How Can I Decide?

 Just think about how difficult it might have been in the time of Washington to wisely select for whom to vote.  Washington himself warned against the power of political parties, and that power has only grown.  What can we do to make wise voting choiceness?  Here are some ideas.

    1.  Dismiss the cute children and smiling spouses in political ads.

    2.  Define your own definition of things you value in others that you would expect in someone capable of serving in the position for which they are running, such as good character, a good reputation, trust worthiness, intelligence, experience, maturity or other such things you personally would expect to find in a person running for particular offices.

An old dodge--Letting the Little Fellow Think He's Driving--When He Is not!

        (The political cartoon comes from the era of the People's Party, warning against being fooled.)

    3.  Identify your own important issues and do a little research on your own before listening to the candidates.  Are their statements accurate, their ideas possible, and where is the source of the money for their advertising and travel coming from.?

    4.  Who are the people speaking on his or her behalf?  

    5.   If he or she has served in office before, what is their reptation and did they keep promises?

    6.  Are they acquainted with the community they will serve if elected.  Where do they live and how often do they visit the communities they represent.  

    7.  Do their promises match reality in terms of costs and support from others needed to get it done. 

    8.  Do they seem more interested in talking than listening, do their promises have a logical plan, and do they seem capable of working with others to get things done.  

    9.  Inquire, if possible, of his or her reputation in his or her own community.

    10.  Does financial support for his or her campaign come from local citizens or primarily unfamiliar outside sources? 

    Our access to information today is helpful only if it is accurate, and it is reasonable to assume that candidates will present themselves as favorably as possible.  It is also likely that their opponent will likely represent them in unflattering ways.  We should not rely entirely on the pamphlets provided by the candidates themselves.  

    The complexity of figuring out how to divide states into voting districts in a way fair to all voters created that strange looking thing called the Gerrymander, who meanders around like a drunken sailor in an attempt to allow all voters a chance to get a fair vote.  Those contortions have always been difficult, but by taking on the challenge of trying to make it better, the Supreme Court may have made it worse.  It certainly has cast a shadow over voting.    

The responsibility as voters remains on us, and we must be reminded of that.  For example, I can make a sign supporting a candidate to put in my yard, but I cannot afford to make thousands of signs to flood the entire area in which the candidate is running.   I can visit with friends and neighbors, but I cannot buy time on television to share my opinion with countless viewers.    Without regulation, organized sources with money can overwhelm promoting their candidates.  What we can do is determine the source of the money spent for all of those advertisements.  

Remember even the richest man in the world has only one vote.  As small as our single vote may seem, it's power is equal to America's richest man.  The danger is how the rich are allowed to use their money for advertisements and other things, if not restricted by laws.  The power of "One man, One vote."  remains.   Decisions by the Supreme Court matter, but the people still hold the power.         

We should pay attention, but we must not be misled by nonsense about our votes not being counted or false votes being used.  Our successful watchfulness of elections is admired and envied around the world.  Sadly, the thing less controlled is the spreading of false doubt.  Watchfulness is essential, but so is ignoring those who use false fear to weaken our trust.       

Our votes do not belong to your political party, your minister, your employer, your best friend, or anyone else.  It belongs to you, and every one's vote matters.  

As a final comment, if during the preliminary campaigns there are no candidates that you believe are good choices, let your opinion be known and suggest that other candidates step forward.  We all have voices, and we must not delay using them until it is too late.  Take the advice of George Washington.  Don't let political parties take over without our voices being heard.

      

A Reflection on Changes

 

After WW II America changed. Foremost may have been the population burst, the result of returning soldiers eager to start families, and marriages postponed during the war.  What came to be called the Baby Boom, represented nearly 40% of the nation's population, with nearly six million babies born.  

Another important change during that time was the result of the GI Bill, which allowed many of the returning soldiers to attend college.  As a consequence, some young men chose careers that did not include returning to the family farm or other careers as laborers. Expected or not, those changes reduced the labor force.  

The Vietnam War, and the fall of Saigon in 1975 resulted in an arrival of Vietnamese, Laotian, and Cambodian refugees, estimated to be a million.  Many had aided the U.S. military, and even after the war ended, deaths and disabilities, such as those caused by Agent Orange, were impossible to calculate.

This blog is not long enough to address all of those who have slipped over our borders, nor the many from other nations who have become legal American citizens.  The objective is intended only to summarize the impact of changes in the ethnicity of the American population.  From the time it became possible to sail across the ocean to reach what became America, the indigenous people were displaced.   

During the early colonial era, the first typical arrivals were English, Spanish, French, Dutch, and Swedes.  At that time, not all of those arrivals may have been eagerly welcomed, but they and their children became what we called Americans.  When enslaved Blacks were brought to America, they were brought not to be welcomed but to be used as slaves, disrupted from their homes and families.  It was Orientals that were brought to do the risky and dangerous work of blasting through mountains to link America from East to West, using Americans for less dangerous work.    

For most of us, especially those whose ancestors came from European Nations, we do not have to go far on our ancestral chart to find immigrant ancestors.  My precious Grandmother came to America in her mother's arms.  She was British, and her parents came to America for the same reason most of those wishing to become Americans today come...to make a better life for their children. 

Our founding fathers had clearly left no question that Americans have been welcome without regard to their religions, nor because they had no religion at all.      

Sometimes we forget that we were not here first.  That history belongs to the indigenous people we displaced.  We were also the ones who brought people who did not look like the majority.  Today I sense a failure to recognize the unique value of our population.  Once we took pride in what we called our melting pot and celebrated it with parades and festivals.  Today I sense a loss of pride in our unique population, and an arrogance to ignore the carefully drafted constitution that has guided us for so long.  I sense not only a decline in the pride of our unique nation, but also an effort to separate us.               

 We can live in a changing world...in fact, we must.  But we should not throw away history that has served America well.  The past idea of each generation having the opportunity to have more than their parents if they worked hard is declining, while wealthy families can amass enough wealth to support their decedents for generations.  Something is out of balance, and I believe the source of change rests with those we have elected.      

I shared my thoughts because I think all of us sometimes need to pause and look around us.  If you had written this blog, you would probably have commented on different things, but that is the point.  We all should reflect on what is happening, and that includes paying attention to those we elect.  Too often they seem to vote as their party tells them, or whatever benefits them, rather than honoring their responsibility to act on behalf of those who elected them.  They seem to ignore the duty the Constitution gives them.  Unless we pay attention, we may not know that is happening.  The Founding Fathers expected more from us.     

When our Constitution was new, people treasured the privilege of voting.  Newspapers were filled with information, not always accurate but certain to have other newspapers to challenge their content.  People attended rallies and argued with friends, trying to persuade them with well-prepared advice.  Today most of us are reluctant to openly discuss politics, except with friends likely to agree on the same issues.    

The intention of this blog is simply to offer food for thought.          

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The Meaning of Charactor

 The meaning of character has evolved significantly over time, from a distinctive indelible stamp of a person's soul to a more flued customized personal development.  If character is flued, what are characteristics that shape and define character?  If time and experience are constantly shaping character, what are some of the guides?   I will share some of the things I believe to be good choices.  

My first choices combines two pairs to represent character -- Honesty and Integrity.

1.  Honesty is telling the truth & refusing to lie, cheat, or deceive.  Integrity is the quality of having strong moral principles and consistently aligning actions with those values, even when no one is watching.

2.  Honesty is saying what you know & believe even when doing so might lead to negative consequences.  Integrity is being honest and fair.

3.  Honesty is about truthfulness and transparency.  Integrity is doing the right thing in words, actions, and beliefs, even when no one is looking.  

Thank you to those who shared their ideas of Honesty and Integrity. 

I agree that good character involves those things.   However, I believe that developing good character includes learning from great men.  Mahatma Gandhi is considered perhaps one of the most truthful men, dedicating his entire life to truth.  Abraham Lincoln was known for his honesty and even acquiring the nickname of Honest Abe.  The story is told of a philosopher who night after night strolled the streets of Athens with a lantern, and when asked what he was doing he replied that he was looking for an honest man.  Mark Twain offered his own bit of wisdom by saying "If you always tell the truth you don't have to remember anything.  However, "one lie ruins a thousand truths."

Thomas Jefferson is an interesting example of the meaning of character.  He is famous for his quote, "Honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom."  However, he is also known for personal matters being less than admirable.  He seems to be well aware of his own disappointing weaknesses of character, as the following well-known quote reveals.  "In matters of style, swim with the current. In matters of principle, stand like a rock.  His reputation declined in the 19th and 20th centuries, with support for States Rights, political philosophies, and especially fathering children of his slaves.   

Religions also share words of wisdom.  Proverbs 12:22 says that lying lips are an abomination to the Lord, but those who act faithfully are his delight."  Other faiths also address this issue.  Judaism:  The Talmud teaches "The seal of God is Truth."  Islam: Lying is a major sin, but exceptions for goodness are accepted.   Buddhism:  Lying is one of the fundamental ethical principles.  Hinduism:  Lying is permissible if the intent is to pervert great harm.  

I chose to use Jefferson as an example of the complexity of character, but what about other men of power?  No president has been perfect, but George Washington recognized the importance of his character as the first president of our nation, and the many decisions he had to make as the first president of the United States of America.  His leadership certainly seems to me to represent character.  However, he had slaves.  It may be nearly impossible to find a man or woman who exemplifies perfect character.  

My old dictionary defines character as moral excellence and firmness.  I cannot think of a better definition for character.  If today's definition of character has changed, perhaps that explains a lot about the world today.        

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Reckless or Careless

Recently a young woman was thrown to her death when the attachment of the bungee cord was carelessly overlooked.  This blog is not about the carelessness of those she must have trusted to do everything right.  It is a reflection on why she chose to bungee jump in the first place.  Assuming that her bungee jump had gone perfectly, why would anyone want to do that? 

In making the decision to Bungee jump, was she reckless or was she careless, after all, she had depended on the capability of others to do everything right.  Was there any reason to believe she was at least partially at fault. The distinction between being Reckless or being Careless is defined as if you know that what you are about to do is dangerous and you do it anyway, that is reckless. In contrast, if you cause danger or negligence, without actually intending to be dangerous, you are simply Careless.  While that definition may make sense in some situations, it seems that in many cases it is inadequate.  Each of us has a brain, and if it is scary enough to activate your awareness that what you are about to do is scary, ignoring what your brain is telling you is more than negligence!  In the case of the woman thrown to her death, she had to have known the risk of danger but put her faith in others.  Was that simply careless? 

Returning to the real issue, why are people willing to put themselves in dangerous situations?  The answer apparently is that such situations trigger a fight or flight response, which triggers an adrenaline rush, which then creates a profound sense of euphoria.

 As examples, people at an auction who keep bidding well past their budget might be called Careless.  People on a motorcycle weaving through highway traffic at a high speed cannot claim carelessness, in my opinion.  Yet, both of those were given as examples of carelessness as I did my research.   

Getting carried away at an auction and, bidding past your intention may fit the definition of carelessness.  Even that may cause harm to others, especially if the bidder is a family breadwinner for others.  In the case of the biker, he is threatening not only his own injury or death, but he is risking the same possibility of others.  That is more than simply carelessness.  

While I was busy patting myself on my back, thinking that I had never done any such things, an old memory crowded its way into my blog.  I was a new kid in that High School, eager to make friends.  One evening, I piled into a car 'dragging main', That was fun, until someone had the bright idea of raiding a farmer's watermelon patch.  I am a farmer's daughter, and I knew better, but I said nothing, foolishly thinking the farmer wouldn't be upset about kids swiping a watermelon.  We found the melon patch, and we all tumbled out of the car, but the boys were not looking for a ripe melon to take back to town to eat.  Instead, the boys began taking more melons than we could eat.  

The farmer's porch light went on, and we ran for the car, the farmer's language shouted at us nearly as frightening as the shots from his rifle.  Whether he intended to be shooting over our heads or not, we plunged into the car and took off, the boys bringing melons into the car.  I was ashamed of myself.  What made it worse was that when we reached town, the boys rolled the windows down and began launching melons out the windows to splatter in the streets.  They had never intended to eat the melons.  Had I been Reckless or Careless, and did it make any difference whether the farmer was shooting at us or over our heads?  I learned many lessons that night that I never forgot.  

That poor young woman who chose to bungee jump for whatever reason never had the chance to learn a lesson.  Those young men who never intended to cause her death that night were Reckless, despite the fact that they never intended to cause her death. 

I shared two stories, both about young people making poor choices.  When someone said, 'let's go steal a watermelon,' I should have said 'please let me out.'  My foolish choice taught me a lesson I never forgot.  Unfortunately, the young woman who fell to her death never had a chance to learn her lesson.  Maybe this blog will be read by someone who can avoid a bad choice without having to learn it for themselves.