Thoughts 11/26/2005 November 26, 2005
Posted by Kelsey Martineau in Politics.Tags: Politics
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Communism vs. Capitalism. I don’t care for communism; let me get that out in the open. Now I believe it was a good concept in the beginning, of noble cause, but it can’t happen because it would require a major overhaul of human thinking and ideas. True communism in our world doesn’t, and couldn’t, exist. Real communism would depend on us as humans to be selfless, or humane, which in our world, plain and simply, isn’t going to happen. For a communist economy to flourish, (if you’d even call it flourish) our society would have to either be selfless enough to desire to work, or want to do it for their neighbors, or consider helping their neighbors for their own personal gain. If humans were generally selfish, which we are, then true communism can’t exist, even the brilliant teachings of Karl Marx. I don’t believe that people are generally evil, but let’s be honest, everyone is selfish. Everyone is out for number one. Therefore communism can’t work.
What about capitalism? Let’s analyze that: Well this is generally where the selfish people are able to come out ahead, perhaps one of the primary reasons that capitalism is part of our economy now. Capitalism relies on people being basically egotistical. The whole thought process, is that if you work at it, you can get rich, and do whatever you want. Wow, that’s sounding a lot more enticing than helping each other, doesn’t it? The U.S. although not 100% capitalistic, it has adopted the idea that the hardest working produces the best rewards. Well I can agree with that. I think capitalism has its downsides too. I mean think about it. In communism, you only flourish if you contribute to the economy / work force. This isn’t the case in capitalism. Look at our bank system. People gain money by interest rates at banks. Don’t get me wrong though, I love the banking system of America, but that’s merely a point. I think banks are required in our society, but they are parasites to our economy. Another reason that a full capitalistic society will eventually fall, (just as ours will eventually) is the fact that many organizations can produce profit by simply moving money back and forth, from place to place. While, in my opinion, this is a fundamental part of our society, it’s not producing anything.
Thoughts 11/21/2005 November 21, 2005
Posted by Kelsey Martineau in Psychology.Tags: Psychology
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What is our purpose in life? Have you ever stopped and considered that? What makes you, get up every morning and say, “I’m going to keep going,” Well if you think about it, and ask certain psychologists over the years, you will get a variety of different answers. Some would say sex (Sigmund Freud), which I don’t believe is true. Some would say personal wealth (Adam Smith), which I don’t believe is true either. Some say passion. Now that sounds more like it. We wake up every day because we have a passion for something. It isn’t the same for everyone. Now granted, someone’s passion may be sex or wealth, but I don’t believe everyone is the same. I believe, we, as humans move from one thing to another very quickly, therefore forgetting a great deal of things in our life. I heard the other day that the average disaster memory lasts 3 years. If you don’t know what that means, basically it’s saying that after 3 years is up, everyone, in general, will forget about Katrina, or basically any natural disaster that happens for that matter. But we have short attention spans. We move from topic to topic so quickly, how can our whole lives are focused on one thing? I think many individuals don’t realize their purpose or meaning until mid-twenties. I saw a statistic that (Source) that claimed that there are 100,000 deaths per year due to teenagers and driving. Well what caused these teenagers / drunken teenagers to be so reckless? Was it the lack of purpose in their lives? Indirectly, in my opinion. Let’s be honest. Most teenagers are stupid. Some of the teenagers that read this blog are stupid. But don’t feel bad, that’s just a stereotype. I was a teenager once too, but I never did anything really stupid, because I always felt I had sense. That’s one thing I don’t understand. If you are an idiot now, how will you ever improve? That makes no sense to me. Anyway, that’s straying off topic a tad. Once we focus on our passion in life, what we really want, and ignore all other desires, all other quests, we will then succeed in all areas. Marriage, a family, money. But that brings up the question: What is your passion?
Thoughts 11/15/2005 November 15, 2005
Posted by Kelsey Martineau in Sociology.Tags: Sociology
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You know I’ve been thinking a lot about our society and how it works. Let’s take people for an example; we pretend every day of our lives. We really never act “real,” There are definitely times when we’re in a bad mood, and what do we do when we see someone that is your friend, or even a stranger? We pretend that everything is fine. It’s so funny to me how that works. Deep down there may be so much going on in our mind, but we don’t let others see that. This really applies to more than just good and bad moods. Think about how people act to their friends, opposed to how they act to strangers. My job requires me to interact with people all day long, assisting them with computer issues. There are some people that I will assist greatly, but they do not thank me or anything. I have no problem with these; don’t mistake what I’m trying to say here. It’s not an issue that they don’t thank me, but it’s an interesting thing to analyze, how they interact with me opposed to their friends they may come into the lab with.
Sadly over the years, our world has become, to put it bluntly, assholes. People are generally rude for some reason. I don’t know why. I don’t know why people are this way. Maybe it’s just because there is more stress in the world now than there used to be, who knows? That’s why I select my friends very carefully. I don’t think we should waste our time with dumb people. Another issue I’ve been dealing with lately is the fact that no one is willing to better themselves. How can people, be so stupid, and act the way they do? How can people not have enough sense to not know how to act in our society? My parents taught me very well, but even if they wouldn’t have, I truly believe my instincts would tell me a lot of it. Maybe over the years people have grown dumber, and that’s part of our problem? Why has racism become more of an issue now than ever? You know I saw an add the other day for “Black Singles” Which you had to be a black person to sign up. Ok, let’s say someone did that and put, “White Singles Only,” Would that not cause uproar? By all means I’m not racist. I think it comes down to the morals and instincts a person has more than the color of their skin. But, in my opinion, “Black Singles,” is reverse-racism.
Thoughts 11/08/2005 November 8, 2005
Posted by Kelsey Martineau in Religion.Tags: Religion
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Wow my life feels so overwhelming right now. I don’t know why. I don’t know if it’s stress, or something else. I, probably for the first time ever, am having trouble controlling my emotions. I guess it’s the time of year. About a year ago this time of the month, something life altering happened to me, then a month later, something else, so I guess it’s just memories from that. I can’t listen to a song from then without getting upset, or feeling sad, or happy, or mad. It’s such a weird feeling. Religion has been on my mind a lot lately. Do I believe this, do I believe that. What if something doesn’t work how I want it to, will I be mad? Well you know that’s a good question, because I have never been in that position. Why is it that we are all so quick to give up on religion, well you know what, let’s throw that word out the window. Let’s use the word spirituality. It’s much more fitting. Religion is too big of a word. Why are we so quick to give up on it? Why do we do what we do? We give up on it, not because we don’t have faith, but because things didn’t work out as we planned. I thought about that, and the story of Job from Bible.
Job 2:3
Then the LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job? There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil. And he still maintains his integrity, though you incited me against him to ruin him without any reason.”
Man, when I read this, or anytime I even think about it I almost cry, because I feel like that sometimes. That’s why I think bad things happen to good people. I, personally, don’t believe God is to blame for calamities, or diseases, but I know one thing, He has the ability to stop them. Think about it, if we have the ability to cure a disease or stop an illness, but we don’t, are we not affecting the outcome? God uses situations like this in our lives to strengthen us, to test us, to push our limits. He wants to know, how strong are you, Kelsey? How willing are you, Kelsey? What sacrifices are you willing to make for me, Kelsey? Being a Christian is not about giving up the things we love to do, it’s not about being a hermit, or a monk in a monastery; it’s about our willingness. It’s about how willing we are to give something up for us. Does God have to write things in the sky for us, to show us that He is real? Is it not enough to look around at the perfectly designed universe, and say, this isn’t chance, it’s God. That’s why I don’t really understand why people have to say God only deals through science. That’s a concept I’ve never really understood. Why would God use the big bang to create the universe? How is something written as clear as the book of Genesis taken so symbolic? That to me doesn’t make sense. I don’t direct this at anyone or any particular denomination for their beliefs, it’s simply my thoughts on the matter. Why must everything be explained by science? Why do humans have to know everything? I just don’t think it’s necessary. Why do we have to medal in what we aren’t supposed to understand? Sure God gives us knowledge, but I don’t think He wants us to use that knowledge to play His part. This world is growing more corrupt day by day, hour by hour, minute by minute. I don’t think it will last much longer. I am not necessarily saying I will see the end of the world in my lifetime, but I have a feeling it’s coming soon. The more we advance in certain aspects, the more corrupt our society becomes. That’s just a fact. I see the day where we are pledging allegiance to the flag, one nation under man. It’s only a matter of time, folks.
And no, I haven’t turned into some religious fanatic raving about the end times, this is merely something that has been on my mind lately. I feel like I’ve kind of been warned to be on my guard lately, for some reason. I think we have an interesting ten years ahead of us, but that’s just me. I’m no prophet, and don’t claim to be, and am not claiming that as a prophetic statement, but it’s definitely something to think about. Thoughts like those don’t just pop in our heads for no reason. God uses us sometimes I think. Contrary to many of my friend’s beliefs, I believe God is very involved in our lives.
Joel 2:28
“And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions.
Thoughts 11/02/2005 November 2, 2005
Posted by Kelsey Martineau in Sociology.Tags: Sociology
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Wow. Time passes to fast. I find it hard to believe that I’ll be 21 in February. It’s a scary thought, it really is. I remember when I was about 10. I thought to myself, “Geez, I’ll never be 13.” Then, when I finally turned 13, I thought the same thing about 15, then 18. Now I just wish I could relive my childhood. I wish I could take back with me some of the knowledge too. That’s not entirely true though, because I do and I don’t; it would change who I am if I were to do that, but at the same time, I feel like I could do a lot of things better. Would changing the past make us better people? I would like to think so; but then again, if we had that knowledge, would it not tempt us to be corrupt individuals? Who knows?
Another thing that has bothered me lately is how our society operates in certain aspects. Take for an example: Attractive females. It absolutely sickens me how they assume that everyone owes them something. Most guys, now mind you I say most, which is probably around 90%, frankly, are ass kissers when it comes to fairly attractive women. This has always bothered me about our society. Individuals like Britney Spears, Jessica Simpson, etc… Which are probably generally dumb people; get ahead in life because of their looks. Research says that attractive females are three times as successful as unattractive ones, because of their looks. Is that really fair? No, because you have great minds that are wasted. I think good looks also go along with bitchiness, because not once have I met, nor dated, an attractive girl that wasn’t a bitch. I’m not ranting, I’m not angry, upset, or burned, I’m just stating a fact, from things I’ve observed in the last few days. It really is amazing how much you can learn just by watching interactions between people. Females in particular. Females seem to have a defense mechanism that they put up, when most guys approach them. But, it’s not the female putting it up usually, it’s the guy. Anyway, that’s off topic. That’s just what was on my mind today.
