Words of the day or scattered thoughts

[Jon-Marcus]

SETIsLady,
Would I be right in presuming that your hubby will agree with at least part of my last post? IE; that he knows what freedom is all about
Yes, It is still the best country in the world.

[SETIsLady]

SETIsLady,
Would I be right in presuming that your hubby will agree with at least part of my last post? IE; that he knows what freedom is all about
Yes, It is still the best country in the world.

Yes he and I would agree with all of the post As would the Freedom Fighters still in Cuba, fighting for their freedom in the shadows.

[Jon-Marcus]

And to those Freedom Fighters; You fight the good fight. I salute you. May the day be soon, that you may walk proudly in the the light of freedom. And never forget the price.

[Jon-Marcus]

Parents;
Being a parent is THE most demanding job/duty there is.
Mind you, being just a father or mother is not quite the
same thing as being a parent. Any male past puberty can
be a father. Same goes for a female. Being a parent requires
dedication, responcibility, and truckload of love.
Contrairy to popular belief, there is NO parenting handbook.
It's all trial and error, and no so-called "expert" can tell
you how it's done. We learn best by doing. Of course, the
learning results in some physical sign. Such as; lines on
our faces and grey hair. But these are small prices to pay
for the joy and pain of raising our children. Nothing can
replace seeing that unsteady first step or first word of your
child. Have you ever noticed how a baby can turn the most stoic
and reserved he-man into a bumbling, babbling, damp-eyed goofball?

Parents today are caught between a rock and a hard place.
Trying to raise their kids in a society that will not allow
parents to do thier job. I'm talking about dicipline ( sp? ).
More and more we are not allowed to dicipline our own children.
Parents have good reasons to not enforce household rules. Such as;
Child Protective Services.
Now, in theory, CPS is a good thing.
Children should NEVER be subject to abuse.
NEVER!
But there is a big difference in aplying the "board of education"
to your son's butt ,which is a form of dicipline,and breaking
his arm, which is definatly cruelty and abuse. Spank your kid these days and odds are you'll find CPS and the cops busting down your front door to take your children from you. And probably take you to jail.
So parents have become afraid to dicipline children.
The results should be obvious.
Children learn early that there are few reprocusions for unacceptable behavior.
Most children are rebels by nature and want to see just
how much they can get away with before mom and dad put their proverbial foot down. Well, we can't bust that ass anymore, so what to do?
Grounding? They'll go out the window.
Nail the window shut and lock the door? That should do it, but Hold on now! That's "child endangerment", and you can be jailed for that. Again.
Schools ( government run, that is) are not alowed to diciline children.
So it's reinforced that there are no real reprocusions for bad behavior.
With my youngest daughter, the best punishment was to make her go to school. But she found a way to foil that brilliant plan, too. She'd get herself suspended. How can we parents win? Oddly enough, She has turned into a
responcible mother and parent of two sons of her own.

And she's found out that mom and dad weren't so dumb after all.

[Jon-Marcus]

Morality:
Broken down to it's basics, morality is knowing right from wrong.
Unfortunatly morality is declining at about the same rate as family. Also, Because family is declining. Yes, this meshes with my last post.
I concider myself to have high country-style morals.
Murder is wrong.
Stealing is wrong.
Ah, heck. Just read the 10 commandments. It's all there.
Ya know, If we in America could simply live by the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, perhaps with the 10 commandments as a moral guide, we wouldn't have any need for the 20,000 or more laws that are presently on the books now.
Don't ya think?

[Jon-Marcus]

I just haven't had much to say that someone more eloquent couldn't say better.
I still don't.
I turn on the local news and I want to throw up, or cry, or put my fist through the wall. Or all three.
I was born in Louisiana. Raised there.
I love that odd-ball state. It's unique in many ways. It's ... Home.
I'm from the northern part of the state, thus the "yankee cajun" bit.
I've never been to New Orleans. No Made Gra for me. No way. Get's too crazy for my tastes.
But, the Big Easy has always been the heart and soul of Louisiana.
What will become of her now?
Again, I want to hit something, to cry, and to throw up.
Louisiana, sweet Louisiana.
Magnolia country. Cresent City.
So much lost. And how much more to come.
I don't know.
I just don't know.

[Jon-Marcus]

I believe :
That not every conspiracy is a conspiracy.
That tomorrow really could be a brighter day.
In hoping for the best while expecting the worse.
In alternate realities/ paralel universes.
That Werewolves, Vampires, and other such creatures may very well be real ( but I sure don't want to meet one).
In U.F.O. 's, and their occupants are much like us; some good, some bad, and some are indifferent.
In GOD. The name is not important. The concept is.
That death is not the end, but only the begining.
That good and evil are human-created concepts and not universal concepts.
That Annie Rice got it exactly right when she was writing "Memnoc; the Devil".
In the Constitution.

[Jon-Marcus]

that mayor Ray Nagin is a good man with a big heart , who's only masquerading as a politician. A real politician wouldn't give a damn. He does. I'd like to shake his hand and buy him a cold beer. He has my respect.

that Gov. Kathleen Blanco twiddled her thumbs, and that she IS a real politician. 'nuff said.

[SETIsLady]

that mayor Ray Nagin is a good man with a big heart , who's only masquerading as a politician. A real politician wouldn't give a damn. He does. I'd like to shake his hand and buy him a cold beer. He has my respect.

that Gov. Kathleen Blanco twiddled her thumbs, and that she IS a real politician. 'nuff said.

Yes, Jon I agree Ray Nagin is a good man. I fear because of that his political career is going to be over. Its a shame, its a real shame.

[Jon-Marcus]

Yes, Jon I agree Ray Nagin is a good man. I fear because of that his political career is going to be over. Its a shame, its a real shame.

Not nessisarily, SETIsLady. He's Mayor of New Orleans. The people of the Big Easy are not likely to forget that he stood up for them against the Big Boys when no one else in government did.
I wouldn't be surprised to see him as Mayor for a long time.

[SETIsLady]

Not nessisarily, SETIsLady. He's Mayor of New Orleans. The people of the Big Easy are not likely to forget that he stood up for them against the Big Boys when no one else in government did.
I wouldn't be surprised to see him as Mayor for a long time.

Lets hope your right Jon.

But, he isn't part of the Washington "in" crowd now.

[Jon-Marcus]

No, this is not a definition, but ...

Liberal fascists ?
Conservative fascists ?
How about moderate fascists ?
Or closet fascists?

In real life, I have met just one self-proclaimed fascist. That was quite enough for me.
She is originally from Switzerland. She loves Americans, but hates America. The Swiss don't want her back, but I sure wish they did.

I've seen, here on the Ship Fantastic, that ugly little word "fascist" bounced back and forth between the left and the right. Between the liberal and the conservitive . ( with us poor middle-of-the-roaders doing our best to not get hit with a curveball.)
Personally,I do not believe that anyone here on the ship is a "fascist", and will not believe so until such time as someone proclaims him or her self to be a "fascist".

After all, one should never assume. We all know what that does.

[Live365]

In real life, I have met just one self-proclaimed fascist. That was quite enough for me. She is originally from Switzerland. She loves Americans, but hates America. The Swiss don't want her back, but I sure wish they did.

I took a particular liking to this part, Jon-Marcus. The way you worded it.

Thanks for the post.

[Jon-Marcus]

If one asks a question in the right way, one can get whatever answer one is fishing for.

I have never put any faith in polls.
I have my own opinions, thanks to an independantly functioning, rational mind.
I see polls as just one more way to influence the sleeping masses.
A lot of polls are supposedly "independant". I say bull hocky. There is always an agenda behind every poll.
If a poll is run by an affiliate to a political activist group, rest assured, the final results will reflect the political views of that group. After all, they sure as heck would not publicise results that didn't show them as being right, now would they? The same thing applies to any other poll, from what's watched on tv, to the environment, to school quality .... you name it.
Agendas. Influance.
And that's my opinion on polls.

[Jon-Marcus]

Fear.
No definition needed.
Fear comes in all shapes and sizes. It's always there. Both the rabbit and the wolf knows fear.
The rich man knows fear, as does the poor man. Fear is one of those universal concepts I occasionaly speak of.
Fear, through inaction, can kill.
Fear, controled and turned into something useful and directed, can also save your life. That's what bravery is; controled and directed fear. Every good soldier knows this.
Most people, even if they won't admit it, fears the night. I think it's in our genetic makeup. But there are those brave souls who go out there every night to help keep the rest of us safe while we sleep behind locked doors. People like; the policeman, the paramedic, and the fireman. Even ones like me; the security officer.
Thankless jobs. Nessisary jobs. And like the soldier, jobs in which you take the fear and use it as best you can to get the job done. I can't tell you how many times I've had to do that. Fear and adrinalin mixed with duty and responcibility. It can be heady at times. Other time you wonder why you don't just walk away and never look back. I could always go back to being a machienist. But, truth be told, I like my job. I like it most when absolutly nothing happens. At 44 years old, I've found that breaking up bar room brawls is a game for young guys. Give me a uneventful night any time. Boredom is good.
I said before it is a thankless job. Mostly that's true. But once in a great while, something happens. And if all goes well, when you never see it coming, someone says " Good job." . That's when it's all worth it. Doesn't happen often, thank God. But it sure feels good when it does. If anyone asks I can give an example, but that's not a hint.
Try this sometime; Tell a cop, or fireman , or paramedic, or lowly security officer "thanks for being here. Thanks for caring".
Watch as a smile lights up their faces. They don't get thanked often. But they should.