Fond du Lac city councilman Jeremy Thiesfeldt is running for the 52nd Assembly seat.

City of Fond du Lac native and city councilman Jeremy Thiesfeldt of 604 Sunset Lane announced today
that he has filed his candidacy papers to officially enter the contest for the 52nd District seat in the
Wisconsin State Assembly. A three-term Fond du Lac city councilman and three-time vice president of the
council, the 43 year-old Thiesfeldt is seeking to fill the seat that is currently held by Representative John
Townsend, who announced in October that he is retiring and would not seek reelection.
“Mr. Townsend has served the 52nd District faithfully since 1998. His community, state, and country owe a
debt of gratitude for his 45+ years of public service in varying capacities. I would be honored to have the
citizens cast their votes to select me to fill this position,” said Thiesfeldt.
When elected, Thiesfeldt will work to restore a conservative, common sense philosophy to the state
government. The welfare of Wisconsin families will be an important part of his platform. “I have enjoyed
my years on the city council and was proud to share in accomplishments with my colleagues and city staff.
I have been urged to run for state assembly and am prepared to continue as a citizen-servant in Madison
representing the hard-working taxpayers of the 52nd district. I will work to return relative autonomy to local
government without interference from Madison and Washington. I will be Fighting for the 52nd to cut
government costs and spending, bring jobs back to our community, and dismantle the inefficient
bureaucracy that stifles our entrepreneurial atmosphere. But, above all, we must together rekindle a spirit
of personal responsibility, family values, and love of God and country that have been a strength of this
community for 150 years.”

…

Victory 2010 Chairman Cunningham says, “Jeremy understands that small businesses are the engine that
drives our economy; I appreciate his willingness to listen and his desire to improve and grow our
community. His leadership has been evident on a number of tough issues, and his resolve to challenge the
status quo when necessary has been clear.”

All campaign inquiries: F. Cary McQuitty
922-5622
carymcq@sbcglobal.net  (Source: Thiesfeldt for Assembly Press Release)

Good luck to Mr. Thiesfeldt.

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Looks can be deceiving and you can’t judge a person by their looks. For example, who’s more threatening: a blue haired mohawked, tattoo studded jacket wearing punk rocker or a person wearing nondescript clothing and generic hair? I would say the person who’s wearing the nondescript clothing and generic hair is a greater threat than the blue haired mohawked, tattooed studded jacket wearing punk. Why? Think about it: If the blue mohawked person robbed you – they would be easy to spot and find as they are unique looking and standing out from the crowd. They might look like a threat being so loud but in reality they are harmless because if you are up to no good – you don’t want to draw attention to yourself. The generic hair and nondescript clothing person could rob you and if you tried to describe them to the cops – they just look like everyone else. There are a few exceptions when people who are loud are also violent and crazy but *usually* they are as law abiding as anyone. They dress differently to make a statement and express individuality. The punk rocker might appear to be a threat but they are really not to you as an individual.

People treat me funny because I am tattooed, pierced, and mohawked. All it is really is their fear of the unknown showing. Think about it: if I was really a danger I wouldn’t go around advertising the fact. There are a few exceptions to the rules but most of the time when someone advertises being a radical, they aren’t up to anything illegal. They might have different ideas than the mainstream and philosophies and be a threat to the status quo but they aren’t breaking any laws.

Laws are there to give people the illusion they are “safe”. Think about it: if there was a law to enforce identification cards (like they are planning in the UK) only the law abiding citizens will do it. The criminals don’t care about the law and won’t follow it or get fake IDs. It’s to give the masses, the sheep, the appearance of order in the chaos we exist in. The criminals will be criminals and do illegal things while the masses fall into line. The ID card is a stupid idea and very 1984ish because it only applies to who will follow the law to begin with.

More laws equal less freedom. Sure, common courtesy laws like not stealing or killing are nice to have to protect me from your average idiot. I am an anarchist and sometimes I am grateful for the police to protect me from stupid people. For instance, the police helped me out when I was punched in the face for being a “homosexual.” In an ideal, anarchical society, the person would behave like an anarchist and respect his fellow human beings – however, the assaulter was moronic, angry and fucked up so I need the police to protect me from people like that.

However, I am against police brutality and abuse of power. There is a difference in keeping people safe from the idiots of the world and harassing someone because they have a studded vest. One time, I was in the wrong place at the wrong time eating pizza on the steps of Search and Destroy in NYC and the police treated me like I was a criminal when all I was doing was eating pizza. It was pretty scary – they patted me down and violated my rights all because they have nothing else to do. There’s also the cops who give out traffic tickets for being a few miles over the speed limit to make their quota. Things like that are an abuse of power – laws are there to keep you safe from other human’s stupidity not be a money making tool.

That is not the case in our capitalistic society. The law system and prison system are money making tools. It’s really messed up.

The question is: How will this change?  The answer: Is with you.  If the people were to stop profiling and treat people for who they are and not what they look like we would have a stronger, happier society.

You’ve Come A Long Way, Baby!

By Christy Lee

Copyright 2001-09

“I am forty-three,” I was thinking back in 1994 as I turned the cold key in the ignition. It wasn’t an earth-shattering statement, after-all. The engine had sputtered, choked, then coughed to a dead silence. I remembered the cigarette commercial that bragged, “You’ve come a long way, baby!”

I could hear the heater fan whirring inside the cracked dash as the fan motor tried in vain to blow the cold air into the car. I sat quietly for a moment, contemplating the path that had lead me to this point. I certainly didn’t feel, at that moment, like I had come such a long way.

As I turned the key again I felt the car shudder. It was the same involuntary reaction I had experienced just moments before as I had stepped out into the pre-dawn air, a moment in time that marked the first day of the rest of my life.

My eighteen-year-old son must have worried over these same decisions just months before as he was looking into the future after graduation. What did I want to be when I grew up? It is such a difficult decision. For the first time I could empathize with his struggle.

My breath hung heavily in the frigid January darkness. I ran my fingers gently over the smooth glass of the frostless windows. The car, sitting snug and protected within the aging garage, still groaned in protest as I held the ignition key in place and pumped the gas pedal. I remember worrying that the car would not start and I would miss out on something–but I didn’t know what that something was at the time. I just knew that I must get to the tech school no matter what.

I had made my decision, the only one I could make at forty-three. I was going back to school to become employable. It was a daunting task for me. I had spent most of my married life at home, raising children and taking care of a household. I was ill prepared to go out into the world alone. I was unskilled to perform more than menial tasks. I knew that I could handle the grill at a fast food restaurant or a steam press at a dry cleaning establishment, but the business world was something foreign and frightening. I had held my foot lightly on the pedal as a precaution. The engine began to voice a hesitant whine. “School waits for no woman,” I had laughed silently.

Only a few car lights dotted the roadway at this early hour. I turned onto the main road that snaked its way to the technical college. Amber lights, blinking a warning as I passed under them, seemed to fade in the odd mist that rose from the asphalt. Houses lined the streets. Here and there a warm window light seeped through the curtain of mist and darkness. Heavy dew-touched smoke clouds hovered eerily above the chimney tops, hinting at the fires that flamed cozily within the darkened homes. I resented the warmth and security that the lighted windows evoked. I didn’t feel safe or secure. I looked at my watch. It was 7:15 a.m. I laughed nervously.

It was that nervous laugh I hated so much. It was my mother’s laugh that always seemed to apologize for being alive. I hated that laugh. I had not even realized that I too used that laugh during therapy sessions. I too used it to defuse feelings of incompetence and fear of being rejected. It was there to tell everyone that what I was about to say would probably be stupid or silly and that they could not object to what I was about to share because I was stupid or silly. I hated that laugh, but it was there, just the same. After that revelation I had promised myself that I would not do that again to myself. But, programming is difficult to eliminate entirely. It was one of the many battles I have fought since that moment of awareness.

I remember thinking that in a few moments I would be putting my escape plan into action. I would walk into a classroom that would provide me with the education and training necessary to walk away from my twenty-two-year mistake.

It was sad that after twenty-two years there was nothing left of the two people who had expressed such high hopes and vibrant dreams for the future. Now, there was nothing but an empty shell of a marriage that contained two strangers who seldom talked to each other and who were on the verge of destroying the bonds they had once sworn to maintain…”until death do we part”. Isn’t the death of an emotional bond still a death?

Perhaps I had misinterpreted this particular part of my marriage vows. I had thought that it meant the physical death of my partner. However, I failed to consider the emotional death that occurs when a relationship suffers from lack of nurturing and broken trust.

The parkway twisted and turned. I could feel the steady drum of the tires as they skimmed the icy surface of the road. My fingers twitched and danced on the frozen steering wheel. I had forgotten to put a piece of cardboard in front of the radiator. Without it, the tiny heater would not be able to heat the interior of the car. It was one draw back of owning an old Chevette.

Most of my life I had been told to not want more than my station would allow. I was from a blue-collar family, destined to do no more than work for a living at some blue-collar job. My escape plan was designed to change that. I wanted more from my life. I had settled far too long and now I was not willing to be placated by the status quo. There had to be something more out there. I was driven to find out.

There were only a few cars parked at this early morning hour. I guided the “Gray Goat” as I called my 1978 Chevette, into a parking space on the south end of the lot. The car slid to a stop with a jerk as the tires hit the curb with a thud.

I remember closing my eyes, breathing deeply in the warming air as the heater fan groaned and worked to push the chilled air out through the heat ducts. The small motor churned away, a fruitless attempt on this winter morning, But I had made it, after all.

I remembered focusing on my breathing. I visualized pushing an imaginary golden cord into the earth from my first Chakra point. Meditation had gotten me through some pretty tough spots in the last year and I needed to center myself before walking into the classroom. Fear was creeping into my thoughts, threatening to create a panic attack. It would prevent me from accomplishing my escape plan. The panic attacks had kept me shackled in a loveless marriage. I would not allow them to stop me now.

I then focused only on the life-giving strength that flowed through the cord, clearing the seven Chakra points throughout my body. I pushed all the stress and fear down the chord and into the earth as I had learned from my meditation coach.

It was amazing that self-doubt had been at the route of my panic attacks, and my fears in general. As I gained emotional strength through meditation and through facing my fears head on, I found them diminishing. The isolation that had become my life only fostered more self-doubt and fears, which aggravated the panic attacks. It had become a viscous cycle.

When my ritual was complete and my breathing was calm and steady, I opened my eyes. The classroom was in the building directly to my west. Tall, silver poles, like the Pillars of Hercules, marked the entrance to the mechanical building with flags that flapped loudly and cracked in the wind. I watched, mesmerized by the twisting and gyrating as they whipped the curtain of air from their lofty perches. It had seemed at the moment that all my senses had become hyper-vigilant. Sounds seemed louder. Smells were more acrid. Tastes were more pronounced. It was amazing what the mind could do.

I walked towards the flags. “Not bad,” I had thought, “for a person who had once suffered from agoraphobia.” As I watched the steady trail of students filtering into the steel doors at the entrance to the building, I knew…”I’m not like my mother at all!”

…She would have never risked my father’s anger. She would have avoided anything that might have triggered his violence. She would not have ventured outside the walls of the illusion she had created in order to survive. She would never have risked his hurtful and humiliating insults that would drag her back into the role he had chosen for her. She would have, instead, existed in a safe fantasy world of her own making.

That had once been me. I had almost succumbed to the panic attacks that had kept me a prisoner in my own home. I had learned my lessons well–learning that life was a frightening proposition. I had been taught to fear men and to sacrifice my true self to them, accepting my lot in life with a smile and a hidden tear. It was the payment for being taken care of–for being “safe”.

I had learned to not rise above my financially imposed status–to accept without question and be grateful for what I had. After all, I was a woman, and women had to be taken care of. We were inferior to men. We were property.

And, it almost worked. I almost believed it. Luckily, there was a small voice deep inside that refused to be silenced. It had nagged me, berated me, and demanded that I listen. When I finally opened my mind and my heart to the voice I found that it was my soul crying out for freedom. That was the beginning of this miraculous journey to freedom.

I am free now. I am involved in a journey that will push me to the limits of my abilities. I will be called upon to risk, to prove myself, and to do…and I will make it! I have broken out of a self-imposed shell of fear to become the person I was destined to become. When I think of where it all started, I can honestly say, “You have come a long way, baby!”

That was 1994 and as a result of my personal journey I now can give back and share with you the things you will need to make your escape… or, if you have already escaped, I can help you learn to, not just survive, but to  thrive.  Welcome Home!!!!!!

Chris

Don’t ever let anyone take your passion away.  Don’t ever let anyone tell you you’re trying too hard or that you care too much.  Always put your heart into everything.  Don’t apologize for doing a great job.

As the saying goes, “Nothing ventured, nothing gained.”

But mediocre people are afraid of the opportunity for greatness.  They are afraid of change.  They like the status quo.

Of course, a weak person would say, “Nothing ventured, nothing lost.”  That means that they perceive any risk by looking at what could go wrong.

These people like the status quo.  They may say they want their lives to be improved, but they really just want to sit around and do nothing.  They’re more comfortable around people who are like themselves:  people who don’t try too hard, who like things to always be the same.  All they want is for things to be easy, safe, predictable.

They run from any and all problems, not realizing that by figuring out solutions, you can turn problems into opportunities.  They are afraid of progress because progress can be scary.  It involves change.  Progress comes in leaps and bounds along with a few regressions rather than in a straight line.

They are allergic to even the slightest bit of pressure, not understanding that a little bit of pressure can be beneficial.

They look for the easy way out.

I call these people the donut eaters.  Imagine government employees who have become complacent.  They just want things to be easy.

Then they wake up and wonder where the time went by.  They ask themselves if it was worth it to sacrifice the chance for greatness by putting comfort and familiarity first.

They vote on personality, not on the issues.

Weak people are also susceptible to the sales-type personality.  You can see the stars in their eyes when they listen to an authority figure speak.  They don’t remember what was said, but boy are they impressed by a good speech.  They don’t like honesty, bluntness, frankness.

Weak people aren’t loyal.  They aren’t there for you when you need them or when things are down.  They are there, though, for you when things are up.

Don’t ever let anyone tell you you’re trying too hard, that you care too much, that you have too much passion, that you’re too intense.

Try hard, care, have passion, and be intense.

Bollywood is not all  glitz and glamour…

“Paa” being the harbinger.It takes great courage to make a  film on Progeria, a rare and deadly disease (there are 46 reported cases of Progeria in India).I will not comment much on the  script,narration, photography  or the acting.Nevertheless,acting department  does not  let its audiences down.Composed by Southern music maestro,Illayaraja,the songs of the movie are truly coming of age,so to say.When the composers seem to have forgotten something known as subtlety in their music,this one is definitely going to be a collector’s album.

Well coming to the crux of this post,its Shilpa Rao all the way for me.I have been a big fan of hers.Her rendition of the song “Mudi Mudi ithafaq se” is  absolutely a  joy to the ears.

I have also loved her song in the movie  ”Aamir”,Maula.So inspirational and endearing has that song been, that NDTV used  it as the theme song for all the 26/11 commemoration programmes.

The song “Mudi mudi..”is literally mellifluous.The tune is mellodious.Shilpa’s voice is similar to that of Vasundara Das’s.Yet it is  so distinct in its own right.Personally,I have not been a big  fan of Bollywood Music ,but this  i am sure will remain my favourite song for years.Songs like this are hard to comeby.This sure has satiated my longing for a great song.Bravo,Mogambo ki khaan(ears) kush hua!!

Wendell Berry

This week I picked up a copy of a new book by Wendell Berry, the dean of American agrarians. The book is a collection of essays, titled “Bringing it to the Table,”  and it promises to be a rich read.

In the introduction another illustrious agrarian, Michael Pollan, notes that some of Berry’s ideas, dating back to the 1970s, prefigure the passionate national conversation now taking place concerning our farms, food, environment, and economy

I had barely cracked the cover of Berry’s new book – Essay 1, Nature as Measure –  when I found myself agreeing.

Berry wrote “The fact is that we have nearly destroyed American farming, and in the process have nearly destroyed our country…How has it happened?…

“…Industrial agriculture, built according to the single standard of productivity, has dealt with nature, including human nature, in the manner of a monologist or an orator. It has not asked for anything or waited to hear any response. It has told nature what it wanted, and in various clever ways has taken what it wanted.”

Berry’s take on this brings me home to a core theme articulated in my new book, The Call of the Land. That theme revolves around the realization that since dictating our demands to the land has characterized our relationship for decades, much good can come from finally becoming still enough to listen carefully to the land, and then to respond. What is the land communicating. What does it ask of us?

As documented in The Call of the Land, thousands of households and communities across North America have already awakened to the necessity and value of a reciprocal relationship. They are pioneering positive, new environmental and economic  relationships with the land. These are the Millennial Agrarians, and they are are showing many pathways forward.

This is an annual event, part of the build up to Christmas.

Francis Rossi lives quite near me, and the Croydon gigs are always popular.

My Mum and I go every year.  And every year I wonder if they’ll still be playing next year.  But last year was almost the last time for my Mum.  They played in October, and the Fairfield Halls were HOT.  Even Francis Rossi said it was hot.  My Mum went out, and passed out in the loos.  An usher (this is the Fairfield Halls!) came to find me.  Blood was everywhere, and, those it wasn’t diagnosed that evening at the hospital, she broke her wrist.  So, we missed half the gig, and Mum was a bit hesitant about going again.  I never though she’d give up before the Quo.

I bought tickets as usual when they went on sale.  Then I had a brainwave: get seats in  a box. So I got two more tickets, and Mum agreed to go in the box!!

From our vantage point, we could see the aging audience, most of whom weren’t wearing black or denim.  We shared a box with an elderly couple and their daughter.  They hardly moved throughout.

My daughter and my husband had the other tickets and we were able to wave to them from our box!!  But we missed the energy of being in the crowd.  The band were great as ever.  I love Quo gigs, and  the highlights of this one were Don’t Drive My Car and Big Fat Mama!

“I wore black because I liked it. I still do, and wearing it still means something to me. It’s still my symbol of rebellion —against a stagnant status quo, against our hypocritical houses of God, against people whose minds are closed to others’ ideas.” — Johnny Cash (February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003)

If you play guitar “Walk the Line” great song on which to practice your walk-ups and walk-downs because:

1. there so many of them;
2. the tempo of the song is so fast;
3. the song is in at least three different keys.  So, you not only get a lot of practice on several chords, but also on several walk-ups and walk-downs.

“Walk the Line” and “Folsom Prison Blues” are great songs to be able to play.  People at least know the choruses / refrains to these songs and can sing along, which will make you a hit at any gathering! : )

Guess the world has gone bonkers.Media being the forerunner.

Case in point being the media coverage of  State Dinner hosted by the US first family to the Singh parivar(read sangh parivar).Gatecrashers hopped their way into the front page of the top Indian newspapers.The space given  to that stray incident is so disproportionate ,in that the real issues were visibly cornered. I was jolted to see it.I had  heaved a sigh of relief when i saw that Shilpa Shetty’s marriage pics  did’nt rule the pages the  preceding day,but the very next day i was disillusioned to see the gatecrashers crashing into the front pages of Indian newspapers.

This apart,the other news that splashed all over the International section of the newspaper was..well food.What was on the menu?What PM Manmohan Singh ate?What his wife ate?She sat beside whom….etc..Who cares if the vegetables used in the food are “white house” grown by the US’s First Lady?

Sorry,but we are just not intersted.If you can get the readers intersted enough to read such phony stuff,use it to spotlight the real issues.People need to know about them.For example,climate change.How many of us know there is going to be a world meet at Copenhagen to discuss climate change?less than 3%..You give it as small a space as crane’s legs with  lousy reporting about the event..And you expect your reader to read it..seriously,give me a break.

Moral of the story:Newspapers should embellish key issues with the same finesse as they exaggerate those goddamn starry events.

“Choose life. Choose a job. Choose a career. Choose a family. Choose a fucking big television. Choose washing machines, cars, compact disc players and electrical tin openers. Choose good health, low cholesterol and dental insurance. Choose fixed-interes mortgage repayments. Choose a starter home. Choose your friends. Choose leisure wear and matching luggage. Choose a three piece suit on hire purchase in a range of fucking fabrics. Choose DIY and wondering who you are on a Sunday morning. Choose sitting on that couch watching mind-numbing, spirit-crushing game shows, stuffing junk food into your mouth. Choose rotting away at the end of it all, pishing you last in a miserable home, nothing more than an embarrassment to the selfish, fucked-up brats you have spawned to replace yourself. Choose your future. Choose life. .. But why would I want to do a thing like that?”

Este es el discurso de Renton, protagonista de Trainspotting, cuando se da cuenta que no quiere desperdiciar su vida pero tampoco quiere ser parte del status quo. Así como él, otros personajes también decidieron seguir su propio sendero porque en algún momento se dieron cuenta que la vida era un regalo valioso y merecía ser vivida.

Benjamin Button se percata que nunca es demasiado tarde para vivir y emprende un viaje que le abre las puertas a nuevas experiencias. Daniel Alejandro Delfín (personaje creado por Sergio Bambarén) escoge seguir sus sueños y oír a su corazón, aunque esto le cueste alejarse de su familia y enfrentarse a sus propios miedos. Virginia Woolf (en “Las horas”) afirma que la capacidad de elegir define la humanidad y opta por el suicidio cuando siente que le han arrebatado su vida. Y dice al final de la película, a manera de consejo: “Mirar siempre la vida de frente y conocerla por lo que es. Amarla por lo que es y después ponerla en sus sitio”.

Estos personajes excepcionales y soñadores, creativos o desangelados me recuerdan el valor de la libertad, la curiosidad y la valentía para buscar el propio camino. Porque todos ellos tomaron conciencia en un mundo que se presentaba adverso, emprendieron un proceso de liberación y experimentaron el amor y la alegría.

Ellos me recuerdan que debo emprender mi propia revolución del progreso.

i’ll be air i’ll be fire
like the silence of the turning earth
like the laughter and the kissed back tears
like the past the now the coming years

only the faintest
only the faintest glance

Today is the Last Sunday in the Season after Pentecost. Although, it is not a formally recognized feast day in the Book of Common Prayer, today is often celebrated as the Feast of Christ the King. The collect and readings for today focus on Christ’s kingship. The gospel appointed for today is John 18:33-37.

³³Then Pilate entered the headquarters again, summoned Jesus, and asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” ³⁴Jesus answered, “Do you ask this on your own, or did others tell you about me?” ³⁵Pilate replied, “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me. What have you done?” ³⁶Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not from this world. If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not from here.” ³⁷Pilate asked him, “So you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.”

Last spring I went back to school. There are about fifteen students in the program in which I am enrolled. At our fall session in September students from another program were also present. Though we did not have classes together we did share meals. One evening at supper I sat with a woman from the other program. I introduced myself and she asked, “Where are you from?” “Texas,” I said. She asked, “What do you do?” I responded, “I am a priest in the Episcopal Church.” Her very next question was this, “Are you one of those liberal priests?”

As we talked I realized she was asking not so much about me but for herself. She really was not interested in learning about me. Although she did not come out and say it, what she really wanted to know was whether I would challenge her beliefs, values, and opinions; was I a threat to her self-identity and understanding of God, herself, and the world; would I upset the status quo of her kingdom. At a very basic level she wanted to know “are you for me or are you against me?” It is a question we all live with and answer with every new encounter.

That question and the concerns she expressed are at the core of Pilate’s encounter with Jesus in today’s gospel. “Are you the King of the Jews,” he asks. What he really wants to know is if Jesus is a threat to his identity, his power, his rule. “What have you done,” he inquires.  Behind that question lay his real concern. “Have you upset the status quo I seek to maintain? Are you changing the usual way of doing business and life – our beliefs, values, and relationships?”

Whether spoken or unspoken, conscious or unconscious, those concerns get triggered every time we encounter another person, a different idea or belief, a new decision or event that might affect us. Like Pilate we want to know what we have to do in order to defend our kingdom. The kingdom we most often defend is the kingdom of our status quo. We do not want someone to mess with our self-identity, values, beliefs and opinions. They should not question our understanding of God, self, others, or the world. And we certainly do not want them taking away our power, privilege, control, or comfort. We have worked hard to build that kingdom and we do not want someone coming along making changes.

And yet Sunday after Sunday that is exactly what we ask for. We ask that those very systems would be changed. We gather and together we pray, “thy kingdom come” – thy kingdom in which you are king; thy kingdom of love and  compassion; thy kingdom of mercy, forgiveness, and reconciliation; thy kingdom of justice and concern for the poor; thy kingdom of humility, surrender, and self-giving; thy kingdom of peace and holiness. Thy kingdom come. We are praying that God might rule our hearts, lives, and world. We are asking for change – that this world, our lives, and relationships might be different.

If we really mean that prayer – “thy kingdom come” – then we must live, speak, and behave consistent with what we have prayed. We must change the way we see, think, hear, act, and speak. The status quo must go. There is a different way of living and being. If Christ is king then we are not. And the other systems and structures of power in this world are neither the first nor the final voice to which we listen. They are not determinative of our decisions about or encounters with one another.

If we truly mean “thy kingdom come” then we must also pray, “Our kingdom go.” Our kingdom of power, domination, and greed must go. Our kingdom of violence and oppression must go. Our kingdom of fear, prejudice, and resentment must go. Our kingdom of judgment and labeling must go. Our kingdom of individualism and indifference to the other must go. We must stop defending the kingdom of status quo.

In defending our kingdoms we tend to live as if the truth belongs to us. We live as if we know the mind of God and, therefore, we know what is right and best, who is in and who is out. And in that moment we are no longer listening to the voice of Jesus. We have become as deaf as Pilate. The truth does not belong to us. Instead, we are to belong to the truth. Only then will we be able to hear and listen to Jesus’ voice.

I must, in all honesty, tell you that the lady I met that night at supper was not the only one protecting her status quo. I too had my little kingdom. And with each question or accusation I retreated a little further and reinforced the walls, insuring that nothing was changed or lost. Perhaps the greatest tragedy of that night is that we never spoke about the Christ, the one who had called us both there to pray, study, learn, and be changed. I cannot help but wonder if we both were so sure that the truth belonged to us that we were unable to hear the voice of Jesus in each other.

The reign of Christ the King frees us to step outside the status quo and not just live in a new kingdom but to be and become a new kingdom – the Kingdom of God. If Christ is our King then the status quo must fall. If Christ is my king then next fall at school I will look for my new friend and begin a new conversation.

]]> http://zizzou.wordpress.com/2009/11/23/parlament-unicameral-vs-bicameral-basescu-vs-geoana/ Mon, 23 Nov 2009 01:03:57 +0000 zizzou http://zizzou.wordpress.com/2009/11/23/parlament-unicameral-vs-bicameral-basescu-vs-geoana/

Prima parte a saradei publice numite Alegeri Prezidentiale 2009 s-a incheiat. Cum de altfel s-a incheiat si frumosul sondaj pus cu mare atentie in dreapta blogului meu!

Concluzii (x3):

I. Voi incepe mai intai cu concluziile punctuale ale sondajului personal.

La intrebarea “Pe cine o sa injuri in viitorii 5 ani?!?” cititorii fideli ai blogului i-au desemnat pe primul loc (la egalitate de voturi) pe:

• SCrin Antonescu
• Pe cei de la net
• Pe mama (fapt pentru care vreau sa le multumesc foarte mult alegatorilor)

Pe al doilea si al treilea loc s-au clasat la o distanta de fix un vot: 

• “Sotul doamnei Geoana”
• Pastile Vadim
• El Capitain Base
• Nem tudom Kelemen

Respectiv

• Alina Plugaru
• Fred Flintstone
• Nea doctoru Sorin

Singurul care a scapat de 5 ani de suplicii si cuvinte grele se pare ca este, uimitor de altfel, Dang! Dang!!! Jiji (se pare ca nu am primit niciun stelist pe blog). Prin urmare ma simt nevoit sa concluzionez ca nici macar Alina Plugaru ori Fred Flintstone nu sunt o solutie pentru Romania post ‘89 in timp ce se pare “ca Cavalerul Luminii” este cel mai indreptatit sa preia fraiele puterii si sa duca tara spre mantuire, respectiv spre Champions League.

II. In continuare am sa incerc sa-mi expun parerea umila legata de ceea ce s-a intamplat azi 22 Noiembrie 2009 prin frumoasa noastra tara:

Cum era de asteptat ne-am facut dinnou de cacat! Dinnou scandaluri electorale, buletine disparute, stampile furate, autocare sau masini mici zumzaind de colo colo, dosare penale pentru fraudare sau tentativa de fraudare a alegerilor etc. In plus, in stilul nostru caracteristic si pe principiul echitabil “petrol contra hrana”, ne-am vandut votul pe: 2 x galeata verde din plastic + 1 x punga faina + 1 x punga zahar + 1 x ulei + BONUS (cado’) 1 x radio facut in China ce prinde doar Antena Satelor (iar pentru cei mai “culti”: 2 x bancnota de 100 RON/cap de alegator student cu stomacul lipit de sira spinarii).

Ceea ce este mai rau este faptul ca nu am inteles nimic din tot acest spectacol ieftin cu iz campenesc. Am ales Parlament Unicameral – caci na orice decizie importanta trece prin stomac – in virtutea faptului ca “numai asa vom face economie la bugetul statului” sau “numai asa ne putem razbuna pe alesi pentru situatia de saracie lucie in care am ajuns”; acest principiu gaunos: “sa mai moara si capra vecinului” a facut ca 77,4% (dupa CURS) sa nu se uite mai departe de lungul nasului, ignorand implicatiile reale ale unei asemenea decizii.

Nu am inteles ca nu suntem pregatiti pentru Unicameral, nu am inteles ca intr-o democratie fragila si plapanda (ca sa nu zic corupta si putreda) ca a noastra, intr-o tara ce nu a flirtat mult timp cu un asemenea sistem si nici nu are o cultura democratica bine sedentarizata, un Parlament Unicameral este un adevarat dezastru.  Nu am inteles faptul ca atata timp cat ne dorim sa fim o tara liberala (mai ales d.p.d.v. economic) este complet impotriva naturii sa avem doar o singura Adunare Legislativa. Ca sa va faceti o idee in U.E. avem doar 10 state cu Parlament Unicameral: Bulgaria, Cipru, Danemarca, Estonia, Finlanda, Grecia, Ungaria, Letonia, Lituania, Portugalia si Suedia.

Iar la nivel global mai putem adauga ca relevante tari precum: China, Iran, Irak, Venezuela, Cuba sau Islanda. Prin urmare dupa cum puteti observa se poate crea un pattern: toate aceste state sunt fie socialiste/comuniste (sau au avut tangente cu comunismul), fie nu sunt democratice (ba chiar sunt dictaturi sau sunt guvernate totalitar), fie au fost sau sunt inca monarhii, fie au o lunga istorie democratica si politica (precum si un inalt nivel de trai). Nici unul din statele Unicamerale nu se vor liberale, ci mai degraba tanjesc dupa un status-quo marcat de o bunastare generala, ori nu au libertatea – politica si financiara – necesara pentru a tanji dupa vreun alt sistem politic si economic.

Riscul cel mai mare in cazul nostru este acela de a ne adanci si mai mult in mocirla economica in care ne aflam (prin alunecare pe o panta non-capitalista) si, poate cel mai rau, fara sa ne dam seama, sa acordam viitorului Presedinte al Romaniei puteri nebanuit de mari, transformand micul nostru “colt de Rai” intr-un “teren de joaca” al unui dictator in devenire. Spun asta fiindca principalul rol al unui sistem Bicameral nu este acela de a “manca banii contribuabililor pentru nimic” ci cel de a functiona ca “plasa de siguranta” prin asigurarea unui cross-checking al tuturor legilor si deciziilor Prezidentiale ori Guvernamentale. Atentie mare! Guvernarea prin ordonante de urgenta, tirania unei minoritati parlamentare, presiunea in luarea unei decizii/votarii unei legi si toate aceste riscuri politico-sociale pentru un stat nu vor fi “anulate” ci mai degraba vor gasi moduri facile de a se “exprima”.

In ceea ce priveste numarul, voi fi scurt: the less the better! Desi in acest caz exista totusi si un dezavantaj: puterea unui sg. vot va fi mai mare, iar coroborat cu un Parlament Unicameral formarea unei opozitii se va dovedi oarecum dificila – deciziile fiind mult mai transante. Si ar mai fi o chestiune de coruptie… dar sa nu fim atat de pesimisti!

III. La final am sa-mi afirm dezamagirea legata de rezultatul (desi inca preliminar) acestui prim tur de scrutin. Ca sa spun drept, inca de cand a inceput aceasta campanie electorala am avut un gutt feeling ca El Comandante Base va iesi dinnou triumfator – cel putin intr-o prima instanta, deci nu m-a mirat ca el a adunat cel mai mare numar de voturi. Ce ma mira cel mai mult este faptul ca  ceilalti candidati s-au ridicat cu greu la nivelui primilor doi “victoriosi”.

Un alt lucru care ma dezamageste chiar mai mult este ca Base’ are inca un numar enorm de simpatizanti in conditiile in care pe parcursul acestor 5 ani de guvernare s-a aflat in mijlocul unor scandaluri enorme ( “Flota”, rapirea jurnalistilor, fuga lui Omar Hayssam, trafic de armament, alegerea lui EBA, arestarea lui Gigi, Lenuta Udrea etc.) si a facut niste gafe impardonabile pentru un Presedinte (“gaozar”,“tiganca imputita”, “mai pasarica”, “sa te urci aici la mine pe masa“).

Pe de alta parte nici cu Mircea Geoana nu sunt tocmai at ease. Se pare ca vom fi obligati sa alegem dinnou cf. regulii “raului cel mai mic” si tare sunt nedumerit care este acela. Vom ajunge si noi vreodata sa alegem dintre doua bine-uri?!? Unul mai mare si unul mai mic?!?

Insa despre aceasta lupta dintre Traian Basescu si Mircea Geoana o sa mai vorbesc in preajma celui de-al doilea tur al Alegerilor Prezidentiale. Pentru moment am sa iau acest rezultat ca o exprimare libera si democratica a unor cetateni maturi, rationali si cu simt civic.

This post is aimed at the Leader that has one foot in the “Status Quo” and the other foot within the likeable, comfort zone. 

Definition of 2 Faced: Having two faces or surfaces.  Hypocritical or double-dealing; deceitful.

Thesaurus further defines: “two-faced – marked by deliberate deceptiveness especially by pretending one set of feelings and acting under the influence of another; “she was a deceitful scheming little thing”- Israel Zangwill; “a double-dealing double agent”; “a double-faced infernal traitor and schemer”- W.M.Thackeray” Reference: FreeDictionary.com

2 Faced Leaders are the one’s who play the fence to look good in front of both realms (superiors/peers and subordinates). They wish to be liked by everyone. This is not the typical playing the “political” game or the use of tact. The 2 Faced Leader will treat their subordinates good, while allowing those same subordinates to be bashed within the “status quo” circle.

Essentially, 2 Faced Leaders, don’t have the courage or guts to stand up and do the right thing in front of their superiors.  This type of Leader lacks a backbone, which is an essential requirement for true Leadership. 

Another aspect of “2 Faced” has to do with alterior motives, regarding the male/female office dynamic.  “If a male boss is buddying up with female subordinates that can easily signal a boss that’s taking an interest in items that aren’t work-related.”  The 2 Faced Boss Article

Leadership has to be authentic – who you are through and through.  DO THE RIGHT THING consistently, no matter the situation.

© 2009 Benjamin J Larson (aka TheLeaderWay). All Rights Reserved.

I realize now that I have lost focus when it comes to the reason I started this blog.  There have been occasions when I needed to vent, but now, I see that the purpose is not an emotional outlet for me, but rather a sharing of my years of experience to help you change your life.  Recently I have been thinking about important things to share.  What can I say to guide you gently towards the changes you want to make in your own life?

I have been learning about Quantum Physics and that according to many scientists, we are the creators of our own reality.  Further, that if we would only get out of our own way, we could create a life of  joy and plenty.  As strange as this sounds, I don’t think that the theories here conflict with my own personal religious beliefs.  Actually, I think that in many ways it validates those beliefs.  Quantum Physics, for most scientists, is the closest they have come to scientifically proving that we religious people have been right all along.  And, that regardless of a person’s religion, intelligent design is part of what they are discovering from the study of Quantum Physics.

Surprised?  I was.  You might want to check out Youtube.com and type in “Quantum Physics applied to mind power“.  You will be enlightened and amazed that the scientific community is coming around to believe in Intelligent Design.  Having said that, let’s get on with the “getting out of our own way” part.  Whether you are religious or not, this is the part that is important.

We are that we should have joy.  If this is true then why are we so unhappy?  Why do we keep doing the same things over and over again, yet expect a different result?  Because we are standing in our own way and don’t understand what we are doing that is keeping us from being happy, we are programed to continue to be unhappy.

So what is needed to change this continual unhappy loop?  We need to change our thinking.  Now, the laws of Quantum Physics tell us that we have infinite possibilities.  Quantum Physics is the physics of possibilities.  There are infinite options and potentials.  However, we are programed by our childhood and the thinking of those around us, not to mention society in general, to think a certain way.  For example:  I grew up in a Blue Collar household and was told that I should be satisfied with what I had and that there was a whole world out there, (white collar), that I would never be able to crack.  I continued that thinking, limiting myself in every way until I started college just before my divorce.  There, doors and windows were opened to this world of White collar and I just had to step through.  I suddenly was not content with my average Blue Collar existence because I knew that I didn’t have to settle.  Options and Possibilities were suddenly within my grasp and there was no going back.

There is nothing wrong with wanting more.  There is nothing wrong with desiring.  There is nothing wrong with wanting what we have a right to have.  Coveting others for their accomplishments makes us unhappy.  It’s not the wanting, it is the coveting.  So, if you need more money in your life, or want a better house, or need to lose weight, or find a better job…no matter what it is, don’t whine and complain about what you don’t have…start thinking about getting it.  There lies the magic wand.

Let me try and explain.  I need to lose weight.  I am unhappy with myself right now.  This is the one struggle I have left that defeats me at every turn.  Instead of visualizing myself thin and asking for it and expecting it, I complain and whine and commiserate with others with like problems and basically covet the lean bodies of others.  What I don’t do is focus on being thin.  I have programmed myself to expect failure instead of success. I surround myself with those who have similar issues.  I attend meetings with those who have similar issues.  In every way I perpetuate the status quo.   I am standing in my own way.  In order for me to become the person I need to be to be happy, I have to get out of my own way.  And to do that I have to stop telling the story of why I am the way I am and start living as if I have already achieved my goal.

What has happened to me in the past does not matter.  What matters is the now and the future.  Dwelling on past only keeps us repeating the past.  We must now step into the present, shed the past as if it were a snake skin, and like the snake, grow and expand our present and think about what we want in the future.

Let’s say that your love life sucks.  I used to say that knowing what I don’t want is as important as knowing what I do want.  Well, I was wrong.  As long as I focused on what I didn’t want, I continued to get what I didn’t want.  It was only when I focused on what I did want that my present husband came into my life.  While no one is perfect, I got the one thing that I desired…an improvement in my financial status.  While money doesn’t bring happiness, it can make life easier.  And my life has been a lot easier than it had been in the past.  I wasn’t rich, but I was comfortable.  And that reduced my stress and increased the potential for happiness.  It also improved the quality of my health greatly.  And, without health, the rest doesn’t matter much.

I have no regrets.  My past is part of who I am now.  Without those experiences, good and bad, I would not be who I am and I like who I am now.  So, rather than be angry, resentful, sad or be consumed with the negative feelings out of my past, I choose to live in the now and plan for the future.

Here is what you do now…write on a piece of paper all the hurts and bad things that have happened to you in the past.  Write down all the names of those who have hurt you.  Write down all the snide remarks, the hurtful comments, the jokes at your expense, the snubs, the ridicules, the physical hurts, the emotional hurts, the spiritual hurts…. and when you are done start a fire in the fireplace, out back on the driveway, in the firepit where you roast marshmallows, in a garbage can out on the cement pad or the patio, or in the barbque grill…anywhere that is safe for you to burn.

After you have started the fire, go down your list and let go of the experience and the feelings.  Forgive the person who caused them.  Then, when you are done reading your list, wad the paper up and throw it in the fire.   Now, you must never dwell on them again.

Now, you need to make a list of what you want, need and desire.  This is called a Universe List.  This is your way of asking for what you want, need and desire.  This is the first step in getting what you want.  These are the things that you dwell on from this day forward.  Be very detailed in your list. Let’s say you want a boat.   Don’t just say, I want a boat.  Describe the boat and where you want to sail it.  Describe the life you want to live surrounding the boat.  List the people you want in your life while sailing this boat.  What do you want to be doing?  Where do you want to live?  How do you look?  How do you feel while living this life?  Oh, and make sure you list how you are going to get the boat.  How much money will it take?  When do  you want the boat?  Leave out no detail.  This is what  you think and feel about now.  If you want more money list how much more.  Let the Universe know if you want happiness, health, peace, joy, love, adventure, or anything else  you may need.  If you want to help others put them in your list and tell what needs you want to be able to meet of theirs and how much money you will need to do this.  If you want to start a business, make a business plan as part of your list and include everything you need to know about your business.  Visualize where it will be, how big it will be, the size building it will need, or for home based businesses, what equipment you will need or the skills you will need, the training you will need, etc.

Each time you start to relive the past, consciously bring the present and the future into your thoughts.  Sit down and re-read your Universe list.  As you accomplish the things on your list, cross them off and add more as they come to you.  Pretty soon you will see how much you have accomplished toward your happiness.

According to the scientists who study Quantum Physics, what you think is what you get. Change your thinking and new things will come to you.  Get out of your own way and discard your old skin.  Focus on the changes you want in your life and don’t be surprised when they happen!!!!!!!!!!!!  That’s what is supposed to happen.  You are supposed to get what you want.  So Sit down and write your discard list and then let go of the past so the future can happen.   This is the perfect time to create a soul collage as a visual reminder of what you want, need, and desire.  Find a picture of a slim person to remind you of what you want.  Find a picture of the perfect boat.  Find a picture that represents the lifestyle you want to live or a quality you want in a mate.  Create a collage and place it in plain view.

Chris

I play the race card against everybody 'cause skin color don't matter!

Je$$e Jack$on loves the spotlight. He runs to it anytime there is a chance to exploit the race-card. Now, this race-baiting, victim vendor is attacking another man because of his vote on Nancy Pelosi’s health care scam. Je$$e Jack$on is making a racial issue out of health care. I’m shocked that Jack$on would do this [major sarcasm].

Reverend Race-baiter informed America, and Rep. Artur Davis (D-Ala), that ’You can’t vote against healthcare and call yourself a black man.’ That’s Je$$e being Je$$e. In Je$$e’$ world, color means everything and blacks should follow in lock-step with all Democratic policies because they have such a great record on civil rights [100 % out of this world sarcasm].

In Je$$e’s world, black men should all think the way he does and vote accordingly. How dare a black man use common sense and vote against a bill that is unconstitutional? Even Davis’ opponent for the governorship of Alabama, a white Democrat named Ron Sparks, jumped on the fact that a conservative democrat [Davis] voted against the bill.

“He was the only Black Caucus member to vote against it. I don’t get it,” Sparks said last week, according to The Associated Press. It’s always about race and group politics with liberals. They expect the black vote and have taken it for granted since 1964, when they claimed to be the party of civil rights [look at the Democratic Party's history and votes to see the myth].

I wonder what Martin Luther King, Jr. would say, if he were alive today, about Jack$on’$ comments. I think Davis is an individual who voted the way his constituents wanted him to. Davis voted for the people he represents, not because of the color of their skin. Something Je$$e Jack$on should know to judge someone by the content of their character, not the color of their skin but his history shows his intent to turn everything into a racial issue.

And I thought liberal/progressives were so against the “status quo?”

I think you the damage that a four-month hold on US military and economic aid has had on Honduras has been vastly overestimated. Disbursals of aid monies do not stop suddenly. There is money in the pipeline that continues to flow. The damage comes more from the perception that the world is against you. It feels like you’re alone, and that has an emotional impact. The real damage to Honduras has been caused by the 80% drop in tourism to the country. That would have happened regardless of what the US said or did. That damage is the fault of Honduras… no one else’s. At some point, we in Honduras have to accept full responsibility for our failures as a society. I think the US is a convenient scapegoat… nothing more. If we use choose to use this scapegoat, it allows us to try and escape the responsibility for what has occurred since June 28 and what is occurring every single day of the year throughout Honduras… massive poverty and injustice. That is the real problem, and I’m afraid that problem belong solely to the Honduran people.

SUCCESS, IS IT REALLY GREEN?

                Why is this image the badge of success? Is this everyone’s idea of success? Success, is it really Green? I fail to believe it is or has to be…

            Money, in today’s World, if you have it you are labeled as ‘SUCCESSFUL’ because with that money you have the ability to buy cars, elaborate homes, name brand clothing, take trips to exotic locales, be in VIP, do many things that you could not do without it. Is this actually the sign of success? All this shows me is that you are successful at spending the money you have obtained and this clouds people’s vision about what success is and what it is they should be in pursuit of to gain success.

            Success doesn’t have to be in the form of money or in the form of spending it on material things. One can be successful or find success in many ways, such as; one can be successful at being a great parent, as a team player, as a graduate from an addiction program, as a gardener, as an individual that goes through therapy and comes out on the other side a better person or simply going through their life and not succumbing to becoming a statistic or through status quo. None of the above has monetary value attached to them; simply a feeling of accomplishment and that to me is success.

            The pursuit of success in the form of money in today’s society, I feel, is the root of so many of the ills we face in our society. The chasing of the ‘ALL MIGHTY DEAD PRESIDENTS’ causes so many people to turn to whatever means possible to gain that level or badge of success, in the form of crime, dishonesty, the abuse of other people and the selling out of self. We have instilled in the youth, as well as adults, that if you do not have money you are not successful or that you won’t be a success until you have money. This example leads to greed and selfishness, tainting our humanness and our equal treatment of others.

            It should be pressed upon all of us that success comes in various forms, not just money. Success is a ‘feeling’ that one has about his or her accomplishments in life. If money is your idea of success, then that is your prerogative but don’t be fooled or frightened into thinking that is the only form of SUCCESS.

            …I pray you all success in whatever form you find it. Remember, it’s your success and no one else’s.