And Yet, More Semi-Ancient Pie-Hole Wisdom

“When another blames you or hates you, or people voice similar criticisms, go to their souls, penetrate inside and see what sort of people they are. You will realize that there is no need to be racked with anxiety that they should hold any particular opinion about you.”

-- Marcus Aurelius (121-180), Roman emperor, Stoic philosopher

What is a useful fact that most people overlook?

Don’t go into any sort of debt. You will pay out money you can use in interest every month, and end up as an indentured servant for the rest of your life. Slavery never ended, and you now have plastic cards as a reminder.  Or, maybe your fly is down.  Everyone's not looking at your crotch because your cute.  Okay, that one guy might be, but, get a clue. 

Why don't young people dream of making their lives better on their own?

Socialists have them convinced that the government will take care of them, even if they don’t want to work, so why try? All of the liberal universities dole out degrees and send the graduates into the world to do nothing, for the most part, except push the socialist agenda.

Is society reaching a stage where it will be perfect?

Not by a long shot. There is still too much selfishness and greed in the world, and here at home. Until political parties can come together and talk instead of acting like spoiled children, and until their constituents understand they’re paying hard-earned tax dollars for those politicians to do nothing but complain and whine, nothing will change. Until ALL lives matter, nothing will change. Until this happens, those who pay no taxes and don’t contribute in any way to society except for burning down neighborhoods in their version of “urban renewal,”  you know, terrorists, will really be the ones in charge.  No country is immune to this immaturity.  We will never be perfect, but we can always try working toward being close if we can all stop being perpetually offended over every little thing.

“If your political theory requires humanity to "evolve", then you do not have a theory.... you have a dream.”

-- A.E. Samaan, author, Holocaust studies

What is a challenge accepted?

Uh, this is a tough one. I accept your challenge? You dared me, and I accept the dare? This is kind of obvious, or is this a trick question and I didn't understand it?  I get a lttle thick, every now and then.

Did you pursue the career of your dreams or settle for something else? 

I was going into psychology, and toward the end of my first year in college, I was #9 on the draft lottery for Vietnam. I had a choice to make. I joined the Air Force in 1972, was assigned to Intelligence in 1973, and never looked back. I don’t regret a day of my career. What I thought was a dream was just that, a dream. I settled for something greater than myself. 

Where would you want to be right now?

On the beach in Syracuse, a city on the Ionian coast of Sicily, with my Ray-Bans, a pitcher of TNT, and a panini. The ladies will all be out in their one-piece bikinis, the water will be fine, the sun will be out, and SPF 50 will be flowing liberally as I try to do my best "greased pig" impersonation.  Such fun!

Besides the university, what can I do to prepare for my adult life?

Trade schools. Many times trades pay more than diplomas. Diving, welding, underwater welding, oil rig workers, long-haul truck drivers, and I’m sure there are more. Oh, and read. Start with current events, politics, sociology, etc., and work your way into the classic authors. Just because you went to trade school doesn’t mean you have the conversation ability of a chimpanzee (my apologies to the chimps).

Vocational education programs have made a real difference in the lives of countless young people nationwide; they build self-confidence and leadership skills by allowing students to utilize their unique gifts and talents.

-- Conrad Burns (1935-2016), Senator (Montana)

What is the purpose of being alive? .. I don’t enjoy any activity, I don't like people, I have no ambition, and I see that life is pointless. I mean even if I had a purpose for living, then I will work for it, achieve it… And then what! Nothing.

The purpose of life is life itself. Put all of the sociological bullshit off to the side. You never mention nature. The smell of a rose, or the feel of the sun on your face. Beauty never crosses your lips. Do you wake up each morning and say, “Oh no, here again.” What? Are you a leper? If you truly knew what misery was, you wouldn’t be talking like this. If you knew true misery, the smallest gift would be a reason to smile.

Every morning we wake up is another day gifted to us by God. We have another day to enjoy the miracle of creation, and another day to excel in this gift we’ve been given. To not revel in the gift is to throw it back in the face of the giver, and how rude is that?

The purpose of you being alive is for you to live. So quit whining and enjoy your gift. Your lack of ambition is on you. If you don’t like people, find some to like or… not their fault - on you. If you see life as pointless - on you. No purpose for living - on you. The nothing you see is all on you. Life is about choices and decisions, and you are making some lousy ones but, again, it’s all on you.

(The folks who run this site are liberal and, therefore, charter members of the "League of the Perpetually Offended."  My answer was removed for violating their rule of being much too honest.  It is what it is, and I'll probably continue to piss them off.  Personally, I saw it as "tough love," but that's because I care about people who tend not to care about themselves.)  

If you restart your life from scratch, would you end up in the same place?

If I retained my memories of this life, no. You didn’t mention memories, so it is odd trying to answer. I’ll assume you have us remember. If we don’t remember, we live the same life and make the same mistakes, and end up in the same place. 

If you have the ability to make people's lives better, does that mean that their failures are yours as well?

No. Your life is all about you making choices and decisions for your life. If you let other people make these decisions for you, that is your choice and the responsibility for that choice lies on you. If I have the ability to make someone’s life better, and I fail, at least I tried. If someone judges me for my failure it speaks volumes about who and what they are. The question for me should be “why” I failed, so I can learn and not let it happen again. If the reason I failed is the person I tried to help squandered my help, my lesson is clear - find someone else to help. I failed by picking the wrong person to help, not that I tried to help. Their failures are theirs, they own them as surely as I own mine. 

“I can't give you a sure-fire formula for success, but I can give you a formula for failure: try to please everybody all the time.”

-- Herbert Bayard Swope

"The future belongs to those who believe in the power of their dreams" Do you find this quote inspiring and why?

My Answer:  It’s kind of an egotistical statement. The future belongs to the young is probably more correct, but the future actually belongs to all of us. Those who believe in the power of their dreams will probably, selflessly, make more of the future, and hopefully, for everybody. I find the quote inspiring in one sense and sad in another. The world population is divided down so many lines, race, religion, politics, sex, class, how can we ever hope the power of any dreams won’t be rooted in greed? I am so very happy to be alive, yet my heart weeps for the inevitable future. 

Author's Response: So lay down and die from the abuses until I really do lose my mind, to benefit those who abuse me? Would you do that? Why? I have a few friends. Why would they ask me to do that? How does it even affect them if I don't?

My Answer: Choices. Our lives are all about making choices. What you say is not what I said.  “Those who believe in the power of their dreams will probably, selflessly, make more of the future, and hopefully, for everybody.”  Be a mentor, the impetus for change. Show others how to be selfless in their choices, how to change the future for the better.  Why lay down, when you can prove this to be true? If you choose to lay down, the future is what it is. More importantly, though, you should always strive to be happy.

Author's Response:  Because of justice. It would be wrong to throw away my life being around people who abuse and use me. They don't wish to see me prosper, they only want me to help them prosper by asking things from me I cant meet at this stage in my life.

My Answer:  Then you made a good choice.

What are the things that do not matter in life?

Drama. I try to keep drama at arm's length. Everyone wants to dump their drama on everyone else. When drama happens, it matters. Afterward, it’s in the past. If you didn’t handle it, why dump on me? No, I do not accept it. Not my circus, not my monkey. Take your pit of misery, the monkeys and elephants, and keep on walking.

If you make choices for yourself, does it bother you when people give you free choices?

The people who give me a choice think they matter. What matters is the choice I make, and I will make it with or without their consent. It bothers me that people don’t understand my choice was never theirs to give. We all have the right of choice. It is free will and no one can take free will away from us. If it makes them feel like they’re in charge by thinking they matter, how sad is that for them?

“Life is about choices. Some we regret, some we’re proud of. Some will haunt us forever. The message: we are what we chose to be.”

--Graham Brown , author

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 an alternate viewpoint. 

It is my fervent hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions and while engaging in peaceful and constructive discussion, in an arena of mutual respect, concerning those 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 22 years with the United States Air Force Intelligence as a planner, analyst, briefer, instructor, and senior manager. He spent 17 years, following his service career, working with the premier, world-renowned, Institutional Review Board helping to protect the rights of human subjects involved 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, and wages 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 lead Chaplain and Chaplain Program Liaison, at the regional medical center.