Isn't it clear? governments are not your friend! Human beings are devolving and becoming more and more infantile...just wanting a mommy or daddy to take care of them. Geez...
It's painful to notice this craving to be cared for all around...and it's also a spur to maintain responsibility for my own life...but I've had great help from loving parents. Others have not had that...maybe that's why so many seek it from government. What remains is to go about life with kindness and staying open to doing what I can within my own sphere of influence. I watch my impatience so that it doesn't turn into ill-mannered arrogance and judgement concerning others which is easy for me to fall into. But, as you say, "alas..."
Going through the same process myself. It woke me up multiple times this week.
No more arrogant, angry criticism - even at my computer screen!
Total focus on WI2BD - What Is 2 Be Done?
One great teacher has urged "skillful peacemaking. ...search for anything on which we agree.
"To be that peacemaker, you need to have the simple faith that as children of God, with all our differences, it is likely that in a strong position we take, there will be elements of truth.
"The great peacemaker, the restorer of unity, is the one who finds a way to help people see the truth they share.
"That truth they share is always greater and more important to them than their differences."
You can help yourself and others to see that common ground if you study it out in your own mind, come to a conclusion, then feel for confirmation from God, and THEN act.
Nancy, you've hit the nail on the head. The nanny state was born a number of years ago and was allowed to grow into a monster by its unsuspecting subjects.
I fear that only the hardship of an economic crisis will bring them to their senses and cause them to revolt.
Revolt or start preying on others when government largesse collapses...Some smaller communities will pull together, but big population centers may become war zones--worse than we have now.
I find it ridiculous that people are claiming that America is all about freedom, when Hungary -- yes, Hungary -- had fewer arrests for online comments, where some in America consider Viktor Orban to be a -- what was that? -- a dictator! Now I understand that Hungary has a much smaller population than the US, and those numbers weren't weighted for population, but Hungary appears to be a safer, saner, more free place than the US.
But Australia, just like the other Five Eyes nations, is going the way of the less-enlightened populations of the planet, and seems to be on a greased slide to reach the bottom. And they will reach it, much quicker than their subjects think they will. It will happen faster than the return of the boomerang.
As an Australian I would like to be able to explain what is happening here. But I have as much chance of that as I do of explaining the re-election of the current government. Seemingly in a landslide. Oh woe is me.
Good morning from the land of the Long White Cloud.
Unfortunately, politicians rarely consider the long term consequences of their actions and more importantly, their rhetoric.
My prediction is that we are in for a long term period of adjustments as the new world order is born. Not out of skullduggery and malicious intent, but rather from the collapse of a corrupt system which nobody trusts where individuals like me sit this one out, somewhere on the sidelines and watch the chaos on our big screen TV while drinking Margaritas.
This shit has to stop, but it won't because Joe Six pack and his buddy, Billy bagadonuts are totally captured by the psychological reframing and warfare on their finances, morals, beliefs and liberties...
Hopefully we will meet, somewhere on the flip side.
Mr. Marles' non-answer perfectly captures essence of the term, "mealy-mouth". That's what happens when one has to overthink how they respond to a question for fear they might offend someone.
I am also a transplant from the BPR group who has finally "manned up" after freeloading for a long time. What surprises me about Australia, is that these are not the Aussies I new from the 1960"s. I first met a group of your brothers in the middle of the jungle in southeast Asia. It was Hades hot without a breath of air when we came upon them, they were signing and laughing without a care in the world, a truly free spirited group. After spending R&R in Sydney I found the whole country was as independent, and tough, as the group I had met in Vietnam. After reading about their government confiscating personal weapons, some years later, I told friends in the U.S. that would be impossible with the people I had known without a significant fright. Alas, parts of my country has fallen into the same poisonous well!
Couldn't the fact that your exemplars were in the jungle, just following orders, telegraph the rest of it quite well, too?
A Kiwi (family) who fled Ardern for the states --which they considered the lesser evil real estate option-- told me that Aussies mostly all want to be Americans, pretend/pose as if they are.
And maybe p/p is the typical american, too.
Maybe p/p is just people, avg/normal +/- 2σ neath the Bells Beach curve:
My comrades and I were in the same jungle, under the same orders, and none of us were laughing and singing. It was an Aussie mentality, robust and independent spirit that I came to admire.
That independent spirit is still well and truly alive in the country areas of Australia, fly over country. But we are in a huge minority. I'm 650ks from the State Capital and life is pretty good here if you don't read the news!
“And yet, tempting and expedient though it may seem, the way to combat barbarism is not to lower one’s own cultural standards, much less unalienable rights, to those of an uncivilized world. One does not surrender one’s own freedoms to curtail another’s... to dig one’s own grave with the hope his enemy might stumble in afterwards.”
Setting standards to “cultural” is the banner of relativist runes-throwers.
Inherent & inalienable isn’t invention. It’s discovery translated into words.
It’s biology.
Not ideology.
Fact & true.
Not opinion.
But biology translated into words is mere emperors’ robes & pavlov’s bells to biologies that don’t, or can’t, know themselves.
How much introspection needle in penal colonies-institutions haystacks could there be?
Isn't it clear? governments are not your friend! Human beings are devolving and becoming more and more infantile...just wanting a mommy or daddy to take care of them. Geez...
Too true, alas...
It's painful to notice this craving to be cared for all around...and it's also a spur to maintain responsibility for my own life...but I've had great help from loving parents. Others have not had that...maybe that's why so many seek it from government. What remains is to go about life with kindness and staying open to doing what I can within my own sphere of influence. I watch my impatience so that it doesn't turn into ill-mannered arrogance and judgement concerning others which is easy for me to fall into. But, as you say, "alas..."
Going through the same process myself. It woke me up multiple times this week.
No more arrogant, angry criticism - even at my computer screen!
Total focus on WI2BD - What Is 2 Be Done?
One great teacher has urged "skillful peacemaking. ...search for anything on which we agree.
"To be that peacemaker, you need to have the simple faith that as children of God, with all our differences, it is likely that in a strong position we take, there will be elements of truth.
"The great peacemaker, the restorer of unity, is the one who finds a way to help people see the truth they share.
"That truth they share is always greater and more important to them than their differences."
You can help yourself and others to see that common ground if you study it out in your own mind, come to a conclusion, then feel for confirmation from God, and THEN act.
I am seeing this work in my own life.
Nancy, you've hit the nail on the head. The nanny state was born a number of years ago and was allowed to grow into a monster by its unsuspecting subjects.
I fear that only the hardship of an economic crisis will bring them to their senses and cause them to revolt.
Revolt or start preying on others when government largesse collapses...Some smaller communities will pull together, but big population centers may become war zones--worse than we have now.
I find it ridiculous that people are claiming that America is all about freedom, when Hungary -- yes, Hungary -- had fewer arrests for online comments, where some in America consider Viktor Orban to be a -- what was that? -- a dictator! Now I understand that Hungary has a much smaller population than the US, and those numbers weren't weighted for population, but Hungary appears to be a safer, saner, more free place than the US.
But Australia, just like the other Five Eyes nations, is going the way of the less-enlightened populations of the planet, and seems to be on a greased slide to reach the bottom. And they will reach it, much quicker than their subjects think they will. It will happen faster than the return of the boomerang.
As an Australian I would like to be able to explain what is happening here. But I have as much chance of that as I do of explaining the re-election of the current government. Seemingly in a landslide. Oh woe is me.
Defund the speech police
Good morning from the land of the Long White Cloud.
Unfortunately, politicians rarely consider the long term consequences of their actions and more importantly, their rhetoric.
My prediction is that we are in for a long term period of adjustments as the new world order is born. Not out of skullduggery and malicious intent, but rather from the collapse of a corrupt system which nobody trusts where individuals like me sit this one out, somewhere on the sidelines and watch the chaos on our big screen TV while drinking Margaritas.
This shit has to stop, but it won't because Joe Six pack and his buddy, Billy bagadonuts are totally captured by the psychological reframing and warfare on their finances, morals, beliefs and liberties...
Hopefully we will meet, somewhere on the flip side.
Mr. Marles' non-answer perfectly captures essence of the term, "mealy-mouth". That's what happens when one has to overthink how they respond to a question for fear they might offend someone.
Australia has become such a disappointment. In my youth it was one of the few countries I wanted to visit. Should have gone, because now I never will.
I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.
Attributed to Voltaire (Francois-Marie Arouet) 1694-1778
Well expressed. Look forward to next weeks prose.
Joel,
I am also a transplant from the BPR group who has finally "manned up" after freeloading for a long time. What surprises me about Australia, is that these are not the Aussies I new from the 1960"s. I first met a group of your brothers in the middle of the jungle in southeast Asia. It was Hades hot without a breath of air when we came upon them, they were signing and laughing without a care in the world, a truly free spirited group. After spending R&R in Sydney I found the whole country was as independent, and tough, as the group I had met in Vietnam. After reading about their government confiscating personal weapons, some years later, I told friends in the U.S. that would be impossible with the people I had known without a significant fright. Alas, parts of my country has fallen into the same poisonous well!
Couldn't the fact that your exemplars were in the jungle, just following orders, telegraph the rest of it quite well, too?
A Kiwi (family) who fled Ardern for the states --which they considered the lesser evil real estate option-- told me that Aussies mostly all want to be Americans, pretend/pose as if they are.
And maybe p/p is the typical american, too.
Maybe p/p is just people, avg/normal +/- 2σ neath the Bells Beach curve:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2h5qFhtYV4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9gf2hnyELUA
It's a dirty dance & corners many. "Nobody" is obviously somebody cuz there she sits, & there she goes:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ypKSbnYOrwE
Andy,
My comrades and I were in the same jungle, under the same orders, and none of us were laughing and singing. It was an Aussie mentality, robust and independent spirit that I came to admire.
Jim
That independent spirit is still well and truly alive in the country areas of Australia, fly over country. But we are in a huge minority. I'm 650ks from the State Capital and life is pretty good here if you don't read the news!
I suggest "independence under orders" speaks well towards answering what surprises you about Australia today ... & that it generalizes beyond Oz.
Good music, but neither cohort had any valid business there (&/or many other p[laces, too):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IlkMgpYNDpU
The disparity in bad speak arrests between the euros and the commies simply indicates that the euros are not as yet housebroken.
Hear hear Joel. I'll take my Liberty thank you. Not sure what is up with the Australians.
Let's hope decent, regular folk there throw off the yoke of their smug and parasitic political caste. It's getting pretty late in the day though...
“And yet, tempting and expedient though it may seem, the way to combat barbarism is not to lower one’s own cultural standards, much less unalienable rights, to those of an uncivilized world. One does not surrender one’s own freedoms to curtail another’s... to dig one’s own grave with the hope his enemy might stumble in afterwards.”
Setting standards to “cultural” is the banner of relativist runes-throwers.
Inherent & inalienable isn’t invention. It’s discovery translated into words.
It’s biology.
Not ideology.
Fact & true.
Not opinion.
But biology translated into words is mere emperors’ robes & pavlov’s bells to biologies that don’t, or can’t, know themselves.
How much introspection needle in penal colonies-institutions haystacks could there be?
Freedom is NOT free. It is paid in blood and the fruit of our labor!
If you trade safety for freedom, you deserve neither!
Give me liberty...or give me death