Tag: life

Weigh-In Wednesday – To Be Blunt…

“HOW CAN I EXPECT MY KIDS TO RESPECT WOMEN IF THIS IS WHAT THEY’RE EXPOSED TO DURING THE SUPERBOWL?!?!?”

Here’s a thought: grow a pair, and actually be a parent. You think this was bad? What do you think images of wars, mass shootings, police brutality, domestic abuse, kids in cages, and all the rest of the violence, and inhumanity they’re exposed to do? Better yet, examine your own fucking behavior, and state honestly if YOU are setting the best example for them as a parent? When is the last time you sat down, and truly discussed the good, and bad going on in THEIR lives? Probably never for the majority of parents, right? How about the football game itself? Think they’re learning solid life lessons while watching a safety targeting the head of a wide receiver over the middle, and being congratulated for a great hit while his opponent lies on the turf barely conscious? Let’s throw all of this into perspective, and put a magnifying glass to everything you allow into their lives as you cast your judging eye on a female performer because she’s dancing, and you can see her midsection.

And as I said to someone else, my kids are exposed to the fraudulent, deceitful, and abusive fantasy world of organized religions on a daily basis. Everything from the “pray for” memes, to people on TV, like Paula White yelling for satanic pregnancies to miscarry, and news coverage of preachers shouting about how every other person but themselves are going to go to hell, and of course the shouldn’t be legislative debates but still somehow are because we STILL let christianity put their devious little stubby fingers into government. Debates such as abortion legislation, or women’s healthcare rights, or religion in school, or somehow now, our taxes going to fund private, untaxed religion (but only christian) based schools?

Despite this, they’re still atheists. WHOA! Whaddaya know, good parenting done right leads the way even if they’re exposed to all that bullshit.

Lackawanna, NY 1911

Weigh-In Wednesday – Moving Forward

People look at the past, and long for the good-ol’ days. We romanticize what used to be, focusing on only the good, and forgetting how much was bad, or even worse than bad. We look at our present, and we focus on the bad, and what we want to change, then dream of a future that is only good, not imagining the negative consequences of what we’re doing today. We say, “Things weren’t like this back in my day,” but odds are, they were. People don’t have less of a respect for life today – mass shootings, and the brutality we see every day isn’t a function merely of a change of attitude toward what life is worth. Were we as a species really respecting, and valuing life when we were burning witches for baseless religious accusations? How about when indigenous peoples were being slaughtered? Gladiator tournaments? Hangings? Beheadings? Crucifixions? Monarchs ordering executions on a whim? Do these all show how we respected life? Are the 2A gun nuts really showing a respect for life by fighting harder for their right to own military grade weapons than seeking to find solutions that would stem the tides of gun related deaths we have in our nation?

Weigh-In Wednesday – Still On My Soapbox

Still seems like the reichwing christian ideals align a helluva lot more closely to what Sharia law wants, as opposed to freedom, and democracy. They just have their own twists based on their own wants, and beliefs, and their own twisted patriotism that they think is the only patriotism that matters. This is why I keep reminding you, my kind, and intelligent readers, that when Russia launched a social media campaign to influence American public opinion, and sway voters in a way that would damage American democracy, and create a national divide, they targeted right wing conservatives. They did so for a couple simple facts, and those being that the conservative agenda is the one furthest from the ideals of American democracy, freedom, and decency, and the fact so many uneducated Americans buy into the preachings of right wing conservatives; they’re the most gullible, and easiest to influence.

Weigh-In Wednesday – Happy Holidays, and Other Useless Junk

The people who post these stupid, “Want to trigger a liberal? Wish them a Merry Christmas” crap, it makes you look pretty damn uneducated. Say Merry Christmas – celebrate Christmas. Hell, we won’t even force you to grow a brain, and learn the true history of the holiday. All anyone ever said is, other people celebrate holidays BESIDES Christmas, so when someone says “Happy Holidays” in return, because, there are multiple holidays to celebrate this time of year, even in your own little narrow minded world, don’t get so butt hurt about it.

Christians in this nation are the most quickly, and easily offended people going, but seem to think if they don’t get their way they’re immediately being persecuted, and everyone else is offended by them. We’re not offended – we just find you to be ridiculous, and stupid. Fucking grow up, and learn how to exist in a world where other people have different perspectives. We’re going on probably over 1500 years of this bullshit from every sect of your cult, and you still haven’t learned how to do that.

Weigh-In Wednesday – The Ten Year Challenge

Our Meet The Filmmaker interview went well, but as always, the questions I anticipate people will ask about the movie are not the questions that are asked. Meet The Filmmakers will probably be released in late Spring/early Summer. Before then, however, Stages will be shown at a movie night at Buff State’s Upton Hall on Friday Dec 6 at 7PM. This is an event hosted by Mike Raisch for his recent production Smith and the Devil which I assisted slightly in helping to shoot some video elements (under water, no less). There will be a Q&A afterward, and I will be speaking about Stages, so feel free to come, and ask questions.

Silent Voices - where I got to play a complete jerk. Conservatives would say this would influence me to become one.

Nearly A Weigh-In Wednesday and I’m Angry

Yes, indeed, my little snowflake. No one is saying “free.” The majority of Americans want these things – it’s isn’t just small radicalized pockets of progressives. We realize these programs cost money; the government collects plenty from us to cover the programs, we just keep hearing about how they’re not affordable, while wars, tax-cuts for the wealthy, and bail-outs to covers shitty (Republican!) economic policies are never questioned as to their cost. Spend our taxes on the things that will benefit the tax payers. I’m sorry your feeble, simple mind can’t understand that people want their taxes to benefit them.

Weigh-In Wednesday – The Uniqueness of You

I learned in time, that’s just how it is, and I need to have patience with myself, more than patience with others. In those times when you’re stopped worrying about it, and start focusing on other things, amazing people come into your life. When you’re forcing it, less than amazing people come into your life.

Just my two-cents of my old age wisdom. Picture me peeling an apple and eating slices off the blade of my pocket knife while sitting in a porch rocker while telling you this. It might make more of an impact.

A straw hat, and denim overalls are also nice additions.

Another Day

“I want to play,” Hailey  announced in that way that only drunk people would announce such a thing.

“What would you like to play?” Billy inquired back with a smirk. He knew her condition meant she would be open to anything. She loved rough play when drinking, and the more drunk she got, the rougher it could be.

“Whatever you want to play…” she said, poking Billy in the middle of his chest with an outstretched index finger. “But you know my preferences,” she continued, tracing her finger down his body.

Billy looked at her through squinted eyes, and a tilted head. She smiled, and laughed a little, and playfully asked, “What?  What’s gong through your mind?”

“You might not want to know,” he responded dryly, “but you’re about to find out.”

Weigh-In Wednesday – It’s Obviously Autumn Again

I’ve often said, the worst changes, challenges, and things I have to adapt to happen in Autumn. Every year, it seems like something new, and increasingly awful. Maybe it has become self-fulfilling prophecy, but often the challenges I face aren’t even things on the radar. Nothing I’m dwelling on, or fearing. Just, random awful crap.

My Autumn has begun in just that way. Let’s see what else it can throw at me by December.

Weigh-In Wednesday – Searching for the Sun

Sometimes, being positive isn’t about finding the silver lining in the storm clouds, or seeing the sun from behind the rain. It’s about appreciating the rain, and how refreshing it can be while it is coming down. It’s about appreciating the dancing shadows in the storm clouds as they roll, and flow. It’s about recognizing your pain, embracing it, and realizing it will pass. 

Not everything is good all of the time, but even when things aren’t good, they’re useful. Flowers rarely grow from sunshine alone. It takes a balance of rain, and some lumps of shit, along with the sunshine for them to thrive.

If you spend your time trying to only be positive, not only do you fail to learn to deal with your problems, but you lose the experience of the pain your problems bring. Without being able to feel, embrace, and deal with pain, you can’t fully appreciate the happiness, and the good. As I’ve said many times, the valleys help define the mountains.  The oceans help to define the land. Contrasts exist to show us what can be, what is important, what we should value, and the things, and people that deserve our greatest efforts.