Recycling Hindsight

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  tscory 10:14 pm on June 12, 2015 Permalink | Reply  

  I GOTTA’ ADDRESS THIS DEMOCRAT THING It aint your daddy’s party 

  I was raised a Democrat. My Dad inspired me. North Dakota had just come out of the Great Depression. And the party was the party of the people..voiced from every town hall, grange meeting, union hall, barbershop, grocery store, and gas station. The mantra of the Democratic party, then, was driven ‘bottom-up.’ The ultra-liberal ‘top-down’ Government knows best’ was not in the picture anywhere. The party mantel was that of using collective bargaining to achieve a balance between the two parties. The implementation of equal opportuity for and equal protection of individual rights was sustained largely at the state level; that is, as close to the individual as possible. During the early 20^th century, the party even instigated socialism at the state level via the Non-Partisan League…which remained an active component of the Party until WWII.

  The change from ‘then’ to ‘now’ was triggered by the programs of Lyndon Johnson’s Great Society. The lesson learned since then is that you can’t fix social and economic inequality by throwing money at the problem, I learned this personally during the early 1970’s when I had an apartment house in Cedar Rapids occupied largely by welfare recipients. I got to know the families pretty well. By then, they were 2^nd generation welfare families where the requisite to receive entitlement support per child was that the father could not co-occupy living quarters. Nobody worked. Incentive is the magic of the American dream, and the society-wide application of some entitlements removes incentive from the equation. The most flagrant current abuses of entitlements are the abuse of food stamps and Social Security Disability. While these entitlements mean well as regards the disadvantaged and poverty stricken, the administration resources needed are huge and add further to large government

  I am no longer a staunch Democrat. My father did teach me to use my mind and not just mindlessly endorse or choose anything that didn’t make sense. Right now, there are many things that don’t make sense associated with both Democratic and Republican partys. We see scandals and abuses of power today that would never have been condoned two generations ago. There is just not the passion of the people to rise up and correct these situations as it was then.

  Please, once again, make the democratic party the party of the people, administered by the people at the lowest level of government that is feasible.
   

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  tscory 12:24 pm on May 29, 2015 Permalink | Reply  

  FAMILY AND CULTURE Are we drowning in someone else’s pool of ‘do’s’ and ‘don’ts’? 

  Hey, what’s your family like…is it the same as you grew up with? In mine, the rules were pretty much unspoken; you just knew what behavior was expected. I was subtley informed that my my father attended the University of North Dakota at age 16, graduating at the top of his class; and that my mother and aunt were valedictorians of their highshool classes. I was at least subconciously driven toward academics at the expense of social exposure and acceptance. So my family was my culture.

  So, what is culture? It’s kinda like the background image on a computer. It is really a set of rules governing our behavior; but, more than that, it provides the perspective for all our thinking. Think of thsi as your personal culture…you have it even without family or social influences. But without family, your personal culture may be perfectly random because your mind seeks acceptance or belonging; then looks for and demands a touchstone.

  For me, there was a sharp boundary between my family culture and the real world. I had only a little guidance outside of my bubble. I had a friend who was into ham radio. I latched onto this hungrily, entering a culture of technology and engineering. But my interests in literature, writing, and music (piano) took a definite back seat. And, I really didn’t know myself until much later. For me, I reached a point in my mid-twenties where I needed a relationship, not just friends-with-benefits.And I was lucky…very lucky. I found Mary. T chased her until she caught me.

  So, back to you, your culture. How’s that working for you? Or, maybe it’s not your culture that you’re marching to. Remember the rule…if you lose your identity in a relationship, you don’t have a relationship. The same applies in a broader sense to familial and ethnic level cultures. So, if you don’t have a relationship, then why are you there, hmm?
   
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  tscory 9:03 pm on May 26, 2015 Permalink | Reply  

  SECOND CHANCES Is your life baggage checked, or carry-on? 

  Choices…that’s where it’s at! Each choice has consequences that don’t always match our expectations. More often or not, our early-on first choices are made on a perception of the moment…without legacy or latency; and, often before maturity sets in…often reflecting the impulsiveness and impetuousness of youth. And, in the context of culture, choices are often taken as commitments that are intended promises to fulfill. And, they say that the road to hell is paved with good intentions. And so goes the several miles of bad road along our life path.

  So, with choices once made, do the rest of our lives depend soley on navigating the sea of unintended consequences; or, is rescue an option? Then, can we choose again? In the world of science, the scientific method is based on an intelligent type of trial and error, where choices are successive and adaptable. But our cultures are only rarely reflective of the scientific method.

  Maybe if we were free and had no baggage, second chances would be a ‘no-brainer.’ But, even with the wisdom gained from a failed relationship, our second chance choices consider more than correcting the original choice. As the baggage invariably includes children, the interests of the children usually govern our new choice(s).

  Finally, we probably know enough about ourselves to see at least an idealized path toward personal happiness….even with baggage. At this point, we owe it to ourselves to seek personal happiness as a demanded consequence of our second chance choice. Oh, yes, we should demand the second chance!

  Go for it!
   
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  tscory 7:45 pm on May 23, 2015 Permalink | Reply  

  What are you working for, dummy? 

  So…Here comes the sense in sensibility..It makes sense to me that in order to become an entrepenuer first you have to know the possibilities for success and have friends with money that will finance your hairbrain idea!  Shark Tank, please help me!!  I haven’t a clue or the CASH!! When your young the world is your oyster and what the Hell, take a chance!! Age ages you and the oyster is much more difficult to crack the shell..So get in line with all the other losers, and just get all that you can and let the big shots foot the bill! If the losers only knew that their next free handout was their last what a wonderful world it would be!  Sing it Frankie!
   
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  tscory 10:11 pm on May 22, 2015 Permalink | Reply  

  WHO CREATED YOUR JOB? You’ve got passion and incentive, right…can’t wait to go towork! 

  …Got to get serious for a minute, ;cause ther’s a lot of bad info out there on jobs Please bear with me a moment!

  All laws and regulations have been written to favor entreprenours over those who work for others…a basic premise of a capitalist economic system. The government cannot create jobs, except for government jobs. Right now, our national economy is 80% service-based and there are more government employees than U.S. Production workers who are making things. Making things and selling them makes more money than services in which you essentially sell your body for dollars with services realizing just a mark-up on direct labor.. We cannot rebuild the middle class without production jobs. We obviosly cannot afford our lifestyle today. That is why we are living on borrowed money from China.

  If need be, fact-check these statements…use U.S. BEA (Bureau of Economic Analysis)…before answering this question. Many of us just want to go to work without putting anything at risk. Anyone can start their own business. If all unemployed people would do this, our economy would grow. There is another way….the same way that WWII brought us out of the economy of the 1930’s. A massive injection of cash directly into U.S. Industry making products that we use every day. It makes little difference what industry or products just as long as they are marketable. Think of the economy like a Monopoly game. And the goal is to make states and small communities self sufficient.

  Ok, smart people what do you think. Just remember whatever your idea is you have to come up with the money to pay for it just like any small business would do. Why do we need the federal government anyway…except to keep us safe and run interferene to that free enterprise can work.
   
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  tscory 2:23 pm on May 21, 2015 Permalink | Reply  

  Take a Close Look At Your Partner…What Shapes your life? 

  f you want to know what your relationship partner is like or will become, take a look at his/her parents…as these apples seldom fall far from the tree. You may want to buy your own apples at the store instead
  

  Too often, in the blindness of love, we overlook some things in our partner, thinking that we can affect change. We also make a choice; namely, either a leap of faith based on love; or, a practical choice based on tradition, or family, on vocation, or some perceived opportunity. Com’on, love almost never makes sense; and, often it is said “You can’t help who you love.” Others will say that “you either follow your heart; or, you follow your mind.” In either case, when you are young, it is a roll of the dice, even if you don’t think so.. Do you have a right to change it later?  You may want to overlook some small things…like picking the fly shit out of the pepper. Rather, view these things in parents:
  

  Is their marriage a partnership; or, is one parent dominant and is one parent entrapped?

  Have they been personally interactive with their children; or has the nurturing ‘at arms length,’ or relegated to others

  Has divorce been validated as a viable choice; or, is their view hard core…Mama says “You made your bed, now lie in it”

  Are there religious issues?

  Are there substance abuse issues?

  Any way, be prepared to ‘run like hell’
   
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  tscory 2:01 am on May 20, 2015 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: "You may not solve your problems; but, maybe you'll solve mine!"   

  Hey, this blog goes after offering hope and a sense of dirction on everyday issues like relationships, jobs, politics and just plain living. I’ve heard that hindsight is 20/20, so we should be able to build wisdom from a collection of “that was real dumb ass,” or “ damn, I’ll never do that again” situations and experiences. Let’s open up the high-ground of wisdom and let it flow down on today and now…and let’s do it together.

  So, we’ll pick a topic, and build our wisdom , brick-by-brick, and comment-by-comment, sharing our hindsights in our comments. We will shape each conversation toward finding advice or solutions that meet our needs. And, maybe we’ll make a few friends along the way. This’ll be like ‘texted’ talk radio.
   
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  tscory 8:50 pm on May 17, 2015 Permalink | Reply  

  Meet the Corys 

  

  The Bompie, as I am better known.

  

  The MeMe as I am known!!

  Terry S: I can mentally regress to my birth-town, Minot ND, and the early summer day my dad took me to the railroad station where the elephants unloaded animals and tents from two Barnum & Bailey circus trains…then progressing with pomp and fanfare in single file to the fairgrounds where the roughnecks were assembling the breakfast tent. I was ten years old and my Dad, a newspaper man, had privileges in introducing me to performers, Senator Bill Langer, and some of the smarter animals.
  My boyhood activities included , getting free weiners from the Eatmore Sausage Co. crawling beneath the bleachers at the local football field looking for money, and shooting rats at the local dump behind Minot State Teachers College where my mother worked s a secretary.
  My teen years grew without real direction, I had my first car at 14, joined Jr NRA at 15, ran a skating rink at 16, graduated valedictorian from Model High School I took a hobotrip riding rails out west and back, and became smitten by ham radio as I transitioned into college…I owe this to Keith Sorensen because in case these revelations cause the authorities or the IRS to come running, I.don’t want to go to jail alone.
  My college years embraced engineering, first at North Dakota State U for BSEE and MSEE degrees and later at Stanford U for the EE degree. In between I served as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Army Signal Corps and toured Europe, riding the Orient Express. But in there, at age 24, I met and married a Norweigen girl who has set me straight while rocking my world for many years. We have two native Californians for children…one of each, now in Florida and Cedar Rapids/Dallas.

  Mary L: I am small town USA,teacher by trade, and NORWEIGAN! Attended Luther College in Decorah,IA,and by marriage have lived in Palo Alto,CA, Plano , Dallas,TX, MN, and Iowa. My husband is smart and serious and I am sensible!! He is a writer and I am a lover of beauty and escape boredom by gardening and decorating my 1910 Bed and Bath style home in Palatka,FL..I would LOVE to give my two kids,7 grands and 4 greats lots of old gal wisdom, you know, like ( recycle, less is more, don’t Postpone Joy! AND don’t Borrow Trouble!, blah,blah blah!! Now, for the meat and potatoes of me..I am totally a believer of being joyous at all times, smile and the world smiles with you, cry and you cry alone!!

  Now, Palatka Florida is my(our) home, hopefully a magnet to attract our seven grandchildren, and for sure our four great grandchildren, the oldest of which, Gabby, is now driving, taking college courses, and scoring a 29 on as ACT English test as a highschool freshman..

  Mr WordPress is discussing. Toggle Comments

   
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    Mr WordPress 8:50 pm on May 17, 2015 Permalink | Reply