A Parent’s Gender Trophy

Posted on 01/22/2018 by Just Jill

Children cannot fully grasp the meaning of the word gender, let alone what it means to be a boy or a girl. Parents who become headliners while hugging their child and saying “we’re letting little Bobbi decide” are doing it much more for themselves than their child.

That last statement may be a generalization (a fancy way of saying it’s my opinion) but from what is presented today it appears to be more truth than opinion.

“We’re letting our child decide if she’s a girl or if he’s a boy” is a lot like saying you’re letting your pet decide if it’s a cat or a dog. My dog acts like a cat sometimes. Or a pig or goat or any number of animals because she’s either grunting, rubbing up against me, or eating anything in site. But no matter how she acts or how much I wish she were a unicorn, she is still a dog.

I shake my head in disgust when I see parents on the news proclaiming that their child has decided he doesn’t want to be a boy and so they’re going to allow him to make the medical decision to transition to a girl. Sometimes they make this decision before puberty, sometimes right in the middle of it, but either way the child must undergo a procedure many adults would consider extreme.

As a side note for those who don’t already know, it IS extreme. It changes who you are for the rest of your life.

What about the child who transitioned from one sex to another and then back again because… gasp… it really wasn’t so bad being a boy after all. It sure would have been nice if his mother had the intelligence to say “not while you’re a child, but if you still feel this way when you’re an adult, I will help you make that transition”. We have become a society of very stupid parents who, it seems, were never parented themselves and thus have no idea how to be a parent.

Instead they want to be their child’s best friend.  

Friendship with your child is possible but it comes later in life when they have grown up, made some mistakes, and realize that being an adult has its rewards and setbacks too. Surprisingly, adults have gone through childhood so usually have some insight. The fact any parent wouldn’t have the brains to realize their child doesn’t have the ability to make life changing choices is beyond comprehension.

Are these parents going to ask their child what career mommy and daddy should investigate since they hate their jobs so much? This is a trick question; do you know why? 

Recently there was a blurb on the news that said a child had created a dating website for transgender children. In order to do this, the parents had to not only give permission but probably help create the site or hire someone to do it. This is not empowerment of their child, this is parental greed for attention; greed for whatever money might come their way from endorsements or writing a book. They are joining a special club where their child is uniquely different from all the other children who are uniquely different.

I say this because there aren’t a lot of parents of non-transgender children who would allow them to create a dating website because their child is too young to date. Think about it for a minute. What would possess you to think to yourself “why don’t I let my child create a specialized dating website so they can hook up with other kids”? There aren’t a lot of parents who want their child to hook up with anyone, especially from the internet.

The transgender child’s parents must not realize that dating websites are full of nasty people, some of them stalkers, who lunge at the opportunity to hook up with others who are unsuspecting and truly believe an honest relationship will form from a first date. I say they must not realize it because it’s hard to imagine them being okay with such a thing.

Now, lets look at the nasty perverts perusing websites looking for unsuspecting children and they come across a child’s transgender dating website. This is a bad blending of two worlds and someone is going to get hurt. It’s okay though, I’m sure mom and dad thought of everything and will interview all daters on the site to make sure there are legit.

So, are these parents going to ask their child what career mommy and daddy should investigate since they hate their jobs so much?

Did you figure out why this is a trick question? If you’re children know how much you hate your job, you are giving them too much information. Stressful, incomprehensible information. They shouldn’t know how much the mortgage is or how close you are to losing the house. They shouldn’t know why you had to sell your favorite guitar or grandma’s jewelry.

If you worship the innocence of children, do not add unnecessary stress into their lives. Do not cause chaos and disorder by putting your own worries into their small heads. Do not confuse them more by saying they might not be a boy or a girl. Do not tell them they can go through the horrendous process of taking drugs and all will be solved.

No matter who you are, no matter your age, there will be challenges along the way. It’s hard enough as an adult to wrap your head around changing genders. To a child, when given this enormous option, there is no way for them to truly understand that it will be a forever decision because they cannot fathom what ‘forever’ means.

Parents, let them grow up naturally and do not pigeon hole them into something you want them to be with the premise it’s what they want.

Don’t make their decisions your trophy.

This post was originally seen on Alexandria (aleksandreia.com).

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A Lie of Political Choices

Posted on 11/27/2017 by Just Jill

When my son was 6 years old, I would let him choose the shirt he wanted to wear to school. In order to make sure he didn’t pick his pajama top or favorite stained sweatshirt, I would pick out two shirts I approved of and let him decide which of those two he wanted to wear.

This seemed like a good way to teach him the responsibility of making choices for himself and the benefit of it. I don’t think I was wrong in this lesson but just the other day I realized that, although it may have been a good idea, it was still very restrictive without him knowing it. I also just realized that I, along with all other voting Americans, are sitting in this same restrictive box.

It may be a good idea not to allow your 6 year old to pick whatever the heck he wants to wear when going to school but is it really a good idea for us, grown men and woman, to allow ourselves to be treated like children each and every time we vote?

Indeed, there are other political choices besides Republican and Democrat but when was the last time a real candidate from a third party actually had a chance? And when was the last time you really felt that the R and the D running were different from one another. That is, until this last election cycle when it was obvious the R behind Trump’s name didn’t stand for Republican, so much as Rebel.

The 2016 election of Donald Trump exposed so much of what so many already suspected. The Dems and the Reps are just one political party. Some say the Dems are socialists and the Reps are Democrats, which seems accurate with each new revelation coming from their own mouths. Whether this is true or not, they are not two separately independent parties; they are one political party simply called politicians.

Much like a scene in a Broadway play, they enact their part to show they are on the side of the voters. What about behind closed doors? Not on the floor of Congress or the Senate… behind real doors. Back stage, if you will. Every time they show their face where the public can see them, they are on stage. There may be those who truly want to make a difference but how many have you seen fall upon the sword of political suicide to protect their true beliefs?

We vote to fill a place holder to avoid the opposition doing the same. Are we stalling until we find someone who perfectly fits the round or square peg we attribute to real leadership? Like Cinderella, all the other girls somehow can’t manage a good fit to her glass slipper. People vote for one side or the other just to prevent someone from being elected. Like choosing to eat a mold covered apple vs. one covered in maggots.

This changed when Donald Trump ran for the presidency. He was not a politician, which was refreshing, if not a little scary. The fear of putting someone into power who is not a politician is a learned fear, a part of the political brainwashing that seems to start from the moment children enter school.

We have been programed to believe only certain types of people can run our country effectively. The more a person sees, however, the less they believe all the crap fed to them day after day in the news, in entertainment, in schools, and even in the policies of their employers.

A choice between a shirt with short sleeves and a shirt with long sleeves only provides part of the picture. If you’re cold, you pick the long sleeves and if your hot, you pick the short. Question though, is there perhaps another option or combination of options? Perhaps behind the closet door are several shirts with several distinctive functions or fashions, all completely acceptable.

A choice between a politician and another politician isn’t really a choice at all. It’s a fallacy, a lie, an illusion of truth. Our governmental system may be far better than other countries, but we’ve fallen into a stupid rut of accepting two candidates of which most of us have never heard of until they magically became candidates.

Dare we agree that Trump has jarred us from the trance we’ve been in for the last century? Swaying back and forth between parties, hoping ‘our guy’ will be the one to introduce lasting change and lasting foundations that ‘their guy’ doesn’t somehow completely mess up?

Dare we cross our fingers that generations into the future, voters will be allowed to make up their own minds rather than be manipulated into thinking the choice between ‘two’ is a real choice?

Dare we continue to question the media, entertainers, politicians, and those who pull their strings, making them answer for their attacks on our freedoms?

Without the courage to stand against those who threaten us, we will cease to exist.

Dare we assume that is what they want? You and I shall stand against them… together! Remember, we rule them, not the other way around.

This post was originally seen on Alexandria (aleksandreia.com).

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Borders and Donald Trump Bobble Heads

Posted on 02/12/2017 by Just Jill

Flipping radio channels is something that happens on a frequent basis in my car. I stop when I find something of interest which means I don’t land on NPR very often. Not that it doesn’t interest other people, it just doesn’t interest me. But a couple of days ago I stopped to hear what was being reported and as usual, ended up rolling my eyes a few times.

One report in particular made me laugh. I’m sure it was intended to make people worry and fret over the potential ramifications of a border wall between the US and Mexico but even the reporter seemed to see the humor. Apparently, she spoke with a man who works in Tijuana who puts items into packages and labels them for shipping. The items are made in China, shipped to San Diego, shipped to Tijuana, and shipped back to San Diego for distribution to customers.

Now my first question is why are we sending items from America to Tijuana for someone there to package when we have plenty of people in America who need jobs. The obvious and disturbing answer is that they can pay people less money in Tijuana. Of course, that leads me into the subject of minimum wage in America, but I digress.

The funny part? The man was packaging Donald Trump bobble heads. That made me laugh as the irony was not lost one me… plus I think I want one.

This man, and others like him, are worried that a wall will somehow cause him to lose his job. I’m not sure how he thinks a wall will do that since there will be DOORS on it and trade can (and hopefully will) continue to happen. The problem is… people have put so much fear into others that they think this wall will somehow end everything. I hope it will end some things, but trade should not be one of them.

Yes, there have been other walls in the history of the world for various reasons. Some have come down, some have gone up, and some are tourist attractions. But all walls have a purpose, good or evil, and all walls have opposition to their existence.

The wall along Mexico’s border has been a topic for many decades and even I was affected by it’s non-existence some 35 years ago. I was luckier than some but I was stalked and eventually attacked by more than one illegal alien. I use the term “illegal’ because they were not in America legally… and I use ‘alien’ because they were not citizens of our country. That’s what an alien is… someone who exists in a country where they are not from, whether they are there legally or not. If the wall was built or even if our border was secure, what happened to me would not have happened.

There are so many people in our country affected by the fact a wall does not exist that it’s no wonder when Trump said he would build it, they voted for him. There are countless numbers of people whose lives would have NOT been affected adversely if we had been securing our border all along. President after president declared it needed to be done and that they would do something about it. Let’s look to Trump and see if he accomplishes that which is swears he will. If it does, one might consider it a miracle.

This post was originally seen on Alexandria (aleksandreia.com).

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The Passive Aggressive Human Award

Posted on 01/13/2017 by Just Jill

I’ve heard horror stories from others who have had encounters with the dangerous and often disguised Passive Aggressive Human. It is hard to comprehend because I’ve been lucky so far in my life to only experience the inexperienced or newbie PAH. There’s always that guy who doesn’t deal with his feelings directly or tell you what he is thinking so he can ‘just move on’ to other things. There’s the encounter with the girl who can’t compliment herself without putting herself down and giving you a sideways glance leaving you unsure which side of her to agree with or just run away.

Now I am experiencing for the first time in my life a person who has an advanced degree in PAH. The Passive Aggressive Human Award, shall we call it PAHA. This award is not easy to achieve because it requires a person to be so completely into their own made up world of ‘self’ that the concept of owning the award doesn’t even enter their mind.

It took me a few months to identify this person’s personality as Passive Aggressive. Perhaps it’s my own lack of experience or assumption that other people are, dare I say, normal and reasonable in their dealings with fellow human beings. My naivety may be my undoing in this circumstance. I ventured out into the world of the Internet to find out if PA was indeed the correct definition for this person and what I found was her picture. That may be overstating but I swear they were talking about my workmate.

Yes, I did say workmate. This is unfortunate not only because I am supposed to work with her one-on-one but because she’s also been assigned as my mentor, coach, and trainer (it literally says that on the list of duties we have). These three things do not identify her in any way other than, on occupation, she can train a person to do certain tasks. She does not, however, know how to mentor or coach someone. Training is a function she can muster however is only useful if the person being trained grasps the teaching immediately. She does not have time for unnecessary questions or instances when a person simply forgets how to do something. She will deal with the situation and then walk away shaking her head or sighing her deep, disgusted sigh that emanates from her entire body.

If someone does something wrong, she spends a great deal of effort protecting that person from the boss however she will put that in her memory banks and hold on to the fact the person messed up for later use.

Let’s look at three incidents in particular.

She yelled at us for doing a task a certain way that, two months prior, we had agreed to do that exact way. Unfortunately, she forgot that agreement and yelled at us. One of my coworkers didn’t know what to say and sat there with her mouth open. I very PC called BS and reminded her of the previous agreement. She stiffened and asked when she ever made such an agreement. When provided with the facts, she simply said ‘well, if I said that, I don’t remember but from now on we’re doing it this way’.

I found this particular incident difficult because of my own desire to ‘fix things’ and perfect my own skills. In other words, I wanted acknowledgement that we were doing what we agreed upon but also wanted the relationship between us to be mended so we could work well together. I apologized for the situation and stated that perhaps I should have checked for an update to the situation.

What didn’t happen was an apology from her for yelling at us. She simply said ‘it’s fine’ and blamed it on the fact she was being yelled at by others, which she didn’t like but somehow did not recognize she was doing the same to us.

She has become angry when she thought I was blaming others and not being a team player. This was far from the truth but because she does not speak to a person before jumping to a conclusion, she complained to our boss via email and then forwarded it to me (still not sure why). The result… I responded to the email and said my peace. This is not like me as I keep my emails PC and far, far away from controversial. But on this day, she had pushed one too many buttons and I simply let it fly. What was her response? An email back stating she was done with all the BS and the responsibilities and this and that and… went home for the day. I stayed at work and spoke with my boss to try and resolve my intense anger over the issue.

The next day, I spoke with my PAH coworker and said I was sorry it got to that level. Did she apologize for her part in the incident? No, she again said ‘don’t worry about it… no big deal’. I would hate to see what she does when it IS a big deal. Burn down the building?

I found this incident eye opening and it has caused my respect for her to drop to below freezing. Complaining about a fellow coworker before gathering the facts is far from professional. Her email to my boss was inappropriate and demeaning. Forwarding it to me was simply a way for her to express her power and ability to throw me under the bus whenever she feels the need. And finally, throwing her hands in the air and running home after I defend myself only shows me she’s unreliable.

The most recent example of her PA tendencies, and honestly the moment when I realized she was PA, was when she sent an email asking me if I was still doing a particular duty and if so, why had something or other not occurred. I must say that her way of dealing with people is extremely poor and if she were to encounter someone fragile or suicidal, she might push them over the edge. As it is, she’s dealing with me and I just got my back up like a cat face to face with a hyena. I professionally answered her email explaining that yes, I was doing such and such. It went from there and after a while it was determined that she was assuming I was doing something that I most definitely was not. We had never agreed that I would do this duty and if we had, believe me, I would have remembered because it was very important.

Here is where the passive aggressiveness explodes. I emailed, offering to help fix the problem. No response. I emailed proof that I was never doing this duty and that everyone in the group was to take care of their own portion of the task. No response. I emailed that I would help gather information and update the data but instead she did it all herself, sighing and grumbling the whole time. Later that afternoon, I updated another area of the report and emailed that we get together and talk about how we should proceed going forward. No response. A week later, no response, no mention of it, nothing.

And this time, I did not apologize.

I self-analyze quite a bit and in so doing it helps me determine if I am wrong in my dealings with others. If I am wrong, I apologize. If I am not wrong but realize that it’s a two-way street, I work with that person to forgive each other and move on. If I’m not wrong at all and the other person is a jerk, no apology is necessary but I still tend to want to fix it (something I struggle with). If I have determined that I in fact am not to blame and I have done all that I can do to fix the situation or apologize for the difficulty of the situation, there isn’t a lot more I can do. Apologizing when you haven’t done anything wrong, is silly. Apologizing to someone who is Passive Aggressive and won’t apologize for what they have done wrong, only gives them power over you. It may be time to move on to another department or company. I’ve heard that there is no way to change a PA person; that all you can do is ‘deal’ with them, keep detailed logs of your interactions with them, and avoid them when possible. That does not make for a friendly or productive work environment and I’m old enough now to realize I really don’t have time for that level of manipulation.

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Election Process is More than Fair, It’s Freedom

Posted on 11/17/2016 by Just Jill

The losing side in a Presidential election always goes back to yelling about the electoral college… because it’s just not fair. It is fair… it’s what actually makes the election process fair.

But for those who keep yelling this is not how democracy works (reminder, we are not a democracy) let’s look at the parts of it that does lean into the realm of democracy.

The Electoral College allows our society to be very democratic when it comes to electing our president. There aren’t two or three states that rule the entire country, there aren’t a few heavily populated counties or cities that decide for everyone, and the election can’t be won by ‘chance’ or by shoving more and more people into the voting pool that shouldn’t vote. Of course that last part seems to happen anyway as we are learning many who legally can’t vote do indeed vote (non-citizens, the dead, etc).

Let’s break it down…

Each state has a set of electors that represents the vote of that state. There are a few exceptions, clouding how the electors work, that do not vote this way but for the most part the electors are won based on the majority of votes in that state. Hence, democracy? They vote based on who gets the most votes in that state… winner take all.

Each state then has a certain amount of electors based on population and they cast their votes for the president. Thus, when you get done counting the electoral votes, the majority goes to the victor. Hence, democracy? Winner take all.

If the president were to win based strictly on how many states are won, there are several past elections that should have gone to one person over another. Should the loser complain they lost when they received more states than the other candidate? In this year’s election, Trump won 30 states to Hillary’s 20. Clearly then Trump won based on state count. But that was not the case in the last two elections when Obama ran… he did not win the majority of states. Should he have lost the election?

Here is a great website showing the maps dating back to 1789.

If the president were to win based on the popular vote of the entire United States, the presidency would be decided entirely by large cities. The final results of this year’s election have not been tallied but here is an example of counties and how they voted in 2012. This is not a representation of this year’s election so it’s not a great example of what happened this time however there is a distinct representation based on large city areas with the largest population base.

People can continue to complain that the majority of voters did not vote Republican this time but based on the maps being compiled and what we’ve seen so far, the majority of Democrat votes were found in the large cities. Those cities do not represent, and should not represent, the entire country. It’s why we are a country. All cities and towns have a say within their states that have a say based on their voter’s wishes, hence all voters have a say. Hence democracy is fulfilled in a way other countries have copied and in the case of other countries, would make their system of government better.

To go against the will of the people within each state is to lead us down a road of dictatorship. Too bad our education system stopped teaching our youth about the failed governments that ruled their people rather than allowing their people to rule their government. Too bad they don’t point out the current societies that rule their people through fear and shame, kill citizens who do not agree or comply, and take everything from them including all freedoms.

Our election process and much about our country is why we are free, it’s why people get to march down the street in protest, it’s why we get to buy whatever brand of clothing or cell phones we want, it’s why there aren’t any bread lines, it’s why we can make an appointment with a doctor and get in within days rather than weeks, it’s why anyone can start a business and succeed or fail, it’s why we have choices. Let’s not lose the greatness we have just to become another country no one wants to visit.

This post was originally seen on Alexandria (aleksandreia.com).

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Headlines and Blurbs Need to Change

Posted on 11/14/2016 by Just Jill

During the last couple of months I’ve noticed a trend in the tornado of political anger. Years ago when written news was brought to us through newspapers, we read headlines followed by the article beneath it. A headline could be surprising or shocking and not be detrimental because the surprise made us read the news.

Now, social media allows people to just read the headline and respond by reposting the headline and include a comment about it and yet never actually reading the article. The article is right there anxiously waiting for someone to read it but everyone is too lazy or too busy to actually do just that.

Headlines like “Five People Shot During Protests” with a comment from the news department simply saying the same thing as the headline with a little twist like “People shot during protests!”. Same message but if you go to the article and read down to the 5th paragraph you find out that it had nothing to do with the protest. The people shot were nowhere near the protest and the man shooting them just felt like shooting a bunch of people.

Headlines like Trump says he will immediately deport or jail up to 3 million undocumented immigrants… with a comment that simply says Trump says he’ll immediately deport or jail up to 3M immigrants in U.S. illegally. Funny how they won’t say illegal aliens… you are not an immigrant if you are in a country illegally.

What does headline that tell you? People read that and think that he’s going to deport 3 million people. Nothing more. Unless you read the article where it tells you (2 paragraphs down) that he was talking about those that are criminals and here illegally. That’s it. Now whether or not a person thinks that is right or wrong is a different subject but it’s obvious that the media’s intention was to anger people, which they did. People reposted it with angry statements of “See… he’s sending innocent people packing”.

Criminals are not innocent!

People, please read the articles and do your research before you repost things. Opinions, maybe not so much, but when you post something as fact you damn well better know it’s actually fact.

It’s embarrassing when you need to go back and say “oops, I overreacted and didn’t do my research before pushing this forward”. Believe me!

This post was originally seen on Alexandria (aleksandreia.com).

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How Can People Not Know the USA is a Republic?

Posted on 11/14/2016 by Just Jill

How can people not know the USA is a republic? It seems that our public school system must be teaching our children falsehoods about our history, our culture, and our government. There is no other logical reason for so many young people being so ignorant and so angry over things that are so false.

America is not a democracy. We are a republic. Democracy in America is simply what people do in their individual lives or when an organization or group is in control by the majority of its members. We do not elect our president using the popular vote for a very important reason.

Big cities should never be in control of the whole country nor should rural areas be in control. Everyone has a say in who is president however our education system has done great damage to the reality of how our system works. They do not explain what an electoral college system truly is. My son said to me one day that there was no reason to vote based on what he learned. He explained that the Electoral College was what determined who the president would be and that his vote was irrelevant.

This is something we discussed in great detail. We discussed that the individual vote is what determines the electoral vote. If enough people vote, they can sway a state’s position. Over the years we’ve watched elections where a person wins the electoral vote (or other votes) by a very small margin. If people had gone out to vote rather than sit at home because they ‘had no say’, that election would have turned out differently.

It’s obvious just by looking at past election results, especially the maps, that not all states vote a specific way. Over the years many states have changed their electoral votes entirely. It is not written in stone.

Young adults come out thinking one of two things, both detrimental. Some believe we are a democracy and therefore if enough people across the nation vote for someone and that person gets even 1 vote more, they win. This is simply not true. Others believe that there’s no point in voting because there are 270 people out there that are deciding the entire election. Both notions are ridiculous.

Much of this nonsense comes from teachers who are negligent by their own ignorance or to promote a belief they have and want to propagate. It also comes from parents and their beliefs or the miseducation they themselves were taught. It is unfortunate that there are people out there that want to continue down a road of lies, hate, and anger.

This post was originally seen on Alexandria (aleksandreia.com).

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Trump and the Mexican

Posted on 06/16/2016 by Just Jill

I’ve been thinking about this for a few days and wondering why this issue about Trump and the Mexican, as he referred to him, seems to be the thing that has caused people to walk away from Trump.

It seems most people are angry because he called a Mexican-American a Mexican. At least that is what you find on the internet and elsewhere. It could be that he should have said Latino or Hispanic (I couldn’t even tell you which is correct or incorrect any more) but he chose another word.

Here’s the thing… I’m not sold on the notion that he meant it as an insult and I’m curious how many actual Mexicans might wonder why Americans are so upset about it and might even be a bit insulted. I mean, what’s wrong with being called a Mexican?

Growing up, I lived around several groups of people at different times. Some were Hispanic/Latino, some were Native American, and some were African-American. But you see, back then (and it wasn’t THAT long ago) people weren’t going by those specific labels. People who were Hispanic/Latino often referred to themselves as Mexican (if their ancestors came from Mexico, of course) or Spanish, if appropriate. People who were Native American referred to themselves as Indian. Those who were African-American referred to themselves as black. Now, of course, that is just in the region I lived in… there could be others who considered themselves differently than what I witnessed.

So I wonder, did Donald Trump mean this as an insult or was he referring to the man as Mexican in the way some might describe another person. He’s Chinese, he’s Welsh, he’s African, he’s Indian, he’s Japanese. Granted, I have not searched the Internet for pictures to verify whether or not I would see this man and automatically thing he was Mexican or Hispanic/Latino or anything else. I’m often oblivious to what a person’s nationality is by just looking at them.

My question is this, do any of us actually think that Trump could have said anything about this situation and NOT been attacked for something or another? If he had called him Hispanic or Latino, would that have caused a different outcome or would people still call him racist simply because of the man’s heritage. What if he hadn’t addressed the heritage at all? Would that have made a difference? I’m pretty certain that no matter the outcome… a Mr. Trump or a President Trump… people will accuse him of an endless barrage of horrific things, true or untrue, until the end of his days. That is the world we live in now, where people attack and re-attack until they’re finally tired of it or have ruined a person’s life. These are the same people who will accuse Trump of bullying or racism when they themselves are full of hate that the normal person can never imagine.

This post was originally seen on Alexandria (aleksandreia.com).

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Rioters: Living on the Edge of Criminal Activity

Posted on 03/21/2016 by Just Jill

People can justify just about anything if they believe there is a good enough reason. People can therefore justify criminal activity if they label it with good intentions. If I could not get the things that were necessary to live because there was a world war or everything just went to hell, I would do whatever was necessary to keep my family safe and fed. If that meant taking from the local grocery stores to survive, I would do it. Thus is my own justification for doing something I wouldn’t normally do.

When people riot they dissuade others from taking their side or seeing their reasoning. They cross a line into criminal behavior and it’s hard, if not impossible, to ever go back.

A few years ago something came up on the ballot that I did not vote for or against because I did not have a strong feeling for or against it. Voting just to vote and not knowing the issue or having a reason for voting is foolish. The item was voted down. When it came up on the ballot the next go-around, I again did not vote one way or the other. And again it failed. This time there were riots. People destroyed cars, set fire to buildings, destroyed businesses… all because they did not get their way.

Continue reading →

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Dear Mitt

Posted on 03/03/2016 by Just Jill

Dear Mitt,

Maybe you should look at yourself before standing before the country and throwing stones. Maybe you should look back a few years to how grateful you were to this man that you now decimate on national TV. Whether I agree with anything you said is irrelevant. Your desire to destroy with your words, in many cases, probably did the opposite.

When you come before a large mass of people you will inevitably find some who agree with you no matter what and some who will never agree no matter what you say. The challenge is to not lose those who are ready to go one way or another. Ironically, your intention to sway people to your side may have done nothing more than turn them to the other side.

I have spent more time during the last few months shaking my head in disgust than I can remember (aside from the last 8 years as a whole). What I find most upsetting and distasteful are those who say they would sooner go to the other side than vote for certain individuals who might get the nomination.

To those people I say WAKE UP.

Don’t cry into your soup just because your favorite most beloved choice as president doesn’t get chosen. Stop acting like grade school children, stop stomping your feet and pouting so loud I can hear you across the nation. Put your big boy pants on and do the right thing… and that is NOT switching to the other side. If you absolutely can’t vote for the one chosen then just stay home. Don’t go out and write in some obscure name or vote for the other team.

My mind is overwhelmed with the noise that is coming from this campaign… and we haven’t even picked the nominees from either side. It’s like romper room on steroids… a three ring circus of only clowns and riddle makers.

If I could, I would slap all of their faces and tell them to SNAP OUT OF IT! They speak as if they understand the importance of this process and I’m sure they do, somewhat. But just like Hollywood, they know nothing of what it’s like to live in the real world. We the people are an annoyance, a regrettable necessity to getting into power. That in and of itself indicates how much power the voters have but unfortunately many of them don’t know they have it.

This post was originally seen on Alexandria (aleksandreia.com).

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Maddening Politics!

Posted on 03/03/2016 by Just Jill
Listening to people calling up talk shows and saying they won’t vote for one person or another if they get the nomination, is maddening! What is wrong with people?
 
This is the first time I am voting to put someone INTO office rather than keeping someone else OUT. There has been no one since Ronald Reagan to vote for and put into office. My past votes were to try and keep someone else from getting in.
 
Cruz and Trump are worth voting into office (and Rubio). Quite frankly, I would vote for any of them because a country run by Hilary or Bernie is destined to fall before the rest of the world and getting back out of that hole may not be possible!
 
Are people so ignorant or just so holier-than-thou that they won’t vote for someone who isn’t their favorite? Is it so they can say, years from now, “I didn’t vote for him” if things go wrong? What if things go right? Will they say they voted for him and lie or will they fess up and state that they were stubborn?

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We Create Our Doom In Our Replacement Generation

Posted on 02/10/2016 by Just Jill

Parents have created the kids of today via their own parents over time. 

We tell our grade school kids to share… be fair… be gentle… don’t poke fun… follow the rules… always believe the teacher. I did the same to my son but in the background I also told him that it’s okay to be proud of his own achievements and that even though we say out loud to follow the rules, sometimes the rules are only make believe and made to hold people back. 
 
Today the 20-30 years olds seem to think that life isn’t fair and if they are receiving more benefits, in whatever form, than the guy next to them, they MUST give it to someone else even if that other person does half the work they do. At the same time, they are extremely selfish and judgmental. They are the first to point and scream how bad someone else is while they are moral kings. 
 

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Is Trump the Answer?

Posted on 01/12/2016 by Just Jill

I don’t believe the Republican and Democrat party are really what Americans want them to be. We are left feeling that we must vote for one or the other but are never truly happy with our choices. When Ronald Reagan came along, it was a revelation. It was an eye-opening experience to see him, to hear him, to realize there were other choices. Sadly, neither Republican nor the Democrat party learned anything from his years in office. They thought it was a fluke, just some oddity that happened in time. They went back to being what they were, back to moving into what they really wanted to be. There is no true opposition to Democrats; Republicans are just a lighter version. Somehow they feel that they are on opposite sides but it certainly doesn’t seem that way.  

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B.O. Lets Them Go!

Posted on 12/20/2015 by Just Jill

I signed up to received emails from the White House at some point, and it’s interesting how many items come through showing just how proud they are of what they have or have not done. The latest email had a link showing how many people President Obama commuted the sentences of during his administration. So far he has commuted 184 individuals… more than the last five presidents combined. The email clearly expressed how great that was that he is letting all of these people out, whether immediately or by shortening their sentences. Now, I have no clue if these people should have been released but it’s still a shocking number when compared to those who have come before him.

Most of them are drug dealers, by the way.

Here’s the chart from their site…

Quote from the site:

“Today, President Obama is commuting the federal prison sentences of 95 men and women, most of whom committed nonviolent offenses. With this step, the President has now granted 184 commutations total — more than the last five presidents combined.”

Included is a link to all of the latest names…

I like how the statement above says that MOST of them committed nonviolent offenses, as if that makes it better. Most of them are drug dealers. Sorry, but drugs and violence often go hand in hand. The statement also shows just how proud they are that he has granted more than the last five presidents combined. Really? Is that a good thing? Does he think this will save us money maybe… justify the trillions of dollars of debt he’s dumped our asses into.

What the above chart should express to anyone looking at it is just how much power certain people want and just how much they will do to get it and keep it. Perhaps they think that all of these newly freed individuals and their relations will continue to vote a certain way. I don’t know but selling drugs to children seems pretty violent to me. And there is no way you can convince me that drug dealers check people’s identification to make sure they aren’t a certain age before making the transaction. No! You got the money, that’s all they need to know.

Personally, I feel that shortening a person’s sentence or pardoning them should meet very strict criteria and be based on a great deal of circumstances. This just looks like he wanted to let the drug dealers go… to do what? Start their own companies… go to work at a reputable company… learn the meaning of life and change their ways? No, Mr. B/O! What these people will do is go back to where they are from, get together with all their buddies, start talking about the good-old days, and get right back into doing what they did to get sent to jail in the first place.

Let’s check back on these people in a year or two and find out just how many residing in jail again, shall we?

This post was originally seen on Alexandria (aleksandreia.com).

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Holiday Politics

Posted on 11/29/2015 by Just Jill

Holidays and politics do not go hand-in-hand, at least not for me. Talking politics during Thanksgiving dinner is inappropriate and obnoxious. That is to say, whenever said conversations cause anger or arguments. Politics these days make me angry, worried, and full of dread.

Another issue exists in my family, or more specifically, my husband’s family. His mother is extremely liberal and he is extremely conservative. It reminds me of when my mother warned her husband and my grandmother never to talk politics. This was over 30 years ago when it was just the democrats vs. the republicans and, at that time, I didn’t understand my mother’s demand for silence between them. Now I understand all too well.

There have been a couple of instances when my mother-in-law angered me because she couldn’t keep her opinions to herself. I believe everyone is entitled to their opinion but I also believe there are certain times when those opinions should not be voiced. For instance, during Thanksgiving. The last couple of years have been fine but the first Thanksgiving we hosted caused me not to invite her back for some time (or even to host). The excuse for her behavior was that she wasn’t taking her meds at the time but I’m not entirely convinced.

During that Thanksgiving she brought up politics five or six times stating that everyone around her was on the opposite side of her politically. She stated during each outbreak that she had to start drinking before coming over and that she had to keep drinking since everyone was against her. By the third outbreak, I was exasperated and by the fourth, I was pissed. By the fifth, I decided to ignore her and go about my celebration without her. She was still there, but I paid attention to others instead.

Years later, she is taking her medication regularly but her politics are still what they are. I’m okay with that, what I’m not okay with is the other times when she was on her medication but still couldn’t determine the right and wrong time to bring up politics. This is what has led me to believe that the first Thanksgiving was not entirely the fault of a lack of medication.

Vector illustration of a democratic donkey and a republican elephant in a TV studio debating at a lectern. They are angrily looking at each other. Concept for US politics, elections, television and the media, presidential elections, political parties, rivalry, conflicts and debates.

The last time was during our visit to another state for my husband’s grandmother’s funeral. Over the course of the funeral and other events she brought up a dream she had the night before that was political in nature. During the dream she was surrounded by republicans and a famous political figure was there (someone she liked… I believe it was Bernie Sanders). She told several people about this dream and would follow up with “and here I am… seems like an omen”. Every conversation brought attention to herself and everyone responded with a very odd look on their face. No one knew what to say to her. Was she awaiting an apology? An excuse? An acknowledgement that she was a victim?

By the fourth time I overheard this conversation, I was determined to say something to her if I she brought it up one more time. Luckily, for both of us, I never overheard her again. I was furious! I’m certain I am not expressing my anger to the fullest because I can’t write down every example or even remember them all. What I do know is that some people just can’t let things go… and I might be one of them. I try and will continue to try to let these moments in time vanish from my thoughts.

These instances, along with others, have put a wedge between us. I’m nice to her and during this year’s celebration I had a neat conversation with her about football and food. I never bring up anything that might lead into politics. When we talk about sports or food, all is well. So that is what I will do and I will also try to let these past things go as well. It’s more important to have her with us during the holidays, especially for my husband, so I ignore the hints to how unfair life is under the rule of one party over another.

It’s a long hard journey and I believe more and more that politics can make or break a relationship. I am thankful that so many people were able to join us for Thanksgiving and will continue to bring everyone together, all the while reminding myself that I’m also thankful that we can have differences of opinion and just move forward with our lives.

This post was originally seen on Alexandria (aleksandreia.com).

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