A Thanksgiving Message 2015

Words and photo by F LoBuono

Unfortunately, for too many of our holidays, traditional has become synonymous with commercial - so much so that we often don't know the difference. Thanksgiving is no exception. The fact that many retail stores will be open for the holiday is ample evidence of that.

Most of us know the history of Thanksgiving - you know, the Pilgrims, Lincoln, and all that. But, too many of us have forgotten the MEANING.

Today, we should focus on the gifts we have - our family, our friends, our very lives. We are thankful for our freedom and to those who protect it. We are grateful for our warm homes and the bounty so many of us are so fortunate to have. We are blessed to love and be loved.

But, to make the holiday complete we must not forget those who are less fortunate than we. We must remember that many will spend the day cold, hungry, and alone. And, we must take it one step further - we must do everything that we can to help them.

Enjoy the fullness of the day with food, family, and friends. And, take a moment to commit to making the world a better place.

Happy Thanksgiving - all!!

When You Think About It. How would you like to be defined?

Words and photo by F LoBuono

Most of us resist being labeled. We don't like being categorized as being this way or that. I know that I certainly do not like it. Still, even allowing for our individuality, all of us exhibit tendencies that tend to show a collective way of thinking, especially during the political season.

So, with this in mind, I decided to see what the dictionary says about the two most important labels at this time of year: CONSERVATIVE VS LIBERAL. I cut and pasted the results directly from the definitions. I neither added or detracted from what I found. You may draw your own conclusions:

conservative

[kuh n-sur-vuh-tiv] 

 

• Examples
• Word Origin

adjective

1.

disposed to preserve existing conditions, institutions, etc., or to restore traditional ones, and to limit change.

2.

cautiously moderate or purposefully low:

a conservative estimate.

3.

traditional in style or manner; avoiding novelty or showiness:

conservative suit.

4.

(often initial capital letter) of or relating to the Conservative party.

5.

(initial capital letter) of, relating to, or characteristic of ConservativeJews or Conservative Judaism.

6.

having the power or tendency to conserve or preserve.

7.

Mathematics. (of a vector or vector function) having curl equal to zero;irrotational; lamellar.

liberal

[lib-er-uh l, lib-ruh l] 

 

• Synonyms
• Examples
• Word Origin

adjective

1.

favorable to progress or reform, as in political or religious affairs.

2.

(often initial capital letter) noting or pertaining to a political party advocating measures of progressive political reform.

3.

of, pertaining to, based on, or advocating liberalism, especially the freedom of the individual and governmental guarantees of individual rights and liberties.

4.

favorable to or in accord with concepts of maximum individual freedom possible, especially as guaranteed by law and secured by governmental protection of civil liberties.

5.

favoring or permitting freedom of action, especially with respect tomatters of personal belief or expression:

a liberal policy toward dissident artists and writers.

6.

of or relating to representational forms of government rather than aristocracies and monarchies.

7.

free from prejudice or bigotry; tolerant:

Today's MOZEN: It's a Matter of the Mind.

Words and photo by F LoBuono

Perhaps, you remember the story. I posted it a few months back. It's true.

On one of my frequent sojourns into my little village of Nyack, NY, I noticed something at one of the bus stops that I pass along my route. It's a well manicured stop with a couple of nice benches to wait on. It's also lined by a handsome stone wall. On one of the lower ledges of the wall, I noticed something peculiar; there was a bunch of canned food stacked there. They were simple things -string beans, corn, and the like. It couldn't have cost more than a few bucks. According to the way they were left, I didn't get the impression that they were forgotten. Rather, it appeared to me that they were left - deliberately - for someone to take home. There was no note, no instructions, no desire for credit. It was a selfless act of kindness. It was as sublime as it is magnificent. Whomever needed them most should have them.

As I continue my habit of strolling into town, I still pass the same bus stop. Periodically, when I remember to, I'll look at the spot where I first saw the cans of food. Most often, it is empty. But, now and again, as it was the other night, the cans appear!! It's always the same: a few cans of inexpensive food. There is no note, no instruction - just a simple, selfless act of kindness.

In these most trying times, I believe that it is more important than ever to capture the mindset of this person/persons who practice these selfless acts of kindness. It is through this thinking - one of open mind and heart that will win the war on terror. All the bombs and bullets in the world cannot do more than the power of love. When we incorporate this into our everyday thinking, our lives, and the world, will improve.

Now, before those more "hawkish" than I go off telling me how nonsensical that sounds. My head will be the first to fly under an ISIS knife. As I've said before, please don't mistake compassion for weakness. Compassion and fierce strength are not mutually exclusive. In fact, they are most complimentary. As a matter of personal experience, all of the toughest men that I have met in my life were quite often the most gentle, too. They had no fear.

So, make NO mistake; the thugs who call themselves ISIS must be stopped. And, apparently, the only way to do it is with the force of arms. A coalition of nations must form to annihilate this threat. There seems to be no other option. I support that option.

What I am writing about here, and expressed by gesture at the bus stop, is that our minds must ALWAYS return to compassion. Everything that we do in our daily lives MUST be tempered with it. If we do not, if we can't or won't, we cannot distinguish ourselves from the very ones we are fighting. The whole point of TERROR is to get into the enemies head. When they do, they have one.

I simply will not allow that to happen.

I think the next time that I see the cans at the bus stop, I'm going quick stop market on the next corner and get a few more cans to add to the stack. Will you do the same?

Today's MOZEN: Ever Vigilent

My New Motto:

Marlowe never sleeps until he knows the world is safe.
                                                                           "The Lady in the Lake". Raymond Chandler

INDEED.

Woman: Do you always fall in love with all of your clients, Mr. Marlowe?

Marlowe: Only the ones in skirts.

Lady in the Lake

Today's MOZEN: A Choice to Make

F LoBuono

Here are two, distinct visions of America. The first is from the famous poem, written by Emma Lazarus and is immortally enshrined on a plaque at the base of the Statue of Liberty. 

The second is from the song, "Dirty Boulevard" written and performed by Lou Reed.                                                                                                                                                 

The choice is our. . .                                                                                                                   

The New Colossus

Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,

With conquering limbs astride from land to land;

Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand

A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame

Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name

Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand

Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command

The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.

"Keep ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she

With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,

The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.

Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,

I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

Give me your hungry, your tired, your poor I'll piss on 'em
That's what the Statue of Bigotry says
Your poor huddled masses
Let's club 'em to death
And get it over with and just dump 'em on the boulevard

Get 'em out on the dirty boulevard
Goin' out to the dirty boulevard
They're going down on the dirty boulevard
Goin' out

Today's MOZEN: We CAN Do It!

Words and Photo by F LoBuono

OK. I take my share of criticism for my pointed opinions. Some of it is fair. A lot of it is not. I get most of it when I become indignant. I just can't help it. It's my hyperactive nature. Still, beyond my bluster lies a deeper motivation. I never take these posts lightly and use all the skills that I may poses to make them as real as possible. Of course, it is MY reality and that must be considered. So, with that said, I have another "rant":

WASHINGTON (AP) — Just a reminder during these election times. Remember it was a Republican majority Senate that derailed Democratic legislation that would have provided $21 billion for medical, education and job-training benefits for the nation's veterans.

I would like, once again, to be indignant and remind EVERYONE that these are the same people who have delayed, if not blocked, the entrance of 10,000 desperate Syrian refugees - often using the meme Money for Vets before a penny for Migrants. I can't tell you how many people within the debate that rages over the refugee issue have posted to Facebook photos of homeless veterans with that slogan splashed across it. Really? And, then the same people have the cujones to deny OUR most needy AND worthy the very benefits that would lift them our of poverty??? Really?

They have a word for this type of behavior. It's called hypocrisy.

You can't, on one hand, use that argument to defend your position supposedly supporting veterans and then, on the other, vote to screw them!! This, as I have so often pointed out, is a case of Cognitive Dissonance, i.e. the disability of constantly distorting a narrative to fit their vision of the way things SHOULD be instead of how they are.

Also, let's get beyond the so-called "safety" issue. Yes. We MUST remain vigilant. We must balance our free society with making it a safe one. This is a battle that we have waged since the very beginning of this Country!! It has always been with us and it always will be. To BE an American is to except a certain amount of risk. It is one of the things that separates us from the rest of the world. And, so it should be now. To think that a terrorist lurks behind every Syrian woman and child is not only unrealistic, it borders on paranoia! Let's put our best efforts where they belong - stopping TERRORISTS, not woman and children.

I am not afraid. I REFUSE to be afraid. It I were to be, I'd be letting those SONS OF BITCHES win. They never will. And, I can SHOW them just how unafraid I am - by being AMERICAN - OPEN, HONEST, FREE!!!!!!! Let's show them. Help our veterans AND Let them in.

WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT IT: Don't Let Them Win!

terrorism

[ter-uh-riz-uh m] 

 

• Examples
• Word Origin

noun

1.

the use of violence and threats to intimidate or coerce, especially for political purposes.

The use of violence and threats to INTIMIDATE or COERCE, especially for POLITICAL PURPOSES.

Please take a moment to careful study that definition. It tells you all you need to know about what is happening in the world right now - and, just how EFFECTIVE the terrorists have actually been. By the very NATURE of the word, terrorism can only be seen as effective IF it produces the desired results as defined above: Intimidate and Coerce, especially for Political Purposes.

In simple terms, it means that terror only works when we let it significantly change our lives and daily routines. When we are AFRAID to do things we normally enjoy doing, or go places we normally enjoy going, the terrorists have succeeded. And, the greatest failure on our part is allowing them into our HEADS where the fear and mistrust they create actually changes the way we THINK. This is the ultimate goal of the terrorists - to get into our heads in such a way as to alter our very consciousness. When they do, they have won.

And, apparently, they ARE winning. Because they've gotten into our heads.

It's understandable that after a heinous act like the one committed against France will produce a visceral reaction. People want revenge! And, they want it quickly. We were in a similar situation in the days and weeks following 9/11. But, in the final analysis, where did the hunt for revenge lead us? Well, ultimately, because we fell into the trap actually set for us BY the terrorists, it brought us into disastrous wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The effects of those wars are still being keenly felt by the US (and, the entire world), even today. In fact, part of the current wave of terror by the brutal ISIS is a DIRECT result of that policy! It's EXACTLY what the terrorists wanted and we gave it ALL to them.

The current situation is no different. The reaction in this Country has, perhaps, been even more visceral and explosive than in France. Social Media has exploded with simple paranoia, most of it ill focused against Muslims and anything Islamic. Even President Obama's plan for accepting 10,000 of the most needy Syrian refugees has been thrown back in his face. The vitriol hurled against these desperate people has been shocking - AND, if you happen to be a TERRORIST, most pleasing! They have created the chaos and paranoia that is their most powerful weapon. Terror groups create far more damage with propaganda than they do with bombs. They will get a society to eat its own children. And, they will be waiting to rise from the wreckage.

And, we will have no one ultimately to blame - but ourselves . . . 

Today's MOZEN: American

Words and photo by F LoBuono

The definition of what it is to be an AMERICAN is to except risk.

Without risk there can be no true freedom . . . 

WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT IT: Perspective In Numbers

                             

Words and photo by F LoBuono

                               69,768,000*

That HUGE number is the amount of people who visited the United States in 2013 (the last year the numbers were compiled). 69,768,000 people of all shapes and sizes - from all cultures and every corner of the globe visited our shores. 69,768,000 traveled freely and, mostly, without incident all over this wonderful Country.

Now, our President has asked us to honor our most cherished attribute: compassion for those who need it the most, regardless of their ethnic or religious make-up. He has asked us to find a place for 10,000 of the most desperate of our brethren - mostly Syrians escaping the brutal war that has plagued their homeland. Despite the Presidents plea, the majority of Americans (53% by a recent poll) object to the plan to house these people - 10,000 of the most desperate people in the world. And, the GREAT majority of these are children, woman, orphans, and widows. However, they are also mostly MUSLIM.

Due to recent events, the practice of Islam is anathema to too many Americans. What they don't understand is that this horrible violence committed in the name of Allah is a SHAM! These thugs know nothing of Islam!! They USE it for their own political gain. The great majority of the 1.2 billion Muslims in the world abhor the fact that their faith has been hijacked by these Myrmidons. Could Muslims around the world do more to combat these vermin? Yes. We all could. But, that does not change the fact the great majority of the people we seek to help NEED that help. And, when we do help them, they will become Americans - just like the rest of us!!

So, before you go off all scared and shit, think about it!! Put it in perspective. When you do, you will realize what FDR told us during another crisis:

We have nothing to fear, but fear itself!!!!!!!

Don't fall for the rhetoric. It we can deal with over 69 million, we can certainly cope with 10 thousand!!

*Compiled by the World Bank, 2013)