Questioning Acceptance, Decisions, and Ethics

 

“Because one believes in oneself, one doesn't try to convince others. Because one is content with oneself, one doesn't need others' approval. Because one accepts oneself, the whole world accepts him or her.”

-- Lao Tzu

Is it worse to question authority or blindly accept it?

If “authority” has drawn down on you, better to drop the knife and kiss the pavement than to question their authority. There is a time and place for everything.

If you had all the money you needed to accomplish your goals and dreams, what would you spend it on?

A center for peace, spirituality, meditation, understanding, and tolerance. I’d have plenty of gardens, fountains, and ponds, and little side gardens for relative solitude. There would be a small stage for presentations, and a small coffee shop with tea, drinks, and pastries.

Is it bad if I want to ruin someone’s life?

Gee, ya think? Just wanting to defies most people’s personal sense of moral ethics. My ex-wife went out of her way to ruin mine, and she almost succeeded. Wanting to do something is not the same as doing it, though just considering doing this is as bad as considering rape. One would think there is a special place in hell for just considering such things.

Whatever they’ve done to make you want this, maybe you should let the past go, move on with life, and strive to be happy always. Karma will catch up to them, sooner or later, and whatever they’ve done will be reckoned with.

“Don't destroy yourself by allowing negative people add gibberish and debris to your character, reputation, and aspirations. Keep all dreams alive but discreet, so that those with unhealthy tongues won't have any other option than to infest themselves with their own diseases.”

-- Michael Bassey Johnson

There is a fork in the road for me and I’m going to make a decision. I want to come back to this post in a year for reference. In the meantime, any positive advice about life in general?

Take the fork. If it doesn’t work out, come back to where you went off the path and continue forward. Life is about making choices and correcting them when we go afield. Have fun and good luck!

What do I need to do or gave to be completely independent?

Be comfortable in your own decisions and choices, so you rely on no one but yourself. Make your own money. Stay out of debt, so you belong to no one. Have a personal code of moral ethics that you will have no problem standing up for. It will define, for others, who you are as an independent person. Go out of your way to help others and be the light for what you stand for. Your credo is, “I don’t need you, but I choose to be with you.”

Have you known that miserable people refuse to learn anything new or different?

They have made the choice to be miserable. What they refuse to do is to make another choice to not be. They will blame their life to this point, the people in their life, or just themselves. They focus on everything miserable, yet they can’t see a light, there is no happiness in their way of thinking, and nothing will change their thought process. They are self-perpetuating misery. It is as though they feel they have the God-given right to be miserable unto death. Maybe they do have the right. I really don’t have an answer for them, other than they need to find some reason to make another choice for their life.

“The reason many people in our society are miserable, sick, and highly stressed is because of an unhealthy attachment to things they have no control over.”

-- Steve Maraboli

How can I know if what I have done is the right thing to be done? In other words, how can I make the right decisions?

The only way you’ll ever know is to jump. Make the best-informed, most ethical decision you can, and then see where it goes. With enough experience, most of them will turn out okay. Never corrupt your moral sense of ethics by making a decision for the wrong reasons.

Does happiness come from financial freedom?

No. Happiness comes from within. It is a conscious choice each of us must make for our life, to be happy always, regardless of financial health

Without a message, there's no point in communication?

Indeed! Communication is “the imparting or exchanging of information or news.” Information and news deliver only one thing - a message.

“Wisdom cannot be imparted. Wisdom that a wise man attempts to impart always sounds like foolishness to someone else ... Knowledge can be communicated, but not wisdom. One can find it, live it, do wonders through it, but one cannot communicate and teach it.”

-- Hermann Hesse

How old were you before you realized that it totally sucks to be a man?

However old I was when I saw two absolutely gorgeous women making love to each other. I became a closet lesbian.

I had a weird dream. What do you think?

I’ve had weird dreams my entire life. I wouldn’t worry about it. Other than talking to myself and playing with knives, I’m fine.

In life, is your cup half-full or half-empty? What made you come to your conclusion and what do you think your answer says about your way of thinking?

Half-full. I so very rarely lose more than I gain in life, therefore, my cup continues to fill. Wake every morning and thank God for the gift of another day in paradise and another chance to excel in this life. Life is, after all, what we make of it. Make your choices wisely.

“Whether your cup is half-full or half-empty, remind yourself there are others without one.”

-- Matshona Dhliwayo

Can you give only two personal beliefs about money and family as a student?

Stay out of debt and thank the family members who support your endeavors. Continue to do this as you move from student to productive member of society, and strive to be happy always.

How frequently are you involved in situations where ethics are an appropriate action?

Everyday. If we pay close attention, our personal, moral, “code of ethics” is called upon constantly when we make many daily choices and decisions.

What happens when you get something that you don’t deserve?

I usually ask who gave it to me, why, especially when I know of more deserving people. If they ask me who, I tell them, and I tell them why. This usually takes them aback as they are used to people just taking the accolade or award. The problem with most management is they are far removed from the reality in the trenches.

“If the nature of deserving was tit for tat, who would believe or want what they really deserved?”

-- VaeEshia Ratcliff-Davis

 

 And... the short answers:

What do you think a government should provide to its citizens?

Safety, freedom, and the Rule of Law.

What do you think a government should provide to its citizens?

Safety, freedom, and the Rule of Law.

Why don't we try harder today to learn to live with each other so that tomorrow we can all get better?

Greed.

What's the journey between commitment and completing?

Doing.

What is your favorite three-word inspirational quote?

Be happy always!

How do you make your perfect partner find you?

I didn’t have to do anything. She chased me.

What should you discover in life?

True happiness.

What do people do in their life which is a massive waste of time?

Sleep.

What should be the main goal for a 4-year university study?

A Bachelor’s Degree. 

“We put our children through their paces in school not so that they will learn something, or master something, or meet any standards. No. We give them tools so that they can experience the joy, the passion, of creating. All we are doing is saying, “Here, if you know this, there is more you can make; there is another path you can map; there is another song you can compose.” School—from pre-K to postdoc programs—exists so that we can all build more from within ourselves and with our colleagues.”

-- Marc Aronson

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 volunteered as a chaplain at the regional medical center.

Feel free to contact Pastor Tony:  tolerantpastor@gmail.com