Chronicles of My Philosophical Journey

It's been a while!

2008-05-26T16:08:00.002-05:00

Not sure anyone is reading this - BUT - it has been a while!
Many things have changed - new job - and many things have stayed the same.
I recently heard Andrew Bernstein speak (again - saw him last year as well) and am reading his "Capitalist Manifesto" book. The lecture was focused on goverment schools.

I am also in the process of reading Tara Smith's Ayn Rand's Noramtive Ethics.

Not sure what I am going to do with this blog - I have enjoyed writing it, but haven't had a lot of time to write. Once I figured out what direction I want to go, I will start writing again.

Craig Biddle on "Living Purposefully"

2006-11-07T20:37:00.000-06:00

Saturday night my husband and I had the opportunity to listen to Craig Biddle. the Editor of The Objectivist Standard, give a speech on how to live purposefully. It was a really good presentation, and althought the concept seems to be common sense, he was able to offer the Objectivist perspective on it.

Maybe later when I have time I can write up a synopsis of the talk.
I must say Craig was an engaging speaker, and very friendly. I only had a short conversation with him near the end of the night, but he certainly is a very approachable fellow, and a great voice for Objectivism.

Last night I was surprised by a good friend that went ahead and purchased a gift subscription to TOS for us. I cannot wait to get the next issue!

Fall in TX

2006-10-12T19:12:00.000-05:00

It is finally getting a little cooler here in TX. It almost actually feels like fall! Too bad we don't actually have foilage down here like there is in New England. I do miss the colors. The KaPOW! of the orange, reds, and yellows of the leaves on the trees up there is just beautiful.

Ah well...

Better Off Dead

2006-09-29T20:59:00.000-05:00

I have been informed that it would be easier for some people if I was dead and faithful than alive and an infidel.
Go figure.
=/

Pleasant Discovery

2006-09-24T16:54:00.000-05:00

I was speaking with one of my sisters on the phone today, and it turns out that she read Atlas Shrugged about a year ago, and has interest in Rand's philosophy. She told me she doesn't agree 100% with Objectivism, but it sounds like she is at least keeping an open mind, and even has one of her books of essays.

It was a pleasant discovery, to find a relative that has read something of Rand's work. I haven't really brought it up with any of my siblings. Mostly because I have only been studying it for a short while, but also because I don't want to be seen as jumping from one ship (religion) to another. I think, given the religious background we are from, it would be an honest mistake for many of my siblings to come to that conclusion.

Anyhoo...it made me happy to hear that. Well, to speak to my sister in general too, and hear that she is doing okay.
(And if you are reading this: come visit me next year!)

Objectivism: Almost a Year Later

2006-09-23T23:16:00.000-05:00

So here it is, the nearly the end of September, 2006.
It's been almost a year since I started attending the North Texas Objectivist Society, and studying Objectivism. I have read a lot of books by Rand, both her fiction and non fiction, as well as other authors, and done a lot of study.
I am still attending an OPAR study group, and participate in the discussion board on NTOS's meetup site, and occaisionally Objectivism Online. (The fellow that started that site also attends NTOS and is a great guy btw.)

So would I consider myself an Objectivist now? No, not yet. Though I have a much better grasp of the philosophy than I did last year, or even a few months ago, I wouldn't say that just yet. I would still say I am a student of Objectivism.

Well, in the company of my friends that are Objectivist, I may kid and say I am an OIT: Objectivist in Training.

Not sure if I mentioned it before...and too lazy to look it up right now, but my husband found The Early Ayn Rand Reader at Half Price books. It is full of some of her early short stories, and most of them are quite enjoyable. I had often wondered if Ayn Rand was a fan of O. Henry, and this book confirmed that she was.

Vandals have come a calling

2006-09-09T01:35:00.000-05:00

At the end of July, I purchased a new car. Well not a brand new car, but it was pretty new for me, a 2001. I have never EVER had a car that new. And it is a sporty thing, a Mustang. I have never had a car that fun, nor cool.

My husband and I realized we needed another car because we enrolled our youngest two kids in a private Montessori school several miles away from home. My husband was also about to start classes at the local college, and it would really be too much on him to have to do all the driving. And, it kinda sucks to be stuck at home with out a car all day. Orignially we were just going to save up a couple of thousand dollars and get a decent but cheap vehicle. But the more I thought of it, the more I realized that with the nasty heat (40 days over 100 this summer), and the fact I would be carting little children around many miles several times a week, it would probably be wiser to spend the cash to get a decent car.

So, I hopped online, and looked around. I started sending my husband links of Mustangs, saying "Hahaha, this is what we need." I was kidding, because I didn't want to spend a lot of money. We went to the local Carmax. Didn't really see anything that I liked and could afford with decent gas mileage. They did have a couple of Mustangs, though...and the prices weren't bad, but still, we decided we should go to another Carmax and see what they had in stock.

Well, truth be told, I saw a neat blue Mustang, that was really cheap, and I was smitten. I did look around the rest of the lot, and there was nothing else with decent gas mileage that was as cool for the same price. (Unless I wanted to get a icky Ford Focus. Sure, sure, it was a 2004, but who wants to pay that much for a Focus when you can have a Mustang for the same payment?)

I was all excited, because I was able to get the car loan on my own. This shouldn't be a big deal, but for the past few years I was self employed, and it didn't fair well for this kind of thing. But here I was, feeling like a grown up, getting a cool car FINALLY.

I felt like a Kellog's Frosted Mini-Wheat: The kid in me was excited because it was a sports car, and the adult in me was pleased because it got good gas mileage because its only a 6 cylinder.

Anyhoo.....my first payment is due next week. All was going well...until....

2 nights ago some @#$)%$_% decided that a piece of concrete they found lying somewhere would look better in my car than on the ground. So they hurled it through my back window. The punk didn't even try to break in the car. Whoever it was just wanted to vandalize something.

According to the police officer that wrote up the report the next morning several other cars were hit in the night. I spent a long time carefully picking up glass and vacuuming it out, and today taped on a plastic sheet until I can replaced the window next week.

It angers me because people can be such pricks. The police officer said to me "If we find the kid or kids that did this, the parents are responsible up to $5000, but they usually don't have the money." I didn't say anything. But I was thinking: I don't care about that. If they find who did this, they will pay me back. I don't care if they have to pay me back $5 a week until the debt is paid. There is no excuse. I don't care if the person that did this was high on drugs or molested by the neighbor's cat. It's just wrong, and even if it was some 15 year old kid, they should be held responsible. I am not looking for anything more than justice. (I must admit, I did have thoughts of a beating...but it passed.)

ANYWAY...it's just a car, but it was a bit of a symbol of accomplishment for me. I finally had something that I had wanted for a very long time that I could afford (barely, true, hahah.)

I must say though, it is amazing how clear a view you have in the rear view mirror when there is no window.

Confrontation =(

2006-08-13T02:22:00.000-05:00

Well, we got some cool bookcases from IKEA last month.
Inspired by their awesomeness (yeah, I am queer, I know!) I decided to put all my philosophy books out in the open on their glorious shelves. I threw my bibles up there too, because, well, I still read them from time to time. (Hey I like mythology.)

Anyhoo...this isn't a big deal, but my mom is visiting. I haven't been very vocal about studying Objectivism, or that I am an atheist. The last time she visited, we didn't really talk about the philosophy my husband and I was interested in. I told my husband, though, that I was just going to throw the books up, included my other bible translation. I figured while we were out of town on vacation and my mom was hanging out with my sister my mom could flip through the books should she so desire.

Well, between that and my 6 year old, things came to ahead Saturday night.
My mother was kind enough to watch my youngest 2 while my husband and I went out to dinner with some friends. When we returned, my mother informed us that our daughter had told her that she (my mom) believed in the spaghetti monster, but that my mother did not. She also told my mother that we didn't allow her to use the word 'god' and that we didn't believe in that word and neither did she. And that the book that used that word was wrong.

WELL. My mom wanted to know what the spaghetti monster was and if what the rest of the conversation was true. We figured that our daughter misunderstood what we had told our son. We have been asking him to stop exclaiming "my god!" when he gets upset or excited about something all the time. Because he does it way too much. So I think she was using spaghetti monster as a substituion. I then explained what the FSM was, and assured her that my duaghter knew that he was fake.

THEN...the real conversation began. I admitted, yes, everything she said was true. We don't believe in god, and that I don't believe the bible any longer. My mom was appalled. She remained calm, but I could tell it was hard. She stated she couldn't believe that I would abandon my believes, and spend so much time "reading philosophy" etc...that I would still have to be accontable to what I used to believe even if I didn't believe them...it was pretty painful. And it is hard to go into any more detail. I felt like I was a child, disappointing my mom.

I don't feel guilty for upsetting her. I didn't earn guilt to be upset about. But I am upset that she is hurt. Angry that religion has such a hold over her, and afraid that this new knowledge that she has about my lack of belief in god may hurt or relationship. I told her that I never brought it up because I didn't think it would be fruitful. But that I have NEVER lied to her about my belief, or lack thereof.

The discussion stayed calm right through the end. I went to the bathroom, and stood over the toilet with the dry heaves. I spent the next 30 minutes being comforted by husband as I cried like a baby. I do wish she had someone to hold on to and cry with too. Because I am sure that is what she was doing at the same time.
=(

Cayman Trip

2006-07-31T17:08:00.000-05:00

My family and I just returned from a vacation on Grand Cayman Island.
Oh, it was fantastic! We had never been any where "exotic" like this before, and it was the first time that my children were out of the country. (Actually, we were only able to take three of them. But since the other two spent a week in Florida and visited all the major theme parks there with grandparents, everyone had a good summer!)

We stayed at a really cool private residence that some friends had already rented out. It was right on the beach, and on the East side of the island. A few of the things that we did was:
1. Snorkeling (my husband and son actually, I haven't mastered the breathing yet)
2. Swimming with stingrays (well, the 4 year old and I mostly was on the boat. She was afraid)
3. Hanging out with sea turtles
4. Eating turtle (husband)
5. Riding on jet skis (all but me. I was feeling ill and didn't want to make "a mess" hahah)
6. Playing with hermit crabs tiny to huge!
6. Just floating in the ocean for hours (I think that was my favorite part)

One of the neat things about The Caymans is that there are no taxes, so you don't pay any sales taxes. Well, that isn't exactly correct. Everything coming into the country has a duty on it of course. But, it was great not having to add sales tax onto all of our purchases. Of course, things are WAYYYY more expensive down there, but it was worth it. And the money is pretty if you chose to use it instead of the US Dollar.

I am proud to say I am now an ambidextrous driver and know how to drive on the left and right sides of the road. Very exciting. Sometimes even at the same time.

Madeleine Albright, John Stossel & Mary Higgins Clark: What Do They Have In Common?

2006-06-13T12:41:00.000-05:00

Besides the fact they all spend a good amount of time in or near New York City...
I am reading their work.
(OOOOO....lucky them!)

The last several months most of my reading has been Rand and Objectivist geared. I am still reading in that area, but here are a few others I have read recently or am reading:

Madame Secretary , Madeleine Albright’s autobiography. I started reading this in the summer of 2005, and am almost done. It is quite interesting, actually, and I am really enjoying it. (I do love autobiographies.) It is an interesting story of her life, politics, and pretty much a study in pragmatism, hahah. For those that have the time, though, and are interested, I recommend it.

I am not a democract, nor a republican. Regardless of politcis, this is a compelling book. Albright does a great job telling her story. She covers her childhood, young adult hood, climb of her career, break up of marriage, etc., very well, without it being too distracting from the book. This isn't a gossipy book, but there is enough peronal stories in it to make it interesting. There is also a lot of insight into how things get done when dealing with other countries, and our own. Ms. Albright may not agree, but her book offer many examples as to why pragmatism is not an appropriate philosophy to live by.

Give Me A Break, by John Stossel. My son picked this up for me at the library last night and I finished it this afternoon.

I grew up watching Stossel on 20/20 as a whiney consumer rights reporter, and was happy when he grew into a more objective reporter. When I started studying Objectivism last year, I was surprised, and pleased to see that many would refer to him as an Objectivist, and I saw some references to him mentioning Rand's work.

I have never seen anything to show he calls himself one, though he admires Atlas Shrugged, Rand, and seems to be pretty tight with David Kelly and The Objectivist Center. (He quotes Kelly in his book a few times and mentions the center. He was even on one of his specials. If you type "John Stossel" and "Objectivist" into Google.com, you will pull up links with him and David Kelly and/or the Objectivist Center all over the place. Me thinks he could use some balancing with ARI, but hey, that's another story.)

But I cannot see anything in the book that even hints at any serious study of Objectivism on his part. I was disappointed by that. By what I had read on other websites and discussion boards, it sounded like Stossel was an Objectivist. I made the mistake of assuming he was from the articles he has written, and from of the posts I have read online at various discussion boards.
I figured it would be best to find out for myself, and so decided to start with this book. (This book shows how he went from a liberal reporter to an objective reporter. That’s why I figured it would be a good book to answer my question.)

It's still a good book, and I recommend it. However, just with this caveat: While Stossel is friendly to some of Objectivist philosophy and capitalism, he is NOT an Objectivist, nor does he claim to be.

Perhaps some would think I am being anal about this. However, in studying Objectivism, it is really easy to allow yourself to be 'stumbled' by things that are written by those that may not have a correct understanding, or may not be in agreement of Objectivism. Had I picked up this book last year, thinking the ideas written near the end was written under Rand’s Objectivist philosophy, I would have been quite confused as to what Objectivist philosophy agreed with or not.

(In order to judge something, you have to know what something is first. That’s why I keep pushing that those who want to embrace or reject Objectivism need to study it first. And that is also why I refer to myself as a student of Objectivism, since although I have read and study much of it, I still have a lot to learn about it.)

Anyway, off my soapbox. Kudos to John Stossel. He really is a heroic reporter. I have more respect for him than before I read the book. We need more reporters like him.

Second Time Around by Mary Higgins Clark. Just finished that a few days ago. I do love my light fiction. I have been reading her stuff for over 20 years. She is my favorite pop fiction writer. Although not as clever as Agatha Christie, she is pretty darn close. (I do love Agatha too!)

Net Neutrality Ammendment Dies

2006-06-09T11:07:00.000-05:00

I was very pleased to read this article Provision U.S. House Shoots Down Net Neutrality over at http://www.cio.com/ this morning.

There must have been a great popping sound heard in Washington, DC, as the House of Reps removed their heads from the sand and voted down the net neutrality ammendment 269 to 152.

I won't go into all the details, but the ammendment basically would require that broadband provides offer the same service at the same speed to everyone. Regardless of how much bandwidth they suck.

The article talks a little about both sides of the coin, but, I see the bottom line as this: these companies have invested millions and millions, if not billions of dollars into their network. They offer a service for a price. How dare the government come in and try to mess with that? How dare they? And, why shouldn't a company that is sucking big band width be told they need to pay more, because they are getting more service from the broadband provider?

Of course, all these consumer groups don't get the fact that this ammendment will do for the internet what the Every child Left Behind Act will do for education: It will make the internet suck for everyone, and take choices out of the hand of providers. Actually, it will be even worse. At least with education, if you are really disgusted with public education, you can home school or send your kids to private school. With government regulation of the internet, indvididual's rights are violated even more so.

Check this site out regarding the issue:

Hands off The Internet Some people don't like this "coalition" because they are compromised of big companies. But they don't hide that fact, and they should be the ones leading the fight, since it is THEIR busines that is at stake here and their property rights. I don't agree with 100% of what they say, but I agree with NO REGULATION of the internet. They have some very interesting posts on the blog.(Read the Blame Canada entry Blame Canada . It is particularly funny.)

I don't agree with the site 100%, but Hands Off does a decent job of using the governments own words to explain why regulation isn't required, by bring up the FCC's "principles" for consumers rights to accessing the internet, etc...they then use these 4 principles to come up with their 6 principles, which stresses the government only getting involved in cause of fraud and criminal activity. Check out the Hands Off Principles page for details.

Interesting Hair Look at the guy pictured on the right. No, I don't know him, but I am fascinated by the hair. Is it real, is it fake? Is there a pack of small furry animals missing a member somewhere? Well, congrats to him on his promotion, anyway.

Excellent Article On Immigration & Individual Rights

2006-05-24T03:10:00.000-05:00

My friend David sent a link out on a discussion list we both belong to. It is an excellent article, entitled Immigration Quotas vs. Individual Rights: The Moral and Practical Case for Open Immigration by Harry Binswanger.

I haven't been to Capmag.com for quite a bit, but there are a lot of interesting articles there, well worth spending some time reading.

Enjoy!

"Math is Hard"

2006-05-20T04:00:00.000-05:00

This is the joke between my 18 year old sister and me. We often will say it, in our stupid voice.

However, it seems I have made the mistake of saying it too many times around my 6 year old daughter. Besides her previous revelations of how powerful math is, she has taken it upon herself to give me some lessons in some important math basics.

Thursday night she got out of bed because apparently I didn't really understand the basic concept of what exactly math is. She put into these simple terms, "Mommy, 1, 2,3 is just like A, B, C. Just like 1 +1 = 2, you can have A + A = B."

I just looked at her. I wasn't sure if I was annoyed that she was up an hour past her bed time or amazed because she is just finishing up kindergarten. Not really sure what to do, hahah, I figured it was safer to say this, "Yes, I get it honey. Math is a language. Now GET TO BED!"

Of course as soon as she skipped back to her bed, pleased with herself because she had given me yet another lesson (hey, I took algebra in high school...she isn't past me yet....at least not for another 2 years at least hahah) I ran into the office and told my husband what has occurred.

He was pleased of course. The problem now is to figure the best course of action. Of course we want to encourage her interest. She has already qualified for a special program at school, as did one of her older sisters. So she will get some challenging work. Which is great. We are very fortunate to live in a school district that doesn't suck. But, since we have to deal with TAKS and the EVERY Child Left Behind programs, we want to make sure gets to keep her math appetite satisfied.

Being a parent is fun...but dang...math is still hard....it sure isn't hard to tell which parent she gets her brainiac skills from is it?
=P

Conversations with a 6 year old

2006-05-15T00:38:00.000-05:00

Last night we went out to eat at a local BBQ restaurant. Somehow the discussion of children came up with my 4 year old daughter. I am not sure how, nor do I remember exactly what we were talking about.

I do remember though, rolling my eyes at one point and saying, "I will tell you what my mom used to tell me: 'Someday you will have a daughter just like you! That is how I will have my revenge!' HAHAHAH!" We had a good chuckle, because all the kids have heard it a thousand times before. (This particular child though, is my “Mini-Me”, so, my mom’s “curse” came true, haha.)

My 6 year old daughter piped up and said something funny, and so my husband laughed and responded with something about the greatest curse would be for her to have a kid like the 4 year old, and the 4 year old to have a kid just like the 6 year old. My 6 year old stopped smiling and got a serious look on her face.

"But I am going into science," she stated matter of fact. We explained to her that was fine, she could have kids and “go into science” or not have kids, whichever she chose was fine with us. We then got caught up in rounding everyone up for the last visit to the restroom before we left.
Now that she was in her “science” mode, our 6 year old she was talking about how cats cannot fly.

“What if you put them in an astronaught suite with a jet pack? Could the go to outerspace”I told her it wouldn’t work out too well because they didn’t have opposable thumbs, nor the intelligence to work the controls.

“...or an ant in a little rocket ship...”We started discussing how there would need to be more than just a tiny rocket ship or jet pack, that there are physical laws at work. Then there was a comment about using math to figure that stuff out.

She was quiet for a few minutes, and then we heard her say, ever so quietly:
"With math, you can know everything."

”What was that?” I asked, not sure I heard her right.“Nothing,” she said, after a pause. I asked my husband if he had heard what I did, and he said he had.

When we got home she waited until we were alone and told me that she had said it, but that it wasn’t meant for us to hear, that she was only whispering it to herself.

Later, my husband asked what she meant, and she said, "Math takes away the unknown. If I am having a nightmare, and I am in a scary dark forest, I can use math to count the trees. Then, I know how many trees there are. So it isn't so scary. Because it isn't unknown, how many trees there are. "

This, from a 6 year old. It is amazing to hear and watch my kids learn how to reason. This isn't something we taught her. She is using what she is learning at school and at home and piecing it all together, forming concepts.

All I can say is: WOW.

Slowest reader....ever!

2006-05-13T23:30:00.000-05:00

Yeah...I guess that would be me.
I FINALLY finished Atlas Shrugged tonight. Granted, it is 1069 pages long, and there was almost a whole month of illness where I didn't read much of anything...but still...

I wonder if this means I get to find out the secret handshake at the local Objectivist group I intend?

=)

Don't Ask Me To Give If You Won't

2006-05-11T02:33:00.000-05:00

My 10 year old came home from school today with a pledge form for a jog a thon. She said that they were raising money for a new marquee sign out in front of their school. I looked at the paper, and read it, and then handed it back to her.

I thought for a moment. The sign out front of the school is two sided. One side has stuff on it in Spanish, the other in English, with reminders and announcements. It is quite handy sometimes, but really, I didn't see why they needed a new one.

"Why do they need a new sign?" I asked, wondering if maybe she knew something I didn't. "It looks fine to me."

"I don't know."

"Well, honestly, even if they needed a sign, I really don't see it being that necessary. So I am going to decline giving any money for this. But you can ask your Dad when he gets home."

Before he got home, though, I tried to use the opportunity to throw in a lesson here. I said, "You know, even though I don't care to contribute to this particular fund, I think it is great that the school is asking for VOLUNTARY donations instead of just taking DEMANDING money from people don't you?"

I didn't go into taxes or anything like that (after all she is 10), but I told her that this was an example of the school asking polite for funding help. And me politely declining because I have other places I want to spend my money. Then I said, "You know, you have $2. It is your money. You are free to donate that to the new sign if you wish."

She looked at me, and seemed to get it and said." I don't really care about the sign either, not enough to give MY money." She then told me that it was voluntary to get pledges, but that they had to run. It is part of gym class though, so that isn't a big deal, at least not to me.

I think I probably made a mistake though. I probably should have asked her in the beginning if it was something she valued enough to part with some of her own money, becuase if she isn't willing to give some of her own money, how can she justify asking others to donate to the cause?
I spoke with my husband about it tonight after she went to bed, and I think this weekend we will speak with her about it in more depth.

Celebrate Capitalism

2006-05-10T16:09:00.000-05:00

I have been off work sick the past few days, in and out of lucidity, and stumbling online here and there, sort of playing the "6 degrees of Objectivism" if you will...going from link to link. Sometimes you find something good...sometimes you find crap, heh heh. Now, not sure how you would classify this...I think it is kind of clever, actually. I have never heard of this guy, but I guess he is fairly well known (at least in Down Under).

Some guy called PRODOS, he has a radio show, has interviewed a lot of people including Tara Smith, Peikoff, etc..etc..etc...ANYHOO...there is an interview with him on The Atas Sphere The Atlasphere. He has some interesting songs...one I got a kick out of is called We Invite The World. There is even a flag to go along with it called Sara. OOO....more link clinking: Prodos has a Celebrate Capitalism Day and here is the Declaration that goes along with it I haven't processed all this yet (brain...working...slowly...) I need to re- read it all a little more thoroughly.

Celebrate Capitalism is June 4, 2006...that is a sunday. I think perhaps I could grill a hot dog or hamburger to that!

On another note: June 6 2006 is 06/06/06....too bad that wasn't on the weekend. It would be fun to have a mock end of the world party as a former xtian hahah. ( that is 666 for those that don't get that lame joke right away.)

Failing To Put My Best Foot Forward

2006-04-23T19:10:00.000-05:00

My family and I went to the Scarborough Renaissance Festival today in Waxahachie TX. While we have all been there before, it is our first time there together as a whole family.

A few other families that we know from a local Objectivist group also attended and we met up with them for a little while. That was a lot of fun, but unfortunately, didn't last long. The youngest in our clan has been quite difficult lately, and I have been feeling not too well. So we split off from the group and decided to go to one of the shows so we could just sit and watch for a little bit.

We did meet up with one of my husband's friend's for work for a few minutes, and then later some from the Objectivist group before we left to chat for a little bit.

When I got home, I was relieved to pull my sneakers off my tired feet. Then I was horrified when I looked down and realized that I was wearing two different sneakers.

Interesting...hopefully if anyone noticed they just thought I was in costume hahah...so much for trying to put my best foot forward I guess hahah.

Capitalism Activism

2006-04-18T13:58:00.000-05:00

I was reading on Objectivism Online's Metablog listing and came across this interesting blog post entitled Form 1040 and 'rational ignorance' on a blog entitled The Rule of Reason. It is a very interesting piece regarding the current tax situation, and how those of us that don't like it, well, we should DO something about it.

He makes a very good case, I think, for donating money for activism that supports capitalism. When I think about it, it makes sense. Think of all the interest groups that are out there with activists, pushing their agendas that work against capitalism. A lot of people don't get that the more this country gets away from capitalism towards socialism, the fewer opportunities individuals have.

Oh, by the way...the ferret is home again. A neighbor caught him yesterday afternoon, and was kind of enough not to turn him into a slipper.

Taxes & Easter

2006-04-17T06:57:00.000-05:00

Well, after 2 months of dragging it out, we finally finished and filed our taxes this past week.
Man, each year it gets more complicated! I don't think compulsory taxes will ever be abolished, but at least they could go with a flat tax or something. Make life a lot easier. Sheesh!!

Easter was this past weekend.
Except for the few times we have gone to my inlaws house for a meal, we have never done much about Easter. Sure, we usually do some egg painting and egg hunt for the kids, but nothing too formal. Easter has never had any religious meaning for me, even when I was a Christian.

We didn't do the egg painting yet at our house. Our pet ferret snuck out of the house this weekend, and it kind of ruined the mood. (We haven't found the little guy yet.) Next weekend we will probably do that though, since it is always fun. (And, all the candy will be half off...how convenient MUAHAHAH!)

Anyhoo, we attended a NTOS meeting Saturday night, and there was an Egg of Reason Hunt for the kids. The kids had a great time searching for plastic eggs full of candy. There was no pretending about an Easter bunny.

My husband and I have decided to totally dispense with the Easter Bunny, Tooth Fairy and even Santa Claus this year. We are not going to make a big deal about it; that's not really necessary, since 3 out of 4 of them don't believe in them any way.

This past meeting at the NTOS was excellent. In fact, my husband had a great discussion with a long time Objectivist about raising kids to be selfish, but in a proper way. I will write more about that later as I have more time.

MAss Insanity only gets worse

2006-04-06T18:19:00.000-05:00

Okay...here is another article that makes the whole health insurance issue in Mass even scarier:
Health bill premiums may exceed predictions
Ability of some to pay at issue

Hmmm...so no high deductible plans allowed....so they are cutting out choices, so they will only have high premium insurance plans....not very smart.
Interesting article.

MAss Insanity

2006-04-06T17:23:00.000-05:00

Here is a very scary story:

Health insurance may be mandatory in Mass.

MA just passed a bill that is going to screw many businesses and individuals.
If an employer doesn’t offer health insurance, it will be fined $295 per employee.
If an individual can afford health insurance, but does not purchase it, they can be fined up to $1000.

I am not an economist, nor have I ever played one on tv, but here is what I think will happen:

1. Layoffs, and rehiring of temps: Employers layoff their workforce, and rehire them as temps through a temp agency. It will be cheaper for them in most cases, even with the mark up for agency fee;

2. Employees being laid off and rehired as 1099 contractors: You don’t have to pay 1099 contractors benefits. The problem will be making sure the employer’s relationship with the contractor is in line with employment laws regarding the differences between 1099 and W2 employees.

3. Employees laid off: just laid off…because the employer cannot afford all of them. Have to pick your most vital and let the rest go.

4. Moving the business: either outside of Mass or to state lines, hoping to attract out of state workers.

Now, #1 could be a great boon to temp agencies. And there are a lot of great temp agencies out there. The problem is that it creates the illusion of job insecurity. I say illusion because you can work for a temp company for years. Just like any other job. But, for many employees, it can be stressful.

Regarding #2, this takes some heat off the employer if they do things right. It puts the responsibility of buying insurance where it belongs: with the individual. Working on a 1099 basis can be a boon to many people if they take the time to understand what they can legally write off and what they cannot. Also, they may actually be able to make a little more an hour because the employer doesn’t have to pay unemployment or medicare tax any longer. But, they may be required to purchase other insurance, such as liability insurance to be able to work with a client.

#3 is the saddest of course. But there will be some smaller companies that will have to make the decision to cut a few people so that they can afford to keep their most valuable/necessary employees.

#4: hey....come on up to NH! No sales tax, and no income tax. Just set up shop over the state line and you may even keep many of the same employees.

Something I find interesting is that that those under a certain income (but not poor enough to get insurance for free) will be able to get insurance on a sliding scale. Hmmm...so the government will be subsidizing that. Hmm...kinda like Section 8 housing. So where is the money coming from to do that? I need to read more on this, but I wonder if they expect to use the fines levied on the individuals and businesses to support the subsides? That is a scary idea. If that is the case, then the plan woudl be a failure if everyone complies with it.

Of course, there is the federal government. I wonder how much of a nightmare it will be for insurance companies to get their subsidy money from the state and/or federal government. We have all heard how much doctor's offices hate dealing with medicaid and medicare. I wonder if insurance companies will start pulling some of their plans out of the state because even with subsidies their profits will plummet.

And there is no provision to raise taxes anywhere to pay for the poor on the plan? Where is THAT coming from? I guess that is the only good news...no raising the income or sales tax or property tax to pay for it...yet!

Oh, look at the web that this spider is weaving. Good luck people of MA.

Update On Rand Readings & Objectivism

2006-04-05T08:31:00.000-05:00

Well, it is now April, and I am still not finished Atlas Shrugged.
It is a very long book (over 1000 pages), but I just have been busy between being sick, and the kids, and work. (Without going into boring details...I am just glad the past 6 weeks are over!)
I have made a special effort over the past few weeks to read more of it, though. I am about 80% through it.

The more I read it, the more I can see how many view Atlas as such an amazing achievement. I posted in an earlier post Going Through Ayn Rand Novels, that I just didn't get a few of her characters. I mentioned that I viewed Roark in The Fountainhead as unrealistic. While I found this a little annoying while I was reading the book, my husband pointed me to an article, Ayn Rand's Playboy Interview in 1964 that cleared things up for me a little bit.

Rand wrote her heros, and heroines the way she thought men and women OUGHT to be. Not necessarily the way many are in real life. Ahhh...okay, that changes my out look a bit on her writing. It is a great article, actually, and answered some questions that had been nagging me.

One thing that you don't see much in any of her books are children. Motherhood wasn't something Ayn chose. I wondered if it was something she felt was not worthwhile for other women. This article gives her take on it, and I think it is interesting. Basically, if you are going to be a mother/housewife, you should practice it as seriously as you would a career. I am not sure many would appreciate her saying that chosing motherhood over a job as a career may be impractical. However, she makes a good point, because, "because a home cannot be a full-time occupation, except when her children are young."

It makes sense to me. Personally, I have known other moms that once their kids hit school age, or are in their teens, they sometimes feel like the are without a purpose. I don't think this necessarily HAS to be the case. But I think Rand's point is that if you don't have a purpose to give you a reason to get out of bed everyday, well, then you don't have much.

Here is another thing that I think a lot of women don't think about: Do some women hide behind our family obligations so that we hide from finding a personal purpose? I think we see this when we meet women that later in life, after the kids are grown will wistfully say " I could have done this, this and this if I didn't have to take care of the family."

See, to me, this is a whole new issue altogether. We read about people making sacrifices for their children...blah, blah, blah. Well, sure, it isn't easy, and you do have to give up something for the sake of the kids now and then. That's called an opportunity cost. My husband and I "gave up" a few things in order to have kids. That isn't a sacrifice. We get a lot of value and enjoyment from our children. Along with the things we get from them, is the responsibility for caring for them. We wouldn't have had to deal with these responsibilities if we had not CHOSEN to have kids.

I am still reading the OPAR book, and occaisionally attend a local study group, and my family and I attend a local group of Objectivists. Which is helpful, because they it is nice to interact and ask questions of those that understand Rand's philosophy. The group is very helpful because there are a good number of families there, so you can see that Objectivism isn't just a philosophy for the young and childless.

I don't think Ayn Rand is infalliable, nor a goddess of some kind. In fact, I think, being imperfect, she probably had a few times where it was hard to stay true to her own philosophy. But, just because a person isn't perfect doesn't mean you cannot learn something from them.

Why the 10 Commandments Are Wrong for Children

2006-04-03T17:55:00.000-05:00

"Why the 10 Commandments Are Wrong for Children"

I just recently read two very interesting artciles regarding how the 10 Commandments can actually be harmful. They are as follows:

"The Ten Commandments vs. America"
An opinion piece found in the Wednesday, March 2, 2005 edition of the The Courier-Journal by By Harry Binswanger

(You can also find it on the ARI website at here.

You can find the article at this link:
"Protect My Children from the Ten Commandments"
by Lewis Vaughn, as published in Free Inquiry magazine, Volume 19, Number 4.

I enjoyed reading both articles because they give two opinions on the 10 commandments from two very different viewpoints:
1. Objectivist viewpoint
2. Secular Humanist viewpoint

I haven no problem with my children knowing the 10 commandments. In fact, I plan on making sure my kids have an opportunity to learn about the bible and christianity in general and other religions, and even expose them to some good old Greek and Roman mythology. I consider it a part of their education in learning something about the world. The 10 commandmnents are not appropriate to use in order to teach my kids how to be decent people because:

1. They are not being taught to think critically or rationally (other than you will incur God's wrath there is no reason to obey them)
2. They are not being taught to personal responsibility

These are fairly short pieces, and I would encourage all to take the time to read them, as I really cannot do them justice.
But, as you can see from both articles, there are sound reasons from a societal/humanist and obectivist/individualist point of view as to why using the 10 commandments to try to teach children to behave is harmful.

For me, I think Ayn rand summed it up best:

"If I were to speak your kind of language, I would say that man's only moral commandment is: Thou shalt think. But a 'moral commandment' is a contradiction in terms. The moral is the chosen, not the forced; the understood, not the obeyed. The moral is the rational, and reason accepts no commandments."

(John Galt's broadcast in Atlas Shrugged...thanks Bruce, for mentioning where the quote was from in the comments...I finally got to that part in the book, but just finally got to update the blog.)

Chicken Pox

2006-02-01T00:48:00.000-06:00

Sigh....my daughter has a different kind of avian affliction than the bird flu: Chicken Pox.

When I was a kid, getting chicken pox was no big deal. If one kid got it, it wasn't uncommont to bring over relatives' kids or neighborhood kids so they could get it too. Get it over with before they got too old. No biggie...

But since the chicken pox shot has been around for many years, I guess it is fairly rare.
My daughter did have the shot a few years ago, but here we sit, almost 1 AM in the morning. She is awake, not feeling well with the chicken pox. Sigh....

I am just relieved it isn't something worse. I can handle the chicken pox. The doctor confirmed how I planned to handle it (baths, calamine lotion, pain reliever and fluids) was just fine.

So...the next several days we will be me and my daughter at home. I won't get any work done, but hey, maybe a little time together won't hurt.

Beggars: Giving Info Instead of Money?

2006-01-11T09:48:00.000-06:00

Does pandering in public bother you?

I have given money to people that have begged for money in public before. The last time I was at Dealey Plaza in Dallas I was approached by at least three people looking for a few bucks. I gave a couple of dollars to one guy, and some change to another guy, but nothing to the third. I was out of change and ones. And, while I feel grateful to have what I do, I couldn't afford to start handing out a five or ten.

Yesterday I was driving back from a job interview in Dallas. I was coming off 635, and was on a very busy off ramp. There was an intersection at the end...it was about 5:30 PM. It is starting to get dark, and there is a ton of traffic. At the intersection at the end of the off ramp, there was this guy with a sign that read something like this:

"Hungry and Homeless. Please help. God Bless."

When the light was red, he slowly walked down the line of cars closest to him. He didn't say anything. I didn't see anyone give him anything at the vehicles ahead of me, and I didn't either. I also didn't make eye contact with him or look at his face. I didn't want to give him any false hope.

Now, it isn't that I don't have any compassion for the homeless or hungry. If I had some grocies, maybe fruit, or snacks, or even some food from a drive thru, something that didn't need to be prepared, I would have offered it to him.

I did have money. I had a ten dollar bill, and I think maybe some change. But, not to sound cheap and mean, I needed it. It was actually my husband's lunch money for the next couple of days. I knew if I gave it to this guy, my husband wouldn't eat lunch, because he wouldn't have any money.

Sure, my husband wouldn't starve. Missing a few lunches is no big thing, especially when you know you will be going home to dinner. However, I don't think handing this guy money on the street is going to solve his problems, and it would just make things a little tougher for my family.

I understand why he is begging at on the street, even in a dangerous part right off the highway. But, it isn't a good idea to allow him at that location. It is dangerous, not just for him, but every mototorist driving in that area. I don't want to encourage him to beg there by giving him money. Sure, I guess it would be encouraging him just the same if I had food to give him...but then I would know he was actually eating.

I have been wondering this: doesn't this guy know there are soup kitchens in Dallas? Doesn't he know he can go get some food? Surely if he is at the point where he is begging for money on the street he is humble enough to go to a soup kitchen or food pantry?

Then I wonder...hmmm....does he know where they are? Can he get there? I think Dallas has a pretty decent public transist system. Not as wide spread as some other cities like New York or Boston, but you can get to most parts of the city. But, alas, that takes money. Do any soup kitchens or charities for the homeless or hungry offer bus passes so they can get there?

I am sure there are some that beg for money on the street to get money for something other than food. Maybe booze, cigarette, drugs...or maybe some use the money to buy some clothes for themselves or their kids. You never know. But, there are so many charities to get clothes, especially for kids. I wonder if those that are truly in need who beg for money just don't know where to go? Is it ignorance that keeps them begging on the streets?

Something I am thinking of doing is putting a list together of the soup kitchens, homeless shelters and other charities in the Dallas area, and keeping a few printouts in my car or bag. That way, if I get panhandled again, I can hand them one. They can choose to follow up on it or not. For some, this may be difficult, but I think for the truly needy, they will make an effort.

I am not sure where to go to get this list together yet, but will spend some time over the next few days searching online and making a few phone calls. My prelim search didn't show any sort of list like this, so when I am done, I can slap it up on a webpage so others can find it.

I have read and heard time and time again that there is no simple solution to helping the homeless and the hungry. Every homeless and/or hungry person has their own story as to why they ended up where they are. I don't have the solution. My little flier I hope to create won't solve their situation. But maybe it will give some knowledge to a few that didn't have it before so they can start helping themselves.

When Bad Things Happen to Good....

2006-01-09T14:14:00.000-06:00

Computers....

I am fortunate to be married to a husband that really knows his stuff with computers. He has built computers, fixed computers, designed and run complicated networks, and done a lot of programming. And he can fix most things on our cars. A very handy fellow to have around.

However, there are somethings you can do to a computer that even he may not be able to fix. Early in the wee hours this morning, I couldn't sleep, so I popped on my laptop. I made some tea, and was drinking it...and spilled some on the laptop.

Within a few seconds, media player stopped playing (I was listening to Tori Amos), and things started happening. I unplugged it, and was trying to shut it down as fast as I could. I then cleaned up as much as possible. But too late, the damage was done.

The husband says my motherboard and a few other things appear very screwed up. I am trying to find the warranty info now. Hopefully the extra warranty I purchased last May includes Idiot User Protection.

Eeeekkk.....

Going through Ayn Rand's Novels

2006-01-07T22:56:00.000-06:00

Thanks to the library, and 2 xmas gifts from my brother in law, I have been plugging away at reading Rand's novels.

I have read Anthem, We the Living, The Fountainhead, and I am working my way through Atlas Shrugged. Here are some quick notes on them so far:

Anthem was very basic, very 1984ish, but not bad. Something you would expect to read in Jr. or Sr. High School.

We The Living was interesting to me because it was an insight into Russia during the early Communist years. But, the main character definitely had some flaws. Very much her own individual, but I think she definitely needed to work on some self esteem issues. Rand made her point about how oppressive a "collective" society can be without losing site of the characters.

The Fountainhead I really enjoyed, although a few of the characters irritated me. I liked Howard Roark but found him unrealistic. I found his love interested, Dominique Francon to be one seriously disturbed person. I kept thinking through out the book..."Oh come on! You can do better than her!" The best part of the book was Roark's closing arguments at his trial, at the end of the book. It is quite beautiful actually, and is a nice summary of what Rand has to say about individualism and collectivism.

So far, Atlas Shrugged is pretty decent. I am only about a third of the way through, but find that the characters seems more mature than the other novels. This is probably because it was written later. Hank Reardon actually seems like a human being, as well as the other characters. There seems to be more action in the book too. Not just a bunch of philosophical meanderings, which happened a bit more than I cared for in The Fountainhead (especially with that Toohey character...what a blow hard!) Also, I have found myself laughing, as I could actually find humor in the book. Especially with Dagny Taggert's dialogue. This lady is quite witty.

Atlas Shrugged is just easier to read as a novel. Sometimes in The Fountainhead I felt like I as being preached to a bit much. So far she has made many of the same points in Atlas Shrugged, but it is woven into the story so well you don't feel like you are at a lecture. (Incidently, I felt that way about We The Living as well.)

One thing that really bugs me though: What is the deal with adultery in her novels?I was quite surprised when I first learned of her own affair with Nathaniel Branden, but now that I have read a bit of her work, I am not surprised at all. Rand seems to present adultery as acceptable if you happen to find someone that agrees with you philosophically.

That is just something that doesn't sit well with me. If you are not with the person you want to be with, then get a divorce and take it from there.

Anyhoo...that is my progression through her novels so far.

Funny Recap of 2005

2006-01-03T17:52:00.000-06:00

Okay, this has some non PC stuff in it (but then, who ever said I was ever PC), but it is hilarious. Its from the Conan O'Brien show. A funny recap of 2005.
2005 Recap

Sometimes you just have to laugh.....

2005 Gives Way To 2006

2006-01-02T18:14:00.000-06:00

Happy New Year!
Yes, I know, I am a day late and a dollar short...but that just makes me consistent.
How did 2005 end? Well, I and a few of my family members are trying to get over the flu...Actually quite appropriate, since 2005 was not a very good year.

My disappointments for 2005 were mainly professional, though there were a few personal disappointments as well. However, I have my family, relative health, and a roof over my head, so I guess 2005 wasn't a major disaster. I did meet some new friends, and finally found a "religious" home. So, in that respect at least it wasn't too bad.

When I think on it, really the bad parts of 2005 were just the first 3 quarters, the first 9 months. The last quarter hasn't been too bad. I had a party, found the HFNT, the Objectivist's local group, as well as a local Objectivist Study Group. Sure, the transmission in our van died Christmas Eve, and our car is on its last legs, and yes, my husband and I have been hit particulary hard with the flu the last few weeks....BUT, the last quarter over all was better than the rest of the year.

I had a lot of hope the first 9 months of 2005, and worked pretty hard. I didn't see much of a return on any of that work. Some of that was my own fault, some of it wasn't. But I can only change what I can change, so I won't waste any time worrying about what is outside my circle of influence in 2006.

I have taken notes of what worked and what didn't, both professionally and personally in 2005. While I develop my "brilliant and cunning" plan for 2006, I plan to avoid many of the mistakes I made last year. There are a few changes I hope to implement, and hopefully these will be for the good.

So here is looking ahead to 2006: Let's all make it a good year.

Books That Have Made Me Think

2005-12-23T06:13:00.000-06:00

I love to read.

I have read many different types of books in my life time, from Judy Bloom to Agatha Christie, Shakespeare and George Bernard Shaw. I have read fiction, non-fiction, mysteries, romance, sci-fi, fantasy, history, biography...etc..etc..

Now, I would never be one to claim I am an intellectual. Oh no...I just love to read. Sometimes I am not too picky. I must admit, when I was in my late teens and early twenties, I did often sneak in my younger sister's room to borrow one of her Sweet Valley High books. (In my defense...ONLY when I was having a really hard time sleeping. You know how that can make you not right in the head, right?) I like the feel of books...sure you can read a lot online, but it is hard to curl up with a laptop next to a roaring fire with a cup of hot chocolate. (I know...I tried...it took forever to get all that hot chocolate out of my keyboard.)

Anyhoo, out of all the books I have read, I figured I would take a few minutes to list the ones that have made the most impact on me:

Dandelion Wine, by Ray Bradbury

I read this in 9th grade.

This semi-autobiographical book helped me to start thinking about what it was to be alive. I knew I was alive before, but I don't think I was really aware of what that meant.
Crooked House, by Agatha Christie I read this when I was 10 years old. I think it was the first actual mystery I had ever read. Introduced me to that genre, which lead to many more enjoyable books by Christie and others.

Job: A Comedy of Justice, by Robert Heinlein

I read this book when I was 26 years old. It made my angry, and it also made me laugh. And it made me think about reality and religion like I never had before.

My Side of The Mountain, by Jean Craighead George

I was in elementary school when I read this book. It amazed me; to think that a child could be self sufficient. It taught me that people are capable of a lot more than we or others may initially think.

Hitchhiker's Guide to The Galaxy, by Douglas Adams

The whole series, is just plain stupid...in a very good funny sorta way. A great read. AND had I never read the books, at least the first book, I would have never met my husband. (Long story...but true! Maybe in another post.)

Those are the top four I can think of, off the top of my head at 6:26 AM. None of them are difficult reads. (See...I TOLD you I am no intellectual). But these books caused me to think, even if it was in a silly manner, such as Hitchhiker's Guide, it still caused me to think.
I think I will ask my son, who is a teenager, what his most memorable reads are and why. I know he has read at least 2 of the books listed above. I wonder if either of them holds any meaning for him.

In the past 2 weeks I have read books 5 and 6 of the Harry Potter series, as well as Anthem and We The Living by Ayn Rand. I enjoyed all four. I am still working on Age of Reason by Thomas Paine, as well as Madeleine Albright's autobiography (sooo close to finishing it). Just so much to read in this world! A great problem to have.

A Motto To Live By

2005-12-22T15:34:00.000-06:00

Remember this motto to live by:

"Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the
intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well
preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways,
chocolate in one hand, glass of wine in the other,
body thoroughly used, totally worn out and screaming,
"WOO HOO what a ride!"

I found the above on a discussion board...and just had to steal it for this blog. I think that is a good motto to live by.

Happiness Without God

2005-12-19T14:13:00.000-06:00

This past Saturday, it was my turn to give a talk or presentation. (I guess I could use the term sermon, but that word makes me bristle.) Because I am not the best speaker (or writer for that matter) I decided that it would probably be a good idea to find a previously written article that may convey what I had wanted to talk about. In this case, I wanted to present something that talked about a humanist's life on a personal level. I decided on happiness. I found an interesting article entitled "Godless Happiness What's Faith Got To Do With It?" by Timothy J. Madigan. This article was originally published in Free Inquiry, Volume 18, Number 3. You can read it on the Secular Humanism site.
Secular Humanism site. Anyhoo...here is my talk. I did edit it slightly for style and grammar, but not for content.

Happiness Without God

For many of us that grew up in a theistic household, I was taught that in order to live a good, happy life, one must not only study and get to "know" God, but also obey Him. Without God, not only was there no chance of redemption, any kind of reward in an afterlife, but it just wasn't possible to be happy. And if you knew someone that was an avowed atheist, agnostic or other non-thesist, well, it wasn't a "real happiness".

Growing up, it wasn't unusual to hear rumors about people I had known that had left our congregation. Of course, now that they were not "on the right path", I would hear things like, "oh so and so looks awful! They look so unhappy!" This was especially true if the former member was seen during the holiday season buying Christmas items, since our particular religion taught that Christmas was pagan, and “true” Christians should not participate.

When I left, that religion, Christianity, and eventually theism altogether, one of the things during my journey that I was concerned about was Happiness. My whole life I was taught that a relationship with god was directly tied to genuine happiness. Over the past several years, I have come to find out that this is a myth, really. That I can be happy, and so can my kids.

In preparing for this talk, I found an interesting article that entitled Godless Happiness :What's Faith Got To Do With It? by Timothy J. Madigan, in a past issue Free Inquiry Magazine. This article does a fine job of pointing out why faith in God or theistic religion is not necessary for genuine happiness.

My notes on the article:
As Madigan noted, while for many the structure of religion can bring order and happiness to a person's life, in the case of any religion based on a belief in the supernatural, this happiness is based on shielding people from reality, and I think, in some cases allows people to shirk responsibility for their own happiness, because, God will take care of it if they just follow his rules. This often will cause people to limit themselves, to not strive to reach a "personal best".
I have seen this numerous times in my own life, talking with former members of my previous religion, about "the person they could have been" if ONLY they had not lived their life within the tight constraints of Christendom.

Theism relies heavily on controlling believers with fear and guilt, which are two emotions that decrease a person's ability to experience happiness. I can tell you from personal experience, it is hard to be truly happy when you are feeling guilty because you may not have the physical energy to serve God every weekend. And it is hard to stay happy when you are in constant fear of the state of your children's spirituality.

That last line of Madigan's article struck a personal chord with me:
"In a culture that still disparages independent thinking, today's humanists also need to be spurred on to achieve excellent lives. And the best way to do this is with a little help from their friends. "

This is why I am here, and why I bring my family to the Humanist Fellowship of North Texas. Because although I have experienced happiness with out God for a few years now, I believe it is easier to do when you are able to meet with others that are like minded in this area.

Ayn Rand: A New Interest For Me

2005-12-09T23:37:00.000-06:00

One thing I miss about high school is that I had to freedom to read and explore many different ideas. I did attend college for a few years, but never had the same time and freedom, since I was a working parent while attending.

anyhow, I recently started attending www.meetup.com events for Objectivists. I had no idea what that was, until a fellow Humanist mentioned it in a posting on another group. I thought hmmm....Ayn Rand...oh, the lady that wrote The Fountainhead & Atlas Shrugged...hmmm...I had no idea she came up with a philosophy too.

Well, needless to say, I took a peak at the meetup up group and was interested. It is funny, because some claim that Humanism and Objectivists are polar opposites. I don't totally agree with this. Mainly because the term humanism can mean so many different things, but apparently Objectivism is fairly consistent.

At the last even I attended, the host recommended that I start with Rand's novel Anthem. I told her I would look it up, and found myself at the library a few days later. Unfortunately, they didn't have it. Fortunately, they could get it within a few days.

In the meantime, I purchased Objectivism: The Philosoply of Ayn Rand, but L. Peikoff, and joined a study group. I have attended one session so far, very interesting. Still waiting for my study guide to come in though.

I finally picked up Anthem a few days ago, and read it today. It is a short story, and very simply written. I think it is very easy to understand, and puts the point across how a society that suppresses a person's natural desire to be an individual is dangerous. It is an oversimplification, perhaps, but does a good job getting the point across.

I think I will ask my library to order Atlas Shrugged next.

I still attend my local Humanist group, and really enjoy it. In fact, I am going to be giving a "sermon" or talk at the next meeting. I haven't decided completely on what that will be yet. I need to decide on that soon.

I don't know enough about Objectivism to accept it or reject it. One thing I will honor, though, is the fact that Rand was clear that she wanted no one to call themselves and Objectivist if they really were not. Too many philosophies get watered down, or shoot off into various versions, and she didn't want that to happen. I respect that. Whatever happens, I am enjoying learning about this philosophy, and look forward to any new insights it can bring to my life.

6 Year Old Exposes Santa with Reasoning

2005-12-03T14:50:00.000-06:00

Well, my 6 year old has been stating doubts about Santa being real for a short time now.Today, on the way to the xmas parade she gave us her reasoning as to WHY Santa cannot be real:

"Because no one can live at the North Pole."
My husband and I thought her reasoning would be because at Christmas time you see Santas everywhere. Especially if you go to the mall a lot. Surely that would give it away.

Anyway, today at home, she gave further reasoning as to why Santa is not real:
"He weighs more than you Mom, a 100 lbs, and he would fall through the ice."
"Even 10 reindeer cannot pull a man that is 100 lbs in a sled."
"Reindeer cannot fly."
"Rudolph cannot be real either because reindeers don't have rednoses."

Apparantly she has been doing some serious thinking about this situation.
(Note: Yes, I know I weigh a lot more than 100 lbs, but I am going to let THAT particular myth live on.)

I finally told her, congratulations! You figured it out!I told her that it was okay to pretend he was real because it is part of the Christmas fun. She agreed, and says she won't interfere with the other girls figuring it out for themselves.I told her it was a great mystery, and we like to let the kids figure it out for themselves to see if they can do it.

My personal opinion is that anyone old enough to be out of kindergarten is too old to believe in Santa. I sort of wished we never let any of them believe in him in the first place. My oldest always knew Santa wasn't real, but I was a single parent, and well, we didn't celebrate Christmas, so it wasn't a big deal. However, I let my husband teach my youngest kids about Santa, and of course I wasn't about to interfere with what my step daughters already believed about Santa Claus. (I don't have a death wish, and I think their mother would have a serious issue with me messing with the Santa idea.)

It is funny really. My husband doesn't believe in God. But he doesn't see any harm in telling them the Easter Bunny, Tooth Fairy and Santa Claus are real. To him, it was never a big deal. Maybe that is because he wasn't teaching them that their lives depending on believing. Even the "Santa is watching you" isn't as serious as follow God or die.

Anyway, I see my two stepdaughters getting older. I think if they don't figure it out themselves this year, well, something should be said. Maybe not telling them out right, but asking them some more questions. Getting them to reason for themselves that he isn't real. I want my kids to keep learning how to base their beliefs on reason, and the Santa myth is a good opportunity to do this.

I do have a little fear for my oldest. She is ten, but I think if the idea of Santa is not challenged, that she may not figure it out herself for a few years. How embarrassing could that be for her? Kids can be cruel, and even a good friend can laugh at you if she thinks you are kidding. She is a really bright girl, but she has a very strong faith in what she has been taught by her mother and grandmother. Therefore, she sometimes clings to things that don't make sense.

2 Simple Things

2005-11-10T12:10:00.000-06:00

I think there are 2 simple things that each person can do in to make a little bit of difference in the world:
1. Don't litter;
2. Bring your cart back to the store or to the cart area when you are done shopping.

Sounds silly, I know, but it would make a wee bit of difference in someone's day.

Prop 2: A Sad Day in TX

2005-11-09T13:50:00.000-06:00

Well, Prop 2 passed in Texas.
I am not surprised at all, but still disappointed.
I was at the polling location for 2 hours waiting in line to vote. Apparently they underestimated the voter turnout, because when I left, an hour past when the polls were supposed to close, there was still at least 100 people behind me. (BTW, to Diebold: please ask the election judges to put more machines in next time! 5 just doesn't cut it.)

My sister asked me when I got home why I bothered to wait in line for so long when I was sure that Prop 2 would pass anyway. I looked at her and said "Because if I don't vote against it, what right do I have to complain about it?"

Of course, it is just a matter of those that really were opposed to letting their voices be heard. Sure, it passed by a wide margin in most areas, but it wasn't unanimous. I think at some point in our country the US Supreme Court will find the bans on gay marriage that many states have passed as unconstitutional. But it probably won't happen in my lifetime.
But it will happen some day. Those that have voted against it in TX and other states are just doing our part to lay the groundwork for the future.

Glen Maxey, a Gay Rights activist and former TX House Demoract rep, had a very upbeat perspective on Prop 2 passing:
"This battle for civil rights is not just an event, it's long term," he said. After the polls closed, he made a point of visiting the campus of the University of Texas at Austin, where, he said, students voted more than 4-to-1 against the amendment.
"I looked at that and I said, 'Well, that's the next generation,' " he said. "I look at it with a lot of silver linings tonight."
Also, he said, the campaign generated discussion of gay and lesbian couples' rights in small cities "where I bet it probably hadn't ever occurred," which he said will advance gays toward an inevitable victory. "
(Source article: Dallas Morning News: Gay-marriage ban coasts )

I agree with Maxey: the next generation is going to keep this going, and not just those involved in gay rights issues. This is a HUMAN Civil rights issue. I am pretty sure all my kids and siblings are heterosexual, but if they turn out to not be, I don't want some stiff shirts in government denying them the right of a legally sanctioned relationship with someone that they deeply love. Let the churches discriminate as to whom they will or will not marry in their churches. But the government should not be.

One interesting story I would like to share with you from the voting poll line:
Next to me in line was a mother standing behind me that had two of her little kids with her. After the first hour, her 6 year old came up to her and asked : "Mommy, why are we still here."

The mom picked up the girl, and said in her sweetest mommy voice:
"Because all the good people need to vote. If enough good people vote, than all the bad people that vote won't win. You don't want the bad people to take over the world do you?"

Now, I assumed she is voting yes to ban gay marriage....before she made that remark, she had been talking about her kids in Christian school and a few other things that sounded like she was a bit of a fundie. Hey, thats her right. Good for her for voting what she believes in.
But to tell your child that people that don't have the same political views as you are EVIL???

Several people in line mentioned the huge voter turn out has to be because of Prop 2, since there wasn't anything else too exciting on the ballot. But no one talked about which way they were voting, everyone was polite. You would think that even if she is going to say something so disturbing she would at least say it so the whole room couldn't hear her.

People are just so judgemental; of course, "fundies" are not alone in that. I know several humanists that enjoy spending a great deal of time calling those that believe in God names. That bugs me even more.

Prop 2 in Texas: Talk about overkill!

2005-11-08T09:43:00.000-06:00

Well, today I am going to vote.
Here in Texas, we have this crazy proposition 2, which proposes to amend the state constitution that will basically ban same sex marriage.

I expect that this Proposition will pass, but hope I am wrong.
Now, I understand how fundamentalists can be against gay marriage. I used to be a strict Christian, and thought homosexuality a sin. However, even when I was almost fundie-like, I did feel like if these people were not in our religion or congregation, that why should we care? It was between them and God.

I don't know anyone very well that is gay or lesbian. Or at least if I do, it hasn't come up. So why should I care? I guess it is because as a Humanist, I feel that it would be wrong to deny same sex couples the right to partner up and be given the same legal rights and respect as traditional marriages.

There are so many people today that get married for the wrong reasons: such as, an unplanned pregnancy. I think this is one problem you don't really have to worry about with gay marriages. Seriously, when you think about it, over the long run, gay marriages may be statistically more successful than traditional marriages.

Now, what bothers me about this proposition is that it seems to even take the idea of civil unions off the table. It would make ANY legal status similar to marriage unconstitutional for anyone that is not a man/woman couple.

I can understand why many people have issue with the word marriage. I think allowing civil unions is an excellent first step. If it grants all the same legal protection and responsibilities as the word marriage...than to me that is just as good. However, this proposition won't even allow civil unions! How selfish of the religious right!!!

I have no problem whatsoever if a church says they will not perform marriage ceremonies between the same sex. That is their right, and no government should interfere with that. However, how dare they say that the government should deny this to anyone?

Anyway..that is my Humanist rant for the day...those of you that live in TX or any other state considering a prop like this, please get out and vote.

Flu, Death & God: A 6 Year Old's Obsession

2005-10-29T06:07:00.000-05:00

As I write this, it is a little past 6AM.
I wish I could say I am one of those early to rise people...but, er..NO.
I have never been a morning person.

One of my daugthers is sick,and I was up most of the night with her.
She is only in kindergarten, but has already developed a morbid attitude at times.

At one point, when she was feeling the worst she looked at me and said:
"What if I die tonight? I think I might die."

There was no hysteria in her voice, just gloom. She is a bit of a drama queen at times, but she gets oh so serious when talking about death.

She is sleeping now, and will be fine. Just a touch of the flu.

This got me thinking though. My daughter likes to talk about death, sometimes in morbid detail. I believe this is because she is so interested in life. She likes to discuss how the body works in both humans and beasts. She cannot decide if she is going to be a human or an animal doctor when she grows up.

We have had some discussions as to what happens when you die, pretty frank ones actually. I say, no one living can say for sure 100% what happens, but I believe you just become part of the earth again after your body breaks down..you know, that whole circle of life explanation that usually is used with kids in atheist or agnostic families. I tell her no one can be absolutely sure until they are actually dead.

Well, this kid, my little daughter is very much a believer in God. She is sure he exists, and that when you die you go to heaven. One of my other stepdaughter started telling her stuff about God a few years ago. My mother also would read Bible stories to her. (My stepdaughter's maternal grandmother raised my stepdaughter for a few years, and was at one times one of Jehovah's Witnesses...which my mother is, and I used to be.) Now, I don't know where the going to heaven part has come in. Me thinks she may have gotten that piece from her Pre-K class last year.

This Pre-K class she was in was, well, quite religious for a group of little 4 and 5 year old kids. We are in the Bible belt after all. In fact, her teacher was oftentimes teased by other teachers about her "religious class". My husband and I was unaware of this until her parent teacher conference that the hubby attended. Apparently, my teacher was spending a good amount of time distracting kids away from god talk. A certain little girl would get the discussion rolling....of course it would be MY kid. This was a public school, not private, so fortunately the teacher was able to get the kids back on track with their lessons.

It is funny, because on one hand it is encouraging to see that my daughter will not give up on her ideas without a fight. On the other hand, I am also a little disturbed. A parent should be the one to have first crack at explaining what they do and do not believe.

I have heard parents that say their children need to discover their own truth for themselves. Often, this means the parents won't come out and say exactly they do and do not believe, for fear of influencing their kids. Will, I say, tell the kids exactly where you stand. They don't need to be confused as to what Mom and Dad believes...and they don't have to accept those beliefs for themselves. But it gives them a starting point where they can launch off of to begin their own search.

Right now all I can do is teach her that it doesn't matter if there is or isn't a god. We are all still responsible for who we are and what we do. She is only 6...there is plenty of time for the question of God later.

I think we need to take care of the Santa Claus myth first...cross your fingers for me on THAT one.....

The Woman Who Altered Literature Forever

2005-10-26T21:09:00.000-05:00

When I was a freshman in high school, we were required to read Dandelion Wine, by Ray Bradbury. Up until this point, I had heard of his work, but never read anything by him. Well, this book is amazing. It made me think differently about how I look at my life growing up. I don't really know anyone that has read it that hasn't been impressed with the book. When I got older, I read many more of his works, such as the Martian Chronicles, his short stories in October Country, and others. Since I read Dandelion Wine, Ray Bradbury became one of the most important writers in my life. That book hit a chord with me on many levels. One of which was just the pure thrill and sensations of being alive. Those of you that read this book probably understand what I mean.

And of course he is the most brilliant man in America. I realized this when I read an interview with him Green Car Journal Online.

Here is the most important quote from that interview:

GCJ: So in your view, women may be better suited to make the decisions that look out for the planet tomorrow?

Ray: “I think they should. They’re smarter than we are.”

GCJ: So women of the world should unite and save the planet?

Ray: “You’re damned right, yes.”

Now, if Ray Bradbury thinks that...it HAS to be true, right?

Seriously, though, as much as I love Bradbury's work, besides his semi-autobiographical tales in Dandelion Wine, I have never really read much into his own life. That interview in Green Car Journal got me to wondering how he formed that opinion of women. I remember from the book that his main character had a high opinion of his grandmother and mother. But was there any other women that influenced his life so much that he would make that statement? I went to Raybradbury.com to see what I could find.

Scroll down to the bottom of the first page, and there is a link that answered that question for me: Marguerite Bradbury - In Memoriam.

Sam Weller, a Bradbury biographer, has written a beautiful summary of why and how Ray Bradbury was able to achieve all he has. He credits much of it to his late wife, Maggie Bradbury.
Ever here the expression "Behind every successful man is a woman"? Well, this story goes to prove that axiom true. In a time when wife were expected to stay at home and work, Maggie worked full time while Ray was free to write.

She saw something in her husband, something beyond just love, that made her believe in her husband. She believed in his ambition and his talent, and his work ethic. She knew her "vow of poverty" would pay off. And it did.

To me, this is such a beautiful story. Sure, I do think Ray Bradbury would have still have continued to write even he hadn't had married. But what if he didn’t have the support of this lady? To read about her, I picture a well educated, yet approachable woman that knew much of the world and read voraciously. (Apparently she was fluent in many languages, so her reading was not just limited to works published in English.)

Sounds to me that Ray, as much as I adore the guy, is a big nerd. A nerd with great ideas, of course, but someone that really could use another person to direct his life a little more. I haven’t read his biography yet, but I am guessing that she made a lot of decisions for them that the man of the house would have usually made. She even drove for him when he needed to travel by car. Ray never learned to drive. Why would he need to? Sounds like Maggie took care of the mundane things in life for him.

So, I raise my glass of diet vanilla Pepsi to you, Maggie Bradbury. Thank you for allowing one of the greatest writers in modern history the freedom to dream and create. I wish I were aware of your influence while you were still alive.

Care for a little Jesus with your Starbucks coffee?

2005-10-26T11:25:00.000-05:00

Starbucks, the Mecca for coffee (or so some claim) is planning on serving up their brew with quotes from Rev. Rick Warren's The Purpose-Driven Life, as reported in USA Today.) Starbucks stirs things up with a God quote on cups )

Apparantly, the company is thinking since there has been such a religious right frenzy the past couple of years, that it couldn't hurt to have quotes from an author that such "great" minds as George W. Bush, and his advisors Karl Rove and Karen Hughes have read it. (Ergh...sorry...I think I just threw up a little in my mouth.) USA Today Rick Warren Article.

This is very interesting, and quite a swift 180 turn for Starbucks, since not too long ago they had cups with sayings on it like homosexuality, and quotes from evolutionists. At first I thought to myself: "HMMMM what a cheap way to sell coffee. It sure may work here in the Bible Belt." But then, I did a little more reading, in the USA articles, and elsewhere online. It seems that Rick Warren sent in his solicitation because Starbucks wanted customer feedback to see what they should offer on the cups in 2006. So, you have this guy, an author with a HUGE church, wildly popular book, and he says, "Hey, pick me! Pick me!" You have to ask, was Starbucks being prudent in accepting his offer? Probably.

Are they pushing Christianity down the throats of its consumers? Well...some feel that is the case. I don't necessarily agree that is so. I think Starbucks wanted a way to do two things:

1. Put out a position message with their brew

2. Increase sales

Not necessarily in that order, of course.

Looking at #1, you can find positive messages that are not from Christian roots. Very easy, especially using the internet. Just go to Quotationspage.com. Starbucks is run I think, by some people that possibly just might understand how to do a little research on the internet. They are not picking Rick Warren's book because he is Christian, but because he is popular, and many MANY customers of Starbucks probably won't be offended by the quotes, and may even like them. This can help with #2.

If you actually visit the Starbucks' website, there is a section called Starbucks:The Way I see It There are quotes from many, many different people. I went through several, and I think I saw only one that could even remotely be consider religious...and this was just talking about faith in general, but no mention of the Bible or other religious texts, or any gods. I am not 100% clear if Starbucks is only going to offer quotes from Warren's book on the cups, or if he will just be a new addition. I think Starbucks would do well to consider those of us that are not Christian, and put out some quotes that are outside of Christianity. There are good quotes found in other religions, and there are good quotes from the non-religious as well.

In light of this new, Jesus Brew Contraversy, there is a petition entitled Starbucks Fairness "Starbucks Fairness" written by William Shehan. If you feel that Starbucks really should open up the scope of their quotation sources to include other religions and non-theist quotes, then please sign the petition. Also, if you have one, please make a quote suggestion.

Whatever is on the cup, I personally am not a huge fan of Starbucks. However, I do respect that they strive to get feedback from their customers. Many companies really don't do enough of that. So, for recognizing Starbucks Capitalistic, yet consumer friendly nature, my hat is off to them.

On that note, I need to go hunt down a Dunkin Donuts...much better coffee.

My Crazy Journey Into Humanism

2005-10-23T16:15:00.000-05:00

I live in the Bible belt here in TX...great area, in general. Nice parks, great schools (honestly...TX does have some good school districts, despite how it is rate as a whole).

I am a Yankee transplant..all the way from New England. You can get away with not belonging to a church up there just fine. There are plenty of other things going on. People are not as in your face about religion as they are down here. (Well, except for the Mormons & Jehovah's Witnesses that come to your door. But they are usually harmless. And the Mormons are usually cute young, guys. The Witnesses should reconsider some of the peeps they let out in public.)

Anyhoo...when we moved, I quickly realized that there were two things that are EXTREMELY important in Texas:
1. Belonging to a church
2. Football

Not necessarily in that order of course.

Well, having rejected my childhood religion a few years before, I had not quite found anything I was comfortable with. I had researched the UUA church; while I have respect for the UUA, I just had a hard time seeing myself belong to a religion that had no creed. Where is the fun in that? (But that's just me.) Having not just rejected my old church, but any religion that had any supernatural basis, I found it difficult to find a new church.

I had grown up and spent most of my adult life active in my religion. My social life was dependent on it. When I did leave, I was still up North. The transition took time, but it was fairly easy, because there are a lot of others up there like me that found a social life outside their church. Down here though...hmmm...it was seriously hard to meet people.

No, strike that. It was seriously HARD to meet LIKE MINDED people.

Now, when I say like minded, I don't mean people that are going to agree with everything I do. Where is the fun in that? I like a good debate now and then, but I have had my fill of Jesus, God, the 12 Apostles and the 4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse, thank you very much. I wanted to meet people that were decent not because they felt required to by God, but felt it was just the right thing to do. People that took this life to be the most precious thing they had, and lived that belief.

Anyhoo...I had found the Secular Humanist website http://www.secularhumanism.org sometime in spring of 2004. Got my free issue of Free Inquiry. Very interesting stuff. I found a few other sites online, and that lead me to the American Humanist Association site, etc. Most of these sites were all secular in nature. Hey that is fine...but I was looking for something that was a little more, well, I guess you could say "church like".

I finally found a couple of local groups, and after visiting each, settled on one I really like. We are a small group of a few families and individuals. We do "sermons", have education for the kids, and have rather good discussions. We all found each other because we all had a religious need to be with like minded people.

Our group is looking to be a part of the local community as well. While I am not a Theist, one thing I do respect about some churches is when they will reach out and help the community without regards to the recipient’s or community’s faith. Unfortunately, we have too many churches that will only help their own or only offer help if the recipient is willing to take on the churches faith. To me that is not very altruistic or "godlike" at all. Hopefully we join these other churches in working with our community to keep it a great place to live, and to push the progress to have understanding between various faiths.

Now that I have figured out what to do about #1....what about #2, football? Simple....I have the NFL Package....GOOOOOO PATRIOTS!!!!

Passion of The Christ 2: Judgement Day!!!

2005-10-22T23:05:00.000-05:00

I found this on a discussion board earlier tonight...very funny, so I thought I would share: