You're A Joke!

OK, you're a super-sensitive, save the Earth, vegetarian, don't harm animals or poison your bodies with meat; it causes cancer, it's unclean, the poor farm animals-- "oh how could you eat flesh?"--yet you drink like a fish and smoke like a chimney. Yeah, you're all about the healthy lifestyle. You roll around in your eco-friendly cars but you're against any type of nuclear power??? Are you serious? Make up your mind. Or are you just so anti-establishment that you only enjoy being difficult and listening to yourself? You claim to be a "socialist"--so in touch with the "working class"--but you'd die without your morning latte, smart water, weekly pedicures, yoga classes, spa treatments, and facials. You're so "grassroots" but I don't see you leaving your gated community for long or donating your trust fund to the poor, 3rd world kids you claim you care so much about. It's what's trendy right now and it's what your parents can't understand about you. That's the extent of your interest. When things get rough, you are the first to run and hide in your ivory tower behind the fence with the rest of your people. You use words like "radical" and "revolution" when you have no idea about such concepts. If you happen to get arrested, there's a high priced attorney on retainer. You think wearing some Che Guevara t-shirt, growing dreadlocks, and attending a rally championing the uses of hemp makes you into a revolutionary freedom fighter? Get real, but better yet--get lost! Your very presence insults the memories of those lost in the struggle. Most of the time, your just some little attention starved rich kid--going through a phase. I'll see you on Wall Street in no time.



The Long Road Ahead

On my way to success, I got stopped by sudden tragedy. When I finished my time there, refusing to wallow in self-pity, I finally go back on the road. As I continued my quest, once again my progress was halted. This time I veered off the path and took a side road that took me off-course. Why? Well, I did this because I got sidetracked by distraction. Come on, I was bored. As always, I spent a lot more time wandering down this road than I initially intended to. Finally, when I awoke out of my stupor of purposeless movement and idleness, I had to backtrack—wasting even more time and energy. However, I was able to again find my way back on the straight and narrow. Because I was at this time running way behind, I had to put forth double, and at times, triple the effort—just to get where I should have been at this time. Then I wondered, “What if I put forth this type of effort in the first place and avoided the pitfalls of distraction—where would I be? Hmmm…” Oh well, no time for regret—that leads to self-pity, which will lead me back to distraction, and—you know the rest. Besides, I can’t move forward looking backward.  Since I have been exerting myself—not trying to get ahead—but just where I should be, I am now exhausted. Do I rest for a while and risk resting too long, or do I lower my head, just slow it down for a while until I regain strength, so at least I will keep moving forward—no matter what? The latter. Yes, no matter what, I gotta keep moving forward. No more getting caught up, no more going too far, no more biting off more than I can chew—that’s how you wind up choking. Now, I’ve got a long way to go. But I’ve also come so far. I am nowhere near where I need to be—but I am also nowhere near where I was. The finish line is now closer to me than my starting point. Yeah, I made some bad mistakes along the way. But I keep pressing on. I spent too much time—wasting time—but it’s still my time. I got entangled easily and found it far more difficult to free myself. I have learned from my mistakes—and the stupidity and ignorance of others. So, they’re not a total loss. But, I’m back on my way. And no one—NO ONE can stop me—but me.

CONCEPTION, LABOR, & DELIVERY

In life, and even life itself, most everything is brought into reality by a three part process; conception, labor, and delivery. Yes, we all understand that this is the basic order of how human beings come into this world. There is the conception to begin the process of creation, growth, and development, the labor to bring forth the child when the time is right, and finally when the labor is finished, the child is delivered into the world to begin life outside of the womb. So it is with dreams, goals, ambitions, and visions. There is a period of conception where the idea or image from the thoughts are implanted in our hearts and minds. Over time we add to these visions, dreams, ideas, etc. and figure out the details and how to make it into a reality. In other words, we "develop" them. But, the hard part, the part where most dreams and plans die is during the labor process. Other words for labor are work, toil, effort, or struggle. It takes all of these to bring forth that which has been conceived in you. Just as a baby must stay hidden with the womb if his/her mother until the time is right--so it is with your dreams, goals, apirations, etc. In addition, just as if you try and force a baby to be delivered prematurely, you risk the death and crippling of your goals and those other things planted within your heart. You can't rush them along, you have to wait until the time is right and when it's time to go into labor you have to push and pull with all of your might to bring it forth. Labor is hard. Labor wears you out. Labor, at times, takes everything within you to get the job done. And just when you think that you have given it your all--more is required and you have to dig deep within you to put forth more effort. But when it is finsihed--the results are sweet. Jeses explained this to us in the Gospel of John chapter 16 and verses 20 and 21; "Most assuredly, I say to you that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; and you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into joy.A woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world." Isn't that how it is? Once you achieve that goal that seemed so far away, you can barely remember what it took to get it completed. You are not at all concerned with the blood, sweat, and tears it took--you are just relieved that it is over. So, I just want to stop by and tell you that even though your dreams and goals seem so far away, don't lose heart. You are just in labor. Some women deliver a baby fast while others are stuck on labor for hours--but keep pushing. Don't give up. Don't abort your dreams because of discouragement or frustration. Don't abort your dreams because of fear or the fact that others don't believe it can happen. Keep it up. Stay in labor. It may seem like you can't make it or that it's too far off--but God is with you and it is almost over. Deliver this dream, this vision, this aspiration into the world. Bring forth what has been conceived in you long ago. God has promised us to help bring it to pass if we stay strong and stay on our feet; "And let us not grow weary while doing good, for 
in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart." (Galatians 6:9).

Another Enemy… Self-destructive Habits

No one sets out to destroy themselves. A heroin junkie never said when he/she was a child, “You know, when I die, I wanna die young of an overdose in the middle of a rat infested alley with a needle sticking out of one of my last functioning veins.” I seriously doubt an alcoholic says, “I love drinking. I love drinking so much, that I want to ruin my liver and kidneys. I want to die a slow death—one where I need regular dialysis treatments and live my last days gasping for air every time I climb some steps. I want to end up being fed intravenously because along the way I destroyed my esophagus and I want to die while my grandchildren are too young to understand why their grandparent is rotting away in a hospice.” And yes, I doubt ANYONE says, “Not me, I want to die of some disease associated with AIDS. Yes, that’s for me. I want to slowly waste away from an immune system rendered useless at a young age. I want all opportunities for a long productive life, having children, contributing a lasting legacy to society, growing old with that special someone, watching my children get married, and playing with their kids snatched away from me. I want my parents and siblings to bury me with unspeakable grief from my early demise along with the anger of unfulfilled potential.” No, of course no one says such things—or even thinks them for that matter. Yet, each of us has heard of, known, or maybe has been related to someone who left this world in such a tragic manner. Tragic? Yes, quite tragic. Why? Because it was self-inflicted—and thus fully avoidable.

Drug-use, alcoholism, sexual irresponsibility, and such behavior are all examples of self-destructive habits. Sure, they’re fun while we do them—pleasurable, stress relieving, exciting, fun—take your pick. Even scripture attests to this; “Stolen waters are sweet, and bread eaten in secret is pleasant.”( Proverbs 9:17). In other words, the more taboo or illicit--the more thrilling. Think about it, when you do something acceptable and legal, though it may be fun first, it loses its appeal quickly. However, when you have to sneak, lie, look over your shoulder, plan out, wait until it’s dark, and/or peak around corners to do that same thing—it’s so much more exhilarating. But these things can and will ensnare us into a life of addiction and slavery—taking from us our potential, health, respect, and years of life. It’s one thing to look in the mirror and see the effects and at that point try and make a cognizant choice to change—but it’s quite worse to be one who lives such a life and is unaware of your condition.  Yes, it’s really sad to tell yourself you are “just a social drinker” when in actuality you’re a bona-fide alcoholic. It’s a depressing affair to hear any drug addict say, “I’m not hooked. I have it under control.” or to watch a habitual gambler lose everything looking for that all elusive lucky streak. How do these things happen? People never wake up one day and say, “I want to begin a life-long battle with addiction today.” But that’s how it starts—like everything else—with one step. Maybe you cannot remember the first drink but that’s where the seeds were planted, the struggle started, the genesis of the demons you deal with. Self-destructive habits enter our lives very innocently through a dare, curiosity, or experimentation. Little did we know that when we picked up that first cigarette, grabbed that first bottle, or snorted that first line that there was a short chain and pair of shackles that came along with it. How many times have you found yourself on your knees grasping the rim of a toilet bowl with your head shoved in puking while promising yourself (and your God) that you’ll never drink again—only to begin again by Friday afternoon? Or how many times have you gone to bed with a stranger telling yourself, “I am getting too old for this. This is the last one-night-stand for me.”? Been there? I’m sure. Look, if anything will rob from you and destroy your potential and your future—self-destructive habits will.

It’s unfortunate that those charged with helping us and at times saving us, actually stand by silently while we wander unknowingly toward our destruction. These are people we call our “friends.” I don’t know about you, but I do not want a person as my friend who is too afraid to confront me and stop me when they see me headed in the wrong direction. I mean ask yourself; if you saw your friend drowning, would you do what you can to help him/her? If you watched your friend accidently walk near a venomous snake, would you just stand there and allow him/her to get close enough to get bitten? If your friend was watching you mistakenly pick up a glass of what you think was water, but in reality was poison, would you expect him/her to snatch it out of your hands immediately? Okay, yes, these answers are obvious. But why is it that so many of us or our friends fail to be straight with us, warn us, or advise us when we have self-destructive habits in our lives? I cringe when I hear these most lame of excuses come forth like; “I don’t want to be judgmental.”, “It’s not my business. It’s not my place to get involved.”, “He/she is an adult. He/she can maker his/her own choices.”, “I don’t want him/her to hate me.” Yes, I am sure you have heard or even said or thought these things. They are pathetic. A true friend is interested in the health and welfare of the other. How in the world can you sit on your ass and watch someone you call your friend destroy themselves and rob themselves of life and potential? You are not a true friend if you sit by and allow fear to let you make the choice of inaction. No, you are not a friend—you are an enabler. Please, I plead with you. If you have people in your life like this that you consider friends—get rid of them with the utmost expedience. The people that you allow to get this close to you in your life should be the ones who help propel you forward into your destiny, not drag you down, or distract you away from it. Your friends must be people who not only believe in you and push you when you are ready to stop, but they have to believe in you more than you believe in yourself and are committed to your success as much if not more than you are. Sure, we all have buddies that will be there when it’s time to open up a bottle, roll up a blunt, or figure out where the next party is. They’ll sit with us and put their arms around us when we are buzzed or high. But where are those that will say to us, “Hey, party’s over. Get up! We got work to do, places to go, business to handle, goals to reach.”? When you are broke, unmotivated, and ready to give up—the ones that are still there are your true friends. You know who else are your true friends? The ones who will tell you that you messed up, you need to get your act together, and the ones that will yell when you don’t listen, get in front of you when you try and walk away, and even slap you when you need a reality check. Yes, your friends are sometimes the ones who cause you the most pain and discomfort—and they don’t care whether you like it or not—because they care more about you than your feelings. Even the scriptures state this; “Faithful are the wounds of a friend, But the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.” (Proverbs 27:6). Put simply, a friend will wound us with the truth—but will also be there to assist in healing those wounds with love. Don’t push away those people who place a mirror in front of you and show you what is real. If you don’t like what you see in the mirror—don’t get mad and take it out of the mirror.

If you have a chance to assess the mess in your life—then you are truly blessed. Why? Because God has given you a chance to get things straight. He could have left you in the blurry, half-conscious, zombie-like state you put yourself in—but His mercies allowed you a window of opportunity to change. You now have the power to change—to break off the bands of addiction and progress toward your destiny. You have now been given clear insight into your condition taking you nowhere fast and thank God He loves you enough to wake you from your sleep for a moment and get back on track. Enough time and opportunities have been stolen from you and wasted by you through self-destructive habits. Redeem the remainder of the time and energy you have left. This is not the end--but just the beginning.

As I close this I just want to leave a few thoughts with you. If you want to achieve success and not end up being one of those bitter old people who always tell the “could have, should have, would have” stories, there are times you have to force yourself to close your legs, keep your dick in your pocket, leave the lid on the bottle, and focus. As long as you sleep through life, all your dreams will remain just dreams and in the end, no one wants to hear excuses. I once heard a wise man say, “Excuses are just explanations people use for a lack of effort.” Please, don’t allow self-destructive habits to continue put you into a coma and rob you blind. Let’s end with one more Bible verse found in Proverbs 21:17; “He who loves pleasure will be a poor man; He who loves wine and oil will not be rich.”

The Four Enemies--Number 1, Laziness and Idle Time

In life, we really have 4 REAL ENEMIES, and they are not people--but intangibles that will rob and eventually destroy your potential and even you; idle-time, ignorance, self-destructive habits, and fear. If you are still curious about this--please read on. 

Let’s begin by discussing Idle Time. Later we will examine the other three.

I am not the most religious person there is—actually far from it. But I like to read certain scriptures in the Bible because the practical advice and wisdom found within are simply priceless. A couple of such verses are these:
 Proverbs 19:15 “Laziness casts one into a deep sleep, And an idle person will suffer hunger.”
 Proverbs 20:13 “Do not love sleep, lest you come to poverty; open your eyes and you shall be satisfied with bread.”
 Ecclesiastes 10:18 “Because of laziness the building decays, And through idleness of hands the house leaks.”

As you can see, these all deal with the dangers of laziness and idle time. Many people think that laziness if something comical and idle time is best used for relaxing and relieving stress. Though stress relief is important and a vital component to living a happy and healthy life, a certain level of stress is actually good for you. Without a healthy amount of stress creating that internal and external pressure, many of us would not perform at our best or at a consistent basis. Stress makes our minds move at high speed, it spawns creativity, at times sharpens our focus, and even energizes us. It is no mistake that people who spend so much time avoiding stress or relieving stress often don’t have much to show for their labor. People who are primarily concerned with the weekend, relaxing, partying, taking a load off, etc. are the same ones to complain about not accomplishing goals or having the things in life they desire. Therefore, time and what we do with it is the most significant factor in our ability to achieve success or become failures. In regards to laziness, most of the time we laugh at lazy people. We associate laziness with procrastination, young men, dreamers, schemers, etc. Though laziness provides the occasional laugh and opportunity to tease someone, it is one of the most successful thieves in the universe. Laziness and idle time go hand in hand—they are close brothers. The Bible even attests to this: “One who is slack in his work is brother to one who destroys.” (Proverbs 18:9). Yes, laziness and idleness can even destroy. How? Well, when you waste time and live a life of laziness and ease, you rob yourself of the most precious gift given to you—time. God has given all of us a certain amount of time and He expects us to do certain things—rather accomplish certain things within that period of time allotted unto us. When we waste the gift that He has given us, along with any other gift—it angers Him. Don’t believe me? Check out this parable given to us by Jesus (found in the 25^th chapter of Matthew):

14 For it is as though a man, going on his travels, called his servants, and gave his property into their charge.

15 He gave three thousand pounds to one, twelve hundred to another, and six hundred to a third, in proportion to the ability of each. Then he set out on his travels.

16 The man who had received the three thousand pounds went at once and traded with it, and made another three thousand.

17 So, too, the man who had received the twelve hundred pounds made another twelve hundred.

18 But the man who had received the six hundred went and dug a hole in the ground, and hid his master's money.

19 After a long time the master of those servants returned, and settled accounts with them.

20 The man who had received the three thousand pounds came up and brought three thousand more. 'Sir,' he said, 'you entrusted me with three thousand pounds; look, I have made another three thousand!'

21 'Well done, good, trustworthy servant!' said his master. 'You have been trustworthy with a small sum; now I will place a large one in your hands; come and share your master's joy!'

22 Then the one who had received the twelve hundred pounds came up and said 'Sir, you entrusted me with twelve hundred pounds; look, I have made another twelve hundred!'

23 'Well done, good, trustworthy servant!' said his master. 'You have been trustworthy with a small sum; now I will place a large one in your hands; come and share your master's joy!'

24 The man who had received the six hundred pounds came up, too, and said 'Sir, I knew that you were a hard man; you reap where you have not sown, and gather up where you have not winnowed;

25 And, in my fear, I went and hid your money in the ground; look, here is what belongs to you!'

26 'You lazy, worthless servant!' was his master's reply. 'You knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather up where I have not winnowed?

27 Then you ought to have placed my money in the hands of bankers, and I, on my return, should have received my money, with interest.

28 'Therefore,' he continued, 'take away from him the six hundred pounds, and give it to the one who has the six thousand.

29 For, to him who has, more will be given, and he shall have abundance; but, as for him who has nothing, even what he has will be taken away from him.

30 As for the useless servant, 'put him out into the darkness' outside, where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth.'

Now to delve into this particular story in detail and examine all the implications, symbols, allegorical meanings, so on and so forth will take time we don’t have and probably cause you to stop reading this and go to another site (if you haven’t already). But what I want us to look at is the reaction of the man when he confronted the fearful servant who did nothing with what was given him. The man, after hearing the servant’s lame excuse became angry and referred to him as “lazy” and “worthless.” Notice, the man in charge is not laughing at his laziness or even seems to find it amusing in the least bit. He juxtaposes the terms “lazy” and “worthless” to give us an idea or definition of what he was and his value linked to his condition. Because this is a parable told to us by Jesus, it is safe to conclude that from these descriptive terms that God Himself finds laziness to something abhorrent. There is no verse in the Bible that makes light of laziness or praises its virtues. When you read about laziness and idle time in the Bible, it is always associated with poverty, decay, destruction, evil, and mischief. So, how should we view it? We should look at laziness and idle time as enemies that rob us. But, maybe you don’t read or even believe in the Bible. That’s totally your choice. However, tell me this; what does laziness reward you with? What does an abundance of idle time develop in your life? What great accomplishment (besides knowing who won the latest American Idol competition or beating a video game) has idle time caused you to realize? How has laziness enhanced you, your wealth, knowledge, health, etc.? It is so easy to fall into the trance of laziness and idle time. When you are idle, your mind is wasted by thinking of wasteful and pointless time-fillers. When you don’t have a plan or objective, you fall further behind those who do. The more time you spend “wasting time” the more difficult it is to get started and the easier it is to say, “I’ll start tomorrow.” Tomorrow never comes and before you know it, idle time and laziness has robbed you.

One other thing comes to mind as I write this. I remember as a kid that I had a stepfather for a few years of my life. He was a lot older than my mother so there was a huge generational gap between him and me. He was a World War II veteran who was born in the early twenties and grew up in Oklahoma. Being Black in those days in the U.S. was hard enough, but growing up in a state like Oklahoma during the years of the Great Depression made his childhood that much more difficult. On top of that, his mother died before he was ten years old and his father was pretty much in and out of his life. My stepfather would often tell us stories of his hardship and how he was forced to quit school at an early age just to work odd jobs to be able to feed himself. Put simply, the harshness of the times and the society he grew up in coupled with the poverty and personal issues set before him, put in a position where he basically had to raise himself and was not able to really have—let alone enjoy—a childhood of any type. He grew up hard and this was always evident in so many facets of his personality and character. I can remember he had such a disdain for laziness.  In his eyes it was like one of the worst flaws a person could have. He looked at laziness like some kind of terrible disease. Where others found it funny or would look at it lightheartedly, my stepfather despised it. It was not until I understood the context within which he grew up that I began to realize why. You see, he understood literally the Bible verse found in II Thessalonians 3:10 “For even when we were with you, this we commanded you, that if any would not work, neither should he eat.” This was his reality—his survival depended solely on his efforts to work. Work equaled living another day while laziness only rewarded one with an empty stomach. He would tell of many nights of going to bed hungry and many mornings of going to school the same way. When he would notice my brother and I being lazy, it was something that angered him fiercely and he tried his best to punish or work it out of us. As a man now, I am thankful for those hard lessons. Children don’t readily accept nor understand that the world we live in is not one that gives things away. Hard and persistent work is one of the only aspects in life that result in gain. Many people are filled with so much potential—yet it is never realized because the twin thieves of idle time and laziness lulled them to sleep and stole that potential.  Others sat right at the cusp of greatness, only to allow these same two thieves to get them to withdraw and put it off for another day--which never arrived. Let’s end this section with one last Bible passage found in Proverbs the 24^th chapter:

30 I went by the field of the lazy man, and by the vineyard of the man without understanding;

31 and, lo, it was all grown over with thorns, and nettles had covered the face of it, and its stone wall was broken down.

32 Then I saw; I set my heart on it; I looked and I received instruction.

33 A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to lie down;

34 then your poverty comes stalking, and your want like an a man armed with a shield.

Love and Abusive Relationships

People tend to stay in abusive relationships for many reasons. However, there are two main ones that are noticed to surface quite often—lack of self-value and a person allowing their love for the abuser to cloud their judgment. Firstly, abusers tend to get with and stay with people that allow themselves to be abused. We have all seen this person. Usually it’s a woman who is beaten by her boyfriend/husband on a regular basis. But other than this stereotypical situation, there is also the man who is verbally and emotionally abused by the woman in his life. Yes, I know, women are verbally and emotionally abused also. Anyway, because this person has such a crippled and shattered self-image, practically no self-confidence, and thus little to no self-worth, this person allows the abuse to continue because he/she feels that no one else would want them. They feel that the person they are with loves them in spite of the continual abuse and therefore, defends them and forgives them over and over. They often turn the abuse inward and blame themselves for it. This creates a situation where the abuse becomes normal and is even expected. The reasons why a person can have such a pathetic self-image are numerous. However, the results are always the same. I have actually heard a woman say to me that when her husband beats her, it shows that he loves her and if he did not do it, she would be concerned. This warps the mind of an individual to the point where they cannot function in a normal relationship. They must be in one where they are constantly striving to earn the other’s love instead of expecting it to be mutually exchanged. It becomes a sick emotional dependency of sorts. It can take years to heal someone of this mental malady. It also ruins the chances of a decent person coming along and showing this person true love. Sometimes when people are not used to real love, when they get it, they mess it up because they are not used to it and feel it’s either too good to be true or it will be ruined sooner or later anyway so why not do it before they become a victim. This also creates a low expectation of the opposite sex to the point whereas if a good woman or good man comes along, they are ignored because they are seen as fake or not genuine. Some people are more comfortable with loose non-committed relationships, abusers, liars, and cheaters because that’s what they are used to seeing or experiencing. One the other hand, some people allow their love for an abusive individual to compel them to stay in an abusive or toxic relationship. Love is not bound by things such as logic, common sense, etc. Therefore, a person will utilize forgiveness, patience, and understanding to a fault. They will sacrifice themselves, and the health and welfare of those around them because they love so hard and so blindly. Though this may be admirable in some situations, in a set of abusive circumstances—it can be downright self destructive. It is easy for us to sit on the outside and judge, but we have at one time or another been in a relationship where we were lied to, abused, taken advantage of, cheated on, insulted, etc. and we stayed longer than we should have. Love will do that. Sad but true. One of the most deceptive lies that love tells us is, “If I just wait he/she will change and things will get better.” Love is beautiful. But one of the tragedies of it is that it can often create hope where there should not be any--at all. Love is often at odds with reality.

The Death of Osama Bin Laden Means Nothing--Maybe Even… Less?

Utopia…

Yes, it is finally here! The days that the prophet Isaiah wrote of when he stated, “…They shall beat their swords into plowshares, And their spears into pruning hooks; Nation shall not lift up sword against nation, Neither shall they learn war anymore.” (ch2, vs4). We have finally arrived at a place of peace, a world without war, a society with no senseless shedding of blood! Can you feel it? No more violence, harm, or danger!!! The war is over! Now that Osama Bin Laden is dead, bullets and guns are worthless, all nuclear weapons can be dismantled and all people in the military can stop training how to fight and only concern themselves with humanitarian missions. Yes, believers and infidels alike will not only hold hands and stroll together into the horizon of peace and brotherhood, but they will all dine together at the table of humanity. Oh they joy set before us… OK, OK, OK, maybe I am being just a tiny bit sarcastic (you think?). But I can’t be any worse than all these morons acting like today should be a national holiday. Context and perspective is everything when it comes to having an accurate understanding of something. This is no exception to the rule. The death of this one man, no matter what your feelings are towards/about him, does even less than cause a ripple in the boisterous sea of war and conflict that certain parts of world are engaged in. Let me spell it out for you; it changes NOTHING… well maybe the FBI/CIA Most Wanted posters/list and actually there’s a chance that some Pakistani is a few million dollars richer. Other than that, what will change besides the face of Al Qaeda? This war will continue to drag on, just like the war drags on Iraq—way after a guy named Saddam Hussein also met his maker. Any person acting like this is a huge triumph and step forward in this whole mess has gotten it all wrong. Sure, he was the face and leadership of this global terrorist network—but it’s GLOBAL and it’s a NETWORK for a reason. Leadership is easily replaced and the killing of key people—no matter how key--has little affect on the overall mission and capability thereof. Trust me, this dude had many loyal and able soldiers to take up the cause. Maybe his death was warranted. Only God knows now. I do not rejoice over anyone’s death—no matter who or what. Personally, I do believe some should die—murderers, rapists, child-molesters, etc. But even then I would not rejoice at their demise or what some would deem “justice.” Should justice be rejoiced over? Or should we just quietly rest in the fact that hopefully it was served? Sure, some things are right but that does not mean that they are to be celebrated.

Justice?

As far as the concept of justice goes, I can’t quite reach my arms around that. I mean, look at what it took to finally get him. Just in Afghanistan, over 2,400 service members have lost their lives. In Iraq over 4,000 paid the ultimate price. These numbers are just military alone and how many died on 9/11? These numbers are dwarfed when one adds in all the civilian casualties and injuries resulting from this—not to mention the affects upon countless families and the hundreds of billions of dollars spent so far—under the guise of going after him. If you ask me, in the long run—he didn't go empty handed. Yeah, I said it. Before all you war-hawks, armchair generals, and ignorant flag waving know-it-alls come after me—understand one thing… I volunteered and served in uniform (and I don’t mean a UPS uniform either) in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Not only that, 4 members of my immediate family did the same and one was shot (thank God for his armor). So, I don’t want to hear or read any of your silly “anti-American” or “traitor” accusations. If anyone has a right to scrutinize and criticize this “war”—it is I. I put on the jersey and went into the game, until you do the same, save it. OK, back to this… if you look at what it took to finally get this guy—kill him, was it worth it? Some if not most would say, “yes.” Well, he’s dead now. What will be different tomorrow? Are the curtains of war finally going to be drawn? Are the rest of the people who followed him and shared his dictates going to snap out of their ideological coma and think like the ones they view as the enemy? What long-planned terrorist act is not going to be undertaken now? What would-be suicide bomber is now scared of the long-arm of the U.S. military? It took us a decade, thousands of lives, and an uncountable amount of money to shoot one guy in the head for crimes he committed of the most heinous order. In this huge disarray of ignorance, hatred, bloodshed, and violence—it is quite difficult for me to feel any sense of justice. Honesty, that is one of the last words which comes to mind.

Killing a Fly With A Sledgehammer

What has happened is the equivalent of going into a neighbor’s home and trying to kill a fly with a sledgehammer. Sure, after taking huge swipes at it for a decade you may finally have smashed him. But what else have you destroyed in the process? In some ways, what America has done in going after this guy is akin to spending 2 million dollars to sue someone for a thousand dollars—even if you win this one, you still lose. In other words, when we lifted the sledgehammer up and saw the smashed insect we still have to look around and deal with all the damage inflicted on our neighbor’s home. Sure, he’s dead, but what else has been killed? We can’t go in, make a mess and then say, “Hey, we killed that pesky fly. Now all your troubles are over. OK, we’ll be going now.” It does not work that way. I do believe that sometimes, you have to use a sledgehammer to kill a fly to send a message and bring an abrupt halt to the nonsense (like what happened to Japan in WWII). But this is not a conventional war fought in a conventional manner in any way, shape, or form. So yes, Osama Bin Laden is (finally) dead, but so are a lot of other people connected to this whole mess. Where do we go from here? Going after him was why this whole this began, but something tells me that we haven’t even scratched the surface of the start of all this—even after a decade into it.

The Affects of Making a Martyr

The Middle East is going through a social/political metamorphosis of sorts now. I believe that it is splitting between the people who support the thinking of ideologues such as Bin Laden and progressive people who desire a more free, open, and tolerant Middle East. This generation is the first to shuck off all the “colonialism, anti-western” rhetoric that the former and present Middle Eastern leadership has used for many years to continually manipulate the citizenry while robbing them of not only money but opportunities and futures. This generation is the one that realizes that the real enemies of their states are no longer foreign powers, but  the very governments that are supposed to be their caretakers. With that said, I truly believe that people such as Osama Bin Laden were headed for demise in influence. They would always have followers, but with the rise of change in the Middle East and the younger generation tasting true democracy and freedom, the alternative of joining his ranks would begin to lose its appeal. However, with his sudden death, he will now be a martyr and thus a forever living symbol of sorts and ironically this will give him immortality—Ché Guevara, Tupac, Steve Biko, etc. He now becomes a beacon or rallying point of sorts and an inspiration for generations to come. It doesn’t matter how good/bad he was. His image will be hijacked (yes, I used that word) and his legend will be spread. In the long run, I think it would have been so much more effective to have captured him alive and let him spend the next decade preparing for a trial that would last another decade and hopefully he could have died quietly in a prison cell. Let me prove my point… remember a man named Manuel Noriega? Exactly.

Fighting an Ideology—Not a War

What is being fought is a destructive, hateful, and intolerant ideology—not a war. This is why we are having such issues. You cannot fight ideologies with bullets, you have to fight them with truth, education, opportunities, prosperity, freedoms and change when necessary. Destructive ideologies must to be exposed for the frauds that they are. They have to be examined, deconstructed, and proven to be failures. Communism in the Soviet Union was fought like this. And this is the only way it will be successfully defeated in Cuba, North Korea, and it is how it is slowly dying in China (whether they want to admit it or not). Americans thought they partially defeated Communism’s spread in Afghanistan in the 80’s with weaponry. But when the Russians left and it was time to build a prosperous nation in Afghanistan, America dropped the ball and another destructive ideology took root—the government of the Taliban. The C.I.A. thought that they could defeat the ideology of Communism with bullets and shoulder fired rocket launchers given to the Afghani fighters. What they really helped create was a man named Osama Bin Laden.

Looking Back Half-Way Through

Let me preface this by stating--"I AM NOT old." No, I am not... I work with a small group of guys in their 20's and I am reaping what I sewed when I was their age--I called guys my age "old." Ha ha ha, how time flies and how tables turn. Yes, in another month or two, I will be OFFICIALLY in my mid-thirties--35 years old. Sure, it's not old, but I don't want to kid myself, I am not in my twenties either.  A recent personal event in my life reminded me of this fact involving such a one as I once was. Anyway, at this moment there are so many thoughts running through my mind that I must put down in this particular blog. So, please (as always) bear with me. I need to now write out what I want to discuss so that if I have to save this piece part of the way through and then pick it up later I will remember what I wanted to write about (yep, one of the first signs of age--you gotta write EVERYTHING DOWN or you will only recall it when it's too late, when you really get old, you won't recall it at all). I want to talk about what 35 means in terms of stages of life. I want to talk about people mistaking and abusing certain stages of life and having to play "catch up." I want to talk about my generation in particular and juxtapose them with this present one. Finally, I want be honest about where I feel I am in all of this. I hope that if you cannot relate, then at the least you can enjoy...

The reason why I entitled this "Looking Back Half-Way Through" is because, let's face it--if you live to be 70 years old, you had enough time to do pretty much what you wanted to do (whether it happened for you is another story) and if you die at this age or older, no one can really say that your life was "cut short." No matter how you slice it, or how well you can get around, get it up, or get down at 70--70 is still old. Yes, yes, yes, I know you have a grandfather or you have a friend with a grandmother who is above the age of 70 and s/he can do all the things s/he did at 20... right. No, I am not denying that there are some spry and active old folks out there. I actually went to college with a guy in his seventies, but 70 is after all--70. And my point is (yes, I took this long to get to it), that if 70 is (on average) the "end of the road", then we have to look at 35 as half-way through the trip. This brings me into a stark reality. One that I would tease people about when they turned 35--"... dude, you are half way to 70... It's all downhill from here!!! What have you go to look forward to? A receding hairline, a growing waistline, crows-feet around your eyes, gray hair--where you still have it--the beginning of a need for Viagra. Ha ha ha ha, face it. It's over!" Yes, I would shout these cruel things to my guy friends and under all the laughs I one day knew that it would be me as the butt of like jokes. But I could not resist the ribbing. So, I must admit, I do believe most these things are down the road for me. Thus, I just move from teasing guys in their mid-thirties to ones in their fifties. Do I still look at 35 the same way--yes I do, just without all the laughter. Thank God I have not started losing my hair and the only hair that's showing signs of gray are a few in my mustache and beard. I don't have wrinkles but the permanent dark circles around my already failing eyes are forming. I was heavier but with constant exercise I have maintained a healthy weight. As for the Viagra (or any other E.D. drug), I have had no need for it yet. And by saying "yet" I don't plan to. But I will be honest here (at the risk of much mockery)… let's be real, it's not going to get any better.

When I think about it, it's so silly for us to grab onto and embrace these ridiculous notions about how "30 is the new 20" or "40 is the new 30." How stupid! Whenever I hear such nonsense, my personal irritation meter goes off. This ignorance is the result of a long-held Westernized way of thinking that actually dates back many years--the worship of youth. America especially worships youth to a point of insanity. They worship the superficiality of youth; smooth skin, dark hair, thin, muscular bodies, perky breasts, firm buttocks, skin unblemished by stretch marks, wrinkles, or lack of elasticity, an instant hard-on, quick reflexes, natural strength, a killer libido, bright straight teeth untainted by years of nicotine, dental work and coffee, bright eyes without the effects of sleepless nights, long parties, and longer hangovers... the list goes on and on and on. This youth worship totally ignores the natural ignorance, at times stupidity, and the impulsiveness of youth--that sadly disallows many youth to make it out of this stage in life. It is this poor way of thinking that has people (mainly you white folks--let's be real) spending God awful amounts of cash on surgeries and other medical procedures to retain "the appearance" of youth; Botox treatments, breast augmentation, tummy tucks, face lifts, liposuction, hair replacement therapy, etc. etc. etc. Not to mentions the gallons of hair-dye and tons of make-up used for the same purposes. It seems that most of American society is sold on the idea that age is ugly and should be avoided at all costs. I think that though a person should strive to look their best, if they spend their time trying to avoid the inevitable instead of embracing it and being who they are, they wind up looking like a bunch of buffoons. You've seen grandma at the club in a mini-skirt flashing her denture enhanced smile and winking at every man she thinks is potential bait. When she introduces herself, you feel the poor old lady's hand quivering... and though one can think of the advantages found in a woman with no teeth, it is tragic to see this lovely woman chasing youth that has long left her instead of rejoicing in the accomplishment of reaching a long life. You've seen grandpa at the mall in a jogging suit and a pair of Air Jordans complete with cornrows (gray ones with a receding hairline at that) and diamond studs in his ears--trying to pick up chics. Can't you see him with his jacket zipped halfway down his bare chest while his gold chain dangles through his white chest hair as he stares through his bifocals chewing a toothpick at women his granddaughter’s age....? Yes, when you don't learn to embrace and appreciate where you are in life--you become one of these creeps.

Therefore, I have a choice to make, do I embrace 35 or do I try to run with the 25 year olds? No, I cannot. I am who and what I am at this point in my life and as I think about it, I must wonder... Where--figuratively--am I now? What stage is the age 35 located in? 35??? It is young and not old, but while 35 is young, it must also at the same time be considered "mature." In other words, though I consider myself still a young man at this age... I am more of a young MAN, than a YOUNG man--you get me? You can refer to teen-agers as "young men" but when you call a man in his thirties young, it carries a far different meaning. People get on me all the time and say, "Ramon, you are not old, why do you stress so much about your age?" My answer has more to do with stages in life, accomplishments, and passage then whether or not I consider myself "old." You see, the truth is, a lot of people (especially my fellow Black brothers and sisters) look in the mirror and if they still look young or they feel they still have time, they tend to put off things and take life as it comes rather than taking control of life and exploiting the time periods for what they are worth. A lot of times, people spend a lot more time at life's party and the hangover they thought that they could deal with by just catching a small nap or drinking some coffee is a lot harsher than they imagined. Pretty soon, when 35 rolls around, they still have not finished school, still have not really made significant investments like buying a house or starting a retirement fund, they talk of settling down but still can't function in a monogamous relationship let alone pass up one-night-stand opportunities, still ask mom and dad for money to go out, still work at a dead-end job and not a "position," still go to their buddies who did something with their lives and ask for the "hook up," still wake on Friday mornings with nothing else in mind but "where's the party gonna be at this weekend," still think it's cool to talk and laugh about how wasted/high they got, still talk about what gaudy accessories they will put on their car (if they have one), still find Hollywood and music industry gossip more interesting than social/economic/political issues, and still consider "watching TV and movies" a bona fide hobby. If you are anywhere near 30 years old (let alone 35) and most if not all of these items fit you--my brother, my sister--please wake up, get a (real) life, shed yourself of the dead-weight (which are sometimes your closest friends) in your life, and get productive.

I guess when it's all said and done, 35 is the stage in life where "letting go" is far more productive then "grabbing onto." Let me explain. In I Corinthians 13:11 (NIV), the Apostle Paul wrote "When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me." Notice, he explains that with childhood or immaturity, he spoke, thought, and reasoned a certain way. However, when he recognized that he approached manhood, the totality of the maturation did not disappear on its own. In his words, he had to put them away or "behind" him. This tells us that a significant portion of growing up, maturing, or moving into your correct stage in life is not something that comes naturally (like puberty, gray hairs, or weight gain), it must come and stay by your own efforts and willingness to let go of things (habits, people, behaviors, thoughts, mind-sets, etc.) that no longer remain suitable to your age. So, I guess there is some truth to the saying, "Act your age." And all that nonsense about "Age ain't nothing but a number." is not as applicable as people want us to believe. Being young is fun and exciting. But unfortunately the window of youth does have its limits. This window is more of one to seize opportunity and make investments than to use it to waste time. This window has a time when it's wide open, but when we get into our thirties, we need to recognize that it starts to become narrow and a decade or two down the road it will have only a crack and then finally it will close. The sad thing about our twenties is that most of us remember them in a blur. I firmly believe that what a person does in their twenties determines the outcome for the rest of their lives. Unfortunately, many don't see it that way and throw away their twenties and the valuable opportunities therein. Then they are forced to burn the candles at both ends in their thirties and forties and look like hell by the time they reach their fifties. We look at our twenties as a time to party, drink, and screw ourselves into a stupor--not realizing that when you are on your thirties, you have to pay the bill. 

So, after all the liver damage, lung corrosion, STD treatments, abortions, emotional baggage, jail-records, child-support payments, dark little secrets, regretful pictures posted on the internet, fights, ruined relationships, lost money, and lost respect--we sit in the mirror and have to make a choice; do I wallow in self-pity and continue this until I destroy myself or do I change? This should have already been taken care of before the age of 35. When I am 35 I should be aware of certain pitfalls and not getting into doomed relationships. I should not be spending my money on the same things a 15-25 year old is spending it on (i.e. video games, sneakers, rims, etc.). As a matter of fact, I should be doing more investing than spending. At 35, getting drunk/high should no longer be a desirable goal. At 35, I should know the difference between and true lady and ho. For you ladies out there, at 35 you should know the difference between a real man and a player. At 35, your self-respect, reputation, and dignity should hold precedence over pleasure--when they come into contention.

Playing catch-up sucks. If you have to play catch-up to get your life in order and avoid doom—do it. There’s nothing like being that annoying person that always wants to sing the sad song about “what I could have, should have, or would have done if…” The funny thing about that particular song is that most everyone around the world knows it, but none of us want to hear anyone else sing it. Also, regret is a neighbor that never moves away. Don’t sell yourself short. No matter how late it is in the game—go for it. But what really sucks about playing catch-up, is that if you fall too far behind, by the time you catch-up, you may be too old or too worn out to really have enough time and opportunity to enjoy the fruits of your labor. However, even if you find yourself in this predicament, do it anyway. Like I said earlier, I graduated from college with a man in his seventies. Though he may not have done much with his degree or he may not have lived very long after its attainment—he did it. And there are times when just accomplishing something says volumes. If you look down the road and have to play catch-up and get your life together but at the same time see that when you finally do it that there may not be a lot to gain from it—do it anyway. Do it for your children so that they will have no excuse. Do it for others that are in less constraining circumstances than you. Do it for that person on the edge that you may not know that needs just a push—just a spark of motivation to take the first step and turn their life around. But most important of all, do it for yourself. Never go to bed knowing that you could have done more—do it. If you gotta play catch up, so be it. It’s better than being behind for the rest of your life.

My generation… well we are an interesting one. We stand between the fall the of the Berlin Wall and the end of the Soviet style Communism and today’s apparent fall of Middle-Eastern/North African dictatorial rule. But in between this epoch beginning in 1989/1990 (ironically, Public Enemy’s “Fight the Power” was released during this period) until today—2011, what has my generation—one going into its forties--given the world? Well, we witnessed the birth of the internet and remember the death of black/white TV’s. We watched the birth, bourgeoning, and domination of the airwaves by rap music. We remember when MTV was actually about music and showed mostly music videos. We remember when you could count the number of reality TV shows on one hand and there really was no such term as “reality television.” We witnessed the death of Apartheid and the release of Nelson Mandela. We watched a couple of space shuttles blow up as well as the introduction of crack cocaine into the world. We remember when cell phones came in a huge zippered bag and weighed about as much as a small brick—and they were only for rich people. We can recall waking up to watch Saturday morning cartoons that weren’t saturated by Japanese anime. We remember when AIDS was viewed as a gay disease and pulling out was considered safe-sex—really. We remember when WWE was actually WWF—and it didn’t suck! Back in those days you had to have a VCR to watch porno and your family could wait with/for you at an airline terminal/gate. Yes, I am old enough to remember a world without websites, Pimp My Ride, American Idol, cell phones, equal rights in South Africa, military style airport security screening areas, and the thought that a Black person would stand a snowball’s chance in Hell if running for U.S. president was the norm.

 My generation--I believe--gave the world much to play and distract themselves with; smart phones, internet porn, portable hard drives, social media websites, 24 hours news and sports on television, 100 million different types of Air Force One’s, 100 million different (mind numbing) reality TV shows, COPS, blogs, Big Brother, Nintendo/Playstation, etc. But when I think about what lessons or progressive ways of thinking my generation has passed on—I come up pretty empty. We still have wars, racism, sexism, ethnocentrism, pathetic attempts at criminal justice systems and democracies, mindless citizens supporting greedy violent dictators, unequal access to health care, education, and legal representation. Yes, we have all of these. And while we all watch American Idol and pick up our iPhones to text our vote while adding comments to uploaded photos on facebook, all these issues grow worse like societal cancers permeating every facet of our lives. Why? Because the mass consumerism and gross materialism my generation swallowed whole has insulated so much of us from reality; creating a generation of careless, ignorant, and lazy people who’s concern does not go beyond the point of their noses. Yes, I am very harsh on my generation. At no time in the world has there been such a tidal wave of information literally at our fingertips and at the same time have there been a people so oblivious to reality. That’s where I think today’s generation and my generation part ways. We are participants as well as recipients of the global financial state. But today’s generation—those that came after me—will be participants and recipients of the new dawn of political and social change ready to shine upon this world. They understand the hollowness and soullessness of running headlong after material things. They understand that inequality affects everyone. They learned how to take facebook, a website created to connect people, and forge it into a weapon of social and political change. This generation understands the TRUE value of money—that it will never be worth what a human life is worth—priceless. This generation, having seen through the falsehoods and lies that my generation sunk their confidence and their money into, understands that giving back and leaving the world a better place than how it was found it the true measuring stick of a person’s value. They understand that a legacy is more important than an inheritance and that giving is truly more blessed than receiving. I envy this generation. The fields of this world are ripe for change and if they continue to struggle and look into the eyes of the children and continue to imagine a better world for them, this generation will help usher in a better and freer Middle East, a more prosperous and healthier Africa, a less hypocritical and more tolerant America, and fairer and less racist Europe. This generation stands at the cusp of change. My generation missed it worrying about the verdict in the O.J. Simpson trial and who the true father(s) of Anna Nicole Smith’s children were (downright pathetic huh?). We need this generation to pull our heads out of the sand and help correct the mess that we are currently giving them or we are all headed down a tunnel with no light.

So, again, where am I? I think I have done OK so far. I’ve accomplished most of my educational and travel goals. Career wise, the money is OK, but the fulfillment and sense of doing something that matters is almost null and void. I am going to change that. In terms of investments, ownership, and wealth I am not at all satisfied. In regards to personal growth, well you win and lose. I often beat myself up because I make mistakes that a person my age should see miles away. Maturity… I’m getting there. Do I feel behind—oh yes! Sure, I have done things and been places most of the people I know have not and maybe will not ever do or be. But we make a huge mistake when we compare ourselves to our peers alone. When we do this, it is often times the result of us really feeling negatively about ourselves, so, we create this comparison in our minds with people we grew up with or have known for a long time and if we can convince ourselves that we are on their level or ahead, then we are “OK.” WRONG! If you want to soar with eagles, you must leave the chicken coop. We should all strive to be better than where we came from, who we grew up with, and shatter the standards of success that we were placed in your minds. Is this arrogance? No. I am a firm believer that every generation should stand upon the shoulders of the ones that preceded it and encourage those coming up to do the same. Success, accomplishment, and limits should always be redefined and continually evolve within a spirit of excellence. So by better, I don’t mean we should think of ourselves as better than anyone else; I am simply saying that the benchmarks for success should always be pushed further—especially further than what we were told they were.



Don’t Forget About God… He Has Not Forgotten You

When we encounter life’s times of suffering, fear, anguish, loss, and pain what we do with hope determines how and even if we survive. The truth is, some problems that we experience, we are forced to go through. We cannot hide from them, go around them, over them, sneak past them, or even sleep through them. When the issue demands that we become victorious over it, we must face it and fight our way through it in order to rid ourselves of it. How many times in life do you and I seem to be conquered by the same thing day in and day out? These hard things, difficult things, gut wrenching things are the very things we must face and overcome. When handling such issues, one of the most important and vital elements is hope. Hope is not tangible but it makes the difference. It is simply a positive expectation that things will get better. Hope keeps us going and believing and expecting nothing less than a good outcome when all is said and done. Hope compels us to fight on even when we are fully drained. It tells us to continue when everyone else has told us to quit. When we have nothing else and no one else—we have hope. However, when hope is abandoned, lost, or depleted--seemingly nothing in this world can cause us to believe that it will get better. When a person has lost hope, they have truly lost it all. Hope is the key to a successful outcome. Without it, we are locked out of triumph. When one is in despair or on the edge of ending it all—they are often referred to as “hopeless.” When the situation looks impossible it is called a “hopeless” situation.

One of the chief ways that we lose hope is to forget about the times when our hope helped us make it. We can often act like we have never come across hard times when the truth is, most of us have been through numerous trials. When we act like this, we are not being mature and we are purposely being weak because we don’t want to exert the effort to endure tough times. We get tired of suffering and just desire a small season of peace and rest. But life is not and shall not ever be like that. Life, at times, is simply one season of discomfort and suffering that invariably blends in to the next. And, over time we learn to deal with it. We become hardened by it. We lose unnecessary sensitivity and learn to be content and not to be so fast to complain. We learn to appreciate that which we in former times overlooked or took for granted. These times build our characters and develop maturity. When problems arrive, we either get better or bitter. Problems equip us or they deplete us. They build us up or tear us down. Whatever happens is all determined by what we do with hope.

One place where plenty of stories about the power of hope are found is in the Bible. Now, if discussions about God, Jesus, faith, religion, and/or the Bible bother you—either deal with it or find another blog to read. One thing I do not do and will not do is worry about offending people or tiptoeing around certain subject matter to remain inoffensive or politically correct. If you’ve read any of my other writings, you will quickly recognize the fact that my main objective is to candidly discuss and/or analyze issues within a logical and realistic context. I always try to make things a bit comical also (to keep you reading). Anyway, in my writing I can also come across as sarcastic, cynical, hyperbolic at times, silly, direct, candid, etc.—but always, always, always real.

Back to the Bible… Within the Bible we can find many examples of hope bringing people through some of the toughest tests of their patience and fortitude. Today, not to sound too preachy or doctrinal, I will examine a very powerful passage of scripture tucked within a very small and overlooked book in the Bible. This story is not one of the many miracles listed in the Bible nor is it a hugely dramatic story of triumph. It is simply an expression of thought by a well-known prophet uttered in a time of great challenges and suffering.

The particular book under analysis is the book of Lamentations. Yes, that’s its title--Lamentations. This book has five chapters. Four out of the five chapters have 22 verses. The third (and middle) chapter has 66 verses. In all actuality, the book is a long poetic piece that chronicles the nation of Israel’s (namely the kingdom of Judah) fall from greatness. It has the tone of a sad but poetic eulogy to be read at a funeral or memorial service of some sort. The book of Lamentations was most likely written between 586 and 575 B.C., during or soon after Jerusalem’s fall from a sovereign nation to that of a colony of sorts of Babylon (modern day Iraq). Each chapter is in reality a separate poem. In the original Hebrew language that this was written in, the verses are “acrostic.” This means that each verse started with a succeeding letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Nonetheless, despite its artistic content and inherent literary beauty, it is not an uplifting story. It brutally compares the nation of Judah (Israel), the people thereof, and the city of Jerusalem to one who has been abandoned and severely impoverished. In truth this did occur. The city, the temple, and these people were invaded by the Babylonians, their city burned and looted, their people killed, kidnapped, and relocated to modern  day Iraq—to live a life of political and social servitude for the proceeding seven to eight decades.

This book in short is a somber one. It is the detail of trouble and suffering that a nation endured because, in the eyes of the prophet—they left and forgot about God. However, right in the middle of this book, in the middle chapter almost in the middle of the chapter—in the midst of all the lamenting and sorrowful recounting of the better years passed by and the looking ahead to the anguish and pain set before them, the prophet Jeremiah writes something magnificent in verses 21-23; “This I recall to my mind, Therefore I have hope. Through the LORD'S mercies we are not consumed, Because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness.” That’s powerful isn’t it? Consider the placement of it. It was written in the midst of so much doom and gloom. It is literally surrounded within the context of death and destruction. But what does he say, “This I recall to my mind…” This opening statement tells us that he made himself remember something significant. It just did not pop into his mind; he had to “recall” it. Firstly, I want to say this to you brothers and sisters; there are times in your life that you will be overwhelmed with trouble and grief. It is a natural tendency for us as humans to grieve, sulk, or embrace the sadness for too long. When this occurs, we move from grieving to wallowing in self-pity. This is so not healthy. It leads to hopelessness and depression. Soon enough we feel like the whole world is caving in on us and there is no way out. Have you ever been there? It’s terrible. It is such a low, dark, and heavy feeling. It can come from a loss of someone, a sudden tragic occurrence, a huge disappointment, etc. But we all deal with it. I want to tell you that when all seems lost, recall to your mind how God has been there for you all of your life and always will be. Let’s move on. He said that because he recalled this thought to his mind, “Therefore I have hope.” There it is—hope. Before he forced himself to remember the goodness of God, he had no hope. He was in the midst of sorrow and hopelessness, yet his key to the recovery of hope was the correct use of his memory. You know, one of the things that happen to us when we are faced with trouble is that our memories are affected. We immediately forget how God has been faithful to us our whole lives. He has protected us and rescued us from very difficult circumstances—over and over and over again. Yet, when trouble arrives at our doors, we focus on the pain and forget the power. The power of God… and even when God did not quickly come to our rescue or perform some miraculous intervention—He sustained us physically, mentally, spiritually, and emotionally through it all. Some of the things that we have gone through, others have faltered along the way. Some of the trouble we dealt with and overcame has actually destroyed others. Some of the heartache we recovered from has severely traumatized others. Thank God. Thank God for holding together the sanity of our minds and hearts. What’s more—even when we were out and about doing the craziest of things—God protected us. Others have done what we have done and now sit in a hospital awaiting their death. But God protected us in our foolishness. So, when we recall this to our minds—it must yield hope.

Well, what was it that gave him hope? “Through the LORD'S mercies we are not consumed…” That is so profound. God’s mercy alone keeps up from being consumed. Another word for consumed is destroyed. As just mentioned, there are things that could have—and yes—should have “consumed” us, but they did not. They did not consume us because of the goodness of God. Even the self-inflicted wounds and trouble brought upon us could only go so far before the mercies of God stepped in and took over. We may face trouble, but it won’t consume us. We may face loss, but it won’t consume us. We may face attacks from friend and foe alike—but it won’t consume us. Can’t you just rest in that fact? Look at where you stand now? Do you have trouble? Are you suffering loss? Do your issues seem insurmountable? You know what… they are there, but they won’t consume you. You may feel the sting of pain and heaviness of a broken heart—but you will not be consumed. Let’s look further…

“Because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness.” I have to close this piece out. But know this, God’s mercy, according to the prophet here, is new every morning. When you woke up today, you were compassed with new mercies from God. And when you arise tomorrow, His unfailing compassion and new mercies will await you and follow you throughout the day. Don’t believe me. What did the psalmist David write in the 23^rd Psalm and he 6^th verse? “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life…” Let’s not forget God. Let’s remember Him not matter how tough it seems. That’s our only way to keep hope in our lives when there is not tangible evidence that things will improve. Don’t forget God because He has never forgotten you.

Gotta Make Time to Deal With Time

Right now I am sitting and waiting in an airport. Yes, like everyone else who travels from time to time—I hate waiting in airports. Well, I have a couple hours to kill and I might as well do something constructive. Come to think of it, when we look back over our life, where we are now is simply the result or the sum total of what we did with our free time. Yes, that is very, very, very true. If life does not teach us anything else, it teaches us that in the end, the time we wasted, invested, or even watch go by will tell on us in the end. It tells on us physically, psychologically, mentally, and emotionally. What we did with our free time—just free time. I won’t even get into what we did with our time in general. Ha, ha, ha, it is funny and yet tragic to sit here and think about it. Before I decide what to write today (because I am sort of torn at this time), I have to warn you that today I am just going to let my thoughts flow for a while. Today my writing is probably more for me than anyone else. So, sometimes when I may sound a bit preachy or like I am lecturing you all, in all actuality I feed off of these words and advice as much as anyone else. Back to time, time… time… wow, as I write this I think of all the time I have wasted. I am in my mid-thirties now and my age means more to me than it ever has. I mean, I am not getting old or anything like that. But at this stage in a man’s life, some things have to die. Then there are other things that he was always told to think about, but his youth and the recklessness that goes along with it, causes him to continuously put it off. Now, now is the time to take those things off the mental backburner and examine them. Then you start telling yourself, “Wow, how did I not think about this for so long? How stupid could I be?” Then you get into “catch-up mode.” Oh yes, some of you all know exactly what I am talking about. It happens in your thirties. You generally piss away your twenties between good times and procrastination. Then when you start getting a gray hair or two, see someone you grew up with miles ahead of you, or have a sobering/life-changing experience and your eyes start to open and you say, “I gotta get myself together. I can’t believe I have wasted so much time.” This is how “catch-up mode” begins. Catch-up mode causes people to consider going back to school to finish what took them twice as long to get halfway through what they should completed twice in half the time (ha ha ha—get it). Catch up mode is triggered when all your homeys or home-girls are married--and on their second kid and you are still excited by and dipping in and out of one-night-stands and hit-and-run episodes. You think of all the good men and women you passed up or could not commit to and you keep kicking yourself. Catch-up mode makes you look at that dead end job you work, just because you are too lazy to get a job that will pay you more but requires more effort and expects you to be on time. Catch up mode also makes you realize that the only reason you work there is because your “friend with benefits” works there too—how sad. Catch-up mode in general makes you reevaluate your life, your direction, your priorities, your present social life, your destructive and addictive habits, your time-wasters, your friends who are going nowhere fast like you and even your friends who are leaving you behind. Sadly, when catch-up mode calls… some don’t answer. They take a longer toke of the joint, an extra shot of the Tequila, or snort a longer line of the coke to drown out the call—umm I mean the noise. Catch-up mode is intended to get you back on track. It’s intended to awaken you out of life’s hangover that you are perpetually in. But, like your buddy who never knows when he had enough, then of course doesn’t know when he’s had way too much—the longer you ignore the call of catch-up mode, the worse it is when life finally catches up with you. On the other hand, instead of a kick in the pants producing motivation, for some people catch up mode becomes the beginning of their depression and a tool that tears down their fragile self-image. These are the people that hate to look into life’s mirror. Instead of the mirror shattering from what looks into it, the image it reflects shatters the person looking into it. Let me tell you something—I don’t care what you see in the mirror—don’t run from it. Don’t turn your back from it or turn the lights out. If you want to turn something—use what you see to turn your life around. Use it for motivation not discouragement!  It sounds so cheesy—but it does not stand any less true; today IS the first day of the rest of your life. If you have breath then you have another chance to make another idiotic decision based in laziness, procrastination, envy, fear, anger, etc. or you can start making better decisions based on reality, truth, positivity, love, forgiveness, and life! Take charge. Don’t tell me about your debt, financial situation, health, rough childhood, last relationship, speech impediment, personal phobias, etc. Put the bottle down, put the weed up, put away the dope for a minute and tell him/her its fun but you gotta chill out for a while. Use what you have and forget about what you don’t have! And there’s one thing that we all have (though not in the same amount)—time. I leave you with a classic verse, “So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.” (Psalm 90:12).

Hatin' On Obama - PART II

1. Two White Americas

Anyone who lives in America and does not agree that even in the 21^st century that there are many “Americas” must live in a cave somewhere in the Ozark Mountains. America is one nation of course. But because of its huge population (300+ million) and its unprecedented mixture of virtually all nationalities and most ethnicities, many people say (accurately) that there are many Americas. For example there is middle class America, impoverished America, rich America, and super wealthy America. My country has also been classified by generations: baby-boomers, baby-busters, generation “X”, etc. Then there are the Americas classified by race/ethnicity: White America, Black America, Hispanic America, etc. I generally believe that, with regards to the topic of present analyses, there are mainly two White Americas: those that wish to keep certain racial viewpoints and practices the norm and those who wish for an America where race is not the significant factor or pretext to judgment that it once was—in other words, a colorblind America. The honorable Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once stated that he looked for or “dreamed” for the day that people would not be judged by their racial exterior by the content of their character. This is the America that the latter mentioned Whites—the ones who put the current president in office—that I am talking about. No, before any of you unsheathe your accusatory fingers, let me state this. I AM NOT saying that all White people who did not vote for President Barack Obama, did so because of race--not at all! Many simply voted out of a loyalty to their political attitudes and party. Nonetheless, just as there were many Black voters who (wrongly) voted for him just because he is Black, there were also many White voters who voted for McCain because Mr. Obama is not White. I believe that during these elections there was more of a spirit of voting “against” rather than voting “for.” I also believe that a large number of the White voters who put the current president in office looked at him and instead of asking why, just said, “Why not?” To them, yes, it was truly special to be alive and take part in an election that placed the first Non-White male in the White House. Yet, at the same time, they did not allow the color of his skin to be a determining factor concerning their particular votes. They realized that America must get past race in many regards and the fact that he is Black was purely coincidental. I am sure that Mr. Obama came across as a person that they could place faith in. They were tired of the Bush/Clinton/Bush (possibly Clinton again) democratic monarchy and wanted a fresh, young, articulate face to represent them. The season was ripe for change. And this young, handsome, Black guy with the Arabic name was just the ticket to “change.” I believe the interest in him would have been the same had his ethnicity bestowed upon him the name of Barack Lee Kim, Barack Eduardo Sanchez, Barack Sanjay Patell, or even Barack Boris Kalashnikov.  This particular element of White America shed their parent’s racial hang-ups—not racist hang-ups—but racial hang-ups. There is a difference.

There is a stark difference between “racial” and “racist.” Their parents grew up in not only a racist America, but a racial America. This is an America that seemed to be consumed and mesmerized by anything that could be made into something racial. I feel that in order for things to move away from being racist, they have to evolve through a period of being racial. When things stop being racial, then we will have finally arrived into a truly colorblind society. Their parents had to deal with the racial (not racist) dynamics of society like Blacks who broke the color barrier in certain industries, the first Black to accomplish this or that, Black Universities, Black Entertainment Television, Black Hair Care products (which are now comically termed “ethnic”), Black music, Black gospel, Black churches, Ebonics, etc. We are just now breaking away from such terms. But again, their parents, and the other part of White America still see such things as the norm and wish to keep it that way. I am not calling these people racist or even prejudice necessarily—but they are far from colorblind and may never achieve that status. These are the White people who don’t feel comfortable in a room full of Black people, who clutch their purses or walk on the other side of the street when they see a group of Blacks. They are the ones who feel the need to mention to you that a particular person is/was Black when telling you a story regardless of its relevance. They see no problem with the most segregated hour in America (Sunday morning). These are the White pastors who have separate “ministries” and buildings for Black parishioners on the “other side of town”—no, I am not making this up. These are the Whites (and Blacks also) that still have a problem with interracial relationships and marriage. Again, they are not necessarily racist, just racial. These are the Whites who have no problem going to a church where the congregation is racially diverse—as long as the pastor is White. These are even the people who have no issue with befriending and socializing with Blacks—but cannot deal with working for or otherwise having to answer to a Black authority figure. In other words, they have no problem with Black people as long as they are no more than equal to them and/or they stay in their places—geographically and socially. OK, before you say it—I know, I know, there are plenty of Black people stuck in this mental rut too. But I will get to them in another article—be patient.

So, this existence of two White Americas has brought one group’s racial attitudes to the forefront. They just cannot deal with or feel completely comfortable with a Black man as President of the U.S. Because they still see the world and especially “their” country through racial lenses. A Black man standing in front of the infamous lectern emblazoned with the U.S. presidential seal is a symbol to them that their way of thinking and seeing the world is quickly coming to an end. It challenges their racial notions and actually makes whatever scraps of racism within in them surface. They do not want to believe for one minute that they may still be hanging on to some racist attitudes. Nonetheless, dealing with their innate uneasiness and unexplainable frustration stemming from having a Black president forces them to either admit the existence of some vestiges of racial prejudice within or deny it by saying their dislike for the president is because of political differences. Their dishonesty gives rise to many excuses why this current president is so bad. They can often be downright obsessed with removing him. There have actually been a number of these types of White people who seriously suggest that President Obama should be impeached. Seriously? Why? I have no idea, other than they can only regain some sort of comfort in the fact that if he was in removed, they would no longer have to look in the mirror and be shown the ugliness of the racist residue still residing within their characters. So, they spend so much time nitpicking and faultfinding the president. This serves two purposes; it allows them to try and cover the real reason why they can’t stand him and it helps them to deceive their own selves into thinking that their dislike is based solely in political reasons. Part of this manifestation is seen in the enormous amount of negative books that have been written about Barack Obama so far.

2. The books

I must admit, what initially inspired me to write this particular piece was something I found in a bookstore when on a short visit to the U.S. I was wandering through the section devoted to politics and came across a ton of books all with the intention to discredit the president. Now, presidents are going to have to deal with authors who write scathing unauthorized biographies, people who write books that are highly critical of their policies and decision making, and even books that are filled with vitriolic and malicious personal attacks. It comes with the job. I can remember the same thing happening to President Bill Clinton, especially around the time he was involved with the whole Monica Lewinsky controversy. Also, how many books have been written about President Bush’s wartime and economic decisions—not to mention the books devoted to printing grammatically incorrect quotes of his or other attempts to paint him as an idiot? It’s normal. But what caught my attention was the sheer amount of Anti-Obama titles on the shelf. He was only president for about two years at the time and I saw more books written against him than I ever saw of the aforementioned presidents. I had to ask why. Then upon further inspection, I found that the books ranged in subject matter to the point where they were contradictory. In other words you had some that presented him as a pro-government, anti-business socialist while others suggested that he was Wall Street’s best friend and only talked tough on cracking down on the lack of ethical practices in the private sector but was really beholden to them. Both cannot be true. Yet, these titles and more were all lined up ready for someone to buy them and buy into the Anti-Obama ideas within. Why were there so many books written like this. What was it about him that amassed this galvanization of dislike and hatred to the point where all these people felt the need to publish it? When you look at the differences between Obama and the other presidents, there is only one glaring difference between them other than his name—his race. But what author in his right mind is going to write an Anti-Obama book centered on the fact that he can’t stand him because he’s Black? So, they have to settle for the next best thing; exaggerate and even fabricate things about him to stir up dissent and thus cover the real source of the ill will. I think I will let the book titles and a small synopsis of each do the talking and I’ll let you draw your own conclusions. I went back home and got on my computer and went to amazon.com to see if their website reflected the amount of Anti-Obama books in comparison to books written against past presidents… same results. Here are just a few of them:

• The Roots Of Obama’s Rage

This book is intended to make you believe that the president harbors a secret “…anti-colonial ideology of his father and the first American president to actually seek to reduce America's strength, influence, and standard of living… The real Obama is a man shaped by experiences far different from those of most Americans; he is a much stranger, more determined, and exponentially more dangerous man than you’d ever imagined. He is not motivated by the civil rights struggles of African Americans in the 1960s—those battles leave him wholly untouched. He is not motivated by the socialist or Marxist propaganda that hypnotized a whole generation… Obama’s economic policies are actually designed to make America poorer compared to the rest of the world… Obama will welcome a nuclear Iran… Obama sees America as a rogue nation—worse than North Korea…” Yes, some guy actually devoted time, money, and energy into writing such a piece of trash. But trust me; you have not seen anything yet.

·         The Case Against Barack Obama: The Unlikely Rise and Unexamined Agenda of the Media's Favorite Candidate

Do I really need to tell you what is printed on these pages? Thought not… next:

• Crimes Against Liberty: An Indictment of President Barack Obama

According to the synopsis of this book the author proves that, “As Americans, liberty is an inalienable right that is granted to us by God, protected by the Constitution, and upheld by our government. Yet, Barack Obama doesn’t seem to share that view. To him, liberty is a threat to the government’s power and something to be squashed by any means possible…  Limbaugh issues a damning indictment of President Barack Obama for encroaching upon and stripping us of our individual and sovereign rights… Obama is guilty of crimes against liberty.” It gets even more ridiculous. Read on…

• The Manchurian President: Barack Obama's Ties to Communists, Socialists and Other Anti-American Extremists

This book plays off the title of the movie, The Manchurian Candidate, which suggests that the presidency of the U.S. is secretly orchestrated by unknown powers. True or not, this book wants you to believe that President Obama was carefully put in the White House to carry out a special Anti- American agenda created by a secret elite society… ooohhhhh. Honestly, wouldn’t this have made a better sci-fi film than political book?

• The Mendacity of Hope: Barack Obama and the Betrayal of American Liberalism

Unlike most titles that seek to display the president as a staunch left-wing liberal bent on taking America down the road to Socialism, this author proposes the idea that Barack Obama is NOT liberal enough. He states that the people of America voted for a more socialistic type of government and got a president who is pretty much like the one before him. He accuses the president of betraying those on the left with his center to right policies and points of view.

• Barack Obama & Larry Sinclair: Cocaine, Sex, Lies & Murder?

This book by far has got to be one of the most outlandish things ever put into print. The author, Larry Sinclair, alleges, “… that on November 6 & 7, 1999 Sinclair claims that he engaged in homosexual acts with then-Illinois Senator Barack Obama, who during these trysts not only procured cocaine for the author, but also smoked crack cocaine while being fellated. Although relatively unknown outside his home state at the time, Obama hit the national stage in 2004 by delivering a keynote speech at the Democratic National Convention. Sinclair realized only then that he'd engaged in sex with an up-and-coming political superstar. Even more incriminating, Sinclair writes about his concerns that Obama and Reverend Jeremiah Wright were involved in the murder of Obama's former lover, choirmaster Donald Young.” Yes, you just read that. This sounds so crazy that one must wonder who can actually make these things up. I could not write a synopsis on this. I have to cut and paste the quote. I’m sure you can see why.

• Radical-in-Chief: Barack Obama and the Untold Story of American Socialism

Yes, another book intended to scare America into thinking that our president is some closet Communist intended on making America into Soviet era Russian (yawn).

• Bought and Paid For: The Unholy Alliance Between Barack Obama and Wall Street

This particular book is a comical departure from the normal attempt at presenting the president as some anti-industry/business Capitalist. Instead it claims that the president “… has climbed into bed with Wall Street CEOs, giving them what they want so they will support his liberal, big-government agenda. As a result, the big banks responsible for the credit crisis get rescued, while small businesses and ordinary Americans get crushed by higher taxes and irresponsible spending.” I wish these guys would make up their mind about him.

• How Barack Obama is Endangering our National Sovereignty

Do I really need to explain the author’s intention in this book?

• How Barack Obama is Bankrupting the U.S. Economy

Yes, years of overspending, the cost of two wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, huge tax cuts for rich people,  plus the billions of dollars spent each year on foreign aid have nothing to do with the downfall of the American economy. It’s all Barack Obama’s fault. These guys stoop to levels that are amazing. He is not bankrupting America. He inherited a bankrupt America.

• Barack Obama's Plan to Socialize America and Destroy Capitalism

Yes, wouldn’t you guess; another book about how Barack Obama plans on destroying American Capitalism (as if he could).

• Culture of Corruption: Obama and His Team of Tax Cheats, Crooks, and Cronies

The title of this book sounds more like it’s about a Middle Eastern or African president.     

•              Gangster Government: Barack Obama and the New Washington Thugocracy

Wow, the title alone is worth at least two laughs. The president went from, socialist, to communist, to secret Capitalist and now we have a book trying to convince us that he’s a street thug running the White House and America like it’s his turf with his homeys. Give me a break!

•        The Audacity of Deceit: Barack Obama's War on American Values

Here’s another where I have to let the quote do the talking. “What lies beneath Barack Obama's well-polished rhetoric will shock you. Obama touts 'change' but his version is nothing less than a frontal assault on American values and traditions. Obama's goal? Bring America to her knees through a policy of 'managed decline.”

• The Obama Nation

What a bunch of morons. But you have to like the word play here; Abomination… Obama Nation. Wow!

• The Blueprint: Obama's Plan to Subvert the Constitution and Build an Imperial Presidency

Really? Do I have to give you an idea of what kind of worthless, pointless, rhetoric is upon the pages of this book?

• Obama Zombies: How the Liberal Machine Brainwashed My Generation

As if zombie films weren’t enough? Now we have books like this?

                Look, I understand that is was hard to get through that section. But I had to show you how incessant the dislike and hatred for President Obama truly is. These are just a few of the books devoted to pouring negativity onto him. Just think, we are only halfway through his first term. No other president in the history of the U.S. (maybe Nixon, but I doubt it) has garnered this much resentment. Yet, on the other hand, I don’t believe any other president has achieved Rock Star status like this guy either. It seems like when it comes to this man, you either love him or hate him. I see very few people like myself who are basically neutral towards him. The basic item of discussion in this article is the concept of racism and how it relates to some White American’s feelings towards the president. I believe that most White Americans don’t really care about his color. After all, it was most White Americans that put him in office. The Black vote was, for a number of reasons, inconsequential (for a better analysis of this read my very first blog discussing Obama). I believe that most White Americans are not racists and are genuinely good and decent people that care nothing about a person’s skin color. I have some in my family. Even so, there are still enough White Americans that have racial and racist views that need to be buried with the rest of humanity that lived in the Stone Age. And that’s not only for White Americans, that’s for all Americans and all people of the human race worldwide.

3.       America Still Trumps Europe  

I know that I get a lot of love from Europe. Yes, a great deal of the readers of this blog are from there. I was actually born there and have visited a few times. But just as I criticize my nation and others, I’ve got to give Europe her due too. Please don’t take it personal. Most of my criticisms on a national level hurled toward governments or portions of society that need a reality check (not necessarily a “Ramon’s Reality”—ok, ok, ok). I mean, when do you think you will see a Black president/prime minister in one of the “progressive” European countries? Pretty much never. They still have a hard time placing Blacks on soccer teams as goal-keepers. Hmmm… Sure you will see a few token members of parliament that are Black. But with all the fuss about how progressive and colorblind Europe is, you would think that that way of thinking would translate into a more diverse group of national leaders. Not so. The Europeans can point the fingers at us as Americans and talk about how racist and backwards we are socially, but their racial hypocrisy far outweighs ours. They helped create the tragic societal and financial messes in Africa through the completely racial and economically motivated colonialism of Africa. They initiated the Atlantic slave trade, the subjugation of the Black natives through direct and indirect rule, the arming of political and ethnic groups for political gain and to help the Black Africans destroy themselves, the inaction or half-hearted action of the U.N. in times of crisis, the enriching and political support of the most merciless and brutal dictators to walk the continent, the intentional underdevelopment of the continent, turned many a blind eye to mass rape, pillaging, kidnapping, and  murder of an intra-African nature, offered their banking services for corrupt dictators and other government officials to safely hide their stolen money, and still to this day control huge amounts of financial interests there to include agriculture, mining, tourism industries, etc. Yet, in spite of all of this, America as a country, donates more material, time, human resources, and money to this continent to help combat the problems that Europe and European colonialism (as well as today’s Pseudo-colonialism) has caused and still causes. So, why did I add this little tidbit to the end of my writing—and in the process maybe lost some European followers? It‘s because we all play a part in this silly ancient social cancer of the past—racism. We all (not just the U.S.) have to play our parts to identify and combat this most destructive of social forces. Amen.