To Those Who Serve ver 1.0

I find that the news these days is pretty boring and quite depressing for the most part.  We don't actually have subscription TV in our house so I'm fortunate enough to not have to watch the news or the latest commercials.  And most newspapers are full or propaganda so we don't get much of that here either.  My Dad stopped by this morning and asked about it and it got me thinking.  So I mentioned my twitter feed.  To keep up with what's going on in the world I use twitter.  It's usually quicker and I can get many points of view instantaneously with little effort.  However, as mentioned earlier very rarely does it seem that the "news" is positive. I found that reflected in my blog. So today were going to dedicate a simple message to those who serve. 

I have a big heart for a lot of people.  And today I'm not leaving anybody out, but I do want to specifically say thank you to some a few groups of people.

I've always thought a lot about "blue collar workers" in our country. Construction!  They have taken a little bit of a beating in the past.  At least in pop media and even conversation.  But when's the last time you drove by a construction site and paid a little attention to what was going on.  Really watched what these men and women were putting themselves through every day for not much pay and no thanks.  This particular group of people sweat and bleed for a living...literally...and they will pay for it the rest of their lives with sore joints and bad backs.  Their skin is leather like from the son and callused.   So here's to those that build!  Without them we would all be sitting in the dirt. 

How often to secretaries get overlooked.  The people that have to put up with the people in charge.  Often working countless hours, on the phone and computer all day.  Then on the other end of their job they get to deal with US...THE PUBLIC!  The very rarely receive any grace for a job in which they often have very little control and yet are the front line of defense to the public today.  They have to make schedules work, meetings happen and all while on the phone and dealing with two or three other people while standing in the office.  They make most of the things in life that we take advantage of just a little smoother and happier for us.  So here's to the secretaries! 

The last group of today is very special to me.  I am a big fan of veterans.  But I have a special place in my heart for Vietnam Veterans!  Every veteran of foreign wars is an amazing person.  But today I want to say a special thanks to those who gave their lives in Vietnam.  And by gave their lives I don't just mean died.  You will learn if you get to know me that I believe every person who has served in the military gave their lives.    Whether for 1 min or for eternity.  These people fought and served in an unforgiving land.  During a time when for the first time in history they received little support from back home.   In my humble opinion these are truly unique warriors and have served us in a way that we will never understand.  So next time you see a Vietnam Vet say thank you.  So here's to you Vietnam Vet's!

It's nice to have some positive thoughts every once in a while.  If you have stories about some of the individuals above, comment bellow.  Or if you want to say thanks to a group of people who should get recognized more often now is great time.  This is only version 1.0, so doing worry!  I love to give credit where credit is often missed!

Ironic Discrimination

Is it possible that anti-discrimination laws have actually become the biggest and most strict form of discrimination?  When did the individual become greater then the whole?  The most heated anti-discrimination issue of the day is same sex marriage.  This has been going on for years.  But at what cost I wonder.  I recently learned that here in CA this same sex marriage and anti-discrimination  battle took on a whole new realm.  The government here decided basically that we can no longer discriminate against sexual preference.  You can read up on SB 1172 and CA Congresswomen Jackie Speier. The articles written will do a much better job highlighting the issues with this bill.  In and of itself the heart of the law isn't the problem.  The problem is in what this congresswoman decided to defend.  Pedophilia (yes you read that right) was brought to light.  And the law was written so vaguely that pedophiles could now possibly make a case that this was their sexual orientation and they could no longer be "discriminated against".

Scary what not thinking things through will get you!  As far as I know, as of right now this law is still blocked and up for review this month. However the people that passed it are not only fighting it they are looking to bring it to a federal level.  So who really is being discriminated against? 

There are a few more problems with this particular sexual orientation fight that I’ve never heard anyone bring up.  The biggest scariest one (to me anyway) is this, while everybody was celebrating the victory of the laws that have been passed...or un-passed, nobody (on either side) as it were, stopped for moment to really think. What just happened here?  We got what we wanted, or how did this happen…but how about hmmm.??? (finger on cleft of chin) We voted as a state.  The people decided what they wanted. And a few select people said, nah. We don't really care what you want; we're going to do what we want. Regardless of your stance on the issue doesn’t this seem like a problem?  Am I the only person that is scared by this?  Not only did they take away our choices and our decisions, but they dictated to us how it would be and then we celebrated them for it.  That thought is kind of scary to me.  What else might they just decided for me in the future since now they know there won't really be a problem.

There has also been a long time issue of discrimination in the workplace.  What ever happened to whoever was able to complete the job at hand the best got the right to be paid to do that job. I don’t really care what race, gender sexual orientation, age, size shape or language you speak.  Are you the best for this position? Now I know what you might be thinking, and I do know the heart of the law.  But did it work?

So here's my thought.  It seems like maybe we went from a few people being unhappy and discriminated against to discriminating against everybody in some way.  Is this progress? And should we call this movement “anti-discrimination” or would maybe you have a better title?

What are your thoughts?

what RIGHT do we have

Last night I was reading my twitter feed and my local school district posted an online chat titled, "Should parents spy on their kids?"  I was immediately irritated and it unfortunately got the wheels turning. There was a lot of commentary on both sides of the coin.  To my surprise 88% said yes, we should "spy" on our kids.  My irritation came mostly from the word spy. They are my children. It is not spying...we call it PARENTING!  LEARN IT! 

So some of the things that are talked about these days are our kids personal space such as their rooms, smart phones, back packs and school lockers.  Are you kidding me!  I am being told by the masses that I'm not really supposed to spy on my kid’s smart phone or look in their backpack because it's their personal space and their right. That is really another topic for another day.  But it made me think about this "rights" conversation that we seem to be having for the last few years. 

All of a sudden everybody has all kind of "rights"!  Where did we get these rights?  Who gave them to us?  Did we earn them?  One of the topics that has come to mind is the "right" to drive a motor vehicle.  I am constantly hearing (and I'm not even an officer) about people's rights involving their car.  I have bad news.  There is no law (that I am aware of) that gives anybody in this country the RIGHT to drive. I believe that driving a car is a privilege.  It can be given and taken away at any time for pretty much any reason by the correct powers that be.  So don't feel so entitled next time your behind the wheel, or the next time the kind gentlemen who's is reminding you that your abusing your privilege by giving you a little reminder ticket.  He is just doing his job, and no you don't have any right. 

How about the right to free health care?  This should stir the pot a little.  Do we all have the right to FREE health care?  Everybody's heard the saying nothings free right.  So who's paying for this...right?  This entitlement.  Let me pose this thought, maybe there's a reason that we can't afford healthcare in this country?  Maybe we should start looking into the root of the problem before we just throw up our hands and start handing out free rights? Cause those freedoms cost somebody, don't they?

So please tell me...what are we entitled to?  What do we have the right to? Maybe if you know the answers to these questions you can explain where we got these rights from in the first place and who is paying for these rights?  As far as I know, the only real RIGHT we are truly given is the right to have any personal religious belief structure in place that we choose.  That one can't be taken away regardless of the law of the land. I’m not sure we are entitled to much else before a lot of blood, sweat and tears.

What The Heck Happened?

I grew up to the words, “because I said so”.  These words were enough to get the job done.  Usually being sternly shoved our way by Mom or Dad because we had not listened the dozen times before.  The kids of my generation didn’t really need a reason to clean our room, take out the trash, mow the lawn or do our homework.  Yes there was always a very good reason for us to be doing those things.  But what was more important at that age… for us to know the reason, or to just understand that it’s not always about us and we just need to do what the boss says to do?

We also didn’t get participation trophies.  Church, school and family always came first, and the teacher or adult ALWAYS got the benefit of the doubt! My parents weren’t afraid to spank me in public, or even say spank for that matter and almost all decisions about my young pre-adolescent life were discussed and made by my mother and father.  AS IT SHOULD BE!!

What the heck happened?

What example is being set for our children these days!  What is more important that the legacy that we pass on?  My wife is a public school teacher and I am constantly hearing “excuses” that get made BY THE PARENTS for the children. 

Things such as…

~I can’t really go over their homework every day because we have sports practice every night.

~He/she won’t stop playing their video games long enough to get all the subjects done they have to do.

~He missed the test because we had to go to a movie or sporting event.

~Well we took an extra 5 day cruise before Thanksgiving break so we didn’t have to miss the holiday…can he make up the work.

There also seems to be a trend going around that is all about letting the child make decisions for themselves.  They don’t seem to like eating with the family so we let them eat whatever they want.  They need freedom to express themselves.  There are parents out there who are feeling guilty about making decisions for their children because their children may not like those decisions later in life.  Are you kidding me! 

If this is your thought, then let me ask you this…what exactly is your job?!?!  I know my children don’t know the first thing about raising themselves.  And I believe I was chosen to be their PARENT, not their FRIEND.  They need leadership and discipline.  If they don’t get good examples of that by watching their mother and father they will most certainly grow up believing that everything should be handed to them and they can show up when they want. 

Is this the kind of legacy you want to leave?  Or even better…is this the kind of attitude you want taking care of you in your elder years when you can no longer take care of yourself?

I guess my kids will suffer because they will learn to do things because they are told.  There will be discrimination, because the eldest child will get privileges the youngest child doesn’t.  They will learn to show up to school and do their work.  They will be taught to do their best, but that they don’t always win…and Dad AND Mom approve all decisions that happen in our family.

Sacrifice

Webster's definition of sacrifice is:

A: destruction or surrender of something for the sake of something else

B: something given up or lost <the sacrifices made by parents>

I was driving today with my two girls in the back seat and thinking about my childhood.  For some reason my Dad popped into my head as He often does.  When I was young and involved in Scouting I used to get pretty home sick.  So in the beginning, my Dad would come on campouts with us to make them a littler easier for me.  Well during the summer we had a "long term" campout that was usually about 7 - 8 days, and since I missed the last one due to my little issue I asked him to go.  It didn't take much convincing and he knew it would mean a lot to me.  So off we went. 

What I didn't know as a young boy is the cost of that simple request.  My Father worked in construction so he didn't really get paid sick days or paid time off.  If he didn't work...he didn't get paid.  He also risked someone else coming in and doing his job for him.  Back then there was a union but it was on its way out.  It would also mean leaving his wife and daughter for those 7-8 days home alone. 

But I remember that week very well and we still talk about the memories today!  So I wonder if a re-definition of the word sacrifice is in order? Or maybe just some clarity? 

I'm not really sure that HE would call it sacrifice.  Some money was lost, and maybe some adjustments to the budget for a month or two. But what was gained?

When I was growing up I knew my sister and I came first.  And my parents "gave up" a lot to make that happen. They even gave up our friendship for a few years because they knew it was more important to be our parents then our friends.  I’m very glad to say that sacrifice for those few short years has paid off, because I can now say they are great friends and mentors. 

So I wonder when you hear the word sacrifice what do you think about. Who comes to mind? Who "doesn't" come to mind?  This word is a big word that could have a hundred different stories written a hundred different ways. I hope that if you read this it made you think a little and brightened your day because of the people that have sacrificed for you!