IS ALL CHANGE REALLY GOOD? Today is December 31, 2011. A year about to end and a new year about to begin. Does the tick of a clock, the one that changes the clock from 11:59 p.m. December 31 to 00:00 a.m. January 1, 2012, really make a difference. Does that one second really change any thing. The night is still dark. The sun will still rise in the East in a few hours. The Flora and Fauna have no clue that a year has changed. Only us humans make a big deal out of it. Many drink the bubbly and trundle off to home, or to jail, as the case may be. Some will start a new relationship, and others will end one. Most of us, though, regardless of what we do tonight, will just simple carry on, living our lives to the best of our ability. Some of us will make new years resolutions, some of which will actually be kept. Most will not. be kept, that is. Some, like me, will not make new years resolutions, but try to make course adjustments and improvements throughout the year. Is that a good thing. Do I need to change? Should I make a new years resolution, and write it down, thus to judge my progress, or lack there of, in a year, when 2013 is ushered in? Comments please. When it comes down to it, though, will any thing really change, just because of a tick of the clock. Will I become thin and rich? will the government become thin and rich? My becoming thin and rich is more likely. And the thin part is within reach. Rich, probably not so much. So, yes, change is good, if it is for the better. But if it is for the worse, then it is not a good thing. So, perhaps all change is not good. As we enter this new year, we can hope that the economy will change, for the better. We can hope that the medical research people will find better ways to help those who are ill so they can change for the better. We can hope that we as individuals will change our bad habits for good ones. But whatever happens, I wish EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU WHO MAY READ MY WARBLING S, A HAPPY AND PROSPEROUS AND HEALTHY NEW YEAR. MAY 2012 BRING YOU MANY OF THE BLESSINGS THAT YOU HAVE COMING TO YOU. AND THAT'S THE VIEW FROM THE DITCH BANK.
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Friday, December 23, 2011
EVERY ONE NEEDS WHAT??
ARE YOU WITH EVERY ONE? A few days ago, MLWFAE and I were watching the QVC shopping channel. They were selling something that "Every one" just had to have. Get one now, before they become available to the public in February. I don't even remember just what it was. But I didn't need one. The item prior to that one was a little tablet of some kind that "Every one" had to get. Why? Well, cause your kids could watch movies on it and not be bored when you traveled. I guess here I need to apologize to my kids, cause I would not have bought one when they were growing up, even had they been available. When we traveled, they could read, but we tried to encourage them to look at the country side. Some of it was more pretty than others, but it was all intriguing. As my wife and I now travel, we still find the country side intriguing, even though we have seen some of it hundreds of times. Still, even as it remains the same, it changes. There are so many electronic items available now, that it is hard to keep up with what they are and what they do, that it makes the mind boggle. In my old mind, emphasis on old, there is nothing better on a snowy winter day, than to settle down by the fire, wood, of course, a hot chocolate and a good book. Maybe play games. No, not on the TV or the phone or the whatever is out there now. But real games, with cards and game boards and game pieces. And interacting as a family. Now that is what "every one" needs. And That Is The View From The Ditch Bank.
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
ADDICTION
ARE YOU AN ADDICT? What, exactly is an addict? A young man ( in his early 40's) so a young man to me, recently went to work for the construction company where I now work. He had been working for the mine that I retired from nearly 3 years ago. Didn't like the politics and the bickering that was going on, he said. So he quit. Nearly a month ago, he was picked, along with some others, to take a random drug test. He failed. I later learned that was the same reason he no longer works for the mine. He is addicted to cocaine. So, other than drug addictions, what else is there? Alcohol, Tobacco, Tea, Coffee, illegal drugs other than Cocaine, Heroin, marijuana, Meth, and the list goes on and on. With new things popping up almost daily. But what of things that aren't illegal. Or even bad for you, necessarily? Back to my opening question. Are you addicted to any thing? Think about it. Many people exercise. daily, even. But what of the person that has to exercise. Who goes to the gym or runs along the road or at a track. And has to do it every day. Or they go into withdrawals, just like a drug user trying to quit. Is this person an addict? Not all people that run or exercise are addicts, but there are those who are addicted and have to do it. What of people who have food problems. Eating to much and becoming fat. ( ok, ok, I won't look in the mirror. ) Or those who eat then purge. Are they addicts? They need help, but what they do is not illegal. So, any ideas on addiction. do you feel that you are addicted to any thing. I really just scratched the surface of addiction's, cause I didn't want to get into the addiction's themselves, but to just start us thinking on what addiction actually is. And That's The View From The Ditch Bank.
Friday, December 2, 2011
ARE YOU A CRIMINAL
WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO BE A CRIMINAL? To borrow a line or two from a Robert W. Service poem; "I'm not as wise as those lawyer guys, but strictly between us two"
I can tell you my version of a criminal. The word is a derivative of the word crime. You commit a crime, thus you are a criminal. That's it in a nutshell. A simple solution from a simple mind. So, what if you break a law, but don't commit a crime? What, you can do that? Well, it may be splitting hairs, Uh no, it is actually not splitting hairs, it is just simple facts. Just the facts Mam, just the facts. So, how do you break the law with out committing a crime? Well, traffic laws come to mind. You can drive faster than the posted speed limit, run a stop light or sign, failure to yield, etc. You can get a ticket and pay a fine, even lose your license to drive, but you are not a criminal. You committed no crime. But you did break the law. An acquaintance recently stated that you can drive 10 miles per hour over the speed limit with out getting a ticket. Why? Cause the cops have to give you that lee way. No they don't. They may do so, but they don't have to. If the speed limit is 60 MPH, they can ticket you for 61. They won't, but they could. Cause that's the law. So, if you break the law through traffic violations, why then aren't you a criminal? Comments please, cause, well refer to lines of the poem by Robert Service and that explains why I just don't know. But we should all obey the law. We agree to do so if we are citizens receiving citizenship after coming here from another country. We tacitly agree to obey the law by just being born here. So we should obey the law. ALL Laws. If we don't like them, work to change them, but until they are changed, obey them. And That's the View From The Ditch Bank.
P.S. I can already hear the pain of the toes I just stepped on.
I can tell you my version of a criminal. The word is a derivative of the word crime. You commit a crime, thus you are a criminal. That's it in a nutshell. A simple solution from a simple mind. So, what if you break a law, but don't commit a crime? What, you can do that? Well, it may be splitting hairs, Uh no, it is actually not splitting hairs, it is just simple facts. Just the facts Mam, just the facts. So, how do you break the law with out committing a crime? Well, traffic laws come to mind. You can drive faster than the posted speed limit, run a stop light or sign, failure to yield, etc. You can get a ticket and pay a fine, even lose your license to drive, but you are not a criminal. You committed no crime. But you did break the law. An acquaintance recently stated that you can drive 10 miles per hour over the speed limit with out getting a ticket. Why? Cause the cops have to give you that lee way. No they don't. They may do so, but they don't have to. If the speed limit is 60 MPH, they can ticket you for 61. They won't, but they could. Cause that's the law. So, if you break the law through traffic violations, why then aren't you a criminal? Comments please, cause, well refer to lines of the poem by Robert Service and that explains why I just don't know. But we should all obey the law. We agree to do so if we are citizens receiving citizenship after coming here from another country. We tacitly agree to obey the law by just being born here. So we should obey the law. ALL Laws. If we don't like them, work to change them, but until they are changed, obey them. And That's the View From The Ditch Bank.
P.S. I can already hear the pain of the toes I just stepped on.
Sunday, November 27, 2011
WHAT COLOR WAS YOUR FRIDAY
BLACK FRIDAY: What color was your Friday, the day after Thanksgiving? Why do they call it black Friday? Don't know? Well, then I'll enlighten you. It is the day that merchants hope to turn their red ink black for the year. They hope to get enough shoppers in their places of business, buying items that they have put on sale, and that enough money will enter the business coffers, to turn that business into a profitable business for the current year. Whew. Stop for breath here. So, they put their wares on sale, hoping that people will buy. And they do. One news report said there was 9000 people camped out waiting to get into Macy's in new york city. OK let's try that again. NEW YORK CITY. That is about how many people are in the city close to where I live, with a few dogs and cats thrown in, perhaps. Too many people for this old country kid. At least crowded into one place at a time. Is there actually that many bargains in one store at one time for that many people to all buy something to turn Macy's red ink black. Must be, or they wouldn't be there shopping. MLWFAE and I went to a neighboring small city in a neighboring State here in the southwest and bought a piece of furniture. It was regularly priced at over $400.00 but was on sale for $399.00. However, for black Friday they took off an additional 15%, thus costing us $340.00 for a furniture piece that was originally priced at over $100 more than that. Now! if this store, ( and all others like them ) can price item's like this and get their red ink to turn to black, wouldn't it make more business sense to price things like that all year long, and have people buying all year long, and keep the ink black all year long and not have to worry about the crush at this time of year. Just saying. And THAT'S THE VIEW FROM THE DITCH BANK.
Saturday, November 19, 2011
THE PONZI SCHEME THAT ISN'T
I'm going to do something with this blog that I have never done before, and probably sill never do again. At least not often, if ever. And that is to quote, verbatim, or nearly so, an article that came out in an AARP news paper. See the heading of this post for the title of that article. So here goes.
When he signed the law creating Social Security, Franklin D. Roosevelt believed the program was so well insulated that "no damn politician" could tinker with it. He was right to worry. The linchpin was the payroll tax demanded of all workers. Once they paid into the Social Security system, he calculated, they would have a stake and never abandon it. For decades now, his foresight has been vindicated. Beneficiaries hail the system, and still, the damn politicians can't stop trying to tinker. Over three generations, a smattering of politicians and economists, from libertarians to liberals have blasted the system as wasteful and dishonest and more recently have trivialized it as little more than a Ponzi scheme. Since the master schemer, Carlo Pietro Giovanni Guglielmo Tebaldo Ponzi had many schemes, none of which paid out any funds for any length of time, and all payouts were financed by new investors, and all ended in a matter of weeks. And he wound up in jail numerous times. And some of his schemes even caused banks to fail.
The reasons Social Security is not a Ponzi scheme, or even close, are numerous. Most importantly, it has endured for 76 years and never missed a payment. The financing is secure and the administrative costs are practically nothing.
So why the fuss? Politics, mostly, plus simple math and demographics. A soaring federal deficit, a declining number of workers per Social Security beneficiary and a growing number of older people living longer. :-) This puts new pressure on the Social Security trust fund. But instead of making the minor adjustments that would strengthen the system, budget critics have a different agenda. They hope to raid it or privatize it or end it.
Anyone doubting its value need only check the latest national poverty statistics. More Americans slid into poverty in the past year than at any time in the past four decades. Most vulnerable were people 55 to 64, one in ten of whom now live below the poverty line. Over 800,000 people 45 to 64 lost health insurance. By contrast, the economic turmoil of the past year drove far fewer Americans over 65 into poverty. No surprise. That's the segment of the population protected by Medicare and by Social Security---the Ponzi scheme that isn't. This article was written by Jim Toedtman, Editor of the paper. Also, I did paraphrase some of the article and I did leave out some of it. But the bulk of it is there.
My wife and I are beneficiaries of this program. And we paid into it for decades. And since I have returned to work for a short period of time, I am still paying into the system. And a payment for Medicare is held out of our Social Security check each month, just like a monthly insurance premium payment. So I do not feel that this is a government handout, like so many programs are. This is funded by those who pay into the system, while so many other programs are just taken from tax payers pockets.
also, most of the few of you that will actually read this message will also be recipients of this program someday. I encourage each of you to pay close attention to the Damn Politicians and what they want to do and let them know that they are to leave this system alone. And That's The View From The Ditch Bank.
When he signed the law creating Social Security, Franklin D. Roosevelt believed the program was so well insulated that "no damn politician" could tinker with it. He was right to worry. The linchpin was the payroll tax demanded of all workers. Once they paid into the Social Security system, he calculated, they would have a stake and never abandon it. For decades now, his foresight has been vindicated. Beneficiaries hail the system, and still, the damn politicians can't stop trying to tinker. Over three generations, a smattering of politicians and economists, from libertarians to liberals have blasted the system as wasteful and dishonest and more recently have trivialized it as little more than a Ponzi scheme. Since the master schemer, Carlo Pietro Giovanni Guglielmo Tebaldo Ponzi had many schemes, none of which paid out any funds for any length of time, and all payouts were financed by new investors, and all ended in a matter of weeks. And he wound up in jail numerous times. And some of his schemes even caused banks to fail.
The reasons Social Security is not a Ponzi scheme, or even close, are numerous. Most importantly, it has endured for 76 years and never missed a payment. The financing is secure and the administrative costs are practically nothing.
So why the fuss? Politics, mostly, plus simple math and demographics. A soaring federal deficit, a declining number of workers per Social Security beneficiary and a growing number of older people living longer. :-) This puts new pressure on the Social Security trust fund. But instead of making the minor adjustments that would strengthen the system, budget critics have a different agenda. They hope to raid it or privatize it or end it.
Anyone doubting its value need only check the latest national poverty statistics. More Americans slid into poverty in the past year than at any time in the past four decades. Most vulnerable were people 55 to 64, one in ten of whom now live below the poverty line. Over 800,000 people 45 to 64 lost health insurance. By contrast, the economic turmoil of the past year drove far fewer Americans over 65 into poverty. No surprise. That's the segment of the population protected by Medicare and by Social Security---the Ponzi scheme that isn't. This article was written by Jim Toedtman, Editor of the paper. Also, I did paraphrase some of the article and I did leave out some of it. But the bulk of it is there.
My wife and I are beneficiaries of this program. And we paid into it for decades. And since I have returned to work for a short period of time, I am still paying into the system. And a payment for Medicare is held out of our Social Security check each month, just like a monthly insurance premium payment. So I do not feel that this is a government handout, like so many programs are. This is funded by those who pay into the system, while so many other programs are just taken from tax payers pockets.
also, most of the few of you that will actually read this message will also be recipients of this program someday. I encourage each of you to pay close attention to the Damn Politicians and what they want to do and let them know that they are to leave this system alone. And That's The View From The Ditch Bank.
Thursday, October 27, 2011
ONLY IN NEW MEXICO
RED OR GREEN OR ITALIAN? Any one who has spent much time in New Mexico and ate meals in the restaurants here, know that one of the questions ask is Red or Green? Meaning Chili. Hatch, New Mexico bills itself as the Chili capitol of the world. There is even a Hatch brand of Chili, sold around the world, or around New Mexico and a few other places. And it is good Chili. Or is it Chile? My wife and I went to a town 60 miles away from where we currently reside to take care of some business. After the business was completed, we went to an Italian restaurant for lunch. there we ordered an Italian style meal. Our two dishes were different, but both contained chicken. her's a chicken breast, Italian style and mine had chunks of chicken with lots of pasta. Her chicken breast had a strip of green chili across the top, along with the normal Italian items. Mine had pieces of green chili and jalapeno's in it. And I was ask when I ordered, red or green. I took green.
Now, this was a small town local restaurant, not Olive Garden. the food was good, it was Italian, with chili. Or is it Chile? But where else, besides New Mexico, can you go to an Italian restaurant, or any other restaurant, and have the fare of the restaurant, mixed with chili? or is it chile? Your choice. But if you don't think it sounds good. Don't knock it till you try it. And that's The View From The Ditch Bank.
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