But we do need alternative energy sources, and we need to invest (cautiously) in alternate energy, right here in the U.S. and eventually wean ourselves from oil and gas. And actually, we have a lot of gas and oil right here in the United States, there’s just too much political BS going on to be able to drill for it.
Common sense should be a factor with energy decisions. Several decades ago, our utility system’s big provider put out a call for all citizens to pare their electricity consumption, “drop your thermostat, cook less, turn your lights off, blah blah...” and when everyone dropped their consumption, the power company cried “foul” because revenue had dropped. Then they raised the rates to make up for lost revenue, and everybody’s electric bill went back up, even though we were using less power. We should have seen that coming. What a headache for the comsumer.
If we’re going to be a progressive country then we need to find energy where we can, and make use of it when it’s readily available at an economical rate, and maybe not be so concerned about the natural habitats of white spotted owl or the Tellico snail darter. They’ll adapt at their new home just across the ridge or in the next creek over.
Chapter15: Restaurant Menus
Here’s one that probably shouldn’t be such a real big deal, but it gripes me still. Restaurants that supply menus displaying pictures of the food should strive to make sure that the food they serve looks like the food in the pictures. Period. Truth in advertising. Either make the food look like the pictures, or make the pictures look like the food. Either way, I don’t care, but when I make my dining choice based on the pictures you’ve supplied me, I have a reasonable expectation to assume that what I get is at least similar in appearance to what I saw in the menu.
Couple of examples are Shoney’s, where the waitress slapped me on the back and walked away chuckling “You know how those menus are.” I never went back. They went out of business in my neck of the woods, maybe in the entire country. I don’t know, and really don’t care. What you sat in front of me should have at least resembled what I ordered.
Steak and Shake. My one trip to steak and shake had me disappointed when I opened my sandwich and the meat was so thin that I could see both sides at one time. I asked the waitress to bring me a menu so I compare the picture to what I got, and she refused. Really? I actually think I could have read the menu through my steakburger. I never went back, although friends have assured me that mine was an isolated case. Too late. But to everybody who’s in the restaurant business, please...make the food look like the pictures (or vice versa.)
Chapter16: Defense
Our nation needs a strong defense. Period. Notice that I didn’t say Offense. Defense. Strong enough that we don’t ever have to use it. Other countries needn’t fear the USA...they just need to respect us and know that we can do irreparable harm to their country if they tread on us. But with the way we’ve been going downhill lately, we’re probably a laughingstock amongst other nations. How can anyone respect us when we’re broke, we have civil unrest every day of the year, and we can’t even get our legislators to drop their petty party politics long enough to pass a bill. We need to work together on capitol hill for the good of our nation, get our finances back where they belong, and try to work “as one”, at least for a few years, to fix it. Then if our elected people want to go back to their childish arguing, whining, bickering and finger-pointing, at least we’ll be starting at a good place. And, as any football coach will tell you, the best offense is a good defense. And we need the world’s strongest defense, which by the definition given, would give us the strongest offense!
One thing that bothers me is that whenever we develop a new weapons system, or produce a new fighter jet, you can see it in operation on the six-o’clock news. How does that help our defense? Or to announce that we’ll be sending more troops to (name a country) to squash (name a regime). This is just plain stupid. Sure, the American people want to know where we’re at and what we’re doing with our military, but so do our enemies. And we’re telling them! Some things should be kept secret.
But anyhow, I have respect and admiration for every man or woman who has served or is currently serving in our military. They deserve everything that we’ve promised them, and then some. Treat our soldiers and veterans with respect.
I’m not as proud of some of our defense contractors. I believe that some have our country’s best interest in their hearts and minds, but others? There’s just too much money to be made whenever America is involved in a war, and I feel that the companies competing for defense contracts should remain distant from our military and congressional leaders other than giving specs and feedback. But here again, if you don’t snuggle with the big boys, you probably won’t get the contract. Just my opinion.
Our military of today is concerned with costs, and I’m glad they are. But still, if we’re going to overspend on anything, let’s make it the military.
We’re constantly facing crisis after crisis all over the world. Some of them, I’m not sure that we even need to be involved in, but our leaders think it’s for our best. I’m not qualified to know. But I do strongly believe that if some other country doesn’t take us down financially, one of them will with terrorism or cyber stuff. It’s not all just bullets and tanks, and ships and planes, and boots on the ground anymore. It’s more than that, and our country’s at stake.
Chapter17: Banks and Credit Cards
Almost all of us use banks. And I just don’t get it. They pay us a paltry 1/2 of 1% to use our money, and then return the favor by loaning us money at 9%, 12%, 15% or even 29.9% if we use that convenient piece of plastic—the credit card. You know, that easy-to-use link to your financial imprisonment, the one where if you only make the required minimum payment, it’ll take a full 30 years to pay it off! How stupid are we? And yet we continue on.
I understand that the banks have to have a spread so they can pay for computers, pay for employees, and pay for that big new extravagant building that they use to house your money. Johnny American says “The spread’s too big!” If you didn’t give the board of directors such a high fee for their meetings, if you didn’t pay your president so much for his figurehead presence, if you hadn’t built such a big fancy building, well then you might just be able to give 2% or 3% on a savings account and only charge 9% or 10% for a credit card. Now that’s a better spread.
I read several years ago that Sears made more money each year on credit card interest than they did by selling merchandise. Now ain’t that just wrong? And every time I buy something, they try to convince me to use a Sears Card. I keep saying no.
My first wife used to work as a teller at a small bank. One day, the girl who normally did the payroll was out sick, and my wife had to cut the checks for the recent monthly board of directors’ meeting. She came home crying after work, because she found out that the board members each received MORE MONEY for their one-hour board meeting than she earned for working 40 hours a week for an entire month! There’s something wrong with that. It needs to be fixed.
I try to use a credit union whenever I can. It’s a little more intimate and the board meets for free!
Chapter18: Charitables and Non-Profits
Hello there Goodwill. Hello there Red Cross. Hi there, Unicef. Each year, hundreds of executives for charitables and non-profits draw millions of dollars each in CEO pay. That’s ridiculous! You’re taking money that’s supposed to be going to underprivileged or downtrodden people and lining your pockets with it.
You’re missing the point, execs, and as far as I’m concerned, you’re a bunch of greedy SOBs! When I gave that money to your organization, I intended for it to help someone less fortunate than I. Not for you and your mansion and your big bank account. Used to be that a caring, wealthy individual would head up a charitable organization for a token one-dollar salary, but lately it’s just gotten out of hand. And just what do you bring to the table to earn your salary? Are you that valuable that you deserve that kind of money? Do your services i
ncrease donations to an extent greater than your ludicrous salary and bonuses? I mean, come on, give my donation to someone who needs it. I’m certainly not suggesting that people stop supporting Charitable Organazitions, but does anybody have any idea how we can reduce outrageous executive pay for charities? Please come forward.
And what about all these non-profit insurance companies, like Blue Cross Blue Shield for example? There’s more. Look them up. Millions for CEO pay, and yet they feel that they deserve more. Some execs for charities and non-profits draw a bigger severance package when they get fired than the average worker makes in a lifetime. That’s BS. How about helping the people for a change? Okay, point conceded...you’re a non-profit, so by definition, you can’t make a profit. Simple enough. You have to dispose of any excess money so you can remain non-profit. But if you didn’t pay your executives so much, you could lower insurance rates. Oh let’s see, we took in more than we paid out this year, so what do we do with the excess money? Oh, right, big bonuses above the already huge salaries. We wouldn’t want to give it back to the subscribers, now would we? Greed.
Chapter19: Drivers
Basically, two words of advice: Pay Attention!
To expound on that, we’ve all been behind someone whose turn signal has been on since they left Miami, and now they’re in Chicago. It’s still blinking. Can’t you turn the thing off? Just as soon as I decide that you’re not gonna turn and I pull out to pass, you finally decide to turn. Or, even though your left signal’s been on, you finally yank a hard right, shoot across multiple lanes and exit the freeway. Can’t y’all hear that little clicking noise behind the instrument panel? Doesn’t that mean anything to you? Generally, it’s some little old lady, and I try to be understanding...but sometimes it’s a head-bobbing, dashboard-beating, wanna-be rockstar drummer who turns to smile at me and give me the “peace” sign as I finally decide to pass. He’s wrapped up in his own little world, but gosh, pay attention! On the other side of this, though, is the one who NEVER uses their turn signal. Just as aggravating. Pay attention. Your driving is driving me nuts!
And then there’s the super-cautious hyper-miler driver who tries to merge onto the interstate at 45 miles per hour...and I’m behind them. I can’t go fast enough to merge with traffic because you’re in front of me, and those trucks are coming at about 70. Usually, in this case, I’ll pull over to the side of the ramp and wait until all the tires have stopped screeching and everybody has zigzagged around you, and you’re out of sight, merrily on your way down the interstate. Get with the program and try to merge at something close to the posted speed limit before you kill someone.
Just pay attention to what’s going on around you. Quit your texting and dialing and imessaging and all that social media until you can pull off the road and park. Do you really have to share it now? You’re propelling 3 or 4 or 5 thousand pounds down the highway and not even watching where you’re going. Quit!
And don’t you just love those high-powered stereos in your cars. They’re so powerful, you can even entertain folks several blocks away. And you do. Only it’s not entertainment, it’s just aggravation. Turn it down! Lot of towns have passed noise ordinances because of people like you.
Chapter20: Christmas
Here we go again, with another Christmas fast approaching, and everybody’s gearing up for another gigantic Black Friday! Yee Haw! Don’t we, as a nation of individuals, realize that we’re spending ourselves into poverty. Sometimes we spend so much money at Christmastime that it’s April or May or sometimes even later to pay off what we bought, just because...well, gee, I really don’t know why we do it! I’ve tried to put the brakes on within our family for years on end, and I’m always met with resistance. Everybody spends more than they can possibly afford. Johnny American says, “That’s too much. Stop!”
I think we’ve commercialized Christmas way too much. Every company spends way too much on advertising dollars, trying to get us to spend money we haven’t even earned yet, and it seems to work. Money flies this way and that way like there’s an endless supply, like there’s no tomorrow. Tone it down a little, folks...if you don’t have it, just tell the kids that Santa’s having a bad year, or else make something for them, or better yet, spend some time with them making cookies in the kitchen or painting a craft project or whittling out a duck decoy for Pops. I know, your kids are gonna get the biggest and the best, no matter what. But my observations are that those who can least afford it are the ones who spend the most. You’re just perpetuating the budget crunch that you were in before Christmas ever rolled around.
And what about celebrating the birth of Jesus? Where did that go? Just because the three wise men brought gifts doesn’t mean that you have to mimic them and clean out the stores. Notice that they each brought ONE gift? You might have missed that part. And I’m not saying that you have to cheap out on everybody, because the wise men brought quality gifts. Just exercise some common sense. It sickens me that normally mild-mannered shoppers get into fist-fights and brawls over bargains on Black Friday. The majority don’t but some do. Geez, is it that good of a deal? I reckon that it’s just a part of Christmas nowdays.
And oh yeah, now we can’t say certain things at Christmastime because it might offend someone. Listen, if I tell you Merry Christmas and it offends you, YOU’RE the one with the problem, not me. Suck it up and smile, and appreciate the fact that I at least tried to say something nice to you. Go buy yourself a present if it’ll make you feel better.
That’s all for now. Johnny American is finished at the podium.
Thank you for letting me speak, and have a Merry Christmas!
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