I Believe...

My friends, you know I enjoy writing.  Most of you also know, I seem to have an opinion on everything, and certainly I am not shy about sharing it.  :-)  Alas, I have been trying very hard to find topics which inspire me to write (and be vaguely interesting). Lately I have just had so many ideas, but no epiphanies which led to a decent blog post.  With April having been the start of baseball season, I found myself watching the movie Bull Durham again, and lo and behold, one of the famous scenes gave me the spark of an idea," I believe in …"

So often in our new social media aware society, many people censor their posts, thoughts and comments because they are concerned about what their online community of friends will think.  We do it in real life too, but I believe the phenomenon is much more pronounced and evident when someone is online (unless of course they are anonymous-in which case manners disappear along with whatever conscience a person may possess). Indeed I am just as susceptible as everyone else. 

And of course, like any rule there are exceptions. We all know people who, damn the torpedoes, will blaze full speed ahead and simply remove any possible doubt in your mind that they possess no shred of tolerance or diplomacy.  In some cases, the person’s “friends” will decide they actually can no longer be friends.   Such an outcome is sad, but in the end, I think it is better one devote what little time we have on this earth to those we can truly call friend; those who love us despite our differences, our flaws and our quirks.  But I digress.

In an effort to be a tad more open (I never liked the term transparent, it leaves me thinking someone has no real substance), I thought I might just sit for a bit and jot down some of the many things I believe.  It might be fun to go back in a few years and see how this might have changed. 

Some thoughts are short, some are longer.  Some may be controversial, some may not.  I hope none will drive anyone away, I just thought it would be interesting.  

Perhaps, someone besides me might read this and add a few of their own?  

So, without further adieu:

I Believe…

In God.

In Love.  There truly is no greater gift.  Faith, hope and wonder are right there too.

I am blessed far beyond what I deserve. 

You reap what you sow. 

Labels can describe us, but they do not define us (our choices, actions and deeds will do that). 

You can learn more about a person at a meal (especially at a restaurant) than you can in an interview.

In the idea the glass is too big, not half full or half empty. Just because I enjoy seeing things differently than other people.  That said, I hope my glass is too big, because it means I still have work to do in life so I can say my cup runeth over.  It drives me. 

In opening one small present on Christmas Eve, and the rest on Christmas morning.

I would rather be respected than popular and quietly rewarded rather than publicly recognized.

Science and religion are not mutually exclusive.  In fact, I think the latter (God) created the former so, I don't have a problem with either. 

A woman who simply looks good in everyday life with little/no makeup or enhancements, is far sexier than any pageant queen or pinup model. 

A lady can look more alluring with a ponytail pulled through a ball cap wearing a decent t-shirt and jeans than in a $500 dress.

No religion on earth has it ALL right.  Too many things are interpreted by men, translated and interpreted and translated and so on and so on.  We all ultimately choose what we will believe and then spend an inordinate amount of time and effort trying to convince people that we are right and they are wrong.  I am quite comfortable with my beliefs and if yours are somewhat different, I am not threatened.

Too many churches resemble country clubs today.  They have gyms, dining halls, activities nearly every night, and very little of it goes towards helping those who need it most.  It has become more about the people already in the club.

People should be free to make their own choices in life, and just as importantly, responsible for those choices.  They make you who you are, they define your character.

Having a sense of humor is vastly underappreciated as a trait in people.  

The proverb “you give a man a fish, you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish, you feed him for a lifetime” should be taught in every school, every home, and very often.   

Too many parents expect the schools to teach their kids right and wrong, to discipline them, to educate them.  And yet, over the last 40 years we have removed enough religious-based foundations from our schools, simply because of where they came from, that schools no longer possess true rights and wrongs or actual discipline and we try to educate everyone the same way-even though we are all actually a bit different.

We need to get back to appreciating our differences rather than trying to make everyone feel "the same".  If everyone is "special" then really nobody is.  I prefer to believe everyone is special in their own way, and if your way doesn't happen to be in math, reading or the sciences, well, accept it and find your gift.  Making everyone feel special in everything is against nature.  It won't work.

WAY too many people today feel entitled to a house, a car, a cell phone, health care, retirement and a great paying job.  I am sure all the souls who ever lived before the 1990s wish that had been their reality, they actually had to earn all of those. 

High schools should require a course in life management which teaches balancing a checking account, how investments work (stocks, IRAs, pensions, property, etc), how to change a tire on a vehicle, how to put out various types of fires, how to conduct yourself in a job interview, how to fill out a resume, public speaking, and many other basic parts of life which help you be a productive part of society.

Too many parents are trying to be their children’s friends or the cool parents.  I once told my kids I hope you love me, I hope you like me, but you will respect me.  If living with the latter makes the former more difficult, I can deal with it.  Hopefully in time you will learn: love starts with respect, moves up through like, and then becomes love. 

Reading is the single most important skill for a child to learn.  Parents should try to read to their young kids every night, and as soon as possible, get the child to read as well.  Communication depends on comprehension. 

Legalizing gay marriage will not “destroy  America” as some claim, but continuing to let our education system go down the toilet will.  We need a revolution in education, not "reform."

Abortion is wrong.  I understand it may be the law of our land, but that doesn’t make it right.  That said, the Pro-Life movement today is a disaster.  Once the girl reaches the clinic, it is too late.  Yelling at them, condemning them, just isn’t helpful.  We must find a way to reach those souls long before then if we truly want to see abortion fade away.  Don’t force the choice, help them to see it as the last, worst choice, on their own.  This way it isn’t seen as taking away a woman’s “power over her own body”, it’s about a woman choosing another path which doesn’t end in termination.  I don’t have all the answers on this topic, if I did, I would be out there implementing them.  I just think the right way to help the unborn is to “win” the hearts and minds before they face the choice.

The Pro-Choice movement has just as many misguided morality cops as the Pro-Life side.  Do you realize school kids today, even my 18-year-old daughter in a public school, cannot take an over-the-counter Tylenol or Advil for pain at school without giving the medication and a note from the parents to the school nurse; yet she can get a morning-after pill (or even an invasive procedure) without even so much as a peep to her legal guardians? 

DUI should be more of a crime (punished more severely) than drug possession (unless you are talking drug dealer quantities).

True sexual predators, those adults who prey on children under 13, should never, ever, ever be allowed out of prison.  I would rather have drug users out early.

People bypass common sense far too often on the issues of guns, religion, abortion, and alcohol. 

Of course the media is biased.  It is a reflection of our society, which I would argue it has nearly always been.  I would say “duh” really because nearly every journalist I have ever known is an idealist and they attended college.  Those 2 traits alone will inevitably cause them to see things a certain way.  It takes true skill, skill as rare as an Olympic athlete to be truly objective and write/report as such. 

Not enough people stop to appreciate sunrises, sunsets, the moon, or the stars. Some of the very best shows of all-time are free, available to everyone, and not displayed on a screen.

Some of the greatest lines I have ever heard have come from movies which were, well, not classics: Evan Almighty, Men In Black, Signs, V for Vendetta.

George Carlin was the greatest comedian of all-time.

Thomas Jefferson is the smartest person in American History.

Soft serve ice cream is better than regular ice cream, unless you add in stuff.  Then it just depends on the "what" is added.

Science Fiction is the greatest genre for true story telling since you can make up any society or world you want before you tell your tale. 

Star Trek is better than Star Wars.  The Matrix is better than Inception.  Battlestar is better than Firefly. 

The British have the best accents in the world.  The French, Russians and Italians are not far behind.

Football is the greatest of all sports. 

Baseball and hockey are awesome sports, but both are SO much better in person than on TV still today.

Great pitching will always beat great hitting.

Hockey provides the best fan experience at a game, IN the arena.   Football is the best sport to watch on television.

Sports are becoming too overpriced for the average fan.  Given what it costs to attend a pro sports game, the teams should guarantee the first thousand fans a picture or autograph every game.    

Memories are what make the ticket worthwhile.

The Yankees are evil.  The only team worse is the Gators.  If the Taliban had a sports team, then, and only then would UF have a rival for the worst fans.  

I can disagree with someone on any one of these, maybe even nearly every one of these, and still be friends with them.