Americanism

It is important for the survival of the nation envisioned by the Founding Fathers is the return to an old national awareness. Americanism is the idea that all individuals become independent and self-sufficient without any support from the government. The early colonists worked hard to stand alone, yet part of their communities. Each colonist did not require assistance from the colonial government. If a colonist needed assistance it was provided from the members of the community and not by the colonial government. Furthermore, the required assistance was temporary. Charity was accepted only temporarily and after all other personal needs exhausted. After the United States was formed and the westward expansion began, the tradition of self-reliance was continued.

Beginning in the mid-19th Century, the form of self-reliance began to fade. By the turn of the 20th Century, communism began to take a foothold as nations fell under it's power. Citizens were no longer able to be self-reliant and were forced to depend on the State. This loss of self-reliance in the United States started with Social Security as part of Roosevelt's New Deal. A new class of citizen developed in the United States that became more dependent on the State and less self-reliance. Now, citizens have becomes dependant on State housing, State food programs and State health care. They have become unable to rely on themselves for subsistence.

There is no denying that some citizens are unable to work for whatever reason. That is understood. Unless they are completely unable to earn a living and have no family to take care of them, then they should be provided with some assistence. Almost every one can work, even those who are disabled, with some exceptions. The Lighthouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired is an example of people with a disability being self-reliant. There is work that can be done.

Americanism brings about a social change so that each individual is responsible for themselves without government support. Americans used to pride themselves for being able to work and be self-reliant. We need to return to that ideal.

Airlines could save us money

If you have been to an airport recently, were you able to see some outlandish color schemes used by some airlines? I created the montage below to provide a few examples.

A 747 requires 90 gallons (at around $250/gallon I might add) paint that weigh nearly 600 lbs. Each layer of additional paint adds more weight and lessens the fuel economy. This is carried over to the customer in ticket prices. The overall price per ticket per passenger over the life-time of the paint maybe small. Better fuel economy and less paint cost could save the ticket holder from paying for an extra carry-on or ticket reduction.

I am sure that the paint schemes lend to brand recognition. You will never hear someone at an airport say, "I want to fly the pretty pink one." Most people don't care what color the plane is as long as the ticket price is competitive and the airline has excellent safety record. I'll take a plain, white bird over a pink one any day as long as I get to where I am going.

Bullying, A Social Failure

We teach out kids to be polite, help others in need, stand up for those who can't and stand up for yourself. We are doing quite will in the politeness department. Sure, we have a loss of tempers in the checkout line or on the highway, but as a whole, we are still courteous to those we meet. From there is it down hill in the socialization of our children. Being nice to others does reduce bullying.

In our modern society, there is a good amount of the population in the U.S. that is concerned more about themselves than others. We drive by the homeless at highway intersections. We drive by those who are stranded on the side of the road. There is justification in the latter as we are afraid to help strangers on the side of the road. More than one Good Samaritan has been robbed or killed for their pains to help a stranded motorist. The former is a belief that those who say they need help really don't and are running a scam.  Who do we know that? We don't. There have been enough stories told about homeless driving BMW's to make us skeptical. So, we don't help. If we return to helping others, we will reduce the amount of bullying by showing that we care.

 One of the great American ideals is to take defend those who can't defend themselves. If you see someone being robbed, step in. Recently (as reported in the news), a robbery was stopped by a bystander merely yelling at the robber. Defending others surely will reduce the amount of bullying. If you see someone being bullied, stand up! Become involved! Calling out a bully makes them aware that they are being watched and that the behavior is not acceptable. The worst thing you can do is to be part of the crowd and no nothing. This empowers the bully.

If you are pushed, push back. Bullies prey on the weak and insecure. There is a fine line between standing up to a bully and brawling. Act in self-defense!* Don't push back until you are pushed. Allowing a bully to get the upper hand shows that you can be intimidated and he will come back for more. Stop the bullying before it gets started. Bullies are not cowards and standing up to them may not completely solve the problem. If a bully punches, bloody their nose and they may think twice before hitting you again.

Our society has been inclined to let other people take up our slack. We become dependent on the school system to keep the peace in our schools. Unfortunately, they are not capable of watching all the kids all the time. Our kids are taught that if they are being bullied, go tell a teacher. I think that if you are punched by a bully, punch him back then go find a teacher to explain what happened and be accountable for you actions. Running to tell does not solve the bullying issue. In fact, it reinforces the behavior. Standing up for yourself is the way to go.

*I am not advocating violence. It is important that you defend yourself only with the amount of force necessary to stop the bully. Going home and getting a gun does not solve the problem! If you get punched, punch back and let it go.

The Need to Belong

The programming of the National Geographic channel showed stories about cults. Cults are such a tragic thing. People who need to find 'something' are often find what they are looking for but unfortunately, they find their way into a cult. The most dangerous cults are those with apocalyptic ideology tempered with a profound belief. Most will remember the Heaven's Gate cult where 41 people committed suicide to ride the ship hid by Comet Hale-Bopp. Groups like Heaven's Gate are primarily dangerous to their own membership. However, the terrorist cult Aum Shinrikyo pose a threat to society as a whole. The most tragic cult account was that in Jonestown, Guiana where over 500 people committed suicide or were murdered.

Then, you have groups like Strong City in New Mexico do not seem to have an outwardly threatening demeanor. However, some of the conduct that has been reported about the group suggests that the groups is a danger to female minors by sexual exploitation. So, there is still a danger. There are reports of other groups, like the polygamist faction of the Latter-Day Saints church where a patriarch controls the lives of 25 or more wives. There have been reports of threatened murder on wives who try to leave. Neither of the aforementioned cults show an apocalyptic bend, but there is the question of human rights violations.

I suppose it is possible that we all belong to a cult of some making or another. To be fair, and somewhat off hand, people who have a fanatical exhibition for any topic are displaying cult-like behavior. Yes, Trekkies/Trekkers, I'm taking about you (and me). Granted, that is generally benign and rarely causes the death of some one. Can fan-based cults cause general harm? It is possible. A local Trek fan club can go fanatical and try to force the creation of the Federation. I know, it's not likely to happen. And, we honestly shouldn't worry (unless they invent a REAL phaser).

It is truly terrible that the need to belong must be filled by cults. Naturally, there is a greater threat to society by other groups of people with the need to belong. Gangs and terrorist organizations have the larger numbers and will to use force to meet their needs. We, as a species, need to find better alternatives.

The Fall of Rome

                Have you seen Quo Vidas? It is a rather old movie, made in 1951, which stars like Deborah Kerr, Robert Taylor, and Peter Ustinov, as Nero. It’s a good flick but one thing caught my attention was one of those mindboggling, eyebrow raising moments. What had caught my eye was one of the scenes toward the end of the movie (SPOILER ALERT) when Christians were executed in the Circus Maximus by being fed to the lions. It wasn’t the fact that the Christians were killed in that manner. What I really zeroed in on was the reactions of the Romans in the crowd. They cheered as the blood and terror of those being torn to shreds by the lions. Poppea Sabina, Nero’s wife, displayed a seemingly orgasmic thrill at the carnage. Let that soak in for a moment.

                Have you ever heard a NASCAR fan explain the love for the event to just to see the crashes? I’ve heard that a time or two over the years. Why? We see the fire and wreckage, often times, flying into the crowd killing the driver and, maybe, one or two in the crowd. That is a reason to watch hours of cars going in a circle? Have you seen the sports DVDs that glorify the injury, or death, of players instead of the skill? I remember watching ABC Sports and the skier tumbling off the ramp. Let’s not forget about the movies. We laugh at movies like Jackass (I won’t go further about that.). The current movie fair seems to require graphic, blood lusty scenes to draw a crowd. We have a fascination with vampires, werewolves and other factious creatures with some elevating such to a god like status. Blood sells. Acting, art direction and score rarely sells.

Do you know a church where the pastor released early or cancelled Sunday night service because of the Super Bowl? Or, have you seen someone get uptight because the preacher keeps services over on race day? Where is the priority? If you are getting uptight because you might miss something on TV, you probably shouldn’t be going to church. Your heart is not in the right place. That one hour should be focused on one thing! Not what the world has to offer, but what the Spirit has to offer.

                Take a moment and re-read the previous paragraphs. Do you see what I am getting to? I certainly hope you do. If not, here’s the meat and taters. We talk about how America is going downhill. How we are going to lose our freedoms. Rome started on their downward spiral when they started focusing on the wrong things and not what was really important. Romans sought to quench their lustful hearts instead of the betterment of their society. Eventually, four hundred years after Nero, Rome fell. The Roman society fell apart letting in those who would destroy it. Is America the new Rome, waiting on the time when it finally folds and no one notices? Think about the road America is on. Take a step back. See what is happening.

Cuba

I am not a foreign policy expert. I just wanted to say that up front. I do have an opinion about the US governments policy concerning Cuba.

In the recent Republican debates in Florida, a question was asked about improving the relationship between the United States and Cuba. It is apparently the Republican policy to maintain the status quo with Cuba that was initiated with the communist revolution in the 1959. Since then, we have maintained an embargo and nearly went to war during the Cuban Missile Crisis. While the trade and travel restrictions have eased somewhat, Cuba is not on the American vacation list. Normalization with Cuba would benefit the suffering economy of the island nation.

Normalization does not mean that the US sanctions communism. The US is demonstrating a flip flop on the issue with communism. China, still a communist country, provides the US with a vast amount of goods. (A great deal of the cheap crap we buy at Wal-Mart comes from China.) The US talks freely about the dictatorial government of Venezuela, yet we buy oil from them. Why then do we maintain such a distant relationship with one of our closest neighbors?

A downside? I am sure there is a possible downside to the normalization of relations with Cuba. There might be an influx of illegal immigration. There has been that in southern Florida for decades with the exception that the illegal immigrants were called refugees and given sanctuary. We don't do Mexicans that way.  There is sympathy with refugees from a 'evil' government, but no sympathy for those who simply look for a better life. Normalization would change the status of those who leave Cuba to come to the United States.

I see that normalization Cuba would be beneficial for both the American people and the Cuban people.

"Lean Forward" Bull

I saw a commercial on MSNBC featuring someone I didn't know. He was talking about stacks and stacks of empty connexes (shipping containers). These shipping containers brought goods to America and now pile up because we have nothing to fill them with then send overseas. His final comment was "We're better than this." He was talking about jobs.

I looked at those connexes and saw dozens of frames for homes. Thousands of American soldiers live in those after they have been converted to housing units. I also see tons and tons of steel that can be recycled into construction materials, automotive parts and forks. Instead of letting those containers sit and rust, we need to use them of less than obvious purposes. I bet they would make a great frame for a reef. I bet recycling those containers would great jobs too.

Yeah, America we are better! Let's use our American ingenuity to do what's right.