sumac wrote:If we could get a 'hook' into something that made sense to Arab psychology, such as "preferring excuse to accomplishment", AND get people in the region to take it seriously, perhaps it would loosen the hold of such thinking in enough people to shake previously-held perceptions and assumptions.
The problem with the above statement ("preferring excuse to accomplishment") and similar ones Lewis has made recently, is that they represent post-colonial American exceptionalist thinking, rather than actual analysis. The speed with which ican latched onto this comment seems to say a lot for its appeal to those who favour easy answers and manichaen "us vs them" thought proceses. While statements like these do allow "us" to feel superior to "those lazy, good for nothing rag-heads," they do nothing to foster actual understanding and effort towards solving problems. Oversimplification satisfies only the simple.
ican's quote, "Seeking to unite is not rebutted by a failure to unite, especially when the odds against uniting are so great." Why even make promises if the odds are against it from the beginning? That's the reason why I call Bush a one dimension president. He doesn't know how to think through his rhetoric or actions. How many times are you going to allow this president to keep changing his justifications for anything? If you don't understand what I'm talking about, it's hopeless arguing this point.
hobitbob wrote:Of course, rocket doggy has shown that he has difficulty inderstanding the definitions of many words.
That's a Jet Hound, not a rocket doggy, you dufus.
sumac wrote:If we could get a 'hook' into something that made sense to Arab psychology, such as "preferring excuse to accomplishment", AND get people in the region to take it seriously, perhaps it would loosen the hold of such thinking in enough people to shake previously-held perceptions and assumptions.
In fairness to the majority of arabs, I think they are as afraid of the arab terrorists as too many of us non-arabs. Confronting one's terrors takes great courage and persistence. The blame game seems safer to too many arabs and non-arabs alike.
Safer that is until actually confronted by terrorists threatening to murder them. Unfortunately there are too many in too many cultures willing to keep feeding others to the alligators hoping to be the last to be eaten.
Somehow we must help the majority of arabs as well as the majority of ourselves develop the necessary courage and persistence to quarantine and/or destroy this terroist pestilence, a cancerous culture that is threatening the survival of the human race.
And Bush has been successful in exacerbating this problem, because he doesn't understand the consequences of his rhetoric or actions.
hobitbob wrote: ("preferring excuse to accomplishment") and similar ones Lewis has made recently, is that they represent post-colonial American exceptionalist thinking, rather than actual analysis.
Yes, putting vacuous labels on concepts solves problems better, or does it?
Stop "prefering excuse to accomplishment" is too shallow and irrelevant to affect solution, or is it?
Blaming rather than analyzing solves problems best, or does it?
"One nation indivisible with liberty and justice for all" is merely a simplistic not adequately realized concept that contributes nothing to the solution of the political problems with which we are currently faced, right?
"Treat others the way you want to be treated and don't treat others the way you do not want to be treated" is a hollow moral imperative when one ruthlessly attempts to defend one's life and liberty, and the lives and liberty of those one loves, or is it?
By the way: Who the hell are "those lazy, good for nothing rag-heads," of which you wrote? This is the second time you've mentioned them except you previously referred to them as "towel heads".
sumac said:
Quote:If we could get a 'hook' into something that made sense to Arab psychology, such as "preferring excuse to accomplishment",
That clearly was not a well-thought out statement from me, as the implication is that "preferring excuse to accomplish" would make sense to the Arab psychology, and I have no idea of whether it is a true statement, or that it would make any sense at all to some of the people in the region. I have no knowledge of Lewis' writings so can't offer an opinion as to whether such a statement is based on anything real, or just nonsense from a faltering mind (as he appears to have been held in some high regard at some point in his career).
Four word utterances, or even 10 word utterances, are almost always over simplifications. So I guess it was just me looking for a simple solution. Mea culpa.
cicerone imposter wrote: ican's quote, "Seeking to unite is not rebutted by a failure to unite, especially when the odds against uniting are so great." Why even make promises if the odds are against it from the beginning?
First, Bush promised to seek it.
Second, Bush did not promise to accomplish it.
cicerone imposter wrote: That's the reason why I call Bush a one dimension president. He doesn't know how to think through his rhetoric or actions. How many times are you going to allow this president to keep changing his justifications for anything? If you don't understand what I'm talking about, it's hopeless arguing this point.
I understand what you are writing about. I understand it very well. You seek a president, a leader, who knows absolutely certainly exactly what he can accomplish, exactly how he can accomplish it, what all the significant consequences of that effort and that accomplisment will be, and also a president who will not trouble you with uncertainty.
When you find such a person please
please please let me know.
Bush on the otherhand has wavered in his choice of which of his many justifications for the Iraqi war he emphasizes at any given time. He early on spoke of freeing Iraqies from the murderous tyranny of Hussein, destroying Saddam's "weapons of mass murder" (yes, Bush first referred to Saddam's weapons of mass murder, and not to Saddam's weapons of mass destruction--someone else coined Weapons of Mass Destruction and its acronym WMD), relieving Iraq's neigbors of war and threats of war, relieving ourselves and Israel of Saddam's continuing sponsorship of terrorists.
Oh yes, no intact weapons of mass murder or mass destruction have thus far been found in Iraq. Only a "few" of their partially assembled components have been found. What danger to humanity do a "few" bottled toxins present? What danger to humanity do a "few" tons of yellow brick present? What danger to humanity do a "few" partially assembled rockets present? Surely everyone realizes that it would have taken months (but not years) for all that stuff except the yellow brick to be assembled into genuinely dangerous weapons. The yellow brick would have taken several years to accomplish the same since the Israelies demolished Saddam's nuclear facility. What was the problem? What's the justification?
ican711nm wrote:hobitbob wrote: ("preferring excuse to accomplishment") and similar ones Lewis has made recently, is that they represent post-colonial American exceptionalist thinking, rather than actual analysis.
Yes, putting vacuous labels on concepts solves problems better, or does it?
It seems to be the method you prefer.
Quote:Stop "prefering excuse to accomplishment" is too shallow and irrelevant to affect solution, or is it?
It is a meaningless phrase.
Quote:Blaming rather than analyzing solves problems best, or does it?
Again, you seem to haev embraced it.
Quote:"One nation indivisible with liberty and justice for all" is merely a simplistic not adequately realized concept that contributes nothing to the solution of the political problems with which we are currently faced, right?
"Treat others the way you want to be treated and don't treat others the way you do not want to be treated" is a hollow moral imperative when one ruthlessly attempts to defend one's life and liberty, and the lives and liberty of those one loves, or is it?
Demonstrating that you have a preference for shallow epigraphs, instead of engaging in discussion, does you no favours.
Quote:By the way: Who the hell are "those lazy, good for nothing rag-heads," of which you wrote? This is the second time you've mentioned them except you previously referred to them as "towel heads".
Common American usage, dear boy, common American usage. Frequently heard from those who embrace your philosophy.
I must agree with ican711nm as to Bernard Lewis's value. Agreed, this is just my assumption, but if pressed I believe ican would be of the mind to say that Lewis, if not the only voice on Middle Eastern history and its mind set, is certainly a valuable one in the chorus. I guess one might refer to some of his (Lewis) "generalizations" as questionable but then most such judgments are-- no matter what the source.
I find Lewis's body of work invaluable because it encompasses many years of study in this area of the world. One doesn't necessarily have to agree with all thought put forward by such an expert as Lewis in order to become more educated on the subject. Additionally, Princeton University usually hires its personnel, like Einstein et al, due to the respect they garner from their peers. It is, after all, those professionals who are probably the best to judge an individual's work in that subject area.
Not too long ago I had posted, on A2K, a 10 page essay on my thoughts on the source and causes of ME terrorism. Professor Lewis had a large influence on that effort. His most valuable concept, I thought, related to this area's mind set of what I referred to as "Blame Deflection". This is exactly what ican pointed out in his Post: 654522 - where he brought up that
Quote:'Arabs "prefer an excuse to an accomplishment" (a phrase borrowed from Thomas Sowell in his book "The Vision of the Anointed") and seek to blame the west for the current state of their culture rather than exhibit the necessary courage required to strive to rectify that part of their culture which has gone awry.'
A good example of this is the moral contortions some of the Shia leaders practice. Thus, we saw these clerics, and their followers, who did only that sans any honest effort at individual rational thought; blame the American Army for the stabbing of the exiled Shia cleric Ayatollah Abdul Majid al-Khoei by unknown assailants inside the Imam Ali Mosque, Shiite Islam's holiest shrine, in the city of An Najaf. Even if one uses the argument that the U.S. Army was derelict in not providing "enough security", how was this to be accomplished by our soldiers if they are forbidden to enter the Mosque? (The details of the murder are at:
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,442342,00.html )
Indeed, Lewis has pointed out that the Arab message that the Middle East is weak because of Western presence and values is the reverse of the truth: The U.S. led West is in the region simply because the Arabs are weak.
JM
P.S. the above website also mentions a Muqtada al-Sadr's connection that we see, a year later, influencing some of the news out of Iraq today. The following website gives us backround info as to the 4 Grand Ayatollahs in Iraq and Muqtada al-Sadr's pedigree and legitimacy in the Shite community.
http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/meast/04/06/shiite.leaders/
It is important to note the latter's connection to the Iran theocracy and the Shia leaders distaste for this cleric that has developed strong Iranian ties and whose inherited militia is likely to be so supported.
hobitbob wrote:ican711nm wrote:hobitbob wrote: ("preferring excuse to accomplishment") and similar ones Lewis has made recently, is that they represent post-colonial American exceptionalist thinking, rather than actual analysis.
Yes, putting vacuous labels on concepts solves problems better, or does it?
It seems to be the method you prefer.
No, it is your thinking. This is your label not mine: "post-colonial American exceptionalist thinking".
Quote:Stop "prefering excuse to accomplishment" is too shallow and irrelevant to affect solution, or is it?
It is a meaningless phrase.
Perhaps it is meaningless to you and to others who prefer excuse to accomplishment.
Quote:Blaming rather than analyzing solves problems best, or does it?
Again, you seem to haev embraced it.
No, it is you who have filled this forum with a preponderance of your blaming polemics. Surely you are capable of recognizing that truth.
Quote:"One nation indivisible with liberty and justice for all" is merely a simplistic not adequately realized concept that contributes nothing to the solution of the political problems with which we are currently faced, right?
"Treat others the way you want to be treated and don't treat others the way you do not want to be treated" is a hollow moral imperative when one ruthlessly attempts to defend one's life and liberty, and the lives and liberty of those one loves, or is it?
Demonstrating that you have a preference for shallow epigraphs, instead of engaging in discussion, does you no favours.
This very retort demonstrates that it is you who are guilty of that which you accuse me: "a preference for shallow epigraphs"
Quote:By the way: Who the hell are "those lazy, good for nothing rag-heads," of which you wrote? This is the second time you've mentioned them except you previously referred to them as "towel heads".
Common American usage, dear boy, common American usage. Frequently heard from those who embrace your philosophy.
"common American usage" 
Not heard at all among my acquaintances 
By the way, please describe my philosophy. I'd be very interested in your perception of what it is.
To Rebel is Easy, to Think is Divine
If I had one political wish, it would be that there would be REAL American history taught in the public schools again, and not the tainted and biased versions that students have been receiving, for some time now.
If people were brought up with the bottom-line philosophy of why we are here as a nation, and how we remain free as a country (it ain't by luck, Buster), things would be a little different.
Real, unadulterated history blasts out of the water, the nonsensical theories and emotional rhetoric being espoused by immature radicals whose self-esteem is derrived from blindly protesting against anything that smacks of mature, moral authority, i.e. "the establishment".
Believe me, I've already been there, done that, bought the t-shirt, and even watched it when it came out on video...and wisdom taught me the foolishness and destructiveness of it all.
I realize that people can only do, think, and be the best that they feel capable of, at the time. I am not here, necessarily to criticize, but to speak Truth - that which flows from the heart by way of the Holy Spirit. For as inspirational and motivational speaker Zig Ziglar has said, "No one has ever erected a monument to a critic."
If I could go back in time, I would have elected an education in history. As it was, as a child, I didn't like it very much. Like the kids nowadays, my knowledge of history, at that time, came from watching Hollywood's version. But now, unfortunately, in our public schools today, notions of anti-capitalism and anti-sovereignty is being subtley, if not blatently planted into the minds of our children and young adults.
But I'm not the type to point the finger, without pointing it at myself. If we, as a moral citizens of this great nation, had done our job and raised our children the way we were supposed to; if we, as Christians, had treated others who were different in our society with pity instead of condemnation (but still remained strong in our stand on what's right); if we had put God first and family next, instead of racing like mad for all the expensive toys and designer clothes that the Jones' had, then all the wonderful blessings in life would have continued to be added unto us, and WELL-ROUNDED wealth would have been ours as a United States of America - physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually, socially, financially, and even politically.
As it was once said, you can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink. It's deplorable how so many people don't want to take personal responsibility for the moral condition of our country, and the outcome of their own lives. They would prefer to only blame the opposing side, and operate from the perspective of a victim, instead of a victor - an overcomer. Instead, they join forces with other whiners and blamers, who seek to over-throw that which is inherently good, in favor of forming social acceptance for that which is inherently immoral. This way, they can make choices without the questioning of his conscience.
When I was in school, it was common to strive for "Gold Stars". They would be posted on a bulletin board for the rest of the class to see. I loved the idea, because it gave me the motivation to strive for excellence, so that I could receive as many gold stars as possible. And it worked. But today if you were to do that, complainers would come out of the woodwork, claiming that gold stars are unfair, because to those who don't have them, aren't very happy about it.
Hence, the achievement of financial success and personal freedom are the "Gold Stars" that many aspire to attain in our country-sized classroom. There are many "students" of this giant classroom, however, who moan and cry, and throw temper-tantrums because not everyone has a gold star, and those who have them don't all have an equal amount. So they try to pass laws and change our system of government, so that people (who are perfectly sane and capable of learning) are given gold stars too, so that everyone will be, by their way of thinking, "equal".
Now these revolutionaries mean well, their vision is short-sighted and their solutions are way off-kilter. Instead of helping a person to fish for himself, they want to take fish from those who've worked hard and caught a lot of fish, and give those fish to to others who haven't seen fit to fish for themselves, all in the name of "charity". Don't get me wrong, charity is important. But as Jesus said, we are not to be forced into giving. If we give, it should be from the abundance of the heart, or it should not be given at all. Forcing someone to give a good portion of what they worked diligently and wisely for, goes against the very grain of the fabric of real freedom. In the long run, this method only serves to hurt America, not help it, for the external motivation (the gold star) to succeed has been removed, and has put the ones with few or no fish, on a perpetual receiving end of society, instead of instructing them on how to stand up and cross over into the giving side. In other words, people now generally expect a gold star, simply because they feel entitled to it - not because they had to work for it. So they indignantly yell and scream, and look for incidious ways to sue those who have acheived the American Dream (whom out of jealousy and resentment they consider the "bad guys).
If someone gets drunk, they blame the bartender. If someone gets fat, they blame the restaurant. If someone gets cancer from indulging in something they shouldn't have (such as cigarettes), they blame the cigarette company. If someone gets shot by a criminal, they blame the firearm and not the criminal. If an accident happens with a vehicle that happens to use a few more gallons of gasoline per mile, they blame the vehicle and its maker, instead of the driver who was driving recklessly, which caused the wreck in the first place. If they're having a hard time getting a job, they blame the Commander-in-Chief, without honestly looking in the mirror, and search out for ways to improve their image, their behavior, their countenance, their communication skills, and their credentials.
If you'll notice, I haven't mentioned any names. So if you decide to get defensive, you'll be doing it irrationally. The bottom line is common (or maybe "uncommon") sense. Generally speaking, good sense is no respector of partisanship, but the climate is progressively (or re-gressively) changing on the matter. You be the judge of it ("...if the shoe fits...").
It's easy to be react with rebellion and be a career-critic, as this often tends to boost a person's sense of self-worth, in a slightly perverted sort of way. It's much better, but harder (and less attention-getting), to search for wisdom and respond with a rational, fair and honest assertion. But I ought to warn you that wisdom does not come cheap. Just like freedom, it comes with a price tag, and is created by the most famous and high-end Designer of them all. (If you're interested, you can find a wealth of how-to info on wisdom, in the book of Proverbs, found in the Holy Bible - with no commitment contract required, but helpful.)
As for myself, I've made a decision to re-educate myself, where history is concerned. I've just recently bought a small publication of the United States Constitution and Bill of Rights. Every child in America should know it forward and backward, even if it takes years. No? Do I hear excuses and whining, again? Then think about this...if we can learn the lyrics to HUNDREDS of our favorite songs, we can certainly eventually learn to understand the words to the most important documents (aside from the Bible) that were ever written. If not, I would certainly re-evaluate my priorities.
Speaking of priorities, ours, as a Americans, are due for a maintenance check - in some cases, a major repair. Don't be afraid to think for yourself. Don't always reject a message just because it contains something with which you disagree. We often learn best when we can take what we need, from whatever source, and leave the rest. If you discard the entire thing without having taken the opportunity to learn something, you'll probably be "throwing out the baby with the wash-water". Be open-minded, and learn to be independent in your thinking. Don't buy everything hook, line, and sinker, just because a news medium on your "side" said it was so. How is their present integrity - is it impeccable? Do they openly correct and admit mistakes? Are their conclusions fair and balanced? Do their poll sources use leading questions or neutral ones? WOULD THEY STILL BE MAKING THOSE STATEMENTS IF THE TABLES WERE TURNED? Don't be a "Kool-Aid" drinker! (Out of loyalty to their leader, those with Jim Jones believed his every word, and followed his instructions to drink the Kool-Aid he gave them, which ended their lives.)
Use the good sense that God gave you, and let's get on with the joy of living and feeding others with words of wisdom, knowledge, and life, instead of passing around sour-grapes and giving people indigestion.
Lewis' early work is indeed valuable, but he has been surpassed by younger scholars. He has become a curmudgeon in his old age. Most of his recent output follows a very predictable colonialist mindset, and is therefore noteworthy only for its documentation of a good scholar going down to tubes.
Oh, and Diamond cat, welcome to A2K. It isn't often we have a poster here who so exemplifies the "Hollywood as History" mindset. You and Foxy should get along swimmimngly.
I am going to introduce yet another subtopic here. CNN has been playing, over recent days, a piece about a guy who has been out of Iraq (Kurdish north, specdifically) for a great many years (mostly in London), and has just returned to seek the ascendency to yep.....the throne. He is said to be highly respected by elder tribesmen, but not enough the man who has the greatest backing to become "king", presumably. Sorry I don't remember his name or have a link. I will go to CNN and find it.
Re: To Rebel is Easy, to Think is Divine
DiamondCat wrote:If I had one political wish, it would be that there would be REAL American history taught in the public schools again, and not the tainted and biased versions that students have been receiving, for some time now.
...
Use the good sense that God gave you, and let's get on with the joy of living and feeding others with words of wisdom, knowledge, and life, instead of passing around sour-grapes and giving people indigestion.
Please! Folks, DiamondCat has written it better than I ever have. Please study her last post. Please reflect on it. Please contemplate it and its many valuable implications. Please apply it to your thinking and your actions. Please!
Sorry, couldn't find a link.
Re: To Rebel is Easy, to Think is Divine
DiamondCat wrote:If I had one political wish, it would be that there would be REAL American history taught in the public schools again, and not the tainted and biased versions that students have been receiving, for some time now.
I assume youa re referring to the "common narrative," of the triumph of teh brave settelrs over the dastardly savages, etc... the reason that is no longer taught is that the historical evidence does not back it up. hagiography is useful in a religious setting, not in a civic educational one.
Quote:If people were brought up with the bottom-line philosophy of why we are here as a nation, and how we remain free as a country (it ain't by luck, Buster), things would be a little different.
Okay, I'll bite...why are we here as a nation?
Quote:Real, unadulterated history blasts out of the water, the nonsensical theories and emotional rhetoric being espoused by immature radicals whose self-esteem is derrived from blindly protesting against anything that smacks of mature, moral authority, i.e. "the establishment".
Actrually, what you seem to be referring to is not "history," but fairy tale. Please tell me why one should avoid historical eveidence and instead teach what we know did not happen?
Quote:Believe me, I've already been there, done that, bought the t-shirt, and even watched it when it came out on video...and wisdom taught me the foolishness and destructiveness of it all.
How nice.
Quote:I realize that people can only do, think, and be the best that they feel capable of, at the time. I am not here, necessarily to criticize, but to speak Truth - that which flows from the heart by way of the Holy Spirit. For as inspirational and motivational speaker Zig Ziglar has said, "No one has ever erected a monument to a critic."
So, what you seem to be saying is that the voices in your head are telling you to do things?
Quote:If I could go back in time, I would have elected an education in history. As it was, as a child, I didn't like it very much. Like the kids nowadays, my knowledge of history, at that time, came from watching Hollywood's version. But now, unfortunately, in our public schools today, notions of anti-capitalism and anti-sovereignty is being subtley, if not blatently planted into the minds of our children and young adults.
And your evidence for this is? Oh, John Wayne movies, etc.. are not historically accurate. they are fiction. You are aware of this, right?
Quote:But I'm not the type to point the finger, without pointing it at myself. If we, as a moral citizens of this great nation, had done our job and raised our children the way we were supposed to; if we, as Christians, had treated others who were different in our society with pity instead of condemnation (but still remained strong in our stand on what's right); if we had put God first and family next, instead of racing like mad for all the expensive toys and designer clothes that the Jones' had, then all the wonderful blessings in life would have continued to be added unto us, and WELL-ROUNDED wealth would have been ours as a United States of America - physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually, socially, financially, and even politically.
Hate to break it to you, but not everyone believes in your god. Even Jesus probably did not believe in your god.
Quote:As it was once said, you can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink. It's deplorable how so many people don't want to take personal responsibility for the moral condition of our country, and the outcome of their own lives. They would prefer to only blame the opposing side, and operate from the perspective of a victim, instead of a victor - an overcomer. Instead, they join forces with other whiners and blamers, who seek to over-throw that which is inherently good, in favor of forming social acceptance for that which is inherently immoral. This way, they can make choices without the questioning of his conscience.
So now we go from "god is good, he whispers in my ear, and John Wayne is an historian," to "you people are whiny and lazy and suck." Hmm..how original.
Quote:When I was in school, it was common to strive for "Gold Stars". They would be posted on a bulletin board for the rest of the class to see. I loved the idea, because it gave me the motivation to strive for excellence, so that I could receive as many gold stars as possible. And it worked. But today if you were to do that, complainers would come out of the woodwork, claiming that gold stars are unfair, because to those who don't have them, aren't very happy about it.
Actually, I have resurrected the "gold star" in my Western Civ classes. the students get a laugh out of it.
Quote:Hence, the achievement of financial success and personal freedom are the "Gold Stars" that many aspire to attain in our country-sized classroom. There are many "students" of this giant classroom, however, who moan and cry, and throw temper-tantrums because not everyone has a gold star, and those who have them don't all have an equal amount. So they try to pass laws and change our system of government, so that people (who are perfectly sane and capable of learning) are given gold stars too, so that everyone will be, by their way of thinking, "equal".
That made the kind of sense that isn't.
Quote:Now these revolutionaries mean well, their vision is short-sighted and their solutions are way off-kilter. Instead of helping a person to fish for himself, they want to take fish from those who've worked hard and caught a lot of fish, and give those fish to to others who haven't seen fit to fish for themselves, all in the name of "charity". Don't get me wrong, charity is important. But as Jesus said, we are not to be forced into giving. If we give, it should be from the abundance of the heart, or it should not be given at all. Forcing someone to give a good portion of what they worked diligently and wisely for, goes against the very grain of the fabric of real freedom. In the long run, this method only serves to hurt America, not help it, for the external motivation (the gold star) to succeed has been removed, and has put the ones with few or no fish, on a perpetual receiving end of society, instead of instructing them on how to stand up and cross over into the giving side. In other words, people now generally expect a gold star, simply because they feel entitled to it - not because they had to work for it. So they indignantly yell and scream, and look for incidious ways to sue those who have acheived the American Dream (whom out of jealousy and resentment they consider the "bad guys).
Out of this particular lump of whatever, I am stuck by your poor grasp of theology. How very interesting.
Quote:If someone gets drunk, they blame the bartender. If someone gets fat, they blame the restaurant. If someone gets cancer from indulging in something they shouldn't have (such as cigarettes), they blame the cigarette company. If someone gets shot by a criminal, they blame the firearm and not the criminal. If an accident happens with a vehicle that happens to use a few more gallons of gasoline per mile, they blame the vehicle and its maker, instead of the driver who was driving recklessly, which caused the wreck in the first place. If they're having a hard time getting a job, they blame the Commander-in-Chief, without honestly looking in the mirror, and search out for ways to improve their image, their behavior, their countenance, their communication skills, and their credentials.
On what do you blame your complete lack of understanding of society?
Quote:If you'll notice, I haven't mentioned any names. So if you decide to get defensive, you'll be doing it irrationally. The bottom line is common (or maybe "uncommon") sense. Generally speaking, good sense is no respector of partisanship, but the climate is progressively (or re-gressively) changing on the matter. You be the judge of it ("...if the shoe fits...").
So, if I decide to think of you as a (fill in blakc to your heart's cointent) you will wear that shoe?
Quote:It's easy to be react with rebellion and be a career-critic, as this often tends to boost a person's sense of self-worth, in a slightly perverted sort of way. It's much better, but harder (and less attention-getting), to search for wisdom and respond with a rational, fair and honest assertion. But I ought to warn you that wisdom does not come cheap. Just like freedom, it comes with a price tag, and is created by the most famous and high-end Designer of them all. (If you're interested, you can find a wealth of how-to info on wisdom, in the book of Proverbs, found in the Holy Bible - with no commitment contract required, but helpful.)
So your philosophy is "Shut up and go along with authority, it is always right?"
Quote:As for myself, I've made a decision to re-educate myself, where history is concerned. I've just recently bought a small publication of the United States Constitution and Bill of Rights. Every child in America should know it forward and backward, even if it takes years. No? Do I hear excuses and whining, again? Then think about this...if we can learn the lyrics to HUNDREDS of our favorite songs, we can certainly eventually learn to understand the words to the most important documents (aside from the Bible) that were ever written. If not, I would certainly re-evaluate my priorities.
Congratulations on the rote memorization. Now, do you actually understand the document? There are differences. While useful for learning anatomy, memorization is pretty much useless when it comes to history.
Quote:Speaking of priorities, ours, as a Americans, are due for a maintenance check - in some cases, a major repair. Don't be afraid to think for yourself. Don't always reject a message just because it contains something with which you disagree. We often learn best when we can take what we need, from whatever source, and leave the rest. If you discard the entire thing without having taken the opportunity to learn something, you'll probably be "throwing out the baby with the wash-water". Be open-minded, and learn to be independent in your thinking. Don't buy everything hook, line, and sinker, just because a news medium on your "side" said it was so. How is their present integrity - is it impeccable? Do they openly correct and admit mistakes? Are their conclusions fair and balanced? Do their poll sources use leading questions or neutral ones? WOULD THEY STILL BE MAKING THOSE STATEMENTS IF THE TABLES WERE TURNED? Don't be a "Kool-Aid" drinker! (Out of loyalty to their leader, those with Jim Jones believed his every word, and followed his instructions to drink the Kool-Aid he gave them, which ended their lives.)
But you yourself in the above paragraphs have identified yourself as a "kool-aid drinker," and implied that to be any other way is un-american.
Quote:Use the good sense that God gave you, and let's get on with the joy of living and feeding others with words of wisdom, knowledge, and life, instead of passing around sour-grapes and giving people indigestion.
No thank you. I prefer to think for myself and cause you and others like you to suffer hypertension.
DC.Welcome to A2K. I understand 100 percent of what you're saying, and agree with most of it. Unfortunately, those of our ilk are fewer in number, and what we believe and wish for this country is not heard by the majority. They're the ones that elect our officials, and are considered as the "constituency." Even the republican party of yesteryear no longer resemble the small government, less taxes confederation. They have instead become the biggest deficit spenders of our time. Conservatism no longer has any meaning. Clinton outdid the republicans during his eight year term. Politics and the landscape we call America has changed into excessive social programs that are being funded by future tax dollars. All the incentives of opportunity has been turned on its head. Equalization has become the buzz word for everything. Personal responsibility has left our vocabulary from the masses, and we wonder why?
cicerone imposter wrote:DC.Welcome to A2K. I understand 100 percent of what you're saying, and agree with most of it. Unfortunately, those of our ilk are fewer in number, and what we believe and wish for this country is not heard by the majority. They're the ones that elect our officials, and are considered as the "constituency." Even the republican party of yesteryear no longer resemble the small government, less taxes confederation. They have instead become the biggest deficit spenders of our time. Conservatism no longer has any meaning. Clinton outdid the republicans during his eight year term. Politics and the landscape we call America has changed into excessive social programs that are being funded by future tax dollars. All the incentives of opportunity has been turned on its head. Equalization has become the buzz word for everything. Personal responsibility has left our vocabulary from the masses, and we wonder why?
Can it be true? We agree? Yes, we agree!
