Muppet Show

 

Sunday Afternoon No Apologies Day

For my entire life, I have always had to make apologies to someone that I have offended because my thruths were too blunt for their sensitive ears...  odd when one thinks about it...  isn't it...  how someone does not want to hear the truth...  and, I am reminded of the phrase...                                                    "the truth will set you free but first it will piss you off..."                                                and, I suppose that is what happened to them...  they were set free by me...

I have my own truths with which to deal that are hardly ever very pleasant for me to hear but I hear them nonetheless and am amazed by their forthrightness and in the way they humble my soul and the spirit that serves it...

We are creatures of our our devices some of which are not deserved for others and some of which are deserved for everyone...  and, it is these truths that one is reluctant to hear...  so, I apologize not for what I say nor do I apologize for what I do or what I might think...  as it is my right to be like this and have no friends at all...  few to none is better than having many insincere ones...

I am elated that I no longer have to go to work and put up with the bullshit that comes out of the mouths of bosses who typically have their heads so far up their asses that they need glasses bellybuttons out of which to see...  imagine that???  

I have had many bosses who have been like that...  and, I suppose that when I was a boss, I was like that too...  as it is typical for bosses to be assholes because that is simply what they do...  they cannot please everyone...  they cannot give special favors...  and, they must never be your friends...  as that is the first level of putting one's self in a position to get sued.

Lawyers love asshole bosses as this is how they make their living, suing others as often as possible and taking a 20% commission for their services...  because it seems that someone only like that, has the authority to speak in a court of law unless you have been invited to the witness stand and then someone else is going to try and ground your ass into the ground to show that the are smarer...

Mother-in-laws and lawyers are necessary evils that make our little world revolves and which help us pass the the time of day along to someone who gives a shit about it all...  because I have seen very few of them around lately...

I am not the last person on earth to think this way...

Map of Consciousness

 

Politics

Well...

 Prove It...

I was raised Methodist, attended Episcopal and Baptist for a while but then decided that my faith was more spiritual than institutional and decided I needed to teach myself a thing or two...  so, I read the Bible (cover-to-cover) taking notes and writing down questions... and discovered there was a lot of information that these religious institutions were omitting...  at least not wanting to share with their congregations.

As part of my spiritual journey, I discovered that there were 12 major religions in the world today, so I decided to learn a little bit about each one of them...  I also read the mythologies of countries all over the world, most of which formed the basis for their religious beliefs.

In all these religions and mythologies, I found similarities about:

• Creation
• God/gods
• Heaven/Hell
• Life After Death
• A Great Flood
• Virgin Birth
• Death of Savior
• Teaching Mankind

So... which religion is correct?

Or...  are all of them correct?

Could God have given them a slightly different story based upon their location and circumstances?

As my self-education continued, I became involved with astronomy, cosmology, theoretical physics, quantum mechanics, string theory, and Stephen Hawking's theory of Spontaneous Creation...  all of which underscored the overwhelming magic of our universe and how it it practically impossible for this type of detail to have arisen out of random chaos brought about by expansion from a big bang.

Since, I was not finding anything substantial on which to hang my spiritual beliefs, I got involved with a program entitled ANCIENT ALIENS...  and, the more I watched that show, the more everything about which I was thinking made sense...

There is a God...  and, there were gods...  all of whom were extraterrestrials from another planet in another solar system in another galaxy and quite possibly from another dimention or even a parallel universe...  we are not alone...  and, when they came to visit us, and supply us with knowledge to grow our civilizations we began to think of them as a God or many gods...

Mankind is THEIR CREATION...  we are even perhaps created or genetically modified in their image...  these aliens or extraterrestrials altered our DNA to push us quicker along our evolutionary path...  they gave some of us knowledge in the hopes that it would be shared with others like:  Einstein, Tesla, DaVinci, Von Braun, and Turing among others who had knowledge ahead of their time.

What really strikes me and sometimes causes chills to race inside me is when I think about what Jesus said to Pilot:  "My Kingdom is not of this world."  How profound is this?  Obviously, the world about which he was speaking was EARTH...  so where is his kingdom?  

• Another Planet?  
• Another Solar System?  
• Another Galaxy?  
• Another Dimension?  
• Another Universe?

Why haven't any of our ministers, priests, pastors, or other members of the clergy explained this kingdom of his in terms that made some kind of logical sense other than saving, he was talking about heaven...?

Don't they owe us that much courtesy?

SO...  my faith is based upon my spiritual journey that continues everyday as I search for more clues as to what is really going on...

AND...  one final thought to leave you with...

if we were created on this planet called earth thousands of years ago, why hasn't our eyes adjusted to the sun because many of us still have to wear sunglasses outside when the sun is shining...  and, why hasn't our skin adjusted either because if we are out in the sun too long without protection, we get sunburn...  don't you think evolution would have caused our bodies to adjust to this sun by now?

Plan Your Life

If I were to advise someone in high school what to do with their lives, I think this is what I would tell them...  

First, learn what you can in high school but have fun as well.

Second, join the Air Force after graduation and as soon as you can after you become designated with a skill, start taking college classes...

NOTE:  If you are in the Air Force, your likelihood of being sent to any war zone is next to nothing

Third, plan on remaining in the Air Force for 20-24 years...

Fourth, plan to have received a BA and MA degrees (perferrably in Education) by the time you leave the Air Force.

NOTE:  if you are 18 years of age when you graduate from high school, you will be only 38 years old after serving 20 years or 42 if you stay for 24 years.

Fifth, relocate in a Southern State and try to find employment at a Community College while you pursue a PhD in  Education.

NOTE:  Plan to work at this Community College for another 20 years or until you are 67 years old and can return with full Social Security Benefits.

So, you are now 67/70 years old and you are living in the South where is cos of living is lower than most other State and you are receiving 3 sources of retirement income:

• 20+ years from military
• 20+ years from Community College
• Full Benefits from Social Security (because you worked 40 quarters or 10 years that your paid FICA)

So...  let's just say that you are going to receive $1,500 each month from each one of those...  that will give you a retirement income of $4,500 each month for the rest of your life...  this does not include possible income from your spouse if you decide to get married.

HERE's another idea...

If you save $2.50/day and at the end of each month you put that money into a Mutual Fund...  and, if you do this for 40 years...  at the end of those 40 years you will have $500,000 that will give you a monthly income of $2,000/month for the rest of your life.

If you were to do the Air Force/Community College life plus the Mutual Fund savings, when you retired you would have an income of $6,500 each month.

The key is to plan out your life and then spend the rest of your life executing your plan...  Once you have developed a plan, you will have plenty of time to enjoy life along the way...

DOJA Cat

 

Did You Know?

 

Snakes Arriving

FIVE (5) THINGS IN YOUR YARD THAT ARE ATTRACTING SNAKES

Whether it's the eye-catching plants and shrubs, striking lighting, or the right kind of subtle decor, putting certain items into your yard can draw the right kind of attention to your property. Unfortunately, there are also some items that could be rolling out a welcome mat for unwanted guests of the slithering variety. If you're looking to avoid bringing more snakes close to your home, there are a few things you need to remove from your yard immediately. Read on to see what surprising items could be serpent magnets.

1.  Tire swings

Tire swings are a simple, timeless joy that are as easy to set up as they are to have fun with. But the seemingly harmless play feature can also be attracting snakes to your yard by collecting rain and offering them a steady water source that will keep them hydrated.

Experts warn that tire swings, slides, and other toys that lie low to the ground can potentially serve as a watering trough for serpents. If you're not ready to part ways with your playground, consider drilling small holes in the bottom of the tire that will allow it to drain and stop rainwater from pooling up.  TO FIND OUT WHAT THE OTHER 4 ATTRACTIONS ARE...  CLICK HERE...

Classic Sunday Newspaper Cartoon

 

FEAR

Our Going Back Economy

It is nearly half a century since the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries imposed an oil embargo on America, turning a modest inflation problem into a protracted bout of soaring prices and economic misery. But the stagflation of the 1970s is back on economists’ minds today, as they confront strengthening inflation and disappointing economic activity. 

The voices warning of unsettling echoes with the past are influential ones, including Larry Summers and Kenneth Rogoff of Harvard University and Mohamed El-Erian of Cambridge University and previously of pimco, a bond-fund manager.

Sink Bird

 

Iran's Nuclear Program

AN OPINION BY Abu Yehuda...

Recently I have been hearing that Israel can’t stop Iran’s nuclear program, and America is our only hope. 

For example, here is Daniel Gordis:

[Former PM Ehud] Barak wrote that Israel no longer has a viable military option for preventing Iran from crossing the nuclear threshold, and that the Mullahs are marching steadily forward on their quest. Israel needs the US to develop military plans to stop Iran (Barak said that not only does the US have no such plans, it also has no interest in developing them); furthermore, he said, Israel is going to have to recognize its increased dependence on the US, and to work hard to deepen its ties to America.

But Barak does not draw the appropriate conclusion from the facts that he presents, and neither does Gordis, who thinks that Israel must “mend fences with American Jews” to help influence the US “to do the right thing” and act against Iran. Barak’s argument (Hebrew link) actually implies that we cannot depend on America.

Barak wrote that Iran’s “breakout time” – the time it will take to produce enough enriched uranium for a bomb once Iran has decided to do so – has been reduced to about 30 days. Of course there are other technological hurdles to pass before that uranium can be made into a deliverable weapon, but still, Israel’s moment of decision is closer than ever.

There is a lot of discussion of whose fault this is, with Barak and others placing the blame on Netanyahu and Trump. I don’t want to expend too many words on this, but I disagree. Trump is accused of precipitously ending the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran (with Netanyahu’s encouragement), which allowed the Iranians to increase their uranium enrichment activities significantly. But Iran was already violating the too-weak deal, and Trump’s policy of “maximum pressure” – both economic and covert, as in the assassination of Qassem Soleimani – was causing the regime great distress. The policy’s failure was assured by its early termination: Trump was not reelected, and Biden chose to scrap it. But it doesn’t matter who’s to blame; the question is what to do about it.  TO READ MORE OF THIS OPINION, CLICK HERE...

Megan

 

Back Porch Pondering

 

This morning, like always, I was tuned in to FOX NEWS on HULU (I no longer have cable) and heard that the mayor of NYC before he leaves office has done away with the GIFTED AND TALENTED PROGRAM for public school children stating the following:  "IF ALL OF US CANNOT BE GIFTED AND TALENTED THEN NONE OF US WILL BE GIFTED AND TALENTED..."

Personally, I think this is the DUMBEST comment I have ever heard coming out of the mouth of a politician...  however, I would have expected this to have been voiced by bartender now Congresswoman AOC...

We want all our students to be MEDIOCRE...  no one should be stupid and no one should be smart...

HEY THERE MR POLITICIAN...  what about the STEM program?

Do you want to do away with that as well because only a few excel in those four areas?

AND...  while we are at it...  why not apply this same concept in sports, making sure we have no players that are any better than the average player...  boy, will that look good in professional sports...

WE ARE NOT EQUAL AND WE NEVER WILL BE EQUAL NO MATTER HOW HARD WE WANT IT TO BE SO...

Fact Checkers

Just a LIttle White Lie

Being Blessed

Money... Money... Money...