What kind of society kills off its mentally disturbed and low-IQ citizens? Us, as is shown by two executions earlier this week. A Missouri inmate who was considered mentally disturbed was executed, as was a Georgia man with an IQ of 70. This is not uncommon in our American justices system.
I find this VERY unsettling.
21-year-old pre-med student Alton Brieske denied being a hero after he saw a car going into the river and he jumped in, broke into the car, pulled a non-breathing elderly man to shore, then gave him CPR. For today’s Thoughtful Thursday, let’s consider how he described the situation: “That was my calling for the day.”
Makes me think that we may all have a “calling” for each day; we just need to recognize and act on it.
For people who don’t swim or know CPR, how about the man who was wandering by and heard Alton’s cry for a hammer to smash the car window. He just happened to have one with him. Maybe that was his calling for the day.
The baby boy born yesterday in-flight from San Francisco to Phoenix has already been introduced to the harsh realities of life. Although his mom had paid for all the “extras,” like luggage, a snack, a pillow, and engines on the plane, she didn’t pay for her son’s ticket. Her absurd excuse is that he wasn’t born yet. But he DID ride the airplane, first inside her, then out on his own, the airlines argued. By the time the new family made it home, Baby [Blank, to protect his identity] had received a personal bill from Southwest Airlines for his unpaid seat on the plane. Welcome to the world of commerce, Little One!
[It could happen….]
As you shop for Christmas and Hanukkah gifts, you’ll likely think of the great deals Walmart has. Personally, I do as well on prices and better on quality elsewhere if I shop carefully and take advantage of coupons and sales. That’s good, because my conscience won’t let me shop at Walmart.
It’s a matter of respect and concern for their workers. Their mistreatment is a matter of record. I’ve read the news stories and investigative reports from reputable news agencies: hiring the undocumented and locking them up in stores (http://www.nbcnews.com/id/4146540/ns/business-us_business/t/suit-wal-mart-locked-janitors-stores/#.VHoEIzHF-So); hiring people with the promise of benefits, then as the corporate profits skyrocket, cutting those benefits (http://dailydigestnews.com/2014/10/profit-behemoth-wal-mart-cuts-benefits-raisies-healthcare-costs-for-part-time-workers/), knowing that most of their employees depend on their jobs to keep just this side of the poverty level; hiring the undocumented and making them work in harsh conditions, without overtime or even a day off (http://www.nytimes.com/2003/11/05/us/illegally-in-us-and-never-a-day-off-at-wal-mart.html); and practicing intimidation, discrimination, careless pollution, tax avoidance, and bribery (http://www.corp-research.org/wal-mart).
I agree that Walmart has great deals, but for the corporation, not for the workers. So I take my wallet elsewhere.
Thanks to all of you for riding along with me. This weekend I looked through all of names of users of my blog and counted backward from 5,120 (Saturday’s count) to see who was the person who put me at 5,000. That was BrigettMayo. A special thanks to her.
When my son finally talked me into doing a blog I told him nobody would read it. I did it because I like to write and express my sometimes-oddball, sometimes concerned feelings about the world I’m wandering around in. I’m gratified–and very appreciative–to see that a bunch of people read my blog every day and that people are listening and enjoying enough to return.
And my son gets to say, “I told you so!”
I live in California, where we have a drought. Yet I get water automatically delivered to my table at restaurants. Which brings me to this week’s Sensible Saturday hint.
Even if you aren’t living in drought conditions, you know that water–especially clean drinking water–is too precious to waste. If water just shows up at your table, suggest to the restaurant manager that patrons be asked first if they want it so that water is not wasted. Remind him that it isn’t just the un-drunk water in the glass, but the water it takes to clean and sanitize that glass. You can also make this suggestion on those comment cards or spaces for comments on your bill.
[For more easy, money-saving, Eco-friendly tips, download a FREE copy of Green Riches: Help the Earth & Your Budget. Go to www.Smashwords.com/books/ view/7000, choose a format, and download to your computer or e-book device. Or download a free copy from your favorite e-tailer.]
Poor Orion. Like many of its predecessors, before it was successfully launched it had several glitches–from wind to malfunctioning valves.
I figured out WHY this keeps happening. It’s the Martians. See, they’re pretty smart beings (ask Ray Bradbury). That’s why, many moons ago, they secretly transported a colony to Earth. Their sole purpose over the years has been to set up invisible wind machines, sneak into a rocket and discombobulate valves, loosen panels, and perform similar bouts of interference.
Why? Put yourself in their position. They know we’re headed to Mars. They’ve seen how we overpopulate and have little consideration for nature. Their version of Fox News reports our riots and wars. In their opinion, would You want US to visit your home planet?
I’ve just updated my other website (http://www.jackieodonnell.net) and invite you to take a look. There’s some of my poetry (Poetry page); some suggestions for a useful product and equipment maintenance/safety, plus some disability law, and a thoughtful quote–all for the person living with a disability himself or in his family or among her friends (Adept-Able Living page). PLUS, for your entertainment and maybe awareness, click on the Quiz-icals page.
While you’re there, look on the Home page for a personal glimpse into my life and interests and for a special offer for my website/blog readers for a good discount on any of my e-books. Then go to the My Books page to learn how to apply the offer.
Also, if you need any professional editing done, visit my Editing Services page.
And, as always, I welcome comments!
Thanks for reading.
“Giving Tuesday” is a great idea and doesn’t have to cost a cent. In fact, it’s a day that can easily be spread throughout the year. Here’s how:
Everyone has one or two hours. True, we may have to steal them from a television program or that yard work that should be done. It’s okay to re-prioritize every once in awhile, though. Let those two hours make a difference. Hand out shampoo and food at fairs held for the homeless in your community. Give blood through the Red Cross or a local hospital. Work toward wiping out a disease and, meanwhile, care for the sick, by distributing contribution envelopes to neighbors for the Cancer Society or Heart Association. Serve a meal at a soup kitchen during a non-holiday season, when volunteers are scarce. Sort through those newborn items your baby outgrew before wearing them and give them to the church’s layette program. Pick up people without transportation and bring them to an appointment or grocery shopping. Use your imagination; you’ll figure out other way to help people in need. It could be called “Closed-Wallet Giving.” What it is, though, is “Open-Hearted Giving”—giving of yourself.
Think about who you would believe. First, there’s a person whose TV and newspaper pictures show in various scenes: in a graduation gown, with earphones doing everyday things, and among friends and family. The other is shown alone, no family or friends around him, coming out of a police station or simply facing forward, almost in mug-shot pose except for the lack of numbers across his chest. You see these pictures again and again. Unconsciously, if you’re like most people, you want to side with the everyday guy. Especially if he’s a kid and the other guy is a cop. Add in the details that the kid is Black and the cop works for a police force with a bad record of treatment toward Blacks.
That’s what we’ve been seeing. And that’s the way the media typically presents situations, deciding which side to present in a better light. Then we wonder why people get upset and riot when the media bad-guy doesn’t get what we think he deserves.
I don’t know if Officer Wilson was criminally wrong. Nobody knows for sure. Only the grand jury has seen most of the evidence. And they didn’t clear Wilson of any wrongdoing; they only said there wasn’t enough evidence to bring him to trial. I know only that the media, which has a duty to be unbiased and has failed that duty–is partly to blame for the damage, destruction, and disrupted lives due to the current riots and all other riots they’ve manipulated us into.