Give me, Give me, Give me

Ok. I know that I've been gone for a while, but I'm back.

Image from ibtimes.com

Unless you've been living under a rock these past few weeks, you know that a nationwide, and recently worldwide, protest has sprung up. The name: Occupy Wall Street. Here are their demands, courtesy of the Occupy Wall Street website, which can be viewed here (it should be noted that while OWS supports these demands, as far as OWS is concerned, there are no official demands):

Demand one: Restoration of the living wage. This demand can only be met by ending "Freetrade" by re-imposing trade tariffs on all imported goods entering the American market to level the playing field for domestic family farming and domestic manufacturing as most nations that are dumping cheap products onto the American market have radical wage and environmental regulation advantages. Another policy that must be instituted is raise the minimum wage to twenty dollars an hr.
Demand two: Institute a universal single payer healthcare system. To do this all private insurers must be banned from the healthcare market as their only effect on the health of patients is to take money away from doctors, nurses and hospitals preventing them from doing their jobs and hand that money to wall st. investors.
Demand three: Guaranteed living wage income regardless of employment.
Demand four: Free college education.
Demand five: Begin a fast track process to bring the fossil fuel economy to an end while at the same bringing the alternative energy economy up to energy demand.
Demand six: One trillion dollars in infrastructure (Water, Sewer, Rail, Roads and Bridges and Electrical Grid) spending now.
Demand seven: One trillion dollars in ecological restoration planting forests, reestablishing wetlands and the natural flow of river systems and decommissioning of all of America's nuclear power plants.
Demand eight: Racial and gender equal rights amendment.
Demand nine: Open borders migration. anyone can travel anywhere to work and live.
Demand ten: Bring American elections up to international standards of a paper ballot precinct counted and recounted in front of an independent and party observers system.
Demand eleven: Immediate across the board debt forgiveness for all. Debt forgiveness of sovereign debt, commercial loans, home mortgages, home equity loans, credit card debt, student loans and personal loans now! All debt must be stricken from the "Books." World Bank Loans to all Nations, Bank to Bank Debt and all Bonds and Margin Call Debt in the stock market including all Derivatives or Credit Default Swaps, all 65 trillion dollars of them must also be stricken from the "Books." And I don't mean debt that is in default, I mean all debt on the entire planet period.
Demand twelve: Outlaw all credit reporting agencies.
Demand thirteen: Allow all workers to sign a ballot at any time during a union organizing campaign or at any time that represents their yeah or nay to having a union represent them in collective bargaining or to form a union.

 Go ahead, read through it again if you hadn't already. Are you laughing yet? Read it again. How about now?

Let's break down their demands as best as we can, shall we?
Demand 1:  They want minimum wage to be $20 an hour? As great as this sounds, aren't we already having enough trouble with inflation? Face it. Even if you get $20 an hour as minimum wage, that just means that the higher ups in the economy are making even more money....and your against that, right? And we're back to square one almost immediately.
Demand 2: Once again. This sounds lovely. Free healthcare sounds like a dream come true. But as your parents always said, "If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is." I understand why people want free healthcare. It's free. People don't like spending money. I get it. But this money does help. It's not like the money you are spending on healthcare is being burned in front of your eyes.
Demand 3: Something else that sounds nice, but it would really make living anywhere awful. The cost of living plummets if there is a guaranteed living wage, even if one is unemployed. Which sounds nice, but then there is less for the city to spend if people pay less.
Demand 4: I laughed hard at this one. Free college education? How are colleges to pay for anything if they are getting no money from the students? Now, as I understand, it goes further. What these people really want is for all of their student loans to be forgiven. But to do this, they would need jobs. And they are not going to get jobs by being on the streets.
Demand 5: Am I the only one to see a pattern so far? All of these demands sound good initially, but each of them either have some down-side, or, like this one, is currently out of reach. How in the world are we going to end the age of fossil fuels and set our sights on alternative energy? It's just not possible at this point in time.

Image from guardian.co.uk

Demand 6: How much? Where would we get this money? Like I said earlier. Inflation is bad enough already. And we sure as hell can't, or shouldn't, borrow from other countries. Besides. Any attempt to fix/make roads are instantly impeded by the left wing tree-huggers.
Demand 7: And here is the tree-hugging. Should've seen it coming. This kinda goes against Demand 6, in my opinion, and makes Demand 5 harder.
Demand 8: Has anyone ever heard of the 13-15 Amendments to the Constitution?
Demand 9: Isn't this contradictory to the whole goal of making sure there are jobs for everyone in the country?
Demand 10: Does anyone realize how long that would take? I'm sure that wasn't a desirable job when our population was smaller. It would be hell now
Demand 11: This goes back to Demand 4, but broadens it. All debts. Ever. Everywhere. These people obviously think that we are the most powerful nation in the world, and that we can do anything. How in the world are we going to erase all debt in the world?
Demand 12: What would this do exactly? And would this mean that we wouldn't have any more catchy "freecreditreport.com" songs?
Demand 13: So you could be in a Union but not have any of the cons? Why not just abolish Unions? Pros come with Cons people.

Image from patriotpost.us

Basically, the Occupy Wall Street protestors are just a bunch of people looking for government handouts. They are too lazy to go out and try to achieve success for themselves. The sooner this silly protest is over, the better.

Aliens!

Have you ever called a number for customer service? One of the first things you hear is “Press one for English, Press two for Spanish.” This is because many people are crossing United States borders illegally. These people are coming into this country, with little or no knowledge of how to speak English, and are receiving the same jobs and benefits that American citizens receive. The illegal immigration problem this country is facing needs to be dealt with sooner, not later, or America might turn into what the illegal immigrants are running from.

            Illegal Immigration hurts many people, though many people would like to paint it as a victimless crime. The truth is it hurts the poor and the minorities, many of whom are in the country legally. While illegal aliens come in and take jobs, Americans deserving or needing those jobs are left to look elsewhere and remain jobless. The illegal aliens are willing to work for less, hurting the minority workers and those without a high school degree. The illegal immigrants are also a strain on public funds, since they receive money, from either jobs or elsewhere, but do not pay taxes, or pay taxes so small it does not make up for the amount of funds they receive. More victims of illegal immigrations are the schools. The children of illegal aliens go to school where, in some cases, the classrooms are close to overfilling. This hurts both the students and the teacher, as the teacher cannot do his or her job effectively and the students are given less attention should they be struggling in their studies.

            Illegal immigration is a threat to this nation itself. It has been noted that three of the four terrorist pilots were in the country illegally. 9/11 could have been avoided, or at least less devastating, as one of the pilots was legally in the country, if the government would have taken illegal immigration more seriously. Homeland Security reported that at least 850 people from countries of special interest, meaning terrorist conducting and sponsoring countries, were apprehended crossing the southern border. Another danger of illegal immigration is disease. Legal immigrants are required to have medical screening, where illegal immigrants are not screened, resulting in the accidental bringing of dangerous third world diseases into America. Such examples of these diseases are malaria, leprosy, tuberculosis (TB), and Chagas disease. These are just a few of the many diseases that illegal immigrants brought into, or back into in some cases, America.

            Other concerns about illegal immigration are the crime rate and the overcrowding of the populace. People, especially immigrants, can commit a crime and go flee the country without being tried. This is a judicial problem, as the person who committed the crime should be tried, but cannot. Illegal immigration also leads to overpopulation, so the homeless rates for cities go up, making the respective cities look bad in terms of cleanliness.

            So why are there so many illegal immigrants in America and where do they all come from? According to recent studies, 56% of illegal immigration is from Mexico, 22% from other Latin American Countries, 13% from Asia, 6% from Europe and Canada, and 3% from Africa and other countries. Those from Mexico are trying to flee economic depression, while those in other groups are tourists who are overstaying their visas. Though crossing the border or overstaying your visa is a crime, illegal aliens are not solely to blame. It is also the fault of the border patrols. The door is left open and people walk in.

           So what can we as Americans do about illegal immigration? One way is to ensure that illegal aliens do not receive jobs, public assistance benefits, public education, public housing, or any other taxpayer-funded benefit. This sounds great, and would work if not for one problem. People lie. People will also try to help out anyone in need and supply fake documents to these people. The government needs to step up and put more laws into effect to stop this problem. Some things the Congress and the Executive branch could do are to beef up investigation capacity, reform asylums, improve detention and deportation procedures, improve intelligence capacity, and improve federal/state cooperation.

           In conclusion, illegal immigration hurts the economy and education, threatens the livelihood of this nation, and overpopulates cities. The border patrols are doing very little against illegal immigration and the government needs to either make a law severely punishing those who enter illegally, or the states need to make stricter laws, much like Arizona has. If America does not make an effort to put a stop to this, then this country may transform into what other countries are; desolate countries with economies that might never recover. Then, it would be other countries that would have to worry about illegal immigrants, especially those from America.

The Wrong Thin-Pression

I would like to thank Ms. Michelle H. Bills for this next rant. She recently brought to my attention a site that endorses the anorexic lifestyles. Growing up, I was taught that anorexia was, to be blunt, a bad thing. Apparently some people didn't get the message. At this site, which shall remain anomynous in case someone actually wishes to try out the hints on the page, the author gives what could be decent path to anorexia, at least to an uneducated mind. To hold him/herself unaccountable in case one of the followers of the site dies or succumbs to serious illness, the author has mentioned that this is a dangerous path that might lead to death.
So, lets break this down into small sections. I'm pretty much going to list and example or two of what this author has said and then say why it's wrong.
1. "Make yourself as neurotic as possible about food, eating, kitchens, cutlery, refrigerators, restaurants, and. . . the actual source of foods. . .Hate that chicken!"
Alright class, who knows what was wrong with that statement? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller? Okay. To make yourself sick by all relations to food is what is wrong with that. I understand that if someone overindulges on food, then the thought can make them sick, but to do this to starve yourself?
2. "Turn food into one of the greater evils of the world. . .by drawing pictures of juicy red apples. . .turning into dead rotting pigs. Place these pictures all over your house, preferably on the food itself. . .and place pictures of fat girls. . .or yourself, you're pretty fat. . .on the fridge. Stick pictures of rakish models everywhere you can see. . .for inspiration and self loathing."
Wow....it keeps getting worse as you go. I hope that for those of you reading this blog, you are smart enough to know that this is not the answer. If you have reached the point that you have posters up around your house of obscenely skinny people, you need help. Now.
3. "Create a list of punishments for craving food. . .Keep a rubber band on your hand and flick your skin whenever you think of eating. . .Other punishments include. . .Self-mutilation. . .denial of a blaket on a cold night or a shelter when it is raining. Remember, you need discipline.
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Discipline my ass! Punishments for craving? Do you know why you are craving? Because you are starving yourself and your body is yelling, "I'M HUNGRY!!! GET ME FOOD!!!!" Punishing yourself for craving is like giving a 1st grader a punishment for the right answer. "Bobby, what is 2+2=?"  "4"   "Very good Bobby. Now take this card to the principal's office."   "What is it for?"   "To make sure you are never allowed in this school again. Bye Bobby."
Ridiculous.....Self-Mutilation. Yes. If you are dumb enough to do this, start by slitting your throat. Guess what? You won't be hungry anymore.
4. "Trick yourself into believing your life sucks. Be mean to people. . .to instigate fights. . .Become and angst ridden teenager. You'll be making yourself mauseous from worry and self-hatred in no time."
If you start to do this and succeed, then pretty soon tricking yourself won't be a problem. Your life actually will suck. People will hate you. Me, I will pity you, but I won't hate you.
The author then goes into what he/she considers "Thinspiration". This includes certain songs to listen to, mantra to repeat, books to read, films and TV shows depicting petite women, and a list of role models to try to imitate. Though I won't list the songs, books, films, or TV shows, I am more than happy to give examples of "thinspiring" mantras.
1. "Nothing tastes as good as thin feels"
2. "An imperfect body reflects and imperfect person."
3. "I'm not starving myself, I'm perfecting my empiness."
Okay, I something to say about each of these mantras.
1. Apparently you haven't tried my family's cheesecake, steak, chicken, or mouth watering Grandma Molly's Mac N' Cheese.
2. There has only been one perfect person, and His name is Jesus. You will never be perfect on earth, especially by starving yourself. Go eat something.
3. I'm not fat, I'm just perfecting my inner circle.
I'm also going to list some of the role models mentioned.
1. Angelina Jolie
2.Tracy Gold
3.Courtney Cox
4. Audrey Hepburn
Most of the models in the authors list have been listed because at one time they were diagnosed with anorexia.
"Fool your metabolism by changing the number of calories you consume daily. . .Drink water. . .every hour on the hour. Bear in mind that often we mistake thirst for hunger. . .find something other than food to satisfy your oral fixation. Choices inclued. . .smoking, chewing gum, water, iced tea, sugarless mints, and diet coke."
Yes, you read that right. "Fool your metalbolism." If this was a natural thing, then the metabolism wouldn't need to be fooled. And by the way, if you are confusing being hungry with being thirsty, go eat AND drink something. This way both are taken care of.  And the author is also suggesting smoking. Let me tell you something. If you are choosing this path towards anorexia, smoking is not a good idea.
"Eat while in front of the mirror naked. You will be completely repulsed and repelled from the food."
...............Enough said. I don't even recommend this for fun. This is disgusting. Why would someone think of this?
"Pinch your thigh and see how you don't need food, because you should be eating away your own flesh from the inside first, before you are deserving of actual legitimate sustenance. . .chew the food but don't swallow it. Spit it out in the bin"
Wow, that makes me feel awful about life. I'm just gonna go.......eat a Big Mac and rub it in your face.
Lastly, the author tells you how to hide your anorexia. Because if it was good for you, you wouldn't still be reading, would you?
"Eat in the company of others. . .Prepare a snack to 'eat on the run' and throw it away at your first convenience. . .Drink out of opaque cups, and spit your food into it whilst pretending to drink. . .Clear the history off your computer. . .leave no traces."
To those reading this, if you have to hide your eating habits, then you are probably not eating right.  there is nothing wrong in eating a slice of pizza or to have a piece of cake. Just don't go overboard or follow the author's advice. Not only will your life be miserable, but it will probably be short too.
Again, Ms. Bills, thank you for pointing this out to me.

The March

As many of you know Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin hosted a rally at the Lincoln Memorial this week. Speaking of "Restoring traditional American Values", the duo drew the attention of thousands of people. Beck challenged onlookers to "“recognize your place to the creator. Realize that he is our king. He is the one who guides and directs our life and protects us. . .I ask, not only if you would pray on your knees, but pray on your knees but with your door open for your children to see"
This is the kind of thinking America needs. Many people complain that others are being insensitive towards them based on their religion. These people forget that this country was founded on Christian principles. In fact, in the early days of the colonies, different colonies would follow a different faith. And if you weren't of that faith, you weren't welcome (Rhode Island was the exception)
Back with people's feeling being hurt.....suck it up. Did you seriously think you would go through life without someone questioning your faith? Come on people. Christians go through it everyday and if they try to fight back, then they are called a racist. This country has got to the point that you can have religious freedom unless you are a Christian.
So, I applaud you Glenn Beck, and hopefully, this country will turn back towards God.