THE GREAT DIVIDE...

The election is over, the final numbers are in. America was divided almost equally before the election, it seems to be just as equally divided after the election of Donald Trump as our 45th President. The difference is this though- prior to the election the Democrats were making a HUGE issue out of whether Trump and his supporters would accept the results of the election when Hillary Clinton won. They said the only way to heal our country and move ahead was for the loser to graciously accept the will of the people and recognize the results as true and valid.
Oops. Hillary lost, and these same people who condemned Trump before the election for actions not yet committed are now guilty of the very thing they condemned Trump for what they thought he would do. It turned out that Trump showed humility and graciousness in victory, while Hillary's followers violently protested, refused to recognize Trump as president, cried all over social media, and threatened to leave the country. I guess the Bible was right again, when Jesus asked those critical of others how can they see the speck of sawdust in their brother's eye when they have a plank in their own?
I want to say this, to all those so upset with the election results: first, to those average Joes, like me- we have survived, as a nation the terms of 44 presidents prior to this new one, and we will survive the term of Donald Trump. Do not let the emotion of a dirty, mud-slinging, corrupt election define who you are or what you are. Do not allow an election to separate you from family or friends, those whom you care about and those who care about you, just because there were political differences. You still need each other, you need the support we can give each other to work through the tough times we face. Let's move forward together.
Second, let me say to all those celebrities out there who have threatened to leave the country if Trump won- please go. Your over-blown sense of importance is grating to me. You see, you exist in your ego inflated life for one reason- to entertain me, to entertain people. You plat act for my pleasure, or sing songs for my pleasure, and when I'm done you go back in your little plastic case until the next time I think you can entertain me. I think all too often your playacting extends into your reality and you seem to think you're above the rest of us. Well. you're not. As fast as your fame comes it can go, so if you don't want to live in the greatest country in the world, where you're free to pursue your dreams, then by all means go! We existed before you and will be here long after your star has faded. So until then, make good on your threats and leave, or start doing your part to help heal this great country.
As for the media, they can play the most critical role in aiding in the healing of our country, or the continued divisiveness. Our media exploited every opportunity to defame Trump prior to the election, because, for the most part, our media is far left leaning and the overwhelming majority clearly favored Hillary and wanted her to win. Allegations against Trump were reported as truth, and when later debunked as lies we heard nothing about it. Hillary's pay-for -play actions while Secretary of State netted her and her foundation hundreds of millions of corrupt dollars; Hillary destroyed subpoenaed evidence and devices, her husband interfered  in the FBI investigation, and the Justice Department protected her by refusing to impanel a Grand Jury which would have given teeth to the investigation, yet the media covered these crimes with the barest of detail. Still, their favored child lost. Now it's time for fairness, for our media to step up and offer support to our new president rather than seek to tear him down/ If they do, it could set the tone for healing. If they don't we can expect more protests and divisiveness- only from the left, not the right.
As a registered Independent, a fiscal conservative and a social moderate, I say to my fellow Americans, both on my left and my right- let's step up together, arm in arm, shoulder to shoulder, united in these next four years, and make this country whole once again. It's time to stop being defined by elections, by parties, and be defined as Americans!
Food for thought...

The Big Con...

A good con has several key elements to it; first you plan, then you pitch, then you take, and last you deny. You never give up the con. You just keep denying any wrong-doing and never give up the con.

Let me start out by saying that I am a registered Independent, that I believe I'm moderate on social views while being a fiscal conservative. In my time in business I've supported those I thought were good people, regardless of their political party affiliation. However, in this 2016 campaign, with so much mud and name calling, without a candidate that appeals to the majority, I decided to dig a little deeper into our two political parties and see just what they were built upon. 

I was surprised at what I discovered, and further wondered if Republicans and Democrats today are even aware of heir party roots. The oldest party, the Democratic Party, today claims that they are the party of economic opportunity, social justice and racial equality, however let's examine that claim in the light and facts of history... they were formed out of a political rift of Jefferson's party, the Democratic Republican party, and out of that split the Democratic party was born. In the 1820's Andrew Jackson was elected and was championed as good for the common man. How did he do it? In violation of treaties, he slaughtered the Indian, the native Americans, forced them onto reservations, and confiscated their lands, which he sold to poor white men for next to nothing with their promise to vote for him. He was responsible for the infamous "Trail of Tears". The National Republican party, later to become the Republican party under Lincoln, fought the Democrats, trying to uphold Indian rights, but to no avail. 

But the injustice doesn't stop there. Jackson, who called Indians "inferior humans" in his 1833 speech to Congress, felt the same about blacks. Jackson was a major slave holder, owning hundreds of slaves, and a proponent of slavery, believed in "ruling with the rawhide". Jackson once placed ads in Northern newspapers for the return of a runaway slave, offering $50 for his return, and a bonus of $10 per one hundred lashes, up to 300 lashes, which was, in essence, a death sentence... Jackson was also infamous for his trysts with his young black female slaves... 

As the country grew more and more uneasy over slavery, and with the election of Lincoln, it looked like the political winds were shifting. Lincoln's original stand was to curb the growth of slavery, and not to allow it to spread west, however, with the growing unrest, and subsequent civil war, he emancipated all slaves. The Democrats were violently opposed to it, both southern and northern Democrats. From physically attacking Republicans who spoke out on the Congress floor, to the formation of vigilante groups, the most common being the KKK, the Democrats fought against the rights of the black man. As a matter of record, not one Republican ever owned a slave. You could say that the Civil War was every bit a fight of Republicans against the Democrats as it was the North against the South.

It is interesting to note that it was not  the Democrats of the 1960s who championed civil rights, rather the Republicans of 1860s. The Republicans championed the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendments to our Constitution, forever banning slavery, defining citizenship, and giving citizens the right to vote despite race, color, or previous condition of servitude. Of these, only the 13th garnered a couple Democratic votes- the 14th and 15th were carried by strictly Republican votes, with no Democrat voting for these rights. The Civil Rights Acts of the 1960s, signed by President Johnson, merely guaranteed the rights already afforded blacks under the Constitution would be enforced. 

As previously mentioned, the KKK was formed and became the enforcing arm of the Democratic party. General Nathan Bedford Forrest was the first Grand Wizard, as well as a Democratic representative. What also is interesting is that the very first meeting of Planned Parenthood, founded by Margaret Sanger, was pitched to "The Wives of the KKK".Her pitch was that humanity could be improved via selective breeding, and killing weaker or lesser ones was actually a blessing... that should be an affront to all who hold humanity precious. But it was a plank of the Democratic party... 

Now I checked all this, because I hear all the politicians calling Trump and Republican followers racists, among other things, and it turns out that it is the Democratic party that has its roots and platform deep in racism. However, they have somehow pulled off one of the biggest con jobs on the American people- making them believe they are the party economic opportunity, social justice, and racial equality, when their entire history has been to subjugate or destroy minorities. Plan, pitch, take, and deny. We've seen the plan and pitch, and they're currently taking with both hands, and the denials have begun. But some are seeing through them. Recently Quanell X, leader of the New Black Panther Party, said blacks need to re-examine their relationship with the Democratic party that they've had for decades because "for 54 years we have been voting for the Democratic party like no other race in America. And they have not given us the same loyalty and love that we've given them... we are being pimped out like prostitutes, and they're the big pimps pimping us politically, promising us everything and we get nothing in return". Take and deny... but truth is truth. 

One last claim... Democrats claimed that "racist" leaders switched to the Republican party, mainly to appeal to blacks to get them to switch allegiances in the 1930s, when many were looking to the Democratic party promises during the great depression. Of those leaders of the KKK and other racist organizations, Democratic Congressmen and Senators, from 1860 to 2000, all those who voted against the Civil Rights Act of 1964- over 1600 total people, and less than 1% switched parties from Democrat to Republican (12 people). Plan, pitch, take, and deny. Truth has no place in a con. Never give up the con. Fact checked and verified...

Food for thought...

Gun Control...

Perhaps one of the most divisive issues facing our society today is the issue of gun control. Those left of center cry out for bans on everything from assault weapons to total ban on all guns. Those right of center demand their 2nd amendment Constitutional right to bear arms... so who is right, and who is wrong?
Let me start by saying I am not a gun owner, and aside from owing a BB gun I've never owned gun. I don't hunt, or shoot for pleasure, nor do I have any affiliations with the gun industry. I  have friends and relatives who own guns and staunchly defend their rights to them, and I have friends and relatives who are dead set against them. I am trying to view this controversy objectively and put forth an informed opinion.
With that said, I'm not going to bore you with statistics- they are well-documented and all over the internet. But this is what I've found... With shootings in Michigan, Dallas, Baton Rogue, et al, the focus of our MS media is on the need for gun control. Yet if we take the total deaths by all rifles, not just assault rifles,each year, they are far fewer than deaths causes by hand, by hammers or other blunt force instruments, by knives, or screwdrivers... we see the benefits of hammers and screwdrivers, so we don't scream for a ban on them, tho they be far deadlier to our population...
Further, it is well documented that societies than ban guns have far higher violent crime and death rates than those who do not ban guns. Even in the United States cities that ban guns show this trend, while cities allowing concealed carry have a far lower violent crime rate. Why? Clearly criminals are more apprehensive in a society that is armed. This is the exact opposite that those left of center falsely claim. Statistics don't lie... Personally, if I'm in a crowd and someone starts shooting, it would comfort me to know that there could be one or more people in that crowd who could stop a random, crazed shooter than having to wait for police to arrive, and have numerous more deaths occur in the meantime... just a thought...
In a broader sense though, what has history taught us about gun control? No one denies the existence of Hitler, nor the atrocities he inflicted on Jews and the world. What was the first thing Hitler demanded of Germany when he came to power? Total gun control. Everyone turn in your weapons and allow the State to protect you. He realized that to bend the people to his will he first needed to remove their power to resist. And look what happened. Are we to repeat history? I think not. The promise of security is never again worth the price of our freedom.
We've all heard the slogans, Guns don't kill people. People kill people." Or, "When guns are outlawed only outlaws will have guns". Those left of center decry these as false, yet they are grounded in truth. The truth is that those who are willing to violently break the law will find another means to create fear and enact their unlawful acts. Guns are a convenience for these people, and outlawing them will not force them to willingly relinquish them. Our issue isn't guns- it's the mindset of those wielding them. We need to focus on the social depravity that leads to these acts of violence. I'm all for background checks, mandatory classes on how to care and handle firearms, and registration of firearms. All are good ideas in themselves, and law abiding citizens would not be offended by them if allowed to keep their arms. However, lawbreakers will not, and do not, follow the law. We have many laws on the books regulating guns, yet most are not enforced. Instead of trying to force more regulations on the country wouldn't it make sense to first enforce those already on the books? And if those left of center just can't agree that this is a fair compromise then the way to change is through a Constitutional amendment repealing the second amendment. However, if they don't have the votes then it means they don't have the majority. And if you're in the minority in a free country, please learn to live peacefully with the majority, who want differently than you, or perhaps you become the problem...
Food for thought...

To Thine Own Self Be True...

A very good friend passed away a few years ago, and before he passed he asked me to keep a helping eye on his wife after he was gone. This past week was the our most recent connection. I stopped by and we chatted for about an hour, just reminiscing and catching up on life. Then, as I prepared to go, as we stood by the door, she said to me, "Bud, I'm not ready to be with someone else." I knew then that this was the real reason for my visit...
When my friend was alive he often used to walk into my office and ask me "life questions", as I liked to think of them. Mostly they were "Why shouldn't I..." questions. And mostly, I'm sure I never told him anything he didn't already know. But my answers validated his beliefs, despite his feelings at the time. Feelings can be fickle, but our core beliefs, if built on a solid foundation, can sustain us through any of life's storms.
I got a similar feeling when she made her statement. Nothing I was going to say would be new to her, but it would validate her beliefs. And I told her, if she's not ready for someone new in her life, that's okay. It takes time to grieve, and each person is unique in their own way. But it is healthy to continue to move forward, to continue to live, rather than merely exist day to day in our grief... One day, if God has someone special for her, he will cross her path, and at that time she will realize it's okay to enter another relationship, to allow her emotions, her heart, to belong to another, even as she holds the heart of someone new. In the meantime, it's perfectly acceptable to remain alone, complete in oneself. There is nothing wrong with being alone, with being single. And society is beginning to accept that status too... Be true to yourself, your feelings...
Food for thought

A New Chapter...

Last week I completed the sale and transfer of my business to my second son, and have begun closing that chapter of my life. Thirty one years at the same job; once a common story in years past, but a rarity in this generation where the average stay at a job is less than five years. But then, I think I'm an old fashioned guy, born about two or three hundred years too late. i would have loved to ride to the crest of a hill and look over land unviewed or untouched by another human being...But alas, I'm here and now..

My future no longer lies in the northern Midwest, but I migrate south, to that peninsula that divides the Atlantic ocean from the Gulf of Mexico, the land of citrus and sun, Florida. Somewhere in this magnificent state Juan Ponce de Leon was convinced was the location of the magical Fountain of Youth, that reversed aging and cured sickness... I'm happy if the process just slows a bit!

This new chapter in my life may be my most difficult, for I am focusing on correcting all the stuff I did wrong to myself these past fifty-some years, I need to lose weight, to get in shape, regain my tennis form, start bicycling again, If I get in decent enough shape I may even play softball again, but I have lots of work to do before that happens. I need to get my  new house the way I want it, although I'm well on my way, I have a whole yard waiting to be converted from weeds to lawn...My yard was always my stress relief, and I can't wait to plant and prune and trim my stress away. I'm giving myself one year from the time I finish consulting and get to Florida full time to focus on me physically.

Next I need to focus on my inside. My daughter has encouraged me to write, or put much of my past blogs into a book form. She assures me that she'd buy it, so that's at least four books sold, for I'd buy three and give one to each of my boys... A cheap and unique present that they'd feel guilty returning... I have done a lot of genealogy work and would like to flesh that out more. I find history is exciting and comes alive when i know I'm related to some of those characters... And perhaps I'll counsel a bit, for that was always a love of mine, and perhaps my formal education will finally be put to proper use...
It's a new day, a new chapter, a new life. Wish me luck... For this may be my toughest yet!
Food for thought...