"R E S P E C T.. find out what it means to me", a little Aretha Franklin to get us started

Okay, wonderful song actually written by a host of people, Luther Ingram, Larry Henley, Jeff Silbar, Howard A Thompson, and Mark Rice, well at least that is what I found. Bunch of people to write one song, but it is a great one, but enough about all this

We are here to solve all the world's problems. Yep, kids you heard right, okay maybe a bit of an exaggeration, but at least most of them and in the wake of solving most of them the rest will probably get taken care of also.

The answer is simple. We just can't seem to put it into place. And also tonight I will discuss one of the reasons why I wrote the Red Chair which unfortunately I haven't corrected yet, but the answer needs to be out there because it is the same thing that will help solve the world's problems.

The answer is simple, but for some reason we, as the human race, cannot implement it. We can climb Mt Everest, we can explore the bottom of the ocean, we can decipher the human genetic code, we can put a man on the moon, and a host of other marvels, but we cannot do what should be the most basic thing to do as a human.

I will start with the Red Chair. One of the reasons I published it first was in reaction to the horrible incident that took place in Steubenville, Ohio. I wanted to show that young girls can make good choices in life. First of all I do not blame the girl for what happened, but something is missing when a young girl gets so inebriated that she loses all her faculties to take care of herself. What causes someone to put themselves in such a dangerous position? There could be the simple answer that she had never consumed alcohol before and so had no idea what was happening to her. This can happen to young drinkers who partake so much so quickly that they lose control. This is not the most wonderful way to start drinking, but in our culture not out of the realm of possibility. Next factor then is where were her friends. Something is missing that no one was able to step up and just take that girl home. And then lastly and which there is no excuse the young man that raped her. There is definitely something completely lacking.

The Red Chair shows a young girl, and I stress girl, can make positive decisions for herself based on what is best for her. Or at least I hope that message comes through.

I stress girl because all over the world females are treated not as second class citizens, but horrible. Many cultures treat the women as after thoughts and that is some of the better countries. The same aspect of life that lets a young girl get raped and humiliated publicly in a town here in the United States gets played out worse all over the world. The news is full of stories of women being ganged raped, women accused of crimes that men committed, women killed to preserve a family name, infant females murdered because they are a burden on the family, sex trafficking, child pornography, shot because they wanted an education, and the list could continue. The point is women are denied something that is very basic to human survival. The difference that separates us from nature.

And this carries on though in many aspects of our lives. You see it in domestic abuse, child abuse, bullying at all levels, and then it moves up in scope. You see people publicly ridiculed for mistakes, (now there is a difference though for people who do it to themselves such as Anthony Weiner and yet he seems to be lacking what is needed to put himself in his current predicament) bigotry at all levels, creating a class society, castes, dictators treating their people with contempt and denying their people what they need or the ability to better themselves, genocide, in places like the Sudan which seem to have its own unique, but horrible situation, and it is found throughout the world. There is a complete lack of something so basic it boggles my mind that we have the problems we do. What makes it so hard for us, as humans, to live this answer?

Some people believe in what the Bible teaches us, some don't, but in any case the answer is there, but we ignore it. Even many people of the Judeo Christian groups fail to follow through on what is taught. So simple, but so ignored, you find it in the ten commandants, in Jesus' eleventh commandant, but it we see it displayed so rarely in human interaction. Well not so rarely that it doesn't exist and it exists, but the ratio of it not being to being used is extremely out of balance. Jesus states in one of his parables that it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than a rich man to go to Heaven. He doesn't say a rich man cannot get to Heaven he just lets us know it is very difficult. In another passage he bursts the bubble of a man who is very devout, but rich. He asks Jesus how do I get to Heaven and Jesus says sell everything and follow me. Is Jesus saying being rich is wrong, no, again he is just trying to let us know being rich gets in the way of achieving Heaven. And yet it seems easier for a rich man to get to Heaven than for us to do what we are taught as little children to do.

Remember the book 'Everything I needed to know I learned in Kindergarten". You look at the world and maybe 99 percent didn't go to Kindergarten.

And what we need to know is so basic to human survival. This is for our lives, our growth as a race, our ability to achieve greatness, but we fail ourselves daily.

A Dad can help his daughter learn it, and his sons. It has two aspects, it is for ourselves and towards others. A girl in Steubenville, Ohio doesn't get raped if she has self respect and takes care of herself, and definitely not if the boy has learned respect for others. If he had, he would have helped the girl not raped her.

First we need to work at all levels to teach many to have self respect. And one of the greatest gains would be if Dads all over the world even here in the United States taught their daughters to respect themselves. Look at how fast young girls nowadays let themselves be influenced by everything but what is in their best interest. Frightening at how often you see young women pay more attention to the wrong influence and you can see it because they were never taught to respect themselves. And yes I get it that in some cultures Dads teaching daughters would be akin to moving mountains.

Second, respect for others. We have completely turned the table on what should be our first instinct as an evolved culture. The Bible pretty much sums it up, don't steal, don't covet, don't kill, don't commit adultery(respect the commitment people make),don't slander( false witness) etc and learn to love your neighbor as yourself, which basically is: have self respect and respect others. So what is so hard about all this, I don't know, but if you look at the world's problems and I have listed quite a few throughout this post it all boils down to lack of respect.

So folks rather simple isn't it, so why do so many people like myself think it doesn't exist in the world. Do I think what I wrote above is earth shattering? No, but heck for all I know this has been written a thousand times a thousand before, yet I am curious as to why something we know so well is such a problem for us to live.

A little bit about the competition, (Libertarian Party) and some other items

Okay so I talk about the Progressive Conservative party like it exists sometimes, but the Libertarian Party does exist. And surprisingly I haven't talked much about it. I have bragged for years and on this blog that I haven't voted for Democrats or Republicans since 1980, so who have I been voting for?

Well over the years I have voted for many Libertarian candidates (national and state level) so I guess it is time to talk about them. I have voted for many independents and even some Green Party candidates even though they are ultra liberal. I am a big supporter of alternative energy so every now and then when the pickings are slim I will vote Green just to support the alternative energy agenda. It amazes me that conservatives and pro business people haven't realized the potential for alternative energy, or at least the mainstream conservatives and businesses. So I get stuck voting way more liberal than I truly believe every now and then. ( and this is part of the Libertarian Party problem which I will discuss in a moment).

So why now, well I put my first short story on Smashwords so every now and then I read some of the other material that gets published. I have to admit I am astonished at how much does get published. Many are short pieces of work, both fiction and non fiction, but there is a whole world out there writing away. Actually bodes well for humanity if you ask me. For my work, I am working on a better edited version with some help now. That is wrapping up. I am not trying to change the story, just clean up some of the choppiness and mistakes. You can read 25% for free which turns out where most of the problems are. I have to brag, many people who have read the whole story say it smooths out as it goes along and like the story. I am struggling with creating a better cover that meets the criteria for Smashwords premium catalog so that is causing some of the delay of getting a better version uploaded. And I am going to write a blog piece on what prompted me to finish that simple story first. Actually I thought that was going to be my next post, but the book on the Libertarian Party I glanced at tonight prompted this post which I will now begin.

The book is written by George Phillies, who identifies himself as a former State Chair for the Libertarian party, talks about what is causing the failure of the Libertarian party and his proposals to fix the Party. The book itself seems a bit rushed. I guess like me he wants to get something out, but he does have more of an action purpose. He talks mainly about the infighting that is going on inside the party; which may not be the best way to sell the Party as a viable alternative to the Democrats and the Republicans. He proposes that the time should be ripe for the Libertarian Party to come to the forefront Nationally. His discussion on why it is ripe for a potential third party to become a major party I think is very good. He uses a "SWOT" discussion of what is going on with the Party and the opportunity section has some really good points.

He spends a good deal amount of time in the first 20% (the free download portion) talking about the infighting among the national board. And he includes some charts that at first glance are a bit confusing or disjointed. You can decipher them with the help of his prose, but still doesn't help his cause to spend so much time talking about dirty laundry. I know he is using it as part of his spring board to present his change. Again I think he is hurting his chances and the party though with too much of this discussion.

Obviously I didn't read it all so I don't know how he plans to change the party, but it did make me think about what are some of the general problems facing a so called third party trying to become a major party.

One of course is money. The two dominant parties both are well supplied with cash from their core and from corporations. Most corporations play both sides just to make sure they get what they want.

I should probably finish the book because I am curious if he discusses what is another problem facing non major parties and that is the Republicans and Democrats have issues they can use to galvanize their core. These two parties sit on opposite sides of some very emotional issues. And this helps them as much as the money lock up and in some ways even a bit more. These bring out the voters which is how they stay in power. Two example issues are the pro life/pro choice debate and immigration. These are serious hot button issues that a third party has to find ways to pull core out of either party to get any action from the voters. And since the two parties sit on the opposite side of these issues there isn't much room to find ways to break this juggernaut.

And it doesn't matter if you have a whole host of rational ideas for most of our country's problems, if you cannot get into these debates (with hopefully some rational solutions) you will have a hard time finding or motivating enough voters to break through. Yes, there is growing number of people claiming to be independent, but they still get dragged into these debates because they are so charged with emotion. And so they drift back into voting for the side they believe in which is either Democrat or Republican. A non major party has to fight its way through the debate to reach these independent voters and let them know that there are potential alternatives.

This is also a problem for the Libertarian Party and I don't know if they get that. They sit on the extreme sides of the Republican and Democrat party ideology so they have an even harder time trying to find a consensus group to support them. Under their idea of Libertarianism they support small government, less invasive, lower taxes, self reliance (Republican) and take the extreme on social issues, legalize pot, gay marriage etc (Democrat/Green Party) so even if Mr. Phillies is right and right now is an opportune time for a non major party to step up, the Libertarian party fails to realize they split their potential support or are unable to rectify these two groups.

So because they have this support problem, ie can they create a large portion of the population into a social liberal, fiscal and government conservative party, the Libertarian Party will continue to struggle. I did use the word create on purpose because they have to create this group. It is not a natural political group within the United States over the last forty years that they have been trying to take root.

Any potential non major party needs to fall either into a conservative agenda across the board or liberal agenda across the board. I think the Green party has managed to find true ultra liberal roots and could actually invade into the Democrat sphere, but they are hard up against the money lock up and the fact the democrats aren't as liberal so they can hold onto the people that tend to lean towards the center. Bascially the democrats have the money and the votes.

The Libertarians, I think, basically call themselves a conservative party, but as discussed above they lose too many people with the social issues. Yes it is truly conservative to talk about individual rights, very much a conservative point, but the social issues are too charged to hold any Republican conservative's attention to change parties. So the Libertarians cannot make the in roads the Green Party has the potential.

The reality is though I think Mr. Phillies is right and many independents want something different. The task at hand to break through is daunting. First money is paramount, second voters, and third, which wins points one and two over, is the message. You have to identify your message that sounds different than the two parties and with both sitting, at least in appearance, as opposing parties, where does a third side come from. One of the opportunities Mr Phillies stresses is that the Republicans are moving much farther to the right than most Americans. There will always be extreme liberals and hard core right wingers, now there is a growing gap between the center and the right that is not being addressed. Some voters jump on the hot buttons, but many are wanting more rational answers to these questions. Neither the Democrats or Republicans are meeting this demand. Unfortunately because of the mixed message the Libertarians send out, they probably won't be able to step in and claim the middle and middle right audience. Historically, once referenced as the silent majority. So who can step up? As you might guess I am one of the people Mr. Phillies is talking about. I want something new. I talk about the Progressive Conservative party, but putting into play is a different animal. The opportunity is out there if you can stand out in the hot button issues and get people to listen to you.

I read Helen Thomas passed away. The CNN posts became a very heated and ugly rant on anti-Semitism, pro Israel, and just craziness. I threw in a odd ball post just to mix things up, but overall the hatred and animosity was a bit much especially since it was suppose to be about her. Yes I get she made some comments at the end of her life she may have held for years,but overall I think most of us remember her on TV being the journalist that didn't back down from any President. It was always fun to watch President Reagan give her the first question etc. Bit of male chauvinism at her, but always fun. I think also he wanted to get her over with first to end on a better note. In general you have to remember sometimes you can disagree with someone and still respect them. Maybe I missed something over the years, but sheesh it was ugly tonight.

And for you sports fans, things will heat up soon. We still have the dog days of summer to finish, but come September we have football and the Baseball pennant race finalizing, and then the playoffs.

It is hot and muggy here in Texas tonight, been getting a bit more rain this year than the last few which is good, but the humidity can be a bit stifling.

Have a good rest of your weekend and soon will come my discussion on a world problem that the Red Chair shows how it should be.

Taking credit?

Nowadays if a politician brags about a successful career in politics for the last 20 or 30 years or so, aren't they admitting they are a large contributor to today's problems. Just a thought for the day

One is finally done

Much to my surprise and still have some work to do, but I finally self published one of my short stories on an ereader book site. I have been working off and on with a few stories and books, but worked on finishing this one for a reason. It is a simple story and doesn't have the edge that my other stories will hopefully have, but I do have a reason for trying to finish this one first.

The story is called The Red Chair and is available on the website www.Smashwords.com It is only 99 cents so not much of an investment to give it a try. I really don't know how you like to search, but I checked it by going to the search box for the website entered The Red Chair and a few options came up. I had to scroll down a bit and unfortunately it was paired in a box with something of a horror story. Quite the opposite of my story. I tagged it as a family book so you might search that way also, but there are tons of family books to scroll through. I hope to get some minor adjustments done so it will be added to their premium catalog soon. Got a couple of things to do that will take up the next few days so it may be a week or so before becoming widely available. Also remember I am admitted type L personality (lazy)

I ask that you give it a try and if you like it please let friends, family etc know to to buy it. If you don't like it, well it is only .99. It is for ereaders, but I think you can download a version to your computer too for the 99 cents. I put it on the website and haven't really looked at what you can do.

In a couple of weeks I will post some thoughts on dealing with certain problems our society and the world faces and hopefully will be able to transition into why this story falls under that topic. Anyway I am a bit overly excited for uploading a short story to a website. I have to add some work to get it accepted into their premium catalog which allows it to be sold on the major eretailer sites like Apple and others.

I self published, but more scary I self edited so any feedback is greatly appreciated. You can find my email address under my profile page. I may have rushed this a bit to get something out, but sooner or later you have to take the plunge. I can do slight modifications going forward so will save those for any glaring errors anybody finds. You can sample a bit of it before buying, but hopefully you will help out a struggling artist (lol) and give the whole story a chance.

Soon I hope to have the second short story done, and after that my first full length novel. So again any feedback is greatly appreciated to help me become a better writer.

Or to put it simply... buy the darn thing.

Otherwise its Texas, its summer, and it hot. Going to wait a bit more before becoming too excited for the Rangers. Last September still irks me.

Let's exercise some freedom of speech

I had all this figured out thirty minutes ago and now I sit down to write and have forgotten everything. Good morning everyone.

Well it is the Fourth of July and everyone is talking about the birth of our nation. I view the fourth more as the conception of our nation and it really wasn't born till the end of the labor pains of ratification of the Constitution by the original colonies now states.

And if you read my blog regularly you know I worry about the durability of our Constitution. Will it survive our lack of attention to it? I think the United States of America will survive in some shape form or fashion, but the Constitution as written and how it should perform that seems to be in trouble. The Constitution and the Country should be one and the same. I just see the Constitution being flushed down the Potomac.

And yet you see countries like Egypt. A so called fledgling democracy going through major upheaval. How do we compare to Egypt right now? As a country you can say we are better off. As a democracy it seems we are better off. Hard to say. I look around and I see no energy to grow the constitution,to enrich it, and to protect it. This is different than growing the United States. A country can survive with all types of governments, even flourish for awhile. The difference is once you take away the support of the people it will eventually fade away or go through a violent/radical change. Our Constitution gives us the ability to flourish as a people. And we,the people, seem to have forgotten what we have, or don't realize the value of what we have.

Yes some people will say they are supporters of the Constitution and our country. I was eating lunch downtown in a park this week and there was a Tea Party rally going on. American flags were flying, people listened to speakers, and everyone applauded enthusiastically. They seemed to be all attuned to preserving our country. Yet I get the feeling they really don't understand about preserving our Constitution. Were they exercising their right to freedom of speech? Yes. The difference being, it is only their version of our country that they want to preserve. That doesn't work. One of the great aspects of the Constitution is its ability to adapt to changing times. You have to realize the world changes and as a country you have to adapt to survive and grow. The key is to keep the foundation of the Constitution and let the people be in charge. If the people stay in charge then they will demand the leadership to make the changes necessary to adapt and grow. When small groups dictate policy, the support of the people will dissipate sooner or later.

Now the difference for the United States. The support of the people wanes not because of attacks, the Tea party or other groups, the super rich, etc, but because of apathy of the people. I tend to blame education or lack of a quality public education. People truly don't realize the value and the dynamics of the Constitution. Also I think it goes to my thoughts above that people don't realize you can have the USA and lose the Constitution. I think people aren't seeing this separation. As long as we wave the flag and support the good ole USA, we think we still have the constitution. If you look close you can see the fault lines developing between the Country and the Constitution.

Did Snowden show us this happening? Hard to say. Is he a hero or a traitor? Can't say till all the facts come in. Is this much to do about nothing? Maybe. What it shows us by what the press is reporting and how people are reacting is we don't know what we are losing. And again I blame lack of quality education as one of the reasons we don't know what we have. People cannot see value in protecting words on paper till they realize how much they benefit from them.

Congress is suppose to represent the people. Specifically stated in Constitution. Right now if anybody told you they represented the people you should punch them in the nose. They have completely lost track of what are their stated requirements. You can blame lobbyists, greed, apathy, and much more, but overall their actions do not support better policy for the people at large. Here is where one fault line becomes visible. The action of our government is counter to the requirements of the Constitution. We, as the people, even bitch and moan. Approval ratings for our Congress are at all time lows. Does anything change? No because we don't make it change. It is not because of the lobbyists or the Wall Street elite, it is because of us. Technically we still have the power, we just abdicate it by not acting upon it and making our Congress support us. Yes, Congress exists, the flag waves, but where is the Constitution. Locked up in a box for people to see. Nice. The Constitution needs to be alive and we need to bring it back to life before we lose it completely.

Okay the thoughts are a bit scattered, like I said up top, I had thought of all this while picking up this morning and by the time I sat down it was slipping out of my brain and rolling down the floor to be swept up with the rest of the dust.

I was going to end discussing we don't know how to deal with change. Oh yeah, this goes back to Snowden, people keep wanting answers from the NSA and all the spy agencies about how they are spying on us. You can't expect an organization trained to find and keep secrets to tell you the truth about what they do. Goes counter to their existence. My example is if your job for years is to press button A and all of a sudden one day someone comes in and says now you must press C and B, but never A again or you will lose your job. Most people are going to lose their job. The habit will be hard to break, even with the threat of losing something vital, change can't be done overnight. And this is where I feel we are, we have accepted the way things are for so long that we cannot change to bring back the Constitution and make it an integral part of life in our government.

And what is funny is that if you support what is best for the people, then most everything else works out well. You can still have capitalism, freedom, even be a bit self centered personally, etc.. You just need the overall actions of the people to force our government to follow the Constitution and put the people first then everything will go well.

This post has many themes I have mentioned before. I write them over and over so hopefully enough people can see the need to press buttons B and C, instead of pressing button A to bring back the power of the constitution to the people.

Well anyway, it is the Fourth I hope you have a safe and enjoyable one. Great day to be patriotic, please remember what we started so we can continue to grow to be the greatest nation in the world.