In today’s Thursday Thought, Barack Obama warns what happens when we wait around for somebody else.
“Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.” — Barack Obama
I’ve been pleased with some TV programs, notably “The Good Doctor,” “Born This Way,” and “Speechless.” Finally! Shows that depict people with disabilities as having actual real productive lives. More series now include characters in wheelchairs, for example, as part of their regular cast as opposed to window-dressing gliding through in the background.
I have a physical disability, weakened by polio. But I’m educated, successful, and have a full life–like almost all of my disabled friends. For too long we didn’t see people like us on TV or in the movies (they haven’t evolved yet, though). On the rare occasion that a disabled person appeared, they were those background-gliders, extras in a hospital, or beggars on the streets.
This new trend is having an effect, too. With a tightening job market, employers are actually looking toward hiring people with disabilities. In fact, job statistics show rising employment of that segment of the population.
I’m starting to feel represented. And I’m seeing more people like me working in shops and venues I frequent. It’s about time!
I’m often surprised by young kids who have littler life experience outside of their own small “me” world. I don’t expect them to come up with ideas that have the potential of changing the world. But some do. Such as this young man.
Every discussion or argument about climate change pretty much revolves around the same issues. The Climate Reality Project boils it down to a dozen questions most often asked by people who don’t believe that climate change is here. Don’t be put off by the title; just go there and see if you’ve heard (or asked) any and see what the answers are.
Go to “The 12 Questions Every Climate Activist Hears and What to Say.” Personally, I’m a “believer,” and I still learned a lot from this article.
This Thursday Thought quote says it all:
Imagine that you were on another planet for 44 years and then came back to earth. How much would have changed? How would you adapt?
This video, narrated by a man coming out of prison for 44 years, shows some of the changes you’d face as you tried to get on with your life. You’ll be surprised at some of the things that just happen when we aren’t noticing.
The Nov. elections will be here before we know it. Right now, groups and organizations are starting to spread out to collect signatures on petitions to put their pet issue on the ballot.
Think before you act. Don’t sign your life away. That’s what you may be doing if you take the petition thrust at you and sign it just so you can get your groceries home before they melt. Read that petition before signing it, especially the actual text of the proposed law. Don’t ask the person with the clipboard for clarification, because, if passed, the law will say what the text says, not what you or the signature-gatherer hopes it will accomplish.
Also, the gatherers have their own agenda, whether it’s to be paid for another signature or to get their viewpoint passed into law. Go through it carefully. Is the wording clear and specific? Do you want the law to be exactly as what’s written? Most importantly, does everything in it conform to your moral values? If so, sign it. Otherwise, walk away.
Signing a petition is a small but important step toward changing unfair, oppressive, discriminatory laws. Let’s just make sure that we vote for the ethical laws we think we’re asking for.
The whole middle section of the U.S. is being brought to it’s snow-suit-covered knees by record cold weather. Wind-chills are turning whole states into Antarctica. A cup of boiling water tossed into the air freezes before it even starts to drop to the ground. Meanwhile, here in California, we’re shriveling up for lack of rain, and our crops are in mortal danger that, in some areas, is the greatest ever seen. Drought is inevitable.
Imagine what conditions would be like if climate change were real and not a politically inspired myth?
Are you and your friends looking for a job to do in 2014? Margaret Mead gives us a strong hint:
On this Thoughtful Thursday, on the second day of a brand new year, let’s get started!
Today is International Polar Bear Day, but it’s not a happy day for the animals. The picture below depicts what is now part of their lives–a mom and her cubs forced to swim long distances because of the melting Arctic ice. In the process, many cubs die. This is a tragic result of habitats drastically altered by climate change.
