My Rantings and Postings.

My Tremendous Life Alteration.

2014-10-29T05:41:00.001-05:00

Wow. I surely miss having the time to post my rantings and ravings, but better to be where I am now, than be back in a cold and empty shell of a living environment where I literally did not have all of my basic needs met.

So for most of my life, I have been living in Chicago, Illinois. One of the most major cities in the world. Sure, it's nice to visit if you're a tourist and stick to the right areas but this is not a place to raise a family and live a happy life for most. Why?
Lack of jobs. Lack of honest politicians and law makers. Lack of safe streets. Lack of rights being upheld. Too much lack, not enough ability to slack in a good way.
For decades, Illinois has been noted as one of the most corrupt states in the union, and I simply cannot understand why I had to have been born there.

I have lived in Chicago for 23 years, and hundreds of job applications have been filled out by me. Since the age of 18, I have been hard at work trying to find a way to attain some honest and legal revenue but to no avail for this person of color and minority status. Nope.
From positions which require some experience to the most bottom tier entry level of openings, I've been hitting the pavement and making calls to try and get some employment because ya know, it's hard to eat and enjoy life without money. Location of job did not matter, starting wage did not matter, hours and duties did not matter. If I thought I had even a remote chance at getting a job with an employer with an opening, more than likely my name was in their massive pile of applicants willing to work and work and work.
After roughly 7 years of trying to land a job (any job) I finally struck gold with an employer which has mixed reviews. That employer? United Parcel Service.

Honestly my experience with them has been less than difficult. Steady work schedule, weekends off, decent pay (for a guy with no debts, kids, or significant living expenses) and for the most part, awesome coworkers. The heavy lifting and extreme weather conditions were much less than desired but no job is completely free of discomfort. So I sucked it up and worked and worked and worked! Originally hired on as a seasonal employee, I figured any money saved could help me fund something big so I would no longer have to go hungry and can eventually do those good deeds I have continually rambled about. Since my performance at the job was more than satisfactory, I remained there and my attitude remained unchanged. United Parcel Service was a pretty good employer for me out in Chicago.

Things were all fine and dandy for me until I realized that even though I have a steady job and solid references, I still could not land an additional job! Economic hardship was still rife in Illinois, along with my handicap of being an African American in a zone of corruption and discrimination aplenty. May, 2013 is when I decided that enough was enough. Although filling out job applications has become slightly easier for me around this time, I had the misfortune of getting calls for interviews only to be passed over. I would convey my interest to employers through writing cover letters and creating a well formatted resume tailored to the position as much as possible.
No. Avail.
I cannot blame everything on employers, to be fair. Had I more job experience I would have probably been considered.

So instead of bowing to the mercy of entry level employers paying less than an acceptable wage, I saved some money and started doing some research. Conflicting results plastered all over the internet really made me need to dig deep in order to find the best location possible. Had I ventured to St. Paul, MN I probably would have been killed seeing as there are gangs and swarms of radical migrants in that region. Had I chosen Appleton, WI I probably would have been passed over just as much. Moving to a suburb of Illinois would have most likely served no purpose, and it would have been too much of a safety net.

After doing some research based on fact and not biased opinion, I purchased a ticket heading to a location which the recession forgot. Based on this information alone, many would know what I am referring to straight away. I thank CNBC for leading me in this direction back in 2011, before I even had a job to make such a risk.

Anywho.....I am talking about North Dakota. Not just any area of North Dakota. If I am to put it all on the line and venture out to some unknown territory, it might as well be as close to in my favor as possible.
August 26th came around as I was as nervous and regretful as can be. I finally had what I desired in Chicago and I'm throwing it away on a chance. Well not completely throwing it away, but I'm taking a huge chance here and that's not really like me.
After the plane lands, I reach a city known of as Williston, North Dakota.

I honestly did not know what to expect as I landed, but I know at the very least: I had a mission.
All this talk of oilfield prosperity was to be experienced by me, but should that fail: I would at least be able to study something in school for a while and work while I studied.
Things were supposed to be so swell, but due to errors on my end and that of the institution which I intended to attend: I did not pursue education any further than the denial which I received when I made it in person.

This news crushed me beyond belief. The fact that I've paid so much money only to see one of my plans fail miserably, it wrecked me almost beyond belief. Not only was I experiencing an immediate bout of homesickness, but some personal drama which I could have avoided lead me to near breakdown levels of sobbing. I simply was not used to this much disappointment and failure, but one thing was certain: I had not much else left in regards to choices.

I have just landed in one of the most prosperous areas of the nation! I should be relieved and overjoyed! Those feelings are quickly depleted when you do not have a place to stay, the heat causes you to sweat through your clothes, the belongings you've packed are heavy, and the mosquitoes consider you a five course meal with desert and some fancy imported beverage. Ah yes, this is what failure and homelessness feels like.

This situation quickly threw me into panic mode. I've been looking for tickets which would get me out of there and fast. Mind you, I've only been there for merely hours at this point so maybe it was not too late for me to turn tail and run. Nah. Not a chance. Since I was wise enough to save some cash, I decided that maybe it does not have to be so bad. I can rest one night in a hotel and clear my head. HAHAHAHAHAH LOL GOOD LUCK WITH THAT NONSENSE!
Every hotel in the area was either fully booked, or completely overpriced.
So what was I left to do? Simple. Make the most of it.

At this point, I have been walking around for several hours. Dehydrated beyond belief. Irritated out of this world due to mosquitoes and the jealousy which comes from me not knowing of this place sooner. Starving and faced with many mental challenges and roadblocks. I was a mess and I knew it.
Before reaching such a low point, I was used to low points before. I guess this is one of the things which pushed me through and forced me to remain here until I can at least gather enough cash to return home. This is what set my mind on making the most of it and just flowing with it until something sticks.

Fast forward to 2 days later. Yes, two days.
I managed to find the job center located within city limits. Not long after having made it there, I was able to take care of some much needed communication to my loved ones and find a job.
What? Find a job in two days? I could not believe it myself! Well, it was a construction gig and I was nearly fired day one for not really having experience (at all) but after some negotiations on by me and my former bosses end I decided that I will stick with it and give it a shot until something better comes along.

Something did, but we will get to that later.
All of the grief and frustration of being without a place to stay (especially to shower up and rest in a bed) was amplified due to me having to physically exert myself in the hot sun all day. I did everything I could to show that I am an incredibly hard working individual and will not surrender but my frustration was beginning to show through. Not directly to my boss, but to some of my coworkers. They took note and gave me assistance in terms of food and encouragement. They continually gave me pats on the back for making this big of a move to change my life, rather than sit on government benefits or commit crimes. This helped me through significantly, but none of their aid helped me through as much as the power of networking.

Fast forward one and 1/2 months. I managed to apply for a job which had great benefits for the area and was accepted. No more struggles with storage of food. No more issues with being able to take a shower. No more sitting in the hot sun and working for 8-10 hours. I was finally free of the struggles which I initially faced, and had an opportunity to exceed my expectations of this area. Well, for a short while anyway.
Due to circumstances outside of my control (honest) I managed to lose my stability and was forced to be on the move AGAIN!
Well, at this point I decided that this was a fight I am going to continue a little longer. So, I relocated to the state's major city known of as Fargo. Although temporary, it set the groundwork for where I am today. Really helps that my employer was willing to transfer me, but ultimately it did not go as planned.

Upon touring the area and really absorbing the sights and scenery: I was overjoyed. This city was right for me and I knew it as soon as I laid eyes on it. Has quite a few of the major city elements that many other major cities have, but not as defined. So I focused on getting my living situation set up here, so that I can enjoy independence and freedom. Right? Wrong. My timing was bad and I ended up going back to my city of despair and misfortune. (I consider it that, because despite my valiant efforts and the efforts of many other African Americans......I continually fall short compared to others) Not all was bad, because I was able to remain out of trouble and enjoy some time with my family and my beloved pets.
My birthday (early November) was when I reached Fargo, soon after I was back in Chicago.

Fast forward to May, 2014. I have returned to the fray of being without a home and steady amenities, but this time I knew it was only a matter of being patient and strong willed before I get exactly what I came for. My freedom and independence in comparison to Chicago. Worth it? Beyond absolutely.
Although I did not attain employment as quickly as I did in Williston, North Dakota I can honestly say that my determination to endure less than savory situations was worth it. I feel secure, although unhinged due to the harsh weather conditions which I am destined to face.

So while I sit in my affordable apartment room enjoying decent proximity to work and the ability to switch jobs on a whim among other things, my biggest regret is not taking this plunge as soon as humanly possible. If I could rewind time and take this chance back in my senior year of High School, I would have for sure done it. I thank God for keeping me alive during my situations where I should have been dead or could have been killed, and I only pray that he continues to keep a protective barrier over myself and my loved ones while forgiving us for our mistakes.

Long story short, I've gone from unemployed longterm, to capable of doing virtually everything I set my mind to in time.
I appreciate North Dakota for being a bastion of freedom and opportunity, and it's residents for not looking down on me too harshly for coming here without a solid bulletproof plan.
Well, maybe someday I can do some significant good. Right now, I'm trying to plan for my next move.

Until some other time.
Thanks for reading.

-Lawrence M.

The Internet. Then vs Now.

2013-07-06T13:58:00.000-05:00

Hello ladies and gentlemen!
Thank you for your patience.
I tend to have an urge to blog, yet it just doesn't happen.
Life. It's busy or my focus wanes but now I'm back.
At least this time.

Right now I shall talk about the internet we use now, vs what it was back when most users today were just a kid. Or not even born yet.
This isn't another one of those HURR SHAER IF YUR A NINTTIES BABBY posts but it may take a turn in that direction. There are clear differences and to be honest I preferred the internet when it was still simple. Still evolving. Still small. Still exciting.

Alright. Moving to my point here.
The internet has brought the average person at least 3 things back when it began.
An opportunity to shop (for books on Amazon and naughty adult vids on adult sites) from the comfort of home.
An opportunity to connect with people who also happen to have this wonderful gateway.
and
An opportunity to seek fun and knowledge.

Back in the earlier days of internet though, most could consider it bittersweet for various reasons. These being merely a few.

The amount of access one had to the internet was very limited. Your choices of your home, a friend's house (if they had it) and the library/school.
The speeds were slow, slower, and "oh my goodness I could do whatever I'm doing faster by postal mail" slow.
There were also unstoppable pop-up ads, viruses, lack of a large user base to connect with and the knowledge to solve problems quickly did not exist on the scale which it does today.

In this day and age, slow speeds, lack of of access and lack of a userbase to connect with are solved very well.
Now with young kids (and kid minded teens) being able to access the internet for reasons more than fun games, research, and and light communication the internet is changed forever.

Instead of browsing the internet to discover new things, bored kids and immature folk make things up and spread lies as if it were truth. Lies and dis-info are not a new thing in this system of things, but constantly hearing of people being killed when they aren't dead parading around false statistics are commonplace on this internet with it's newest user base.

Instead of surfing the internet to find a few new good friends, everyone seems to be motivated by friend/follower/visitor counts and how many likes/shares/retweets/favorites/upvotes/stars/other social currency they can receive for some dumb picture or plagiarized post.
Receiving attention is great and all, but demanding attention through desperate and deceptive practices is just plain wrong. Not that it matters. It's how people become famous in real life.

These are 2 things I hate about the internet at the time. Things I most certainly absolutely did not see when I browsed the net as of 10 years ago. Not even wearing nostalgia glasses either.
How could I be? Back when I surfed the internet, Myspace wasn't heard of, Facebook didn't exist, Twitter, Youtube, Tumblr, etc. Nothing but games and occasional chat rooms for me. Also instant messenger. Can't forget that.

Although things are so different, I can still appreciate how fun the internet can be.
All is not lost. All is not hopeless. I still have much use and fun because of my internet connection.
I just wish that social networks were not sullied up by kids with confidence and plagiarism issues.

So far my rambling has come to a close on this post.
Thank you for reading and have a great day!

-Lawrence M.

Life, Liberty & The Pursuit of Happiness.

2013-05-26T16:53:00.001-05:00

Hello ladies and gentlemen. (I really need to advertise this again)

Today, I'm going to talk about some way of life that a little known country used to believe in. That country is the United States of America and I believe that policy to be infinitely adaptable by every other country on earth.

Now then.

The United States drafted a little document, rather series of documents which make up our constitution. I'm not an expert in Constitutional Law but I shouldn't have to be to know that these series of instructions were written with EVERYONE's best interests in mind.

What's best for the crowd is likely best all around if it means nobody has more power than anyone else.

Moving right along: I'm here to talk about that phrase and it's meaning.

For a little while I suppose.

As long as you are living life without infringing on another person's ability to draw breath, income, or enjoyment of their lives: you shouldn't be prohibited from doing it. Things like minor drug use, firearm ownership, saying whatever is on your mind, and doing whatever you feel comfortable doing were once upon a time absolutely unlimited. Assuming no 3rd party had been affected/effected in any way.

Nowadays in many countries, including this one: you can't enjoy naturally grown and inexpensive stress relief without needing consent from a certified medical professional. Otherwise you are a criminal or a drug addict.

You cannot own certain types of or more than a certain amount of weapons before someone considers you crazy.

You can be jailed for telling someone what you dislike about them and although people in the world are still pretty much allowed free will: it is only a matter of time before too many vocal people consider it rude and legislation passes to prevent free will because a few loud people were offended by it.

The good ol' days before the Internet, where everyone did what they felt was right without needing approval or worry about whether or not this would cost them employment opportunities/land them on a watch list of some sort.

Those days need to come back someday.

The amount of stupidity caused by forward thinking people is plentiful.

The amount of irony which exists by people who cannot do research is saddening.

The amount of freedom a person has to live a happy healthy life is not only declining: it is at real risk of extinction.

Me? I am not the most worried of this.

Every now and then, light shines through the darkness. People come together to make things right via a variety of methods.

Evil is expunged and good will reign triumphant. Even if for a little while.

Feels as if people should ask themselves more often before taking to heart something which does not involve them:

"What does this matter to me? Can I not just go have a good time on my own terms"

Someday things will be simple again.

Until then, I'll be clutching at dog hairs.

Seriously, they are plentiful too.

Thanks for reading this pile of Ramble.

I appreciate it.

Must. Return. To. Writing.

2013-05-22T21:09:00.001-05:00

Hello ladies and gentleman.

*Crickets definitely chirping*

After so long after not being able to write about things which I think of: I am finally forcing myself to churn something out which isn't terribly rushed or lacking quality.

Lol, the things which have changed in such a short while. To say the least, I have been busy with things but being too busy for things you love doing accounts for a feeling of emptiness. Such as the one I feel after having a head filled with things to type about yet no typing happens.

Long story short: I miss writing.

I also miss reading but I will make more time.

Thanks for reading. :)

Lawrence M, over and out.

Until I return of course.

Kickstarter. What good is it?

2012-10-10T21:03:00.000-05:00

Hello ladies and gentlemen.
Thanks for checking out my blahl.
Here today, I'm getting ready to talk about the world's biggest crowd funding site in the world.

Kickstarter, just to kill the suspense.

Now there are a lot of terribly bad projects which have been listed. Alongside this, there have been occasional gems.

One my my least favorite? Some jerk ass who felt the need to speak out against video games. Anita something. Her name isn't memorable or important. (I am not hating on her because of her feminist views, but I really do hate sexism. I cannot even say that I hate her.....I just really really really do not like hearing of her. It's a good thing that it's seldom that I do hear of her, yeh?)
Thing is: video games are not cobbled into one genre. There are mountains of video games that have women without sexism or typical female outcomes. There are mountains of video games where women have equal roles. There are mountains of popular video games that don't emphasize gender importance. She doesn't know that though. She only knows that our rights end where her feelings begin.
Of course she's entitled to her opinions......but her opinions are so bad that I wish I could eat bricks and mortar until I'm too heavy to move and then face the floor until my body digests (or doesnt) the bricks and mortar.

Moving right along: are guys going to complain about petty little crap like that? Nah. Most guys just play video games, which is why you may not find so many women present, or present outside of the typical female roles. Which is why video games are so lucrative. Video games aren't meant to be picked apart by pseudo intellectual folk who cry and whine when something isn't "right" to them.
They're meant to be played and kept or traded in. If it works, don't break it and start trying to fix it again. Just enjoy them for what they're worth.

That's not even the worst part.
Over $100,000 just to make videos?
Simply put: that's a hell of a lot of money just to cry about sexism in a male dominated industry. That money could have been better invested in someone or something else.
Nobody's saying that women can't play or create video games: but men have been doing it for so long. Men are more passionate about it. That's ALL THERE IS TO IT.
Unfortunately, the people who invested knew what they were getting into. Oh well.

Alright, what about those folk who try to convince you that what you invest is going to be worth it, yet do nothing at all? Pretty much what Anita did but instead of whining and crying about something that isn't hurting anyone and getting horrendously overpaid for it: do absolutely nothing at all.
Lots of people try their luck on this site and get nothing when they've got some reasonable ideas, whereas a few lucky idiots half heartedly post a bunch of nothing and make tens of thousands of dollars.
I can't tell you how many scamming jerks there are on that site, as they're being disabled left and right.
When scammers like Anita get through and are willingly accepted.....it gives me clear proof that you can't stop them all. [wow I'm really not into this Anita gal]

Seriously though? What good is Kickstarter?

Simple. It's as good as any other idea hub. Great ideas can come across and be underfunded or ignored altogether whereas bad ideas can be welcomed with open arms. Fortunately for the world, the inverse is also true.

I'm not dismissing Kickstarter as an entirely useless platform.....but I can't wait for the day that an actual hard working individual or team of individuals come together and make something amazing because of Kickstarter.

I've said my piece, although most of this is me complaining about some dumb girl's opinion on video games. I sorry.

Thanks for reading this though.
I appreciate it. :)

An Update On My Life.

2012-10-10T20:42:00.002-05:00

Hello ladies and gentlemen.
Instead of crying and whining as I have done in so many of my other posts (more like expressing my opinion but any opinion can be regarded as bad; no matter how hard you tried to word it well) I'm going to drop some decent news.
Decent news that WILL mean good news for many other folk down the line.

What is this news? Well for now (as it's temporary) I have a job. Although the chances of me converting this job into permanent are pretty decent [well that's the general feel and notion] I only really need this job for a little while as it will provide me the stepping stone needed to enter my career field.
I said many months ago that I'd love to learn how to drive trucks. In order to drive trucks, I'll need to learn how to drive. That I shall do, even though it's going to be quite expensive. I don't mind. As long as I put my training to the test and refuse to give up: I will succeed.

Once I succeed in my goal at becoming a truck driver, I shall do what I can to make my money work for me. It can't be that hard for a guy who has ideas, so give me some time to earn the money necessary to make these plans come to life.

Now my overall goals haven't changed much.
Get a job, turn the money earned from this job into a career, use the money earned from said career to enhance earnings, continue to enhance earnings until wealth is undeniable; repeat wash and spread out.
All the while planning on moving myself and my family to a decent area and not forgetting to give to those who need it as well. I don't mean pinching 10,000 from 100,000,000 type of giving back but much more. Much much more. (realistically speaking; if I had 100 million dollars.....30 million will go to reasonable and honest charities in doses to prevent idiots from running off with large sums of money.)

Well I have typed enough for this post.
I never really have much to say when it comes to myself.
Thanks for reading though. I definitely appreciate it.

Another Tragic Terrorist Attack.

2012-07-21T16:02:00.000-05:00

Hello there ladies and gentlemen.
Here today, I am going to write about the tragedy which took place in Colorado.
It has been a while since I last blogged, but I have been busy.
It would have been a lot nicer to come back and write something different: but here I am anyway.
This deserves to be written about.

Now then, we already know most of the details about what happened.
Some lunatic who looked relatively normal storms into a movie theater and opens fire on on dozens of unarmed people for no reason whatsoever. Most people consider him a psychopath, some people feel that all gun owners are bad because of this, and even fewer consider him what he actually is (a terrorist) but no matter what you think of him: there is literally no way to prevent psychopaths from running wild unless we do something to prevent this. Which is not much.

An ounce of prevention equals to or is greater than a pound of treatment/cure. In this scenario, there were plenty of things which could have been done to stop this: but since it is too late to prevent this past situation from occurring: it is already too late to prevent it. It has already happened. However, people tend to learn from disasters and tragedies. This can serve as another organisation's ounce of prevention.

What do I recommend as an ounce of prevention so this doesn't happen again (so easily, because any plan potentially goes to crap once the first shot is fired) in the future?
No silly, we don't ban all firearms.
Of course, it wouldn't help to give everyone a gun either with no requisites.
Further still, administering absolutely painful to endure types of background checks and psychological exams will ensure less people who need a gun to survive actually get one. (Let's face it, there are plenty of good people who suck at tests and they deserve to live just as much as the intelligent people)

Trick question. We could:
A.) Allow people who can legally own a gun, rights to carry it anywhere. Seriously, if someone were to shoot up an area and it's patrons were armed: the gunmen would not be able to kill or wound anywhere near as many people: even if the bad guys had numbers. People could get away while someone or a group of people took a stand as any ordinary hero(es) would.

or (not recommended)

B.) Disarm those who wish to enjoy any services being rendered by either forcing them to leave their weapons out of reach or confiscating them. Perhaps issuing a "No Firearms" zone to customers and other patrons but hiring security guards/police officers.

Solution B could work, but most organisations and corporations like to SAVE money. Hiring extra security or police officers will not do anything to help costs. It would only drive costs up, resulting in potentially lost business. Additionally, this could lead to more hostage situations. Most police and security guards are positioned in 1 area of the room, whereas an attack can occur from anywhere. I am not saying that Solution A would be the best bet in every single situation, but I think it's a whole lot better than waiting for security/police personnel to save the day. As we already know, most of the time it takes minutes in order for an officer or armed guard to show up whereas people in the Solution A scenario could have taken him out in seconds to a minute.

When terrorists decide to start indiscriminately taking lives, they do this knowing that most are not able to fight back. These cowards use everything from chemical attacks, to improvised explosive devices, to fully automatic assault rifles and everything in between if they can kill or maim as many people as possible without dying or facing adequate resistance. If even 2 people in the audience had a gun and proper firearms training for that weapon: he would have been successfully deterred.

Race doesn't matter. Nationality doesn't matter. Mental health and criminal background doesn't matter.
If a person wants to achieve a level of killing that no man should ever wish to see, a person can do it.
A group of people would be many times more effective at spreading the message. Gangs do it all the time and they thrive in areas where guns are disallowed (to the law abiding citizens)
Knives and bladed weapons have been killing people for centuries with no trouble.
Chemical gasses and toxic compounds have been slaughtering people for centuries as well.
What about automobiles and other vehicles?
Let's not forget healthcare blunders and other mistakes in modern medicine.
The list of things that can kill a man (and his family) has to be in the thousands by now, but guns are feared the most due to the fact that they're efficient at what they do and largely available.

Oh wait, cars and alcohol are largely available as well.
So are over the counter medicines.
Knives have experienced no shortage over the years either.
What about prescription medicines and illegal drugs?
Right, dogs have some reputation in this as well.
Explosives that can be made with over the counter materials? You betcha!
Again: the list of things that can kill a man (and his family) are not limited to the ones which use cartridges and magazines. This method is preferred due to it's effectiveness and speed of which the task can be carried out. Fortunately, it can be defended against by an magic (which doesn't exist), body armor (which is more expensive than guns and not incredibly available) or a gun.
Take your pick.

What am I getting at here?
Making guns less available does nothing to dampen a psychotic terrorist's bloodlust.
He or she still has access to weapons (or books on how to make a gun/explosives/deadly chemicals/etc...)
Banning firearms will absolutely result in improvised explosive use and improvised firearms construction use.
Making people go through extensive background checks and psychological tests will only lead to determined criminals bypassing these requisites and getting a gun anyway.
Giving everyone a gun with no restrictions isn't a great idea either, because now the idiots have one too.

So what will we do?
So far, nothing. People will go through great lengths and commit crime no matter what.
The best solution in my book, is to better prepare those who want a gun for self defense.
JUST LIKE POLICE OFFICERS OR SECURITY GUARDS AM I RITE?
No, silly.
Just make it a requisite for people who want a gun to learn how to shoot under stress and chaos without killing someone's kid. (accidents happen, but train to minimize risk)
Who knows? Some regular suit wearing casual might be able to step up and use their legal firearm to prevent a scary situation from turning into another nightmare/tragedy.
This certainly cannot happen if everyone in a building is about as ready to fight back as a mouse would be to a snake.

This post wasn't my intention on rambling on firearms: but they are incredibly relevant to the tragedy which took place.
It really does make me sick to know that people have to die for no reason, especially when the people who died are normal folk who go from point A to B without causing any trouble.
Even more maddening when some of the people who die, left their living status while having potential to be a great force on Earth.
One thing is certain though. It WILL continue to happen.
The only possible way to cut down on idiot terrorists using their overpowered weapons to mow down the innocent civilians isn't to hire more officers. It is to grant citizens the knowledge and training on how to stand up for themselves and protect their own.

This has been another one of my blog posts.
Thanks for reading.
Over and out.
For now anyways.

Cocaine.

2012-07-03T15:35:00.000-05:00

Hi there ladies and gentlemen.
Here today I'm making another post about another popular drug.
Again I am no expert in the field of narcotics AND I HAVE NEVER TAKEN ANY DRUG DEEMED ILLEGAL. NOT EVEN A SMALL DOSE.
I'm just here to discuss some crap and form an opinion.

Now here's a fact about cocaine that nobody can refute.
It's not going anywhere. Ever.
People all over the world love to use it for their own reasons and the surprising part is: not everyone who does this drug will become or remain addicted.

So what's cocaine supposed to do to someone who takes it?
I don't know personally but from what I hear: it gives the user an adrenaline rush. Actually a combination of extreme focus and a boost of energy. From what it seems, a user doesn't actually get high from it.....they just use it to prolong their activities. Some people use it to stay awake because of the demand that their legitimate job (or criminal activity) demands. Others use it to party all night and some do it just because they like the feeling they get upon taking it.
To me it just sounds like illegal (and naturally grown) pep pills or 5 hour energy.
The thing that makes it different from other stimulants would be the potency. A person could snort a line or inject a syringe of cocaine and be awake for tens of hours and even days.

What are the after effects?
Obviously addiction is something a user can fall victim to, and there's complications like heart disease and brain damage. Due to the fact that it provides users with an adrenaline boost based on amount consumed: it can lead to overdose and heart attack. It can also lead to brain damage and depending on the path of delivery: damage to whatever area on your body responsible for taking in the substance.
It also affects the mentality of the user. Many who do or have done this drug suffer from mood swings and all sorts of psychological disorders. Some go paranoid, some get aggressive, others become extremely detached and some get all of these. There's no telling what can happen because drugs affect people differently.

How is it made? Where does it come from?
The precise details aren't in my knowledge, but the coca leaf found in South America is definitely responsible for the manufacture of it. I assume someone would boil the leaves, take the liquid and add powdered substances + contaminants to make it solid and addictive.

How much money does this pull in?
A lot more than marijuana that's for sure.
It's far easier to cut down, and it's easier to adulterate/contaminate.
In this scenario the drug dealers would be placing profits above people, but is that so shocking?
Nope. There's no secret that it pulls in billions upon billions to those who have great connections to customers and supply lines. I'm not quite sure how much it makes all around the world, but there are tens to hundreds of millions who want to try the stuff, tens to hundreds of millions who like it every now and then, and tens to hundreds of millions who love it regularly. With such a demanding audience, of course it's pulling in billions.

What help is offered to those who are addicted?
In America, there are some locations that provide rehabilitation to those who need the help without cost to the user, and then you've got locations which require sponsorship. If the person who's addicted has no friends (or has friends without money) then it's pretty much too bad for the addicted person.
In Portugal: it's decriminalized. If you want to do this drug or any other drug under the sun it's ok.
If you need help, there are centers available which don't cost the addicted person a dime.
In Europe, there are plenty of nations which allow you to receive cost free help. Again, cost free to the person seeking help.
If I'm not mistaken, the Scandinavian countries (Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden) Switzerland, and The Netherlands provide such help no questions asked.
I know France has incredible health care quality and it's available for all French citizens without many out of pocket costs (if any) and a nation with such great healthcare might offer such a service to a person in need as well.
With every other nation on this planet, I will assume that it's provided within reasonable accommodation until proven otherwise.
That's just too much reading to sift through for a guy not studying this or something related in college.

That's pretty much all I have to say about cocaine.
If I'm missing something or wrong about something: that's fine. I have the jist of it and that's what I was aiming for.
Thanks for reading though!
I appreciate it as always.

Energy Sources For Cars.

2012-06-16T16:02:00.000-05:00

Hi there, ladies and gentlemen. After being bored for approximately 30 minutes: I decided to create one meaningless post and one that took some time.
Essentially 2 meaningless posts, but one you can actually read. heh

Here today I'm going to write about fuel sources for cars.

It's evident that gas prices aren't very pleasant to the consumers who use it.
There are also incredible amounts of evidence pointing out that gas isn't pleasant to the environment either.
Alongside that, I've been hearing for the longest that gas (unless it's produced in a lab with abundant resources which will only make the prices higher) isn't going to be around forever. Yes, I'm aware that there are abundant reserves of oil in the Earth, but it's gonna dry up sometime......right?
Well maybe.

Enough chitchat about gas. Let's talk about the alternatives.
Starting with a rumor that an engine was created in Australia by obviously talented scientists/engineers/prodigies that runs on water.
I'm not too sure how probable that is, because I'm sure people these days would LOVE to drive cars that run on water, and the demand would be so great.....the world's economic problems would be solved for 1 trillion years. (if the Earth survives that long, of course) Only thing is, there's no viable proof. I'm not hunting around on the internet for anything involving the water engine, because I feel that I'd have more luck finding out what really goes on in Area 51 rather than finding out the truth about that engine. (Area 51 is an extremely well guarded military installation and it's shrouded in mystery. So far, the public only know that weapons and aircraft testing take place there but many people go on and on about alien body sightings + unidentified flying objects being seen around there) [Food for thought]
I am convinced that it can be done though. If it were done in the first place, I'm positive that it can be done again. Even if this was just a rumor, I know that there are incredibly talented people on this earth who could make it happen.
Can you imagine? Even if the water were contaminated because of the engine, you could run the water through a purifier and repeat the process until it evaporates. Should you find yourself running low: I'm sure you'll be able to find some way of getting the car running again. The most difficult decision you'll have to make if you're stranded and in need of water, is how much you'll divide with the car. LOL
Also, what happens if the car is on empty but gets pushed into a large body of water? Pretty sure the car would be in need of serious repairs.....but it's funny. Trust me. It's funny, I swear. LOL

Alright, we're obviously not laughing out loud or driving cars that are fueled by water.
The alternatives we're most likely to see are Natural Gas, Electricity and Ethanol.
I'm rooting for all of them, as they produce far less pollution (possibly none) in comparison to petrol/gasoline
Right now, 2 variants of an electric car exist. An incredibly costly, but still incredibly awesome fully electric car and a not so costly but not fully electric [yet still cool] variant exists as well.
The fully electric car is known as the Tesla Roadster. If I had the money to buy such a gem, chances are I'd have the money to armor it up. I know I'd love to, but adding all that weight will slow the car down and possibly put too much strain on the motor/batteries.
The hybrid is known of as the Chevy Volt. It runs on gasoline/petrol AND electricity. You can use electricity if you don't wish to use gas, (and with these prices.....why would you?) and the gas is there in case you run out of electricity. Personally I'd buy this over the Tesla Roadster, because the options are available in case I need one over the other.

Now in Sweden, an ethanol powered car actually exists. I'm pretty sure it was made by SAAB motors, and I wish there were more of this type of vehicle out on the road now. Just to be accurate, Henry Ford (the inventor of the Ford brand of cars that existed then and continue to exist today) made an early ethanol engine, but I guess it never took on. Could it be that the oil companies have alternate energy producers by the neck? Well it exists and it's better than what's on the road today. So why haven't we made the switch yet? I know I can't wait for the change, because ethanol can be produced with natural materials AND operate without fogging up nature.

That brings us to another energy source which is found to be abundant on Earth.
That's Natural Gas.
America, Russia and quite a few other nations are in abundance of it and should an engine be produced which can safely convert natural gas into energy which makes cars go: another clean source of fuel which is highly available and can be produced and used without gouging car owners of their money!

I've gotta tell you, I'm as hyped as the average iProduct fan just as a new iProduct hits the market.
Not only am I an amateur environmentalist, but I'm all for competition existing in market places world wide. I like knowing that we don't have to guzzle all of the Earth's oil supplies, and I like knowing that we can eventually continue to drive with cleaner engines. On top of all this, it'll bring more jobs AND it'll encourage more people to major in difficult studies like math and science.
All we'll need to do after this, is make sure an engine variant for aircraft and other vehicles and we'll be all set. :)

I've written all I can at this point.
Rather than go to sleep, I'll just surf the cursed internet at this time.

See you later, reader.

Dying Of Boredom. It could be worse......

2012-06-16T14:08:00.001-05:00

Hi there, ladies and gents.

Not much to see here, just a little post to get the brain juices flowing.

I AM BORED TO DEATH!

Normally the simple fix would be a nice video game like Nazi Zombies, Resident Evil 5 or Battlefield Bad Company 2 where I play online with folk who know how to play the game of choice: but that's no longer an option at the moment.

That being said, I'd much rather be alive and stuck without anything interesting to do at the moment, instead of stuck 6 feet deep without anything in my control anymore.

I am grateful for living and my family/friends being alive as well.
I'm just bored and I need to think up something to do.

The biggest idea I've got so far is to write another post sometime soon.
Meh.

Hunting! Doing it right vs. being wasteful.

2012-06-04T19:11:00.000-05:00

Hi there, ladies and gentlemen!
Another day, another random blogpost. Same story.
Now then let's get on with it!

It's a fact, lots of people on this planet love meat. It's safe to assume that a huge majority of people on Earth wouldn't want to go out and hunt for their meat, but loads of people do. I mean it's just easier to go to the shop and buy whatever cut of meat you're craving, or whatever meat your family prefers. It's still a bit messy to clean the meat, cut the meat, season it and blah blah blah but you don't have to go through the gruesome details that hunters and butchers do.

Moving right along, I decided to write this post because I WOULD LOVE TO GO HUNTING SOMEDAY! I went fishing before, and I'm still kicking myself over it because I caught a small fish and couldn't get it off the hook. It was a small beautiful black catfish.....and I didn't even eat it. I'm sure some other creatures did because circle of life: but I think of that as wasteful. Then I rationalize it, because there's a chance that the fish didn't die. I didn't keep it out of water until it stopped moving.....but if I did then I'm sure another fish ate it. That small fish couldn't have really filled me up, but it's the thought that counts.

Alrighty then, let's discuss terrible hunting protocol. What makes bad hunters bad?
Bad hunters are the folks who kill innocent creatures and leave the meat up for grabs so worthless insects like mosquitoes and pesky flies can have their fill. No matter what you do, mosquitoes are always going to find a way to eat, but it's just disgusting to leave an animal out there like that.....knowing that it could have been put to good use. Even worse knowing that worthless insects are having a field day because you were too weak to carry that slab of beef or pork with you.

Bad hunters also have bad aim! Yeah, it's not incredibly easy to kill living creatures from a distance but if you're going to kill creatures, you should at least kill them with some sort of humanity. Killing a creature with a head shot is an excellent method of putting them down, if you can hit it cleanly. Getting a head shot on any sort of creature isn't going to be easy but it can be done. It's highly recommended against because the margin for error is very high. Should you miss the cranium: you could hit the jaw bone or the snout. What does this mean? The creature can suffocate or starve to death far far away from you. Hence making you a bad hunter.

It's seriously disgusting and rude to take a life for no reason, but knowing that there are sick people out here who kill creatures and leave the meat to waste.....that's just scummy. There's murderous scumbag scum, burglar scum, greedy scum, and many others. As far as I'm concerned: bad hunters are wasteful scum. If you want to kill something and not worry about being wasteful, become an exterminator and be merry. If you want to kill something but not bring home the meat, donate it somehow. It's an excellent alternative to leaving a nice slab of deer or wild hog or moose out in the wilderness so nobody can make use of it.

My first stock image. I feel so dirt.
This is (was) a wild hog. Plentiful in the US in some states.
Kill one of these and you'll be eating for a while.
Well not this one. It's not alive and it contains no meat.

How did I find out what makes a hunter good or bad? Simple. I did a bit of research. I haven't been hunting a day in my life, but doing a little internet sleuthing can make anyone an expert nowadays. The only real way toward expert-hood is experience and I plan to earn it someday.

So......what makes a hunter good?
First of all, don't follow the same mistakes listed above!
Secondly, it would be nice to make yourself as visible to other hunters as possible. Hunting related deaths occur pretty often and although some of them are fixed and made to look as if they were an accident: some authentic hunting accidents do happen. If you blend in too much or look like a wild creature (for some reason "hunters" like to wear animal skins) then could possibly be struck by a hunter's projectile.
A good hunter will adjust his angle and ensure that all bullets and arrows steer clear of other hunters, so make sure to be as visible to other humans as possible. Courtesy of Google and 1000 Ways To Die: I've been informed that bright orange is the way to go. I'm sure you could wear bright blue or bright pink but stick to orange. Trust me, I'm not a hunter or a doctor.
Next up: make sure to bring a powerful enough gun with hunting approved ammunition. Something with a decreased chance of penetration will absolutely make the difference!
Oh, and while you're at it.....shot placement matters and it's all or nothing. Shoot for the lungs or the heart if you can hit it, and if not: shoot for the legs. Creatures can't run very fast if you blew out it's kneecap. Should you go for the mobility kill option: follow up with a close range shot which ends the suffering. Use your imagination.

Remember folks, it's cool to kill wild and meaty creatures: but only if you make use of the dead as much as you possibly can. This is the way good hunters operate.
I'm deadly positive that you can donate the meat should you not care to bring it home, and if you bring it home: you spent less on groceries this month. Good for you.

This concludes my blog post.
Thanks for reading.

Online Relationship Tip Pet Peeves.

2012-06-02T09:44:00.000-05:00

Hi there ladies and gents. I would like to apologize for the hiatus, but let's face it.....you're much better off without me spamming on blog links and stuff like that.
Therefore, after a long wait I decided to get back into the writing role.

Now then, it seems everywhere I go on the web there's mediocre relationship tips that revolve around 1 gender.
Facebook has them, Twitter's comprised of nothing but them, and every other social network is easily bound to follow suit. I know tumblr has a ton of relationship quote pictures and all that unoriginal mess but that's not important and that's not the point.

Point of this post is, if you're going to do something: do it right.
There are a whole lot of kids and teens being led down a straight and narrow path of failure when it comes to functional relationships. The people posting these tips don't know what they're doing! They're just saying the things that girls and misguided guys (who are most likely trying to sweet talk multiple girls) want to hear or use.

Now then, what's my problem with these false relationship gurus?
It's not just the fact that they're only teenagers who don't know shit about real relationships, but they're always flip flopping and changing their vibes. Yeah, typical teenage hormones: but how do you expect to be in a stable relationship if you can't even try to be stable? Exactly my point.
One minute they "miss" someone, the next moment they're talking about how they're so over this person who never really existed. Then they're back to "missing" someone who never really existed, then they're talking about cuddling and intercourse and kissing and gifts and everything under the sun to cash in on the gullible and easily swooned masses of teens who use these social networking sites. (sponsors look for stats and keywords, ya know)

Am I finished? Of course not.
The main thing which really ticks me off about all of these amateur hour relationship "experts" would have to be how the guy is always the antagonist. If a relationship ends, it's because the guy cheated. If a relationship ends, it's because he only wanted to use her or he lied. If the relationship ends, it's because he wasn't open with his feelings and some shit like that. Ya know, if the kids who supported these accounts wern't kids or kid minded: they'd know that guys aren't the only reason that relationships go down hill and break apart. If they wern't just blind sheep: they'd know that women cheat, lie, and hold back feelings as well.
Every account dedicated to motivational "teen" quotes and relationship advice places the woman on a pedestal.
Once you grow up and get into a real relationship, you should realize that there should be no pedestal. Sometimes that's just how it works because not every relationship is the same but in the real world: an incredible percentage of men in relationships like being shown that they matter just as much as his girl does.
Women just want a man who isn't going to cheat or lie? Wow, what a coincidence! Men want a woman who isn't going to cheat or lie. Women just want to be accepted for who they are? Jee golly wiz!!! Men just want to be accepted for who they are too. Women like random text messages? Of course men like random text messages. Women like random gifts? Men like random gifts also, ya know. Women like random kisses and being spoken to at random? Men like random kisses and being spoken to at random whoa what a surprise. You get the idea, the list goes on and on.

Men and women want virtually the same things in relationships in very many cases, but what difference does it make? The woman's needs in any relationship are far more important than the needs of the guy, says the internet. Since the internet's a massive conglomerate of people just trying so hard to agree with each other, it's a shame that people can't agree on more important affairs. Since most of the internet's userbase is under 18 years old, (or in possession of an under 18 mentality) I suppose that's why we're not using it for more important affairs like curing cancer or feeding the poor. Nope, we're too busy focusing on being in the perfect relationship and putting words on pictures of celebrities. Let's be honest here, it would be nice if everyone could be in a relationship with a genuine person that they can trust and love with all of their hearts and minds, but not everyone's going to be considerate enough for that. Not everyone's going to want to settle down.

I guess so many people are determined to win the hearts and minds of women on the internet because it doesn't take much to impress persons of the female gender on the internet these days. Not all women are easily impressed on the internet, but in the majority: all you've got to talk about is how guys should respect women and worship the ground a girl walks on and you are basically guaranteed approval and sponsor's dollars. Trying to post statuses or tweet about what MEN actually want would be a bit more difficult, because what could you possibly get out of it other than money and support?
Oh yeah, I almost forgot. It's not because men would be less supportive: it's because men won't throw themselves at the account creator. It's evident that these relationship/quote accounts are deprived of attention, and they want all the attention they can get.
When tweeters/facebookers/tumbloggers start talking about relationships and how the girl deserves all the respect and affection: girls VERY OFTEN mistake this for the guy being sweet. They take his words at face value and don't realize that they're just 1 of many. They don't realize that this guy, and every other guy like him on the internet are doing to girls what may have happened before. They're just telling these gullible little gals everything they want to hear, and these girls eat it up. They eat it up, and they hold guys to these ridiculously teenage fantasy fairy tale high school romance standards.

Now it's safe to say once again: I do hope that everyone on this planet can find someone they love and trust. I would appreciate knowing that more people can be happy together and actually get married then stay married. I'd like people to stop using looks as the only basis which determines how good they'll be together and blah blah blah.
In the meantime, let's be realistic. The only thing these fake ladies men and closed minded individuals can provide in terms of relationship advice......would be the unrealistic standards that most guys aren't going to live up to. That, and a flood gate of desperate guys who will do anything to get a girl so he can move on to the next one.

When I said it really pissed me off that guys are always considered unimportant in the relationship: I really really meant it. Not just because I'm a guy, but if a common relationship is between a guy and a girl but everyone's talking about how the girl should be treated like a gem: it obviously leads me to believe that it doesn't really matter if the guy is happy or not.

Alright then: so it makes me mad when these fake relationship experts are emotionally unstable, and it me mad that they basically hate the male gender.

What else really gets under my skin about these fakes who desperately seek approval from women?
It's the fact that there are so many of them!
Every time someone discovers a way to make money on this planet, you've got plenty of people who'll try to innovate, and even more who will try to imitate.
Trying to make money without hurting anyone isn't really the problem here. It's just, every time I look up: I see an average of 150 new 14 year olds wearing baseball caps and no shirt trying to tell ME how to treat a woman. Each and every single one of these fake ladies men/advice gurus steal tweets like it's their job (because it is) and they're constantly spreading the same bad information.

Sidenote: If you want to be walked on, then yes.....treat your woman exactly as they tell you. Follow the terribly bad advice these "advice gurus" offer and see how long you'll be able to keep this up. To be entirely honest, the type of girls these "guys" describe often seem entitled and boring. It's as if you owe them a great boyfriend experience and all they've got to do is be a person with girl parts and occasionally interact with you. No sane guy wants to be with a girl that he HAS to give his hoodie to. No guy wants to be with a girl that NEEDS to know who he's talking to. No sane guy on Earth is going to marry the first girl that SEEMS like a great wife based on a short while of good times had.
Sure, these idiots are rolling in the popularity and money right now. Later down the line though, not that I'm wishing ill will to them or anything like that (seriously wish they'd stop tweeting though) but they definitely seem like the type of guy to have kids they didn't plan for because they're sleeping around so much. They seem like the type of guys who spew a bunch of mundane advice, but don't follow their own.
Oh that's right! Players!
They might be those assholes who say "don't hate the playa, hate the game" or "don't be mad that I played you" and that mess.

As I go over this blog post, it seems and feels as if I'm nothing but jealous.
However: I feel no real jealousy. If I had the audience reach that these generic peons have.....I'd do my best to trend better things. Not every discussion has to be about relationships and feelings or broken hearts or how much guys lie to their beautiful girlfriends and it's about time someone learned that. Of course, I could have their audience reach. All I'd have to do is pretend to be a ladies man (online) and tweet my heart out or I could just buy my followers like everyone else.

All in all, I'm pretty much done here.
I was going to include a picture, but what good would that do?
Not a whole lot.

Thanks for reading!
-Meh

The Police. So Many Misunderstandings.

2012-05-19T13:49:00.000-05:00

Hi there, ladies and gents.
Thanks for checking out another one of my blog posts.
In this segment right here, I'll be talking about one of the most hated professions on the face of the planet. It's one of the most demanding, one of the most dangerous, and one I respect. Mostly.
I thought we as humans were bigger than that, but a lot of us stick to stereotypes and generalizations which is why this is one of the most hated professions on earth. Alongside that, it's why I hate the internet so much. Sure I use it often, but that's not the point of this post.

I feel that 99% of the police men and women out there are fighting the good fight. Of course, there are no claims to back me up. Heck, the number could be as little as 83% or 75% in some places and dramatically lower than that in others. Regardless on how you feel about them, they're here to stay and all of these cop haters can only hope their hatred doesn't consume them. I hope that as well.

Even if every cop were a good cop: you'd still have cop haters because.....

1.) There's no such thing as a 100% corruption free profession.

2.) Everything that can be loved can be hated as well.

We all know that the duty which good police officers uphold is no easy task. Their job is literally to put their life on the line so that other people can go back to their families or whatever it is that civilian loves doing (assuming it's not harming others or illegal stuffs) and that's a very tough pill to swallow. One day they're putting bad guys in jail or issuing legitimate parking tickets or other citations. They go home, they enjoy their family, friends, and have good times. Hopefully of course, because even the best and brightest go through struggles on the personal level.
The next they're fighting off drugged up criminals who have high powered and most likely fully automatic rifles or sub machine guns which pierce right through their cruisers and body armor. Sometimes the officers have no cover, other times their cover is useless.
Even if the cop did win, he or she has to deal with the emotional stress of taking a life.
Although the attacker put themselves in that situation and that was the only way to get out of this alive: anyone can tell you it's not easy to take a life. Some people will tell you that it gets easier after each kill, some people know that it never gets easier. That's what happens if the cop wins, and it's still not too pleasant. Especially because it's not always over. Retaliation is almost guaranteed, and you never know when it'll happen. They could go after your family or friends instead, and that's obviously not fun.
Should the cop not fare well in their shootout: they're dead. Obviously.
Another good man or woman taken off the face of this planet, because of some criminal scum. That's far less pleasant. Far less by a metric ton to the 100th power.
Actually far less pleasant infinitely.

And now:
I bring you 2 random police officers the internet has deemed good.

A simple Google search brought me to this woman.
She looks like a good officer to me!

Another officer found via Google.
I suspect that Good Police do things like this.

I'm not an individual who sees things one way! I know that bad cops exist. I made it plain as day in the beginning of the post. All of that occupy movement crap has changed a lot of people's minds about police and I don't blame them. Then again, you don't go around thinking that all police are bad just because a few have shown just how much more money means to them than the public safety of the people they're trying to protect. By the way, just how much have the occupy movement participants changed? Housing market's still bad, jobs are still widely unavailable, people are still dying, racism and bullying still exists. What did they change? What? WHAT????
SOMEONE TELL ME!

Moving right along..........

I'm nearly done with my post.
Before I go, I shall now type a few more things then gtfo.

1.) Just about all people who think that all police are bad are often the same type of people who think all men/women are the same. These folk can't get a good partner, so they randomly hate everything and anything.

2.) I realize that some people have been mistreated by police officers. Obviously.

Sure a few jerks in a cop suit may have hassled you out of that reefer you were going to smoke. Maybe they ticketed you because you've gone a few miles over the speed limit. Maybe they pulled you over and made you late for work. (lol yea right more like that party you were going to) Alright. I get it. Everyone runs into dickheads who abuse their power and make something big out of nothing. Even I've been hassled by a cop before. Do I hate all police because I've been called a few names by some douche in a police SUV? Haha, nope. I'm bigger than that. If you're not some angsty little teenager, you'll get over little mishap and stop generalizing people.

3.) Maybe they've really really REALLY done you wrong. So wrong, that they've ruined your life or made it miserable. Maybe they unjustly killed someone you love. Immediately I think back to the civil rights era, where blacks were maimed and killed for being black and having a voice.

Maybe they've stashed drugs on you or someone you care about. Maybe they didn't help you when they adequately could have. For any of these reasons, I'm sorry to hear that.
Let's keep in mind that these are not all cops. Thinking that all cops are pigs is like thinking all blacks are chaotic monsters as racists would love to portray. Yes there are tons of black people in the world who don't know how to act: but thinking that all blacks are inconsiderate and violent because of the minority = dumb as hell.

I'm about finished with my blog post.

Before I go: have this Police Medic.

He'll beat you to health with his wellness stick.

Yes the caption is already there, but if I repeat it: it's twice as potent.

Thanks for reading. :)

My Current Life In A Nutshell.

2012-05-17T22:10:00.000-05:00

Hello there ladies and gents.
Thank you for reading another one of my posts.
Right now is another one of those times when I feel as if things are hopeless in terms of getting my life on track, but I continue to forcefully remind myself: as long as I've got a pulse and limbs (but mostly a pulse and a functional mind) I can become the change I wanted to be.

Throughout my life, I thought I was sure as to what I wanted to be. Like any average kid who's researched and found new interests: I quickly found out that what I thought I wanted to do for a living wasn't something I'd love to do for a living.
Even though I'm sure of what I want to accomplish in regards to my charitable and money making goals: I'm tirelessly stuck on HOW I'M GOING TO GET TO THE MONEY!

It helps me none to know that people who have absolutely zero money management skill or goals outside of having a good time with their paychecks (ALL THE TIME EVERYTIME) manage to get all of the jobs and such, whereas I'm actually willing to go down the jagged path of entrepreneur-ism and create jobs which can't AND WON'T be outsourced to labor exploitable countries yet I'm being denied in all of my attempts for some reason or another.

It could be the fact that I lack connections.
Ok, what good does it do to hire everyone you know or everyone your friends know instead of using your own judgement? I can't control who gets hired, but there are too many incompetent folk out here who still hold a job yet despise every single second of it then instantly perk up when that piece of flimsy paper which they feel entitled to appears in front of them. The likes of which they will mismanage, then complain about not getting paid enough.

Or it could be the fact that I've got a dirty little potty mouth.....online. (Not all the time though)
Seriously? Never mind the fact that I've seen plenty of people begging for drugs and sex, making threats, and taking provocative pictures while managing to have a job or 3. Nah, that's all fine. It's cool. It seems that it's ME who's worst possible candidate for having an opinion you don't agree with. Seems that the 1st Amendment only applies to some and not me.
Alrighty then.

Perhaps it's because I lack experience/skills?
This one's hit and miss. I could have done a lot of charity work or internships but it takes money to travel.
Money I don't have.
Of course I could have gone to school and earned a degree.....but again there are so damn many people out there who have 2 and 3 jobs without even finishing high school. What gives?
Besides, what the hell type of experience are you looking for in an ENTRY LEVEL FIELD?
Some of the requisites I've seen for entry level jobs = pathetic. Then again, I can get with the times or get lost. Either one I'm alright with. Also sucks that I had taken a few classes which should have helped me get a job, but no dice. No dice. Yet.

ALL JOB WHINING ASIDE:
I'm mostly here to tell you of what I'm planning on doing to get ahead.
So what is it?
I'm starting over from scratch.

I'm like the guy who get's an amazingly important life lesson and actually pays attention to it.

My mom, my friends, and a few others spoke about the essentials behind going to school.
So that's just what I'll do, unless I manage to find a job last minute.
Even a temporary job will escalate my status immensely, as money coming in will definitely provide a broad range of plans I can use to make a living and make living for others as comfortable as possible.

If I'm allowed to enroll and not be hindered in any sort of way.....that's much better than nothing because there are tons of people in this country who have difficulty signing up for school. I don't wish to be one of them, but I'm sure there's something I can do if I run into a brick wall with no job and no school. Right?
RIGHT?

Sure there is!
I can either go beg my government for some assistance, but with so many homeless people in this nation: I'd say that's going pretty well.
(Not really.)

I could take my chances in a shelter!
Then again, that's not much better. There are a lot of thieves and aggressive people in homeless shelters, and I don't know this from experience but had I known personally: it wouldn't really matter much.

Again, I could take my chances!
However, I'd be a tad bit more in control of my destiny.
As a survivalist.
It's a lot harder, but if I want to eat: I'll find a way that doesn't involve digging in garbage receptacles or begging for change.

Meat is good, but what will I eat for veggies?
Also how will I kill it? Guns cost money. These things need answers, but I'll figure it out

Alright, let's rewind a bit.
If I were to live off the land, I'd need an expert survival handbook, a trusty companion (I'll ask nicely if I can bring that Siberian Husky I've posted before) and loads more supplies than I've got now.
In other words, this is absolutely a last chance scenario and I wouldn't even do it for years. I'd just endure until the good weather's no longer here.

So let's rewind back to going to school.
I go to school, endure the ignorance and mundane studies and spend as much time as possible trying to get better in my chosen field of study.
Sounds good right? Well it gets even better if I get a job during my studies.
I can start one of my money making goals and earn money while I earn money while I earn my degree.
Also, one of those pivotal roles you play in any social situation is that of the networker.
Make as many friends as you can not by trying too hard, but being naturally friendly and willing to offer your assistance and such.
Some people won't like it, others will. That's what I'll do and chances are I could possibly stumble into a legal source of income from these college going lads. Of course, I could stumble into a bunch of psychopaths but we'll keep on the positive route.
*Insert needless drabble about a few industry leaders going to school, meeting a group of swell fellows, then dropping out and making billions here*

Assuming I've been in college long enough to attain my degree or manage to stumble upon a full time job which I absolutely cannot refuse: that's when I make my move.
The hell out of Chicago.

I love this city because of it's beauty and it's memories, but I don't like the incredibly high rates of crime.
I loathe the higher than average tax rate.
I absolutely hate the "worse than murder itself" corrupt city officials.
George Ryan, Rob Blagojevich, Richard Daley, etc blah blah blah too many to count.
If I wish to make an empire in order to save my life and the lives of others, I've got to get out of this city. Should I not make it out: I put up an effort and that's most of what matters.
Not to forget, I can take my experience and perhaps get a job which pays more and taxes less than Chicago.....

Where will I go?
Over west.
That's all that's needed to know at this point.

As I think to myself, why did I make this post:
I answer immediately "to cure boredom and tell the truth at the same time"

All in all, thanks for reading!
Feels like I'm missing a picture, but you don't need all that.
:)

Cashing In On Twitter.

2012-05-16T14:56:00.000-05:00

Hello ladies and gents. Thanks for checking out another blog post of mine.
Of all the things I talk about, this has to be one of the most beneficial.
Who on earth would turn down the chance at making money when it exists and it's legal?
Of course you wouldn't.

So......
You want to use the internet to make money?
Obviously. That's why you're still reading this post!
Well enough chit chat: here's what you need in regards to making money via Twitter.

You need:
1 Twitter account.
1 fairly sized, big or massive audience.
1 or more methods of monetizing your twitter account.

First step is easy. If you have a little time to spare, should you not have a Twitter account: just sign up. It's free, obviously. If you already have a Twitter account but you want to start fresh: just create another Twitter account.

If you want to do this as easily as possible and you have a little money to spare:
Just search Google.com for methods on increasing your twitter followers.
First result I attained was a site called getmorefollowers.com and even though the website looks clean and non threatening: there's no guarantee that you'll get what you paid for. Use your own discretion and hope for the best.
Be careful! There are some sites out there which scam the buyer (You, if you pick this method) and you certainly don't want that.
Is there any way of knowing whether or not you'll be scammed? Not really. The only surefire method is to research the company and or try them out. Purchase the smallest package, and if it delivers: chances are you'll be in the clear should you purchase a bigger plan.
WARNING: Purchasing followers may be (is supposed to be) against the terms of service. Should Twitter deem you guilty of buying your followers: you may have wasted your money as they may close your account. I wouldn't worry too tough about that though, because there are several hundred accounts with paid for followers and not a single care was given that day.

Wait a second......you don't have money to spare for an immediate audience boost, do you? Maybe you don't want to waste money on this method. Hmmmmmm well that's fine too. I warn you though, this will be nowhere near immediate and it requires more luck than skill. At the very least, you wasted no money and are only in the running to make some money.

What you do is: you pretend to be a fangirl. That's right. Obsessive fangirl fan bases are absolutely easy to infiltrate. Fortunately, this isn't even an evil scheme! So don't worry about having a guilty conscience or anything, it's just adapting to what people want the most. So far, Justin Bieber and 1Direction are the most high octane fan bases to be apart of. In a matter of hours you could have a hundred or hundreds of followers. Just ask a bunch of Beliebers or Directioners to follow you and bam. In the midst of all these follow requests: make sure to post a few tweets prove to them and anyone else viewing your tweets that you're a human and not just a bot or desperate. It helps to do a little research like what songs these groups have published, which is your "favorite" song and things like that. After you've attained a comfortable amount of followers, start tweeting more often. The followers will start pouring in and they may even agree with what you say!

Continuing on: if you attain 3-10,000 followers then it's time to start posting relationship tweets and everything else regarding love and other stuff guaranteed to get RTs and replies. It's important that you change your profile photo, name, and twitter account name after you've earned as many followers as you're comfortable with. There were bieber/directioner quote accounts but I haven't seen them anymore. Nobody takes them seriously, and you shouldn't take that chance. If you do: good luck to you.
Just remember, I've been on Twitter long enough to identify what works and what doesn't. Your goal to making money on Twitter is to connect with an audience. Because most of Twitter happens to be teenagers: you have to address teenage issues and that will guarantee your success.
I beg of you: just try to be a bit creative!
Switch words up a bit. Speak your mind. Try to stay on the path of resonating with your audience but don't mindlessly drone out quotes and stuff. People who steal jokes and quotes are often condemned but not enough. The same quotes, jokes, and facts and pictures have gone viral multiple times from multiple accounts. However: you want to be a bit creative. You want to switch things up a bit. The more you can modify the same lame teenage quotes jokes and pictures: the better.

Hint: make sure to change your background, profile photo and Twitter name to something regarding teens. If you want a sure bet, make the default photo and background something regarding teens. In terms of your Twitter name: it doesn't matter too much but don't make it offensive.

Alright, so you've got your purpose built Twitter account and audience together.....right?
Well let's go over the basics again. You want a Twitter account that regards teenage issues but you don't want it to be your identity. Be as anonymous as possible until you've made a ripple in the Twitterverse. There are a lot of super sleuths online and you could end up being exposed for what you really are. If your Facebook or personal Twitter account contains hatred, sexism, racism or anything else many teens claim not to like, you could be revealed to the Twitterverse as a racist/sexist/bully/whatever and 2 things could happen.
1.) You'll lose followers by the truckload which means you'll lose money.
2.) You'll stir the ad provision network the wrong way and they'll terminate your income source.
Sure there are a few people out there who use their own picture and sometimes their first name: but I'm telling you.....don't take the risk. DO NOT TAKE THE RISK! Make an average quote account once you've got at least 1000 followers (although you'll get better results if you have at least 3-10 thousand) that's when you move on to step 2.

The second and final step: monetize your account.
SponsoredTweets.com
MyLikes.com

These are 2 verified sources of income for top Twitter users. You don't have to have top Twitter status in order to monetize this way. SponsoredTweets have a requirement of at least 300 followers before you can sign up: if I'm not mistaken. A massive majority of tweeters have well over that, so their requirements may change. When last I used it: it was 300 followers. They've stepped up their acceptance process, which means they manually check tweets of users. Tweeters who swear too much and adult content tweeters are considered ineligible for an unknown amount of time. I've never seen an adult content tweeter linked with SponsoredTweets or Mylikes, because at the time: adult content and large advertising corporations = not a good mix due to current laws. That means no tweets/twitternames/pictures which deal with sexual content. Perhaps there were some negative tweeters who straightened up and were accepted upon applying again, but perhaps not. I don't have all of the details, but I do know they screen potential tweeters for excessive swearing, adult content, and other negative tweets.

Alright, so you signed up for Twitter, acquired your audience, tweeted sappy teenage stuff, and signed up for SponsoredTweets or Mylikes. (sign up for both if you want the maximum amount of income from your Twitter account)
Surely this is it, right?
Well sadly it isn't.
The good news is, you don't have to do much more than tweet in order to potentially start raking in the hundreds to thousands.
SponsoredTweets and Mylikes require a separate login.
All you've got to do is log in with your Twitter account or your separate account details (although it's tons easier to just link with Facebook/Twitter) and sponsors shall be available.
Tweet a sponsored link, and should your followers click it.....you earn money.
Since it takes a ton of followers to make good money per ad tweet: that's why I said you'll be better off with 3-10,000 followers.
The more followers you have, the more the advertisers are willing to pay you per tweet.
It's all because of a little thing called audience reach.

Advertisers are trying to get their product out there, and they feel a bit better knowing that they've got a better chance of people actually paying attention to the product being advertised. The more of an audience you've got, the more of a chance you've got at making sales/acquiring signups/etc for the advertiser and that's what makes the system work. Should you have less followers: you'll make less of an impact on the advertiser's demands.

In short:
Follow my method.
Follow it and be happy.

Oh and something else to throw out there.....
Get a trusted friend to work with you on this project for an increased success rate.
Twitter allows 1 account to log in on multiple devices.
So your friend can tweet during the day, and you can tweet via night.
Or you 2 can mix it up, but work out a schedule. Also make sure you don't overuse anything!!!!

Another tip on promotion:
Get yourself a Facebook page dedicated to your Twitter account.
You can earn more followers and such.
Tell your real friends to like said page or just keep liking the posts until they like your page as well.
I feel it's far easier to earn Facebook likes than it would be to earn Twitter followers.
If you're lucky: everyone who likes your Facebook page will also follow the Twitter account posted to the Facebook page/group.

One last tip on promotion:
For goodness sake: POST IN TRENDS! Don't just go spamming in every trend.
Post tweets that relate to the trend, and if you can.....include a picture.
Try not to be bitter, even if that's all that Twitter makes you feel.
Especially post in the fangirl trends, because you'll have a better chance of growing your audience.

One more tip in terms of making money from your Twitter account?
Simple. Create a tumblr/blog which allows you to post 3rd party ads and link that to your Facebook Group AND Twitter page.
In order to make any money from your blog: you need advertisements. Sign up for Google Adsense or some other reliable 3rd party advertising agency and you're in the clear.
But not yet.
Post the ads, and post blogs to your tumblr/blogspot/other blog/website AND NOT JUST PICTURES FOR FUCK SAKE!
So many angsty teens post pictures to their Tumblr (it's only Tumbloggers on Twitter) which contradict their Twitter personality and that's not how you make good money on the Internet. Content which the advertisers can relate to is what earns the decent bucks. Content that doesn't look as if it were rushed is what keeps you in the clear.
This seems like a lot of work for just one person, so I recommend getting a friend in on this.
Even the most elite Tweeters can't do this alone, so they get their personal network of "friends" (highest bidders) to inflate their self worth and follower count.

Now that I think about it.....
I've been denying it for so long!
I need to get in on this.
It's a good amount of money on the side after a while and it'll get me where I need to be.
I'm going to start a quote account and do everything I can to make a difference.
I'll be the change I want to see on Twitter.
If you want to make some money as surely as possible on Twitter:
Follow my instructions to the nail.
You'll make some decent money with your efforts, but only if you stay vigilant!

P.S. You need a paypal and functional bank account/prepaid debit card if you want to get paid without dealing with check cashing fees.
It's bad enough that Paypal charges you a percentage of the money you received, but if you request a check: they take even more.

Alright. As clear and concise a guide I could provide.
I suggest you take my advice and follow me on Twitter!
http://twitter.com/#!/powderedblack
happens to be my Twitter name at the time, but who knows when I'll change or delete my account?
Well follow me anyway. Worry not, I'll follow you back.
If your tweets aren't generic: I'll retweet it.
Oh, and follow a good friend of mine.
http://twitter.com/#!/RamblingPerson

Done with this blogpost.
Thanks again for reading.
New post coming soon!

Guns.....

2012-05-15T01:34:00.000-05:00

Hello readers.
Another random day, another post on a topic you could have seen coming.
Although I've probably posted something identical to this: I don't recall.

Every country in the world has them, just about every person on earth has their opinion on them, and millions of people are considering owning one or have already established (legal) ownership. The industry makes more money (especially on the black market but still) than some of the highest paid industries out there, and they're not going anywhere.
Still don't know what I'm referring to?
Of course you do. It's the title of the blogpost. So yes it's guns.

Guns are responsible for so many things on earth, not all of them good. Then again that can be said about literally everything else on this planet. Everything has it's good and it's bad uses and guns are no exception.
I could make this a typical post where I go over the pros and cons extensively: but I'm going to do my best to speed things up because I know you've got things to do. Sound fair?

Well then.....guns are meant to deter attackers/wild beasts. Sometimes the wild beast stands upright, approaches you and makes demands which you understand. Other times, the wild beast stands upright, makes a few grunting noises and starts making swipes at you with it's massive claws which have 1600 lbs of force. Ouch. (it's bears, folks. bears.)
Obviously there are other threats which require the use of a firearm, and if you're given the ability to brandish your weapon: that's enough in quite a few cases. If things need to escalate: firing a warning shot changes the mind of even more who dared to challenge you. Should the warning shot lack the POWERFUL message you're trying to convey and they choose to continue their advance.....most gun owners will shoot to wound (because really who wants to kill someone when you can get them to stop bothering you instead) whereas others will shoot to kill.
Both outcomes are legitimate, as the attacking creature had no intention of going away quietly.

As for the folk who live in areas populated with edible wildlife and small game: that's free food strutting around! Who's going to spend money on food from the grocer/super market when you can easily acquire your own? That's like the smartest move you can make, as long as you don't go ballistic and eat everything that moves. There are hunting licenses and limits and edible creatures aren't openly available. Thus meaning, we don't REALLY have to stress over a few folk extinguishing the deer/wild hog/chickens/turkeys/ducks/rabbits/whatever because they reproduce faster than we can kill them.
All blabbing aside: guns are useful for more than just defending yourself. Although if you think about it, you'd be defending your budget from overpriced meats. hahaha

Last on our subtle list of gun uses?
Practice. There are countless people on earth who have no trouble with shooting at phone books, blocks of ballistics gel, empty cans/bottles and whatever else makes for a good plinking target. They're happy with doing this as often as possible and we can all agree it's much better than killing for the sake of killing. Seems like a great idea if you're trying to make it into the law enforcement/military career paths. Oh, and in case you haven't noticed: First Person Shooter games have been best sellers for the longest. If you gave any one of those gamers a gun and told them to shoot something: I guarantee they'll have fun. My point? Shooting stuff is fun. It doesn't just have to be for self defense or hunting and you're smart. I know you knew this already. Just had to include this little bit.

There you have it. These are the strongest firearm ownership points.

A gun I made using a web application. I removed the watermark because
screw the rules I hate watermarks.

What about the reason(s) that people hate guns so much? Surely we've got to know......right?

Why are there are so many people against them so strongly? Simply because there are a quite a few evil people on earth who could snap and go on a killing spree. That is one of our biggest fears as a society, unless you've got no heart and no friends. Who wants to hear about one of their loved ones, or several of their loved ones being slain by some lunatic? That's right. Not a single person on earth can confess to that and mean it.
Surely a lunatic could use poison, blunt force weapons or sharp objects. Then again, it's much more fair than a gun. People can conquer poison or receive an antidote. People can fight off or evade attackers who need to get close. Not many people survive head shots or shots to the heart.

Guns make it far easier to kill another person because you don't need to be close OR expose yourself in order to make a kill, and 1 person who has nothing to lose could kill as many people as they've got bullets. Quite unfortunate that there are massive amounts of guns which have incredible firepower without being incredibly heavy: but sometimes you'll have a hero step up and sacrifice their life so others may live. I wouldn't bet on that all the time, because most people value their lives! When the gun wielding jerk starts firing or just before: everyone starts thinking about all they'll leave behind. Many people don't wish to make that sacrifice: so they take their chances. Besides, not everyone can play the hero.
Oh and the chance of bullets being able to pass through aforementioned hero while remaining lethal are very real.
Mr. or Mrs. Hero could die while not adequately protecting the person/people they're trying to save. Does no good to sacrifice yourself to the gunman if the bullets pass right through them and kill another person but it's much better than nothing. This is the reason that most people hate guns and they're right for it.

Trigger happy folk who don't care about human life indiscriminately killing people: it has happened, it will continue to happen, and believe it or not: it seems that the only way to stop this from happening is to give average citizens the ability to defend themselves. I know it seems highly impractical for every person on earth to carry a gun everywhere they go, because many could consider that a sign of being afraid. Sure it would be nice to have it and not need it: but a society where everyone carries a weapon leads to people being paranoid as to when they'll need to use it.
Giving a gun to virtually everyone means virtually anyone could be the next terror threat.
Fortunately, not for long should everyone have a fighting chance.
Seriously though, if a team of gunmen came along and everyone in the room has a gun: someone can end the struggle or buy enough time for everyone to fight back or get away.

America has many states which allow it's citizens to carry guns openly. For some reason, those states typically have lower crime rates! What a surprise.
For states that condemn gun ownership: you typically see an incredible rise in crime compared to states which allow open or even concealed carry. How shocking. :|
Now let's look at Mexico. It's pretty much illegal to own a gun there, and it's not the best place to be.
Cartels have made that point perfectly clear and because citizens are unarmed: it's a safe bet that they're easy targets 99% of the time.
Wait a second, if you go to Europe and stay a while.....you'll notice that guns aren't as big over there!
Sure there are a ton of Europeans who would love to own a gun, but gun ownership isn't very common for them. They don't feel as if they need it too tough. Hell most police don't carry guns in Europe! Although this is mostly true for Norway and Great Britain: I'm sure there are other Euro nations which don't pass out gun ownership rights as eagerly as America. Guns would be an improvement to Great Britain in order to keep scum in check: but it would heavily conflict with neighboring countries in the Euro Zone. Possibly.

In a perfect world, a human would never have to turn a gun on another human. However you slice it though, we're far from a perfect world. People get outstandingly frustrated, greedy, and or psychotic then wish to end another human's life as quickly and surely as possible. That isn't what civilized gun ownership is about, and taking guns from everyone won't solve anything. It will absolutely make the situation worse and the sooner we allow every day civilians the ability to defend themselves whilst living in high crime areas: the sooner these high crime areas tone down (even significantly) then everyone can be happy.

How many criminals do you hear putting their guns down so they can become law abiding citizens?
Not enough. It happens, but when someone leaves the crime world: 10's of people are eager to take his/her place. Talking won't defend people from bullets. You can't guilt a criminal into stopping their illegal deeds.
Walking in the streets won't stop assholes from indiscriminately firing on innocent people.
Only eradicating that scum of the earth will send a clear enough message.
If enough people fight back, the stupid jerks will get it. When they realize that most people are armed and aren't going to lie down and take the abuse: there's a good chance they'll stop.
They're cowards. They're not wanting a fair fight. That's precisely why they use guns when guns aren't needed. They take guns into areas where it's against the law.
Blah blah blah et cetera et cetera.

Wrapping things up:
I love guns. I understand why some people don't like guns, but you have to remember that guns aren't killing people! People are going to attain guns no matter what if they want them bad enough, and this holds true all over the world.
Europe seems to have their gun regulations under control, but since guns are already legal here: I just wish they make guns available to all who can legally own them. Chicago's one of the worst and lawmakers know it.
My city and state are a mess. I mean, we've got legendary murder rates. That's not good news.
If law abiders had guns, we could magically shrink the stupid murder rate.

That concludes my post.
Thanks for reading this sleeping pill!
Oh and credit to the gun app.
http://pimpmygun.doctornoob.com

Drugs and Tolerant Countries

2012-05-06T21:45:00.000-05:00

Ladies and Gentlemen, thanks for checking out my blog post!
Well, it's not completely my blog post. Although it is, because I've written it: it was written per the request of a pretty decent follower of mine. His account name on Twitter is @Section12 just for the sake of naming names.
By the way, good luck dude! You'll pull through.

Now then, my previous post dealt with Marijuana. We all know that loads of people around the world know about it, and compared to many other LEGAL substances on earth......it's worth it's weight in gold.
Although it's not perfect, it's a pretty solid and reliable method of relieving tension or enhancing one's mood. Mostly.
Thing is, many countries around the globe have pretty much condemned this drug to hell. So many decades spent trying to make weed seem like the big bad wolf. So many people put in prison for selling this relatively harmless drug. So many lives lost (both literal loss of life and loss of freedoms due to prison time) upon people trying to get their hands on the stuff or being in the wrong place at the wrong time. So many injustices thrust upon the folk who just want to enjoy themselves without hurting anyone.

I could go on a bit longer with my bleeding heart prose, but I choose against it.
Instead I shall talk about countries which decided against punishing individuals who want to use nature's methods of cutting off the crust of the mind.

First country on my short list would definitely have to be Portugal. Based on the information I read: I know that Portugal doesn't punish it's citizens for smoking, snorting, or injecting any drug. That alone would have most people in this country packing their bags and fighting hard to become a citizen there. Although many statisticians can jarble together a bunch of facts and make them seem legitimate: their stats and "facts" run alongside one of my theories. My theory, which isn't my theory at all yet I claim as my own is: "drug use will decline [become uncool] overtime if it's deemed less severe a crime or even legalized" is starting to surface. Drug usage in Portugal is on the decline, and even if it wern't: it's great to hear that a person's life won't be ruined because they wanted to do a little something on the wild side.

Surely enough, drugs can and have been the cause of death and destruction. From cocaine to weed, people have been hurt from tainted product, overdose, or absolutely needing a fix and not caring who's life they put in danger. Fortunately, should a person fall under the spell of addiction: the government of Portugal isn't going to judge. They're willing to offer free rehabilitative services to whomever accept them or whoever request them. More than likely.....
Although a good deal of drug users are able to function without being severely addicted: it's great to know should they need help: it's there without prosecution.

Second country is obviously The Netherlands.
If I'm not mistaken, drugs are tolerated there but not legal. Their relaxed stance on drugs have led to millions of people enjoying their contraband without too much hassle from the police.
When you take addictive drugs which are also illegal, chances are you can become addicted AND become stressed or anxious due to the inability to easily attain the next high. Should an addict find themselves no longer wanting to do drugs, they can consult the help of their government. It's a good a move as any, as it gives many a sign of hope. A sign that no matter what you do, someone will care enough to ease you through the pain and suffering.

Third choice on my list is the bundle of Scandinavian countries.
That means Finland, Denmark, Norway and Sweden are all on the same spot. Obviously.
Although these countries aren't so strict when it comes to dealing out justice/punishment: they're incredibly understanding when it comes to helping drug addicts steer away from their vice.
Helping people afflicted by drug addiction make the choice to stop doing drugs without treating them like criminals = a pretty effective policy.
I just wish the USA would widely adopt this method of rehabilitation. It exists in some areas, and some hospitals will save a person's life even when uninsured: but chances are you'll have to pay for rehabilitation. As far as I know, there are no government sponsored drug treatment programs. I could be wrong, because things change everyday. At this point in time though, the only way to fight your demons would be to have someone sponsor you, sponsor yourself, or have soul of a warrior and allow your body to detox naturally.
Again, I know there are some free rehabilitation programs in this country, but there are far more drug addicts than there are centers to rehabilitate these people.

Speaking of countries to adopt this policy: Canada has chosen to do this as well.
Of course, they've got free health care. Why would they not include this on their list of things to give to citizens?

Just to point something out: countries which take the penalty out of drug use or provide free services to those who are addicted are much better off than leaving the addicted folk to fend for themselves.
It creates criminals out of people who just wanted to get a buzz.
Sure, it's annoying as all fuck to hear people go on and on and on forever about how much they love smoking/drinking/snorting/inserting/you get the idea and I'd be perfectly ok with these people behind bars.
For the people who just want to smoke after work, let them be. The world may be a better place because of it, someday.

Now if only we could completely abolish the body destructive drugs.
I'd be ok with people growing and smoking their own junk.
When that "junk" turns into powder, that's when it's hazardous to health and society worldwide.
Atleast that's how I think.

Wrapping things up here.
Thanks for reading!

A Post About Weed.

2012-04-22T09:08:00.000-05:00

Hello to you, ladies and gents! I tend to write about a range of things, and drugs are no exception.
A huge disclaimer: I have no idea where supply points are for this drug or any other drugs I decide to write about. I have not personally taken this or any other drug I choose to write about. I'm simply writing about drugs due to documentaries I've seen on TV + what I've learned over the years.
I'm just writing about what I know, and experiences upon taking these or places to buy such illegal goods are not among the list of things I know.

Enough chit chat, let's talk about one of the most accepted drugs on the market!
Once again, I have never personally dealt with this drug. I have been around people who regularly did this drug during high school. They've told me about their experiences and things like that, but I've never actually had an urge to smoke. I was silly enough without drugs and I felt that they wouldn't benefit me in any way.

So what's the deal with weed?

Why do so many people find this drug appealing?

Well it's simple actually. It's cheap, it's easily accessible (in America and Amsterdam especially) and it's the least harmful of the illegal drug family. Lets not forget the effect it provides upon use. Contrary to the widespread rumor, weed is actually responsible for deaths! We'll get into that in a little bit though.

Let's get into one of the reasons that people could enjoy this natural phenomenon. I say some enjoy it because they wish to fit in. These days and for several foreseen "days" in the future, it's considered quite unpopular an opinion to think badly about marijuana. Peer pressure will get the best of just about anyone and if you don't cave in to society's demands and questionable habits: you're a hater or a hipster. My heavens, why would anyone wish to be called a hater or a hipster? I better go fire it up to fit in!!!!
Speaking of weed, I forgot to acknowledge the secondary names! It can be known of as weed, kush, (although it's not reference to weed: it's reference to a strain of weed) pot, cannibis, dope, dro (another strain) and many other silly names for it.

Then you've got those who actually enjoy it. That's an acceptable reason. Well I consider it acceptable to a point. There are several million individuals in this planet who do drugs such as marijuana regularly and you wouldn't even know it! I've got much respect for those who can do drugs such as marijuana and not make a big spectacle about it. Respect only increases for those who can do such drugs, continue to keep it silent, AND be a functional member of society.

Some enjoy the cost, because it's much cheaper than alcohol and there's no tax.
Some enjoy the actual highs attained from the product.
Others enjoy the fact that it's so accessible. Nobody will ever ask you for ID.
Then you've got the health fanatics who enjoy knowing that marijuana's an organic product. (mostly)
Although tobacco and opiates are also organic products, weed is less addictive and told to have far more health benefits. Besides, tobacco provides no high and opiates cause obvious bodily damage.

Drug cartels love the drug because it's pretty profitable, and if they have some sort of a heart: they'll be able to take comfort in the fact that nobody's dying from overdoses. Nobody's going to have to worry about getting AIDS or doing something amazingly stupid while under the influence. Oh, and there are different flavors to this. From apple to apricot, blueberry to strawberry: the flavors extend well beyond that I'm sure.
So many different strains, so many different customers, all sorts of different possibilities: one route if the circumstances are good......which is money.

Surely everything on earth has it's flaws!

Even though so many people (usually teenagers who don't have all of the facts) preach about this drug as if it's a pristine miracle discovery, I am aware of the complications and know of some negative aspects.

First of all it's illegal! Obviously people aren't at all deterred by the fact that it's illegal, but once upon a time alcohol was illegal too. I feel that if people who use this drug continue to persist, this may become another legal method of getting high. Until it's written into law that people can smoke weed legally, you can still be locked up for it. For those of you who don't know, once you're arrested (in the case of drug users.....drug possession or drug dealing) you're going to find it harder to find a job. Well, supposedly. I see ex and future convicts getting jobs all the time! It's frustrating to no end, but maybe they've got something I don't.

Oh, and employers do drug tests all the time! Even though there are methods of flushing the drugs out of your system.....random drug tests can and have caught a lot of people off guard.

What about the bodily issues?
Well......

Lung cancer and brain damage seem to be the leading risks when smoking marijuana. One thing I've discovered, is that paranoia can occur after extended use. It may not be as severe in comparison to harder drugs, but being even more paranoid is never a good thing.
Being frightened/paranoid all the time can lead to tension. Tension leads to increased heart rate. Too much strain on your heart leads to heart attack, and possibly stroke.

These are possibilities though. What about the lung cancer? Upon previous research, I've been informed that marijuana can contain as much as 20 times the amount of tar in comparison to regular cigarettes. Even if it contained 2 times less tar than the tar-iest of cigarettes, the risk is still there. I'm not too sure about any other risks, but cancer, stroke, and heart attack are risk enough for me to never pick up the stuff.

So we've conquered the bodily issues which can and have led to death.
What about the other life threatening issues?

Drug cartels, drug pushers, police officers, and even innocent bystanders have all been injured, tortured, and even killed. Still think your precious little weeds aren't responsible for death???

Cartel owners are desperate to keep their profits and expand their operation, so they're seldom afraid to take on the police. They dispatch their minions to do the dirty work and as drug bosses: they too will stock up on more than their share of firearms and ammunition.
Police want to go home to their families and friends, so every now and then they'll find themselves in situations where they're forced to use deadly force on dealers and others involved in the drug ops.

Drug dealers are often doing crazy things to earn fear and respect, so innocent men women and children occasionally end up tortured or killed intentionally without a purpose. There's that, and rivals trying to take profitable drug spots. Since bullets are often fired indiscriminately and won't just drop to the ground useless if they miss their target, countless innocent bystanders (even those who are inside their cars and homes) are maimed or fatally wounded unintentionally.

Let's not forget about the corrupt drug dealers and drug bosses! Most people can think of them as corrupt immediately, but as long as the product isn't deadly and blood isn't being spilled to make a sale: that's as clean as it needs to be. Except when it's not.

Reports have been going around involving drug cartels and drug dealers tainting the weed.

Lacing it with harmful chemicals in order to increase the user's high.
I'm not sure how many people have died from this, but I can guarantee that people have died from it.

All in all, this drug isn't perfect.

It has led to deaths. It can cause delayed fatalities.

It is illegal (in most areas) and can ruin your employment future.
But so far, it seems to be the least addictive and most enjoyable drug out there.

No other drug can be enjoyed as excessively as marijuana can, without the extreme risk of overdose.

No other drug is as inexpensive, and no other drug is as widely available.

No matter how you slice it, weed isn't going anywhere. Although I wish it would sometimes: we'll save the drug eradication efforts for the more powerful stuff first.

In other words, thanks for reading another post!
This guy, over and out.

My Mega Charity Details.

2012-04-11T05:09:00.000-05:00

Hello there, ladies and Mark. As for all of you others who are reading, I thank you.
In this blog post, I shall talk about some of my future charity details.
I have no intention on creating such a charity anytime soon in my life, so bear with me as I write down one of my pipedreams. The term "pipe dream" seems like a discouraging word: but I'm not convinced that my goal is impossible.

So let's get to the details now.
A charity has to have a location, right? Yes.
Instead of having 1 massive charity in order to help out the needy: why not branch out and help more people in more locations?
Exactly. So I'll pitch tent in North America, South America, Africa, and Asia. Due to the fact that I've got a few billions of dollars shy of my goal amount: I'll just leave it at that.

Ok, so now you've got some knowledge as to where I'm setting up forts.
Just because I want to: let's get into detail about the buildings themselves!
I may not know about all fireproofing or bulletproofing methods which exist out here, but I know I'm going to make this building as bulletproof and explosive proof as can be.
So far I know is each building will be constructed with advanced materials that most buildings aren't made up of. Bulletproof bricks, ballistic steel, reinforced concrete, ballistic nylon insulation and anything else which can prevent the building from being shot up and blown up efficiently. Let's not forget bulletproof glass!
This won't make my fortifications invincible, but it will make them capable of shrugging off small arms fire and possibly even mortar fire + rocket propelled attacks as well.
Also it's safe to assume that these buildings are going to be massive. It will be ultra expensive to build them, and quite expensive to maintain them. If I can go much bigger than the biggest hotels, I'll do that.

Alright, so we've got building details out of the way. What are we going to do if rebel forces try to storm the place? Definitely not call the police!
We're going to need good soldiers and armored vehicles to defend our base.
There are so many countries I could choose from in terms of troop request, but it's simple really: just hire those who can do the job without costing way too much. Not much more than snipers, sappers, and regular ground infantry should be needed. Anything else, we'll get a hold of as needed.

So.......
These troops shall all wear the Dragon Skin body armor, unless it's outdated along with ceramic plates and anything else I can do to prevent bullets from causing any real damage to them.
The troop placement is vital, so they'll be all around the building. This will provide everyone with 360 degrees of protection.
The guns of the ground troops will most likely be something that can take the environmental punishment without jamming. A gun which doesn't break down too quick, while firing a bullet that can take a man down at a distance minus the over penetration. An Ak-47 would be a fine gun to have, but too much penetration and not being able to land bullets accurately over distance are key issues. Perhaps time will produce a gun which provides these demands, or maybe my team will use majorly upgraded M4/M16 style rifles with an impressive bullet to match. The M16/M4 rifles of today are pretty good at their job, but per my research I've heard that it jams a lot and the bullet doesn't perform well enough in some cases.
Snipers will be there to overlook the ground troops. Along with the snipers, there will be spotters who can overlook the horizon at long distance.
Then there will be snipers who can overlook the other snipers.
Snipers will also be assigned to watch the backs of snipers.
In essence, snipers will be back to back.
Ground troops will be all around the building. All of them wielding powerful weapons, all of them adorned by the latest and most efficient body armor. None of them willing to let anyone with a weapon pass through the gates, everyone searched for weapons or explosives or else turned around or dispatched.
Problem solved, everyone secure.
Sappers will near infantry and snipers, just to ensure vehicles can be eliminated before being too much of a big deal.
2 heavily armored main battle tanks and heavily armored transport vehicles shall also be far out in the front, to prevent tragedy from hitting those who I'm trying to help. I've heard stories about the amazing levels of damage these vehicles can withstand, so I'm not worried at all.

Alright, bases covered.
What's next?

What will these buildings serve a purpose for? Surely we can't feed, shelter, clothe, entertain and even pay these individuals for nothing right?
Well we could, but it's far less productive. Life shouldn't be that easy.
We'll take help from those who are able bodied.
Simple farming tasks, simple feeding tasks, cleaning tasks, anything we can do to lessen the impact we're putting on the planet: the better off we'll be.
So we'll grow all sorts of veggies and breed animals which will be used to feed the needy.
We'll see what we can do to reproduce fish too because fish are healthy and delicious.
Definitely looking into taking advantage of the plentiful-ness provided by wild boar, and preserving blue fin tuna. As time goes on, I'll address any other species I'd like to preserve and reap.

Wait a second, I'm not paying them to work!
This would just be a job! It's not, but it could be if they wanted it to be. Although I'm not going to pay them $50,000 a year to receive aid from me.....I do know they've probably got plans in mind or things they'd like to get on a personal level. If I'm rich enough to give this darn much opportunity: I shall.
It seems a little silly at this level, considering it's going to cost a lot of money for upkeep and expenses: but this is if I'm rich and already making tons of money in investments.
Donations aren't out the door, but they're something I don't wish to require.

Ok, what will these folk do? It wouldn't be nice to make them into my very well cared for servants. I'd have to give them something which makes them useful, should they leave my premises.
Learning, that's what. Everyone's given the option to school based on their education level.
Should that person not be educated even in the slightest: that's ok. They can learn at their own pace, and eventually learn what they're truly interested in. Nothing's stopping them from learning everything they've ever been interested in.
If you have a degree or certification of skilled trade: school isn't mandatory. Chill out, put your brains and skills to use, and enjoy your stay!
Where will these people learn? The facility could be big enough to contain schools, or they can get scholarshipped into the school of their choice if they're able to pass the entrance exam and finish the entrance exam set forth by the school.
Maybe I'll just get my own schools, because colleges today are so flipping expensive! I've got to find dedicated teachers who are willing to teach loads and loads of students.
However, I'd love to give these folk the opportunity to educate themselves and be professionally educated.
That's one big thing most of society happens to be missing.

We all know that people can't live on education and nourishment alone.
They've got to have something fun to do!
Entertainment centers and sports aplenty.
Basically, that's all that needs to be said.
Everyone's got access to their own games, their own music devices, their own radios, this that and the other.
Since everyone has an allowance, everyone can purchase what they want should I have made an error.

By the way, I'm forgetting to include how I'm going to power this operation!
Not financially, but literal power. There's an amazing invention known of as a bloombox which can power a large building without requiring extra resources! Solar power is also a great thing, but bloomboxes knock sun power out of the water. Of course since I'm no dummy, I'll use a bloombox or 2 to power the buildings, and solar panels to feed the backup generators. There's also wind generation and other methods so I'll use those to cut a needless expense and not absorb too many expenses

Long story short, I'd love to give people the live I know I wish I had.
Protection, education, allowance, opportunity, and everything else fun under the sun.
If I ever had the cash to finance this massively massive dream goal: you bet your behind I'm going to.
So my post ends here.
I bid you a good day.

This guy, over and out.
Thanks for reading, once again!

If I Were Rich......Instantly

2012-04-09T03:13:00.000-05:00

Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you for reading.

If it were not for my best friend providing me a computer to write my continual rants: I would have most likely been out in the streets from sheer boredom and insanity.

This isn't a story about how much I love and appreciate my best friend who is like a brother to me.

This is a story about what I'd do differently if I were rich.

I'm talking swimming in money, won't have to worry about being broke until I die rich.

There are countless celebrities and highly wealthy individuals with more money than you'll ever make in 200 years with double your pay, and if I had their salaries I promise you I'd do some real good.

I was just getting ready to start naming names, but you've got a brain. You've got Google search on your side. You've got an imagination. Pick one for crying out loud!
Using your imagination, pretend I'm that wealthy person!
Since we're money oriented folk, let's pretend I'm the ~~cream~~ creme of the crop.

If you used Google, and I know I did: you'd know that Carlos Slim Helu is the richest man on Earth with $69 Billion. I'm not sure if that's his net worth or personal wealth, but that's what I got from the search results.
He's providing or he provided a service in Mexico that nobody can really compete against.
He owns the biggest, if not the only telecommunications provider in all of Mexico.
I'm not sure what he does in the name of charity, but based on the condition of Mexico: I'd say not much.
I mean, you don't see people coming from Norway or Canada running from their homeland in search of a better life in droves like you see Mexican folk.

(I am in no way being racist or anything like that, but you hear it all the time. Not everything you read on the internet or hear on the news is true, but when lots of people make a big enough fuss about it, it can't be too untrue right? I have no problem at all with honest and civilized people trying to get a better life in another country, because I may be one of them someday. I simply included this because it's fact. Mexicans are coming here because the standard of living is better and there's more opportunity here. Again, I have no problems with it at all, yet whether I do or don't: there's nothing I can do. Enough with this long drawn out explanation.)

Anywho, these countries aren't perfect (but damn near close) yet not a whole lot of people get killed over there. Not a whole lot of people go jobless or penniless for long. Not a whole lot of people are discontent with the way their businesses and governments do things.
As for Mexico, you've got a man who's making (or made) more money than a sizable percentage of earth's population combined; yet where is the contribution? When does he give back to those who need a little more to survive? What's he doing to minimize the famine and violence? Surely a man with such vast amounts of wealth can pinch off a sizable amount of money and slow down the flow of these problems......right??? RIGHT?????

Moving back into the direction of the intended post, I'm not trying to bash rich people for being rich.
I'll let them do that to themselves, as they lie on their death beds.
I'm trying to give you men and women a plan as to what I'd do had I been rich. Stinking filthy rich like this Carlos tool listed above or lesser will do, but more is more.

Simple enough, here goes nothing!
P.S. 1000 Ways To Die inspired me to write this.
It's no novel, but it inspired me to do something other than study medicine.

First, assuming this money is given to me via electronic transfer: I'd take a pretty nice chunk of it and put it into an interest bearing account. There are some accounts in this country which bear high interest, but not high to the point where they raise red flags.
I say 1.5 billion goes into this account, if they can handle that much. In America, one of the highest interest rates (unless you can negotiate and good luck on that!) happen to be 2.25% You don't even need to do the math to know that 2.25% of 1.5 billion dollars is more than enough to kick back on and support people with. This is simply to ensure that I've got enough money to indulge and not be a gigantic douche by having nearly 60 times that amount and just saving it for a rainy day. Besides, I always wanted to be a billionaire. Don't take that away from me! lol
Additionally, I'd divide $500 million among friends and family to ensure that they're no longer worrying about anything either AND to ensure that I'm able to spend this money evenly.
Just for the sake of explaining myself: I'm splitting up the sum of $500 million among them. No sane man would leave his own family and friends out of the picture once they strike it rich. All I'd tell them to do, is not to get lazy. Make that money work for them so they wouldn't have to mooch from others or cry about being broke. Fortunately for me I don't have too many friends. I do have a a lot of family, but I'd only give money to those I've interacted with. You know what happens when someone becomes rich and they have a lot of family they've never seen or heard of before right? That sum of money would go pretty fast, so I'd limit myself to giving to those who I've seen before.

Secondly:
I'd immediately give $40 billion in aid money. Many people in this situation wouldn't know what to do with it. Well I would and I'd spend it on feeding, clothing, and sheltering the masses. Starting with America, because it's where I live. I see these people starving and suffering out on the streets or retreating to their deceptively nice looking home. I know what it's like to be less than satisfied after eating due to not being fed enough. I know what it's like to live somewhere that you aren't comfortable with. I may not know what it's like to live like them 24/7 but I've put myself through that experience. It was nowhere near pleasant and I've always told myself that I'd help out anyone I saw in that condition. I try to, but my chump change isn't really going to cut it.
Just to clear any potential confusion: I wouldn't give to America only. I'd just work on fixing the problems among the truly needy here first. I'm sure I could aid many areas on the globe with Forty Billion Dollars at my finger tips.
If I don't feel satisfied after my contributions to charitable organisations, I'll build my own.
It will be more than costly, it will require many people to build and to run it, but for everyone who's involved: I shall make it worth their while.
We'll save this for another blog post though.
The details are so juicy, but seem so far out there: it's ridiculous.

Thirdly:
I'd visit the White House and ask the president to allow me to enact a stimulus package.
Spending 7 billion dollars on the American people should do the trick for a little while at least.
When George Bush enacted the stimulus package back in 2008, he handed out about $860 million dollars. Not bad, but I'm putting many times that amount back into the hands of the people.
The only difficult part about this, would be how often the payments would come and how I'd set this thing up without too many errors and cheaters. I was thinking once near summer time so more people can have a good time when it's so nice outside and once during the month of December. Everyone deserves a nice gift or 2, a nice hot MEAL, the leftovers of that meal, a house to enjoy them in, which is insulated and filled with people to be with along with things to do when it's this cold outside, and if I had my way: just about everyone (who wasn't completely hopeless with managing money) could have it.

Fourth on the list:
I'd spend some on creating jobs. How much?
About $10 Billion dollars worth.
There are plenty of businesses I could create or invest in, sure. Then again, I'm also not trying to slam $10 billion on the table based on a whim. I'm trying to make money, and I'm not trying to gouge my workers/customers either. I'm also not trying to push another piece of crap phone or other generic product into the atmosphere.
Chances are I'm going to make my own series of businesses which are dedicated to doing the damn thing right in the first place, for less money than most other, if not all other competitors.
If that's not enough, I'm also going to routinely search for any methods or tips I can use in order to make my businesses a thing that both sides can enjoy. In other words, I'd be spending a ton in order to improve my businesses and things like that: but far more so than other businesses in this current state of things.
That's why it's called an investment. I'm willing to pay any amount to ensure my businesses are started and run correctly the first time and continually, with the hope that it will start generating revenue. This is in order to repeat the second and third things I've said (and hoping to do) above. Thankfully there are numerous ways! There's no 1 business venture I have to invest in so I have multiple chances of success. The more I succeed, the more the world can recover. Simple as that.
Wait, it's not as simple as that! What if my businesses fail? Well atleast I tried. Of course I could get celebrity endorsements and stuff like that, but I'll let my products speak for themselves.
Ok, now simple as that. lol

Lastly, I do have $10 billion remaining. Am I right or am I right?
Wait, let me re-check my work. Out loud.
$1.5 billion for myself
1/2 billion for family and friends.
$40 billion for charity, across the globe.
$7 billion for stimulus package for America
$10 billion on making money and jobs appear.

As I thought. $59 billion spent, 10 billion to go.

I'd use the remaining $10 billion for various tasks. One day I'm helping out people world wide, the next I'm putting big chunks of it away so it can grow interest. Either way, this is my plan had I walked into this much money. Best part is, I can afford anything I want and not feel guilty.

If what I've said above isn't selfless: screw off. You're lying and you know it.

Wrapping things up here, be aware and be advised. Had I ever arisen to this much money in my bank account or in my back yard: you'd see me holding my end of the bargain. If it doesn't affect you immediately, it will in the immediate future once I get this sort of thing going.

Thanks for reading!
Next blog post, I talk about the amazingly amazing charity I'd love to construct one day.

Someday.............

This guy, over and out.

Writing A Book? Harder Than Imagined!

2012-04-05T22:35:00.002-05:00

Rome wasn't built in a day, good books are seldom written over night, and I'm not gifted with graphic design prowess. Even though I'm hardly considering the abandonment of this monumental goal, I'm putting things into perspective.

Persp[things]ective

See what I did there? It's just a nice little joke to include. lol

Besides, I always wanted to use it somewhere.

Moving right along, I would just like to say that my current choice of book content isn't what I'd like to publish.
Why? It seems too juvenile to be taken seriously, and if I were to write a book in this lifetime: I'd want it to be something that most mature audiences can enjoy. My book would have been along the lines of something you'd see on an middle schooler's essay paper and I would be the laughing stock of the writer's world.
Of course it wouldn't matter should I make it to the writer's world with such an unadvanced book: but there are better ways to make money.

Pretty much that's all I have to say at this point.
Thanks for reading!
You know my name.
Over and out.

Book Publishing?

2012-04-05T19:05:00.001-05:00

Hello there, ladies and gentlemen!
Thank you for checking out yet another one of my posts!

Due to the fact that I've been so darn busy trying to hammer out the right words for my most recent post: I haven't really had time to keep on the blog as hard as I wanted to.

Now based on the title of this blog, you could assume that I'm interested in writing a book.
You would be precisely right. The best part about this generation is, my goal of writing a book is entirely reasonable and attainable! Thanks to the advancement of technology, I could write a book and have it published in a fraction of the time, money, and resources it would take in order to me have written one 20 years ago.

Did I say I was trying to become a best selling book author?
I did not.
Would I like to be among the ranks of best selling authors?
Obviously.
What will my book be about?
Me and the presidency. Or something along those lines.
Trust me, I'll do my best to write this thing without making so many mistakes!

In the meantime, I shall continue to push posts and find a way to reunite with those who I liked talking with.
Due to the loss of my computer (which meant a loss of log in data) it's going to be a while until I find out what I had formerly known.
I shouldn't have to spell it out for thee. lol

Well, just an informational post.
Not much to see here!
You know my name:
Thanks for reading!
Over and out.

Big Businesses and Taxes: Both Sides Of The Taxes.

2012-04-05T18:50:00.000-05:00

Hello there, Ladies and Gentlemen! Thank you for checking out a piece of my mind. :)
In this segment right here, I'll be talking about the tax situation that people are always on about.
I admit, I was completely one sided on this subject. I felt as if corporate leaders were greedy individuals who have no hearts: and for the most part I still stand with my original point of view. After a while of being faced with the tax talks, I had to look into this situation from their point of view. It also helped that I was able to watch a few shows which gave me the other side of the story, but let's get to the point.

If you didn't know for some reason, running a business is very expensive!!!!! No matter where in the world you operate, what you sell, or where you sell your goods and services: it's all going to lead to a variety of fees and expenses that you'd have to pay if you ran your own business. No one is safe from this, but so far it doesn't seem to be that huge of a deal if new businesses can continue to rise.
Just so we are all clear though: there are alot of good businessmen and business women on this planet who are more than willing to pay their fair share of the taxes, and there are some who have absolutely no heart and are willing to do whatever it takes to save a few dollars more per year: as that means more money for them. Whichever side of the fence you operate on as a business owner, one thing is very very certain. The bigger the business, the higher the taxes. Well, assuming your business is big and successful of course.

Even though it still doesn't make sense to me that companies like Apple and Nike continue to take advantage of cheap labor, despite being among of the world's top companies AND take advantage of lesser tax rates such as the ones found in Switzerland and Ireland: I know that paying the American business tax rate would be much less beneficial as far as saving money goes. The hiring of cheap labor isn't reasonable or humane and I wish they wouldn't do it, but these hundred billion dollar companies are not going to change it's ways for a few disgruntled writers or anyone else who has anything to say about it. They're making a ton of cash every single day, and they'll continue to do so while saving as much money as they possibly can. It's an endless circle but there are glory lights at the end of the tunnel. Roughly depends on what direction you're looking in, but fear not. It won't matter someday.

Moving right along......

Let's not forget who's responsible for running all businesses world wide!!! That's right, it's because of humans that corporate leaders are continually searching for the most controversial methods of saving more money. Lo and behold: tax reduction is one of the most bold and least beneficial to those who support them.
Although computer programs and websites look for the best deals because it's what they are programmed to do: humans are going to look for the best deals in order to save the most money. Even though it's blatantly obvious that many CEO's in this world could care less about saving money on their own personal spending due to the fact that they make so much of it: if the business in question isn't saving as much money as it possibly can, that's more money which could never go to more important matters. Things like upgrading technology, hiring more workers, providing to charitable organisations, pensions, emergency budget, and countless other expenses could be effectively reduced or eliminated from business spending plans due to high tax rates.

Wait a second.
Wait just a frog licking second!
If businesses must pay taxes in order to give back to society, but really successful and really huge businesses are doing everything they can to pay less taxes......
That must mean something!
Either these corporate giants are too greedy and don't care about anyone but themselves (and maybe their personal network of friends) OR
The American tax rate is too high.

Per my research: I found out that we've actually got the highest business tax rate!
Japan seems to be competing with us once again on the global scale, but this time we aren't fighting with guns or planes.
Their tax rate, which is pretty friggin high comes to a smidge over 38%
In my book of reasoning, they need their tax rate to be about that high to help recover from the natural disasters and everything else that concerns Japan.
As for America, we've got 1 and 1 fraction more of a point than Japan does.
Although massive businesses like Apple, Nike, Microsoft and others should be more than be able to shrug off such a high tax rate without having to worry about going under: the corporate leaders of these companies really don't see a point in paying so much in taxes.

Why shouldn't they? It wasn't America which gave them their start!!! Oh wait, it was.
But what about the people who buy their merchandise? Certainly America didn't have a positive effect on their sales. Oh right, we did, we do and unfortunately: we shall continue to do so despite the fact that these corporations are clearly giving us the shaft.
Clearly there's got to be a reason that these American made businesses don't feel like giving back their fair share? Don't know. There are options though.

You could argue that what I said above about having money for unknown expenses and advancements is the reason. Yet if you take a look at the companies listed, you'll know for sure that they've got profit for years.
Or you can agree with my initial point that businesses are greedy.
Which ever path you choose: I'm ok with that.
Just don't go around being all anti big business.
Someday, you'll end up working for them and you wouldn't want to burn your bridges as badly as I may have singed them.

This concludes another lengthy but enjoyable post.
Thanks for reading!
You know my name, over and out.

Early Playstation Consoles

2012-03-25T19:26:00.000-05:00

Before Sony unveiled it's multimillion heavy hitter consoles such as the PSP, The PS2, and the PS3, these are the consoles I found myself spending so much time on. Mind you, this is what I spent so much time on in the Sony department. I still had variety, but I had the most fun on these consoles by far.

I've played with this console longer than most of you were breathing.
just kidding.

This is known as the Real Playstation 1. There were barely any misconceptions

about this console. Of course to many, it was just a Playstation.

My Grandmother gave me this particular version for Christmas in 2005.
Me and my Playstation 1 were inseparable!

To make things very clear, I loved these game systems! Every free moment I had would be spent on them, and even now I'd love to have one or the other. (Because my Playstation 2 will not play my PS1 titles!!!)

Wait a second, these consoles look different: but they have the exact same capabilities! What on Earth???

I don't know why they did this either, but clearly there are aesthetic differences among the 2. Personally, I like how big and sturdy the Playstation X looks. However, I do love how clean and compact the Playstation One is. Hmmmmmmm, I almost wish I could do another one of my typical "pros vs cons" type of post, but there's really nothing to compare. They cost about the same on the market today, they costed about the same on the market once they were newly released, they both have the exact same capabilities, and peripherals are compatible among each other as well. Not to forget that they both played CD's and Video Games precisely as the other one did. So......which would you choose?

My bet, I fold. If I had it my way, I'd take the clean looking Playstation 1 controller, and pair it up with my clunky Playstation X console. I don't like the dark grey, so I shall either order a custom color or paint it myself.

If I ever did such a thing, I'd be darn sure to post pictures of it!

Alright, readers.
Thanks for reading.
Lawrence Miller, over and out.

P.S.
I'd like to give a special shoutout to
Mark. Mark knows who he is.
Someday, I shall re-enter the alliance of skilled readers.
I think you know what I mean.

Weaponology. Just Another Highly Enjoyed Show.

2012-03-24T02:07:00.000-05:00

Hello there, reader! Thank you for checking out another one of my posts!
Today I shall talk about another one of my favorite shows. There's a great chance you haven't heard of it, but I don't watch shows for the opinions of others.

Enough rambling, it's time to go ballistic!!!

If you have ever watched Weaponolgy: you'd know that it's the phrase announced before many (if not all) of the episodes. This little detail isn't very important but I feel that this show IS very important. It combines the 2 elements of TV which many males can enjoy: stories and lessons from individuals who've gone out and experienced the grueling training + unpredictable combat you get when become a [special forces] soldier. Then you get gun demonstrations and history on some of the world's most efficient and easy to love weapon systems.

Listening to the history of weapon systems, the history of special fighting units, and then seeing former soldiers and other relevant experts enjoy their 15 minutes of fame is good too! However, the show would be as interesting as a Geico commercial if a good narrator wasn't present. Fortunately the director of this show had good taste and hired John Schuab.....a guy with an excellent speaking voice! Although they could have hired Mike Rowe, Justin Peed, (google him, ok?) Ron Perlman, Samuel L. Jackson or some other successful narrator: this choice just worked. Well, it worked well enough.
For loads of other documentaries, the director tends to hire an individual who's unenthusiastic and monotone. Not this guy. When you watch a show and the voice actor doesn't seem like he's reading from a 2000 page history book: you'll be more likely to become a fan of the show. More fans, means more visibility to the cast of said show. More attention brought to the show/cast = better chance that another good show + cast can deservedly become successful.

Unfortunately, that isn't the case for Weaponology.
Apparently, it's been produced in 2007 and there hasn't been anything hinting toward a new season for 5 years. Even if the staff were deeply immersed in studying and bringing up new content for another season: it couldn't possibly take 5 years. All in all, the ship has sailed and I might as well get used to the re-runs. Which is no problem for me, because I enjoyed the series fully! I still watch the episodes and enjoy them just as much as any average person would watching re-runs to their favorite shows. Only thing is, I still secretly hope that new episodes and seasons are produced......even if they're sent straight to DVD. hahahah laughing out loud

Alright, this concludes my post.

I wish I could tell you guys to go buy Weaponology on DVD, but who does that?
Torrents may not support the series, but who cares??? You should atleast try it out somehow.

Just Youtube it if you're feeling that guilty, as they no seem to longer care about tv show uploads.

Thanks for reading, nonetheless. I appreciate it.

Lawrence Miller, over and out.

P.S. I'm actually watching it right now!
The episode which deals with the Navy Seals is on now, but one of my all time personal favorite episodes have to do with the French Foreign Legion.