Billosophy

I read, mostly to learn, sometimes for entertainment … but always for answers.  I was remembering this morning, something I read a while back (could be a month, could be 2 years ago – its what happens when you are about to turn 40).  I look at living life (how I live) not as a predetermined path of existence bouncing from one episode to the next, but as a multi-level directional path.  I believe everyone on earth has their own path (or life) to journey.

What I do with my life is up to me – I chose the path, the direction, the meaning.  I chose to live my life helping people become better, building people up when they need it, listening to people when they need to talk, guiding people when they ask for help.  This is my choice in what I want to leave behind.  I continue adding to my life, so I may give to others.  What got me thinking about this was what I read a while ago.  We all know there is “Dark” and “Light” … “Hot” and “Cold” … but what if someone were to tell you there is no such thing as “Dark” or “Cold” – what would you say?  What is the first feeling you felt inside your heart or mind when you read those words … think about the concept before reading further.

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Welcome Back!  So – what did you feel, what was your reaction?

If you think about it … what is Dark?  Dark = Nothing.  So how can “nothing” be something?  Once something is dark … can we make it darker?  Can we add darkness to that?  We are surrounded by “darkness” or space – the vacuum our whole universe exists in.  So consider this, Dark = the absence of light!

Just like Cold … how do we make something cold?  We remove the heat.  In order to cool the air we have air conditioners that chug alog pumping freon from a gas, through the coils condensing it into a liquid which removes the heat from the air and the result is “cold air.”

But what if there is no such thing as Cold?  -459.67 degrees … Absolute Zero!  You cant get any colder than that – Scientists said so!  So, if Absolute Zero is as low as it goes, how can “Cold” be?  You cant make something colder that Absolute Zero – right?  Along the same lines of Dark … I will say Cold = the absence of heat!

So where am I going with this … LIFE … how do you live your life?  Your life starts at birth (or conception – but we are not discussing that today!) … when your life starts you begin learning.  Learn how to chose, learn how to adapt, learn how to BE who you are.  What you ADD to your life is the path and direction you take.  So, by thinking along this logic path … Is there such thing as BAD (Evil) or could we define “Bad” as an absence of Good?

Every person is born the same – as a baby, with ZERO knowledge of anything else.  We are taught by life, the environment, parents, friends, teachers, strangers, animals, everything!  From the first day – we begin learning.  When we say “That person is Evil” or “That person is Bad!” … I think that is a misstatement.  People who do Bad or Evil things are just lacking the “Good” in their life.

I want to challenge your way of thinking – instead of defining those around you as “Bad” … look to see the level of good they have.  I am going to bet … 99% of the time you will find they are just low in that category.  There is no Dark, its just the absence of light … there is no Cold, just the absence of hot … and there is no Evil, it is just the absence of Good!

If you live to do good, be good and show others how to be good … what would happen?

How many drug commercials do you see a day?  One of the drawbacks I face due to working at home is I either have to sit at my dining room table (or office as I call it) in silence and work, or have the TV on as back ground noise.  When did the networks start selling every second of daytime advertising to the drug companies?  I can not turn around without hearing how horrible my life is and how much better it would be if I just took their pill.  I often find myself wishing I could sit in lawn chairs with my buddies and watch a football game on a small TV plugged into an extension cord on my front lawn!  MAN – how HAPPY would I be?  Oh, and who doesn’t wish they could kayak with their dog … seriously, there are three people making BANK off of this movement.  The networks that are charging the drug companies, the agencies the drug companies hire to make those horrible and painful commercials and THE DRUG COMPANIES!  Lets not forget folks, drug companies are not in the business of helping people or healing people – they are in the business of making shareholders richer.

Did you know … Bristol-Myers Squibb (one of the top ten largest pharmaceutical companies) reported 2008 revenues of $20.8 Billion and 81% of that is net sales from pharmaceuticals!

My buddy Eric at SpaghettiOh.com wrote a post about antidepressants and how its easier to take one than actually deal with life issues.  The story from Reuters talks about how antidepressant usage has doubled between 1996 and 2005 – NINE years friends!  How on earth does a product that can not be purchased without the consent of a 12 year trained professional we call “Doctor” happen?  Maybe this quote will shed some light:

“Although there was little change in total promotional spending for antidepressants between 1999 ($0.98 billion) and 2005 ($1.02 billion), there was a marked increase in the percentage of this spending that was devoted to direct-to consumer advertising, from 3.3 percent ($32 million) to 12 percent ($122.00 million)”

Lets do the math … that is a 381% increase between ’96 and ’05 … drug companies increased spending NOT in Research and Development … not in Studies to further advance the medical field in cures to cancer, aids, *insert whatever disease here* … they increased spending 381% in “direct-to consumer advertising” … $122 Million dollars was spent by a company that can not sell their product to you … on advertising their product to you!

But wait … in case you thought they cared … their products are known to cause – Aggression, Agitation, Anxiety, Confusion, Depression, Hallucinations, Hostile, Hyperactive, Impulsive, Irritable, Panicky, Personality disorder, Overly excited, Severely restless, Sleeplessness, Suicide, Weakness, Abdominal pain, Bone pain, Breast pain, Chest pain, Headache, Heartburn, Joint pain, Leg cramps, Painful menstruation, Diabetes mellitus, Hair loss, Frequent urination, Hyperglycemia, Ketoacidosis, Loss of appetite, Pancreatitis, Urinary tract infection, Weight gain, Weight loss, Amnesia, Dizziness, Seizures, Speech disorder, Stroke, Transient ischemic atychosis, Worsening of epilepsy …

… but seriously, ask your doctor if you want to ride a bicycle through your neighborhood and laugh at the kid jumping through the sprinkler while your wife chuckles quietly at you because you can now hold your pee.

I watched a movie the other day with Tyler and was surprised at the end to be thrown into such a deep self discussion about life (both in general and my own personal journey).  The movie was The Book Of Eli … if you have not seen it – I highly recommend it.  In this movie Denzel Washington is walking around a post apocalyptic world.  I wont spoil the movie, but he walks around reading a book, a big book.  As the movie progresses you see the importance of this book.  At some point, Denzel (and the movie goers) come to a realization that he has only been ingesting what was written in the book and not sharing what he knows.

I was then skimming around my Facebook news feed and one of my friends (Dan Tocchini) posted a quote by Kierkegaard.  The quote spoke about the difference between a spiritual man and a religious man … here is the quote:

The spiritual man differs from us men in being able to endure isolation, His rank as a spiritual man is proportionate to his strength for enduring isolation, whereas we men are constantly in need of “the others,” the herd. We die, or despair, if we are not reassured by being in the herd, of the same opinion as the herd.

Christianity of the Spiritual Man – Soren Kierkegaard. (page 163)

From this quote I find myself looking back into my life and finding examples of those afraid to be alone … me at many times, insecure in my own thought, afraid of my “lack of friends” and having an attitude of “screw every one, I only have ME to protect me.”  I remember pastors in the church I was raised who would demand their “flock” to do and obey.  Pastors who would constantly need the “you are good, you are ok” affirmation from the flock of the church.  I hold those memories close as to keep a very clear understanding of what a “Spiritual” person is not and how a religious person carries a very different viewpoint.  Dan Tocchini, to me, is a very spiritual person – and I do not thank him enough for his Facebook status updates that challenge my thinking and keep me focused on what I despise and how to avoid the trap.

Another friend of mine, John Terry, commented on an earlier post of mine “Religiosity – The Quality of Being Religious” and asked me in his comment “But where do you stand spiritually?”  I gave some thought into my response and posted those … but felt like my underlying message was not really being explained well.  You know when you have that “Ah-Ha” moment … I had it when I read the quote Dan posted and watched The Book of Eli at the movies.  There is a huge difference between a religious man and a spiritual man … which are you?

According to Pat Robertson, the reason Haiti was hit by a 7.0 magnitude earthquake is because a long time ago they made a “deal with the devil” … WHAT????  I read this article and almost fell out of my chair.  How does this guy’s brain work?  How can he be so stupid, yet still have the mental capacity to remember to breath in and breath out to stay alive?  I think I’ll pay the royalty fees to my buddy Mike and use his word “IGNORANT” for Pat Roberson!  I read the quotes below in a Huffington Post article from Wednesday!  What is even better is they included a video to watch his say this on TV.  Robertson says:

“They were under the heel of the French. You know, Napoleon III, or whatever.  And they got together and swore a pact to the devil.  They said, we will serve you if you’ll get us free from the French.  True story.  And so, the devil said, okay it’s a deal.”

“That island of Hispaniola is one island.  It is cut down the middle; on the one side is Haiti on the other is the Dominican Republic,” he said.  “Dominican Republic is prosperous, healthy, full of resorts, etc.  Haiti is in desperate poverty.  Same island.  They need to have and we need to pray for them a great turning to god and out of this tragedy I’m optimistic something good may come.  But right now we are helping the suffering people and the suffering is unimaginable.”

“TRUE STORY???” – Color me confused – but how in the world can this ignorant ass sit there and say this without being challenged?  Really Pat – and when was this “meeting with the devil” … and how did you come into this knowledge?  Did “God” tell you this?  Where are your facts … Why is this now coming out … Why haven’t you talked about Haiti’s deal with the devil before today … or is this another attempt at getting your face back into the media again?  Isnt this the same guy who “predicted” the END OF THE WORLD in “November or October 1982?” … FAIL! How about the Tsunami that would hit the American coastline sometime in 2006 … FAIL! Then we have the “mass killings” to come during 2007, due to a terrorist attack on the United States … FAIL! What made the whole “Terrorist Attack on the United States” a fan favorite of mine was in January 2008 Robertson said “All I can think is that somehow the people of God prayed and God in his mercy spared us.”  HA HA HA … EPIC FAIL!!! Your ever seeing … all knowing God told you what he would do … and after “changed his mind” ’cause his people prayed???  No Pat … you are WRONG!

I guess after his numerous failed attempts at delivering Gods word to the world … he has now changed his tactic and is God’s Color Commentator … now its only After The Fact!!! It saddens me to know there are many many people who hear Pat’s comments and say “You know – he is right!”  In my eyes – Pat Robertson is just another blow hard looking for his own personal gain … ’cause when we boil it all down to basics … he is just like me … someone on a podium preaching his interpretation of what is right in his eyes!  Only difference between he and I … is the amount of HATE in his heart.

I ran across this blog post regarding the Devil’s response to Pat Robertson’s unfounded accusation!  WIN!

Muhammad Abu Tahir to the stand!  If you have not heard this name – it is probably because he is as stupid as they come these days.  Mr Tahir decided to get “unruly” on an Air-Tran flight from Atlanta to San Francisco.  Why – you may ask?  He was REFUSED Alcohol … Cut Off … 86′d (well not from the flight – but from the bar cart!)

A little over 1/2 way to San Francisco – this guy could not wait for another drink.  To the point he had to “interfere with a flight crew.”  Are you serious … 14 days after a Nigerian schmuck tries to blow up a plane over Detroit this guy wants to get his panties in bunch ’cause he cant have another Vodka/Cran?  Just to put it into perspective … it’s a 5 hour 30 min flight from Atlanta to San Francisco, Air Tran has (according to their website) ONE flight from Atlanta to San Francisco!  It leaves at 8:40pm local time.  In less than 3 hours on a flight this guy has to have another drink so bad his actions call for 2 military fighter jets to scramble, they then escort the plane for an undisclosed amount of time until the pilot of the Air-Tran flight has to divert to Colorado Springs.

I am not sure what Muhammad Abu Tahir does for a living, but I think this tool needs to reimburse anyone who missed a connecting flight, the overtime pay the airline had to pay the flight crew and flight attendants, the salary of the two fighter jet pilots along with the fuel consumed by the jets (including the Air Tran jet) … As well as the “rental” fee for having two of OUR military jets escorting the plane.  AFTER that cost has been figured out (oh yea, we’ll charge him for the accountants needed to figure out how much all this actually costs too) we’ll slap this ass with an “acting like a terrorist” charge … Crazy!!!  For good measure – I’ll charge him for the time it took me to write this post too!  Anyone else want in on this?

Tip if you are going to fly … Don’t Be An Ass!!!  If you are going to drink – save the bender for ground level … and if, for any reason the flight attendants tell you something … OBEY THEM!  People are already jumpy when it comes to flying … if anything, take a sleeping pill.

Since there are some people believe words can be owned … I am going to claim ownership of the word “Parent” and all iterations of the word (Parents, Parental, Parenting, etc).

Why am I claiming ownership of a word?  Because I’m seeing groups claim they own the word “Marriage” and it’s definition.  Their public statements baffle my mind.

According to these people, Marriage is strictly defined by the Bible as a union of man and woman.  We are living in a world where if a gay or lesbian couple try to get married – someone in an office gets an email alert and they run out to squash any and all usage of the word “marriage” and all iterations of it (married, marry, etc) pertaining to the relationship!  It is just ignorant.  In our country the right to freedom of speech is held dear and this behavior is a slap in the face to free speech.

Now that the religious nut nuts own the word “Marriage” do we need to pay royalty fees?  Do writers need to submit their compositions to the Marriage police to ensure they’ve used the word correctly?

According to Dictionary.com – “Marry” (aside from the Man/Woman definition) is also defined as:

to unite intimately … to combine, connect, or join so as to make more efficient, attractive, or profitable … to cause (food, liquor, etc.) to blend with other ingredients

Also the word “Marriage” (aside from the Man/Woman definition) includes definitions like:

any close or intimate association or union … a formal agreement between two companies or enterprises to combine operations, resources, etc., for mutual benefit; merger … a blending or matching of different elements or components

You may be wondering why I’m going on this little tirade.

I ran across a quote from Jenny Tyree (Marriage Analyst for Focus on the Family in Colorado), the quote was in an article about the health care bill and its effect on married couples – but her quote gave me enough motivation to look her up and read other articles she chimed in on.  My hunch was correct – she is ignorant across the board, not just on the government health care issue (I’ll be posting on that next!).

Regarding marriage, Jenny has been quoted saying:

“Maryland’s homosexual ‘marriage’ proponents betray their short-sighted view of marriage with their constant talk of it simply to obtain benefits and recognition,” she said. “They ignore the fact that the heart of marriage — our most pro-child institution — is to help ensure every child has a mom and a dad.”

Excuse me … but doesn’t biology ensure every child has a “Mom and Dad?”  Isn’t marriage about ensuring the children have a stable family and good parents?

I’m also confused about her statement saying homosexual proponents “betray their short-sighted view of marriage … ” Are you KIDDING me Jenny?  So let me get this straight … you and Focus on the Family would rather have a child raised by a Man/Woman combo no matter what?  Please tell me you and Focus on the Family are not THAT “short-sighted.”  Just because a man knocks up a woman and they have a baby does not make them “parents”  If it were up to me … I would put a child with a loving and caring couple – a couple who understands respect, love, compassion, empathy … a couple that will raise the kid to be a benefit to society!  According to your dogma, this is impossible if this is a gay or lesbian couple.  I do not need to go into all the “what if’s” … I know how you skirt those questions.

So – I now own Parent.  The word parent is defined without regard to biology.  Here are my rules for using the word Parent:

1. Parent is important, therefore it’s always capitalized.  Parents are deciding what our world will be like in 30 years — they deserve a capitalization.
2. The word Parent has no ties to biology.  Certainly the biological baby mama and baby daddy can be parents, they can also be losers.  Birthing a child and raising a child are totally different.  Men leave women to be single moms, spouses separate and share the parenting duties in individual households, people live as a family and treat each other horribly every day.  Biology does not make a Parent.
3. Parents are not focused on being their children’s best friend, they are focused on teaching them the foundation they need to be adults such as; boundaries, responsibilities, societal rules, work ethic, love and support

If marriage is about the family and raising children, then you need Parents to make it work.  I’m on a rampage to take back the word marriage, my first step is to claim Parent so they can’t use it in their narrow hate filled ignorant definition.  Using the Bible to preach hate …. somebody ought to be ashamed of themselves.  But that’s another topic for another day.

With that said … I hereby declare I own the word Parent!!!

Pick 2 out of 3 … this is how I feel sometimes when I discuss religion with others. Their belief in God or whichever “higher power” is defined by what is written in a book … that was written by other humans. Who has it right – Catholics, Jews, Muslims, Christians? Boil it down and all these religions have the same “message” but their delivery is different because of what someone else has written. They all believe there is a God, they all believe there was a Jesus who walked around earth, some believe Jesus was God, some believe he was a prophet, some believe he hung out with other gods … some think he had brothers, some think he had kids … all these beliefs are based on what others have written.

I have been reading up on religion over the past couple weeks and ran across a GREAT chart … The Big Religion Comparison Chart lists 42 belief systems from around the world.  This is in no way an absolute on religion but it is the most comprehensive list I have found.

If you wonder how Islam, Judaism and Christians look at each other – Islam believes Jews and Christians are respected as “People of the Book,” but they have wrong beliefs and only partial revelation.  Jews believe Islam and Christianity are false interpretations and extensions of Judaism.  Christians believe Judaism is a true religion, but with incomplete revelation. Islam is a false religion.  I found this great comparison of Islam, Judaism and Christianity on ReligionFacts.com.

Since there are so many differences – and so many cultures in the world, is it possible that there is no “right” religion?  We all believe what we are taught and never as why … why do Christians believe when the Bible says “God created the universe in 7 days” they think it means “7 actual days!”

Bottom line … why put a label on your belief system?  Organized religion has shown us time and time again it teaches fear, submission and you are not good enough without the “leaders.”  After all … why would God tell them how to teach you the proper way to live your life when all through the Bible it teaches you directly how to live?

This past week I read an article that at first shocked me … then humored me. Patty Jo Marsh and Jacob Bartels are boyfriend/girlfriend. Each has a set of kids from a previous marriage/relationship … a total of 7. The kids age range from 17 to 7. Nothing wrong with this right? Well flash back to a couple days after Thanksgiving and somehow, the topic came up regarding the parents love of tattoos. The kids “decided” they wanted to be like their folks and get tattoos also.

Far be it from Patty Jo and Jacob to sit the kids down and discuss how tattoos are permanent and how they should not be taken lightly. This decision for life is something one should think about before putting needle to skin. Unfortunately – this did not happen. 6 of the 7 kids received small cross type tattoos on the web of their hand. When asked why she tattooed her kids … Patty Jo replied “They asked us to!” – so here is what she and Jacob gave them!

Now – are you ready for what they used to tattoo the kids?

Evidently what Patty Jo and Jacob did not realize is Tattooing your kid is illegal … also, tattooing in the state of Georgia without a license is also illegal.  So, off to jail they went and the kids were temporarily removed from the house but returned when Patty Jo and Jacob posted bail.  This all came to light when one of the 11 year old kids was visiting their biological mom.  The mom asked about the mark and the kid said it was temporary – after not being able to wash it off the bio-mom called the cops to file a complaint.

Like I said at the beginning … at first I was shocked!  How could anyone in their right mind think they were doing something that was OK?  (then I watched the video interview with Patty Jo and I answered my own question).  After the shock of “How could a parent do that” … I realized they were just trying to bond the family.  In their mind they were  bringing the family closer while sharing with their kids what they love – Tattoo’s.  Then I started thinking about other things parents do to their children … I have seen new born girls with pierced ears, did the kid even show an appreciation in ear rings?  What about circumcision for boys – body mutilation at the request of the parents protected by religious beliefs.

I think what Patty Jo and Jacob did was irresponsible and there are consequences to breaking the law (and there is no such thing as the “I didn’t know” defense in my book).  The machine they used looks crazy and unsafe and they will be punished for that too … but for us to judge them on their parenting skills – lets try not to throw those stones too far!

Dawn and I watched the movie Idiocracy on accident.  I saw the tagline “The Future Is A No Brainer” and I just had to give it a shot (plus it starred Luke Wilson).  Dawn and I watched this movie in horror and humor.  The title of this post was the working title of the script … the quick run down of the movie is Joe (Luke Wilson) is in the Army and is just the average soldier.  He is used in a “Hibernation” project that was suppose to last only a year, however, Joe wakes up 500 years later to find out he is the smartest person in America.

The movie is an over the top “What If” … but I believe it is closer to a “What Is.”  The movie makes fun of everything from Costco having shuttles to take people around the store, to the TV shows that only show men getting hit in the “soft spot.”  The President of the United states is a wrestler only because he is strong.  If you have not seen this movie – its a must see … funny and horrific at the same time.  Which is why I am writing about it today.

When did we become so scared as a country?  Why are we so reactionary as a country when our enemy (for lack of a better word) is standing right in front of us laughing?  I read a post by Ann Coutler where she states something of interest:

Since Muslims took down Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, in 1988, every attack on a commercial airliner has been committed by foreign-born Muslim men with the same hair color, eye color and skin color. Half of them have been named Mohammed.

Since the year I graduated High School and joined the Navy – 22 years for those playing the home game … our enemy has been the same.  We know who he is … we know many facts about this person.  Why are we not addressing the white elephant in the room (or in this case – the foreign-born Muslim man).  I believe airports should have 2 separate security lines … Muslims in one line, everyone else in another.  Why – because until we as a country show the world we will not stand for intimidation no matter what … we will continue to lose this fight against evil.

I have heard more than once that profiling is not right … however, the FBI profiles criminals, and they do it well.  Why not profile terrorists?  Why not single out those suspicious in airport security, isnt that their job?  The way I see it – as long as we continue creating rules to stop terrorists after they do something … they will always remain one step ahead.

Correct me if I am wrong … they (the terrorists) can blow up planes, churches, markets, or really anything they want, but when one guy draws a comic of Mohammed wearing a bomb as a hat they get offended?  Now, color me confused, but since we now know what pisses them off … why are we NOT using that to our advantage?  Kurt Westergaard – the Danish cartoonist who drew the picture has had his life threatened over that silly picture … he is under police protection because of a cartoon!

We as a country must reinvent who we are – we are ignoring the change going on around us, and that never ends well.  We all know the quote “Never bring a knife to a gun fight” … I think its time for us to change our line of thinking.  It was not that long ago when the early Americans were fighting against the British to protect this new free country.  How did we win, we did not follow the Rules Of War … we did not march shoulder to shoulder into battle … we hid in trees, we ambushed, we divided and conquered.  And We Won!!!

Why are we not doing that now?

I am not sure this is a real word – however, it is “REAL” in my world … and since you have entered into my world to learn more about me, welcome to my vocabulary.  Allow me to explain!  The suffix “osity” is defined as “The quality of being” … therefore when I append Religious to the front of it I create this new word.

Now for my definition -

The quality of being religious is a power thing … Religiosity allows people to judge others by hiding behind their Bible, Torah or Qur’an.  Instead of living life as an example and being the spiritual leader they were “called” to become, they assume a self appointed position of authority.  Interpreting what they read and instructing people (or their flock, congregation, followers, etc) on how they expect them to behave, what to believe and how to think.  So, the quick and dirty definition of Religiosity would be – The self assumed position of authority where one dictates the thoughts and actions of others without actually being the example.

This is where I find my biggest objection to “organized religion” – the lack of actual leadership in those who are leading.