Offshore banking, cryptocurrency, and found money

Never have so many institutions and people availed themselves of cryptocurrency investments and offshore banking firms as is so happening today.  Typically, those that are up to no good, and therefore need not only plausible deniability, but desperately do not want tax authorities or any other authority for that matter, to know their financial business or the amount of their offshore financial assets, find that the lure of offshore banking with its deliberate labyrinth structure to be ideal to hide their assets and therefore to permit these people and institutions to thereby make all sorts of secretive investments as well as to take other actions, without the conscious concern that they will be found out.

While it almost goes without saying, that such opaqueness and the hiding of assets in order to avoid taxation or civil forfeiture and the like, is beneficial exclusively for the party so engaging in such; this though is not the entire truth, for in reality, those offshore banking institutions, count on one very important fact, which is that some of these people, such as, for instance, highly placed individuals in unstable governments, as well as high-level drug traffickers, aren’t necessarily going to be alive for the long run.  This thus signifies, that when the impenetrability to those assets is incredibly secure, that when a given person dies or essentially becomes disappeared, that even those that had a pretty good inkling that these former people or institutions held cryptocurrency or had offshore banking assets, that they themselves are often going to find it very problematic to secure those assets as next of kin, or fellow business partner, and so on and so forth.  In other words, offshore banking institutions, delight in structuring assets in such a way, that the provability of the ownership of such, along with the appropriate beneficiary, so of, is a difficult task to prove, signifying that those assets that remain dormant for a suitable period of time, essentially become “found capital” for those offshore banking enterprises.

That said, at least for those with offshore banking accounts, there is a reasonable chance, that money so lost, might be re-discovered; as compared to cryptocurrency which prides itself on having no central authority and no paper trail, signifying that those that were so fortunate as to have a significant amount of assets in cryptocurrency, don’t have any good recourse against someone else extracting such through coercion and force, or should they subsequently simply become a non-person, so to speak, the asset in essence, is no longer theirs.

Those then, that are using all the tricks of the trade to hide their valuable assets, might seem to be always having the best of it, but when unexpected and unanticipated events happen, the end result may be, that the money that was earmarked for themselves, family, or their associates, might just end up in the hands of that offshore banking institution, that basically has the found money, and are not too surprisingly, somewhat reluctant to let go of it; and even if they do give it up, they typically have very good control of the narrative, and hence not all that is returned to somebody that has proven their legitimate provenance, is all that was actually there.

Towards a more robust Affirmative Action

Affirmative Action is the law of the land, of which the intended purpose of this law was meant to increase the representation of those that have historically been denied a fair and equal opportunity in regards to their education and employment, because of discrimination, both overt and covert, so done, in respect to their specific characteristics, such as their race or creed, which thereby has served to impede these people from educational achievements and good employability because of such discrimination so sustained against them over an extended period of time – of which, it was determined that this nation would thereby make it their policy to correct such, by taking affirmative action, so of. 

While Affirmative Action may indeed be the law of the land, we find, though, when it comes to laws and legislation, that the proof, as they say, is in the eating of the pudding; and of that proof, this nation has not done what it has so committed to do for those that have been cheated out of a fair chance to have a good life in this, the richest nation that the world has ever known.   So then, for all those that believe that Affirmative Action should be far more robust than it currently is, there is still hope.  That hope rests, though, in the arms of the Federal Government, which quite obviously has the power to wield a pretty mighty stick, if it be inclined to do so.

There are all sorts of statistics and documentation that are maintained as part and parcel of governance.  A detailed look at this documentation clearly shows that certain historically discriminated parties, are still underrepresented as part of the student body in public non-profit higher educational facilities, along with these same people also being underrepresented in management positions and above in a significant amount of the largest and most powerful corporations that are headquartered within the United States. 

When it comes to public non-profit universities, it would be well to remember that these institutions do not typically pay any property tax, nor any Federal or State income taxes.  The fact that these universities do not pay certain taxes, is something that needs to be forcefully addressed, for all of those institutions that are not in good compliance with the Affirmative Action program, and thereby, all those non-profit universities in non-compliance to proper student apportionment should have their protected tax status revoked, until they become in compliance.  As for all these large multinational corporations, of which, there are a significant amount of them that are not currently in compliance with the Affirmative Action program, they should have all their governmental contracts suspended or canceled, until they become in compliance, and if necessary, the trading of their stock on the public stock exchange should be suspended until such is ameliorated.

There are always going to be plenty of people and institutions, that say “yes” and agree to do something, without really having the intention of actually doing anything constructive or meaningful on their end.  The principal point of Affirmative Action is to correct for previous wrong actions and incorrect inaction, and at a minimum, to make it governmental policy, that that which we know to be wrongly discriminatory, will not be tolerated anymore.

Governmental regulation and the force of law

There are all sorts of people and companies that complain about governmental regulations, but not all those that cry “wolf” are being sincere in what they so complain about.  The fact of the matter is, that some of the biggest and most influential corporations that the world has ever known, absolutely thrive upon aggressive and restrictive governmental regulation, because through their lobbying efforts and influence, such legislation is written in a manner in which effectively the door is closed on those that would dare to compete, thereby allowing these hugely influential mega-corporations to essentially become the sole provider of a vital service or good which provides them with not only a reliable and steady stream of revenue, but also the very nice profit that comes with being the only game in town.

None of the above, means that there shouldn’t be governmental regulation or that somehow, we would be better served if we reverted to some sort of exclusively laissez-faire free enterprise system, with thereby little or no rules or regulations; but rather this reflects that when you allow the fox to guard the henhouse, then this is not going to produce the end result that is going to be most beneficial for the people at large.  The most important point of good governmental regulation, is that the regulation so created is done in a manner in which the greater welfare and beneficence of the people takes precedence over unneeded favoritism so being provided exclusively to one corporation or consortium, so of.

The main potential problem with the force of law, so done through governmental regulation, is that when that regulation is structured in a way that clearly favors one designated party, then that party, so favored, now has the force of law, through governmental auspices to get their way as well as having such enforced by that government, which quite obviously makes it quite a formidable foe for anyone or any entity even contemplating, trying to storm the Bastille.

When for all intents and purposes those that write the rules and regulations supposedly on behalf of the government, are actually doing so in cahoots with those that need to be properly regulated then the end result will be satisfactory only to those parties.  This thus signifies, that the implementation of meaningful rules and regulations by the government should not only be transparent, but such should be debated and discussed, at much as it is reasonably conceivable, within an open public forum. 

After all, if the government with all of its attended power and force of law, vacates its purpose, which is to help keep the playing field fair and level, so that the competitive atmosphere in the business world remains relevant and viable -- by that government essentially forfeiting the value of that force of law, so properly written and applied, then those that appear to functionally run this country, aren’t actually the elected officials at all, but rather these legislative officials are nothing much more than puppets, dancing to the tune of their corporate puppet masters.

Those that cover their true identity, have something to hide

There are all sorts of people that wear masks in life, some figurative, and some literal.  The thing about figurative masks, is that it’s difficult for the other person to really know that a mask is being worn, at least, in the short run; whereas, on the other hand, those that wear literal masks make it rather obvious, from the get-go.  So then, while there are two basic types of masks that many people are prone to wear, it is important to understand, that mask wearing, whether figurative or literal, primarily occurs because people, for whatever reason or reasons, are consciously desiring to hide their true identity.

For instance, when it comes to social media in which those that are posting, as well as those that are commenting, have obscured their real identity in some manner, the interplay within that media has a much stronger tendency to degenerate into vitriol and other negative expressions; as compared to social media in which each party has clearly identified themselves, which has a stronger tendency to be more civil, though, not always. 

Then there are cultural events, that permit people to wear masks or costumes, such as with Mardi Gras, or Halloween, or a costume party, or even those venues in which the ambience lighting is so low that visibility is limited, in which, for those that partake in these sorts of things, the fact that their true identity is obscured or somewhat obscured, typically brings out a different part of a given person’s personality, because they not only have somewhat plausible deniability, they also have the excuse, should they choose to draw upon it, that they were just going with the flow, so to speak.

That which happens at entertainment or artistic affairs, is usually pretty harmless -- what isn’t harmless, though, is when someone is arrested, or forcefully taken somewhere, in which either the person so being held has their identity obscured by a hood being place over their head, or there are people that are observing and perhaps directing all that is happening which are behind a hidden mirror, or one of the interrogators has obscured their identity as well as their authority.  Those then, that are going through an interrogation in which either their personal identity has been obscured, or those that are doing the interrogation have obscured their identity, are going to be in a lot tougher place than those that are dealing with what has to be dealt with, on the up and up.

So then, it is truism, to state that when one’s identity is in the control of someone else in which that particular person so being held against their will, has been dehumanized, for example, by their clothes that they are now wearing or the lack thereof, or masking, or hooding, or the physical position that they are placed in, that they are indeed, in a very bad predicament.  Further to the point, those that do the interrogation in which their voice, or their physicality has been obscured in one way or another, the end result for the person suffering through that interrogation is almost for a certainty not going to be good.

We so find, that when excluding for costume parties and things of that ilk, that those that deliberately obscure their identity, or hide in the shadows, are doing so, because what they are about to do, they don’t want to really own up to, and by covering their identity, they feel far less constrained in behaving in a civilized fashion, and that which is evil, typically thrives in not being held personally accountable.

A country of the elite or a country of the people?

In the scheme of things, America should not have reverted to what it was back in the gilded age, with an incredible amount of disparity between those that had it all, compared to the masses which had little or nothing; but in fact, as Bloomberg.com reports, “…America’s middle class now holds a smaller share of U.S. wealth than the top 1%.”  While there may well be absolutely legitimate reasons of why the elite has gotten all so much richer at the expense of the middle class, perhaps based upon the elite’s drive, motivations, and knowhow; yet, to a very large extent the two biggest reasons why wealth has become more and more concentrated into the hands of the 1%, is basically because the governance of this country will not appropriately and fairly tax at a progressive rate, the very institutions and people that have all the money; in addition, to the salient fact, that present day America does not feel the need to tax appropriately the actual gargantuan amount of wealth and capital held in the hands of the 1%, thereby allowing those with capital to simply passively invest such to add even more to the wealth that they already have.

The thing is, a house divided cannot stand, it will by necessity, fall; and further to the point, to believe that those that are Americans are actually living in something akin to a vibrant and strong democracy, in which somehow the 1%, have in their hands more in wealth than the 60% that represent the middle class, is absolute insanity.  The only possible way that this income and wealth disparity will continue to go along its merry way, is for America to become in its functionality a police state, of which, it can be said, to a very large extent, it seems as if that is the clearly the direction that America is in, today.  Remember this well, that those that have the money, the wealth, the power, and the law on their side, can easily hold off the masses for a considerable amount of time, for this is done all of the time in autocracies, dictatorships, totalitarian regimes, and the like; and further to the point, those that have it all, seldom will give up anything that they value strongly, without a real fight.

Those that bother to or care to look at America’s underbelly, will see for a certainty, that far too many of our fellow citizens have far too little, as well as these forsaken people often being devoid of hope, opportunity, as well as suffering from the lack of fair play by their government that fails to represent them, well.  Those, that are part of the middle class, are clearly better off than the underclass, but their security to a very significant extent, is held in the hands of their masters, which typically are the 1%, who often control their wages and their security, directly or indirectly. While one must give some begrudging credit to the 1%, for keeping the people fairly quiescent, through a quality lineup of “bread and circuses,” there will, though, come that time of reckoning, when those that are being essentially cheated out of the American dream, are going to have a call to arms, and those that nobly answer that call, will be the ones that are true to what this country was always meant to be and may yet, become.

“For these are all our children. We will all profit from, or pay for, what they become”

The above quote, comes from the inestimable, James Baldwin.  This sentiment is timeless, and if we would desire to improve our lot now as well as into the future, this is therefore that wisdom that we truly need to take to heart.  After all, all those that have come long before us, are no longer amongst the living, so then, in effect, the baton is indeed passed from one generation to the next, for better or for worse. It therefore certainly makes sense, that we should desire to see more children, become good citizens and therefore beneficial for society, as opposed to instead only having a small subsection being of merit.  This thus signifies, that at the very minimum, government auspices should make it a high priority to see that each and every child has the fair opportunity to attend an educational facility of substance, without being penalized because of race, creed, or class; in addition to the vital need that the families that these children are a member of, have at their foundation, the type of accouterments that are necessary for the good development of a child. 

Regrettably, the United States has clearly devolved into a system in which it has deliberately determined that some children, that are born or raised in unfortunate or trying circumstances, should, for all intents and purposes, be left behind.  As bad as that is, America, has furthered determined that it seemingly doesn’t matter how weak and non-performing so many of its children are in school, of which, test scores and general literacy rates seem to fairly reflect that despite lots of money so spent, that this, in and of itself, does not guarantee the good education of children, in aggregate.

Rather, it would appear that America, only likes to back a winner, so that the elite of the best students, are feted at levels that clearly reflect their high value; but that does little or nothing, for all those others that are lacking in the appropriate skill set to do their best on the world stage.  Those then, that somehow believe that having a minority of superior students, will permit America to remain the preeminent nation in the world, now and into the future, have clearly got it all wrong, for the race will not be won, by just having exclusively the best so running, as if the balance, so of, doesn’t matter, because, in fact, they do.

The children that we presently have are seemingly blessed with a very large prosperity pie, but the problem that America needs to face is that too much of that pie is in ever fewer mouths, and those that have been left behind, have been left with just the crumbs, if that.  So then, there will indeed be a price to pay, when all those that have been doing the profiting, face a disenfranchised domestic monster of their own making; though it need not necessarily be that way, if only America would live up to its creed, of fair opportunity and equal access to all, for it is in the hands of the living, as to what we will or will not become.

When the government consistently runs deficits, there are winners and losers

The United States Federal Government can’t come even reasonably close to a balance budget, but instead consistently runs huge deficits, year after year.  Perhaps there is some upcoming resolution to such, which will effectively address and take care of this fiscal crisis -- but probably not, for the United States politicians along with its corresponding legislative actions, speaks volumes about what they are and what they are not doing in order to balance the budget; which is, for whatever reason or reasons, essentially that these politicians do not feel the urgency or have the courage to tax the citizens at the amount that would be so necessary to balance the budget and/or reduce government expenditures, so of.

Nobody likes to pay taxes, but in fairness to the present generation as well as especially to future generations, this country has an obligation to get its fiscal house in order, which it has not done.  This signifies what is already glaringly obvious, that those that are the richest and most powerful in America, effectively run its tax policies, and when those that have all the money, are tax at a rate, which is significantly below what they should be progressively taxed at -- for income, for capital gains, for capital, and for inheritance taxes, then the wealth disparity not only gets ever greater, but the governmental deficit liabilities, also gets ever larger.

Those then, that are not being taxed at a fair and progressive rate, are therefore getting a free ride upon all those that these future tax burdens will rest upon.  These superrich people as well as these exceedingly wealthy corporations, quite obviously, are the winners; and the losers are all those stuck with the tax liability bill, that they of their generation did not directly generate, in the first place.   Another way to look at how unfair and ill serving our current tax policies actually are, is to reflect that those with the highest degree of assets, are not only being subsidized by this governments’ weak-knee tax policies, but they can also be direct beneficiaries of government finance in another way, because when the government puts out its hand for bonds to finance its massive deficits, it is those that have capital that can therefore most easily lend to the government, and therefore these parties then get paid interest for having had the funds to do so.

It is rather a sad state of affairs, that America somehow believes that it is right to socialize amongst all its people its governmental deficits, while privatizing and localizing the profits and wealth so being generated in the here and now, without bothering to appropriately tax those that have more than enough to pay the freight to do their necessary part to contribute to the balancing of the budget.  Further to the point, governmental budgets are more incline to be more prudent and sensible, when that payment so needed to achieve such, must be paid in full, each and every fiscal year.  On the other hand, when such deficits, are continually kicked like a can down the road, this thereby encourages more irresponsible governmental expenditures, because those making such decisions, know for a certainty that the class that they favor, will not have to ever pay for it.

Stock analysts and stock price targets

When it comes to investing, the future is uncertain, and those so making investment decisions, would, all things being equal, strongly desire to have certainty in the outcome of a particular stock investment.  The thing is though, that just isn’t going to happen, for as they say, the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry.   Still, when it comes to money, and the risk thereof of any investment, many people are going to want to find something tangible that purports to be of a well-reasoned and expert analysis that will provide them with some meaningful insight as to how their investments will work out.

So then, the brokerage, banking, equities, and investing business world has constructed something that is, in theory, supposed to be of benefit to investors by shedding some theoretical insight about the future price point of a given stock.  These experts, are known as stock analysts, who are typically quite good at putting together detailed and nuanced reports about stocks, and then weighing in as to whether a particular stock is a buy, a hold, or a sell, and further to the point they top this off with a predicted stock price of that stock, in the next 12 to 18 months.

The thing is, though, that even if each of these stock analysts were true independent agents, which they typically are not, there are a multitude of macro factors that influence the price of a given stock, which has little or nothing to do with the underlying value of a given stock; so that even when a corporation is hitting all of their targets, those macro factors as well as the irrational behavior of those that invest in stocks, can easily wreak havoc on a stock price target, that perhaps was actually pretty sensible.

However, there is another factor, that those that put out stock price targets, like to keep under wraps, which is the very access that stock analysts need in order to hear and to have a privileged audience with important executives within a corporation, typically signifies that previously written stock price targets have likely been favorable to that corporation, and, of which, newly written price targets, are in all likelihood also are going to have to be favorable, as well.  That is to say, even though stock price targets, can be up, down, or neutral, the overwhelming amount of them so published are of the positive flavor, because that is the feedback loop that works out best for those parties, involved.

Additionally, one can never underestimate the greed of the general investor, who, with a calculator, can calculate their anticipated profits on a given stock, by looking at the price that they would be buying it at, and then comparing that to the stock price target that some stock analyst is predicting that it will go to over the next 12 to 18 months.  Obviously, if investing was as simple as that, then everyone would make out like a bandit, but, in fact, that isn’t the way it works.  In truth, stock analysts with their stock price targets, basically offer nothing of real substance or value, irrespective of how well worded and professional their document so looks, for not all that glitters is investment gold.

We are here to learn and to learn well, and then to apply those lessons so learned to others

There isn’t any real good point in overcomplicating life, for life at its core, is really about being a better neighbor, one to another.  Those that are a good neighbor, look out for one another, they do right by one another, they are forgiving, non-judgmental, generous, and helpful.  All those that spend an inordinate amount of time, being argumentative, jealous-hearted, hateful, and vengeful, in addition to other various negative emotions, clearly are not on the right trajectory.  We should want to treat people they way that we prefer to be treated, which typically means that those that are unforgiving, violent, and petty, are not what we want to portray as our own qualities.

We are provided with a good mind, so that we can think before we act; which is especially of value when that good thinking precludes us from striking out in a negative manner at those that we perceive to have done us wrong.  As they say, two wrongs still don’t make a right, and vengeance or revenge is a dish best served cold.  All those that are quick to react without thinking through the consequences, so of, are probably not going to be ultimately happy with the outcome of that decision making.  Those things that are in our control, or subject to our will, are ours to own the responsibility, so of.  Therefore, we should see the interactions that we have, good or bad, with others, as a way that we are tested on the lessons that we have so learned, and those then, that are true to those lessons, by having maintained their integrity and good judgment are going to be in a much better place, then those that have lost those, if even just for a short period of time, because what so subsequently occurs, always matters.

Those that take the time to keep a fair perspective in life, and do so in a time and place of which they are calm, are seldom going to admire any of their previous actions that were vindictive, small-minded, and mean; but rather, at best, they will be embarrassed by them, or possibly regretful and remorseful.  In reality, the best of times for any one of us, are when we have done something noble, that meant something of substance to someone else, because to get to where we need to be, requires that we be of meaningful assistance to others, that need our voluntary help.

The prism that more people need to view this world, is to see it as the ultimate proving ground of who and what we are as reflected by our thoughts and actions.  Those that claim that this world and society to be without purpose are wrong, for everything that we do, matters -- and has relevance for us and for those that we have impacted, for better or for worse.    While it is true that some tests that we so face are easy, to get to where we ultimately need to go, we are going to have to successfully pass those tough tests, that many a person has flailed and failed at.  Therefore, know this, that there are no shortcuts in life, for what we so achieve, we fairly earn, by our consistent good application of doing the right thing.

Timeless truths

While in this modern-age there are plenty of people and organizations, that appreciate the value and therefore the importance of scientific discoveries and breakthroughs, this in and in itself, is not actually the highest conceivable mission for humankind.  As much as a given individual wishes to believe that certain discoveries are so profound that everything thereafter is going to be amazingly good, they don’t seem to consciously comprehend that humankind has a remarkable way of adapting to new technologies and devices, in a manner, in which the amazing, becomes to a certain degree, somewhat banal or if not that, taken for granted over a long enough period of time.  So then, this or that discovery, is in actuality not going to change the fundamental nature of humankind, though it may indeed change the conditions for the better that we live within; but unless the actual character of humankind thereby changes for the better, it’s pretty much all for naught.

The most important type of discovery and breakthrough that humankind needs in order to achieve its upmost, is the unveiling of timeless truths.  Each of us when we incarnate into human form have to a very large extent, been veiled from knowing who and what we really are.  Yet, within our psyche, there is always that inkling that life is something much more that what we perceive strictly through our five senses.  Indeed, true life and therefore the meaning of life is beyond those senses; for the physical is not meant to be the master of one’s being, but rather should be seen as that which encases our spirit within its physicality, of which, far too many of us, misidentify our physical presence as the be-all and the end-all of who we are.

The timeless truths that we need to search for and to find, are those truths, that have always been the same since the beginning of time, and these truths will not ever change at any point for any reason, ever, for they are immutable.  These then are the truths that each of us are compelled to not only just find but once so found, to live out in all that we subsequently say and do, for it is those truths and only these truths that will last and have significance throughout the eons of time.  So then, what are these timeless truths? 

The first truth is that there is order in God’s universe, of which, because of this order, none ever will be lost, and none ever will be left behind.Further, God is not our puppet master, for to control others is only for those that wish to be tyrants or are insecure, and never for those that believe that free choice is the only true way to measure the character of that which was created with its own volition, so as to express itself and to explore.This thus signifies that there is no higher tribute that any of us can provide to God, then to use our free will as a means to bring enlightenment to those that are in darkness, for these avatars, are the true light bearers, and therefore eternal pillars in the immaculate mansion of our God

Who is watching the prosecutors?

To a very large extent, this is a country in which its governance is primarily run by lawyers, of which, to wit, there is a distinct oversupply of lawyers that become politicians and therefore are part and parcel of the legislative process, as well as the fact that it is the prosecutors, virtually without any meaningful oversight by an independent consortium of the people, that decide how the law will or will not be applied in a given incidence.  This thus signifies, that prosecutors, who are supposed to seek justice and have so equally applied, and to do such without favoritism, are pretty much free to do whatever that they so desire to do, and to therefore respond only to those that they deem worth responding to.

In America, justice is seldom equally and fairly applied and it is virtually never impartial, of which, in truth, the main reason for this, lies at the feet of all the prosecutors that are not transparent, that are not consistent, that are not true to the law, and that do not feel the obligation that they need to justify what they so do or don’t do, while performing their job on behalf of the people.  It really isn’t conceivable for the people to have respect for the law, when the entity that is supposed to demonstrate the most respect for the law, doesn’t actually do so.

Prosecutors should have some serious degree of public accountability, which certainly is not possible when so much of what they say and do, is secreted away from the public purview, for whatever reason given, legit or not.  The prosecutorial office should never be in practice, a fiefdom.  When it is, that provides way too much power residing in the hands of a small number of prosecutors, who even with the best of intentions, are going to be more than tempted, to address their own personal agendas, as well as to often make “nice” to particular power structures of their choosing that they favor or perhaps that they answer to, all at the expense of those that are on the outside and without fair view of what is really going on, inside.

Whenever laws are unequally applied, then what so happens, has essentially been left at the discretion of the prosecutor, with no one else having a meaningful say, of which, all of this is accomplished without the general public having enough visibility to know what is really going on, as well as the people not having any recourse to the decisions so made; of which, such justice being rendered, is seldom going to be just, but rather that which purports to be justice will be in reality, far too often, arbitrary, discriminatory, and irresponsible.

The only possible answer to curtail all of this arbitrary power that currently resides in the hands of the prosecutor, is for far more openness and far less opaqueness to be the norm within that domain, along with their being a much higher degree of oversight of what prosecutors are doing, by an independent consortium of those that are familiar with the intricacies of the justice system, and therefore far less easy to be fooled or to be misdirected.  For a certainty, anytime, someone important in power is being carefully watched, society will find, at a minimum, that at least their excesses, if nothing else, will remain in check.

Breaking strikes by using “scabs” is unfair to labor

There are many things that corporations do not desire for their employees to do, of which, pretty much at the top of the list, is that they don’t want their employees to organize themselves and then later to subsequently go out on strike, so as to get better pay or better benefits or better job security or a combination of these, so of.  As much as a given corporation believes that they always have the best of it, when it comes to labor and therefore the terms and payrate for their employees, the fact of the matter is that they don’t, unless that labor force literally has no options, which is seldom the case.  After all, without employees, the well-oiled machine of a given corporation that makes products and therefore earns money, comes very quickly to a grinding halt.

So then, corporations do not like labor strikes, and corporations will never like strikes, because when the workforce walks out, everything good soon falls apart, unless some sort of reasonable resolution comes to fruition in a relatively short period of time.  That said, when it comes to greed, one should never underestimate those that are the elites within a corporation, of which, a notable selection of them, aren’t necessarily put off by a strike, especially when they feel that they can round-up a suitable amount of people that can come in and get the work that needs to get done, at some sort of acceptable payrate and passable quality.

The thing is though, that strikebreakers, or scabs, aren’t normally respected by the community, at large, and typically are look at with an infinite amount of disdain by those that are themselves out on strike.  This thus signifies, that hiring scabs to get work done, of which, these are actual members of the same community of those that are currently out on strike, probably isn’t going to be successful, because communities have a way of exacting justice upon those that are messing with their pay, their job, and basically their life.  This is why, strikebreakers are often found in those that are already outcasts to a given community, as in those that have been segregated from the community because of something such as their race, their immigration status, or faith; or they can also be found well outside the community, in some far-off forsaken town, that itself lacks good opportunity and jobs.

All of this combined does make for a rather sad brew, for those that are on strike, have done so, because they are trying to achieve greater mastery of their own lives and are even willing to risk their livelihood to get something materially better.  Those then that are the strikebreakers are quite obviously themselves in a rather poor position, as well as typically poor circumstances, in which their desperation or lack of choice, or lack of opportunity, places themselves in the situation, in which a job, any job, is better than nothing, and so they do what they feel they have to do, not because they necessarily want to, but because it represents to them, an improvement of their lot.  Yet, none of this should ever be happening in the first place, if the government would only make it their policy, that companies of a certain employment size, were thereby compelled by law, to fairly negotiate with their labor force in regards to strike issues, as contrasted to being permitted to replace such with strikebreakers.  That is to say, if the government won’t help to defend labor, then, for sure, this is not going to be fair fight, and those that don’t fight fair, know this.

All things considered; the abortion rate should be far less then what it is

The subject of abortion, is something that is fraught with rather high emotional responses from many a person.  There are plenty of people, that are concerned that the Supreme Court decision of Roe v. Wade will soon be effectively overturned; in addition to the salient fact, that many States are relentlessly making it much more difficult for patients to get a legal abortion.  This would seem to reflect a cause of some real concern, for those of a more progressive outlook, or for those of the belief that a person should have the right to choose, seemingly as if the United States is not just attempting, but actually succeeding in turning back the clock of time. 

The thing is, though, is that never has there been more options and more viable avenues for those that do not desire to get pregnant to avail themselves of, then we are so seeing today.  For instance, we have birth control implants, birth control shots, IUDs, birth control pills, birth control patches, condoms, and so many other effective means to preclude pregnancy.  So too, there are options for those that have had unprotected sex in which they can take the morning after pill, or have an IUD inserted, so as to still prevent getting pregnant.  In other words, for those that know that they are going to have sex, there are prudent steps that can be taken to prevent an unplanned pregnancy, if only those participating in such, are willing to take the responsibility to do such. 

We do find though that the abortion rate has been trending down in recent years, but still, it has yet to demonstrate a precipitous decline, which basically reflects that as many of the viable choices that people can avail themselves of, far too many people, just basically prefer to gamble or to not take personal responsibility, thereby placing themselves in the unenviable position of having to deal with something that they truly do not need to deal with to begin with, and to thereby suffer the consequences, so of.

The truth of the matter is, that very few people, that have gone through the travails of an abortion, wish to have gone down that route to begin with.  That is to say, the very debate about abortion, would be far less relevant or poignant, if the number of abortions so being performed, was reduced to a rate that was effectively small enough, that those that declaim the loudest about the right to life, would therefore have very little to actually shout about.

The reality is that there isn’t a whole lot of people that want to be in a position in which they have to have an abortion; yet, abortions are still occurring in America at a rate that reflects the very opposite.  This would seemingly indicate that something as important and life changing as getting impregnated, seems to be a topic that has not been successfully managed or addressed in a meaningful way by governmental institutions or really by any other institution of significance in this nation, which is a contributing reason why so many undesired pregnancies, and the dramatics, so of, occur, each and every hour of every day.

The point of government

In the animal kingdom, it is the law of the jungle, in which essentially the strong devour the weak.  In that type of scenario, right or wrong, doesn’t really have any play, for might pretty much makes what is taken as right.  Of course, that is the animal kingdom, which is relevant for that domain, and not so relevant to the world of human beings.  When it comes to human beings, we are born with an innate sense of what is right and what is wrong, so that when things are occurring that aren’t just, or that aren’t right, we know them as essentially being unjust and wrong.  So too, humankind ideally prefers to live within a construct in which we are judged by the content of our character and the acts that we so perform, which trumps in justice all those that lack the character to do the right thing as well as those that have performed bad acts, without suffering the just consequence for such.

The very form of government that makes the most sense for a given society, is that form of government that supports the unalienable rights that each of us is fairly entitled to.  This thus signifies that the point of government is to protect as well as to secure the very rights that each person is equally entitled to. That is to say, government is constituted in order to benefit those that make up that governing society, by joining together into one body politic for that expressed purpose, and to the degree that government with its incumbent powers properly conducts its business of behalf of the people, it has done so for the greater good.

Again, the point of any well-founded government, is for the defense of the people, as well as for the correct application of the rule of law, so as to assure the domestic tranquility and the fair opportunity for the people.  What no government should be, though, is the oppressor of the people and therefore the impediment to the people’s unalienable rights; but regrettably, many governments in ways big and small, are exactly that.  So then, rather than the people, receiving the good benefits of a government that has been constructed for their behalf and for their general welfare, we often find that many governments are corrupt in such a manner, that the very few received the lion’s share of the benefits at the expense of the many, which clearly is a bastardization of what good governance should so represent and be.

In fact, most people, don’t seem to really understand that government, is supposed to really be of, for, and by the people; and instead, they view the government as an entity to avoid, or as simply intractable, unless they are one of the few, receiving some real benefits from that government.  In today’s modern society, government in many ways, seems to have lost its most basic and important mission, which is really the defense of the people’s unalienable rights, above all.  That is to say, government is meant to be the people’s good servant, and not its unsatiated master.

Job security and job insecurity

The United States is a mature and established nation, but for those in the work force, especially those of middling to poor educational achievements, as well as those that though educated, have degrees in areas of expertise that don’t readily match up well with good employment opportunities -- thereby presents the issue that there is a significant number of employees in America that clearly do not have any real semblance of long-term job security at a decent and living wage.  One might believe that this is the very nature of capitalism, and if it is, then this so represents capitalism at its worse; for the more people that don’t have job security, and therefore do not have appropriate wages and a livelihood that they can build a solid foundation upon, therefore represents people that are subject to having the little that they have established, surely and inexorably eroded from them.

Further to the point, a significant problem with the capitalistic system, writ large, is the strong tendency for so many of those institutions to desire to privatize and/or to localize their earnings and profit, to being specifically earmarked to the cream of the crop of the elite as well as of their investors, thereby creating an ever increasing amount of inequality between those that have it made, compared to those that have little or nothing; in which, the end result of this reflects that corporate profits are essentially privatized, whereas, the cost for those that end up being unemployed, underemployed, underpaid, or dismissed, is basically socialized to the people, at large.

The way that employment should work, once a given company reaches some size of substance in regards to employed workers, or sales, so of, is that the corporation should first and foremost be held accountable to the human element of those that work for them, as contrasted to concentrating strictly on profit or gross margin, above all.  This thus helps to emphasize that in the reality of the business world that there are going to be those times of plenty, as well as invariably those times of scarcity, in which, it is those tough times, that companies prove their mettle to those that have been loyal workers to that corporation. 

That is to say, corporate profits do not need to be always generously distributed at the very time that they so occur to the elites and to their investors, but rather it would serve the general public better if more profits would be permitted to accumulate on corporate balance sheets, so as to be there, when so needed to be called upon, for those tough times, instead.   After all, job security is going to only be possible within a given corporate structure, if that is an actual priority of that company; so that, those companies that answer only to profit, or earnings, or the short-term, are going to have a strong tendency to care not a whit about job security for those that they employ, because they have prioritized their greed above their obligation to be fair and just to those that have done their good part on behalf of that corporation, in their expectation that the company will do them right and not wrong.

Rip Van Winkle and inflation

Those that are in charge of the Federal Reserve, constantly talk up the benefits of a little bit of inflation, but they don’t seem to want to readily admit that inflation, whether it be a little or a whole lot more than little, is ultimately a very bad brew for those that are classified as “widows and orphans,” of which these people are typically risk averse, with a strong desire to hold onto their capital, first and foremost, in which inflation inexorably serves to erode such. So then, those of the Rip Van Winkle ilk, who prefer to bury their treasure or to put such under their mattress, or invest in conservative treasury bonds, are clearly going to lose in any economic environment in which inflation has turned decidedly in an upward trajectory.  That is to say, in an era of inflation, clearly a dollar of the present day, is not going to have the same value, one year later, but in fact, that money will, because of inflation, have become devalued.

There are a lot of advantages to stability in any business and most importantly when it comes to the coin of the realm.  Those that know that a dollar today, will have the exact same value years later, will find therefore that the planning that they need to make for their business enterprise, for bills, for investment, and for savings, is going to be a lot more straightforward with the foreknowledge that the dollar is stable and therefore not subject to either deflation or inflation.  On the other hand, when the dollar is suffering from being devalued through inflation, there are going to be particular people and businesses that are going to be hurt by such, and of course, there are going to be some others that will make out quite handsomely.

The type of people and businesses that do poorly because of inflation are manifold.  For instance, all those that are risk adverse, and therefore savers of capital as compared to investors of that same capital, as well as all those that have income, of which, that income is not tied to inflation, are in most cases going to do rather poorly vis-à-vis inflation, for what they so have is being systematically eroded in its real value by inflation.  On the other hand, those that are in debt, of which the interest rate for that debt has been fixed at a reasonably low rate, will typically find inflation to be their friend, for they are now paying back their debt with dollars that are materially cheaper than the dollars that they originally borrowed, in the first place.

Another significant problem with inflation, is that people and businesses, because of inflation, and because of their desire to make up the ground that they are losing to inflation, are often going to have to take a higher degree of risk to try to recover or to come out ahead of the inflation rate that they are facing.  That doesn’t make for a more stable construct, but rather adds to the instability of the monetary system, endangering far more people and businesses, simply because the monetary unit is not stable.  Further to the point, inflation is always a reflection that not all is well with the coin of the realm, and those nations that are unable to stabilize their currency run the real risk of not only devaluation in comparison to other nations’ currency, but also the incumbent problems and drama of national insolvency.

Those that hate, often do so, to try to silence the call of their pain

It would seem that there are plenty of people that hate, and the degree of hatred and vitriol expressed in person or through social media, at the present time, would appear to be getting ever progressively worse.  This type of incivility isn’t good for societies, and clearly is a fair reflection that not all is well within America.  The thing about hatred, hateful actions, hateful words, and just plain hate, is that this type of emotion doesn’t just come out of nowhere; but rather it has to typically come from deep within a given person’s psyche, and subsequently this is expressed in negative ways through various toxic frustrations that these people apparently aren’t able to deal with, in any good or constructive way.

Yet, none of us are born in hate, or are born to hate.  This thus signifies that hatred is a trait that is often developed over some extended period of time, of which, one of the primary driving forces of the hate and vitriol that consumes certain people, is their own pain that they feel deep inside, that thereby cries out for satisfaction, and seemingly does not care how it is quieted, just as long as it is silenced, at least, for some period of time.  This is why, therefore, so many people that are themselves hurting and suffering, strike out in such a negative manner towards other people, because they do not know how to effectively treat what is ailing them, so they deliberately find an avenue that will allow them to express themselves in a manner in which they feel powerful for their ability to hurt another and are able therefore to forget their own troubles, at least, for the moment.

This signifies that the people that hate the most, despite whatever façade that they often put on to make themselves appear to be of the norm, are suffering, themselves; signifying that to respond with hate to those that are hateful, isn’t going to do anything of substance to heal the wounds that each party needs to have healed.  Most of those that are quite hateful, have a specific frustration, disappointment, ailment, addiction, tragedy, or some combination of these, that they find to be quite overwhelming and intractable, and because they cannot see a way out, or a way to make progress upon these troubles, decide that the most appropriate response to their pain, is to strike out against others, with the hopeful and sick expectation that by doing so, this will create havoc and hurt upon someone else, which they believe will help to alleviate the emptiness and pain that they feel inside.

Those that are hurting are going to turn to whatever that they believe will bring some sort of satisfaction or solace to the hurt that they so have; of which, some of those people will turn to drugs or drink, whereas others, will express themselves in ways that are destructive and hateful.  None of these things will deal with the crux of the problem, but instead this will simply postpone for a time, the reckoning that so needs to occur, sooner or later, for those that are in pain, are those that desperately need to find a sensible cure.

Germany and its lost African colonies

In the 20th century, all the African colonies that were once under the control of European powers, eventually became free and therefore sovereign from such outside oppression.  The strange thing is that when people think of the colonizers of Africa, Germany is typically not really considered; as opposed to other European nations such as France, Great Britain, Belgium, and to a lesser extent those of, Italy, Spain, and Portugal.  Yet, Germany was a major power in Europe at the beginning of the 20th century, and truth be told, Germany was also a major African colonizer, but having lost World War I to the Allied powers, the Treaty of Versailles, sealed their fate, and Germany’s colonies, were thereby subsequently taken over primarily by Great Britain, France, and Belgium per that treaty.

To a certain extent, because Germany no longer had those colonies, they should be credited for being far less of an oppressor of those that were citizens of Africa, regardless of whether such was voluntarily done or because it was agreed to by treaty; for a deal is a deal, and from 1919, on, Germany had no African colonies; whereas all those other European nations when given the opportunity to liberate such, chose instead to keep them colonized instead.  This thus indicates that Africa, to Europe, at that time, was seen as a place to be exploited for the expressed benefit of those Europeans.  Further to the point, the victors write the history, as well as also being given the chance to change the direction of that history, but when provided with that opportunity, those European powers did not desire to change, and failed to do so for the betterment and fairness of humanity.

Those then that believe the Allies were all good, have clearly got it wrong; for by their actions, in regards to those African colonies, they clearly were not good.  After all, for an African nation that was colonized by Germany, and then subsequently became, for example, colonized by Great Britain, one would be hard pressed to say that this was an improvement, but rather this would seem to follow suit with the idiom, of “out of the frying pan and into the fire; ” in which for those subject African colonies there may well have been advantages in dealing with the devil that they already knew, as compared to the devil that they did not know, but still a devil all the same.

The real important thing to know about these African colonies is that such existed as a form of revenue and as a means of mineral expropriation for those that were its colonizers.  Therefore then, defeating Germany, provided for those that were the victors, an opportunity to extract an even higher share of that wealth from Africa, which therefore meant such booty was essentially redirected from German hands into the hands of other European powers, signifying to a very large extent, that wars between nations as compared to all those other countries, that have “no dog in the fight”, often doesn’t change a thing of substance, other than where the tribute of those that are colonized will be made.

Court fines, fees, interest, penalties and such, imposed upon convicts

One of the first things that a person that is contemplating a lawsuit that involves monetary compensation as being enforced for restitution, needs to think about, is that there usually isn’t any good point in suing someone that doesn’t have the ready funds to make that payment.  Yet, for some reason, the target that the justice system seems to take inordinate pleasure in charging court fines, fees, interest, penalties, collection costs, and surcharges, are typically people that have a net worth that is zero or thereabouts, and are already in rather dire straits; but since they have been convicted of some sort of offense, this is therefore seen as the price that so needs to be paid for their subsequent “freedom.”

It would seem that it isn’t so much “don’t do the crime if you’re not willing to do the time,” but rather this is more akin, to the justice system trying to make a profit from impoverished convicts, or to get some sort of payback from those that are already disadvantaged and poor.  It would seem far better to admit that those that cry the loudest for “law and order” are the very people that should actually pay the fines and surcharges so being currently assessed against the forsaken and destitute convicts; representing, in truth, the fair price of that justice having been enforced in the first place, on their behalf.

The justice system as meted out in America, seems to favor overwhelmingly those that have money in their pocket as compared to all those that don’t.  After all, those that have money typically have the room to maneuver and to negotiate terms; whereas, those that do not, are at the mercy of the court, that seems not to take into fair consideration the reality of this salient fact, that many of those convicted of crimes, are effectively broke, and also without promising prospects.

No great nation, builds their foundation and their greatness upon the backs of those that are the most vulnerable; but rather they take into reasonable consideration, the circumstances that has brought those with little or nothing to their name, to that unfortunate place that they never wanted to be at.  Those that insist that a significant portion of those convicted of crimes should be financially punished until the end of time, aren’t just and they sure aren’t right.  To kick someone when they are down, over and over again, is not only abuse but it is bullying; and it also is not becoming of a nation that purports to represent progress, as well as equal justice under the law.

No doubt, the justice system and the carceral state is a beast that needs to be fed; but why must it feed exclusively upon those that have no real meat?  Rather, America needs to reform itself, and get back to the very basics, of understanding that institutions which are supposed to represent justice, but somehow are never satiated, are destructive to the core of American values, and it is those misguided and misbegotten institutions, that need themselves, to be reformed.

You want to be good, then practice being good

On any given day, we make all sorts of decisions, some good, and some not so good.  For all those, that want to make more good decisions so as to therefore be a better person, and thus, in principle, be good for something and therefore good for others, this is going to necessitate a whole lot of practice.  In other words, as much as we might want to believe that we are born good, and that everything that we deal with subsequently is always going to be good, that isn’t going to be the reality of the situation; but rather, we are going to have to diligently practice being good, as preparation for whatever so comes, expected or unexpected, in order to maintain that goodness for ourselves and for those we interact with.

To a very large extent, we should welcome problems, difficulties, and setbacks; because when everything is going our way, we might not really be learning all that much, and for a certainty, we probably aren’t doing all that we could be doing in order to make this world a better place for our being a part of it.  Therefore, a more productive way of looking at inconvenient problems and such, is one in which this creates for us, our opportunity to make something good out of it; and to the degree that we succeed, so much to the better; whereas, to the degree that we fail, this should therefore be a wake-up call for us to keep on trying to be good and to do right, so that in the future, we will do better.

As they say, a “baptism by fire” is a surefire way to either grow or to regress.  Nevertheless, as much as we might desire to avoid such, recognize that if our own house was on fire, we would strongly prefer that the fire fighters coming to save our home, would be those that have had good experience and previous success in dealing with such, as opposed to those which may well be schooled, but have, to date, been untested.  That is why we need to not only step up, where it is appropriate to step up; but occasionally we need to push ourselves outside of our normal boundaries in order to grow further, because the more experience that we get of which we end up being successful with, the more useful and complete we are, as good human beings.

There wouldn’t be any drama in life, if everybody was a goody two-shoes, but we need not worry about that, because there is always plenty of drama, if not in our immediate vicinity, then for a certainty, outside of it.  While some people, might find such drama to be purposeless, or some might find such unbecoming, the fact of the matter is, most people are at a minimum intrigued by it, if not outright involved in it, willingly or not.  It is that drama, that we need to engage ourselves in, not so to entrap ourselves by it, but rather to prove our mettle in a field in which such proving will provide a real material benefit for others, which is the real-time type of practice, that defines us as good, or as good for nothing.