Viva la Revolution!

Take a look back at my last post. We are becoming a nation of servants. But there is no reason for that to happen. Take arms, Brothers. The time is near.

http://warongreed.org/?utm_source=rgemail

There are more of us than there are of them. The poor get poorer because they are exploited by the rich. The rich get richer because they screw the poor at any chance they get. Aren't you mad? Don't you think it's, not only unfair, but just plain wrong that those with money can get away with anything they want? Don't you think they should have to answer for what they are doing?

Get mad, People! The time to stand up for what is right is now. Quit whining and start to take action.

VIVA LA REVOLUTION!!!!!!!!

The New American Slaves

So many people can't see what's going on in front of them. They aren't getting the big picture. I'm going to break it down for you.

A large corporation sends its factories to another country (Coca-Cola, Nike, Kimberly-Clark, etc.). They claim, since the labor is cheaper, they can pass the savings on to you. They don't. They keep all that extra money for their own greedy little selves. Meanwhile, they have taken jobs from American people. These are skilled laborers who used to be making enough money to live and support their children.

Where are all these displaced workers to go? There is really only one place: the service industry. They won't be making anywhere near what they used to. They won't be able to support their families on what they make. But they have no choice. They have a skill they can no longer utilize.

Now, those corporation suits, their profits are up and they have it all at the expense of the American people. Do you see what they are doing?

They are turning us into a nation of servers! That one percent of the population that controls ninety-five percent of the wealth is forcing the rest of the population into servitude.

Don't stand for it, People. You have to fight the power, rage against the machine. If you continue to give money to those who would enslave you, then you will only deserve what you get. But if we stand up against The Man we may continue to be the land of the free.

How safe are your children?

That's how they get you to watch the news.

So. Those plastic toys your kids want all the time are made in China and could be toxic. Whatever shall we do? And how dare those Chinese!

Think about it. If you were making $0.67 a day to make toys for spoiled American children who will have become bored or have broken said toy in a week or less, would you care that much in your work? More likely, your mind would be on your own children and whether or not you would be able to feed them.

http://www.walmartmovie.com/?successMessage=Welcome+to+the+Revolution!&key=24660500&message=Successfully+updated+Supporter+information

Re-evaluate your lives. You don't need more. Your children have too much already. They will learn to appreciate what they have if you stop handing them everything they ask for. They might even learn how to earn things they want and become better people.

Let's face it, kids born after 1980 are rotten, solipsistic, mean-hearted, spoiled, whiny cry babies with very few exceptions. Maybe it took poisonous toys to save humanity.

Tis the season

Now that you are all safely tucked into your turkey-induced comas after celebrating the holiday invented by Lincoln to try and reconcile feelings between the North and South by reminding them to be thankful by commemorating the murder of the indigineous people and the stealing of their lands, you will be able to get plenty of rest for the big day of shopping you have in front of you.

Sales start at 4am. That's for all of those who can't get up at 5, but have no problem staying up until 4. Before you set your alarms, ask yourself one question: Do we really need it? I've been making my gifts for the past 10 years. Everyone appreciates my presents more than all the store bought crap combined. I spend a fraction of what everyone else is spending. And people aren't stuck with more useless junk.

The gross commercialization of the holidays has destroyed what the season is about. For me, it's about hope. The Horned God is dead, but the Green Mother holds his life in her womb, ready for rebirth in the Spring. If you're a Christian, then shame on you for taking all the pagan traditions, using them as your own and, eventually bastardizing them into what they have become.

Remember, we have only one planet and it has finite resources. Perhaps instead of buying your brats 47 new plastic toys that they won't appreciate in 2 weeks time, you could teach them some real values. Teach them that this time of the year is supposed to be about helping, sharing and giving. Not about how much you can accumulate under a synthetic tree.

Lost Respect

It can be difficult holding tight to you principles. It may mean giving up certain things. It may mean struggle. But without your principles, you are a mere puppet. Do you really want to be a yes man? Can you respect yourself if you cave?

The commercial for the new Eagles album tells you that it is available only at Wal-Mart. If you're still shopping at Wal-Mart, you shouldn't even be reading my blog. If you are one of the smart people who can see all the problems Wal-Mart causes, you may have a decision to make.

In all honesty, I don't want the new Eagles album at all. I know people who do, though. People who have stopped shopping at the Mart and are torn as to whether or not they should purchase the album. Does it count if you have someone else go in and get it for you? Yes, it does. When I saw that the album was available exclusively at Wal-Mart, I lost all respect for the Eagles. Even if I wanted the album, I wouldn't buy it. Even if it became available somewhere else.

To me, that is sticking to your principles. If I can't get it somewhere else, I sure as hell am not going to buy it at Wal-Mart.

And shame on the Eagles for striking a deal with the devil. Apparently money trumps integrity every time.

Favorite Things episode 1

I started a new job and have time for nothing else. Unfortunately, I am working for the man. You know the man. The one that has money to burn but doesn't use it for anything productive or helpful. I hate him, but I do have bills to pay.

Whenever life gets you down, say, for instance, when you find yourself feeling debased by doing what you have to to get by, then you should take a lesson from Julie Andrews and remember some of your favorite things. Here is one of mine:

Forbidden Zone. Starring Herve Villechaize and Susan Tyrell, Forbidden Zone is probably one of the best movies EVER!!! Remember the 80's band Oingo Boingo? This is the movie from which they took their name. With its cast of zany characters, this Richard Elfman film has it all. Sex, violence and people periodically breaking into song. The music was all composed by Danny Elfman who also plays Satan.

So, say you've had a trying day and you feel you might do bodily harm to someone. Stop. Get out your copy of Forbidden Zone and watch your stress away. I guarantee it'll work

Duck and cover

Have you seen this PSA where sweet, innocent children ask their parents if maybe it wouldn't be a good idea to have a plan in case of a terrorist attack? It sickens me. It's government propaganda meant to scare us so we won't question the all the things that the government is doing to screw over its own people.

Back in the fifties, at the height of the Cold War, students were treated to Duck and Cover movies. The government told the population that, if a nuclear bomb were launched, you could save yourself by simply ducking down and covering your head. I think we all know that that would never work. But it kept the masses appeased.

Why have we become such pussies? Oh, I'm scared. Someone might attack me. Toughen up, kids. Because if you don't, when and if an attack does happens, no amount of planning will save you.

And to the people who conceived and carried out this PSA, how dare you frighten people for your own ends? You make me sick.

It's about time I said something about Wal-Mart

But what can I say that hasn't already been said?

I worked at K-Mart while I was in college. It was fine. Then, in the mid-nineties there was a huge controversy with the mart. It seemed that the company was firing its older employees just short of retirement to keep from having to pay out pensions. Well, people were outraged. It was a prime example of the man sticking it to the little guy. The masses boycotted the store. Revenue fell. The reputation of K-Mart was that of mud.

K-Mart heard the cries of the people and they changed their policies. And while there are fewer K-Marts now than in the 90's, they are still there. The fact that they are dwindling in number is most likely due to the competition of Wal-Mart and Target, not because they gave in to the people.

What does this anecdote teach us? It teaches us that if we band together we can make a difference. We have the power. All we have to do is use it.

http://walmartwatch.com/

Let Them Eat Cake!

"In a way, the world-view of the Party imposed itself most successfully on people incapable of understanding it. They could be made to accept the most flagrant violations of reality, because they never fully realized the enormity of what was demanded of them, and were not sufficiently interested in public events to notice what was happening. By lack of understanding they remained sane. They simply swallowed everything, and what they swallowed did them no harm, because it left no residue behind, just as a grain of corn will pass undigested throught the body of a bird." 1984-George Orwell

I've spoken before about the fact that the government has pretty much taken over the main stream media. Anyone who watches The Daily Show will have seen them take a recent soundbite and compare it to an older one showing that the powers-that-be keep trying to rewrite history so they don't look like a bunch of stupid despots, which is, in fact, what they are. And while ignorance is bliss, do you really want to pretend that the terrible things in this country aren't happening? Will you sit idly by and wait for society to crumble?

In Robert Graves' I, Clauduis, we are shown Rome shortly before its fall. It is a government full of solipsistic, self-aggrandizing crooks who believe that, as long as the people have bread and entertainment, they will let those in charge do whatever they want, regardless of the welfare of the masses. Are we so willing to let ourselves be mollified by cheap goods and reality television?
If we are then maybe it is time for this "great experiment" to end.

At the risk of sounding trite, the truth is out there. And if you are reading this, you have the key. There are so many alternative news sources available. Not to mention that you can get other countries take on our policies by reading their newspapers.

Please, expand your minds. Look for the truth. And don't allow corporations, politicians and the idle rich to ruin your home.

God(s) Bless America.

Back off, Born-Agains!

Back off, Born-Agains! I had to say it again because, maybe if you Christo-Facists had gotten it right the first time around, you wouldn't have to be born again. And these people scare me.

In the name of Christianity they seek to destroy freedom, liberty and truth. There is no acceptance with these folks. You are either one of them or you need to be saved. They wage war against anyone they feel is not Christian or not Christian enough.

You may disregard their rhetoric as just words, but don't be fooled. They need to be taken seriously. Jews, homosexuals, artists, liberals, Hindus, African-Americans, immigrants, scholars, scientists, Muslims, pagans and women are all targets. I for one do not want to end up barefoot, pregnant and in the kitchen. Not when so many women fought so that I could have the same rights (or at least similar rights) as men.

They prey on the desperate, using thinly veiled hate. They claim that democracy is the enemy of faith. They say God will provide. Well, guess what? He won't.

The Christian right has already infiltrated our congress, senate and Supreme Court. Even our highest official is born again.

Look. Don't let narrow-minded people tell you what is moral. You should know what is moral. You should make your own decisions. That is why god gave you freewill.

By the way. If you commit an evil to make the world a better place, you are still committing evil.

Another Fine Mess

Once again it's time for elections. And once again all of the candidates possess a fatal flaw too large to ignore.

We've devolved into a two party system where both of the parties are exactly the same. You know it's true. The only difference is are they up front about the fact that they are going to screw us over or do they lie about it.

So, why do we keep voting either Democrat or Republican? Are we just that lazy? You know, there are no longer Whigs because they went out of favor and the Republicans haven't always been around. We could easily affect a change in this rotten system of ours if we just opened our minds to the possibility of a third party who might actually make a difference.

Take the Libertarians. They want a smaller federal government. They think people should take personal responsibility instead of leaving it to the government. Their website includes a short quiz which will tell you if are a Libertarian. They take all the guesswork out of it. Couldn't be easier. http://www.lp.org/

Then there is the Green Party. I know, they're all a bunch of hippies. But at least they don't want to rape the enviroment, take over the world or get rich at the expense of the American public. http://gp.org

Look, there are a lot of political parties out there. Instead of blindly following the masses, look into other possibilities and make an educated choice. It's your future.


http://www.cpusa.org
http://www.usmjparty.com
http://www.reformparty.org
http://www.americanpatriotparty.org/
http://www.sp-usa.org
http://www.thelaborparty.com

(I do or do not approve of these parties in varying degrees. This is only a small sample of what's out there, so go and find them.)

The Second Ammendment

I believe in the Second Ammendment. I own guns. I love my guns. But I don't understand the controversy guns cause.

The real problem is that people don't seem to see the 2nd Ammendment for what it is. It is not really about your right to own guns, it is about your right to protect yourself. Our forefathers wrote this in the midst of a revolution and its aftermath. People lived on the frontier, in the wilderness. There were wild animals and those pesky Native Americans. People should have the right to protect themselves.

The issue gets cloudy because some people don't use guns for protection. If you use a gun to harm someone, you have forefeited your rights. I think that's only fair. You couldn't be responsible, so now you have to go into timeout.

And why can't you wait a couple of days to get your firearm? I'm sure if you are in that much danger, someone will be willing to protect you until your background check is done. If you haven't already used a gun innappropriately, you have nothing to worry about, do you? Just chill.

Also, do we really want crazy people to have guns? If someone is talking to God and God tells them to kill...well, you see the problem.

The point I'm trying to get across is, the NRA is a bunch of loonies who just won't bend or compromise. That goes double for those damn hippies. As with everything, there is no black or white.

Common sense. Get some.

A little common courtesy, please

I had prepared something deep for today, but something happened on my way to the forum. As it seems to be an epidemic, I must address it.

Your turn signal is not only meant for turning. It is also to be used when you change lanes. This is more than common courtesy, though plenty of people out there could use a dose. If I don't know you're coming over, I could easily hit you. That shouldn't be my fault--- I don't read minds, especially those of people in other cars. But when the cops come, I'll probably be blamed.

Now this particular asshole was doing about 65 in a 50. He was behind me and coming up fast. He got into a turn left only lane and then cut right back in front of me with no warning (although, I'm not stupid. I knew that was going to be his intention). And he came pretty darned close to hitting the front of my car.

I did what anyone would have down and honked my horn.

All that speed and rudeness, for what? He got to be the first one at a red light! So I gave him the thumbs up. Good for you, Buddy.

And he flipped me off.

He does wrong and I get the bird? No, really, sir, I insist. I applauded him.

So he decided to wait until the light turned red to go through it. He obviously doesn't know me. I had already ascertained no cops around and followed him through the red light.

He decided he would drive 25 in the 50.

This really tickled me. He had been in such a hurry. Now, he was willing to slow to a crawl to try and ire me. When other cars started to pile up behind me, he made a show of PUTTING ON HIS TURN SIGNAL and pretending he didn't know where his turn was. (It was the area college. I knew he was a little spoiled bitch driving his parents' car.)

His ploy entertained me so much, in fact, I started to laugh. Then, to laugh harder. Soon, I was laughing so hard my sides split and found myself pointing at him and laughing at him.

You see, I had nowhere to be but here. And I had all day. I didn't care that he wanted to be in front of me. I only wanted for him to realize he is not the only person on the road. I was there and you almost hit me because you couldn't be bothered to check your blind spot, signal and give me space. Prick.

I know it's contrary to popular belief in this country, but THE WORLD DOES NOT REVOLVE AROUND YOU. THERE ARE OTHER PEOPLE AROUND YOU AND THEY CAN ONLY TREAT YOU AS GOOD AS YOU TREAT THEM.

KARMA

Today's thought

Once upon a time everything was lovely, but that was before I had to deal with people.

Henry Stack Sullivan

Well, Oprah said it was good.

I read. I know it's not the most popular pasttime nowadays, but I enjoy it. Aldous Huxley said, "Every man who knows how to read has it in his power to magnify the ways in which he exists, to make his life feel free, significant and interesting." I agree. (I also share Huxley's disdain for pop culture.)

There is a cable channel specifically for children 6 months to 2 years. Does this sicken anyone else? What happened to reading to our children? To playing with them? The television is more than a babysitter. It has become the parent. It's no wonder our children have no imaginations. It's obvious why the test scores of our children have fallen so low. We have no one to blame for other countries surpassing us academically other than ourselves.

I worked in a bookstore and people would come in and say, "I'm not a reader, but..." How could you admit that? And in a bookstore no less. All of us who worked there had a love/hate relationship with Oprah Winfrey. At least she was getting people to read, if only because she said so. In the summer of 2005, Oprah recommended 3 books by William Faulkner: The Sound and the Fury, A Light in August and As I Lay Dying. They are all amazing stories, yet no one asked us for any of them. That same summer she had on that Million Little Pieces or whatever it was called. Not 30 seconds (that is no exaggeration) after the show was over, there was a deluge of phone calls asking for that book. No one wants Faulkner, a Pulitzer Prize winning author (1955 A Fable and 1963 The Reivers), but they'll go out of their way to find a book that turned out to be one big fraud. Serves them right!

Read, People, read. If you have children, read to them. There are worlds waiting for you inside books that you will never get from television. The movies will never be as good as the books! They can't be. Things have to be taken out to make the book fit into a 2 hour format. Those things are often quite important. Also, the movie forces me to see the vision of the movie makers. What's in my mind is always better.

A friend sent me this: http://www.strike-the-root.com/4/jacobs/jacobs14.html. I'm not the only one who sees the importance of reading. This site may just be the eye opener some of you might need.

Our First Ammendment Rights

I started to write a blog based on one of my favorite rants in the real world and suddenly had to stop because I realized that the powers that be may not like what I had to say. I thought about how we all know we're being monitored just in case we're terrorists and realized The Man might think I was seditious and come a-courtin'.

So here's what I am going to write instead:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion (1), or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech (2), or of the press (3); or the right of the people to peacefully assemble (4), and to petition the government for a redress of grievances (5).

1. We are not all Christians. Why do Christians feel they have to convert everyone? Especially those wacko Born Agains. People are so afraid of Fundamentalist Muslims when the ones they really need to fear are those Fundamentalist Christians!
2. Remember the beginning of this blog? Beware of what you say, Folks.
3. Most of the press is in the pocket of the government. If they don't print what they're told to print, they just won't get to print anything at all. How liberating.
4. We have that right, to assemble peacefully. So why aren't we?

Most of us (except that top 5%) have plenty of real grievances we'd like to redress. And you may redress them by calling (202)456-1111. That's the number for the White House switchboard.

Once again, that number is (202)456-1111. A very nice lady will send you, basically to voicemail which is listened to daily. Use your voice! Call them once a week. Hell, call them once a day. They'll love hearing from you!

Suggested Reading

"The Flying Virgin had fingernails painted bright pink with white tips. A French manicure, some witnesses call it. The Flying Virgin used a can of Bug-Off brand insect fogger, and across the blue New Mexican sky, she wrote:STOP HAVING BABYS."
[http://oprprinceton.edu/popclock/]

This quote is from my favorite Chuck Palahniuk book, Lullaby. I know most hardcore fans will tell you that Invisible Monsters is his best (it is, actually, a very close second for me) and a cult has risen from Fight Club. But Lullaby, Man, now that one talked to me. It cemented Mr. Palahniuk as one of my 3 all time favorite authors.

Not everyone will enjoy the books of Chuck Palahniuk. But for a certain "demographic"---and you know who you are---his words have become almost like a religion. I don't feel that I am exaggerating when I say that the man is a genius and that one day his collected works will be taught to literature majors in every college.

Try him on for size. http://www.chuckpalahniuk.com/

Our apologies, Miss Whitney

Moments ago I was behind a car with a Bush/Cheney '04 sticker, an anti-abortion sticker and a Christian sticker I found extremely offensive. The stickers taken one at a time angrified me, but taken all together made my blood boil. The car was driven by a woman.

What is wrong with this women? The Bush administration has set the women's movement back half a century. We are losing control of our own bodies. And fundamental Christians want women barefoot, pregnant and in the kitchen. How could any woman support views that would make her a second-class citizen?

I am calling for all women who know that they are strong. Those of you that can be real role models for our girls. Speak out. Let the boys know you are there. If we don't exert ourselves soon, we are going to find ourselves covered in cloth from head to toe, forced to keep out of sight.

The suffragettes at the turn of the last century and those ladies in the seventies who tried to get an equal rights amendment passed didn't think they were doing so in vain. Yet, here we are, giving up our rights.

Eli Whitney didn't invent the cotton gin. His sister did. But women weren't allowed to hold patents and so we don't even know her name. Please join me in ensuring we don't have to live like that again.

If it all seems to difficult, remember that women used to be revered. They can carry life. Early man looked on woman as miracles. And we are. Without us, there would be no future. I'm pretty sure, though, that if need be we could do without men altogether.

So, with apologies to my husband (who treats me with the respect and reverence usually reserved for a goddess), women rule and don't forget it!

Click this, Bitch!

Yesterday at work a couple of the girls were talking about seat belt laws. They both knew of at least one person whose life was saved because they were NOT wearing a seat belt.

My husband, in fact, was in an accident where he would have been killed had he been wearing a seat belt. Now he refuses to wear it, ticket be damned.

You've all seen the commercials. Click it or ticket, they say.

My favorite commercial is the one where they tell you that police officers are trying to save your life. Bullshit! The seat belt issue is about revenue. Your state wants money, so they'll just whittle away one more wee bit of your freedom to fill their coffers. Anyone who believes otherwise is deluding themselves.

I know there may be a risk if I don't wear my seat belt. There may be. I'm an adult and I'll take that into consideration. Then I will make up my own mind. After all, who gets hurt if I am in an accident without a seat belt? I do. Well, maybe I do. Or maybe by not wearing one my life is saved.

I wear my seat belt only to avoid a ticket and I resent it. People may think that this law doesn't matter much. Just shut up and strap yourself in, Missy. Fine. But remember this...every time you let the government tell you how to live your life, every law they pass and make us conform to is just one more step towards fascism.

Are you prepared?

People that Have To Go!

This feature feeds my fantasies in which great portions of the population disappear and always for the better.

For the introductory issue I have chosen...soccer moms.

Gods, how I hate them.

While it's admirable to take an interest in your children and to allow them their own interests, everything about soccer moms bothers me. Starting with their kids. If someone had told me that one day I'd be saying, "These kids today..." well, I wouldn't have believed them. Your children ARE NOT your friends. They are children and they need rules and boundries. Instead parents lets them do whatever they want. They have no respect for anything or anyone.

Also, you soccer moms need to let your children fail and be criticized. You keep telling them how perfect they are even when they aren't and what will they do when they get out into the real world? We now have generations of soft, lazy morons who don't know how to take responsibility for anything. Good job.

Of course, the most important prop of the soccer mom is the SUV. Do you really care about your kids when you're so obviously willing to destroy any future they may have by polluting the enviroment with vehicles that use up so much fossil fuel? No wonder your kids are selfish and think of no one other than themselves. They have learned by example.

And every soccer mom in her monstrous truck, which she really can't handle, has a cell phone in her hand. Thank you for taking my life into your hands. Why don't you just grab a cocktail and we can have the trifecta of dangerous driving situations.

The sweater sets, the personalized plates, the manicures, the total disregard for anyone outside of their own pathetic family. For these and a hundred other reasons, the soccer mom MUST GO!

Suggested Reading:

It Can't Happen Here-Sinclair Lewis
Brave New World-Aldous Huxley
1984-George Orwell
the Handmaid's Tale-Margaret Atwood
The Plot Against America-Philip Roth
The Door into Summer-Robert Heinlen
Martian Chronicles-Ray Bradbury

Does anyone sense a pattern? If so, I want to know you!

Suggested Reading will be a recurring feature. More than likely it will list only a couple of books, but these books together are so ominous I couldn't resist. As a bonus, here is a non-fiction that has ties to above listed eight.

American Facists-Chris Hedges---"Tolerance is a virtue, but tolerance coupled with passivity
is a vice."

I know how to solve the world's problems!
Does it amaze anyone else that governments can't seem to get it together when they are composed of mature adults with advanced college degrees and real world experience? One might think that those charged with running the world should be able to agree on a plan of action that will fix what is broken. But that doesn't seem to be so.
Now, when I was in the 4th grade, I was asked to join the PAT. That stands for Program for the Academically Talented. Once a week we were let out of regular classes and we did mindbenders and minute-mysteries.
In the 5th grade, PAT introduced Future Problem Solving, or FPS. The purpose of FPS was to teach us to think in the abstract, to think in broader terms and to solve the problems of the future. We would be put in groups of 5 or 6 and would begin by reading the problem aloud. Next, we were given a half an hour to brainstorm. After our papers were filled with ideas, we would share them and pick the best. Finally, we were to go into detail about how to implement our plans.
I think FPS allowed me to learn how to see the bigger picture and I am able to imagine several outcomes instantly. FPS was fun and educational and I never knew anyone who didn't feel the experience enriched them in some way.
It doesn't take a genius to see that if 5th graders can work together for a mere 5 hours and solve the problem of starving children in Ethiopia that our government officials could use the same techniques successfully. Since no one will suggest that they are only given 5 hours, they will have the advantage of time. With their greater education they will know facts off hand that we could only suppose. And they will have far more resources than than we ever did.
Of course, it would probably be more successful if we let the 10 year olds do it themselves!

I'd like to express my proclivity towards language from the very beginning of this blog. I adore words. When 2 words are synonyms, their meanings may still be very different. I love the way words and language can be subtle or in your face.
I not only love the words themselves, but also the way words work together. I am a grammar fanatic. You won't catch me dangling a participle, ending a sentence in a preposition or using an adjective when I clearly meant to use an adverb.
It's unfortunate that when people communicate by computer they use all sorts of vulgar shorthand. When correspondance was solely through letters, people wrote properly. Even though writing by hand is far more tiring, the writer still managed to write in complete sentences. I see this as just another step in our trend towards laziness.
I will strive, within the confines of my blog and without, to always be proper and correct in my musings. I promise. And, if anyone else wants to bring back the art of language but has forgotten just how to do so, may I suggest reading Eats Shoots and Leaves by Lynn Truss. It is both educational and entertaining.
While you're at it, read her amusing Talk to the Hand.

My First Riff on Responsibility

I often wonder where that old American can-do spirit went. My guess is that it left along with the concept of responsibility. Nothing is anyone's fault nowadays. They have a disease or a syndrome or it is just plain someone else's fault.

We make choices. That is what freedom is all about. You make a choice. If it doesn't turn out to be a good choice, then that's on you. Accept it and move on with your life.

My mother teaches nursing and has been a pediactric nurse for 37 years. She sees a lot of women who have chosen to be mommies without daddies. And that is fine. I know lots of women who do it successfully.

There are those, however, who use single motherhood as an excuse. They can't make classes or turn in an assignment or get any real study time because they have a child. Bullshit!

In the early 1980's my father was laid off from his job. There was still the mortgage and my ballet lessons and my brother's hockey. To pay all the bills, my mother worked the night shift.

The night shift, you say? So?

Every night Mom tucked us into bed. Then she worked the 11-7 shift (on top of her regular part-time shifts). She would get home after 7, take a bath and put on her pajamas---as if she had been in bed all night. She'd get us up and make us breakfast and get us off to school. As far as my brother and I were concerned, it was business as usual. I wouldn't even find out how close they came to losing the house until I was 30.

Now I agree, it was easier for her because she did have a supportive, loving partner. So, let's look at what she did when Dad was working. My mother was at the hospital 3 days a week. She also gave tours of the facility, taught Cpr and first aid classes and was the president of her nursing school alumni. She took on both cub scouts and girl scouts at the same time. She was always our roommother at school and was the president of PTA while we were in elementary, junior high and high school. As a nurse, she was always asked and always accepted to chaperone fieldtrips. She spent 12 years getting a second Bachelor's in education. The house was cleaned once a week, but always looked like it had been done that day. Dinner was always on the table at 5:30. All while raising 2 children who turned out pretty good.

All I'm saying is, it's hard but it can be done. If you are willing to take the responsibility of your choice and put in the work it can be done! If your not willing, maybe you should think twice before...well, conceiving.

Bought my soul at Goodwill for a dollar ninety-eight.
Spread it on the ground for a picnic;
Knocked over a bottle of wine.
Stuffed it in the washer; stuffed it in the dryer.
It shrank two sizes.
What the hell, I wore it anyway.
Dude burnt a hole in it with a cigarette.
Threw it in the trunk and forgot about it.
Found it later, wrinkled and dirty.
Got it stuck in the door and it tore.
Stained, shrunk, burnt, wrinkled, dirty, torn.
Looks like it's time to buy a new soul.

I don't know about you, but my soul's not disposable. I've tried to live my life by looking at the larger picture. It's been lonely. What I 'd like is a community of people who can see there are problems and want to fix them. I need people who don't think they are the center of the universe.
Let this be a forum for politics, the enviroment, education---indeed for all those things we've broken and need to repair if we are to have a future.
I don't know where we're going to start, but the suspense is killing me!