Interesting Ideas

 

College or what?

I went to college right after high school because my parents wanted me to go...  I did not want to go.  Two and a half years later, I left college and enlisted in the military.  When I left the military, I went back to college because I did not like enlisted life.  Officers had a good life, but enlisted did not.  That sent me back to college.

Throughout my career, I realized that a college degree got me the job, but my job performance was not contingent upon my college degree but upon me achieving outcomes.  Unfortunately, in order to be in a position to achieve outcomes, I had to have a college degree - for white collar jobs.

At the end of my career (45 years later), I realized that I could have had a successful career without a college degree.  And without COLLEGE DEBT.  A college degree was not the only place where good jobs could be found.

The technical trades which can be learned at a trade school or a community college at substantial less money involved provide skills that allow for a successful life...  the tradeoff is that it can be hard on your body.

Managing a restaurant, a retail store, a hotel/motel, or even a resort offers all sorts of advantages for a successful career PROVIDING you are willing to pay your dues for 5-10 years.

My dad had a college degree, and his job was white collar, sitting behind a desk, supervising other administrative people.  He was traveling 6 months out of the year, he worked 12–15-hour days, brought work home on the weekends, and later in life, he had to attend evening activities 3-5 nights a week.

The mental and physical toll on his body was high.

When I went to college in the 1960s, tuition which included meals, dorm room and books was $2,500 each year or $10,000 for four years.  One could cut save $2000 each year by living off campus.  The actual tuition was $500/semester.

The average price for college is $35,000 each year.  If that money is borrowed, then college graduates will be working for 10-20 years just to pay off their college debt.

Most people work in order to have some sort of retirement account plus social security plus savings when they retire, even though they don't really think about retirement until they are in their 60s.

If you save $2.50/day and at the end of the month put that money into a mutual fund and leave it there for 40 years continually adding each month...  at the end of 40 years, you will have $500,000.  If you start at 20, you will have this money at 60.  If you and your spouse do this, you will have one million dollars.

Pressure to have a white-collar job will no longer be that great on you.

Even if you have a college degree in order to get the large salaries, you will need to move up north.  You will almost never get a good return on your college investment if you remain in the south to work.  The money just isn't there...  in general, but it is possible after 20-30 years if you want to wait that long.

There are so many people now that are going after a college degree that there are simply not enough jobs for college graduates and many graduates are working as waiters and waitresses while they hunt for jobs.

REMEMBER:  It's your life not your parent's life...

 

Somewhat Political

 

Y Chromosome Vanishing

The sex of human and other mammal babies is decided by a male-determining gene on the Y chromosome. But the human Y chromosome is degenerating and may disappear in a few million years, leading to our extinction unless we evolve a new sex gene.

The good news is two branches of rodents have already lost their Y chromosome and have lived to tell the tale.  A 2022 paper in Proceedings of the National Academy of Science shows how the spiny rat has evolved a new male-determining gene.

How the Y chromosome determines human sex
In humans, as in other mammals, females have two X chromosomes and males have a single X and a puny little chromosome called Y. The names have nothing to do with their shape; the X stood for 'unknown'.

The X contains about 900 genes that do all sorts of jobs unrelated to sex. But the Y contains few genes (about 55) and a lot of non-coding DNA – simple repetitive DNA that doesn't seem to do anything. But the Y chromosome packs a punch because it contains an all-important gene that kick-starts male development in the embryo.

At about 12 weeks after conception, this master gene switches on others that regulate the development of a testis. The embryonic testis makes male hormones (testosterone and its derivatives), which ensures the baby develops as a boy.


This master sex gene was identified as SRY (sex region on the Y) in 1990. It works by triggering a genetic pathway starting with a gene called SOX9 which is key for male determination in all vertebrates, although it does not lie on sex chromosomes.         READ MORE...

Led Zeppelin - Going To California (Live at Earls Court 1975) [Official ...

Owning a Home

 

I purchased my first house in 1975 for a little over $50,000; it was a ranch style home with three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a carport, an acre and a half of land, nestled safely inside about ten oak trees.  I purchased 10 additional acres of land behind it.  I had an annual salary of $12,000 and my wife's salary was right around $8,000.

We sold that house for $40,000 profit that was split between my wife and I due to a divorce after twenty years of ownership.

In 1993, using that profit from my first house, I purchased another house in another state for a little over $100,000.  Collectively, my second wife and I put down $40,000 and borrowed the rest.

Since that time, I have owned five other houses, all of which were more expensive than the previous one, and all of which a nice little profit had been made.  When my last house was sold, I made more profit that the cost of my first house which took into consideration inflation and cost of improvements.  An increasing real estate market helped make that happen as well.

Twenty years ago, my second wife and I became debt free and that made a difference in profit realization as well.  Consequently, I have encouraged couples to become debt free.

I have owned homes in good times as well as in bad times; I have purchased homes when employed as well as when unemployed.

HOW DID I DO THAT?

In 1993, I created a small business that I incorporated with the help of a lawyer ($500 fee) and since then I have used that company to flow my revenue through (both salary and consulting fees).  I pay corporate income taxes as a sub chapter S Corp and file quarterly statements as well as an annual report as is required by law.  My CPA fees are about $1500 each year - but I have never had to pay taxes because there has always been a loss.

During times when I am unemployed, I use my company's tax records to buy a home.  All of this is perfectly legal.

In 2015, I dissolved my company and started paying taxes again but never have I gone over $1500...

So...  for twenty-two years, I legally avoided paying taxes to the IRS...

If I had of paid taxes, it would have been much more than the $1500 I paid my CPA.

HOW DID I LEARN THIS?

I discovered this possibility in 1979 when I attended the Babcock Graduate School at Wake Forest University to get my MBA.

MC Escher Drawing

 

What Color is the Circle?

 

Misinformation and Disinformation

 

At one point in time, conservatives had to worry about CENSORSHIP from the liberal controlled news media outlets, now these same outlets are passing along information that is not true, or they are making the claim that the conservatives are passing along information that is not true.

China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, as well as many other countries (Socialistic, Communistic, or Dictatorships) regularly use censorship, misinformation, and/or disinformation to control the behaviors of their own citizens...  fearing that the truth might cause a revolution and overthrow of the government.

It is totally unexpected from this type of activity to become prevalent in the USA...

Yes, the USA has its Constitution and Bill of Rights, but I am confident that our Founding Fathers never envisioned that the actual truth might one day be kept away from the public...

If you do not believe this could happen in the USA, has happened, or will happen, then think about our GOVERNMENT finally admitting that there are UFOs flying around and the possibility that extraterrestrials are more than likely flying those UFOs.

If they kept that information from the public then certainly censorship, misinformation, and disinformation is not beneath their level of credibility, honor, honesty, and integrity.

Pretty soon, the liberals who are pushing the false narrative, will not know what the REAL TRUTH is or is not because they too will be confused.

Are you smart and clever enough to take matters into your own hands and find out if the news you are hearing or reading about is false or true?

My guess is that you have no desire to mess with that kind of nonsense as long as your lifestyle is not infringed upon.  There is no good reason not for us to live with LIES.

• ALCOHOL
• CIGARETTES
• MARIJUANA
• SEX
• DANCING and FISHING and a little HUNTING is all any American really needs.

"F" the TRUTH!!!

In The NEWS

Sports, Entertainment, & Culture
> The 2024 Paris Paralympics competitions kick off, including cycling, swimming, table tennis, and Taekwondo (More) | See latest medal tracker (More)

> The Cure to release two new songs on "eco-vinyl" made from sustainable material, the first new music from the iconic English rock band in 16 years (More)

> Steph Curry signs one-year, $62.6M extension with the Golden State Warriors, on track to make him the third NBA player to pass $500M in career earnings (More) | 2024-25 UEFA Champions League groupings for "league phase" set; see full schedule for the new 36-team format (More)


Science & Technology
> Brain study finds the prefrontal cortex—the region responsible for decision-making and other executive functions—is also the first to show age-related deterioration (More) | Why is the prefrontal cortex special? (More)

> Shoebox-sized telescope goes online after being launched into orbit via a SpaceX satellite; device was made for under $1M and was designed and developed in under one year (More)

> Decadelong study shows vultures form fewer social bonds as they age; findings, expected to aid conservation efforts, support theory animals become more ingrained in habits and social circles over time (More)


Business & Markets
> US stock markets close mixed (S&P 500 -0.0%, Dow +0.6%, Nasdaq -0.2%); Dow notches record close (More) | US economy grew 3% year-over-year from April through June, faster than preliminary assessment of 2.8% (More)

> Dollar General shares close down 32%—its largest single-day drop on record—after retailer reports lower-than-expected Q2 results, slashes full-year guidance (More) | Affirm shares close up 32% in biggest rally in three years, a day after "buy now, pay later" fintech company beats Wall Street expectations (More)

> US pending home sales index falls 5.5% year-over-year in July to lowest level since records began in 2001 (More) | US average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage falls to lowest level since May 2023 at 6.35% (More)


Politics & World Affairs
> Vice President Kamala Harris, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) sit down for first joint interview on CNN; see takeaways (More) | Staffer of former President Donald Trump, Arlington National Cemetery employee reportedly clash in altercation after employee tries to stop Trump campaign from filming on the grounds (More)

> Israel says its forces killed local commander of Iran-backed Islamic Jihad group, four other militants in second day of West Bank raids (More) | Israel, Hamas agree to zoned three-day pauses in fighting in Gaza to allow for polio vaccines (More)

> Justice Department watchdog finds FBI mishandled child sexual abuse cases, including failing to comply with mandatory reporting requirements in roughly half of cases examined (More) | View findings (More, click "Read Report" for PDF)

SOURCE:  1440 NEWS

END OF AUGUST

 

Hard to believe that this is the last day of August 2024...

They say time flies by when you're having fun, and I suppose they are true...  even though I have no idea who they are or are not for that matter.

The end of August, means different things to different people but for me, it used to symbolize the end of the summer...

End of the summer 

• As a child that was traumatic because it meant returning to school and to what I considered to be boring education.
• Back in the 1950s and early 1960s, there was no such thing as gifted and talented programs for intellectually advanced students; consequently, they had to remained bored all day long because education did not challenge them.
• Nor did education and its teachers experiment with different learning styles.
• If teachers did not use the style that was conducive to your learning, then you were simply SOL.

As I got older, the end of August meant very little to me other than it was just another month that had passed me by that I would fortunately never see again.

The passing of time means AGING to most of us and for some of us that aging process is not that easy to tolerate.

END OF AUGUST - partial list

1. end of summer
2. end of family vacations
3. students back in school
4. workforce is 100%
5. less traffic
6. back to school expenses
7. volunteering at school
8. college football
9. fall leaves and weather
10. flu season
11. cold weather around the corner
12. close to thanksgiving
13. close to Christmas
14. New Year's Eve

It is true that August is a symbolic month for most of us while for many of us, it is still just another month.  If it is symbolic, those symbols may change with age.  If it is not symbolic, we are still going to age.

Whatever August 2024 may mean or not mean to you, tomorrow, it will never be seen again.

Somewhat Political

 

Nanoscale Imaging Capabilities

Dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP) has revolutionized the field of nanoscale nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), making it possible to study a wider range of materials, biomolecules and complex dynamic processes such as how proteins fold and change shape inside a cell.

A team of researchers at the University of Waterloo are combining pulsed DNP with nanoscale magnetic resonance force microscopy (MRFM) measurements to demonstrate that this process can be implemented on the nanoscale with high efficiency. The effort is overseen by Dr. Raffi Budakian, faculty member of the Institute for Quantum Computing and a professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy, and his team consisting of Sahand Tabatabaei, Pritam Priyadarshi , Namanish Singh, Pardis Sahafi, and Dr. Daniel Tay.

"Large-Enhancement Nanoscale Dynamic Nuclear Polarization Near a Silicon Nanowire Surface" was published in Science Advances on Wednesday, August 21.          READ MORE...

miriam makeba, Zimbabwe concert (paul simon - graceland land

Today's Drivers

 

Have you ever noticed how most of today's drivers, regardless of age, are simply RUDE?

I'm not talking about driving fast... everyone drives fast these days - speed limit signs don't mean jack shit anymore.

But before I get into that, let me share something that has bothered me for a long time...

PICKUP TRUCKS

Small Toyota type trucks are ok, but most of these trucks are large, jacked up, and you cannot see around them.  The only way is to drive in another lane, if there is one.  Most of these trucks don't use their turn signals, so they immediately change lanes to get around an obstacle, leaving the driver behind forced to slam on the brakes.

And this brings me to my first point. Driving too close.  Most drivers today want to ride the bumper of the car in front of them.  Not sure why they do that unless they are trying to pretend, they are NASCAR drivers.

Sometimes when they do that to me, I slow down or apply the brakes just to get them to back off.

But the behavior that really gets me going is driving fast in the lane on your left, so that they can get in front of you to EXIT the highway.

The most sensible action is to slow down and pull in behind me when they need to exit to the right off the highway.  

It makes me wonder if they ever had a driving class.

The second issue that gets me going, is cars that pull out in front of you from a sideroad, knowing that they do not have enough space in front of you to do that, forcing you to slam on the brakes or change lanes if you can.

I am not the only one who complains of these driving behaviors which makes me feel a little better...

Mesmerizing

 

An MC Escher Drawing

Government Healthcare

 

On the surface, it sounds like government healthcare might the best thing since sliced bread...  mainly because EVERYONE and I mean literally EVERYONE would finally have access to healthcare.

That seems like a good thing...  at least from the POV of American citizens and possibly ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS.

However, it has been my experience that anything the government becomes involved in, turns into a disaster because of mismanagement, poorly trained and motivated workers.

Unlike private enterprise, the government will put a cap on wages and salaries and that will force many of the competent and skilled doctors and nurses to find alternate employment.

Consequently, we will be left with bottom of the barrel medical personnel.  Let me put it this way...  the student(s) that make the WORST GRADES in medical school are still caused DOCTORS when they graduate.  No doubt you have experienced some of the poorly educated doctors.

Not only will the quality of medical personnel decrease, the waiting time for medical services, procedures, and surgeries in increase in waiting time.

I am reminded of a story of a 84-year-old drywall worker from Marion, VA who went to the bigger city of Wytheville, VA for medical treatment for his bladder.  After waiting in the ER for over 12 hours in pain, the young doctor finally arrived and because of his inexperience and potential legal liability refused to do the necessary surgery, referring him to another specialist in Greensboro, NC about two hours away.

While this is a small-town example, it accurately reflects what will happen with government healthcare.

Other examples are the government-controlled healthcare systems of Great Britain and Canada.  While the UK's system seems to be the best of the two, many patients from both those countries are willing to pay the cost to come to the USA for their serious healthcare issues.

Why do you think that is happening?

More than likely, it is because the USA has better physicians, and surgeons.

We have better physicians and surgeons because we have private healthcare.

It has always been a difficult decision of whether or not to have government healthcare.

Obamacare was one attempt to make that happen and there have been all sorts of negative issues as that program was implemented.

I pay $6,000/year for my healthcare which includes both government and private services (Medicare and a private supplement).  The annual costs of all my medical treatment are about $400,000 to $500,000.  I am being treated by some of the best most skilled doctors in the country.

I would lose all of that if we instituted a pure government healthcare system.

Questions and Answers

 

Life always has me wondering over questions few people want to know the answers or even care about.

Why was the human race even created or was it simply an unintended consequence of the creation of the universe and natural evolution?

In pursuit of the answers to this question, I have discovered that some scientists believe our evolution happened too quickly; therefore, they believe someone, or something tampered with our DNA to expedite the evolutionary process.

Who could that have been?

Some believe it was an extraterrestrial better known as our RELIGIOUS GOD.

I understand that this does not coincide with our religious teachings but since JESUS himself admitted to Pilot that his kingdom was not of this world, that statement alone has gotten many of us wondering where the Kingdom of Jesus is?

Is this kingdom in:

• our solar system
• our galaxy
• a nearby galaxy
• a distant galaxy

As you are no doubt well aware, the Bible does not give us any indication of where this kingdom (possibly heaven) is located...

WHY NOT?

• Surely God realizes that one day MANKIND is going to evolve to the point that they will start asking questions like this.
• Surely God realizes that one day SCIENCE is going to evolve to the point where they will begin questioning God's existence.

I am fully aware that many people believe in RELIGION regardless of whether or not there is any credibility to that belief...  as if belief is the sole purpose of life...

IS THIS WHY our world has so many different kinds of religions and belief systems that we refer to as mythologies or philosophies?

Currently, there are literally hundreds of different philosophies/religions in the world with the MAJOR ONES, numbering twelve.

I also find that to be somewhat of a coincidence.

• 12 months
• 12 zodiac signs
• 12 disciples
• 12 stations of the sun/moon
• 12 Greek gods
• 12 is considered cosmic order
• 12 hours in a day
• 12 members of a jury
• 12 northern/southern stars

It is fine not to question.  I am not saying that everyone should question, only that I question and just wanted to share a couple of my questions.

Insecurities