Karma

Over the last year or two, I have noticed the tendency of younger people to use the word "karma" as a vindictive comment about someone else's behavior or action. Let me say that I am neither a theologian nor a psychologist, just a person who wonders about how our language and belief systems change because of misunderstandings.

Every time I read a Facebook post that says someone is getting a karmic payback, I have to wonder if the commenter realizes the meaning of karma. If the poster is a Christian, then a non-Christian belief is being used to kind of wish evil on another person based on the poster's personal viewpoint. If the poster truly believes in karma, then wouldn't saying someone else deserves bad karma be inviting the same back on the poster?

Christians believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross for the forgiveness of sin. They don't believe that a person's sins or bad karma cause one to be reincarnated as a lesser form of life. Christians are taught that people reap what they sow, but that is a different concept than karma which presumes reincarnation.

I think all this judgmental karma talk is a way of making oneself feel better or superior to the person who has been perceived as having committed some kind of faux pas. The thing is, everyone has different beliefs, mores, morals, emotions, and motivations for his/her behaviors. The only one who truly knows a person's heart is the Lord. The rest of us really aren't qualified.

Convoluted World Events - Some Things Never Change

I can't help but wonder about America's role in the current civil unrest in the Middle East. During my lifetime, information about subversive American activity in other countries has come to light. It is difficult to accept when we have been apparently manipulated into believing the good ole' USA is the shining example of all things good, the country all others yearn to emulate, the people who all other people desire to be.

When we find that our CIA has been involved in uprisings, assassinations, and political maneuvering, it is difficult to accept. We turn our eyes, our backs, our thoughts away from these ungodly events. Soon we begin to believe again that the evil exists in other countries, but not here.

This past month has seen the people in Egypt rise up against a dictatorship in their country, and today there is similar activity in other countries. People who have not enjoyed a democratic government now are demanding to have what other countries have. Thanks to the Internet, information and plans for assemblies are disseminated to all the people in all the nooks and crannies of isolated and remote dictator-run countries.

In the United States, union members are protesting because they don't like the cuts the state governments are trying to get through. This involves state workers and teachers. The latter can certainly pay some of their health insurance costs, just like the taxpayers who pay teacher's salaries. It might be different if teachers were actually teaching! Young people today are practically illiterate, and this is appalling considering the amount of money and perks teachers get.

It is a different world - the people, no matter in what country, are sharing information and opinions for the first time and this will make all the difference.

Tea Party on the River

The Tea Party today in Kittanning, PA, along the Allegheny River, reinforced ideas I have had for some time. It is gratifying to meet like-minded people in these huge congregations. Contrary to what the liberal media reports, the Tea Party movement is growing rapidly all across our country. It is comprised of mostly educated, peace-loving, everyday people who are frightened by what they see happening in America.

It is no coincidence that crises arise just as the Administration announces a solution, their solution. A solution that will, added to all the other recent moves in the direction of Marxism, make our Republic a topic for history books. Don't kid yourself -- these changes have been carefully planned for a long, long time. Any one who has read the bible of community organization, Sol Alinsky's Rules for Radicals, knows it is a step-by-step recipe for taking away freedom and replacing it with socialism. He was a communist/Marxist. Our president used this book when he was learning to organize, and he continues to use its methods and theories today in an effort to change this country for the worse.

The fear is our country is rapidly being changed into one where the majority of its people will be taken care of by the government. What these dependent people do not realize or understand is that when they allow the government to take care of them, they really lose more than self-respect. They lose their freedom. Slavery in America meant that wealthy plantation owners took care of their slaves for life. The slaves took the housing, food, etc., in exchange for working on the plantation. They couldn't vote, couldn't leave, and couldn't own anything. Today, our government gives welfare recipients housing, food, etc., in exchange for NOT working. The payback is guaranteed votes and support to those in office. When Obama says he wants to spread the wealth, what do you think he means?

We absolutely must stop this movement toward the demise of our Republic. The Tea Party members are working to this end, and are dedicated to voting ALL present elected government officials OUT of office in November. It starts in the Primary, of course. Don't vote for incumbents.

The Dumbing Down of America

The dumbing down of America was a topic of interest several years ago, but today it is even more apparent the movement was a success. The latest example is Great Britain, no less, declaring the "i before e except after c" spelling rule is no longer important. Because so many people never learned, or were taught, the simple little rule about using the "ie" or "ei" combos, it was decided to let the know-nots win.

Sounds like an insignificant change in the rules, but magnified, it becomes a major philosophy of current times. Lowering standards never really helps anyone. A co-worker, Chris, asked me the other day, "What ever happened to the word 'disappear'? 'Gone missing' or 'went missing' now seem to have replaced it. Why?" I have often wondered the same thing and realized I first heard this term used by tv news anchors. Who told them to use a phrase that infers a person walked away on their own to replace one that infers a far more serious action? Our language is being changed daily as people replace one word with another, changing the meanings of both words. I've noticed many times that the person changing the meaning often didn't understand the original meaning of the word.

Michael Jackson

I remember when my youngest daughter was six years old and had a crush on Michael Jackson. She had a large poster of Jackson in her bedroom, the one of him in the white shirt and pants and the yellow sweater. The Thriller album was new and hot and everyone loved Michael Jackson.

His private life was exposed when all the pedophile lawsuits began to surface and his popularity began to wane. The grotesque results of countless plastic surgeries showed us a child/man who was extremely dissatisfied with his race and appearance. His story is really very tragic, and now with his death, his involvement with drugs is now evident.

I don't know why Americans, in particular but not exclusively, are so enamored of celebrity. Most of the time, the celebrities aren't the kind of people who should be lifted up onto a pedestal and nearly worshiped by average people. It's really quite sad that so many people are spending so very much time lamenting the death of a pedophile. Unbelievable.

Rules For Radicals

Well, finally, someone else is realizing that our President, a one-time community organizer in Chicago, could "possibly" have followed, and is still following, Saul Alitsky's book, Rules For Radicals. I have been saying this ever since Obama announced his candidacy for President. As a community organizer in the early 70s who was employed by the Office for Economic Opportunity, I was trained to use Rules For Radicals in the community where I worked. OEO was eliminated by President Nixon because he said it was superfluous, had no power to really help the poor and disadvantaged, and was wasting public money. It was primarily a black organization in which I was one of the 'token' white employees. I recognized some of the oratory and points Obama was making on the campaign trail, and it frightened me. No one else seemed to pick up on the similarity. Tonight, I flipped the tv onto Bill O'Reilly's show, and lo and behold! He was talking about the Obama link to Alitsky's radical left teaching. Finally, others are noticing this. Whether anyone wants to believe it or not, our fearless leader is a radical who is putting this country in danger of Socialism. Fact.

American Idol and House Hunters

As usual, the final three contestants on American Idol has one surprise. I didn't think Chris would be there rather than Allison, who is a phenomenal singer at seventeen years of age. I predicted from the beginning that Adam and Danny would be the final two because they each outsang everyone else. A couple more weeks and it will be all over til next year. I love this show - I think because it gives obviously talented young people a chance they wouldn't otherwise have.

Now, if only there could be something similar for visual artists, without the age requirements, of course. At this point in my life, I have a huge amount of artwork and I need to start selling it. Not only do I need the money, but I don't want my kids to have to deal with it when I am gone. Half of them would toss it all out, while the other half will treasure it.

I have a question for the people of House Hunters: Are there really that many people who have large enough incomes to purchase all those mega-expensive homes? Or were those programs all filmed prior to the housing bust? I especially dislike the young couples who look at half-million dollar homes and proclaim the kitchens or bathrooms are out of date or ugly or just won't work. Gosh, they should have been born into an earlier generation who had to have a twenty-percent down payment and excellent credit to buy a house - all without any government assistance. People were grateful for what they had. When I look at the House Hunter International shows, I am appalled by how much people in other countries have to pay for very tiny and often ill- equipped apartments - houses seem to be totally out of reach or just not available.