You know what really grinds my gears? The continued intolerance towards gays by the government. In a time where being politically correct is a necessity to be accepted by society, somehow this non politically correctness is still alive and well. I am a firm believer that political correctness has gone too far, and is robbing us of our right to free speech, our individualism, and so many good jokes. In Canada, political correctness even trumps laws now. An east Indian no longer needs to wear a helmet while riding a motorcycle on the street. A law that has been in place for many years, designed to save lives. But this law can now be broken if it is against your religion to wear a helmet. God forbid we step on religion for human safety. The point I'm try to make is that the government will do anything and everything, including rewriting laws, to avoid offending anyone. And yet it is still ok to deny homosexuals the same basic rights as heterosexuals?
I've lost track of what the laws are in Canada, but I know in the states there are still places where gays can not marry. I understand the bible thumping, inbreeders objection, that the bible clearly states marriage is the union of a man and a women, and if churches refuse to marry gays, so be it. The KKK still gather to hate everything not white, why can't cultist churches preach what they choose as well? It is a private organization. But the fact that the government still refuses to recognize a gay marriage is baffling. Why not take away their right to vote, and make them ride at the back of the bus? I can see this intolerance back when misinformation was rampant. You had government officials, and news broadcasters stating that African Americans had smaller brains than white people and they were not much more than monkeys. But all that BS was debunked, and people stopped listening to the racists and made a decision for themselves. Now it seems times have gotten better, there's less misinformation, people are more accepting, and it's largely do to the fact that the government has gone towards tolerance and being more politically correct. The government has wised up and realized offending people loses you votes. The thing is, a lot of people listen to their government, some a little too much. If the government says a gay marriage isn't equal to a straight marriage, the simpletons, in the bible belt will believe it. So why is the government still saying it? Well it's simple, there are more red neck, homophobes than there are gays, and they would rather offend less people, so they can get more votes. The problem is, it's a catch 22. The Red necks will never stop hating gays if the government says it's ok to do so.
The only easy solution I can see is to give both sides what they want. Let the child molesting priests, marry the red necks to their cousins "in the name of the lord" and let the gays get married in the name of the government. I can't stand the ignorance and intolerance of religion, so let them have the "in gods eyes" marriage, but allow married gays to have all of the legal right and benefits of a straight married couple.
It's 2013. The fact that there is any one body of people that is discriminated against, or not treated equally by the government baffles me. The people that went through the racism of the 50s and sexism of, well always, look back and shake their heads. The sad thing is, they had an excuse of misinformation. They were lied to by their officials. What's our excuse? We know better. I'm shaking my head now.
Wednesday, June 5, 2013
Monday, March 11, 2013
Are we the 1%
So I often think about how the worlds financial situation works. Who has money, who does't, and why. There are lots of talks about how more and more of the worlds wealth is being owned by a smaller and smaller percentage of the population. This seems to be of major concern for a lot of people. I guess as the rich get richer, it means they gain more control, and more power over the rest of the people. Well good news! I know how it's happening, why it's happening, who's doing it, and how to stop it!
Why it's happening, is because the 99% are dumb. Who's doing it is you. How it's happening is simple, you are giving your money to the 1% by choice. How to stop it...well that's the thing, you don't want to.
Who are the 1%? The richest of the rich? CEOs of big companies? The big oil tycoons around the world? The owners of the big world banks? Well lets look at those three, and see how they ended up with so much money.
Banks: Lets start with the big wigs at the top of the banking world. We always here how many billions of dollars each big bank makes each quarter. If I was the owner or CEO of one of those banks, those profits would go to me, that's how capitalism works right? Now how did they make so much money? Well back not so many years ago, there were no credit cards, no lines of credit, no financing your new TV, furniture, and 24" rims for your escalade. People saved up and bought stuff. You might have a mortgage, but other than that, you were debt free. People, and by people, I mean you, demanded a way to have shit now. Not in 3 years, when I can afford it, you want it now. So you have a car loan, a line of credit, a credit card, and a loan on pretty much anything you've ever bought that was over $500. And it's great isn't it! You can have all the things you want, as long as you can make your monthly payments! Here's the problem, you are paying 3% on your $30,000 car loan, 7% on your $5000 line of credit, 19% on you $1500 mastercard bill, and 6% on that lovely $3500 living room set, and don't forget your $350,000 mortgage at 3.5%. Now, I don't think this is far fetched. I think a lot of people have 3 credit cards, maxed out, their line of credit tapped out to $25,000, a $50,000 car to make payments on, and a far larger mortgage, but even at those lower numbers, you're paying $7500 a year in interest. $7500 per year, per person...where do the banks get their money? You give it to them. They didn't sell you the new car, or tell you to buy a bigger house, or go on that vacation. You wanted it, and you wanted it now. The bank provided you a way to have it now. Are they evil for doing that? Remember how happy you were when the bank approved you to buy your shit! You loved the bank that day, but hate them when you find out how rich you've made those same people. You don't need most of the stuff you are paying interest on, and yet you are willing to sign a huge part of your pay cheque to the banks each month to have it. Everything comes at a cost, the banks never said it was free or tried to hide the fact that there is a fee to have it now.
CEOs and owners of large companies: Lets take one company, a car company, any one will do. Cars used to be cheaper. I know someone that paid $53,000 for a Hyundai minivan in 2008. $53,000 for a korean minivan, that is now worth probably $15,000. Every year we insist that our cars are a bit roomier, have a bit more power, have a few more gadgets, and are a bit safer. No one wants to buy a car that has been the same for 8 years, they want everyone to know, they have the new model, and yes, it was more expensive! People are constantly buying new cars, and they aren't cheap. Used cars are worth next to nothing, because no one wants last years model, it's not cool. So that mean resale is terrible on the $53,000 minivan you just bought. Could you keep driving your current car longer than you will? Yes, could you due without the park assist, SatNav, leather interior? Yes, but you won't. You don't care about the fact that you are signing $53,000 away to car company, as long as it looks cool, and your neighbours will be envious. Car companies have grown immensely, in the last 30-40 years. Households usually have at least 2 cars now, it used to be one. People want a new car every 4 or 5 years, not 10 or 15 years. And cars are far more complicated, and expensive to make. Again, you demanded the cars, why would the car companies say no? You told them what you want, they provided it, you were more than happy to stuff your money in their pockets.
Big oil: This one is pretty cut and dry. You demand it. You drive large, over powered tanks getting terrible gas mileage. You drive all over the place unnecessarily. You don't think twice about driving 3 blocks, or even just going for a drive for fun, or to get away. You take trips on huge fuel sucking planes. You buy food that came from china. Fuel is cheap, for now. People might say it isn't cheap, but still drive a gas pig. It can't be that bad if 12 MPG isn't a concern to you. When you have to think twice before driving everywhere and anywhere, then gas is at a realistic price. Again, you demand gasoline. You demand the right to drive wherever, whenever you want, and millions upon millions of people do the same every day. The pump at the price is set. You know where the money goes, straight to the 1%, but you don't even think about it, as long as you don't have to give up you car.
It all comes down to supply and demand. You asked for it, they provided exactly what you asked for, and now you hate them for it. Everyone is getting exactly what they want, at least in the western world. We drive $53,000 mini vans, live in huge, overkill houses, pay $6 a day for a coffee, have closets full of clothes, have enough food that we can throw most of it away, have a tv in 3 different rooms of the house, have a different pair of shoes for each occasion, get a new $400 phone every year, and yet complain about everything. If people from 1950s could see they way we live right now, they would think that we are all filthy rich. The amount of wasted money in astounding. The crap that we buy, that we don't need to survive in mind boggling. How would you explain to someone from 1950 that yes, my car was $50,000, yes it has a TV in the dash, and I spend $60 a month so that I can talk on my phone anywhere, but I'm poor.
Sorry 99%, but most of you have nothing to complain about and need to realize, you are the reason for your own complains.
Why it's happening, is because the 99% are dumb. Who's doing it is you. How it's happening is simple, you are giving your money to the 1% by choice. How to stop it...well that's the thing, you don't want to.
Who are the 1%? The richest of the rich? CEOs of big companies? The big oil tycoons around the world? The owners of the big world banks? Well lets look at those three, and see how they ended up with so much money.
Banks: Lets start with the big wigs at the top of the banking world. We always here how many billions of dollars each big bank makes each quarter. If I was the owner or CEO of one of those banks, those profits would go to me, that's how capitalism works right? Now how did they make so much money? Well back not so many years ago, there were no credit cards, no lines of credit, no financing your new TV, furniture, and 24" rims for your escalade. People saved up and bought stuff. You might have a mortgage, but other than that, you were debt free. People, and by people, I mean you, demanded a way to have shit now. Not in 3 years, when I can afford it, you want it now. So you have a car loan, a line of credit, a credit card, and a loan on pretty much anything you've ever bought that was over $500. And it's great isn't it! You can have all the things you want, as long as you can make your monthly payments! Here's the problem, you are paying 3% on your $30,000 car loan, 7% on your $5000 line of credit, 19% on you $1500 mastercard bill, and 6% on that lovely $3500 living room set, and don't forget your $350,000 mortgage at 3.5%. Now, I don't think this is far fetched. I think a lot of people have 3 credit cards, maxed out, their line of credit tapped out to $25,000, a $50,000 car to make payments on, and a far larger mortgage, but even at those lower numbers, you're paying $7500 a year in interest. $7500 per year, per person...where do the banks get their money? You give it to them. They didn't sell you the new car, or tell you to buy a bigger house, or go on that vacation. You wanted it, and you wanted it now. The bank provided you a way to have it now. Are they evil for doing that? Remember how happy you were when the bank approved you to buy your shit! You loved the bank that day, but hate them when you find out how rich you've made those same people. You don't need most of the stuff you are paying interest on, and yet you are willing to sign a huge part of your pay cheque to the banks each month to have it. Everything comes at a cost, the banks never said it was free or tried to hide the fact that there is a fee to have it now.
CEOs and owners of large companies: Lets take one company, a car company, any one will do. Cars used to be cheaper. I know someone that paid $53,000 for a Hyundai minivan in 2008. $53,000 for a korean minivan, that is now worth probably $15,000. Every year we insist that our cars are a bit roomier, have a bit more power, have a few more gadgets, and are a bit safer. No one wants to buy a car that has been the same for 8 years, they want everyone to know, they have the new model, and yes, it was more expensive! People are constantly buying new cars, and they aren't cheap. Used cars are worth next to nothing, because no one wants last years model, it's not cool. So that mean resale is terrible on the $53,000 minivan you just bought. Could you keep driving your current car longer than you will? Yes, could you due without the park assist, SatNav, leather interior? Yes, but you won't. You don't care about the fact that you are signing $53,000 away to car company, as long as it looks cool, and your neighbours will be envious. Car companies have grown immensely, in the last 30-40 years. Households usually have at least 2 cars now, it used to be one. People want a new car every 4 or 5 years, not 10 or 15 years. And cars are far more complicated, and expensive to make. Again, you demanded the cars, why would the car companies say no? You told them what you want, they provided it, you were more than happy to stuff your money in their pockets.
Big oil: This one is pretty cut and dry. You demand it. You drive large, over powered tanks getting terrible gas mileage. You drive all over the place unnecessarily. You don't think twice about driving 3 blocks, or even just going for a drive for fun, or to get away. You take trips on huge fuel sucking planes. You buy food that came from china. Fuel is cheap, for now. People might say it isn't cheap, but still drive a gas pig. It can't be that bad if 12 MPG isn't a concern to you. When you have to think twice before driving everywhere and anywhere, then gas is at a realistic price. Again, you demand gasoline. You demand the right to drive wherever, whenever you want, and millions upon millions of people do the same every day. The pump at the price is set. You know where the money goes, straight to the 1%, but you don't even think about it, as long as you don't have to give up you car.
It all comes down to supply and demand. You asked for it, they provided exactly what you asked for, and now you hate them for it. Everyone is getting exactly what they want, at least in the western world. We drive $53,000 mini vans, live in huge, overkill houses, pay $6 a day for a coffee, have closets full of clothes, have enough food that we can throw most of it away, have a tv in 3 different rooms of the house, have a different pair of shoes for each occasion, get a new $400 phone every year, and yet complain about everything. If people from 1950s could see they way we live right now, they would think that we are all filthy rich. The amount of wasted money in astounding. The crap that we buy, that we don't need to survive in mind boggling. How would you explain to someone from 1950 that yes, my car was $50,000, yes it has a TV in the dash, and I spend $60 a month so that I can talk on my phone anywhere, but I'm poor.
Sorry 99%, but most of you have nothing to complain about and need to realize, you are the reason for your own complains.
You stink
Well I know I said my next post would be about smokers, so I'll just do a quick vent about them before I go on to what I really want to talk about. To all the smokers, the world is not your ashtray. A friend of mine was driving along the freeway last summer, when he noticed a large amount of smoke up ahead. The dry grass, in the centre divider of the freeway was on fire. A good samaritan had pulled over already, and luckily had a fire extinguisher on board. My friend and the good samaritan managed to get the fire out before it became a serious problem. We've all seen the black, torched grass on the sides of highways, and every year we hear on the news about the forest fires that were started by a cigarette.
I'm just trying to get into a smokers head. You're driving down the road, listening to country music, smoking, and your cigarette is almost finished, should you put it in the ashtray, where it belongs, or throw your disgusting, slobber covered butt into the world, for someone else to deal with? Well if you put it in your ashtray, you might have to vacuum it out the next time you clean your car, which sounds like a lot of work. You might as well throw it out the window, maybe you can start a fire, or at the very least have all of the great, healthy toxins from the cigarette, be washed out of the butt the next time it rains, and run into our creaks and streams. Yum.
You are not more important than anyone else in the world. No one wants to pick up your trash, and no one wants to put out your fire. Also no one wants to pay your medical bill when you develop lung, mouth, and throat cancer or any of the other great health problem that come with smoking. No one wants to smell you, at work, on the bus, in the store, or at home. And no one wants to have our tax dollars go to your welfare cheque. Lets face it, smoking isn't cheap, and yet the only people I see smoking are poor people. Maybe they are poor because they smoke, maybe they smoke because they are poor, or maybe, they smoke because they are idiots, which would also explain why they are poor, either way, I bet you could find a better way to spend your money.
I'm just trying to get into a smokers head. You're driving down the road, listening to country music, smoking, and your cigarette is almost finished, should you put it in the ashtray, where it belongs, or throw your disgusting, slobber covered butt into the world, for someone else to deal with? Well if you put it in your ashtray, you might have to vacuum it out the next time you clean your car, which sounds like a lot of work. You might as well throw it out the window, maybe you can start a fire, or at the very least have all of the great, healthy toxins from the cigarette, be washed out of the butt the next time it rains, and run into our creaks and streams. Yum.
You are not more important than anyone else in the world. No one wants to pick up your trash, and no one wants to put out your fire. Also no one wants to pay your medical bill when you develop lung, mouth, and throat cancer or any of the other great health problem that come with smoking. No one wants to smell you, at work, on the bus, in the store, or at home. And no one wants to have our tax dollars go to your welfare cheque. Lets face it, smoking isn't cheap, and yet the only people I see smoking are poor people. Maybe they are poor because they smoke, maybe they smoke because they are poor, or maybe, they smoke because they are idiots, which would also explain why they are poor, either way, I bet you could find a better way to spend your money.
Thursday, October 18, 2012
Lets have a toast for the douche bags.
I was going to write this blog about smokers, but that'll have to wait until next time. I need to focus on another topic while it's fresh in my mind, and everyone elses. I want to talk about the nightmare that some teenagers have to endure every day of their lives.
Amanda Todd, a fifteen year old girl from Coquitlam, recently killed herself because she could no longer deal with the daily torture she endured from classmates at school. Think about that for a second. How bad would it have to be, to decide killing yourself, is a better option than dealing with another day? I am so upset and saddened that kids are resorting to suicide due to actions of their classmates. I wish I could just talk to these kids for a minute before they end their life, and explain that high school is a blip on the radar of life, and nothing outside of high school is even remotely like high school. The nightmare ends at graduation.
I'm not sure as to the solution to stop bullying. Normally, I'd suggest cracking some heads, and slapping some parents (the parents of the bullies). But this might not solve anything. I am ashamed and embarrassed to say this, but in high school, I'm sure some people would have said that I was a bully. Maybe not the worst of the worst, but I know I did things to other kids that were cruel and uncalled for. Looking back, I regret my actions deeply, and if I ever run into any of the people I tormented, I've promised myself, I will humbly apologize and explain my actions were unacceptable. Unfortunately, the damage is done, and those kids can't erase those shitty days from their memory, and can't undo the fact that they have lived their life with unjustified, low self esteem.
You know how parents always tell their kids, "you're not invincible". I've talked to many people my age and we all agree, we never thought we were invincible. The problem was, we never thought of consequences. I guess the end result is the same, but the cause is very different. The things I did when I was younger scare me. I'm sure my mom loves to read this. The things I did as a teenager should have got me killed, or at least maimed. Not that I was half as wild as some kids I grew up with, but looking back at the way I drove, the way I worked with dangerous equipment, the dumb ideas I had for stunts etc. I was nuts. The thing is, I'm the same person I was then. I'm actually a very cautious person, so why was I so reckless? It's like young children that like to play in the mud, and get dirty. At some point we don't like getting dirty. We like to keep our clothes clean, and care what we look like. Why at some point were those things not important to us? Just like as teenagers, some of us didn't think of consequence. Not sure why, but we didn't, and that's why kids bully other kids. I know it's a bullshit cop out, but it's true. When I would make a mean comment, or throw a banana peel at another kid, it was to get a laugh out of the other kids, and maybe by making other people laugh, I'd be a bit cooler, or more accepted. You see a group of people doing something as a teenager and if you do what they do, you fit in, and that seems to be what is important at that age. Not once did I feel bad for the person that was getting picked on. I'm not a bad person, and now I feel terrible, but back then, it's not that I didn't feel bad, it's that I didn't think to feel bad. I never once thought of the aftermath. I didn't think about how that kid would feel, or how it felt to not be accepted. I didn't think that that kids life might be agony, and they might hate every morning, and couldn't wait for the bell at the end of the day, so they could escape the torture and reticule.
Don't get me wrong, some people are just assholes. They were in high school and will be forever. The nice thing is, those people go nowhere in life. Their shit isn't tolerated outside of high school. They may still be convinced they are in the "it" crowd, but the "it" crowd gets pretty small after high school, and most of them end up working at Footlocker or tanning salons for the rest of their lives.
A small action to gain a bit respect from your peers can be devastating on the receiving end. I don't know how to get that into someones head that hasn't yet learned to think about anyone but themselves and doesn't understand consequence.
I think Pink does an amazing job of trying to help kids through the hell that is high school. She has a lot of songs about what it is to be the loser at school. It sounds like she had a rough time in high school. Let her be a shining beacon of reality. She went for the butt end of the jokes to super stardom. I hope people listen to her, and I'm sure they do, and maybe Pink has already saved some lives and helped people through hell.
I don't know if we will ever be able to get rid of bullying, but I wish we could get the message out to the kids that are living a nightmare, that it ends, it's bad, but it ends. I hope we find a way to help these kids, or protect them, or stop the bullying, because I can't handle anymore tragic stories of kids, that should be having the time of their life, so depressed, they can't go on.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ocDlOD1Hw9k
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjVNlG5cZyQ
Amanda Todd, a fifteen year old girl from Coquitlam, recently killed herself because she could no longer deal with the daily torture she endured from classmates at school. Think about that for a second. How bad would it have to be, to decide killing yourself, is a better option than dealing with another day? I am so upset and saddened that kids are resorting to suicide due to actions of their classmates. I wish I could just talk to these kids for a minute before they end their life, and explain that high school is a blip on the radar of life, and nothing outside of high school is even remotely like high school. The nightmare ends at graduation.
I'm not sure as to the solution to stop bullying. Normally, I'd suggest cracking some heads, and slapping some parents (the parents of the bullies). But this might not solve anything. I am ashamed and embarrassed to say this, but in high school, I'm sure some people would have said that I was a bully. Maybe not the worst of the worst, but I know I did things to other kids that were cruel and uncalled for. Looking back, I regret my actions deeply, and if I ever run into any of the people I tormented, I've promised myself, I will humbly apologize and explain my actions were unacceptable. Unfortunately, the damage is done, and those kids can't erase those shitty days from their memory, and can't undo the fact that they have lived their life with unjustified, low self esteem.
You know how parents always tell their kids, "you're not invincible". I've talked to many people my age and we all agree, we never thought we were invincible. The problem was, we never thought of consequences. I guess the end result is the same, but the cause is very different. The things I did when I was younger scare me. I'm sure my mom loves to read this. The things I did as a teenager should have got me killed, or at least maimed. Not that I was half as wild as some kids I grew up with, but looking back at the way I drove, the way I worked with dangerous equipment, the dumb ideas I had for stunts etc. I was nuts. The thing is, I'm the same person I was then. I'm actually a very cautious person, so why was I so reckless? It's like young children that like to play in the mud, and get dirty. At some point we don't like getting dirty. We like to keep our clothes clean, and care what we look like. Why at some point were those things not important to us? Just like as teenagers, some of us didn't think of consequence. Not sure why, but we didn't, and that's why kids bully other kids. I know it's a bullshit cop out, but it's true. When I would make a mean comment, or throw a banana peel at another kid, it was to get a laugh out of the other kids, and maybe by making other people laugh, I'd be a bit cooler, or more accepted. You see a group of people doing something as a teenager and if you do what they do, you fit in, and that seems to be what is important at that age. Not once did I feel bad for the person that was getting picked on. I'm not a bad person, and now I feel terrible, but back then, it's not that I didn't feel bad, it's that I didn't think to feel bad. I never once thought of the aftermath. I didn't think about how that kid would feel, or how it felt to not be accepted. I didn't think that that kids life might be agony, and they might hate every morning, and couldn't wait for the bell at the end of the day, so they could escape the torture and reticule.
Don't get me wrong, some people are just assholes. They were in high school and will be forever. The nice thing is, those people go nowhere in life. Their shit isn't tolerated outside of high school. They may still be convinced they are in the "it" crowd, but the "it" crowd gets pretty small after high school, and most of them end up working at Footlocker or tanning salons for the rest of their lives.
A small action to gain a bit respect from your peers can be devastating on the receiving end. I don't know how to get that into someones head that hasn't yet learned to think about anyone but themselves and doesn't understand consequence.
I think Pink does an amazing job of trying to help kids through the hell that is high school. She has a lot of songs about what it is to be the loser at school. It sounds like she had a rough time in high school. Let her be a shining beacon of reality. She went for the butt end of the jokes to super stardom. I hope people listen to her, and I'm sure they do, and maybe Pink has already saved some lives and helped people through hell.
I don't know if we will ever be able to get rid of bullying, but I wish we could get the message out to the kids that are living a nightmare, that it ends, it's bad, but it ends. I hope we find a way to help these kids, or protect them, or stop the bullying, because I can't handle anymore tragic stories of kids, that should be having the time of their life, so depressed, they can't go on.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ocDlOD1Hw9k
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjVNlG5cZyQ
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
The Sin of Eating
So I had discussions with a couple of friends this weekend about their diets and their reasoning for their diets. Controlling what goes in your body effects how much energy your have, how long you will live, and your overall health. It seems that's a major topic these days. Everyone has an opinion, or belief. There seems to be good reasoning behind most diets, and yet they all seem so different. But I've come to the conclusion that they are all flawed.
Lets face it. If you followed a good, health eating guide, you'd just not eat anymore. Everything is bad for you, or the environment, or your moral standards. If we were all vegan, and glutton free, and only bought within the "100 mile diet", and only ate organic, and didn't eat processed foods, we would have really nothing to eat, except some local, expensive fruits and vegetables, part of the year.
People like to subscribe to one type of diet, and stick to it as if it's the one and only solution. This isn't religion, you can pick more than one.
The human body in an amazing thing. It can process so many types of foods. We have adapted over many thousands of years, to get our energy and nutrition from any source we have available. We also have an ability to remove harmful toxins from our foods. Take alcohol for an example. Alcohol is a poison, not unlike cyanide, or arsenic. If you drink a vast amount of alcohol, it will kill you. If you drink slightly less, you will vomit and pass out. These are probably signs of your body telling you, this is a poison, don't take too much. But if you have a very small amount each day, the long and short term effects are negated by your liver. Our bodies evolved to have livers, so that toxic or poisonous things can be taken out of our bodies, to prevent harming ourselves. If you ingest large amounts of poison, on a daily basis (a bottle of booze, or a case of beer lets say) your liver will be over worked and will at some point fail, but if you keep it to a small amount, your liver will probably last indefinitely. That's the wonder of the human body, it can handle almost anything, IN MODERATION.
Also, everyones body is different, and we all have different requirements in out diets. We are always told that salt is bad and avoid it at all costs, but that's because most foods these days have too much salt in them. But salt is not bad, the average person just needs less of it, but take someone that runs marathons, and sweats a lot, they often deplete the salt in their bodies, and need to take in extra. People also like to avoid carbohydrates, and calories as much as they can. This is simply because people are in the habit of taking in more energy than they are using, but if you lead a labor intensive life, and have a fast metabolism, you might seek out as many carbs and calories as you can stuff in your face. What works for one person, might not for someone else. People that are allergic to peanuts, probably shouldn't eat them, but that's not to say that peanuts are bad for everyone. Everyone reacts different to different foods. One diet wont work for everyone.
Did you ever think about the alternative to what you are trying to avoid? Some people try so hard to avoid something, that they might be putting something far worse in their bodies. Take the atkins diet, or people that use aspertame instead of sugar. Is fake sugar healthier than real sugar? Or are you just replacing diabetes with cancer? Sugar isn't bad, people just eat too much of it. Moderation people.
All the different diets try to avoid one thing, whether it's meat, or animal products, or gluten, or carbs, or growth hormones, or preservatives, or fat, etc. But cutting one or two of those things out is not healthy eating. I can eat gluten free, and have greasy, deep fried, KFC chicken, with bacon on it. Is that healthy? I can be a vegan and eat potato chips and twinkies for every meal. Is that healthy?
There's always a catch. If all farmers were to only grow organic products, production would drop approximately one third. That means there would be one third the amount to go around, which means a lot of people, would starve to death. The world needs a lot of food to feed the masses, and humanity has found a way to deliver. People complain about the way it's been delivered, but offer no solution to produce food as cheap or as fast as it's being done.
Choosing to avoid one specific thing just seems like a waste of time. I doubt that thing that you are avoiding is harmful if you eat it in moderation. Instead I offer the simple advice of common sense. Most of us could afford to eat less meat, less gluten, less processed foods, and less junk food. We could replace said foods with more fruits and vegetables, and foods with better nutritional values than doughnuts, and Doritos. Subscribing to one diet, does not make you healthy, in fact it's probably harmful if you don't research the best way to approach that diet, and know what alternatives best replace the things you are trying to cut out. You know what is healthy and what isn't. Moderation is the key.
Lets face it. If you followed a good, health eating guide, you'd just not eat anymore. Everything is bad for you, or the environment, or your moral standards. If we were all vegan, and glutton free, and only bought within the "100 mile diet", and only ate organic, and didn't eat processed foods, we would have really nothing to eat, except some local, expensive fruits and vegetables, part of the year.
People like to subscribe to one type of diet, and stick to it as if it's the one and only solution. This isn't religion, you can pick more than one.
The human body in an amazing thing. It can process so many types of foods. We have adapted over many thousands of years, to get our energy and nutrition from any source we have available. We also have an ability to remove harmful toxins from our foods. Take alcohol for an example. Alcohol is a poison, not unlike cyanide, or arsenic. If you drink a vast amount of alcohol, it will kill you. If you drink slightly less, you will vomit and pass out. These are probably signs of your body telling you, this is a poison, don't take too much. But if you have a very small amount each day, the long and short term effects are negated by your liver. Our bodies evolved to have livers, so that toxic or poisonous things can be taken out of our bodies, to prevent harming ourselves. If you ingest large amounts of poison, on a daily basis (a bottle of booze, or a case of beer lets say) your liver will be over worked and will at some point fail, but if you keep it to a small amount, your liver will probably last indefinitely. That's the wonder of the human body, it can handle almost anything, IN MODERATION.
Also, everyones body is different, and we all have different requirements in out diets. We are always told that salt is bad and avoid it at all costs, but that's because most foods these days have too much salt in them. But salt is not bad, the average person just needs less of it, but take someone that runs marathons, and sweats a lot, they often deplete the salt in their bodies, and need to take in extra. People also like to avoid carbohydrates, and calories as much as they can. This is simply because people are in the habit of taking in more energy than they are using, but if you lead a labor intensive life, and have a fast metabolism, you might seek out as many carbs and calories as you can stuff in your face. What works for one person, might not for someone else. People that are allergic to peanuts, probably shouldn't eat them, but that's not to say that peanuts are bad for everyone. Everyone reacts different to different foods. One diet wont work for everyone.
Did you ever think about the alternative to what you are trying to avoid? Some people try so hard to avoid something, that they might be putting something far worse in their bodies. Take the atkins diet, or people that use aspertame instead of sugar. Is fake sugar healthier than real sugar? Or are you just replacing diabetes with cancer? Sugar isn't bad, people just eat too much of it. Moderation people.
All the different diets try to avoid one thing, whether it's meat, or animal products, or gluten, or carbs, or growth hormones, or preservatives, or fat, etc. But cutting one or two of those things out is not healthy eating. I can eat gluten free, and have greasy, deep fried, KFC chicken, with bacon on it. Is that healthy? I can be a vegan and eat potato chips and twinkies for every meal. Is that healthy?
There's always a catch. If all farmers were to only grow organic products, production would drop approximately one third. That means there would be one third the amount to go around, which means a lot of people, would starve to death. The world needs a lot of food to feed the masses, and humanity has found a way to deliver. People complain about the way it's been delivered, but offer no solution to produce food as cheap or as fast as it's being done.
Choosing to avoid one specific thing just seems like a waste of time. I doubt that thing that you are avoiding is harmful if you eat it in moderation. Instead I offer the simple advice of common sense. Most of us could afford to eat less meat, less gluten, less processed foods, and less junk food. We could replace said foods with more fruits and vegetables, and foods with better nutritional values than doughnuts, and Doritos. Subscribing to one diet, does not make you healthy, in fact it's probably harmful if you don't research the best way to approach that diet, and know what alternatives best replace the things you are trying to cut out. You know what is healthy and what isn't. Moderation is the key.
Monday, January 9, 2012
A total colapse of Domocracy
When I think of what the role of a government should be, what comes to mind is far different from what we've ended up with here in Canada, and in the USA. The government is supposed to be a body that acts in the best interests of the people on matters such as justice, safety, development, providing necessities, sustainability, providing a financial structure and things of that sort. All of those things can be provided on a very small scale. You could have a government that reprosents a very small population, and still be very successful, and yet, we have governments that are ruling vast areas, and millions of people. When dealing with such a wide variety of landscape, and cultures, you are going to have drastically different needs from a governing body, and yet, we get a blanket solution, that doesn't really meet the needs of the majority.
Take the USA for instance. 50% of the country wants Republicans to represent them and 50% want Democrats. The Dems and Reps have very different ideas on how the country should be run. Wouldn't it make sense to find out where the majority of Republican supporters live, and draw a line, separating them from the Democrat majority area, allowing each area to have their desired government? Instead of a constant battle between the two parties, each could rule the area that supports them. Wouldn't that make a far higher percentage of the public happier with their government? If that would work, why not break it down smaller? Why not have each state be their own country with it's own interests, and own way of governing. I know there would be some kinks to iron out, but the way the system is now, has more than a few kinks to iron out.
If things were on a smaller scale, there would be more accountability. You couldn't rely on votes from people all over the country, you would have to impress the people right at home, in your state, and make sure you keep them happy, or you'd be voted out.
I find that when dealing with the federal government, I am constantly frustrated, and feel my tax dollars aren't going to where I'd like to see them go. I think the federal government is very inefficient, and wasteful of resources. Mind you, the BC provincial government seems equally incompetent. I'm glad the city I live in does its best to separate itself from the provincial government. They opt to use their own police force instead of the RCMP, and are trying to get out of the Greater Vancouver Regional District, so they can run their own hospitals and such. Why are police and hospitals something that needs to be run on a provincial or federal level? A police officer that lives in the city he works in probably knows more of the problem areas, knows the culture, and knows they layout. Why send someone from the other side of the country, to do that job? They might not speak the same language, they might not understand procedures or happening that are common place in that particular city. Not to mention it cost more money to uproot someone, and train them to be able to work all over the country.
A lot of small, successful companies fail after they try to expand. The reason for that is efficiency. As a small company expands, they need more space, more employees and more resources, which raises overhead, and it can be difficult to increase income in proportion to overhead. You might need to hire a manager, or secretary, when one wasn't needed before, and neither of those people are producing a product, so overhead goes up, but production only slightly increases. Or things that used to get done in house, now get subleted, to keep up with demand, increasing the cost of that procedure.
Smaller is better. What better way to control every aspect of something, than to have it small enough to to do yourself. The federal government has lost touch with the bulk of the population and no longer provides the service it is supposed to. The inefficiency is costing millions of dollars that are needed to help the country stay afloat, and help it's people. If you look at the percent of the population that is working in one way or another, for the government, you understand how wasteful the government is. If government was run on a much smaller scale, you could manage with fewer employees. There are too many Chiefs and not enough Indians, which is causing overlapping jobs and major delays in the ability to process anything, and it's costing us as tax payers.
Take the USA for instance. 50% of the country wants Republicans to represent them and 50% want Democrats. The Dems and Reps have very different ideas on how the country should be run. Wouldn't it make sense to find out where the majority of Republican supporters live, and draw a line, separating them from the Democrat majority area, allowing each area to have their desired government? Instead of a constant battle between the two parties, each could rule the area that supports them. Wouldn't that make a far higher percentage of the public happier with their government? If that would work, why not break it down smaller? Why not have each state be their own country with it's own interests, and own way of governing. I know there would be some kinks to iron out, but the way the system is now, has more than a few kinks to iron out.
If things were on a smaller scale, there would be more accountability. You couldn't rely on votes from people all over the country, you would have to impress the people right at home, in your state, and make sure you keep them happy, or you'd be voted out.
I find that when dealing with the federal government, I am constantly frustrated, and feel my tax dollars aren't going to where I'd like to see them go. I think the federal government is very inefficient, and wasteful of resources. Mind you, the BC provincial government seems equally incompetent. I'm glad the city I live in does its best to separate itself from the provincial government. They opt to use their own police force instead of the RCMP, and are trying to get out of the Greater Vancouver Regional District, so they can run their own hospitals and such. Why are police and hospitals something that needs to be run on a provincial or federal level? A police officer that lives in the city he works in probably knows more of the problem areas, knows the culture, and knows they layout. Why send someone from the other side of the country, to do that job? They might not speak the same language, they might not understand procedures or happening that are common place in that particular city. Not to mention it cost more money to uproot someone, and train them to be able to work all over the country.
A lot of small, successful companies fail after they try to expand. The reason for that is efficiency. As a small company expands, they need more space, more employees and more resources, which raises overhead, and it can be difficult to increase income in proportion to overhead. You might need to hire a manager, or secretary, when one wasn't needed before, and neither of those people are producing a product, so overhead goes up, but production only slightly increases. Or things that used to get done in house, now get subleted, to keep up with demand, increasing the cost of that procedure.
Smaller is better. What better way to control every aspect of something, than to have it small enough to to do yourself. The federal government has lost touch with the bulk of the population and no longer provides the service it is supposed to. The inefficiency is costing millions of dollars that are needed to help the country stay afloat, and help it's people. If you look at the percent of the population that is working in one way or another, for the government, you understand how wasteful the government is. If government was run on a much smaller scale, you could manage with fewer employees. There are too many Chiefs and not enough Indians, which is causing overlapping jobs and major delays in the ability to process anything, and it's costing us as tax payers.
Thursday, November 10, 2011
The only Holiday that Matters
November 11 is tomorrow, and for me, it's the only holiday that has any real meaning. Christmas is to celebrate someone I don't believe ever existed. Easter, death of said person. Canada day...yes, I live in a country, I guess that's worth celebrating. Victoria day? I think the monarchy is a joke to be honest. Thanksgiving, any reason to eat turkey is good for me, but what's it really about? The only day that I view as anything more than just a day off, is Remembrance Day. Unfortunately, it has left a bitter taste in my mouth this year.
I heard on the radio, that several donation boxes have been stolen by thieves. This really sums up society today, doesn't it? People take what they think they deserve, and no one with hold them to the flame for it.
The money collected for veterans, is to support the heros that gave up everything, to fight oppression, fear, and genocide, so that we can live in a safe, prosperous, democratic country. The veterans gave up their hopes, their dreams, their youth, their families, their health, their friends and their lives, so that we can live the amazing lives we are blessed with. Everything we have, we have because of the veterans courage, honor and bravery. And yet, some animals out there have decided that they are more deserving of charity than the veterans. What type of person would logically think that their crack habit is more deserving than the well being of an old man, who could use a little help getting through his day, due to some injury he sustained saving the world.
Can you imagine, being 18, or 19 years old, and being shipped to a part of the world you knew little about, and spending the next few YEARS of you life, living in horrid, filthy conditions, with little food, no place to call home, no bed to sleep in, no family members to comfort you and being shot at and bombed regularly. Sounds like the worst thing that could ever happen to a person, and yet, this wasn't some sort of punishment, they did this by choice, because they knew it was the right thing to do, because they were brave, because they had honor. They endured hell, for all of us, and now some dog thinks it's right to steel from them. Humans go to jail, dogs get put down.
To every person that sacrificed anything and everything, to lead us to where we are, thank you. I salute you on Remembrance Day and every other day of the year.
I heard on the radio, that several donation boxes have been stolen by thieves. This really sums up society today, doesn't it? People take what they think they deserve, and no one with hold them to the flame for it.
The money collected for veterans, is to support the heros that gave up everything, to fight oppression, fear, and genocide, so that we can live in a safe, prosperous, democratic country. The veterans gave up their hopes, their dreams, their youth, their families, their health, their friends and their lives, so that we can live the amazing lives we are blessed with. Everything we have, we have because of the veterans courage, honor and bravery. And yet, some animals out there have decided that they are more deserving of charity than the veterans. What type of person would logically think that their crack habit is more deserving than the well being of an old man, who could use a little help getting through his day, due to some injury he sustained saving the world.
Can you imagine, being 18, or 19 years old, and being shipped to a part of the world you knew little about, and spending the next few YEARS of you life, living in horrid, filthy conditions, with little food, no place to call home, no bed to sleep in, no family members to comfort you and being shot at and bombed regularly. Sounds like the worst thing that could ever happen to a person, and yet, this wasn't some sort of punishment, they did this by choice, because they knew it was the right thing to do, because they were brave, because they had honor. They endured hell, for all of us, and now some dog thinks it's right to steel from them. Humans go to jail, dogs get put down.
To every person that sacrificed anything and everything, to lead us to where we are, thank you. I salute you on Remembrance Day and every other day of the year.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)