The circuitry of Decision

OK.. all this furor and talk about the Government shutdown and Obamacare and Debt Ceiling and finances and caring for others got me thinking. I developed a view of the whole issue that works for me and IMHO explains it all rather well. However, I posted it in my Facebook status and didn't receive much response. I am not sure I really expected any but the pride and ego in me would have appreciated some. So since posting it on a larger frame with a wider readership didn't work I figured I would try again in a smaller readership, this way when it gets no response it won't be such a hard hit to my ego and pride.

The view is this:   Financial decisions should be made with the head (logic, etc) while other decisions such as caring for others, respect for others, etc should be made with the heart (emotion, what is right, etc) and that the connection between the 2 organs is the rest of the circuitry that allows one to make decisions that come as close as satisfying both as possible.

However many people and especially Politicians don't have proper operating circuitry. They either have and "open" in the circuitry where there is no connection between the 2 and one drives the process while ignoring the other (e.g. the only consideration is financial and the well being or care or respect of other is not considered). Or they have a "short" where the 2 are fused together and one drives the other (e.g. there is NO consideration given to the finances, it is all given to the emotion/emotive concern and we go bankrupt or in debt).

Now we would all like to do both but the sad fact of the world as it presently is, is that we must make choices and some things get sacrificed in those choices. We all hope to make the best choice that comes as close to satisfying both as much as possible. To have either an open or a short in this circuitry just creates more problems and doesn't solve anything. And this we get shutdowns and fights as we are currently seeing.

I apologize this isn't or erudite or well researched and documented as it should be. I profess not higher education or skills.. just an average human being with a computer, a connection to the internet, and a blog. All dangerous weapons in my hands I am aware but also a safety valve to relieve stress and pressure in my own way. Thank you all 2 or 3 who read it.

What is our obsession with covers?

Today's brief post is brought to you by... conscience and humility.

I was sitting around thinking why I feel better, feel more righteous, feel more complete with a bible with a leather (whether genuine leather or simulated leather) cover than just a plain hardback cover? Why is the cover important? The inside content is the exact same, the only different is the cover material. Is it a reputation thing? A pride thing?

That lead to the truly sobering, humbling thought... our interactions with people are no different. The inside content of people is the same, it is only the outside "covering" that is different. And yet we still feel different... more righteous, more complete, more comfortable, more at ease with certain groups. Why is that?

I don't know, I wish I did.. just a sobering thought to consider today.

Quick survey

Today's post will just be a quick little post/survey to see if anyone is really reading this and thus will respond. Plus I am a nosy little sloth...

Last night while lazily hanging from the tree limb I got to thinking about movies we enjoy and those we will watch over and over an endless number of time. Such movies that anytime we are flipping through the TV channels in boredom, when we come across them we will instantly stop and watch them, regardless of how many times we have seen them before.

For myself I have 3 that fit this criteria:
(1)The Godfather
(2)The Great Santini
(3)Lonesome Dove (I know it was a miniseries and not movie per se but it is my blog and I include it).

So there it is... what movies fit this criteria for you my fine readers and friends?

Please respond in the comments section or shoot me an email at the address at the top of the page.. I look forward to your responses.

Tree Association Thursday II

Ok, for today's Tree Association Thursday I am gonna get a little mystical and metaphysical, or at least I am gonna pretend that's what I am vice just being loco.

I have a strong belief that we are truly souls trapped in a flesh and blood vehicle. And as these souls we are made up of what I call "soul strings". These souls strings are what connect us to life and experience and others. For example... the term soulmates which I believe exist. I do believe each of us has at least 1 soulmate and most likely more. There is the romantic soulmate.. the perfect copy for us, the perfect complement to us that "completes us" to borrow from Jerry Maguire. When we come near this person (or persons) that particular soul string vibrates/resonates and we feel complete/whole/at peace. Now this is not to say we all end up with that person as intended or wished. Sometime they are with someone else, be it another soul mate of theirs or they just settled for the wrong person. I also think we have more soulmates, more soulfriends if I can make up my own word. These soulfriends are who we refer to as BFF's or what have you. Some of us have more than others and some of us only have a small number that we put in this category and consider brothers or sisters or family.

I also believe we have soul strings that resonate with certain interests of ours, with certain "soul DNA" that reach back through time and history and genetics to connect us. For example I offer my fascination with British History and such. I am connected with that topic, with those individuals, with that period because I hold some soul DNA of that. I also have some soul DNA of the South. I warned you this was gonna be mystical, metaphysical, or just plain weird.

And finally, I am from the South and I have a deep, ingrained affinity for the South and her people.. faults and all. And I have learned that we southerners are particular and eccentric bunch. We are warm, friendly, open, and welcoming to all but we are at the same time reserved, withdrawn and secretive. We rarely and truly open ourselves up to others. We are afraid of being hurt, we are afraid of pain and suffering, we are afraid of failure and we hide behind courtesy, manners, and humor. We southerners are quick to make a joke, to poke fun at ourselves, others, and the situation. We use this to hide from pain and suffering and failure. You Yankees wouldn't get that for you are too cold and distant and humorless to understand (I am kidding my Northern family members). When things get too deep and meaningful for us, we are quick to crack a joke.. it is a coping and hiding mechanism. A safety device if you will. It exasperates those with us who are trying to get to know us, who are trying to sound us out, to love us, but it is just how we are.

Anyway.. that is enough weird for one day. Thanks for sticking it out... that is provided anyone is still here by this sentence. If there isn't then may you fall in a hole filled with sharpened stakes and salt.

Tree Association Thursday

Today is a Tree Association Thursday (get it.. Tree Association...the Sloth version of Free Association)..a series I would like to make a regular thing... these may have a theme or they may not, they may make sense or they may not, they may be long or they may be short.. the main thing is... it will be whatever I want it to be. Something to keep me posting and involved. I am not even sure anyone reads this judging from the lack of comment. I can see on stats that the last couple of posts have been read, or at least briefly visited by 8-10 people (or 8-10 times by one person), so someone out there has visited just not commented. And yes that is a cheap way to say... please read.. and if you read please at least comment once in awhile so I know it is being read. Otherwise I am just taking to myself and I do that enough and get enough strange looks as it is...

First off, I have been reading a lot of Shakespeare lately. Why I do not know, those who know me well are already well versed in the fact that I have myriad interests that switch often for no reason or rhyme. It is part of what makes me, me and adds charm or so I tend to think. Anyway.. this reading of Shakespeare is dangerous because it gets me thinking, speaking, and especially writing in "Shakespeare-ese" for awhile. Thanks to my sense of humor, southern upbringing, and redneck background I am already nigh incomprehensible and to add "Shakespeare-ese" just renders me even more strange.

Secondly... I have also been doing a lot of reading/research in British History. Mainly the Kings and Queens from William The Conqueror to the War of Roses. I love history and specially American and British History. Because let's face it.. British History is our History as well. I guess being of Scottish-Irish-Welsh (and some French) descent, it is in my DNA. And the recent obsession with the Royal Baby, it is a fact that no matter how much we deny it or pretend it doesn't exist, we Americans (especially of British ancestry) are still beholden and linked deep in our souls with the "Old Country" and always will be. A corollary to this is I have become interested in Soccer.. especially British Soccer and Premiere League. I fought the Soccer interest for many years but finally gave in... Go Arsenal.

Thirdly, and here is where I get close to Political.. This Sloth does not get the current uproar over the Rodeo Clown in Missouri. So what if he mocked Obama..where was this outrage during Shrub's reign when people mocked him, wore masks of him, burned him in effigy, or had posters of him beheaded and such? Was ALL of this is poor taste? Yes. Is it offensive? In some ways.. but so what?? Last time I checked we have free speech... doesn't mean we will like what is said..I am sure most reading this (honestly, if I have even one reader I am please wether they agree with me or not) do not like what I say. It doesn't mean we agree with what is said. We may find it offensive but the fact is.. we have the right to say it or express it. Stand against ALL of it or allow it but to be find with it when you agree with it and against it when you disagree with it is hypocritical and juvenile and we have enough of that as it is. Next time.. do what I try to do and just ignore it. Change the channel, close the book or paper, switch to a different web page.... BUT whatever you do, do not switch to a different blog from this one.. I need all the readers I can get.

P.S. While I want and welcome comments.. if you leave criticizing or negative comments be warned... I will get some of my fellow Arboreal Dwelling Jungle denizens to throw poop at you. I would do it myself but (1) it is too much work, and (2) you try throwing poop with only 3 digits and none of them being an opposable thumb.

Just exactly whose battle are we fighting?

Allow me to acknowledge upfront .. this is gonna be a controversial post. It will certainly upset one group and possibly upset both or more, but it needs to be said... at least by me, for myself.

Earlier today, I "called out" a friend for a Facebook post he made about some comments by RGIII about it being a good time for any gay players in the NFL to come out. And in the post my friend challenged Baptists and Baylor University in general. My point to him was that by challenging and provoking them, he was in essence "kicking the mad dog" and that that put him on their level, a "juvenile" level. And that he was above that and that we needed more "adults" in the conversation and less "juveniles". In this post I am gonna kind of violate that myself, but I hope to at least make a point or start a conversation by it.

I hear all the time from "Christians" (and in the interest of full disclosure I am a Christian and a Southern Baptist one at that) that Homosexuality is wrong, that it is a sin against God, unnatural, etc. I am not here to argue any of that one way or the other (again for full disclosure I do feel it is unnatural and a sin but one that is no worse than any other especially the myriad sins I commit every single day and therefore I do not hold anyone lower or worse than myself). What I want to discuss though is those who "fight" it at every step and who claim to be "fighting" God's battles and standing for God.

Last time I checked we weren't called to fight God's battle for him. He is God, he is all powerful, all seeing, all present...ergo he is more than capable of fighting his own battles without our help. And throughout history we have caused more problems than we have solved by stepping in where we aren't wanted to supposed to be. We are however, called to love each other, to show each other respect, grace, forgiveness,... all attributes of God we only bring out when we want them shown to us. But we conveniently forget them when we are discussing how to treat others we disagree with.

We are NEVER going to get anyone to listen to us or take us seriously until we get them to trust us and to believe we care about them. We can use all the words and actions we want but they are nothing but useless noise if there isn't trust and respect backing them up. And how do we build that trust? By showing them love and respect for who they are, as they are.

We can claim to be "standing for God" and more but it is done without love and respect we are nothing but "clanging cymbals". For example take the adulteress caught by the mob and brought before Jesus. Did Jesus applaud them for "standing for God" or  for "fighting God's battles for him"? No.... instead he said.."Let he is without sin cast the first stone". The point here is not that they mob was wrong in their claim of adultery or sin, but that they were all sinners and violaters of God's will and law. And therefore had no right or claim to "stand for God" or "fight for God". As the story concludes Jesus then asks the woman where her accusers are and she says there are none... and Jesus says "then neither do I condemn you, go and sin no more". Even Jesus who had every right to accuse and punish did not.. he showed love and compassion. Certainly if Jesus (being God in the flesh.... a theological point we can argue at another time) chose to show love and compassion instead of punishment, we sinful, imperfect human beings can and should.

Let's not lose sight of the forest for the trees by being so caught up in "fighting God's battles"for him that we alienate and drive away the very ones we claim to care for. Another argument I have seen used to justify all the hate and argument is..."if someone was about to step in front of a speeding car, I wouldn't just stand there and watch it happen.. I would warn them and do what I had to to save them". That's a valiant goal and one we should all strive for, BUT, if you do nothing but condemn the person by calling them stupid and ignorant, and blind (add any other suggestion you wish) and drive them away. Then they will just move further away from you and you will drive them into the very street and on rushing car you are trying to save them from.

Let's all step away from the constant criticizing and condemnation and picking of fights, in other words, let's all stop being juvenile and be adults instead.

A little about me Part 1

I recently did a "50 Things People may not know about me" that a good friend asked me to do and while 50 is way too many things for my feeble, simple monkey brain to come up with it did get me thinking... and what resulted was this.... I would like to periodically post a few things about me (such as favorite books ,movies, etc..) that most who know me know but others may not.

For this first part I will keep it simple....

Favorite All Time actor- Jimmy Stewart

Favorite Modern Actor- Robert Duvall

Favorite Movie- The Godfather

Favorite Western-Lonesome Dove

Favorite Sport- Baseball

Favorite Shakespeare Play- Macbeth

That's good for a start.. since no one reads these anyway.

However.... should anyone read this and want to know anything.. Please feel free to ask me any questions you would like to know about me and I will do my best to answer them as "un smart arsed way as possible. (and yes that is a word.. I just made it up.. live with it)

You may ask them in the comments sections... or email me...