Tag: Holidays

Entering The Sad Season

It is Sunday and I try to give my readers something to think about….this Sunday it is the problems that may occur during the holiday season.

Next week we will be entering the season, for some, is not a good thing…..sadness and depression can claim a few minds for various reasons…..mental problems like loneliness, sadness, a massive depression….but there is a way to ward off these feelings.

The referenced article is about the Covid isolation but I feel it could be used to battle the holiday blues as well.

Reading, writing and sharing poetry can help people cope with loneliness or isolation and reduce feelings of anxiety and depression, a new study shows.

Research by the University of Plymouth and Nottingham Trent University has found that many people who took to sharing, discussing and writing as a means to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic experienced “demonstrable positive impact on their well-being.”

The findings are based on a survey of 400 people which showed that poetry helped those experiencing common mental health symptoms as well as those suffering from grief. The research is published in the Journal of Poetry Therapy.

It was carried out with registered users of the website poetryandcovid.com (now archived as poetryandcovidarchive.com), who used the website to share their own poetry and/or read other people’s.

Just over half (51%) of respondents indicated that reading and/or writing poetry had helped them deal with feelings of loneliness or isolation, and for a further 50% it had helped with feelings of anxiety and depression.

Around a third (34%) felt that engaging with the website helped them feel “less anxious,” 24% felt that it helped them “feel better able to handle my problems,” 17% expressed that it enabled them to deal with issues relating to bereavement, while 16% said it assisted with ongoing mental health symptoms.

“These results demonstrate the substantial power of poetry,” said Principal Investigator Anthony Caleshu, Professor of Poetry and Creative Writing at the University of Plymouth. “Writing and reading poetry, as well as engaging with the website, had a considerable positive impact on the well-being of the participants during the COVID-19 pandemic.

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2023-11-poetry-people-cope-loneliness-isolation.html

I know there are many writers here on WP and I thought they might like to see that their efforts could be useful to others.

During this seasonal ‘blues’ there are other ways to cope (for lack of a better word)….

As the start of a week, survey participants were asked how much they agree with the statement, “I have felt able to impact, influence, or play an active role in how happy I generally feel.” A week later, they were asked the same question, and the difference was remarkable. Participants’ level of agreement with the statement jumped 27%, according to researchers of the BIG JOY Project. At the same time, participants saw a 26% boost in emotional well-being. So what had changed? Over the course of a week, participants were asked to perform “micro-acts” of joy, whether that was setting aside time to meditate or offering to do a favor for a friend. It was clear that these small acts could make a big difference, just as the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu have proclaimed.

Participants who committed to performing these tiny acts of joy each day for a week saw a 23% boost in positive emotions, including hope, optimism, wonder, and amusement, while 30% more participants felt content with their relationships. There was also a 34% increase in participants’ level of agreement with the statement, “I am in control, on top of things, like I have been coping well.” Even sleep improved. “We’re really excited,” project leader Emiliana Simon-Thomas, an expert on the neuroscience and psychology of compassion, kindness, and gratitude at the Greater Good Science Center (GGSC) at the University of California-Berkeley, tells NPR. “There are statistically significant, measurable changes [including] greater well-being, better coping, less stress, [and] more satisfaction with relationships.”

More than 70,000 people in over 200 countries have taken part, per NPR—and you can, too. Participants simply fill out a survey, then agree to perform daily activities shown to boost well-being. They might pay a stranger’s bill, congratulate a colleague on a promotion, choose to look on the bright side (positive reframing), or watch an awe-inspiring video. The preliminary results suggest that by acting intentionally, participants can feel they have greater control over their thoughts and emotions. Researchers plan to compare the results from willing participants with those from a control group assigned to take part. In the meantime, they say we can all learn to exert more control over our happiness, even amid suffering. As the GGSC notes, per the Deseret News: “Joy is an inside job.”

Hopeful these will help[ if you get the seasonal ‘blues’.

Have a wonderful Sunday and as always….be well and be safe….

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Constitution Day–17Sep23

Today is Sunday and Constitution Day

A day that few Americans are ware of in any shape….a day that should celebrated not ignored.

I have made no bones about it I think that the Constitution should be celebrated more heavily….I believe that it would give Americans more exposure to the document and that will lead to more knowledge.

It would also help if it were a federal holiday….celebrate and document that has been the envy of a free world.

A quick history to set the tone….

After the American Revolution freed the American colonies from British rule, the Founding Fathers wanted to make sure the new government couldn’t abuse its power. At the 1787 Constitutional Convention, delegates from twelve of the thirteen new states gathered to draft the document that would serve as the basis of all future U.S. law.

The Constitution calls for three branches of government with equal powers, creating a system commonly known as “checks and balances.” Each branch has power to mitigate the others. Powers not assigned to one of the three branches are left to the individual states.

Delegates at the Convention had two options for setting up the framework of the new legislative branch. The Virginia Plan, predictably supported by larger states, called for representation based on population. The competing New Jersey Plan called for equal representation for each state. The two-house solution known as the Great Compromise combines aspects of both plans and is still in use today.

The Constitution also outlines the responsibilities and powers of the judicial and executive branches, how the President is elected, and other nitty-gritty details.

The Founding Fathers recognized that society evolves, and that the Constitution would require a mechanism for making changes. However, they wanted to ensure that making changes would require agreement from a large number of states. To alter the Constitution, a proposed amendment must be ratified by three-fourths of states.

In 1940, Congress and the President passed a resolution creating “I Am an American Day,” observed on the third Sunday in May. In 1952, the holiday was renamed to “Constitution Day” and moved to September 17, the day in 1787 that the Constitution was signed. More than 50 years later in 2004, Congress once again changed the name of the holiday to Constitution Day and Citizenship Day.

To prevent the abuses of power they felt subjected to under the British monarchy, the Founding Fathers framed the Constitution carefully, distributing power between three branches of government. The Constitution outlines the government’s powers, the limitations on those powers, and the rights of citizens. It also outlines an amendment process for making changes in the future.

Did you know that the amendments to the Constitution were heavily debated?

Here are the five things that were left out of the Constitution after the debate.

When James Madison spoke to the First Congress he proposed a series of nearly 20 amendments as a Bill of Rights, and not the 10 we all know about. So what did Congress delete from the final list that was ratified by the states?

There were some very significant deletions as his proposed list went through the House and Senate, and Madison himself took part in the decisions to edit out some of his ideas.

In the end, 12 of the original amendments survived the congressional approval process. Enough states approved 10 of those 12 amendments to make the Bill of Rights a reality on December 15, 1791. One of two bypassed amendments was eventually ratified in 1992 as the 27th Amendment; it restricted the ability of Congress to change its pay while in session. (The other proposed amendment dealt with the number of representatives in Congress, based on the 1789 population.)

https://constitutioncenter.org/blog/five-items-congress-deleted-from-madisons-original-bill-of-rights

In essence it is no more important than National Hotdog Day….that is a shame.

Like I said this is too important to rank along side National Cat Lovers Day or National Pizza Day.

Constitution Day should be celebrated along with Independence Day.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Closing Thought–23Dec20

Some troubling news for the holidays……

I know we have not heard much from those barbaric pricks of AQ and ISIS….but a report is starting circulate that these groups could be planning something big for the holiday season….

Aimen Dean, a former Al Qaeda bombmaker turned spy for the U.K.’s MI6 spy agency, is warning that the Islamic State (ISIS) terror group is preparing a wave of attacks in Britain, France, and Germany ahead of Christmas.

Dean said ISIS commander Abu Omar al-Shishani is planning to send attackers to Europe through Turkey and across the Mediterranean from North Africa, The Daily Mail reported. Speaking at the International Security Week conference, which ran from Nov. 30 to Dec. 3, Dean said Shishani is primarily motivated to attack the countries over recent incidents in which depictions of the prophet Muhammad have been shared, in violation of some Islamic practices.

“The worry is that, according to people who know him, [Shishani] is planning to avenge the Prophet Mohammed cartoons in places like Germany, UK, France and all around Christmas time,” Dean said. “I’m afraid I’m not bearing good news but we need to be worried about the wave of terror that is coming from northern Syria and Libya for Christmas this year,” Dean said.

Dean derives his expertise from working as a bomb-maker for Al Qaeda and then informing on the group for eight years, the Daily Mail reported.

Dean raised a particular warning that European leaders trying to lift coronavirus related lockdowns around the Christmas holiday are only further enticing the terrorist plotters.

“This promise of no lockdown at Christmas has made it a more attractive time frame for targeting,” Dean said. “Already they have been thinking about it, already they have been looking at it and I feel this will be the next target.”

source:  American Military News

Not a surprise…but this info should be more readily available to the public…..

Learn Stuff!

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Constitution Day–17 September

We celebrate the founding of our country on Independence Day on 04 July….but all most people know is they have the day off and BBQ and drink beer.

Image result for constitution day images

Personally, I think the day we should celebrate is 17 September, Constitution Day, because it was when it became official….the US became a republic.

Constitution Day and Citizenship Day is observed each year on September 17 to commemorate the signing of the Constitution on September 17, 1787, and “recognize all who, by coming of age or by naturalization, have become citizens.”

This commemoration had its origin in 1940, when Congress passed a joint resolution authorizing and requesting the President to issue annually a proclamation setting aside the third Sunday in May for the public recognition of all who had attained the status of American citizenship. The designation for this day was “I Am An American Day.”

In 1952 Congress repealed this joint resolution and passed a new law moving the date to September 17 to commemorate “the formation and signing, on September 17, 1787, of the Constitution of the United States.” The day was still designated as “Citizenship Day” and retained its original purpose of recognizing all those who had attained American citizenship. This law urged civil and educational authorities of states, counties, cities and towns to make plans for the proper observance of the day and “for the complete instruction of citizens in their responsibilities and opportunities as citizens of the United States and of the State and locality in which they reside.”

In 2004 under Senator Byrd’s urging, Congress changed the designation of this day to “Constitution Day and Citizenship Day” and added two new requirements in the commemoration of this Day. The first is that the head of every federal agency provide each employee with educational and training materials concerning the Constitution on September 17th. The second is that each educational institution which receives Federal funds should hold a program for students every September 17th.

https://www.loc.gov/law/help/commemorative-observations/constitution-day.php

Image result for constitution day images

This day is far more indicative of the nation that we were to become than the laundry list of grievances against England……

Then there is another document we should be celebrating……

The year was 1789.

And it was a very good year.

A writing of a document that is overshadowed by another document and is part of that document, the Constitution….that document would become known as the Bill of Rights…..

A list of the amendments that would define the society in which we now reside…..but is it as it should be today?

It’s been 230 years since James Madison drafted the Bill of Rights—the first ten amendments to the Constitution—as a means of protecting the people against government tyranny, and what do we have to show for it?

Nothing good.

In America today, the government does whatever it wants, freedom be damned.

We can pretend that the Constitution, which was written to hold the government accountable, is still our governing document, but the reality of life in the American police state tells a different story.

“We the people” have been terrorized, traumatized, and tricked into a semi-permanent state of compliance by a government that cares nothing for our lives or our liberties.

The Bill of Rights Turns 230: What Do We Have to Show for It? Nothing Good

Sometimes I feel as if these “Rights” are just words written two centuries ago that mean little today.

These are used as political props more than a blueprint for a society and its people.

Take some time and educate yourself on this document……too many people give it lip service without knowing the first thing about the document.

Learn about the Constitution……https://constitution.org/

Learn as much as you can about the US Constitution…..https://constitutioncenter.org/

Be Smart!

Learn Stuff!

Class Dismissed!

“Lego Ergo Scribo”

Closing Thought–10Jul19

In case anyone is interested…that military celebration of Trump at the Lincoln Memorial cost the taxpayer dearly…..

The Pentagon said on Tuesday that President Donald Trump’s celebration of U.S. Independence Day, which included bringing tanks and equipment to Washington, cost the military at least $1.2 million (£962,927).

In addition to the cost to the military, the Washington Post reported last week that the U.S. National Park Service had diverted $2.5 million in park entrance fees to help pay for the event.

The actual cost for the Pentagon is likely higher, since the Pentagon said funding for the aircraft demonstrations came from the military services’ training budgets.

It was not immediately clear if all of the $1.2 million was for the cost of transporting equipment like two Abrams tanks and two Bradley fighting vehicles from Fort Stewart in Georgia for the celebration.

(reuters.com)

We just celebrated the Declaration of Independence it is when our Founding Fathers threw down the gauntlet to England as the open salvo on the road to nationhood.

But in my opinion while this document is important there are others that I feel should be equal in importance to the DoI…..

First, 19 October should be a holiday…Capitulation Day….the day when the final battle of the American Revolution comes to an end and we start down the road to creating a nation…..

In the summer of 1781, after six years of war, the American Army was struggling. The British occupied New York City. A second British army lead by General Lord Cornwallis ravaged the South – capturing Charleston, Richmond, and apparently was heading for the Chesapeake Bay. Mutiny plagued the American army in New York and New Jersey.

There was a glimmer of hope, however. The French, allied with the Americans since 1778, had landed six thousand troops in Rhode Island while the French fleet gathered in the Caribbean preparing to do battle with the British. General George Washington and the French commander, Comte de Rochambeau, met in May 1781 to plan their strategy. Washington wanted to attack the British in New York City. Rochambeau, fearful of attacking such a well fortified position and lacking confidence in the Continental Army’s abilities, recommended marching south to battle Cornwallis in Virginia

http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/yorktown.htm

https://www.mountvernon.org/education/primary-sources-2/article/articles-of-capitulation-yorktown/

Next is 17 September the day in 1781….Constitution Day……Constitution Day commemorates the formation and signing of the U.S. Constitution by thirty-nine brave men on September 17, 1787, recognizing all who are born in the U.S.
or by naturalization, have become citizens.

This day is when the US of A became a nation in all eyes…..

In my opinion these two days are as important as 4th of July and more so the more history you learn.

Just saying.

In closing just a few weather related thoughts……today it is 107…..our beaches are all closed because of algae blooms and finally a weather system is developing into a T. storm….just a typical Summer day in South Mississippi.

“I Love a Parade”–Part 3

Closing Thought–14Feb19

Happy Valentine’s Day!

There is proof that Trump is clueless!  Yes the person YOU elected is a clueless fool!

Our Dear President went to France and saw a Bastille Day parade and was impressed so much that he came home and wanted to have a big military parade here in the US……I touched on his desire in a previous post…..https://lobotero.com/2018/08/17/i-love-a-parade-part2/

Since his military parade was crapped on he now thinks he has a better idea……

President Trump is once again proposing a parade. This time, it’s an Independence Day parade at the Lincoln Memorial. According to USA Today, Trump told Cabinet members Tuesday that a July 4 parade at the memorial “could be an exciting day” and might “become a tradition.” Trump made headlines pushing for a military parade last year that was projected to cost up to $92 million; the idea was ultimately axed. His new idea might not actually be for a parade, per se, he continued, per the Hill: “It’ll be a, really a gathering as opposed to a parade I guess you’d have to say,” the president said, calling it a “Salute to America.” Washington DC does have already-established Fourth of July events including a parade down Constitution Ave., a concert, and a fireworks show. (Trump said his military parade was scuttled due to local politicians’ greed.)

A parade with music and fireworks on the 4th of July……think about that for a moment!

Seriously….this is YOUR president….and he has NO CLUE!

Happy Valentine Day to one and all…..grab your honey and give ’em a big hug……Tomorrow y’all……chuq

F*ck Veterans Day!

Closing Thought–23Nov18

***(A thought NOT a statement on my part.)***

That is the impression that I got on Veterans Day post comments here on IST…..I have been reading lots on the subject of Veterans Day……

Keep in mind that this is one person’s opinion…one that I am beginning to agree with…..

No one cares about the wars we are fighting these days……NO one talks about them….not the MSM or Our Dear Supreme Leader and especially the Congress…..but they will without shame trot out some Vets as a political prop for some ‘patriotic” porn they feel they need to win over voters……and then there is the laziness of the average person that will trot forward and offer a ‘thank you’ to a veteran….without no care of what that means……it means nothing to a veteran that cannot get his treatment from the very people that sent him to fight and are using the services that they depend on and cannot receive……

So I agree……why not just cancel Veterans Day altogether?  NO one really cares anymore!

Veterans’ Day – maybe we ought to drop the whole charade. Don’t get me wrong, there will be celebrations a plenty: the NFL will roll out the ubiquitous stadium-sized flags and march uniformed service members in front of the cameras; cities across the nation will hold parades; and millions of Americans will take a moment to go through the motions and “thank” the nation’s soldiers. Sure, the gestures are sometimes genuine and certainly preferable to the alternative. Still, all this martial spectacle misses the salient point hidden just below the surface: the American people are absolutely not engaged with U.S. foreign policy. Most could hardly name the seven countries its military actively bombing, let alone find them on a map.

Worse still, hardly anyone even talks about America’s wars these days – not the mainstream media, not the president of the United States, not the Congress. Veterans’ Day just happens to fall about a week after the midterm elections – which both President Trump and Barack Obama each told their supporters was “the most consequential of our lifetimes” – but the truth is that foreign policy was hardly even on the agenda this past Tuesday. Americans argued about healthcare, taxes, immigration, and Mr. Trump’s personality, but ignored our supposedly adulated soldiers.

https://www.truthdig.com/articles/should-we-do-away-with-veterans-day-altogether/

So since the people only see it as a day off from work why not just make it a special shopping day in the time before the big day, Christmas?

Look at the many wars we are now fighting.  I comment and post on them on many occasions and yet NO one seems to give a shit one way or the other that Americans are still dying for goddamn reason than to keep the M-IC is pocket cash.

In closing …..I do not think we should abandon the day….just making an observation by what I see here on IST.

I call it a day and will start my weekend…..leftovers are on the menu…..damn the leftovers!

Labor Day–2018

Today is the first Monday of September and that means that it is Labor Day….most other countries celebrate it on the First of May but we here must be different.

Because it is a holiday I will be doing the usual stuff with family….grilling and a little fun…..

Since this will be my last post today and I do like some history I offer up a couple of videos on the history of the celebration of Labor Day….

A wee bit more history for you……

Many people worked hard to see that Americans could make a living wage (some say we are not there yet)…..as for my musical interlude is songs from the workers struggles of the early days of the 20th century.

I do hope that everyone has a wonderful day off and be well and be safe and please drink responsibly….

The “Opiate Of The Masses”

My Saturday begins and I bet you think you will get some diatribe on Marxism….if so then you are WRONG!

But if you truly would like a lesson in Marxism I will gladly help out…..(pause here for reply)….I thought so…..

We begin the month of December….with all its Black Fridays and Cyber Mondays and all the sales and deals on the run up to Christmas….and every year Americans spend more and more on these “deals” and gifts….why?

I am glad you asked….I have written about this phenom in the past……

I have written about our addictions in the past….our addiction to drugs or the addiction to war…..but our real addiction is……. consumerism….

Whatchu talking about professor?

You Are An ADDICT!

Source: The Real American Addiction – In Saner Thought

We as a society are truly addicted too consumerism…..why else would we stand in line to buy a phone that has NO new features?

American consumers have learned NOTHING from the screwing they took in 2008.

That is it for today…I have a tangerine crop that needs pulling…..go out and enjoy your day…..

Memorial Day–2016

Today is Memorial Day….a day set aside to remember our fallen service people during a time of war.

We build monuments to them and then they are soon forgotten…at least this day the public is forced to remember…..all the “sunshine patriots” come out of the woodwork…..and most will beat their chests like sex crazed primates….the sound and fury that signifies (what?)…….

But first a musical interlude….

This will be my only post of the day for I intend to honor our vets in my own way…..first I post this video of the group that I was part of during the Vietnam War…the LRRPs…..with the 9th Infantry Division….Mekong Delta….Republic of South Vietnam…..

Please take the time to learn about a group of men that did all asked of them and for the most part have been forgotten….something I hope to rectify…..

 

9th Infantry Division RECONDO Qualification Badge, LRRP, LRP | Vietnam ...

Although the LRRPs of Vietnam became the 75th Rangers…..I was a LRRP then and will always be a LRRP.  I refuse to let my guys be eaten up by the legend of the Rangers…..we were there first and we did it better…….

In closing let me leave my readers with a couple of thoughts……

Our veterans are having a rough time…as they always have when they return home from war……we need to do better in their care…..we need to care more than we do today……

The Veterans First Act, does almost nothing to fix the structural problems with the VA. Instead, this bill will increase costs and further entrench an unaccountable bureaucracy. Worst of all, under this bill, veterans will continue to be left waiting for the critical medical care they need.

“The VA, riddled with scandal, needs an overhaul focused on accountability and choice that leads to improved delivery of health care to our veterans. The Isakson-Blumenthal bill meets all the demands of the federal employees, but none of the demands of veterans.

Don’t let mere political activity be mistaken for actual progress.  Our veterans deserve better. We strongly urge Senators to reject the Isakson-Blumenthal bill, and keep the door open for real VA reform.“

One last thought……

Please take a moment of your time today to remember all those that did not return home to their loved ones…it is the least we can do!

Go now and enjoy your Holiday activities….I shall return tomorrow in full force….

Peace Out!