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Tag Archives: Politics

Daily Ramblings – Wisdom Wednesday – Ralph Nader

13 Wednesday Apr 2022

Posted by Dave Gardner in Wisdom Wednesday

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

Author, Auto Safety, Consumer Safety, Environment, Lawyer, Lobbyist, Politics, Ralph Nader, Wednesday, wisdom

A society that has more justice is a society that needs less charity.

Ralph Nader

Turn on to politics, or politics will turn on you.

Ralph Nader

The only difference between the Republican and Democratic parties is the velocities with which their knees hit the floor when corporations knock on their door. That’s the only difference.

Ralph Nader

When strangers start acting like neighbors… communities are reinvigorated.

Ralph Nader

This country has far more problems than it deserves and far more solutions than it applies.

Ralph Nader

Ralph Nader is my second choice for prominent Arab Americans this month. Here’s his Wikipedia page if you’d like to learn about him: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ralph_Nader

Have a great Wednesday, folks!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Wisdom Wednesday – Marcus Aurelius

10 Wednesday Nov 2021

Posted by Dave Gardner in Wisdom Wednesday

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

Emperor, History, Marcus Aurelias, Plague, Politics, Quotes, Reign, Rome, War, wisdom

Reject your sense of injury and the injury itself disappears.

Marcus Aurelius

The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane.

Marcus Aurelius

It is not death that a man should fear, but he should fear never beginning to live.

Marcus Aurelius

Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself, in your way of thinking.

Marcus Aurelius

Waste no more time arguing about what a good man should be. Be one.

Marcus Aurelius

Here is the Wikipedia link for Marcus Aurelius: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marcus_Aurelius This is a very interesting read, should you care to learn more.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thinking Tuesday – Critical Thinking

21 Tuesday Sep 2021

Posted by Dave Gardner in Ted Talk

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

advertisement, Critical Thinking, ideas, misinformation, Opinion, Politics, rumor

In today’s world, information overload is a common term. We get pounded with advertisement, news, and a truckload of gossip. Ask any question in Google’s search engine box, and take a look at the responses you get. I bet you will get both sides of an argument, regardless of what question you pose. Keto or not, vitamins or not, vegan or not, what type of exercise works–what doesn’t?, etc. I chose physical fitness for my core topic here, but you get the idea. How do we sift through all this information to find the truth?

Unfortunately, it isn’t as easy as it sounds, typically because most of the voices online are in it for a profit, clicks, or some other selfish purpose. This is where critical thinking takes on a whole new meaning. Today, we all have to become critical thinkers to avoid being overwhelmed by masses of opinions that are just that–opinions. To arrive at some semblance of truth, we have to really dig, and examine what we are reading critically. Watch this short video to learn how.

I hope you enjoyed this video and will try out some of the things it suggests. Critical thinking is no longer relegated to the university. We must all learn how to critically think and choose our information sources wisely. If we do not, we will be easily duped by many on the internet who have no interest in telling us the truth, but are rather interested in gaining political points, selling us something, or perpetuating a rumor that is popular.

Have a great Tuesday, folks!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Funny Friday – Time

28 Friday May 2021

Posted by Dave Gardner in Funny Friday

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Bob Woodward, History, Honoring, Memorial Day, Military, Obama, Politics, Reading, Remembering, The Fallen, time, Veterans

Today, there will be no joke. Instead, I wanted to write a little about how fast time moves along when we are engaged with something. I’ve been doing a lot of reading lately, and just fell off my to-do list because the book was so riveting. I’m reading one of Bill Woodward’s book, called The Price of Politics. The book is about the Obama administration, discussing some of the key moments where he and the Republicans were banging head. The current story is about the budget negotiations prior to the 2012 Presidential election. What a crazy story. Woodward is really good at describing the nuances and complexity of negotiations between the House, Senate, and the Obama White house.

For some, reading political history is a little dull. I like to read history related to politics, prominent figures, and the military. I have to say that this book has been particularly engaging, because Woodward writes about something that occurred only a few years ago. By the way, his books on the Trump administration were also good. They are called Fury and Rage.

Anyway, time got away from me, as I ran down the Woodward rabbit hole the last few days. Am I done? No. There is still more to read. I’ll take advantage of the long weekend to do just that.

I hope all of you have a terrific Memorial Weekend. For those of you who are serving, or have relatives that are serving, I thank you for your or their service. I also would like to thank those who have fallen while serving our country. These people who made the ultimate sacrifice are those who we commemorate this weekend.

In light of this, I will not be back on here until Tuesday. Have a great weekend folks!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Ted Talk Tuesday – Voting Systems

13 Tuesday Apr 2021

Posted by Dave Gardner in Ted Talk

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Politics, Suffrage, Ted Talk, Ted Talk Tuesday, Voting, Voting Systems

With all the hoopla surrounding the presidential election of 2020, I thought this would be a good video for my reading audience. I enjoyed this talk and hope you do too. Watch Amber McReynolds discuss voting/election systems and how they should benefit the voter, not the politicians.

One more announcement. I got the second shot for the COVID vaccine today. I may be out of it tomorrow and the next day, if my reaction is the same as my wife’s and niece’s. Just a head’s up in case I do not post tomorrow or the next day. I don’t feel bad at all right now, but we just got the shot a few hours ago. I’m playing it by ear.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Spread Your Wings Sunday – Weekly Challenge – May 17, 2020.

17 Sunday May 2020

Posted by Dave Gardner in Spread Your Wings

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Tags

Broaden your mind, Empathize, Opposite views, Podcasts, Politics, Spread Your Wings, Visualize

This week’s challenge involves a podcast. The challenge is to listen to a podcast whose political views are exactly opposite of yours. Example: If you like Rush Limbaugh or the Daily Wire, listen to an NPR podcast or a podcast from Rachel Maddow. You get the drift. If these are unfamiliar in your country, listen to someone you know believes 180 degrees differently. This isn’t to torture you, but to give you a chance to broaden your views.

When I first began this practice a while back, I could not stand listening to the podcast, but over time, I began to hear some things that made sense or questioned my view in a meaningful way.

Challenge: Listen to a podcast that supports political leanings opposite of yours. Just do it for a week. Give me the podcast you listened to in the comments.

My podcast is one of the ones I suggested: The Rachel Maddow Show. You should be able to find it on Apple, Spotify, and Google Play, for sure. I listen to her on Spotify.

Have a great week!

Until next time…

Dave

42.994893
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Daily Ramblings – Wisdom Wednesdays – Finding the Best Way Forward

06 Wednesday Feb 2019

Posted by Dave Gardner in Wisdom Wednesday

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Conservative, Democrat, Global Challenges, Issues, JFK, Liberal, Politics, Republican, SOTU

“Let us not seek the Republican answer or the Democratic answer, but the right answer. Let us not seek to fix the blame for the past. Let us accept our own responsibility for the future.” – John F. Kennedy

Read more at: Brainy Quotes

The President of the United States delivered the State of the Union address last night. 76% of the American people approved of his speech. For those readers who are not from the United States, the State of the Union (SOTU on Twitter) is delivered by the President at the first part of the year, typically at the end of January. This year it was delivered late because of the U.S. Government’s shutdown.

JFK got it right. The only way to make progress in any government is to deliberate, debate, and compromise. Finger pointing, name calling, and all the rest will never deliver the results any country on the globe wishes to make to improve the lives of its citizens. The only way forward is to engage each other in dialogue, working through the issues, weighing what’s right or wrong, and pushing legislation forward that serves the people of the nation(s) it is being created for.

We all have our political slants. We all have a vision of where our respective countries need to move forward. It is so easy to get aligned with one side of the political spectrum and attack the other side. If you find yourself getting too stressed out when watching the news or a political talk show, take stock of yourself. The news outlets of today are designed to stress you out. The news is designed to frighten, create conflicts out of nothing, and support one side or another. If you find yourself in this situation, simply walk away. Take a break from it. That being said, be tolerant and educate yourself.

Read the legislation that is in consideration. Listen and read about these issues from a variety of sources. You’ll have a well-rounded view about what is about to take place and truly understand the issue. Understand both sides of an issue, along with the advantages and disadvantages of each. If you can do that, you will be in the unique position of understanding why your position works because you can argue the other side’s views as good or better than they can.

There are many issues we all face in the years to come. The challenges of Global Warming, Terrorism, Poverty, Disease, Technology, and Human Trafficking. These challenges will be met and beaten by an educated citizenry who elect people who are truly deserving of the political posts they are running for.

Until next time…

Dave

42.997350
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Daily Ramblings – Series Sunday – Improving Character Traits

04 Sunday Nov 2018

Posted by Dave Gardner in Series Sunday, Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Ben Franklin, Character, Consevative, Discrimination, Liberal, Open Minded, Politics, tolerance, Traits

“Tolerance implies no lack of commitment to one’s own beliefs. Rather it condemns the oppression or persecution of others.” – John F. Kennedy

Read more at https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/john_f_kennedy_133845?src=t_tolerance

This month I’m going to work on another character trait—tolerance. In some cases, I am pretty close-minded, particularly when it comes to politics. I want to open my mind to other’s ideas. So, starting this month I’ll be reading, watching, and listening to the other side. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still voting straight Republican across the board, but I want to be informed about the other side’s ideas and views as well.

Subsequently, I have begun listening to NPR, The Rachel Maddow Show, and The Daily podcasts—just to hear the other side of things. I also listen to Tim Ferris, Rush Limbaugh, and Ben Shapiro. I also want to read more broadly. I have been using Google News for my daily update and read articles by the Washington Post, The New York Times, and other Left-leaning news outlets.

Tolerance is much more than just politics. Tolerance is also about letting other people be. I am pretty liberal when it comes to abortion (A woman can do whatever she wants with her own body—none of my business), liberal when it comes to drug use (people can put whatever they want into their bodies—again, I don’t care).

I really want to exercise my critical thinking to truly understand the other ideologies out there. I think oppressing or persecuting others, because of their beliefs, is not something I want to be a part of. Each of us believes what we do because of our upbringing, our life experience, and our social interactions.

We have so much division in this country and I am just OVER IT. I believe we are all interested in a society and world that are free from oppression, persecution, and allow people to pursue their interests freely. Wish me luck!

Another installment for this series will arrive on the first Sunday of December.

See you then!

Dave

42.997920
-82.517567

Inauguration Day

22 Sunday Jan 2017

Posted by Dave Gardner in Politics

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

change, inauguration, Politics, president, trump

Yesterday marked the peaceful transition of power from one President to another. This inauguration was special to me because it was the first time in over 30 years I had the time to sit down and watch the whole thing from start to finish. To say this inauguration was different is an understatement. This inauguration, like the election, was divisive before it began. On one side, there are protests, fiery rhetoric, and all kinds of skirmishes on the social networking feeds. On the other side, condescension, claims of fake news, and all the rest.

I’m a firm believer that each President that has been elected has been the right President at the right time. Initially, none of us will know if this belief rings true, but I have looked at past Presidencies and have found that each person, holding this office, has done things that moved our country forward. Each President has dealt with the pressures of the office in his own unique way, right or wrong, and did what he thought was the best for the country, with all the information he had at the time.

President Obama represented a paradigm shift for the Oval Office. Besides being the first African-American President, he brought a tremendous mind to the office and demonstrated to some of the American public a revelation that families are the same regardless of race, religion, color, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and all the rest. It was easy to see that the President loved his family and did the best he could to get done what he believed was the best for the American People.

President Trump, like President Obama and the rest of the men who held this office, takes the reigns of the most powerful nation on this Earth. Like President Obama, he continues to add to the fabric of the American Story. He faces challenges like each President before him. His first day in office was met with protests across the planet and a very divided electorate. He, like any other President is being faced with the same things that any other President faced, a country worried about the future, concerned about the changes that may come, and the need to know they are safe.

When I look back at my 20-year career in the Army, I remembered the epiphany I had, when I realized that the people I came to know in places like Germany, South Korea, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia, weren’t much different from me. Despite our differences, all the people I met had the same concerns. They wanted to be safe, to be loved, to be treated fairly, take care of their families, and hoped the world would be a better place for their kids, that they had it a little better than they did as parents. Is there anything different today in our country? No. People are afraid that they will lose something they had yesterday. They are fearful that the new President will take away things they had yesterday. In a nutshell, they are afraid of change.

President Trump’s candidacy, and now Presidency, has met with opposition that many say is unlike any in history. I would argue that probably is a little exaggerated. If you look at each man who has run for the office of President, each faced his own demons, the opposition of the other party, coupled with the many challenges the office presents all by itself, not to mention the forces outside of our country who are vying for supremacy in the ever-competitive world.

Will our new President do well? Will his Presidency be an absolute disaster? Will he divide our country more or find that balance to bring our country together? Will he achieve something great for the American People or will he fail miserably, demonstrating to the pundits of his Presidency that they were right about him all along? Only time will tell. Personally, I look forward to the changes and hope that our new President will succeed, just like I have hoped that previous Presidents would win and accomplish what they were voted into office to achieve. Again, I believe that everyone elected to this office is the right person at the right time. Will I be right? All I can do is hope.

 

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