The Mind of KLH

Here I go again…complaining!  But if they didn’t give me anything to work with…. (I’m just saying).  I just watched the guys on American Idol…I recorded it, and the only good thing about that was I was able to fact forward through the commercials.  Anyhow…It struck me once again that this show has shot it’s load. (is that crass??)  There was a time when American Idol was something special, it really was about finding the “best singer” in America, think:  Kelly, Ruben, Fantasia, Carrie.  Now think Taylor Hicks, or David Cook…WHAT???  Now it’s about…well, I’m not sure what’s it’s about, but I’m sure their interest is not in finding outstanding talent.

The notion that after auditioning hundreds of thousands of singers that these 24  are the best of the lot is insulting.  Simon is right when he says he can go into any bar or hotel lounge and hear similar performances.  The problem is that he and his colleagues chose these people to be on the show.  These singers get up on stage and do the best they can, then they get blasted as though they did something wrong.  Most of these kids where mediocre when they auditioned.  It is totally unfair to think that somehow they are going to morph into great talents when they hit the big stage in Hollywood.

The bigger problem I have with this mess called American Idol is that it holds up average singers as the gold standard of talent.  Consequently when young kids see this they feel like that is what you strive for.  It’s no wonder that truly great singers are becoming so much more rare.  If the average kid can sing as good as the people on stage, then the people on stage ain’t good enough.

On second thought…I think I do know what American Idol is all about.  It’s about creating an Idol.  A false image they can promote as something that it really isn’t…real talent.  American Idol is about making money, but don’t get me wrong making money is good.  Just don’t lie to me and tell me you’re looking for the best singer in America…we all know that isn’t true.

Stay Fly and Fly High!
KLH

I’m mad at our elected officials.  I’m mad because NONE OF THEM ARE WORTH ANYTHING AT ALL!!!!!!!  (Sometimes a primal scream is just what the doctor ordered.)  We elected Barack Obama and a whole lot of Democrats to bring change to America.  Instead what we got is the same damn thing.  I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised, but I am.  I thought this time it would be different, and “Change” really would come, but nope…no such luck.

I really was excited by Obama, now I just feel like I got suckered.  Obama so far is just like the rest of them…he makes these grandiose promise when he’s running for office and once he’s in he doesn’t do anything he promised he would.  Unemployment is higher than he said it would be.  Health-care reform with a PUBLIC OPTION is on life support (pardon the pun).  Guantanamo Bay is still open.  Congressional negotiations were supposed to be on CSPAN.  There was supposed to be unprecedented openness and bi-partisanship…that’s a no go on both of those.  There was going to be a whole host (one of Obama’s favorite words) of green energy jobs from the Stimulus Bill…but those are “still on the way”.

The Republicans are just as bad.  Their only mission is to see to it that nothing at all gets done while Obama is president.  Then they hope to regain power.  Just say no, that is their governing mindset.  In the meantime people are suffering from the arrogance and ignorance of the people we elected to make possible a good and productive life for us.  The truth of the matter is harsh, and it’s this…Our government officials don’t care about us.  How do I know that?  Simply look at what’s getting done, and what isn’t.  All they care about are power and the perks and privileges of that power.

So what’s the solution?  I think that we the American people should start a movement to vote out of office every single incumbent in the country.  Let’s send a message that they work for us.  From our State officials all the way up to the president, they are public servants, and as such they should SERVE US.  Let’s start with a clean slate, and require that these people serve our needs.  Let’s demand common sense solutions to the challenges that face us.  Let’s speak up and become the democracy we were supposed to be.  What we have now is no democracy, it’s no ‘rule of the people’.  What we have now is a joke…and a bad one at that.

I welcome your comments.

Stay Fly and Fly High!
KLH

If you want to succeed you cannot cheat. By that I mean you cannot take short cuts. Even as I’m writing this I am aware of people who have done just that…they have cheated and they have taken short cuts. Let me put it to you this way…success has a price. That price is determined by what it is that you want. If you want to be a doctor, the price is a gazillion years in school, and two gazillion dollars in tuition, and then you get to be a doctor. If you want to be a nurse, a computer programmer, or a machine operator, or a rodeo clown, you have to pay a certain price. That price may be a financial cost and or a certain amount of work. But there is indeed a price, and it must be paid upfront and in full.

Even cheats must pay a price. They bribe someone, they risk their life and or liberty to steal something, or they sell their soul, but believe me they pay a price. Success offers no discounts. You can’t do some of the work, and then expect to succeed. You must do all the work. You must work UNTIL you get to the promise land, and if you don’t, the universe knows the difference. You can’t be content with simply trying, or even trying your best. If you’re trying…you’re lying. Trying means you gave up…and giving up will attract more of the same from the universe. Success will give up on you.

Instead of trying use this formula: Be, Do, Have. Be-what you want to be. See yourself in the position you want to be in. Conduct yourself the way a person in that position would. Visualize that life and start living it right now. Second is Do-Do what that person would do. Wanna be an actor? Then ACT!!! Get into local community plays, get into an acting class, go to an audition, perfect your craft. If you will BE and DO like and actor, then in time you will HAVE the life of an actor. You can even say that BE and DO are like action and conviction. If you have enough of both these ingredients you WILL SUCCEED, and if you don’t the universe knows the difference. It’s really up to you.

Stay Fly and Fly High!
KLH

In this day and age with the recession raging our government has to be very cautious with spending tax payer money.  Hard choices have to be made.  There is a finite amount of revenue available, so money cannot be wasted.  At least that’s how it should be.  For some misguided reason our local and state governments see fit to give taxpayer money to people who won’t go to work.  Why, you may ask?  Because they had a baby, or two, or three, or…you get the idea.  A lot of women have decided to make welfare a career choice.

Now I know that a lot of “welfare moms” and wimpy liberals will say “OOOOOOhh you don’t understand.  These women are finding themselves on hard times, and we can’t let these babies starve, and yada yada”.  To that I would reply that a lot of people these days are finding themselves on hard times, me included.  The welfare department doesn’t give me any money, nor should they. 

There are families have that 3rd and 4thgeneration welfare recipients which is an outrage.  Clearly a lot of these “women” and often times girls have made a conscious choice to use baby making as a way to pay the bills.  No….I haven’t forgotten about the “men”.  These so called men are complicit in this rip off.  Any man worth a damn, would never have children he couldn’t afford to support.  People…in this day and age we just can’t afford to pay for somebody else’s children. Welfare needs extreme reform.  But, how do we do it?  I have a couple of suggestions.

First, U.S. citizens ONLY , NOT IMMIGRANTS…can receive welfare once per lifetime, and just for 9 months.  Men who father children and don’t pay for the support of those children, will be placed into a mandatory work program.  They will work in a job that benefits the neighborhoods they live in, street cleaning, graffiti removal, landscaping public property, you get the picture.  Half of the money they earn will go to repaying the money us citizens had to pay to take care of their babies.  Next, mothers and fathers who receive welfare money will go through a mandatory training class where they will learn how to teach workshops to educate young people how to avoid pregnancies they cannot afford.  Mothers will teach young girls that because a guy says “you have a nice ass” doesn’t mean he’ll make a suitable parent.  Fathers will teach young boys that it is weak, ignorant, and unmanly to have sex when you can’t shoulder all the possible consequences of having sex.  If you get pregnant again after having already received welfare…all I can say is you better have a good job.

We have gotten to a place in our society where our standards have gotten pitifully low.  Young men and women should expect so much more for themselves.  Welfare should be an extreme choice for an utterly desparate situation.  If you can work you should be required to by law, if you have children.  Beyond that, I simply don’t want to pay for anyone elses kids.  Nobody asked me if it was OK for them to have unprotected sex…and if I would mind paying for their children.  (They probably know what the answer would be.)

We need a new day…a new way of looking at things.  Welfare as a career choice is disrespectful…it’s disrespectful to the taxpayers, and it’s disrespectful to one’s self.  I know that some people will still say I don’t understand.  They will say that birth control isn’t 100% effective…but those same people won’t admit the obvious, that abstinence is always 100% effective.  Fact….sometimes when you have sex the woman gets pregnant.  To the women I say before you get all hot and bothered, ask yourself “If I get pregnant, can I afford to pay for this baby on my own?’ Truth is, that might be your reality.  To the men I say if you don’t have a job, or if you have any other loser traits… sex is not for you.  Whatever the case may be I don’t wanna buy junior diapers.

Stay Fly and Fly High!
KLH

Well…I was watching Oprah the other day interview Jay Leno, and she asked him a couple of times if he felt sorry for Conan O’Brien.  I’m sure she asked what a lot of people would have asked given the chance.  As I was watching Jay who seemed a bit uncomfortable, it hit me….ARE YOU FREAKIN’ KIDDING????

Conan got severance payout of somewhere in the area of $40 million dollars.  If he lives another 40 years, and never worked another day in his life, that’s a million a year.  I don’t feel sorry for Conan at all.  I think even the notion that anyone should feel sorry for him is absurd.  Conan is super rich, and he’ll easily get another gig that will make him even richer….how sad.

Now to be clear, I’m not mad at Conan.  To me the fact that he makes that money means that the people who pay him believe he’s worth it…and that’s all good.  But I think that we the regular folk, get caught up in this altered reality.  A mindset that is removed from what really matters.  So many people are taking sides…which one of these very rich men got the short end of the stick, is a ridiculous waste of mental energy. 

If we must feel sorry for someone…I have some suggestions:  How about the one hundred fifty thousand and counting people who have died in Haiti?  How about the thousands of children who will be orphans when the dust settles in Haiti?  How about the hundreds of thousands of people in this country who didn’t get a severance package when they were told there is no more work?  How about that man that has to make the long drive home to tell his wife and kids that they’re going to have to move into Grandma’s house because ours was foreclosed on?  How about the thousands of people who die every year because their heartless insurance companies won’t pay for that “experimental procedure” that would have saved their lives.

Now, don’t get me wrong perhaps Conan did get the short end of the stick….perhaps…but I know for a fact that most people would love to have that stick.  I wish the best for Conan, but I’m more concerned with regular folk facing REAL problems.  If we as a people collectively focus on helping each other and even more importantly helping ourselves, we’ll all benefit in a very big way.  Conan can take care of himself.

Stay Fly and Fly High!
KLH

Goodness knows this is a very controversial issue….but controversy has never prevented me from diving in, so here goes.  I believe that personal liberty is a very important right that we as Americans have.  I don’t want anybody telling me what I can and can’t do.  However, I know that there are limitations on my liberty.  When what I want to do infringes on someone else’s liberty, I can’t do it.

Now I know that I can’t have a baby.  I can never know what a woman goes through when she gets pregnant.  But just a surely a woman can never know what a fetus feels.  A woman can never know what it’s like to be the man that wanted to be a father to the fetus / baby that was aborted.  Yes…. I am against abortion.  But I am not a fundamentalist freak who believes in extreme measures being perpetrated against women who have had abortions.  I’m writing now because I was watching Court TV airing the trial of Scott Roeder who ADMITS that he shot and killed Dr. Tiller, who was an abortion provider.

The shooter/killer is claiming that he was justified because he was acting in the defense of unborn babies.  This guy is nuts, he’s a hypocrite, and it’s insane that tax payer money is being spent putting on a trial for this killer.  People like this make a mockery of the whole issue.  My thing is this…there is a ton of evidence to support the claim that life begins if not at conception, then VERY shortly thereafter.

I know a lot of women will want to scream at me and say “a woman has a right to do what she wants with her body”, and I would agree.  But these women fail to acknowledge the body that is within them.  I think that a much more appropriate thing for her to exercise her rights over is whether or not to have sex.  Or, whether or not to use birth control.  A woman doesn’t HAVE TO GET PREGNANT!!!!!  Additionally a woman doesn’t HAVE TO HAVE SEX!!!!  How about self control, preparation, forethought, and descretion? 

Here’s another thought (I have a lot of them) if it’s ONLY a woman’s choice as to whether or not she has a baby, then why should a man have to pay child support?  If a woman can decide indepently to abort a pregnancy, then should she be “woman enough” to decide to pay for raising that child?  To exclude a man’s feelings and rights during pregnancy and then force obligations on him after birth is dead wrong.  Now….to be clear I think a man should pay for the upbringing of his children, but I also think to exclude him as a dis-interested and unimportant bystander when the issue of abortion comes up is grossly unfair. 

Abortion rights?  I think abortion is wrong, but I’m not willing to put women in prison for it.  I think it would be more appropriate to overturn Roe v. Wade and make it illegal.  I actually believe women are smart enough to avoid unwanted pregnancies.  It may be a little inconvenient but I know plenty of women who have succeeded.  Birth control works most of the time, and if you add a condom into the mix along with the pill, it’s actually pretty damn hard to have a baby if you don’t want to have one. 

So to all you beautiful, sexy, capable, intelligent women out there if you even MIGHT have sex, just be prepared, it really does work.  To the men, don’t be idiots…USE A RUBBER.  Have a nice day!

Stay Fly and Fly High!
KLH

I welcome your comments.

Well…I said before Obama can’t save you, and I am convinced that is true.  In fact there is no government official that will do for you what you won’t do for yourself.  Nobody can save you…but here’s the good news…Nobody else has to, because you can save yourself.  The gift that President Obama gives to us is the gift of seeing ourselves.  What do I mean by that?  As eloquent and inspiring as Mr. Obama has been it has become clear that even he, cannot change the quality of our lives in any subsequent way except perhaps in a bad way. 

Mr. Obama and Mrs. Obama have said many times on the campaign trail that “We are the change we have been waiting for.”  That is the magic bullet!  I have heard the president say that “It’s not about me…or the congress…it’s about you.”  This is where you and I have to sit up, take notice, and then take action.  All the horrible financial conditions that we find ourselves suffering through is a result of choices we all collectively have made.  We gave our power away to elected officials who don’t care about us, or can’t care for us.  We spent money we didn’t have, and let our government do the same.  We didn’t save for a rainy day…we thought the sun would shine eternally, only to find out that…it doesn’t.  Sometimes it rains and right now a whole lot of us are getting soaked.

So in his State Of The Union address president Obama I’m sure will give a great speech.  He will say it is still important for  all Americans to have health insurance, and it is.  He will say that republicans and democrats should work in a bi-partisan way (I’ve grown to hate that term) and they should.  The president will say that the economy has gotten better but we still have a long way to go, and we do.  There are terrorists out there that demand our vigilant defense and sometimes offense…check.  The president will say lots of things both inspiring and bothersome.  But what the president won’t say, is the thing he most needs to say, and it’s this – “I can’t save you, neither can the congress.”

He won’t say it perhaps because he believes he can, or maybe he honestly doesn’t want to.  Either way the truth is still the same…The government can build the road but we the people have to drive the car to where we want to be.  I was a big supporter of Mr. Obama, I still think there is a lot of potential he has yet to realize.  So far I am sad to say I am not impressed.  He over promised and under delivered.  But…that’s what politicians do.

Right now the State Of The Union is horrible…but you and I can turn it around.  That is my prayer and determination for our country.  So I really hope that Mr. Obama will get about the business of building us some roads…because I think a whole lot of people are about to burn rubber on the way to the America we’re supposed to be.

Stay Fly and Fly High!
KLH

This is a question that a lot of people have pondered, and a lot of discussion has been conducted around this topic.  But because Dr. King was such a giant of a man, I think it interesting to consider it in the political and social climate of the day…”What would he do now?”  Well…I think he would be an enthusiastic advocate for universal health care.  He would see the horrible inequity and injustice piled onto people who can least afford it.  I think Dr. King would show how absurd and immoral it is for a health care system to price life saving medical treatment out of the reach of most Americans.  Our police and fire departments are “socialized” so why not medical care?  I think that would be a question he would powerfully demand an answer for.

I think Dr. King would be proud that we have an African American as our president.  But King would not just rubber stamp everything Obama does.  I believe that King would keep the pressure on Mr. Obama to deliver on his promises.  I for one would love to see that.  Dr. KIng would point out the futility in conducting a “War On Terror”.  It is impossible to kill enough people to make them not hate us.  Dr. King showed us the magnificent power of a righteous cause, peacefully being demonstrated for all to see.  He’d remind us that when you don’t take up arms against your enemies the world is forced to see the rightness of your cause.  Yet…as Mr. Obama has said ‘a head of state can hardly be a pacifist’…I think King would agree.  But somehow Dr. King would find a way to counsel our president in the ways of gentle power.  War has it’s place, but so does love, peace, and common good.

I think Dr. King would have been sad that Michael Jackson died so young.  I think he would have told parents the importance of loving their children and supporting them and making them feel like they really matter. I think he would have told us that celebrities have as much right to privacy and intimacy and quiet as we do.

I think Dr. King would be a really powerful force helping to guide us all to our better selves.  Happy Birthday Dr. King….we sure could use you now.

Stay Fly and Fly High!
KLH

What a world we live in.  Terrorism has been around for a very long time, but it’s really popular now.  A war on terror may on it’s face seem like the thing to do.  After all terror is …terrible.  All good people want to live in a world free from the horrors that terrorism rains upon innocent people.  We all were mortified by the nightmare of 9-11, the bombing of the Federal building in Oklahoma, car bombs in the Middle East.  All of us hate terrorism and it’s affects…at least all of us decent people.  However a “war on terrorism” is a dumb idea.

Before you get upset with me, let me explain.  (I hope I don’t go too far over my head)  Terrorism is a tactic.  Basically it involves violence against innocent people with a desire to bring about some some political, religious, or philosophical net result.  Terrorists are by definition unbalanced.  They are most certainly not impressed with our war on terror…especially the ones who blow themselves up with their victims.  Terrorists are filled with hate, and hate is a very powerful and infectious force.  I am inclined to believe that we cannot kill enough of ‘them‘ to make them stop hating us.

Once again…we cannot kill enough terrorists to make them stop hating us.  Think about gang violence…the ‘Crips’ kill some ‘Bloods’ and the ‘Bloods’ are gonna get even.  You kill one of ours we kill two of yours.  So now the ‘Crips’ have to “re-get even” and the cycle NEVER STOPS!!!!!!!  Every single time we kill a terrorist we reaffirm their reason for hating us.  More young men sign up for the cause because the bomb we dropped killed somebody’s mama…so now they REALLY have to get even.  As long as we’re in the cycle the cycle will never ever end.

Now…before you call me a crazy pacifist wimp, I do not believe that we can just sit back and allow ourselves to be brutalized.  However for this horrible merry-go-round to stop someone has to get off, and put on the brakes.  This is what I believe…the terrorists aren’t evil just for it’s own sake.  I really don’t think that they care that much about Americans wearing Nikes and eating at McDonald’s.  I think they perpetrate the evil of terrorism because they don’t know what else to do.  They want something and they don’t know how to go about getting it.  In and of itself these terrorists get no thrill from killing us and themselves…at least I don’t think so.  They want something…and you know what?  I think that what they really really really want is real close to what I want and what you want.

You want to end terrorism Mr. President?  Find out what they really want.  Step outside preconceptions and justifiable rage at their violence and find out what they want.  If we can find a way to help them to see how they can get it (God knows terrorism hasn’t worked) maybe we can spend some of that Iraq and Afghanistan money on a proper economic recovery plan…ya know what I’m sayin??

Stay Fly and Fly High!
KLH

‘

Yes…it’s so easy to be positive, it’s so easy to have a great outlook on life, it’s so easy to believe in the ‘Law Of Attraction’, the goodness of God, and all that…when things are going well for you.  Now…how do you think I know that?  Yep, that was me.  There I was in all my glory talking to people who where having a hard time in life, telling them “Yeah, you have to keep fighting!  You have to be positive.”  Even though I didn’t actually believe I was better than ‘them’, looking back on it, I know I had a certain level of arrogance.  I felt like I had figured it all out, and that if only these poor people would follow my sage advice they too could be positive like me.

Well…the recession kicked in, and it’s been kicking ever since.  I’m lucky if I make half what I made a year ago.  Sometimes I literally wonder if I might have to ask a friend for food…and that has a way of humbling a positive thinker.  It’s as if God is saying to me “So…you really believe all that positive thinking stuff?  I’m going to test you to see how much you really believe.” 

As it turns out I really do believe that stuff.  I really do believe that our thoughts materialize.  What we focus on becomes our reality.  We really can attract things into our life.  But, I learned something else.  I learned that it’s a whole lot harder to be positive when you can’t pay your rent.  So, I can empathize a whole lot more with people who are having a hard time.  However I will not simply accept that there is nothing we can do.  I won’t let my friends off the hook when they say they have no power.  I cannot support that. 

I believe that we are all powerful.  Each of us can make a choice.  The quality of that choice is what will determine the quality of the reality we find ourselves living in.  Every time we make a choice we moves ourselves along on a path.  Weak victimized choices lead to a predictably weak reality.  Another person given the same scenario might make a powerful choice and their reality will reflect that powerful choice.  There are people right now in the same recession you and I are in, making tons of money.  If the recession is what’s keeping us down, how would it be possible for anyone to make money?  I talked to a realtor a couple of weeks ago that said he had a good year…imagine that!!! 

The recession ain’t the problem.  The problem is what we do about the recession.  A coming New Year is always a great time to reflect and to project.  What I wish for you and for me is the recognition that at any time, no matter what the challenge, we can make a choices that empower us.  The more we stack up these powerful choices…the more we can look forward with boundless optimism to 2010.  Happy New Year!

Stay Fly and Fly High!
KLH