Homework?

“There’s a huge philosophical divide between parents who want their kids to be very scheduled, very driven, and very ambitiously focused at school -- those parents want their kids to do homework. And then there are the parents who want a more child-centered life with their kids, who want their kids to be able to explore different aspects of themselves, who think their kids should have free time.”

-- Etta Kralovec, associate professor of teacher education, University of Arizona South

I can almost bet the "huge philosophical divide" of which Etta Kralovec speaks would show up on a poll as primarily those parents with a political leaning toward liberalism and, for once, they might find an ally - in me.  

It isn't that I agree with no homework, I simply see this as a way to hold a teacher's feet to the fire and prove whether they are capable of teaching.  Parents, nowadays, whine that they have no time to assist teachers by helping students with their lessons at home or hearing from the teachers that, as parents paying said teacher's wage, they should also be expected to take more responsibility for the child's education.  If parents have no time or desire to ensure students do their homework, much less to assist them, then when is a parent going to find time to spend their "evenings doing things that are proven to correlate with student success.  Eat dinner as a family, read together, play outside, and get your child to bed early," in their selfish schedule?  And, if the students are doing their work at school, when are the teachers going to teach them how to do the work.  This defeats the entire point of learn at school and practice at home.

I have to agree with Etta Kralovec that there is a huge philosophical divide.  There are parents who want their children to be able to survive the real world, and there are those parents who want a kinder, gentler, fantasy of what the real world will offer.  These children will grow into whiners which will replace the whiners who bred them.  This experiment will travel down the same path as Dr. Spock saying to spare the rod, stop spanking your child.  He reversed his opinion many years later when he saw how screwed up our society had become due to the lack of respect for work, education, and authority.

But, like I said, I agree with this experiment and I'm very surprised teacher unions support it.  The unions have long fought for a teacher's right to not be held accountable and to dump the responsibility for the teacher's shortcomings onto the parent as a way of shifting blame while protecting their paycheck and union dues.  This idea puts the entire responsibility, for a teacher being proficient at their trade, right back where it belongs - on the teacher.  This allows us to finally separate the "getting along" for a paycheck, from the teachers that truly care about education.

This isn't about homework, it is about responsibility.  This is about parental responsibility for bringing a child into the world and ensuring that child has the tools to succeed and be a productive member of society.  It is about the teacher's responsibility to do their damned job or go find another in the foodservice industry.  And, it is about the responsibility of the child to learn, even if they have to educate themselves, so they can be all they hope to be.  It is, after all, their life.

In the end, parents will finally understand that students who actually find a future will be those who have responsible parents that find the time to ensure their children are learning, who purchase additional material for them to fill their time at home, and who impress upon their children the importance of knowledge for themselves, their society, and the world they live in.  The downside of this experiment is that, while we wait for our children to fail and parents to wake up, we will be falling farther behind the rest of the world in education, and we already suck so badly.

Just saying.

Editor's Note 

(re: disclaimer cum "get out of jail free" card) 

Before you go getting your panties in a bunch, it is essential to understand that this is just an opinion site and, as such, can be subjected to scrutiny by anyone with a differing opinion. It doesn't make either opinion any more right or wrong than the other. An opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form opinions of their own, if they haven't already done so. This is also why, occasionally, I will present an "opinion" just to stir an emotional pot. Where it may sound like I agree with the statements made, I'm more interested in getting others to consider another viewpoint. 

It is my fervent hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions and then engaging in peaceful, constructive, discussion in an arena of mutual respect concerning the opinions put forth. After over twenty years with military intelligence, I have come to believe engaging each other in this manner and in this arena is the way we will learn tolerance and respect for differing beliefs, cultures, and viewpoints.

We all fall from grace, some more often than others; it is part of being human. God's test for us is what we learn from the experience, and what we do afterward.

Pastor Tony spent 23 years with United States Air Force Intelligence as a planner, analyst, briefer, instructor, and senior manager. He spent 17 years, following his service career, working with an Institutional Review Board helping to protect the rights of human subjects in pharmaceutical research.  Ordained 1n 2013 as an "interfaith" minister, he founded the Congregation for Religious Tolerance in response to intolerance shown by Christians toward peaceful Islam. As the weapon for his war on intolerance he chose the pen, to wage his "battle" in the guise of the Congregation's official online blog, The Path, of which he is both author and editor. "The Path" offers a vehicle for commentary and guidance concerning one's own personal, spiritual, path toward peace and the final destination for us all. He currently resides in Pass Christian, Mississippi, where he volunteers as Chaplain Program Liaison, at a regional medical center. 

My Sunday Thought for 043017: Ripples

"Everything we do, even the slightest thing we do, can have a ripple effect and repercussions that emanate. If you throw a pebble into the water on one side of the ocean, it can create a tidal wave on the other side."

-- Victor Webster, actor

The following article was posted by the Universal Life Church Monastery periodical The Visionary on April 14, Alabama Megachurch Close to Creating Its Own Police Force. I found it both humorous and disturbing. Fringe lunatic congregations like the Hillsboro Baptist Church threaten the security, safety, peace and tranquility of military funerals to the point patriotic motorcycle groups have to cordon off the cemetery to keep the congregation at bay, yet this Alabama church feels threatened from outside forces to the point of a paranoia requiring their own police force to quell.

The reader's comments, listed at the bottom of the Monastery article, are telling to the general mindset of folks.   4000 people want to ensure their own safety in these trying times, and it would seem a majority of people feel they should suck it up and hang it out there like the rest of us.  Maybe the offended have a point - if we all can't have a personal police force, why should they?  And why should the taxpayers foot the bill when we're supposed to have a separation of church and state?  Yet, members of the League of the Perpetually Offended are the very ones who have created the fear for safety which has been brought down upon this church, and our society, like mass paranoia.

I suppose, if the congregation of these 4000 feel this threatened, the church should probably ask each congregation member to pony up one dollar every Sunday which would bring $4000 a week into the coffers enabling them to hire a private security force, armed to the teeth, with which to ensure the feeling of safety which they seem to feel the State police are unable to provide.  They could also have closed circuit monitoring, and snipers posted at strategic locations with which to blow the head off of any offended terrorist before they can rain death and mayhem down on the peaceful parishioners.  After all, it's what Christ would have wanted, right?

"There is a ripple effect to the gospel that's inevitable. There's a ripple effect to true grace. It doesn't lead us to only sit and contemplate what happened to us. It leads us to proclaim what's happened to us—and what can happen to anybody and everybody on the planet."

-- Louie Giglio, pastor, author

Whether the church foots the cost for security or the government does, it is money not being used to feed the hungry, cloth the needy or shelter the homeless, and if none of this is being accomplished the League of the Perpetually Offended wins.  Any time good falls prey to evil, the League wins another battle.

No matter how peaceful we can make this pond we live in, no matter how much we all try to get along, there will always be some splinter group of the League wanting to create ripples in the pond, a disturbance in the force, rattling the cage and trying to awaken the sleeping bear of personal offense, an offense at something or someone the greater majority of us are fine with.  What the League perpetually seems incapable of understanding is that a miniscule splinter can be bothersome, whereas a variety of large trees adds beauty and positive purpose to a forest.  If the splinter offends thee, pluck it out.  If there is infection, excise it before it spreads.  Or, the offended could simply learn to live and let live, to be tolerant, understanding, and reasonable.  It is time much better spent, and we have so little time as it is.

“It's sad that in a world of billions, people can still feel isolated and alone. Sometimes all it takes to brighten up someone's day is a smile or kind word, or the generous actions of a complete stranger. Small things, the tiny details, these are the things that matter in life — the little glint in the eye, curve of a lip, nod of a head, wave of a hand — such minuscule movements have huge ripple effects.”

-- Shaun Hick, author, poet

The pond of our existence can be as smooth as glass, as turbulent and foreboding as a North Atlantic storm, or as beautiful as waves crashing along the Pacific shore.  Whether we offend or take offense, the calm of our pond is dependent on the quantity of all which society chucks into it.  Peace is dependent on understanding which comes from knowledge and education, and a tolerance we are willing to exercise so those around us can seek their own personal path to happiness; it is our willingness to live and let live.  This, however, is a concept which runs contrary to the tenets of the League of the Perpetually Offended because the "live and let live" concept negates perpetuity of any desired feeling of offense for which they dedicate their own pleasantly masochistic feelings of misery here on earth.

"Every loving word and action create a far reaching ripple effect - like the waves of the ocean."

-- Swami Dhyan Giten, author, spiritual teacher

The ripples we cause should be gentle and have loving purpose, we should be always cognizant of the what, when, where, how, and why of our words and actions while we each travel along our path in this life.  Our actions and words should complement what others do, or allow others to compliment what we are striving to accomplish.  Our ripples should add to the beauty of the pond and interact with other ripples to create a symphony of movement we can all enjoy and find purpose in.  Our ripples should be the impetus for miracles, not the destructive force of tsunamis.

Does all this mean we should never show offense?  Absolutely not, but perhaps we would be better served to ensure our offense isn't driven by our own selfish desires... of which there are many.  We would be better served to pick and choose well thought out battles to ensure we don't come off as selfish, self-centered assholes to the rest of society.  Let us, instead, celebrate the peaceful diversity of culture, philosophy, religion, race, and personal belief.  

When a person finds something wrong in everything, it makes others wonder if they are capable of ever finding anything right in anything.  Just saying.

“Having a vested interest in other souls unconditionally creates a ripple effect that produces miracles in the lives of those around us.”

-- Molly Friedenfeld, author, spiritual teacher, radio host

Editor's Note 

(re: disclaimer cum "get out of jail free" card) 

Before you go getting your panties in a bunch, it is essential to understand that this is just an opinion site and, as such, can be subjected to scrutiny by anyone with a differing opinion. It doesn't make either opinion any more right or wrong than the other. An opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form opinions of their own, if they haven't already done so. This is also why, occasionally, I will present an "opinion" just to stir an emotional pot. Where it may sound like I agree with the statements made, I'm more interested in getting others to consider another viewpoint. 

It is my fervent hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions and then engaging in peaceful, constructive, discussion in an arena of mutual respect concerning the opinions put forth. After over twenty years with military intelligence, I have come to believe engaging each other in this manner and in this arena is the way we will learn tolerance and respect for differing beliefs, cultures, and viewpoints.

We all fall from grace, some more often than others; it is part of being human. God's test for us is what we learn from the experience, and what we do afterward.

Pastor Tony spent 23 years with United States Air Force Intelligence as a planner, analyst, briefer, instructor, and senior manager. He spent 17 years, following his service career, working with an Institutional Review Board helping to protect the rights of human subjects in pharmaceutical research.  Ordained 1n 2013 as an "interfaith" minister, he founded the Congregation for Religious Tolerance in response to intolerance shown by Christians toward peaceful Islam. As the weapon for his war on intolerance he chose the pen, to wage his "battle" in the guise of the Congregation's official online blog, The Path, of which he is both author and editor. "The Path" offers a vehicle for commentary and guidance concerning one's own personal, spiritual, path toward peace and the final destination for us all. He currently resides in Pass Christian, Mississippi, where he volunteers as Chaplain Program Liaison, at a regional medical center. 

The Greatest Thing

The greatest thing?

Curly: Do you know what the secret of life is?
Curly: This. [holds up one finger]
Mitch: Your finger?
Curly: One thing. Just one thing. You stick to that and the rest don't mean shit.
Mitch: But what is the "one thing?"
Curly: [smiles] That's what you have to find out.

-- "City Slickers" (1991)

I always thought this was simple "Curly-an" philosophy:  The secret to life is "one thing."  What is this "one thing?"  Well, the secret to life, of course, would be the obvious sequitur.  Actually, I think the whole thing wreaks more of Taoism.  Regardless of the root, however, the point is that you hold within you the ability to find out what the secret of life is.  Once you find the secret of life, you'll understand it isn't just one thing.

I have learned that, for me, life does not end with death.  Death is just an end to another act in a much greater dramatic production of this thing we call "life."  If our consciousness moves on to other realms then how can we call this death?  Our life on this plane of existence has simply come to an end, the curtain has closed, and the lights have dimmed to blackness.  The, as we fear the story has ended - a light grows brighter to reveal the opening of yet another curtain as the story of life moves forward as we continue to become all we were intended to be.

The greatest thing is, at any moment, to be willing to give up who we are in order to become all that we can be. 

-- Max de Pree

For a moment, please consider the next few paragraphs.

The Coptic Gospel of Thomas reads, "These are the secret sayings which the living Jesus spoke and which Didymos Judas Thomas wrote down.  And He said, "Whoever finds the interpretation of these sayings will not experience death." Jesus said, "Let him who seeks continue seeking until he finds. When he finds, he will become troubled. When he becomes troubled, he will be astonished, and he will rule over the All." 

  

The name of God is explained to Moses by God as this, "Moses said to God, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you’, and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you’... this is my name for ever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations.” 

If we buy into the rumor, by some, that Jesus traveled to Nepal where He spent some years training His mind while learning Buddhist philosophy and mysticism, then we might find some enlightenment in a similar idea concerning the Tao, the way or the method toward enlightenment:

The Tao that can be told is not the eternal Tao.
The name that can be named is not the eternal name.
The nameless is the beginning of heaven and earth.
The named is the mother of ten thousand things.
Ever desireless, one can see the mystery.
Ever desiring, one can see the manifestations.
These two spring from the same sources but differ in name;
this appears as darkness.
Darkness within darkness.
The gate to all mystery.

-- Laozi (604-531 BC), "Tao Te Ching" (1)

Now consider this:  "Let him who seeks continue seeking until he finds," because the mystery of everlasting life is in the interpretation of what Christ said.  We simply cannot see the forest for the trees because all we do is desire.  "Ever desiring, one can see the manifestations," only the manifestations, but not the mystery.  Only when we are desireless will the "darkness within darkness" become clear and "the gate to all mystery" will be opened.  Max de Pree may be right; maybe the greatest thing is to give up all we are in order to become all that we can be.

The greatest thing a man can do in this world is to make the most possible out of the stuff that has been given him. This is success, and there is no other.

-- Orison Swett Marden

Most of great religions tout knowledge as the way to enlightenment, a higher state of being.  The ancient Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Moorish, Asian, and even the Maya and Aztec cultures all considered knowledge paramount to civilization.   Astronomy, medicine, anatomy, physics, architecture, and earth science were all discovered millennia ago, forgotten, relearned and forgotten, and so on.  The Egyptians moving massive stones for pyramids, Greek and Roman science, Moorish medical knowledge, Maya and Aztec astronomy, and Chinese oil drilling were some of the things we are just now discovering they all knew first.  We have to come to terms with the fact that we don't have people discovering things first, we have people discovering things - again.  The fact that most of this great knowledge has been lost to modern man is why we are forced to learn it all again.  But, was it lost or was it written down and forgotten, incorporated into sacred texts and scholarly volumes without the scribe or monk realizing what it was?

The "one thing" could be the mystery contained within these texts, and yet the "one thing" might not be a mystery at all.  It could be we simply refuse to see what ancient scholars saw so clearly because we have been taught not to consider that which is too easy, or that our “novel” idea runs against academic orthodoxy.  Selfish desires blind us to the obvious, the forest of knowledge hidden behind a line of trees which we can’t see beyond due to prejudices; we fail to see what is right in front of us.  If we were to stop thinking about it, it would come to us.  Maybe the real secret in the translation is we already know what we know.  Maybe we are already like gods and we simply don't realize it.  I think God hinted at this in the Holy Scripture: 

"Then the LORD God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, knowing good and evil..."

-- Genesis 3:22

Perhaps what we need to do is stop thinking in negative absolutes.  Let us give up words like can't, won't, and never, and start using might, could, and maybe tomorrow.  We need to acknowledge our only limitation is the knowledge we currently possess.  Anything might be possible once we find the knowledge to accomplish it.

So, what is the one thing?  As I stated in the beginning, it isn't just one thing - it is the greatest thing.  Our awareness of self, our God, and our universe would not be possible without this one gift, this one greatest thing.  What it is, you already know, and we will continue to expand our knowledge until we understand that which we know.  When that time comes, we will understand desire, let go, and simply remember, "Behold, the man has become like one of Us, knowing of good and evil..."  The beginning is upon us.

Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young. The greatest thing in life is to keep your mind young.

-- Henry Ford

I leave you with a final thought concerning knowledge, a fairly obvious truth.  Knowledge resides in our mind, our soul, and our soul is... timeless.

Editor's Note 

(re: disclaimer cum "get out of jail free" card) 

Before you go getting your panties in a bunch, it is essential to understand that this is just an opinion site and, as such, can be subjected to scrutiny by anyone with a differing opinion. It doesn't make either opinion any more right or wrong than the other. An opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form opinions of their own, if they haven't already done so. This is also why, occasionally, I will present an "opinion" just to stir an emotional pot. Where it may sound like I agree with the statements made, I'm more interested in getting others to consider another viewpoint. 

It is my fervent hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions and then engaging in peaceful, constructive, discussion in an arena of mutual respect concerning the opinions put forth. After over twenty years with military intelligence, I have come to believe engaging each other in this manner and in this arena is the way we will learn tolerance and respect for differing beliefs, cultures, and viewpoints.

We all fall from grace, some more often than others; it is part of being human. God's test for us is what we learn from the experience, and what we do afterward.

Pastor Tony spent 23 years with United States Air Force Intelligence as a planner, analyst, briefer, instructor, and senior manager. He spent 17 years, following his service career, working with an Institutional Review Board helping to protect the rights of human subjects in pharmaceutical research.  Ordained 1n 2013 as an "interfaith" minister, he founded the Congregation for Religious Tolerance in response to intolerance shown by Christians toward peaceful Islam. As the weapon for his war on intolerance he chose the pen, to wage his "battle" in the guise of the Congregation's official online blog, The Path, of which he is both author and editor. "The Path" offers a vehicle for commentary and guidance concerning one's own personal, spiritual, path toward peace and the final destination for us all. He currently resides in Pass Christian, Mississippi, where he volunteers as Chaplain Program Liaison, at a regional medical center.

Choices & Consequences

To be, or not to be, that is the question:

Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer

The slings and arrows of having rolled 

In a steaming pile of fresh, steaming, cow manure 

And, by doing so, force a bath, 

Or to sniff the south end of a friend heading north.

To die, to sleep--No more-- 

And by a sleep we mean to dream

Of chasing rabbits and humping legs,

The thousand natural shocks which dog is heir to.

If I were to die, I'd like to come back as a dog.  Whoever thinks this is a good idea really needs to consider reevaluating the life they live and the choices they make.  I love dogs, but dogs have flea issues, they smell like, well... a dog, they eat kitty Rocca out of the cat box, hump the legs of strangers (I might be able to get over this one), eat rotting dead road kill, and roll in the first fresh cow pie they come across.  Oh, yeah!  Sounds like a hoot to me.  The next time a dog licks your face or your mouth, think about where the tongue has been.  I mean, really, they clean their crusty private parts with it - constantly.

Dogs act exactly the way we would act if we had no shame.

-- Cynthia Heimel, feminist, humorist, author

Humans say and do things without thinking through the consequences.  Our mouths are attached to vocal cords spring loaded in preparation for the next knee-jerk reaction to some ridiculous thought that traverses the wasteland of our mind.  Sometimes it takes us years to develop an understanding of the relationship between choices and consequences, and more years to master the art of thinking before we act, if we ever manage to.  Without good breeding we simply wander through life like so many trailer trash sires and bitches, wondering where we went wrong and shaking the empties looking for the dregs of warm beer as we wait for the next welfare check to hit the mailbox.  The last thing we do is worry about the meaning of life or what tomorrow brings.

My dog doesn't worry about the meaning of life. She may worry if she doesn't get her breakfast, but she doesn't sit around worrying about whether she will get fulfilled or liberated or enlightened. As long as she gets some food and a little affection, her life is fine.

-- Joko Beck (1917-2011), Zen master

German sexologist and author, Ingelore Ebberfeld, says, "Kissing originates from animals sniffing each other." Okay, I'll buy that, but if this is true, we must have been sniffing each other's mouths, right?  I mean, otherwise, like a dog, we'd probably be planting a juicy wet one on each other's ass.  The choices we make and the consequences of those choices can have far reaching historical and cultural effects.  Perhaps it is better if we're, at least a bit, concerned about getting fulfilled, liberated, and enlightened as we travel down our path looking for our next meal and a little affection.  

Some people have compared butt sniffing in dogs to saying “hi” or shaking hands, but it actually goes much deeper than that. A dog’s anal glands can reveal its gender, reproductive status, general health, and even what it had for breakfast. In other words, it’s like peeking at someone’s Facebook page before you meet them.

Scent can also reveal whether the dog is friendly, nervous or hostile – which are obviously important things to know when two dogs meet for the first time. But just as important is the butt sniffing ritual itself. How dogs conduct themselves when sniffing and being sniffed is key to harmonious canine relationships. That’s why you should let dogs sniff away when greeting each other, regardless of how distasteful it might seem.

-- Matt Jobe, The Smell Test

Coming back as a dog might have some advantages.  We might learn how to conduct ourselves when "sniffing and being sniffed."  We might find, as dogs do, how our conduct is the key to harmonious relationships.  It really isn't veterinary science.

Editor's Note 

(re: disclaimer cum "get out of jail free" card) 

Before you go getting your panties in a bunch, it is essential to understand that this is just an opinion site and, as such, can be subjected to scrutiny by anyone with a differing opinion. It doesn't make either opinion any more right or wrong than the other. An opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form opinions of their own, if they haven't already done so. This is also why, occasionally, I will present an "opinion" just to stir an emotional pot. Where it may sound like I agree with the statements made, I'm more interested in getting others to consider another viewpoint. 

It is my fervent hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions and then engaging in peaceful, constructive, discussion in an arena of mutual respect concerning the opinions put forth. After over twenty years with military intelligence, I have come to believe engaging each other in this manner and in this arena is the way we will learn tolerance and respect for differing beliefs, cultures, and viewpoints.

We all fall from grace, some more often than others; it is part of being human. God's test for us is what we learn from the experience, and what we do afterward.

Pastor Tony spent 23 years with United States Air Force Intelligence as a planner, analyst, briefer, instructor, and senior manager. He spent 17 years, following his service career, working with an Institutional Review Board helping to protect the rights of human subjects in pharmaceutical research.  Ordained 1n 2013 as an "interfaith" minister, he founded the Congregation for Religious Tolerance in response to intolerance shown by Christians toward peaceful Islam. As the weapon for his war on intolerance he chose the pen, to wage his "battle" in the guise of the Congregation's official online blog, The Path, of which he is both author and editor. "The Path" offers a vehicle for commentary and guidance concerning one's own personal, spiritual, path toward peace and the final destination for us all. He currently resides in Pass Christian, Mississippi, where he volunteers as Chaplain Program Liaison, at a regional medical center. 

My Sunday Thought for 041617: Initium Enim Prope Est

"Our greatest hopes could become reality in the future. With the technology at our disposal, the possibilities are unbounded. All we need to do is make sure we keep talking.”

-- Stephen Hawking

We look to the horizon and await the dawn of forever. Ancient knowledge, long lost, is being rediscovered by open minds undeterred by that which they're told can't be accomplished. We use to dream of the unattainable, and now we are discovering the unattainable is simply our inability to see the appropriate path. Our predilection for 'failure before trying' has given way to the constant proof that what we are told is unattainable, consistently is being attained. Science fiction brings new ideas to the forefront of our imagination so those seekers among us can make the fiction become fact.

“You never change things by fighting the existing reality.  

To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.”

-- R. Buckminster Fuller

Naysayers only fuel the mind of the seeker.  Tell a seeker they can't and watch them prove you wrong, maybe not today or tomorrow, but they will not stop until they succeed or die in the effort.  And if they should die, there will always be another seeker to take up their mantle and continue the search.  This is who we are, what we are and, most importantly, why we are.  Seeking knowledge is how we are genetically programmed.

“Do not let the memories of your past limit the potential of your future. There are no limits to what you can achieve on your journey through life, except in your mind.”

-- Roy T. Bennett

We were created in the image of God, but it was left up to us, through freedom of choice, to discover how to become the beings God intended.  A parent cannot, simply, declare a child is an adult and expect the child will know all which being an adult entails.  The child must learn to crawl before it flies.  We must learn, for ourselves, to understand the knowledge which will make us as righteous, moral, gods before our creator.  Once we have the knowledge we will begin to also understand the true path which God has set for us, as well as our place, in this universe - and in the next.

Today we are proving thought has substance, is tangible, and the power of the mind is actually a controllable physical manifestation we have forgotten how to utilize.  The age of revelation, the great unveiling of forgotten knowledge, the new beginning, is upon us.  Can we transplant a human head?  Can we transfer our consciousness into an interstellar vehicle for space exploration?  Can we control matter and time with our minds? Are we mature enough to move forward down this path, daring to count ourselves among the gods, and stand with our creator?

The beginning is nearer than we think, and I can't wait to find out what lies ahead.

“Never let the future disturb you. You will meet it, if you have to, with the same weapons of reason which today arm you against the present.” 

-- Marcus Aurelius

Editor's Note 

(re: disclaimer cum "get out of jail free" card) 

Before you go getting your panties in a bunch, it is essential to understand that this is just an opinion site and, as such, can be subjected to scrutiny by anyone with a differing opinion. It doesn't make either opinion any more right or wrong than the other. An opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form opinions of their own, if they haven't already done so. This is also why, occasionally, I will present an "opinion" just to stir an emotional pot. Where it may sound like I agree with the statements made, I'm more interested in getting others to consider another viewpoint. 

It is my fervent hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions and then engaging in peaceful, constructive, discussion in an arena of mutual respect concerning the opinions put forth. After over twenty years with military intelligence, I have come to believe engaging each other in this manner and in this arena is the way we will learn tolerance and respect for differing beliefs, cultures, and viewpoints.

We all fall from grace, some more often than others; it is part of being human. God's test for us is what we learn from the experience, and what we do afterward.

Pastor Tony spent 23 years with United States Air Force Intelligence as a planner, analyst, briefer, instructor, and senior manager. He spent 17 years, following his service career, working with an Institutional Review Board helping to protect the rights of human subjects in pharmaceutical research.  Ordained 1n 2013 as an "interfaith" minister, he founded the Congregation for Religious Tolerance in response to intolerance shown by Christians toward peaceful Islam. As the weapon for his war on intolerance he chose the pen, to wage battle in the guise of the Congregation's official, online, blog, "The Path," of which he is both author and editor. "The Path" offers a vehicle for commentary and guidance concerning one's own personal, spiritual, path toward peace and the final destination for us all. He currently resides in Pass Christian, Mississippi, where he volunteers as lead chaplain, and Chaplain Liaison, at a regional medical center.

Stress Not

Sitting on the back porch tonight, I find myself alone with the breeze and the warm glow of the patio lights, an iced glass of bourbon, and my pipe, smoking with my favorite blend and filling the air around me with an aromatically therapeutic scent. It struck me, as it always does, that I have no stress. A glass of bourbon and a bowl of pleasingly aromatic tobacco and all's right with my world, with the exception of the occasional train blaring it's obnoxiously loud horn as it rumbles through town, and even this I have learned to, for the most part, ignore. Go figure.

Any stress experienced in my life, to this point, I thought was centered on school and marriage.  It was stress driven, for the most part, by fear of being left behind and having to endure said stress for an indefinite period, and jumping into a marriage much too young with a relationship neither of us was prepared for or experienced enough to understand.  

As for my 23 years of military life?  It wasn't a job insomuch as it was, truly, an adventure.  I never stressed over it as much as I looked forward to it.  Little did I know, at the time, it was also an escape from the stress of the marriage which finally failed.  I would come to learn, from all of this, that a person can experience stress without knowing it or admitting it.  That job I looked so forward to, the job I was so good at and so happy in, would be the cause of my post-traumatic stress and, by extension, my donation to the final destruction of my marriage.  The divorce forced my realization that I suffered from a mild case of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, and the knowledge that you can have stress, suffer under it, and not realize it. 

The lessons I've learned during that life, and what would follow, I have tried to impress on others.  Education and history are things to be cherished and not feared; never enter into any relationship, business or personal, with a foundation based on lies; and never stress over that which you have no control, which means you have no reason to ever stress since, if you have control, there is little reason for stress to begin with.  This latter is the foundation for life - be in control.  You will come to realize you don't have to be in control of anything else as long as you are in control of yourself.  The best way to become in control of one's self is to learn to ask  the only important question:  Why?  

Something else to keep in mind is to not fear the future, for the future is nothing but the next instant in life.  One must learn and understand how to enjoy each and every instant.  We have no control over the next instant; it will happen whether we want it to, or not.  Once we understand this lack of control over the next instant, there is little reason to look passed it, to an instant in the future, and stress over that instant either.  Once you learn to live in the moment, you may find how to live in-between the moments.  The time between time is the minutes and hours spent in a dream which lasts seconds.  Why do we miss so much of the experience of life happening around us?  

If you aren't in control, you are out of control.  If you're out of control is there any wonder you move through life like a bull in a china shop, leaving in your wake things broken, shattered, and emotionally compromised?  Better to move through life slowly, with a well thought out plan, one step at a time.  Don't buy into someone else's hype and immediacy.  Contracts never have to be signed before they are read and understood.  The car on sale today can be had tomorrow for the same price if the deal is worth having.  The contract being forced with a sense of immediacy is usually a contract to be wary of, and anything too good to be true usually is.  

For instance, a marriage 'license' is a piece of paper, a record, a tax dodge, and a boilerplate contract only as ironclad and binding as the honesty and love of the people signing it.  I know people who have been together in terrific relationships, for twenty years and more, without benefit of this so called contract.  Current laws pretty much give life partners the same legal rights as married couples, so what's the point?  Two people in love simply want to tell friends and family, the society in which they live their lives, and their God, that they are pledging, for the rest of their lives, their undying love for each other.  Feel like lying to God for some selfish reasons?  No stress here.  

Yet most contracts, personal or business, between family, friends, or strangers, are simply marriages; agreements to abide by certain written statements which we base only on the honesty of the individuals signing them.  If one of the individuals violates the contract, one or both of the parties will end up getting financially or emotionally hurt.  The purpose of a contract is to keep everyone honest, and to guarantee the agreed upon outcome.  It is supposed to remove stress from the equation by arriving at agreements both parties can live with.  Stress comes into play is when one or both of the parties are lying to one another, or to themselves, about their ability or desire to abide by the agreements.

Better to go through life being honest with yourself and others.  Don't promise that which you cannot provide, and don't sign contracts which you cannot fulfill.  Always strive to be in control of your emotions, your decisions, and your life.  Don't make decisions during times of high emotion.  Be honest enough with yourself to understand the impact your words and your actions will have, now or in the future, upon your life or the lives of others.

Stress not?  Well, perhaps easier said than done.  

Right now I'm listening to the ice, rattling in my glass, telling me I've finished my bourbon.  I have to find some philosophical tidbit as the impetus for discussion during this Sunday's PTSD meeting at the medical center. I could stress over it, but that seems inconsequential to the obvious lack of bourbon in my glass.  I will come up with some topic to discuss.  I always do.  I have found that life unfolds despite any stress I may visit upon it, and that stress only muddies the water, making life more difficult to see.  One door closes and another opens, this happens with or without me.

I look over my shoulder and see the last dregs of Evan Williams calling my name from the kitchen counter, inside.  I can stress over it, or I can get off of my lazy ass and put the soldier out of its misery.

No stress here.  

Editor's Note 

(re: disclaimer cum "get out of jail free" card) 

Before you go getting your panties in a bunch, it is essential to understand that this is just an opinion site and, as such, can be subjected to scrutiny by anyone with a differing opinion. It doesn't make either opinion any more right or wrong than the other. An opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form opinions of their own, if they haven't already done so. This is also why, occasionally, I will present an "opinion" just to stir an emotional pot. Where it may sound like I agree with the statements made, I'm more interested in getting others to consider another viewpoint. 

It is my fervent hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions and then engaging in peaceful, constructive, discussion in an arena of mutual respect concerning the opinions put forth. After over twenty years with military intelligence, I have come to believe engaging each other in this manner and in this arena is the way we will learn tolerance and respect for differing beliefs, cultures, and viewpoints.

We all fall from grace, some more often than others; it is part of being human. God's test for us is what we learn from the experience, and what we do afterward.

Pastor Tony spent 23 years with United States Air Force Intelligence as a planner, analyst, briefer, instructor, and senior manager. He spent 17 years, following his service career, working with an Institutional Review Board helping to protect the rights of human subjects in pharmaceutical research.  Ordained 1n 2013 as an "interfaith" minister, he founded the Congregation for Religious Tolerance in response to intolerance shown by Christians toward peaceful Islam. As the weapon for his war on intolerance he chose the pen, to wage battle in the guise of the Congregation's official, online, blog, "The Path," of which he is both author and editor. "The Path" offers a vehicle for commentary and guidance concerning one's own personal, spiritual, path toward peace and the final destination for us all. He currently resides in Pass Christian, Mississippi, where he volunteers as lead chaplain, and Chaplain Liaison, at a regional medical center.

My Sunday Thought for 040917: Your Daily Outlook?

The look of contentment; it's the look that says you just filled your diaper with roses.  This is me, most all the time, content... and with my diaper full of roses.  If you don't see it, look closer, on the inside, it's there, just passed my focus engine, waiting to come back out and piss everyone off at how stupid happy I seem to constantly be.  But, it's not just the look.  A person's outward appearance is usually some plastic facade, disguised as a bullshit personality, without some feeling and emotion to support it.  You have to truly be at one with your contentment.

We all try to impress, and we all fail at it.  Hey, for the most part we're lousy communicators.  Who knew?  But in the emotional moment, if you're lucky enough to catch the momentary look of honesty, a person's face can speak volumes of who they really are, even if their pie hole makes little or no sense.  For some of us it's the curse of walking around looking like we just packed our diapers, for others it can be the morning scowl which follows them through their pitiful lives.  Personally, I prefer taking any crap in my life out with the morning garbage, and doing it grinning like a Cheshire cat.

This here look is one of shock and awe.  This is me when one of so very many thoughtless moron cuts me off on the highway as they rush headlong toward destiny only to discover they've gotten nowhere.  It also the look I get when an intellectual deficient opens their pie hole to spew forth some 'intelligent' political rhetoric which was better left under the rock he discovered it, along with the League of the Perpetually Offended.  This look is usually replaced in short order by a look of pleasant surprise as the offender is taken down a notch by someone with infinitely more political acumen, or someone in a State Patrol uniform that knows how to drive.

This would be the look I get when that same moronic driver which cut me off realizes the cargo rack atop the SUV that he just came up on like a bat outta hell, is actually the new 'low profile' emergency light bar for the State Patrol vehicle it's attached to.  Oh!  Pretty colors...

This is also the look I get when I'm the one the Stater pulls over, for not paying attention to my speedometer while I'm sightseeing.  Yeah, that would be the aforementioned focus engine of mine working overtime at leisure. Attention Deficit Disorder has never been a big issue for me, as my attention usually gets a radar lock on someone, or something, to the exclusion of all else around me.  It is embarrassing at times and useful at others. Embarrassing when cleavage is involved, but particularly useful during an ass chewing as you can just focused on a pencil or a stapler until all you hear is, "Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah." When they're done, never say you haven't heard a word they said, always smile broadly, thank them for their input, and brace yourself for the inevitable explosion which is a sign your continued gaiety has unsettled their lack of managerial prowess, at which point you'll have the opportunity to wear this look one more time before being thrown out of the office.  One note of caution, their anger can be deafeningly palpable.

This is the problem with having short fuses.  We all tend to take life too seriously. It is just life after all, and tomorrow you'll wake up to one more glorious day in paradise with yet another chance to excel at your chosen profession.  In my case, that would be retirement.

Right now, most of you are probably giving my last statement this "you have no idea how damned crappy my life is" look, when maybe what you really need to be considering is why your life is so damned crappy.  The reason, for most, is that you've never been to the very bottom of the barrel; that point when you've lost everything you've loved, cared about, or worked for your entire life.  You'll have arrived at the coward's precipice which divides life from death and realize you're leaning way too far over it.  If you aren't a sniveling coward and manage to survive looking into the depths of darkness, it might make you stronger or, at the very least, teach you an appreciation for what little you have left and how even this little bit might be considered the wealth of the universe by those who truly don't have a pot to piss in.  The grumpy look you see staring back from the mirror is more of a self-condemnation for not making better choices and enjoying the better consequences.  Get over it.  Tomorrow is another morning so... rejoice!

If you aren't happy with whatever path you're on, remember that we all tend to take life too seriously.  It is just life, after all, and tomorrow you'll wake up to one more glorious day in paradise with yet another chance to excel at your chosen profession.  This is the mantra I try to recite, and I tell everyone to recite, each and every morning in order to get our head screwed on straight before we go out amongst them English and put boot to ass for whatever cause célèbre or personal tasks we have on our daily docket.  When you wake up each morning, you should knock on wood as proof of life, and smile as you look to the heavens and say, "Thank you, God, for another glorious day in paradise and yet another chance to excel in life."  You may fall down in your day's endeavor, but get back up, learn from the mistake, and continue moving down your path.  Above all, remember that tomorrow is going to be another glorious day which God has gifted to you so you can excel in life.  If you aren't trying to do this simple task each and every day, you are wasting God's daily gift to you.

Maya Angelou once wrote, "If you don't like something, change it. If you can't change it, change your attitude."  Life is what it is, if you don't like it or can't find happiness in it, perhaps it's time to stop moaning about it and institute changes which will make you happier.  One thing you'll have to do, though, is understand happiness it isn't about material things.  Happiness is about waking up every morning.  It is about family, friendships and love, a purpose to work toward, and a fluffy kitten.  Happiness isn't about what we get but, rather, about what we give to others, even if it happens to be a packed diaper. 

Choices, and the consequences of those choices, make us who we are.  Emotions only grow by sharing.  We can only get more love and happiness for ourselves by giving them away to others, and the same goes for anger and sadness.  You must first light the candle of awareness before you can accept ownership of the choices you have made and the reality of the consequences you live with.  Once you have accepted ownership of why you are not where you wish to be, you can finally change your outlook and your path.  Wisdom comes from humility and humility comes from being honest with yourself, and doing so before God, friends, those you love and care for, and those who love and care for you.

Your daily outlook should always be bright with the anticipation of another chance to excel in life.  You should always approach life with the eyes of a child, eager to experience, to learn, to marvel at all of God's wonders, and to eat the sweet, juicy, banana of life.  What is life, after all, without a good banana, and another day to enjoy it?  I guess it would depend on how ripe it is, but then, that's why they came up with banana bread, and that look, the one which says you've had your daily fiber, and then some.

Thank you, God, for another glorious day in paradise!

Editor's Note 

(re: disclaimer cum "get out of jail free" card) 

Before you go getting your panties in a bunch, it is essential to understand that this is just an opinion site and, as such, can be subjected to scrutiny by anyone with a differing opinion. It doesn't make either opinion any more right or wrong than the other. An opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form opinions of their own, if they haven't already done so. This is also why, occasionally, I will present an "opinion" just to stir an emotional pot. Where it may sound like I agree with the statements made, I'm more interested in getting others to consider another viewpoint. 

It is my fervent hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions and then engaging in peaceful, constructive, discussion in an arena of mutual respect concerning the opinions put forth. After over twenty years with military intelligence, I have come to believe engaging each other in this manner and in this arena is the way we will learn tolerance and respect for differing beliefs, cultures, and viewpoints.

We all fall from grace, some more often than others; it is part of being human. God's test for us is what we learn from the experience, and what we do afterward.

Pastor Tony spent 23 years with United States Air Force Intelligence as a planner, analyst, briefer, instructor, and senior manager. He spent 17 years, following his service career, working with an Institutional Review Board helping to protect the rights of human subjects in pharmaceutical research.  Ordained 1n 2013 as an "interfaith" minister, he founded the Congregation for Religious Tolerance in response to intolerance shown by Christians toward peaceful Islam. As the weapon for his war on intolerance he chose the pen, to wage battle in the guise of the Congregation's official, online, blog, "The Path," of which he is both author and editor. "The Path" offers a vehicle for commentary and guidance concerning one's own personal, spiritual, path toward peace and the final destination for us all. He currently resides in Pass Christian, Mississippi, where he volunteers as lead chaplain, and Chaplain Liaison, at a regional medical center.

My Sunday Thought for 042317: Holocaust Remembrance - The Forgotten Victims

Serbs and Gypsies being marched to concentration camps

Please Note:

I will be reposting this each Sunday until April 23, 2017

(Holocaust Remembrance Day)

The impetus for this post comes from my good friend "Gypsy" who is a muse for most of my PTSD posts as well as others. This one was based on a message she sent me, which I edited for clarity and have paraphrased, here:

“I may have a topic for your writings concerning the perpetually offended. Someone on Facebook said they were proud to be from Jewish descent because the Jewish Holocaust was the worst genocide in history. I simply said, many historians would tell you that it was not only the Jewish people who were in the Holocaust, there were also LGBT, Gypsies, Germans, and you name it. I was then informed I was a liar because if that was the case it wouldn’t be called the Jewish Holocaust… Some people forget my family were Romanian gypsies on my father’s side, and were sitting in the same camps as my step mothers that were Jewish and going through it all together in unity. [I] had no desire to have a pissing contest with a stranger on who was beaten worse before I was even born... I instantly thought to wonder what Tony would think if he saw this conversation with the whole BLM and white power, and all this crap of race hating going on in this day and age… I have sent this person your blog before [you write the post] so maybe they will read it and learn something.”

Gypsy knows the League of the Perpetually Offended hold a place dear to my heart, and closer to the damned than most, bless their poor misguided souls. Perpetual offense is the prodigal child of ignorance, and the person she was talking to seems to fit this category, though we must remember it is not our place to judge. Yeah, right.

“For the survivor who chooses to testify, it is clear: his duty is to bear witness for the dead and for the living. He has no right to deprive future generations of a past that belongs to our collective memory. To forget would be not only dangerous but offensive; to forget the dead would be akin to killing them a second time.”

-- Elie Wiesel

The Nazis were insane, yet disavowed recognition of their own insanity because they were, well, insane.  It would make perfect sense they would be in denial as they embarked on the Reich's mission of sociopathic ethnic cleansing, genocide, and enslavement of the world's population which didn't meet the guidelines which the Nazis, themselves didn't even meet.   Considering our current knowledge of the human genome, and the fact that we now know there is no such thing as a 'pure Aryan race,' the Nazis would have been hard pressed, today, not to find most of their own ranks behind the wire with the rest of their ill-defined broken and genetically 'impure' of humanity, their own insane sociopathic mental illness notwithstanding.  Theirs was to be a true hell on earth for the non-Aryan allowed to survive, and this is more to the point of Gypsy's conversation.  All non-Aryan people were to be judged and utilized as found appropriate by the Third Reich.

"Someone who hates one group will end up hating everyone - and, ultimately, hating himself or herself." 

-- Elie Wiesel

Around 11 million people died during the Holocaust.  The numbers differ slightly depending on which list you trust, but along with the 6 million Jews sent to the camps for extermination and/or slave labor, 5 million of the total, the non-Jews, were also victims of the Nazi 'internment' camps.  Five million more victims whose only crime in life was being homosexual, Slavic, gypsy, mentally ill, autistic savant, handicapped or crippled, sympathetic Christian clergy, trade unionist, Jehovah's Witness, communist, anyone found harboring anyone on this, yet to be, all inclusive list of Nazi defined undesirables, and anyone found to be resisting the Reich to include Germans.  It was a Jewish Holocaust only in the sense that Jews were the largest minority specifically targeted, prior to the eventual ass whipping visited upon them by the Allied forces and their Russian Axis partner (who saw the writing on the wall and rebelled against them on the Western Front).  In reality, if Nazi Germany were to have won, all minorities would eventually have made the list, including the populations of all those countries which sided with them, their Axis partners in these crimes against humanity.  No one was immune from extermination.

To the point of this post, for a person of Jewish heritage to disrespect the deaths of the other, non-Jewish, Holocaust victims simply because their numbers may be insignificant in comparison, would be to deny their "duty," as Elie Wiesel put it, "to bear witness for the dead and for the living."  This for Mr. Wiesel was a matter of doing that which is right, "He has no right to deprive future generations of a past that belongs to our collective memory."  Most important to this is the thought of remembrance, "To forget would be not only dangerous but offensive; to forget the dead would be akin to killing them a second time."  I don't think he meant we should only remember the Jews which died. 

No human race is superior; no religious faith is inferior. All collective judgments are wrong. Only racists make them.

-- Elie Wiesel

I will be repeating this post each Sunday until April 23, Holocaust Remembrance Day. Like Mr. Wiesel, I too believe in the remembrance of history, especially those events of horrific nature to mankind. I also believe one must learn history, for themselves, not just what they are spoon-fed by educators who have forgotten how to teach and what is important to teach, nor from the media which seeks to assist in the re-writing of history or the telling of news with questionable reliability on the truth.

"Someone who hates one group will end up hating everyone - and, ultimately, hating himself or herself."

-- Elie Wiesel

I will continue to post this as my part in the education of those who seek to learn, and for those I include several websites, below, in which to open their minds to reality and yet other sites chock full of interesting tidbits. Note that contrary to the title of the last website on the list, during WWII the death toll of those non-Jews killed by Nazis was significantly more than 5 million (although I would expect nothing less from the Huffington Post than to mislead readers in an article's title).  I have corrected their misleading title by adding a clarification in brackets.  

Warning: Some of the photos and information included on the following sites can be quite disturbing.  Time to parent up!  I recommend reviewing all sites and photos prior to sharing with youth.

1. The Forgotten 5 Million Non-Jewish Victims of the Holocaust
2. Holocaust - Non-Jewish Holocaust Victims
3. Five Million Forgotten - Non Jewish Victims of the Shoah
4. The Holocaust's Forgotten Victims: The 5 Million Non-Jewish People Killed by the Nazis [in the extermination camps]

Editor's Note 

(re: disclaimer cum "get out of jail free" card) 

Before you go getting your panties in a bunch, it is essential to understand that this is just an opinion site and, as such, can be subjected to scrutiny by anyone with a differing opinion. It doesn't make either opinion any more right or wrong than the other. An opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form opinions of their own, if they haven't already done so. This is also why, occasionally, I will present an "opinion" just to stir an emotional pot. Where it may sound like I agree with the statements made, I'm more interested in getting others to consider another viewpoint. 

It is my fervent hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions and then engaging in peaceful, constructive, discussion in an arena of mutual respect concerning the opinions put forth. After over twenty years with military intelligence, I have come to believe engaging each other in this manner and in this arena is the way we will learn tolerance and respect for differing beliefs, cultures, and viewpoints.

We all fall from grace, some more often than others; it is part of being human. God's test for us is what we learn from the experience, and what we do afterward.

Pastor Tony spent 23 years with United States Air Force Intelligence as a planner, analyst, briefer, instructor, and senior manager. He spent 17 years, following his service career, working with an Institutional Review Board helping to protect the rights of human subjects in pharmaceutical research.  Ordained 1n 2013 as an "interfaith" minister, he founded the Congregation for Religious Tolerance in response to intolerance shown by Christians toward peaceful Islam. As the weapon for his war on intolerance he chose the pen, to wage battle in the guise of the Congregation's official, online, blog, "The Path," of which he is both author and editor. "The Path" offers a vehicle for commentary and guidance concerning one's own personal, spiritual, path toward peace and the final destination for us all. He currently resides in Pass Christian, Mississippi, where he volunteers as lead chaplain, and Chaplain Liaison, at a regional medical center.