Questioning Morality, Focus, Violence, Guilt, and Judging

“Waste no more time arguing about what a good man should be. Be one.”

-- Marcus Aurelius

What was the biggest shock you got after randomly researching someone from your former work or neighborhood?

So many have died. They haven’t even reached 70 yet, and they're dying off. I’m glad I spent over 20 years staying fit in the military. I look at these people and I’m very surprised they actually make it through nine holes of golf.

What is a loss of morality?

Sin.

Do you think that the pandemic permanently ruined our lives and that now social interactions with other people are literally meaningless and empty and repetitive and does your area some like a ghost town reminding you of the days we once mattered?

This “ghost” hopes to grope as many ladies as he can before the Reaper comes. Everybody I know is making up for the lost time. I hope a lot of people feel as you just stated, though. Maybe it will keep them out of our way.

If the next hour is your last, what will you think and do?

One hour kind of puts the damper on making love.

If you traveled back in time as your younger self, would you prevent all the bad things that are going to happen? Do you feel guilty if not preventing them?

No. It is what it is, and I am thankful for who I became because of it. Guilty are those people who wallow in their personal pit of misery, refusing to move forward and find a semblance of happiness.

“If time travel is possible, where are the tourists from the future?”

-- Stephen Hawking

What else could be asked?

“Why?”

What should I do when someone is telling me to focus? Do I have to do the smart thing or the right thing?

Focus what? It depends on what they want you to focus.

The right thing would be to not focus on the girl in the short skirt. However, the smart thing would be to focus on exactly that. Now if they, again, ask you if you’re focusing, you can smile and say, “Why, yes. Yes, I am.”

What should you avoid when talking to your boss about a salary review?

Demanding… anything.

What is the reaction of a religious person when told they are wrong?

A religious person can’t be wrong? Even atheists are wrong. It isn’t a big deal unless you’re a radical Muslim terrorist. They are perpetually offended.

What do "normal" people do in their free time (ex. weekends)?

Who is normal?

“All these years, they’ve been like two little plants sharing the same plot of soil, growing around one another, contorting to make room, taking certain unlikely positions.”

-- Sally Rooney

How can a senior citizen survive on one meal a day?

Make certain it's high in calories and protein. A sausage-spinach lasagna would be my choice, but I’m Sicilian, so it figures.

What is the best thing you can do if you feel underdressed at a social event?

Put your clothes back on, and stop showing off.

I’m told that it is always wrong to hit someone, no matter the circumstances, but are there really no circumstances when you personally would?

Women. I might push a woman away if she is being violent, but I will not hit her. Now, if she comes at me with a weapon, this is a different matter. It becomes a matter of survival, and she’s going down. She can spank me later.

What triggers curiosity in the brain?

The desire to know.

What do you do when you don't have anybody to talk to when you have to take a decision?

I pros and cons, weigh the consequences for each option, and make the best decision I can. This is all anyone can do.

“On an important decision, one rarely has 100% of the information needed for a good decision no matter how much one spends or how long one waits. And, if one waits too long, he has a different problem and has to start all over. This is the terrible dilemma of the hesitant decision maker.”

-- Robert K. Greenleaf

Why is it wise to never talk bad about other people?

What makes you so perfect that you feel you have no faults? Talking bad about people simply shows other people who you really are. Better to keep your pie hole shut unless you have something constructive to say.

How do you deal all of your life with something you have done?

Own it, try to fix it, and ask forgiveness from those you have wronged. You can’t take back that which you have done, but you can try to mitigate the fallout.

Even when someone has made potential for themself, is it wrong to look at someone as a failure for their entire life just because they didn't do too well in school and left college?

This plays to “who are you to judge?” Are you so perfect? Life is about us making choices and decisions for ourselves, and we try to make the best we can for our life, not someone else’s. Each individual has to walk the path they choose. No one can walk it for them.

What is the main goal of book reading?

It depends on the book. It is, either, entertainment or knowledge. 

If you do something really bad to someone and they stay, what does it mean?

They are a glutton for punishment, or they love you. Something to think about, before treating them badly again. However, If they really enjoy being treated badly, this might open up a kinky chapter in your lives. Something for both of you to discuss?

“No matter what I attempt, even if it's the most simple of tasks, it always ends in failure. Unfortunately, I find that my life is one big regret after another. Yet, after all these years, I still don't know when to give up. Is it my fault to keep trying when the results are always the same? Is it impossible for me to make things right? Even if I'd try to give up, I don't think I could. It's not in my nature to submit in the face of disappointment. In the end, I guess I'm just a glutton for punishment. I really am an idiot ...”

-- Katsura Hoshino

Is it considered rude to call someone an asshole in English?

I would think it to be rude in any language.

If a husband gets a great new position with a federal agency in a different city but his depressing uninspiring wife who is joined at the hip to her parents and refuses to move, should he just dump her?

Oh, my God! Why did he marry her? She is a depressing, uninspiring child that never grew up. Unless he really loves her, or she is a goddess in bed (which I would doubt), yes, dump the baggage and get on with life. Find a significant other who is happy and inspiring always, and who supports your career choices, as you will support hers.

What are some good places to move to if I want to get rich?

The library.

How accurate are people in judging others' personalities?

It’s a crapshoot unless they’re trained in it, and, even then, there are hidden variables, especially if they become aware they are being judged. A good judge will soon have to consider whose game they are playing. Are they leading the subject, or is the subject leading them?

What are some things that can make a lawyer hate you?

Don’t pay them.

“Divorce lawyers stoke anger and fear in their clients, knowing that as long as the conflicts remain unresolved the revenue stream will keep flowing.”

-- Craig Ferguson

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