Therapeutic

It's interesting what different people find therapeutic. My wife is struggling with the death of someone close to her right now and even if I say something, she just listens and responds better if her counselor (therapist?) says it. I'm fine with that, at this point she needs help more than I need credit, but it's sort of funny. In fact, it may the only funny thing in this whole episode.


This thought led me last night to compare her therapy/counseling to the current outrage being shown by the democrats/Hillary supporters, etc. I'm not sure how many of the demonstrators are professionals, or at least are getting paid for their time and effort, but (at least in my Facebook feed) there are a number of genuinely concerned people. I appreciate their concern, but I'd like to say a couple of things that I would like everyone (and I mean everyone!, looking at you alt-right) to think about before posting or demonstrating or whatever dumb shit you are thinking about doing.

1. Fascist has an actual meaning.  That means when you call someone a fascist, I expect you to understand what it means.  I find it interesting that the people who are calling Trump fascist are then demonstrating and disrupting society in general, thus leading to actions that tend to increase the opportunity for someone to be fascist.
2. Immigration reform does not mean blocking all immigration, just the illegal ones. I don't see any reason we can't have legal immigration just like we have for the last several hundred years. Also as a nation, we reserve the right to
3. Stop changing the meaning of words. Misogyny means someone hates women. Homophobic means (by definition) that we are afraid of homosexuals. I reserve the right to be uncomfortable or anything else I want to feel without necessarily being "homophobic", that is unless I'm afraid of a gay person.
4. Unless something has changed since I was in school, there are only 2 human sexes....Period.  I don't care how you feel, and by the way, feelings are a pretty porous foundation for laws.  If you want to "feel" like a woman or man or for all I care an octopus, I'm ok with that. Just don't expect me to pass laws that enforce some imaginary right for you to feel that way. If you choose to feel that way, you will just have to live with the consequences.
5. You are not entitled to full on 100% "safety". Nobody owes you that. Toughen the fuck up a little my delicate snowflake. You are entitled to a reasonable amount of security, ie you shouldn't be afraid of being assaulted walking down the street, but safety for the most part is an illusion. Bad stuff happens...process it and let's move on.
6. Finally, learn some fucking history and civics. If you don't like the results of the election or the electoral college, fine. But quit arguing stupid shit without understanding the basis of how we got there. I personally am glad that New York and California are not running things for the rest of the United States. I'd also like to point out that unless you want a second Civil war, you should think carefully about how people imposing disliked rules, regulations and taking away civil liberties generally works out. History suggests that it's not usually a good result.

Later

I hate 2016

So now my eldest child may have ADHD??? Fuck this, I'm ready for the year to be over. 2017's gotta be better, right?


I guess this is my comeuppance. For years, I've kinda thought that ADHD was for the most part a scam or sorts. Not that kids don't have attention problems, but my experience has been you can fight through that shit if you wish to. After reading the indicators earlier today, I probably have it to some extent, which explains where my eldest got it (maybe).


Anyway, just had to vent and/or complain.


Later

Son.Of.A.Bitch

Welp, didn't see that coming.


I didn't stay up to watch the breathtaking excitement of the returns coming in last night, instead opting to get a good nights sleep so I can continue on my exercise program that I'm trying to be serious about.  I almost wish I'd stayed up just to watch the faces of the political types on CNN or CBS or whatever as the news sunk in that fucking Trump had won.


 While I'm not a fan of our former first lady, I thought for sure the remainder of the idiots that make up our great country would cancel out my vote and elect Hillary.


Now, I'm just  (sort of) a good ole boy from Louisiana, but even I could tell there was a "hidden" vote for Trump. La is a pretty country/redneck kind of state, but I think a lot of people even here said what they thought friends and family wanted to hear...until the voting booth closed behind them.


I also think that the Democratic party in particular and the Republican party to a slightly lesser extent has completely lost touch with most of America, AKA the flyover states. They think that the stock market is good, and the Internet companies out in Cali are minting cash, so everything must be good. To paraphrase College Gameday, "not so fast my friend". I know me and a bunch of my friends are tired of paying for everything with our taxes, seeing little benefit (personally) from it, and also being blamed for the majority of the ills that afflict America (real or imagined).


More to come when I have time...


Later

Happy Election Day Y'all

This shitshow just cannot get over fast enough for me. I'm tired of Trump, tired of Hillary, tired of the morons on the TV and tired of the majority of the American public who doesn't seem to much give a shit that Hillary sure seems to be a lying criminal.


I'll probably hold my nose and vote for Trump since Louisiana still won't let me write in my dog for some reason....


Let's hope everyone gets to vote and express their good citizenship. Let's hope that it's a (reasonably) honest election. Let's hope that there's no violence and a minimal amount of stupidity.


Later.

Welfare annoys me sometimes

I need a snickers? I guess?




The point is, we as a nation spend a lot of money on social welfare programs and so far we (as a nation) don't seem to be getting much back out of it. And that's regardless of who the money goes to. At the risk of being overtly an asshole, I'm beginning to feel a few things.

1. If you go on welfare, you have to get birth control implants. I'm fine with you having sex how you want, as much as you want and with whomever you wish. I don't think that obligates me to pay for your fuck-ups when they happen. Stop having kids you can't afford and expecting me to pay for it.
2. If you go on welfare, you should be drug tested. If you're positive, you lose the payment(s) in whatever fashion you're receiving them. You at least have to enter some form of treatment. Not sure about exactly how to handle this one once we get past the positive test portion of the festivities, but I know you shouldn't be able to lie around and do drugs while I work to pay for your living expenses.
3. if you go on welfare, you have to report each workday morning at a site to be determined and do work. It can anything from data entry to digging ditches, but you have to make yourself useful. Allowances will be made for job interviews, dr. appointments, school etc. This will not be considered "employment" and thus will not be subject to OT, vacations, holidays, labor acts and any of the other myriad bullshit that Congress has come up with over the years to burden the system. You will not be in a union, will not be eligible for union membership and will not be subject to any sort of unionization drives or any rules and regulations that the Federal, State or Local governments have come up with that govern unions.
4. If you go on welfare, you can't stay for the rest of your life. We as the voters need to set limits on how long you can stay. The work in section 3 is intended to give you some sort of skills that can be supplemented with attendance at a local community college, 4 year college, technical school etc. so you can get a real job.
5. If you go on welfare, you don't need cable..at least not anything beyond basic cable. You don't need 100/100 GB internet either. You don't need a smartphone, you can get by with a flip phone.
6. I'm inclined, although this is almost assuredly unconstitutional, to push for loss of voting privileges. I want everybody to vote, but if you're on welfare, you're sort of conflicted. By definition, you should vote for whoever gives you the most.

The corollary of my points is,  You do deserve the following: A safe space to live, heat/cooling, basic utilities, health services, schooling as needed and some form of safe, reliable and on-time transportation.


That's it. My 5 (and one unconstitutional bonus) point plan for redoing welfare. I know most of the planet will hate it, but hey, what are blogs for except to put up opinions and then let the world ignore them.  In addition, I reserve the right to add more points should some occur to me.