Peace On Earth, Good Will Toward All

Most people have heard the story of the Christmas Truce during World War I, in which some troops on both sides of the trenches stopped fighting and enjoyed a holiday evening in peace and harmony with each other. Lesser known is that this was not unprecedented. It was reported that a similar event happened in 1870 during the Franco-Prussian War. A French soldier stepped up in front of everyone and began singing “O Holy Night”, which led to a temporary cease-fire between the troops in that area. It didn't last, of course. Peace rarely does. The officers, who were not at the front lines, did not approve of such things as fraternizing with the enemy and not killing each other.

My point is this: the Power of Peace is strong. When enough people decide to stop fighting and start getting along, miracles happen. The men were tired of fighting, tired of killing, tired of losing loved ones, and took it upon themselves to put an end to it.

This isn't about religion. This is about Peace. Most religions in the world today call for some sort of Peace. During this holiday season, it’s hard not to hear the phrase “Peace on Earth, Good Will toward Man.” Why is it, then, that with so many calling for Peace, we don’t have it?

The answer is simple: Intolerance. People say they want peace, yet are unwilling to tolerate anyone or anything they don’t agree with. I’m not pointing fingers at any one group or person. I've been guilty of it myself, although I try to be tolerant. Sometimes it is difficult. You believe someone is living the wrong way and it is your duty to correct them. Only, it isn't. Your duty is to love one another. Treat others as you would be treated. The Golden Rule isn't “Do unto others before they do unto you,” it’s “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” Although the former would work as well, provided what you’re doing is treating them as you would wish to be treated.

Peace is not easy. Too many people have their own opinions of how things should be. Our society has become so ego-centric that many find it impossible to consider someone else first. “I’m right, they’re wrong, why should I give in?” Only, it’s not giving in. It’s getting along. Consider if everyone started getting along and stopped fighting over such silly things as political parties and sexual orientation? Instead of fighting over which religion is the right one, we agree to let each person worship (or not worship) as they see fit.

Let there be peace on earth
And let it begin with me.
Let there be peace on earth
The peace that was meant to be.
With God as our Father
Brothers all are we.
Let me walk with my brother
In perfect harmony.

Let peace begin with me
Let this be the moment now.
With every step i take
Let this be my solemn vow.
To take each moment
And live each moment
With peace eternally.
Let there be peace on earth,
And let it begin with me.

This song, written in 1955 by Jill Jackson and Sy Miller, sums it up nicely. Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me. Now. In this moment, and each following moment. Let me live in harmony with my brothers and sisters instead of fighting. As John Lennon put it, you may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one. I hope someday you’ll join us and the world will live as one.

Christian Nation? Guess again....

I would like to preface this by saying I am not attacking any religion. I am not saying mine is better than yours. I am simply making a statement. I cannot help that you infer something other than what I imply.

Today is September 11. The twelfth anniversary of the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon, as well as the plane that was reportedly bound for the White House before being brought down in Pennsylvania. I do not know who was behind it, although I have my thoughts. Some say it was Muslims, some say it was our own government, some say it was a third party. I don’t know, and for the sake of this rant, it doesn’t really matter.

My rant today is in response to all the people proclaiming that this is a Christian nation and how we need to get back to God.

No, we don’t. This is not, nor has it ever been, a “Christian” nation. I’m not arguing about the theological beliefs of the founders. Each one had his beliefs, and that’s great. What I’m saying is that the Founding Fathers were smart enough to realize not everyone has the same faith, or the same beliefs. Even those under the same blanket umbrella term have varying beliefs. Even different people sitting in the same church have differing opinions of what they are supposed to believe.

Again, I’m not bashing Christianity. I don’t agree with it, can’t believe in it, but then I don’t HAVE to. That’s the point I’m getting at. This country was founded with the concept of Freedom of Religion. Each of us is allowed to believe what we want. Where we run into problems is when members of certain sects try to force everyone to follow the same belief system. The First Amendment  prevents this from happening completely, although it does take place in far too many local areas.

Examples of this are the “Blue Laws” or “Sunday Laws” found in many areas. These were created by secular governments at the behest of religious lobbyists who believed everyone should take off the “Sabbath Day” (despite Sunday not being the real Sabbath Day). It didn’t matter if everyone in that area held the same beliefs or not, they all had to live by the same religion based rules. And yes, these are allowed because the First Amendment specifies that the FEDERAL government will not make any laws regarding religion, but says nothing about local or state governments.

But I digress. This is not a Christian nation. This is a nation founded with the idea of having Christians and Muslims and Jews and whomever else living together in peace. People would be allowed to worship as they believed so long as that worship did not infringe on someone else doing the same. For example, it doesn’t matter to me if you think Sunday is the Sabbath, or Saturday, or Wednesday. Just don’t tell me I can’t go shopping on that day because it violates your religion. You don’t have to agree with mixed race couples or same sex couples, but don’t tell me who I can and cannot be in a relationship with just because it violates your religion.

If you want to pray to your god, or God, or Gods, or whomever, to get this country great once more, I’m fine with that. If each of us who have some sort of religious belief did that, it might actually happen. If you don’t have any religious beliefs, I’m fine with that too. Don’t mock me for having beliefs, and I won’t mock you for not having them.

I’m digressing again. Back on topic…. This nation was created by men who knew people would argue over who believes the truth and who doesn’t. They specifically designed for each of us to be allowed to worship or not worship as we choose, in peace, without fear of attack by narrow-minded people who can’t handle the thought that someone else might be different. Some of them were Christian, sure. Not all of them. That didn’t stop them from setting down the point that everyone is free to believe what they want. 

So no, this is not a Christian Nation. Nor is it necessarily a Religious Nation. It is a nation of individuals who were supposed to be able to live together in tolerance, if not peace and harmony. What a shame we can’t have that.

A Not-so-twisty Concept

I have to wonder about the latest trend in fast food. It seems more burger joints are joining in and it doesn't sound all that appealing to me. I'm talking about pretzel buns.

Now, I like a nice warm soft pretzel, coated with massive salt crystals, maybe dunked in cheese or spicy mustard. But never have I been eating a pretzel and thought, "Ya know...this would be great on a hamburger or hot dog!" I just don't like the idea of a hard crust surrounding my burger. Yet Wendy's has their burgers and Sonic has their hot dogs clothed in pretzel buns. A quick search on Google shows pretzel buns are readily available in many bakeries.

To be fair, I have not yet tried either fast food place to see if their fare is any good. I am tempted to get some pretzel buns by themselves, warm them up, coat them in salt and butter, and put in a good movie. Some day when I have nothing better to do and enough money to do it with, I might swing by and pick up one of these offers. Don't hold your breath, though.

The Customer is Always....

Customer service…. What does that term mean to you? The customer is always right, no matter what? Unfortunately, it seems customer service is starting to go the way of the dodo. More stores are putting in self-service lanes so you never even deal with a cashier. You gather your purchase, scan the stuff, bag them, put them back in your cart and haul them out yourself. If you’re lucky they may have one or two lanes open with an actual person, but the lines for those lanes are extremely long. Or, they’re the “Express Lane” kind and you have more than 10 items in your cart. Gas stations did this a long time ago, grocery stores are catching up. Soon it will be restaurants where you enter your order on a screen at the table or counter, swipe your card, and your food arrives on a conveyor. There actually is a small chain of restaurants where your order is delivered by model train on an overhead rail, then lowered to your table. I haven’t tried it yet. I wonder what you do when you want a refill of tea, though.

What’s more troubling, beyond the lack of personal service, is the quality of personal service. Restaurant servers in particular seem to be in the news lately, demanding either higher wages or better tips. In some areas, your server is most likely making about $2/hour, with tips making up the difference. I don’t agree with this, because not everyone can or will leave the (now suggested) 20% gratuity. I certainly don’t unless the service was stellar. The problem I see is that so many servers aren’t doing their job. I was at one restaurant recently where our waitress took our orders and brought drinks, then someone else brought our food. Our waitress stopped to make sure we did get our food, then disappeared until it was time to bring the check. I had to flag someone down to get drink refills. It’s not that she was on break. I could clearly see her standing at other tables, chatting. At one point she sat down to chat. Yes, she was trying to garner a bigger tip from that table, but that shouldn’t excuse her from showing some attention to her other customers as well.

I’ve had this same problem with counter workers and telephone service as well. The apparent lack of interest in the job, the customer, or anything else but his or her phone or time clock. Many are not rude, per se, but just don’t seem to care to do their job. Others I have seen have been plain rude.

I can’t say it’s all customer service people, definitely. I’ve seen plenty that do an excellent job of paying attention to customers without hovering, being friendly and seeming to care about what they’re doing. Despite making pittance, they do their job well, and those people I applaud. I know customer service is difficult. I’ve done it. There are days you don’t want to get out of bed, let alone deal with idiots all day long. Yet you force yourself to get out, face these people with a smile, and do your job. Kudos to you!

Which brings me to my next point…. Customers can be idiots. If you’re standing in line to order something, get off your phone and talk to the person behind the counter. They’re there to serve you, not try to interpret what you mumble while telling your BFF about some moron that almost ran into your car while you were busy not paying attention to where you were going. Your BFF can wait a few minutes while you place your order and interact face to face with someone. Honest. Or if you’re in line in the grocery store or Walmart or wherever, get off the phone long enough to talk to the cashier. He or she is a person too, and when you’re rude to them you may discover you are missing something you’re sure you’ve paid for. In a restaurant, interact with the server. Put your phone down. Stop your conversation long enough to give your order and see if the server has any suggestions or questions. Otherwise, it’s not their fault your steak isn’t done right or that coffee isn’t decaf after all, or you can’t quite put your finger on that unusual seasoning…. Be polite and interact with people who are there to serve you. Consider how you would feel in their position. The old adage is fitting: Treat others as you would have them treat you. If you wouldn’t want someone treating you this way, don’t do it to someone else. It’s really kinda simple.

Bottom line, good customer service is a two-way street. It requires the service person to be friendly and polite, but it also requires the customer to be friendly and polite. At the very least it requires that both parties interact enough to make sure things go smoothly. I realize it’s a lost art, but using manners is a good start to better customer service, on both sides.

Knowledge vs Opinion

I was driving my son to school this morning, and had the radio on the local NPR station. Yes, I listen to NPR. Get over it. Anyhow, the leading news story was that fashion designer Lily Pulitzer Rousseau died recently. Sad, yes, especially for her family, but not overly interesting to me. For those who do not recognize the name, she is famous for designing bright, colorful clothing with floral prints, paisley, stripes, and such. Not my taste, but apparently she was able to turn a side hobby into a booming career. Good on her. We were half listening to the interviews when the story ended with, “Also, former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher passed away on Monday.”

I was surprised. Not about Ms. Thatcher dying, although that is sad. What irritated me is the leading story was not about a prominent, albeit former, world political figure dying but instead about a fashion designer. Now, to be fair, NPR did follow through with a story about Thatcher’s life in politics. Still, placing such an iconic, influential person after a fashion designer only emphasized something my son had said the night before: Our society values opinions more than knowledge.

I will veer from my normal rants and not talk politics as such. Instead, I have to comment on how our society has fallen from the bright future of knowledge we once foresaw to the obsession we now have with image. Going through the line in the grocery store, we are bombarded with information about celebrities and their antics, as well as stories on how to improve our image and make people think better about us. We can find articles on make-up, hair, clothing, diets, and a plethora of ways to make ourselves appear better to others. We have become a vain society.

When did we go from revering Einstein and other scholars to revering Kardashians and other rich, spoiled, talentless people? Why have we become so obsessed with image rather than knowledge? Part of it, I believe, is because of the decline in education. Over the past few decades there has been a push to let children through school regardless of grades. Anyone familiar with “No Child Left Behind”? Unfortunately, this allowed some children to graduate high school with little ability to read comprehensively. I realize it also enabled some with learning disabilities to progress more than they would have otherwise, and that is good. However, many schools are not equipped to work with learning disabilities and so just ignore them. The curriculum has been downgraded to make things easier for children, while more emphasis has been placed on participation in athletics. Latin used to be taught in high schools. Now many high school students can barely speak English as a first language. Rather than push children to expand their minds, we have allowed them to grow stagnant in order to not make them feel bad for not knowing their multiplication tables.

As these children grow physically, their mental abilities are not focused or encouraged enough. More emphasis is placed on physical appearance and ability. The star athlete, the head cheerleader, these are the school heroes rather than the head of the honor roll. Once out of school, this emphasis continues in the working world. Dress right and you get promoted. Wear your hair a certain way to attract a man. Everything is about appearance and making others like you more. No more does the intelligent child become the prominent employee. Now the favored ones are the well dressed, well-manicured, pretty people who use more body than brain to get ahead. Is it any wonder, then, that we have become a society so enamored with opinion rather than knowledge? Is it any wonder, then, that a news report about a fashion designer would take precedence over a news report about a political figure?

Marriage.... what's the big deal?

The Supreme Court of the United States is hearing testimony today on two cases that ban same-sex marriage. One is Proposition 8 from California that makes same-sex marriage illegal. The second is the Defense of Marriage Act, or DOMA, which claims that marriage is supposed to be nothing but one man and one woman.

The problem with these two items is that they are highly discriminatory. In this era of supposed equal rights for all, we are still a long way from actually having equal rights. There are far too many people still judging, still discriminating, still hating others based on the most trivial of reasons. By trivial, I mean they have no good reason for their bias.

I have asked many times for any non-Biblical reason why same-sex marriage should not be allowed. I have to date heard one. That argument is that the dictionary states marriage is one man and one woman. Unfortunately, the dictionary was written initially in a time when marriage was just that: one man and one woman. Of course, arranged marriages were common, as were forced marriages, but that’s irrelevant. Definitions for many things have changed over years of usage. The definition of marriage should be updated to be more inclusive rather than staying in the Middle Ages.

Many people are against same-sex marriage because they believe it is wrong, according to the Bible. Let me say, before I counter this argument, that what you believe is up to you, no matter how hateful it is. You’re entitled to believe it to be true, just as I am entitled to believe it to be false. That being said, the argument using the Bible is extremely biased.

Yes, there are passages in the Bible which can be used to make the argument that homosexuality is wrong. There are also passages in the Bible that say women are supposed to be subservient to men, that Saturday is the correct day for worship, and that eating pigs is wrong. I don’t see these passages being touted. Sadly, many who use the Bible as their sole basis for being discriminatory are unfamiliar with the entire Bible. They pick and choose what they want to follow, discarding the rest. They then wear their beliefs as a badge of honor, thrusting it in the face of any who dare disagree with them.

I know many churches will not permit a wedding to be held in that location if one or both of the people getting married is not of that religion or even a member of that particular church. This is fine. Discriminatory, yes, but it is up to those in charge of that particular church to make such decisions. This does not make marriage the sole institution of that church, however, or any church. Marriage is not a religious institution, no matter how badly some want it to be.

As I said, you have the right to believe what you want. I support that fully, no matter how wrong your beliefs may be. That does not give you the right, however, to force others to follow your beliefs. There is no justifiable reason for any law in the United States to be made forbidding same-sex marriage. Religion has been used as a battering ram for racial segregation, for sexual orientation segregation, for any type of discrimination that those wielding it wanted. That doesn’t make it right.

Imagine, for a moment, if someone decided that pork should be banned, because the Bible says we should not eat pork. There goes the Easter ham, there goes the bacon, there goes pork chops. Would you follow that law? What if a law were created based on a religion other than yours, forcing women to wear their hair a certain way, or certain clothing? Would you follow that law? Probably not, because it would be against your beliefs. Yet you expect others to follow your laws because you believe them to be right? How arrogant are you?

You have the right to not agree with same-sex marriage, or same-sex couples. Absolutely. You do not have the right to tell them they are wrong, or cannot marry. You don’t have to like it. You don’t have to participate in it. You don’t have to agree with it. But you do not have the right or the authority to ban others from liking, participating, or agreeing with it. To believe you do have that right, that power, is arrogant, ignorant, and certainly not based on anything a loving God would do, no matter what religion has been attached to Him.

Why buy the cow...?

So, I feel like I need to voice my opinion on something that is troubling me. No, it’s not a major controversy. At least, it’s not for most of the participants. Still, it bothers me and it seems to be getting worse.

There is a trend, and has been going on for several years now, of man-bashing. And yes, it’s getting worse. Every day I see posts on Facebook about how “Real Men” need to treat women, and how lousy men in general actually are.  Television is full of childish, immature, stupid men being dominated and controlled by highly intelligent, strong willed women and children.

Gone are the days of ‘Father Knows Best’ and ‘My Three Sons’ and other show that had positive male role models. Now we have the bumbling, inept dolts who couldn’t make the right decision if it were the only decision. What happened?

I’ll tell you what happened. Women happened. A few decades ago, men were allowed to be strong and intelligent. Then we were told that things needed to change. Men needed to “get in touch with our feminine side.” Okay, fine, I’m good with that. After all, that leads to equality, right? No.

It got worse. Once women knew they could force men to do whatever they wanted, they took advantage of it. “A woman is allowed to change her mind. It’s a woman’s right.” It became about keeping men guessing and off balance so women could be in control. Women started treating men like children, and men regressed because it’s what the women wanted.  The more men regressed, the worse they were treated. The worse they were treated, the more they regressed.

The problem is, now we have all these women saying such twaddle as “A ‘Real Man’ would treat a woman the same way he wants a boy to treat his daughter” and “A ‘Real Man’ would make sure his woman is taken care of physically, emotionally, and financially” and that whole thing about Boaz and his supposed relatives.

Unfortunately, nothing is being said about how a ‘Real Woman’ should treat a man. I brought this question up, and was asked to prove what a ‘Real Woman’ was. I asked them to show me what a ‘Real Man’ was and was referred back to the nonsense post that originated the question. Many of the same women who post about what a ‘Real Man’ should do then post about what bitches they are and how they don’t care about others and so on.

My thought is, if a woman can act in any manner she chooses, what motivates the man to want to act properly for her? If he must make all these improvements in his life just to please her, and she is not required to improve herself, what’s the point? Sex? Guess again.  He’ll just move on to someone who doesn’t require so much sacrifice unequally.

Ah, equality. There it is. Yes, I know that for years, decades, centuries, women were treated as second-class citizens at best and as property at worst. I’m not denying women have had it rough. What I am saying is that if you want to be treated as equals, you need to work for equality rather than domination. I’m all for equality. If you’re interested in domination, though, move along. I don’t support female domination any more than I support male domination. So if you want men to treat you as special, you need to start treating men better too. It’s a two-way street. You don’t deserve respect until you can show it. If you can’t give me respect, I won’t give you any. Capice?