Fear For This Country
Today is election day, and I am terrified. Either way I choose, I feel, I lose. Kerry and my beliefs don't even come close to meshing, and Bush will get my husband killed. I think this will be the last election of the people (and that's if the people ever had a say to begin with). Reguardless of the results, I will wear black tomorrow. I morn this country, which was great. I morn our freedoms, that as time goes by, will still slowly disappear. (again that is if we ever really had any). I morn all that was good and decent in the world. I morn.... Those of you who believe that one of the canidates will make this country great, I morn for you. I feel that the veil of propaganda has been lifted from my eyes, and I now see the world as it is. I am more afraid of that, than anything else. Our country is hated. Our country is war like. Our country can't take care of it's own problems and are neive enough to believe that a New/Current President will make it better. Wake up and smell the coffee, all polititions are liars. Kerry will say what he thinks will get him votes, so will Bush. In the end, we are stuck with a man with personal ambitions for personal gain, what ever that may be (and don't say that there are none, because every one as personal ambitions and gain). In the end we are going to be controlled by the media, and the propaganda will continue to fly. In the end, we won't realize all that we lost till one magical day when we wake up in a comunist (or worse) country. We are on the road to WW3, and we don't even realize it. It frightens me, that I will have to raise my son in this world. It frightens me to live in this world. I wish it were better, that my fears were unfounded, but I can't say that. None of you can. So on this Nov 2, 2oo4 I will find my self back in a church praying that our next president (whoever that may be), our country, and all of humanity, comes to it's senses and see the world as it is, and does something to make it better. Maybe if I pray enough, this country will survive long enough for us to hand the reign of power to our children, and have the confidence that things will get better.
posted by . at 11/02/2004 10:44:00 AM
13 Comments:
"IF you love our country, and what it stands for, vote for individual freedoms. Vote for freedom of speech, and the right to live your life on your OWN ideals, instead of the ideals of one man. Vote for a better tomorrow. Vote for the safety of our country. Vote for the safety of our boys at war. Vote for a better job market. Vote for a better economy. Vote for JOHN KERRY!!!!!!!!!!!"
The above was part of my post "4 NEW Years" and I believe every word of it. I agree with you that Kerry, like all politicians, is not above personal motive and saying things to become elected. But do not forget that Bush and his administration is the reason things have gotten so bad; the reason that now, more than EVER before, the rest of the world hates the United States of America. We did not have this fear under the presidency of Bill Clinton. We did not have this fear under the presidency of George Bush Sr., although we DID have war. Bush Jr. is the ONLY president to actually USE the power of pre-emption, and unfortunately, we are now on dark times that seem to only grow darker over the horizon.
I vote for Kerry not because I believe he is some righteous savior, exempt of being polluted or free from hypocrisy; I vote for Kerry because it's a chance for a better tomorrow. Under Bush, we will have four more years of turmoil and misery and an even worse fate after four years - a mess that we, in all likelihood, cannot fix or clean up. I'm not saying things aren't bad now, but it's better NOW than it WILL BE in four more years. With John Kerry, our great nation has the opportunity to begin a clean-up of the terrible messes caused by the as-of-now current administration.
I understand your fears. I hear them. I share some of them. But unlike you, I have not lost my hope, and I know my voice can make a difference. I see the truth in front of my eyes; unhindered by propaganda, untainted by mud-slinging. I look at the hard facts of Kerry and of Bush. I see all that Bush has done. I see what Bush's administration has done to healthcare, to stem-cell research, to basic civil rights, to our soliders, to our nation's economy. I see all that Kerry has done that can be legitimately questioned; not the war-record, not the flip-flopping - but the questionable senate record. I look at all of it, setting aside all else, and I weigh the pros and the cons of having each in office. Bush has, UNDENIABLY, racked up an infinitely HIGHER list of cons than Kerry has. There IS a lesser of two evils. There IS a hope for our country.
That hope is John Kerry. If you truly pray for our country, for Peter's future, for the life of your husband; then I join you in your prayers, for I believe that God will see us through this rough time. I believe that your prayers will be answered and John Kerry will be elected.
Wow, I can't help but read that and get depressed. We as Americans just don't appreciate how good we have it. We should celebrate the fact that you and I can head to the polls and cast our ballot. I am stationed in the Middle Eastern country of Bahrain. Let me say that I would not trade places with anyone in this region of the world. Women will never be at the same level as men. Can you imagine never wearing shorts or tshirts? That's the law over here, even in the 130 degree sun. Women are destined for one thing in life. Childbearing. Sure, some may be able to vote but they will never truly be free like us in the United States. We have it better than Europe. We may quibble about tax rates but try living in Switzerland or France or any other western European country. 80% tax rate for shoddy health care, poor economies, and lazy people. I take pride that I work 55 hours a week at least. I can get recognized for my hard work here. I can invest my money myself for retirement. Thats why America's economy is the strongest in the world. Because were the hardest working. Democrat or Republican. People in Spain complain that they can't take their two hour "siestas" at lunch everyday because their economy sucks so bad. They need to keep up with the Brits and Americans. But in France maybe they are on to something. Maybe I should complain about working 32 hours a week. Well at least their needs are taken care of by the government. But when your son needs to see a specialist, make sure your calendar is clear 8 weeks from now, because thats as soon as you'll get in. This country gives more to impoverished nations than any other in the world. Americans are the most genorous giving people I know. Most of the world tries to exploit that. But thats why I risk my life. So people can complain about how much France hates us. And WW3 started when Muslim terrorists killed over 3 thousand innocent civilians. We can't lose.
@Ian-- I understand what your saying, but you miss my point. My point is in the fact that the government is getting so corupt that there will be little rights here left. I have noticed that voices are being silenced now, that our freedoms we take for granted are disappearing. Maybe I am over reacting, maybe I have been listening to many conspiracy therory stories, but it seems things such as our freedoms are disappearing. That is why I am so frightened.
My husband is a Marine, and he to is serving his country to make life better for us all. It is him I fear for. It is for you. I do not want your scarafice of being half way across the world, away from your family to be in vain. With the things as they are here, you may not have an America you have come to know, to come home too. That is what is frightening.
It is not your actions as a member of our armed forces that frightens me, it is the hatred of the world. The world turned on us Sept 11, 2001. The relished in our misery, and danced in the streets. We need to gain favor with the other countries in the world. We need to make allies not enemies. If we don't do that, then yes, WW3 will happen and men like you and my husband will be the ones fighting in it. Call me selfish but I do not wish to lose my husband to war. I do not wish to be a widow before I am 30.
Please understand my fears are not for me, for I do not care what happens to me. They are for my son, husband, and you. I wish I could explain this better, but I for one am out of words.
Thank you for your support and I will pray for your family and husband. I disagree about our freedoms disappearing but I know we both want the same outcome with this war. For everyone to be safe. I appreciate your opinion. I wonder if my mother feels similar to you? Thanks for being an American interested in what is going on this world and not just a zombie.
Hey Ian C,I am in Iraq myself and know just what you mean,been trying to get the point across myself.But hey you keep your head down and get home safe ok?One day we will all look back at these time as when for a breif moment we all stood togther and said "NO MORE",but until that time comes it is up to people like us to take care of each other as well as the rest of our people.Godspeed home.
I think most of the people voting in this election were zombies from one side or the other. At least WE know we voted based on facts...
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What are your 50,000 thoughts a day creating?
Our thoughts create our reality. This is a simple truth known by all people involved on the spiritual path. It is one of the most taught universal principles in the personal development field. Yet it is one of the most misunderstood!
People practice visualisation, affirmations, they use hypnosis, subliminal programming or countless other tools to transform their lives. However they fail to recognise one key area in their lives that hinder these wonderful techniques from being effective.
They sit day after day visualising their perfect scene and yet nothing happens. Why? They have followed all the instructions to the letter! They have chanted and imagined! They have formed a colourful, vibrant scene in their minds and affirmed that this is their reality. Then all of a sudden things get worse! What is going on?
Would you like to know the secret? Would you like to know why these people get no results? Would you like to hear one powerful statement that explains everything?
Yes?
Good. I will tell you why these people get no results or even opposite results to those they are aiming for -simply because of the following truth. Consciously controlled thoughts such as visualisations do not materialise - ALL thoughts materialise!!!
Most people believe that if they visualise for 10 minutes a day their lives will magically transform. This is not the case. You must change your core thinking. You think approx. 50,000 thoughts a day. How many of those thoughts are working against your ten minute visualisation?
You can control the thoughts that enter your mind by changing the way you view the world. You can decide which thoughts you give energy to and which thoughts you discard.
The thoughts that you follow and give energy to become more dominant than the thoughts you discard. Your subconscious mind records these as your dominant picture on the issue at hand. You then move towards this picture because your subconscious mind starts making your outside world reflect the picture that you have stored internally.
Your mind should be on whatever you want. The picture you need to have is a positive vision of you already having achieved your goal. To realise this vision you need to focus and concentrate. Remember thoughts are real, they create your reality.
Let's say you have been visualising a new house. You spend your ten minutes in meditation picturing yourself living in your dream home. You finish your session and get up feeling positive that you will achieve your goal. Then during the day you get a heating bill through the post and exclaim "Oh no look how expensive this is I cannot afford to heat this house". Where is your focus in the present moment? What are you affirming? You are telling your subconscious mind that you cannot deal with what you have. You are affirming that your life is not how you want it to be. If you knew without doubt that within a week you would be moving to your new home would you honestly be worried about a heating bill? Perhaps other doubts creep in like "I should be happy with what I have", or "I will never get this house looking the way I want it" and so on and so on.
These thoughts that are not aligned with your goal. You are not giving complete attention to what you want. Whilst you are dealing with these other lines of thought your attention is not on your goal.
If you are aware of your thoughts you will suddenly realise that you have spent much more energy on counter productive thoughts than on creating a dominant picture of the goal you want.
Point your focus in the direction of you're the life you want. Think about what you want NOT what you don't want. It's that simple.
Your focus determines your reality. Change your focus and you change your life. The Secret
Can you use hypnosis and self hypnosis to improve your health?
Well in 1958 the American Psychological Association, the American Medical Association and The British Medical Association concluded that hypnosis was indeed a viable therapeutic tool and approved its medical use.
Although there are many theories, no-one really knows how or why hypnosis works. However, the benefits of its use are clear. It has been used successfully in all manner of treatments from IBS to pre-surgery relaxation and post-surgery pain relief.
Olympic athletes, footballers, basketball layers, golfers etc., have known about the power of the mind for some decades now (perhaps the elite knew even further back). It has been shown in medical studies that when you visualise yourself performing a task your muscles respond in exactly the same way as they would if you were actually doing the task. Sports psychologist have used this to their, and their clients, advantage for years now.
The power of the mind is becoming more evident to the medical establishment as well. Everyone knows about the beneficial effects of using a placebo. It seems that if the mind is convinced that something is true then it will make it true even if the situation appears to be the exact of opposite in the 'real world'!
It seems that the quickest way to get the mind to accept a new belief is through hypnosis and self hypnosis. Phobias can be eliminated in one session now and new beliefs planted in the same aount of time.
The use of hypnosis as a weight-loss tool is well written about as its effectiveness in quitting smoking! It has been used very effectively in non-surgical breast enhancement and treating erectile dysfunction. So it is not very hard to believe that it could be used to convince the mind that health is abundant or that a particular unhealthy situation is reversing itself.
Once the mind becomes convinced that an unhealthy situation no longer exists and that health is abundant then just like the visualiser who makes his/her muscles respond to a mental image the person in discomfort or dis-ease can make his/her body begin to repair itself. Makes sense right!
No-one can predict the scope of hypnosis for healing. However, everyone knows of miracle healings that have taken place when a sick person has visited a spiritual healer, bathed at Lourdes, prayed etc. If these healings can take place then I see no reason not to believe that hypnosis can have the same effect.
Unfortunately, no large scale studies have been undertaken, to my knowledge, that have tested the power of hypnosis to cure chronic or terminal illness but I do believe there is enough evidence to suggest it is a very beneficial tool in recovery. self hypnosis
What are your 50,000 thoughts a day creating?
Our thoughts create our reality. This is a simple truth known by all people involved on the spiritual path. It is one of the most taught universal principles in the personal development field. Yet it is one of the most misunderstood!
People practice visualisation, affirmations, they use hypnosis, subliminal programming or countless other tools to transform their lives. However they fail to recognise one key area in their lives that hinder these wonderful techniques from being effective.
They sit day after day visualising their perfect scene and yet nothing happens. Why? They have followed all the instructions to the letter! They have chanted and imagined! They have formed a colourful, vibrant scene in their minds and affirmed that this is their reality. Then all of a sudden things get worse! What is going on?
Would you like to know the secret? Would you like to know why these people get no results? Would you like to hear one powerful statement that explains everything?
Yes?
Good. I will tell you why these people get no results or even opposite results to those they are aiming for -simply because of the following truth. Consciously controlled thoughts such as visualisations do not materialise - ALL thoughts materialise!!!
Most people believe that if they visualise for 10 minutes a day their lives will magically transform. This is not the case. You must change your core thinking. You think approx. 50,000 thoughts a day. How many of those thoughts are working against your ten minute visualisation?
You can control the thoughts that enter your mind by changing the way you view the world. You can decide which thoughts you give energy to and which thoughts you discard.
The thoughts that you follow and give energy to become more dominant than the thoughts you discard. Your subconscious mind records these as your dominant picture on the issue at hand. You then move towards this picture because your subconscious mind starts making your outside world reflect the picture that you have stored internally.
Your mind should be on whatever you want. The picture you need to have is a positive vision of you already having achieved your goal. To realise this vision you need to focus and concentrate. Remember thoughts are real, they create your reality.
Let's say you have been visualising a new house. You spend your ten minutes in meditation picturing yourself living in your dream home. You finish your session and get up feeling positive that you will achieve your goal. Then during the day you get a heating bill through the post and exclaim "Oh no look how expensive this is I cannot afford to heat this house". Where is your focus in the present moment? What are you affirming? You are telling your subconscious mind that you cannot deal with what you have. You are affirming that your life is not how you want it to be. If you knew without doubt that within a week you would be moving to your new home would you honestly be worried about a heating bill? Perhaps other doubts creep in like "I should be happy with what I have", or "I will never get this house looking the way I want it" and so on and so on.
These thoughts that are not aligned with your goal. You are not giving complete attention to what you want. Whilst you are dealing with these other lines of thought your attention is not on your goal.
If you are aware of your thoughts you will suddenly realise that you have spent much more energy on counter productive thoughts than on creating a dominant picture of the goal you want.
Point your focus in the direction of you're the life you want. Think about what you want NOT what you don't want. It's that simple.
Your focus determines your reality. Change your focus and you change your life. The Secret
Can you use hypnosis and self hypnosis to improve your health?
Well in 1958 the American Psychological Association, the American Medical Association and The British Medical Association concluded that hypnosis was indeed a viable therapeutic tool and approved its medical use.
Although there are many theories, no-one really knows how or why hypnosis works. However, the benefits of its use are clear. It has been used successfully in all manner of treatments from IBS to pre-surgery relaxation and post-surgery pain relief.
Olympic athletes, footballers, basketball layers, golfers etc., have known about the power of the mind for some decades now (perhaps the elite knew even further back). It has been shown in medical studies that when you visualise yourself performing a task your muscles respond in exactly the same way as they would if you were actually doing the task. Sports psychologist have used this to their, and their clients, advantage for years now.
The power of the mind is becoming more evident to the medical establishment as well. Everyone knows about the beneficial effects of using a placebo. It seems that if the mind is convinced that something is true then it will make it true even if the situation appears to be the exact of opposite in the 'real world'!
It seems that the quickest way to get the mind to accept a new belief is through hypnosis and self hypnosis. Phobias can be eliminated in one session now and new beliefs planted in the same aount of time.
The use of hypnosis as a weight-loss tool is well written about as its effectiveness in quitting smoking! It has been used very effectively in non-surgical breast enhancement and treating erectile dysfunction. So it is not very hard to believe that it could be used to convince the mind that health is abundant or that a particular unhealthy situation is reversing itself.
Once the mind becomes convinced that an unhealthy situation no longer exists and that health is abundant then just like the visualiser who makes his/her muscles respond to a mental image the person in discomfort or dis-ease can make his/her body begin to repair itself. Makes sense right!
No-one can predict the scope of hypnosis for healing. However, everyone knows of miracle healings that have taken place when a sick person has visited a spiritual healer, bathed at Lourdes, prayed etc. If these healings can take place then I see no reason not to believe that hypnosis can have the same effect.
Unfortunately, no large scale studies have been undertaken, to my knowledge, that have tested the power of hypnosis to cure chronic or terminal illness but I do believe there is enough evidence to suggest it is a very beneficial tool in recovery. self hypnosis
We all know the effects (and after-effects) of beer. But lifting a glass of cool liquid to your mouth on a scorching hot day, have you ever stopped to consider the processes and ingredients involved in making it? Well maybe not but here is the answer anyway!
Simply, beer is a fermented combination of water, barley, yeast and hops. The major variation in any beer is the type of yeast used in the fermentation process.
Let's look at the properties of this beverage.
Water is the main ingredient of beer. In the past, the purity of the water influenced the final result and was specific to the region of the earth from which it came. Today, water is filtered of these impurities, although pure water supplies are still ideally preferred by elite brewers.
Barley malt is an extremely important ingredient in beer as it is the main source of fermentable sugar. Many new breweries use barley malt extract, in either syrup or powder form, as this form ferments much quicker. It also contains many minerals and vitamins that help the yeast to grow.
Without yeast, beer would not exist. Yeast is a unique single cell organism that eats sugar and expels alcohol and carbon dioxide, two of the more recognizable ingredients of beer. Yeast comes in several variations, of which there are two major categories that determine the type of beer produced; Ale yeast and Lager yeast. If yeast alone were used the beer would be extremely sweet and therefore another ingredient needs to be added to reach the final product.
Hops are the flowers of the hop plant, a climbing vine plant that grows well in many differing climates. Hops contain acids which add bitterness to beer. Adding bitterness to beer helps to balance the sweetness, as well as acting as a natural preservative. Add more hops to the mixture and you will get a more bitter taste. This kind of beer is extremely popular in Britian and is simply referred to as "Bitter" (the original names are always the best!).
Variations of these ingredients create different tasting beers as well as having an affect on the alcoholic content.
When making your own beer many good resources are available which provide home brewing kits. It is important to read the ingredients of the packets in order to ascertain which has the best mixture according to your needs. One quick tip which many home brewers fail to adhere to is this: "Use fresh still water"!
Many have often sought information on how to make beer and the basic homebrewing equipment is not very expensive you can get what you need, for as little as $100.
In order to start making beer, you will need the following: A brewpot, Primary fermenter, Airlock and stopper, Bottling bucket, Bottles, Bottle brush, Bottle capper, and a thermometer.
In addition you can even use items from your kitchen to aid in the beer making. A breakdown of all the equipment is as follows: Brewpot A brewpot is made of stainless steel or enamel-coated metal which has at least 15 litre capacity, but it's no good if it's made of aluminum or if it's a chipped enamelized pot, (these will make the beer taste funny). The brew pot is used to boil the ingredients thus begins the first stage of beer making.
Primary fermenter
The primary fermenter is where the beer begins to ferment and become that fabulous stuff that makes you so funny and charming. The primary fermenter must have a minimum capacity of 26 litres and an air tight seal it must also accommodate the airlock and rubber stopper. Make sure the one you buy is made of food-grade plastic, as it wont allow the bad stuff in or let the good stuff out.
Airlock and stopper
The airlock is a handy gadget which allows carbon dioxide to escape from your primary fermenter during fermentation, it is this process that keeps it from exploding, but it doesn't allow any of the bad air from outside to enter. It fits into a rubber stopper, and is placed into the top of your primary fermenter. The stoppers are numbered according to size, so make sure you use the correct stopper for the correct hole
Plastic hose
This is a food grade plastic hose which measures approximately 5 feet in length. It is needed to transfer the beer from system to system, and it is imperitive that it is kept clean and free from damage or clogs
Bottling bucket
This is a large, food-grade plastic bucket with a tap for drawing water at the bottom, it needs to be as big as your primary fermenter, because you need the capacity to pour all the liquid from your primary fermenter into a bottling bucket prior to bottling up.
Bottles
After fermentation, you place the beer in bottles for secondary fermentation and storage. You need enough bottles to hold all the beer you're going to make, the best kind of bottles are solid glass ones with smooth tops (not the twist-off kind) that will accept a cap from a bottle capper. You can use plastic ones with screw-on lids, but they arent as good for fermentation and dont look as well.
Whether you use glass or plastic bottles, make sure they are dark-colored. Light damages beer, i would recommend green or brown bottles.
Bottle brush
This is a thin, curvy brush which is used to clean bottles because of the the shape of the brush it makes it very affective at getting the bottle spotless. We haven't even gotten into how clean everything has to be, but we will, and the bottle brush is a specialized bit of cleaning equipment that you will require in order to maintain your bottle kit.
Bottle capper
If you take buy glass bottles, you will need some sort of bottle capper and caps, of course, and you can buy them from any brewing supplies store. The best sort of bottle capper is one which can be affixed to a surface and worked with one hand while you hold the bottle with the other.
Thermometer
This is a thermometer which can be stuck to the side of your fermenter, they are just thin strips of plastic which are self adhesive, and can be found in any brewing supplies store, or from a pet shop or aquarium. Not everything costs money though even some household equipment can be used.
Household items
In addition to the above specialized equipment, you will need the following household items:
* Small bowl
* Saucepan
* Rubber spatula
* Oven mitts/pot handlers
* Big mixing spoon (stainless steel or plastic)
So there you have the ingredients and the method to make your home brew, all you need now is to get yourself a beer making kit and your on the way to beer heaven.
Bar equipment
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