A Little Love And Respect For Others Would Make The World A Lot Better Place
This is a companion article to a story I wrote recently. Previously, I wrote about “Familiarity” as being the primary basis for understanding others that are different than you. If you’re interested, you can read it here: http://profoundrevelations.com/2016/10/07/people-fear-others-different/
However, this article is more about the basic fundamentals of respect for others.
People talk about respect for others all the time, but what doe’s it actually mean?
According to the Mirriam-Websters dictionary, respect is defined as:
A feeling of admiring someone or something that is good, valuable, important, etc. :a feeling or understanding that someone or something is important, serious, etc., and should be treated in an appropriate way. : a particular way of thinking about or looking at something.
But respect for a fellow human being is so much more than a simple definition from a dictionary. Respect is the little things. Respect is simple human decency.
Aretha Franklin sang about it in 1967.
To respect someone else, do I have to agree with their lifestyle? the way they dress? their religion? politics? sexual orientation? Do they have to have the same skin color as me?
No, of course not!
For me, the concept of respect is really quite simple. Respect, is the simple acknowledgment and validation of the values, beliefs and lifestyle of another person as a fellow human being. Think about that for a second.
Respect for others is also about throwing out the stereotypes and bias you have about others, especially someone you don’t even know. Every human being on this planet is unique in their own way. Every person has value.
Here’s an example or respect that we can all relate to. If I am going into, a building or a store, I automatically hold the door for anyone else coming in behind me.
I hold the door open for everyone even if I have to wait several seconds for them to catch up. I am talking about literally everyone; young, old, overweight, underweight, Blacks, Hispanics, Asians, men, women and everyone else in between.
I have learned one important thing by performing this simple act of kindness. I learned that the most scary, looking gang-banger types will inevitably, smile and say thank you. Well, most everyone. Believe it or not, the ones most often to just walk past me, and say nothing at all, are mostly elderly white women. Go figure.
How about when you are standing next to a stranger in line or other, public place, do you just ignore that living breathing human being standing right next to you? Or do you acknowledge them by at least say hello, Comment about the weather or whatever? I do.
In my position in my career field, I am in a position of management. When I need someone to do something, I habitually approach them with “Could you do me a favor?” or “I need your help”. This approach is nothing more than a sign of respect for another. They actually don’t have a choice if I ask, however, I respect them and the job they do.
A pat on the back, a joke, a fist bump, or handshake in recognition of a job well done also goes a long in showing someone you respect them and acknowledge the value of not only them as a person but also the value of their work.
Don’t confuse my kindness or respect for others with weakness. I still have a job to do. If someone makes me be an asshole,I will. However, this is something I find distasteful.
I greet everyone at work with the same respect that I show for the President of the company. It makes no difference to me if the employee’s job is to empty the garbage or you are the one in charge of everything. Respect and kindness go a long way.
You should try it sometime.
In today’s highly charged partisan political environment, people are more divided than ever before. I have friends, really good friends, that for some reason are strong supporters of the other parties candidate for President. Their candidate is someone that I wouldn’t support, even if he was the only candidate on the ballot. In that case, I would just write my own name in.
We respectfully debate back and forth either in person, through Facebook or on the phone. Do I think any different of them just because I don’t agree with their politics, absolutely not! I may feel that they are misguided, but they are still my friends and we have a lot of history and good times we shared, and still share.
Respect for other people’s beliefs is critically important. I don’t have to agree with them, but I still respect them as a person. Besides, there is often a lot of common ground between us. Politics, religion or whatever belief system a person has is only a small part of their character as a whole.
I make it point of talking to as many of my fellow employees as I can at work. We have an extremely diverse 370 person workforce. I often ask people on Monday’s if they had a good weekend, and ask if they did anything special.
I am past being surprised when the person who on the surface it would seem that I have the least in common with, casually mentions how they did something like, a home remodeling project or refinishing a piece of furniture or whatever.
Hey, I like home remodeling projects, and I enjoy remodeling furniture as well. This seemingly minor bit of conversation enabled us to create a deeper connection and discover some common ground between us. This has often lead to some interesting conversations and we both learn something new from each other. Often, we both walk away with a with a level of respect and understanding that didn’t exist previously.
In my experience, Often people in low paying jobs didn’t have the same education or opportunities in life that I had. I make it my mission to help people the best I can. I work with them, try to teach them new skills and explain how to succeed.
You would be surprised how people blossom when someone takes the time to mentor them, offer words of encouragement, and teach them new skills. This opens the doors to new economic opportunities. Isn’t this what we should all be doing?
It seems perfectly clear to me kindness, love, and respect for one another go a long way in creating an atmosphere where when you are kind and respect others, the chances are good that they will respect you as well.
The stereotypes and bias that everyone has are nothing more than a false narrative on actual reality.
The simplest way to break this cycle is to take the initiative and show a little kindness, love, and respect for our fellow human beings.
You might be surprised, that you find more common ground between yourself and someone who is seemingly the polar opposite then you than you might think.
Isn’t it worth finding out?
Of course, not everyone will get along for one reason or another, this is just human nature. But that doesn’t mean that a little kindness, civility, and respect won’t go a long way in mitigating our responses to one another.
Here is one last thing to consider. In life, I judge everyone by only one of two categories. You are either an asshole or you’re not an asshole. It’s really that simple. Everything else, religion, politics, sexual orientation, lifestyle, race, creed or culture really just doesn’t matter. It’s who you are as a person that counts.
Attacking The Legitimacy Of Our Elections Is An Attack On The Very Foundations Of Our Democracy!
The American system of free and fair elections is under attack. Donald Trump has done the unspeakable. Donald has attacked the very foundations of our nation’s Democracy. His shocking and unsubstantiated allegations of voter fraud and media bias are an affront to the very foundations of our democracy that our founding fathers fought and died for.
So, Donald Trump, I am speaking directly to you, personally. This is an open letter yo you, Donald Trump.
Please try to listen, and pay attention, just this one time.
The American elections and peaceful transfer of power are considered the “Gold Standard” around the world, as well as they should be.
Let’s start from the very beginning and clarify a few facts.
The United States of America is not a true democracy in the strict sense of the word. The United States as set up and ratified by our founding fathers in 1787 is actually what is known as a “Constitutional Republic”.
Constitutional means that the government is bound by a constitution. The United States has a constitutional form of government.
A republic is a country governed by elected representatives. The United States is a republic.
This is why our free and fair elections, as well as the peaceful transfer of power, is so critically important, as we the people elect the politicians who are to represent us in all levels of Government.
This article is not about you, Donald Trump and your lies and bizarre statements. Obviously, you say this nonsense to fire up your misguided base.
And, frankly, I am sick and tired of writing about you. Every election cycle we have politicians running smear campaigns. This is nothing new.
Thomas Jefferson, was a well-known Founding Father, the principal author of the Declaration of Independence, and the third President of the United States. When Jefferson was running for President a smear campaign was run against him calling him a hermaphrodite. By today’s standards that smear campaign was actually kind of quaint.
What I am talking about here is your attack upon the very foundations of our electoral process. The legitimacy of our free and fair elections is critical not only to the voters but to the entire legitimacy of the United States Government.
Here is the video of the exchange that I am talking about. This exchange occurred near the end of the third and final Presidental debate, with roughly three weeks to go until the general election…..
There are two main factors at play here that I want to explore.
First, {1} you have been saying for weeks that the election is rigged against you. You have stated on multiple occasions that there are millions of people registered to vote that should not be allowed to vote.
Also, {2} You claim that the Democrats will be bringing in busloads of illegal immigrants from State to State to vote illegally.
Let’s dispense with the second part {2} of your allegations right off the bat. No, Donald, the Democrats will not be bussing in busloads of illegal immigrants from State to State to vote illegally. This has never occurred and never will. The reason is because of the first part of your ludicrous accusations.
I have personally voted in every single general election since 1976. I have voted in four States in my lifetime, beginning in California, then Connecticut, then Massachusetts, and now Florida.
The process was always the same. First, I had to register to vote. My identity, Social Security number and address was verified. I was then issued a voter registration card by mail.
I arrived at the polling place and stood in line at the registration table. I gave them my name and address which was checked against a list that they already had. Once I was verified that I was at the proper polling place and my name was on the list, I was given a ballot to vote.
The important thing here was my name was on their voter registration list. Once I arrived to vote, my name was checked off, so it would be literally impossible for anyone else to come along and use my name to vote illegally.
The most important fact to remember is that in modern times there have been exactly 31 cases of voter fraud that have been verified by the Justice Department out of hundreds of millions of votes cast. 31 cases total.
First of all, the United States federal government does not run the elections. The States run the elections, all fifty of them. But when you are running for President of the United States, I would have thought that you would have known this.
In order to pull off some sort of wide-spread vote rigging as you have suggested, it would take literally thousands of people, both Republicans as well as Democrats working together in multiple States in some sort of coordinated effort to even begin to try to pull something like this off.
Republicans and Democrats can’t even agree on what time it is, so I find this accusation of yours to have a probability of less than zero.
Besides, let’s look at the facts. When you, Donald Trump, lost the Iowa caucuses during the primaries, he said the vote was rigged. When you lost the Wisconsin primaries, you said the vote was rigged. Hell, you even said that the vote was rigged when you didn’t win an Emmy for The Apprentice, three years in a row. Are you starting to see a pattern here?
Evidently, in your mind, if you lose, it is somehow rigged against you.
The other thing that Donald Trump complains about all the time is that the media is biased against him, and they are poisoning the minds of voters against him.
No Donald, the media is not biased aginst you!
The only reason that the media is against you, is because of your own self-inflicted wounds. I’me getting to this in just a second.
It is true that there are some media outlets that are leaning left of center and others that are right of center. Some media internet media outlets just make stuff up.
First of all ever since you started running, at your rallies you point to the media covering your events and call them; liars, tell the truth, and call them the crooked media, and a whole lot more. Believe me, when I say, this is not a good way to win friends and influence in the media.
Secondly, you obviously don’t understand the media. The media are like small children that become fixated on a small shiny object. You regularly become that small shiny object because of the outrageous things that you continue to say.
Even when you are having a pretty good day, or week and there is even something that comes up about your opponent, You can’t help yourself, but to say or do something that is so outrageous that whatever your opponent did becomes lost in all the noise of your own making.
For some reason, you insist on always being that bright shiny object, even when it’s to your own detriment.
Besides the media doesn’t go to the polls and vote, people do. So, you have nobody to blame but yourself.
But, now with all the outrageous lies, half truths and other bullshit that comes out of your mouth, you have really gone too far.
When you started questioning the integrity of our elections, and the fact that you insinuated that you would not support the outcome, and the ultimate will of the people, you went way, way, way, too far.
The United States elections and the peaceful transfer of power are sacred not only to the American people but to the entire free world. Every losing candidate in the history of our nation (except for during the American Civil War) has conceded to the winning candidate for President.
The losing candidate’s concession to the winning candidate is what brings the American people together and guarantees a peaceful transfer of power. This is what begins the healing process in what is often a very divisive election cycle. In the end, we are all still Americans. The President of the United States is tasked with representing ALL of us whether we personally voted for them or not.
Donald trump threatens the very fabric of American society by even insinuating that our elections are not free and fair.
As Americans we may not agree on everything, But, the one thing that we all agree upon is that our elections are free and fair, And, the peaceful transfer of power is our most important constitutional duty.
In order to remain a free society, and fully live up to the ideals that our founding fathers fought and died for, we have to trust and believe in our free and fair elections, as well as the peaceful transfer of power, Without that, we have nothing.
As a final thought, Donald. If the founding fathers were alive today, they would line up to punch you in the face. Just saying……
Conspiracy Theories and the Gullibility of Society
Let’s start with exactly what is a conspiracy theory? The standard definition is:
1. A theory that explains an event as being the result of a plot by a covert group or organization; “belief that a particular “unexplained” event was caused by such a group.
2. The idea that many important political events or economic and social trends are the products of secret plots that are largely unknown to the general public.
The most bizarre fact about conspiracy theories is the fact that any evidence presented is by definition just another cover up by said secret organizations or groups to obscure the truth. Essentially, To conspiracy theorists, “belief” is far more important than any facts or evidence to the contrary.
There is something seriously wrong in society when uninformed “belief” in something is far more important than “scientific evidence” to the contrary.
When did we stop believing in science?
There are many, many, conspiracy theories out there, way too many to cover them all. But, here are a few examples:
The Flat Earth Society
Secret underground cities and caves at the Grand Canyon
The Illuminati
Shadow Government
The American moon landings were a hoax
Alien bodies stored at Area 51
Chem Trails.
Climate Change is a hoax perpetrated by the Chinese
Bigfoot, chupacabras, Swamp Monsters, Mothman, and more…
The origins of the AIDS virus
The Philadelphia Experiment
Etc, Etc, Etc.
Are we so gullible as a society that we will blindly believe anything that anyone says and take that to be fact? Evidently, we are. At least some of us anyway.
Often, conspiracy theorists quote “Unnamed Authoritative Experts” as the evidence and scientific legitimacy to support their findings. Since when are unnamed authoritative experts the basis for sound scientific method? What do they have to hide?
If something is fact, there is no legitimate reason to be utilizing “unnamed. authoritative sources”. In fact, this undermines the entire argument as it eliminates public scrutiny of the facts as well as eliminates the possibility that the evidence provided could be analyzed or peer-reviewed by other experts in order to reach similar conclusions based upon the preponderance of the evidence presented.
Of course, conspiracy theorists point to the fact these authoritative experts lives would be in jeopardy if their identity should become public. Their lives would somehow be threatened, or subject to ridicule, by the very same shadow government, or covert groups that actually control all that goes on.
Really???
Let’s take a look at just the few conspiracy theories I have listed and look at the basic facts;
The Flat Earth Society – They believe the Earth is a disc with the Arctic in the center and Antarctic, a 150-feet-tall ice wall, around the rim holding back water. NASA employees guard this ice wall to prevent people from climbing over and falling off the disc. Earth’s day and night cycle is explained by positing that the sun and moon are spheres measuring 32 miles that move in circles 3,000 miles above the plane of the Earth. These celestial spheres illuminate different portions of the planet in a 24-hour cycle.
OK??? NASA has only been around since the 1950’s so who was guarding the Arctic and Antarctic ice walls before the 1950’s? What happened to all the people who sailed to the edge of the Earth and were turned back by these sentries? Or were they all forced to sign some sort of binding non-disclosure agreement?
How do you explain the around the world expeditions that have taken place in the last few hundred years?
How do you explain the thousands of photos taken of Earth by multiple nations including the International Space Station, Satellites, Astronauts, and even High School and College students that have launched go-pro cameras on high altitude weather balloons? Every single one of these photos shows the Earth as being round.
I would think that the evidence is clear.
Secret underground cities and caves at the Grand Canyon
A story on the front page of the April 5, 1909 edition of the Arizona Gazette recounted the discovery of a series of bizarre caves and artifacts in the Marble Canyon region of the Grand Canyon. The report claimed two Smithsonian-funded archaeologists, Prof. S. A. Jordan and G.E. Kinkaid, are responsible for the find. As the article noted:
(D)iscoveries which almost conclusively prove that the race which inhabited this mysterious cavern, hewn in solid rock by human hands, was of oriental origin, possibly from Egypt, tracing back to Ramses. If their theories are borne out by the translation of the tablets engraved with hieroglyphics, the mystery of the prehistoric peoples of North America, their ancient arts, who they were and whence they came, will be solved. Egypt and the Nile, and Arizona and the Colorado will be linked by a historical chain running back to ages which staggers the wildest fancy of the fictionist.
The problem here is, No record exists of Kincaid or Professor Jordan within the Smithsonian’s Department of Anthropology, nor is there a paper trail at the Smithsonian detailing the artifacts gathered on the expedition. When asked directly about Kincaid’s claims, a Smithsonian Institute representative once said:
Well, the first thing I can tell you, before we go any further, is that no Egyptian artifacts of any kind have ever been found in North or South America. Therefore, I can tell you that the Smithsonian Institute has never been involved in any such excavations.
Just because this area has been a “No Trespassing” area for the last 100 years doesn’t in way mean that there are secret caves or underground cities that the U.S. Government is trying to hide. Besides if there were such a thing, I would think that there would not be any trace of it now. Especially, if the U.S. Government was trying to cover it up. 100 years is a long time to erase any trace of anything ever being there.
The Illuminati
According to Wikipedia.org – The Illuminati” refers to various organizations which claim or are purported to have links to the original Bavarian Illuminati or similar secret societies, though these links are unsubstantiated. They are often alleged to conspire to control world affairs, by masterminding events and planting agents in government and corporations, in order to gain political power and influence and to establish a New World Order.
Central to some of the most widely known and elaborate conspiracy theories, the Illuminati have been depicted as lurking in the shadows and pulling the strings and levers of power in dozens of novels, films, television shows, comics, video games, and music videos.
I think we can all agree that the rise of Donald Trump as the nominee of the Republican Party for President of the United States totally disproves that the Illuminati even exist at all.
Shadow Government
Once again, according to Wikipedia.org – The shadow government (cryptocracy, secret government, or invisible government) is a family of conspiracy theories based on the notion that real and actual political power resides not with publicly elected representatives (for example, the United States Congress) but with private individuals who are exercising power behind the scenes, beyond the scrutiny of democratic institutions. According to this belief, the official elected government, is in reality, subservient to the shadow government who are the true executive power.
Once again, see my previous response to The Illuminati.
The American moon landings were a hoax
Let’s just look at the facts concerning the moon landing hoax. According to conspiracy theorists, Stanley Kubrick the famous movie director actually filmed the fake moon landing on a super secret CIA controlled sound stage in Hollywood.
This is kind of strange as Stanley Kubrick, was a well-known social activist.
Essentially, according to conspiracy theorists, the Apollo moon landing never happened.
Here is the video of the launch. We all saw the get into the capsule. We all saw the launch of Apollo 11, on top of the Saturn 5 Rocket. Here is the footage;
I remember distinctly being glued to the television as an 11-year-old by and Walter Cronkite talking us through what we were watching. If they didn’t go to the moon where did they go?
Three days later, this is what we all watched. It was exciting beyond belief.
With only 13 seconds of fuel remaining Neil Armstrong landed on the moon. I will never forget this day as long as I live. This was broadcast literally around the world. It was amazing!
So, some people who are not Astro- Physicists somehow decided that the flag didn’t look right, and the shadows on the moon were somehow suspicious.
Let’s look at the facts. There were approximately 400,000 people who worked on the Apollo program. Not one, not one person, has ever stepped forward and claimed or provided any sort of proof that this was an elaborate hoax.
Besides this was during the cold war, I am fairly certain that the Soviets would be the first ones to blow the whistle on any sort of hoax like this.
Alien bodies stored at Area 51
The CIA has confirmed the existence of Area 51. Area 51 is real, no doubt. Just because Area 51 is a top-secret military installation, somehow this has morphed onto this is the location that the Federal Government is storing the bodies of aliens that have crashed landed on Earth.
Just because one person claims to have seen them, one person and we have no way to confirm the authentically of their claims, so obviously, this is fact. Right?.
This really is just as stupid as it sounds. I could claim that the United States Government had killed the tooth fairy, stored her body at Area 51, and it would have the same exact weight. What proof do I have? Nothing! That’s the point.
Climate Change is a hoax perpetrated by the Chinese
This is a charge often repeated by Donald Trump. Let’s look at the facts. 99% of the world’s “climate scientists” and virtually all the world’s scientific bodies have stated unequivocally, that climate change is real, and is being caused by man’s activities.
Many unbelieving politicians, especially in the Republican Party preface their ignorant statement with “I am not a scientist, but…”
You can already STOP RIGHT THERE. If you are not a scientist, what credentials do you have to refute the science? In this case, your “belief” in something doesn’t fucking matter.
Bigfoot, chupacabras, Swamp Monsters, Moth-man, and more…
There has never, ever, been any verified sightings, dead bodies, bones, DNA evidence (Hair, scat, bones, skin samples, etc) Nothing at all to support the existence of these creatures. Until there is, there is no proof whatsoever that anything like this exists at all.
The origins of the AIDS virus
Conspiracy theorists believe that the AIDS virus was created in a laboratory and injected into homosexuals and African-Americans by ruse of a hepatitis-B experiment back in 1978. Thabo Mbeki, the former South African President, said that the scientific claims that the disease originated in Africa is false and that the U.S. government actually created the virus in a lab and is trying to place the blame on Africa. Theorists believe that the AIDS virus was created by the CIA to rid the country of homosexuals and African-Americans and to weaken the group’s numbers.
Once again, where is the proof? There is not one shred of evidence that this is actually the case. The lack if evidence has not stopped conspiracy theorists from running with this wild accusation.
The Philadelphia Experiment
According to The Telegraph UK; The Philadelphia Experiment, Popularised by the Charles Berlitz novel of the same name, conspiracy theorists believe that during an experiment at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard in October 1943, the US Navy destroyer Eldridge was rendered invisible.
According to some accounts, the scientists on the experiment found a way to bend light around an object but that the experiment went wrong and Eldridge was transported through space and time, reappearing at sea. Several sailors, it is said, were badly hurt when the experiment went wrong and some were melded into the ship’s superstructure. The US Navy has denied that the experiment ever took place.
Certainly, I can imagine that U.S. Navy did do experiments to render ships invisible to radar. However, this entire conspiracy came about based on a novel by Charles Berlitz.
Furthermore, according to Wikipedia; The USS Eldridge was not commissioned until August 27, 1943, and it remained in port in New York City until September 1943. The October experiment allegedly took place while the ship was on its first shakedown cruise in The Bahamas, although proponents of the story claim that the ship’s logs might have been falsified or else still be classified.
The Office of Naval Research (ONR) stated in September 1996, “ONR has never conducted investigations on radar invisibility, either in 1943 or at any other time.” Pointing out that the ONR was not established until 1946, it denounces the accounts of “The Philadelphia Experiment” as complete “science fiction.”
A reunion of Navy veterans who had served aboard the USS Eldridge told a Philadelphia newspaper in April 1999 that their ship had never made port in Philadelphia. Further evidence discounting the Philadelphia Experiment timeline comes from the USS Eldridge’s complete World War II action report, including the remarks section of the 1943 deck log, available on microfilm.
Once again, the proof to support these type of wild allegations is not based upon any facts to support the actual evidence.
I am not saying that any of these theories that I have listed have zero basis in fact. What I am saying is that the evidence does not support the narrative that is provided to us. Until solid evidence is provided and verified, we cannot say for certain that these events actually happened as the conspiracy theorists would lead us to believe.
As Tom Dye, The Safety Guy, I often investigate incidents. Often, my initial working theory turns out to be incorrect. Once all the facts are revealed, timelines established, and sequence of events are verified, the actual root cause reveals that my initial working assumption was often incorrect.
The truth of the matter is always the truth, no matter what my personal beliefs may be. Obviously, I have to accept that where the facts and evidence may lead me, must take precedence over my personal beliefs on the matter.
I have to rely on “scientific method” to base my decisions on. what is the scientific method?
Per Wikipedia; The scientific method is a body of techniques for investigating phenomena, acquiring new knowledge, or correcting and integrating previous knowledge. To be termed scientific, a method of inquiry is commonly based on empirical or measurable evidence subject to specific principles of reasoning.
Another tool that I find to be extremely useful is; Occam’s Razor;
The definition of Occam’s razor is : a scientific and philosophic rule that entities should not be multiplied unnecessarily which is interpreted as requiring that the simplest of competing theories be preferred to the more complex or that explanations of unknown phenomena be sought first in terms of known quantities.
To put it into simpler terms; With two things being equal, the simplest explanation is usually the right answer.
Is society gullible? Obviously, many people are. Whether it comes to politics, personal interactions, science, or everything in between. Many people rely on belief with no basis in fact and choose to ignore the evidence right in front of them.
When did we lose our way as a society start ignoring, or disbelieving scientists and science?
As the great Astrophysicist Neil DeDegrasse Tyson said; ” The best thing about science is it is still true whether or not you believe in it”
Here’s more from Neil DeGrasse Tyson
Am I a scientist? No. I am not; a Physicist, Mathematician, Chemist, Geologist, Biologist, or any other kind of Scientist. However, because I am not, I have to rely on the people who are. That doesn’t mean that I will just follow one person’s facts blindly, not at all. I do my research and try to find collaborative research from others to support the facts.
Who else are we to believe?
I believe in facts, and objective truths, whether I find them personally uncomfortable or not. Because it doesn’t really matter what I believe personally, because the facts speak for themselves.
Should you take my word that everything I have written as the truth? Of course not. Do your own research and cross referencing for own benefit, You would be a fool just to take my word for it.
Of course, the conspiracy theorists would say that I am just another member of some sort of secret organization or group, attempting to sway their opinion from the actual truth that they hold to be self-evident.
One never knows does one?
It is for you, and only you, to decide the truth for yourselves.
