tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28289497377927274622024-03-20T19:24:32.861-07:00The Simple Raven's Posthttps://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.comBlogger271125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-39181660405198855172024-02-19T09:41:00.000-08:002024-02-19T09:41:37.772-08:00A new Human.<p> </p><p><b><span style="font-size: 26.0pt;">A new Human.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Some time ago I was listening to a past
American president's campaign speech. He was threatening harm to people who
didn’t support him for the next elections. To me, that is the end of democracy.
I wonder what we are planning to do next.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Years ago, I came to Canada to build a new
life. There were no refugee hotel rooms or any financial help or direction, as
provided by the government today. Now we have the potential of a government
next door that insists that we should pay higher taxes and increase military
spending or the neighbors will ask the enemies to harm us. Things are changing
but not to benefit me. My situation is not improving relative to my efforts. Am
I taking things personally or am I crazy to see it this way?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I am a firm believer in the potential of
mental health science to help people. We can go a long way with the right kind
of help. Keep the physical body well, understand the mental part and work with
the spiritual aspect. Being short on any of those will not provide for a
pleasant existence. I accept mental health help for me and for those I am with.
I take help when provided.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Combining the above, I come up with a crazy
conclusion. Humans are mentally sick. Not just some of us, but all or most of
us. We are born with a self-preserve mechanism that protects us from destroying
ourselves and perhaps the world we live in. It’s like a reflex. If my hand gets
close to a fire, the hand jumps away from the fire faster than I can think. Am
I in a reality that I understand, or is my mind building a new existence? Is
“now” the end of the way we were? If so, which way do I want it to go? All
options are open.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Where I grew up in Israel, we had Jackals and
Hyenas. The Hyenas are a female-dominated species. At twilight, they produce a
blood-curdling cry that freezes the heart and paralyzes the prey. Their
principal weapon is fear. At night I used to lie in my bed and hear the hyenas,
thinking that Satan is out and we are doomed. Now I am old and again I have the
feeling that some evil force is dominating humans and we have no escape plan.
Satan, Trump, Putin, Netanyahu, and other power-seeking selfish entities
compete to dominate and shape us. Here, evolution is just starting on a new
trajectory. If we humans can survive a major change in how we are made, the
species will emerge differently than it went in. It will be changed mentally,
drawing upon something old but new that we named “spiritual”. Now I am
visualizing five billion people going in the same direction, with no force or
coercion to dominate others. Can it be done? I remember we are over five
billion, but we are all one. My imagination is building a new, better human being,
but there is very little time to properly plan what it should be <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Imagining a new form of human being is
difficult, since I am looking for a new and improved version. Repeating old
mistakes will not do. We shouldn’t be aiming at simply increasing the
population as we always were. It’s done and now quality takes over from
quantity. A new human should include something immaterial we call beauty. We
are done with efficiency.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">People have been digging the natural
resources up for thousands of years, finding new ways to dig better and more.
Name a natural resource and you find us extracting it very efficiently and
refining it even faster. We don’t need all that we produce and can use
recycling for the rest of our lives. The new humans will do exactly that. Life
will be tied to our ability to adapt to new ways. For generations, we have been
learning the wrong things, causing overproduction and death to our planet. By
cheating and making useless things, our so-called business drowned us in
garbage and built useless projects. Now our noses are against the wall.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">It is time for the cheaters to face reality
and come back to where we need them. We don’t need all their extra oil and gas
or other things they make just to be rich. No need for more roads to China
either. What we need is a change of heart.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The new people I am imagining will keep busy
by helping and educating others.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">In the new (imaginary) world, all the effort
will be aimed towards what we know is good. Weapons will not be needed and
nature will be allowed to punish those who go against it. People will see a
reality in which there is a hell on earth for those harming our planet and the
good people on it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Nature, or God, as I call it, is a harsh
judge. It does what is needed and can’t play human games considering humans’s
forever-changing feelings. Throwing people to the mercy of that court is a
harsh step, but sometimes is necessary if we don’t learn what will save us the
easy way.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a name="_Hlk513389707"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-no-proof: yes;">Here</span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> is a link to my blog: </span></a><a name="_Hlk512627101"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"></span></a><a href="https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/</span></span></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Feel free to <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">check other articles and comment.</span></span></span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-42631974433221065182024-02-14T09:18:00.000-08:002024-02-14T09:18:14.479-08:00How can humans survive?<p> </p><p><b><span style="font-size: 26.0pt;">How can humans survive?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I had a son a long time ago, and he survived
only one day. (Now I have another). The doctors could not help him and prayers
did not prolong his life here on earth. It was a case of “let God’s will be
done.” Is a one-day-long life less than many years of life? I think when God
prolongs life here on earth, it is for those left behind, not for the person
who will not live another day. I try to stay alive and let God decide for how
long. He probably planned the life ahead before it began, for reasons I didn’t
know. A God who planned and created universes doesn’t need my computing power
to reach His goals.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">If you ask people what they expect the
government to do for them, joy probably gets many votes. Many will answer that
they expect long and healthy lives. Nowadays, there will be a pleasure
component attached. People expect pleasure of some sort, such as holidays, or
perhaps things that money can buy. People in our world as we know it assume
that there will be divine intervention offering prosperity or other pleasures
as part of the deal. Life should include happiness, or is it a big enough gift?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Words and more words. Love and happiness can
only exist if there are others to enjoy it or suffer it. Over the years, we
learned that all of humankind is a part of one creature that is connected
without an overall skin. We like them, hate them, force them, and learn from
them. There is no life without them and “them” is interchangeable with “us.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">For humans, there is only one way to exist on
earth. We try to be more successful by forcing each other to be the same as
ourselves, but we always fail. We try to make others do our work and they
instead make us do theirs. Our goals can only be achieved if we do them
together, and that is by agreement, which is a lofty goal. The one way is
working together if we wish to survive and it’s not always fair.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Again, to win, we must all work together,
which we cannot do since we trip each other. I build and another kicks it over,
so I will not have more than they do. We both lose, so I try to force. Forcing
people to do things is very costly and often dangerous.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">A big problem for us is that we only know how
to play games to win or lose. We used to play for pride. Each of us wanted to
be the best in something like a sport or a skill and show it off. We gave it up
and changed the word. Now we find people saying something like I am proud to be
gay. I have a hard time figuring out how being proud of a skill that takes a
lot of effort to obtain relates to sexual attraction, but I don’t wish to
offend, so I wait for the answer to come to me. I wonder if it ever will. For
now, I work hard not to say things that may offend good people. I am just one
human and there is surely enough that I don’t understand, but possibly will.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Why can’t I understand the world I am living
in? That is a two thousand years secret. That which some of us call God created
a conflict which forces us to go against our nature to have a nature at all.
Male and female, He created them. The males can subjugate the females but in a
short time will all die. Females are the only ones who reproduce.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The males and some aggressive females try to
use physical force and fail. Females use their softness to soak up the male
strength and equally take part in the art of creation. My wife can get her way
even if I deploy the most modern weapons that exist. A shy smile that is
stronger than an aircraft carrier group. If she says “I love you” I will be
ready to disarm a three million dollars supersonic ballistic missile. I have no
defense against the soft power.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Yet, I love this life the way it is. I think
that she also does. We can’t win while we fight with equally lethal weapons,
even if they are different. We play a game for the joy, not to win. It never
ends.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">In the beginning, we were more like animals
and killed each other for gain. After thousands or even millions of years, we
learned to work together and civilization grew. Our Lord said, “Whenever two or
more of you gather in my name, I am in their midst.” We tested the theory, and
it worked. The soft energy wins. It is the hard energy that must be on guard or
it will lose its strength and throw the balance off.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I am glad to be a human. Let’s play together
and nobody wins. I just want to enjoy the game.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a name="_Hlk513389707"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-no-proof: yes;">Here</span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> is a link to my blog: </span></a><a name="_Hlk512627101"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"></span></a><a href="https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/</span></span></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Feel free to <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">check other articles and comment.</span></span></span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-no-proof: yes;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-no-proof: yes;">Note: Tuesdays with Morrie is an interesting book if you
like.</span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-91425382255475387072024-02-05T09:22:00.000-08:002024-02-05T09:22:54.271-08:00<p> </p><p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><b><span style="font-size: 24.0pt;">A rock speeds through </span></b><b><span style="font-size: 22.0pt;">The Milky Way,</span></b><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">
which is assumed to be empty, but it’s not. It is turning around its axel.
Flying around a small burning star (Sun) that gives it heat energy providing
“Life.” The formation is named by the humans upon it, the” world.” Some stardust
captured material that is rotting slowly doing things on its own. A thing that
has a mind. From tiny to huge particles and observable waves, a small veneer is
what humans call “Life.” I am existing in “Life.” Life as I know it can only be
in “Light” and “light” is something material. It is balanced against something
“spiritual” which I can’t understand. The people of old understood that the
emptiness we can sense is full of something that yet is not observable by my
human senses. It is not material, but we would call it energy. Just like our
human subconscious, it has a mind that stirs it towards goals. It can “act.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">At this point in my life, I am suffering and
having a hard time wanting to stay alive while in pain. We don’t crave pain,
but we want to be with others we care about. However, I have a job to do and I
don’t want to give it up, pain or no pain. My task is to sow the seed of hope
and happiness, starting here and spreading out. My mind is whispering, do
something good. It will spread.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">We talk a lot about saving lives and invest
much in saving lives. Equipment, training, infrastructure, and insurance all go
in. Also, at the same time, we make significant efforts to destroy life as we
know it. The year 2024 just began and I see efforts expanded toward human
action that will cost lives and many resources. Nations are getting ready to
fight over water, air, living space, and other resources we dig up from the
ground. There are millions and billions of dollars budgeted for weapons and gaining
strategic or economic advantage. Over here in my peaceful valley, we are
working hard to produce materials for weapons and industry. In other areas,
efforts are geared towards the production of cheap energy. Meteorological coal
and carbon for burning is what we produce and we try to do it without paying
taxes. CEOs are getting rich while migrants and less skilled people are forced
to work for less. The competition is the fiercest at the bottom.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I work hard to figure out if there is a way
to achieve Christian love and peace in this world, considering what we have
become. Is the Christian model the answer to our inequality, which brings wars,
poverty, and a need or desire to fight and kill each other?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">We have a complicated task to solve. About
half of us learned through life to fight for advantage over the other half. I
know I used the word “fight” and we hurt and kill to do so. My present
provincial leader is openly advocating to fight my federal leader to gain more
prosperity. We call it the “right” of the political divide, and I pay for
lawyers on both sides left and right. Politicians and business experts are busy
creating an environment that will help them gain more prosperity in many ways.
The Casino must always win. Is that enough to keep someone interested in life?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">However, I like to view what we do from
another vantage point. First, look and see what is good for all of us. The
group is most important. Be sure that some will cheat, and take advantage.
Society trained us how to be humans and is often not the best example of such.
Life must go on with small and great contributions each doing what they can. I
look at the forest until I can start seeing trees. Now I look more to see what
is good.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I follow a young Jewish Rabbi from thousands
of years ago. He had no technology or modern tools. His teachings were about
human behaviors and he lost his earthly life. Is it wise to use Christianity as
guidance for this time in history?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I take examples from my faith and trust God
to lead where I should go based on intuition.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I have to trust in God blindly. I am scared,
but I do it. My Christian faith fills me up stronger than intellect and all
material things. Life is all there is, and it leads to something eternal. If I
have the faith that I need, I may move our kind forward. If I don’t, we go on
searching where there is little hope of finding. Should we living humans invest
our time on earth believing something immaterial? I am ready.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a name="_Hlk513389707"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-no-proof: yes;">Here</span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> is a link to my blog: </span></a><a name="_Hlk512627101"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"></span></a><a href="https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/</span></span></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Feel free to <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">check other articles and comment.</span></span></span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-75745130968848363182024-01-30T11:36:00.000-08:002024-01-30T11:36:05.560-08:00<p> </p><p><strong><span style="font-size: 24.0pt;">We are living in the most interesting
time in human history.</span></strong><span style="font-size: 24.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;"> Did we choose it? Did God make a
mistake by allowing “Original Sin?” Can God make mistakes? Would perfect
eternal life that never ends have been better for us humans, considering what
we have now?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">My favorite question about the entire problem
is, did the woman cause our eternal problem by listening to the serpent instead
of to God? When I read the bible in Hebrew, I feel women are blamed for things
perhaps more than they should be, considering all the stories. We forget they
are the mothers, mates, life-giving humans doing what God tells them to do.
They take a tiny bit of material, light in this case, and convert it to a human
who obeys or ignores the will of the creator. The most important person in my
life is a woman and I remain alive because of her love. Yet I never have found
a satisfactory explanation for the question of what is love. To understand
“Love” we need a story. A human mind creates stories. The story becomes
reality. Go ahead. Think about it. Thinking makes you and me human. A rock or a
tree may think also, but at a different speed. We only deal with what we can
compare to in our environment. Figure that out.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Why do I think we exist in the most
interesting time ever?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I was comfortable in the time of the Cold
War. The Soviet Empire and the Capitalist nations were close to equal on the
world stage and no one had the upper hand. People started weaponizing money and
hurting each other’s economies. War and military industries took over and
resources went to killing instead of improving life. Russia lost Afghanistan,
the Berlin Wall collapsed and Putin took over Crimea. Everywhere poor migrants
attempted to find a better life, and many died. The Soviet block was starving and
well-equipped armies faced off, like Iran against Iraq. The world became more
dangerous. Even family units fought to get on sinking boats and human smuggling
flourished. Many people realized that there was no safe place for them to go
to. Can it get more interesting? It did. Human extinction loomed around.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">A beautiful world that has all we need is
being wasted while not just humans but also animals are suffering pains worse
than death for so many, who mostly have done nothing to deserve it. Some are
fighting often just to get on the top of the pile. Most of them don’t need to
do so. They want to win or be ahead, enjoying their addictions and not even
trying to break bad habits. They lost their moral compass. I am watching a
world in danger of destroying itself. I call it “Interesting.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I am a human and I fear living in such
interesting times. We, the people that after the great wars wanted to give
everything to our children. The children didn’t appreciate the gift and simply
wanted more. We gave to other people, to people who selfishly took what they
could without considering how or when to pay back. They lost the honor that we
tried to instill in them. Some attempted to copy us and make sacrifices, while
many considered cheating to be good business. The leaders gave a bad example.
Not a world to envy. My fear for the world increased. Russian armies attacked
Ukraine, while Israeli armies demolished terrorist camps mercilessly. The
innocent, easily led by religious ferver, died in the thousands. They still do.
They can’t defend themselves, so resort to lies and deception, which weakens
their ability to hold the moral grounds.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">My world is unpredictable and interesting,
but there is not much holding it together. We humans set some of it up against
the rest and the peaceful valley that I hide in is in danger of breaking.
People use Social Media to attack each other. Some level of evil filtered
through my perch, causing my ability to use the power of God to diminish, but I
desperately need it while the world is in turmoil.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">My body is facing extinction from the inside.
Doctors, technology, and God himself seem to fight for me, but something inside
me is not lined up. I need perfect harmony with the universe which I can’t get.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The world is moving on its own, motivated by
a force that I do not understand but fully trust to do the right thing. Will
there be a world for me after this life is over? I believe so.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Others will bury or cremate me and say the
right words. The “I am” with my name will not know what has changed. If you are
dead, you don’t see yourself from the outside. At least that is what I think.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a name="_Hlk513389707"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-no-proof: yes;">Here</span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> is a link to my blog: </span></a><a name="_Hlk512627101"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"></span></a><a href="https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/</span></span></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Feel free to <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">check other articles and comment.</span></span></span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-2632582171193334162024-01-21T22:48:00.000-08:002024-01-21T22:49:25.634-08:00 Like water under a bridge, time can’t stop.<p> </p><p><b><span style="font-size: 24pt;">Like water under a bridge, time can’t
stop.</span></b></p><p><span style="font-size: 16pt;"> Life is a constant change.
Nothing ever stays the same for long, and it is filtered by the human mind.
Only some events are remembered, while others must be forgotten. The most
important event in my human memory is my birth into this world, and I remember
none of it. Many thousands of years ago, humans appeared on earth. Later,
writing happened, and a story emerged. Humans were created from nothing and
were assigned names. The male human was told to name all the other creatures,
and they recorded in writing. The humans were destined to suffer by working for
a living and giving birth. That was written. Hundreds of thousands of years
later, memory at last.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Memories aside, I wish to know about my
humble beginnings. All that I can know is from the memories of those older than
me and their stories are not the same. I remember some things on my own, but my
mind is playing tricks on me. Is it trying to remember the good and forget the
bad? Could it be remembering the most useful information? Useful for who or
what? Confusing.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Does the mind try to remember things to lead
me to behave or make choices other than I would make on my own? I wish I knew.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Would that be the wish or direction of God?
Is He the boss or do I have free will?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16pt;">I belong to a big church organization we call
Roman Catholic. There are many others and we should honor them all for their
good intentions. Many we should be careful with, especially where money is
concerned. It’s easy to lose faith in God if we are cheated. Sex plays a part
as well. Christ didn’t teach about pleasure, but people expect pleasure and
benefit from religion.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16pt;">A few years ago, my church elected a new
leader. The Pope can assume a name other than his birth name and use it for
inspiration. Our newly elected Pope chose the name Francis, based on the most
popular saint in the world, St Francis of Assisi. St. Francis is popular with
Catholics and other religions. He is the most Christ-like person we know of.
The name inspired people all over. It does not remind people of prosperity or
winning in competition. Francis in the 12th century tried to be a soldier but
ended up paying a ransom for his freedom. He was a classic case of God
directing a human towards a divine goal.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16pt;">He became the living example of a perfect
human being for those of us who care about what a human should be like. Most of
us humans can only wish to have a role model of a human that is worth trying to
be like. Our constant search for how to be better, stronger, more powerful, and
so on, blocks us from becoming better persons. The best we can manage is
increased production or other traits that don’t improve the kind of human we
become.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16pt;">Pope Francis, who was elected to be the
spiritual leader of over a billion human beings, made a statement by choosing
the name of the simple little Frier Francis, who changed the church a thousand
years ago. If the Church is going to survive into future generations, it must
change. Not change into a more attractive or popular form but into the vision
of the founder, known to its followers as the son of God. A thousand years of
making the institution more rich, elaborate, and beautiful, must go back to the
original teachings. The greatest commandment of them all is “Love your neighbor
as yourself.” How could it be done without destroying the fabric that held it
together remains unknown.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16pt;">The Pope wants change, so change will come.
It will be a change in the hearts and minds of its people or it will fail. The
vast organization is searching for how to change back to its origins. We are
looking for a simpler way of life. No better artwork, more financial influence,
or artistic expression. Humans are looking to improve the way we exist
together.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16pt;">The change is happening in the remote
prairies of Canada. Where there are only a few churches and a sparse
population, churches are burning down. The art is destroyed, becoming burnt
black holes and the music almost stops. The church is changing whether we like
it. Those who cause the change feel justified by an old vendetta. Unmarked
graves. So sad that it came to this.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16pt;">The predominant religions will all need to
change. They strayed away from the original goals and must correct the
destination. People are needed to build a new society and we can only get them
from around us. We will harness our efforts towards working together. Humans
have the power of God in them. It can only release and be usefully combined
with others. Free will works only when humans want it to work, for a common
good goal. It is happening here and now.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a name="_Hlk513389707"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-no-proof: yes;">Here</span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> is a link to my blog: </span></a><a name="_Hlk512627101"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"></span></a><a href="https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/</span></span></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Feel free to <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">check other articles and comment.</span></span></span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-72163931765269561122024-01-08T14:25:00.000-08:002024-01-08T14:25:04.019-08:00It is 2024 and my little mountain community is quiet and pleasant.<p> </p><p><b><span style="font-size: 24.0pt;">It is 2024 and my little mountain
community is quiet and pleasant</span></b><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There
is not much snow but it will change. The mountains will be white and people
will get to wear their gift winter attires and new snow boots. In the evenings,
the streetlights come on, and the picture changes. I love what I see. Some
people come out for a walk, while others talk in the stores and everyone is
greeted with a nod or a warm hello if they know others or even if they don’t. I
close my eyes and think, am I alive or is this the world that the bible calls
the Kingdom? How would I improve it? I have no idea.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">We do not design some things for improvement.
A human cannot imagine something better than what we have, so we leave it alone
for a while. Otherwise, we make very small unneeded changes.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Since I finished a set of cancer treatments
recently, I will not know about next Christmas for a while. I have tremendous
help on the medical side and technology, plus experience bending over to keep
me alive. I also have the benefit of people praying for me. It helps those of
us who believe that it does. Some do and others don’t. I do.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I see on the news hospitals in Canada
buckling down under pressure and staff shortages. Doctors walk between sick
people on the floor in emergency rooms, unable to help. The politicians who
failed to plan and use resources properly are working hard to shift blame from
themselves. Some poor immigrants with mops are wiping dark spots off the
floors. Some of them are not food-secured and are unhoused people. Nurses are
all talking about changing professions. Gone are the days in which we all
banged pots and pans cheering our most needed yet lowest-paid workers who saved
us from a pandemic.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I used to see signs on businesses saying
“under new management.” Now we should have banners stating “under poor
management.” Our money is going to what we don’t care about while health care,
education, and infrastructure are not attended to. According to the leaders, I
show more concern for transgender issues than for the well-being of
grandmothers in senior homes. The leaders are wrong.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">It’s not all bad, however. I arrived at our
hospital at around 8:00 pm in severe pain. In less than ten minutes, a very
professional nurse took all my information, not skipping a step. I was
screaming in pain, so they isolated me and in a few more minutes, an intern
checked me. She was followed by a doctor who had already talked with my
physician and had a plan.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">On the next day, the situation repeated and a
new doctor was trying other medications and in two hours I was stabilized and
could go home. The lab and x-ray departments were working, and the staff was
not only professional but also had the best bedside manners we can imagine. On
the way home, I noticed how beautiful our municipality was at night. How do I
deserve that? I chose right when I was going to retire. Sadly, I couldn’t have
more choice about provincial and Federal elections. The private media interfered,
I think. I don’t know how they did it. Here we have private media but it is
operating as media used to work in the good old days.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I review my situation on the way home. Many
friends and family are getting ready for winter vacations while others are
coming here to enjoy our winter. Bless them all. Life may be ours to enjoy, but
many are suffering while we don’t need to suffer. There is more than enough for
all of us if we just share. People will help even those who don’t work. We
always do. Trust the divine spark in humanity. It’s there. My heart cries for
all the young people fighting wars. We count civilians killed and maimed but
rarely mention the soldiers on either side.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I try to pray for peace. People around me are
making a show of praying and it makes me feel bad. We can’t ask God for peace
while maximizing our pleasure by disregarding those who suffer. God knows who
is sincere and who isn’t, and I am not even sure about myself.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I don’t know how long I will live, but I wish
to live where there is peace and goodwill. The Crowsnest Pass is close to it.
People offer me help and pray for me. Others use their skills and hard work to
keep me and my family happy.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">A dark cloud is forming in front of my home.
Someone threw a dog a bone and the neighbors, including me, are snarling,
baring their teeth. A person is threatening to steal a view that others
purchased in good faith and the council is debating. Private interest collides
with the use of the commons.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Will something irreparably ruin my dream of a
wonderful place to retire?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The weather is cooling, and winter is here.
What will 2024 bring us if we don’t ask for too much and care about each other?
God bless us all. Keep on thinking. It’s our best gift in this life. Take what
you need and share the rest. I will try to do the same.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a name="_Hlk513389707"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-no-proof: yes;">Here</span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> is a link to my blog: </span></a><a name="_Hlk512627101"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"></span></a><a href="https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/</span></span></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Feel free to <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">check other articles and comment.</span></span></span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-71163177685980596612023-12-03T20:04:00.000-08:002023-12-03T20:04:45.084-08:00Who will win the war?<p> </p><p><b><span style="font-size: 26.0pt;">Who will win the war?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">In the event of a war, Israelis promptly go
back to their reserve positions or wherever their presence is required. They
grow up knowing that the Jewish state is much smaller than the Muslim states
around it and that even those at peace wouldn’t cry if Israel was gone. Muslims
don’t accept losing lands to non-Muslims. In Canada and the West, Muslims are
the most peaceful people, but in the Middle East, many are not. Folks like the
extremists in Iran or Afghanistan often educated them. Consequently, Israelis
don’t dare lose a war regardless of how they feel about their internal
politics.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">When on October 7th Hamas tortured,
kidnapped, and killed 1200 Israelis, the rest assumed that their faith would be
the same if they didn’t all fight together for their lives. Most Israelis grew
up hearing stories about what happened to Jews who didn’t fight. First the Jews
of Europe and later the Jews in Israel who fought against the Palestinians and
all the Arab countries at once.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Now, Israel boasts one of the best armies in
the world, and its entire population undergoes training in the arts of war and
functions as a well-disciplined unit. You don’t get to choose who you will
fight, but follow your orders to the best of your ability. The faith of your
family and friends is on your shoulders.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Stories come out of human minds.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Yosy is a reserve pilot. He is a newly
married teacher and has a baby boy. He heard on the news that Hamas burned
babies in ovens and then got the call. Report immediately to your unit. A jeep
was all ready at the front of his home to take him and he barely hugged his
wife Yafa and kissed the baby before running to war. The vehicle was equipped
with a siren and flashing lights and in less than an hour; he was at the
military base hearing and watching the planes taking off.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">He knew where he was and the names of people
around. A short while later, dressed in his flight suit, he was waiting to take
the plane assigned to him. His briefing told him he would fly to a destination
in Gaza and bomb a building next to a school. Yesterday he was teaching at a
school. His emotions were fighting his training and sense of duty. The
building's residents, targeted for bombing, should have been alerted by now.
That wasn’t a part of his mission.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Seated in the familiar cockpit all strapped
in, he felt at home. He was less than a year from active duty and years of
training and practice. The distance of flying in Israel is minimal in a
supersonic jet. What about the kids around the building he was going to bomb
crossed his mind? Their people burnt babies in ovens, his mind replied. But
they didn’t. Their parents shouldn’t have voted terrorists into government.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">His eyes rested on the terrain below. He knew
every area of Israel and Gaza from the air. The buildings were small in the
distance and he couldn’t see the people, but knew they were there. In his
mind’s eye, he pictured them dancing as they did at Nine Eleven. They always do
when they hear about Americans or Israelis being hurt. They shout Allahu Akbar
and shoot in the air. But we hurt them first, crossed his mind. They refused
peace; he remembers his teacher in school saying. He remains vigilant just in
case the enemy has some anti-air weapons, but they don’t. In the distance, he
saw a salvo of missiles heading toward the Israeli side. He circled around and
saw the Iron Dome going up to meet the offense. They are shooting at my family;
he thought. But the children did nothing. Bombs away.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The smoke rose, and Yosy couldn’t see a
thing. Only the pictures in his mind. Bodies buried, fires, and kids crying
can’t find their parents. Choking dust and smoke. It’s a war that they started.
They didn’t just kill they tortured and beheaded people.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Yosy’s grandmother used to tell him stories
about the war. She said that there is a God and against him is the dark Lord.
They fight in our minds, she repeated often. If we go for revenge and terror,
the dark Lord wins. Everybody will kill everyone else. People can change, but
it starts with us. God has to win in your minds.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">They planned the attack on Israel for a long
time. Equipment and training take long to obtain. Brainwashing of participants
is not instantaneous. They predicted the effects and calculated the use of
ordinary Gazan's sufferings to sway world opinion. It was all executed
meticulously and we may ask, why now?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The answer is that Israel and Saudia Arabia
were close to signing a peace agreement. The Iranian people wouldn’t oppose it,
but the leadership couldn’t have it. Both the Israelis killed in the music
festival and surrounding towns, as well as the poor everyday Palestinians, are
paying with their blood for an old religious and political feud.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Yosy and his comrades will have to deal with
their mental health problems for a long time. Their political leader may turn
himself from a wanted man to a hero and the world may be at war. Some people
don’t care. The dark Lord already possesses their souls.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a name="_Hlk513389707"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-no-proof: yes;">Here</span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> is a link to my blog: </span></a><a name="_Hlk512627101"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"></span></a><a href="https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/</span></span></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Feel free to <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">check other articles and comment.</span></span></span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-83203560282837338892023-11-27T10:04:00.000-08:002023-11-27T10:04:43.248-08:00 Old Man’s Thoughts.<p> </p><p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><b><span style="font-size: 26.0pt;">Old Man’s Thoughts.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">When I was about 25, my boss told me I must
join our pension plan. It did not impress me. It was a large sum, and I was too
young to think about someday when I would be 65 and receive a benefit. I didn’t
trust the politicians even in those days when they did much more for us than
they do now.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">More money in our pockets is a good election
slogan, but we can’t do it. I couldn’t at 25 make a significant commitment to
save for retirement. I truly believed that I would do something that would provide
me with the money that I would need for retirement. I and some millions of
young people bought into the American dream. We were going to work hard and get
rich, and it didn’t happen.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Thank God someone wiser organized pension
plans that were invested professionally and accumulated the money needed for
the later years of life. That money financed some ventures that made more money
and left us with enough to live the rest of our lives comfortably without
asking the young generation for help. Yes, our pensions are financed by us and
our employers. The money should be invested in our future and not for
politician’s pet projects.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">It worked well until politicians decided to dip
into it for their own benefit. They could and did take over managing the money
and lost as I expected. Good politicians are not necessarily good investment
managers. By investing for political reasons, they lose but don’t care. In four
or eight years, they will collect their pensions and go play a new game.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Now I am the last of my group of friends from
the old days. My best friend, (and my best man), is dying from COVID and other
health issues. For me, what’s left is isolation and prayers to stay alive a
little longer. Each time that I go out, I meet some folks who tell me not to
get vaccinated since they had some health issues after getting vaccinated. They
feel justified in recommending not to listen to the doctors since they
themselves know better. I choose to listen to my doctor.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">However, all the COVID issues will be
forgotten ten years from now. We have bigger problems to deal with. We live in
a scary world which doesn’t have to be that way. Natural disasters, wars,
baffling weather, hate, and vengeance are just a few things I see. Greed and
competition for turf are more common than any positive emotions. Almost
anywhere I look people are divided half against the other half. Yet the Earth
can provide for all and people can solve all the problems we have without
fighting. If we give all people what they need, not want, we will have a lot to
spare.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">When we search history and pre-history, we
see a few interesting facts. There have been great civilizations before us.
They either failed to protect themselves or destroyed each other and
disappeared. Knowledge that we don’t yet possess existed on this planet several
times over and was wiped out. It arouses my curiosity and makes me think about
where we are heading.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">All the past generations had a conflict
between good and evil or light and dark. Only the difference is blurred out.
Those who win always write history. The side that lost gets no air time. Yet,
if we could ask those who lived before us, we would always find people
believing that the side we are talking to is the side of good and the other the
side of bad.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">All sides have good and bad intermingled. All
sides get corrupted by power and people feel sorry for the weak but join the
strong. This is enhanced by those who preach that God is on their side. No, He
isn’t.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">God created not the same but equal and gave
humans free will. Now, He is waiting to see what we will do. Will we join the
dead civilizations or be the ones created in His image? We are living through
the latest test right now. It is being tested around each kitchen table, in
every community, and worldwide. None of us escapes the test. It is between my
wife and me, and between America and China at the same time. It is decided by
loving negotiations and by great modern equipped armies.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">A relatively slight change in people’s
outlook on life can solve problems and perhaps save the world. Why are we not
doing it? Mostly because none of us wants to lose and all of us wish to win.
Those are animal instincts, not human values. This is where we need help from
God. If we all accepted that God wants us to have His kingdom on Earth, we
could have it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Sadly, we may have to fight for it. Rudolph
will not give up his leadership position since he has the red nose. We will do
what we must as well as we can not forgetting that peace and happiness are the
goals.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Goodness can become a reality in some small
place and spread throughout the whole body. People follow the example, good or
bad. The actual fight is inside each of us and we must believe that we can win.
Some day cooperation will eliminate competition.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a name="_Hlk513389707"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-no-proof: yes;">Here</span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> is a link to my blog: </span></a><a name="_Hlk512627101"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"></span></a><a href="https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/</span></span></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Feel free to <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">check other articles and comment.</span></span></span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-29374196051332170302023-11-20T11:25:00.000-08:002023-11-20T11:25:06.491-08:00A balanced life, for free.<p> </p><p><b><span style="font-size: 26.0pt;">A balanced life, for free.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">If you ask me about my level of happiness,
living in the Crowsnest Pass Alberta, I will rate it high. My place is
beautiful, and friendly, has wonderful services, and is full of potential. Yet,
when the UN does its World Happiness Report rating of how happy people are in
their countries, Canada doesn’t score as high as expected. The northern
European countries score the highest even without all the natural advantages
that we have. The weather is the same and we all are educated and enjoy modern
health care. Why are they happier than we are?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The other day I was en route back to
Blairmore in the dark. The temperature was 6° C in Nanton, so I opted to take Highway
22. In five minutes, the temperature dipped to 1° C hovering back and forth to
0° C. A vehicle in front of me swerved dangerously in front of an oncoming
truck and I slowed down to 60 km/h. It was going to be a long drive home. Once
I cleared the foothills, the road dried up, and the temperature stayed at 1° C.
It occurred to me that minute differences in our environment or even just
thinking can make an enormous difference to our quality of life. What is one
degree? Dry road instead of ice.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Take Sweden compared to Canada. It’s a
smaller country with about ten million people versus our almost forty million, or
the US, close to 400 million. They produce much of what they need. Their one
brand of automobiles, Volvo, is competing with the other major brands in the
world. People who want a good car for a good price buy it. Volvo invented the
seat belts and provided the patent free to the rest of the world, saving many
lives. Their simple sensible brands do well. You can find H&M clothing in
most fancy malls. IKEA products are found everywhere.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The Swedes dress nice, but nothing flashy. It
is considered bad manners for the Swedish people to flaunt their wealth. They
have millionaires and billionaires, but you wouldn’t know it. No Mar-a-Lagos
and golden staircases in Sweden. A few years ago, a picture became viral
depicting their Princess Madeleine in the street picking up her dog’s poop. All
they do is aim at moderation and practicality. People learn to say no to what
they don’t need and consider equality in all they do. They have a perfect
public transportation system and use it. Bus stops are fitted with daylight
bulbs to help ward off depression in the long winters.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The owner of IKEA, who is worth around fifty
billion, was once denied entry to a gala where he was supposed to receive a
prestigious award because he arrived by bus. He wouldn’t have fared much better
if he drove his fifteen-year-old Volvo instead.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Driving is a way for most people to show
their wealth around the world. In Sweden, you don’t see many expensive cars.
The people are content driving the dependable Volvo, which is very comfortable
and behaves very well on roads like our Highway 22 on a freezing night.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Jealousy is a major reason for human
conflicts. In Sweden, there is hardly anyone to be jealous of. Swedes don’t
enjoy showing off. Everyone in Sweden is middle class, ensuring a balanced
society. They have a different attitude toward work. There is no competition to
avoid getting fired, as we often have. People do their work well without it and
never work overtime. They value time with family, friends, nature, and the
arts. At the same time, they managed to develop and produce one of the world’s
best fighter planes, while Canadians will pay hundreds of millions of dollars
for an American fighter that may arrive late.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">All Swedes have generous holidays, free
education, and healthcare they can afford. Taxes cover the payment for generous
maternal and paternal leave that Swedes expect. They pay some of the highest
taxes in the world, depending on their income. If you are a top earner, you may
top 50%. There is no monetary reward for overworking, and people don’t do it.
Much different, for example, from Japan, where work takes away all other values
in life. Here, balance is more important than getting ahead. The Swedes will defend
their choice to pay and receive what they do. They don’t need lawyers and
accountants to file their taxes. They are happy the way it is.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Just like many Canadians, they are able to
enjoy the long, cold winters. They take their vitamin D and play winter sports.
They see the beauty of winter scenery and like wearing winter clothes for a
while. An old Swedish lady told me that if they didn’t have the winters, they
wouldn’t enjoy summer as much. Summer is a good time for waxing the skis.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">A balanced life offers them the opportunity
to enjoy their family, and they do. Many keep small summer homes and spend much
time on the water. Moms can mother and guys can father. They don’t live for
show; they exist naturally. In the sixties, we were mesmerized by their longer
lives and began our fitness craze that is still going on.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">A tiny difference in mentality can have a
tremendous difference in life, just like one degree can change the drive home
from stress to joy. Acceptance and balance versus a constant attempt to show
superiority<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a name="_Hlk513389707"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-no-proof: yes;">Here</span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> is a link to my blog: </span></a><a name="_Hlk512627101"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"></span></a><a href="https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/</span></span></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Feel free to <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">check other articles and comment.</span></span></span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-2858069844713057562023-11-12T20:31:00.000-08:002023-11-12T20:31:41.723-08:00The world or the Money.<p> </p><p><b><span style="font-size: 26.0pt;">The world or the Money.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">About a hundred and some years ago, a smart
man named Henry Ford introduced the assembly line. Cars were produced up to
that point by highly skilled people who understood all the parts and developed
their skills over many years. With the assembly line, many workers could learn
how to make small parts and fit them together to make the vehicles. Each didn’t
know how to make a car. It wasn’t a new idea. The Venetians in Italy did the
same to build ships hundreds of years earlier. It was new for now and set up the
US on the road to prosperity.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Mr Ford understood a very important aspect of
economics. If you produce all those cars, who is going to afford to buy them?
He insisted that those who build the automobile must make enough wages to
purchase them. Of course, they must first have food, shelter, and other needs.
The workers soon had enough money for indoor plumbing, entertainment, and many
other conveniences that were invented, manufactured, and sold, creating
economic prosperity.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The idea that Henry Ford started spread out
throughout the United States fast and growth became synonymous with prosperity.
Soon, people understood that increasing the population would catalyze economic
growth. America didn’t have the European setbacks of wanting only what was good
for its own nationality. They were open to any Caucasian people and made colored
people available to serve them. Some races were more or less desirable than
others. There were also fewer restrictions on space for growth. Other powers
did not compete for space in the country because of its enormous size.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The United States was on the way to becoming
a rival to the old colonial powers. New people flocked to get in and they built
new economic centres on the East and West coasts. Some people became very rich
while others enjoyed the American Dream as people marvel at dreaming about
winning the lottery. All the prosperity and hard work didn’t save them from the
great depression. Great wars were fought, and those who survived enjoyed a
period of pleasant existence. The rich feared the spread of Communism and all
were fearful of what Fascism could do. Hitler was fresh in their minds.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">A period of peace and prosperity marked the
time after the Second World War, even while the Cold War was raging in the
background. The working people never had it so good. Now people learned how to
use democracy to their advantage while the Elites focused on how to maximise
their power and profits. They joined the religious fundamentalists for
political reasons.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I remember discussing with fellow workers who
were unsure about what benefits to request in the next union contract. Life was
good and minorities, including women, felt reasonably good about how things
were shaping. We fought, on many fronts, won, and now enjoyed the fruits.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Our European allies, including the defeated
Germany, went the Social Democratic way, while America built itself on the
Capitalistic model. The problem is that they didn’t read the end of the book
about capitalism. Canada tried to stay in the middle lane.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The old British Empire, from which came both
the US and Canada, ruled by dividing people. In North America existed many
options to divide the population and set groups against each other. There was
no firm sense of national unity. All the people had ancestors from many
nations. There was no religious unity either. All faiths had strong
representations. The elites chose to divide on economic grounds.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Soon we found ourselves in a new situation,
with a higher Middle Class and a much bigger lower Middle Class. Blue collar
shirts versus white collar shirts. Everyone was no longer seeking a better
peaceful life but to climb on others for a higher position on the economic
scale. The workers instead of savings had debt limits, while the others had
investment portfolios. All wanted more government services and less taxes. GDP
rose and resource extraction did as well.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The humans of Earth in the last few
generations went on a rampage, exploiting natural resources as if there was no
tomorrow. We forgot about future generations and the need for the planet to
regenerate while we focused on competing for higher status.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">No longer do people consider natural cycles
to be the will of God, and we place our faith in our fledgling science. The
planet groaned in pain. It gave life to so many life forms that now we are
destroying its ability to sustain life.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">A good example is oil. It bridged us from
animal power to electronics, but now we are wasting it by unnecessarily burning
it. The only consideration we have is the price per barrel and the financial
dividends to investors or export taxes for governments. When we use all the
oil, there is nothing on Earth that can replace it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">It is now the first time in human history
that we have to sacrifice for yet unborn generations in the future. We may have
to fight for their future. What will we do?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Worlds are created by what we call God.
People make money.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a name="_Hlk513389707"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-no-proof: yes;">Here</span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> is a link to my blog: </span></a><a name="_Hlk512627101"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"></span></a><a href="https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/</span></span></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Feel free to <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">check other articles and comment.</span></span></span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-69068069224745268602023-11-06T10:54:00.001-08:002023-11-06T10:54:39.408-08:00Good versus Evil.<p> </p><p><b><span style="font-size: 26.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Good
versus Evil.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Each of us can go back to the earliest memory
of our life. It may be a genuine memory or one that we were told about. We also
remember “the bad guys.” Our parents or guardians pass on to us the fear and
hate of some others. In my case, it was the Nazis, followed by the Communists
and the Arabs. They were all bad guys. My parent’s friends and the people they
dealt with were the “good guys’, but we had to watch almost everyone since they
could cheat us.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">We had good German people, Russian and Arab
friends, and neighbors, but the nation or race was scary. Humans need a boogie
man who is worse than us. We don’t manage to be as good as some people are, but
we can always find someone less than ourselves. We cheat in business and call
it smart, but watch the less fortunate noticing their deficiencies. There is a
fear of homeless people, for example. We don’t help them since they supposedly
will use our money to buy cigarettes and booze; we say. Some undoubtedly will.
Some high-class people will cheat all of us out of a lot of money and we will
try to gain their favor. The same with politicians who gain from their
positions. We shower them with compliments and they provide political favors in
return.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">There are signs that humans like us lived on
Earth as far back as 200,000 years ago. We have evidence of writings from over
10,000 years ago. It seems as if the fight between good and evil always
existed. Also, there was always a competition for leadership. People naturally
fight for the alfa dog position. This is animal instinct behavior. There are
always people who consider it differentiating between animals and humans. It is
a conflict between those who look for selfish gain and others seeking
cooperation for the benefit of all. The Athenians were developing democracy
while the Spartans wanted strength at all costs.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">There are still many people around who
remember the time that Star Wars movie became a hit. That sci-fi piece of art
depicted the distinction between good and evil and humanity's interaction with
the supernatural.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">It had the appeal of new special effects,
great cinematography, and talented acting. The movie took the world by storm.
To this day, there are people in Great Britain who formed an official religion
around the principal theme of believing in the “Force”. It doesn’t take much
imagination to guess what the “Force” is representing. I call it the universal
mind, since its other more common name is no longer popular.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">In Star Wars we witness a corrupt dark lord
using the force for evil reasons, wanting to win the leadership of all
intelligent life forms. The Force is an invisible great power humans can use
for right or wrong if they know how. It plays with humans, seemingly to let us
learn some lessons that it alone knows.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">We can easily see in the Old Testament how
the Gods (rolled into one) can be mean beyond our comprehension. Take, for
example, Noah’s flood. People didn’t listen, so a flood killed the whole
Earth’s population, women, children, and animals. Sodom and Gomorrah were
obliterated supposedly for sexual misbehavior. The Egyptian people suffered the
ten plagues after God hardened Pharaoh’s heart, leading him to anger God. In
the end, all Egyptian firstborn males were killed, and Pharaoh’s army was
drowned. God, or the Force was also used to punish His own people in the
cruelest ways. It was a world in which the power of a spiritual being kept law
and order using powers not available to the opposing force.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The entire picture was changed two thousand
years ago when God fathered a son who walked the Earth in a human form. Now,
words took the first place and people used miracles only minimally. The power
of God was diverted to the use of wisdom. The son taught humans to be shepherds
and what they must do themselves to have a perfect society on a healthy planet.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">We struggled but couldn’t achieve the goal.
In came a new idea from the art world. The Jedi of Star Wars. Humans trained
beyond anything known so far, who used the Force for good instead of evil. They
could fight, but fairly and only for the good.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">A new option was discovered. The conflict now
can be not for dominating and subjugating the world but for making it better
for all while controlling evil by the only thing it understands. The measured
use of force dominated by intellect and good intentions. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">There is no need for a strong man or emperor
in that world. Power could be in the hands of each community designed for their
circumstances. An educated, well-trained super moral Jedi cast can serve the
Force, and the people aimed to build the perfect society. To preserve our
humanity, we would combine old biological technology with artificial
intelligence. Otherwise, we may be another failed experiment and something else
will take our place. Future archeologists will dust our bones and artifacts
trying to figure out where we went wrong.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a name="_Hlk513389707"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-no-proof: yes;">Here</span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> is a link to my blog: </span></a><a name="_Hlk512627101"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"></span></a><a href="https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/</span></span></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Feel free to <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">check other articles and comment.</span></span></span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-80691481994582065302023-10-30T09:51:00.002-07:002023-10-30T09:51:32.709-07:00Realities.<p> </p><p><b><span style="font-size: 28.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Realities.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">What can be truer than reality? I see it and
I believe it. Courts function on that principle. If a crime was committed, we
search for eyewitnesses, or lately for camera footage showing what really
happened. As I was growing up and learning to be a human being (we all do)
science also grew. Humans materialized some of the greatest scientific
discoveries just before I came to earth. I admired the people who were famous
for their discoveries, like Albert Einstein in science and the Mahatma Gandhi
in politics.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Just recently, people, or I should say,
influential thinkers, began to question what we learned and took for granted.
Some of it came from studying old writings that were not available until
lately. Perhaps it was available but not understood. For example, in the
beginning, there was the word, and the word was God.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">How can God be a word? One likely explanation
is: A word is an idea. Could it be that those who wrote the bible considered
God to be an idea? There is no reason to believe that they didn’t. God can be
anything, any place, at any time.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">There are people now seriously doubting that
reality itself is what we always thought it is. I touched upon this before in
other articles. Life could be a dream. Some dreams are ridiculous and we know
we are dreaming. Some can be so real that we don’t know they are dreams until
we wake up. One philosopher said that all of life is a dream from which we wake
up only a few times to know that it is a dream. We don’t have to wake up.
Possibly when we die, we wake up.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">It is possible that we exist only in the
material world, and we are material beings. We could be like a caterpillar that
turns into a cocoon, dies, and from it emerges a beautiful butterfly. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Now there is a new idea becoming popular. My
generation is shifting away from traditional religious beliefs and exploring
new ways to understand our innate connection to a higher power beyond material
things. Our senses, visual, hearing, touch, smell and so on — only detect what
is in light or exists because of light. There is a side that we call “dark”,
but only because we can’t see in it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">A bat, for example, doesn’t see in light the
way we do. It uses ultrasonic sounds to see and exists very well. Much more of
our universe is a dark matter than that which we see. The possibilities of life
forms existing in it out of our spectrum are endless. A life form may be
nothing like we are used to. It can be invisible to us, and we may, but not
necessarily, be invisible to it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">One theory that now is the subject of many
books appeals to me most. It became popular with the movie, The Matrix. We
could be existing in the mind of a computer or a biological entity, that makes
up our existence to be real to us.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">All of what we call reality is orchestrated
in our brains. What I see is visible in light. My eyes collect bits of light,
converting them to electrical signals traveling in my skull to my brain. The
brain interprets those signals into pictures that I use for creating my reality
in my conscience. I learned to create reality with all its beauty and ugliness,
and I do so all the time. It’s like the ultimate virtual reality, but we don’t
know who started it and why.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">To know more about reality, we first must
answer the question, who we are. Sounds easy, but it’s not so. At church, we
say my body or my soul. We admit that I am not either. If it’s mine then it can’t
be me. Then, who are we?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I go back to the biblical story about Moses
asking God to tell him His name. God said “I am” who I am. The bible often
mentions that someone who died went to be with his past generations. His
fathers. It could be his mothers also depending on how we interpret it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I always lived in my reality, never doubting
it. As I said, I see it, so I believe it. Other people say and do things that
seem strange to me. The world is constantly in conflict between good and evil,
but we disagree with which is which.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">As I get older, I realize more and more that
there is more than one reality for humans. It strikes me as impossible, yet it
happens. As far as I can understand, people convince themselves that something
is a reality. When we do, it is impossible to change. After all, each of us
thinks, how can we change reality?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a name="_Hlk513389707"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-no-proof: yes;">Here</span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> is a link to my blog: </span></a><a name="_Hlk512627101"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"></span></a><a href="https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/</span></span></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Feel free to <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">check other articles and comment.</span></span></span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-64123036272843267152023-10-23T09:59:00.001-07:002023-10-23T09:59:22.565-07:00A nice place in the mountains.<p> </p><p><b><span style="font-size: 26.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A
nice place in the mountains.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">About 55 years ago, my family bought our
first little car and went exploring our new country. On one of those trips, we
ended up in a set of mining towns called The Crownest Pass. It was in the
mountains but wasn’t impressive. There were some gas stations and restaurants,
so we stopped for lunch. My mom ran a finger over the seat of a chair and
lifted it marked with black dust. The server hurried up and wiped the table and
chairs, saying something about it being a coal mining town, and we ordered our
food. A local woman at the next table said something about how we should see
the wash after it was dried on the clothesline.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The folks around us had a certain look to
them. They were kind of gray, wrinkled, and their heads were bent forward. My
mom said that it reminded her of some mining town she visited in her childhood
in Europe. Miners, she said, were mountain people. They were good hard-working
folks but didn’t live long. It's called here Black Lung, my father added. We
drove around a bit, noticing stores, churches, and even a car lot, but there
was no reason to stay. Next, we visited a farming town, Pincher Creek, and it
was brighter and gave us a cleaner feeling. My dad said that it would be nice
if Pincher Creek was in the mountains.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">When I was about ten years away from
retirement, I started looking for a little town to retire to. A co-worker
mentioned the Crowsnest Pass. She said that there were no more operating coal
mines, and the place was clean. There were some little towns to choose from and
you could purchase a place in the mountains. In the more touristy places, one
could only lease a place but not own it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I made another trip to the land beyond the
Frank slide and it pleasantly surprised me. The Pass was clean and offered all
the benefits of mountain towns, but at a reasonable price. There were fewer
businesses and people, but a vibrant community. People describe Canadians as
“nice” but here the people were nicer for some reason. I met another person who
was looking at real estate and he said, “This is the place that time has
forgotten”. Another said that I should visit when they do the Thunder in the
Valley. Others in Calgary also described the great show of fireworks in the
mountain valley.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I found my retirement place. Purchased some
land and built a modest home. Originally, the people told me about great winds,
a place where there is nothing to do, no cultural life, a depressed economy,
and everyone running away. I don’t see any of it. Now I am an old-timer here. I
can’t get over how blessed I am. The Pass economy picked up, new people are
here and the local people no longer wish to leave the place as they did a while
back. They see the value of where they are. Soon those who left in the early
days will come back to retire here. After trying the rat race of the city,
folks realize what we have here. We live in God’s country. All we have to do is
open our eyes and see it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">In my 25 years here, I saw many folks leaving
the place to be closer to family who moved away or to medical facilities. After
a while, they come for a visit and they don’t look the same. It’s not only the
natural aging, but being away from a great community and mountain air. While in
the city they wait twenty hours at Emergency, here they get treated in the
first hour. Kids get more attention in schools and there is hardly anything
that we can’t buy here if we can wait for a week. You can sit at a local coffee
shop and in a short while make new friends. It’s easy to join a club of
like-minded people or watch local sports. People still go to their choice of
church and treat the other religions with the respect that they like to be
treated. It is no wonder that here we can meet older people living
independently or with little help.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Across from my home, I see a holiday home
that is often rented out. Our lives here always leave the visitors from near
and far impressed. Some come down and talk to me. Often they express how lucky
they think we are.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I think that what happened here is
interesting. All the folks who wanted a busy life full of stress and constant
competition left in the pursuit of happiness. Those who remained were people
happy with simpler lives close to nature where we care about each other. Here,
we cherish a different set of values. Less glitter and more warm hearths.
Creativity stumps accumulation and relationships beat showing off.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Winter clouds set over the mountains, and the
Pass is getting ready for another winter. The Plains First Nations used to come
here for the winters. To me, it’s more beautiful here with the snow than in the
hot parts of the world where there is no seasonal variation.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a name="_Hlk513389707"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-no-proof: yes;">Here</span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> is a link to my blog: </span></a><a name="_Hlk512627101"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"></span></a><a href="https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/</span></span></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Feel free to <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">check other articles and comment.</span></span></span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-23685117881390213962023-10-17T18:26:00.001-07:002023-10-17T18:26:12.275-07:00The Romans renamed Israel Palestine.<p> </p><p><b><span style="font-size: 26.0pt;">The Romans renamed Israel Palestine.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">When people know you were born in some
country, they assume you know a lot about it, even if you left it as a child.
Last Saturday, when the Hamas Palestinians attacked Israel, I was facing
questions. People know I was born in Israel.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The attack was well-planned, meticulously
carried out, and designed to terrorize a nation. Those who carried it out were
well-equipped and prepared to die for what they believed was a just cause. We
saw a bunch of murderous terrorists attack innocent people, but to them, they
were martyrs giving their lives to save their people. They did it by exacting
the highest possible price. They take being called animals, terrorists, or
anything else as a compliment because it shows their bravery, skill, and
commitment to their cause. All of them who were killed believed that their
actions would deliver them straight to paradise, where God would reward them.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">In that attack on Israel, many innocent
people suffered and died. To me, they are the grandchildren of those I grew up
with. The places Hamas destroyed look exactly like where I lived while growing
up. The blood that was spilled joined blood from many generations of people who
attempted to solve problems by force and war. In the Middle East, the law of
the desert is strong. People believe that brutality is the only answer that
will prevent people from hurting you. Here we have the same kind of people who
want revenge to be a deterrent.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Israel, where I grew up, comprised of people
who survived the brutality of the Second World War. The atrocities of Hitler,
Stalin, and other colonial-minded leaders marked all my teachers. They told us,
kids, how important it was to keep our humanity when others perform atrocities.
I heard so often that “we don’t want to be like them”, the Nazis, or Soviets.
They encouraged us to be civilized in dealing with the Palestinians who lived
with us. I lived on a farm with a Palestinian family of shepherds and shared a
desk in grade nine with a Christian Palestinian boy. They didn't sympathize
with Hamas and were worried about the extremist Jewish nationalists now in
Netanyahu's coalition. Those wish to rid Israel of other religions disregarding
some biblical teachings to treat outsiders fairly.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Of course, other groups are against Zionism,
wanting to live in the holy land in peace with all others. There are also many
political parties representing a whole range of ideologies. The Jews who are
not pro-Zionism are not very popular these days, but there are many.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">During the planning stages of Israel under
British rule, Zionists opposed Palestinians living alongside Jews because of
concerns about democratic influence on the Jewish state. They had the numbers
in their favor. Many Palestinians were warned about the upcoming independence
war of 1948 and told they would be safe if they temporarily moved to Gaza and other
areas under Arab control. Israel won and they couldn’t come back. Their young
people started violent movements such as Hamas that the majority didn’t
support. We Canadians had our FLQ and the Riel rebellion. It is always a fight
for land and freedom and always exploited by some who want power. The innocent
pays the price.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I predicted the current war months ago when
Netanyahu aligned with Israeli groups aiming to use military force to remove
Palestinians from disputed territories. They provoked again and again, leading
the more militant factions on both sides to take action, which they did. No one
expected Israel to be caught flat-footed as they were.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">What happened reminded me of Pearl Harbour
and 9/11. Putin is the beneficiary since the world took its eyes off Ukraine.
Now many Israeli peace-loving citizens are dead, and the poorest Palestinians
are suffering like never before. Those remaining alive are told again to leave
their homes and later come back. When they will try, I am sure there will be
new conditions attached.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The Jewish people who suffered so much in
other countries, were given the land of Israel as a “land without people to a
people with no land”. The people on the land were called “natives” and
considered less than human. The British and the West knew some who aligned with
Hitler like the Mufti of Jerusalem.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Both sides in the Israeli conflict are partly
responsible, but innocent people are suffering. The world is trying to use
their suffering for political gains.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">If I had a chance to tell the Israelis and
Palestinians what I think they should do, what would I say? Very smart people
have been trying for years to find a solution, and so far they haven’t. I am
not that smart, so I try to get answers from the scriptures. Can I tell them to
forgive and forget? To love one another? I can’t, since I don’t believe they
could.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The best I could offer is that since Jews,
Muslims, and Christians all believe in the Ten Commandments, they can follow
them. Don’t interpret, or philosophy, just google it or look in your holy book
and do what it says. You can’t fix the past but can make concessions for the
future. Do it fairly and start again. Don’t take too long. Please pray for
peace.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a name="_Hlk513389707"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-no-proof: yes;">Here</span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> is a link to my blog: </span></a><a name="_Hlk512627101"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"></span></a><a href="https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/</span></span></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Feel free to <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">check other articles and comment.</span></span></span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-52557970963643460672023-10-09T17:06:00.002-07:002023-10-09T17:06:33.533-07:00What is it all for, anyway?<p> </p><p><b><span style="font-size: 26.0pt;">What is it all for, anyway?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">She was 18 and went into labor prematurely.
The people in the Kibbutz in Israel chose to send her to the hospital with a
tractor instead of the horses. I arrived in the world. I couldn’t speak or do
anything else, and I was naked. As hard as I tried, I could never remember that
time. All I know is that I accumulated things.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">A few years later we lived on a farm and a
couple of my parents’ friends visited from the city with their boy, who was
roughly my age. Our parents had us in my room and took all my toys out for us
to play with. Arick, the other boy, started to sort my toys. He took them one
by one, looked at them, and placed the nicest ones behind him, saying, “This is
mine”. The cheap and broken toys he left on the floor beside me. I tried to get
some back, and he pushed me hard, saying, “It’s mine”. My mom came in and saw
tears in my eyes. What’s the matter she said? In the voice of a three-year-old,
I explained, Arick is taking all my toys. I didn’t have many.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">He had my wooden truck, my stuffed vinyl dog,
Pluto, I used to sleep with, and a few more. Don’t worry said mom, he will not
take them home. I was worried, and I wanted to play with my toys right now, but
my mom told me to be quiet. I was learning one of the biggest lessons that we
learn in this life. The world wasn’t fair. Later on, my mom cut the cake she
made and gave Arick a bigger piece with more icing. I said I didn’t want cake,
so he ate mine as well. So much for peaceful protest.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Life went on. When I was sixteen, my family emigrated
to Canada while Arick and his family stayed in Israel. I started a new life
accumulating things and knowledge. Arick remained in Israel and was killed in
the next war. He was my best childhood friend. I felt guilty, but being a
minor, I had to go where my parents went. My dad fought a few wars for Israel.
I tried to join the Canadian army, but they couldn’t take me before I was a
citizen. I settled for civilian life and, like everyone else, accumulated
things. Luckily, for me, a priest I knew, convinced me to upgrade my education.
Those were the good years in Alberta when Peter Lougheed was premier. Higher
education was available cheaply, and we were building an educated workforce.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I earned a university degree, studied in a
technical college, and worked hard for promotions that came one after another.
My health wasn’t the best and again, luckily for me, the country accepted
universal health care. Now came the period we call middle life. Building a
home, raising kids, upgrading vehicles, and trying my damnedest to keep up with
the ever-changing world.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">A few years later, the now-advanced medical
discoveries, saved my life. The doctors implanted a top-of-the-line Pacemaker
Defibrillator in my chest, which gave me an extended warranty period. I was
alive, but not young again. The question popped into my mind: why am I alive? I
can no longer reproduce, and nature doesn’t keep creatures around when they
don’t contribute to the genetic pool. Why are we alive?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">My generation attempted to solve many human
problems. We had the longest period without a major war. Went to the moon,
prolonged natural life, saved for the later part of life, and gave human rights
to some minority groups, the biggest of them women.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Now the Catholic Church is considering women
clergy, and women in politics are common. Sadly, they are becoming like men
instead of gracing society with a feminine perspective. My female premier is
fighting against measures designed to improve our chance to remain alive on our
only planet. She is enticing people with greed. The old Pope is working to
convince us to do what we can to prolong human existence.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Did God allow me an additional lifetime to
join the fight? My priorities are my family, my faith, and my country. None
will survive if we don’t act decisively now. Are old insignificant people like
me expected to fight for the world? Where are the young people?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Young people have robust bodies and
accumulate things as we did. They look for new experiences and security that
they rarely have. Old people know that the Universal Mind doesn’t act on words.
The world is unfair. God senses emotions and intentions. We, the old people,
now with extended lives have those.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">At the end of life, when we will go back
naked as when we were born, we no longer do all things for ourselves. That is
when we are honest and send the right messages to the invisible mind that
formed and controls the universe.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Prayers can work better than physical effort,
but only when originated in the right way. Fear, unconditional love,
self-sacrifice, and other pure emotions influence reality.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I honor all religions and see something good
in all major political ideas. Life is a gift of time in which I can get things
and give them away. I can make changes with emotions and intentions. I can’t
explain how. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a name="_Hlk513389707"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-no-proof: yes;">Here</span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> is a link to my blog: </span></a><a name="_Hlk512627101"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"></span></a><a href="https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/</span></span></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Feel free to <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">check other articles and comment.</span></span></span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><i><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Note: The above article was written before
the latest war began.<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-2062636976040372382023-10-01T20:23:00.000-07:002023-10-01T20:23:02.130-07:00A story with no end.<p> </p><p><b><span style="font-size: 26.0pt;">A story with no end.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I woke up just as the sun was making things
visible. From the living room window, I observed a bear running by the base of
the hill across. He ran until there was a slope going up and continued at the
same speed up the hill. Just a few years ago, the hill had bears, moose, deer
cougars, and smaller animals. Now it’s full of houses. Should I call anyone to
trap and possibly kill the bear? He could be dangerous to people, especially if
they feed and try to pet him. A wild bear is not a good prop for taking selfies.
Is it more important to stay safe or to let nature do what it has been doing
for generations? Who’s hill is it, anyway?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">There is a rock ball hurling through space at
tremendous speed and on it many life forms, human beings are dominant. For some
unknown reason, it made itself just perfect for our existence as we adapted to
it. We slowly learned how to thrive, but the invisible power seems to disagree
with our methods.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Life for some of us is great, but not for
most of us. That includes the animals. The Earth, spinning and speeding through
the galaxy, is able to provide all that its creatures need, but the Universal
Mind demands cooperation. Humans, unlike other life forms, must use their
intellect to survive. The more we know, the more we must do. Nature designed us
to be competitive and improve through evolution. Works for everything else, but
not for us.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Just like the natural competition between
males and females, we can’t exist without each other. When we fight, we come to
a point where it becomes obvious that we will destroy ourselves, be gone, or
start again from scratch. It happened before and will happen again. We have an
almost equal split on most issues.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Humans developed technologies and machines
that can perform tasks that were once considered miraculous a short while ago.
Much of the recent development has been to prolong our natural life, improve
health, produce food, and save us from pain. Much more is added each day to
make our lives easy and save us from doing work. Lives in the advanced areas of
the world improved and communication increased exponentially. Now people around
the world know how much better it is to live in the developed world and the
majority who are not wealthy see and envy what the others enjoy.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Many people are trying to join the good life
peacefully, even if they perform the undesirable tasks that others refuse to
do. This doesn’t work for their children who are born into wealthy
environments. They expect returns for their sacrifice and hard work, without
needing to cheat or steal to get it. While this is happening, others are
risking all to join in. In the poor places, there are wars and insurrections
that filter into our country.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Just a short time ago, we had to break up a
fight between opposing parties from Africa. Canada is dealing with diplomatic
issues over past crimes in Ukraine and Poland, and a scandal from India. We
have problems to solve over the treatment of our own First Nations when the
country was being formed. There are still many people around who wish to restart
the conflict between the French and English Canadians. Others are fighting over
sexual variations, sex changes, and abortions. Just as many people are looking
for fights as those wanting peace. We have the most fresh water in the world
and now we are fighting over water. Global Warming is causing unexpected
conflicts.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">People find things to fight about everywhere.
In some places like Afghanistan, it is about religious practices. Other places
fight over political ideologies. Many more are at war over economic issues. The
rich want to have more money and the poor wish to have some and divide it
amongst many. Very often, conflicts arise about raw power and domination. The
biggest war ever was between a few powerful men who wanted to dominate the
world. When they do, people fight for freedom and independence. Anything scarce
causes people to fight. Gold was the main reason for Europeans taking over
South America.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">As far as I can see, the biggest reason for
fighting is to dominate portions of the planet and do on it what the
inhabitants wish or must do to stay alive. People get violent about their
native soil and often have some ideas about getting some of the ground that
others occupy. Bears and other animals feel the same about their territory.
With animals and some people, we feel justified in killing them and taking
their land. Take for example the Armenians in Nagorno Karabakh or people in
parts of Ukraine.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">In my birth country, Israel, Jews have been
fighting Palestinians for thousands of years. It is clear to see if we want,
that there is pressure from somewhere to teach us we can only win by
cooperation and not by fighting and winning. Will we do it, or die fighting?
The answer remains unwritten. The story needs an ending.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">We must have Democracy and use it to benefit
all.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a name="_Hlk513389707"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-no-proof: yes;">Here</span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> is a link to my blog: </span></a><a name="_Hlk512627101"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"></span></a><a href="https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/</span></span></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Feel free to <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">check other articles and comment.</span></span></span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-8523199047648457092023-09-24T19:41:00.001-07:002023-09-24T19:41:11.809-07:00Politics vs. Faith.<p> </p><p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><b><span style="font-size: 26.0pt;">Politics vs. Faith.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Some people just say hi, and look as if they
know me. Others ask me if I am the guy from the paper and say they like what I
write. One mailed me a pleasant letter. It is all welcome since I write for
them. One last week voiced a concern. He said he doesn’t believe in God and he
doesn’t believe that the world is in trouble. He looks at things statistically
and true enough: less than one percent of homes in BC burnt last summer. I felt
like saying, yes, let’s do nothing until over 50% of homes are burnt. We will
solve the problem later. Let us think positively.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I am being sarcastic here. I have strong
feelings about beliefs and thinking, much based on primitive knowledge that is
not popular in the Western world. It takes a lot of research to find out about
the old knowledge that is not written down. With all of our outstanding medical
technology, not many are interested in jungle spirituality.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I don’t follow any guru or shaman for my
faith. I don’t go telling people that every word in my Christian bible is the
word of God either. People should do the work and figure it out for themselves.
Because I can read Hebrew, I know that there are variations in translations.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">We live in times where the truth is the
hardest thing to come by. Confusion is built into our nature. In the Bible, the
humans were trying to be like God, so they built a tower to Heaven. God didn’t
want the competition, so he made them/us speak in different languages. Soon we/they
were at each other’s throats. Go forward in history to the time in which the
resurrected son of God was forming a new religion and read on.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Jesus was sending twelve simple, probably
illiterate fishermen, out to change the world. He gave them a gift of tongues
that sounded much like a new version of Google Translate. They used it and
today his religion is the largest in the world. The secret is to remove
confusion and work towards one goal. We can do it, but we don’t. Our nature is
to set ourselves apart and try to get ahead of each other. Presently, we do it
by following political ideologies.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Private interests play a role in politics,
making everything politicized and lacking genuine action. The politics are
played with private interest in mind. As I am watching, my province is busy
trying to break away from the Canada Pension Plan. It is one of the best
pension systems in the world and it works because we all are in it. One
province had its own before the rest started, so they are keeping theirs. Now
Alberta wants out since we have a younger population. If we do that, the rest
of Canada will have to cover our share and possibly ruin the Canada Pension
Plan. People will be forced to purchase insurance and the poor who need it the
most will be left out in the cold.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">One of the first stories in the Bible, which
so many of us claim to believe in, is about Cain and Abel. That comes from the
beginning of our civilization. Cain killed his brother out of jealousy. God
asked him where his brother was and he answered with a question. Am I my
brother’s keeper? He was not. God punished him by marking him for everyone to
see. That is not much. However, it was clear to the ancient people who wrote
the story down that we can’t survive if we look only after ourselves. We are
social animals and need each other.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Alberta now is becoming much like Cain from
the Bible. The whole world is realizing that continuing to use the energy that
we became addicted to is harmful, even if we insist it is most ethical against
all the signs. We are trying to break the Health Care system by privatizing
small portions and are harming the Canada Pension Plan. How long is it going to
be before we will not dare to tell people where we are from?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Our government wants to determine our actions
with referendums. They know that this is the easiest way to cheat. You can see
what Brexit did to Great Britain. Referendum questions can be misleading. I
look at what is happening to our insurance and worry. We have been hit with
extreme weather events less than BC, but much of our personal wealth is
uninsurable or very expensive to insure. Year after year is warmer than the one
before. Believing in Global Warming is not determining if it happens or not.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">My goal is to survive and not be ashamed to
show my face as a Canadian from Alberta. I want politicians to represent me,
not try to shape me.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a name="_Hlk513389707"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-no-proof: yes;">Here</span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> is a link to my blog: </span></a><a name="_Hlk512627101"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"></span></a><a href="https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/</span></span></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Feel free to <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">check other articles and comment.</span></span></span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-22574500677303369402023-09-17T20:35:00.000-07:002023-09-17T20:35:15.238-07:00 Is “Me” going to survive Death?<p> </p><p><b><span style="font-size: 26.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is
“Me” going to survive Death?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Mom, I said, where was ”I“ before I was born?
You were in mom’s tummy she said. But before that? She said something about angels
but I didn’t get it. Later in life, I came back to that question many times as
I was learning new things but never got an actual answer. It was obvious why.
No one ever told me who “I” was. It wasn’t my body, and it wasn’t my soul. I am
the one who has the body and soul, but I don’t know who is “I am”.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Now I am considered “old” and I am asking
where will I be after this life is over. When the doctor said, “You have a
tumor, and it’s cancerous,” the question became more urgent. There is only
limited time for me to find out before I’ll go there and folks rarely come back
to tell us. Some people think they are experts on the subject, but they leave
me full of questions. Heaven, they call the place of the dead, or hell if you
were bad enough, but they don’t say who is “me” that will go there. Will I look
like my body? I hope not. I never felt that my body was that great at all.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The church that I was born into has many
books and teachings, but even if you read them all, you can’t find the answer
to my question. Who is me? I have a body that is designed carefully for this
life. It starts as an embryo, grows, learns, and later works. It is always
waiting for something in the future.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">When I first asked my mom the question, I was
only less than three feet tall. I was always waiting to be older, stronger, and
smarter, but when I did, I was waiting to be older and smarter yet. Never
reached the point at which I can say I know. I waited to be an adult, to
graduate, get a promotion, have kids, raise them, and every year go for
vacations.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Life is a gift of time in a human body in
which we play a game. The game has billions of potential moves since we play it
with all the billions of people who are also playing and with the entire world.
It doesn’t stop with the world since there is a universe that houses the world
and it has no end. The part that makes it more interesting is the human
invention called time. We are designed to function for up to about a hundred
years and we know it. Do what you wish, if you can, but there will be an end. What
comes after the end is a mystery that we can’t solve, only guess at.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I am not good at guessing. However, if I knew
what comes after death, would I be the same? I refuse to believe that after
this life I will sleep forever and all that I learned will be wasted.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">As I struggle with those philosophical
questions, another dimension arrives and gains popularity. It comes mostly with
the young people playing with artificial intelligence gadgets. What if all that
I learned is wrong and reality is not what we think it is? Young people are
playing with very advanced virtual reality that keeps getting more
sophisticated and convincing every day. When we will develop quantum computers,
the border between what’s real and what is imagined will become blurrier. All
we need is the computing power.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Serious scientists, including physicists, are
awakening to new possibilities investigating old ideas with new technology. We
built our modern science upon our ability to test and measure theories. There
are many theories out there. Multiple universes, Matrix, and others. People
have been questioning the validity of what we call reality for thousands of
years. Major worldwide religions came up with ideas that seemed to contradict
our Western beliefs until recently. Now, with renewed interest in spirituality,
we see some similarities.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">We are discovering astonishing facts when we
use the latest technologies. The material world that we didn’t question for
most of written history seems to be less solid than we thought. If we magnify
what we assume are the building blocks of reality, we come up with nothing. The
smallest particles of the atoms are mostly energy, with hardly any material
substance at all. What we consider solid is only so at a certain
frequency. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Other scientists are deep into the study of
dreams. In the biblical days, dreams were very important but later became fairy
tales with no significant value. Now they are making a comeback. There is money
invested into the study of dreams and their psychological values. There are
books published by serious universities and professors.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Another so-called New Age idea that’s
becoming a more serious study is the effect of human thoughts, not only on our
own bodies but on events in reality. For a long time, people dismissed the idea
as just prayers that do not affect reality, but now studies are designed to
provide scientific proof that our thoughts can influence events. Researchers
have recently been using water for demonstration purposes. The results are
indisputable. Human thoughts and beliefs change material substance.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I don’t know where I was pre-birth or will be
after this life. I am sure that, that which I call “me” will still be conscious.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a name="_Hlk513389707"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-no-proof: yes;">Here</span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> is a link to my blog: </span></a><a name="_Hlk512627101"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"></span></a><a href="https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/</span></span></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Feel free to <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">check other articles and comment.</span></span></span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-55669596456089477702023-09-11T08:13:00.002-07:002023-09-11T08:13:36.235-07:00 Rural life and Communities.<p> </p><p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><b><span style="font-size: 26.0pt;">Rural life and Communities.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I am beginning to feel like a writer from the
past. Often my articles start with a line similar to the old children’s stories
that used to open with, “a long time ago in a faraway land”. I don’t have a
time machine. The truth is that my stories were in my lifetime and here in
Alberta. It feels as if it was in history in some other place. We like
nostalgia and remember mostly the good things, but Alberta was a better place
in many ways. People didn’t go on cruises, didn’t have homes full of unneeded,
often unused stuff, and having a telephone and a black-and-white TV was the
limit of technology we used. We had real walking talking friends instead of
Facebook friends and told them what we liked instead of clicking “likes” and
counting them.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Friends often met someplace and went
together. Some groups met over kids’ activities, community sports, and, in
those days, some church activities. Later, we went for coffee or even a meal
together. Even those who made minimum wages could afford to go out. Since I
didn’t belong to a social group with money to spare, we looked for places that
cost little. One option in those years was to go to a hospital cafeteria.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The hospital kitchen served nutritious meals
to patients, staff, and outsiders who could sit together at long tables and
meet new people. It wasn’t fancy, but outsiders were welcome and had a
nutritious, safe meal. We sat at the long tables and met nurses, doctors, and
perhaps some homeless people.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Schools had cafeterias, daycares did, and
some places provided meals for the needy, free of charge. The point I’d like to
make is that we didn’t have situations where hundreds of people were catching
diseases from one central kitchen. Now we do.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Last week a whole chain of daycares spread E’coli
to their little trusting customers. Some kids are probably still hospitalized
as you are reading this. It couldn’t have happened under the old system. They
all share a central kitchen.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I look with tears in my eyes at the parents
whose kids are fighting for their lives. Many had to stay away from work,
causing problems all over the place and they don’t know where to leave their
kids next week. They talk about class action lawsuits, but how will that help?
We can’t buy kids for money or purchase health.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The Alberta that I remember, was built on
communities that copied our rural life. A village had a doctor, a town had a
clinic with some most needed equipment, and for big problems, we went to the
nearest city. A village had a daycare where they cooked food for their kids.
They cared. The same was true for a community in the city.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Now economics is the driving force. It is
cheaper to cook on an industrial level, so we did away with kitchens in each
hospital or school. Efficiency was prioritized over human interaction to
benefit investors, but this caused a gap between producers and consumers. They
don’t live happy lives but exist to produce and consume. They are always
pursuing happiness, but happiness in the form of lots of money never comes
close to most people. We buy lottery tickets even if only one in millions ever
wins and mostly don’t keep it long.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I am not trying to tell you that Canada was
perfect in those days. It wasn’t. The people who felt most oppressed were in
Quebec and they rebelled in the quiet revolution. African Canadians and First
Nations began to demand equality and acknowledgment of their legal rights.
People who were different asked for better treatment. There was a big argument
in the country about abortion and birth control rights for women. Draft dodgers
from the US came by the thousands and we had demonstrations against the US
policies about Vietnam. Canada was discovering its soul.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">None of the disturbances were as noticeable
as the women and their sympathizers fighting for equality, especially on pay.
It was legal and common to pay women half or three-quarters of what we pay men
for the same work. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Canada chose a new flag and a new Prime Minister
wanted to bring the Constitution home and be free from British rule. Slowly the
people won some rights but also lost the spirit of community living and small
business being important for the new economy.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Now we can’t find anything made in Canada and
we must sell our resources for a price determined by forces outside of our
country. We can’t compete in the market if our local daycare cooks their own
meals. We hardly have any communities left that can be as self-sufficient as
they used to be. People in our cities don’t know their neighbors.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I owe my life to technical advancement and
modern development. Yet I am nostalgic about the communities we had and miss
knowing who cooked the meals in the hospital, daycare, and school.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a name="_Hlk513389707"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none; mso-no-proof: yes;">Here</span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> is a link to my blog: </span></a><a name="_Hlk512627101"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"></span></a><a href="https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/</span></span></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk512627101;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk513389707;"><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Feel free to <span style="mso-no-proof: yes;">check other articles and comment.</span></span></span><span style="mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-90893433922118956992023-09-03T22:57:00.000-07:002023-09-03T22:57:38.787-07:00Lucky or Blessed?<p> </p><p><b><span style="font-size: 26.0pt;">Lucky or Blessed?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">These days when I have time away from my
cancer concerns, we visit friends who also have cancer issues and we talk. Now
we talk about fires. A friend’s daughter visiting from Vancouver told us
happily that the problem with fires is over. It’s not Global Warming she said.
They caught the people who were starting the fires. It was interesting to hear
that the authorities caught the people who were starting the fires. They must
have been very special to start thousands of fires from Kelowna to the
North-West Territories. On their time off, they started fires in Greece,
Portugal, Hawaii, the eastern provinces, the Western States, and much more.
Global Warming is being blamed also for floods in many places, but perhaps
“they” will catch who is doing it soon.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I hope we will catch those guys soon since we
have other problems to deal with. The African nations are rebelling against
their governments. As people are losing their meager ways to survive through
hard work and saving what they can, they do the only other thing they can.
Trying to migrate into the more affluent parts of the world is not working, but
they still have guns. Give them more time and they will purchase more modern
weapons and learn how to use them. We may catch a few careless campers setting
fires, but Africa has hundreds of millions of people. Those people know how to
build armies, buy weapons, and attack others who accumulate wealth from their
resources. Fires, floods, looming wars, and it’s more scary than cancer.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">When we see the migrants looking to get in,
we wish them to go back to their countries. After all, Africa and other
continents are rich in many ways. Why do they not develop their own countries
and take care of their people? Because their ex-colonial masters take it all telling
them to be happy they have some jobs. Sounds familiar.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I remember some sixty years ago or more when
those countries were fighting for independence. The colonial masters figured it
would be cheaper to join the freedom fighters and rule remotely. One after the
other, the leaders of independence movements mysteriously found help in the old
colonial powers. France trained a presidential guard to keep a powerful family
in Gabon in power for years in exchange for resource exploitation contracts. It
only worked until now when Global Warming is reducing people’s ability to
produce and purchase food. Now Gabon is the latest African country to rebel
against their government and lock up the president.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">We have a worldwide problem. The Particulates
that are produced by burning things act as a blanket over the planet, keeping
heat in. It’s a blanket that we can’t take off. Droughts and dryness caused by
heat lead to more burning, increasing the problem. When the hot air meets
cooler temperatures, it releases the collected moisture, leading to floods in
places we never imagined. Governments are responding to public pressure and
helping the devastated areas. None of us knows if we will not be next.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The money that we spend on fighting fires and
floods is not available for regular government expenses or to help those
affected by the droughts and floods, which brings food insecurity and makes
people consider war as a possible solution. I end up thinking that perhaps
dying from cancer will be easier than living in the world we made so hostile.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Looking through my window, I see paradise and
realize that for some reason my community of the Crowsnest Pass is doing very
well compared to the world I see on the various news. I go for a stroll
downtown and notice how the community picked up in the last little while.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Some people believe in luck. Am I and so many
others lucky to have cancer, heart problems, and other issues? Of course not.
But we are here and even with governments that have been causing problems to
our healthcare system over and over, we still have a great system. We have a
problem with Global Warming but here the climate is moderate and even the
winters are fun. Yet, how often can a person be lucky? I choose to skip the
popular idea that we are lucky and change the word to “blessed.” You can be
lucky only sometimes. The casino always wins, but you can be blessed all the
time. It has something to do with the Universal Mind that governs the universe.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Ours is a place where there are many faiths
living in harmony with each other. I am starting to consider that perhaps the
Universal Mind, or God as I call it, is using us to demonstrate a point. Here
there are older folks who worked underground and lived modestly. Their children
built a community that is resourceful and welcoming. Others noticed it, and the
natural beauty, and moved in. It is not the playground of the rich, but life
here is more attractive than in the cities and their bedroom communities.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Each day I meet kind and helpful residents
mixed with a steady stream of visitors who are reading the real estate boards
and considering life here.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I place cancer aside and enjoy the place I am
in, remembering to be grateful for the blessings. Somehow, the universe knows.
I also pray for a tomorrow.<o:p></o:p></span></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-17265812174606890182023-08-27T19:29:00.002-07:002023-08-27T19:29:53.823-07:00Warning from the Universe.<p> </p><p><b><span style="font-size: 24.0pt;">Warning from the Universe. <o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">It was 1967. We rented a one-bedroom
apartment by the Holy Cross Hospital for the four of us. Newcomers can’t afford
much. Next, I went for a walk to look for a place to buy groceries. I passed by
a Safeway but couldn’t figure out what they do. Looked inside and concluded
that it must be a wholesaler’s place. How could there be a space this size for
people to grocery shop? Two blocks away there was a small corner grocery store
and to my surprise, the owner could speak Hebrew. It saved me. We had food and shelter
if we could get a job that would pay before our money ran out. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">There were private little food stores every
few blocks, many laundromats, bakeries, and even little shops selling and
fixing TVs. Unemployment wasn’t a problem. Little private businesses filled the
city, paid taxes, and provided employment even for the most unskilled folks.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Two years later, we had a used car. It was a
Chevy ll ($900) 1965, and we took care of it better than people today look
after $50,000 vehicles. I was now a regular at the local gas station with a
two-bay garage where the local guys hung out most days. There were gas stations
and garages almost at every corner. Little mom-and-pop restaurants filled the
rest of the space.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I loved how capitalism worked. Half of the
people were self-employed and street competition kept prices low, leaving
little room for small business owners to boast about their work. The others
were wage workers. They mostly made lower income than those in private business
but had fewer things to be concerned about. Someone else took care of pensions,
health care, keeping up with inflation, and all the rest. Unions were just as
concerned about the well-being of the business as the owners. We hadn’t yet
grown to believe that workers were a resource to be exploited and considered
employees to be our most valuable resource. When I quit one job, the big boss
came out with me to convince me to stay, even though I was the vice president
of the union. We all worked together.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The years went by. Slowly the lives of the
workers became just a bit harder every year, as the wealth of those who “made
it” ballooned out of proportion. In Europe, the cradle of our colonial
civilization, the emphasis was to look after their national population, while
in America, the winner took it all. No one cared about the people who were not
born in the affluent part of the world. We let them in slowly, just to keep the
wages of unskilled workers low.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The period between 1967 and the early two
thousand is significant in one way. Humanity did advance in some respects but
was overproducing to satisfy the industrial sector. Marketing ensured that we
would borrow, buy, and exploit the planet without consideration of what was
coming. Now the results are in. Garbage is killing nature, air, water, and all.
Some of us are trying to fix the problem while others are making it worse. Both
sides are not doing anything unless it gives them political points.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I believe in a universal mind that silently
oversees what humans do and uses natural forces to make corrections while
letting us make our own decisions. We don’t expect a rock called Earth flying
in space to have a mind and take action, but it does. When we hurt it, it
fights back, using us to punish ourselves.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Our scientists are all interested in what we
can see and not at all in anything else. The smartest people from the past had
other ideas. They believed in a universal mind that doesn’t register an image
based on light and human vision. We are just now starting to investigate the
possibility that invisible “things” can exist and be intelligent or able to
act. Some of us even noticed that most of the universe is not an empty vacuum
as we imagined, but something that has gravity which we can measure. They call
it dark matter, amongst other names. It co-exists with us, but it is older and
more knowledgeable than us. It has the power to mark us as a failed experiment.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">We possibly took the wrong road soon after
1967 and the force is watching what we will do. Science is great, but shouldn’t
replace God.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">If I were that force, which I am not, I would
set up to be ready for the human experiment failing but ready to assist if they
change. The planet can slowly become more hostile yet able to recover from the
right action from humans.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Most people never read the Book of Jonah in
the Old Testament. He reluctantly warned the city of Nineveh that God would
destroy them, but they repented and were saved. Could the story of Jonah in the
Old Testament have a message for our generation if we are willing to learn?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">If you think
it is, develop your capacity for love, compassion, empathy, and higher consciousness.
Give up the chase for money, power, fame, and self-importance. Take care of our
world.<o:p></o:p></span></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-37086713543918886002023-08-20T19:47:00.000-07:002023-08-20T19:47:00.304-07:00The art of leadership.<p> </p><p><b><span style="font-size: 26.0pt;">The art of leadership.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">A long time ago, I applied for a promotion
and received my first supervisory appointment. I was in charge of a group of
people and had a mission to accomplish. The people all had their own ideas and
were concerned about how to achieve their personal goals ahead of those of the
employer. Mothers needed to raise their kids, students had to pass exams and so
it went. I was representing the employer while the workers all needed the pay,
but considered their personal needs ahead of the employer’s goals. I did not
even have the most minimal training in supervising people. All I had was the
example of my supervisors, who mostly failed. Supervisors in those days existed
by threatening to fire people and often abuse workers if they could. My boss
told me that supervisors were not in to win popularity contests. I assumed that
success would mean workers achieving their needs by making the employer achieve
the company’s goals.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I and other young supervisors were the first
generations born after the war. Our elders were educated with army discipline
while we learned new ideas about psychology, self-improvement, motivation, team
building, and more. The employer sent us for a week of training in the Japanese
methods of leadership. At the time, Japan was devastated by the war they lost,
but came out of the ashes with glorious results. They built a new system based
on loyalty. They built up industry, mostly car manufacturing, that successfully
competed with the pride of the US automotive industry.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">There was no conflict between labor and
investors. The supervisor’s job was to provide the workers with what they
needed and aim them toward the company being number one. The workers worked
hard, were proud of their achievements, and involved their families in the
company's future. American companies stumbled over each other to adopt the
Japanese business model and workers enjoyed a good middle-class life. Employers
also didn’t need to waste effort on micromanaging. The products gained a
reputation for being reliable and cheap.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">As often happens, the unions quit just trying
to keep up with inflation, demanding to get ahead with less effort. Employers
found ways around them and hired temporary part-time people who had no benefits
and often not even a regular schedule of work. The consumers paid the price.
Soon employers started searching for ways to get the work done with less or
even no front-line staff. That is why we have automated cashiers, automated
banking machines and so much more.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The attitude of prioritizing personal gain
over loyalty to employers replaced the old way of thinking. This came with
additional costs, resulting in reduced quality of products and services.
Countries with loyalty won while industrial nations used intimidation as a
business tool. The world changed.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">If we aim at producing the most for the
lowest cost, forced labor will be our choice. Slaves or machines can do that.
The old colonial system worked well and made some people very rich. However,
over time, it failed. The same is true for using natural resources
irresponsibly. The natural disasters of 2023 are proof of it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">We've been producing too much for too long to
benefit a few of us, but at the cost of workers and the environment, mainly the
energy.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Another worthy goal could be to use what we
have wisely and supply what we need, aiming at durable products while paying
fairly for them. This could provide a good living for all and the workers can
be our best consumers if they are paid well. It is a win-win situation, with
long-lasting benefits for the world and the people. It can only work if the
political will supports it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">We love games and admire winning. Unfortunately,
we forget that for every winner, there must be a loser. For me to be recognized
or rich, some others will have to be ignored and poor. Their resentment will
grow, the world will suffer, and peace will not be possible. Our society may
end up being another great civilization that disappeared from the pages of
history if it has not already done so.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">In my youth, I looked at life as a great
possibility, with hope being the primary motivator. Now I look back and think,
how can we salvage the most out of the mess we made? The red sun reminds me
that life on Earth is a journey with a beginning and an end. My experience
dictates that the only way is going together, covering each other’s backs.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">My management textbooks aside, I focus on one
line, not from a manager’s course or book. “Lead us not into temptation and
deliver us from evil.” Another line pops up in my biological computer I call
the brain. Forgive us as we forgive others. I think I have what we need to save
ourselves if we choose to do so. I will let this be the ending of the article
about human leadership.<o:p></o:p></span></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-11650821592656756792023-08-14T17:02:00.002-07:002023-08-14T17:02:53.808-07:00Two weeks’ holidays.<p> </p><p><b><span style="font-size: 24.0pt;">Two weeks’ holidays.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Two weeks in human life is not long, but not
insignificant either. We are designed to live about sixty to eighty years, but
many live longer or shorter. There are accidents, sickness, wars, acts of
nature, malnutrition, and much more. Just listing the causes of death can
easily fill a page. There are also people with a genetic disposition to live
longer than most. There are people who can afford to live lives of leisure
protected from most dangers. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Insurance companies are excellent at using
statistics to predict how long people will live in a geographical area. I am
not sure about the accuracy of this, but I heard that life expectancy is
declining and infant mortality is increasing in the United States. It’s not
what I would expect.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">When I started my work life as a teenager,
two weeks was the normal holiday. We worked eleven and a half months a year and
holidayed for two weeks. Few people in those days had the means to go somewhere
on vacation, but family visits were a common pass time. I remember the
excitement of waiting for the holidays. Often I had projects lined up to be
done when I was off work. Even though we didn't always have summer holidays, we
enjoyed our time off. No one in my circles traveled by plane to other places
because the only way to finance such was by giving up on other important things
in life. I didn’t know any folks that were born into money. If I met them, they
looked down with curled lips, often saying that they hate immigrants.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Later came a new period of holidays. We
started camping. Holiday trailers and boats showed up on the highways and an
industry developed around catering to vacationers. Now a holiday is longer for
many folks. When I retired, I had seven weeks of vacation a year plus
accumulated time from working extra. I chose to spend as much time as I could
in the Crowsnest Pass, but my children prefer to endure the airports and the
rush. They still mostly do a two-week vacation and the rest “as needed.” It is
a prestige show item and people spend a lot of time talking about the exotic
places they visited.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Now I am old, fighting cancer, and no longer
care about holidays. My whole life is a holiday, spent in my choice of place,
but I am not who I used to be when holidays meant so much to me. As a child, I
lived in a tourist destination but didn’t know it. Holidays were a time away
from school when I was alone on the farm. Later in life, when everyone was
traveling, I was happy to be in a place that satisfied all my needs, stayed
there, and thanked the Lord.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">My work now is writing a column in the local
paper. I receive positive comments which motivate me to write more. When I get
two weeks of holidays I don’t rejoice, nor feel neglected. The world moves on.
However, this year I wish it didn’t move as fast. First, there was a strike in
Hollywood, the center of world entertainment, consequently well publicized.
Shortly after a costly strike by the shoreman paralyzed sections of the
economy. We found out that the Hollywood people were not being paid living
wages. Both striking groups had a new demand. They want guarantees not to be
replaced by Artificial intelligence. Another disaster showed its ugly face.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The economy went into inflation. We
discovered Canada is suffering from a severe shortage of housing, while we are
short workers. Money was set aside for housing but may have enriched people who
do not provide the type of housing that is needed most. Many seniors and people
on fixed incomes are using food banks.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">As if that is not enough, global warming is
here ahead of predictions. Canada is on fire. Droughts are threatening the food
supply and there is no money to pay for the extensive fire and flood damage.
Now even the tropical island of Hawaii is burning. I am trying to get away from
all the bad news, but there is no break.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Every day there are reports of people trying
desperately to migrate to better places and perishing in the attempts.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">In desperation, I close my eyes and pray.
God, please help us. We lost our way. In my mind, a voice says, you humans
abandoned faith in me. Even those who say they believe in me honestly don’t.
They either believe that their science will save them or argue about the
stories I used for teaching what humans must do to save themselves.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I go back in my mind to what I know about
holy books or scriptures. Eastern religions talk about reincarnation and
eventually uniting with the Universal Mind. Judaism is built upon being the
chosen people. Islam doesn’t shy away from using force to convert. Christianity
appeals to me the most, but we divided it into over a thousand philosophies.
Somewhere in all those volumes full of words, there is a truth hiding that all
the believers claim to know.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">What we need, now more than ever, is to
change a few things.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Co-operation instead of predatory
competition.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Less effort to please our desires and more to
be moral creatures.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Understand each other as before the tower of
Babel.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Listen to the collective unconsciousness more
than to the private consciousness.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I will leave you with that and face the
coming two weeks. May God watch over us all.<o:p></o:p></span></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-13179435595666332792023-07-24T13:03:00.001-07:002023-07-24T13:03:22.219-07:00 Sick world, or not?<p> </p><p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><b><span style="font-size: 24.0pt;">Sick world, or not?<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The Alberta sun is blood red and going down. Here
in the Crowsnest Pass, we happen to live where there are no wildfires this
year, but most of our people are not that lucky. The map on the weather network
shows around a hundred fires and a helicopter pilot just got killed around Peace
River. Reports from all over the world say that this is the hottest year since
we have been recording. It’s the worst in BC.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">In 1975, I learned at university that fires,
floods, and changing climate, will happen. We believed it would not happen in
our lifetime and ignored the predictions. We like to hear only good news. Many
still do, even as they drown in floods or lose everything to fires. In my
opinion, humble as it is, those who profit from carbon released into the air
should pay for the damages. Why should we pay with taxes for damage caused by
private enterprise? Their own scientists warned them.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">My wife and I were driving back home from
Pincher Creek and highway paving forced us to wait for hours. Locals like us
took side roads through the towns and came back to the highway ahead of the
traffic, causing us to wait in the heat much longer. Soon some motorcycles
passed the line on the right and inserted themselves into the waiting line
ahead of us. A friend told me the next day how he was smart and made it to an
appointment on time, while another, a mother coming back from work was late to
pick up her kids. Someone is ahead since others are set back.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">A politician rose to fame by criticizing
another politician much like himself. They both had only one thing in mind: to
be powerful and force poor workers to work harder for less. I attended a
meeting in which the politician plainly said that the workers were stupid and
didn’t deserve more. The politician made millions, but the workers couldn't afford
rent and good food for their children. I wanted to shout. It’s not fair, but we
all know.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">Those are examples of what happens to a
society that lost its morals. On the world stage, it translates to wars and
other disasters causing horrible suffering and uncountable loss of lives. There
will be a price to pay for Russia destroying Ukrainian grain, for example.
There is only one human world and all humans are a part of it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I figured out years ago that humans like me
appear as individual entities but are all parts of the same body. Even the old
bible says so. We gain an advantage by taking from other people. If we could
regulate ourselves and not overdo it, the world would be a different place, but
we don’t. That is why the Lord’s prayer mentions, “Lead us not into
temptation.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">We all know the feeling. I can buy something
shiny new or do a good deed with the money. Just like a raven, I grab the shiny
and fly away, letting others worry about the needs of those who are not as well-off,
saying that I worked for what I have and that they can do the same. A few can,
but there are always many who can’t.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">The planet we inhabit was designed to sustain
all of us if we do the following. We must use the wisdom of the planet that we
used for millions of years before developing into what we are now. It is called
“Mother Earth” by primitive people for a reason. It gives us life and takes
care of us to maturity. We are made from it and exist on its gifts. It demands
however something in return. We must accept with our free will to share the
bounty with others who are not superior humans, as we are, in our opinion. The
Mother demands that we will love our brothers and sisters or perish by our own
hands and go back to nothing. Complete nothing, no created things.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">It’s a hot day and I am sitting by a keyboard
living up to my commitment. My readers get a new article every week. Many thank
me for it. My body is sick but I keep a mask on. We all do if we admit it or
not. The world from where I am looks great. Is it just a mask? I ask, or is it
me thinking that it’s a sick world?<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">If it is sick, then we have a way to show
that it can be cured. We have a spot that is blessed by God, or the universal
mind. Not so cold in the winters, or hot in the summers. The people help each
other and feel safe. There are people here representing all the major
religions, nationalities, and age groups. People with disabilities are safe
here and outsiders are competing for the privilege of living here.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 16.0pt;">I see many faces of visitors around and I
think we are exporting the goodness we are blessed with. I look at the setting
sun and it’s not red today. I hear kids’ voices from a holiday home. The church
was full of visitors this morning. Thank you, Lord, I whisper and I feel an
answer. Keep it up, good people, and I will be here with you. <o:p></o:p></span></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2828949737792727462.post-24025059751419429682023-07-17T09:53:00.000-07:002023-07-17T09:53:12.805-07:00Thinking Education and beliefs.<p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size: 24.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Thinking Education
and beliefs.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">All my life
I loved animals. I chose to live the rest of my life, after retirement, in a
place where I can be close to nature and the four-legged creatures. The animals
are much like us and have similar bodies, emotions, feelings of loyalty, and
even a sense of humor. What they don’t have is our ability to think. We can
think about life, ideas, and death. Our thinking allows us to solve problems,
invent things, and be creative. It also allows me to remember some things and
forget others. Without it, I may lose my mind. If my conscience existed before
the moment I was born, I would love to remember where I was and predict where I
will be after death. I must consider however that there could exist a good
reason why that knowledge is hidden from me. This life may just be a holiday
from another life that we can’t see from here. Our senses don’t detect much of
the universe. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">When we see
a newborn baby we realize that there is something in it that makes it a person.
The newborn doesn’t yet know anything that it can do by thinking and acting. It
knows how to breathe, eat, and clear the waste from the body but not much else.
The rest comes later mostly after observing those who already know. For the
animals, it happens much faster. They act more on the sub-conscience while we
learn ideas. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">At one point
I learned to use my hands to grab and at another to walk on two feet. How did I
do it? I don’t know. I learned millions of little things that I use throughout life
and can’t remember when or how. One thing is clear to me when I think about it.
I am not free. All of what I know, like how to be a human being, I learned from
those around me. Not acting that way would have been unpleasant for me since
society made those myths we learn and insist that all humans learn them. I
learned what others call common sense. Much of what we learned in the past
turned out not to be true. The Earth is not flat, and we are not the center of
the universe. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Year after
year the people around were teaching me more about how to be like them,
therefore human. If I had any ideas of doing something my way I got criticized and
when I did it their way I received praise. Each year I was working hard to do
things like my elders. The kindergarten turned to grade one, in which I was
waiting to be in grade two. The kids in the next grade were always bigger,
faster, and knew more things and I couldn’t wait to be like them. The biggest
change was graduating from grade eight. The kids looked like adults and I
assumed that adults had all the freedoms of the world. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">When I came
to Canada there was a different graduation system. At eighteen you could pass a
test and drive and at twenty-one you could drink alcohol. Young people joined
their older counterparts in the race to see who can make more money. They
divided their time between work and pleasure. Work provides money that will
allow to buy happiness, but it never does. The work is something they do but
wouldn’t have done without pay. The money is promising to buy pleasure but can’t.
The reward is always in the future and after a brief moment is in the past. The
“life” remains unfulfilled. We are always living in anticipation of something
better coming. A trip perhaps or a long-awaited visit. Possibly a move to a
better place. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">People go
through the levels of education, train for work, get promoted, and discover
that they are making someone else rich or more powerful while not improving
their own lives. Retirement comes and they don’t have the energy to truly enjoy
it. The human race is growing new humans to be like us and tell them that this
is freedom, which they believe. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The biggest questions
are never answered. Who am I? I am not my body. I have seen living people die
and leave the body. Where did they go? Religions try to answer that question
but never agree. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Humans tell
stories and stories become reality. Religions are stories that often were
written by the smartest humans of their time drawing upon stories of humans in
touch with the divine. Other humans worked hard to shape the stories and make
them improve what humans do, and we teach those ways to new humans. They always
have some promises for a better future but the ultimate future is not seen by
the living. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I am
convinced that the Universe is not dumb and that we are not a mistake of
nature. The universal mind is guiding us in some direction and acts like a
loving father or parent. It leaves us in charge giving us free will. It exists
regardless if we are alive or after we die. It allows us to destroy ourselves
or improve our existence. We choose with the help of our stories. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Now<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am old and perhaps at the end of my life. I
don’t know if the animals may have a better life without my ability to think. They
don’t have a religion or God and don’t think about the afterlife. I can’t avoid
it. <o:p></o:p></span></p>https://thesimpleravenspost.blogspot.ca/http://www.blogger.com/profile/18096780150987241949noreply@blogger.com0