A Letter To Greg

This article is actually a letter (sent by email) to a very good and valued friend of mine of 50 years. I sent this letter to Greg earlier today. I realized as I was concluding the letter that it is really a Manifesto.

There is an old cliché that says there are three kinds of people in society.

#1 People who make things happen.

#2 People who watch things happen.

#3 People who wonder what happened.

That relates to what goes on in politics, religion and other forms of social interaction. I want to be part of group #1. I, unfortunately, often find myself as part of group #2. But, I strive my hardest to avoid at nearly all costs being part of group #3.

Lately, I've found myself losing sight of who I really am by being sucked in and reacting (knee-jerk reaction) to issues, events and ideological discussions I really can't do anything about and that really are not my problems. I find myself spending far too much of my priceless time writing to inform, educate or influence people who really don't want to be informed, educated or influenced. They simply

Beaten Down By the 8,000 Pound Gorilla – Amazon.com

You've heard it said you can't fight city hall? Well, In today's world, you can't fight city hall, the county government, the state government, the federal government and now – apparently, Amazon.com has joined the ranks of the oppressive powers thwarting small businesses at all kinds of turns. M. Scott Peck, began his best selling book, The Road Less Traveled, with this three word sentence, “Life is difficult.” I will add to that, life is complicated and getting more so everyday.

You may notice, and if you haven't, please do, that I no longer have Amazon.com links on my blog sites. Amazon decided to terminate me as an Amazon Associate because I am in violation of the Amazonian Laws of conducting business.

Now, please understand. I've had an Amazon Associate agreement since about February of 2005, that's approximately 11 years. I read their agreement (which reads like most legalese documents forced on anyone wishing to do business with global mega corporations). It's long, make that LONG, in some ways incomprehensible without a Yale lawyer like Bill or Hillary Clinton or Harvard lawyer like Barack or Michelle Obama as your attorney, can be confusing and, to me, smacks of some forms of restraint of trade and unfair trade practices.

Weekend Wrap-up – October 3, 2015

Happy rainy Saturday if you're anywhere in the east. To my friends and readers in the west and southwest, if I could pipe this rain out to you, I would. I know you need it worse than we do here in the east right now.

I trust your week was good and you had some bright spots in a week that left quite a number of people in grief. Of course, the grief I speak of is that which made the current sensationalism news headlines in Roseburg, Oregon. My heart goes out to all those families and friends who lost loved ones. One reality we have to keep in mind is that grief and such terrible events are not exclusive to those that make the national media. There are negative and even horrific things happening somewhere, both here in the U.S. and all around the world, everyday.

Is the Beginning of the End in Sight?

As I've been traveling across the United States and the North American continent, as always, I have been meeting all kinds of interesting people, seeing all kinds of interesting places and terrains and observing Americana. For those who are familiar with me and this blog, you know that My McVansion is my personally customized tiny house on wheels and I prefer to travel on the Blue Highways to observe and experience what is left of the U.S. that existed before the interstate highway system was established and built out.

How many times have people asked this question over the centuries and millennia? I'm sure the ancient Greeks, Romans, Persians and other societies have asked the same question. Am I talking about the end of the world? Possibly! With our exponentially advancing technology, we are able to track asteroids and comets better than ever and we're now realizing that some of them are coming fairly close to our little rock floating around in space. We know this planet, the moon and the other planets in our solar system have been struck by these objects numerous times each. One such strike is the reason dinosaurs and other forms of life no longer exist on this planet. . . READ MORE

A Warning For Everyone - No One Is Immune From This

You may have heard about this, but here is a feature article from the Washington Post, a reasonably well respected newspaper regardless of anyone's political persuasions. The article is about the Washington Metro Police Department - supposedly, one would think, in our nation's capital, a pillar of virtue. Not so! Read the story but, especially watch the video the Post produced.

It doesn't appear to matter what your race is or reason for being anywhere. I get the impression police are being trained to profile any vehicle they believe will contain a sizable amount of cash regardless of whether the vehicle is a "beater" or a luxury vehicle or anything between.

By the way, this has mostly been used by counties, small towns and villages, but as the big cities are realizing how much this "highway robbery" can bring in to be used to fund their departments, it appears they are raising the bar.

Read the Post article here and view the video:  http://wapo.st/1H6xAtO

Obviously, it's still a relatively small fraction of the traveling public who end up being targeted. But, the number is growing and so is the number of consulting/training companies who earn millions by teaching police how to "highway rob" with intimidation. They use interdiction methods specifically designed to catch smugglers and drug traffickers. But, the vast majority of the victims of these interdictions are innocent people like you and me. 

Just one more thing to be aware of. I guess we have to all make sure we don't carry any large sums of cash with us anywhere. You never know when you may become the next target or where it may happen. But usually, it will be at some serious distance from your home base. 

Here is something interesting. This is a current definition of "Police State" from the Urban Dictionary:

"A country where the police watch what you do and try to control your life. Where there's cameras in town centres and on public transport. Where you can be arrested because of something you said to a friend about the leaders of your country. Where police stop and search people for no reason. [my comment - anyone hear of "Stop and Frisk?"] Where you can be detained without charge or trial. Where the state plants bugs with impunity. Where protesters have to get police permits, and where police regularly attack protesters." 

And here is what is stated by Wikipedia in the opening paragraph of the topic "Police State:"

Police state is a term that originally designated a state regulated by a civil administration, but since the middle of the 20th Century, the term has "taken on the emotional and derogatory meaning of a government that exercises power arbitrarily through the police."

Does any of this sound familiar? 

Photo-of-the-Week #180 - My 6th and Final Home in Clifton, New Jersey, September 2013

These two photos are of the last home my parents owned in my hometown of Clifton, New Jersey. Unfortunately, this house harbors only negative feelings for me. It was and forever will be, the last place I lived in my hometown and New Jersey. I will never return to live in any part of New Jersey. It was in this house that my father died at 42 and when I was 21. It was in this house that my family and I lived under the same roof for the last time. I was the only member of the family who continued to live in the house from the day of my father's death until eight months later when I moved to Syracuse, New York and left New Jersey. . . READ MORE

Photo-of-the-Week #169 – Alert: Don't Waste Your Time! Antique Wireless Museum, Bloomfield, New York, July 6, 2014

I don't usually use pictures of places like this as Photos-of-the-Week, but for the Antique Wireless Museum, I'm making an exception. This place REALLY ticked me off. I discovered the place on my way through New York State to a new location. I checked it out and found out it was not open the day I was passing through the area. That annoyed me, but didn't really make me angry. There was a similar museum in Connecticut near Bradley International Airport that wasn't open very many hours, either. Basically, the place pictured above was only open for a couple hours on Tuesdays and for three hours each on Saturdays and Sundays. Now, THAT is NOT convenient for the public. It should have been my first hint. . . READ MORE

Photo-of-the-Week #158 - 150 Year Old Civil War Artifact, Charleston Museum, Charleston, South Carolina, December 2004

Here is the H.L. Hunley, the first combat submarine used to sink a ship in battle. The Hunley, with a crew of 8, sunk three times losing a total of 21 crewmembers. It had only a single successful mission before sinking the final time with its crew and being lost in 1864 during the Civil War. . . . READ MORE

Dreaming, Experimenting, Experiencing and Living

That is my interpretation this morning of what life is all about after reading some blog posts and on-line newsletter articles from some of the other people I personally follow. You may interpret life differently and that's just fine with me. Share your ideas, definitions and opinions in the comments after this post. Each of these four words can inspire an individual post, a feature length periodical article or even one or more chapters of a book. Actually, each of the words could easily inspire an entire book. Who knows what the future holds. Maybe I'll undertake one or more of those as challenges.

Dreaming

So, let's begin with the basics. Everything begins with a dream. I won't go into what inspired our conception. I hope we're all familiar with the mechanics of this miracle. The next miracle for all, but the tiniest percentage of human beings, is "The Dream." You and I are who we are and where we are today because of "The Dream." According to an article in Scientific American, researchers have found scientific evidence that dreaming may actually begin in the womb as early as the 23rd week of gestation. More research says it begins between the age of 5 and 7 years. Yet, experiential evidence suggests that children will speak of dreams as soon as they are able to talk and articulate reasoned thoughts at the most basic level. Personally, while I don't have a lot of memories from before the age of four, I do recall small "snapshots" from before that and they included some nightmares. How about you?

Dreams begin to take on more sophistication and meaning as we become more aware and knowledgeable about the world we live in. I think this probably begins by the age of four or five. Of course, our world is very small at that time. Our circle of relationships and experiences is very limited and, accordingly, so are our dreams. For young boys, those things they see in nature and their small surrounding world typically impress them. Policemen, firemen, soldiers, doctors, teachers are their outside the home influences and may be why in early years boys dream of these occupations for their own future. Young girls, on the other hand, even today, though, perhaps less so than in the past, seem to see teachers, nurses, women doctors, mothers and similar as their early influences. Of course, much of our earliest literature focuses on these kinds of occupations, after all, what five or six year old is ready to comprehend a graphic designer, computer programmer, hedge fund manager, etc.

There are lots of stimuli in the current, developed world with all forms of literature, audio, video, broadcast and cable television, movies and the Internet. Most of us had only a fraction of this kind of stimulation when we were children. But, dream we all did. And as our brains became filled with more and more knowledge and we expanded our minds through more and more experiences, so, also, did our dreams expand. The exciting thing is that human potential is almost limitless. By the time we reach puberty and those exciting, yet often painful teenage years, we begin to believe we know where we want to go with our lives. Most teenagers become overly anxious to spread their wings, leave the nest and soar. We envision (dream about) falling in love, finding THE "One" who will be our permanent mate for life, the place we want to live, the kind of home we want to have, the occupation/profession we will earn our living from, the lifestyle we'll lead, the places we'll visit and the adventures we'll experience. In essence we've created our dream "magic carpet" that will take us through this glorious life we envision. Oh, yeah, and that glorious life we envision usually will not exactly emulate the more mundane, hum-drum life of our parents, unless, of course, we're never allowed to think outside that box.

Those dreams are what propel us into adulthood. Regardless of how simple they may be or how complex, adventurous, exciting and glamorous they may be, they are our launching pad. And then comes...

Experimenting

So, it's not like we didn't do any experimenting during our developmental, teenage years. Sure we did. We wanted to learn about all kinds of things including sex, love, what was outside the boundaries established by our parents, what it was like to have money of our own, how to express ourselves culturally, socially, fashionably, intellectually, physically, creatively and occupationally. Most of us muddled through this challenging stage of life without many serious consequences. But, oh baby! Once we were 18, out of high school, maybe in college and away from home on our own recognizance, working a job and earning our own money, free to come and go as we pleased, maybe even getting our own cave/nest or sharing one with one or more roommates and so on, the experimenting with all things "life" took on a much bigger meaning.

This is truly the time of our lives when the rubber started to meet the road. This is also when certain stark realities began rearing their ugly heads. All of a sudden our responsibilities and obligations expanded beyond those of helping with household chores and keeping our rooms cleaned up (to a greater or lesser degree depending on our parents strictness or leniency). We may have experimented with drinking alcohol and with some drugs while we were in high school, but now, NOW we had the option and choices to make about how far down those roads we wanted to "experiment." Now, we could dress anyway we wanted to. Now, we could run with a "fast" crowd all hours of the night and weekends. Now, we could travel whenever and wherever we wanted to. Now, we could try different jobs and careers. Now, we could do and be anything we wanted to whenever and wherever we chose to. Or so it seemed.

Well, that was part of the "dream," anyway. But, along with this time of experimenting came those stark realities. We began learning new lessons during this major experimental phase of our lives. First, we are responsible for our actions. Second, we are always accountable to someone. Third, obligations must be met and fulfilled. Fourth, there are ALWAYS consequences, positive or negative to all our choices and actions. As examples, I'll use just two areas of human behavior that are major areas of experimentation during this time in particular, sex and alcohol.

Responsible sexual behavior will lead to a lifetime of joy, respect and fulfillment for both individuals involved. Irresponsible sexual behavior can lead to the conception of one or more (by one or more partners) unwanted children and all the responsibilities thereto attached. It can also lead to disease that may detrimentally impact one and possibly others for their rest of his or her life and their lives. Of course, in the worse case scenario, it can end in an early and usually ugly death. Most of us have made it through this stage of experimentation. Unfortunately, far too many pay the consequences.

Responsible use of alcohol is another area of experimentation. I make no judgments and am not going to be hypocritical about alcohol. But, one of the great questions that remains in the back of my mind is why do alcoholic beverages exist and why to we partake in them? Please don't reply to this question. It's rhetorical. While the "health industry" and the medical profession both keep coming up with ways and reasons that consumption of alcohol is beneficial in moderation, I see this as a feeble justification to support this industry. If alcohol is good for us, why does the same medical community vehemently demand that pregnant women not drink alcohol? It all seems like another double standard to me. Hey! I did my share of drinking, my drink of choice was Scotch - on the rocks. I am one VERY, VERY lucky individual who has driven an automobile numerous times (in Manhattan, one time, I might add) so drunk that under today's laws they would slap me in jail and throw away the key. I never had an accident, injured anyone, any property or myself, but I sure could have. Stupid and irresponsible doesn't begin to describe how I feel about my actions at that time of my life.

I just described my experience with alcohol in which I was extremely fortunate. Unfortunately, way too many young "experimenters" have maimed and killed innocent men, women and children because of their experimenting and irresponsibility. They found the negative consequences. Many people will self-medicate with booze. The pain of dealing/coping with those stark realities of life weakens them to use alcohol to temporarily relieve them of the pain. What most people don't realize is that  the pain is probably a good thing. There are lessons to be learned. But, that's a topic for another time. Unfortunately, for too many people, the body (and mind) develop a dependence on alcohol (like any of the many other addictions). Fortunately, the majority of people do not become alcoholics and "bad drunks." But, for those who do, the harm they do to themselves, their loved ones and others they may have maimed or killed is beyond any reason. They may spend some time in jail and many may permanently lose the privilege of driving any kind of motorized vehicle.

Experimenting is an important part of who we become and leads us into...

Experiencing

Experiencing is truly when the rubber meets the road and stark reality truly faces us, head on...sometimes whacking us up the side of the head with a 2x4. Reality is when the dreams and the experimenting land us smack, dab where most people will end up spending most of or all of the rest of their lives. That's why I've heard many people wiser than me say, "No matter where you are in your life, it's exactly where you want to be, otherwise...you'd be someplace else." This is the time when we typically make all kinds of excuses, blame someone else for the path our life took and why we're basically not happy, not joyful, not fulfilled and taking way too many anti-depressant drugs (the drug industry and the therapists are happy, though).

I've heard people say "I'm lucky, I married the right man/woman, have/had great kids, have/had a job/profession/career I love, work/worked for the best employer, live/lived in the perfect home, reside/resided in the best village/town/city in the world, etc." I don't think luck had much to do with any of that. I think you have/had dreams, you pursued them, you experimented and found what worked and didn't work for you and focused on what worked, didn't settle for a partner but sought one who shared your dreams and values, had great kids because you again, shared your values and dreams (and included them in your dreams) with them, respected them and earned their respect by sticking by your values and established fair, meaningful, reasonable boundaries for them based on your values. The same goes for the career, the home you live in and the village/town/city you chose to live. These were all conscious choices you made based on your dreams, the values you developed and the experimenting and determining what worked and didn't work for you. Sure, there is always some small element of chance in life. For example, there is a chance some freak act of nature could happen and change your life. There's a chance you could contract some terminal disease and die way too young. There are always "chances" of things happening. Heck! If you buy a lottery ticket in the PowerBall, there is a chance you could win millions of dollars. But, most of us don't live our lives waiting for that PowerBall winning ticket.

You can't blame other things or people or circumstances. As the old saying goes - "Shit Happens!" We have to deal with it. That's part of experiencing life. If you're married to (or even divorced from) the wrong partner, don't blame the other person. In any relationship, it takes two (in a marriage) or more (in other forms of relationships) to make the relationship work or fail. It always amazes me how many people love to beat dead horses. For some reason, we want to have and use the latest technology in the form of smart phones, computers, tablets, the Internet, high-tech appliances, cars that have more techy bells and whistles than Carter had little liver pills (for those who remember Carter). But, we cling to archaic values, standards and ideas that should have ended eons ago (maybe when they stopped burning witches). If your marriage isn't working, DEAL WITH IT! The only reason (poor excuse) to stay in a dead or abusive marriage (or relationship) is because of insecurity and fear (often fear of failure). Change it and move on. Life is short. The same applies to not liking where you live or where you work or whom you work for or what you do for a living. CHANGE IT! Easier said than done, you say. Of course, it's always easier to do nothing and stay in the pain, despair, anguish, discontent, abuse, etc. that you're in. Besides, there is also the fear of the unknown. What if it's worse on the outside? Well, you'll never know if you don't go find out. If I get any comments at all on this, I'm sure you're going to give me a million excuses.

Hey! I've been there! I've done that! I've been divorced twice. My family that I grew up in disintegrated in one day by one single action when I was 21 years old. I've had businesses fail. Sure! There are many things I haven't experienced, but I'd credit that to making choices that didn't put me in a position to experience those things (score one for good choices). Everything we do during our life from the moment we're born until the moment we die is, in some form or another, experiencing...

Living

This is the bottom line, brothers and sisters. Life is about living. I cannot accept the idea that we take those beautiful dreams we start creating as soon as we're able to begin comprehending what tangible life is all about, build and expand those dreams, experiment and manage to live through doing some really stupid things (all too often) to ultimately allow circumstances take control of this miracle and gift we call life. Maybe we don't set high enough expectations. Worse, yet, maybe we don't even have any real expectations. If you don't know where you're going, you're very likely not going to like where you end up.

No! This is not a motivational speech! This is simple philosophy. I'm not some brilliant sage. I'm a simple guy who was fortunate enough to pursue some education, develop some dreams and follow those dreams. I stumbled. I fell. I failed. I lost my shirt, my family, my marriages (and a significant other) relationships and some businesses. But, I determined a long time ago, no matter what the outcome of a situation or circumstance, I AM ALWAYS THE WINNER! I may lose a wife or money or a business, but I always gain far more in Experience than I lose. Multi-millionaire, successful business consultant, best selling author, Brian Tracy says, "We will always tend to fulfill our own expectation of ourselves." Low or no expectations and we'll have low outcome and fulfillment. High expectations and we'll have a high-level outcome and fulfillment - even if we miss the final mark. Wendy Wasserman says, "Don't live down to expectations. Go out there and do something remarkable."

Each of has a finite amount of time on this Earth. I don't care if you have an unshakable, devout religious belief in some kind of eternal afterlife or if you believe in reincarnation or if you believe that when you take your last breath that's all there is and it's over for eternity. That is all up to you and I'm not even going to suggest I know anything about what happens at the end of this life. What I do know is that by some miracle each of us was born and endowed with various talents, degrees of intelligence and the ability to dream. We were born somewhere in this world under a broad range of possible circumstances. It is not our parent's or anyone else's responsibility to create our future. That's the beauty of living free. No matter what the circumstances of our birth, we are ultimately in control of and responsible for our own lives. As the best selling author of the classic book, Think and Grow Rich, Napoleon Hill said in his book, "Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve." He also said, "It takes half your life before you discover life is a do-it-yourself project."

So, there you have it. In four words, what a life is all about. Dream...Experiment...Experience...Live this life to all you want it to be. Don't measure it in money and investments, how much property and possessions you gather or touchdowns, home runs, partners you've had sex with, places you've visited and experienced, etc. Measure this life in freedom, joyfulness, happiness and contentment. Everything else is simply numbers and measurements that don't count for anything in that last moment of life. The only thing that really matters is how you lived your life and how happy and content you are at that final moment.     

Because I Can . . .

I have likely mentioned in an earlier post that I have coordinated an annual retreat for a group of professional speaker friends of mine for the past 12 years. By definition, a professional speaker is someone who gets paid a fee for presenting a keynote speech, conducting a seminar, facilitating a workshop or presenting a humorous program for some kind of group, corporation, institution or government agency. They generally earn all, most or a substantial amount of their annual income from their speaking services. We call this the Veteran Speakers Retreat because all of the speakers who attend (including their spouses) have been presenting for at least a couple decades. But, in truth, we are a bunch of seniors in the third-half of our lives and have now developed interests other than building our speaking businesses.

Part of the planning process for each year's retreat is determining what topics we will discuss at our interactive morning sessions. We only have sessions in the morning because we want to go out and play the rest of the time. And, of course, the sessions have nothing to do with the speaking business, they just have to be fun. So, as the committee was brainstorming ideas for a theme and coming up with ideas and titles for nine of the ten sessions (one session is the same each year, so we don't have to consider anything for that time slot) a number of ideas came out. Lo and behold, the idea "because I can . . ." was put on the table. At first, it didn't mean much to most of us. Then the person who contributed the idea offered this explanation.

It seems that two of the people on the planning committee had been in South Carolina at a speaking engagement and on the way back to their home in Virginia, they decided to drive across the state of North Carolina to Charlotte to visit with another member of the planning committee and her humorous husband. At breakfast the next morning, the female member of the visiting couple poured some cereal into a bowl, added some fruit and began to eat the cereal and fruit without adding any milk. This struck the female of the host couple to be a bit peculiar. Whoever heard of eating cereal without milk, she thought. So, curiosity got the best of her and she asked the visiting female why she was eating her cereal and fruit without milk. Here was the reply . . .

"Because I can!"

Now, think about it? That is a perfect answer. There doesn't need to be any other detailed explanation. It gets right to the fact of the matter. She eats cereal and fruit without milk because she can. So, we adopted that as the theme of the weekend for the retreat.

Now, of course, just like in the news, you hear the new buzz phrase "back story," meaning, so, this is the story, but what is the actual story behind  the story, what led up to the story. So, since we determined that we all do things "because we can," there has to be some kind of background to whatever it is that "you can (do)." We then took the concept of the "back story" and created four sessions from that, all related back to "because I can." I might add that the female member of the visiting couple does seminars and workshops on storytelling. Thus, this all comes together in a nice, neat package. The four sessions we created were titled:

Back Story: Surprises That Got You Here . . . (the unexpected that got you here this place in your life)

Back Story: Difficulties That Got You Here . . . (difficult challenges in your life)

Back Story: Blessings That Got You Here . . . (divine providence, people, events)

Back Story: Stupid Things That Got You Nowhere . . . (those stupid ideas and choices you shouldn't have made)

It's your turn now. What are the things you do in your life just "Because you can?" Everyone of us has at least one thing, but probably many. For example, I like oatmeal (back to cereal again), however, I drink almost no cow's milk any longer. I like my oatmeal with raisins, cinnamon and real maple syrup (real as opposed to the maple flavored syrup made mostly with corn sugar and artificial flavor and color). No milk, thank you very much!

Here's another example. When I pick up a new book, I don't just open it up and read it. I look at the title and sub-title. Then I read the back cover. If it's a hard cover book with a dust jacket, I next read about the author on the back jacket flap. Then I read about the book on the front jacket flap. If I'm still interested, I check the copyright date to see how old the information is. Then I look over the chapter and section titles in the table of contents. If something there peaks my interest, I turn to the index and look for specific subjects, topics and key words. If there is no index, that's pretty much the kiss of death for that book. If I find the subjects, topics and key words I'm interested in I'll flip to look at some of those pages. That's when I'll finally decide if I want to buy and read the book. My time is valuable and my money is hard earned, so before I'll invest any of either of those commodities I want to be reasonably sure I won't be wasting either of them. And I do this, why? Because I can.

Of course, I have lots of back stories about many things that have brought me to where I am today and can do all the things I choose to do, just "because I can."

Because You Can . . .

Take a little time and think about some of the things that others may view as a bit quirky or eccentric about you. These are things you do "because you can." They are some of the things that make you a "designer original." There is no one exactly like you in the world, even if you have a twin or a couple triplet siblings. It's also one of the wonderful things about being human. We each have the freedom and capability of doing certain things in certain ways, probably different than anyone else you know. You were blessed with this right and freedom.

Grab a pad and write down three things (or more if you want to) that you do "because you can." Think of things that others may glance at you strangely when you do whatever is. Perhaps it's something others envy or admire you for. Maybe it's something that grates on someone else's nerves like scraping your fingernails down an old fashioned chalk board (they were mostly black in my early school days and were called blackboards).

After you've written them down, look at them and relish these unique things just "because you can."

Back Stories . . .

Everyone has a back story. To be more accurate, everyone has many back stories. What are some of yours? Many of my back stories are based around the very diverse, interesting (at least to me) and, at times, exciting and even a little glamorous career I've had in audio and video recording, production and sound services. I'm proud of founding the radio station at the college I attended that is still on the air and has since become part of the curriculum of the (now) university, 46 years later. I'm proud that my little budding media production company in Washington, DC had the exclusive contract to produce all the radio public service announcements keeping the public informed with the agency responsible for the U.S. bicentennial celebration in 1976. Each event, whether in your professional career, your family, your community or your own personal interests is a part of the big back story that is your life.

Back Story: Surprises That Got You Here . . .

Take your pad and pencil again and write down three (or more) "Surprises" that got you to where you are in life today. Perhaps it was how you met your spouse, if you have one. Perhaps, it was preparing for one occupation or profession and then some surprise, a serendipity, came along and took you in a direction you had never considered and became the thing that carried you to where you are today. Believe me, there are so many you could write a book of your back stories.

After you write them down, just a couple brief sentences, reflect on them. How did they change your life? Where might you be had this "Surprise" not have happened? Who might you be married to? What might your career look like? You get the idea.

Back Story: Difficulties That Got You Here . . .

No one gets through this life without some adversities. You've heard it said, I'm sure, and there is even a book by this title, "Why Do Bad Things Happen To Good People?" Other people express it as "S**t Happens!" What are the "Difficulties," the tough challenges, the things that came along and changed your life in a way you could have never guessed you'd ever face. Again, grab your pad and pencil and write down three (or more) of them. Just a few brief sentences to remind you of these events and challenges.

Once again, after you have written them down, take some time to reflect on them. You are today who you are and where you are, in some part, larger or smaller, because of these "Difficulties" you faced and had to deal with, like it or not.

Back Story: Blessings That Got You Here . . .

Yes Sir! Yes Ma'am! It doesn't matter whether you are religious, spiritual or a non-believer, you have been blessed. Just think about of all the places in the world you could have been born and from all the parents who could have joined a sperm and egg cell. You are the totally unique individual you are. Maybe you were born in abject poverty and that made you want to do everything you could to get out of that condition as an adult. Maybe you were born in a very wealthy family who spoiled you rotten and you wanted out of that situation. There are so many circumstances it's impossible to even consider how unique your "Blessings" are. Take that pencil in hand and jot down a few descriptive sentences about three (or more) "Blessings" in your life. Perhaps, you've never even thought of them as "Blessings" before.

Now, take some time and reflect on these "Blessings" and how they got you to where you are today. Maybe you've thought about this in the past. But, then again, maybe not. It's time to start realizing just how "Blessed" you are no matter what your circumstances at the moment.

Back Story: Stupid Things That Got You Nowhere . . .

Now, this back story can either be fun or embarrassing or both. Let's face it! No one goes through life without doing some really stupid things. Oh, they seemed reasonable, logical, rational and like the right thing at the time, but when the rubber hit the road, we got nowhere. We were the black patch left on the road as the car sped away. Yes, these are the things we really want to forget and we hope no one else remembers them either. But, alas, they are part of our lives and, while they got us nowhere, hopefully as we look back now we can laugh at ourselves and wonder just what we were thinking at the time. So, for the last time, grab that pad and pencil and write down three of these "Stupid" things that got you nowhere. It's not likely that you only had three or less. None of us are that good. It could have been a relationship, business decision, job change, moving to a new home or leaving an old home or taking a vacation that shouldn't have happened. Whatever they are write them down.

And, as before, take a little time to reflect on these "Stupid" things and think about what the lesson was from each one of them. If you can, have a good laugh on yourself. Believe me, you are not even close to being alone. No one wants to really admit they made some "Stupid" decisions and did things they really don't want to bring to light. But believe me, each one made an important impression on who you are and how you, somehow, got to where you are today.

Because You Can . . .

So, here's the thing. You are the sum total of everything you've ever done, all your blessings, every relationship you've ever had, no matter how long or short the duration, every decision you've ever made, every challenge or difficulty you ever faced and, yes, every stupid thing you've ever done. Relish this. It is who you are and why you are precisely where you are today. And, here's the best part. If you're not who you want to be or doing what you want to do or being where you want to be . . . you have the freedom to change any or all of it "Because You Can . . ."

This Is The Week That Was

I have refrained from making any comments about the horrific events of this week. There were, of course, two major events, the marathon bombing in Boston and the fertilizer factory explosion in West, Texas. I'm sure there were any number of other negative events in other parts of our country, but whatever they may have been, they were overshadowed by the media's coverage of the two main events.

One talking head commentator made a very interesting point this week. His point? There are about 312 million people in this country and about 311,999,500 of then arrived home safely each evening and share time with friends and family. In other words, the state of the human condition is very, very, very good. Unfortunately, some very bad things happen to some very good, innocent people - whether attacked by a terror attack at a marathon or shocked and shaken by a massive explosion in their community.

Also, unfortunately, bad news, negative news and sensationalism are the things that sell commercials on broadcast and cable TV, radio news and talks stations and newspapers. Good news is actually so common that it doesn't garner the headlines. The horrors of the Aurora, Colorado and the Newtown, Connecticut shootings have created a furor over gun control that has created massive controversy and debate. But, the reality, as I see it, is that it's still not really about the guns, the kinds of guns or the size of the magazines. It's about a very, very small fraction of a percentage of the population who are evil and it doesn't matter whether they have access to guns or not, they will perpetuate their evil deeds. This week was a perfect example as two young men took three lives and permanently maimed nearly 200 people - WITHOUT using guns. As a matter of fact, they carried out their evil plan with common household products available to anyone.

My point here is not to defend or oppose the current debate over gun control. However, considering that tens of thousands more people are killed each year by automobiles and trucks including some incidents that involve hit and run or even suicide by car. But, there doesn't seem to be any debate over banning cars or large engines or certain kinds of cars. And if you add to the reality that alcohol and some drugs, including prescription drugs, often precipitate tens of thousands of deaths by auto, how do we curb that. We already tried "prohibition" of alcohol in this country and that didn't work and actually caused the establishment and growth of an underground, criminal liquor industry.

I could go on and on. But, my point is simply this. There is evil in this world. This cannot be denied. There are people in this world who want other people dead. Who are the targeted people? They are Americans, British, French, Indians, Africans of all nationalities, Asians of all nationalities, South Americans of all nationalities. In other words, there are evil people everywhere intent on harming and killing other people for a variety of reasons. We can't ban pressure cookers, model airplanes and remote control cars, knives, guns, booze, automobiles, baseball bats, poisons (add whatever you want to this list) because that's not going to stop evil in its tracks.

We need to accept that evil exists and the more people there are in the world, the more evil there will be. And, for some reason, evil people have this need to deprive the overwhelming majority of good, peaceful people of their natural rights, freedom and happiness. Foiling these evil people is the answer and the only answer. No matter what laws we pass to control or ban anything whether guns, knives, explosives, cars, airliners, etc. it will not stop evil from wreaking havoc, murder and pain. The only thing that will win will be facing down the evil people, whether they are mentally ill, sociopaths, psychopaths, religiously or politically radicalized individuals. Unfortunately, there will continue to be "collateral damage" forever simply because there will be evil people who will slip through the cracks like the two young men involved in the Boston Marathon bombing.

We live in dangerous times. Actually, I don't believe the times are anymore dangerous than any other time in the history of human civilization. I simply believe that in the continuous march toward progress, we continue to create more and better and more efficient means of killing and maiming. We as a nation (as all nations do) call it National Defense. We say we are creating these weapons of mass destruction for protection of our own citizens (regardless of the name of the country making the statement) and as a deterrent against attack or for preemptive reasons. However, once these weapons are created, they will eventually find their way into the hands of the evil people. It's a vicious cycle that doesn't seem to have an end other than the potential annihilation of all of humanity and civilization. Pandora is out of the box and we're trying to put her back in, but she's having none of it.

I would be remiss if I didn't salute the many law enforcement agencies and individuals, the firemen and EMS people and all the other first responders at all levels - in Boston and its suburbs and in West, Texas - for their fantastic efforts this week. While I might be a bit critical of some of these agencies and people sometimes, I have to salute them and praise them for their effective efforts this week.

My thoughts and my prayers for peace and overcoming the pain, both physical and emotional, of these horrendous events - the most recent being the Boston Marathon bombing and the West, Texas explosion and fire, but certainly not forgetting a long, long (all too long) list of horrendous terror attacks, acts of war, major accidents and natural disasters. There is never an answer for "Why me?" or "Why my loved one?" For those of faith, I hope they receive and feel comfort from their faith. For those who don't subscribe to a formal belief in some faith, I hope they find peace and consolation in whatever way works for them.

I wish I could end this post with some kind of concrete ideas or prescription to heal all the hurt and defeat all the evil in the world. I can't! I simply have to accept my own humanity and do my best to do no harm to others, to not infringe on or deprive my brother and sister humans of their natural rights, especially freedom and happiness. And, I have to hope that I'm fortunate enough to never find myself as the target of a horrific event whether precipitated by evil, human accident or nature. Life is fragile and very short. We are all vulnerable. My very best to you for your safety and health and especially to enjoy your personal freedom as you define it for yourself and for your happiness. 

7 degrees - Brrrr!

That was the temperature here on the shore of the Potomac River in West Virginia this morning. Okay, so I'm a wimp! I guess my blood has thinned out as I've aged. I wonder if not consuming as much "anti-freeze" (alcohol in various forms - beer, Scotch, vodka, etc.) as I did when I was much younger, plays into this diminishing tolerance for sub freezing temperatures?

It got pretty cold in northern New Jersey where I grew up during the late 40's, 50's and 60's. Then, and I don't know what possessed me, I chose to move to Syracuse, New York to attend graduate school at Syracuse University over moving to Gainesville, Florida to attend the University of Florida. Sub-freezing and sub-zero temperatures, a dozen feet of snow and layer upon layer of winter clothes over moderate temperatures with sub-tropical beaches and bikini clad babes just a couple hours away. What was I thinking?

Oh well, that was then and this is now. It's becoming pretty hard to predict the weather anywhere in the U.S. anymore. Without getting into the "global warming/climate change" debate, it is pretty obvious that we can no longer count on any kind of recognizable weather patterns any longer.

As a kid, winter was winter. It was cold and invariably included a nominal amount of snow. Spring was spring and became one of my two favorite seasons. Summer was summer, typically hot and reasonably humid in northern New Jersey. We never had air conditioning in the house or cars, so there were some uncomfortable days and nights. Fall, my other favorite season, was fall. I guess I viewed it as the opposite of spring. It started warm and got progressively cooler and crisp. All the foliage that emerged in the spring changed color, withered and went into hibernation at the approaching winter. It was predictable. We could pretty much set our watches by it. The agricultural community counted on it.

The fact, setting aside all the scientific and political rhetoric, is simply that it is what it is. It really doesn't matter if you like it or your don't like it, you can't do anything about it. Are we contributing to it? Of course we are. It's not even logical to think any other way.

Population Expansion

The U.S. population was about 5.25 million in 1800 and in 2000 it reached 281.4 million - an increase of approximately 5,350 percent in 200 years. And between 2000 and 2012 the population has increased another 11 percent (I don't know if that includes illegal aliens who want to remain in the shadows).

Take this to a global perspective and the numbers are even more mind boggling. At the time of Christ, essentially 1 AD, the entire population of the Earth was estimated at 200 million people. That is about the same as the entire population of current day Brazil or about 5.25 times the current population of California, the most populous state in the U.S. The entire population of the world at that time could easily have resided in the state of Texas with plenty of elbow room.

In 1800, the population of the world was estimated to be just under one billion people. So, over a period of 1,800 years, the population of the world grew approximately 500 percent. From 1800 to 1900, a period of 100 years, the population grew by 169 percent to 1.65 billion people. Another way to look at it is that in 1,900 years the population grew by 825%. Now, here is where the numbers really become startling. From 1900 to 2000 the world population grew from 1.65 billion to slightly more than 6 billion, that is a growth factor of 364 percent in 100 years. And the 50 year period from 1950 to 2000 saw population grow by 240 percent or nearly a 3.5 billion increase in just 50 years. Remember it took 1,800 years for the world population to grow by a mere 800 million people and 50 years to grow by 3.55 billion.

The population of the Earth has grown another 16 percent from 2000 to 2012 adding about another billion people for a current total of just over 7 billion people. If you ever wonder why the traffic and congestion seems to be worse than you remember it as a youngster or young adult, it's because 50% of the world population live in urban areas. If the urban areas of the 1950s couldn't handle the population increase, they simply expanded the boundaries further and further out from the central cities.

Here's another amazing thought to ponder. During the 20th Century, A number approaching one billion people died prematurely as a result of wars, mass annihilation (democide), famine, disease (300 million to small pox alone), starvation and a variety of forms of natural and man made disasters. Yet, still humans propagated very well during that Century. The reason, of course, is encompassed in two words - science and technology.

The Human Impact

I seem to like to use the slogan dreamt up for the cigarette brand, Virginia Slims, "We've come a long way, Baby." It's too bad it has to be attached to something as negative as cigarettes. But, in fact, we have come a long way. The scientific and technological advances of the past two centuries and especially the last 112 years are amazing. Without question, they are, in my opinion, at the very heart of why humans have thrived and increased in such startling numbers during this period of time, despite the premature deaths of so many humans by the variety of causes I outlined.

However, with these scientific and technological advances that have improved the human living experience and fostered the massive population growth, there has been a huge cost. Humans have depleted and decimated the planet's resources at an alarming rate. Many forms of animal and plant life have become extinct or are bordering on extinction. And, while many people recognize the, most often, irreparable damage, too few of this unwieldy number of human inhabitants seem to really care.

The list is too long to go into in this post on my humble blog, but all of it impacts our water supply, healthy, organic agricultural products, domestic and wild life supplies and even a healthy, abundant seafood supply. I often have to wonder if the 1973 sci-fi movie, Soylent Green, is more a prophecy than a work of fiction. In fact, the dateline of the film is the year 2022, a mere nine years from the present. Many of the precise issues that were the basis for the movie, indeed, are real issues today. Is this really the future? How much of our current food supply is genetically engineered? How do we eat agricultural products that are out of season in our individual locations? How many of us forgotten what free range grazed beef, chicken and pork tastes like or what a good old fashioned Beefsteak Tomato tastes like? Why do we drink our water from plastic bottles? Is it purely for convenience or is there an underlying, unspoken reason we find bottled water more palatable?

And, what about the unbelievable volume of garbage we are creating at astoundingly, ever increasing amounts. Sure, we have recycling of certain things, but so much of this un-biodegradable garbage is creating a strata of petroleum based garbage and chemicals that will ultimately leach into the ground and impact more of our water and agriculture.

Gee, I sound like some kind of environmentalist, yet that's not my intention. These are all very real facts of life and every human on the planet is and will continue to be impacted by them. While the, so-called, "global warming" or "climate change" topics are used as political ammunition by various special interest groups, they are actually a fact of life. They have occurred as part of the natural cycle of the planet's maturing process many times over billions of years. So, no, I don't believe we can stop it. However, there is certainly no question that we, the human population of this bit of space dust we inhabit, are contributing to the acceleration of this natural process. It seems alien to us only because we, as a species, have never experienced this before. And here's a harsh and stark reality, there are probably thousands of species that didn't survive these natural events before.

More Interesting Factoids

For those readers in northern North America (not including Mexico, which is considered part of Latin America) and especially the U.S., it is important to realize that we only represent 5% of the world's total population. That's right! We are only 5 measly percent. Asia represents 60.4%, Africa is about 14.5% and Europe is about 11%. Yet, with our tiny 5% of the world population, we are ranked in the #1 position with China, a country with nearly five times our population, vying for this position, as contributing the largest amount of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. I dare say, while I couldn't find a statistic, that if we combined all of Asia, comprising over 60% of the planet's human population, the U.S. would still rank very near the top of the list. Once upon a time it was said that the U.S. had all the motor vehicles and the former U.S.S.R. had all the parking spaces. The balance is changing, but we are still the #1 in terms of lifestyle "bling."

But, here's some good news. The population growth trend is reversing. In recent history, the last century and more specifically, since 1950, the peak global growth rate, 2.19%, was in 1962 and 1963 or at the end of the generation we called the "Baby Boomers." Currently, the population growth rate is at about 1.05%. It's projected to continue decreasing so that by 2050 the rate will be about .45%. I didn't study all the data, causes and effects, however, I feel confident in saying that the birth rate will continue dropping due to better family planning methods and education. At the same time, the population will continue to age, which is a very obvious trend in the world. This, of course, is due to the continual advances in science, technology and medicine. Ultimately, this should be good for the planet.

So, What's the Point?

The point is that it's cold outside to today and it is what it is. We are not going to change the natural rhythm of the planet, but some of us are going to, most likely, fare better than others as these changes continue. Those who, in my opinion, are going to fare better are those who are doing what they can to pare back on consuming "bling" that costs resources, yet loses it's value, if it actually had any, in very short order. These are the people who are reevaluating their own personal lifestyle values and seeking freedom, happiness and fulfillment from those aspects of the human experience that have traditionally yielded those qualities.

While many, probably most, of the city dwellers will remain in the urbanized area. Those seeking personal freedom and more fulfilling, less stressful lives and a cleaner environment and happy lifestyle will emigrate either to smaller population centers, rural areas or even expatriate to other countries around the world where the lifestyle is more conducive to the values the individuals are seeking and the cost of living is considerably lower. And, many of these folks will look for more moderate climates with healthy, organic food and good water. Will I see you there?  

Freedom Lost

That's the title of a weekly column by Bill O'Reilly. Let me clarify something right from the top. I've mentioned several times this blog is not political. It does not represent right, left, conservative, liberal, Republican or Democrat views. This blog represents ME and my attitudes. I fall in the middle of everything somewhere - sometimes I'm a bit more conservative and sometimes I'm a bit more liberal. I have no agenda or ulterior motives to have you, the reader to be like me, change who you are or do any grandstanding. You will, on occasion suffer through a rant I might get into over something that really torques me. But, that's my right and privilege as the owner of this blog and by what's left of the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights. If you don't like what I'm saying, you have the freedom of choice not to read it. I do my best to write honestly and from my brain, my heart and my gut. But you won't offend me if you choose to not read a post or disagree with me.

Bill O'Reilly

First, I am not an avid fan or follower of O'Reilly. I find him sometimes enlightening, sometimes rude, sometimes combative, sometimes informative, sometimes educational and sometimes just downright offensive. When I watch news on the cable channels, I typically surf between Fox, CNN, HLN, CNBC and MSNBC. Like most men, I'm attracted to very pretty women and, especially, intelligent and accomplished professional women. So, yes, I have a certain preference to Fox. But, that being said, HLN has some pretty foxy ladies, too. CNN is okay, MSNBC doesn't rank in the higher grades in this department, other than the intelligent part of the equation and CNBC - numbers, it's all about numbers. Being totally honest in my disclosure, I watch CNBC and MSNBC the least and probably share the rest of my limited news time somewhat equally between Fox, CNN and HLN.

The men of the news channels are okay. I have some preferences, but generally, I think most of them do a reasonably good job and aren't too offensive with their personal biases - with a few exceptions, of course. Bill O'Reilly seems to cover the gambit. He is, by his Irish Catholic background, typically a right leaner, though I've seen him chew up and spit out some obnoxious righties. I guess what I do like about him is that he takes on important issues and he's not intimidated by any of his guests - right, left or in the middle. He attempts to ask hard questions wanting REAL, straight answers - not the usual political, government speak puke that we are so accustomed to hearing out of the mouths of members of Congress - both parties - even the independents, the president, his cabinet and his press mouth piece and especially, the overpaid bureaucrats (protecting their asses and their retirement plans).

I often sit there when I happen to catch an episode of O'Reilly (I don't go out of my way to do such) screaming at the guest "ANSWER THE DAMN QUESTION!" I'm inclined to suggest that the left leaning, liberal politicians and pundits are so well versed in "spinning" everything that when an interview or sound bite is done, I've learned nothing and am frustrated by the waste of my valuable time and expensive "air" time these "clowns" have abused. The conservatives may be a little better, but if they are, it's not much.

O'Reilly seems to work hard at putting these people on the spot and hammering them to get Real and Straight answers. He's not always successful and you can see his frustration. In his weekly column, sent to me by a conservative friend from my college years, Bill scored some important points with me. I'm about personal freedom and living free (no kidding, huh?), so anytime a topic with the word freedom pops up I'm all over it. Today's title, "Freedom Lost," instantly drew me in. And that's why I'm writing about it today.

"Me and Bobby McGee"

Bill started out quoting a line from Kris Kristofferson's great song "Me and Bobby McGee." I'm hearing Janis Joplin singing it in my head as I write this, "freedom's just another word for nothing left to lose." The words grate through my sensibilities and ring in my ears. Bill suggested that, perhaps, this thought is both sage and appropriate for 2013 America.

876 New Laws

Yep! You read that right. There are 876 new laws on the books that have to be obeyed or there are legal consequences. Oops! I forgot to mention, these 876 new laws were signed into law by Governor Jerry "Moonbeam" Brown of the great and most populous state of California. They all went into effect last week. Ha! I'll bet you thought I was going to say that President Obama signed them as national laws. Uh-uh! These are just those impacting the citizens of California.

Now, I don't know how they go about proposing and passing new laws in California, but since former Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, a Californian, herself, told us how they do it in Washington, I'm sure California isn't too different. Remember former House Speaker Pelosi said, " We have to pass the bill so YOU can find out what is in it." I'm sure that since Congress is so busy passing laws that there is no way they can take the time to figure out what they are really about and what their impact will be. Actually, they are mostly adding earmarks and other laws inside of laws that no one really knows about, so who has time to worry about the actual law itself? With 875 new laws going into effect on January 1, 2013 in California, can they use any other system to mass produce less freedom?

What Are These Laws?

So, obviously, these new laws have to be vitally important to the state of well-being of the citizens of California. Bill O'Reilly included just four examples and I'm including them here so you can see how people's lives will be impacted.

In California you can no longer . . .

- Hunt a bear using trained dogs.  (O'Reilly comment - Untrained canines are okay, I guess. And how would the authorities be able to tell? Would the dog have to take a test in the forest?)

- Sit in an off road vehicle without being in a seat. (O'Reilly comment - You can't sit on the floor. Or on the roof. Do off road vehicles even have roofs? I don't know.)

- Use a boat in a "freshwater body" without paying a separate fee. (O'Reilly comment - That's to raise money to control the influx of "invasive mussels." I thought that was a 1950s monster movie.)

- Drive a party bus without a special license. (O'Reilly comment - Can't wait to see that test. Do you know the words to "Celebrate" by Kool and the Gang?)

Okay, I'm sure there may be a few of these laws that really impact the common well-being and welfare of the populous of the state of California. But, how many of them are like this? And we actually pay representatives and a governor and all the staff people and cost to operate the government to do this? Where did I miss the boat. It's time to get a law degree or a degree in political science so I can live well off the public dole, too.

Now, remember, these are just California laws added to who knows how many already existing laws. Now, add onto these all the new federal laws that we'll find out what's in them since they are now laws. We didn't actually have anything to say about, probably, the vast majority of these existing and the new laws, BUT - we are responsible and required to obey them or suffer the criminal or civil or both consequences. And, don't forget if you are foolish enough to leave your own state and cross into another state, you are now required, by law, to obey the laws of that state, too, whether you know them or not. Ignorance of the law is no excuse. And just in case, here it is in Latin, "Ignorantia juris non excusat." In the event this isn't clear, the link will take you to a great explanation.

Every New Law Means Less Freedom

So, what am I getting to?It's actually quite simple. This blog is about Living Free. This post is about how year in and year out our "supposed" representatives go out of their way to pass new laws, laws that many, if not most of them don't have a clue as to how it will impact their constituents - that's you and me. In other words, every new law, regardless of whether the law mandates something we must now do or must not now do takes away another piece of our personal freedom. Many, and possibly, most, of these new laws are about insignificant little things that impact only a very small group of people or some aspect of our society and benefit a special interest group of some kind. We already have, I dare say, hundreds of thousands of laws on the books - that we are each and everyone of us - responsible to know and accountable to obey - period! New law = less freedom. It's really simple.

I have done my best throughout my lifetime to live further and further off the radar because, quite frankly, I didn't want to have to learn and be accountable for hundreds of thousands of laws. It's like living in a community with a homeowners association, just another form of government. I don't want someone telling me what kind of front door I have to put in my house or what color paint it can only be and what brand of paint I have to use to get that specific color or if I can have a flag pole on my property and how tall it can only be or, if, as an amateur radio operator, I can erect a tower on my property to mount antennas on to enjoy my hobby. Get the picture?

So, "Freedom Lost," Bill O'Reilly's take on it. "Freedom is just another word for nothing left to lose" is Kris Kristofferson's way of expressing it. And Cicero asked and answered, "What then is freedom? The power to live as one wishes." And two of our great statesmen, President Lincoln and President Kennedy said, respectively, "Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not for themselves." and "Conformity is the jailer of freedom and the enemy of growth." 

How free are you? How do you exercise your human right to personal freedom? What can you and we do to stop losing more freedom? Are you content to just continue living in a system that doesn't allow for more freedoms, but continually chips away at the remaining freedom we have? I dare say, the vast majority of the population of the U.S. is content with that and will continue down that road. Are we rapidly going in the direction we fought to break away from? I surely don't have the answers, only the questions. But, I know, for one, I will do my best to conform only to the absolute minimum degree possible to not lose all my freedom and end up in some kind of physical prison in the country (yes, the United States) with the highest rate of incarceration per 100,000 people, by a significant margin, over every other country in the world.

Just 876 more laws to obey Californians?  Just 876 more chips off the Freedom block. 

Wednesday Musing: Big Questions . . .

How much of life do we take for granted? As I look at the harried lives that seem to be more the norm than not, I have to raise one of the really big questions of life - "Is this all there is?"

This morning about 300 people boarded a high-speed ferry boat from the central New Jersey area to Wall Street near Battery Park on the southern tip of Manhattan Island. Today was the first day the ferry was back in service since Superstorm Sandy devastated this region two and a half months ago. The folks riding that ferry, scheduled to dock at about 8:45 AM, were all commuting to their jobs. Little did they know that more than 60 passengers on that ferry would be carried off the small ship on stretchers, backboards and gurneys. Most of them would be treated for non-life threatening injuries, but at least two of them, one especially, will most likely die in the hospital.

Just before this past Christmas a few hundred children went to school just like any other day. Their parents were managing their busy lives and going about their daily routines. Out of nowhere, a young man, who had never been a threat to anyone before, ends the lives of 20 innocent children and seven innocent adults (all women, interestingly), including his own mother and then takes his own life.

The list could go on, but you get the point. It could be a sudden and violent event such as those described or it could be being handed a pink slip and notified that your services are no longer needed by your employer of, perhaps, one or more decades. It could be finding out your house is underwater and you can no longer afford the payments and it goes into foreclosure. It could be a medical diagnosis that wasn't expected. Perhaps, you're handed divorce papers that you weren't expecting. 

All of these bring about the Big Question - "Why?"

There are lots of big questions to consider in life, but do we? Are we too busy to deal with these questions until something transpires that forces us to face one or more of them? Do we take too much of life for granted? Do we have the attitude that something like this will never happen to me? Are we just avoiding the Big Questions because they seem too incomprehensible? It's probably some or all of the above.

What are some of the really Big Questions we never seem to want to or get around to addressing? Here are only a few to ponder:

What is love REALLY?

Am I really in-love or am I still in-love?

Why am I really working at this job or for this employer?

Am I or what does it take to be a good parent?

What does freedom, especially personal freedom, really mean to me and am I really free?

How do I define happiness and am I really happy?

Why is life so complicated?

Am I prepared to die, especially since I don't know when that may happen or under what circumstances?

I have created a long list of Big Questions and these are only a few of them. I was inspired to think about this by my friend, John Applegath in Durham, New Hampshire and author of the book, Working Free: Practical Alternatives to the 9 to 5 Job. John posed these questions to people in discussion groups in the Durham and Portsmouth, New Hampshire area.

Why do most people reach a point in their lives (and it's possible all people reach the point, some may just be too busy to even realize it) where they ask the question that I posed at the beginning of this musing - "Is this all there is?" Some of you who are old enough may remember the song, sung by the late Peggy Lee, that asked this question. This point in time is also considered a "mid-life crisis" and some people have more than one of these events. 

I dare say that the Big Questions are the questions that really define life and who we are and who we become. I'm not sure that there are any concrete answers to most of the Big Questions. Maybe that's why we are either afraid to ask them and seek answers for ourselves. Or, we choose to avoid them because in the business of the day to day routines and ruts of life we don't have time to incorporate "truth" for our individual lives into our lives.

To truly live free these questions need to become part of our self-dialogue and our dialogue with others who may be able to shed light on aspects of life we can't seem to grasp. It is my firm belief that we all need less than we have, can live simpler, less complicated lives than we do and ultimately achieve a better understanding of what this very short period of time  - birth to death - is really all about and how to get the most out of it.

Just saying . . . 

The Haves and The Have Nots!

As John Bardos, JetSetCitizen.com, stated in his post from Christmas Day titled, "A Not So Merry Christmas," if you are reading this your life is pretty damn good and you're among the 10% wealthiest people on the planet. John and his wife are hanging out in Thailand for a while, so he is seeing a world very different from back in the good ol' US of A and Canada. While I can't make any broad generalizations about Canada, though I do know some Canadians, I can say that the US of A is the land of conspicuous consumption and I don't think Canada is too far behind us.

Yes! There certainly is a significant percentage of the U.S. citizenry who live in poverty. But, even those, except the most impoverished in the U.S., live better than many of those who might be considered middle-class in most of the rest of the world. The U.S. is an economy that has thrived on consumption. As a nation based on a capitalistic economic system, there must be a robust consumption of goods and services for the economy to not only thrive. But, to survive, just as in most things in life, there is a propensity to over consume.

There has always been a small percentage of the population who are wealthy and considered the "Haves." The average or common man has typically had "enough." The "Have Nots" fall into two groups, as I see it. The first group consists of those on the lowest end of the economic scale or those we might label as being in poverty. The second group consists of those of modest financial means who want a lot more, but can't truly afford it, so consider themselves as "Have Nots" even though they may be living comfortably by the standards of the time.

Post Great Depression and World War II

What seems to have happened post World War II and post Great Depression is that the "middle class" as we have come to identify the majority of the U.S. population have determined that they want more and more and will have more and more no matter what it costs. With credit requirements becoming easier and easier and less restrictive, it became easier for people to buy homes, cars, furnishings, appliances, take vacations and just about anything else people decided they wanted and wanted now . . . instant gratification, if you will. The credit card was developed to make it even easier to consume more stuff. People financed Christmas, buying more than they could afford to spend at the holiday and paying for it the rest of the year. The same thing happened with taking vacations that could be financed.

Essentially, because of this new mentality of buy (have) now and pay later, we ultimately have become a society of conspicuous consumption. I witnessed this in my own family when I was growing up in the 50's and 60's. Every few years we had a new home, larger and with more amenities than the last. We became a three car family by the time I was 17 years old. A large screen color TV replaced the slightly smaller screen color TV that replaced the smaller black and white TV that replaced at least two earlier generations of small screen black and white TV's. New clothes, nice middle class vacations, newer furnishings in the home. And, all it required was that my father, a white collar worker in a pretty upscale engineering position in a well-established Fortune 500 corporation, who had a second job teaching night school, kept up with the payments for all the "Stuff." I didn't fully understand all the implications of our lifestyle or the debt required to maintain that lifestyle. I was young, pretty well shielded from it and enjoyed it. The cost didn't fully register with me.

Well, the cost didn't register with me until A. my father committed suicide at the beginning of my last semester of college, B. my mother, who my father never allowed to work, saw her lifestyle slide backward virtually immediately and C. I graduated from college and had my first few job offers and exclaimed, "Holy S--t, who can live on this?" So, I went to graduate school it earn a masters degree at one of the more prestigious (and accordingly, expensive) private universities in the east. I was fortunate enough to receive a graduate assistantship that paid for most of my tuition and gave me a small stipend to live on. And, if it weren't for my entrepreneurial spirit and my small, freelance recording business, I would likely have starved and not completed graduate school.

But, then I picked up a part-time position at a local community college as a "technical consultant." My hourly wage at age 23 was equivalent, or possibly a little more, than my father had been earning at the time of his death at 42 years old and the assistant to the vice-president of the Aerospace division of the Fortune 500 corporation (and in line for the vice-presidency one day, had he lived). That was the beginning of my climb to conspicuous and over consumption. The rest is history and I've described much of it in other parts of this blog.

It's Not Bad to Want

Here's the bottom line. It's not bad to want stuff. It's not bad to have stuff. What's bad is wanting stuff and falling into the trap of "instant gratification." In other words, before there were mortgages and especially ridiculously easy to obtain mortgages, people saved up to buy a home. The same was true for "a" car - yes, one car in a family, not a driveway full of them. We wore Ked and P.F. Flyer sneakers not Nike Air Jordan's with prices ranging from $150 to $500. We didn't turn our asses into billboards for the likes of Calvin Klein and other designer jeans with prices exceeding $100 a pair. We wore blue jeans or dungarees. We shopped at Robert Hall Clothes, Kinney Shoes and Thom McAn Shoes. These long standing retailers and their brands are mainly memories now.

Our world is so much different today. In 1950 the average new home was about 985 sq. ft and, depending on location, location, location could be purchased for about $5,000.00. In 2010, despite the economic crash, the average new home was about 2,500 sq. ft with price tags, again, depending on location, beginning around $250,000.00 and up (mostly up). A new Ford Mustang V8 fastback cost me $2,600.00 in 1967. Today, a comparable Mustang would be $26,000.00 and up.

Sure, salaries have increased, but so has every other aspect of our cost of living. But, the big difference is that there is so much more to consume. That has driven manufacturers (mostly not in the U.S., most likely) to offer hundreds of options to choose from such as iPhones and smart phones, computers of all shapes and sizes, iPads and Tablets, iPods and mp3 players, sporting equipment, expensive bicycles,  tricked out wrist watches, clothes, clothes and even more clothes and over 45,000 separate items on supermarket shelves (up from about 7,800 in 1970).

The point is not that consuming or having things is bad, after all, that's what drives the economy of this country and much of the world because of our consumption. What's bad is over-consuming, the debt that is all too often increasing to have the stuff NOW - and here's one most of us actually say we think about, but I'll wager we don't  . . . the garbage, trash and waste that is growing at astronomical rates.

No Answers For You Or The World

I don't have an answer for the U.S. or any other part of the world. I only have an answer for myself and that is to consume far less and only what I need and will use. There is nothing wrong with having some of the "wants" we each have, but most of the things we want we only think we want because of peer pressure, status or always wanting to be one step ahead of your friends/family. The reality is that we can all live without a lot of what we "consume." As the population continues to increase, if we continue to consume at the present rate, bankruptcies will escalate exponentially. That will hurt the economy causing prices to increase even more. We will continue to create more waste, trash and garbage that will endanger the environment, potentially, even more than carbon fuel emissions, which will also continue to increase. I'm not a scientist, economist, statistician, sociologist, etc. I'm just a simple pragmatist who has realized that I've done my share of damage to our world and I'm looking at what I see as reality. Ultimately, this will be unsustainable at some point in time and I don't think that point in time is all that far in the future. There is a realistic balance that must be found and we each have to do a little to make it work.

Perhaps, between the U.S. government teetering on the fiscal cliff and needing to raise it's debt limit to keep paying its obligations or go into default - along with many of the states and local governments - it's time to make 2013 a year to evaluate and reprioritize our lives and lifestyles. Most people won't. They will just continue down the road to perdition. But, I can guarantee there will be no personal freedom in more joblessness, ever increasing prices with incomes that are falling behind, less government services and increases in taxes and an uncontrollable garbage problem as our future. 

"The Age of Plastic"

One day, if our species survives several hundred more years, archeologists and anthropologists will uncover "The Age of Plastic," a layer of the Earth that will include vinyl records, cassettes, 8 track cartridges, CD's, DVD's VHS and Betamax video cassettes, Tupperware, plastic soft drink and water bottles, cars, toys, tools, furniture and other furnishings, garbage cans and every other kind of imaginable use of plastic, because this stuff is not biodegradable and will not breakdown. This will be our legacy to the future of human kind, if there is a future.

I am a HAVE. I have chosen to downsize, simplify, economize and take control of my own life and not be influenced by endless TV & radio commercials, infomercials, incessant shopping network snake oil sales people, print advertising, direct mail, Internet banner ads and spam emails. I have determined what I NEED to live happily, comfortably, debt free and within my means. I allow for some wants, but I ascertain that the investment in those wants is something that I'll truly gain personal pleasure and satisfaction from. I'll live without the myriad other things that are running through my head as I compose this sentence that I want, but truly know I can easily live without. I am not in the 1% or so considered financially wealthy. I am also not in the group considered to be seriously impoverished. Some might, by their measurement and standards, consider me to be in poverty. I don't. I HAVE what I NEED and I'm happy, debt free - and most of all living free.

You don't have to live like me or make the same choices I've made. Our lives are exclusive of one another. I've made my choices and continue to modify my lifestyle to that which works for me. My only suggestion is that, if you want to enjoy living free, you evaluate your own life, lifestyle, needs and wants and make the choices you feel will provide this for you.