I am speaking about the recent legislation in NC whereby the state employees must prove that they don't smoke or must meet certain BMI standards (i.e., not be fat) to qualify for less costly health insurance. It's not that I mind the concept of health, it's just the methods. The methods in this case are draconian and fascist in my opinion. You will come in to my personal space and test me for nicotine use. You will subject me to embarrassing body fat measurements. In the name of health? What else will you mandate in the name of health?
Is this about wellness or is this about money? How much will this testing program cost the state of NC in terms of actual dollars and the loss of good qualified people who will just not subject themselves to this madness? Is the state saving money or is the insurance company? Is this really about wellness? Do poor people who can barely afford whatever food they can put on the table benefit from this policy? Is this truly the best method to promote wellness?
What will be the next criteria for wellness? Vitamin D in the blood, muscle mass, certain chemicals? Are we measuring the amount of fast food consumed in a week? Now THAT would be a good way to promote wellness! But that would impact the fast food industry and even though we've proved time and again that a steady diet of fast food is detrimental to overall wellness we won't touch that sacred cow (well I think it's a cow; I'm never quite sure what is exactly in those burgers).
No more debate in this country -- Self censorship for the lose
We don't debate in this country any more, we polarize. If you say something, anything that is against the other persons view point then you are labeled a radical, rabble-rouser or conspiracy theorist or just plain kook! We are not allowed to even mention concepts or viewpoints today that clash with popular culture. When you have a country when you begin to self-censor yourself, where you tell yourself "I can't say that because it's unpopular or will make people uncomfortable, regardless of the level of truth" then you have started the great decline. The country cannot sustain a democracy that is riddled with self-censorship and fear of speaking one's own mind and thoughts, however unpopular they might be.
eBay Madness
I've been selling off several relics of the past on eBay lately. I think it's a physical manifestation of the desire to rid myself of "things". Material things that tie me to places, people or the past and act not as a grounding force but a tether; some days seeming to hold me back.
Not that we should ignore the past, most certainly not. Look at Afghanistan. Russia committed over 108 THOUSAND troops to Afghanistan in the height of its attempt to tame that wild country. They failed epically! We have 65 Thousand troops over there and plan to add some more and we have already failed epically in that country. Yes, we have FAILED! Have we captured Osama Bin Laden? Have we stemmed the tide of Taliban? Have we won the "hearts and minds" of the Afghanistan population. Oh my goodness no! We have failed. And we are going to fail. History tells us we will fail in that endeavor if we follow in the same footsteps. Not to say Afghanistan isn't a place that needs attention. Is it in our best national interest to be there? Is this our primary national security interest of the moment? If you listen to the news it would seem so. I think not.
So I've been trying to learn from the past and yet let go of the past efforts and things that no longer have any real value. They just tie me down; keep me shackled to material "things". I'm trying to do some unshackling here and eBay is my shackle key set. So far I've not become rich by monetary standards but I have cleansed myself of some old junk and the entire process seems invigorating somehow.
Website SEO and other such nonsense
I'm still trying to figure out Search Engine Optimization. It's not easy. There's lots of clever folks out there getting their sites up to the top of the search engines and I'm just now beginning to catch up and get up to speed. If any of you are SEO geniuses please feel free to share some of your wisdom. I can use all the help I can get.
Fortune Frogs, Lucky Lizards, Magic Puzzle Boxes
and Australian Kakadu Hats
The store is doing well. I have sold a few items. No hats yet. I love these hats. They are comfortable and stylish and I've received so many compliments on them. I guess people just don't have the disposal income that the 6 O'clock news would like us to believe they do. I keep hearing that our recession (aka "deep recession" aka "depression") is getting better now, we can all sigh a sigh of relief. Unfortunately I'm not seeing people back to work, I'm not seeing money free up and I'm not seeing the local indicators that would lead me to believe this was even remotely true.
I received some samples of the Lucky Lizards and Fortune Frogs and they are so damned cute! I know many people that will get these for Christmas and birthday presents from me. I just love these things. Woops, am I getting attached to things again? Maybe we just have a hard time letting go of “things”.
