Save Oceans,Whales,SeaTurtles,Dogs,Everything,By Sending Donations

                                  It is a long list of what people can allegedly save by simply donating. A simple unchallenged promise, and people eagerly send money. The sender gets to feel good and perhaps liberated from the responsibility of having to do anything further.
                                  The organizations get more tax free money to fill their coffers. And so marches on the dynamic of the nonprofit world, where everyone benefits except most often that which is supposed to be saved.
                                   If "saving" was as simple as sending donations, money would already be the world's magical elixir.
                                   A number of organizations have made suffering and misery much worse by their alleged saving and helping. Dog fighting, animal cruelty, a number of conservation concerns and more have increased because of these organizations.
                                  If there is no accountability for the true efficacy of these organizations and their programs, nothing will ever change for the better. Unless and until that happens, people will continue to believe their donations will help save oceans, animals, and a thousand other things, and it will all remain belief and nothing else.

                                 
                                 
                                   
                                   

The Disregarded Near Extinct Bats And Other Wildlife

                     A near extinct bat species that is off the beaten track and not on the radar of one of the well funded organizations concerned with bats, wildlife or conservation in general, is facing its last days on planet earth after being here for untold thousands of years.
                    We tried to get these bats on the radar of one of these organizations, to no avail. What does it take to help an obscure species that is not a cash generator or source of publicity? The value of a species appears to be proportional to its ability to generate publicity, bragging rights and funding. Money is the pivotal word, not words like international, worldwide, wildlife guardians, or anything else. The choices private conservation organizations make regarding wildlife and conservation are not about altruism.
                      If these bats flew around with replenishable hundred dollar bills attached, their fate would be very different.
                   
                   
                   
                     
                 

Science Education Should Be Mind Opening And Engaging, Not Part Of A Stagnant Curriculum

                               For many teenagers, science education is an ordeal to be endured and to hopefully get through and never have to experience again. The limited areas of science that are taught in schools are irrelevant to the lives of many children and teenagers, and rather than interest them in science, permanently turns many off.
                                Recognizing that there is a vast population of students that will benefit far greater if science is made more mind opening and interesting does not mean that what is presently taught in biology and chemistry will not remain available for some. But there must be alternatives for others. Children and teenagers still need to learn  basics. But for many, not in excruciating detail to the exclusion of all else, which also makes school a difficult, alienating experience.
                                  Now before anyone thinks this is advocacy for the further dumbing down of children and teenagers, think again. Many children, teenagers and adults know little about the natural world around them. They know hardly anything about birds, insects, mammals, reptiles, trees, other plants, the skies above, weather systems, oceans, lakes, nature, marine life, ecosystems, climate, wildlife, biodiversity, the interdependence of all life, and much more. Regarding the limited areas of science that they are taught, often in excessive detail, little to nothing is retained for most.
                                  There is no great benefit to the  present science curriculum that it should remain untouched. Especially when it produces generation after generation of science illiterates.
                                 

Pampered Supervisors And Management Are Counterproductive In Police Work, Public Service, And Elsewhere

                      The basic role of a police department is to serve and protect. The basic way to achieve this is through patrol, including in vehicles, walking beats or foot patrol (which is the essence of true community policing), and on bicycles for some.  Those supervisors allowed to do little to nothing ( and having other personal off the streets, except for those medically incapable) does not serve the public or the basic police purpose, in addition to being a needless expensive cost.
                      The mindset of supervisory entitlement that occurs far too often in police departments and elsewhere - meaning certain supervisors and some others have near permanent exemption from work - is counterproductive and wasteful.
                      Cops need to be on the streets, and their supervisors on all levels, with few exceptions, need to be out there with them. Not as babysitters, but as full participants in the police mission of patrolling, serving and protecting.
                       Supporting a pampered, free from stress management class (for certain people, not all) does not serve the public good. Not in police work, not in public service, not in the private sector.
                        Reevaluating the amount and types of supervisors police departments and other bureaucracies need, and then streamlining these bureaucracies and making them lean and efficient is long overdo.
                     
                   

Professional Police Departments Have No Place For Clout, Cronyism, Fictitious Meritorious Promotions

                          Big city police departments, or any police department, should not be a refuge for the politically connected where cronyism and clout prevails. A professional police department should have none of these things.
                          Police departments should not have meritorious promotions that are masquerades to promote the politically connected and clout heavy.
                           Promotions should be based on civil service examinations. If a police department chooses to make some allowances, recognizing that not all qualified people do well on a civil service test and that exceptional officers still deserve a chance to get promoted, then meritorious promotions must mean exactly what it stands for.
                           It  must be clearly defined. There must be an impartial, objective procedure and standard for determining who is qualified and what meritorious means. The people doing the review and choosing of an applicant cannot personally know that person. If they do, they should not evaluate that particular candidate.
                            In one city, meritorious promotions have long been the avenue for rewarding those that have clout and not necessarily ability.  This has often resulted in the promotion of incompetent and poorly qualified people, and a far less than desirable command structure.
                             The mayor of that city left a destructive legacy of cronyism, waste and incompetence. It is disgraceful that any U.S. city, let alone a major one, be operated like a corrupt third world nation.
                             Professional police departments have professional hiring and promotion standards and procedures. Clout, cronyism, and political favoritism have no place in professional police departments. Unfortunately, at least one major U.S. city continues to fall far short.

                         

Ingratiating, Calculating "Free" Press And Reporters

                                  There was a time when reporters had principle and integrity.  The muckrakers and people with guts and principles have almost all disappeared. We have now a press, journalists, and a media that is obsessed with one or more of the following:  1. money  2. popularity  3. the sensational   4. Serving an anointed interest. 5. Being an ingratiator.
                                   Left or right, progressive or conservative, up or down, front or back, we have a media and press that is subservient to some special interest. Even when they pretend to be truth seekers, hawks in search of the truth, investigators claiming to investigate and protect, all we find instead are ingratiating carefully calculating sheep.
                                 

A Weakling Supremacist Announces He Will Run For Senator

                                  Supremacists think themselves superior by virtue of their birth, and look down upon and consider inferior those born differently. But it is they that are the weak human beings that need to feel strong by dehumanizing and demeaning someone else. Not one single human being on this planet has control of the family, race, ethnic group, religion and other circumstances that they are born into.
                                  But people do choose how they will live their lives, and whether they will give to this world pain, misery, their greed and selfishness, or something better.
                               
                             

Why Community Policing Fails, How It Can Succeed, And What It Has In Common With Psychoanalytic Babble

                                          It is impossible to implement a new program when old dysfunctional programs remain in place. When community policing became the rage, and a source of new funding and revenue, it did not displace that which was already not working. Instead, it became the new add on program to everything that was already dysfunctional.
                                          Community policing was easily absorbed and adopted by inefficient, antiquated police structures. It took on a life of its own, and was perceived as giving new meaning to police work, when in reality it was often nothing other than a new bureaucracy consumed with meaningless paperwork and endless meetings.
                                          Community policing provided employment and grants to the academic world, police departments and other bureaucracies, many of whom to this day will eagerly defend their brainchild. It is not easy to separate the academic world and government structures, including police departments, from revenue sources, any more than it is to separate a baby from the mother that gives it milk.
                                          Community policing, in order to justify itself, had to become something bigger than life. If something is simple and easy to implement, how can the big salaries, ridiculous expenses, government funded salaries, grants and studies be justified? Community policing created its own jargon, language, layers upon layers of paperwork nonsense, meaningless reports, thousands upon thousands of wasted paper pushing hours. It had to appear as something more than what it was. No different then when psychoanalysis was the rage, and people shelled out thousands of dollars to have themselves analyzed by someone that probably knew less about human nature than the average factory worker. Psychoanalysis, like community policing, like some of psychology, religion and other fields, was designed to obfuscate. If something is easy to understand, it becomes far more difficult to separate people from their money. Making things complicated, convoluted, confusing, hard and difficult to understand, is a way that some people are able to confer upon themselves and their institutions power, status and wealth.
                                           Community policing was a surefire way to ensure less policing, less time on the streets, less time patrolling, and more time engaged in paperwork, meetings, administrative engagements.
                                           Drowning police in senseless paperwork put many of the community police promoters in the same boat as the "all the police are criminal advocates", who want a report filled out for almost every single thing a cop does.
                                           Here is a simple model for effective community policing. It is not new.
                                           Cops used to walk beats. Not just a few here and there. Before there were cars and all the modern technology, cops walked beats. Everyday they were in the same neighborhood, and they knew the people and community well. By their daily presence, they not only served and protected, but they also were often positive role models.
                                             Things changed with technology and for other reasons. Just because there is technology does not mean it should be used or that its use is an improvement.
                                              In a typical high crime neighborhood, the cop spends his or her day in a squad car driving to one dispatched call after another. The cop may never get to really know the community. Many of his or her interactions with the public revolve around something negative. Meanwhile, specialized units that are free from responding to 911 and other dispatched calls are driving around looking for people to arrest. Some police departments encourage their officers to make as many arrests as possible, believing that a high volume of arrests translates into a public perception that good police work is being done. Quantity over quality never translates into anything good.
                                             What is lacking are cops on the ground patrolling. Police that walk the same beat day in and day out. That is the essence of true community policing. In order to get more cops out of cars, on foot in communities, certain things are needed.
                                               First, you need motivated conscientious police that want to be on the ground patrolling by foot. It cannot be police that will use a foot post as an opportunity to hide and do as little as possible. It has to be cops that want to be the neighborhood officers. Cops that want to serve, protect, patrol, be part of the community in a constructive way and serve as positive role models. This will also be of benefit to the police who will find this work far more gratifying than riding around in a police car all day.
                                               Police departments have to stop being the sanctuary for politically connected people. There are already far too many wasteful positions, expensive management positions and unnecessary layers of supervisors. There are also far too many able bodied police pushing papers.
                                               Police work has to return to its bread and butter. Cops patrolling in squad cars, some on bicycles, and cops patrolling on foot. Cops patrolling on foot is the essence of true community policing. It does not require a brain surgeon, some professor somewhere, some so called police or criminologist expert to figure that one out. It is time to take the  nonsense out of police work, remove the unnecessary and costly bureaus and paperwork programs, top heavy management jobs, administrative paper pushing positions, and get back down to the basics.
                                                 The cop walking a beat in the year 1900 did more real community policing than all the pretend nonsense community policing that exists now.
                                         
                                       
                   

Destroying The Seas, Destroying The Human Ability To Survive

                                        Humanity cannot continue to ignore the blatant ecological damage that nations are undertaking. Regardless of which nation owns or claims to own coral reefs, coral reef islands, shoals, portions of seas and oceans, the protection and conservation of these resources has to take precedence over territorial claims. Destroy the oceans, destroy the seas, and the human ability to survive is destroyed. No amount of nationalism, territorial ambitions, military ambitions and goals, or anything else can change that.

The Jew Hating Weakling

                           A certain greedy lazy weakling who has never had to work a real job and do true labor in his life, has amassed a fortune by his non stop, incessant whining about how terrible are the Jews. He contends there is a Jewish plot behind everything, including his latest whining about a Jewish plot to stop Donald Trump. How much easier life must be as a crybaby that never has to  address the complexities of life and that has a scapegoat for everything.
                           The weak and cowardly need a scapegoat and a target to hate and blame. The business of hate is lucrative for some of them. It is too bad they get as much attention as they do, and that when given power and the chance to act on their weakness and hate, give to the world death and destruction. Even though they feel empowered by their hate, it will not shield or protect them from the death we must all face one day. It is too bad in the short span of their lives, they give nothing to the world but poison.

Presidential And Political Candidates, The Hot Air Art Of Giving Speeches They Do Not Write

                                         There is a controversy regarding whether or not Melania Trump plagiarized a speech that Michelle Obama gave. A little research that anyone can do indicates that Michelle Obama did not write the speech that Melania Trump allegedly plagiarized.
                                         More importantly, it turns out that hardly any presidential or political candidates write their own speeches. What a pity that we rarely get to learn their true thoughts, and have only hot air to rely upon.
                                        Why do we elect presidents and other politicians? Because they can read a speech? A 6th grader can do the same thing. If someone did not write the speech they are giving, then why even give it? Or else say at the beginning of the speech - I did not write what I am about to say.  At least there is some sincerity and honesty in that.
                                       
                                         

Environmental Group Silence While The South China Sea Is Destroyed

                                   The shoals, coral reefs and coral reef islands of the South China Sea that are in dispute, and that are now being developed by China, are causing great harm to many Chinese and people of other nations that rely upon marine food resources.
                                  Destroy the coral reefs, destroy the shoals, destroy the islands, and you destroy an invaluable, irreplaceable marine food resource.
                                   No matter what any Chinese or Filipino or anyone else might think regarding who owns these islands and shoals, the bottom line is that once these shoals, coral reefs and islands are destroyed, there will be less food left for everyone.
                                    And no, Mr. X., these natural marine structures that give home and life to abundant marine animals, including endangered sea turtles, cannot be restored once destroyed. And yes it is true many of the reefs and islands have already been destroyed by dynamite and cyanide fishermen, and by other countries, which is your ridiculous excuse for why it is okay for China to carry on its destruction.
                                     The fact that so much has already been destroyed is all the more reason to save what little is left.
                                      Where are all these environmental groups?  Where are all these marine advocacy/conservation organizations? Why is their silence regarding this destruction deafening? They know full well what is at stake.

China, The Damage To The Islands Of The South China Sea Harms Everyone

                    There is much at stake for the Chinese people regarding the status of the disputed shoals, coral reefs and islands of the South China Sea. Let us put aside for a minute the territorial dispute regarding whether these islands, reefs and shoals rightfully belong to the Philippines or to China.
                     Every island, every shoal, every reef that is developed means further destruction to one of the last healthy fisheries left in the South China Sea. The environmental destruction that has taken place, and that continues to take place, means less food for the Chinese people and for all the people of Southeast Asia.
                      Every developed island, coral reef and shoal becomes a dead zone.
                      Is the pursuit of territorial, political or military goals worth the destruction of a vital marine food source?  By developing these reefs, islands and shoals, one of the richest marine food sources is being lost forever.
                     

The Understated Virtue Of Politeness and Courtesy

 
                    In this way too crowded world, things will be better, people will do better, children and teenagers will go a whole lot farther, by practicing simple courtesy and politeness.
                    It is too bad the loud, the angry, the ignorant carry the stage.
                    Simple politeness and courtesy are enormously lacking. How much better the world would be if people at least made an effort to be decent, polite and courteous.

Is It Better To Have Neutered Police, Lazy Police, Armed Secretaries, Or Professional Police?

                    There are a lot of things wrong in American underclass neighborhoods. High levels of crime, few opportunities, poor schools, gangs, drug dealing, and more. The list can go on.
                     Vast communities are ignored and are out of the radar of mainstream America. That is wrong. Many people in upscale areas care more about dogs and cats than human life.
                     There are others that could care less what happens in these communities, unless it suits their political or religious agendas. And so, in the disenfranchised communities, and in the places where many disenfranchised people end up, like jails and prisons, hate organizations whether religious or political in nature, eagerly seek out recruits. There are now in the United States armies of these hate organizations with their fat cat multimillionaire greedy so called leaders.
                      In the face of chaos and violence it is easy for people to ignore what is going on, as many do, or to give up in despair. Many seek out easy answers that fit simplistic political or religious agendas.
                      Bad cops did not create dysfunctional communities. Bad cops did not create dysfunctional families, where fathers would rather be out on the streets than responsibly raising their own children.
                        If a child is raised in a neighborhood with a crappy father who cares about his own pleasure only, or where a struggling  mother may be dealing with addiction to drugs, and where neighborhood children are raised to have allegiance to the gang that controls the area, chances are that child will end up in prison one day, not college.
                          Focusing on bad cops is an easy thing to do. It makes it easy for some to ignore all else. It makes it easy for some to have a target to blame and to not have to feel personally responsible. It makes it easy for some to feel self righteous. It makes it easy for some to ignore massive violence and non police related murders, which means almost all the murders and violence in the United States.
                          For certain hate groups that operate as religions, they need the narrative going of evil people of another race in order that they can keep growing and expanding. Hate is a business, and hugely rewarding for the demagogues on top. Hate has made a lot of greedy white and black so called leaders filthy rich.
                              There must always be mechanisms in place to weed out bad cops. Some police departments are much better at this than others. But in the same way that bad cops must be weeded out, the cops that do their jobs diligently and conscientiously day in and day out must not fall victim to a public witch hunt.
                              Contrary to what some people want to think, it is not the Klu Klux Klan running police departments. Some cops that choose to work in high crime areas make this choice because they want to work in neighborhoods most in need.
                               There are racist cops, black or white or brown, on police departments, just as there are in the general population. Police are recruited from the general population, and unless the day comes in which no one is racist, then police departments will continue to have some who are.
                                If people believe the myth that bad apples dominate, and that police collectively are bad, then treat them all like kindergarden children and make sure a prosecutor is attached to every cop. Or attach to every cop some controlling abusive supervisor that is convinced everyone she or he supervises is a criminal. If police stop being proactive, if they stop aggressively and appropriately patrolling, if all they do is write tickets and fill out reports, things will only get worse.
                                   Meanwhile, gangs and violent criminals love lazy police and police that are neutered. These types of police are of no use in stopping crime from rising. Cops that are naturally lazy love an environment that rewards do nothingness.
                                   Unfortunately, lives lost and ruined by gangs and criminals are rarely of interest to anyone.
                                    People that live in areas where there are professional proactive police actively patrolling are receiving the best in police service, including the people living in blighted, high crime neighborhoods.
                             
                             
                         
                       
                         
                     

Violence, Victimhood And Brainwashed Slaves

                      Another fool making excuses for violent people and those that incite people towards hate.... They are disenfranchised, they are oppressed, they are victims, they are angry.....
                     So much evil, hate and violence justified by victimhood.
                     Victimhood is the sure way to not advance and stay downtrodden, to be the brainwashed slave to some idiot that has become rich off of hate and blaming.
                     Life is hard and oppression and injustice are not going away. There are many injustices to be angry about. But those that excuse hate and violence, that justify hate and violence, that blame and target others, do nothing but ensure nothing will change for the better and a lot of innocent people will be harmed.

If A Society Cannot Protect Its Police, Then It is Worthless

                                  The police are given a job to serve and protect. They are not an occupying army, and they are not at war with communities.  They are there to serve and protect communities, and at times this means having violent confrontations with criminals. The police task of serving and protecting is not the same as being in war. There is no justification ever for anyone to deliberately attack police, just as there is no justification ever for attacking teachers, janitors, dentists, or anyone by virtue of their lawful occupation. The only legitimate target for attack are the soldiers of an army at war by the soldiers of the opposing army.  Civilians are never legitimate targets. Police are never legitimate targets of attack. In all occupations there are good people along with some bad apples. There are channels for dealing with bad cops, and if those channels are not adequate, then there are legal and lawful ways for changing things.
                                    No one has the right to attack police because of the actions of cops that have done wrong things. Two wrongs never make a right. A civilized society cannot function if morons take the law into their own hands. Even bad cops have the right to due process free from vigilante actions. Would anyone advocate harming dentists because of the actions of a few bad dentists?
                                     If the police are under attack and are considered legitimate targets by cowards, then the rules of the game have to change. Police have an obligation to serve and protect, and society has an obligation to make sure police can perform this task without the risk of assassination. If society cannot fulfill this basic obligation, if society is too corrupt or too overcome by weakness to protect its police, then it is no longer functioning. We might as well pull the police off the streets, declare martial law, and have the military patrol the streets with shoot to kill orders. A society too dangerous to protect its police, too dangerous to even have police, is completely dysfunctional and useless, at which time there should be martial law.
                                     People are free to argue and peacefully protest all they want about police conduct or misconduct. Or whether they love, hate, support or do not support the police. But advocating or inciting violence against the police, or actually committing acts of violence against the police, is always wrong, unjustified, and completely unacceptable. Any social media outlet should have the guts and decency to shut down all incitement and calls for violence against the police and others. People are free to love or hate police, teachers, dentists, farm workers, any occupation. But whether they love or hate the people of an occupation is completely different from something they never have the right to do- which is to commit acts of violence against the police or anyone by virtue of their lawful occupation.
                                 
                                 

             

Drug Addiction; Crime Or Disease? The War On Drugs

                             Is drug addiction best treated as a crime or as a disease?  We have tried the former, and have yet to try the latter.
                             Here are some of the results of keeping drug addiction in the hands of the criminal justice system: 1. It has promoted the growth of a huge black market in drugs that has allowed gangs to become rich, powerful and spread all across the United States.  2. It has promoted the growth and expansion of terrorist organizations from the drug black market.  3. It has diverted enormous law enforcement resources into a war against drugs that never gets won, and that allows other crimes to not be properly addressed by this diversion of resources. 4. It has contributed to the erosion of values and the growth of corruption, including in law enforcement entities. 5. It has marginalized and criminalized an entire population of drug addicted people that are seen as criminals, not as people in need of medical intervention.  6. It has destroyed entire communities outside of the United States and contributed to the destabilization of countries.  7. It has contributed to the growth and expansion of gangs, terrorists and criminals not only inside, but also outside of the United States. 8. Entire neighborhoods in the United States are controlled by gangs, which are the dominate socializing force for many children and teenagers. These gangs will lose their stranglehold if they lose their drug money.  9. Violence has grown from the illegal drug market. 10. Street drugs are often adulterated and have sickened many.
                              What fifty year old man will want to be an active gang member if there is no money in it? What grown man will want to stay as an active gang member if there is no money in it?  Not a lot. Drug money is the bloodline of gangs. Without drug money, gangs and many terrorist organizations will immediately be weakened.
                                There is an alternative.  It is not pretty. It is imperfect. It is far from ideal. But it is far better than the existing situation. What follows is a summary of the alternative. If you disagree, and think it is better to leave things as they are, do not despair. Many will agree with you. Gangs and terrorist organizations also do not want things to change. And neither do many of the  people  that profit or are employed by this so called war against drugs that never advances.
                                Moving drug addiction into a medical model and away from the criminal justice system is an idea already well established. Here is a summary of how it can be implemented:
                                 A drug addict will go to a medical clinic designed for addiction. Over a period of time, the drug addict will leave urine samples to prove that he or she is an addict. A one time urine sampling is not sufficient. Once it is determined that the person is addicted, he or she will be provided treatment options to overcome the addiction. In that treatment will not work for many, the drug addict will be provided the option of receiving the drug to which they are addicted at the clinic. If the person is addicted to cocaine or to heroin, the drug will be provided at the clinic. The person will then take the drug at the medical setting. They will not be allowed to take the drug with them to be used at another time or to be sold or given to someone else.
                                By providing cocaine or heroin to drug addicts in a medical setting, the drug addict will be treated as a patient with an addiction disease. This will allow the drug addict to carry on with a relatively normal life.  By not buying drugs from the streets, drug addicts will no longer be consuming drugs that are often adulterated, and that ends up making them sick or putting them into hospital emergency rooms. The drug addicts will buy the drugs from the clinic based on a sliding fee scale.
                                By removing the drugs from the black market, gangs and many terrorist organizations will immediately be deprived of their major income sources. Gangs will immediately lose their powerful grip on communities. Violence and crime will start to go down.
                                There will be the problem of lost generations of people that have lived in the black market criminal underworld of gangs and drugs. Drug dealing has been a major employer for many. Alternative employment and training into the legitimate world will need to be provided. The United States will have to wake up to the fact that there is a widespread, criminal, disenfranchised world of people that need to be trained and reintegrated into society.
                                  In the same way that diabetics and people with chronic diseases are not required to stop using their injections or other medications, drug addicts will similarly be treated as chronically diseased patients. However, at all times drug addicts will be provided treatment options to shake their addictions. It will work for some, but there are many people that will use drugs all their lives. It is better that they get these drugs in a medically regulated setting instead of from the streets. It is healthier for them, and it effectively destroys the criminal black market world of drugs.
                                 Marihuana, which is not considered an addictive drug like cocaine or heroin, will have to be addressed differently. It should be heavily taxed, regulated, and treated differently than the medical model that will be used for cocaine and heroin addiction. Marihuana use that has proven medical benefits for certain people with diseases will be treated as a medicine .
                                 At no time will the use of any drug be allowed on the public way. Driving while under the influence will remain criminal for both drugs and alcohol. Drug use will never be acceptable for certain jobs. Drug testing will continue for occupations where no drug use can ever be tolerated, such as in law enforcement, transportation (pilots, vehicle operators, etc.) and more.
                                 Regarding addictive drugs that are pure poison, like crystal meth, which causes immediate brain and organ damage, mandatory treatment must be made available for users of such a drug, and heavy criminal penalties for the sellers of such drugs. Selling a drug that is so detrimental to the human body should be elevated to a form of aggravated battery or attempted murder.
                                 Moving heroin and cocaine out of the criminal justice system and into the medical realm is greatly flawed. But leaving heroin and cocaine in the hands of the criminal justice system is even more flawed
                                  During prohibition, when alcohol use was prohibited in the United States, gang violence exploded. Organized crime grew exponentially. Finally good sense prevailed, and alcohol was made legal. Was this the right thing, considering the untold thousands that die from alcohol, drunk drivers, and alcohol related accidents?  It was the right thing because prohibiting alcohol enriched and strengthened gangs and criminals, and it did not stop people from consuming alcohol. Corruption grew on many levels. Leaving alcohol as a legal substance is far from perfect, but the alternative is even worse.
                                    We should learn from history. Gangs have grown exponentially with the growth of narcotics. And now we have the worldwide threat of terrorist organizations. Many of these terrorists are fund by the drug black market.
                                    Drug addiction is a disease. It is time to stop pretending otherwise. As long as so many resources, so much time and energy is squandered on the war on drugs, getting tough on crime will remain an illusion. The drug war has resulted in destroyed communities inside of the United States, destroyed communities and countries outside of the United States, strengthened gangs, strengthened terrorist organizations, adverse ecological consequences by the use of herbicides in Colombia and elsewhere, the marginalization and criminalization of drug addicts who are forced to deal with criminals to feed their habits instead of medical personnel and the health risk this entails, and the growth of corruption.
                                   
                               
                               

Poverty, Poaching And The Decimation Of The Forest

                     The greatest biodiversity exists in some of the poorest countries in the world. Places where rainforests, mangroves and coral reefs are under great threat and are being destroyed. Places where much has already been lost.
                     Poverty, rapid population growth and desperation does not bode well for the remaining rainforests, mangroves and coral reefs.
                     People in poverty living next to or in the remaining rainforests are thinking of their own survival. When people are hungry, they will catch whatever they can. When people are poor, they will sell whatever they can that has value and that can bring in money.
                    The familiar image of poachers is that they are decimating wildlife out of greed alone.
                     Most of the people decimating wildlife are simple folks with few resources available to them. The forest is a place where food- wild animals- can be caught for free. Food to eat, and food to sell in order to survive. In some places, the wild animals, like parrots, have value if captured live.
                        Desperate poverty contributes to nature's decimation.
                        There are now in the world many dead forests. Places where practically every mammal has already been killed. Other than a few small birds here and there, practically nothing is left of the wildlife. And even with hardly anything left, snares and traps can still be found. Anything alive is lucky to survive all the traps, snares and relentless hunters
                        Eerie, sad places where once there was abundance and life. It is like a window into a future that does not bode well for humanity.
                        There are no easy answers for stopping the decimation of the forest and its wildlife.
                         Forests, mangroves and coral reefs need far better protection than what they now receive. This has to be viewed as a worldwide crisis for all of humanity, and must be addressed by the concerted efforts of wealthy nations working cooperatively with the poorer nations of the world.
                          The wealthy, developed nations of the world have to start viewing third world rainforests, mangroves and reefs as important assets that need to be protected. Adequate resources must be devoted to the preservation and protection of these invaluable assets.
                          This requires intervention on many levels. Does the rainforest have more value logged or protected? If biodiversity and humanity is to have any future, humanity had better start choosing protection.
                           And it had better stop viewing conservation and wildlife organizations as saviors. These self serving money making entities have collectively become enormously enriched while wildlife and nature has become enormously depleted.
                            Responsible governments need to step in and recognize that conservation and wildlife protection is a global crisis and a global concern.
                            Rainforests, mangroves and coral reefs need to be properly preserved, secured and protected by governments and their various arms, including law enforcement entities and military forces when necessary( particularly in the case of armed poacher gangs that are killing wildlife to sell tusks, rhino horns, gorilla hands and feet and other animal body parts in the blackmarket).
                            Poverty must be addressed on many different levels. This includes incentives for people to not cut trees, to not kill wildlife, and for them to have sustainable alternative means of making a living. Family planning needs to be a vital component of any conservation effort. There is simply not enough forest, not enough mangroves, not enough coral reefs that can sustain an unsustainable human population.
                            The rain forests, mangroves and coral reefs of third world countries must have more value to all countries instead of  having them destroyed.  Keeping the rainforest intact and not having it logged has more long term value to humanity than having it logged.
                             Time is running out. As this is written, thousands of people are in the rainforests of the world, looking for any wild animal to kill, eat, trap, sell, or capture. Loggers are decimating  rainforests, the most biologically rich places in the world. In the case of the Congo, home to gorillas, bonobos, chimpanzees and countless wildlife; they simply will not survive the assault. Wildlife, from great apes to simple creatures, are being wiped out in the massive world wide destruction of rainforest.  Rainforests are being logged to death and their wildlife hunted to depletion, with hardly enough exceptions.
                              People are blindly sending money to a number of conservation and wildlife organizations believing they are addressing this crisis.
                             They are not. These organizations have been far too ineffective and at times harmful, and have lulled people into complacency.
                              True conservation and wildlife protection needs to move fully into the hands of responsible governments. They must be at the forefront of conservation and wildlife protection. Conservation organizations must be advocates for strong, non corrupt government involvement in conserving and protecting wildlife and habitats. These organizations must stop pretending to be something they are not.
                              I have seen incredible coral reefs, mangroves, rainforests filled with life. I have lived long enough to see many of these places die. The individual life span of a human being is not that long. We are only here for a short time. It was never our right to leave behind far less than that which we inherited.

                       
                       
                       
                       

How A Rainforest Rewarded Scientists, Wildlife And Conservation Groups, And Received Nothing In Return

                   In a country decimated by deforestation, we made a determined effort to save one of the last intact rainforests. This rainforest served as one of the last, and for some species, the very last, refuge for highly endangered species. Rare wildlife, including bat species on the verge of extinction, rare parrots, highly endangered owls, other raptors, hornbills ,other birds and more, inhabited this rain forest. Some highly endangered migratory birds also utilize this forest.
                   Native people living next to the rain forest gave up their ancestral land in exchange for a huge development project that forever altered their land. Some of the native people resisted, realizing that in exchange for money and short term benefits, they were giving up everything, including the death blow to their culture. The politics of exploitation that went into a people giving up their land, with questionable consent and tears by some horrified by the destruction of their land, is a lengthy topic beyond the scope of what will be addressed here.
                    We did not oppose the development project, only where it was being located. It was a massive alternative energy project that we knew would not only destroy land, but would decimate bat and bird populations upon completion. We also knew that once the native people lost access to their ancestral land, greatly increased damaging pressure would be placed on the rainforest next to their village. We knew that the loss of ancestral land would cause impoverishment long term. The finished project would be a source of  minimal or no employment, especially for unskilled workers.
                     We argued that this project should not be placed near a rare, and one of the last, intact rainforests and home to rare wildlife.  It should have been placed in an area where the land was already degraded, far away from endangered wildlife and the flight paths of endangered birds and bats. It should have been placed somewhere that would not deprive a native population of its ancestral land.
                     We had already fought a long battle to stop the development of a rare mangrove and coastal forest area, with the near complete indifference and non involvement by conservation and wildlife organizations and scientists.
                      This project was much larger, with an enormously harsh consequence for the rainforest, the indigenous people, and the endangered wildlife.
                        The more rainforest and land is degraded, the more there is destruction to biodiversity. The loss of rainforest and mangroves means human life is endangered by landslides, degraded water and air, reduced protection against the elements, including typhoons and other weather events. The more the land is degraded, the more wildlife is driven into extinction. The quality of human life is diminished and human safety is jeopardized.
                         With so much at stake, would it not seem certain that at the forefront to protect the rainforest and its wildlife, and the land of the native people, would be the wildlife and conservation organizations?  How about the scientists and environmentalists with their lucrative grants and research projects? How about the organizations that raise huge sums of  money proclaiming to be the protectors of bats, owls, parrots, endangered wildlife?  Did they at least try to protect the land, the endangered bats, birds and other species?
                           We know what transpired by our records and emails.
                           We need only look at what was built on land that was destroyed and that serves as a permanent monument to environmental failure. A monument that puts in harm's way bats and birds, and hastens the death of a rainforest.
                         
                         
                     
                 

Conservation And Wildlife Programs For Fraud And Failure, And One For Success

                  Conservation and wildlife protection succeeds best when there is strong governmental support and laws backed by public law enforcement. This forms the strong skeleton inside of which all else can succeed, including research, community based programs and involvement, interventions in species protection, replanting, restoration, and more.
                   In the United States, federal and state nature and wildlife areas (national parks, national wildlife refuges, national forests, state parks, state forests, etc) are protected by laws and ordinances enforced by law enforcement authorities, including state and federal officials. Nonprofit entities play a secondary role, which can be useful and important.
                    In most third world countries, the very places with the highest amounts of biodiversity and rain forest, there is the least amount of government involvement and protection. Instead, a number of highly ineffective nonprofit organizations are at the forefront of conservation and wildlife protection.
                    The greatest success in conservation and wildlife protection occurs where there is active, strong government involvement and protection. The least successful places are where there are high levels of corruption, and government protection is weak or absent.
                    Nonprofits, including international organizations, thrive in third world countries where there is the least amount of accountability on all levels, including of the nonprofits themselves. And thus they can make wild claims regarding their conservation and wildlife protection efforts, including their alleged successes, which assures the nonprofits of endless contributions and an aura of legitimacy, however false this might be.
                   Wildlife trafficking, illegal logging, poaching, live capture and trade of parrots and other wildlife, illegal collecting of plants and animals; all of this illegal activity rewards criminals and terrorists. It can only be stopped by strong interventions by governments with military and/or law enforcement involvement.
                    It is disgraceful how many wildlife organizations have people deluded into thinking they are actually saving and protecting, no matter how ineffective and harmful are their programs and alleged interventions.
                   Wildlife and habitat are being decimated, especially in the third world.
                   Wealthier developed nations should do all they can to assist third world nations in adequately preserving and protecting their native habitats and wildlife.  This includes providing appropriate military and law enforcement training and support. This is where nonprofits can be useful - by advocating for this. Criminal gangs and terrorist organizations cannot be fought by nonprofit feel good programs, proclamations and claims. Other programs that help conservation, such as family planning, are best addressed by governments instead of nonprofit entities that shy away from anything controversial. When wilderness areas and wildlife are properly protected, it is easier then to embark on ambitious programs to help people and communities and to help them benefit from conservation.
                   Conservation and wildlife protection have failed miserably where it is needed most.
                 

Ruth Ginsburg- Resign

 It is inappropriate for a supreme court justice to blatantly choose sides in a political campaign, especially one that is presidential. Do the country a favor and resign, and then do all the political campaigning you want.

Hell On Earth, The Plight Of Yazidi Women And Girls

                  Yazidi women and children were taken by force from their villages in Iraq where Yazidis have been living for thousands of years. Their fathers, brothers, grandfathers, husbands, cousins were murdered by genocidal ISIS Islamists, who then took Yazidi women and children as captives to be used as sex slaves.
                  The world ignores the genocidal hatred and intolerance in the Islamic world that gives rise to all these demented Islamists in all their demented forms. When ISIS ceases to exist, other demented Islamists and Islamist organizations will fill the vacuum - groups that already exist or that will be newly created.  A cancerous tumor can be removed, but other cancerous tumors will form because the source of the cancers - states and religious leaders that sponsor and promote religious hatred, religious violence, religious intolerance- remain unchanged.
                   These demented Islamists have no moral qualms about raping children and women. They think systematic, institutionalized sex slavery and rape is their right as Muslim men, and that their victims deserve it because they are non Muslim so called infidels.
                   One Islamic religious leader and so called scholar condemns ISIS as un Islamic, but this same so called religious leader and scholar justifies terror and violence as long as the target is against another group he despises. Justifications and excuses for terror and intolerance give rise to hideous ISIS type outcomes.
                   One article said that some Yazidi women have been rescued by ransom money paid to ISIS, but that this money has dried up, and now few women and children are being rescued.
                   How can there be no money? The world is awash in printed money and excessive materialism.
                    The U.S. and the west had trillions to spend to engage in a war it had no business starting, and that it abruptly stopped fighting in a second wave of presidential incompetence.
                    These Yazidi women and children that are being raped daily should be in the thoughts and minds of Bush and Obama and others daily.
                     We started a war, and we never properly defended religious minorities and moderate Muslims from Islamist murderers. We should not continue to turn our backs to them and to all the  minorities of the middle east.
                     But no matter what stupid and wrong things the west has done, nothing justifies the sheer evil being committed against the Yazidis. Evil is never justified, no matter how many try to excuse and explain it away. A wrong, real or perceived, never justifies a wrong.
                    These Yazidi women and children need to be brought home. This cannot continue to be ignored.
                      In Mosul recently, 19 Yazidi women were burned alive because they refused to have sex with their captors. Other Yazidi women have committed suicide to escape the daily rapes and beatings.
                      Search for yourself the tragedy of the 19 Yazidi Women that were burned alive in cages, and the tragedy of the thousands of Yazidi girls and women held captive.
           

           
                 
               

Organized Religion,Indoctrination,Religious Violence

          When I was a child, I attended a religious school four days a week after spending the day in a public school. I cannot describe how mind numbingly boring was the experience. I have nothing positive to say about it other than that we were never taught intolerance or hate for others.
           If someone goes out and spends time picking up garbage from a forest or from somewhere else, or tutors a child, or engages in a productive activity that benefits others, that is in my opinion serving a higher power in a greater way than endless prayer.
           Religion and faith are not necessarily the same. Organized religion too often leads to indoctrination, uncritical thinking and mindless conformity. Fortunately, most religions do not combine mind numbing indoctrination with violence and hate. But where they do has disastrous results, as the world is witnessing.
            Organized religion needs to cease being a sacred cow beyond reproach.
            Religion combined with hate needs to cease being seen as religion. It should be afforded no respect, no special status or privileges, no tax free status in the states, and no legitimacy.

When Religion Is Pure Poison

               Too often religion is the home of mindless conformity.
               Combine mindless conformity with hate, intolerance and violence, and the result is pure poison.
             

Information Instead Of Accountability; NonProfit Money Making Quests

                Many nonprofit organizations have done incredible jobs making sure that they are the information source for whatever problem, concern or issue they address. People mistakenly believe that being a good source of information is the same thing as providing effective solutions and interventions.
                When nonprofits appear knowledgeable, they then appear to be on top of their game, and the place where people will send contributions and grant often undeserved legitimacy.
                Name the problem or concern, and a simple internet search will provide an array of nonprofits that eagerly want to be the information source for that concern.
                 Appearing on top of their game does not mean an organization is effective, that it is not self serving, that it actually ameliorates suffering, and that it appropriately and properly addresses serious issues.
                 An internet search of an array of issues, including animal cruelty, conservation, dog fighting, wildlife protection, rain forest protection, dolphins, whales, other marine life, birds, bats, chimpanzees, other great apes, big cats, small cats, canines, third world poverty, third world child welfare - the list is endless- will produce a plethora of nonprofit organizations.
                  Unfortunately, the day has yet to come when people wake up to the fact that presenting information, appearing knowledgeable, does not mean these organizations are effective and not harmful.
                   Information is useful. But not if it continues to provide cover for the lack of accountability and effectiveness.
               

Stop Dog Fighting And Animal Cruelty Campaigns, Making Money While Achieving Nothing

                 Campaigns against dog fighting and animal cruelty are great ways of generating publicity and attracting donor money. Because the actual programs of a number of animal organizations are ineffective or harmful, the campaigns need to be seen for what they are actually - publicity and money making generators that benefit the organization and not the target population.
                  There is an unbelievable amount of money, careers, fame and fortune that have been built on the backs of animals. Yet animal cruelty and dog fighting continues unabated and growing. Until there is a serious effort to stop animal cruelty, which has yet to exist, animals will continue to be massively exploited by the very people and organizations that claim to speak on their behalf.
                   

Animal Organizations That Help Dog Fighters And Animal Abusers

                 Animal cruelty and dogfighting are violent crimes where there is a minimal law enforcement response, and an ineffective and often harmful response by a number of animal organizations. Why these animal organizations eagerly promote themselves as the answer to animal cruelty, no matter how dysfunctional this is, no matter how harmful this has been, should be cause for concern and not continue to be ignored.
                 Creating the illusion that an organization or individual is actually doing something about animal cruelty can be incredibly lucrative. There are a number of self serving motives as to why organizations and people exploit animals in the name of good. Profit, fame, fortune, money, the need to feel good ahead of the needs of animals; the list goes on.
                  There is so much money to be made by pretending to address animal cruelty, that it is seemingly impossible to stop this pathological dynamic. For profit media conglomerates are in on the action, as are a number of very lucrative so called non profit animal organizations. And certainly a number of people have achieved fame and fortune by their alleged concern for animals and properly exploiting public sentiment.
                   It is too bad that the very people that should be protecting animals are far too often uncritical, mindless conformists unwilling to challenge the marketing, hype and propaganda  they are fed or that they are feeding to others.
                    Animals truly are voiceless, and those that claim to speak for animals are most often their exploiters.
                  Here are just a few reasons why no animal organization should be conducting, or pretending to conduct, animal cruelty investigations.
                   Acts of physical violence against animals are crimes in progress. This includes dog fighting, beatings, burnings, torturing, cutting, choking, etc. The only people equipped and present to address crimes in progress are public law enforcement. They are present 24 hours every day, everywhere.
                   Decades ago I saw firsthand how animal cruelty in all its forms was ignored by law enforcement, with few exceptions, and how a number of animal organizations eagerly pretended to be the adequate substitute for law enforcement. It simply did not work then, as it does not work now.
                    Domestic violence gets responded to by on duty law enforcement. It does not get ignored, and pushed over for some useless domestic violence team to respond at another time, perhaps on another day. Unfortunately, this is exactly the pathological dynamic that exists when it comes to animal cruelty. Token forces, even if they have police powers, and even if the are fielded by a police department or by a private animal organization, are a good public relations show, but are utterly ineffective. Imagine if they were assigned the task of addressing domestic violence or other crimes in progress. No one would tolerate it. It gets tolerated with animals because animals cannot speak. These token forces provide an excuse for law enforcement to continue to do little to nothing and for the illusion to continue that certain animal organizations and police departments are actually doing something about animal cruelty.
                    Most animal cruelty gets investigated by animal organizations that lack police powers. Many were the times that dog fighters and animal abusers simply moved their animals to another location after getting paid a visit by one of these organizations. It is like a drug counselor paying a visit to a drug dealer, thereby giving the drug dealer a heads up that he or she has been discovered, and affording them the opportunity to move their drugs elsewhere.
                   We begged and pleaded with the heads and others from some of the wealthiest, most powerful animal organizations. We explained how thousands of calls were being made to the police regarding dog fighting and animal cruelty that were getting ignored. We asked that they be advocates for animals, just as anti drunk driving advocates advocate against drunk driving, and anti domestic violence groups advocate against domestic violence. No anti drunk driving organization or anti domestic violence organization tries to be an inadequate substitute for law enforcement.
                    How pathetic that decades later, nothing has changed. It is a testimony I believe, to greed and selfishness. Animals have their abusers. Instead of defenders, they far too often have only exploiters.
                    Imagine if we had gone to the heads, board members and others of anti domestic violence organizations or anti drunk driving organizations, and presented to them information and documentation that police were largely ignoring domestic violence and drunk driving, and that their organizations were not helping by doing their own investigations. How different the response would have been from than that which we received from the animal organizations.
                    No animal organization should investigate or respond to animal cruelty. No other crime, especially violent crime, gets responded to by non police entities, and animal cruelty should be no exception.
                     I challenge any animal organization anywhere that claims to respond to or investigate animal cruelty, or that claims to address animal cruelty and dogfighting, to debate me.
                     I challenge all animal organizations that claim to respond or investigate animal cruelty to reveal publicly how much money they take in, how much money they spend on their animal cruelty investigations, and what are the results of their investigations. One management person from one animal organization told me about the thousands of investigations he and his organization conducted. I responded, out of those thousands, how many animals did you actually recover, how many offenders were actually arrested?  He got angry and said what did it matter just so long as the crime was investigated.
                     I have learned far too well that when it comes to animal cruelty, to crimes against animals, to the humane, ethical and proper treatment of animals, you enter a world of no accountability,  huge contributions, enormous sums of money, and little to nothing to show for it except hype and empty words.
                    Meanwhile, thousands of animals are fought, abused, tortured, burned alive and more every day. Hardly any will get helped or rescued because the pathological dynamic continues of a minimal police response and a dysfunctional response by a number of self serving animal organizations.
                   
                     


                 
                 
                 
                   

The Basic Human Right To Practice Religion Free From Harm

        No matter what someone thinks about another religion, good or bad, no one has the right to harm the people of another religion or faith because of what they believe. The right to practice religion or faith free from oppression, persecution and harm is a basic human right. The enemies of humanity include those that violate this basic right and not the adherents of any particular religion or faith.

Two Wrongs Never Makes A Right-An Immutable Law Against All Terrorism And Those That Defend Terror In the Name Of Islam

             This is the age of nuclear weapons. If people cannot learn to control their violence, we are all doomed. What should be uncomplicated is so tied up in cow manure, excuses and lame justifications, that people cannot even agree to control their own insanity.
              So here are some simple rules. All the apologists for terror, for murder, this may not be a guide for your faint and weak hearts (not the literal one that beats in your chest).
                It is true that the west has waged stupid, senseless, unnecessary wars. But the west is not alone in that. But even if it were, the wrong actions of one side is not a justification for the wrong actions for the other. The Islamic world is no less guilty than the west in waging imperialist wars of conquest.
                How many times do we have to listen over and over to some idiot apologist for violence, murder, terror, that justifies the violence, murder and terror because of what the other side is doing?
                Two wrongs never make a right. What is so hard to understand about that?
                If you murder my family, it does not give me the right to murder your family. It does give me the right to seek justice against the actual person that committed the crime, but it does not give me the right to commit new crimes.
                Deliberately attacking civilian populations is never right. It is never justified.
                Suicide murder bombings are always wrong. Something this evil is not with exceptions. Fools said suicide bombings were good as long as they were committed against the civilians of one religion in particular, while these fools were too stupid and immoral to realize that no civilian should ever be targeted.
               There are certain people on the left that will apologize for any kind of violence and terror as long as it is done by the so called victims they patronize. These people are morally bankrupt cowards.
                Left, right, Christian, Muslim, Jew, Buddhist, Hindu, no matter the religion, no matter the political belief, there is never any justification, never any excuse, for deliberately attacking and harming civilian populations.
                 In any conflict, even if one side has committed acts of terror by deliberately attacking and murdering civilians, it does not give the other side the right to do the same.
                Two wrongs never make a right should serve as the basic foundation for any religion that considers itself legitimate and a pursuer of good.  Two wrongs never make a right should serve as a fundamental political and religious ideology. Whenever some cowardly fool starts explaining why his sides' terror and murder is ok because of what the other side is doing, the person should be called out for the fool he or she is.
                  Instead of continuing the cycles of violence, instead of justifying and excusing violence and terror, people have to find the moral strength and decency to stand up against all terror and all deliberate attacks against civilians. No matter what the other side has done, no matter what crimes another person has committed, or what crimes a nation has committed, it does not give any person, any nation, any religion, the right to commit their own crimes. Two wrongs never makes a right means sounds easy, but it is of the highest moral standard.
                 
               

Executive Compensation And The American Aristocracy

                In Japan, CEO's and top management are not like the often rapacious CEO's of American corporations. Japanese executives do not receive ridiculous salaries and benefits completely out of proportion to what their workers earn. In the United states, executives and other privileged people pay themselves as much as they can get their hands on. While many people struggle to pay medical bills and the premiums from incredibly inadequate, unaffordable medical insurance plans, executives of some of the medical insurance companies are paid more in a week than many workers earn in a lifetime.
                Added to all of this is a taxation system that makes sure the rich are favored, and the hell with the middle class.
                  Executive compensation has ceased to correlate to reality. It is all about creating and maintaining an aristocracy.
                 

Return To A Graduated Income Tax, Stop Turning The United States Into An Aristocracy

                A taxation system that favors a tiny wealthy minority of the population, who already reap all of the benefits society has to offer, and none of its pains, is not sustainable. The United States once had a graduated tax system. The country did not collapse. It had a healthy middle class. The middle class has shrunk for a variety of reasons, but it did not help to create an aristocracy and oligarchy that favors the wealthiest few, and increasingly renders powerless the middle class.
               A return to a graduated tax system is not socialism. It will not destroy the country. The country is already on an unsustainable path by spending far more than it takes in and by endlessly printing money.
              It is impossible to continue to sustain a hugely expensive military, maintain other expensive obligations including education, social welfare, and not have the money to pay for it. We need to look for ways to cut the fat out of all these bloated bureaucracies. But we also need to change our tax system and stop pretending it is functional.
              End loopholes and return to a graduated tax system. People have to start paying their fair share, and that includes the rich. The United States cannot continue to spend money it does not have. It cannot continue to be turned into an aristocracy.