Freedom

 

Who You Were Meant To Be

 Are you too FAT?

Are you too THIN?

Are you too BLACK?

Are you too WHITE?

Are you too STUPID?

Are you too SMART?

Are you too TALL?

Are you too SHORT?

Are you too RICH?

Are you too POOR?

Are you too AGGRESSIVE?

Are you too WITHDRAWN?

Are you too OUTSPOKEN?

Are you too SHY?

Are you too LIBERAL?

Are you too CONSERVATIVE?

Are you too Northern?

Are you too SOUTHERN?

Are you too EASTERN?

Are you too WESTERN?

Why are you trying to be something that you are not?

YOU ARE WHO YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO BE...  nothing more...  and, certainly nothing less...

BUT ABOVE ALL ELSE...  you are an AMERICAN...  a citizen of the U.S.A.

• Not an European
• Not a Russian
• Not a Chinese
• Not a North Korean
• Not a Japanese
• Not an African
• Not a Mexican
• Not a Brazilian
• Not an Egyptian
• Not a Middle eastern

You are protected by all the FREEDOMS that Americans have...

You are protected by the RIGHTS all Americans have...

You are protected by the JUSTICE all Americans have...

You are protected with:

• Life
• Liberty
• Pursuit of happiness

no other country in the entire world has what americans have...  you should never forget that...

Young and ARMED

Overlooked Matrix Themes

The Matrix is a 1999 American science fiction action film written and directed by the Wachowskis.  It depicts a dystopian future in which humanity is unknowingly trapped inside a simulated reality, the Matrix, created by intelligent machines to distract humans while using their bodies as an energy source.  When computer programmer Thomas Anderson, under the hacker alias "Neo", uncovers the truth, he "is drawn into a rebellion against the machines" along with other people who have been freed from the Matrix.

The Matrix is an example of the cyberpunk subgenre of science fiction.  The Wachowskis' approach to action scenes was influenced by Japanese animation and martial arts films, and the film's use of fight choreographers and wire fu techniques from Hong Kong action cinema influenced subsequent Hollywood action film productions. 

The film popularized a visual effect known as "bullet time", in which the heightened perception of certain characters is represented by allowing the action within a shot to progress in slow-motion while the camera appears to move through the scene at normal speed, allowing the sped-up movements of certain characters to be perceived normally

THEMES:

1. Freedom
2. Free Will
3. Positive Thinking
4. Belief in One's self
5. God as the Matrix Architect
6. Oracle as the intuitive soul
7. Neo as savior Jesus

The special effects of the trilogy of movies overshadowed most of the themes that the movies could have explored but did not, leaving the viewers to simply be amused and amazed and if thoughtful enough explore the deeper meanings that the movie was also trying to convey.  These themes were lost and we as an audience collectively abandoned all of the controversial themes in lieu of being entertained.

Taking For Granted

The meaning of FREEDOM

the power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint.

and,

absence of subjection to foreign domination or despotic government.

and,

the state of not being imprisoned or enslaved.

RIOTING and VIOLENCE Will Not Stop Police Racism

I am not a law enforcement officer nor do I have any experience in law enforcement other than arranging a several law enforcement classes when working in Continuing Education at a North Carolina Community College...

I am not a Psychologist or a Psychiatrists nor do I have any experience in either one of those fields other than the PSYCH courses I took in College to fulfill graduation requirements, learning just enough to make myself dangerous in those fields.

BUT...  common sense, logic, and experience tell me that RACISM is damn near impossible to eliminate or prevent when individual need someone to blame or someone to hate.  AND, just because you are in law enforcement does not mean that you are no longer racist.  It just means that you need to put forth more of an effort to hide it.

Part of our justification for our racism can be found in our Democracy and First Amendment Rights...  believe it or not, these two concepts allow a lot to take place in America from which there are always UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES.

Our Democratic Freedoms can/could cause: 
SOCIAL UNREST
SOCIALISM TO TAKE ROOT
CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE
PANDEMIC TO FLOURISH
ECONOMIC GREED
INCOME INEQUALITY TO EXIST
INEQUALITY OF ALL SORTS

Home Sweet Home

Staying-at-home has been a problem for most Americans who relish the idea of FREEDOM more than they relish the idea of their own/others health.  While I am a HUGE proponent of FREEDOM, I am not yet willing to RISK my own HEALTH in order to receive the FREEDOM that most of us took for granted before it was taken away.


I am reminded of Janis Joplin and the song Me and Bobby McGee

Lyrics

Busted flat in Baton Rouge, waitin' for a train
And I's feelin' near as faded as my jeans
Bobby thumbed a diesel down, just before it rained
It rode us all the way to New Orleans

I pulled my harpoon out of my dirty red bandanna
I was playin' soft while Bobby sang the blues, yeah
Windshield wipers slappin' time, I was holdin' Bobby's hand in mine
We sang every song that driver knew

Freedom's just another word for nothin' left to lose
Nothin', don't mean nothin' hon' if it ain't free, no no
And, feelin' good was easy, Lord, when he sang the blues
You know, feelin' good was good enough for me

Good enough for me and my Bobby McGee
From the Kentucky coal mine to the California sun
There Bobby shared the secrets of my soul
Through all kinds of weather, through everything we done

Yeah, Bobby baby kept me from the cold
One day up near Salinas, Lord, I let him slip away
He's lookin' for that home, and I hope he finds it
But, I'd trade all of my tomorrows, for a single yesterday

To be holdin' Bobby's body next to mine6
Freedom's just another word for nothin' left to lose
Nothin', that's all that Bobby left me, yeah
But, feelin' good was easy, Lord, when he sang the blues

Hey, feelin' good was good enough for me, mm-hmm
Good enough for me and my Bobby McGee
La da da
La da da da

Is COVID-19 causing us to lose our common sense because we cannot bear to lose the freedom of not being able to go where we want to when we want to, putting our own health and the health of others at risk in the process.  For some of us, COVID-19 could end of lives if we don't stay at home and for others, not staying at home could cause future quarantines and future loss of employment because we did not exercise common sense...

Personally, I am not willing to take that RISK and am perfectly willing to stay at home as long as it takes to guarantee my life.  It is simply not worth the RISK.

Hump Day

Here in the Valley, social distancing is not really being followed when people are out and about, and every time my wife needs to go out for groceries, like Walmart, she notices that no one is wearing face masks...

Of course, there is less than 25 people in our area that have been diagnosed with COVID-19 and only 7/8 deaths so far, giving rise to a lack of concern among the local residents here; but, to me that is a stupid way to behave.

People like me, who have a low or no immunity, MUST follow the social distancing guidelines or else face a high probability that we will catch COVID-19 and possibly die.

As always, I spend most of the morning watching FOX News...  and, the reason why I watch this cable channel is because I have previously watched:  CNN, CBS, NBC, ABC and what I have discovered is that ALL OF THESE NEWS ORGANIZATIONS distort the truth against President Trump and/or they simply do not broadcast those stories that FAVORS President Trump...

Why is this important to me?

FIRST AND FOREMOST, I did not vote for candidate Donald Trump.

Second, I am a Conservative Liberal and as a result am a SEEKER OF THE TRUTH...  regardless of whether the truth agrees with my personal political beliefs or not.

THIRD and equally as important as my FIRST AND FOREMOST is the fact that no matter what President Trump does or says, the Democrats and mainstream media are against him.  This is a fundamental problem for our DEMOCRACY, not to mention the concept that it is ethically wrong, morally wrong, and a complete loss of integrity which is the heart and soul of the American Mindset in my opinion.

If this philosophy continues, we will most certainly lose our FREEDOM...

POWER... WEALTH... INFLUENCE

IN MOST COUNTRIES...  the freedoms that Americans take-for-granted do not exist in other countries...  and for that, we should consider ourselves lucky...  but, therein lies the problem because most Americans make no considerations at all in this regard; instead, they are controlled and ultimately influenced by those who have POWER and/or WEALTH.

• 20% of Americans are wealthy
• 60% of Americans are average
• 20% of Americans are poor

Then we have,
1% of the whole are extremely wealthy
while
1% of the whole are extremely poor

STATISTICALLY, we have a perfect bell-shaped curve...

On the far left-hand side of our diagram are the 1% wealthy whereas the 1% poor are on the far right-hand side.  On either side of the middle "-2 to +2" we will find the 60%.  From the center to the right, wealth gradually increases and to the right, wealth gradually decreases.

From the model, we can also conclude that WEALTH, POWER, INFLUENCE gradually increase from the center out to the left and gradually decrease from the center out to the right.

ALL AMERICANS BELIEVE VERY STRONGLY...  that they have free will and make their own choices...  but, that is simply not true...  If you don't have wealth and power, then your free will and choices are influenced and controlled by those who do have wealth and power.

However...  and, this is your right, you may not believe this to be true, especially since everyone makes choices all the time some of which influence one's life and one's life direction substantially; but, those choices are still influenced indirectly by wealth and power whether you realize it or not.

You drive the speed limit when there is a cop in sight...  that is power
You pay your taxes each year...  that is power
You receive a salary from your employer...  that is wealth and power
You are regulated by medicine...  that is wealth and power
You do what your supervisor tells you to do...  that is power
You obey the lifeguard at the beach...  that is power
You are quiet in Church...  that is power
You make monthly debt payments...  that is wealth and power
You control the choices your children make...  that is power