Let me preface this writing by saying I don't agree with anyone who cheats, lie, or does anything that is wrong and against the law. I too, like Gid mentioned in his article, Link , teach my children the principles of what it is to be good and not do wrong things. I explain the why nots, and the responsibilities they have to themselves first, and to society next. I have however lied before. Yes I have, told a white lie, and that's being honest. That does also make me a hypocrite o...

Lately I’ve seen in the news medium how some writers have seemly plagiarized in order to write their books. Either they have lifted paragraphs or bylines, or they write things as life-stories when it should be fiction. Why, I wonder do these writers compromise in such a manner? Why, if being a writer as been their dream for so long and usually it is for most of them, would they mess up like that? Do they think they would never be found out or that the readers out there are not smart e...

Thank you Gideon for the inspiration to add my thoughts to this subject! Link [I can link so well here but still can't do a bloody photo! {laughs at self} ] While I don’t agree with the Reparations and the connotations to those like me who are innocent in it’s demand, one mustn’t forget that one of the reasons why the government has done and is trying to do anything it can to make amends is because they have to do something after years of not doing anything at all. And if we’re go...

In one of my previous “Ramblings” blog I mentioned that some people wanted to do away with Christmas and wondered why they don’t just go to a deserted island somewhere until the season is over. I just read an article on MSNBC.com, Link , that even the President is caught in this snafu because of a greeting card he sent to many friends and others that said “Happy Holidays” and not “Merry Christmas”. I’m all for celebrating Christmas for what it really is, celebrating the birth of C...

Once again someone's life is in jeopardy because of the ruling handed down by a judge who just didn't give a damn! Yvette Cade was set on fire by her husband. She is now fighting for her life! Ms. Cade went to the Courts to extend an Order of Protection she had against her abusive husband. She wanted Judge Richard Palumbo to even grant her a divorce but he wouldn’t. I heard the tape on television this morning and he wasn’t even considerate to her, he sounded really condescending! ...

[Inspired from an article written by Kathleen Parker, “It’s time to Retire Hitler”.] I have noticed this happening a lot lately even before reading Ms. Parker’s article in my local paper. Politicians are invoking the name of Hitler when they want to insult their opponents. His name is mentioned so much that you can Google it and receive quite a lot of responses! That’s how popular Hitler as become, even today. Studying the rise and fall of Hitler is important because doing so wi...

You can say whatever you want about Oprah but she puts her money where her mouth is (to coin a phrase) and she gets things done. She doesn’t just pay lip service. If there’s a need she will use her celebritydom and her wealth to do something about it. Her most recent accomplishment was the arrest of two wanted criminals. Link Oprah for Congress, now that’s a ticket I would vote on! (and at the time of this posting, another one has been caught!)

I'm putting this in the Current Events section because once again on JU we're talking about the racial issues and that which keeps dividing all of us, or at least most of us! I wrote this piece two weeks ago after watching a program on television. I think it may have been 20/20 or 60 Minutes or one such program. It amazed me about these two beautiful young ladies, singers, whose anthem was hate. It moved me strongly into writing this. I wasn't going to post it, especially since I've s...

In Florida, there are new laws passed because of sexual predators preying on our young and innocent children. There are bans in place now that are much stricter than the laws before. I applaud them. It says that a sexual offender or predator cannot be within 2,500 feet of a school, church, playground, Day Care, or any place with children. Some people are saying however, (the family members of these offenders) that their families are being blacklisted because of the new laws and they c...

During the recent confirmation hearings of Judge John Roberts, a terminology that stuck out and kept coming up was “strict constructionism” , so much so it was referred to in an article written by Rich Smith , who writes Investment articles for Fools.com . Jeffrey Nesteruk also wrote a recent article in the Chronicle of Higher Education (September 16, 2005 issue) about “The Limits of Law as a Moral Arbiter”. He said some very interesting things in his article that left me t...

Before Hurricane Katrina and the devastation that happened to New Orleans (N.O.) I really didn’t pay attention much to that state except when it came time to Mardi Gras because that was featured on television a lot. Then of course there were the movies about N.O. or the musicians and the movie stars who were originally from there. I knew N.O. was a diverse state (racially) but I wasn’t aware the black population was higher than any other group, 67%, has mentioned by Citallion who gave an ...

I was watching C-Span yesterday. I don’t watch this channel often. I watched because David Welch Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs was answering questions as to the US response or involvement with what’s happening in Israel with the Gaza Strip. A lady (whose name I don’t know) asked Mr. Welch what the United States is doing to help with the situation there? (Not her exact words) I asked myself why? Why should the US get involved? Are they going to get involved in...

I'm sitting here going noooooooooooooo! Not again! Not another Hurricane! Just this morning my son said to me that we seem to be so lucky this time around because there’s been a lot of Tropical Depressions and some bad weather but no hurricane. I agreed with him. It looks like we talked too soon. Because here comes Hurricane Katrina bearing down on our neck of the woods! NOoooooooooooooooo! I can’t take it! Now here goes the scampering for gas and water and canned food ite...

I received some conservation tips from terpfan in a response to my "A Gassy Issue" blog (the first one). I happened to be browsing the About.com Website and found the following tips as well and thought they might be helpful. 1.Don't drive a gas guzzler. Do you really need that SUV? Six cylinders instead of four? How about that big pickup truck? 2.Keep your car properly maintained and tuned. A poorly tuned car can use more than 25% more gas. 3.Use steel-belted radial tires. They ...

The UK’s Prime Minister, Tony Blair, has announced new rules for foreigners in his country. In short, foreigners who live in the UK and belong to any extremist groups, who condone or sponsor violence against the country and its’ people, even breathe hatred, will be deported! They’re also going to keep a list of websites, book shops, and places that would incite violence in the country and do something about them. The most important thing (IMOO) he said as reported in this article (whic...