One look at our recent American culture and one concept is abundantly clear. We have become a fearful, myopic society. We’re self-centered, self-consumed, and self-absorbed. We are encouraged by all that surrounds us to JUDGE one another, to separate the population into groups or “collectives” and turn against one another because of our differences. And the up side of this is … ? Exactly what is the benefit of all this hatred and division?
As a woman of faith, it is my goal to imitate my God, to live as He lives, to love as He loves. This lead me to think about the gulf between the urge to be “of service” and that of myopic America. The difference is so simple! OTHERS!
Children are naturally myopic, selfish, but as we mature, we should become increasingly aware of the needs of others. It’s called “Other-awareness” in the education or psychology fields, but in life, it’s just growing up. If society doesn’t encourage us to mature in this way, however, it is unlikely to occur. What we are seeing now is a nation of people whose psychological development has been stunted by a shift in morality from others to ourselves.
There are as many different ways to “serve” one another as there are individuals. We are each unique, and uniquely gifted. Some enjoy cooking and making a little extra to share with a neighbor is a joy. Some have organizational abilities and can help other start businesses or clean homes. Some are good with small children while others are better with Seniors who need assistance. Like a pond without an outlet, we grow smelly if we do not give of what we have received. Our “richness” grows stagnant and moldy unless we find an outlet, a way to serve.
If each person who reads this article decides to become a giver, a public servant or a neighbor, we can change the current drift of our nation toward oblivion. If we commit to this change and seek opportunities to help one another, kindness will spread and multiply because that is its nature! If we can do this, the government won’t have to!
Service might be a position of employment or a volunteer position. It can be a regularly scheduled event or a random occasion. Service might be scrubbing toilets or teaching children. It can be at a Senior Citizens high rise or a Veterans center, making meals for a disadvantaged mother or picking up groceries for a “shut-in.” The cool thing is, each of us “see” a need in our community. It’s like a burr under a horse’s saddle that rubs and rubs until it’s dealt with. Whatever that “burr” is to you is most likely the way you are designed to help your neighbors and your nation. Get involved. Find a way to give. Find someone who needs your help, and then do it with a joyful heart and watch history change!
Every kid loves Halloween! So do adults.
As responsible dentists, community members, and US citizens, Halloween Candy Buy Back dentists have found a way to keep the fun, while helping kids and our troops deployed overseas.
How does the program work?
Participating dentists “buy” back kids’ Halloween candy at a scheduled event
“Buy” with cash, coupons, toothbrushes, creative exchanges – They can partner with local businesses to give away coupons for food, services, goods, etc. They can give away the Hygiene Kits, they can set up an Opportunity Prize–each kid gets a ticket per pound of candy for an opportunity drawing to win special prizes, etc.
Dentists send the candy to Operation Gratitude or other Military support groups
Occupiers FYI: All rightie, the Occupation is now in 45 states, has a tax exempt status, and has raised $50K already — the movement is growing….
Actually, some of the Occupiers ARE “employed” right now as they protest @ $350-$650 PER WEEK!! Craig’s List Ad Reads: “FIGHT TO HOLD WALL STREET ACCOUNTABLE NOW! MAKE A DIFFERENCE GET PAID!”: Check it out! Sponsored by: “The Working Families Party (WFP)(workingfamiliesparty.org),” who tout themselves as, “New York’s most energetic, independent and progressive political party.” BUT WAIT!! WHO is behind WFP?? Take a look here @ this video exposing that Occupy Wall Street was organized from day one by SEIU / ACORN front WFP!!
Uh, huh… Yup, an organized revolt that is funded by the Lefties. Gee, what a surprise… What do you suppose their purpose is??? Any guesses?
I don’t think TEA Party members have to “get paid” to go to rallys, just sayin’…
Good God! ALL SERVICE MEMBERS & VETS – Check this out! I have to say … this is without a doubt, a radical, new low for our sitting President! I am OUTRAGED!!!! Are YOU???
More proof he is an Ass Hole
PLEASE EVERYONE, READ THIS and then broadcast it to all your friends and relatives. This is a letter that my good friend’s husband wrote today after his uncle’s funeral yesterday.
If Obama does not want his name associated with our military, too bad he wanted his name associated with “The President of the United States.” Read more…
A few weeks ago, I posted an article about P2V or Pets 2 Vets. That organization is centered in the Washington, DC area. They continue to do great work bringing great dogs and our military heroes together for an increased quality of life!
Now there is an organization in the Southwestern part of the country. Soldier’s Best Friend (SBF) is a 501(C)3 tax exempt non-profit corporation based in Phoenix, AZ.
We (SBF) are devoted to helping our veterans and the pet overpopulation problem. Our staff is comprised of active military members, a combat veteran, practicing PTSD therapists, professional service dog trainers, a veterinarian, and many other great volunteers. To learn more about our staff click here.
We are now accepting applications to consider your placement with a Service Dog or Therapeutic Companion Dog. To apply now click here
All placement and training fees are no cost to the veteran. The veteran will be responsible for transportation and housing costs (if needed).
Soldiers are like you and me …
They’re PEOPLE!
Veterans diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, have issues with panic attacks, depression, nightmares, anxiety and reclusive behavior, Burnham said.
“Once they get their dog, they have to take it for a walk, so that in itself gets them out there,” he said. “And they’re more comfortable going into crowds, because they have their buddy with them.”
Training is done with the soldiers and dogs, and is composed of private and group sessions one to two days a week for up to 30 weeks at the Disabled American Veterans Hall at 8447 N. 61st Ave. in Glendale.
All of the dogs will receive basic obedience training, and some will be taught additional skills depending on the soldiers’ needs, lead trainer Shawna Swanson said.
“We have one veteran that’s requested the dog wake him up prior to a nightmare starting, because he talks in his sleep before the intense nightmare sets in,” Burnham said. “There are dogs that just have that instinctive behavior to read an anxiety attack coming on; we can’t train that into the dog.” PLEASE READ MORE
I can only hope and pray that those in positions of leadership in this country, that our inadequate Commander-in-chief, and the 90% of Americans who do not know what service costs, can somehow remember that Freedom costs … the – the bravery exhibited on a daily basis, the selflessness in service as politicians argue over Trillions of dollars and shake hands with desired votes.
I do not support Ron Paul’s foreign policy of “isolationism,” but I would very much like to see the mission clarified and simplified so we know when the battle is over!
FORWARD OPERATING BASE PASAB, Afghanistan — It was the worst of places, but the soldiers on the ground had few options when they marked the landing zone for the medevac helicopter. One of their buddy’s legs had been blown off by an IED near Pashmul South, and another had suffered a traumatic brain injury from the blast.
Grape rows, tree lines and mud walls surrounded the field. It was the perfect setting for an ambush.
Medics tend injured soldier alongside the road
Purple smoke billowed from the landing zone as the crew of Dustoff 59 sped toward a small band of 1st Infantry Division soldiers, waiting with their wounded. As pilot and Chief Warrant Officer 2 Marcus Chambers slowed for the landing, gunfire broke out and the all-too-familiar tat-tat-tat-tat, tat-tat-tat-tat pinged around them.
Chambers set the aircraft down and flight medic Staff Sgt. Garrick Morgenweck flung the door open to retrieve the wounded. As he stepped out, insurgents fired a rocket-propelled grenade from close range, striking a mud wall and narrowly missing the helicopter as it blasted through. PLEASE READ MORE
The day to day devastation …
the unimaginable sights, sounds, smells …
the uncertainty from one day to the next …
waiting, waiting, waiting …
all take a toll on the soldiers on the ground.
War is hell!!!
A phrase thrown around lightly
by many who have never given much thought to the subject.
‘A little more closer to hell’
Capt. Maureen Pennington, director of nursing services at the NATO Role 3 Multinational Hospital at Kandahar Air Field, believes that medevac crews carry a quiet burden, one they aren’t often willing to share with outsiders, and she worries about what they see.
She senses the relief they feel when they hand over a patient and notices a slight drop in their head once the trauma team takes over. She knows they’re retracing their actions and wondering whether they did everything they could.
“You can’t even imagine what they go through. I think they have the weight of the world on their shoulders with all of the soldiers that they take care of,” Pennington said, adding after a brief pause, “That responsibility must weigh very heavy on them.”
While most of the medevac soldiers attempt to disengage their personal feelings from their work, some, like Lowther, let the swell of emotions wash over them. He can’t help but cry at times, especially when his patients are Afghan children. An endless stream of them, robbed of their childhood by poverty and war, make their way onto their helicopters.
Some have been caught in crossfire; others are simply victims of the brutal Afghan rural life.
Sometimes he calls the hospital to check on someone he’s treated. He’s one of the few who wants to know if they made it. Most can’t bear to know.
But even Lowther has a threshold. Recently, while other crewmembers were watching mission footage shot by an embedded film crew, he was overcome with a sickening pain and left the room. He can live it every day, but he can’t stand to watch it replayed.
Even those who try to disengage eventually think about what they see. Catastrophic blast injuries from IEDs that shred a body like nothing else. Gunshot wounds that cause a man to writhe as he pleads with a medic to help him breath or give him water.
Sometimes, the pain in the eyes of the soldiers gets to Morisoli.
He thinks about the journey they’ll have trying to put their life back together. He thinks about the families that will welcome them home. He can’t linger in his thoughts too long, though, because he knows that in the end, it just hurts too much.
He has to let go because he knows that tomorrow, or the next day, he and his crew will pick up another soldier who has lost his legs.
“This is a rough game, and I don’t care who you are, it’s going to affect you,” Role 3 hospital commander Capt. Mike McCarten said.
“They’re seeing things a little more closer to hell.”
It is one thing to see and eagerly point out the flaws and blatant errors of the current administration. Easy! They’re everywhere! I believe the majority of Americans see, although perhaps not … everything, but certainly enough to know we have changed course, and it doesn’t seem to be for the better! People are angry, frustrated, and scared! That’s NOT advantageous to the pursuit of happiness!
What are you willing to die for …
to LIVE for?
The Great War & WWII were fought on foreign soil (mostly) for what? What was the objective(s)?
To free those interred at prison camps
To assist our neighbors (allies) in the defense of their land
How about to stem the tide of EVIL?
Prior to these WORLD WARS, our involvement in conflict focused on the establishment and protection of … America, of Our Land. In none of these instances was HATE a driving force for our involvement. Now, however, hate is spreading like wild fire, not only in our own nation, but around the increasingly chaotic globe. WHY?
Why does hate thrive? Because LOVE has not risen to the task … yet! Because FEAR rules. Isn’t that what terrorism is? FEAR!!!!! Our Seniors tremble in fear that their Social Security Checks and Medicare benefits may be slashed. Our young people fear the gathering darkness on the horizon, even though they do not understand the enormity of it. And those of us who know, those of us who have lived long enough to gain an ounce to two of wisdom are silent. We’re too busy with our lives. We don’t want to get involved. We are hurting, too! Or … It’s not really as bad as all that! Ha! We’ve waited long enough for a leader to rise up and take charge! It’s OUR turn!
For such a time as this, we have been empowered!
For such a time as this, we have been equipped!
We know the TRUTH, We have a LIGHT, We’ve seen God’s hand
For such a time as this we’ve been prepared!
The evil tide is rising, the swell, it floods the earth,
While good’s called bad and darkness, light,
With none to show the way.
For such a time as this, we have been empowered!
For such a time as this, we have been equipped!
We know the TRUTH, We have a LIGHT, We’ve seen God’s hand
For such a time as this we’ve been prepared!
There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.
1 John 4:18
It has never been about the group. It’s about YOU and ME! It’s about the INDIVIDUAL! Each of us must choose. Each of us must decide NOT to be afraid. Each of us must define our beliefs and take a loving stand. We can’t trust big business, right? We can’t trust, the banks? We can’t trust our political leaders? We can’t trust the Courts … or the Media??? It is up to YOU and ME to take back our nation. It is up to YOU and ME to choose the HIGH Road and out of compassion, respect our differences. It is up to YOU and ME to determine what kind of America we leave for our children and our grandchildren! It is OUR RESPONSIBILITY!!!!! No one else’s! SO what will it be …
LIFE or death?
LOVE or hatred?
FAITH or fear?
It’s time to decide … NOW! Decide how YOU want to live out your days, and start working it out. If we each do our part, we can redeem our nation from the encroaching evil, but not with hate! Hate kills; love builds!
I work hard. I’m not rich, but I have enough.
I take care of my family, provide for their needs.
I haul my weight and that of my family.
I will work to take care of them,
I don’t need subsidies or tax dollars spent on me.
Nor do I want to be taxed so those who choose not to work
and procreate more of their kind can live off my earnings.
Got it? Now lemme alone so I can work!
Once upon a time, America was inhabited by hard-working, proud, legal immigrants, grateful for a place to thrive and raise their families without fear of oppression for political, religious, or ethnic reasons. From the war ravaged European nations or nations undergoing harshly difficult times, these new Americans were eager to become part of the ideal for which America stood: … land of the free and the home of the brave!
They brought with them their skills and talents and employed them with great zeal to prove their gratitude to the new nation founded on principles of personal liberty, the likes of which none had experienced previously. Naturally, they settled in neighborhoods that took on the characteristics of their homeland culture: the Italians, the Irish, the German, the Slavic, the Mexican, the Puerto Rican, and so on. This was not so much built on a fear or hatred of others as it was a comfortable familiarity with those from similar backgrounds. But, human nature being what it is, fear and hatred grew and wove its ugliness in, around and through our neighborhoods, and emphasized our differences rather than our similarities.
Gradually, fear and hatred swallowed up the personal pride and deep gratitude shared by our great grandfathers and great grandmothers. Our current society, crying out for handouts, is the result.
This is America to me.
I was taught the notion of the American “melting pot” with neighbors from just about every imaginable European background. There were the McCutchean’s two generations out of Scotland. The Henrici’s with 5 daughters, the Midocks with a back yard ice-skating rink, the Amslers, the Dills, the Allens, Amicis. It was not a big deal. The Polumbo’s were “rich” because they had a NEW car. The Perez family talked funny, but they were really nice. America was different than other places because we could be different and still be friends.
I was taught to be polite to everyone and to respect people. I was taught to behave. I was taught not to lie or cheat. That when I did, I really only hurt myself.
I was taught to treat others the way I wanted them to treat me. To plant seeds of respect to reap respect. To plant seeds of kindness and it would come back to me in my time of need.
I was taught to respected every person equally – There really was such a thing a “color-blindness,” maybe not everywhere, but where I grew up, it existed. A person’s sexuality was a completely private thing and simply not an issue. I know how foreign this sounds, but … it was real once.
Where has MY America gone?
I believe there are more people who care and want to help one another than there are those who only want to take.
I believe there are more people who believe in God than those who choose not to, but I also believe NEITHER side needs to shove their beliefs on the other.
I believe there are more people who understand responsibility and accountability than those who don’t.
I believe there are more people who live by a moral code than those who don’t know right from wrong, but those who don’t need instruction.
Nearly one half! Can you wrap your head around those numbers? Of the billions spent by our Federal government, almost HALF is handed out to those unable? or unwilling? to work and become self-reliant. Whatever happened to the individual desire for independence, for fulfillment, and accomplishment? Don’t we teach our children to be independent and self-reliant?
“There was a time in America when being on the public dole was a bad thing, today it is rapidly becoming a way of life. Getting this number back down to size is not going to be pain free.” (Clifton is a Conservative and blogs at Another Black Conservative
America Needs to Re-discover
Her Identity
Maybe we should ask the rest of the world to help us re-define our American Identity? Do we want to be known as the Global Bullies? or the Good Neighbor? The New Age Robin Hood (stealing from the rich and giving to the poor?) or The New Age Emancipator, freeing individuals to rise above their circumstances and find a noble purpose in wholesome work and daily, self-sustaining life?
Many of our minority citizens have a strong leaning toward the liberal side of the fence because they have been taught to believe that the “HELP” programs are for them, and demonstrate the compassion of the Democratic party. I beg to differ! Think it through! Many of these lovely, hard-working Americans have pulled themselves up out of the roots in slavery only to become enslaved once again to the slave-master government. How is government, foodstamps, welfare dependency freedom??? The goal of our republic is to provide the possibility, the availability of freedom sufficient to pursue individual and personal happiness, not doled out by the government in monthly increments, but as built and designed by the individual for the individual! In America, it is about the individual! Individual rights secure individual freedoms to live out our individual lives as we each see fit. However, freedom is only freedom until mine steps on yours.
What is important to you?
freedom to worship, or not, as you see fit, or allowing the sterilization of America from all religious affiliation and influence?
freedom to say what’s on your mind, or intimidation by way of political correctness?
freedom to live as you choose or a multitude of restrictions on your lifestyle?
freedom to build a family or state issued “family units”?
freedom to choose your friends or political pressure toward certain group affiliations?
freedom to pursue purposeful work or government assigned “lemming” work?
time to pursue hobbies, pleasures, enjoyments or no money or time for such frivolousness?
happily involved in volunteerism or or hoarding in fear?
helping others out of compassion or taxed enough to feed those who don’t want to work?
Help up or hand out?
“I predict future happiness for Americans
if they can prevent the government
from wasting the labors of the people
under the pretense of taking care of them.”
There are as many different ways to “serve” one another as there are individuals. We are each unique, and uniquely gifted. Some enjoy cooking and making a little extra to share with a neighbor is a joy. Some have organizational abilities and can help other start businesses or clean homes. Some are good with small children while others are better with Seniors who need assistance. Like a pond without an outlet, we grow smelly if we do not give of what we have received. Our “richness” grows stagnant and moldy unless we find an outlet, a way to serve.
Service might be a position of employment or a volunteer position. It can be a regularly scheduled event or a random occasion. Service might be scrubbing toilets or teaching children. It can be at a Senior Citizens high rise or a Veterans center, making meals for a disadvantaged mother or picking up groceries for a “shut-in.” The cool thing is, each of us “see” a need in our community. It’s like a burr under a horse’s saddle that rubs and rubs until it’s dealt with. Whatever that “burr” is to you is most likely the way you are designed to help your neighbors and your nation. Get involved. Find a way to give. Find someone who needs your help, and then do it with a joyful heart and watch history change!
blogsense-by-barb 