So I keep reading stories about racist this, and racist that. Sexist him, and sexist that. Bullshit is what I call it. When I was growing up, my mother always taught me to live as is described in the Bible, "Do unto others, as you would have them do unto you." Now I am a believer in God, but I am no holy roller by any stretch of the word. I believe there is a divine intelligence, and I believe that he/she/whatever they are wants us to lead a good life. However, the almighty gave us free will, so it is up to us to live our lives. I have been around on this ball of dirt for 42 years now, and I have seen a lot of interactions between people during my duration on this planet.
Are there racists and sexists among us? Most certainly, and anyone who denies it is a moron. Are they as wide spread as what the media in this country would have you believe? Probably not. For instance, if you disagree or make fun of anything having to do with Obama, then you must be a racist since he is black right? WRONG! I disagree with about half of the things that GWB did during his presidency, because I make fun of him on those subjects, and disagree with him, does that mean I hate white people too? How about the people on the left that screamed bloody murder about him, or wished death upon Dick Cheney, or any number of other "offenses" that they did while that administration was around? Do we need to have Justice Department investigations brought against them as well? No, sounds crazy and stupid right? So why are we doing just that to a rodeo clown who wore an Obama mask?
The "war on women" is the next thing that makes me shake my head in disgust at the morla mongers in this country. First, I will take a stab at the GOP and their policies, then I will deal with the idiots on the left. Republicans, I have to say that you are just as bad as the Progressives when it comes to this issue. First off, if you don't like abortions and birth control, then don't get them. You want to protest them? Fine, but all to often, I see morons that cross the line. The one saving grace that I have seen in their arguments is that at least they realize that the Constitution restricts that Federal Government from doing anything about this, so they are changing the laws at the local level, unlike the morons of the left. Last word on this, who the hell are you to tell anyone else what to do, and what their morally obligated to feel/do. Mind your own damn business (I will hit on this farther down in this article as well).
Those of you on the left, I am a pro-life person when it comes to me and my family. Who am I to tell someone else what to do though. So I am on your side when it comes to it being a private issue for the person and their family. HOWEVER, who are you to demand that I pay for it? Part of Obamacare makes not only birth control (for women) tax payer funded, but it also grants more money to places like Planned Parenthood as well. It also forces healthcare providers to provide these services if they want to be eligible to receive federal money for their services, even if it is against their religious beliefs (Hello, this is the First Amendment calling all retarded Progressives). I have yet to see free viagra or condoms for men in Obamacare, why should I pay for your birth control? Oh I know, so I don't have to pay for your brats, right? How about instead you buy your own protection if you are going to do the deed, instead of making me pay for it. That is what is called self reliance, something I have to do every single day of my life. Nothing in life is free. Somewhere along the way, you are paying for it. You just might not be able to put two and two together easily, so you miss it in the shuffle.
My point here is that too many in this country want to project their wants, needs, and morales onto everyone around them. Not everyone around you wants the same thing that you do. Just because you may have some other like-minded people that surround you, that doesn't give you the right to force someone else into your mold. We are a republic, not a democracy, no matter how many times that left wants to try to delude everyone on this subject. Democracy just gives the majority the right to trample the rights of the minority. Thankfully, that IS NOT what our government was setup to be. Republics protect the minority from the savages of the majority, by allowing you to do what ever the hell you want at the local level. That is why I don't think abortion, school prayer, or any of those type of issues should be touched by the federal government. I am not the only one that feels this way either, go read the Constitution and the Federalist Papers sometime if you don't believe me. Roe vs. Wade is junk law, it is a precedent on a law that had NOTHING TO DO with abortion. The law it was based on had to do with birth control for MARRIED COUPLES ONLY, but thanks to some activist judges we have crap laws like this, and a multitude of "laws" just like it all over this country. Lunacy!
So back to political correctness, only on a personal level. When I first started working when I was 16, you were expected to be respectful of others and their feelings. At the same time, it was not run like a prison state. Today, it often feels like a prison state. I knew a guy that had an issue where someone said he said something that he did not say at all. His job was in jeopardy, and how do you prove you did not say something in the first place. They immediately started on the assumption that he was guilty until proven innocent. Luckily, someone stepped forward that was present at the time of the "supposed" statement and exonerated him, because he did not say what he was accused of saying. He did not lose his job, but he was still reprimanded, and his life was hell for about a month or so. It effected his performance review for the year, and his anxiety/stress levels were through the roof.
Now not all situations are like this, some happen because someone overhears two people talking, and someone could get offended, even if they are not in the conversation at all. Mind your own damn business. Some will be talking to someone and hear what they think is something that offends them. Instead of doing the right thing, letting that person know that they may have overstepped their bounds or should clarify what they were saying, people will go to HR secretly. Come on, really? You can't just ask the person what they mean? You just can't say "Hey, what do you mean by that? I think that's a bit to far."
I believe in the general goodness of people. I believe that sometimes people don't think before they speak, and will say the wrong thing. Sometimes they just may not know that something came across in a way that is totally not what they were meaning. If someone says something, they may not even realize that you took it a different way than what they meant it. Political Correctness is a way for the populace to become used to being afraid to speak their mind. It makes it easier for us to be controlled if we are afraid to speak for fear of retribution. Political Correctness is just another step to us becoming sheeple and not standing up for ourselves. The only way we can stop it, is to not abide by it. If everyone just practiced "Do unto others, as you would have them do unto you," This world would be a far much better place.
Saturday, August 17, 2013
Thursday, August 8, 2013
Minimum Wage
So I have been hearing a lot about minimum wage and raising it to a "living wage." When I first started working as a teenager, I started at McDonald's at minimum wage. The job sucked. It really sucked. I had to clean bathrooms, mounds of old, used grease that was scrapped off the flat tops. Empty spoiled food from containers into the garbage. Clean the restaurant for the next day's service. All when I was underage and still in high school.
I got out of high school and went to Penn State, and decided that I was more interested in partying than in going to school. After floating around for awhile, I finally found a sales job where I was out on the road on my own without a boss breathing down my neck, and where I was in charge of earning my paycheck with commission sales. I got married, had 2 kids, and eventually had to leave that job due to the long hours being away from my wife and kids required to make a decent living.
So back on the hunt for a job, I was once again finding myself only able to find a minimum wage job. Those jobs sucked too. I mean really sucked. I was a stockman for Wal-Mart. Getting carts from the parking lot. Cleaning the bathrooms, and a special thanks to all those wonderful human beings that find it necessary to shit all over the floors and walls in public restrooms. Carrying heavy furniture and electronics to way to small cars. Who really believes that they should buy a 40+ inch T.V. and bringing a compact car is the greatest idea of all time really?
Through it all I slowly came to the conclusion that I should have came to when I went to Penn State the first time...I needed a skill to make myself more appealing to employers if I ever wanted to make more money than minimum wage, working shitty jobs. So I went back to Penn State and received my first college degree in 2002. I started working for my employer in 2003 and started at $11.75 an hour plus full benefits, something I never had ever before. I took advantage of my company's tuition reimbursement package and received my second college degree in 2012. I am currently making over $23 an hour, and have 2 college degrees in IT to my name. I don't know many people whose aspiration in life is to be a stockman at Wal-Mart, or a busboy at a restaurant.
My point in all this is that you have to have some type of skill that makes you valuable. If you want to be in a job that a trained monkey can do, then an employer shouldn't be required to pay you the same amount of money that is paid to someone that has worked hard to not only do a good job, but who has also educated themselves with the knowledge needed to do more complex tasks. There is this simple-mineded notion that if you pay someone higher wages, for low skill labor that they will be able to live life as a no skill worker and be happy. It doesn't and it just breeds something very dangerous that I have seen happen many times over my years in the work force. It breeds a false sense of complacency. People get comfortable doing things after awhile. The problem with this is that they never take any steps to better themselves. When they do not have the motivation to better themselves, they stagnate and often become bitter to those that are moving ahead with their lives or are the ones that are providing their jobs in the first place. It becomes someone else's fault that they cannot get ahead. It becomes someone else's fault that their job sucks and is unfulfilling. It is that bastard's fault that I ca't pay my bills or buy my kid's the things they want. They don't pay me enough. No, they pay you exactly what the job is worth, and if you do a good job, you can get incremental increases based on your performance. If that isn't enough for you, then take your skillset and go work for someone else that will pay you what you are worth, or start your own business and charge what you feel your skills are worth. The government shouldn't spoon feed you via your company, you should make yourself as valuable as the money you want to make.
What I am saying is, get some skills if you want a better job. If you have more skill than the job you are doing, find another job. If you are happy where you are, stay there. Do you think your job sucks? What makes you think that making an employer pay more is going to make your job suck any less? Get something different that you will enjoy. Go be a plumber, electrician, carpenter, accountant, lawyer, roofer, painter, seamstress, whatever you want to be. Just get a skill, and get a real job. Let teenagers learn the value of skills by working those minimum wage jobs. If you are 30+ years old, and still only working minimum wage jobs, and never having had anything better, then you are the one to blame. Not low wage paying employers.
I got out of high school and went to Penn State, and decided that I was more interested in partying than in going to school. After floating around for awhile, I finally found a sales job where I was out on the road on my own without a boss breathing down my neck, and where I was in charge of earning my paycheck with commission sales. I got married, had 2 kids, and eventually had to leave that job due to the long hours being away from my wife and kids required to make a decent living.
So back on the hunt for a job, I was once again finding myself only able to find a minimum wage job. Those jobs sucked too. I mean really sucked. I was a stockman for Wal-Mart. Getting carts from the parking lot. Cleaning the bathrooms, and a special thanks to all those wonderful human beings that find it necessary to shit all over the floors and walls in public restrooms. Carrying heavy furniture and electronics to way to small cars. Who really believes that they should buy a 40+ inch T.V. and bringing a compact car is the greatest idea of all time really?
Through it all I slowly came to the conclusion that I should have came to when I went to Penn State the first time...I needed a skill to make myself more appealing to employers if I ever wanted to make more money than minimum wage, working shitty jobs. So I went back to Penn State and received my first college degree in 2002. I started working for my employer in 2003 and started at $11.75 an hour plus full benefits, something I never had ever before. I took advantage of my company's tuition reimbursement package and received my second college degree in 2012. I am currently making over $23 an hour, and have 2 college degrees in IT to my name. I don't know many people whose aspiration in life is to be a stockman at Wal-Mart, or a busboy at a restaurant.
My point in all this is that you have to have some type of skill that makes you valuable. If you want to be in a job that a trained monkey can do, then an employer shouldn't be required to pay you the same amount of money that is paid to someone that has worked hard to not only do a good job, but who has also educated themselves with the knowledge needed to do more complex tasks. There is this simple-mineded notion that if you pay someone higher wages, for low skill labor that they will be able to live life as a no skill worker and be happy. It doesn't and it just breeds something very dangerous that I have seen happen many times over my years in the work force. It breeds a false sense of complacency. People get comfortable doing things after awhile. The problem with this is that they never take any steps to better themselves. When they do not have the motivation to better themselves, they stagnate and often become bitter to those that are moving ahead with their lives or are the ones that are providing their jobs in the first place. It becomes someone else's fault that they cannot get ahead. It becomes someone else's fault that their job sucks and is unfulfilling. It is that bastard's fault that I ca't pay my bills or buy my kid's the things they want. They don't pay me enough. No, they pay you exactly what the job is worth, and if you do a good job, you can get incremental increases based on your performance. If that isn't enough for you, then take your skillset and go work for someone else that will pay you what you are worth, or start your own business and charge what you feel your skills are worth. The government shouldn't spoon feed you via your company, you should make yourself as valuable as the money you want to make.
What I am saying is, get some skills if you want a better job. If you have more skill than the job you are doing, find another job. If you are happy where you are, stay there. Do you think your job sucks? What makes you think that making an employer pay more is going to make your job suck any less? Get something different that you will enjoy. Go be a plumber, electrician, carpenter, accountant, lawyer, roofer, painter, seamstress, whatever you want to be. Just get a skill, and get a real job. Let teenagers learn the value of skills by working those minimum wage jobs. If you are 30+ years old, and still only working minimum wage jobs, and never having had anything better, then you are the one to blame. Not low wage paying employers.
Thursday, July 18, 2013
The Martin/Zimmerman Verdict
The big news for the past week has been the jury verdict of the George Zimmerman trial for the fatal shooting of Trayvon Martin. I have been trying to gather as much information as I could so I could form the best opinion that I could. I have seen a lot of interjection of racism into the argument. I have seen a lot of talking heads on T.V. giving their opinions. I have talked to my neighbor on what his opinion is. Through it all, I have tried to maintain an open mind, as I tried to form my thoughts through it all.
First off, I think it is a tragedy that there was a situation that was created, that ended up with the death of a 17 year old. Being a father of 20 and 16 year old boys, I can only wonder what I would be like if something like this happened to them. I would be a wreck. I would be out for blood. Someone would have to lock me up, because I would be out looking for whoever did it. I feel for the parents, and I can say they showed more restraint than I would be able to if I were allowed to sit in that courtroom in their shoes. This is what my father-side tells me. I would want to become the deadly sin Wrath, and be damned the consequences. This is the anger-side that would be goading the father-side into following animal instinct.
My law-abiding side tells me that I couldn't do such a thing, because it goes against the rule of law. This is the side that would squelch the anger-side. At first, anger would win out, but slowly over time, law-abiding logic would take control. That logic is what I had to look at this case with. Some may not like what my opinion is, most may not care, but in the end everyone has their own opinions.
My law-abiding side tells me that the jury has spoken, and the prosecution did not meet their given burden of making the case that George Zimmerman committed second degree murder. The prosecution didn't do a good job, and that is the end of the story. We have seen this before, where you have a large media fiasco case, and the prosecution and investigators can't drag the horse across the finish line. Everyone should remember the O.J. trial, which has a lot of similarities. I am not going to go into the details of the case, but instead going to deal with the things that the prosecution in this case did wrong in my eyes, and talk about some of the accusations that I have seen from others.
The first accusation I had seen, even at the onset of the trial, was that the jury was not what it should have been. Well, where was the prosecution then during the jury selection process? If they didn't like the fact that there were 5 older white women and one minority woman on the jury, then why didn't they change it? They didn't change it, because they were there when the jury selection process was happening. We know this, because the prosecution denied letting a black man onto the jury, because he watches Fox News. This brings me to another point in the line of bullshit that I saw in this case.
Politics ran rampant in the media before this trial started. Why is it that because the left in the media decided that this was going to be a black vs. white issue? And more importantly, why is this being made into a right vs. left argument? Someone died in this case. Someone's parent are now without a child in this case. For the love of God, WHY did anyone start interjecting politics into this? Because they are pushing an agenda. So let me get this straight, and point out how moronic of an idea the prosecution had here. If someone watches Fox News, they are going to be for the white guy, and against the black guy...even if he IS a black guy right? A Fox News watcher could NEVER be someone that would respect the law, and try base their dcisions on what the facts of the case are, and what the requirements of the law are. Only the left can do that right? IDIOTS! The next time you see a left/ Progressive protest, and see a right/Conservation protest, take a look around and see which one of those is the more peaceful and respectful of the law. I have been to both, and I have seen firsthand. Have you?
so the jury brought its verdict out, that Zimmerman was not guilty of committing second degree murder. Now what? The NAACP wants the DoJ to file civil rights charges against George Zimmerman. I am sorry, but I don't want our government suing the citizen's of this country. It isn't the NAACP's right to do so either. HOWEVER, the parents of Trayvon Martin would be completely within their rights to sue for wrongful death. I point back to the O.J. trial for this one. First, Zimmerman was the one that started following Martin. Second, it is safe to say, that if Zimmerman had not started following Martin, that their confrontation would not have taken place and Trayvon would still be alive. The 911 operator had told Zimmerman, not to pursue Martin, and he disregarded that advice and proceeded anyways. Zimmerman decided to take it to the next level. I think it is a case that should be brought into the courtroom, but I would not want to see either our Government, or a political activist group doing the suing either. Civil court is not the place for either of those in my opinion.
In the end, a 17 year old died before being able to grow up and live his life in this world. Another man is now having to deal with taking the life of another human being. My sympathies lie with the parents, and my logic blames the prosecution for falling down on their responsibilities. My law-abiding side sides with Zimmerman, that he was tried and found not guilty of the charges that were brought against him. My overall feeling is, that no one won and that no one was going to win no matter what in this whole affair. Nothing I personally could do would have changed anything in this situation, because I do not live anywhere near Sanford Florida, but I can only teach my children to be careful and try not to let themselves get into a situation like the one that Trayvon Martin and George Zimmerman found themselves in. This is one of those things that I am torn over, and I don't believe that there is a side that is 100% right.
First off, I think it is a tragedy that there was a situation that was created, that ended up with the death of a 17 year old. Being a father of 20 and 16 year old boys, I can only wonder what I would be like if something like this happened to them. I would be a wreck. I would be out for blood. Someone would have to lock me up, because I would be out looking for whoever did it. I feel for the parents, and I can say they showed more restraint than I would be able to if I were allowed to sit in that courtroom in their shoes. This is what my father-side tells me. I would want to become the deadly sin Wrath, and be damned the consequences. This is the anger-side that would be goading the father-side into following animal instinct.
My law-abiding side tells me that I couldn't do such a thing, because it goes against the rule of law. This is the side that would squelch the anger-side. At first, anger would win out, but slowly over time, law-abiding logic would take control. That logic is what I had to look at this case with. Some may not like what my opinion is, most may not care, but in the end everyone has their own opinions.
My law-abiding side tells me that the jury has spoken, and the prosecution did not meet their given burden of making the case that George Zimmerman committed second degree murder. The prosecution didn't do a good job, and that is the end of the story. We have seen this before, where you have a large media fiasco case, and the prosecution and investigators can't drag the horse across the finish line. Everyone should remember the O.J. trial, which has a lot of similarities. I am not going to go into the details of the case, but instead going to deal with the things that the prosecution in this case did wrong in my eyes, and talk about some of the accusations that I have seen from others.
The first accusation I had seen, even at the onset of the trial, was that the jury was not what it should have been. Well, where was the prosecution then during the jury selection process? If they didn't like the fact that there were 5 older white women and one minority woman on the jury, then why didn't they change it? They didn't change it, because they were there when the jury selection process was happening. We know this, because the prosecution denied letting a black man onto the jury, because he watches Fox News. This brings me to another point in the line of bullshit that I saw in this case.
Politics ran rampant in the media before this trial started. Why is it that because the left in the media decided that this was going to be a black vs. white issue? And more importantly, why is this being made into a right vs. left argument? Someone died in this case. Someone's parent are now without a child in this case. For the love of God, WHY did anyone start interjecting politics into this? Because they are pushing an agenda. So let me get this straight, and point out how moronic of an idea the prosecution had here. If someone watches Fox News, they are going to be for the white guy, and against the black guy...even if he IS a black guy right? A Fox News watcher could NEVER be someone that would respect the law, and try base their dcisions on what the facts of the case are, and what the requirements of the law are. Only the left can do that right? IDIOTS! The next time you see a left/ Progressive protest, and see a right/Conservation protest, take a look around and see which one of those is the more peaceful and respectful of the law. I have been to both, and I have seen firsthand. Have you?
so the jury brought its verdict out, that Zimmerman was not guilty of committing second degree murder. Now what? The NAACP wants the DoJ to file civil rights charges against George Zimmerman. I am sorry, but I don't want our government suing the citizen's of this country. It isn't the NAACP's right to do so either. HOWEVER, the parents of Trayvon Martin would be completely within their rights to sue for wrongful death. I point back to the O.J. trial for this one. First, Zimmerman was the one that started following Martin. Second, it is safe to say, that if Zimmerman had not started following Martin, that their confrontation would not have taken place and Trayvon would still be alive. The 911 operator had told Zimmerman, not to pursue Martin, and he disregarded that advice and proceeded anyways. Zimmerman decided to take it to the next level. I think it is a case that should be brought into the courtroom, but I would not want to see either our Government, or a political activist group doing the suing either. Civil court is not the place for either of those in my opinion.
In the end, a 17 year old died before being able to grow up and live his life in this world. Another man is now having to deal with taking the life of another human being. My sympathies lie with the parents, and my logic blames the prosecution for falling down on their responsibilities. My law-abiding side sides with Zimmerman, that he was tried and found not guilty of the charges that were brought against him. My overall feeling is, that no one won and that no one was going to win no matter what in this whole affair. Nothing I personally could do would have changed anything in this situation, because I do not live anywhere near Sanford Florida, but I can only teach my children to be careful and try not to let themselves get into a situation like the one that Trayvon Martin and George Zimmerman found themselves in. This is one of those things that I am torn over, and I don't believe that there is a side that is 100% right.
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