If we do not learn from the mistakes of the past, we are doomed to repeat them

Let me start by admitting that I am worked up today. Pissed off. Because I believe there is a fundamental problem facing us all that is undermining our ability to flourish. Many of you will disagree with what I am about to say, but I'm still gonna say it. Quit lying to people. Quit spreading this phony propaganda that some lame opportunistic motivational speaker came up with to help himself sell books and book speaking engagements that tells you to let go of the past and only focus on your future. This is among the worst advice that anyone, but especially people trying to take their life to a higher level can ever get. Its just bullshit.

The greatest gift we get from our elderly is the benefit of their experience. More than anything else, learning from their past mistakes and the unfortunate things that happened to them gives us an edge in moving our families and our society forward. It is the fuel of growth. I admit that I like, most everyone went through a time in my life when I thought I knew more than my parents and grandparents. From 14 years of age to about 19 I thought it was amazing that my parents even survived being so clueless about how life really worked. But as I left home, went out on my own and had to suffer the consequences of making my own decisions, it was amazing how truly wise I began to remember my elderly family really were. I say remember because I now realize I had more common sense at the age of 10 than I did at 15. And somewhere around 22 I regained the proper perspective. The ages at which this happens may be different for you, but most people would admit they had this same experience. If you meet someone who is beyond 30 and they cannot say they had this experience, whatever the reason, run. You have entered the life of someone living in the dysfunctional Twilight Zone.

It is very important that we as people mature to the point of being able to let go of the pain of the past. It is critical to our growth that we not dwell on whatever suffering occurred, but only a fool fails to hang on to the lesson learned. If we do not hang on to the lesson learned, the suffering was for nothing. We must not only hang on to the lesson learned, we must talk about it whenever appropriate. Teach the lessons to our young and promote respect for the wisdom of those who have experience throughout our society.  We must make it a goal of our society to return to the idea that only by understanding what the past has taught us and how to turn those lessons to our advantage can we survive and grow as a nation and individually.

Every problem that we face as a nation today has happened before. There is nothing new under the sun. It is amazing to me how few Americans realize how many times this nation has had to face difficult economic decisions, or that many of the things we complain about today actually began as a way of trying to solve an often bigger problem of the past. What changes is modern technology's ability to inform ever greater numbers of people of the problems at hand almost instantly. Truly at no time in our history have so many known what the nation was facing as today.

The problem however is that most people only know about the problems from the perspective of who ever they get their news from. Too often it is hard to get the complete unbiased truth, and so many people weigh in with their suggested solution while reporting the news, we are really not encourgaed to reflect on our own, drawing from the wisdom passed on to us by those who raised us and taught us about life. I believe that in this way we are cheated of the common sense wisdoms that many have to offer. In fact, rather than encouraging a discourse that will encourage more citizens to contribute to a solution, we are often made to feel as if we just are not smart enough to truly understand and so must depend on the wisdom of those who too often are serving an agenda not necessarily in our best interests.

And in the midst of every crisis, we are bombarded with messages at every turn, sometimes even by well meaning people promoting the idea that the holy grail is in letting go of the past. We must embrace the lessons of our past. We must honor and never forget the struggles of our people and the price they paid for us. And we do that by looking for the wisdom in the lessons learned from their experience and passing those basic truths on to each succeeding generation. Not only will we benefit from such wisdom, but we sow the seeds of self respect in our young because we have encouraged them to respect where they come from.

America is under attack in an unprecedented way

On January 1, 1863 President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. Contrary to poular belief, it did not end slavery immediately, but made clear that ending slavery was a central goal of the US government in fighting the Civil war. In January 1865 the US Congress approved the 13th amendment officially abolishing slavery in the United States .The end of the Civil War was followed by a period that has been known historically as reconstruction. The central goal put forward for reconstruction initially was to protect the civil rights of former slaves in places still hostile to the very idea of freedom for black people. By the end of the period generally recognized as reconstruction, that goal had been manipulated to primarily become to insure that the Republican Party would be in permanent control of certain southern states under the widely accepted notion  that only they could guarantee that the result of the Civil War could be insured long term.

It took from 1866 to 1884 for the new freedom of Black Americans to be changed into a system of terror and apartheid so shameful that most of the details have still been kept from succeeding American generations.

Today we see the reemergence of the principles that led to the undoing of reconstruction. It seems clear to me that among the underlying motives of the so called social conservatives of today is to return as much as possible to the kind of localized control of government that guaranteed the ability of those who created and maintained the system known as segregation in America free of federal government interference. What I find most disturbing is the lackadaisical way most Americans view what is taking place; Blacks, Women, Gay people, Immigrants seem to be totally unaware how easily this goal can be accomplished if social conservatives and Libertarians realize success in their efforts to return America to good old days that were never very good for anyone, not even most whites. Even some Black Americans are seduced by the seemingly pro-American rants of people like Rick Santorum, Ron Paul, Scott Walker, Palin, Bachmann, O'Donnell and others of their ilk. But if you look carefully below the surface, if you look carefully at the actions of these people when they have been given power, and listen to the things they say when talking only to those they consider their own, you see a picture that is clearly American only if you think America is white, male, wealthy, straight and stingy. These are people who shamelessly cast themselves as basing their goals on Christian values while violating every tenet of the teachings of Christ. These are people who, when given the chance, seize every dollar and benefit for themselves while fighting valiantly any effort to extend those same benefits to the vanishing middle class and the despised lower classes.

Nothing I can think of would ever cause me to vote Republican. I, just at the bottom of my heart, cannot support the basic tenet of Republican politics that government should be diminished in order to increase the coffers of the obscenely wealthy when I have seen over and over in my life what happens when average Americans are left without adequate protections from those who would rig every aspect of life for their profit. I have paid the price repeatedly in my life for opposing the unfair treatment of those who are powerless in my own jobs in management, clearly understanding that if I don't stand up for the rights of others, mine cannot be guaranteed. But I submit that this trend we see taking hold of the Republican party goes far beyond the basic disagreement I have with Republican politics. It is no less than tyrannical and anti American in its desire to limit its guarantee of freedom to the chosen few in opposition to the very purpose of the establishment of the United States of America.

The Great American Con Job

Todays America is a con artists paradise. Among the great American con jobs of this century has to be health care. You get it from all sides. Insurance companies pay off congress to tell you that they have your best interest at heart. Meanwhile they charge you ever more for the substandard care they are willing to authorize, and the medical establishment helps by coming up with ever more ridiculous reasons for you to seek health care. Among the greatest current boondoggles is "sleep apnea". You see, now its a major medical problem if you snore, snort, or fart during sleep. It requires a sleep study, which a panel of pulmonology specialists must study, to tell you that you don't sleep right. Then they fit you with a contraption that they must laugh themselves silly about called a c-pap machine which blows air into your mouth so you can sleep better and oh, most important of all, everybody involved except you gets paid.

First they said that obesity is a major indicator of sleep apnea, then they discovered that the same number of people who are not obese get sleep apnea as who are, but yet they still use obesity as a risk factor to decide that you must undergo a sleep study while allowing the non-obese people who fall alseep on the job to carry on without interruption. This used to be called discrimination, but no one cares if you discriminate against the obese, after all who likes fat people?  I am 6 foot, 280 pounds with more stamina than almost any of my co-workers, yet I am a risk factor for sleep apnea because my neck is too big. So if you are killed by a driver who falls asleep whose neck is less than 17", don't expect sympathy because that person was not considered obese.

The Day The Music Died

It is with ironic sadness that I report that the end is indeed near. Humankind, at least the way we know it is soon to pass away. It is inevitable. Just as it was certain that dinosaurs would eventually eat, produce waste and waste byproducts to the point the earth could no longer sustain them, so will it be with humankind. Of course, prevailing wisdom, (more aptly described as hope) is that humans will outsmart mother nature and that technology will ultimately save the day.

The biggest problem with humankind is that the problem is not simply eating through the earths abundance or the enormous amount of waste we leave behind. Add to this our natural predisposition to destroy each other through war and others forms of violence. Add also an ever growing sense of panic (sometimes known as greed) that pushes more and more of us to abandon any reasonable relationship with integrity in an effort to have more for ourselves. The more obvious it is that we have doomed ourselves, the greater the numbers of those who conclude that the only reasonable strategy is "every man and woman for himself". When you realize and accept this ever growing consensus among the people, you began to understand both the confusion that grows daily among people who are not sure what they support or believe, and the popularity of the conservative mindset which would be much more aptly named if it was called preservatism rather than conservatism. There really is little conservative about the actions of right wing conservatives, it is largely about self preservation and is a by product of the fear that people have when they think they are forced to live with those inferior to themselves and genuinely believe that this situation will ultimately bring them down.

Among modern preservatism  you have those that call themselves social conservatives. And while they would have you believe their beliefs are based on sound fundamentals of faith, look deeply enough and you see that there is little faith evident. In fact the strongest element that you can see among them is a general lack of faith in humankind at all beyond the concept of themselves as the chosen few. In the 70's we called it what it really is, a God complex. The belief that God must favor them and only them and therefore they have a unique insight into what is right and what is wrong, and any discussion of flexibility of viewpoint is at best foolish and at worst downright evil. Especially ironic when so called Christian social conservatives are considered, because they cling so tightly to a notion totally the opposite of the fundamental principles taught by he who they claim redeems them.

Unfortunately conservatives are not the only ones who are dedicated preservatists, many so called liberals  move back and forth daily between opposing extremes of emotion often based on what the individual issue is of  and are generally no less confused about what integrity actually is and when to apply the given principle. The only real redeeming factor that moves me to consider myself a liberal is at least among us there is an ongoing dialogue and this willingness to at least consider other thoughts and ideas separate us from those with the God complex. Among real  liberals our greatest weakness is the fact that we cannot help but constantly re-examine how we feel and ask ourselves if we are doing the right things. Ironically, this is also our greatest strength and the most redeeming factor in our favor.

Our end is clearly near, or at least the end of the way we have known it to be because we have come so close to the edge and there is no turning back now. In America the preservatists have begun to feed on each other and the rest of us. And the world all follows in their own ways. The all out attack upon the rights and freedoms of the middle and lower classes, while not really new, is unprecedented in its scope and the amazing support it receives from so many who will ultimately suffer most is a clear indication that a level of awareness has been lost. Ignorance and confusion has always been humankind's greatest weakness and never before have so few had the ability to mislead and confuse so many so easily.

It is said that what goes around comes around and I see clearly in America a return to the racist and social revisionist principles that so nearly destroyed our nation repeatedly before. The saddest thing about America today is the many young people who have no clue or respect for the price that was paid for their freedom and the blinders that have been put on by those who should know better. The young are in grave danger of losing it and being returned to a time that was never as good as some would have you believe. Having so little understanding of the true nature of humankind, they cannot conceive of that which many around them long to return to. Freedom is not free and history shows clearly that when you do not respect where you come from, you have no future.

But it does not really matter because we are approaching the edge of the cliff at remarkable speed and and overall change in the way life will continue to exist upon this planet is inevitable. We are much like fleas on the back of a dog. The dogs masters try everything to kill or wash us off, yet we hang on thinking we are winning. But inevitably we simply insure the coming of the final devastating conclusion, and only God knows who or what will survive and what that will be like. Enjoy your day. They are numbered.

Red Tails comes at a Good Time To Be Reminded About Our Soulful Journey

As I proudly observe the renewed interest in the story of The Tuskegee Airmen that is the result of George Lucas new film Red Tails, I am reminded of how much we as Americans have to be proud of that is either a direct or indirect result of the scourges of slavery and segregation. For so many years the main focus of slavery and its aftermath has been the negatives. I would like to see a renewed focus on the positive things that came as a result of or in spite of one of America's most  infamous times in history, especially for the sake of the young who grow ever more distant from any memory or understanding of what Americans have faced together and overcome. It can be said that we as a people are as much a product of what we have triumphed over as anything and in America, we have triumphed over many difficult times in our history, slavery and segregation being only two.

I personally would like to believe that if Americas young people had a better understanding of the pride and determination so many of their ancestors maintained despite suffering through indignities that most of them could not even imagine, they would have more respect for each others lives, and the lure of gangs and drugs would be at least a bit easier to resist. It is with great pride that I urge all Americans regardless of ethnic origin to go and see Red Tails. And I hope it will promote a conversation among families and friends about other examples of Americans overcoming their circumstances to triumph in pride and glory that are closer to home. What better time could there be than now when our nations future seems so tenuous, when we are a people strained by the worst depression in the nations history and divided against each other over ideology and even religious beliefs as we search for answers to restore what in reality has never really been. The problem for Americans is that each generation tends to not understand that Americas history is one of struggle. When the economy flourishes, and when it is in decline, we struggle with many of the same issues that divide us today. The only real difference is who is suffering most at any given time and how we collectively perceive what the solutions are.

As a child growing up in North Central Texas, raised by a poor mother who grew up in East Texas, I heard over and over the stories of the pain and difficulty of living in a place where the Ku Klux Klan flourished. Lynchings, beatings of innocent people and the daily humiliation that was a natural byproduct of segregation was not some distant memory or stories in a book. I watched my mother cry with the pain only someone who had to support her children by devoting so much of her life to cooking, cleaning and raising the children of people who required her to take her meal breaks on the back porch where they fed the dogs. Yet what I remember most about my mother was the forgiving spirit she had. Her faith in God. The way she insisted that all people were not bad and that most racists were in fact victims themselves of the ignorance promoted by those who profited from maintaining such a climate. I remember my Great Aunt Maude, a proud woman of Native American and African American mix who told me stories of unthinkable atrocities in the area of Oklahoma where she raised her children at a time when it was worse to be Native American than African American. I treasured the stories my Great Aunt told me because her sister, my Grandmother, died at a young age due to the racist policies of hospitals of the area at that time, a subject that was so painful to my mother that it was never discussed in our house.

Among my favorite things to do when I was very young was to sit and listen to the elderly Black men who gathered daily at the neighborhood grocer where they sat outside during nice weather and talked about everything in the world and their view of a world that even after they had served in world wars and worked them selves to the bone for meager wages still subjected them to sickening insulting treatment daily. Yet these men didn't speak with anger, they spoke with pride about what they had survived. Proud that despite all that was done to take away their dignity and self respect, they had made it through and could still hold their heads high in the knowledge that they had helped to insure another generation would have an ever increasing chance to set things right.

Enemy Expatriation Act is itself an act of treason

Throughout America's history, after every great challenge; the civil war, World Wars I & II, The Great Depression, part of what helped America recover was that America felt it clearly saw it self and recognized who it was. But the America of today has its greatest challenge in  that when it looks in the mirror it does not recognize what it sees. Since the end of segregation, because of immigration coming  from all over the world, thanks to the result of years of oil profiteering, America no longer resembles to power wielding conservatives the country they wanted to believe they lived in. This is why they are now willing to gut it. They want to rip it apart and remake it in the image they want. Only a fool believes this will benefit anyone who believes in freedom and democracy for all. And I think this problem will define how history judges America of this current time period.


 I think historians will say today's Americans lived during the last gasp of a great society. That America became a victim of itself. Like a fat, ignorant, greedy child, lost in the woods surrounded by predators anxious to eat it, the most dangerous of whom we thought were friends,  we put on blinders to what was really happening around the world and allowed ourselves to be seduced by ideas like Amercian Exceptional-ism, even as we saw a steady decline in the nations quality of education, health system and the very idea that a free market should be inclusive and reward all who contribute to its success, not just those who get themselves to the top. Like every accomplished society in history, our decline was made inevitable by an ever increasing focus on greed that inhibited our ability to see the forest for the trees.

Against the backdrop of these times,  our government debates the legislation being promoted by Joe Lieberman and Charles Dent known as the Enemy Expatriation Act, it is clear that we are facing one of the greatest attacks on the very foundation of the principles of the constitution of the United States in our lifetime. No matter how innocent these supporters of this bill claim their intentions are, it is clear that this will ultimately become a tool for those who would silence any form of dissension of US citizens aimed at any part or member of the US government. Is it merely a coincidence that this legislation should be proposed now, when terrorism, which sponsors of this legislation claimed this act is designed to deal with, is actually on the run, but more and more Americans are awakening to the erosion of their rights by those who would break unions and give ever increasing power and benefits to the conservative elite.

I feel that the most powerful thing America's founding fathers did was to assert that the citizens of these United States should always have the right to protest the actions of their government and further, if they found that this government no longer served them, to change it for the best interest of the majority. The Enemy Expatriation act would clearly be most effective at limiting the number of people who can participate in their duty to oversee their government and supporting it is no less than an act of treason. It is time Americans take a long look at people like Lieberman and Dent and others who would propose legislation designed to limit the ability of ordinary Americans to participate in their government. They need to be removed from their offices and banned from ever holding a leadership role in American politics again. 

The fundamental foundation of a free market system is the win-win situation.

One of the things that concerns me most about the world we live in today is the way the concept of free markets has become interchangeable with the idea of anything goes. As much as any single thing this frame of thought has contributed to the decline of morality in the way business is done, oddly enough most often seen in those who constantly claim to be filled with integrity.

I believe that the concept of free markets are based on the idea that when markets work, everyone who contributes has a fair chance to earn. And that the dynamic of having as much participation in the markets as possible by competing forces keeps them honest and contributes to the vitality of the markets. Throughout history this idea has been proven to work when markets are in development and are free to grow without interference. But in our world today, there are those who would insist that regulation is the chief culprit that stymies the effectiveness of free markets. Problem is, an honest examination of history proves otherwise.
Almost without fail, when markets thrive, someone will eventually become greedy and start to look for ways to gain a greater share of the markets by creating unfair advantages for themselves. They use their wealth, power and influence to try to shut the door of opportunity on those who would compete with them, and by doing so they become the force that inhibits the natural order of a free market. As this perversion of the markets grow, the markets become less and less free and the result is a market controlled by the ruthless.
The most effective tool to combat this occurring has been responsible regulation overseen by those who have a vested interest in keeping the markets free, and by the ability of those who work for these competing forces to be able to level the field for themselves through collective bargaining. When the people whose labor helps to make the difference between success and failure are no longer able to bargain for a fair wage and instead they are forced to work for wages that will not fairly sustain them, the markets are not free and the offending business is not successful, because  ultimately these businesses suck the life out of a community rather than contributing to their vitality. That is why once the vitality is sucked out of a community, the offending business feels it has no choice but to go someplace else and begin the process of sucking the life out of another community somewhere else. In today's world we call that out-sourcing. In the beginning, the new location of these blood sucking businesses welcome them and laud them as progress, but without fail in time they will be seen as a pariah when it is understood that they will pack up and leave as soon as they find someone willing to do the job cheaper and allow them less regulation. They tell us regulation, again is the bad guy, ignoring the fact that without rules, too many simply cannot be counted on to make a long term commitment to the vitality of that community. When America thrived in the past, it was because owners of business felt a need for their own good to make such a commitment to the communities they operated in. They understood that if people could not afford their products, they would not thrive. This was a dynamic of the free market concept that became somewhat obsolete when small and medium sized local businesses began to disappear in the wake of the mega-corporation. Ironically, the people wanted them. They wanted cheaper prices and convenience, somehow not realizing, or not caring that they were contributing to the perversion of the free market system by removing its most important ingredient, competition. And by contributing to the decline of dynamic localized competition, they set the stage for the loss of jobs and their rights to negotiate fair wages and benefits.