What do you think causes this type of behavior among little ones? Are children born evil? Is this just their normal way of asking for things when they go to the store?
No.
And
No.
You know just as well as I do that Dr. Phil doesn’t get it right too many-a-times. However, I have to give Dr. Phil credit for this one. I’ve seen a few shows of him bitch-slapping parents for their lack of consistency in disciplining their children. Spot on, Phil!!!
It’s because stupid parents too often give in to the temper tantrums that the kid behaves like this. If “no” always meant “no”, kids wouldn’t use their fits of rage to manipulate to get what they want. So, yeah, it’s the dingy parents fault. I know parents that beat the bejesus out of their kids and their kids are STILL out of control. When will people learn? And if you can’t handle the responsibility of having a kid, wear a condom! I think more ADULTS need spankings, if anything…. Seriously.
What all too often happens in the home is a child begging to do something or begging to have something they don’t have. Mom and dad say no. Child has a fit. Mom or Dad gives in. They can’t handle the blood curdling cries.
Senorita learns that all she needs to do is have a temper tantrum, and she gets what he wants.
This is not rocket science, folks. Hell, give more credit to the children. They’re smarter than most of us are. They pull the blinders over their parents every time. Parents are stupid to give in to them – recreating this type of behavior each time the kid wants something. If I was a child and knew a manipulation tactic that worked with my parents, I’d use it. Ask my mother! Anything to get those ….shiny new toys.
If and when a child learns that when his parent says “NO” that it means “NO”, even after screaming bloody murder in the living room, they will learn that fits don’t buy their way into “getting the goods”.
I don’t see anything wrong with allowing a child to create blood curdling screams in the living room. Let them have at it. But the important thing is here is not to “give in” to them from the very first time they have their fit. Let the kids get it all out of their system. My guess is that their first fit is probably genuine. It’s only after they learn that their 205 decibel screeches WORK that they, from that point on, fake the tantrums to manipulate their parents. Duh.
Then the worst of the worst happens….. You take them out in public. They want something. You say no, and experience the most embarrassing moment of your life when little junior throws himself on the floor and goes into a convulsive hyper-criminal-like state-of-the-art fit-o-rama! Everybody’s watching you and giving you dirty looks. They probably want to kill your little junior. Or better yet, handcuff and restrain their ass and off with the police they go!
Ever watch Super Nanny? I just needed to watch this show once, and I felt right away that Super Nanny knows her stuff. And she has kids. Do you see her teaching parents to beat the innards out of their children? Nope. It can be done non-violently.
Spanking kids is the easy way out. However, taking the time to discipline children is hard work that consumes a great amount of time and requires a significant amount of patience. Most parents don’t have this. Most parents aren’t prepared to have children. They idealize ahead of the time that “anyone can do it”. This is so untrue.
Raising children requires a gift that many breeders out there don’t have. All parents think about is that they want kids, pop ‘em out, and …presto! Any parent out there knows that even with just one child, it’s a pain in the ass.
Being a parent requires that you give up most of YOUR needs, wants and desires and use every cell in your body to take care of that little one. It’s about giving yourself up for a while. This is what I believe causes Post Partum Depression. It’s saying, “good-bye self” and “hello 24/7 child”.
Depending on the degree and the person, if you were deprived of your basic needs as a child yourself (touch, love, encouragement, support, etc), following the birth of your own child will cause your un-met needs to resurface. While you won’t tell anyone you feel this way, you will probably think to yourself , “why should I do all this – I didn’t even get that myself”.
It can go the other way too. If you come to the stage in your life where you feel you’ve recovered from the damage done to you as a child, you might go out of your way to spoil your child with love. And there’s nothing wrong with that. But spoiling your child with love doesn’t mean giving them every dagnabbit thing they want. Spoiling with love means just that. Unlike the popular myths in the US, it does *not* damage a child.
This is all just common sense or so it appears that way to me.
The discussion got very interesting when they went over medication. Probably a lot of you reading this are currently taking medication or have been on it at some point in time in your life.
KING: Do you take medication?
DANO: I may. I’m not opposed to that. I’m now, as I said, going through this. I’m sort of weighing that as an option.
KING: You are depressed now, then?
DANO: Yes. Yes.
KING: This event-oriented depression, Dr. Swartz, common?
SWARTZ: Often, there’s a trigger, that people will look in their life and be able to say, this seems to have tipped the balance and put me into the depression. And, unfortunately, sometimes that can be a major loss, such as a death of a loved one, but, alone, too, being such a large stress.
Posttraumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD, is a psychiatric disorder that can occur following the experience or witnessing of life-threatening events such as military combat, natural disasters, terrorist incidents, serious accidents, or violent personal assaults like rape. People who suffer from PTSD often relive the experience through nightmares and flashbacks, have difficulty sleeping, and feel detached or estranged, and these symptoms can be severe enough and last long enough to significantly impair the person’s daily life.
PTSD goes further. The event only has to be perceived as traumatic by the victim. In reality the incident might not pose a serious threat to life, but if the incident is genuinely considered to be life-threatening, then the victim has experienced an event outside the range of normal human experience. More recent evidence has shown that PTSD can result from sexual abuse, and from bullying. I believe that the drastic increase in PTSD is very much the product of modern living. PTSD case numbers rise in ratio to advances in technology. The more advanced today’s world becomes, the greater the scope for the existence of severe life stresses and traumatic situations. The more advanced our communications networks become, the more our minds are filled with plausible traumatic imagery. I suspect the incidence of PTSD cases will continue to rise.
So as you can see here the timing of a trauma is irrelevant. It just simply has to happen. I reckon that it’s safe to assume that the majority of us have PTSD to some degree or another. Depending on our backgrounds, individuals vary on how they cope with it.
Back to the Larry King Show…
KING: Now, Chad, you don’t take any medication? Does it work for you?
ALLEN: No, I don’t take medication right now. My sister does, although none of it’s ever really been all that effective, and I think, to talk about treating the illness of depression, and leave out both the emotional and spiritual component is a recipe for disaster. I think that recovery from…
KING: But if medication would work, you’d take it, wouldn’t you?
ALLEN: But I don’t think it can only just be medication. To simply, just think that this magic can come in a pill is not even half the battle, and to go through this and not be able to talk about what’s going on in the emotional front, it’s not going to happen.
Sometimes the pill alone can do wonders, but sometimes we have to take the pill and utilize other coping mechanisms to get by. Common sense, right?
KING: Is it doubly depressing, Dr. Swartz, when a person in depression gets bad news?
SWARTZ: It can be. It’s interesting, because sometimes when people are in treatment — I have had patients on medication that get very serious news, such as a cancer diagnosis, and sometimes it will trigger another depressive episode, and sometimes they do well through it. And so each time, you have to be vigilant, to pay attention to see if the symptoms are going to come back.
KING:Is it true that over 20 million people have it?
SWARTZ: It is. It’s about 5 to 10 percent of men and 10 to 20 percent of women that some time in their life, will have a depressive episode, the kind of depression that’s an illness.
This is interesting. Twenty million people have Depression. Can you imagine if we were to add those that don’t even know they have depression? Whoa!
What’s also interesting here is the different ratio between men and women! This doesn’t mean that men don’t walk around with as much baggage as women. What it means is that women are much closer or aware of their feelings compared to their male counterparts. Remember how I mentioned in my last entry on Depression on how Society teaches us not to feel? Surprise! Boys and Men have feelings too. The only difference is – is that society is much tougher on boys, sadly. Men can choose to feel if they want to, but most don’t because they remember their daddies beatings to “make them men”. And when the boys cried during their beatings, they remember being told the number one cliche line: “SHUT THE HELL UP OR I’LL G-I-V-E YOU SOMETHING TO CRY ABOUT!”
Did anybody watch Jay Leno the other night when Laura Bush was on?
If anybody watched that, you heard her saying (in reference to the No Child Left Behind Act) that boys suffer greater than girls do growing up and how they need the same type of nurturing that girls get.
Perhaps Trelease has a revealing insight into the problems boys seem to have when it comes to academic achievement. Boys are more likely than girls to repeat a grade or drop out of school. They suffer more from learning disabilities, are three times more likely to be enrolled in special education classes, are more likely to be involved in criminal and delinquent behavior, are less likely to be enrolled in college preparatory classes, have lower educational expectations and do less homework (Riordan, Sommers, 2000, 1996).
Laura Bush continued that the percentage of women attending college these days is drastically higher than than men.
Plain and simple. Women and men are raised differently. A man can still be raised as a man, sure. But they should be allowed to express themselves. Too many people think they’ll grow up as fags if they cry when they’re 2 months old. No, I’m serious here.
More on Medication from Dr.Swartz from the Larry King Show:
(If anyone you readers have made it THIS far, please read the below. It’s very important!)
SWARTZ: There’s a small group of people for whom that’s probably the treatment of choice. But for most patients with depression, they’re so severely affected that they’re not able to really engage in that kind of intensive psychotherapy. The other issue is that for some people that are taking medication, it’s often a problem if they don’t get an adequate dose of the medicine for long enough for it to really get a chance to work. Often, people have side effects, or they give up on the medication before they’ve had a chance to see if it’s really going to be successful.
This is so common. People try medication for a few days, get undesirable side affects, and never try medication again!
Why does this happen? I have my own theories:
People think they are contaminating their bodies with poisons.
If you’re used to feeling bad all the time and know no other feelings than “bad”, to feel good would actually make the depressed feel even worse because of the contrast. Feeling good simply means you are feeling, and for those whom have never felt good before literally freak out.
People are afraid to admit to themselves that they have a problem. They feel taking medication means that they are “bad” or “wrong” or “crazy” and finally “undesirable”.
When agree to take a medication, you are also agreeing to give up the wheel into the hands of the medication and re-live what “powerlessness” is. This is something that control freaks cannot do.
And last but not least, people are afraid of the unknown.
This stubborn behavior will keep them in their stupor. People have a choice, though. And that is the choice that makes them happy, so you really can’t blame them.
On Becoming Immune to Medications from the Larry King Show:
CALLER: And it’s really for the doctor, my question is really for the doctor. There is absolutely no way that I cannot be on medication. When I go off, it cycles down. I’m high. I’m great, and then it’s a spinning cycle down. Can you become immuned to like — I was on Paxil for a long time and it just wasn’t working anymore, and I really had to fight my doctor to change that medication, and I think other people should know out there, if that’s a fact.
KING: Doctor, do you switch medication often?
SWARTZ: Well, you make sure you’ve given the medication a good chance, in the sense of getting to a full dose and staying on that, usually for four to eight weeks. But, if something has stopped working, it’s as important that you try something else. You don’t want to just keep with something that’s not helping you, and there are so many good options now that it’s important to move on to something — to try something else. And it can happen that a medication that’s been helping for, even a few years, can lose its effectiveness.
Last but not least, one more important thing about medication:
KIDDER: I did. I wanted to say a couple of things to the woman who talked about going off her Paxil. There is a withdrawal from anti-depressants. It’s well-documented, and it’s documented also by the companies who make them, although they don’t like to publicize it. They don’t call it drug withdrawal. They call it discontinuation syndrome, but you will get depressed, unless you withdraw really, really slowly from any psychiatric drug, in particular, antidepressants.
And it’s really important to know that, because it’s quite dangerous, so, what I want to say is, I don’t want anyone out there getting the idea that, oh, Margot got better without her medication, so I’ll just throw mine out. If you throw your medication out and try and just – like an alcoholic — you will end up in the bin.
So, to all you people that are suffering with anxiety/depression and don’t like living that way, there is hope.
Did any of you watch Larry King the other night (April 21st)? He had a panel discussing the treatments for depression. It was very interesting. What made it even more interesting was that famous television personalities participated and discussed the severity of their depression and talked about how they’re still being effected by it and/or what they all did to help it.
The problem with depression is that people (and yes, even those going through it themselves that don’t even know it) just don’t understand it. It was discussed on the show that in the old days that those whom were suffering from this were thought to have been possessed by the devil.
But I’d like to elaborate on this. Depression to our elders is thought of as an excuse to be “lazy”. It’s an excuse to procrastinate. It’s an excuse to generally not have to do the things that everyone else is responsible for doing. If there are any myths about depression, this has got to be T-H-E biggest and most popular myth out there. And for those seeking for help were thought to have been using their help “as a crutch”. Therapy and medication is a crutch. “Oh and religion isn’t”? Gimmie a break!
Our elders say that strength is recognized by keeping yer mouth shut, holding it in, biting your bottom lip, and over-working yourself till you drop. …..”As if there are no side-effects from that.”
Nothing can be more antiquanted and so remote from the truth.
It’s very sad because those suffering from depression have a much harder time going through it if those that surround them (family and friends) deny the severity of this illness, place blame on irrelevancies, and just as worse, think the illness doesn’t exist at all in the first place.
This makes an illness that’s curable, incurable. People can make something that IS hopeful, hopeless. Do any of you ever stop to wonder why there are so many suicides all over the world?
That’s all it’s about. You are not a bad person, or crazy, or weak, or flawed, because you feel suicidal. It doesn’t even mean that you really want to die – it only means that you have more pain than you can cope with right now. If I start piling weights on your shoulders, you will eventually collapse if I add enough weights… no matter how much you want to remain standing. Willpower has nothing to do with it. Of course you would cheer yourself up, if you could.
What part about this do people not get?
Don’t accept it if someone tells you, “that’s not enough to be suicidal about.” There are many kinds of pain that may lead to suicide. Whether or not the pain is bearable may differ from person to person. What might be bearable to someone else, may not be bearable to you. The point at which the pain becomes unbearable depends on what kinds of coping resources you have. Individuals vary greatly in their capacity to withstand pain.
This is yet another well known myth. Dear Lord…… pain cannot be compared from one person’s pain to the next.
Here’s another example from the Larry King show:
TANYA TUCKER, MUSICIAN, AUTHOR “100 WAYS TO BEAT THE BLUES”: From there, I got progressively worse. The more people told me that, you know, wow, you should be so blessed. Don’t you feel blessed? And you have all this — mansion and all these beautiful things.And I said, you know — the more they told me that, the more depressed I got. At one point, I didn’t get out of bed for, I think, three months, and I went down to the bottom of the hill one day and I had to call somebody to get me to come back up – come pick me up because I couldn’t physically walk up the hill.
I wish people would understand that when you try to cheer up depressed people, they only get worse. I’ve been around many-a-depressed people in my day, and this is the case. I’m hoping that this is an eye-opener for some!
When pain exceeds pain-coping resources, suicidal feelings are the result. Suicide is neither wrong nor right; it is not a defect of character; it is morally neutral. It is simply an imbalance of pain versus coping resources.
You can survive suicidal feelings if you do either of two things: (1) find a way to reduce your pain, or (2) find a way to increase your coping resources. Both are possible.
As emphasized on the Larry King Show about Depression, coping resources include family and friends: family being the most important.
SWARTZ: Anti-depressants are absolutely medications that have saved lives. The best way to prevent suicide is to treat depression, and we know that anti-depressants are, in many ways, the most tried and true treatment for depression, but, I agree that medicine alone is not the
treatment of depression. It needs to be combined with psychotherapy, support from your family, learning about what you have, and also being responsible. So, that might mean not using drugs and alcohol, that might mean getting enough sleep and doing other things to reduce stress in your life.
Not to misunderstand the “learning about what you have and being responsible” part. While it’s a nice thing to know you are loved, that doesn’t exactly do the trick. And in order to get to that place, one needs to be understood. Responsibility is only possible after one has gotten to a certain level in their depressed phase. No two people are alike. This should also be digested using “case by case” logic.
TUCKER: And if I can help anyone out, I’m glad to talk about it. But the main thing is that medication, too, is not all the help. It’s very important, I think, that you have a very well-educated doctor that knows what he’s doing. And I know there’s probably a lot that aren’t so educated out there, but you’ve got to find the right doctor and have your family close by.
Well this is only so if your family is supportive. I don’t blame those who aren’t supportive, though. They are in pain too but refuse to do anything about it.
As always, the first step to recovery is realizing that you are hurting.
Another common myth is that people think depression simply means that you are down, slow, sleeping all the time, unmotivated, expressionless, and apathetic. This is so untrue it’s not funny.
SWARTZ: I think that many people when they’re depressed feel an anxiety or a tension. And I think it’s true that it would be rare for someone in the midst of a depression to describe themselves as relaxed. It’s a torturous ordeal for someone to go through.
Depression and Anxiety pretty much go hand in hand.
ALLEN: Dietary-wise, I avoid caffeine. Caffeine was a huge trigger for the anxiety that was coupled with my depression. Anything that brought me up was going to drop me right back down again.
WHAT IT MEANS TO BE DEPRESSED
While everyone experiences depression in quite a similar way, it DOES differ depending on the person.
CHAD ALLEN, ACTOR, BECAME DEPRESSED, HAS HAD SUICIDAL THOUGHTS: You know, I never made what would classically be defined as a suicide attempt. My sister — I have a twin sister — she made several very real suicide attempts. However, I am familiar with what it feels like to feel suicidal, to want to die, to not be able to wake up in the morning and feel like I can’t lift up my head, I can’t get out of the house today. What am I going to do?
Many people don’t understand this, but when you can’t move, you simply cannot move. Period. This is a very common symptom.
Imagine what Homosexuals go through. Something that not too many people care about or empathize with.
ALLEN: You know, I first started — since probably 12, 14 years old. I also started drinking alcohol and using drugs right about the same time. So for me, that was my first — my first sort of coping mechanism I used. And when I finally got sober when I was 24 years old, I finally felt what it was I was hiding from. First, it was anxiety, which is kind of the evil twin sister of depression, and then those feelings of absolute just despair and sorrow, you know, I can’t get out of here today, what am I going to do?
KING: You were in the closet, right?
ALLEN: Yeah.
KING: Did being gay, do you think, had anything to do with it?
ALLEN: Absolutely, we started a campaign…
KING: Absolutely yes?
ALLEN: Absolutely, had a lot to do with it. We started a campaign called the talk-about-it campaign, to address the issue of depression in the gay community. The gay community has an almost 18 percent, if not higher, instances of depression than the community at large. You
know, people are always asking me, why is that? And I say, you know, I hosted the Tulsa, Oklahoma pride festival last year. I get in my car and I’m all set to go down the street — Tulsa, Oklahoma is famous for its Christian protesters — and one man was holding up a sign; the sign said “how come the community that calls itself gay has the highest suicide rate?” With almost no understanding of the irony that maybe it had something to do with him standing there holding that sign, you know.
The fact is, there’s a lot of things that we’ve had to deal with, and coming out and being who I am, that’s part of it. But it’s been a tough battle.
Accepting WHO you are and WHAT you’re all about and allowing yourself to be YOU and accepting that, is a huge step in the battle.
Before we go to calls, Chad, you recently lost a close friend, right?
ALLEN: I did, yeah.
KING: He died suddenly of a heart attack at age 31.
ALLEN: Correct. Yeah.
KING: How did that affect what you already have?
ALLEN: Well, you know, it was a horrible event, you know. And the fact of the matter is, I know now that when stuff comes up for me that is going to create an emotional response, what I have to first focus on is not running away from my feelings. And that took me a lot of years to learn, that, A, it’s OK for Chad to be sad. And this is what it feels like. And it sounds odd, but for me being sad was not OK, and I think a lot of times, the world that we live in, we’re taught being sad, being angry, these so-called negative emotions, they’re not OK.So, I started going, you know what, I’m going to take good care of you today, Chad. You’re going to be sad for a while, and that’s all right.Whatever it looks like, I’m going to take good care of you, and I’m not going to leave your side, I’m not going to run away from you.It helps.
Well, there you go. If this is not sad in itself, I don’t know what is. Society dictates that we’re not supposed to show our feelings. Could this be a cause of depression? Absolutely. When you’re taught not to feel happy when you are, to feel sad when you are, to feel angry when you are, to cry when you feel like crying, to laugh when you feel like laughing, — we die inside.
You see this type doesn’t look depressed as much, do they? No, because they take care of their problems with addictive habits and violence. This is why they can function in society.
But what about those that don’t engage in these type of act-outs?
Yes, you got it (hopefully). All the anger is internalized. This causes depression, my friend. But those depressed are taunted by society as weak, lazy, irresponsible, and even more unloved by those they expect and need it from the most..
Likewise, it is helpful to understand that anger is contextual and social, Tavris adds. When anger fails to fill a constructive framework, however, it can morph into undesirable expressions of the emotion, anger experts say. Anger externalized can turn into violence and aggression; anger internatlized can cause depression, health problems, and communication difficulties, they note.
Anyway, depression is more than little kids whining that they don’t want to do housework. It much more than that.
Society, keep up the good work. Maybe with a little more of your help, we can create even more monstrous murderers and criminals.
If you sit on your ass and don’t at least try to help protect our borders, don’t come crying to me when we’re hit by a terrorist attack. (We know it’s just a matter of WHEN and not IF.) And don’t come complaining to me about how much taxes you have to pay because a percentage of them are going to house the illegal aliens, pay for their hospital bills, jail/prison time, and feed them on welfare.
As Texas becomes Texico, and Tuscon becomes Tusico, and California becomes Mexifornia, look what else is happening:
Well, not that this hasn’t been going on for ages. Sure we need to get the oil prices down, but…. I’m sure we all conveniently forget that Saudi Arabia supports the terrorists.
But oh no…. “we need to get those oil prices down and the Mexicans are good for depressing our wage structure….”
And God forbid we complain about the illegals because then we’re labeled “racists”.
But let’s look at it this way, folks. If either you or I went to the Canadian or Mexican border pregnant with 16 kids and no money, would we be given such pampered treatment in their countries – well, IF THEY EVEN ALLOWED US THROUGH WITH NO DOCUMENTATION???
In those countries, would us Americans get free health care, welfare, money for riding the buses, government supported housing, drivers licenses, and the works? Hmmm. Oh, and could we keep our illegal status over there and get a job too? Ask Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh.
Oh and don’t give me that mumbo jumbo that the “guest workers” are taking the jobs that Americans aren’t willing to do. That’s ridiculous. There are law-abiding citizens that would just be happy enough to have a job at all.
I’ve been working since I was 15 years old (before illegal aliens were taking over our country) and I had no problems finding work. Didn’t some of our parents tell us that if you want something, go work for it and learn how to be an adult? Well, what’s in store for our youth today?
Everything in a nutshell: We’ve spent billions on the war in Iraq to “win the war on terror“, yet our government that you so enthusiastically support is allowing criminal illegal aliens and terrorists to slip through our borders, and continuing to support one of the most terrorist-hoarding countries such as Saudi Arabia.
Go figure…. Figure yourself out. Or better yet, figure Bush-boy out for me. And while you’re at it, don’t forget to sign this petition. Yes, I’m a realist too and think it probably won’t do a damn thing, either, but isn’t it a hell of a lot better than sitting on your rear-end complaining?
I eat all kinds of meat – even Korean raw meat (Yuk’oe).
I am a big fish eater. I even it it raw. (Japanese Sashimi)
Shame on me…. I also eat eggs. I even eat them raw in Japan. (Japanese Onsen Tamago)
God forgive me…. I’m also guilty of eating milk, cheese, and yogurt!
I’m sure there’s more that I eat that comes from living things including plants. There’s not too much out there that I won’t eat and that includes horse tongue and pigs ears!
I kill bugs. (or I just have my husband do the deed)
I don’t condemn people who wear fur. Hell, I used to own a fur coat ages ago!
But, I’m thinking that I must be a hypocrite because…
I condemn very strongly the killing of animals merely just for pleasure. Those that go hunting make me sick to my stomach. I hate them all and I curse them. Now, if they were starving and needed to, I wouldn’t care, but these Right Winged Cowardly Extremists take the lives of the innocent and defenseless as an outlet for the tormented anger they have bottled up in them. What if a larger form of life were to come up against your defenseless existence and take YOUR life? How would you like that?
I despise those that take the life of their own animals and eat them.Some may be joking about this little habit of theirs, but I can’t even come up with a word that describes this kind of treatment towards domesticated animals.
I cringe at those who ignore the advice of professionals and continue to beat their pets or even kill them because their pet was bad, the owner wanted to taste cat, rabbit, or dog meat (yes, this does happen), or to set an example for their children.
The last group of people who hurt animals are the worst. These are people who intentionally hurt animals because they enjoy hurting things, or because it makes them feel powerful. Many of these people would hurt other people if they could get away with it, they just choose to hurt animals because animals are more helpless than people.
Why do these people do this? There are different reasons. A lot of these people want to have control over others. They will hurt an animal because they think this means they control the animal. Or they may hurt the animal to control another person. For example, a husband might hurt the family’s pet to show his wife what he could do to her if she doesn’t obey his commands. Someone else might make his dog kill other dogs because he thinks that makes him powerful.
Others simply enjoy pain and violence. Those who enjoy violence might also destroy inanimate objects as well as animals and people.
All of the people in this last group suffer from serious, psychological problems that will probably not go away on their own. They often need the help of licensed professionals–like a psychologist. We are not 100% sure why people become like this–most are probably born with
their problems, but others can get their problems from brain damage, poisonous environments, or by being treated badly themselves. Without help, the psychological problems these people have can haunt them for their whole lives.
To sum it up here, I’m strongly against violence and the killing of domesticated pets. And if I had it my way, the prison sentences and Capital Punishment that’s used in the conviction of human homicide, pet torturers and killers would receive the same fate.
What’s my answer? No. No, No, and No. I can’t even understand why this is even an issue so big that it was broadcasted on the news.
From my point of view, I see some VERY clear differences between the two. Journalists go out and interview, quote words taken from the original sources live, and then they gather their information from press conferences, interviews, and whatnots and publish the information whether it be editorial or or not.
For the most part, bloggers rely on the sources that journalists work very hard to gather. We site the source in our blogs (hopefully) and go on either commenting on the issue or make it non-editorial leaving the opinions up to the individual reader or both.
I should have paid more attention to “who”, but one gentleman said on the news that bloggers post false information. Now, I’m sure there are bloggers who DO post false information. But I’ve read many-a-blogs in my day, and I’m sorry but I just don’t see that. Remember, most bloggers back up their factsusing links and blockquotes. If the links are bad ones…. well, that’s not our problem because you know as well as I do that bias exists and who’s to determine fact from fiction?
Next, we bloggers add our own opinion. Since when does an opinion become “false information” ? The last time I checked, an opinion is neither right nor wrong.
6 entries found for opinion.
o·pin·ion n.
A belief or conclusion held with confidence but not substantiated by positive knowledge or proof: “The world is not run by thought, nor by imagination, but by opinion”
(Elizabeth Drew).
A judgment based on special knowledge and given by an expert: a medical opinion.
A judgment or estimation of the merit of a person or thing: has a low opinion of braggarts.
The prevailing view: public opinion.
Law. A formal statement by a court or other adjudicative body of the legal reasons and principles for the conclusions of the court.
BLOGGERSrequire no journalistic experience. All they need is computer access and the desire to blog. There are other, even important differences between bloggers and mainstream journalists, perhaps the most significant being that bloggers pride themselves on being part of an unmediated medium, giving their readers unfiltered information. And therein lies the problem.
When I or virtually any other mainstream journalist writes something, it goes through several filters before the reader sees it. At least four experienced Times editors will have examined this column, for example. They will have checked it for accuracy, fairness, grammar, taste and libel, among other things.
If I’m careless — if I am guilty of what the courts call a “reckless disregard for the truth” — The Times could be sued for libel … and could lose a lot of money. With that thought — as well as our own personal and professional commitments to accuracy and fairness — very much in mind, I and my editors all try hard to be sure that what appears in the paper is just that, accurate and fair.
Do I sometimes make mistakes? Yes, I’m only human. Do my editors always catch my mistakes? Most of the time, they do. But not always. They’re human too. The “For the Record” corrections published on Page 2 of The Times every day make our human fallibility only too clear.
Shield laws (and the 1st Amendment guarantee of freedom of the press, the philosophical progenitor of these laws) were created to enable the media as an institution to inform the citizenry, without government interference.
And it’s the institutional safeguards of the traditional media that differentiate them from bloggers and the blogosphere, even if those safeguards sometimes fail. When they do, as they clearly did in the case of several recent media scandals, heads roll.
Many bloggers — not all, perhaps not even most — don’t seem to worry much about being accurate. Or fair. They just want to get their opinions — and their “scoops” — out there as fast as they pop into their brains. One of the great advantages of the Internet, many Web lovers have told me, is that it’s easy to correct an error there. You can do it instantly, as soon as the error is called to your attention, instead of having to wait until the next day’s paper.
But the knowledge that you can correct errors quickly, combined with the absence of editors or filters, encourages laziness, carelessness and inaccuracy, and I don’t think the reporter’s privilege to maintain confidential sources should be granted to such practitioners of what is
at best pseudo-journalism.
I’m not saying that all bloggers are lazy, careless or inaccurate. I’m sure many take as much pride in their work — their professionalism — as I do.
That’s right. Bloggers are not edited. This is both good and bad. It’s bad in the sense that those should not be presenting as facts, false information. It’s good in the sense that some of us bloggers could be presenting the REAL truth without the interruption of professional editors distorting reality and promoting political correctness. In other words, sometimes it can be that only the real truth can be found from a blog BECAUSE IT HASN’T BEEN EDITED.
Look at Liberal CNN and Conservative Fox News. Reporters, journalists, and anchor persons all have their spins on almost every societal concern out there. Do they not? Yet bloggers are being condemned for their spins and being told their not journalists (well, which is true).
2 entries found for journalism.
jour·nal·ism
n.
The collecting, writing, editing, and presenting of news or news articles in newspapers and magazines and in radio and television broadcasts.
Material written for publication in a newspaper or magazine or for broadcast.
The style of writing characteristic of material in newspapers and magazines, consisting of direct presentation of facts or occurrences with little attempt at analysis or interpretation.
Newspapers and magazines.
An academic course training students in journalism.
Written material of current interest or wide popular appeal.
Nobody should have to think for you. Stupidity is a word that also should be given to those people who cannot wade through the bullshit they read or hear on the news. But there are a lot of stupid people out there that take what the upper ups in the media say as Gospel. However, more than anything else, selective “listening” is the problem. People believe and attach themselves to certain media outlets that suit their own agendas. They do this instead of listening to both CNN and FOX and then forming their own opinion. But this is too painful for many people as they have too much trouble putting their baggage aside to think rationally.
I’m sorry if I’ve ever posted false information on my blog that wasn’t me being sarcastic or me giving my opinion. I would certainly hope that my readers don’t use me as the only source for the news. I would also appreciate it if in the event I did post false information that my reader (instead of leaving a condescending remark) would take the time to give me a link to where the correct information can be found, and I’d gladly correct it. I’ve been found guilty before and corrected my mistake before. It happens to the best of us.
But don’t assume that I think of myself as a journalist. This is just my little picnic table where I find news events that strike a nerve where you get to hear me stand on the roof tops and scream like a helpless misfit.
I never did say I was normal.
UPDATE! The below was left in my comments section here by Jeremy Bol, a blogger/journalist. I stand corrected.
I think there may be something you’re missing here. Journalists frequently revamp or regurgitate other people’s work. By the standard for a true journalist you state, nearly the only paper in the world we could call “journalists” would be AP News. Most news agencies cite them on an hourly basis. Some bloggers can be classified as journalists, but not all.
The biggest difference between a journalist and a true blogger is that a journalist has the aid of an editor.
I consider myself a blogger AND a journalist. I have been published with my blog material in several publications throughout the internet, not just blogs. Jane Novak (http://www.armiesofliberation.com) got no less than 20 of her articles published in the Yemen Times, Arab News and several other middle eastern papers. Her continued diligence in journalism created awareness in the region and eventually led to the release of a Yemeni newspaper editor.
Bloggers in general are not journalists. Many are though.
Earlier Thursday, Wendy’s International Inc. announced it had ended its internal investigation, saying it could find no credible link between the finger and the restaurant chain.
Sales have dropped at franchises in Northern California, forcing layoffs and reduced hours, the company said. Wendy’s also has hired private investigators, set up a hot line for tips and offered a $100,000 reward for anyone who provides information leading to the finger’s original owner.
I hope that Wendy’s customers start returning. I really feel so sorry for their business, and am glad that justice is being served.
I’m dying to find out who the owner of that finger is.
Religious Hypocrites are a lot of fun to point out. Nine out of ten of them are Extremists on the Right Wing side.
Tonight I ventured over to one of my favorite Liberal blogs, Preemptive Karma. The entry that reads, “Bite Me” received a comment from your typical hit and run troll. The comment is as follows:
Stay off my message board, bitch.
Wow. It reminded me of the frequent troller, Maddie Dog, that prowls through liberal blogs leaving nasty comments. Maddie Dog even left a really nice comment for me on this entry. Mind you, Extremists from the right side hate celebrity talk. Do you think people are just sometimes too lazy to read your blog description and/or your category section? I don’t know about you, but if I run across a blog or a blog entry that I don’t like, I just move on. Life’s too short to ruin your entire day over what a stranger has typed into their blog. And if that’s their biggest worry in life, I call them very lucky.
Going back to the Preemptive Karma Blog and this entry where a troll left this friendly message, if you click on the troll’s blog, you’ll notice that she’s a self proclaimed “Christian” and ‘appears’ to be very “religious”. She also has an in depth comment policy plus a rant (in another entry) where she complains about the habits of other bloggers. It is most interesting to see that she is guilty of doing EXACTLY what she tells her own readers what not to do. I couldn’t help but to laugh. And boy, did I hear that pot calling the kettle black!
But those are your Religious Hypocrites for yah.
There are only a very few people that call themselves Christians, that are actually very kind and “Christian-like”. All the others are extremely evil, violent, insensitive, callous, greedy, materialistic, intolerant, judgmental, racist, and filled with hate.
The Depth of the Scandal
How bad are things? What is the depth of the scandal? Unless we face these questions with ruthless honesty, we can never hope to correct the problem.
Whether the issue is divorce, materialism, sexual promiscuity, racism, physical abuse in marriage, or neglect of a biblical worldview, the polling data point to widespread, blatant disobedience of clear biblical moral demands on the part of people who allegedly are evangelical, born-again Christians. The statistics are devastating.
Materialism and the Poor
John and Sylvia Ronsvalle have been carefully analyzing the giving patterns of American Christians for well over a decade. Their annual The State of Christian Giving is the most accurate report for learning how much Christians in the richest nation in human history actually give. In their most recent edition, they provide detailed information about per-member giving patterns of U.S. church members from 1968 to 2001. Over those thirty-plus years, of course, the average income of U.S. Christians has increased enormously. But that did not carry over into their giving. The report showed that the richer we become, the less we give in proportion to our incomes.
In 1968, the average church member gave 3.1 percent of their income—less than a third of a tithe. That figure dropped every year through 1990 and then recovered slightly to 2.66 percent—about one quarter of a tithe.
As evangelicals we claim to embrace the Bible as our final authority. One of the most common themes in the Scriptures is that God and his faithful people have a special concern for the poor. Why this blatant contradiction between belief and practice?
Racism
In 1989 George Gallup Jr. and James Castelli published the results of a survey to determine which groups in the U.S. were least and most likely to object to having black neighbors—surely a good measure of racism. Catholics and nonevangelical Christians ranked least likely to object to black neighbors; 11 percent objected. Mainline Protestants came next at 16 percent. At 17 percent, Baptists and evangelicals were among the most likely groups to object to black neighbors, and 20 percent of Southern Baptists objected to black neighbors.
To say there is a crisis of disobedience in the evangelical world today is to dangerously understate the problem. Born-again Christians divorce at about the same rate as everyone else. Self-centered materialism is seducing evangelicals and rapidly destroying our earlier, slightly more generous giving. Only 6 percent of born-again Christians tithe. Born-again Christians justify and engage in sexual promiscuity (both premarital sex and adultery) at astonishing rates. Racism and perhaps physical abuse of wives seems to be worse in evangelical circles than elsewhere. This is scandalous behavior for people who claim to be born-again by the Holy Spirit and to enjoy the very presence of the Risen Lord in their lives.
Roland Lussier, left, comforted son Roland Jr. after a wake for his older brother, Chase, last week in Red Lake, Minn. The last funeral for the 10 who died in the March 21 shootings is scheduled for today, and observers said many young people on the Red Lake Band of Chippewa reservation are still on edge.
(Richard Tsong-taatarii — Star Tribune Via AP)
“There may have been as many as four of these kids who were active participants in the plot,” said the official, who declined to be identified discussing an ongoing investigation. “The question is, how many other kids had some knowledge of this or had heard about it somehow? We think there were quite a few.”
FBI agents plan to perform forensic analysis on 30 to 40 computers seized Friday from the high school computer laboratory, FBI and school officials said. Investigators hope to learn more from the school computers, since much of the alleged discussion and planning among Weise and his friends occurred through e-mails and instant messages, the law enforcement official said.
The mysteries about Jeff Weiss are unfolding. Here are some disturbing and chilling clues into his mind before he committed these crimes:
(sic) So fucking naive man, so fucking naive. Always expecting change when I know nothing ever changes. I’ve seen mothers choose their man over their own flesh and blood, I’ve seen others choose alocohol over friendship.
I sacrifice no more for others, part of me has fucking died and I hate this shit.
I’m living every mans nightmare and that single fact alone is kicking my ass, I really must be fucking worthless. This place never changes, it never will. Fuck it all.
(sic) That is just messed… My dad committed suicide, recently, a girl everyone knew at our school committed suicide.
Why do I care?
I believe in no religion, flame me, call me whatever you want as you won’t/can’t convert me and won’t change me in anyway.
I think it takes alot of courage to accept death, if you think that you go to Hell or whatever God-forsaken pit after this life for ending your own personal suffering then you’re just… Nevermind.
I think most people who say this type of thing have never dealt with people who HAVE faced the kind of pain that makes you phsyically sick at times, makes you so depressed you can’t function, makes you so sad and overwhelmed with grief that eating a bullet or sticking your head in a noose seem’s welcoming.
If you think you’re better than those who take their own lives; you’re not. If you think you’re stronger than those who have taken their own lives; your not.
It takes courage to turn the gun on your ownself, takes courage to face death. Knowing you’re going to die and actually following through takes heart, I don’t care who you are.
This is my opinion, I do not claim to know all the answers or claim to be better than anyone. I just know my own opinion… Flame me all you want, if it makes you feel better to belittle someone you’ve never met than by all means go ahead. I don’t get pissed over text.
He had some “weird dreams” too.
(sic) Hello all, I’m new here. I’m not exactly sure what this post is about but hopefully by the end of it what it’s about will be clear.
Lately I’ve been having some really strange dream’s, they seem very realistic and filled with colour and sound’s, they really are more realistic than dream’s from like last month, but a few night’s ago I had this dream where I saw this very evil, very creepy canine’s face coming toward’s me, and I heard someone say “Shoot!,” either way everything went black and I could feel my whole body jerking and shaking, and while this was happening I could hear very loud and very distinct gunshot’s, mostly machine gun fire… I found it very weird and woke up immediately after feeling a little disoriented…
I don’t know what’s up, but anyone have any idea why this kind of stuff is just happening now?… I hope I posted this in the right forum…
I read a lot about criminology and have found that a lot of serial killers join the military at some point in time. It looks like that’s something even Jeff Weise had on his mind too.
(sic) The dog seem’s to represent the military? Funny, just woke up a little while ago but I had a dream about war, seemed real enough too… Sometimes times these dream’s scare me with their realism. Thank’s for replying.
(sic) Last night, or yesterday evening, something very weird happened…
I came home from school because I was “sick,” (although in truth, I wasn’t… I was BSing because I didn’t want to be there anymore… Really stupid reason why I wanted to go home… If you want to know, ask, I’ll tell you), anyways. I was so depressed I felt like sleeping… So I went to bed at 1 PM and slept till 6, got up for about 10 minutes — was still feeling down so I went back to sleep… It was somewhere during this period (from 6 to 12 AM) that…
I was laying in my bed, facing my computer and TV, I could see my alarm clock across the room, it’s red numbers, and the yellowish glow the light on the extension cord gives, I could see this black figure. It was really well defined against the darkness, sort of darker then dark (I know that sounds weird but thats how it was), about 3 ft tall… For some reason, I reached for it (I was in the dreamy state — but I could tell I WASN’T dreaming), and touched it. I was sort of scared, but it was then (after touching it) I fell right back into a deep sleep…
Events like this usually follow a tingly feeling I get before going to bed… Or a really “drained” feeling that makes me really tired when I’m lying in bed… This happens every once in awhile… Any ideas on what the heck happened?
If nobody had known who Jeff Weise was, we’d probably assume he’s just another confused teenage boy just trying to figure out what’s wrong with himself.
I’ve been studying Primal Therapy for over 10 years, and it’s quite evident by his dreams and his hallucinations his body was actually reliving sequences from his earlier childhood. His dreams represent the life of fear he lived. He asked WHY he was 3 ft. tall in his dream. Very easy. He was the little guy about to become attacked by …. possibly his father? The little guy was himself when he was about that tall. Seems pretty real to me. Remember his dad committed suicide. Doesn’t look like his dad had it all together, huh?
I think the bits and pieces of this puzzle are coming together. If psychiatrists and psychologists would open their minds and do a little more research and stop calling Primal Therapy, “Primal SCREAM Therapy”(thinking that patients just run around rolling on the floor screeching)and get a real clue, they’d BE ABLE TO STOP these kinds of things BEFORE THEY START.
Jeff Weise appears to have been wondering what was wrong with him. At that stage he could have been helped. He was on medication, so we know he was going to a psychiatrist. Did that psychiatrist not see the scars on his arms from his cutting himself? Did he not know about his dreams? Everybody thinks depression is a f’n chemical imbalance. The stupidity of our Mental Health System is disturbing and extremely antiquated.
According to the most modern therapy (Primal Therapy), it is only natural for one to subconsciously re-live whatever prior traumas happened in order to heal. Our bodies whether physically sick or mentally sick are continuously trying to heal themselves. You know when there’s bacteria in our bodies, our anti-bodies chip in to help out to heal us. It’s a similar process for psychological healing.
Repressed pain divides the self in two and each side wars with the other. One is the real self, loaded with needs and pain that are submerged; the other is the unreal self that attempts to deal with the outside world by trying to fulfill unmet needs with neurotic habits or behaviors such as obsessions or addictions. The split of the self is the essence of neurosis and neurosis can kill.
That pain is the result of needs and feelings that have gone unfulfilled in early life. Those early unmet needs create what I call Primal Pain. Coming close to death at birth or feeling unloved as a child are examples of such Pain.The Pain goes unfelt at the time because the body is not equipped to experience it fully and deal with it.When the Pain is too much, it is repressed and stored away. When enough unresolved Pain has occurred, you lose access to your feelings
and become neurotic.
The problem in our society today is that we put the blame on everything else but the parents. The parents are always good, they always wonder what happened to their happy child, they can’t understand why their child sleeps all the time, why he’s doing poorly in school and etc.
The blame is ALWAYS put on either video games, reading the wrong books, listing to rap or heavy metal, the blame is put on playing with the computer too much, it’s put on the friends they hung out with, and it’s put on the TV they watch. These are all examples of the SYMPTOMS; not the problem.
So, unless there’s a huge change in society, these things will continue and continue and continue, and we’ll all still be wondering why, why, why.
Primal Therapy costs so much because it’s unpopular and controversial. The therapy is based on what Freud said about how our past shapes our present. Primal Therapy just took it one step further. But people are afraid of learning about it because to learn about it means that we have to be brave and face reality which nobody’s courageous enough to do.
And when a kid shows he’s in pain, nobody listens. We just simply look the other way.
Do you think we’ll learn something from all this? Probably not.
Karla Homolka and Paul Bernado would abduct one victim at a time, bring them to their home and slowly torture, sodomize, and dehumanize each one of them from days to weeks on end before they eventually killed them. To add to the cruelty, they video taped everything they had done to all their victims and would play back the videos joyously admiring their work.
Just to give you one example, Paul Bernado tried to empty his bowels (# 2) into the mouth of one of his victims.
If you were going to be murdered, wouldn’t you rather be killed quicker by someone like Ted Bundy than having your innocence stripped one day at a time experiencing the most brutal torture on your way out? You can’t imagine what their victims went through.
Paul Bernado got life in prison while Karla Homolka got a light twelve year sentence. The only reason she got such a light sentence is because she ratted on Paul after she, herself, wound up in the hospital from the beatings that Paul regularly delivered to her. (At first she said she had fallen down the stairs.)
But do we normally expect a couple that looks like this to be one of the cruelest of serial killers?
And this is our wholesome little love puppet in prison.
TORONTO (CP) – The families of two slain Ontario schoolgirls want a role in shaping the strict conditions Karla Homolka will face after she is released from prison.
“The families definitely want to see this to an end,” said lawyer Tim Danson, who represents the parents of Leslie Mahaffy and Kristen French. “They want conditions such that Donna French isn’t going to run into Karla Homolka in a St. Catharines mall.”
On July 5, Homolka will have served her full sentence. ”There’s an irony in all this in that she’s being released on Leslie Mahaffy’s birthday,” said Danson.
Homolka’s father said he isn’t even sure he wants to see his daughter when she gets out.
Now that I’ve wiped the tears from my eyes from laughing so much, with my re-gained composure, let me share with you the latest Google searches from my visitors that have appeared on my Sitemeter.
I could not resist posting these. In fact, I will try to make a habit out of doing this. I need a good laugh every once in a while.
(The yellow highlights show where my site was targeted.)
One frivolous lawsuit after the next in this country, and our stupid, bleeding heart “Justice System” keeps letting this tired trend continue…..
LAS VEGAS, Nevada (AP) — The woman who claims she bit into a human finger while eating chili at a Wendy’s restaurant has a history of filing lawsuits — including a claim against another fast-food restaurant.
Anna Ayala, 39, who hired a San Jose, California, attorney to represent her in the Wendy’s
case, has been involved in at least half a dozen legal battles in the San Francisco Bay area, according to court records.
This is unreal. It’s not even funny. Restaurants have lost a considerable amount of business because of this greedy parasite-like woman. Criminal charges should be filed against her. She should not only be fined the amount of money that she caused each business to suffer, she should also be given a prison sentence to boot.
There are people who do this for a living. I’m sure you’ve heard of people running into traffic to get a car to hit them just so that they can win money from law suits – in the meantime causing a huge amount of inconvenience to the poor law abiding driver.
There are also those that throw grapes on the floors of supermarkets and then purposely slip and fall, so they can sue and get more money.
These types of money-obsessed leeches make me sick to my stomach. But like I mentioned earlier, it’s not only the fault of those fiscal whores in our country, but also the fault of our legal system that allows this nonsense to carry on.
I suspect that these greedy little people have more money than you think. Isn’t it true that the more money you have, the stingier and more controlling you are with it? Just from experiencing life in my 36 years, all of the people I’ve noticed to cry “poverty” are those who have plenty of money – maybe not necessarily rich, but have enough money for their basic survival needs and for luxurious items as well.
In this country, too many people don’t understand what poverty is. They judge “poverty” on whether or not they can afford a new Plasma TV, a brand new car they don’t need, and several other “shiny new toys” to quench their materialistic thirst.
And if we don’t get what we want, like children we bend the rules hoping that our system will cater to our needs.
…:::NEWSFLASH:::…
Folks, let me refresh your memory on what poverty really is. Poor people don’t know when their next meal will be. Poor people don’t have TVs, insurance, radios, microwaves, comfortable beds to sleep on, computers, cameras, air-conditioning, heaters, education, clothes without stains and holes in them, and some don’t even have a home. If anyone cries “poverty”, it should be them.
Conservatives in our society say they do it to themselves, so they deserve to live deprived of the things we middle-class, material whores take for granted.
...:::WRONG!:::…
Do you all think that the homeless and poor enjoy their lives and being in the situation they are?
Really? You really think they’re happy?
You say “get a job” while you scream obscenities at them as you drive by in your SUV, but let me ask you this: Would you hire a homeless person who hasn’t bathed in years who comes into your clean office wearing clothes with holes, stains, and years worth of stench on them? Is it even possible to hire someone who doesn’t have an address or a phone number? Would you hire a person you see sleeping under the highways at night singing and talking to themselves. Can they carry their shopping carts into your office or do they have to leave their shopping carts outside with all their worldly possessions in them? Do you mind if they’re missing teeth and the ones they do have our blackened from years without brushing them? Would you hire someone who doesn’t own a pair of shoes and socks?
And don’t give me that cliche line that if they didn’t buy cigarettes and alcohol, they’d have their life back together again.
Most homeless people have no family and friends either and spend their lives with people throwing things at them and ridiculing them all the time. They are mentally ill and are deprived of the many things you take advantage of. If I were in their shoes, I’d be smokin’ and drinkin’ too.You think they’re insane now? Imagine how they’d be without their daily fixes.
But this is the dogmatic reaction our middle class snobs have toward the less fortunate in our society.I don’t understand how ya’ll can donate your money to the church, but walk outside and sneer at the homeless man who hasn’t eaten in days. And you call yourselves “Christians” ?
Our justice system is so fair and good to those who pull wild stunts to get more money than they need, yet those who are genuinely poverty stricken are spat on.
As many as 40,000 personal Web diaries — dubbed "blogs" — crop up
each day, reports Technorati, a San Francisco startup that tracks Web
logs.
Overall, there are just over 8.5 million virtual diaries, up from
100,000 two years ago, as Average Joes, CEOs and political foes turn to
blogs opine on everything from Pope John Paul II’s death and "First
Twin" Jenna Bush to the Red Sox and housing costs.
Well, I sure am glad to hear that I’m not the only one without a life. My hobby is consistent with 8.5 million other bloggers and the numbers (40,000) growing everyday. Even politicians have blogs.
Families too have been known to find out on a blog more information than they ever wanted to know about a relative’s uncensored sex life.
YIKES! I actually do find quite a lot of blogs out there about sex. I think this is great if people want to talk about their sex life and I support their freedom to do so. Hell, there’s a lot of people interested in reading about those kinds of things.We are all sexual animals – some repressed sexually and some not.
One day while surfing, I ran into The Spanking Blog, and ah ….I …. couldn’t believe my eyes. However, even though my stomach turns at some of these blogs, I DO appreciate the honesty that rings through these sexual blogs.
On the other hand though, I look down on those bloggers who try to come off denying that they are trying to pick up men in their blogs simultaneously covering up the fact that they are desperately horny and sexually frustrated. Yet when you look at their blogs, there are sexual innuendos all over the place. These women are the trashiest sluts of any kind. Their blogs scream "Fuck me", but when the male sexual predators arrive, they scold them in the form of an entry on their on their "I’m a Good Catholic Girl" blog – thereby trying to convince their readers that they are innocent good little girls being unnecessarily fondled.
I hate those kinds of blogs because of the rampant denial those bloggers are in. If you don’t want sexual predators writing love letters to you, then stop talking about how you’ve had lesbian affairs and threesomes several times in your past IN YOUR BLOG so the whole world can see! Idiots! These are the kinds of women who get raped and then whine to everyone afterwords trying to draw attention to their readers. "Why oh why meeeeeeeee?" "Little innocent me….." Gimmie a break. You’re a skanky whore. Deal with the consequences! Whores are treated like whores. Period.
"If you blog, there are no guarantees you’ll attract a readership of
thousands," states the manual. "But at least a few readers will find
your blog, and they may be people you’d least want to expect….And
there may be consequences."
Yep, just ask me. I am being stalked by a group of 19 year old "Wannabe Lawyers Vigilantes" who are just trying to learn the ropes about their new career and are using me as their guinea pig. But hey, I look at the bright side. At least I’ve proven myself useful in aiding their careers! Look at it this way too: I was the chosen one out of 8.5 million bloggers for their experiments!
A is for Anonymous First, the "no duh" warning: don’t post any
pictures, reveal your name or even confess you work for, say, an
unnamed weekly newspaper in Seattle. "(I)t’s clear that you work in one
of two places," cautions the guide. Posting using a pseudonym is smart
but, if you think using "Leanne" when your name is Annalee is a good
idea, think again.
Technology as Alibi Superficial disguises go only so far when
every wannabe pundit also has a unique — and, unfortunately, traceable
– Internet address. The good news is, there are services like
Invisiblog.com, Anonymizer.com and Tor that specialize in helping you
keep your address and your identity under wraps.
Well, it’s too late for me. As careful as I am, I’ve already been found and my true identity revealed to the American Princess who is suing me for "plagiarizing". I’m a "Backwoods Hick" and now everyone knows.
Be Exclusive You don’t have to let the whole world watch. You
can set up a blog that is password-protected. Blogging services such as
LiveJournal let you decide who gets to see all or parts of your blog.
Turns out, you can also block Google and other major search engines
from listing your blog in Internet search results. To do so, you need
to create a special file called a "Robots Text File."
This one’s a little hard for me. As an Attention Whore, I need all the publicity I can get! Even if this means I have to get stalked by 19 year old drooling law school students.
More than half the blogs at Idiotspace.com are password protected. But then again, they do a lot of things I can’t understand.
Have a Blog and Keep Your Job Mark Jen, the fired Google
worker, isn’t the only blogger to land on the unemployment lines. Delta
Air Lines, Microsoft and Friendster, the on-line social networking
service, have all allegedly canned hired help for blogging. Countless
other employers are taking steps to prevent loose-lipped workers from
disclosing company information on the Internet.
Florida‘s legislature has approved a bill that would give residents the right to open fire against anyone they perceive as a threat in public, instead of having to try to avoid a conflict as under prevailing law.
Outraged opponents say the law will encourage Floridians to open fire first and ask questions later, fostering a sort of statewide Wild West shootout mentality. Supporters argue that criminals will think twice if they believe they are likely to be promptly shot when they assault someone.
Republican Governor Jeb Bush, who has said he plans to sign the bill, says it is “a good, commonsense, anti-crime issue.”
What is it with Florida??? I’m sure glad that I don’t live there anymore. (Miami’s the exception!) Let me just say this. I tend to annoy a lot of people. If I were living in Florida, my days would be numbered.
Whoa! Jeb! Bro! Whatchya doin’, pard??? THIS is NOT gonna work!!! What the HELL are ya thinkin’ ya KOOK!
Hey now, I’m all for personal protection with handguns and concealed carry / “right to pack” but dude, you are going to create a DISASTER with this new legislation that will only give the “anti-gun nuts” plenty of “ammo” to take our guns away with. Check it out:
“.. perceive as a threat in public…”??? This is completely SUBJECTIVE, completely up to the interpretation of the “perceiver”.
I can just see it now, a wild-eyed Floridian telling Judge George Greer: “The way he was looking at me in that bar, Judge, I just KNEW he was gonna pull out a pistol and blow me away so I shot first and asked questions later”. Then I see Judge Greer pounding the gavel and saying “NOT GUILTY!”. Holy CRAP! Jeb, pull your head out of your BUTT!
GTL is right. It IS subjective, and that’s what the problem is. I wonder how these future shooting sprees will hold up in court. If you go right by the Letter of the Law, you’re free to shoot anyone.
Here’s one scenario: What if boys are playing ball and the ball happens to roll into an unknown neighbors yard? According this this new law, you can shoot whomever trespasses – even if you’re innocent. But it’s too late to find out in the end because you’re already dead.
Florida’s been known for people lacking in patience on the road and will shoot if you honk your horn at them. They also shoot over parking spots. Florida makes Texas look like Disney Land.
As we all know, many Texans carry guns. But if you ask me, as far as I’m aware, Texans use their guns more responsibly. I don’t think Floridians can handle that type of power in their hands. Because everybody gets angry. Everybody gets impatient. Everybody has mental problems to an extent, and when you give them the right to uphold the law in their own hands, they will it to their advantage and abuse the hell out of it.
And ma’am, I’m not talking about self-defense here.
In a situation recalling the recent death of Terri Schiavo in Florida, an 81-year-old widow, denied nourishment and fluids for nearly two weeks, is clinging to life in a hospice in LaGrange, Ga., while her immediate family fights desperately to save her life before she dies of starvation and dehydration.
The dehydration is being done in defiance of Magouirk’s specific wishes, which she set down in a “living will,” and without agreement of her closest living next-of-kin, two siblings and a nephew: A. Byron McLeod, 64, of Anniston, Ga.; Ruth Mullinax, 74, of Birmingham, Ala.; and Ruth Mullinax’s son, Ken Mullinax.
AGE should have nothing to do with this. Regardless of whether one is as young as 1 or 110, if a patient in a hospital has expressed their wishes to live in writing and legally backed up, they should be honored their rights to live. Again, like the Terri Schindler case, Mrs. Magourik is not terminally ill, not comatose, nor is she in a PVS.
Some people think, “Oh just let her croak already – she’s 81 years old — it’s her time…..”.
Why is it that some people think that the family and friends surrounding an elderly woman or man mourn less, grieve less, or are not phased by their death because “it was their time to go” or “they’ve lived long enough”. I find people who think like this to be callous, cold, and just plain insensitive!
The death of any loved one should not be rated.
The death of any loved one should NOT be belittled or compared with the death of another.
Regardless of age, someone you love is still someone you love and someone that you will miss considerably when they’re gone. Period.
Ever wanted to become a trashy internet cam whore, but you just don’t know how? Tired of earning money for things the honest way? If you’re shameless and conceited enough, then the exciting world of online prostitution may be for you. It’s hard at first, but don’t get discouraged. Being a cranky bitch and undressing yourself in front of a cam for middle-aged men isn’t as easy as it seems, so here are five simple rules to keep in mind when becoming an internet cam whore…
Although this was written to be a joke, the author of the above website humorously defines these trashy sluts to a tee.
This is the biggest load of horse-poop I’ve read in a long time. This article was probably inspired by some dingbat parent who got a little too enthusiastic “disciplining” their child and is trying to point the blame on external, unrelated BS so that he/she doesn’t have to feel responsible for his/her son/daughter bullying in school.Guilty parents do this all the time. They refuse to take responsibility for their actions.
If your kid watches too much TV, wouldn’t you think the kid is trying to escape from his problems? Any type of addiction is a way for someone to run from their problems. It’s a convenient distraction. It’s how people cope with a reality that’s too hard to accept.
CHICAGO — Overweight adolescents are more likely than normal-weight children to be victims and perpetrators of bullying, a study released Sunday found, bolstering evidence that being fat endangers emotional as well as physical health.
Ahhhh… Here AGAIN, guilty parents putting the blame everywhere but on themselves. Over-eating is just yet another distraction that keep people from either killing themselves or another person. It’s called…
Interestingly, from other interview-based research conducted at other Midwestern middle schools, noted Dr. Espelage, “kids who bully a lot also say they’ve been victimized too. Nearly 80 to 90 percent of adolescents report some form of victimization from a bully at school.”
THE MYTH: Bullies suffer from insecurity and low self-esteem. They pick on others to make themselves feel more important.
THE RESEARCH: Most bullies have average or above-average self-esteem. They “suffer” from aggressive temperaments, a lack of empathy, and poor parenting.
Or how about lazy parenting? Most parents resort to violent disciplinary tactics rather than the more time consuming ones that would work better.
THE MYTH: Bullies are looking for attention. Ignore them and the bullying will stop.
THE RESEARCH: Bullies are looking for control, and they rarely stop if their behavior is ignored. The level of bullying usually increases if the bullying is not addressed by adults.
Those kids that are victims of domestic violence feel powerless, and bullying is a way some of them re-gain CONTROL.
THE MYTH: Boys will be boys.
THE RESEARCH: Bullying is seldom outgrown; it’s simply redirected. About 60 percent of boys identified as bullies in middle school commit at least one crime by the time they are 24.
THE RESEARCH: Physical differences play only a very small role in bullying situations. Most victims are chosen because they aresensitive, anxious, and unable to retaliate.
THE MYTH: Victims of bullies need to learn to stand up for themselves and deal with the situation.
THE RESEARCH: Victims of bullies are usually younger or physically weaker than their attackers. They also lack the social skills to develop supportive friendships. They cannot deal with the situation themselves.
This is one of the biggest myths of all. How do you expect a little boy to overpower and combat a group of other boys??? If anybody can tell me how this is possible, I will shut up.
THE MYTH: Large schools or classes are conducive to bullying.
THE RESEARCH: No correlation has been established between class or school size and bullying. In fact, there is some evidence that bullying may be less prevalent in larger schools where potential victims have increased opportunities for finding supportive friends.
THE MYTH: Most bullying occurs off school grounds.
THE RESEARCH: Although some bullying occurs outside of school or on the way to and from school, most occurs on school grounds: in classrooms, in hallways, and on playgrounds.
THE MYTH: Bullying affects only a small number of students.
THE RESEARCH: At any given time, about 25 percent of U.S. students are the victims of bullies and about 20 percent are engaged in bullying behavior. The National Association of School Psychologists estimates that 160,000 children stay home from school every day because they are afraid of being bullied.
THE MYTH: Teachers know if bullying is a problem in their classes.
THE RESEARCH: Bullying behavior usually takes place out of sight of teachers. Most victims are reluctant to report the bullying for fear of embarrassment or retaliation, and most bullies deny or justify their behavior.
HAHAHAHA! And if they DO know, they don’t do a godamned thing about it. Parents too. They think it’s good because “it will toughen their kids up”. Well, if THIS is what tough is…….. alrighty then.
THE MYTH: Victims of bullying need to follow the adage “Sticks and stones will break your bones, but names can never hurt you.”
THE RESEARCH: Victims of bullying often suffer lifelong problems with low self-esteem.They are prone to depression, suicide, and other mental health problems throughout their lives.
You know those crazy and wild kids you see running around free like lunatics in restaurants, shopping malls, and grocery stores? THEIR PARENTS ARE BAD TOO. If you read the above link, there are ways to get your children to be more civilized without resorting to violence! It’s been done before by parents WHO HAVE KIDS!
I realize that a lot of you who were spanked very harshly or severely physically abused as children have grown up to be decent people. I am in no way trying to imply that all victims of domestic violence wind up being bullies or anything else, for that matter. In my opinion, EVERYONE HAS THEIR OWN WAY OF COPING, AND ONE OF T-H-E MOST POPULAR WAYS OF COPING KNOWN TO MAN IS ONE WORD:
..::DENIAL::..
So, if you chime in telling me that your parents whooping your ass has helped you to become a better person, I ain’t gonna believe you.
Have you ever wondered how those Japanese people use their toilets? It was quite a big mystery to me when I went lived in Japan at first! Let me just tell you this. I had been using those damn things bass ackwards for several months until I figured out the trick! —>Please click this link to view the tutorial on how to use a Japanese toilet<—
This is a pay toilet. It costs 100 yen (about 1$).
I think it is too expensive to use it.
But it smells good. It is very clean and very large.
It is larger than the bathroom at my home.
Shimbashi Station(Yurikamome line)
It is rare for a toilet to be this clean in a Tokyo station. There is no smell,no dirt and a lot of toilet paper.There are both Japanese style toilets and Western style toilets.
Yurikamome line is not always crowded and the restrooms there are clean too.
Hamamatsu cho Station(JR yamate line)
This toilet is simple and clean. I think this toilet is a little known hot spot.
It is rare for a toilet to be this clean on the Yamate Line.
This is toilet in a Pachinko shop.(Pachinko is like a mixture of pin ball and slot machines)
This toilet is like a toilet in a hotel and with “Washlet”. Washlet is
the machine that automatically wash your “you know whats” after doing your business.
I can’t tell you how rare it is to find a clean toilet at a train station in or around Tokyo.
Now, let’s take a peek at what these toilets REALLY look like. (Well, most of the time.)
Tabata Station(JR yamate line)
This toilet is down the stairs to a platform in a lawless zone.
There was poopie outside of this bowl and the worst smell. Help me!
After taking this picture I felt nauseated.
Shinjuku Station(Subway Marunouchi line)
This toilet is famous. Because the Aum put sarin here.
Door of toilet is broken and cannot close. Floor of toilet is very wet. This toilet is not only dirty but poisonous. It is hard to smell whether it’s shit or sarin.
(By the way, I had to edit some of the English in these descriptions as I believe the original author was a Japanese.)
But, are you kidding me??? This is nothing compared to what I had seen in the ladies room!!! Nothing! The men’s little toilets are a Martha Stewart collection compared to the ladies toilets. In fact, if there were pictures of the ladies toilets in Japan on a website, I sure wouldn’t be able to post them here! I’d have to submit them to either Rotten Dot Com or to Funky Fresh Freddie’s blog.
But I’m not surprised. I’ve spoken to men. Ladies public restrooms are BY FAR THE MOST NOTORIOUS FOR BEING THE MOST DISGUSTING ON THE PLANET. Why? The homes of most women are very neat no matter what country you live in. They are pressured by society to keep their homes a certain way, so when they DO use a public toilet, they let all their hatred out by way of being inconsiderate to the next person that may be using the toilet after them. They can only keep their “Martha Stewart” facade up so long. Public restrooms are their only outlet to say “Fuck it. I’m doing what ‘I’ want!”.
As for me, I’m a slob. So, when I use public bathrooms, I’m very neat and tidy and carefully consider the feelings of the person coming after me. I think more people should be slobs at home!
It is a very common practice for parents to instil their beliefs on to their children. Sometimes we can assume that before the child reaches adulthood, he will carry the beliefs that his parents held.
After having been in school, having socialized with others, and having done independent research, one has seen both sides and then makes their own decisions. Sometimes this doesn’t happen, though. Some children feel that it’s “betrayal” if they allow themselves the freedom to have a unique thought from their parents. I guess this depends on how strongly the parents opinions are forced down their children’s throat.
That’s all good and well, though. We can expect these types of things to happen all the time.
A person who likes anything and everything that “everyone” likes (trends, etc.) for the sake of being cool. Once that trend ends and everyone stops liking it, they promptly start disliking it and it becomes the worst thing in the world. They also mock the people that continue to follow the “uncool” trends.
Billy: Wrestling’s so gay, why do you watch that? I can’t stand that crap.
Billy (3 years earlier): Stone Cold rules!
You know, I can understand why kids do this, but I’d like to think that when people have matured to a certain age that they start thinking on their own, and doing WHAT THEY LIKE and believing in what THEY TRULY believe in. But some folks never grow out of that. They can’t stand being in the minority of ANYTHING. I guess they believe that if the “moral majority” think one way, then it’s right.
.::NEWSFLASH::.
There is no right or wrong when it comes to OPINIONS!
These kind of people, I also call puppets and parakeets. OR… SHEEPLE!
People unable to think for themselves. Followers. Lemmings. Those with no cognitive abilities of their own.
All the teens were wearing bell-bottoms because they were sheeple.
Or…
A individual that forfeits their right to choose in favor of inclusion in groupthink and what is viewed as popular or elite group. Allowing the influences of different forms of media and group members to hold great sway in the formation of attitudes, behavior and opinion.
To accept the group mentality and opinion as fact without examination.
Not only to be told what to do, but accepting the paradigm of thought as absolute thereby removing the weight of personal responsibility in the making of decisions.
All of these puppets have a leader. Sheeple are seduced by power and authority. For example, the puppet will believe in something like breast feeding in public, but once they hear from somebody who symbolizes “strength” to them, they go with what that person thinks.
So, sheeple, puppets, and parakeets not only go out of their way to follow the “moral majority”, they also emulate the thoughts of those that mark strength in their behavior. They figure if the strong man says “breast feeding in public is offensive” , well…then it’s offensive. Their own opinions change as fast as lightning streaks the sky. It’s truly amazing to watch these kind of people in action in a social gathering. Simultaneously, it’s very sad.
It’s quite a cowardly behavior, don’t you think? In the American society, we women have progressed so much that individualism is currently looked upon as being mature, sexy, brave, unique, feminine, strong, and intelligent. Apersonality trait that the modern man looks for in a woman – a real woman.
It’s a pity to notice someone who sacrifices the euphoric feeling of being ones self to gain acceptance from others. They don’t care if the person being accepted is not their true selves. They are just THAT needy and desperate. And I thought that “neediness” only applied to children. I was wrong. Adults can be sheeple too.
The radical left and right wing “individuals” in today’s society are guilty of being “sheeple”. Xenophobia is a sheeple concept… and so is Americanophobia!
Mind you, these sheep are the same people that will chastise you if your opinion differs from theirs. Or God forbid, you’re not doing what the common man does. If you try to debate them or reasonably discuss their views, they have NO argument to offer other than insults. You can always expect personal attacks from those sheeple who cannot supply rhyme or reason as to why they feel they do because they’ve plagiarized their beliefs from another person. So, how can we expect them to have a logical argument? How can we take sheeple seriously?
I’ve been told that California is the most “dangerous” place to live in the United States regarding natural disasters. So, I thought that I’d do a little research to check to see if that’s really true. I will be moving to LA in less than ten days. I heard that Los Angeles is always having earthquakes, floods, and forest fires. My husband and I are puzzled by this because my husband in his 50 years of existence has never experienced any of this. He’s actually still alive. I have once lived in Los Angeles for 6 years, and I, myself, have never experienced said dangers.
Mind you, I lived in Miami, Florida for 23 years.
First, let’s explore the population in California. Well, based on the below graph (you can see it if you click on it), it appears that there are 37,172,015 people. That sure is a lot of alive people that still haven’t died from an earthquake. California, the nation’s leading farm state, last enjoyed a sustainable population of 10 million in 1950. An expected 50 million is said to be the population by 2025. Moreover, each year the state loses 50,000 acres of farmland. More and more people continue to move to California every year, and it’s not just the Latinos.
The 6.7 Magnitude Northridge Earthquake struck early in the early morning of January 17, 1994 at 4:31 AM. The Epicenter was in Northridge, California, a suburb of Los Angeles in the San Fernando Valley. This same general area had been hit by a 6.6 Magnitude quake in 1971. It was one of the most expensive natural disasters in US history, with total damage estimated at $15 billion. The death toll of 57 and 1500 serious injuries is considered low for a quake of this size in a heavily populated area. This was one of the best prepared areas in the world. Most people were safe in their beds at the time of the quake, reducing the casualties. Earthquake awareness in California was high following the 1971 San Fernando quake in this same area and the 1989
Loma Prieta quake in northern California. Building codes required earthquake resistant designs that prevented outright collapse in almost all cases.
My huband’s house just rattled a little bit. I also find it very interesting that only 57 people died in such a big city.
Earthquakes aren’t known to happen everyday, every month, or even every year. The biggest most dangerous life-threatening earthquakes ‘typically’ occur once every 50-70 decades.
One thing quite interesting about earthquakes, though is that they sometimes occur in places where we never expect them too. Kobe City in Japan never in it’s existence had an earthquake, and then boom – one came and killed 8,000 people. The same thing happened in Kagoshima. Who’s to say the big earthquakes won’t happen ever outsideCalifornia? But some people think they know everything: All the danger is in California.
Well, next let’s move to the ferocious and “very frequent” Floods in Los Angeles.
Storm Damage
Numerous mudslides, areas of flash flooding, and even some river flooding occurred as a result of the excessive rain. Many popular commuting routes on canyon roads through the Santa Monica Mountains and San Gabriel Mountains were washed out or covered by mudslides and debris flows. In hard hit Ventura County, portions of the Ventura and Santa Clara Rivers flooded and the Sespe Creek saw its historical flood of record. River flooding, mudslides and landslides closed numerous roads including highways 126, 150, 33, 23 and 154, as well as the Pacific Coast Highway [101] which was closed by both the Ventura River flood and the mudslides at La Conchita. Several tributaries of the Santa Clara River near Santa Paula experienced significant flooding impacting Highway 126 and adjacent agricultural fields and citrus fields. Initial evaluation of several of these tributaries, including Haines Barranca, Haun Creek, Todd Barranca, Elsworth Barranca and Hopper Creek, put the flow rates at or near 50-year frequencies. Communities such as Ojai, Piru, and Fillmore were isolated by road closures. In Santa Barbara County, Highway 154 north of Santa Barbara toward San Marcos Pass had to be closed for an extended period of time due to road damage and mudslides. Extensive urban flooding was also observed in Palmdale. CALTRANS estimates the cost of road repairs to be in excess of 30 million dollars.
There were 22 deaths directly and indirectly related to the storm according to county emergency management.Several of the deaths were attributed to automobile accidents that were the result of wet road conditions. Ten of the deaths were a result of a landslide that buried 13 homes and damaged 19 others in the La Conchita community in extreme western Ventura County. There were reports of many other homes that sustained damage from overflowing rivers and streams, or landslides in Santa Barbara, Ventura and Los Angeles counties. Total crop damage in Ventura County alone is estimated to be near 52 million dollars according to the county Office of Emergency Services. For a more in-depth analysis of this event and a broader scope its impacts across California, please see the Event Summary written by the California-Nevada River Forecast Center. NWS Los Angeles/Oxnard Event Summary Team Ben Moyer – Senior Forecaster Jayme Laber – Senior Service Hydrologist Special thanks go to Jayme Laber for producing the map of rainfall totals and providing much of the information in the storm damage summary.
Well, I’m looking and looking an am not able to find many reported injuries or deaths as a result of forest fires. I do know that a lot of people lose their homes in forest fires.
But again…. I live no where near forests, mountains, or anywhere near where these forest fires have taken place. Some of them are even caused by arsonists. Hmmmm…… I would reckon that there are just as many people injured in forest fires as there are injured in flash floods in Texas. The only thing more dangerous about forest fires is that the fires spread and burn down homes.
But how often do these events take place?
Heck, my biological mother lived in San Bernardino for years where forest fires are more likely to take place, but she never reported an injury or of her house burning down even once! This is amazing!
Well, so this is how “dangerous” it is to live through all the everyday natural disasters in CA.
Pinellas Park, FL (LifeNews.com) — The remains of Terri Schiavo’s body were cremated on Saturday, according to an attorney for her estranged husband Michael. Meanwhile, Terri’s parents were been denied the opportunity to have an independent expert come in and examine Terri’s body or her autopsy.
Judge George Greer had issued a court order Tuesday, before Terri’s starvation death, allowing Michael to cremate her body and bury her in a secret location outside Philadelphia.
Bob and Mary Schindler said the cremation would violate Terri’s religious
beliefs and had hoped to bury Terri in Florida, where they live.
Greer sided with Michael on both requests. He required Michael to inform the Schindlers where Terri is buried, but only after the burial service is completed.
There’s something I don’t quite understand. Whether it be in real life or on the Internet, if someone insults another person and that person retaliates, why are they called a pussy? Why are they told to get over it?
“You can dish it out, but you can’t take it” is my favorite saying. And that’s just because it’s so true.
People who are “serial bullies” cannot handle “back talk”. They are unable to drink the same poison they deliver. Now, who’s the weakling? Who’s the coward? Do we have a vote? If you can dish it out and you aren’t strong enough to accept the response, you are just plain weak and thin-skinned.
I always find it funny how the victims of bullies are called the “crybabies”. Don’t you think?
Let’s explore what a serial bully is. Some people when they’re young and in middle school, they bully a few times and they grow up and move on. Some of these people when they reach adulthood even feel bad about what they had done to their classmates when they were a child. I have personally known those to have felt remorse for having bullied in the past. These are temporary bullies.
But then there are those who continue bullying into their adulthood and will take that character with them to their graves. This is what is called a serial bully.
is a convincing,practiced liar and when called to account, will make
up anything spontaneously to fit their needs at that moment
has a Jekyll and Hyde nature – is vile, vicious and vindictive in
private, but innocent and charming in front of witnesses; no-one can (or wants to) believe
this individual has a vindictive nature – only the current target of the serial bully’s
aggression sees both sides; whilst the Jekyll side is described as “charming”
and convincing enough to deceive personnel, management and a tribunal, the Hyde side is
frequently described as “evil”; Hyde is the real person, Jekyll is an act
excels at deception and should never be underestimated in
their capacity to deceive
uses excessive charm and is always plausible and convincing when peers,
superiors or others are present (charm can be used to deceive as well as to
cover for lack of empathy)
is glib, shallow and superficial with plenty of fine
words and lots of form – but there’s no substance
is possessed of an exceptional verbal facility and will outmaneuver
most people in verbal interaction, especially at times of conflict
is often described as smooth, slippery, slimy, ingratiating,
fawning, toadying, obsequious, sycophantic
relies on mimicry, repetition and regurgitation to convince others
that he or she is both a “normal” human being and a tough dynamic manager, as in
extolling the virtues of the latest management fads and pouring forth the accompanying
jargon
is unusually skilled in being able to anticipate what people want to hear
and then saying it plausibly
is emotionally retarded with an arrested level of emotional development; whilst language
and intellect may appear to be that of an adult, the bully displays the emotional age
of a five-year-old
is emotionally immature
exhibits unusual and inappropriate attitudes to sexual matters, sexual behavior
and bodily functions; underneath the charming exterior there are often suspicions
or hints of sex discrimination and sexual harassment, perhaps also sexual dysfunction,
sexual inadequacy, sexual perversion, sexual violence or sexual abuse
in a relationship, is incapable of initiating or sustaining intimacy
holds deep prejudices (eg against the opposite gender, people of a
different sexual orientation, other cultures and religious beliefs, foreigners, etc -
prejudiced people are unvaryingly unimaginative) but goes to great lengths to keep this
prejudicial aspect of their personality secret
is self-opinionated and displays arrogance, audacity,
a superior sense of entitlement and sense of invulnerability and untouchability
has a deep-seated contempt of clients in contrast to his or her
professed compassion
is a control freak and has a compulsive need to control
everyone and everything you say, do, think and believe; for example, will launch an
immediate personal attack attempting to restrict what you are permitted to say if you
start talking knowledgeably about psychopathic personality or antisocial personality disorder
in their presence – but aggressively maintains the right to talk (usually unknowledgeably)
about anything they choose; serial bullies despise anyone who enables others to see
through their deception and their mask of sanity
displays a compulsive need to criticize whilst simultaneously refusing
to value, praise and acknowledge others, their achievements, or their existence
shows a lack of joined-up thinking with conversation
that doesn’t flow and arguments that don’t hold water
flits from topic to topic so that you come away feeling you’ve never
had a proper conversation
refuses to be specific and never gives a straight answer
is evasive and has a Houdini-like ability to escape accountability
undermines and destroys anyone who the
bully perceives to be an adversary, a potential threat, or who can see through the bully’s mask
is adept at creating conflict between those who would otherwise collate
incriminating information about them
is quick to discredit and neutralize anyone who can talk knowledgeably
about antisocial or sociopathic behaviors
may pursue a vindictive vendetta against anyone who dares to held
them accountable, perhaps using others’ resources and contemptuous of the
damage caused to other people and organizations in pursuance of the vendetta
is also quick to belittle, undermine, denigrate and discredit anyone
who calls, attempts to call, or might call the bully to account
gains gratification from denying people what they are entitled to
is highly manipulative, especially of people’s
perceptions and emotions (eg guilt)
poisons peoples’ minds by manipulating their perceptions
when called upon to share or address the needs and concerns of others, responds with impatience,
irritability and aggression
is arrogant, haughty, high-handed, and a know-all
often has an overwhelming, unhealthy and narcissisticattention-seeking
need to portray themselves as a wonderful, kind, caring and compassionate person,
in contrast to their behavior and treatment of others; the bully sees nothing wrong with
their behavior and chooses to remain oblivious to the discrepancy between how they like to be seen
and how they are seen by others
is spiritually dead although may loudly profess some religious
belief or affiliation
is mean-spirited, officious, and often unbelievably petty
is mean, stingy, and financially untrustworthy
is greedy, selfish, a parasite and an emotional vampire
is always a taker and never a giver
is convinced of their superiority and has an overbearing belief
in their qualities of leadership but cannot distinguish between leadership
(maturity, decisiveness, assertiveness, co-operation, trust, integrity) and bullying
(immaturity, impulsiveness, aggression, manipulation, distrust, deceitfulness)
often misses the semantic meaning of language, misinterprets what is
said, sometimes wrongly thinking that comments of a satirical, ironic or general negative
nature apply to him or herself
knows the words but not the song
is constantly imposing on others a false reality made up of distortion and fabrication
sometimes displays a seemingly limitless demonic energy especially when
engaged in attention-seeking activities or evasion of accountability and is often a committeeaholic or apparent workaholic
Do you know anybody like this? They are very similar to Narcissists.
A pervasive pattern of grandiosity, need for admiration, lack of empathy, as
indicated by at least five of:
1. a grandiose sense of self-importance
2. is preoccupied with fantasies of unlimited success, power, brilliance, beauty, or ideal
love
3. believes that he or she is “special” and can only be understood by, or should
associate with, other special or high-status people (or institutions)
4. requires excessive admiration
5. has a sense of entitlement, ie unreasonable expectations of especially favorable
treatment or automatic compliance with his or her expectations
6. is interpersonally exploitative, ie takes advantage of others to achieve his or her own
ends
7. lacks empathy and is unwilling to recognize or identify with the feelings and needs of
others
8. is often envious of others or believes that others are envious of him or her
9. shows arrogant, haughty behaviors or attitudes
If you are a strong person, you will not eat the shit that the bully spoons out. If you are weak, you will dish it out and expect the other person to gracefully tolerate it.
WARNING: YOU WILL BE OFFENDED BY THE BELOW IF YOU ARE EITHER MOURNING OVER THE DEATH OF POPE JOHN PAUL II OR HAVE LIKED HIM. PLEASE DON’T CONTINUE TO READ THIS IF THAT IS THE CASE.
Please don’t expect me to be fair, balanced, or understanding of the pope. I can’t. I can’t be objective or rational because the two things that anger me the most are non-consensual sex with children and
chauvinism.
The fact that he looked the other way while all these problems were happening in churches all over is criminal. He is no better than the priests guilty of destroying the innocence and trust in the souls of little boys.
Pope John Paul II was guilty for aiding and abetting child molesters. In this country, we are arrested for this crime. Well, both of these crimes: for child molesting and aiding and abetting.
A question for you “right to die-ers” who seem to have all the ‘unbiased’ resources into the Terry Schiavo case. Let us “right to life-ers” in on your little secrets. All of our literature is either too “right-winged” or too “religious”. We want to know where all those “reliable” or “credible” sources are?
I’m wondering if this is like a special salad dressing made in a restaurant where they have this secret recipe, and you’re dying to replicate it at home, but you’ll never know the REAL ingredients.
CLEARWATER, Fla. (AP) — Summaries of state Department of Children & Families investigations into the treatment Terri Schiavo cannot be released to the media, a judge ruled Friday.
Ruling the day after Schiavo died, Circuit Judge George Greer denied a request from the St. Petersburg Times to obtain summaries of dozens of investigations into complaints that Schiavo was being mistreated. None of the allegations were substantiated.
The death of Schiavo, 41, ended a gut-wrenching court battle between her husband, Michael Schiavo, and parents, Bob and Mary Schindler, over whether she would have wanted to live in a persistent vegetative state.
Greer ruled the records belong to DCF, and although her husband can have access to them the records cannot be distributed publicly. The agency did not want the records released, saying it would hamper an ongoing investigation.
A separate, similar motion filed by Media General, parent company of The Tampa Tribune, is scheduled for Monday.
The repeated allegations of abuse were based partly on bone scans showing Terri Schiavo suffered fractures and statements she made to family and friends that she was unhappy in her marriage. Michael Schiavo has denied harming his wife and his lawyer said bone fractures resulted from osteoporosis caused by the woman’s years of immobility and complications of her medication.
Of course, like any other electronic polls out there, these results aren’t scientific. This poll was an unsuccessful one. Not too many people voted, and I get an average of 530 visitors a day. I might have to start creating XXX polls to get your lazy butts to vote. But to all those who voted, thank-you!
I’m just trying to see if I’m the only one with no life. No seriously, I’ve just been curious what my visitors do. Not too many students come by, and the majority appear to be working full-time.
I can see where the temptation is there for people to think those who interact with strangers on the Internet for hours a day have no life. I thought about this a lot, actually. I could be wrong, but I think it’s because interacting electronically with strangers could be thought of as talking to objects (not real people). I’m guessing that some people think that if you cannot hear their voice or see their face, that the communication is not real.
Let’s say if you spend your days talking to your pillow or your teddy bears that you would be thought of as a lonely person with no life, right? Especially if you think they’re talking back to you! On the Internet, it’s the same. There are, again, no faces or voices – just a bunch of typed words that appear on our computer screens.
More than anything else, it’s the friendly interaction with strangers. Off-line on-lookers who question the quality of our lives assume the interaction between others electronically to be that of a “friendship”. I can only speak for myself, but this is not the case with me. I may call these people “online friends”, however this is not the case when I define the word “friendship” carefully.
I love attention. This is probably the major reason I blog. I love the interaction with others as well. While we aren’t “friends” per the strict definition, it’s brings to me much stimulation and entertainment. I also love to observe people and learn about them as well.
I don’t necessarily feel that if we can’t see the face or hear the voices of others, that they cannot be real or worthy of any trust. Well, it really depends on WHERE in Cyberspace you’re having this communication. For example, if you spend all your time in chat rooms trying to hunt down a “love match” for yourself, I find it a tad bit harder to trust the person on the other end. I’ve heard people to have lied about their weight or their looks so that they can find someone who will fall in love with them. But I guess it all depends on WHO you’re talking to. This whole phenomenon should only be judged on a “case by case” basis.
Those whom have trusted before and have been betrayed badly will probably not trust the Internet as a means to communicate with people.
I think all situations should be judged “case by case” as in real life (face to face interaction), we’ve all been let down, betrayed, used and abused by those we thought loved us. This reminds me of the BTK Killer. He was the president of his church, had a wife and two kids, and worked for the boy scouts. He was trusted, and we all found out the truth in the end. Do you know who your neighbors really are?
Vulnerable and innocent children who put all their faith, love, and trust in their parents get betrayed by them everyday in all sorts of ways in this world. The people whom we expect to protect us, wind up hurting us and turning our souls vigilant, paranoid, and a loss of innocence takes place where the world and it’s people must be interrogated thoroughly before we can trust again.
So, it’s not just the average Joe on the Internet that we cannot trust. In my opinion, we don’t know who ANYBODY is face… or no face.
Hello all, and welcome!
In my blog, I discuss Americanophobia, politics, political extremism (my rantings about the extreme right and the extreme left), anthropology, crime news, psychology, LOTS of humor, and try to debunk common rumors spread about the American people. The variety of topics I discuss are in 360 posts ... Continue reading »
“There is a big difference between being anti-American and being critical of the United States….critiques are appropriate and necessary, provided that they rest on facts and address real abuses, real errors and real excesses–without deliberately losing sight of America’s wise decisions, beneficient interventions and salutary policies. But critiques of this kind–balanced, fair and well-rounded–are hard to find, except in America herself…” — Jean-Francois Revel
"The fundamental role of anti-Americanism in Europe in general, and particularly among those on the Left, is to absolve themselves of their own moral failings and intellectual errors by heaping them onto the monster scapegoat, the United States of America. The U.S. is charged with all the evils, real or imagined, that afflict humanity, from the falling price of beef in France to AIDS in Africa and global warming everywhere. The result is a widespread refusal to accept responsibility for one's own actions." — Jean-Francois Revel
"Anti-Americanism is hypocrisy at its finest, You can spend your evening catching the latest episode of "24" and then complain about Guantanamo the next morning." --the Berlin bureau chief of Der Spiegel
"Of course some Americans are stupid, but... "It all boils down to the fact that knowledge and intelligence are two different issues. Rote memorization of world capitals does not equate intelligence.
I do find it interesting that Canadians and Europeans have such strong opinions on this, considering that there are many more pressing issues to be concerned about. Perhaps the steady Canadian and European refrain of "Americans are stupid" is a reflection of their own deep-rooted insecurity. You know -- an inferiority complex." --Mohammed
"As an American, please allow me to begin by asserting that our nation has had its strengths and its weaknesses, its successes and its failures, and its justices and injustices throughout history and continuing into the present. Although I sense much patriotism for my homeland, I recognize our need for humility to understand that our country is not above questioning or reproach but is rather under the same standards as all other nations of the world. I would simply like to ask those who view our country from afar to maintain a balanced perspective and realize too that there exists good and bad in America, both in terms of its domestic society and politics as well as in its relations with other nations.
Whilst there may be growing anti-Americanism in the United Kingdom I do not believe such sentiment to be reciprocated on our side of the Atlantic. I viewed a recent survey that indicated most Americans view England positively, and never have I seen the flag of your country (or any other foreign land, for that matter) burned in the streets of our cities. Clearly we as American citizens have not meant to be your enemies." --Seth
"As someone who takes human rights seriously, I'm appalled by the lack of sympathy the left feels toward the victims of any regime other than the Bush administration. Let's shout it to prisoners everywhere: If you're not harmed by an American, your suffering doesn't count." --Erik Svane
"Ambivalence, antipathy, and resentment toward and about the United States have comprised an important component of European culture since the American Revolution at the latest, thus way before America became the world's 'Mr. Big' -- the proverbial eight-hundred-pound gorilla -- and a credible rival to Europe's main powers, particularly Britain and France . . . . While the politics, style, and discourse of the Bush administration -- and of George W. Bush as a person -- have undoubtedly exacerbated anti-American sentiment among Europeans and fostered a heretofore unmatched degree of unity between elite and mass opinion in Europe, they are not anti-Americanism's cause. Indeed, a change to a center-left administration in Washington, led by a Democratic president, would not bring about its abatement, let alone disappearance." --Andrei S. Markovits (author of Uncouth Nation - Why Europe Dislikes America)
"Is Euro Disney Land a threat to the French Culture? If French culture can be squashed by Mickey Mouse, or more exactly by simply moving Mickey geographically, it would have to be disturbingly fragile." Moreover, Revel argued, culture always circulates and, in the case of Euro Disneyland, California was merely repackaging for Europeans such European stories as Cinderella and Pinocchio. According to Revel, French culture was not being colonized and if any culture was in crisis, he contended, it was that of America with its fad for political correctness and other forms of "neoprovincialism." --Jean-François Revel
"Anti-Americanism is the only face of xenophobia still broadly accepted in Europe." --Mary Fitzgerald (New Statesman)
"Americans find themselves damned either way. If they remain within their own borders, they are isolationist hicks who are shirking their responsibilities. If they intervene, they are rapacious imperialists." --To hate America is to hate mankind
"The British find it very difficult to come to terms with the loss of their global dominance. We felt a deep sense of hurt and loss. We used to run the world, and we don’t anymore. So, in order to palliate that insecurity, we tend to run ourselves down too much. And we’re also snooty about the people who DO run the world." -- Boris Johnson (Member of Parliament)
"It is tragic that Anti-American ideas are so easily passed through rumour, while reconciliatory ideas and notions must be backed up with catalogues of evidence before they are even considered, purely because of the fact that it is so much easier to hate than to keep an objective open mind." --David Hatton
"Other common anti-American objections are ignorance and stupidity. In dealing with these two, I have no reason to suspect that the average American is any less intelligent than the average person from anywhere else. One trait I have noticed is that other cultures are generally much more ashamed of any deficit in the intellect of the individual, especially ours (the British), and as such will make a much greater attempt to hide it. If all cultures bar one are scared of looking stupid and take action to prevent that happening, then that one remaining culture is inevitably going to be lumbered with that image." --David Hatton
"We became not a melting pot, but a beautiful mosaic. Different people, different beliefs, different yearnings, different hopes, different dreams." --Jimmy Carter
"Most of the anti-Americanism these days stems from plain old nationalistic jealousy by a lot of countries that are born of insecurity about their own place in the world and their painful self awareness of their own failings and shortcomings...like the kids in the next block who are jealous of the boy who has a better bicycle or a newer fancier skateboard....phuque 'em all." --Robbins Mitchell
"Europeans, like the rest of the world, hate America and Americans, but love our aid when in distress, and our soldiers to die for THEIR COUNTRIES. You need to work, live and pay taxes from this side of the Atlantic to understand our vision of Europe and the rest of the world." --Jerry
"Unjustified hatred of Americans:
There is much unjustified hatred in the world. There is unjustified hatred of the USA. Much of this arises from the victimisation complex that sweeps much of mankind. Whoever is in charge, whoever is powerful or successful will also be hated. This immature hatred often evaporates quickly with a little reason or thought. There are some some invalid, unjustified criticisms. The most widespread hate is the hate by people the world over who fall victim to their own shortcomings, and want a scapegoat." --Vexen Crabtree
"USA citizens are not given world news in the same way as most the other developed nations, and may well be genuinely unaware that much of the world is as poor as it is. European news is highly world-centric, whereas due to its size most USA news does not have enough time to cover news in all neighbouring states, let alone news from around the world. " --Vexen Crabtree
"Despite the USA's dominance of mass media, it is frequently only the pro-USA, self-congratulatory messages that seem to arrive in Europe, the USA citizens criticism and disbelief of their own government is not apparent, which gives the overall impression that Americans are either gullible, ignorant or honestly uncaring." --Vexen Crabtree
"If a person outside of American culture is a hateful person, they may actively hate and verbally attack America. If the person takes this to include a hatred of Americans themselves, they are inconsiderate and have become a fool. If a person like this is brought up by people with vested interests in attacking America (and there are many), a person can be driven to take his opinions to a violent level. Generic hatred is not solved or soothed by adding more layers of hatred.
There is a belief and hope that if enough nations oppose America, the American people will realize what their government has been doing and will overthrow them. This hope is misguided, as anti-American actions are causing the opposite"--Vexen Crabtree
"I think it is best, when faced with people from other nations, to treat them as individuals. Yes, you can "hate" the injustices that governments perpetuate on us all, and yes, you can despise ignorance in all its' forms. But any sort of blanket prejudice punishes yourself more than anyone else, because it thwarts the opportunity to learn from someone else. It stops you from making potential connections that could ultimately change your life. As an "american" living abroad, I pity my fellow countrymen who still have the wool over their eyes, but I don't hate them. The fact that when I meet them, they are indeed traveling at the time, says to me that they are in the process of opening their minds. Being in Europe, for many Americans, is the first step to realizing that other cultures do indeed exist and thrive, and that other forms of social structures are both possible and desireable.
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Many ask me why I left. Political reasons aside, when I mention that my family now enjoys free health-care and that my daughter will have the opportunity to go to university virtually for free (O.K. not free exactly, because we all pay taxes, but these services are included in what we as citizens receive for our tax dollars here in Europe,) they always respond with a sigh as they realize that this is the way all societies should be run. They know that something has gone terribly afoul in their beloved "homeland."
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Americans, in essence, need to be re-taught what is possible in the world, they do not need to be shunned. Shunning them will only help to produce more negativity in the world. If we all, from without, can help them to change what is wrong with their country from within, by sharing our knowledge of alternatives, then the whole world will benefit." --Lily
"Sometimes the caliber of a nation is found not in why it is liked, but rather in why it is not." --Victor Davis Hanson
"Everyone is in favor of free speech. Hardly a day passes without its being extolled, but some people's idea of it is that they are free to say what they like, but if anyone says anything back, that is an outrage." --Winston Churchill
"With a military that has become a laughing stock and her increasing irrelevance in the world around her, I believe that the Canada I know and loved is gone. The sad truth is, Canadians have only themselves to blame since they meekly chose to accept everything without question and without fighting back. Most of them even pat themselves on the back for being so “progressive” and “multicultural” and “diverse,” while failing to recognize that all of those things will bring about Canada’s demise. America may not be perfect, but at least there is a strong conservative movement and a population who will fight to keep their rights." --Jayne Gardener (Why I left Canada)
"Regarding Race Relations in the South:
I once read an observation that ONE (and there are many) of the differences between the Northern and Southern approach to race is that the North tends to reject the Individual while embracing the Race. The South conversely seems to have prejudice towards the other Race while embracing the Individuals. It's a generalization to be sure but one with more than a grain of truth.
Blacks and Whites have always lived closely in the South, most southerners have an aquantince of another race whom they like, while at the same time generalizing about the 'others'.
The North has always been more segregated and less mixed in ordinary commerce and interaction. They accept the race but interact with few individuals of another group. Leading to less real experience with the other group. Fewer Northerners subsequently have friends of a different race.
I think we a need to be cautious when making these generalizations but I believe they still offer food for comment.
I guess I'm just saying that one shouldn't assume the South has a less open society because of some who have lingering, isolated, racist attitudes towards 'Canadians'. It just seems that these notions, are more exposed, and carry more gravity due to their past. --JG (reply #70)
"My “two cents” to all you Americans out there: speaking as a Brit, it pains me to see some of the comments emanating from this page by alleged British sophisticates. Much of the real reason for anti-Americanism of this type — though it will be hotly denied — is nothing more than envy. Truth be told, many an Englishman yearns for the day when we were the number one dog in town, with the world sitting obediently at the feet of hordes of short-back-and sides public school boys lording it over primitive tribes of Africans and Asians, whilst men such as Joseph Chamberlain and Winston Churchill sincerely speculated on the chances of the USA being welcomed back into the imperial bosom.
Americans, don't lose heart; you are the great power of the age. It is your lot to be envied and feared. Do not fall for the soft hearted illusion that this translates into moral superiority of any variety." --James
"It is sick that to be Canadian one must hate other people. I've been to US hundreds of times and England as well and they never equate their nationality with hatred of others. It seems we are a nation of people that are in serious need of therapy. Thank god I enjoy visiting other countries and felt no need to hate or denigrate others. When ever I go to United States or England I always leave the Canadian stuff at home and I get along just fine. I would recommend this for others." --Nov. 12th, 2005 5:08PM
"The only thing more annoying that a 'typical American' (and they do exist!) is a Canadian with a superiority complex! Americans do get the piss ripped out of them behind their backs but with the flag on your pack you probably will as well." --travoholic
"I grew up on army bases my whole life and nothing makes me prouder than watching Canadian soldiers do what they can, when they can, to help out more impoverished nations. I do, however, become angered at people who begin talking about who has the better, or bigger army and who can beat whom. Soldiers sacrifice their lives for the betterment of mankind, not to win pissing contests." --Mon Dec 13, 2004 5:12 pm
"I attribute European anti-Americanism to a state of prolonged “adolescence” from being protected by American treasure and military might throughout the post-WW2 era. I think about how teenagers rail against their parents actions and restrictions, all the while knowing, deep down, that they cannot provide for themselves.
On a somewhat lighter note, there was a program on PBS (Public Broadcasting System) a while back about why Europeans don’t like America. One interviewee attributed it to the Europeans knowing that America won’t hurt them." --Denis Eugene Sullivan
"In spite of the constant accusations of “arrogance,” Americans are really very self-deprecating in many ways and often place the French, and other Western Europeans, on a pedestal of cultural superiority; this probably goes further back into world history than virulent anti-Americanism does." --Jennifer
"Yes, anti-Americanism is a sad reality all over the world. I feel its simply part of "hatred of the superpower". Britian for most of its empire's history was mocked harshly by English speaking colonies and much of mainland Europe. Nobody likes the "big kid on the block". I think the fact that American media plays a more dominant role in English speaking societies around the world further reminds us of our inferiority complexes.
In short, America's ok with me. I can only hope that reason and the shedding of jealous ignorance can let other people see that America isn't that bad." --Matt
"Conservatives love America the way a six year old loves his mother. Mommy is perfect, don’t be mean to mommy, etc… Liberals, according to me, have a grown-up love for America — the kind that recognizes faults and works to improve the nation out of love." --Al Franken
bias, blockquotes, bloggers, bloggers vs journalists, blogging, broadcasting, broadcasts, cnn, commentary, facts, fox, jeremy bol, journalism, journalist, links, magazines, mainstream ignorance, media, newspapers, opinion, reporters, spins, substantiating facts, writing
Are Bloggers Journalists?
In Blog and Web/Tech News, Censorship / Freedom of Speech on April 23, 2005 at 8:52 PMLet’s Ask Thomas Jefferson
What’s my answer? No. No, No, and No. I can’t even understand why this is even an issue so big that it was broadcasted on the news.
From my point of view, I see some VERY clear differences between the two. Journalists go out and interview, quote words taken from the original sources live, and then they gather their information from press conferences, interviews, and whatnots and publish the information whether it be editorial or or not.
For the most part, bloggers rely on the sources that journalists work very hard to gather. We site the source in our blogs (hopefully) and go on either commenting on the issue or make it non-editorial leaving the opinions up to the individual reader or both.
I should have paid more attention to “who”, but one gentleman said on the news that bloggers post false information. Now, I’m sure there are bloggers who DO post false information. But I’ve read many-a-blogs in my day, and I’m sorry but I just don’t see that. Remember, most bloggers back up their facts using links and blockquotes. If the links are bad ones…. well, that’s not our problem because you know as well as I do that bias exists and who’s to determine fact from fiction?
Next, we bloggers add our own opinion. Since when does an opinion become “false information” ? The last time I checked, an opinion is neither right nor wrong.
Credits to Dictionary.com
You can’t judge the validity of anything by one man’s opinion.
Here’s yet another huge difference between Bloggers and Journalists:
That’s right. Bloggers are not edited. This is both good and bad. It’s bad in the sense that those should not be presenting as facts, false information. It’s good in the sense that some of us bloggers could be presenting the REAL truth without the interruption of professional editors distorting reality and promoting political correctness. In other words, sometimes it can be that only the real truth can be found from a blog BECAUSE IT HASN’T BEEN EDITED.
Look at Liberal CNN and Conservative Fox News. Reporters, journalists, and anchor persons all have their spins on almost every societal concern out there. Do they not? Yet bloggers are being condemned for their spins and being told their not journalists (well, which is true).
Credits again to Dictionary.com
I guess I can see where the mix up is. Bloggers do similar to that of journalists. However, one cannot be compared to the next. It makes no sense.
And another thing, the AP appears to be it’s own worst enemy. Read about the lies here.
Nobody should have to think for you. Stupidity is a word that also should be given to those people who cannot wade through the bullshit they read or hear on the news. But there are a lot of stupid people out there that take what the upper ups in the media say as Gospel. However, more than anything else, selective “listening” is the problem. People believe and attach themselves to certain media outlets that suit their own agendas. They do this instead of listening to both CNN and FOX and then forming their own opinion. But this is too painful for many people as they have too much trouble putting their baggage aside to think rationally.
I’m sorry if I’ve ever posted false information on my blog that wasn’t me being sarcastic or me giving my opinion. I would certainly hope that my readers don’t use me as the only source for the news. I would also appreciate it if in the event I did post false information that my reader (instead of leaving a condescending remark) would take the time to give me a link to where the correct information can be found, and I’d gladly correct it. I’ve been found guilty before and corrected my mistake before. It happens to the best of us.
But don’t assume that I think of myself as a journalist. This is just my little picnic table where I find news events that strike a nerve where you get to hear me stand on the roof tops and scream like a helpless misfit.
I never did say I was normal.
UPDATE! The below was left in my comments section here by Jeremy Bol, a blogger/journalist. I stand corrected.
Jeremy, thanks for your contribution.