Questioning Loyalty, Bravery, Sense, Logic, and Age

 

“Women may be the one group that grows more radical with age.”

-- Gloria Steinem

Why is telling everyone and the wrong people my dreams and goals a fatal mistake?

Telling the wrong people anything is a way for you to exercise damage control in your dreams and goals. The wrong people simply love to be offended that you should dare to have dreams, much less attain goals. Better to keep some things in your small circle of friends, but try to remember, that there is no such thing as a secret among friends.

Can you show us a picture that demonstrates how money can’t buy loyalty?

Any NSA snitch in a storm:

Does it raise suspicion during a job interview if you ask “How many sick days am I entitled to every year?”

They should cover everything dealing with employment during the interview, but some people expect you to read minds. I would leave all questions till the end, at which point they should ask if you have questions. You should couch it with several other questions, so as not to raise suspicions. Things they should cover are “at-will” employment, probation period, days off, holiday schedule and pay, and things like that.

What is your talent?

I’m not sure if I’m that talented, but I love to write.

What does it say about your business if your two best employees quit?

Someone has made them a better offer. I’m working them too hard for the money I pay. My benefits aren’t as good. Or, I have a supervision or management problem that I’m not aware of, and my two “best employees” didn’t find it necessary to clue me in because they might have thought I was issuing the marching orders to management.

"A bad manager can take a good staff and destroy it, causing the best employees to flee and the remainder to lose all motivation."

-- Unknown

How do you love yourself again? Does anyone else see and think the worse of their life now? I felt lucky for the life I had. I was full of life and happiness. But, now, I resent it all thinking it was never fine, that no one likes me, and I was never enough?

Life is what it is, full of ups and downs. We are here to learn the lessons of life, hopefully, sooner than later. What we should be taught, from the onset of life, is that true happiness is paramount to anything else. True happiness is a choice each of us must make in our life. Be truly happy always and in all things, regardless of our circumstances.

Not understanding this, you felt lucky for the life you had. Now, you harbor resentment. You feel nobody likes you, and you were never enough. Life is about making good choices and decisions. It is your life so only you can make those choices and decisions. You started out good, then you made some poor ones. If you’re looking to shift blame, you can’t. You have to own your life and make better choices. If life totally sucks, you may have to start all over again and consider all the ways “why” you went wrong. 

How do you tell if you are a baddie?

Someone has given me a little spanky, and I enjoyed it.

I can understand why some people don't want to make assumptions, but why don't some people understand the difference between an assumption and an educated guess?

If you make an assumption based on what you’ve seen happen before, it would be considered an “educated guess” based on past experience. It is still an assumption, however. If someone says they prefer an educated guess to an assumption, and their educated guess turns out to be wrong, it is still an assumption. A wrong assumption.

What is your view on Sarah Jessica Parker, 57, who says she is not 'brave' for rocking gray hair? 'Please applaud someone else's courage on something'? Why is there pressure to focus on preserving youth when there are more important life issues at hand?

I look pretty good for approaching 70. I need to lose a bit of weight up front, is all. Hair has been thining for years and the face is starting to show “laugh lines” where I don’t laugh. It all has to do with aging “gracefully,” and I still lean heavily on my magnetic personality to get me through. SJP is one of the rarities that goes with the flow. It isn’t brave to her because it is what it is. She could fake it but, sooner than later, someone in the industry will say she’s faking it. Not a lie, just embarrassing. She prefers to make the most of what she has. It isn’t as brave as it is smart. She will never hurt for work.

Is it wrong to judge others for their mistakes?

Yes. You’ll make one soon enough.

“The self-righteous scream judgments against others to hide the noise of skeletons dancing in their own closets.”

-- John Mark Green

Do guys regret "situationships"?

It depends on if she takes the elevator and gives the guy the shaft.

Is bribery a bad or a good thing?

It’s always a bad thing when someone can buy your righteousness for money. In your mind, you know the right thing to do, but someone offers you something to change your mind and see things their way. You take the money like a common street whore. Now, everyone knows you can be bought for a few bucks. How does that make you feel, to sell your self-respect to the highest bidder?

In the military, our enemies bribe weak-minded individuals to steal secrets, We call these weak-minded personnel traitors.

Is the term “loser think” more about being uninformed or it’s about unproductive thinking?

I’ve always viewed it as “unproductive” thinking. Being uninformed doesn’t, necessarily, make you a loser.

How do you make decisions based on logic, not emotion?

Taking some time to think always helps. If a salesman says the offer is only good for a limited time, the time will come again. Tell him you’re interested and will get back to him, then take some time to really think about it. Write down lists of pros and cons for the decision. Lists tend to level the emotional playing field by forcing you to see the good and the bad.

What phrase or word describes the desire to be yourself?

Creativity.

“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.”

-- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Is a broken clock ever right?

Twice a day.

Do we have a moral obligation to hope?

You are not obligated to do anything you don’t want to do. Society obligates you, but you don’t have to accept the obligation. There are usually penalties for not accepting, but, again, it is your choice.

How do you hide a talent?

Don’t exercise it.

Can a younger person age like an older person?

This really isn't a choice. Barring an early death, they will age, and they will age like some older persons. We don’t all specifically age in the same way, because we are individuals. But, generally, you can’t tell there is any difference because we all age.

What are some examples of “doing something for the first time”?

Anything you do, that you haven’t ever done before, is a good example. Is this another trick question?

“The first time I heard you laugh, I only wanted to say funny things so you would always be laughing."

-- Kamand Kojouri

What do you appreciate because of your career that the average person doesn't realize?

I was in the military for almost 23 years. I traveled to good and bad places. I learned to love my country more every place I went. With all of our faults, we are still the greatest country in the world, and it sickens me in my heart when we show our ass to the world and elect an incompetent President who, with the assistance of Congress, tries his best to tear us down and destroy us.

Do you not like people?

I absolutely love good people.

My thoughts and thinkings claim that I have a definite major purpose in my life, but I really don't know what it is. How can I get to it?

How do you not know, with all the thoughts and thinkings, what your “major” purpose is? How do you know that it’s “major”? You have “thoughts” and “thinkings” but nothing is concrete. Try living life around your thoughts and thinkings, and see what clicks, if anything. I had thoughts and thinkings in college about being a psychologist. I spent 23 years in the intelligence field, instead of being drafted. I didn’t see that one coming, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. Intelligence was da bomb. No, really. A nuclear one.

Why do people judge and criticize?

Because they can, and it allows us all to see who they really are.

Why do some people lack common sense?

247 answers to this question? I’m going to make a guess that the majority answer has to do with “common sense” not being that common anymore. It’s still good, but not common.

“Common sense is not so common.”

-- Voltaire

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, finally, a senior manager. He spent 17 years, following his service career, working with the premier, world-renowned, Western 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 the lead chaplain at a regional medical center.

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