tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9454860512065577822024-02-20T14:11:28.259-04:00Thibeau TimeA personal view of the world; examinations of current and local issues; and most important, a medium of self expression to share with anyone who is willing to read: a glimpse into my life, my experiences and myself. I am sure that I will have at least one experience to share, one moment to disclose, one insight to behold that you will find remarkable, touching or knowledgeable. Comments, opinions and thoughts are always welcome. Tenet Noce.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.comBlogger151125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-24027479497079834412014-11-09T11:09:00.002-04:002014-11-09T11:09:35.494-04:00Sunday Afternoon Poetry #24Good day my cyber friends! I hope that you are enjoying this lovely Sunday. There's a lot of things pending for me at the moment which makes it difficult to concentrate however I've been having some pretty entertaining engagements this morning and it has motivated me to post a blog entry today. Since it is a Sunday, I'm going to post one of my original poems and continue my <a href="http://thibeautime.blogspot.ca/2012/02/sunday-afternoon-poetry.html" target="_blank">Sunday Afternoon Poetry</a> series. I hope you enjoy! Thank you all for reading and remember, love one another.<br />
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Twilight </div>
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"Come forth," said she. "Into the light."</div>
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"Release your fears on thy final night."</div>
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The smell of roses filled the air</div>
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I looked above and saw him there</div>
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I could not speak, I could not move</div>
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Was this a trick? A joker's ruse?</div>
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"Bow down and show respect to me;</div>
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Or eternal pain will come to thee."</div>
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Onto my knees I begin to pray,</div>
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"I love thee Lord, please let me stay!"</div>
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A shadow of pity came cross His face</div>
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He laughed at me and cried, "DISGRACE!"</div>
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"For Eternity have I ruled here,</div>
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And watched you as you laughed and sneered.</div>
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You did no help your fellow man</div>
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And took with Satan hand in hand.</div>
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For pity asketh you of me?</div>
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Then tell me why to favour thee."</div>
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I turned to what should lay within</div>
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But found only a life of sin.</div>
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"Forgive me Lord for I have erred,</div>
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You have no need to keep me here.</div>
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From the darkness shall I flee,</div>
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A life in Hell, Eternally.</div>
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Clearly there is a biblical influence going on here. While I don't have a date for this one I can safely estimate that I wrote it somewhere around 2000-2001. That was during an extremely religious/spiritual period in my life when I was deeply exploring religion and searching for god. Needless to say I didn't find Jesus but eventually found a road to walk upon that continues to find me enlightened along the way.</div>
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<a href="http://thibeautime.blogspot.ca/2014/05/sunday-afternoon-poetry-23.html" target="_blank">Previous</a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-476381673681645052014-10-30T11:28:00.003-03:002014-10-30T11:28:53.033-03:00 Street Harassment - A "Nice Guy's" GuideGood day cyberspace. I hope that the day has found you well. Last night, Lucy DeCoutere came forward publicly and courageously shared her personal experiences with Jian Ghomeshi. That revelation finally brought a lot of people to their senses which is something to celebrate but in this accomplishment there is also the shame that we should bear for the seven women before her that people tried so desperately to discredit and not take serious. Thank you Lucy.<br />
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This incident is an all too common occurrence, sexual and/or violent crimes against women. It is a daily occurrence for women across the globe who do not have the luxury of having enough celebrity klout to be able to speak up and see just done as it is no doubt now certain it will be dished out to Jian to some degree; at least that's the direction things seems to be changing to. We mustn't become complacent when the news story dies, we must continue to believe in the victims. Let their voices be heard without judgment or blame.<br />
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Sexual assault and sexual harassment towards women needs to stop in all it's forms. The incidents surrounding Jian Ghomeshi are very serious as they are both violent and sexual in nature. These types of incidents happen every day and more often than not it is not someone jumping out of an alley; it is someone the familiar to the victim. My goal here today is actually discuss another form of street harassment that all this brought to my head and that is in regards to street harassment or cat calling; specifically a defense or argument used by countless men. Granted not all the men I hear it from are misogynists (many are), some are just ignorant.<br /><br />When it comes to street harassment, many men have a difficult time understanding where the line is drawn or don't acknowledge that line whatsoever. First it is important to get this out there right away: men, you are <b>NEVER </b>entitled to a woman; she is not an object or a prize and your verbal sexual harassment expresses that you feel entitled. You're not. Unwelcome advances are never alright.<br /><br />It is usually at this stage that the argument in question generally arises and most often to troll or to victim blame: 'but I was just being nice' or 'I only said hello' or 'I'm a nice guy though'. Well gentlemen, I'm no woman but I have been educating myself on women's rights, feminism and sexism for quite some time now and while I do not claim to speak for anyone other than myself, I think I might have an answer for you.<br />
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<b>"I was just being nice."</b><br />
While this may sound like a genuine argument, it isn't. First of all you are taking the onus off of yourself for a wrong you committed, regardless of you awareness or opinion of it, and you placed it on the victim. Most rapes and sexual assaults are not committed in secluded alleys in the dark of night which means someone else 'was just being nice' until they weren't. With the frequency of sexual assaults and rapes against women and the way they are judged and mistreated by the entire system (and society), is it a wonder that a woman might not perceive you as 'just being nice'?<br />
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She has no way of knowing anything about you, nor do you have any knowledge of her. What if she has already been a victim and your 'being nice' is a trigger to those memories and events? When you get upset and your excuse is that you were 'just being nice', you are blaming someone else for your own shortcomings. I'm not telling you not to be nice, I'm telling you that just because you think you're being nice, does not make it so.<br />
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<b>"I'm a nice guy though."</b><br />
So am I but that does not excuse you from the responsibility of showing respect towards women. I am mature enough to admit that I too, in my youth, thought and some times said this however I have come to understand how very wrong I was. Being a nice guy, much like 'just being nice', are not something you can impose on anyone with evidence and that is what you are doing when you use this as an excuse to blame a victim. She doesn't know that and that you are blaming her for feeling harassed instead of asking how you can correct your behavior is a good indication that you aren't really that nice of a guy.<br />
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What I learned that helped me change is that being a nice guy is listening when a woman, or anyone, is trying to express herself; that being a nice guy is showing the same respect towards a woman as you would a male counterpart; that being a nice guy is understanding that you make mistakes, even typical patriarchal, misogynistic mistakes, acknowledging them and taking steps to change them; that being a nice guy is understanding that consent is given, never assumed; that being a nice guy is not what I thought being a nice guy was.<br />
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You can be a nice guy and still make the mistake of crossing a line with street harassment; a nice guy will learn from his mistake. What makes you a bad guy is using an excuse to pass the buck and blame the victim for not understanding you were 'just being nice' because you're a 'nice guy'.<br /><br /><b>"I only said hello."</b><br />
This one is a popular one in the list of victim blaming statements commonly accompanied by the personal affront that some male's advances weren't welcomed by a woman. Most every encounter begins with a greeting of some sorts. Hello, Hey, Hi, Sup, How's it going, What's new....even a nod of the head or a wave of the hand are gestures of greeting. This is how most relationships, romantic, professional or platonic begin. Incidentally, it is also someone a victim is involved with in one of those three ways who is most likely to commit a sexual or violent crime against them. Let that sink in:<br />
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Lover.<br />
Boss or Coworker.<br />
Family or Friend.<br />
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When women know they face the fear, the staggering odds (see above graphic) and disturbing judgment when coming forward about claims of sexual assault or rape there should be no misunderstanding why your only saying 'Hello' could be felt as an unwelcome advance. Again and again with these excuses it is always assumed by the man that they are somehow entitled, that somehow a woman should just be happy and appreciate that you are being kind or nice to them. There are days when I don't like my own family being nice or kind to me, let alone a complete stranger; especially one that fits the profile or image of some of my deepest fears.<br />
<br /><b>Examples of street harassment</b><br />
Whistling.<br />
Gesturing.<br />
Commenting. 'Hey baby!', 'Looking good!', 'Sexy!', 'You're looking beautiful!'....<br />
Leering.<br />
Touching.<br />
Swearing. 'You're a hot bitch!', 'That is one sexy ass!', 'Check out that slut!'...<br />
Sexualization. 'You can me detention any time!', 'You can frisk me any time baby.'....<br />
Intimidation.<br />
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The list of things that fall under street harassment and the thousands and thousands of examples that could be provided are countless and too many to list here. The above mentioned list is perhaps unfairly generalizing the many levels and forms of street harassment, I feel it is an acceptable list for people to start with and grow.<br /><br />
<b>In closing...</b><br />
It isn't about you, it's about them. That's it. Simple. No need to make it complex. Victim blaming is why this behavior continues; why people escape punishment; why so many women live in fear; why so many women continue live in a silent, nightmarish Hell.<br /><br />So you may just be 'being nice' because you're 'just a nice guy' who was 'only saying Hello' in your own mind but that's not always the way it is in hers....and the way she is made to feel is what's important not that you feel personally insulted because you don't understand. When we get called out as human beings, we have a tendency to become embarrassed by the situation and in this arena we turn that embarrassment into anger instead of a chance to learn, grown and apologize.<br />
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Once again, thank you all for reading. I hope that you will be a little more thoughtful in how you approach women, those you know and those you don't, and why your good intentions can come across as unwanted advances. There is hope yet and we need to support all the women out there suffering in silence; they deserve a stage to speak out from free from the hate, judgment and other disturbing victim blaming behavior. One love.<br /><br />PS: This post is about sexual harassment, sexual assaults, and crimes of a violent/sexual nature against women. This is not in any way indicative of anything but my support for a historically oppressed group; in his case women. I do openly acknowledge that men deal with these very same issues as well.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-64312327082469289732014-10-28T15:37:00.002-03:002014-10-28T15:38:36.025-03:00The Many Faces of LoveGood day my friends out there in the digital world. I hope that time has found you well. Lately there seems to be a tremendous amount of bad news in the world. Of course, this isn't really anything the new. The world has always been full of strife; we just get to see more of it these days. Or maybe there really is an increase in the amount of instability in the world. Regardless, today I'm finally getting around to a post I've had on my mind for some time: a post about love, the romantic kind.<br />
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For the last six months, more like a year but 'officially' we'll stick to about six months, I have been down the in the dumps, depressed even, trying to sort out my last failed relationship. I've had lots of opportunity to think, there's been no shortage of that and while I have managed to sort through some of it and move forward, I realize that there was something holding me back: I helped raise a little girl for those six years we were together. That seems to be what I can't get past but identifying the source of a problem is the first step to finding a solution; I'm sure I will figure this out in time.<br />
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I'm not meaning to start this out on a negative, really I'm not. There is no question that the damage done in the end will stick with me for some time to come. Primarily I have serious trust issues but I suppose when you open your heart to someone that you risk the possibility of being hurt. I don't like the way I feel at all. I miss being a more positive person and most of all, I miss being loved. I know there are all kinds of people who love me and I think I know what you mean. This absence, this void I feel is missing cannot be filled suddenly by someone else, I have to fill it first; I have to be happy with myself. This got me to thinking about all the times I have been in love.<br />
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I have been fortunate enough to have loved and been loved more than once in my short existence. Some people might argue that you can't be in love with more than one person but I think that most would agree that this is not just possible, but happens to us all. I've thought about those partners, most are still close friends and I started thinking about how each one felt and while each one was a very special, meaningful and honest love, they were different. The love I felt for each (all at different times; no need for you to think I'm a hussy) was honest and true but they were different types of love.<br />
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<b>First Love or Puppy Love</b><br />
I think that we've all been there. This uniquely euphoric feeling of happiness and joy that overwhelms the senses when we first feel romantic love, and it's reciprocated, towards another individual. This new sensation, emotion is something unlike we experience until that moment. We know what love is but the concept of being in love escapes us until the moment that first love enters our lives. For most of us this happens during our teenaged years; I was sixteen.<br />
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I remember how excited I was; how absolutely overcome with happiness I was. Here was this other human being who felt this amazing attraction to me in the same way I felt for her. I had had interests in other women at the time but I had always not found a way to either convey that or I was too embarrassed or shy to say anything (which is funny in retrospect given how outspoken I am). I was in love for the first time and as it would turn out, the first time I expressed that loved with someone in an intimate manner.<br />
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Things will change, as will hearts and suffice to say my first experience in love ended in a broken heart but not an angry one. She was and is one of the more honest and up front women I have ever had a relationship with. No damaging lies and honest even if it was unpleasant. While it didn't work out, we are still very good friends. We've made other attempts at it over the years but things have never managed to work out. I'm sure she knows who she is and if she's reading this, you will always have a special place in my memory. You're a wonderful woman, an amazing mother and a real friend. I will always be happy to have known and know you.<br />
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<b>Opposites Attract</b><br />
Have you ever met someone who was almost your complete opposite and instead of being turned off from them, you find yourself curiously attracted to them? This is the second face of love I came to know. I used to be a nerdy, geeky, small man of average physical appearance....wait, that's still me! She was the girl that girls want to be. Attractive, confident, strong and empowered. I loved school and learning; she dropped out. We had very little, if anything in common so you can imagine my complete and utter disbelief (not to mention the huge amount of courage to follow through) when she jumped into my car after I pulled over and asked if she'd like to go for a ride (yeah, I did that, it happened).<br />
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I never imagined that this simple car ride would turn into a six year relationship on a rollercoaster of events and emotions that are not for the faint of heart. To say we had our ups and downs is to understate it but what we had was ours. While I don't think I have fought so much with any partner in my entire life (and she'll attest to this), we made it work and we were happy more than we were sad or angry. She gave me the greatest and proudest of my entire life thus far: she bore our child. While that moment was the greatest joy, it was a <a href="http://thibeautime.blogspot.ca/2012/02/michael-edward-purdy.html" target="_blank">fleeting moment</a>.<br />
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We walked many new roads together; grew together; loved and mourned together but in the end, well, hearts will change and so will people. Maybe it was the stress of our shared loss; maybe the differences finally caught up to us; maybe it was just the end of the time we were meant to be together but whatever the case, after six years it ended somewhat mutually. I'm sure she knows who she is as do most who know me personally and that's just fine.<br />
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You gave me your heart and your love and shared the single greatest moment of my life and for that there are no words of expression. A part of my heart will always be endeared to that time and place. You have come so far from where we were; from where you were and if you should also happen across this post I would like you to know how absolutely proud of you I am and how absolutely overjoyed I am that you were able to have a family and children of your own. The right man is out there for you, he just needs to know how to handle a strong woman who doesn't take shit.<br />
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<b>Love at First Sight</b><br />
I contemplated the order of these last two but I started chronologically so I figured I might as well continue that way. This needs to be explained more as a story of the experience rather than trying to explain what it is or how it is; there is no real way to express it. Now, a lot of people will argue that you cannot possibly fall in love with someone with just a look but for all you naysayers, I say you are missing out on one of the most powerful forms of emotion you can experience in a moment. Here is what love at first sight it:<br />
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<i>I remember it as though it were happening in front of me right now, this very moment. I was with my girlfriend over at a friend's house. He was having a party, nothing unusual for him nor the group of friends I was hanging around with at the time. I was off work from Tim Horton's that night and it was after dark, night time. We were early and four of us were sitting around sipping on some beer waiting for other people to show up. </i><i>A car came up the driveway. I heard the doors closing and the sound of female laughter outside the door as they made their way up the stairs.</i><br />
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<i>The door opened and I swear by my life and my love of it that never have my eyes beheld what they saw at that moment. She stepped into the room and there was such a sudden brilliance of light emanating from her; from all around her; shining as bright as a noonday sun. I would not have looked away even if I could have, I was entranced. Her long, dark, walnut colored hair flowed down over her shoulders; floated on some invisible breeze as she tossed her head to remove it from her eyes. And her eyes. Her eyes were vibrant and alive; excitement took on some unspoken form within them. A smile across her face brought a warmth to my soul I had never experienced before. Every part of me knew in an instant.</i><br />
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<i>In that moment, girlfriend by my side, I consciously decided that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her. There was nothing more important than knowing her. I left the party early and left my girlfriend that night. I would do everything I could possibly do to earn the privilege of asking her out.</i><br />
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I stayed single for six months. I abstained from relations with other women. I sobered up. I became a new man, a better man and I finally felt I was at least somewhat good enough of a person to talk to her and so I asked her out for coffee. She said yes and that began an almost decade long, off and on relationship that concluded with a six year stretch together; the one mentioned in the introduction. While I'm reeling the aftermath of the chaos inflicted at the end, I am not here to talk about the bad.<br />
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That feeling of love I felt with is the most remarkable of emotions. It makes you feel invincible; unbreakable; incapable of failure. It lifts you up to a place you didn't even know existed. It is a feeling you never want to lose and therein lies the danger; you fear losing it so much that you will compromise yourself in ways you never imagined. In the time we spent together I was in love with every part of her and there is nothing I would not have done for her. Her happiness was the source of my happiness and while this might all sound like a cliché romance novel, it is what it is. It's the most illogical and irrational of all the types of love I have experienced and it has had a greater affect on me, negative and positive, then any other.<br />
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I highly recommend falling in love at first sight but be careful, it's a long way down from the top (of the emotional ladder).<br />
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<b>Soul Mates</b><br />
This brings me to the fourth face of loved I've encountered. Soul mates. What is a soul mate? I guess we all have this idea of a soul mate, of a person who is made to compliment us in all the right ways; another person who was made just for us; a person you are connected to in a way that cannot be expressed; your perfect partner. Well, chances are there are no perfect partners in the concept of perfection we carry around but the idea of a perfect partner is not one who patronizes us or one we don't argue with; it is the opposite. They are a partner who will expose us but who will keep us safe while they are doing; someone who sees the bare soul beneath the external mask we wear.<br />
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I have met two. One was a man and he was my the closest one can have to a brother without DNA. He complimented me in a way that I cannot begin to express and for five years we spent more time together than I have with some of my partners. We worked together; lived together; partied together; travelled together; moved together. He will always be someone I remember with great fondness despite our falling out at the end. You made me face more of my own demons than you'll know and helped me through more than I ever told you. You will always be my friend even if time has pushed us apart subjectively and figuratively. While this was never a romantic connection is most definitely worth noting as a soul mate doesn't have to be a romantic love; it can be a fraternal one.<br />
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However, when it is a romantic connection I want to tell you that it brings with it a feeling of wholeness that cannot readily be identified. It sounds strange to say that someone 'completes me' given the obvious Hollywood reference here but that's kind of what it's like. There isn't any guess work involved; what cannot be expressed verbally is intuitively understood. Your values, your ethics, your philosophy fall into alignment alongside theirs. And that's just the psychological part of it.<br />
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Emotionally, it is the most fulfilling of experiences. It is a feeling that falls under romantic love but it is something far greater than that. It's like a piece of you that you didn't even know was missing has suddenly been filled and you wonder how you ever existed without that peace (double entrendre here as this feeling brings the most amazing sense of serenity). You feel your emotions as though they were physical things embracing you; the negativity of every day existence is a distant memory in the sounds of their voice. There is no jealousy; there is no anger. There is only understanding.<br />
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There is not a moment that goes by that I don't wish the circumstances of our lives had been different to see where it would have gone. She knows how I feel; I know how she feels but this is one love I have only ever been permitted to feel from a distance. While I would love her in an instant, it is most certainly the case that it's just not in the stars. I take comfort in knowing she is out there; that she is happy; that she is loved.<br />
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<b>Falling</b><br />
Falling in love is a wonderfully dangerous thing. On the one hand you get to experience what could quite possibly be the very meaning for existence (if you've ever really been in love you'd agree that it at least makes the top 10) and on the other hand, you could end up going through the darkest moments of your life. It's a risk. It's a risk you <b><i>need</i></b> to take.<br />
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I have had my heart broken more times in 20 years than I care to count. Some were mostly painless, most were moments that required a few weeks of sadness and a select few moments almost tore me to pieces. I have been cheated on, lied to, beaten, pushed and had a knife pulled on me in those same years (I cheated once and did eventually admit it even though she never found out; it was wrong of me) and I'm sure I wasn't always the most pleasant individual either. I know I've broken my share of hearts as well and for that, I sincerely and truly apologize.<br />
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However I feel today (which is a little better now that I have taken the time to share and reflect), I have been there in some sense before and as you can see, I've made it back to a place of love and joy so I suspect that at some point down the road I will find myself falling in love once again and whoever she is, whatever face love presents itself with, I will cherish every moment of it as if it were my last because I have known that last moment one too many times.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV6Z9_eB8vDFR6JizBsKJBcgO7iqCLlItUl5GSvrPFYIaix3pkserRA1G1U0sa7d9jtK8E2UiClmZtNqoI_3sAIbS8ia2dqafUIlVcO_svdpJvR58k0BrwU48GnXhk9sKMevqH7Me5_TI/s1600/LOVE-LIFE-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV6Z9_eB8vDFR6JizBsKJBcgO7iqCLlItUl5GSvrPFYIaix3pkserRA1G1U0sa7d9jtK8E2UiClmZtNqoI_3sAIbS8ia2dqafUIlVcO_svdpJvR58k0BrwU48GnXhk9sKMevqH7Me5_TI/s1600/LOVE-LIFE-2.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://whyloveactually.com/" target="_blank">Original</a></td></tr>
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Thanks for reading and may you all be blessed with finding someone who loves you for everything that you are and all that you can and will be. Never settle for less. One love.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-23119966320556892792014-10-20T19:45:00.000-03:002014-10-20T19:45:27.439-03:00FeminismHello friends from around the global community. I'm back again with another long winded post which I hope you will have the time to fully read through. Today's discussion focuses on feminism and while I could never hope to fully identify what feminism is, I can share some of the important ideas and thoughts that I have come to learn from my growth into a feminist. Yes, I am a feminist. Being a feminist has nothing to do with gender and now that we've cleared that up right from the start, let's get into this shall we? Today's blog post is brought to you and inspired by an article on children's "sexy" <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/sexy-halloween-kids-costumes-at-value-village-anger-mom-1.2805428" target="_blank">Halloween</a> costumes from the <a href="http://thechronicleherald.ca/" target="_blank">Chronicle Herald</a>; a provincial newspaper here in Nova Scotia. It is more like the catalyst that prompted me to write.<br />
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<b>What is Feminism?</b><br />
A lot of people are confused about what feminism is. I've heard all kinds of interpretations about what people think feminism is from both men and women. Some of the answers I get vary from the well educated to the absolutely frightening. For the purposes of my post today I am going to define what feminism means to me. I understand the impossible task of generalizing such an umbrella of issues under one definition; that is not my intent here. My intent is to provide a general starting point and expand from there.<br />
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Feminism is the idea that women and men should be treated equitably and equally socially, economically, lawfully and in all affairs. Let's take a moment to look at those two words: equitable and equally. People often get confused here and run off on tangents in an attempt to discredit feminism. <i>Equity</i> means the same amount, quantity whereas <i>equally</i> means the same quality. Feminism is the idea that women should be given the same amount of opportunity with the same rewards as men. Now language becomes a bit of a speed bump here if we're not careful. <i>Rewards</i> do not necessitate materialistic gain; it can be emotional, psychological, etc.<br />
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This is a rather general explanation but the most important idea to retain here is this: feminism is about improving rights for women in all areas of society; it is <b>not</b> discriminating against men and taking away their rights to give to women. And this leads into the next branch of my post.<br />
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<b>What feminism isn't.</b><br />
Because feminism is so often misunderstood, I am going to take a minute to list off what feminism is not. It is not about taking away rights from men. It is not discriminating against men. It is not man-hating. It has nothing to do with sexuality despite some less than intelligent claims by trolls that being a feminist makes you a lesbian; it does not. Feminism is not violence. Feminism is not just for women. Feminism is not hairy armpits and legs. Feminism is not strictly for women. Feminism is not going away.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://brinebooks.com/1233/blog/human-rights/canadian-radio-station-reveals-misogyny/" target="_blank">Original Website</a></td></tr>
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<b>Misogyny</b><br />
Try not to take this the wrong way but this is one of my favorite words. Why? Because it encapsulates so much of the male contribution and propagation of the continued discrimination towards women base on their gender. It covers it all. In one simple word, granted that it is properly understood, sums up so many ideas that need to be addressed. I will provide a definition of misogyny from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page" target="_blank">Wikipedia</a>: <br /><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;">Misogyny</b><span style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;"> (</span><span class="nowrap" style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px; white-space: nowrap;"><span class="IPA" title="Representation in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA_for_English" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none !important;" title="Help:IPA for English">/</a></span><span class="IPA nopopups"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA_for_English#Key" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none !important;" title="Help:IPA for English"><span style="border-bottom-style: dotted; border-bottom-width: 1px;" title="'m' in 'my'">m</span></a></span><span class="IPA nopopups"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA_for_English#Key" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none !important;" title="Help:IPA for English"><span style="border-bottom-style: dotted; border-bottom-width: 1px;" title="/ɪ/ short 'i' in 'bid'">ɪ</span></a></span><span class="IPA nopopups"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA_for_English#Key" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none !important;" title="Help:IPA for English"><span style="border-bottom-style: dotted; border-bottom-width: 1px;" title="/ˈ/ primary stress follows">ˈ</span></a></span><span class="IPA nopopups"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA_for_English#Key" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none !important;" title="Help:IPA for English"><span style="border-bottom-style: dotted; border-bottom-width: 1px;" title="'s' in 'sigh'">s</span></a></span><span class="IPA nopopups"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA_for_English#Key" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none !important;" title="Help:IPA for English"><span style="border-bottom-style: dotted; border-bottom-width: 1px;" title="/ɒ/ short 'o' in 'body'">ɒ</span></a></span><span class="IPA nopopups"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA_for_English#Key" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none !important;" title="Help:IPA for English"><span style="border-bottom-style: dotted; border-bottom-width: 1px;" title="/dʒ/ 'j' in 'jam'">dʒ</span></a></span><span class="IPA nopopups"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA_for_English#Key" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none !important;" title="Help:IPA for English"><span style="border-bottom-style: dotted; border-bottom-width: 1px;" title="/ɪ/ short 'i' in 'bid'">ɪ</span></a></span><span class="IPA nopopups"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA_for_English#Key" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none !important;" title="Help:IPA for English"><span style="border-bottom-style: dotted; border-bottom-width: 1px;" title="'n' in 'nigh'">n</span></a></span><span class="IPA nopopups"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA_for_English#Key" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none !important;" title="Help:IPA for English"><span style="border-bottom-style: dotted; border-bottom-width: 1px;" title="/i/ 'y' in 'happy'">i</span></a></span><span class="IPA" title="Representation in the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA)"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA_for_English" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none !important;" title="Help:IPA for English">/</a></span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;">) is the hatred or dislike of </span><a class="mw-redirect" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women" style="background: none rgb(255, 255, 255); color: #0b0080; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px; text-decoration: none;" title="Women">women</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;"> or </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Girl" style="background: none rgb(255, 255, 255); color: #0b0080; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px; text-decoration: none;" title="Girl">girls</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;">. Misogyny can be manifested in numerous ways, including </span><a class="mw-redirect" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sexual_discrimination" style="background: none rgb(255, 255, 255); color: #0b0080; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px; text-decoration: none;" title="Sexual discrimination">sexual discrimination</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;">, denigration of women, </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Violence_against_women" style="background: none rgb(255, 255, 255); color: #0b0080; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px; text-decoration: none;" title="Violence against women">violence against women</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;">, and </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sexual_objectification" style="background: none rgb(255, 255, 255); color: #0b0080; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px; text-decoration: none;" title="Sexual objectification">sexual objectification</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;"> of women.</span><sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Code2000_1-0" style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Misogyny#cite_note-Code2000-1" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none; white-space: nowrap;">[1]</a></sup><sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Kramarae2000_2-0" style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-size: 11px; line-height: 1; unicode-bidi: -webkit-isolate;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Misogyny#cite_note-Kramarae2000-2" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none; white-space: nowrap;">[2]</a></sup><span style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;"> Misogyny is evident within many mythologies of the ancient world as well as various religions. In addition, many influential </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_philosophy" style="background: none rgb(255, 255, 255); color: #0b0080; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px; text-decoration: none;" title="Western philosophy">Western philosophers</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #252525; font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.3999996185303px;"> have been described as misogynistic.</span> </span><br />
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<b>Misogyny in language</b><br />
Let's talk about misogyny, big and small (well, I think they are all of equal importance; bad is still bad no matter how you slice it). One of the biggest changes I had to learn was my language. So much of our day to day language is patriarchal (male-oriented/dominated) in every way. When we see a group of our friends of mixed genders our tendency in greeting might be to say, "Hey guys!". Let's examine this for a moment.<br />
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Clearly in a mixed gender group there are both men and women so why do we call that group by a male pronoun? To be blunt about it, brainwashing. To be a little more complex, it is the continued indoctrination of society through education, media and institutionalization. We are programmed with this patriarchal language at the very onset of birth and it continues on into adulthood. There is no escaping that; it can only be addressed through changing the way we speak. While is may sound funny to say something to the effect of, "Hey everyone!", it is most likely because we are so accustomed to our way of speaking.<br />
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This is just one 'small' example of misogyny in language and I've had the rebuttal that I'm just being picky with this; that there are bigger feminist issues, bigger world issues; that I'm going overboard. I am not, you are not going 'overboard' enough. To dismiss this lack of respect towards women as individual human beings is no different than dismissing a 'minor' racial slur; it's wrong no matter which way you slice it. There are worse examples of language that you can dig up, that is certain, but the idea here is to provide a common example that everyone can relate to. We've all used this expression without so much as a second thought to the fact that it supposes, like most patriarchal language, that men are dominant over women (who are submissive). Just because you don't agree with me on this does not make it any less true.<br />
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<b>Misogyny in media</b><br />
I expected that this could be the longest portion to my post but I am going to try and keep it as brief as possible. I want to clarify that when I use the term 'media' here that I am speaking about all forms of media: news, movies, music, television, magazines, etc. Our media is inundated with misogyny and built on a foundation of the objectification of women.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZEaNXQ_sXmjDd_zCFYGrLa3G1mhbRouRaqCGLeyOscm9r-TGNU0J3f8_3CQTjeOManxFnij1YbPokZwQhluZLGP3H1ki6Wk3iYYJ6wrupQrITH-7ez0Shgou_jWcKA5aY3fsb0pIa1aA/s1600/ads.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZEaNXQ_sXmjDd_zCFYGrLa3G1mhbRouRaqCGLeyOscm9r-TGNU0J3f8_3CQTjeOManxFnij1YbPokZwQhluZLGP3H1ki6Wk3iYYJ6wrupQrITH-7ez0Shgou_jWcKA5aY3fsb0pIa1aA/s1600/ads.jpg" height="206" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.verbicidemagazine.com/2012/07/11/10-bizarre-misogynistic-vintage-magazine-advertisements/" target="_blank">Original Website</a></td></tr>
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Women are consistently and repeatedly used as objects, most often sexual n nature, in order to sell a message or product. That message can be from a news anchor telling you who to vote for or it could be from Axe telling you how their scents will make you irresistible to men. Regardless of the context in which the objectification of women is being used, sexually oriented or not, it is sexist and misogynistic, Women are not objects. Cars are objects; rocks are objects; this computer from which I am typing is an object; women are not. Yet daily we are bombarded and inundated with media that continues to promote the idea that it's alright to objectify women.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhitvH3urCzjNhtaBd_nI5iE0nrFoBw_mSfst_jeCVpgBf3oRFkNgqTXkMBSTUqTNAJr_ZFbNO8Z7pC5QYiWhm2yDs8ndraUgsPamOvzwtzLsau26TXBAspU036CfHveTSeVlZKGcrYiGw/s1600/rm1155-police-women-halloween-costumes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhitvH3urCzjNhtaBd_nI5iE0nrFoBw_mSfst_jeCVpgBf3oRFkNgqTXkMBSTUqTNAJr_ZFbNO8Z7pC5QYiWhm2yDs8ndraUgsPamOvzwtzLsau26TXBAspU036CfHveTSeVlZKGcrYiGw/s1600/rm1155-police-women-halloween-costumes.jpg" height="320" width="207" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.thecostumeland.com/40-womens-costumes/47-police-and-army-costumes/38088-police-women-costume.htm" target="_blank">Original Website</a></td></tr>
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Their are many problems that come from the objectification of women but none so damaging (in my opinion) than creating the environment to disassociate women as people thus making it easy to dismiss any negative actions take towards women (including verbal abuses). Psychologically it allows a person to ignore the fact that women are human. Once they become objects, all bets are off and they can be treated however a person should decide and that person won't see what they are doing is wrong. We are teaching men, and women, to view women as objects.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf9m-Hd3UV4xZlM_DYlPeuHARckw-obba1y1UY-cBFTQxvD48iaWk175OvUeT_4v0qmy88CqNpsWTfRsgfy0Bxb44g9mejJn7f0G_w3ivkisllqyMsxYymEEtGONiLZeKBRr27pfLhWGA/s1600/Capture.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf9m-Hd3UV4xZlM_DYlPeuHARckw-obba1y1UY-cBFTQxvD48iaWk175OvUeT_4v0qmy88CqNpsWTfRsgfy0Bxb44g9mejJn7f0G_w3ivkisllqyMsxYymEEtGONiLZeKBRr27pfLhWGA/s1600/Capture.PNG" height="184" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/sexy-halloween-kids-costumes-at-value-village-anger-mom-1.2805428" target="_blank">Original Website</a></td></tr>
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This mass marketing and advertising of women as objects is growing exponentially and at an alarming rate. It is also breaking beyond the 'norms' of objectification and are noticeably objectifying females at younger and younger ages (see the "sexy" Halloween link at the beginning). This objectification is far more dangerous towards younger boys and girls. It sets, at the very onset of psychological social development, a precedent and expectation for women as well as for men. Women must be 'sexy' while men must be 'tough' to generalize it but that particular issue has a deeper and more far reaching source to it.<br />
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<b>Men and Women</b><br />
As mentioned, oftentimes the stereotype we see in the media is men being tough, women being sexy. This notion of what it means to be a woman or what it means to be a man is part of the foundation of misogyny and sexism. The biggest problem is that not all women are the same and not all men are the same. Both genders come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. We're all a little different from one another and through growth, development and environment we become more complex human beings; more complex men and women. Our ancient and out-dated strict binary definitions of men and women are the first contributors.<br />
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What does it mean to be a man? What is male? What does it mean to be a woman? What is female? This enters into an area where the discussion can rapidly go astray. The aim of these questions and upcoming assertions/statements is to make you think and not necessarily a concrete reflection of my own views or interpretations. When we're born, our gender is determined by the physical characteristics of our body (that can change later and I'll touch upon it shortly and briefly). From there we begin the 'grooming' process. Girls play with dresses, boys with ripped jeans; girls like pink, boys like blue; girls like princesses, boys like soldiers; etc. The list goes on and on but sadly and unfortunately not one of those things defines what it means to be a man or a woman.<br />
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The continued confusion about genders we are educating our children with is causing serious psychological sexual development as well as emotional and social. By stating you're a boy if you wear ripped jeans, like the color blue and enjoy playing soldiers serious limits the infinite possibilities for character development on any child born with a penis. The same works against women. Being a man or being a woman goes beyond you physical characteristics and has absolutely nothing to do with your subjective interests; it has to do with how you identify your gender. Assigning gender to inanimate objects and ideas promotes the idea that those things are off limits to the opposite gender and that is absolutely not true.<br />
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Gender identity is a much larger and vast topic and subject to discuss and I am not nearly as informed to write at length about it. What I will say is that it is the individual that decides how they identify. Some women figure out they are men and some men figure out that they are women; they identify with that gender or sex even if their physical body does not reflect what their psychological mind does. It is the psychology here that is important; we can change the physical. Many do and rightfully so for them. The subjective idea of gender association plays an even more detrimental role in case of gender identification in young people trying to discover themselves in a world where they are constantly being told what they should be finding.<br />
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<b>Rape and sexual assault</b><br />
Rape. It is the most vile form of misogyny. The complete objectification and dehumanization of one individual upon another. The damage inflicted upon the victim is maximized through psychological, emotional and physical violation. Of the two binary genders, women are far more likely to be the victim of a rape or sexual assault than a man. That is not to say that men are not subjected to sexual assault or are not raped; they are and this is equally serious. For the purpose of the rest of this portion we will be talking about rape and sexual assault against women.<br />
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We all have a general, albeit disturbing, idea of what it means when we hear the word 'rape'. We conjure up vile images of sexual and physical violence of a man against a woman. I'm not going to get into descriptive writing about how we generally imagine rape but I now that you have that thought it is extremely important and crucial that you understand that that is only <b>ONE</b> form of rape; there are others. Chances are, you have been raped and so have I. If you ever had a partner who pressured you into having sex after denying them consent, you've been raped. If you were ever legally intoxicated and had sex, you've been raped. If you ever had to be convinced to have sex, you've been raped. Not every rape is violent; not every rape is apparent; and worst of all, not every rape is reported.<br />
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Why? Why aren't all rapes reported? Because, traditionally and currently, the victim is crucified at the hands of the law, the courts, their families and the public. So often, victims are blamed for the atrocity committed against them and the perpetrator quite often escapes any form of justice whatsoever. "What was she wearing?" "Were you drinking?" "Were you alone?" All questions that are irrelevant to the fact that someone was violently violated without consent. The only question we should be asking victims is what we can do for them. Over time I my eyes have been opened to how predominant a reaction it is for people to blame the victim. The victim is innocent, stop punishing them.<br />
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As there are many forms of rape, so too are there many forms of sexual assault and harassment. Sexual assault can be seen as touching someone in one of the 'private' areas (ie: breast, buttocks, vagina or penis) but is not limited to just those things. Inappropriate touching, kissing, groping and advances are also sexual assault. Again here we too often see the victim blamed for the actions and behaviors of a criminal or sexual deviant. This continues across the board into sexual harassment as well. My most loathed form of harassment has got to be cat-calling/street harassment.<br />
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If an attractive woman wearing an attractive outfit happens to cross your path on the street it is not an invitation to objectify her and treat her like smut. She did not get up this morning with you in mind; she did not get dressed thinking of you. She did these things for herself and when you open your mouth and harass her about it you are punishing her for loving herself; for being confident in herself; for having self-respect. From your whistle to your vile and crude comments, each one is a nail in the coffin of herself as a person. Here is another area where people will often tell me that I've gone too far with feminism; that it's ridiculous. I've even had women tell me they enjoy it and I have to say, that is your right however many (possibly most) do not and this is just another way that misogyny objectifies and degrades women.<br />
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<b>Feminists</b><br />
Many people like to put a label on feminists (discussed above <b>What feminism isn't</b>) and write them off as extreme man haters whose sole aim is to subjugate men and take away their rights. This couldn't be further from the truth (though in any idealism you will have extremists; just look to organized religion for a plethora of examples). Feminists come like people: different shapes, sizes and most importantly, different genders. Feminists aren't all women, though predominantly I would wager they are a good portion. Some, like myself, are men who have become aware of the stark contrast between men and women's rights.<br />
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Laci Green - 50 Reasons Why I'm A Feminist</div>
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Two of the most influential feminists I've come across are <a href="http://lacigreen.tumblr.com/" target="_blank">Laci Green</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/femfreq" target="_blank">Anita Sarkeesian</a>. Laci has a number of different <a href="https://www.facebook.com/officiallacigreen" target="_blank">social media</a> platforms where she communicates some extremely important ideas on feminism and also on sexuality in general, I highly, highly recommend you check out her <a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/lacigreen" target="_blank">YouTube</a> channel if you want a clear, easy to understand explanation on feminism and a number of feminist issues. Anita is another inspiration to me and you may have recognized her name. She has recently been making headlines after her Women as Tropes in Video Games series was released on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/feministfrequency" target="_blank">YouTube</a> (her channel is the <a href="http://www.feministfrequency.com/" target="_blank">Feminist Frequency</a>). While she continues to receive death threats, rape threats and vile communications, her videos on women in video games were enlightening and educational. If you have kids and they play video games I strongly urge you to watch her videos.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/gdc-awards-to-honor-feminist-frequency-creator-riot-games-founders/1100-6417669/" target="_blank">Original Website</a></td></tr>
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<b>Change</b><br />
I don't expect to change any minds; I expect only to open them. While today's story in the Herald was a catalyst to this post, I am increasingly frustrated by the vast amount of misogyny and sexism towards women that is imbedded in our society and it's continued propagation on such a startling and alarming level in every facet of society. I am increasingly angered by the number of people who dismiss and disregard every day sexism as 'things that just happen' or because 'that's the way it's always been' or 'stop being so sensitive', etc., etc., etc. There is no excuse for it. Women and men are both one thread from the same cloth; that we have managed to create a social structure where one is valued more above the other is nothing short of deplorable. We can do better.<br />
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We can do better by each choosing to change the way we speak, the way we act and the behavior we find acceptable. Stand up to misogyny in whatever form it finds itself, wherever it should find itself. There is no excuse for the purposeful and intentional degradation of another human being; period. You will make new enemies; you will lose friends; you will be ridiculed; and you will be attacked (character and possibly physically) but you will be helping to making a change we so desperately need.<br />
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<b>Ramblings</b><br />
It is absolutely astonishing to me just how many people accept the way we treat women in the world. We all have a connection to women be it a mother, a sister, an aunt, a cousin, a lover, a wife, a daughter, a niece or just a friend. Would you tolerate even the subtlest of these types of behaviors towards them? Would you ask your daughter what she was wearing or how drunk she was when she was raped? Is that even a conceivable question for a parent? It's so easy to dismiss feminism because it's so easy to disassociate; look how good we've become at turning women into objects.<br />
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I have a profound and deep empathy for women, all women in all places. I have only recently joined the ongoing struggle for women's rights and it has been one of the biggest wake up calls of my life. Never before have I reexamined so much of my core philosophies, ideologies and morality then I did when I died a misogynist and was born again a feminist. I have so much more to learn and sometimes I make mistakes but I am learning; I am seeing what it is that women must endure and struggle through on a daily basis; on a moment by moment basis.<br />
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I have only really begun to involve myself with ideas of social justice and activism in the last few years but it has been most enlightening. What has been perhaps the most disturbing is while I have been criticized for the ideas I've supported, I have never received more criticism, more hate, more personal attacks then when speaking about feminism and women's rights. If this absurd and ridiculous amount of hatred is but a taste of what women must endure when standing up for their rights it is evidently clear to me that women are by far the stronger gender.<br /><br />I empathize as best I can but I will never know the fears and nightmares that must be endured by women simply from being a woman. I can only listen, learn and share. I will continue to do what I can because feminism is not just a women's issue; it is a men's issue and a very important one that we must come to understand. While this is not the first time, nor the last, that I have written about feminism (see blog post <a href="http://thibeautime.blogspot.ca/2014/05/yesallwomen-warning-graphic-language.html" target="_blank">YesAllWomen</a>) and won't be the last, it is so imperative that we do away with the absurd notion that feminism is no longer needed; it most definitely is.<br /><br /><b>The End</b><br />
While I know I didn't talk about everything I wanted to and I didn't go as in depth into what I did touch upon as I had anticipated, I have done my best in this rather brief post (in relation to feminism as a topic) to identify some of the important ideas about feminism that I have. It is nowhere near comprehensive but it's far from empty. I hope that it will start you down a road where you begin to question the way women of the world are treated (not just in the Western world). Thank you all for taking the time to read and as always, love each other. Oh, and for those of you who are constantly telling me to stop wasting my time on a non-issue, this is in part for you because feminism <b>IS</b> an issue; a very real and disturbing issue.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-45080836856212584672014-10-13T20:29:00.002-03:002014-10-13T21:42:22.459-03:00Dairy Queen: Not Treating Me RightGood day my fellow readers. Today was not such a good day and as a result I need to share a few things about my experience. I know some of my close friends who are aware of the situation are patiently waiting for this post; I just needed to relax before I wrote anything and you will see why very shortly. I apologize in advance for the length of the post...I have a lot to say. Let's get to it.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://pubpages.unh.edu/~cvt6/project/DairyQueenProject.html" target="_blank">Original Posting</a></td></tr>
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<b>Back Story</b><br />
At the beginning of September I moved to Truro, Nova Scotia to live my sister; she is allowing me to live with her rent free. I took a leave of absence from work and moved here to find mindless work to get my finances in order and to do a little soul searching. I applied to a dozen or so jobs on the job bank two weeks into September and was immediately contacted by Dairy Queen located in Truro at 945 Prince Street.<br />
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I wasn't looking for responsibility or authority; I was looking for something I could do to keep a low profile and earn some money. During the interview with the owner, John, and the Truro store manager, Greg, it became quickly evident that John had something more in mind. Given my extensive experience in fast food and management, John wanted me to work at his Stewiacke location to assist his current manager. As my sister works only ten minutes from Stewiacke and I could get a ride, I informed him that I would take that role on if he wanted but it would have to accommodate my sister's schedule: nine to five, Monday to Friday. I was hired the next day and started my training that very same week.<br />
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Despite taking on more than I had originally planned I thought it might be a good opportunity so I accepted the position at whatever wage they chose to pay. I requested only minimum wage and flipping burgers; they gave me above minimum wage, a supervisory role and a future bigger role to play. This was what they wanted and pushed me for; I agreed because it would assist me.<br />
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<b>The Beginning</b><br />
Having worked over fifteen years in fast food, I was looking forward to my training as I was sure much of it would come naturally; it did. As I became a little more familiar with the work I was doing, I began to do little things that were inconsequential if not done but might be helpful in the overall operation of serving customers. It became apparent rather quickly that this was not only not appreciated but not welcome.<br />
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On my second day, I was working at bagging orders for drive thru and in store. They were very clear that when bagging orders that you only dispense <b>ONE</b> napkin per food item. This isn't unheard of and is mostly common practise at many restaurants. I noticed that most drive thru orders had a minimum of two food items as most people would get a combo of some sorts. Taking this empirical and observed data, I began bagging small bags with two napkins ahead of the lunch rush. What happened next was the first indication that things were not going to go as smoothly as I hoped.<br />
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One of the workers saw me, inquired about what I was doing and then seemed impressed about the idea and the time it would help save over peak periods. A minute later Greg, the manager, saw what I was doing and instead of asking why, he simply looked at me and in a rude and obnoxious tone simply said, "No." Needless to say I was confused so I asked him what he meant. He just told me to stop doing it. I explained what I was doing, or tried, and he cut me off and told me to stop and take the napkins out. Again, I politely asked why to which the answer inevitable arrived at: "Because I said so." Warning bells were now sounding.<br />
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<b>Paper Towel & Bacteria</b><br />
Dairy Queen uses brown paper towels for their dispensers to dry your hands. As I was doing dishes one day, I required one of the items immediately. After washing, rinsing and then sanitizing the dish in question, I took some fresh paper towel and began to dry off the item needed. Midway through the process, Greg spots what I am doing and once more it is a snarky and rude command, "NO!". I inquire as to what he means and he tells me that I'm not allowed to dry anything with the paper towel. I asked why to which I was told, "Because you are spreading bacteria all over it." Seems legit right? Not really.<br />
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First, the dish was cleaned using proper procedure and during this process my hands also were properly cleaned. The paper towel I was using was straight out of the box, mostly free of contaminants; at least no more than an open air surface would have. But let's say that he's right, not a problem...wait, yes it is. In a restaurant that does not use gloves when handling <b>ANYTHING</b>, it is both illogical and incorrect to give me that as an explanation and reason not to use paper towel. Each employee, including the manager and owner, wash their hands and then use the <b>SAME</b> brown paper towel to wash their hands before touching food products and open surfaces. How can it be safe to dry my hands and not spread bacteria everywhere that way but unsafe to dry a dish? It can't. This is a contradiction and nature abhors a contradiction. I didn't call him out on it. I dropped it and I kept my mouth quiet and did what I was told.<br />
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<b>Touch Screens & A Stylus Pen</b><br />
Dairy Queen uses touch screen monitors at their point of sale which is rather helpful when it comes to quickly entering in an order; at least when it works properly. After being trained on the cash register, I was having difficulties with the touch screen. I would press on something and it would not acknowledge my touch or it would select an item around it causing me to oftentimes enter an entire combo order before I can delete it and start over. The drive thru was particular bad for this perhaps because it was used more.<br />
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One day during a rush such an incident occurred on the front counter with a very kind and understanding woman. When I explained what had happened she reached into her purse and gave to me a brand new stylus pen; a stylus pen that is specifically designed for <b>ALL</b> touch screen devices. I opened it up immediately and used it very efficiently to finish taking her orders. It was like using the cash register for the first time. Every button I touched responded as it was supposed to and my efficiency at cash immediately doubled; possibly tripled.<br />
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As I continued taking orders, Greg stepped away from the drive thru he was running over our peak lunch hour and came over to me at the front counter and once again I was told nothing more than, "No." I asked why once again and again was met with little to no explanation. I explained, as I had before about the difficulties I was having with the touch screen and how much better the stylus was making me to which I was told, "Listen, I can't have you using that. First it breaks up the aesthetics because you're different then the others on cash and secondly because another staff might see you using it and use a real pen and break the screen. Those are $55,000 machines." He then turned and walked away. Wow.<br />
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First, if you paid fifty five thousand dollars for each of your touch screens you need to re-visit your vendor, demand your money back and go down to The Source and pick some up for a couple thousand that would do all the same things and save you a bundle. Second, and this one here is particularly disturbing, what kind of faith do you have in your staff that you think one of them would use a real pen on a touch screen? What kind of idiots are working there and better yet, what does it say about the manager who hired the employees he considers so stupid and incapable that they'd use a real pen on a touch screen? This moment proved without a doubt that Greg has no respect for his staff whatsoever. I fully understood that the lack of morale among the staff was most likely a direct result of Greg and his poor leadership skills. He's definitely a boss, not a leader.<br />
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<b>Confrontational</b><br />
During me second week, I came in on my day off to drop off banking information. This one minute drop off turned into a twenty minute critique of everything I learned up until then. Greg stopped me from leaving to tell me how poorly I was doing in certain areas; that I needed to get better faster; and lastly, to tell me that I was confrontational because, and I quote, "When I told you to stop bagging napkins you questioned me." I was confused and asked for an explanation turned me into 'confrontational'.<br />
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Every day for the three weeks that I worked at Dairy Queen I was met by Greg telling me about something I did wrong or criticizing the work I was doing or the method in which I was doing it. Over that three week period I never once received positive encouragement, compliments or constructive criticism about my work. Every word that came from my manager was to tear me down. When I shared this with a few co-workers I was told a few disturbing things but mostly that 'that is the way he is with everyone.' Really? That is possibly the worst style of management to undertake: rule by force.<br />
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An example of the sheer pettiness of the determination to degrade me and make me feel even more useless, I will share this complaint. He called on his day off and had not one but two staff tell me that I was writing down my cash wrong. What was wrong about it? I'll show you. When I count cash, I write out the denominations I'm counting in a column, then a multiplication symbol column, then an empty column for the number of each denomination I have, then an equal sign column and finally a column for the sum. Like this:<br />
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5 x ____ = <br />
10 x ____ =<br />
20 x ____ =<br />
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That's intuitive to me, organized and easy to understand. Apparently it's all completely wrong. He took time out of his day to have two employees do his beration for him and instruct me in the proper method that is <b>REQUIRED</b>:<br />
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____ x 5 =<br />
____ x 10 =<br />
____ x 20 =<br />
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Can you imagine how petty and insecure you have to be for something like this? Banks do it via method one; every restaurant I have ever work at does it via method one; every bank deposit slip I've ever filled out does it via method one; but no, I was doing it all completely wrong. How stupid I was!<br />
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<b>Burgers, Buns & Microwaves</b><br />
I understand the pressure and stress of the fast food industry, the high demand for fast, accurate service. I have lived it for half of my life and I am aware that there are times where corners are cut in order to meet those demands but some of the practices at Dairy Queen left me not wanting to eat there anymore.<br />
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Fresh is important. We've all been through a drive thru and asked for fresh fries. Why? Because we know that they sit there for long periods of time some days and they get served even if they should have been tossed out. Dairy Queen practises this to the fullest extent. I never once saw fries being thrown out from sitting too long and there were times where they sat and started becoming soggy. But I'm used to this sort of practice, I don't agree with it but it's not my business. However, their hamburger practice is a little more disturbing.<br />
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When you buy a burger from DQ you are taking a risk. Oftentimes a dozen or more patties are cooked through the 'grill' regardless of being needed or not and then are kept in a 'warming' tray. Yes, all burger restaurants use warmers but I have worked at others, including Wendy's and they throw out (or use for other purposes) their patties after they have sat too long; not so with DQ. Your patty may have just been cooked or it may have just been cooked a few hours ago; you have no way to tell. Those toasted buns (yes, the buns are toasted in case you missed it) are all toasted prior to store opening for the entire day; the entire day. The bacon you enjoy on your burgers? Microwaved to perfection in bulk and left to sit in the open air all day long. To make sure you always have a nice hot burger, once it is all put together they stuff it into a microwave and nuke it. Yup, every burger and poutine is microwaved prior to being served. Hot food is not an indication of fresh food; quite the opposite.<br />
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<b>Food Prep & Hand-washing Protocol</b><br />
During what would be my third and final week, I was trained to work the grill which included prep work. I enjoy prep work and making burgers because I am good at it, exceptionally so and because I enjoy using my hands. There is a certain satisfaction to be found in it. However, I was somewhat taken aback that all the prep work is done on the same cutting board, attached to the burger making unit, and was rarely wiped down while switching between foods. I am <b>SUPER</b> particular about cross contamination. I hospitalized a woman as a teenager by mistakenly serving her green peppers and that incident has stayed with me since. I take food safety very seriously.<br />
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On the front counter is where all the candy and toppings are kept for blizzards and all their ice cream products; this includes at least two varieties of nuts: peanuts with skins (loose and attached) and pecans. While they are kept at the end of the line, they are added using a spoon like all the others. This causes them to spill out onto the counter and into other products. Given the gravity and severity of allergies to nuts common in our society today I find their practice of nut storage a dangerous gamble with the lives of the consumer. Even if a customer identifies an allergy, there is no certainty that it will be nut free even if nuts are not part of the actual item.<br />
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Outwardly, the management promoted but hardly enforced proper hand-washing. On my <b>LAST </b>day of grill training I was told that the grill person sets a 30 minute timer to be reminded to inform all staff to change their sanitizer cleaning water for fresh stuff and to wash their hands. I was spoken to by my manager because I forgot to do it once that day. In my three weeks at Dairy Queen I was never once, not once asked to wash my hands or change my sanitizer water. Clearly the practice is good in theory but without action it does not nothing to prevent cross contamination and the spreading of dangerous germs and bacteria. Those same hands are being used to touch your patties, your buns, your cheese, your veggies, your fries and almost every other food in the store. Yum!<br />
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<b>Miscellaneous</b><br />
At least twice a day I was shown how to perform a task by my trainer or the manager and twice a day I would be told by one of the two, the opposite one who trained me, that I was doing it wrong. I attempted numerous times to convey my concerns in a professional manner and was ignored, berated or critiqued at every turn.<br />
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While I have spent a lot of time complaining, and there is still a bit more to come, I have to say that it was not all bad. Many of the staff members were wonderful and fantastic people that I am happy to have met. It should also be noted that many of the staff expressed the same frustration with the manager and his inability to lead and the constant negative criticisms of their work. Many clearly did not respect him and rightfully so given his lack of respect for them. John, the owner, seems like a your average business owner: happy as long as things are running smooth and the store is making money. He reminded me a lot of my first employer and while our interactions were limited, I developed an immediate sense of respect of him. He was honest and straight-forward but never ignorant; the opposite of his manager. I was told by one of the staff that 'Greg does it John's way and acts one way while he's here and as soon as he leaves it's back to Greg's way.'<br />
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Something I found extremely odd and would be concerned about as an owner: no inventory process. Well, that's not entirely true. Once a year they do an annual inventory count. Once a year. I don't understand this. Every restaurant I worked at before did it at the very minimum monthly; many did bi-weekly; and others, every week. This is essential to keep food and product costs down to maximize profits. That's business 101. While the lack of inventory management is irrelevant to me, I found that to be particularly strange.<br />
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<b>The Firing</b><br />
Today I was sitting at home, wondering what would be awaiting me at work today. What new critique of my work would it be today? Despite the anxiety of knowing that every day you go to work you are going to be put down and criticized, I was feeling somewhat relaxed as it's a holiday and the manager would not be in; just a skeleton crew of high school aged employees and myself. I was listening to music when my sister came in with the phone; work. My stomach went into knots. I already knew what was coming despite having conceded every argument, adjusted my work to every critique, refrained from standing up for myself and adhered to what, in my opinion, are some absurd rules and regulations. It was Greg.<br />
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Greg called me to tell me that they 'would no longer be continuing with my employment.' As the nerves crashed, my hands began to shake and I forced a out a very polite and calm why. I was told flat out, "I don't have to tell you. It's within the three month trial period." I told him I understood that he did not need a reason to fire me on paper but asked for an explanation as that was the professional thing to do. He told me "No." I told him that I felt he was being disrespectful towards me, that I didn't understand and asked for something, anything to help understand the decision. "No." And with yet another ignorant conversation, I was no longer employed. No reason, no explanation.<br />
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I have worked, as mentioned, in fast food for over fifteen years. I have been just a lowly staffer; I have been a supervisor more times at more places then I care to share; I have also managed one. I know about the 90 day trial; I know how to bend the rules; I know all the things that Greg tried to make himself feel superior with by treating me like I was incompetent and ignorant despite knowing I had the same knowledge. It is precisely that he knows I know that the professional courtesy should have been shown and an explanation provided. I can take being fired but I should be entitled to at least an explanation. It is not much to ask given there was no warning or indication and I had committed myself to helping them out by taking on a larger role then I wanted. In fact, I was made to feel, by the manager once more, that they were somehow doing me some great favor by allowing me to work for them in that capacity. I didn't ask for it, they pushed and urged me to do it. I honestly did it for John because I could see he really had high hopes and John, if you get the chance to read this, all your hopes and expectations would have been met and surpassed if it wasn't for the arrogance, ignorance and audacity of your narrow-minded, bullying and rude manager.<br />
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<b>The End</b><br />
There is more I could tell, little things I could share that would further help paint a picture of the environment I worked in and the absurdity of my firing in relation to the actions and behavior of some of the other staff that work there but this post has already gone on longer than expected. I think enough has been said about my experience without needing to add anymore.<br />
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Needless to say, my time at Dairy Queen was by far one of the worst job experiences I have ever had and the absolute worse in the fast food industry. The sad irony is that it had nothing to do with the work, the job or the stress. It was about respect, rather a lack thereof, and a complete inability to treat employees as human beings. I cannot not consciously end this without advising that you avoid the Dairy Queen in Truro. Spending your money there helps a manager on a power trip further destroy the morality and self-worth of almost every employee that works there. You also take some health risks especially if you have allergies (absolutely no glove usage whatsoever; in three weeks I was the only person who used gloves for anything).<br />
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While I do not hold the company directly responsible for any of this, there is a disconnect between corporate and franchise level. Corporate, as I've come to learn, only becomes concerned when the money isn't rolling in or if marketing isn't up to par. Outside of that they show little interest in how operations are run.<br />
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I want to thank you for reading if you've made it this far into my post. I was beginning to feel more confident about my situation and that I was finally starting to move forward in a positive direction only to be torn down and cast aside by a petty and spiteful individual. I was angry, very angry but I took the day to calm down before writing anything about my experience. I find it best to write with a clear mind over a clouded one. I am still upset and mad about the situation. Once again I find myself having to start anew once more and it is extremely frustrating and demoralizing.<br />
<br />
And with that, I thank you all once more and wish only positive and amazing things for you all. Today was a write off but tomorrow brings with it the promise of a new day and with every new day comes new opportunity. Perhaps the Universe had to get me out of there because I was ignoring the detrimental effect it was having on me simply because I need to work.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-79881868225478510572014-05-29T14:29:00.001-03:002014-05-29T15:58:00.147-03:00#YesAllWomen (Warning: Graphic Language Content)Good day my friends from around the world. I hope that today has found you with the same optimistic passion for life that it has found me with. I am feeling particularly joyful today and though today's blog entry doesn't necessarily align with my particular emotional state, it is a subject that has rightfully found a place of conversation in the public eye. Unfortunately the conversation isn't nearly loud enough and nor are there enough people, especially men, talking about it. I highly suggest watching the video linked below for one of the best explanations for what inspired the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/YesAllWomen?src=hash" target="_blank">#YesAllWomen</a> campaign and for insights/explanations into what misogyny and sexism are. Just a fantastic explanatory video.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
Warning: Graphic Content</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/HPFcspwbrq8?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Please visit Laci Green's <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJm5yR1KFcysl_0I3x-iReg" target="_blank">YouTube</a> channel & Subscribe!</div>
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I am no woman. I don't presume to understand or know what it is that they endure at the hands of misogyny within a patriarchal society. I cannot begin to place myself in the of shoes the women who live with a constant nagging feeling of fear and paranoia wherever they go just because they are around men. I'm not going to try and pretend that I know what it's like; I don't. Because I don't, I'm not going to try and discuss the subject of sexism from the point of view of a woman; that would be both presumptuous and insulting.<br />
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What I am going to talk about is how men, no not all men but for the remainder of this blog entry I won't be making any effort to correct myself here because until you have demonstrated that you are "not all men" then you are "all men" (myself included), use misogyny to subjugate women but also use misogyny and sexism to subjugate men as well. I'm not bringing up this topic in any way to remove from the real crime here, the one against women, but so that men can see how their behavior towards men also promotes sexism towards women, misogyny, patriarchy and in some cases, homophobia. Let's explore.<br />
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For those of you who don't know, I'm a pretty small guy. Weighing in at about 125lbs at 5'9", I'm not exactly what one might call intimidating. Throw in some glasses and a love for math and science and you have the perfect storm to create a nerd or geek. That's me. And I'm proud of my Geek/Nerd-dom; but it wasn't always that way. No, for a long time, and even occasionally now, I was at the mercy of alpha males and bullies; heck, in some cases it was the beta's! So I'm going to try and make this relevant now before someone accuses me of co-opting a feminist movement; I'm just trying to demonstrate how the effective and successful effort to destroy misogyny and create a gender equal/equitable world will first and foremost help women but also men.<br />
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When I was growing up I was subjected to a number of different forms of bullying, not excluding violence. I can empathize with the feelings of despair, of powerlessness, of fear and of vulnerability. Most often I was abused verbally with name calling and accusations and this is where I know that some of you have shared experiences in this regard and also where the <a href="https://www.google.ca/#q=%23yesallwomen" target="_blank">#YesAllWomen</a> comes into play. You see, the "bad" things I was called weren't actually bad but they were vocalized with negative intent which is very relevant to the issue.<br />
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"Stop being such a girl."<br />
"Don't be a pussy."<br />
"Fag."<br />
"You're such a little bitch."<br />
"Don't be a girl."<br />
"You're such a girlie-boy."<br />
"You're such a girl."<br />
"A girl could beat you up."<br />
"Faggot."<br />
"Mama's boy."<br />
"Scared little girl."<br />
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I think you get the gist of it by now. Needless to say that this form of mental abuse was very detrimental to my self esteem and personal development; and this is just the tip of the iceberg. I too lived in fear and paranoia of men. I didn't know when I might become the subject of their attacks or hatred and how they might make me suffer for that. My parents, most likely my mother, will be reading this and she doesn't need to know any more than this. I've grown. I've learned. I've forgiven. I let this end result of years of mental, verbal and psychological abuse allow me to make "justified" poor decisions but I have long since moved on from there. Back to the topic at hand.<br />
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It's extremely self-evident the point I was trying to make here and if it's not, then I will type it out plainly for you here men: It is misogyny and sexism when you use women (or gay men) as a way to insult another man, make him feel inferior and make him feel emasculated. Do you understand what's wrong here? Women are not inferior to men; gay men are not inferior to straight men. When you use "insults" like that, you are promoting sexism, misogyny, homophobia and hate. There is no other way around it. It isn't "boys will be boys"; it isn't "that's just kids being kids"; it isn't "that's just the way it's always been"; it is nothing short of abuse.<br />
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Because I am a man I am told not to feel and when I do I am told to stop being such a "girl". I have a news flash for you men. Maybe if you took the time to recognize that as a man, that you DO have feelings (incidentally the very SAME feelings that women and ALL humans feel) and that if you acknowledged them and processed them rather than not, that maybe some of this violent abuse would able to be properly addressed; some of it may even stop. And it needs to do that. Stop.<br />
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I don't, in any way, intend to take away from the struggles that women face from their male counterparts on a daily basis all across the globe but rather demonstrate that the struggle they face transcends beyond the feminism and into the masculine. Because of this, you men should be way more compassionate, understanding and willing to listen and change; you are doing serious, irreparable damage. This is a serious problem. It is predominantly and primarily a women's issue because they are the victims and the victim has the most insight into the problem; it is secondarily and directly a men's issue because they are the primary causes of the behavior; but because it is an issue for both, it is a societal issue, a human issue because no matter what "side" you're on, it negatively affects us all. And we are all, each one of us, regardless of gender, Human.<br />
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I want to thank you all for bearing with me while I tried to share this point of view in regards to this unjust way in which we systematically abuse women. I have been personally been moved, changed, inspired and grown as a direct result of feminism teaching me the ways in which I myself have propogated this very same problem. I am thankful for each feminist, female and male alike, who have taken the time to help educate me and provide me with wisdom in a constructive way so that I too can help in my own little way to fight back against this affront against women. As always:<br />
<br />
Smile.<br />
Love Yourself.<br />
Love Each Other.<br />
Today and EVERY Day, Respect Women.<br />
<br />
<b>UPDATED</b><br />
An example, I suppose, of what I was trying to convey. Today I didn't bring a sweater to work and it is cold in here so I borrowed a flat yellow sweater from one of the women at work to keep warm. So far I've received the following "compliments":<br />
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"You look very girlie today John."<br />
"You kind of look like a cute lesbian from the back."<br />
"Nice women's sweater."<br />
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I do understand, as most of you will probably, that there was no negative intention in the comments. They were meant to be light, offhand jokes; sarcastic responses to something outside of their norm and I am not offended but that doesn't mean the comments aren't inappropriate. While they seem innocent enough, comments like this (especially coming from women and men alike) continue to promote sexism. Just some thoughts as I was proof reading.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-7543439276990452592014-05-28T13:31:00.000-03:002014-05-28T13:31:11.016-03:00Dear John - A Letter To MyselfGood day my friends, wherever you might be found today! I hope that the day has found you safe, healthy and happy. Personally, while nothing of a spectacular nature has occurred, I find myself quite content and optimistic. I'm aiming to quit smoking on June the 1st, just three more days, and start going to a gym to work out. Healthy lifestyle, here I come. I've also stepped it up a notch with my external attire when going to work and already, after a mere two hours, I've already received several compliments on my appearance (which begs the question: did I look like a slob before or do I just look that much better?).<br />
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Today's blog entry is an idea that I wish I had had the foresight to think up a LONG time ago but better late than never I suppose. The idea was planted when I came across a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFGAQrEUaeU" target="_blank">video link</a> of a man who had videotaped a message for his future self. What a novel idea! Looking back on old writings and poems, it's interesting to see how I have developed over time; how I have changed; how I have evolved. With that in mind, I thought I would write my future 50 year old self a letter and with any luck, in 20 years we'll still be here along with the Internet and I can come back and reflect upon it. Also, this is my first and only 'Dear John' letter (you might not get that joke but I'm sure some of you are chuckling at least a little bit).<br />
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<i>Dear John,</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>It's been a long time my dear friend; almost twenty years. I am sure that a lot has changed between now and then. I wonder what the future might look like. In case you've forgotten, here in 2014 we have global conflicts happening all the time (Ukraine is a big one right now; is that even a country now? Do countries even exist?). We love our technology; Apple and Samsung rule the mobile/cellular market and computers are between Apple and Microsoft. Do we still have computers and cell phones?</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>I hope that the last twenty years or so have treated you well. I wrote this letter to you so that you could remember some of what it was like in 2014 and also so that I could remind you of a few things. Right now, you are a call center agent working at <a href="http://www.blueocean.ca/" target="_blank">Blue Ocean</a>. You do enjoy your work even though you feel like there is something more, something greater waiting for you out there. You might even be getting a promotion in two days but you would already know if you got the job or not now wouldn't you?</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Today, it is just you and your cat, Maggie. You live alone in the city of Halifax located in Nova Scotia, Canada (again, these places may no longer exist; hell, you could even be dead and I'm writing a letter to a ghost) and while you are single, you are nothing close to lonely. You've been working on quitting smoking (which you better have done by now) and learning to balance your energies. </i><br />
<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://i1.ytimg.com/vi/UBcZ5PWMeZc/mqdefault.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://i1.ytimg.com/vi/UBcZ5PWMeZc/mqdefault.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">That's You Buddy! (<a href="http://www.yourepeat.com/g/Thibeau" target="_blank">Original</a>)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<i>I want you know to know some things John. First, whatever you do, wherever you end up, don't regret any of it. You learned a long time ago that mistakes happen and that as long as you acknowledge and atone for them that you can be at rest with yourself. We don't have a real game plan right now so where you ended up is really open to possibility. I hope that you ended up someplace that makes you happy; preferably with someone who makes you happy. Don't worry about if you've found that greater purpose; chances are it was just our own delusions of grandeur. A simple life of love and laughter is everything that I want or need so however disappointed you may feel about where you ended up, don't. Life hardly ever goes as planned.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>My sincerest hope is that you did find someone to love and to love you and that you now have a family. It is the single dream and desire that you truly hope to find someday. I'm sure you recall we lost this once already and while our siblings have all found what you wanted, right now you are missing that and longing for it. I truly hope that the Universe has brought you together with someone who compliments you the way you deserve. And for the record, it will be just fine John if we're alone as long as you never forget that true happiness, the kind that allows you to be happy with others, comes from inside buddy.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>If you are anything at all like I am now in your resolve then I am certain that you are doing just fine. I hope that you were able to make the time to travel and see some of the world. While we've already seen most of Canada, you know damn well there are places in this world you are determined to see; I look forward to experiencing all the adventures that you have experienced over the last two decades. It seems kind of odd to know that the things I wonder about will be memories or past experiences for you.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Before I go John, I want you to know that you are happy. You don't have everything you'd like, you're not particularly wealthy and you're not particularly famous; but you are happy and you know how to be happy. I sincerely hope that you have not forgotten this valuable knowledge. If I had just one piece of advice for you John it's this: you are good enough; always have been and always will be. Don't let anyone tell you different.</i><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://images.ados.fr/1/paysages-fantastiques/photo/hd/3367410336/36395634c5/paysages-fantastiques-future-world-big.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://images.ados.fr/1/paysages-fantastiques/photo/hd/3367410336/36395634c5/paysages-fantastiques-future-world-big.jpg" height="228" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">World of Tomorrow? (<a href="http://club.ados.fr/natulcien/paysages-fantastiques-157299/photos.html" target="_blank">Original</a>)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<i>I hope that you'll be around to read this someday; that the world will still be here for you to be able to read this. Things seem dark and bleak right now. The environment is in ruins, global conflict is abound, economies are struggling or collapsing and civil protests occur in every corner of the globe. I hope that we have found a way to resolve some of these issues and make a better world. </i><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://socialmediaseo.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/future-world.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://socialmediaseo.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/future-world.jpg" height="164" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Or World of Tomorrow? (<a href="http://socialmediaseo.net/2010/01/19/awesome-image-of-a-future-world/" target="_blank">Original</a>)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<i>Take care of yourself John and hopefully you're exactly where you ought to be. I hope that the future has been kind. Take care of yourself, smile and laugh often. That's really all there is to it.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>From one John to the same, but different, John.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>PS: I hope you aren't bald!</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
I want to thank you all for taking a few minutes out of your day to read today's blog entry. While there are some other, more private and personal, words of wisdom I have to bestow upon myself, those are in my other letter to myself; the one being sealed in an envelope. I hope that you all have a most wonderful day and that it is filled with much joy and few tears. As always:<br />
<br />
Smile.<br />
Love Yourself.<br />Love Each Other.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-62581648533321806472014-05-27T15:54:00.002-03:002014-05-27T16:32:08.979-03:00Fact of Fiction or Prediction: ZFT - Technological Manisfesto<span style="background-color: #f6ffff; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;">Good afternoon my cyber friends! I hope that you have been enjoying the better part of your day and that it has brought forth many moments of laughter and joy. Recently, I re-watched the entire series of a television show called <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1119644/" target="_blank">Fringe</a>. Yes, I re-watched all five seasons for the second time within a year. This show quickly became one of my favorite TV series to date. I am a man of of many things and one of those that I hold dearest is being a Man of Science.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: #f6ffff; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;"><br />I love science; I love math; I love the Universe. I love knowing that the impossible can be possible and that whatever we can dream, we can accomplish. I will let you investigate the IMDb link above to find out more about the show but suffice to say it deals with all types of <i>fringe</i> science and paranormal activity. If extreme science intrigues you then this is the show for you. I highly recommend this series (Joshua Jackson does a great job; almost forget Dawson's Creek).</span><br />
<span style="background-color: #f6ffff; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: #f6ffff;"><span style="line-height: 19.200000762939453px;">One part of the series that really interested me but did not get the in depth exploration in the series that I'd hoped was the manifesto of a </span><i style="line-height: 19.200000762939453px;">terrorist</i><span style="line-height: 19.200000762939453px;"> group called ZFT. The ZFT Manifesto was drafted in response to the realization that technology was surpassing the ability of man to control and use and that at some point in the future there would be a catalyst event that would spill over into alternate Universes whose future's would hang in the balance of how we prepared for that coming conflict. While the reasoning behind the preparation can be easily disregarded if you're not open enough to the idea of alternate/parallel Universes, it is the idea of man being surpassed by technology that really garnered my attention.</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: #f6ffff;"><span style="line-height: 19.200000762939453px;"><br /></span></span></span>
<span style="font-family: sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: #f6ffff;"><span style="line-height: 19.200000762939453px;">Below you will find several excerpts from the ZFT Manifesto. Obviously the Manifesto is incomplete and partial, at best, as it was created in the mind of writer for the sole purpose of forwarding the plot of the series. This in no way takes away from the fact that the writer(s) hit upon a philosophical idea that could easily be relatable to the world in which we live....or are quickly moving towards. I am not sharing this because I think the machines will rise tomorrow or that our technology will grow too strong for us to wield; I am sharing it because I found it to be very interesting and because I it may not be that far beyond the realm of future possibilities. Here are some of the excerpts I was able to recover:</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: blue;"><span style="background-color: #f6ffff; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;">"Humanity is naught but the collection of it’s moments and the sum </span><span style="background-color: #f6ffff; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;">of it’s parts. That some may be used to counter others is as natur</span><span style="background-color: #f6ffff; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;">al a selection process as the lion and the gazelle, Homo-Sapien </span><span style="background-color: #f6ffff; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;">and Cro-Magnon. In this there is comfort should it be needed. </span><span style="background-color: #f6ffff; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;">This is not a war of hatred and anger. It is a battle of survival."</span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: #f6ffff; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><span style="background-color: #f6ffff; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;">"A black horizon approaches. Our scientific advancements have so </span><span style="background-color: #f6ffff; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;">dramatically outpaced those of the human soul that man, a creation...</span><span style="background-color: #f6ffff; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;">defined by passion and greed, now stands at the base of an in...</span><span style="background-color: #f6ffff; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;">pyramid of knowledge which expands heavenward with with no regard for the </span><span style="background-color: #f6ffff; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;">the frailty of its foundation. We will as a species, surely be</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #f6ffff; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;"><span style="color: blue;">crushed beneath its weight."</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #f6ffff; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #f6ffff; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;"><span style="color: blue;">"But we will not simply perish. The very fabric of our universe will be torn to rags."</span> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #f6ffff; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #f6ffff; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;"><span style="color: blue;">"...like an infant conducting the firmament, these technological trends will produce a cumulative impact far more catastrophic than the minds of its architects can possibly understand." </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: #f6ffff; font-family: sans-serif; line-height: 19.200000762939453px;"><i>Like children discovering nature for the first time, we are unaware and perhaps ignorant to the dangers that will meet us in the future as we venture forward.</i></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue;">"Against those men of science, whose grand investigations will usher...in the cataclysm, stand only a handful who can see beyond the horizon, Soldier angels who must watch over and protect us before...blind, thoughtless beast fed by thousands upon thousands of our...Pandora's force open the locks of Nature and compel her to spill...her precious secrets. Of all the beings considered for the gift of continuance, only those who qualify at the molecular level are to be approached."</span> </div>
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<span style="color: blue;">"...not their resistance deflect our intent. All rules of societal...behavior are void in the pursuit of the goal. Morality has no place......in the coming battle and those that hesitate will perish in the coming..." </span> </div>
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<span style="color: blue;">"table dec... generally understood (but...ine, and which this document..What we know as reality is ...of a larger multiverse." </span></div>
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<span style="color: blue;">"...he advances of science which is supposed to expand our knowledge of the universe, will, if not carefully controlled, destroy the world as we know it..." </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: sans-serif;"><i>Sound advice for anyone pushing the boundaries of science, technology and physics.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: sans-serif;">"</span><span style="background-color: transparent;"><span style="font-family: sans-serif;"><span style="color: blue;">Our technological ambitions have not only driven us to the brink of catastrophe, the catastrophe has already begun. What will the apocalypse look like? The answer, to use a term generally understood but the specifics of which you cannot imagine, in which this document will attempt to describe, is “warfare”."</span> </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent;"><span style="font-family: sans-serif;"><i>I particular am drawn to this entry. Our technology continues to grow exponentially; so fast and so far that it is almost a certainty that we have moved much further ahead than what we are told and what we are aware.</i></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: sans-serif;">"</span></span><span style="background-color: transparent;"><span style="font-family: sans-serif;"><span style="color: blue;">We think we understand reality, but our universe is only one of many. The unknown truths of the way to travel between them has already been discovered, by beings much like us but who's history is slightly ahead of our own. The negative aspects of such visitations will be irreversible both to our world and to theirs. It will begin with a series of unnatural occurrences. Difficult to notice at first but growing, not unlike a cancer, until a simple fact becomes undeniable only one world will survive and it will either be us or them."</span> </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent;"><span style="font-family: sans-serif;"><i>I have been drawn to the idea of Multi-verses, parallel/alternate Universes for quite some time. It has always seemed logical to me that if we existed in a reality where there were more than one Universes that it would only follow that we should be able to travel between the two. This idea was also explored in an older TV series called </i><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0112167/?ref_=nv_sr_1" target="_blank">Sliders</a>.</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: blue;"><span style="background-color: transparent;"><span style="font-family: sans-serif;">"</span></span><span style="background-color: transparent;"><span style="font-family: sans-serif;">Our children are our greatest resource. We must nurture them and protect them. We must prepare them so they can one day protect us." </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent;"><span style="font-family: sans-serif;">That is all that I have been able to decipher from watching the series and researching the work of other people who also felt inspired by the idea presented in this fictional manifesto. I say inspired but I do not mean inspired in the sense that I am looking forward to this coming point in human history or that I am personally putting an effort forth to help arrive there; I am not. Personally, I'd like to see sunshine, lollipops and rainbows for us all but that seems like a pipe dream FAR into the future.</span></span></div>
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Why I am sharing it is because I believe we are reaching a critical point of this nature. Our technology continues to grow and expand and we as a species are having a hard time keeping pace with the development. Those children of tomorrow, the one's being born in the Age of Technology will have an easier time but even they will succumb to the massive exponential growth of technology. Imagine how fast it will be growing in twenty years time!</div>
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I am not afraid of technology, nor the future. I am afraid that we are not taking the precautions we should be to ensure that our technological developments, creations and inventions don't grow beyond our capacity to control or operate; that we do not overstep the boundaries of science without first having the necessary tools to halt on the path we are on to allow the opportunity to know and discover the outcomes and consequences to our research, development and growth. </div>
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<span style="font-family: sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 19.200000762939453px;">I look forward to tomorrow, to the near future and the distance coming world. What amazing scientific breakthroughs will we accomplish? What technological developments will we arrive at? Where will we be? What will we be? There is no doubt in my mind that whatever our future holds that we are now barreling down the highway at ultra sonic speeds in comparison to our historical record of advancement. We are growing, fast. Let us hope that it is faster than our technology and fast enough to control and understand it.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: sans-serif;"><span style="line-height: 19.200000762939453px;">I want to thank you all once again for taking the time to read and share. It is good to have arrived at a point where I can now feel safe in saying: It's good to be back. I have missed my blog and I have missed the opportunity to share ideas, information and opinions. I am thankful for each one of my followers but more thankful to live in a world where technology has provided the opportunity for me to share so much with so many.</span></span></div>
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Smile.</div>
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Love Yourself.</div>
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Love Each Other.</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-68217097124930393312014-05-26T12:06:00.000-03:002014-05-27T14:11:11.340-03:00Riders versus RidershipGood day my friends from around the globe! I hope that today has found each one of you safe and sound. Woke up this morning to a very sunny day and though the clouds have since covered the sun and released their stock of accumulated moisture (it's raining), I am still having a rather sun-shiny kind of day. Today's blog entry comes courtesy of a discussion I was having with a co-worker in regards to <a href="http://www.halifax.ca/metrotransit/" target="_blank">Metro Transit</a> here in <a href="http://www.halifax.ca/index.asp" target="_blank">Halifax</a>. However, I am certain that some of this will apply to any public transit system anywhere. Let's get started!<br />
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I suppose the first place to begin would be by defining what I mean by <i>riders</i> and <i>ridership</i> and the differences between the two. I think that by defining them you should also get a general concept of the difference between the two. For this post, I intend to define <i>riders</i> as the actual people who use public transit; the individuals who ride the bus. I define <i>ridership</i> a little differently. Ridership, for my purposes, is defined by the economic aspect of transit. It is the dollar amount of profit and volume of passengers on any given route, on any given day, at any given time. Ridership includes riders but riders does not include ridership. I hope that wasn't too confusing. On to the topic at hand.<br />
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As we were having a discussion on some of the shortcomings of public transit, my co-worker pointed out that it felt like Metro Transit was more concerned about ridership and not so much riders. This immediately struck me. First, I had never considered the differences between riders and ridership and second, because I had not considered this I also had not considered the impact that that could have on determining how Metro Transit operates.<br />
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When you take into consideration nothing but the financial side of the operation, the <i>ridership</i>, it is very easy to see how and why certain decisions are made. If a bus route is often empty or a route is not producing a high enough margin of recouping losses, it will most likely become the victim of cuts; either the frequency or the route entirely. Transit fare rates are most likely also determined based on ridership as well. If the volume does not justify the service there will be an increase in costs. This is all absolutely understandable when considering decisions as a business. But Metro Transit is not a business; it is a service.<br />
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There is a big difference between a private business and a public service and a somewhat finer line between private service and public business. Private business provides service to private citizens at a cost; public service provides public service paid for through taxation and minor fees; private service is similar to private business but offers an alternative to public service at a higher cost; and public business is providing a service to the public at a lower cost than private business. Transit, in my own perspective, is a public service.<br />
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A public service ought to serve the public for which it owes it's existence: both physically and financially. Metro Transit should be shaping and creating policy and decision making processes based primarily first on <i>riders</i> and secondarily on <i>ridership</i>; riders should always trump ridership. I can already here some of the more conservative of you out there and the opposition you are surely preparing to bring forth; that's alright. It's part of the process.<br />
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When you approach from the point of view of riders, you are looking at the system with people in mind. Residents who depend and require access to affordable, reliable and timely public transit. If the public transit system does not bring all these things to the table, it begins to fail it's citizens and they in turn, lose trust in the public service being provided.<br />
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By shaping the system to accommodate the rider, not the ridership, you will most definitely face obstacles and struggles in the onset. There will be losses; there will be mistakes; there will be growing pains. The end result however will be a transit system that works for the people who ride it and functions as an intricate and essential part of our growing metropolis of a city. People <i style="font-weight: bold;">need</i> public transit.<br />
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They need public transit to go to work, to go to school, to daycare, to recreational activities, to visit family, to visit friends, to support the city, etc, etc, etc. There are countless, inumerous reasons to provide a functional public transit system for ridership reasons but there is only one reason necessary to provide this for riders: people. People make up this city; people drive the buses; people work the jobs; people pay the taxes; people support the city; people make things possible. Let's take care of people, not profits.<br />
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While I don't have the answers, no one person ever does, I do have ideas; some of which I've shared before. One persistent idea that remains that I will continue to voice for is the hours of operation for our public transit system. Even in our country-style city, we live in a twenty four hour world. A twenty four hour world operating every single minute of every single day and we operate on a transit system that runs, at best, 16-17 hours a day. That number is for weekdays and decreases significantly in frequency and volume on the weekends which is odd because there is as much activity here on Saturdays particularly as there is on any given weekday. It is time to expand the hours in which Transit operates as just one example of changes in favor of <i>riders</i> versus <i>ridership</i> that needs to come.<br />
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I'm sure that there are things that I don't know about the operations at Metro Transit; rules, regulations and what not that I have no knowledge of that may affect the decision and policy making process but they can be changed. A public service should service the public and not the pocket book. While I am an idealist, I am not naive enough to think that such a system can exist without some recuperation via fares and taxation however I do believe that more is possible. Change can be scary and tough but it creates improvement and by improving our public transit system we entice and encourage more riders to jump on the bus, as it were.<br />
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Remember, you cannot have <i>ridership</i> without <i style="font-weight: bold;">riders</i>.<br />
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Thank you all once again for taking the time to read and/or to share. I look forward to having something else to share with you tomorrow. Today is rather exciting day for me full of real possibility and I hope that I will have opportunity to share a positive, end result to today. As always:<br />
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Smile.<br />
Love Yourself.<br />
Love Each Other.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-82482695981922925612014-05-25T11:05:00.002-03:002014-11-09T11:10:22.185-04:00Sunday Afternoon Poetry #23<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Good afternoon my digital comrades! I hope that you are all enjoying this wonderful Sunday with a little bit of rest and relaxation. As promised, I am reviving my <a href="http://thibeautime.blogspot.ca/2012/02/sunday-afternoon-poetry.html" target="_blank">Sunday Afternoon Poetry</a> blog series. I love poetry; writing and reading it and it bring me great pleasure to have a medium in which to share personal poems as well as poems that are personal to me. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Today I am sharing a poem from one of my favorite authors growing up, Shel Silverstein. I really have to thank my father who brought home the collection of writings and poems by Silverstein in the book call Where the Sidewalk Ends. I remember reading many of the poems and short stories with glee and joy in my heart. Such simple words brought laughter to my soul and allowed my imagination to soar with open possibilities. Today I am going to share one of his poems from that book; I hope you enjoy. Please take some time to read some more Shel Silverstein <a href="http://shelsilversteinpoems.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">here</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #3c605b; font-weight: bold; text-align: -webkit-left;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Where the Sidewalk Ends</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; text-align: start;">There is a place where the sidewalk ends</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And before the street begins,</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And there the grass grows soft and white,</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And there the sun burns crimson bright,</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And there the moon-bird rests from his flight</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To cool in the peppermint wind.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">Let us leave this place where the smoke blows black</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">And the dark street winds and bends.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">Past the pits where the asphalt flowers grow</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;">We shall walk with a walk that is measured and slow,</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;">And watch where the chalk-white arrows go</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;">To the place where the sidewalk ends.</span></div>
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Yes we'll walk with a walk that is measured and slow,</div>
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And we'll go where the chalk-white arrows go,</div>
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For the children, they mark, and the children, they know</div>
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The place where the sidewalk ends.</div>
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Love One Another.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://insearchoftheendofthesidewalk.com/" target="_blank">Original</a></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">I hope you enjoyed this little poem and that you'll take the time to check out some more of his work. As always, I want to thank you all for taking the time to read and share. I'll be sharing one of my own poems in next weeks post so make sure to take some time out of your day of leisure to enjoy some poetry and reflection. And of course, as always:</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">Smile.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">Love Yourself.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;">Love Each Other.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><a href="http://thibeautime.blogspot.ca/2012/08/sunday-afternoon-poetry-22.html" target="_blank">Previous</a> <a href="http://thibeautime.blogspot.ca/2014/11/sunday-afternoon-poetry-24.html" target="_blank">Next</a></span></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-79459791271308243272014-05-23T13:57:00.003-03:002014-05-27T14:00:45.064-03:00NursesGood day my friends out there in Cyberspace! I started this blog post to keep as a draft to have one ready for tomorrow but when it comes to writing, I just want to share right away so today will be a double-header with blog posts as I've decided to publish this one today instead of waiting until tomorrow. I'm currently debating taking Saturday's off from blogging as I will be resuming my <a href="http://thibeautime.blogspot.ca/2012/02/sunday-afternoon-poetry.html" target="_blank">Sunday Afternoon Poetry</a> series starting this weekend. Let's get to it shall we?<br />
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Not too long ago, the union which represents nurses here in Nova Scotia went, or tried to go, to the bargaining table with their employer, Capital Health. Unfortunately no agreement was met and as a result the nurses held an illegal strike which was quickly quashed by back-to-work legislation enacted by the province and denoting them an essential service. What's super important here is the "essential service" part of this. Yesterday, Capital Health announced that it would be dolling out punishment as a consequence to the wildcat strike (now that the nurses are back to work). You can read about that <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/capital-health-to-suspend-large-number-of-nurses-1.2650679" target="_blank">here</a> before I get into things.<br />
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I've made a few attempts at trying to open this same discussion on my social media however people are either biased towards me due to my past actions/opinions or they are simply looking to engage in a controversial debate because most have missed the point entirely or just plain avoided it. Let me state what I am not interested in: I am not interested in if these nurses should or should not be disciplined. I do have an opinion on the matter but what has got me going is the suspensions themselves.<br />
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Approximately two hundred <i style="font-weight: bold;">essential</i> nurses are being suspended from work to punish them for not going to work...does nobody else see the absolute insanity of this? How is it that nobody is pointing out the glaring contradiction? The wasted time, energy and money to get these nurses forced back to work only to turn around and take them off the job? By far, this is one of the most counter-productive, counter-intuitive moves that could have been made to discipline the nurses for breaking the law.<br />
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The powers that be did their best to damn the nurses, as I'm sure the nurses union did to the government (unfortunately that's how these things still work). They told us horror stories of missed appointments, patients suffering, patients in duress, etc, etc, etc. They told us that the nurses were needed; that they were essential; that is was a crime to deny this right to healthcare to citizens; they told us the nurses were greedy. Yet, despite all the huffing and puffing about the damage done and the dire need to get them back on the job, dire enough to call MLA's together to pass a law to force them back to work, those same patients are no longer in dire enough need to require service from any of the two hundred or so nurses who will be off the job soon. Strange. I didn't realize that all those patients were suddenly of such good enough health that they no longer require the nurses services.<br />
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The nurses, of course, aren't taking this sitting down and will be contesting each individual case. You can read a little more about that <a href="http://globalnews.ca/news/1347163/halifax-nurses-who-walked-off-job-before-legal-strike-position-suspended-union/" target="_blank">here</a>. Personally, I support the nurses in their efforts to have these suspensions overturned because, as I've stated and made clear, this move by Capital Health is completely contrary to <i>providing an essential service to Nova Scotians</i>.<br />
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I will take a moment to add my own two cents about this whole situation. Back to work legislation is no different than holding the muzzle of a gun to someone and telling them what to do; inversely, holding people at the muzzle of a different gun by striking is no less an affront against treating each other with decency and respect. Are all strikes good? No. Are all government back to work laws bad? No. I am not the judge of all matters nor possess the wisdom or knowledge necessary to make that call; what I am is a person and as a person I know what respect and dignity are and right now, those are both being ignored. The one's who suffer the most as a result? The patients; people.<br />
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So, I stand in solidarity with the nurses not because they are necessarily right but because the government is more wrong. I'm certain that the thoughts and opinions may fly, perhaps not here, but given that I've tried to express this opinion more than once and it has devolved into the argument of: should they or should they not be disciplined? Or: do they deserve it or not?<br />
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Thank you all for taking the time to read. A special thanks to my readers who have supported and encouraged me by sharing and engaging. I look forward to continuing to bring you new blog posts on a regular basis.<br />
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Smile.<br />
Love Yourself.<br />
Love Each Other.<br />
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<b>UPDATE 5/26/14</b><br />
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Nurses are now being forced to write "confessionals". This is completely degrading. Capital Health, I have no words to express how disgusted I am with this. You can read the story <a href="http://thechronicleherald.ca/metro/1210165-capital-health-demand-for-confessionals-shocks-nurses-nsgeu" target="_blank">here</a>.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-74445921107351120572014-05-23T08:14:00.001-03:002014-05-27T14:11:55.001-03:00Apps 4 Android: SwiftKeyGood morning my fellow citizens of the Internet! I hope that the day has found you happy and healthy. As promised, today is the first in a series of posts on reviews of apps that I use for my Android based Samsung Galaxy S3. I must reiterate that I am not a salesperson or representative or technological guru; I'm just a regular mobile device user who has found some pretty functional and entertaining apps that I feel are worth sharing. Let's start with one of my favorites: <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.touchtype.swiftkey.phone.trial&hl=en" target="_blank">SwiftKey</a> (30 day trial).<br />
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What is <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.touchtype.swiftkey&hl=en" target="_blank">SwiftKey</a> (pay version)? SwiftKey is an app for your cell phone, or <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.touchtype.swiftkey.tablet.full&hl=en" target="_blank">tablet</a> (please note that they are TWO separate apps, TWO separate downloads and TWO separate purchases), that replaces your default generic keyboard that came with your device. What do you need an app for your keyboard when you already have something built in? Customization and ease of use.<br />
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Let us explore the customization side of this app. You will notice that there are a number of similarities between this app and the factory app and that is because there are. Things like typing texts with the swiping motion or rotating keyboards. While these are options available on most any similar app, SwiftKey goes beyond most other apps with a number of really amazing tools, options and functions.<br />
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SwiftKey allows you a number of options with your keyboard setup. If you are like me then you never have your phone horizontally, always vertical. Or maybe you like it rotated. SwiftKey has the capability to help improve your texting with different keyboard layout options either way. Besides the keyboard layout, you have options of changing color schemes, removing/adding arrow buttons, removing/adding special characters and a number of small but helpful choices. My color scheme is Pumpkin.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwjQroKm0rAMnKzKDBVKvz89qIoeldbW5kNrs5BEa7FoQ0fJbEOU7VcBVgHz_4Iv5zFKWYgVuV2hIa_CHZVEgtXCZLM3skOK9010MDmB4GUaXy-pgZTDKyLy21DkG7osIPfl8M_4D5T_c/s1600/Screenshot_2014-05-22-18-51-49.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwjQroKm0rAMnKzKDBVKvz89qIoeldbW5kNrs5BEa7FoQ0fJbEOU7VcBVgHz_4Iv5zFKWYgVuV2hIa_CHZVEgtXCZLM3skOK9010MDmB4GUaXy-pgZTDKyLy21DkG7osIPfl8M_4D5T_c/s1600/Screenshot_2014-05-22-18-51-49.png" height="320" width="180" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizfBPzqr0RCZpE8bb-Np2jR_EupDubNKMtLAuw0R0MIsTkwzOm0bS3xWt8oVSb0cO3orvAS156jGFc_xVcQkTjPgj6K9jNoaXsxjKbz8jv4vHdpxZ2yNCZMAEJfhKyLbMP8Gtl0OqNfk8/s1600/Screenshot_2014-05-22-19-07-51.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizfBPzqr0RCZpE8bb-Np2jR_EupDubNKMtLAuw0R0MIsTkwzOm0bS3xWt8oVSb0cO3orvAS156jGFc_xVcQkTjPgj6K9jNoaXsxjKbz8jv4vHdpxZ2yNCZMAEJfhKyLbMP8Gtl0OqNfk8/s1600/Screenshot_2014-05-22-19-07-51.png" height="180" width="320" /></a></div>
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Another tool that comes with SwiftKey is the statistics. Have you ever been curious just how accurate your typing is or how many words have been auto-corrected? SwiftKey keeps track of all those interesting little statistics that you can review at any time! To add to this you can also see a heat map view of which parts of your keyboard you are using the most. While these have no practical use per se, it is definitely interesting to look back on some of those statistics once in a while. I enjoy seeing how far I've flowed. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8iopdciBZktRhMnB289Kv_4Fog78Vtngk5kpwPA3Ymh_c86wt3PjnNPEvJOCIad4aP_vY-_qnEHMkN8w1vHoSsjy3Tg7utfEdY7H3HAPTVdzfXfuMXlWyvrODisVP0TKBz06Urvast8M/s1600/Screenshot_2014-05-22-18-50-32.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8iopdciBZktRhMnB289Kv_4Fog78Vtngk5kpwPA3Ymh_c86wt3PjnNPEvJOCIad4aP_vY-_qnEHMkN8w1vHoSsjy3Tg7utfEdY7H3HAPTVdzfXfuMXlWyvrODisVP0TKBz06Urvast8M/s1600/Screenshot_2014-05-22-18-50-32.png" height="320" width="180" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyhLjp52KTFqbPl4L9x4hP8-9SubMB731o0PtZv0q6NH6nGONBUS8BtkPIF8vExAr3nAj6ycV3SDPENuZM-Z_fCGx6V5tngE8ecISDOhitiwVxwIiJBaK5lH_Pl7IHIf1qm3VVcW5KvUk/s1600/Screenshot_2014-05-22-18-50-48.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyhLjp52KTFqbPl4L9x4hP8-9SubMB731o0PtZv0q6NH6nGONBUS8BtkPIF8vExAr3nAj6ycV3SDPENuZM-Z_fCGx6V5tngE8ecISDOhitiwVxwIiJBaK5lH_Pl7IHIf1qm3VVcW5KvUk/s1600/Screenshot_2014-05-22-18-50-48.png" height="320" width="180" /></a></div>
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You may have noticed my stats are a little low. I decided to restore my phone and re-install my apps as I was having some terrible memory and battery issues. I have been using this app for over a year now. You might be wondering by now: So it's got cool features, but it's still not that different or better than the generic one. I was saving the best part of this app for last and as far as I am concerned it is this feature that raises it above all other apps and makes it very much worth the $3.99 for the app. That feature? Predictive text.</div>
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Now before you tell me you hate predictive text or don't use it, hear me out because I didn't use it either; mostly because it was never predicting the right words. Where your custom keyboard application has pre-defined, pre-determined and thus a select set of words to predict based on the letters you started typing, SwiftKey remembers the words you use. It personalizes YOUR language and YOUR words to work out predictive text based on your messaging. What's that? You don't really text but you use your phone for social media? No problem. SwiftKey offers you the option to link email and social media accounts to it. What does this do? SwiftKey goes through your posts and emails examining your language and building a dictionary of predictive text that is specifically geared to you.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitT1EMcR6dWDtvuUfx9jZqHroi_-0BkAs02z9JcQkD9KRHftHgSikd6TPdxw3CdE-d1xjUr4cp8_z5YY5NJKHQNLB_vGN3e2rqScP_j2RIVWZjMbvQMcHuDaggcCued8yBGA2bYj92Zag/s1600/Screenshot_2014-05-22-18-48-56.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitT1EMcR6dWDtvuUfx9jZqHroi_-0BkAs02z9JcQkD9KRHftHgSikd6TPdxw3CdE-d1xjUr4cp8_z5YY5NJKHQNLB_vGN3e2rqScP_j2RIVWZjMbvQMcHuDaggcCued8yBGA2bYj92Zag/s1600/Screenshot_2014-05-22-18-48-56.png" height="320" width="180" /></a></div>
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As you can see, I have added all the possible methods in which SwiftKey can learn how I type, what I type and the sort of typing I do. After a few months I could almost text simply by clicking the predictive words that appeared on my phone. Yes, the app can grow to be that functional.</div>
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I realize that for the best experience with this app that you have to pay to use it but at $3.99, that's two cups of coffee here folks, you can significantly improve your level of communication on your mobile device when texting, emailing or participating on social media. You will have far fewer instances of grammar trolls or auto-corrected/predicted words that make no sense in a statement you've made. I would highly recommend this app to anyone who uses their phone or tablet on a daily or regular basis for anything that requires typing.</div>
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I hope that you enjoyed this first posting in my Apps 4 Android series. I'll be back next week with another app to share with you. Feel free to share some of your own favorite apps in a comment and I will go check them out and post a review based on my experience. I'm always looking for a new app to try out. Thanks for reading and as always:</div>
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Smile.</div>
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Love Yourself.</div>
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Love Each Other.</div>
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Special shout out to Brenden over at <a href="http://www.bloggershalifax.ca/" target="_blank">HalifaxBloggers</a> for helping to bring local blogs and bloggers together! Follow <a href="https://twitter.com/BSommerhalder" target="_blank">him</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/halifaxbloggers" target="_blank">BloggersHalifax</a> on Twitter!</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-57557491280338603572014-05-22T09:53:00.003-03:002014-05-27T14:12:17.310-03:00The Fear of Not SmokingGood morning my friends out there in the world wide web! I hope that the day has found you well. I was going to write my first blog post in regards to the Apps for Android series I will be starting but since I don't have access to some of the information I wanted, I have decided to settle for a something a little different for today.<br />
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I made a conscious decision yesterday to change some aspects of my life so that I can lead a healthier lifestyle and maybe extend my life a few years. Recently over the last few months, I have begun to notice significant affects caused by being a smoker for over fifteen years now. I have difficulty climbing even just a flight of stairs; I have random, non-muscle relayed pains in my chest and back; I can't run for any real distance without losing my breath; and sometimes I get short of breath just sitting around doing absolutely nothing. You have no idea how much these symptoms scare the life out of me.<br />
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As much as those things scare me, and as ridiculous as it may sound, I am afraid to quit smoking. I know that sounds insane but there are aspects of smoking that I'm afraid or anxious about. One is that I smoke when I get antsy or anxious and for someone with my energy level, antsy is almost a constant state of existence; I just need to be doing something and smoking is something. I'm also afraid I'm going to miss smoking or maybe miss the moments smoking provides: moments of reflection, moments of solitude, moments of quiet. Then there are those times where the habit kicks in like when drinking coffee or after a hearty meal. Frankly, giving up smoking feels like giving up part of my identity; time to change my identity I guess.<br />
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It's not that I have any more or less of a desire to smoke or not smoke; it's that I have decided that I want other things in my life that are more important in attaining than the fear of quitting smoking (even though it's ridiculous fear I know). I think I am finally at a point where desire outweighs fear. There are things that I want and others, like cancer, that I don't want. So I have a desire and I have an initial plan...or an idea for a plan.<br />
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I have always considered myself to be a fairly intelligent human being and have always, for the most part, been grateful for that. One thing I felt I have always been lacking and have always wanted to change is my size. I'm tiny; small; scrawny; skinny; a twig; thin; or any other synonym you'd like to use to describe me. Needless to say that in any type of situation that requires any form physical force that I am probably the least likely person you'll want around. I have zero upper body strength and even though my legs are fairly strong, they have become weak over time.<br />
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I want to be healthier and I want to have the ability to be as strong physically as I am intellectually and as I have become emotionally. I am missing a critical third piece to my "Tri-Force" of a happy existence and I think it is time that I give myself the lifestyle I deserve.<br />
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While these are some of the main driving factors behind my recent desire and passion for accomplishing this thus far unaccomplished goal, there are other obvious factors like the amount of money I will be saving and how much more I will be able to do with my time. I have also been inspired by a number of my social media connections, my digital friends, who have turned from a more sedentary lifestyle to one of physical activity and healthy living.<br />
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Don't get me wrong, I'm not looking to become a body builder. I'd just like to have some muscle mass and be a little bigger than my nephew who is less than half my age and barely a teenager. I would really like to start getting involved in sports again, specifically hockey (and road hockey in the off season) and I would really like to just run. I enjoy running (apparently it may be <a href="http://thechronicleherald.ca/sports/1208535-three-in-a-row-for-bryden-tate-in-blue-nose-10k" target="_blank">genetic</a> and <a href="http://www.trackie.com/track-and-field/Articles/promising-n-s-runner-mike-tate-settles-in-at-cam-levins-alma-mater/11468/" target="_blank">here</a>) but again, not looking to become a long distance or short distance runner; just a runner for recreation. I have to say I had an inclination to work towards next year's <a href="http://bluenosemarathon.com/" target="_blank">Bluenose Marathon</a> but for now, I need to focus on the task at hand.<br />
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Well my friends, this about does it for today. I know that I will have more than enough moral support from all my friends (digital and physical) and family; that's never been the trouble. The trouble has come from my own personal fears and today, today I am nearly ready to face those fears; as irrational as they may be. Thank you all for reading and as always:<br />
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Smile.<br />
Love Yourself.<br />
Love Each Other.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-80385480690331714092014-05-21T13:32:00.005-03:002014-05-27T14:12:36.687-03:00Apps 4 AndroidGood day to you all my <a href="http://thibeautime.blogspot.ca/2012/04/digital-friends.html" target="_blank">digital friends</a>! I hope that wherever you are, whatever your circumstance that you have found at least one moment to spent in happiness. It's been another little stretch since my last posting but not nearly as long as they have been. I am going to take this as a positive sign that I am slowly, but most certainly, getting back into my writing. I even have sudden desires and urges to write and long to get back into the groove of a blog.<br />
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Today's blog is more of a ramble; a pre-cursor to a new set of blog posts I will be attempting to post in the future: applications for you Android-based phone. More specifically, they will be posts about the applications that I use on my Samsung Galaxy S3. I am aware that there are about a million other technology related posts on different apps for Android but I am not discouraged; I am not them. There won't be any lists or best of type posts, just posts about specific apps I use or have used and what I think of them.<br />
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I've decided that I have been trying to hard to make things happen and that the best course of action would be to start doing things that come naturally to me. Right now, in terms of writing, what feels like comes naturally is talking about techie stuff. I don't immerse myself in technology and social media as much as I once did but I do thoroughly enjoy the fun and entertainment of using both and discovering new things about them. I did get a really good topic suggestion that I will be using for another post...hopefully some time this week. It will no doubt get some people's blood running with it but that is how it is with potentially controversial subjects.<br />
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I guess today's post will not be that very long; I think that just getting something written down is a good way to continue trying to get back into the groove of things. It can't hurt. I would, however, prefer to be outside enjoying some of this most beautiful of days but unfortunately I am required to be at work in order to be able to continue to pursue the things that make me happy. I hope that each and every one of you has a most fantastic day!<br />
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Smile.<br />
Love each other.<br />
Check out this bacon.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-1536718467108983792014-04-17T20:48:00.004-03:002014-05-27T14:12:53.936-03:00The Halifax Rebrand<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 18px;">Good evening cyberspace. I hope that time has found you well. It has greeted me with a few challenges as of late but that is just alright; how else would I learn, grow and become a stronger, wiser individual? I decided to repost a Facebook post I made in regards to a recent re-branding of the Halifax Regional Municipality due to a lot of negative feedback on the matter. I could have taken the time to touch it up here but I felt I would just leave it as it was. It was written with only a general idea, some personal experience and a desire to see the city I call home come together at least for this. It's intention is good and our actions will determine the result. Before I continue rambling on about the topic, here is my original thread:</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 18px;">"As someone not born and raised in Halifax, someone who has only recently in the last few years lived here, someone who has always had a connection simply because it is the focal point of Nova Scotia, someone who knows and knew Halifax witho</span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; display: inline;"><span style="color: #37404e; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 18px;">ut being a true Haligonian I would like to share this sentiment with all of you born and raised in any of the communities that comprise the HRM:</span><br /><br /><span style="color: #37404e; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 18px;">Most people from the "outside" call it all Halifax anyway; always have and most likely always will. It isn't a slight to anyone (Dartmouth, I'm looking your way; you too Sackville and Bedford), it's just that Halifax is the geographical capital city of Nova Scotia and it is much easier for someone who does not live here to bring all the citizens of the HRM under that umbrella; especially post amalgamation but it was happening long before. And while we refer to that umbrella of communities as Halifax, we are aware that there is a difference between the rest of the communities and we take due diligence (especially those of us from Nova Scotia or the Maritimes in general) to ensure we refer to the actual names of proper communities, big or small, that aren't "Halifax". The new Halifax brand, intentional or not, is just taking that unspoken definition and turning it into a defining brand (see what I did there?). </span><br /><br /><span style="color: #37404e; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 18px;">So with that in mind, I think that the real haters of this new rebranding should stop looking at it as though some uppity Haligonians are trying to take the credit for the success of the city as a whole or are trying to take away the history of the communities that encompass the HRM and the new Halifax brand. This branding is an attempt, perhaps a weak one, to sell us to the world and I'll let you in on something: we need the economic boosts where we can get them here in the Maritimes. Will it make us all rich and wealthy? No. What will it do? It will make us united; it will makes us connected; it will make us strong; it will make us all work toward the future together. It will do all this as a brand, not as a definition to who you are and where you are from. </span><br /><br /><span style="color: #37404e; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 18px;">And yes, 200k is a ton of money (though I heard somewhere it was closer to 300k but the number is irrelevant) but take a look at what some of your governments, at any level, have wasted on lesser plans and objectives in the past. Take a moment to review the ill-fated financial decisions made before this and you'll surely find greater financial wastage to be upset about. The reason I can accept the cost is because this was a promise made by Mayor Savage; he said he would rebrand the city and he has done just that. Regardless of the success or failure of it, Savage said he would do, did it and will now stand by it until it flies or dies. As the Mayor, the figure head of representation for all the communities that fall under the HRM, he has unified each one of us behind a strong and bold grab for positive economic growth that will benefit us short and long term, regionally and globally. We have a new edge to compete with the mega-cities across the country like Toronto, Montreal, Calgary, Vancouver and we have all of that without having to be mega. </span><br /><br /><span style="color: #37404e; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 18px;">If for no other reason, you should be in support of the rebranding because it is happening regardless of your dissent. A unified support of such an undertaking would definitely go a long way to furthering it's potential for success; petty and juvenile infighting does the opposite and quite frankly, makes us look foolish and the people across the HRM that I know, and I've met a great deal of you, are no fools.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #37404e; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 18px;">I love Halifax. I love the HRM. I love the whole damn city and it really doesn't matter how we sell ourselves to the world because it is the people, not the place, that really sell our city. Once you've been here, you will always come back. That is my word on this matter."</span><br />
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<span style="color: #37404e; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 18px;">I know many residents are very passionate about their community and I don't expect anyone to just be alright with this marketing change; it's change and that can be scary but change can be whatever you want it to be. I have lived in this city for almost three years now and the feeling of community I feel here, everywhere here, is stronger than many rural communities I've lived or visited. We have a rare thing here in Halifax; we have history (however good or bad) and we have wisdom and the cities sense of pride and community is build behind that time and experience. We have true strength and true strength cast behind such a project can only bring success.</span><br />
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<span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; display: inline; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.727272033691406px; line-height: 18px;">Stay safe, be at peace and love one another. </span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-88212956369062035992014-03-02T11:59:00.002-04:002014-05-27T14:13:19.925-03:00Ukraine: The New Georgia?Good day my friends. I hope that the morning has found you well and that today brings with it many moments of happiness. I am back again after a two days of being absent from writing. I am determined to continue writing as often as possible; if only to maintain my writing skills. Today I wanted to discuss some thoughts about what is happening in Ukraine right now.<br />
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For those of you who may have missed what has been happening, and it is quite possible that you have as things really reached a tipping point during the Olympics and well, mainstream media found the 2014 Winter Olympics to be more newsworthy than the political upheaval and eventual revolution that happened in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukraine" target="_blank">Ukraine</a>. Here are a few news stories, chronologically ordered, to help give you some brief understanding of what's happening:<br />
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Ukraine split after two months of <a href="http://www.thestar.com/news/world/2014/02/04/ukraine_more_polarized_than_ever_after_two_months_of_protests.html" target="_blank">protests</a>.<br />
Ukranian President calls for <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/viktor-yanukovych-calls-for-truce-with-ukraine-protest-leaders-1.2542830" target="_blank">truce</a>.<br />
<a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/russia-trades-blame-with-eu-and-us-over-bloodshed-in-ukraine-as-death-toll-mounts/article16955387/" target="_blank">Violence</a> shatters truce.<br />
<a href="http://www.thestar.com/news/world/2014/02/20/ukraine_truce_comes_to_a_violent_end.html" target="_blank">Sanctions</a> on Ukraine.<br />
Former President freed becomes Interim <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/ukraine-s-parliament-speaker-named-interim-president-1.2548105" target="_blank">leader</a>.<br />
Russia ready to <a href="http://www.torontosun.com/2014/03/01/putin-proposes-use-of-russian-armed-forces-in-ukraine" target="_blank">invade</a> Ukraine; <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/ukraine-crisis-harper-recalls-ambassador-tells-putin-to-withdraw-1.2556228" target="_blank">approved</a>.<br />
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If you were completely out of the loop before and took the time to read those news links then you probably have a basic understanding of the violence and upheavel occurring in Ukraine right now. Russian flags have even been observed being raised and flown in some Ukranian cities even before Putin went looking for approval to send troops in.<br />
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The situation in Ukraine is volatile and poses a dangerous threat to the global community. As we speak, Russian military forces have already entered Ukraine and the US, as well as Canada, have both demanded that Putin remove his forces. This very tense international incident has the potential to cause serious tensions between two international powers, Russia and the USA, that have a long history of war and threats of war with one another.<br />
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It is a positive and encouraging sign that the media is addressing and reporting on the current crisis happening there. It wasn't so long ago, just back in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008_Georgia%E2%80%93Russia_crisis" target="_blank">2008</a>, when Russian forces invaded the country state of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgia_(country)" target="_blank">Georgia</a> committing genocide against its people. The world didn't blink an eye and not a single news media outlet reported on the growing violence and death. Had it not been for some video recordings that were leaked/smuggled out of the country, the world may not have noticed until it was too late. Comparisons have already been <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/28/us-ukraine-crisis-turchinov-idUSBREA1R1WN20140228" target="_blank">made</a>.<br />
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So why is what is happening in Ukraine important to you or me or anyone who isn't living there? It's important because what happens there will inevitably draw us in. Our troops, our economy, our resources. It is important because it is another country whose economic instability has led to nothing short of a civil revolution. Country after country across the world for the past several years seem to be imploding in on themselves and all primarily cause to economic failures under the current global financial system. Of course there are plenty of other socio-economic and geo-political reasons involved as well; let us not put the blame solely in one place.<br />
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What is happening in Ukraine is concerning and a further indication of global instability. It carries with it rumors of war and threatens to plunge the planet further into war and global chaos. Super powers have already begun a war of words and egos and given the history of the countries in question, there is little doubt that the situation will escalate quite quickly especially after the Iran debate between Russia and the USA. It is important to pay attention; Ukraine could act as a catalyst for rising tensions that need very little encouragement to spill over into a second Cold War...or worse yet, a third global conflict.<br />
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I will leave you with this comparison I saw online after Russia's government approved military action:<br />
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"World War II started shortly after Adolf Hitler hosted the Olympics in Berlin; World War III started shortly after Vladimir Puton hosted..."<br />
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Let us hope that a peaceful resolution is found before countless more lives are unnecessarily lost. Love one another and be thankful that you live in a country not divided by violence and/or revolution. And if you do, then my thoughts and positive energies are with you.<br />
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-16442538447940961782014-02-27T10:53:00.001-04:002014-05-27T14:13:46.579-03:00Poverty, Health Care & Leo Glavine<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Good day my friends out in Cyberspace! I hope that the day has found you well. Mine started abruptly this morning shortly after four when one of the residents in my domicile decided to cook some supper and make an international phone call. However, it has improved significantly. I start a little four day vacation later today so there is that to look forward to. Today I just want to share some thoughts I've been carrying around since reading and hearing about the remarks of the Provincial Health Minister, Leo Glavine, where he blames poor health on poor people; going so far as to single out those on income assistance. You can read it <a href="http://www.kingscountynews.ca/Opinion/Columnists/2014-02-06/article-3601297/Leo-Glavine---From-Province-House-to-home%3A-Doing-my-share-for-healthcare/1" target="_blank">here</a>.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">If you took the time to read this, and unless you're an extreme right-wing conservative, you're probably somewhere between annoyed and 'I can't believe he said that'. The truth is, the Minister made a number of particularly disturbing and insulting statements in his release. While some have demanded an apology and few requested his resignation, I don't think either would really suffice. The problem isn't in the statements, it's that he believes in them and worse, they indicate much deeper, underlying and disturbing thoughts are lingering below the surface. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"<span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;">Years and hundreds of programs have tried to help people understand their part in the healthcare equation and everyone needs to put these teachings into practice."</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;">When I read this what I'm actually hearing is: "You had your chance to do it your way and you didn't so watch out because it will soon be <i>my</i> way." Now, it could be that I'm biased in terms of politics or it could be that I'm swayed by statements like this because they're similar to other tyrannical statements I've read but I find that statement one of the scariest in the entire piece. Onto the next.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;">"</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;">As minister of health, it is my job to improve the health of all citizens. To do this, we need a population that looks after its own health."</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;">It's all your fault.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;">"</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;">Do we need to take further drastic measures? Some have suggested looking at the banking model."</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;">This is another extremely frightful statement. Treat Health Care like a banking system? Has Mr Glavine taken a recent look at financial state of the global economy? While he does go on to reference the Canadian banking system, I stand by my question. The banking systems of the world, even Canada, are flawed and based entirely on debt. I'm not going to get into a rant on economics, there are plenty of other posts available on that topic, but what I will say is that before we go trading out our current system that we don't trade it for one equally flawed and broken.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;">"</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;">They must prove that they practice a healthy financial lifestyle before being able to borrow money."</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;">This is a terrible, terrible analogy of how good old Leo wants to run things. If you can't prove you meet a certain standard of health, you don't get to see a doctor? How discriminating is that? Who will determines these standards and guidelines? How long do I have to be "healthy" before I am applicable for Health Care? Are we just shutting the door on all senior citizens once they reach a certain age because the older we get, the more health care we need. </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;">And if we can "prove" our health Mr Glavine, then what? We get the same free health care services as before? And do those who are deemed too unhealthy for health care still continue to pay for it? Obviously this statement was not thought through.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;">"</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;">But, copying this approach would be archaic and inhumane, and it is not for me to judge those who are dependent on the system."</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="line-height: 24px;">It's not for him to judge yet the entire article is nothing but judgment. Judging people who don't fall under his perception of healthy; or living a good life; or being a good citizen. This individual is sitting in an elected position of public office with near inscrutable power and he uses it to chastise the very citizens who elected him there. It really feels like Mr Glavine has an Iron Fist when it comes to who should be receiving Health Care.<br /><br />"</span></span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;">Then there are people who are cognizant abusers of the system. They accept government assistance, yet still have money to travel. These people are abusing their neighbours’ hard-earned money. The goal of assistance programs is to help people out of a difficult time, not give people free money."</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;">Where to begin....and end. I think I will try to be brief on this despite the fact that I could probably write an entire other blog post simply off those few sentences. The fact is that there are people abusing all systems, in all places, at all times. Not just the poor but the middle class and the upper class and the wealthy on top of them as well. There are bad seeds among any socially labelled group, class or organization you wish to name. It is, <i>currently</i>, an inescapable fact. To state that a small minority of individuals abusing the social assistance program are responsible for high costs in health care is absurd. One might point out the high costs of politician's pensions as a contributor to the high costs of health care and other social programs; but we won't.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;">"</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;">Proactive healthcare is the best way to restore long-term wealth to our province</span><i style="background-color: white; line-height: 24px;">."</i></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">This is an accurate statement and claim. No argument that the best way to save money on health care is through preventative measures and proactive treatments. At least Mr Glavine had one intelligent statement to make.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">That concludes thoughts about some of the things the Health Minister had to say in his op-ed piece. I now have a few general statements to make as well. Firstly Mr Glavine, I have been on social assistance and while I am unsure who you are speaking of, I can assure you that the only travelling I could afford was on a public bus to get to and from potential places of employment. The amount of money provided was barely sufficient enough to survive and had it not been for the services of local food banks, I most certainly would have had a much worse time.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">As for poverty, have you ever tried it Mr Glavine? Have you tried to eat healthy food from a grocery store when you have to choose between rent or power? Do you know that corporations market unhealthy products towards those living in poverty and make those products MORE affordable then health food? Does Mr Glavine understand the difficulties in putting children in extra-curricular activities when you can barely afford their lunches? I doubt Mr Glavine has any real sense of the reality that those who live in poverty have to go through just to survive; let alone to live a life. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">We are all human and we all deserve to live a happy <i style="font-weight: bold;">and</i> healthy life. In order for that to happen yes, we all need to make a personal choice to lead better lives but it becomes a much more complicated affair when that personal choice is between leading a better life or surviving through the day. I worry about the possible day where I may find myself once again fighting for survival and needing to visit a hospital for health care; I may well not be welcomed. </span></span><br />
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</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #1a1a1a; font-family: cassiaregular; font-size: 18px; line-height: 24px;"><br /></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-3341016941805137802014-02-26T12:17:00.001-04:002014-05-27T14:14:21.374-03:00The Communist Manifesto: Marx's Revolution on the Horizon?<div style="text-align: left;">
Good day my friends out there in Cyberspace as well as those I am fortunate enough to see in person. Still trying to get back into the habit of writing regularly. Unfortunately inspiration has been lacking and thus my writing suffering. However, I have exciting news: I started reading books again! And with books come ideas and ideas are something worth writing about; even if they're only for my own self-reflection. The first book I started reading, this will be my second time reading it, is The Communist Manifesto.</div>
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The last time I read it, I was still a little young and didn't retain and cannot recall much of what I read. This time around I am older, have lived some life and gained some knowledge and wisdom. I am not completely finished, despite it being a rather short piece of writing, but I have been stricken with some thoughts so far that I'm going to share here now. Please enjoy and feel free to leave your own insights. Here we go: </div>
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Marx wasn't wrong about the proletariat eventually taking control
of the means of production and replacing capitalism with socialism; he
just had no way to realize the lengths that the bourgeois would go, or
the amount they would part with, to keep the proletariat under control.
Marx thought he might see the fall of capitalism but he was mistaken and
did not realize this until later in life. He did not take into account
that the bourgeois would evolve as the means of production also evolved.
With new capital wealth, the bourgeois, over time, could easily part
with old forms of capital and hand them down to the proletariat ensuring
their happiness and staving off revolutionary change by convincing them
of increased prosperity disguised only as alms. I think that now,
today, in our present time, Marx would be more excited than ever to see
what is happening. Capitalism is collapsing globally as the proletariat
are becoming aware that the gifts they thought they were receiving were
nothing but alms devised as a curtain to keep them veiled from the real
destruction and appropriation being undertaken by the bourgeois. The
proletariat is rising and the bourgeoisie should be afraid because the
revolution Marx spoke of, wrote of and dreamed of could be just beyond
tomorrow's horizon.</div>
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Democracy, suffrage and law are nothing more than
mirages created to convince the proletariat that they have power when in fact
they do not. By these means the people can be convinced that true
change can be effected through non-revolutionary means. In these three
social creations, the bourgeois have tamed the revolutionary spirit of
the proletariat.</div>
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People will remain conservative until suffering
forces them to break from the norm. As long as the bourgeois can
maintain a balance of suffering versus reward in the eyes of the
proletariat during the accumulation of wealth/capital, they will
continue to retain their authority and power.</div>
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Communism is nothing more than a Democracy without
the illusion of vote. A member of the bourgeois (upper class/wealthy)
being the representative and ruler over the proletariat (working class)
for the better of society.</div>
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Capitalism is de-evolving. During it's initial onset
and subsequent growth over the last century it took in members of the
lower class and spit them back out as the working class creating
economic and social prosperity. However, capitalism has arrived near or
past it's ability to continue being productive to the evolution of
society. The evolution of technology has caused a shift in the means of
production and the necessity of the proletariat. This is causing the
forceful reduction of individuals from the working class to the poor
class; reversing the initial and long term growth gained through
Capitalism.*</div>
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Some interesting quotes from Marx & Engels:</div>
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"Higher wages are in fact not a contradiction of
capitalism or a defeat of it. On the contrary, they protect capitalism
and actually make it work better."</div>
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"In a great society, a few men will aspire to run things and the great majority will allow them to do it."</div>
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"The working class cannot simply lay hold the ready-made State machinery and wield it for its own purposes." </div>
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I hope you enjoyed some of the thoughts that came to exist while I was reading this interesting piece of political literature. While I may not hold true Communist nor Capitalist values, there are values and ideas from both I can support and agree with. There is definitely a sociological paradigm shift on the horizon and from it we may the rise of a new form of government and economic system; a lack thereof; or something we may not even recognize. The future is near and we should all be excited.<br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*some ideas borrowed and expanded upon by the author</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-20630117481637119972014-02-14T20:13:00.002-04:002014-05-27T14:14:55.045-03:00Happy Valentine's Day<div style="text-align: justify;">
I hope that everyone has had themselves a good day today and for those of you with a significant other, I truly hope you had a wonderful Valentine's Day. Unfortunately like many other people today, I find myself with no one to share my love with. While that is something that is alright for me, for many today is a day full of contempt or bitterness for being alone. It can be tough being single and alone any day of the year but even more so when <i>love</i> is everywhere you look, see and go. I was sifting through some old poems and I found one I wrote on Valentine's Day a decade ago for a sweet woman who was a little down because she was single on Valentine's. Needless to say, she got a smile and I hope you will too. Have an open heart and be ready for love will find you when you are least expecting it to and if you're heart is closed it may pass you by. </div>
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Happy Valentine's Day</div>
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Alone at work you'll sit and stay</div>
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As others share this Valentine's Day.</div>
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There is no one to send you gifts</div>
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And give your day that special lift,</div>
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I have not flowers nor any sweets,</div>
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So I hope this poem will be a treat;</div>
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Cheer you up when you're feeling down,</div>
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To make you smile instead of frown.</div>
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A special day for lover's all,</div>
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Young and old, short and tall.</div>
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Do not be worried by love eluding,</div>
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But focus more upon the meaning:</div>
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It's not a flower, it's not a card</div>
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But how you feel inside your heart.</div>
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Happy Valentine's Day.</div>
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However you spent your day, I hope it was touched by love at least once. And if you're feeling bitter or resentful today because you feel scorned or betrayed, I feel you and I completely understand but your past scars will heal; don't let the wounds of yesterday stop you from finding a love a tomorrow. Stay safe and love one another. </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-70368729864358352262013-09-26T22:58:00.001-03:002014-05-27T14:15:20.256-03:00# Symbol: What Does it Mean!?!?<div style="text-align: justify;">
Good day my digital friends. I hope that the day has found you well. Every so often on my Facebook news feed, a discussion goes by about this silly little symbol: #. I have been taught to refer to it as the Number Sign or a Pound Sign. More recently with the explosion of Social Media, specifically Twitter, it has come to take on an entirely new meaning...to me. It is also a Hash Tag. Facebook has also recently taken the move to adopt it into their platform as well and if you're an avid Twitter user as I am, you know full well the purpose of using the # symbol; Facebook users do not share the same understanding or love of the # symbol.</div>
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It surprises me how much of a hot topic this actually is for many people in the Facebook world. I understand that there is a certain lack of understanding if you've never used Twitter and thus I can understand some resistance however like anything new, once must give it an opportunity. Use correctly #Hashtags are a very effective social media tool. They allow for like-minded people to find one another through a vast expanse of users. By simply clicking on a hash-tagged word you are brought directly to all information that has been posted with that same hash tag. Imagine, people being able to freely seek out engagement, debate, knowledge and understanding. Facebook users, it's time to get on board simply for the sheer volume of knowledge and information that can be made available there versus Twitter. </div>
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I shall also take a moment to note that I get some of the hatred. People absolutely abuse the use of the hash tag; oftentimes tagging every word in a post or Tweet. This is an improper use of the hash tag and even the Twitterverse shuns such usage; you are not alone in this Facebook. However, mocking it continuously by using hash tags in every one of your words to voice your distaste will only make you out to be a troll or someone who lacks basic social media understanding. Now onto the meat of what I actually wanted to talk a little about after finding the following on Wikipedia on the # symbol:</div>
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""Outside of North America, the symbol is called hash and the corresponding telephone key is called the hash key. In American and Canadian English, the symbol is usually called the pound sign (outside the US, this term often describes instead the British currency symbol "£"), and the telephone key is called the pound key.[<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Number_sign" target="_blank">1</a>]"</div>
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So first, one more thing to Facebook users who despise the # symbol without even trying to understand, it is a symbol and symbols can and do have many shapes, forms and especially meanings. Take for example the color Red. It can mean stop, it can mean danger, it can mean hot. Yet it is still the same color; where is you campaign on the atrocity on Red being used so frivolously? </div>
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Ok, so back to the quote. I've read several times over and what strikes me here, what jumps out is that the # symbol is only called the Pound Key/Symbol in North America. Imagine that. Essentially the rest of the planet calls it a Hash Key/Symbol yet it is we here in the Canada and the USA that blast people who call it a has tag, call them idiots and constantly remind people that it's called "pound". How absolutely and typically ethnocentric of us. How very arrogant.</div>
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Sure it may sound like a bit of a stretch to you but after reading this it just further reinforces the idea in my head that North Americans need to wake up and get there heads out of the sand. We are not the center of the Universe and we need to stop thinking we are. We do not know any better and while I am merely discussing a silly little symbol, it serves as a very real indication on how we behave on a larger scale towards much more serious issues. If we cannot even accept that what we call this symbol is the minority view in the world and that perhaps maybe WE could change for the rest of the world a little then I've wasted every second I have spent writing this. </div>
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While I am happy to live where I do, I do not take for granted nor do I ignore the privileges that come with it. I am aware of the grand scale of ethnocentrism that we possess and the we attempt to enforce on other nations and peoples across the globe. We enforce our values, our laws, our democracy, our freedom, our opinions...can't we just say <i>fuck it</i> and call it a hash tag already?</div>
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While I sound bleak and condemning I assure you that I am not meaning to be negative but when one points out the ugly, no matter how you paint it, it's still ugly. I'm just pointing out some ugly and asking that maybe we clean a little bit of it up and I don't mean the damn hash tag (as I'm sure some of you are fuming by now or getting tired of reading it over and over again) but other, meaningful things that we can change to stop enforcing our own North American views on the rest of the world. </div>
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The last time I checked a picture of the Earth from space there were no borders dividing land masses.</div>
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The last time I checked a biology textbook there is only one species of human beings, <i>homo sapien sapiens,</i> and not many, subdivided by color, religion or culture.</div>
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We are one people living on one Earth and that's all we have for as long as we're here. Let's spend that time together doing better things than enforcing views, condemning other views or arguing over what a # symbol means. As always, thank you for taking the time out of your day to read and doubly so if you felt compelled to share. Love on another.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-48436722339751475382013-09-21T19:52:00.001-03:002014-05-27T14:15:44.261-03:00Press Release - Southern Unified Organization for the Top Hemisphere (SOUTH)<div style="text-align: justify;">
For Immediate Press Release*</div>
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21 September 2013</div>
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The Southern Unified Organization for the Top Hemisphere (SOUTH) would like to announce its intention to put forward a motion at the upcoming United Nations World Conference in November of 2013. The United Nations World Conference will be held at the New York United Nations Building located at 1 United Nations Plaza in New York from November the 20th, 2013 through to November 24th, 2013. Representatives from all 192 countries will be present, the majority of which will be representing countries from the Southern Hemisphere.</div>
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The motion put forward by SOUTH will be to present a case and put forth a study on revising what has commonly been the layout of the planet on maps and globes. It is a scientific fact that our perception of direction is subjective. We have named the poles North and South, given those terms definitions of direction and created our geographical records to reflect those terms. The reality of the situation is that we, SOUTH, feel that we were not given an opportunity to take part in the finalization of how our geographical representations should look like. It is with this in mind that we present our request to move forward with change.</div>
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SOUTH proposes that beginning on January the 1st, 2020 that all georgraphical representations of the planet be done with the Southern Hemisphere at the top of the map while the Northern Hemisphere will be moved to the bottom. We are currently in the process of drafting a resolution to change the global definitions of North and South. It is time that the dictatorial demands of the developed countries of the Northern Hemisphere now take a back seat to the needs and demands of those developed nations in the Southern Hemisphere.</div>
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"For too long, everything in the World has revolved around some country or city-state in the Northern Hemisphere. Throughout history it has been the Northern countries that have been the source of war, poverty and environmental destruction," says recently elected Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott. "It is time that we, SOUTH, stand together and be given our opportunity; they've had a few millenia to get it right and have failed miserably."</div>
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While we, SOUTH, understand the magnitude of this undertaking we do so with great resolve and determination. The Southern Hemisphere currently contains the majority of all countries on the planet as well as the majority of countries who are members of the United Nations. Most of the world's largest supply of natural resources are also found in the Southern Hemisphere. With such a vast populace and reserve of resources, SOUTH will, over the coming years, become a force of influence and power.</div>
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There are currently 83 countries who have joined SOUTH to push this resolution forward. </div>
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No media contact will be made available until one week prior to the conference as we continue to finalize the resolution that will be put forward during the United Nations World Conference.</div>
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For more information please contact SOUTH via email at southern.hemisphere@gmail.com. Please find included a tentative reproduction of our proposal for a new World Map.</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-20501754389236620912013-09-21T13:05:00.002-03:002013-09-21T13:05:31.761-03:00Social Etiquette on Holding a Door or Elevator<div style="text-align: justify;">
Good afternoon to you all. I hope the day has found you all very well and continues to get even better. It's been about a two weeks since my last post, which is about three months less than the interval between posts prior to that; I consider it a rather small, but positive victory. Last night I realized I need to get a new post going and feeling some writer's block, I crowd-sourced for topics. Unfortunately it was quite late however I did get this one little interesting response. I said I would write about anything and I guess this contributor thought she was being funny but here we go nonetheless.</div>
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So what is the social etiquette on the length of time that one should hold open a door or elevator for someone else. It seems like a simple enough topic to discuss, throw out a subjective time from my own personal experiences and voila! We have a blog post...but that'd be far too simple for someone like myself who likes to examine even the simplest of notions in depth. I've actually come up with a few different variables that can potentially change the length of time you wait holding a door for someone.</div>
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The first thing I examined was the 'who'. Who am I holding this for? Is it a friend? A stranger? A family member? An acquaintance? A celebrity? This is a very important question. It would seem far more likely that we would hold the door for a shorter amount of time for a stranger rather than a family member; or maybe it's the reverse for you. The individual(s) and their personal connection to us can subjectively alter the length of time one might hold a door open for someone. Personally, I am fairly equitable on a day to day basis on who I hold doors for and how long. It's an act of kindness, however small.</div>
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The next thing to cross my mind is distance and speed. How far away is the person? How quickly are they moving? These are two interesting questions because they impact our decision to hold or not to hold a door and how long we might hold it for. As an example, if I am holding an elevator door for someone walking from 15 feet away and they are moving particularly slow, I will hold the door as long as necessary if I have already started to. If however I see that the door will be closed long before someone arrives I may just continue on my way. When it comes to elevators I have a general rule of thumb: if I don't see you coming towards the elevator, I hit the 'close door' button; if I see you coming and it is obvious I will hold the door as long as it takes for you to get in (even if I get annoyed that you're walking at a sloth's pace). </div>
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Something else that will impact the length of time I might hold a door is my own personal disposition. I am a human being. I have emotions and sometimes those emotions are negative. If I am in a particularly negative mood I might not hold a door or elevator for anyone for any reason regardless of anything else. We've all had days like that and it's hard to get out of the negativity. Interestingly enough, someone holding a door or elevator for you can be just the right amount of kindness to eradicate the bad mood.</div>
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So I still have yet to address her actual question which was: how long should one actually hold open a door or an elevator for someone else? I look at them as two different questions because I have different 'rules' for each type of hold. When it comes to a door, I will not hold it open or try to hold it open if it looks like it will take longer than 15-20 seconds for the individual to get to the door to walk through. The only exception to this rule is for those with disabilities that impair movement; I will wait for minutes. For an elevator I have kind of already explained how I do that so the actual amount of time I would hold it for varies. Pretty much if you're out of sight, I'm leaving you behind when it comes to an elevator. People occasionally get annoyed because if someone starts coming to catch the elevator after already having waited for someone before them, I will continue to wait.</div>
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I would personally suggest, Amanda (the contributor) that you use your own best judgment however I will leave you with this:</div>
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People react positively to kindness even in the most foul of moods. Doing something kind for someone for the sake of being kind does not come with a time limit. Social etiquette is a subjective term and no official paper has been written in stone on what is good or what is bad. We have ideas, some personal and some public that influence what we perceive to be good or bad social etiquette but what it really comes down to is this: do you want to hold the door/elevator because society has imposed this idea in your head or do you want to do it out of kindness. Ultimately what you decide will determine how long you hold for.</div>
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And with that, we shall bring this post to an end. I am hoping to not wait so long for the next one but as I mentioned, the frequency between this and the last post is a vast improvement for me. I look forward to decreasing the interval between posts. As always, thank you all for reading and double thanks to those who share. Have a wonderful day and love one another.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-78892824900561851412013-09-13T13:51:00.000-03:002013-09-13T13:51:00.094-03:00Writing for Writing's Sake<div style="text-align: justify;">
Good afternoon Cyberspace. It has been far too long since my last blog post update. I haven't exactly been busy or occupied or anything; unless you count working five to six days a week, eight to ten hours a day (which I don't). Regardless it is not work that has kept me from maintaining my blog or any of the other things that have suffered over the last few months. Nope, it's not that I'm too busy; it's not even that I'm uninspired because there have been a whole bunch of issues that I could have easily written posts about at great lengths but chose not to. </div>
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Today I am having a pretty lousy day. I awoke to a phone with no text message notifications from a loved one. I arose to a hard rain pounding down all across the city which negated my ability to get the things I wanted to do done this morning...like get to a store to buy something so that I could eat some breakfast. Above that I also did not sleep very well, haven't been eating all that great and have generally been stressed about finances. I went to the wrong building when I arrived at work and had to walk back through the rain to get to the right one, my brain is groggy and I feel disassociated. BUT! I am determined to start making changes and resuming regular blog posts (this is like my third attempt in the last six months) is part of that. So here I am, terrible day, and I am forcing myself to write something even if it's just griping.</div>
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Lately there it has seemed like there has been an ever increasing rise in negative attitudes and opinions everywhere I go. People attacking people over this or that; people vilifying other people because they share differences of opinion; every day good people slinging insults and attacks because they share different political ideologies; people using other people for scapegoats for issues that could in no possibly be attributed to the simple stupid and mistaken actions of a single individual. And I'm nobody's fool; I don't expect campfires and kumbaya but a little human decency and respect isn't really asking for a lot...is it? </div>
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Not sure what else to write about right now. I suppose just getting something out is a way to get the ball rolling on resuming writing. I mean, if I write about nothing and nonsense enough there is bound to be something creative or inspiring to find its way to the surface. Like that old expression: a thousand monkeys typing on a thousand keyboards for a thousand years will eventually hammer out the entire Encyclopedia Britannica (or all of Shakespeare's works depending on the origin). Let us hope that it doesn't take me a thousand years to find something interesting and passionate to type about.</div>
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Well, nearing the end of anything sensible to really discuss. I guess I will add something relevant to local and global events just to feel like I've shared something important for you: </div>
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Firstly, let's stay the hell out of Syria. While I am aghast and horrified by the use of chemical weapons against civilians, I also opposed military intervention into a country that has been fighting a civil war for years. I am all for humanitarian support for the people of Syria and maybe we should be set up near borders to assist with that but Syria should be permitted to find its own path just as the United States once did and we did in Canada (though for us there was little violence in comparison). </div>
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Secondly, if Miley Cyrus' twerking was something you felt compelled to talk about longer than her performance at the MVA's then you spent far too much time on it. </div>
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And lastly, frosh weeks at post-secondary education institutions is a complete and utter waste of time and resources. University is for education, not humiliation. Frosh weeks may help people to break out of their "shell" but more often they help people to get drunk and get stupid. The events and activities at many of these events, especially the after hours ones, as despicable and no child in the world would feel comfortable doing these things if their family were there watching. If you wouldn't do it at home, don't do it abroad. Also, don't act so fucking surprised to hear about it either. That really pisses me off. People acting like this stuff has never happened before. It's been happening for years and years and years and we continue to turn blind eyes to it so you don't get to claim ignorance here. One last thing on the subject, the SMU incident was not isolated and similar occurrences will continue to happen unless we address the issue and not sit around looking for who is at fault for it happening. A student union president's resignation; sensitivity training for student leaders; disciplinary action for two students; and a promise from faculty will not a solution create. While there are outside groups applying pressure, it won't do any good if the support dies off once the next big news headline hits. Stay vigilant to the issue and don't think because we've made some cosmetic changes on the surface that anything is different underneath. Rape, rape culture and sexual assault are serious matters; not to mention illegal, and the life-long affects of being a victim are impossible to gauge. But I've gone on too long about this here, and not long enough about it to properly express and share my thoughts on it (another blog post perhaps).</div>
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Guess that's it for today. This is my third attempt to re-kindle the writing fire I had not so long ago and I really want to tell you, and myself, that I am committed; that I will follow through; that I will get back to doing that which I enjoy but let's face it, talk is cheap without action. Here's hoping the action I started here today continues as a reaction tomorrow...and then again the next day...</div>
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A wonderful day to each and every one of you who may have stumbled across this garbled blog post of vague ideas. One Love.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-27799810342161502762013-06-27T23:57:00.001-03:002013-06-28T10:31:04.119-03:00Racism in the HRM<div style="text-align: justify;">
Good day fellow citizens of the Internet. In the last three days I have bore witness to one blatant case of verbal racism and have heard first hand the account of another case of willful racism in my beautiful and wonderful home called the Halifax Regional Municipality. Don't get the wrong idea; it really is a unique and special place. I have seen much of my homeland, Canada, and this city has something that sets it apart from other places; other great places. But there is a little darkness and I want to share one such instance because I know people involved very personally and they are good people; honest people.</div>
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I like politics. I enjoy the debate; I enjoy the engagement; and I enjoy participating in what we shall call an <i>open and free democracy</i>. At some point in the near future there is going to be a Provincial election called and so the political talk is starting to jump into drive. Personally, I know a number of individuals who have put themselves forward with different parties. Just to cover myself and attempt to demonstrate my non-partisanship and bias I refer you to my past post on why I despise <a href="http://thibeautime.blogspot.ca/2012/04/politics-party-system.html" target="_blank">party politics</a>; I don't support parties, I support people. Moving on, I do volunteer for a few of these candidates because I believe them to demonstrate true character and depth. </div>
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One of the candidates I volunteer with is <a href="https://www.facebook.com/AbadKhanNS?fref=ts" target="_blank">Abad Khan</a> (yeah, that's a plug; he's a great individual) who is the NDP candidate for the Fairview-Clayton Park riding here in HRM. I've know him for a little over a year now and we've engaged in a number of discussions. He is well informed and we share many similar thoughts and opinions. </div>
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Another candidate running in the same riding is Travis Price who is the Conservative candidate. You may know Travis from his Pink Shirt and Anti-Bullying campaigns. I was fortunate enough to spend a year and a half attending Eastern College with Travis. He has brought his message all around the world and it is a great pleasure to know him. Travis is an upstanding individual and despite the positive impact he has had on youth, he was quite modest about it during our time in school. I mention Travis because he brings kind of a sick, ironic twist to this story (and yes, I'm getting to the point; it's called a set up!).</div>
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So because I volunteer with one and know the other, I follow their campaigns. The Conservatives made a to-do about Travis' announcement; and why shouldn't they? There was plenty of media coverage, a number of articles written and some photos snapped and circulated. Jamie Baillie, who is the leader of the Provincial Conservatives, was present at the event and posted one of those pictures to his <a href="https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151703247830470&set=a.10151161685480470.495080.634725469&type=1&theater" target="_blank">Facebook wall</a>. If you follow that link you will find the picture.</div>
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If you read the comments you might have noticed something seemed missing; it is. Two nights ago, I happened to come across the post and what I found in the comments section was just disgusting and vile: open, ignorant racism. Now, the comments are gone and that's probably good but the fact that it happened wasn't addressed; at least not publicly. This would have been a good opportunity for Mr Baillie to follow his young candidate's example and do something positive. Perhaps relay the message that the Conservative party doesn't tolerate racism and does not condone such behavior; or perhaps he could have said that the Conservative party does not want the any vote that derives from racism; or maybe you could have said something instead of kind of brushing it out. </div>
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What really needs to be addressed here is the behavior: racism. How, in this day and age, anyone can seriously choose their political allegiance based solely off of skin color; or even worse: a prejudice rolled into racism. Like I said, decent people came to the rescue but knowing Abad, I was hurt, shocked and blown away. And maybe I'm blowing it out of proportion because you're thinking: there aren't enough people like that to make a difference. No? How many closet racists are out there? If one is this bold, and there are more than one, then others will be too. It also means that someone else risks the chance of adopting such behavior which will grow into more people adopting it and the behavior being passed on over time. You can judge for yourself. Below you'll find my screen shot from that night. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4TcfuPMWuW4X0EFSmtuv0F5hDFvAMMlth5q1-rcOt20EVBv9I_Axp2SN0kTL96ldp0tEHEgFUlOWYAZAtekDHKCmsi2yv2L7FZmmdyEbdbEaJgjS6uVEIOjHylaekaXqMmg1DZvq4S10/s553/Capture.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="452" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4TcfuPMWuW4X0EFSmtuv0F5hDFvAMMlth5q1-rcOt20EVBv9I_Axp2SN0kTL96ldp0tEHEgFUlOWYAZAtekDHKCmsi2yv2L7FZmmdyEbdbEaJgjS6uVEIOjHylaekaXqMmg1DZvq4S10/s640/Capture.PNG" width="640" /></a></div>
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I'm sad and ashamed to know this sort of mentality exists in such a great place like HRM. There are so many wonderful and amazing people from all forms of cultural backgrounds and that is one of the great allures of this great city. It celebrates it's diversity and uses that very diversity to grow in a progressive and socially constructive way that is truly amazing. And for the record, Abad is Canadian; went to school here; grew up here' lives here; works here; and Stuart, he probably speaks better English than you. I hope that in your daily lives you will step up like the people above, like Travis, like good decent people and put an end to this behavior. It cannot be tolerated.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-945486051206557782.post-57303131855343539312013-06-15T15:19:00.002-03:002013-06-15T15:30:41.832-03:00Goodbye<div style="text-align: justify;">
Well now that things have changed I feel I owe all you amazing and supportive people an explanation, as best I can, for the depression and anxiety you've all helped me through.</div>
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Yesterday I had to say Goodbye; I had to put an end to a ten year chapter of my life and I had to do so very much against my will. Goodbyes are never an easy thing and this one in particular shall rank up there as one of the hardest I've ever had to find the strength to say. No one died so you can put that worry to rest. The only thing damaged from my end was my heart.</div>
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For ten years I have been in love with one very special woman. The very first time I ever laid eyes on her I bore witness to what I have come to be told was an "aura". I don't see aura's but what I saw that first moment I will never forget. A shining light so brilliantly white and yellow that the sun's rays paled in comparison. I was struck instantly and knew in that very moment that I had experienced what many a poet, writer and artist has been trying to express for millenia: I experience love at first sight. A different kind of love I've never known before. One that I will never forget and never regret.</div>
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Saying goodbye meant more than losing this, not that it was really mine at the time but in a way it was. It's not just the love you lose; you lose a part of yourself. That has been the source of my anxiety: my heart was existing in one place, my mind and body another. One cannot live without one's heart; it leaves the soul empty. I know that in my heart that this was the right thing to do, right now, in this time and place. Will it be the same tomorrow? I don't know.</div>
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Make no mistake; I have no regrets. I don't believe in them. Regret is meant for people who are unwilling to take action; who chose doing nothing over risking doing the wrong, or right, thing. Doing the wrong thing is better than doing nothing; a mistake can be corrected. It is not how I envisioned this Once Upon A Time ending; I'd always hoped for a Happily Ever After. This is not to be.</div>
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So today, while my heart is heavy and aches with sorrow, I am working on moving forward and growing. I carry with me every moment, good and bad, every memory I have made and those will have to suffice as reminders of what it truly means to find happiness and love in one's life...until I am able to find them again. I'm sure this won't go over well for some; others will know exactly what I'm talking about; some will have a little more clarity; and some will finally have an understanding of what I have been dealing with personally. The worst feeling in the world is letting go of something or someone you love with every fiber of your being; a love that overwhelms the foundations of the heart and shakes you to the core.</div>
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I could go on at great lengths about all the wonderful things I've taken away or the things I have allowed myself to suffer through and endure; but I think this is enough for you to get the gist of it. I was depressed because I knew that I would be saying Goodbye to a great love; goodbye to someone who is, on the inside, one of the most wonderful, caring, sensitive and thoughtful people I know...she just doesn't know it.</div>
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So there it is. Remarkable how such a simple little word can have such an impact on an individual but yet, here I am. Yesterday I lived in perptual heartache and stress but I loved and was loved; today, my heart begins to heal, the stress has been alleviated, I still love but I'm no longer being loved (I know I'm loved but I think you know what I mean).</div>
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And I guess the hardest part is going to be the void. While I don't discount that I will fall in love again someday, the pain and realization of knowing what I am missing during the between will certainly be a struggle to overcome. Life is hard; love even harder at times but these are the risks we must accept if we want to really live. I may sad, but I am alive and living; the pain tells me so much like the joy will do again.</div>
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Thanks for listening; thanks for caring; and thanks for loving.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10632933520581304507noreply@blogger.com0