With Memorial Day having passed, I feel it is an appropriate time to talk about the personal impacts war can have on our veterans. To be honest until this year I had not realized the true purpose of Memorial Day. I had been watching CBS when a short clip played showing shots of our lost men and women in Iraq. While playing these images a voice over was saying that there are thousands of smiles that only exist in memories, thousands of laughs that can never be heard again. This really struck me hard.
Death is permanent, while any victory that may be achieved is only fleeting. These fathers, mothers, sons, and daughters are paying the highest price and we need to respect and honor them for it. Unlike previous wars all of these men and women had decided to join the war. As cliche as it sounds, while I do not agree with their decision, I must support their right to decide for themselves. And regardless of what decisions a human makes they are still a human and their life was precious and should be respected and honored.
With that being said I wish to offer my advice to anyone considering joining the armed forces or anyone with friends considering joining the armed forces. Seriously consider your decision. Truly think about it, write out why you wish to join, what influences have made you want to join and which have made you not want to join. Which of these influences do you regard higher? Ask your deity (whatever your higher power may be). Do they really want you to go? Do they want you to possibly kill anyone? Do they want you to be in harms way? Ask your friends and family. Do they want you to kill anyone or be killed yourself? Will it bring honor to your name? Will you be able to justify any killing you do? Who really is the 'enemy'? Can you handle it in a war zone? Can you look another human in the eyes and kill them knowing that they would kill you?
Most importantly ask yourself, Is it worth it? Everything in life is a trade off, you can have it all if you give your all. Will the honor, respect, pride for fighting for your country, etc be worth living the rest of your life with the knowledge that you ended someone's life or perhaps you won't get to live the rest of your life at all? These are important questions to consider and not to be taken lightly. These shouldn't be answered now or even tomorrow, take at least a week to consider the true impact of your decision, not just on your life but on everyone's life around you and all the lives over in Iraq.
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Small Change, Big Difference
We can't change the whole world at once. In fact we can't change anyone else but ourselves. So it should be no surprise that to promote world peace we can only change ourselves. This is where the small changes come in.
If we want peace on the outside, we need peace on the inside. If you have secrets that need to be told, tell them. If you feel guilty about something you have to clear your conscious. And if you are acting in opposition to how you know you should be acting, you must fix this. Of course this last one is not such a small change and should forever be your guide through life. The point here is you must be yourself before you can even begin to talk to someone else about who they are.
After your closet is clean of skeletons your mind can rest easier and you'll be much better off for it. Then it is time to make the right actions. The following is an obviously simplified storyline but it can be seen how a situation like this is indeed happening everyday. Suppose you are on your way to work and in your hurry you cut someone off. This person then gets angry and is in a bad mood when they get to work. Since they are in a bad mood they take it out on one of their employees. That employee then goes home extremely upset, gets drunk, and abuses their child. The child grows up with this abuse and is deeply scarred, eventually turning to a life of violence and killing your child. All because you were in a hurry.
Obviously this is a slight exaggeration but this constant feeding into anger and violence is the very root of all our problems in the world today. So next time you lose your temper or feel impatient and feel like being rude to someone else, keep in mind that you are feeding this violence in the world. When you are rude to your waitress, when you talk disrespectfully to others, even when you get angry and just hold a grudge against someone, you are feeding the much larger machine of violence in the world.
Of course you will get angry from time to time, but what you do with this anger is more important than not getting angry at all. It is important to notice that you are getting angry and think of the bigger picture. Then you must calm the anger by finding its true root. In our little story the abusive parent may say he's angry that his boss took out his anger on him, but that's just the most recent event. This anger has been building up his whole life, perhaps he was abused as a child too and is still angry about the injustice in this, perhaps his wife had cheated on him and he never truly forgave her, whatever the case may be there is an infinite supply of reasons to get angry and if you don't truly get over them then you will carry this with you your whole life.
Stopping the spread of anger is a giant step and as you can see really doesn't take much effort on your part, just a little patience here, some forgiveness, and some insight into yourself. If you do just this, it would be a very valiant step, but if you feel up to it you can do more. Instead of just stopping the spread of violence or hate, also spread love! Simple things like smiling, saying please and thank you, talking to someone who looks lonely, helping a stranger, or just being polite. Just as the violence spread and something as small as cutting someone off turned into murder, love can spread and something as simple as a smile can turn into someone saving a life.
This is all a lot of words basically saying what you learned in kindergarten. Be polite, share, be kind to others, don't hit, don't curse, don't steal, etc. Simple little things you've known your whole life but somehow we tend to forget in the heat of the moment, and this is when it is most important to look at the big picture.
Every one of your actions (and thoughts!!) has repercussions and you are free to take whatever actions you want since you are a free spirited adult, but when you take those actions remember the impatience turning into murder and the smile turning into a second chance.
If we want peace on the outside, we need peace on the inside. If you have secrets that need to be told, tell them. If you feel guilty about something you have to clear your conscious. And if you are acting in opposition to how you know you should be acting, you must fix this. Of course this last one is not such a small change and should forever be your guide through life. The point here is you must be yourself before you can even begin to talk to someone else about who they are.
After your closet is clean of skeletons your mind can rest easier and you'll be much better off for it. Then it is time to make the right actions. The following is an obviously simplified storyline but it can be seen how a situation like this is indeed happening everyday. Suppose you are on your way to work and in your hurry you cut someone off. This person then gets angry and is in a bad mood when they get to work. Since they are in a bad mood they take it out on one of their employees. That employee then goes home extremely upset, gets drunk, and abuses their child. The child grows up with this abuse and is deeply scarred, eventually turning to a life of violence and killing your child. All because you were in a hurry.
Obviously this is a slight exaggeration but this constant feeding into anger and violence is the very root of all our problems in the world today. So next time you lose your temper or feel impatient and feel like being rude to someone else, keep in mind that you are feeding this violence in the world. When you are rude to your waitress, when you talk disrespectfully to others, even when you get angry and just hold a grudge against someone, you are feeding the much larger machine of violence in the world.
Of course you will get angry from time to time, but what you do with this anger is more important than not getting angry at all. It is important to notice that you are getting angry and think of the bigger picture. Then you must calm the anger by finding its true root. In our little story the abusive parent may say he's angry that his boss took out his anger on him, but that's just the most recent event. This anger has been building up his whole life, perhaps he was abused as a child too and is still angry about the injustice in this, perhaps his wife had cheated on him and he never truly forgave her, whatever the case may be there is an infinite supply of reasons to get angry and if you don't truly get over them then you will carry this with you your whole life.
Stopping the spread of anger is a giant step and as you can see really doesn't take much effort on your part, just a little patience here, some forgiveness, and some insight into yourself. If you do just this, it would be a very valiant step, but if you feel up to it you can do more. Instead of just stopping the spread of violence or hate, also spread love! Simple things like smiling, saying please and thank you, talking to someone who looks lonely, helping a stranger, or just being polite. Just as the violence spread and something as small as cutting someone off turned into murder, love can spread and something as simple as a smile can turn into someone saving a life.
This is all a lot of words basically saying what you learned in kindergarten. Be polite, share, be kind to others, don't hit, don't curse, don't steal, etc. Simple little things you've known your whole life but somehow we tend to forget in the heat of the moment, and this is when it is most important to look at the big picture.
Every one of your actions (and thoughts!!) has repercussions and you are free to take whatever actions you want since you are a free spirited adult, but when you take those actions remember the impatience turning into murder and the smile turning into a second chance.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
War Spending Bill
So today is the final straw. I have long opposed the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, from the very beginnings. I have always prefered peace to war, resolution to conflict. But I have remained silent for far too long. Now its time to take action as this whole war is getting ridiculous at this point. Read the following article if you don't think so: http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/05/22/congress.war.funding.ap/index.html
Some highlights:
This is ridiculous. We are now officially and directly cutting domestic spending (that is not only greatly needed and much more productive for the world) for the war that has no end and no goal. Now I'm sure that domestic spending has been cut repeatedly throughout the war but I have not done the research yet on this. If anyone has any information on this feel free to post.
Perhaps the most shocking thing about all this is the second bullet above. Bush is admitting that he will veto any bill that would provide free education to veterans. This bill would cost about $52 billion dollars which is surely no small sum, but are we not willing to reward the people who are giving their lives for our country. I will be the first to admit that I do not agree with sending anyone off to fight, but I would be the first one to reward them for doing their duty. Whereas this administration was quick to send people off to fight and just as quick to deny those people any rewards.
While doing some research I stumbled upon this site:
http://www.nationalpriorities.org/costofwar_home
This site gives the cost of the war and the direct effects it has had on your community. It is truly astounding what could be done with this money that is going into a war that shouldn't even be happening, even in Afghanistan.
I know this may be an unpopular sentiment (though if we truly looked at our souls it wouldn't be so controversial) and very ideological but we should not be fighting ANYWHERE!!!
There is no reason we can not be at peace in this country. We are not at war with any neighbors, we don't have any resources that others want. The only thing we are doing that causes people to not like us is.....FIGHTING WARS!!! It is quite preposterous to think that fighting a war would bring peace. Its like trying to melt an ice cube by putting it in the freezer, it just won't work. Even if we 'won' the war in Iraq and set up a government there, what do you think will happen next? Suddenly the entire middle east will be at peace? They have been at war for centuries, practically since the beginning of recorded history. So if we establish a 'democratic government' in Iraq then we will be at war in Iran, then Jordan, then Syria, etc.
THERE IS NO END TO A WAR!!!
Wars beget other wars and it will always be that way. The only way to peace is to work hard to resolve these conflicts. We can no longer take the stance of not talking to leaders we disagree with, in fact they should be the leaders we talk to the most!
I have gotten off topic and I'm sure I will talk about all this at some other time. The important thing now is to show how you feel about the war and this war spending bill!! The politicians must hear our opinion, you must let the politicians know how you feel!! Even if you support the bill and/or the war you must speak out. I do not mean to say that my way of thinking is the only way and am well aware of many other opinions and I would love to hear these!! Dialogue is the first step to turning an enemy into a friend.
Even if Bush veto's the bill with the extra domestic spending, the Senate can override this veto!! So please speak up and make sure your politicians are actually representing you, they can't represent a silent voice!
Here are some sites to help you contact your local representatives:
http://www.webslingerz.com/jhoffman/congress-email.html
http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
Some highlights:
- Republicans seemed likely to scuttle efforts to provide 13 more weeks of unemployment benefits as well as money for heating subsidies, fighting Western wildfires and aid to rural schools, and numerous other programs added by a key panel last week.
- Such spending had been backed by senators in both parties but had drawn a veto promise from President Bush.
- The White House has promised to veto the additional veterans education benefits, arguing that they would hurt efforts to re-enlist troops finishing their stints in the service.
This is ridiculous. We are now officially and directly cutting domestic spending (that is not only greatly needed and much more productive for the world) for the war that has no end and no goal. Now I'm sure that domestic spending has been cut repeatedly throughout the war but I have not done the research yet on this. If anyone has any information on this feel free to post.
Perhaps the most shocking thing about all this is the second bullet above. Bush is admitting that he will veto any bill that would provide free education to veterans. This bill would cost about $52 billion dollars which is surely no small sum, but are we not willing to reward the people who are giving their lives for our country. I will be the first to admit that I do not agree with sending anyone off to fight, but I would be the first one to reward them for doing their duty. Whereas this administration was quick to send people off to fight and just as quick to deny those people any rewards.
While doing some research I stumbled upon this site:
http://www.nationalpriorities.org/costofwar_home
This site gives the cost of the war and the direct effects it has had on your community. It is truly astounding what could be done with this money that is going into a war that shouldn't even be happening, even in Afghanistan.
I know this may be an unpopular sentiment (though if we truly looked at our souls it wouldn't be so controversial) and very ideological but we should not be fighting ANYWHERE!!!
There is no reason we can not be at peace in this country. We are not at war with any neighbors, we don't have any resources that others want. The only thing we are doing that causes people to not like us is.....FIGHTING WARS!!! It is quite preposterous to think that fighting a war would bring peace. Its like trying to melt an ice cube by putting it in the freezer, it just won't work. Even if we 'won' the war in Iraq and set up a government there, what do you think will happen next? Suddenly the entire middle east will be at peace? They have been at war for centuries, practically since the beginning of recorded history. So if we establish a 'democratic government' in Iraq then we will be at war in Iran, then Jordan, then Syria, etc.
THERE IS NO END TO A WAR!!!
Wars beget other wars and it will always be that way. The only way to peace is to work hard to resolve these conflicts. We can no longer take the stance of not talking to leaders we disagree with, in fact they should be the leaders we talk to the most!
I have gotten off topic and I'm sure I will talk about all this at some other time. The important thing now is to show how you feel about the war and this war spending bill!! The politicians must hear our opinion, you must let the politicians know how you feel!! Even if you support the bill and/or the war you must speak out. I do not mean to say that my way of thinking is the only way and am well aware of many other opinions and I would love to hear these!! Dialogue is the first step to turning an enemy into a friend.
Even if Bush veto's the bill with the extra domestic spending, the Senate can override this veto!! So please speak up and make sure your politicians are actually representing you, they can't represent a silent voice!
Here are some sites to help you contact your local representatives:
http://www.webslingerz.com/jhoffman/congress-email.html
http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
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