Questioning Enemies, Guilt, Doubt, Answers, and Value

 

“The Bible tells us to love our neighbors, and also to love our enemies; probably because generally they are the same people.”

-- G.K. Chesterton

Should enemies be treated better than friends?

Yes! It just pisses them off.

What should I do? I’m 24 with two kids. My parents don’t want me to work at the daycare and bring my kids because they don‘t want to get sick. They also complain about babysitting full-time.

You’re 24 years of age. Time to grow up and live your life, not your parent’s life. There comes a time in everyone’s life when they need to break the parental bond and live their own life, for better or worse. If they don’t want to get sick, they can wear a mask or not see the children. Their choice. It seems they complain an awful lot about your life, so you need to decide whose life are you living, yours or theirs.

What is half full and half empty?

A glass of water.

What is a good framework for imagining the world in 10 or 20 years?

A good framework of bullshit. No matter how hard you want to imagine the world in 10 or 20 years, you will be disappointed. The world has not moved at the speed we thought it would, ever. What we imagine is just that, our imagination.

What are some ways in which people hide their identities?

A good disguise, and an ability to live “off the grid” in a world of identification.

Why do you need to force, in order to succeed?

You need perseverance. The will not to give up, in the face of failure. Failure is a lesson life throws at us so we can learn, and failure is the best way we can learn. If you can persevere through all of the failures, you will probably attain your goal. If you attain your goal, you will be truly happy, and that is "success" in life.

“Peace cannot be kept by force; it can only be achieved by understanding.”

-- Albert Einstein

Michael Jackson's 1979 interview with Soul Magazine is disturbing. Doesn't that make you feel like he's guilty?

Michael Jackson was strange, and he is dead. I’ve got so many other things to focus on than a strange dead guy being guilty or not.

What is the free app for questions and answers?

I thought we were on one.

Do creative people have a greater sense of the absurd?

As an artist, I can attest to this. You must have a greater sense of the absurd to create greater interesting things. You come up with the absurd, and then you tamp down on it until it becomes acceptable to society. If people balk at it, you haven’t tamped down on it enough. A great artist can reign in a good balance. 

Are car mechanics born evil or do they learn it in training?

My wife was born evil. She wasn’t a car mechanic. If you embrace “evil,” you are evil to begin with. 

Why can stupid people vote? If you know nothing about the issues and are unable to think for yourself (don't pretend they can, we all know that's not the case) why should you get to make decisions for the rest of the population?

Half of the people on the face of this planet are stupid. They know nothing of the issues and are unable to think for themselves. Unfortunately, the laws say they can vote. This is why we have a President who doesn’t know where he is most of the time and puts military personnel in harm’s way with no support. Stupid people should not have the right to vote, but until we can educate everyone to the same level, we are going to be screwed every election cycle.

Do you think that a world without arguments, haggling or bargaining would be a perfect world? That a perfect buy and sell negotiated and mediated by perfect AI would make a perfect world and better humans?

No arguments, but haggling and bargaining make the world go round. It is what we like to do.

“Arguing with anonymous strangers on the Internet is a sucker's game because they almost always turn out to be — or to be indistinguishable from — self-righteous sixteen-year-olds possessing infinite amounts of free time.”

-- Neal Stephenson

Can it be true that one should never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, concerned citizens can change the world, indeed it is the only thing that ever has?

Yep. Let’s go with that.

If I don't have anything I want to do in the future, what should I do?

Do some rote, mindless job that takes no intelligence. After a while, you’ll find that you want to do something else that requires a modicum of intelligence. At this point, you will have found something that you want to do in the future. Ta-dah! 

Is everyone smart enough to know how dumb they are?

Be real.

Why isn't creativity constant?

It is. Someone is being creative constantly. With as many creative people on this planet, it would be hard to imagine “creativity” would take a day off.

I’m In Year 11 and I have a job interview coming up, and my mum asked, why did I sign up for jobs? She is getting all fussy about it. What do I do?

Take a job, be an adult, and make her proud. You are young and she is worried. This is what mothers do. But, if you are set on getting a job, make it a safe one so she has less to worry about.

Can you give me some examples of funny, but true, quotes about failure?

I've used this one quite a lot: 

“I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work.”

-- Thomas A. Edison

What are the different answers to, "Who are you?"

There is only one answer.  I am me. I can’t think of anyone else I would want to be.

What is the proper answer to, "Who are you?"

Let’s go through this again: I am me.

What is it called when you know how something works?

Knowledge of how something works, or awareness of how something works. But, it all comes from why something works. 

What type of smart means you don’t have a job but still have money?

“Investing” smarts. I have no job, but I still have money. My friends have the same smarts. 

Does it ever amuse you how void people are of compassion until they're facing the same obstacle or persecution you dealt with? Now, all of a sudden, they expect empathy or sympathy. Do you ever take pleasure in watching karma do to them what they did to you?

It isn’t amusing to me. I find it sad that karma has to deal with their lack of compassion in this way. If I took pleasure in their misery, then karma would have to deal with me, as well.

What is the correct word to use, “behind” or “behinds”?

Behind. Is “behinds” even a word?

"He who wants to persuade should put his trust not in the right argument, but in the right word. The power of sound has always been greater than the power of sense."

-- Joseph Conrad

Why do people keep repeating the same question?

They are looking for the answer they want.

Can it be true that talent is a gift, but character is a choice?

Natural talent is a gift. You can learn a talent if you choose to work at it. But, your character is, indeed, a choice. You build who you are by making choices of who you are going to be.

Author's comment: Excellent, I like this, thank you.

What are your expectations for 2024?

To make it through to 2025.

Why does society not understand that if a child can consent to sex with peers, they can with adults, too?

Society understands this perfectly. It is why we have created laws on the books to curb the practice.

Why do Christians believe they’re going to heaven? Scripture clearly says Jesus is coming to live in Jerusalem.

Where Jesus lives is not a reason for everyone to put their afterlife on hold.

Did you realize that you often offend people by being humble?

They seem to have a problem. I’m humble, so it sucks being them. But, then, I have no filter.

“I like the scientific spirit—the holding off, the being sure but not too sure, the willingness to surrender ideas when the evidence is against them: this is ultimately fine—it always keeps the way beyond open—always gives life, thought, affection, the whole man, a chance to try over again after a mistake—after a wrong guess.”

-- Walt Whitman 

Is it true that knowledge and wisdom have no value unless it is shared?

Knowledge and wisdom have personal value, but they have no value to anyone else unless you share them.

What are some techniques that an emotionally intelligent person can use to detect lies from others?

Knowing people, if it’s too good to be true, it probably isn’t. On the other hand, if it sounds too good to be wrong, it probably isn’t either. People usually act a certain way, and they rarely change. For instance, I have no filter. So, if someone says that I said a thief was honest, they would know that was bullshit. I call a spade a spade, not a heart.

Why is it easy to waste time, but difficult to save time?

Waste doesn’t take much thought, but, saving requires some thought.

What are the mistakes young people make "before" entering a relationship?

They mistake lust, for love, and they mistake friendship, for trust. You need to have all of it. You must be a friend to whom you want to love and lust for the one you love. Over all of this, you both must trust each other to be the friends you say you are. Don’t make the mistake of thinking one is the other, when you know, in your heart, you need all of it.

Which life lesson would you say is the most important?

True happiness. Parents don’t teach their children to be truly happy always and in all things, regardless of their circumstances.

What lessons have you learned from a failure that you believe others could benefit from?

Failure is nothing more than life giving you a lesson to learn. If you simply ignore failure, you have learned nothing from it. You must learn from your failure and try again, and again until you attain your goal. You must persevere in the face of failure, or you will go nowhere.

“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.”

-- Winston S. Churchill

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 view any more right or wrong than the other. Opinion, presented in this context, is a way of inciting others to think and, hopefully, to form their own opinions, 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.

I fervently hope that we keep open and active minds when reading opinions while engaging in peaceful and constructive discussion in an arena of mutual respect concerning those opinions offered. After twenty-three years of military intelligence, I believe that engaging each other in this manner, and in this arena, is a 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 United States Air Force Intelligence as a planner, analyst, briefer, instructor, and senior manager. Following his service career, he spent 17 years working with the premier and world-renowned Western Institutional Review Board, helping to protect the rights of human subjects involved in pharmaceutical research. He also served 8 years on the Board of Directors for the Angela J. Bowen Foundation.

Ordained in 2013 as an "interfaith" minister, he founded the Congregation for Religious Tolerance in response to intolerance shown by Christians toward peaceful Islam. As a weapon for his war on intolerance, he chose the pen. He 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 personal, spiritual path toward peace and the final destination for us all. He resides in Pass Christian, Mississippi, where he volunteered as the lead chaplain at a regional medical center.

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