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Well howdy there, kiddos! I see you all have your snacks and drinks ready. Are we all set for yet another shrieking plummet into the dark abyss of my mental synapses? It’s gonna be a deep one…

Fasten your seatbelts and keep any rational expectations of social conformity inside the car at all times. I claim no responsibility for them being sheared off by sharp words or cutting commentary. So, without further adieu…this installment is entitled:

The Politically Correct
~ or ~
A Nation Suffering with Cranial Rectosis

Ohhh you knew I was getting around to this, didn’t you? But of course! It’s time to hack off, peeve, annoy, disenchant, offend and generally irritate the mumbling masses of nervous and trembling “politically correct” within our society with a little bit of harsh honesty and unbridled redneck commentary.

For far too long we have been spoon-fed a slow but steady meal of mass-media-enhanced mental conditioning horse-####. It stems from how the “Powers that Be” feel we (as a society) ought to embrace and handle certain issues. Whether it’s our moral view on people’s sexual orientation or our views on Spanish being popularly adopted as our second national language…Political Correctness has been, hands down, the biggest contributor to the loss of social individualism in recorded history.

Why do I think that? I’ll tell you why. It’s because we have allowed the fear of offending other people’s sensibilities to utterly and completely infest every aspect of our lives and social thinking. It’s to the point now, where cartoons that have been accepted and aired for over 50 years are now being censored for content suddenly deemed “inappropriate” due to PC issues with certain races. Tolerance for non-confrontational racial humor and stereotypes in mass media (in any form) are at their all-time lowest point.

Why can we, as a nation, not recognize and understand our individualism? These days it seems that we’re afraid to be one nation of separate, but equal races. We will continue to be plagued by racism and the fear of Political Correctness until we, as a people, stop trying to meld ourselves into a dysfunctional mass of “supposed” blended uniformity. There is beauty in all races of humanity. We are not all the same culturally, and shouldn’t be. Diversity is our most beautiful aspect, as a nation. Uniformity is an utter bore.

Political Correctness has also told us that all dark-skinned people within the United States are no longer just Americans. No. They’ve all suddenly been descriptively lumped together into a laughably ridiculous designation popularly known today as, “African-Americans”. Oh my dear merciful heavens…what have we come to?

I’m sorry, but every person of the darker persuasion does not have an ancestral link to Africa. Some are Haitian-Americans… others are Jamaican-Americans… etc. etc. etc. You see my point. I don’t believe that we, as a people, have a right to claim ourselves as anything but “American” when we are either born into this nation or naturalized through legal immigration. It does not matter the country of our ancestral origin. We are Americans, first and foremost. Personally, I find it to be nothing more than a big steaming pile of racially motivated crap with nobody but the NAACP benefiting from it. It’s hollow, meaningless, trite and absurd. I suppose, if you want to get technical about the PC-version of what I am…. I might be considered a Euro-Native American.

If anyone had a right to insist upon a differentiating terminology for their particular race, it would be the native peoples of this land. Their nations were decimated, mercilessly, and without justification. All of it was done for nothing more than greed for riches and land. These people were also enslaved, tortured, separated, re-educated, deculturalized and brainwashed. But the nations that remain are still proud.

They are not whiners, nor seekers of specialized social status, because they are mature of mind. They have my profound respect and admiration for their strength and dignity. I have ancestry in both European and Native blood. I could easily start up a tangent-rant about how ridiculous this country has been about the whole “Indian” terminology since it inception… but I won’t. It would do little good, and this blog entry is already resembling War & Peace, by size alone.

I am not a bigot, nor a racist, nor a white supremacist, nor a skin-head, nor a neo-nazi, nor a member of any other organized hate-group. However, I am tired of having the tired old story of racial prejudice being rammed down the throats of the white segment of this nation’s populous over every damn issue that might even remotely portray a black American in the slimmest of negativity. Face it… wrong is wrong, regardless of race. If you’re busted doing something wrong…skin color doesn’t matter. Stop whining about it and march to jail. You are now no longer white, tan, red, yellow or black… you are ORANGE.

And if you think that racial stereotyping and prejudice causes more and more black Americans to show up on the evening news, you need an education. You need only look at the literally staggering percentage of black, poverty stricken youths who would rather sell illegal drugs, join gangs and take their chances against law enforcement rather than graduate high school and/or college. Statistically, there are more black people in America currently suffering in poverty-stricken areas than any other racial segment of the populous. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to deduce that you’re going to see more crime being committed by black citizens. It isn’t racial targeting… it’s merely the inevitable result of statistical percentages!

That being said, let me summarize this whole speech with this final thought for you people. It’s been said that beauty is only skin deep but ugly runs clean to the bone. But I submit to you, that the worst kind of ugly is that of the racially narrow-minded with their personal cultural agendas. And the beauty beneath a skin color comes from dignity in their diversity, with compassion and understanding toward other races.

There… is where beauty and ugliness truly lies. Within the cultural choices we consciously make as a people and in how we treat one another.

Peace, yall.

I know it seems like I’m having more and more to say about subject matters these days. And, perhaps, this is a good thing…or maybe it’s bad. Who’s to say? At any rate, I thought I would share these few odd thoughts and ponderances. Perhaps you’ll agree.

Perhaps you’ll merely scratch your head and wonder, once more, why I haven’t already been admitted to a psychiatric ward. I’m the first one to admit that some of my thoughts….well…ok, MOST of my thoughts are not mainstream in origin. Too much of the non-conformist gene in me, I suppose. But, without further delay, here it is.

Have you ever stopped to wonder about how businesses seem to have this innate “right” or “permission” to slap any and all operational costs on the buying public so they can dismiss any worry of it? Think about it. Imagine there’s a business called “XYZ Service - We keep America Zipped!”. Ok, XYZ has just found out that the government has imposed a new monitoring fee on their services. This means that each month, XYZ will have to pay close to $500 to state government in order to operate legally. The board of directors at XYZ determines that this fee will cut into their profits, and we all know how important it is to squeeze every penny of profit out of us as customers.

How can they avoid disruption of their regular income? Easy. They merely pass this cost along to their customers in the form of a “Fee” listing on their monthly billing statement. We’ve all seen these tiny little enigmatic charges and fees on our utilities and monthly subscription service invoices. But why do businesses have the right to stick US with THEIR costs?? Answer: Because there’s no law against it. And there should be one. Businesses get away with this because there’s no legislation that says a business must pay its own costs and fees if it provides a monthly service to customers.

If you’ve ever taken a close look at your itemized cell phone bill, you’ll see a whole slew of charges for every little fee and cost under the sun. That’s because, as a mobile phone service provider, your cell phone company must pay all manner of usage taxes and charges mandated not only by the state they’re operating in…but also for the country they’re operating in. This would cost them MILLIONS per year if they absorbed the cost, themselves. That’s simply not going to happen.

No, they’re going to divvy that cost up among all of their customers who are locked into a 2-year service contract (which means, kiddies, that you’re now bent over the proverbial stump…and I hope you brought lube). Yes, there’s state fees, state taxes, federal fees, federal taxes, sales tax and probably a paper bill fee (so they can recover the costs of mailing you the bill in the first place). Yes….they’re that lame and greedy.

There needs to be legislation enacted on a federal basis, which would require these cell phone companies to absorb some of their own costs. Fundamentally, what they’re doing is wrong. Oh yes, they’re making it easier to gain profits by “passing the buck”. But why should it be OUR responsibility to pay THEIR bills? We’re already paying our own.

Just something to think about, the next time you’re writing out that check for your monthly services.

Today’s commentary about life in general will be two-fold in design. It’s value packaging!! Two…two…two rants for the space of one! What will I think of next?? Zow-wee!

Ok, enough of that. I’m going to be addressing both the new Arkansas Clean Indoor Air Act of 2006…and the state law (HB 1739) which mandates the use of headlights when windshield wipers are in operation.

So, without further adieu… here’s my take on the smoking law. The Arkansas Clean Indoor Air Act of 2006 (Also called ACT 8) basically says that all employers with three (3) or more employees are subject to this law. All enclosed buildings where less than ½ of the building is considered to be doorways must be smoke-free. Fines can range anywhere from $1000 to $1500 per violation.

Now…. Before you assume that I am against being healthy, let me state that I have been smoke-free for almost a year now. I enjoyed smoking because it was relaxing and pleasant to me. However, it was also killing me and posing severe risks to the health of those around me. For not only the preservation of my own life, but that of my friends and family, I chose to quit. But that’s not going to stop me from ranting against this absurd law.

I’m sure it was constructed with the best of intentions, and that there are as many (if not more) supporters and backers of this law than there are those opposed to it. I can’t help but feel that this is, once again, a blatant overstepping of government into its citizens’ personal human rights. Employers should be “allowed” to enact laws governing the permission to smoke within their privately owned places of business, but should not be subjected to state laws which may hinder establishments specifically designed to accommodate those who choose to smoke. Bars and pubs, billiard halls, and certain restaurants derive income from patrons who might otherwise not visit if their choice to smoke either before or after a meal was taken from them.

I fully realize the fundamental truth behind the health risks of second-hand smoke. I also fully recognize the rights of non-smoking individuals to breathe clean air in businesses. This is not an argument against the health-conscious citizens. I’m merely saying that employers should be allowed to weigh the risks of allowing employees and/or patrons to smoke inside their businesses on a case by case basis. Not because some set of legislators decided that we need to have our behaviors policed in the interest of overall well-being. This doesn’t adequately reflect an accurate overall majority view of this issue, in my opinion.

Take, for example, my place of business. Many shop workers are also smokers. This is their choice. But due to this new law, it is now regulated that all indoor enclosures are non-smoking areas, subject to fines and penalties if this law is violated. The workers argue that they are exposed to far worse airborne substances than mere cigarette smoke. Paint fumes…fuel vapors….welding fumes…smoke from metal oils burning away. Cigarette smoke is a drop in the bucket. Yet, they’re being subjected to local government saying, “We know better than you. Just do as we tell you or pay the price.”

Individual, basic, human rights are at the very core of the values we should cherish. While we, as a society, should be conscious and mindful of the equally basic human rights of our fellow man…we should also realize that we should not be told what is best for us. We’re adults. Our government was designed to be “Of the people, By the people & For the People”. I don’t recall hearing this matter being presented to “The People” for a majority vote. No… it was a legislative matter governed by elected representatives who, themselves, didn’t bother to put the matter up to a majority vote among their own constituents.

I have a prediction that this Law will eventually be amended and/or reconstructed as protests and viable arguments about its all-encompassing and biased construction come to light.

Now we take a little stroll down the line to a much more commonplace, everyday type issue. I know you’ve all seen them. I’ve seen them…sometimes almost too late to avoid them. Yes, we are talking about these moronic, booger-eatin’ abortions of commonplace logic. They, for some unknown reason, choose to not only dismiss any thought for their own safety… but inherently endanger every fellow driver on the road. By stubbornly refusing to use either their headlights, their wipers, or both…during inclement weather… they shroud their vehicles in road-spray and the curtain of dark gray rain that permeates the roadways. This makes it difficult for them to see us, but it’s twice as hard to see THEM.

Why, one must wonder, is it so difficult to activate two switches when they encounter rain? If a driver has no respect for his or herself, that’s one thing. But, if for no other reason than the prevention of serious and life-threatening accidents, they need to respect other innocent drivers and use their lights and wipers!!

There’s no other excuse than simple, unadulterated laziness on their part. And I, for one, am tired of seeing them zipping down the interstate like a big gray cloud, oblivious to anyone or anything but their own agenda.

The law was enacted to try to curb this dangerous and thoughtless behavior. But, I have yet to hear of anyone or see anyone ticketed for this. With the threat of rain looming on the horizon for central Arkansas today, I’m sure these inconsiderate, knuckle-draggin’ bastards will be out in force once again.

New feature on the blog: Stupid Word Of The Day
Gubernatorial - No truer terminology could be associated with a political race of any kind. They're all goobers.

More later...of course.

In the spirit of the blog, and in an attempt at fostering similar angst and frustration with “the system” in my readers… I have chosen to address and target the marketing media once again for this installment.

Today’s misguided and scrutiny ridden tryst down into my dysfunctional mindset is geared toward the marketing media’s attempt to “disarm” or “numb” the buying public. Ah yes, word play which is created for nothing else than to downplay the grotesquely absurd price tag totals of today’s mostly useless, vain, and poorly fabricated trinkets in the malls and shopping centers of America.

I speak, of course, about the two words which are obviously a marketing MUST when attempting to persuade “John Q. Public”. These two words are….

JUST and ONLY

Look upon them carefully, people. See them for what they really are. Deception and disarmament, incarnate. No more contradictory terms could be applied to the majority of prices on merchandise than these two profoundly misleading terms. They are constantly used in an attempt to befuddle and downplay our sensibilities of what we know to be a decent asking price for any given piece of merchandise that these two words are splashed onto.

Why am I up at arms about two mere words? Because the sheer stupidity behind their usage is at the very core of this rant. Consider this, if you will… If you were to be in need of a stick of underarm deodorant. What might you suggest the price to be? $2.00? Perhaps $5.00? Who’s to say what brand you use? Ah, but what if you were to stumble across a rack of deodorant that displayed a large, fluorescent explosion sticker that boldly announced that the price of Brand-X Deodorant was ONLY $12.99 EACH!!!

I know what you’re thinking. “Right. Who would pay $12.99 for a stick of deodorant?” And you’re completely correct in your thinking. It’s absurd. But nonetheless, the words JUST and ONLY are constantly being splashed across every thinkable advertising gimmick known to mankind. No matter the cost, no matter the merchandise… the common thinking amongst the retailers must be centered around the chance that these two words will somehow dupe us into equating the quality and need for the product with that of it’s ridiculous price!

I, for one, am not fooled. Nor am I amused by it. It’s become a sickening and annoying sight. Check any newspaper…any billboard…any TV advertisement. ONLY $19.99…. JUST $500…

And if these aren’t enough, you’ve got to love UNDER. Ah yes, UNDER. “Buy this garden cart for under $100!!!” However, with the discovery that the cost of the cart is $99.99 … one tends to find their expectations of a legitimate and opportunistic bargain to be dashed against the rocks of disappointment once more. The very idea. All done in a bid to avert your eyes from a competitor’s shallow bargain just long enough to disgust you with their own shallow bargain. UNDER…… the very idea.

And while we’re on this little band wagon of spite… why not address the teeth-grinding experience of enduring yet another REBATE?

Oh for pete’s sake…who came up with this bastardization of comsumer relations??? Why must we endure this constant enslaught upon our intelligence by corporations bound and determined to capitalize upon every penny they can squeeze out of us? What ever happened to valuing the people who guarantee your profits by thinking of their interests? No, let’s bind ourselves to the rest of the greedy corporations by including an offer with a rebate!

We’ll offer an unheard of low price for a popular retail item…then confuse and fluster the hell out of our consumers by complicating every aspect of the rebate with “qualifying conditions”, “waiting periods”, “mailing deadlines” and “10 to 12 week” processing times. Not only this, but let’s engineer our conditions so that any error made by the consumer on the rebate claim form will cause him or her to default on the rebate due to mail delivery time. By the time they’re notified of the error and can send in a corrected form, the time period for their claim has now expired. Oh my aren’t we smart!

Not only will we make it nigh unto impossible to weed through all of this confusion without error… but we’ll play on the innate tendencies of the average human being to not want further complications in their life. Most people would rather lose the discount rather than suffer the headache of going through these steps, so we’re almost guaranteed not to have to honor our rebate offer! Oh delight and joy!

How much more of a red-tape anal rape can you devise? Rebates ought to be outlawed. If you wanna offer Brand-X phone at a promotional discounted price… grant an “instant” rebate. Let the retailer deal with recovering their money from the manufacturer. Gain the public’s trust and satisfaction by granting them the lowered price…period. No gimmicks. No hoops to jump through. Just a promotional low price.

Alright… I’ll go take my medication now and find my happy place. Good day.

Ok…it’s obviously time for another entry into the ol’ blog. We finally did the whole camping thing over the July 4^th holiday weekend. We headed down to Lake DeGray near Arkadelphia, Arkansas and set up camp at DeRouche Campground. Although we experienced some rainy conditions toward the end of our stay, including some rather muggy and humid conditions, we had a good time overall.

We had the opportunity to camp in our new tent, and experience the frustration of a leaky air-mattress…but it was still fun. The nights were fairly cool next to the lake because of the cool breeze we got off the water. We took a box fan, so that helped. We didn’t catch many fish, but we ate what we caught. It was mostly hand-sized or smaller perch. No catfish or bass to be had in the shallow lakeside areas.

We took a guided sunset lake tour by boat, which was fun. We ate at the local CrackerBarrel restaurant one morning for breakfast, so that was a pleasant change from cold cereal. Oh, we’d brought biscuits and bacon and whatnot…but our friends’ camper oven was giving us fits. We did manage to get some pancakes fixed up toward the end of the trip, tho.

We were befriended by several ducks and their ducklings due to the copious amounts of bread crumbs the women were tossing out. Free food = winged visitors.

Here are a few pics from the trip....