our education, each of us should devote some part of our day to contemplating the question as to why we are here in this world to begin with, so that through that search, we are able to find our reason for being, as well as subsequently in understanding better our commonality with our fellow sojourners here on earth.

All those then, that therefore have advanced themselves further than their compatriots, have an inherent and even sacred obligation to take their wisdom and see that such is applied in such a manner that it is not done exclusively for one's own self-aggrandizement, but rather that it has been applied in a manner in which other people, can be uplifted, for none of us is an island.

So then, anytime that we see someone that is hungry or hurting, and seemingly without hope, and we subsequently turn our back upon them, explicitly or implicitly, we have not done what we should and ought to have done for them.  Further, those that we come across, that are ill-educated, of which we do not thereby desire to see that we do our part to help enlighten them, then we have not done what we should and ought to have done for them.  Each of us is meant to do our part to help uplift one another, whenever that we can, for the race is not to the swift, but rather it is always for those that recognize that no race is complete until all so finish it.

The ultimate union

People search for love and meaning in all sorts of places, activities, and things, as well as in their relationship and their interaction with their fellow human beings.   Some of those people, for instance, do find that love and meaning through the uniting of their cause with something that matches their calling, or some find it with their love of spouse and family, or some through their love of country, and some through the meaning of the work that they so do.  Still, there are many people that don't really find any of those things to be completely satisfactory; or, find that within that union of love for job, or family, or activity, that though there is much good in such, they also find disappointment, loss, hurt, and even rejection.  Further there are those, that aren't able to find much of anything in this world that provides them with any lasting happiness or meaning.  In short, many people want to love and to be loved, and want to find meaning and real purpose in life, but are not fully successful in such.

It isn't so much that people are searching for that love and meaning in all of the wrong places, but rather it is that the characteristics of that of which we desire to unite with, is typically itself, imperfect; and in consideration that we too are imperfect, this often results thereby in the frustration of mankind's best laid plans, not coming to that desired fruition, thereof.  This signifies, that the fundamental flaw with one's desire to unite fully with someone else or to some cause, is the fact that our aim in such, is not as high as it really should and ought to be.  In other words, there is only one being that is perfect, inerrant, omniscient, and immutable, and that is God.

This indicates that those that are sincerely searching for truth, love, and meaning, need to direct their eyes upon the prize that is beyond all other prizes, and therefore through that unity with that one prize they will thereby end all of their sorrows.  Yet, so many people though professing their love or appreciation of God, are reluctant to wholeheartedly actually demonstrate in their thoughts and in their actions their adherence to what that so entails; perhaps because they are too enchanted in this present world with one thing or another, or devoted, or enthralled, or loyal, or addicted to such; and thereby have no desire to let go of that of which they already have in order to find that lasting union that will bring peace and wholeness. 

It isn't that our love for one another or our devotion to this or that is necessarily wrong or misguided, for in truth, that which is beneficial for one another, as well as those activities so done for the benefit of mankind are right, necessary, and good.  Rather, as good as this may be, it is incorrect to see such as the end of the story, but rather this should more properly be seen as the pathway that thereby provides the impetus for our enlightenment so that we will subsequently find our way to our unification with that which actuated us in the first place, and who has been patiently awaiting since then for our triumphant return.

Justice is not served by bribes

Justice should be about telling "the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth," and that truth telling should apply to both sides of the law, so that true justice can therefore be rendered.  One can guess that it almost goes without saying that the defendant in a criminal case, along with witnesses selected for the defense, are probably not going to tell the whole truth.  However, it must be said, that the prosecution side typically does not disclose the whole truth, itself; and the prosecution, is specifically suppose to represent not only the state, as well as the people, but also fair justice, applied.

In regards to the prosecution, the most problematic part of their truth telling often comes down quite tellingly to the real motivation of some of the witnesses so presented.  For instance, any testimony in which the person testifying has been explicitly or implicitly threatened by the prosecution, then such testimony as that, is surely not the whole truth, but rather something that has been coerced or coached, or both.  Additionally, those that testify in which as a condition of their testimony they will receive leniency so as to preclude incarceration, or the length of such, or the threat of such occurring, are obviously going to testify in a manner in which they are going to say what they say that favors their own personal interests in conjunction with those that they are obviously beholden to.  Finally, there are plenty of people that are provided with monetary funds from the government or its authorized agencies or personnel in one form or another, in order to entrap, corrupt, instigate, inform, or anything else along that same some of line, so as to get the desired ultimate result, which clearly cannot conceivably be: justice.

While the United States judicial system prides itself that it never bribes anyone in any way, at any time, the fact of the matter is, that the United States does exactly that, in far more cases than it so desires to own up to; for every time that testimony is purchased on behalf of favoritism so shown to a particular person so as to produce that necessary testimony, that is, in essence, bribery.  Additionally, in a fair judicial system, all deals so agreed to with witnesses for the prosecution, should be transparent as well as being fully vetted and thereby disclosed to the other side, along with such being disclosed to the jury, so that such testimony can thereby be appropriately weighed, or alternatively to that, such testimony which has been purchased, directly or indirectly, in order to assist the prosecution, should be subject to an outright ban.

After all, people that are employed, are paid for their work; and all those in the judicial system that are paid in one form or another, for their work, or for their work to come, are going to, typically, do what they need to do in order to justify having been paid.  So, it can be said, that all the games that prosecutors play, in order to secure a conviction, of which the prevailing attitude is often one of whatever it takes to get that conviction, is never going to be justice served, but rather will always be justice denied.

The truth behind no layoffs

There is a subsection of companies that are only too proud to point out that they have never had a layoff within their corporate history, and of which, in an era of which good job security is seemingly at new lows, this policy of having no layoffs is definitely something that rightly deserves appreciation as demonstrating good stewardship and good corporate policy. Yet, nevertheless, this also deserves to be rightly scrutinized, just to make sure that all that needs to be known, is so known, and is thereby transparent to the public eye.

That is to say, the simplistic definition of a no layoff policy for most people is pretty much, that nobody gets laid off; but the reality of the situation has far more layers of investigation to it.  For instance, some companies typically hire a significant portion of those that work for them, not as direct employees to the company, but rather through a recognized temporary agency, that places these "temp employees" on a "needs" basis with them.  Further to the point, these temporary employees are not part of the payroll of the subject company, but are instead paid by the temporary agency that so placed them; signifying that these are not direct employees of said corporation, so that when a temp employee is subsequently let go, or basically laid off, so to speak, they are not categorized as have been a direct employee of that corporation, thereby meaning that they are not part and parcel of anyone having been laid off by that company, even though from an individual standpoint, they have lost their job, just the same as someone that was officially laid off.

Additionally, there are those that work with corporations, as subcontractors to that corporation, of which that corporation is represented as being the contractor, and therefore these subcontractor workers are, by definition, not direct employees of the company that contracted them, but rather are direct or even are temp employees of the subcontractor.  Therefore, when a given subcontractor loses their subcontracted job with the contractor, or has that work reduced or delayed, any layoffs so ensuing from such, are going to be layoffs subject only to that subcontractor, and therefore has nothing to do with the contractor's policy towards layoffs; yet, those so losing those jobs with that subcontractor, are laid off all the same.

 So too, within a corporation that espouses a no layoff policy, when times are tough, they may turn to other avenues to maintain employment, but such will necessitate, for instance, a reduction in the pay rate of employees, or a reduction in the hours so being worked, or the necessity of a furlough of workers, in which those workers so being furloughed, are no longer receiving any income at all, during that furlough period.  In all of these cases, technically, nobody has been laid off, yet, the effect of those so being employed is that their income stream that they count upon in order to budget their life and to pay their bills and whatnot, has been disrupted to their disadvantage. 

So then, while a no layoff policy sounds like an absolute win for those that are directly employed by that company, in actual fact, this is not the same thing as a guaranteed salary, and never will be.

"God created man in his own image"

We read in Holy Scripture that "God created man in his own image" (Genesis 1: 27).  When we contemplate upon this, our only reasoned understanding of this scripture is that mankind was created in God's image, in order for mankind through its own effort, free-will, and desire would one day, recognize that its highest calling, was to live up to in every aspect, so of, of being true to that image, and none else.  This so signifies, that everything that we think, do, and contemplate upon, that is not consistent with the attributes of God, are failures of our character, that we are meant to overcome.  

We are specifically not automatons, because God does not need nor does God so desire, to have that which has no free-will be obedient to God, for that which has not consciousness, thereby has no choice to make.  Rather, mankind has been gifted by God with consciousness, and thereby the decisions to be made, are ours to own, and none other.  So then, in fairness to mankind, this earthly plane was so created, to provide the place and the time for mankind to prove or disprove who and what they so represent; so done, by our thoughts, actions, and deeds, of which, to the degree that we comprehend who and what we really are, the sooner that we will thereby faithfully reflect that which actuated us in the first place.

After all, to be made in the image of anything, means to be made of the same substance, and therefore those that are not true to that image are clearly not qualified as being descendants in good standing of God.  Our purpose in life is to actually rise up and to thereby through our enlightenment understand that we are meant not to just be perpetual children of God, but rather that we are intended to mature to such an extent, that we are thereby able to eventually be co-creators with God, for there is no greater honor that is due to that which created us, then to become One with that which breathed us into existence.

This clearly signifies that all the ills that mankind so suffers from, stem from the errors and misunderstandings that mankind has created unto itself.  The problems of this world, therefore, and the struggles, thereof, are meant to wake our consciousness up from the slumber that so many suffer from -- as well as for us to understand intimately what it really is to suffer disappointment, loss, regret, tragedy and the like.  For, after all, those not tested thoroughly in the boiling cauldron of life, will thereby lack the needed exposure to fight valiantly against the evil that assails us, and thereby are ill prepared to deal with such constructively when subsequently so faced.

This planet represents for each one of us, the proving ground, that will make us to be that which we were always meant to be; so that, when put to the test, we will never fail, for that which has become the spitting image of God, is in it substance, inerrant, enlightened, and thereby complete.

The value of the right type of teasing

Teasing has its place, of which there are those times when it is pretty much welcomed, and then there are those times when that teasing is more so done as a means to provoke another.  The whole point of good teasing, though, is to test the other person in a way to understand them better, done so in a manner which is not direct, or directly confrontational, or of a too serious tone, in order to better ascertain if there is some commonality or rapport between one to another.  After all, most people fear personal rejection of someone that they respect, admire, or like, and often are a bit reluctant to expose themselves for who and what they really are or how they actually feel to that other person, without first getting a better sense of where they appear to currently stand with that person, of which, their workaround to this sort of conundrum, is often some playful banter, known as teasing.

So that, teasing in personal relationships, though it does have a fair amount in common with flirting, isn't really the same; because teasing is actually more sincere in its application, because it is meant as a means to test the waters, between one to another, as contrasted to flirting, which may have more to do, with simply trying to be manipulative or to get over on another.

In a polite society, it doesn't behoove anyone to be absolutely direct all of the time, or to not take into account and of consideration the other person and their perspective, along with it also being prudent to take into deliberation the other person's status, and therefore the better part of valor, is typically to be discreet and one of the best ways to be discreet without being direct, is to tease one another.  For, after all, when somebody teases another, they usually have a fair escape hatch available for them; of which, then, if the reaction by the other party is decidedly negative, they can thereby quickly state that they were, "just kidding."

Additionally, in order to get to know anybody better, some form of two-way communication, must occur, and of which, in order to continue that conversation, this so necessitates that nothing too stupid, nothing too blunt, or nothing too insulting, happens; so therefore, teasing has its necessary place, because those that tease are often able to effortlessly cross a line, that directness would typically not be able to successfully accomplish.

So too, most people, enjoy being teased, when such is done in a manner that brings out a characteristic of theirs that they like, but are heretofore been reluctant to express, themselves.  In other words, teasing can be seen as a pathway of liberation for both parties, because it is a way to open up avenues that previously have been left unexplored.   So then, the right type of teasing is something that is welcomed, because in its own way it helps to clarify things that were previously left unsaid, or unknown.  Those then, that tease, in that good way, are those that care to know more about the other.

Private wealth for generations

There are all sorts of financial advisors for those that have sizeable assets of which one of the selling points of those advisors is the coming up with a sound strategy so as to successfully pass on one's assets to family members in such a manner that the taxation of those assets is absolutely minimized.  Not too surprisingly, those that are considered by their clients to be the best financial advisors are the ones that are able to navigate those treacherous tax waters in such a manner so as to maximize the legacy so left to one's heirs.

While it certainly makes sense for all those that have assets to want to pass on at least some portion of such to their offspring, as well as to notable others and organizations; when this becomes instead, an  overarching mission to do all that is possible to circumvent fair tax laws in a manner in which fairness is subsequently left at the door, and, of which, thereby we discover that the sole objective of such is to "game" the system in a manner in which, those that have, need not worry about giving up much of anything of their assets, than in short, the American public is ultimately unfairly short changed.

After all, while a given person is alive, the monies that they have earned, invested, inherited, and kept, is typically theirs to do with, whatsoever that they so desire.  However, once that person's physical life has ended, it would seem that in fairness to that country that thereby provided the structure and the infrastructure to aid in its own way that individual's success, that that country should be entitled to reap in monies of an appropriate portion from the demise of that person, of that which is their assets. 

Therefore, the failure of the state apparatus in extracting a fair portion of the money from those that have become exceedingly wealthy, through the means of an estate tax, is thereby the failure to preclude that country which was specifically created with no hereditary titles, from creating its own type of special inheritance privileged class of all those that have done nothing of merit, but to have been born into this land with all the advantages and accouterments of those so born with that proverbial silver spoon in their mouth.

This land has great public wealth, of which the purpose of that wealth being in the hands of the government and its agencies is for the expressed benefit and welfare of the people.  On the other hand, whenever great wealth is in the hands of private people, that wealth is controlled by those people, and often is utilized in a manner specifically to favor their own people, their own interests, and their own desires; but even when such is thereby devoted or diverted to public means, the decision of where, when and how those monies are thereby divvied up, is essentially left in the control of that person or institution that has control of those assets.

Private wealth is not the same and never will be the same as public wealth.  This thus signifies that great private wealth, which is thereby permitted to seamlessly pass on from generation to generation, will invariably lead to a country that will represent in action the great battle of the very few that have, against the very many that have not, and should those very few prevailed, than the mass of people that have lost, will be left with just the table scraps.

Worth dying for

There is a price for everything that we so encounter, though not everything has a monetary price so attached to it.  Further to the point, the value of things is never going to be the same person-to-person; not to mention the fact that things don't necessarily even have the same value, day-by-day for the very same person.  Still, the actions that we do are in aggregate a true reflection of who and what we really are, and therefore fairly reflect by those actions that of which we stand for.  So that, those that state that this is not the case, or that this viewpoint misunderstands them or misconstrues their actions, are often barking up the wrong tree, for that which we do, is what we really are.

So then, those that speak of their courage, but never do a courageous thing are by definition, not courageous.  So too, those that speak up strongly about the importance of this or the importance of that, but when tested on that very thing, find therefore that their voice once so loud, has thereby become silent; so need to question their integrity, for those that only stand tall for what they claim matters dearly to them, when the conditions are favorable for that particular position; yet, run and hide when those conditions have turned decidedly unfavorable, are those that are lacking in good principle.

For life to have any meaning for anyone there has to be something that actuates a given person's life in a manner in which they have found something worth living to, or worth living up to.  Perhaps that is one's family, or friends, or country, or even one's employment, it so varies depending upon the individual, for it is within that sense of purpose that gives that person their meaning in life.  Still, it must be acknowledged, that each day brings us some trouble, or a hint of such, of which, that of which we live so strongly for, will invariably be challenged to some degree by something that will take that which means so much to us, away from us.

This thus signifies, that which we live for, is often going to be the very same thing, that we are also willing to sacrifice ourselves to, and, if need be, to die for, when such is threatened to be unjustly wrested away from us.  After all, if we are unwilling to fight righteously for that which we have valued so highly, when we are called in service to that value to do exactly that, then we are not honoring that which we previously had cherished so dearly.

So then, we find that there is going to come that time, for every single one of us, in which we have a sacred call of duty, and of which, that duty is to risk possibly everything in order to defend and to protect that for which we have lived our lives for, and of which, we may or may not succeed in that battle, but battle we must so do.  When tested, thereof, those then that have integrity will prove such, and will give their last full measure in order to do so, and those that do not -- have failed that which they purported to have been true believers of.

Opinions and the desire for dominance

As they say, everybody has an opinion, and most people desire to express such.  The problem though thereupon comes when certain people get so attached to their opinion that they have expressed, that they don't want to ever give ground on it, and then when someone else, has an opinion that so differs from theirs, this may so present a war of dominance of one versus the other.  To a certain degree, that is to be expected, but when we get to those times when it gets all so serious, in which each party, is thereby determined at all costs that they are right, this thus creates a lot of friction and possibly lasting resentment.  Further, though, the person that believes that their opinion is right, and typically each party so does, often also has a very strong tendency to not desire to actually listen to the other side, because they aren't interested in engaging with the other party, let alone even considering their opinion as possibly have some validity or possibly even being right.

So then, those that have strong opinions are typically the very same people that have closed minds, and closed minds do not listen to what other people have to say, because they feel that they don't need to, for they perceive their mind as being correct.  While there is something to be said, about being consistent, and true to  one's own word, there is also something to be said, about the need to actually have an open discussion with another person who is entitled to state their own opinion, of which, common courtesy and fair play should encourage one another to hear the other person out, which when so done, could lead to some give and take between those parties, leading to a better situation, of which, there would then exist some sort of common ground, that can thereby create a possibility of collaboration rather than of dominance.

In those situations, in which, people aren't willing to listen to reason, because they aren't even going to bother with the listening; then opinions so expressed really come down to finding those other people, that are in lockstep with one's own opinion, and leaving therefore all those that are in opposition, behind.  While there is merit in unity, there is also merit in diversity, along with the fact that those that will not broker any dissent or honest feedback or open communication are essentially know-it-alls that might not actually know it all.

Each of us is unique as an individual, and in large communities, there can be an incredibly diverse amount of backgrounds, interests, and achievements within that community.  Yet, we have an inherent obligation to not only to be of assistance to our family and to our friends, but also to be of assistance to the community that we are members of, of which, we are therefore obligated as a good neighbor to do our part in helping to make that community a better place for our being a part of it.  This thus signifies that those that insist that it is their way or the highway, so that they therefore are the dominant one, are often the very people that are not repairers of the breach, but rather are the ones that create the breach to begin with. 

Truth is eternally immutable

We find ourselves seemingly living within a construct in which each person, is able to freely proclaim their version of truth, of which, we are led to believe, thereof, that their truth therefore is as valid as any other person's truth.  This type of nonsense brings no good benefit to anyone, for if truth is subjective, or if truth is mutable, depending upon the time of the day, or era, or person, or opinion, then there is, in fact, nothing that could ever be truly defined as truth.

Truth, by definition, is that which does not change its nature, or its tune, upon the winds of time; but rather truth is just as true today, as it was yesterday, and will be tomorrow.  So then, only that which is immutable has the necessary characteristic of truth, and therefore all that which is mutable though it may at times take upon the aura of truth, or may be true within the context of that time and place, it is not, though, in totality, true.

It is important to understand the nature of truth, for if we do not understand truth from a fundamental basis, than we are susceptible to believing all sorts of things that are not foundationally true, and that, thereof, is a very slippery slope.  Each of us has an inherent obligation, to search for truth, and those that do not, or care not to do so, are those that are too lazy of mind, to understand that any endeavor that does not at its heart have the search for and the desire for truth as its abiding principle -- is a venture which is flawed in its concept.

After all, to fight doggedly for that which is false, is always going to be a fight which will bring forth neither lasting peace, nor lasting satisfaction.  This so signifies that the only fight worth fighting for, is always on behalf of that which is good, right, and true; for these together, are eternal and therefore are properly worthy of our time and effort.

So too, because truth is immutable, this signifies that it cannot be contained within a vessel which is susceptible to error or mistakes of perception.  So then, truth, lies outside of our own person, but not outside of our purview of finding such, of which, part of the actuation of any human life, is that innate desire to discover who and what we really are, and therefore the purpose thereof, of our being.

In many ways, life consists of facades upon facades, not necessarily in order to confuse us or to entrap us, but rather such exists as a means of encouraging us to look behind those facades in order to discover the truth of the matter.  It is our curiosity, more than anything, that pushes us to keep on peeling back the layers in order to know that which we must for a certainty know; and when we know the truth, we will be free from that which we thought was true, but was in actuality, a mirage -- so created as a means to test us and to challenge us, but never as a deceit to us.