Posts filed under ‘WALT’S OPINIONS’
STAY ALIVE: BERLIN 1939 – 1945
STAY ALIVE: BERLIN 1939 – 1945
Stay Alive is authored by Ian Buruma. His reason for writing this book was to describe the conditions in Berlin during World War II The source of some of the information came from his father who was living there at the time.
The events and the lives described in the book deal with circumstances some would choose to forget, especially Germans. But it is important that what is reported in this book is never forgotten.
Life in Berlin was extremely difficult during this time. Not only for Jews, which is well documented, but for all the residents. Stray out of line and the punishment could be brutal no matter what your nationality, up to and including death.
This time in Berlin and the conditions under which the people were forced to live were the result of a small group being given too much power and this group included some who were totally incompetent.
The destruction caused by the war approached Berlin gradually. Even after England declared war on Germany, Berlin was spared being bombed. But that would drastically change especially after America joined the conflict.
This book is worth reading even if you are not a history buff for it brings to light the depth to which society can be led by those who have no right to be leading.
TRUMP AND THE NEWS MEDIA ARE BOTH GUILTY
TRUMP AND THE NEWS MEDIA ARE BOTH GUILTY
There has been a subject delt with in public, which I feel should never be discussed in public. The subject is the supply of munitions available during a war, as for that matter also in times of peace.
Trump was probably guilty of the birth of this mistake in discussing the state of the supply of advanced missiles now that the war with Iran has raged for so long. When asked what the supply was available after so many have been used, and taking to the usual Trump, lied saying there was no problem with the supply of these weapons.
Someone needs to teach Trump how to say, “No Comment”.
And with this lie the news media took to exposing the lie by publishing the truth. If no lie had been made I feel the news media would not have felt obligated to reveal the true nature of the supply of these weapons. Now thanks to this combination of lies and then the truth the entire world knows facts which never should be revealed under any circumstances.
ARE YOU INFLUENCED BY INFLUENCERS?
ARE YOU INFLUENCED BY INFLUENCERS?
Ever since I heard the term ‘Influencer’ I had an immediate dislike for it. For I am not easily influencedon a subject of some importance. That’s just me, and perhaps a product of age,but what about you?
When I want information on a subject I consider important I go to a reliable source which I trust. There are times when I may depend on more than one source for information. This brings me to the heart of this post. Are you sure the Influencer you are listening to is reliable and has accurate knowledge on the subject? Do they consider themselves authority figures but have no authority.
What are the qualifications required to make an Influencer an Influencer? Does the person you are listening to, especially on a subject of great importance, offer qualifications which give their opinions so validity? I’m sure that some Influencers deal with a subject of no great importance. I am just as sure that some deal with vital subjects.
So, my advice when listening to an Influencer is to be careful. Depending on the subject check the qualifications of the individual giving the information. In this day and age there is an overwhelming number of sites to obtain information. Be careful in what you take as gospel on a subject being dealt with by a person who might no know what they are talking about or base the discussion on their own opinion?
Do not be easily influenced.
LIFE IS NOT A COMPETITION
LIFE IS NOT A COMPETITION
Life is not a competition.
We all meet people who we envy. Who we consider ‘better’ than we are. Our ego encounters problems when we meet people we envy. But we must be careful, for if we try to emulate others we may lose sight of what we want to accomplish and consider what we have done with our lives. We may slowly drift from the path our life has taken to one which will lead to a dead end. Lose sight of our own importance.
There will always be individuals who are more accomplished than we are. By the same token there will always be those less positioned in society than us. No matter who you meet accept your life and carry on.
THOUGHTS ON THE BENEFITS OF OLD AGE
THOUGHTS ON THE BENEFITS OF OLD AGE
I write this reflecting on what my thoughts have been upon reaching the milestone of old age. But I also write this for the young. If they listen they may benefit from a senior citizen.
During out youth we all have an idea of what we want to do with our lives. They may be as simple as existing from one day to the next. But some of us set out with more concrete goals. Something we want to accomplish on life’s journey. Old age gives us an opportunity to reflect on how we have done with those goals. A chance to examine our past life and ponder the positive and the negative occurrences. To think about the decisions we made along the way and whether they were wise choices or set us in the wrong direction. To think about the circumstances which made us who we are.
I had a friend who would point out the importance of the decisions we make and once made what is done is done. There is no going back and changing things for the better. He would say that life is not a rehearsal.
Looking at my own life I think about who I am today and review the decisions and experiences that got me to this point.
On last comment, and this is for the young.
Take time to appreciate the events of your life as they happen. Before the only thing left are distant memories. When you are older you might be amazed at how minor events hold great importance in who you have become.
TRUMP AND THE EARTHQUAKE
Trump and the Earthquake
When Trump invaded Venezuela he said that it was to help the country. The country now needs more help than it has perhaps since the last century.
The earthquake has devastated the country beyond belief. Recently it was reported that they are starting to lose the ability to use some of their heavy equipment due to lack of gasoline.
One benefit of Trump’s invasion of Venezuela was to restore the country’s oil production, so Trump has connections to a host of oil executives. It seems that if he truly wanted to help the country in this time of need he could have gas shipped to them.
Could that be because extending a helping hand would not lead to profit?
WHERE IS THE GOVERNMENT?
WHERE IS THE GOVERNMENT?
We all remember the devastating fires around Los Angeles where thousands of structures were destroyed. The last update I heard about progress in restoring the area was that 30 houses have been built out of the thousands destroyed. It was stated that one of the main stumbling blocks was insurance companies holding the policies of the homeowners. This leads me to the title of this article.
Where is the government?
There are many aspects of life where we feel that government intervention is not helpful. But these homeowners have been diligently paying their premiums and when it comes time to filing a claim they should not have the amount of trouble they are now experiencing. Why isn’t there some branch of government which can step in and speed up the process of getting these people what they are due?
There is one company which was named in being a roadblock in the process of settling with the homeowners. A company which I will not name but has been named in the past for denying a customer the service they had earned.
There was a resident in Florida who had a policy with the above company paying premiums for 13 or 15 years and the company dropped them. The reason was that they might have a claim in the future. Am I the only one who sees this to be terribly wrong? Am I the only one who thinks that some action should be taken when something like this is permitted?
What do you think?
BOOK REVIEW: THE DELUGE BY STEPHEN MARKLEY
BOOK REVIEW: THE DELUGE BY STEPHEN MARKLEY
The Deluge is an excellently written book where the author takes a surprisingly accurate glimpse into the future.
The book deals with the future of climate change and global warming. Surprisingly the author also has a massive fire which destroys Los Angeles. Among critical events the Capital is also taken over, but this time by an environmentalists’ group. After camping on the Capital grounds, they are thwarted in their mission in a disastrous meeting with the authorities.
There are other conditions in this book which make for a compelling story. Conditions which I hope never comes to pass. States become entities unto themselves regulating entry and establishing a host of frightening conditions for their citizens.
This is an extremely well-written book peopled by interesting characters and weaving an exciting story. The book describes a possible future, part of which has already occurred and also a disastrous future for our country.
TRUMP TRUMPS BIDEN
TRUMP TRUMPS BIDEN
All through Trump’s administration that anything that goes wrong is Biden’s fault. Anything good is because of Trump.
In all honesty Biden was far from perfect and his pardons and use of the justice department were far from above board. But how Trump handles these areas is a few orders of magnitude above Biden’s.
Okay, Biden pardoned his son, Hunter, when he first said he wouldn’t. He also pardoned his family. In my eyes the only reason for a pardon is to forgive a wrongdoing, but that’s only me.
Now let’s look at Trump’s use of pardons. He has pardoned himself and his entire family and his businesses from any crimes concerning the I R S. What could he be hiding? And what are the penalties that are being avoided? Then there is pardoning all the January 6 ‘patriots’ who had been found guilty of a host of crimes including beating policemen. And now he is attempting to reward these criminals.
Now let’s look at Biden’s and Trump’s use of the justice department. It has come to light that Biden is not completely innocent in his use of the justice department. But Biden’s manipulations pale compared to Trump’s endeavors.
Trump constantly accused Biden of weaponizing the justice department, but Trump has done that to the extreme. Trump indicated at the beginning of this term that he was going to go after his enemies, those individuals who prevented him from doing what he wanted to do or those he had some sort of grudge against. And Trump made no attempt of keeping those intentions secret. The entire world would see, by using social media, the identity of those he considered wrong doers. And in doing so negated a great deal of the indictments he had the justice department issue.
In this piece I have pointed out two areas, pardons and the justice department, where Biden and Trump do not have perfect records. But Trump far exceeds Biden in doing what is less than right.
Let us hope and pray that this country never has another president who approaches Trump in the abuse of power which he has exhibited.
OUR DEMOCRACY IS DYING
OUR DEMOCRACY IS DYING
The direction in which this country is moving is both strange and disturbing. Since Trump became president the principles associated with our Constitution have been diminishing. And the separation of the three branches of government has become blurred.
The primaries have become a killing field for Republicans running for office who have defied Trump in some way. Who went against decisions Trump has made which were less than beneficial for the country. To run against these errant Republicans Trump has chosen to supply competition of his own choice with the population being represented having no say in the matter. Their only qualification to run for office is the willingness to accept any decision that Trump makes.
I wonder of the qualifications the candidates Trump chooses keeping in mind the qualifications of those he has selected to serve in his cabinet.
The job of Congress is to serve the people they represent. This has been replaced by fear of losing their job if they defy Trump. Our democracy has been diminished by a president who values himself more than the country he was elected to serve.
Fear has replaced duty in the Republications in Congress. The values associated with our country are disappearing and the direction our country is taking is beyond our control.
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