ClydeStyle

Tag: personal responsibility

  • How do you feel now?

    This is blog 2 of 5 in this series regarding history and what your feelings are about it today.

    Given what has taken place in the last couple of months, this is very timely, and A.I. has helped to make it easier.

    The George W. Bush administration’s decision to invade Iraq in 2003 was primarily based on the belief that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and posed a threat to the United States and the international community. The administration also cited Iraq’s alleged support for terrorism and its violations of UN Security Council resolutions as justifications for military action. 

    Specifically, the Bush administration claimed Iraq was actively developing WMD, including nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons. They also asserted that Iraq had ties to the terrorist group al-Qaeda and that Saddam Hussein’s regime posed a threat to regional stability. These claims were used to garner international support for the invasion, with the US and UK arguing that the invasion was authorized under existing UN resolutions. 

    However, the claims about WMDs were later found to be unsubstantiated. No WMDs were discovered in Iraq after the invasion, and intelligence failures and flawed assessments were identified as contributing factors. The invasion and subsequent occupation of Iraq led to a prolonged and costly conflict, with significant loss of life and long-lasting consequences for the region. 

    The Bush Administration, due to the false information and lies, cost the U.S. nearly one trillion dollars for that war that lasted from 2003 to 2011, which is about 255 billion per day.

    In summary, while the legality of the Iraq War remains a subject of ongoing debate and many have argued that the invasion was illegal, the UN’s inability to pursue charges against the Bush administration stems from a combination of factors, including the lack of Security Council authorization, the US veto power, and the limitations of international legal institutions like the ICC.

    We did nothing for the Middle East. We did not stop terrorism. We senselessly killed more than 655,000 civilians violently, and there were no consequences for the Bush Administration in this life.

    In June, the Trump Administration, without congressional support, bombed Iran. Is history repeating itself? What say ye?

  • Good intentions are all about helping others

    So I’m relaxing at home in the Midwest and it’s cold, but like normal the anticipation of the holiday sets our mood. I was just thinking about all the wonderful food traditions that my family has. We eat the typical food shared in Western civilization.

    We had a very traditional Thanksgiving, and Christmas dinner will shape up the same way. I enjoy these times, but I can’t help but think what things would be like if the food manufacturers weren’t trying to make a profit, but we’re trying to make us healthy and live longer, how much better off we’d be?

    I grew up believing that I knew what a healthy breakfast was. In the 70s, we were told that it was your favorite cereal with toast juice and milk. In the Midwest, Coney Island restaurants introduced us to a good, hearty breakfast and I. The same decade that breakfast consisted of two scrambled eggs, hashbrowns or grits, choice of bacon, sausage, or ham and toast, all for $1.99. And don’t forget the cup of coffee!

    The intentions of breakfast during that time got its origin during the industrial age. You see, back then, people would eat leftovers from the previous nights dinner. This was fine for farmers, but not for factory workers who had to stand for long periods of time in the same place with all that heavy food in their stomachs – it gave them indigestion.

    So, the solution from the “powers that be” was to create a breakfast that was more dense and lighter than our leftover dinners. So they filled us with sugary cereals, gave us the incredible, edible egg, and gave us swine.

    Then, that breakfast gave us diabetes, hypertension, gout, heart diseases, and some cancers. Did they know? Did they care?

    We didn’t need high fructose corn syrup, and it has turned out to be worse than swine. It was part of the great food engineering age where manufacturers created food that would trick our bodies into eating more. Intentions?

    All I’m saying is if good intentions led our decisions, then as a country, we wouldn’t be so sick. We are sick because companies found a way to make money off of it.

  • Have gun, will travel

    This phrase from the 50s is all about being ready to do anything. There was even a show about it back then, but the makers of this show would have never imagined that their callous attitude about the use of guns would be trumped by the views held currently about gun use.

    I wonder how many folks believe the founding fathers were thinking of automatic weapons when they wrote in the constitution for us to have the right to bear arms?

    What is more scary is that in recent months, there have been some really senseless shootings. There have been people shot for going to the wrong house, getting in the wrong car, standing around doing nothing, and going to a sweet 16 party. It seems as though the school shootings, church shootings, and other mass shootings are old news.

    Have we gotten bored with shootings?

    And then, Congress can’t seem to find the courage to solve this very simple problem. The answer is not as easy as changing gun laws or even outlawing certain guns because there are too many guns available.

    If we take the position that we all have to die of something or you feel that as long as it is not your kid getting shot, then who cares? It is easy to see how votes can be purchased for a price, and the NRA has deep pockets. Their average spending is around 3.2 million per year, buying the votes of senators and other law makers.

    The level of hypocrisy has to stop. Clearly, the answer will not come on a federal level. It has to take place state by state. Local organizing is the answer, and the time to do it is now. Have political power, will travel!

  • May is mental health awareness month

    The month of May has been designated as the time that mental health professionals share and discuss nearly 300 mental disorders that are listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manuel of Mental Disorders (DSM-5).

    America still has not accepted the fact that our nation is mentally sick and there is just so much that a person can take. Many other civilized nations have already begun to consider their citizens and have created laws that make counseling available and even mandatory in some cases.

    China, Italy, Japan, Canada, Australia, France, and Germany are among the leading countries who have decided to make mental health more than a talking point and have made laws in the best interest of its citizenry.

    A mental illness is a health problem that affects mood, thought, behavior, or perception. It would affect a person’s ability to function at work, in relationships, or in things you do every day.

    There are many disorders. People are suffering from mood disorders like depression; anxiety disorders; personality disorders; psychotic disorders; eating disorders; trauma-related disorders; and substance abuse disorders. The saddest part is that there are many folks in prison who were arrested for committing a crime associated with a disorder. In America, we put people like this in jail instead of giving them the help that they need.

    What’s worse is that we allow folks suffering with a mental health disorder access to automatic weapons.

    We need to continue to solicit our government to make policies that help those suffering from mental health issues and not ostracize them in our society. May is the month to make us more aware. Will you do your part?

  • Happiness is still two kinds of ice cream

    Are you happy??

    Well first let us define our terms because sometimes we confuse happiness with joy. Joy is a feeling of great pleasure and happiness and it’s based on a response to a known stimulus. Jesus is Lord of us all. That is a fact to all who believe and as long Jesus maintains his current position as both Lord and Christ, we will remain full of joy despite our current circumstances.

    Happiness is similar. It is a feeling or showing of pleasure or contentment toward a situation or circumstance. Both joy and happiness begin in your brain.

    Not to get too technical but Endorphins are created in your pituitary gland and hypothalamus, both located in the brain. Endorphins are a type of neurotransmitter, or messenger in your body. They attach to your brain’s reward centers (opioid receptors) and carry signals across your nervous system which tells the rest of your body you’re happy. Imaging studies suggest that the happiness response originates partly in the limbic cortex. Another area called the precuneus also plays a role.

    Dopamine, serotonin, and oxytocin along with endorphins are the hormones that are responsible for our happiness. Dopamine is the main contributor as it is stimulated by compliments, good decisions and anything that makes you feel good.

    So a song or movie can change your mood or you can just decide to be happy or sad. You can choose to be angry or any of the emotions. Someone can commit an offense against you and instead of being angry, you can choose to be content. You don’t have to respond with anger — that’s just the first choice of your flesh when something happens but like a radio station in the car, you can choose another station when you don’t like the song.

    This process is a higher level of self-control which is possible to achieve. You would be teaching your body how to wait on you for the response instead of selecting the reaction for you. It takes practice but you can do it. One exercise I use to help me in this process is to practice the emotions often when there is no stimulus for them. I can be angry when I want to and I can be happy when I chose to as well and I can feel it in my body.

    The title of this blog simply means that happiness simply requires a cause to be. I keep a happy cause locked and loaded in my mind for when I need a different response to things — all facts, no fluff.

    Give it a try and see if we can make the world a happier place together!!!

  • With liberty and justice for all?

    There are 2.1 million people in prison in America. We have more people incarcerated than any other country in the world. I wonder how the rest of the world interprets that?

    America is definitely a land of many things and our freedoms allow for a person to migrate here and have an unlimited earning potential. But for a place so plentiful, how can we not protect our justice system? Nevermind that we know there are thousands of innocent people there because the system has flaws. African Americans make up 13 percent of the US population but 38 percent of the prison population. There are 4200 people in federal prison right now that are serving life sentences for nonviolent crimes. Think about that.

    Furthermore, the number one reason for incarceration is drugs. This is interesting because when a drug user steals to keep up with a drug habit, they should not be sent to jail but rehabilitation. The war on drugs is responsible for mass incarceration. And it is interesting that none of the drug dealers had boats, planes or any other means of transporting drugs to America.

    Once a person becomes a  felon in America their freedom is pretty much over even if they make it out of jail.  You see, our Christian nations provides no way to be reconciled so you suffer for life. Even when you are out of prison we still have a way to keep you on the crooked path.

    What’s worse is that neither political party has made strides to correct our justice system and since the prisons have been privatized, it would be extremely difficult to fix because that would mean we would be greatly effecting someone’s bottom line.

    It seems that this would be low-hanging fruit for a political candidate but apparently the bribe to keep things the same must be pretty good. I believe the solution is simple: Have 6 months of amnesty with each prosecutor or solicitor because I believe they already know many of the people who are falsely imprisoned or have been sentenced way to long. They would have 6 months to release these people. After six months, a special task force would be deputized to go over the prosecutors work and if they found anyone still falsely imprisoned, the prosecutor would have to replace the prisoner in jail.

    The special task force would be made up of law school graduating classes at various universities. The law department could oversee this venture while the students did the research.

    No one should be in prison for having a drug addiction. They should immediately be taken to rehabilitation. Everyone who has not committed a violent crime and has been incarcerated for at least 5 years should be released.

    All prison sentencing should only carry a maximum sentence of 10 years no matter what you do and anyone who has served 10 years should be released. Being a felon should be a thing of the past and prisons should get their charters to operate based on the percentage of prisoners who are actually rehabilitated.

    If we did these things in 20 years we may not have a need for prisons… or maybe I’m just dreaming!

  • History and truth need validation

    We live in a time that has the phrase “fake news” circulating through our language. Most of our country looks back at history and tries to cover up the wrong doing because of guilt. In fact, the further back we go the worst it gets. Our country is very divided which was the intent of some. We actually have people who are hoping for another civil war. Because of all these things and more, our history needs to be fact checked and validated.

    The greatest reason for this is so that we don’t repeat the mistakes. It’s always difficult to hold someone accountable in their ignorance. And it’s even more tedious to suffer someone through their wrongdoing. It really becomes taxing on everybody because our ignorance and forgetfulness tends to effect us in great numbers.

    Recently, the Queen of England died. She was on the throne for 70 years and whether she was a figure head or not, that monarch has a ton of innocent blood on it’s hands. Colonization of countries was their specialty and to reign over a place that terrorized countries for a living is not fashionable at all. Their entanglement in South Africa, Jamaica, Barbados and other places was absolutely horrible. But I guess if you live long enough people forget. She lost family members recently because they could no longer endure the racism. But I digress.

    America has a reputation for building weapons on mass destruction, incarcerating it’s citizens and racism. The Bill of Rights and freedoms we have on paper are great until they aren’t. Sure there are worse places you could live but measuring and comparing us based on our resources and what’s actually possible for us to do, we are definitely found lacking.

    This is a perfect place to live if you are wealthy — but that’s only one percent. For the rest of the 99 percent we have varying degrees of contentment and down right bankrupt individuals who are barely keeping their head above water. We have been repeating our past and finding better ways to be convert in our repeats. Our problems are systemic and design to maintain the status quo.

    As a country, we need to figure out exactly what we are trying to do and be honest about it. If we really have a plan to continue to disenfranchise citizens then say that. But based on resources, our country could be a place where everyone thrives.

    We need the correct history so that we can be more tolerant of each other. There are way too many injustices to name here but if we really wanted to correct the problems we have to start with admitting the wrong.

    We need a history check and an honest conversation about what type of country we really want to be.

  • Happy appreciation day!

    Only part of the United States participates in this annual ritual known as Sweetest Day and I have been doing it wrong. Whereas Valentines Day is to celebrate romantic love, Sweetest Day is to appreciate all the folks in your life for who they are. Male or female doesn’t matter — it’s just a day of appreciation.

    Granted Hallmark gets excited when in comes around probably more than anyone else but in these tough times it’s good to take a day and evaluate relationships and appreciate them.

    I was reading an article about a woman who dropped her boyfriend off at Kroger and she stayed in the car. While she waited on him she took the opportunity to go through his phone only to discover he may have been having an inappropriate relationship with her sister.

    She was so enraged that she waited for him to come out of the store and she ran him over with the van — seriously injuring him and killing an innocent person walking out behind him. She then, stops the van, gets out and begins to attack her boyfriend while he is lying on the ground wounded.

    It appears as though she snapped and could not bear the information she discovered while invading his privacy. It is unclear if the sister was a minor or not but whatever she found, she was in that moment willing to give up or greatly alter her own life because of it. She, of course, is now facing a ton of charges and if convicted she will get life in prison.

    There are so many things wrong with this scenario. It is for this reason why we need to really evaluate the relationships we have to see if they are for better or for worse. To truly celebrate Sweetest Day we should first purge the toxic relationships and covet the really good ones. So here’s to all of you who are making this life better for others! The world would be nothing without you!

  • Finding YOUR spot in this world

    One of the most fulfilling things in life is to know your place. To know where you fit in life and actually be doing something that builds your self worth is something everyone would want but few actually achieve.

    Opportunity has been covered in red tape and there are so many hoops to jump through that many people give up on chasing their dreams. It is as if our government wanted to keep people from achievement. It seems as if the rich have a hold on making the real money and instead of skill and ingenuity creating opportunities, who you know makes all the difference.

    The decision needs to first be made as to the thing that matters most: To seek fame or fortune; to have influence and power; or to make life easier or better for others. Other decisions like whether or not to go to college, start in the military or learn a trade are key. A person can succeed doing either of the three.

    Then understanding what moves you and what makes you feel alive. I’ve always asked myself the question is it a job that I would do for free. Then finally you have to make it work. And on the way to completing this task you learn many things about who you are and what you are made of. You learn your passions and your fears. You learn how you respond in problem solving and the things that frustrated you the most.

    Above all else you have to master the learning curve to secure your space under the sun. There really is enough world for all of us. You just have to carve out your own slice! Happy cutting!

  • The big Break up

    The Stylistics made the song “Break up to make up” famous! Saying, “First you love me, then you hate me, that’s a game for fools.” Probably the worst thing about breaking up is that in the beginning it leaves you so empty. There is a brand new void that needs to be filled. Some embrace the void as pain that quickly leads to depression. Others look to fill the void immediately often dragging someone new into the picture which isn’t fair to the newcomer.

    What makes relationships so hard is that we all have somewhat of a hidden complex about ourselves. Things like personal quirks that we feel we can’t be honest about. We have feelings we can’t share for fear of being judged. We don’t want anyone to know we’re insecure. Then there are people that are so afraid of being hurt again that they can’t be transparent in a new relationship. There are so many dynamics, but with most of them good communication and honesty fixes most of them.

    Assumptions are another great relationship killer. And mind you these things hurt over time. The first 40 assumptions aren’t enough to kill a relationship. It’s the next 200 of them that does it. Then you start factoring in all the wasted time. All your fears about breaking up come to light and that space you don’t enjoy — the emptiness is surrounding you again.

    Well, if you have ended a relationship recently let’s try to pick up the pieces. First, if you think it’s all your fault — it is! Not ALL because it takes 2 people for a relationship. You definitely need to own a percentage of the break up. But who’s fault it is doesn’t matter now because it’s over … right???

    What matters now is that we learn from what happened and own our dysfunction. Some people enter a relationship still broken from a previous one. You can not give yourself wholly to a person when you are broken. You must heal first. Some people just don’t like to be alone. They jump around from person to person when they really need to get a dog — or some other pet and heal.

    There are also areas that need improvement. All improvements must be made for only one reason — because you want to make them for yourself. If you were informed in a previous relationship that you were selfish, you have to decide if you believe that to be true. Any changes you make has to be because you want it. If not, it will not be genuine.

    Slowing the dating process waaaaaay down is also a must as you must give things time to develop. When you meet a new person you are instantly in discovery mode. Give it time. Before you start making new commitments you must heal from the past and know what characteristics you like before you meet someone and don’t compromise them.

    If you are really looking for a long- term committed relationship, you need to seek spiritual guidance for this is the highest point of mankind’s intellect. Glorify God in every aspect of the relationship and if it ends, you will land on your feet! Now, make sure you take care of yourself physically, mentally and emotionally in order to recover from the break up. Give it time. You will get better!