Things are not right. There is a person in Washington, DC/Manhattan/Florida trying to become something we cannot tolerate. The following video explains it perfectly, especially the last sentence. Please pay special attention at the end: we are seeing clear evidence of that in #45's actions.
Some are predicting that the world will come to an end soon … like in January 2019 … just as the Democratic Party takes over the House of Representatives in the USA. I am not sure about this. Watch this video and you will get a good glimpse as to why I am not sure the end of the world is coming in 2019.
Tomorrow, Tuesday, November 6, 2018, Americans will go to the polls for the midterm elections, elections that many believe are the most critical elections in recent history.
Tomorrow is a critical day for the country we know as the United State of America.
Between now and tomorrow, many minds will be made up for one candidate or another.
For those that are still undecided, and for any future elections, I encourage you to listen to those you agree with … and to those you may not agree with.
Elections are opportunities for all of us to learn about the issues that all of us have, and then use that knowledge to work together to find workable solutions. A workable solution is not a perfect solution. A workable solution is arrived at through compromise and negotiation, through seeking a win-win situation for all, by gaining agreement based on solid values and objectives.
A workable solution is not achieved through fear of any kind. A workable solution is not achieved through lies. A workable solution is not achieved by force.
During this election and during future elections, as was so eloquently stated by Dr. Steven Covey, "seek to understand, then to be understood." It starts by listening to the other side.
More importantly, it requires that we drop the "us versus them" mentality, it demands that we become "us" and that we resist the constant efforts of politicians to divide us, to demonize one group, to belittle another group. Unity makes a country great. Diversity makes a country great. Freedom for all makes a country great. Prosperity for all makes a country great. Respect for all makes a country great.
Anything that attempts to divide us is not in our best interest as a nation. Anything that negates the power of diversity is not in the best interest of our nation. Anything that attempts to deny our freedoms, to prevent people from voting, to mass incarcerate people to silence them, to make/keep people sick, that designs an economy that hurts the poor and middle class — anything that does such terrible things is not in the best interest of our country.
So, tomorrow, Tuesday, November 6, 2018, please vote. Vote for the candidate that will help solve problems that affect all, that will help bring people together, that will be truthful and honest. even when the truth is hard to take; pick candidates not just because of the party they are running under, but because they have a plan and they can address the issues without fear-mongering and lying; pick a candidate that you have researched and that you think is capable of representing the whole of the people and not just a few privileged. Vote with your mind and not your gut.
And when all is said and done, let's all set a goal to listen to all sides of an issue, to become better citizens, to be better human beings. It is not an easy path; it is the worthwhile path.
The topic of today's NY Times' "The Daily" podcast was the midterm House and Senate races, and the chances of either party to gain or lose seats in either. The basic message: it is looking promising for Democrats in House contests, and Republicans could increase their majority in the Senate.
A key point made during the analysis is what portions of the population each body of Congress is designed to serve. The House ends up representing more of the suburban middle class centers, while the Senate ends up representing more of rural America. The comment was that this is the way Congress was designed. In my mind, it means that Congress was designed to be divided instead of united. Thus, this means our country is a divided nation. So much for the "United" part.
I understand the importance of having separate functionality, where the Legislative, Executive and Judiciary share the role of running the country. It concerns me greatly when elected officials have made it possible to divide us as a nation. "Divide and conquer." How can we expect to make significant progress on issues that affect all of us if we cannot come together as a nation? And when we constantly fight amongst ourselves we allow those in power to take advantage of our inattention. This is how corruption can go on, undetected, for decades. This is how waste is allowed to become virulent, money going to projects that benefit a few at the cost of projects that could benefit the most.
It is time to look at our nation and become aware of the many ways we are pushed to be divided. We are separated by political party association. We are split into a myriad of religions and churches within each religion. We are separated by skin color, race, age, gender/gender identification, sexual orientation, socio-economic status. We are divided by neighborhoods, counties, school districts, towns, cities, states, countries, continents. Wedges are driven between us based on schools we attend, sports we enjoy, teams we support, and even branch of the military we align ourselves with. And the list of barriers built to separate us goes on. Who needs a border wall when we have built so many other walls around us?
Each of these divisions we are part of competes for resources. What would happen if, instead of competing, we would cooperate to achieve long-term, well-planned goals that would benefit the majority? Could we not reduce waste, improve efficiency, and have greater congruence among all concerned.
It starts by becoming aware of things that divide us, how these things got started, and who benefits from these divisions. In the end we will find that career politicians and their supporters benefit the most from these divisions. Then we must begin to tear the walls, the borders, the artificial lines in the sand that have been put there by greedy politicians that do not care about the well-being of the majority and only have short-term plans that damage our health, our economy, our sanity.
When a government no longer works for the people, people must work to change the government. In today's world, politicians may be the cause of the majority of problems with our government. Replacing career politicians with other career politicians will not solve the long-term problem. Perhaps getting rid of politicians will be a much better approach.
As George Carlin said: they (politicians) don't care about you [profanity warning]
With the FBI brief investigation completed, and with the ultra-secret handling of the report, the whole nomination vote comes down to this: will senators act based on what is just or based on what the party affiliation dictates?
It is not hard to imagine that the accusations on Judge Kavanaugh were politically motivated. It would not be the first time that dirty politics are used as a means to an end.
Yet, it is also not difficult to imagine that these acts did happen more than three decades ago. If so, the acts are not justifiable. And we must ask ourselves: is the Kavanaugh of 30 years ago the same Kavanaugh of today? Did we not all make mistakes in our youth, some of them serious, mistakes that we would never make today?
I am not condoning, in any way, sexual assault or misconduct such as Judge Kavanaugh has been accused of. But I also recognize that the accusations were for actions that happened in a very different place and time culturally. They were wrong then, as they are wrong today, and if Judge Kavanaugh indeed conducted himself in such despicable fashion, he needs to deal with that sooner rather than later.
The other part of this whole process is the lack of evidence. Even the best FBI investigation would be suspect without evidence. Interviewing a thousand witnesses would only offer minor clarity to one side or the other. Law enforcement almost always needs evidence to make determinations about possible criminal offences.
And so it comes down to politics. Will senators decide the nomination based on Judge Kavanaugh's legal merits and career? Or will this be a partisan vote regardless of obvious facts?
My heart goes out to Doctor Blasey Ford and all other victims of sexual attacks. As a man, I apologize to all of you for the hurt that other men have inflicted on you.
As a liberal, I resent the fact that President Obama was cheated of the opportunity to appoint a Supreme Court judge when he had every legal right to do so. Dirty politics were certainly played then.
I suspect Judge Kavanaugh will be the newest Associate Justice of the Supreme Court. That will impact our country for decades, possibly for generations.
In the grand scheme of things we need to remember that "this too shall pass."
Today was a day of some work, some resting, and beautiful parenting.
I am dealing with a cold, one I felt creeping up last Thursday and did not take care of right away. As if often happens, a long dance event tends to deplete one's immune system, so by Saturday night (and definitely Sunday morning), the cold had developed fully, with a bothersome running nose and copious sneezing. I ended up staying home and working in the morning, and then I slept all afternoon. That was quite helpful.
And then MacKenzie and I had a great father-daughter time. We drove to Sumter to look at a used car that a co-worker is selling. We took it for a long spin and it turns out to be in excellent shape. It is a great 2001 Honda Accord Coupe with almost 190000. The current owner has agreed to take it to his mechanic for a full inspection. I will begin the process of getting a loan and insurance. Hopefully MacKenzie will be licensed and independent by November 1. She has been incredibly patient during this process and deserves an early high school graduation present.
HEALTH & FITNESS
Despite the cold I am dealing with, I managed to log 2.1 (slow) miles. I had to endure pain on my right hip flexor several times during the jog, but stretching it out seemed to help. Going up hill seemed to make it flare up and hurt so much that I had to stop. But I made it through and that is waht matters.
Today's run involved a brand new pair of Zoot Run shoes; this is the first pair of their "Sport" model that I have tried. They feel a bit tight and not as comfortable as the other Zoot shoes I have purchased, but this may be a combination of all the barefoot dancing from Saturday. I will try the Zoot Run again in a few days and see if they feel better.
GOALS, DREAMS, HABITS, RITUALS
Working on new rituals over the last few weeks has really paid off. For example, without an alarm clock I was up by 4:15 and out the door before 4:45 AM, a full 30 minutes ahead of schedule. This allowed me to handle the painful moments during the jog, and also the sneezing and low energy that came from having a cold.
The new rituals, now well ingrained, have turned into new habits. I no longer need to use the check list from my to-do list as much to get all those things done. They are becoming second-nature to me. This is the beauty and power of working on new rituals — they become new habits that help support our goals and dreams.
PERSONAL GROWTH
I was listening to the "Motivational Mornings" podcast in which they reviewed a book called "The Miracle Morning" by Hal Elrod. In the book there is a acronym for six things to do every morning to boost your productivity and improve everything you do: SAVERS
S = Silence (meditation, relaxation, peace)
A = Affirmations
V = Visualization
E = Exercise
R = Reading
S = Scribing (or Scribbing or Scribbling)
I plan on implementing this strategy to impact my future success. I already do the first S and the E. For the next few days I will add the "A" to my rituals. Immediately after my morning meditation, I will use power affirmations to help me achieve my goals and dreams. After a few days I will add the "V" to my rituals. This should be fun!
One of the key concepts highlighted in the podcast is that we need to focus on what we need to become in order to achieve our goals or dreams. In order to change the exterior world we must change the interior world. Only through change will we grow and improve.
Here is a great video that nicely summarizes "The Miracle Morning" concepts.
FINANCES
September was a bad month on the expenses side. I have yet to catch up with entering data for the month. This will be done (hopefully by Wednesday).
POLITICS
In listening to the New York Times "Daily" podcast, I was moved by the powerful statements from two women, two victims of sexual assault that confronted Sen. Flake as he was leaving his office. The pain in their voice, their powerful words, and their moving stories may change this country in ways they may have never imagined. Perhaps it is time for all of us to look at our representatives and demand that they "Don't look away, look at me when I am talking to you" and hold them responsible for their actions. Sen. Flake was moved to do the right thing and he acted with integrity as he rallied senators from both parties so that a FBI investigation would be required in this matter. I am not sure if the investigation will result in Judge Kavanaugh's rejection from the Supreme Court job. Having the investigation is, in itself, a victory. It is one more win in the struggle to integrate women's rights into all aspects of life. It is not enough to have the right to vote. Women must have the right to feel safe everywhere, to make as much money as their male counterparts, to be treated fairly in all circumstances. The chauvinistic mentality is obsolete and must be eliminated and replaced with humanistic principles that will allow us to grow together, in cooperation and not competition.
FOCUS HABIT(S)
During the month of October I will focus on improving the following two habits:
Drinking 64+ oz of water: I probably enjoyed about 32-48 oz. today
Lubricating my eyes three times per day: two times today.
STREAKS - For the record
Current list of streaks:
Writing: day 33
Blood Pressure Readings: day 17
Logging to SparkPeople: day 1 (I missed logging in during the trip)
I worked from home again, mostly to stay off the roads and out of the way of those that really need to drive. We have had periods of sunshine, but it has been mostly cloudy. It is definitely windy and very humid. Florence is approaching.
Our internet access has been a bit flaky. That could be related to the storm or just me having an older PC.
Even if we lose power, as we are expected to, I will hand-write notes and then post them to the blog after the storm is over.
HEALTH & FITNESS
Another nice 2+ mile jog this morning. I listened to Week 4 of the NHS series, with a little of Podrunner's "135 BPM - Amplifier". to finish the session.
Nice meditation session this morning before heading out to jog.
GOALS, DREAMS, HABITS, RITUALS
Current list of streaks:
Writing: day 15
Blood Pressure Readings: 6 days in a row (holding steady around 120/80)
Logging to SparkPeople: 5 days in a row (still need to enter food and activity data)
Intermittent Fasting: 2 days
Daily Exercise Routine: 0 (I did jog for 30 minutes, stretched a little and meditated, but did not do strength training) (In order to count this one, I am making it a bit challenging. A day will only count if it contains at least 30 minutes of cardio, at least 30 minutes of strength training, at least 10 minutes of stretching, at least six hours of sleep, and at least 10 minutes of meditation.)
Meditation: 2 days (all-time = 40) [The app tells me I missed a day -- darn it!)
PERSONAL GROWTH
I have been doing the rolling of clothes and other items and I have developed several shortcuts. I think I may do a video on some of them. I managed to do more cleaning and purging today; I will post pictures soon.
FINANCES
When should you tap into your emergency fund? Here is some good advise from the Dave Ramsey organization.
POLITICS
Our Liar-In-Chief simply cannot stop! Today (or yesterday) he lied to the whole world about how well his so-called government did when dealing with Hurricane Maria and the disaster in Puerto Rico. More people died there than in the 9/11 "attacks" yet the citizens of Puerto Rico had to fend for themselves for months. Why? Probably because they are Hispanic, not #45's top priority, especially since he cannot kick them off their own island. I bet he would love to build some magnificent golf courses and resorts on free land.
PODCASTS / VIDEOS
One of my favorite authors and speakers is Timber Hawkeye of the "Buddhist Boot Camp" podcast. I loved today's episode on "Self-worth."
The European Union (EU) recently announced that they were working on discontinuing what in the USA is called Daylight Savings Time (DST). The EU citizens found that the time change was no longer applicable to a society that is not, for the most part, largely based on agriculture and farming. Europeans argue that if the aim of this time change is to maximize use of daily time, then the time change is highly ineffective at doing so. I completely concur. I firmly believe the disadvantages of DST significantly outweigh its benefits. It is time to ditch an obsolete construct and settle on Standard time. It is not as if every community in the USA follows it, anyway. I think it is time to let the time be the time and stop monkeying with the time, for time's sake! Time, after all, is just an illusion, a human construct designed to get more things done, often at the expense of actual living.
HURRICANE UPDATE
Hurricane Florence is heading our way, perhaps not as a direct hit to the SC coast, but close enough to cause havoc. Schools in our district have already been closed through next week. Our governor has issued mandatory evacuation orders for all coastal counties. Store shelves are just about empty, even this far inland.
HEALTH & FITNESS
I did a partial workout today. I simply ran out of time (and some motivation) to complete the whole thing. It is hard to get back on a workout routine once you have been off for a week or two. Tomorrow will be better.
PERSONAL GROWTH
I briefly looked online today on ways of making common, free cardboard boxes more usable for organizing efforts. Here is my suggestion: use an old pillow case to cover the box.
Shoe box with top cut off. Not pretty.
Shoe box with rolled cleaning rags. That would work.
Found an old pillow case. Slip box into pillow case.
Cover box with pillow case. Gently tuck material into box.
Same cleaning rags inside newly covered box. Much nicer. Easy project.
What in the world is a mayor in Louisiana thinking? According to a news report, the mayor of Kenner City has banned the use of Nike products perhaps as a reaction to Nike's decision to use Colin Kaepernick as their spokesperson for the latest "Just Do It" campaign. I don't think the mayor of any city should interfere with free commerce and free enterprise based on their political viewpoint. Government business should be conducted without influence of personal opinions. This mayor has left their city open to a lawsuit, although I doubt Nike will do that. Nike's sales have gone through the roof as a result of their decision to hire Kaepernick. By the way, I admire Mt. Kaepernick for his valor and bravery and his firm convictions; in many ways, his courageous actions forced us to open our eyes to issues that had remained buried under the rug of ignorance for far too long. We may not have liked what he brought to light, and facing these issues has made us a better nation.
TIPS & TRICKS
An easier way to roll jeans:
TECHNOLOGY
Do you log out? It is not uncommon for computer users to allow connections to websites (such as banking sites) to expire before they logout. Often, users just close the window or tab without logging off. This is not a good practice as it potentially leaves the connection to the account vulnerable to hacking. The best thing we can do is to always log off from any resources we have connected to.
On September 6 we celebrate "National Read A Book Day" and "National Coffee Ice Cream Day." Coffee ice cream is one of my favorites, and reading a book one of my favorite pastimes. Maybe it is a sign that tonight we should eat some coffee ice cream (my favorite) while reading a book, although we must be careful not to drip all over the pages (especially if it is a borrowed item). J
Lots of things happened on this date, among them:
1620 The Mayflower
departs Plymouth, England with 102 Pilgrims and about 30 crew for the New World
1901 US President
William McKinley is shot by Leon Czolgosz, an anarchist, while visiting the
Pan-American Exposition in New York
1916 1st true
supermarket, the "Piggly Wiggly" is opened by Clarence Saunders in
Memphis, Tennessee
QUOTE OF THE DAY
"Meditation is a way for nourishing and blossoming the divine within you." ~ Amit Ray
HEALTH & FITNESS
I am been good about logging in to SparkPeople everyday for the last six days. I just caught up with entering the food I have eaten. Sadly, this effort brings to mind that I have not been exercising daily as I know I should. Time to get back on it — today! :-)
PERSONAL GROWTH
As I rose this morning I realized I missed one of my streaks yesterday. I was rushed in the morning and forgot to meditate; then got busy all day and did not meditate during the day. And so my streak of meditation days ended at 40 days. Today, I start that streak again. There is an important lesson there: just because we miss one day of whatever activity we are trying to do regularly, it does not mean we need not start all over. The event (in my case, missing the meditation period) gives us pause to evaluate the importance of relevance of that event. If it is still important and relevant, then we must start again. And, as my Buddhist Master often says, when we forget the activity (and we will), then start again, and then again, and be kind to yourself when you find yourself starting over and over. Whether this applies to meditation, exercise, diet, work assignments, cleaning, or anything else, it is a daily process that we commit to everyday.
How appropriate that today's quote is about meditation.
The other lesson from this finding is that rituals and routines are critical in developing better habits and achieving our goals and making our dreams come true.
FINANCES
As I venture into using "EveryDollar" everyday, I learn more and more about my finances. One of the things we must be alert to, regardless of what budgeting/tracking system you use, is the impact of automatic transactions. I have many transactions carefully scheduled, and tracking each manually will be a nice challenge.
POLITICS
I published my "Manifesto for a Better United States of America" as a separate post. It is not meant to be a call for revolution, but for reform. Some of the reform is drastic and could be confused with revolution. In my mind, the time for this type of drastic change is now, perhaps overdue by decades. We cannot continue doing things in the same way and expecting different results. When we waste billions of dollars on war instead of spending those resources on peaceful efforts that would result in less suffering then we miss the opportunity to make a real positive impact in our world.
One of the podcasts I listen to regularly and that applies to anyone is called "Hacking Humans." I think we can all learn from the hacks hackers are using to hack into our lives. Power is knowledge, and knowledge brings safety.
TECHNOLOGY
Have you been the victim of an internet based crime? Not sure who to talk to about it? Try the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center or IC3
I originally posted this manifesto on September 5, 2018. This is my vision of what we must do in order to make the United States a better country and thus begin the process of improving the world. I made small edits on September 6, 2018.
Here is my manifesto for true change in the United States of America and in the world:
1. Congress must pass an amendment limiting the number of terms a Senator and Representative can serve. Senators must be limited to two terms, Representatives to three terms.
2. The salary for members of Congress shall be set to the average wages received in their district. If the average wage in a congressional district is $26,000 per year, then that would be the salary for that member of Congress. There shall be no additional perks or bonuses allowed; the majority of Americans do not get perks nor bonuses.
3. The benefits given to a member of Congress shall match the lowest benefits available in their congressional district. If there are citizens that lack health or other benefits, then the Congress member shall have none.
4. Neither Members of Congress nor the President shall have lifetime benefits after finishing their term. They shall be eligible to receive a one-time payment equal to their previous year's salary to assist them in transitioning back to private life; their health benefits, if any, shall also be extended by one year after the end of their term.
5. Congress shall not pass any law that affects the citizenship but to which Congress is exempted.
6. It shall be illegal for Congress to pass any expenditure resolution which contains unrelated amendments that thus increase the expenditure. For example, a resolution to authorize the funding for the Department of Veterans Affairs shall not contain amendments of any kind unless they directly affect programs of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
7. Congress shall pass a balanced budget amendment and shall submit and approve an annual budget at least 120 days in advance of the end of the current fiscal year. Failure to do so would result in disciplinary action, potentially including loss of salary and termination for failure to perform.
8. Any Bill/Resolution brought for a vote must be presented to Congress with a minimum of 30 days prior to the scheduled vote. All such items for voting must be publicly available for at least 30 days so that citizens can voice concerns to their representatives.
9. All citizens shall receive basic health benefits at no cost.
10. All citizens shall receive education benefits, including access to college and universities, at no cost.
11. The criminal justice system shall be reformed to help rehabilitate, not punish, those that commit a crime. We shall implement a system based not on revenge but on compassion. Humankind's history shows us that the more pain we inflict, the more pain we suffer; the more love we give, the more love we receive.
12. We shall strive to end poverty, ignorance and disease worldwide; we must dedicate our resources to improve conditions on Earth for all planet inhabitants by focusing all our efforts to ensure we live in peace and freedom, and that everyone has enough food, water and shelter, and excellent free health care and education.
Partisan politics in the USA has reached ridiculous levels. Please read my thoughts below under "POLITICS."
Today is "World Cheese Pizza Day." Does that mean that toppings are outlawed today?
Speaking of outlaws, Jesse James was born on this date in 1847. I bet he would kill for one of those cheese pizzas.
Tonight dinner will consist of cheese pizza to conform with today's celebration, and we will also have pizza with toppings, to push back against the expected, to be a rebel, to be different; mostly, just because pizza is great with or without toppings!
PERSONAL GROWTH
Here are seven things you can control that can make a huge difference in your life:
FINANCES
On my drive to work I realized that some of the knowledge that comes from budgeting and expense tracking can lead us to believe that being over-budget on one or more categories is a horrible thing. While it is not the best idea to over-spend, knowing that we are over-spending is the first step in making changes that will, eventually, bring us to the point where we can live within our means and stop over-spending. This is especially true in the first few months of us taking responsibility for our finances. It is during this time that we discover where money is going that we did not even realize was a factor. It is this process of discovery that brings control to our spending habits. With knowledge comes the power to make adjustments. If we over-spend one month, then we can strive to under-spend the next month to make things balance out. Knowledge is the key to self-control.
POLITICS
Partisan politics in the USA has reached ridiculous levels. Yesterday's Supreme Court confirmation hearings on Judge Kavanaugh's nomination were a pathetic display of useless partisan politics. As a liberal, I was dismayed by the ridiculous waste of time and effort in what we all suspect is public posturing for the cameras. Democrats do not have the votes to prevent the confirmation of Judge Kavanaugh. I understand that there are many things not to like about how the process is going. It is not fair that thousands of pages of related documents were received just hours before the hearings were scheduled to start. It is unfair that twice as many pages were excluded from the disclosure. It is sad that there is no time to digest all this material to make an informed decision on Judge Kavanaugh. On the other hand, Judge Kavanaugh has an extensive public life and Democrats have had lots of time to investigate and they did not have to wait until the day of the hearing to begin the process. And, from what I heard in an NPR report a few months ago, Judge Kavanaugh is the least worrisome candidate amongst the list of candidates originally proposed by #45. Is Roe V. Wade in jeopardy if Judge Kavanaugh is confirmed? Perhaps it is. However, considering the erosion to the pro-choice movement at the state level over the last few years, it would not be surprising if Roe gets overturned. Many liberal leaders have allowed this to happen. Change is inevitable, even if we do not like the change that is happening. And change can go the other way if we liberals get our act together.
Here is my manifesto for true change in the United States of America:
1. Congress must pass an amendment limiting the number of terms a Senator and Representative can serve. Senators must be limited to two terms, Representatives to three terms.
2. The salary for members of Congress shall be set to the average wages received in their district. If the average wage in a congressional district is $26,000 per year, then that would be the salary for that member of Congress. There shall be no additional perks or bonuses allowed; the majority of Americans do not get perks nor bonuses.
3. The benefits given to a member of Congress shall match the lowest benefits available in their congressional district. If there are citizens that lack health or other benefits, then the Congress member shall have none.
4. Neither Members of Congress nor the President shall have lifetime benefits after finishing their term. They shall be eligible to receive a one-time payment equal to their previous year's salary to assist them in transitioning back to private life; their health benefits shall also be extended by one year after the end of their term.
5. Congress shall not pass any law that affects the citizenship but to which Congress is exempted.
6. It shall be illegal for Congress to pass any expenditure resolution which contains unrelated amendments that thus increase the expenditure. For example, a resolution to authorize the funding for the Department of Veterans Affairs shall not contain amendments of any kind unless they directly affect programs of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
7. Congress shall pass a balanced budget amendment and shall submit and approve an annual budget at least 120 days in advance of the end of the current fiscal year. Failure to do so would result in disciplinary action, potentially including loss of salary and termination for failure to perform.
8. Any Bill/Resolution brought for a vote must be presented to Congress with a minimum of 30 days prior to the scheduled vote. All such items for voting must be publicly available for at least 30 days so that citizens can voice concerns to their representatives.
9. All citizens shall receive basic health benefits at no cost.
10. All citizens shall receive education benefits, including access to college and universities, at no cost.
11. The criminal justice system shall be reformed to help rehabilitate, not punish, those that commit a crime. We shall implement a system based not on revenge but on compassion. Humankind's history shows us that the more pain we inflict, the more pain we suffer; the more love we give, the more love we receive.
12. We shall strive to end poverty, ignorance and disease; we must dedicate our resources to improve conditions on Earth for all planet inhabitants by focusing all our efforts to ensure we live in peace, and that everyone has enough food, water and shelter, and excellent free health care and education.
TIPS & TRICKS
Should I Answer That Call? If you are bombarded by phone calls at home or on your cell from numbers you do not recognize, you may appreciate the website "Should I Answer?" Not only can you look up numbers, you can also report scammers and telemarketers.
