Its Monday, but I am not in a hurry to go anywhere. I stayed in bed feeling the soft mattress on my back and stared at the empty ceiling. I know my brain craves for caffeine, but I am yet too lazy to get up. My mind drifted to the movie I watched last night - Apocalypto.
There is a scene of cannibalism in the movie...
Hmmm, humans have come a long way, evolving from man-eaters to man-lovers, and I feel like a lower life-form because I can neither eat nor love any man. Ha ha, just kidding on the love part. But can't we just split firewood, make furniture and harvest grains?
The movie directed by Mel Gibson also show lush virgin forest.
Oh yeah, I wish there will be forest left in my country.
However contrary to the idea of tree huggers who can't see through the bark, the Philippine government is the most successful eco - group. Yes the are! They give away permits for logging, mining, plus the operation of coal-fired power plants is part of the plan.
Here's how the plan works: logging, mining and power-plant operation make some people rich; rich people think they should be at golf courses; golf courses have trees and greens and emission-free golf carts. Clean and green indeed...
The movie is action packed.There's the tribes war..damn its too gory to watch, with all those blood splattered on the screen...
I remember someone once says "Everlasting peace is a dream, and not even a pleasant one. War is a necessary part of God's order."
Probably the same reason why the military wants all able-bodied male in college to undergo compulsory ROTC training. However, letting cadets march in formation for five hours, carrying wooden rifles, only prepares them for the kind of war fought ages ago. I suggest that Counterstrike be included in the high school curriculum and 12 units of Airsoft adventures be required for a baccalaureate degree.
Damn, I do need to get my caffeine before my mind gets haywire.
Get up, and dash!
5 comments:
Ummm...Counterstrike? Airsoft? Ya lost me there. I'm assuming those are videos games or something.
It sucks being old.
I took what you call ROTC all through high school. We did do hours of drill but the rifles were not like in the US were they were light weight replicas of the real thing. Put live rounds in these and they were accurate to 600 meters. In fact I competed at ranges up to 1000 meters with these same rifles.
I also have called in air strikes, once on my own position for 24 hours as steady as possible. We couldn't do it at night and that meant we were fighting the forest fire with backpack water pumps, picks and shovels alone for that time. My ROTC type training which lead to Army Infantry training and my being a platoon commander has enabled me to save over 50 lives in civilian life. Most people can't stand the sight of blood and stand around watching someone bleed to death. I don't know how many people I saved from death due the auto collisions, attempted suicides from jumping in from Subway trains. Heart attacks on trains. Taking knives being wielded by drug crazzed individuals on crowed trains. All things would never have happened, heck I could not have done them save for the Cadet training. I don't think everyone should have to do it but I like Robert Heinlein fell citizenship should be handed out but must be earned.
Then again I could have stood around and let people bleed to death I was never the only one there. I guess I should have let have let one of the others of dozens to hundreds of others around do it. Thing is none of them did anything but stare. I have even had to do first aid because Paramedics were throwing up. Trains make a mess. I have had total strangers die in my arms unable to help them. In the long run I am sick as a result of helping so many others.
Yet despite trying to live as good a life as I could, by my own religious beliefs heaven is out of reach for me. You see in my belief system single men are not qualified for heaven and I have never found a woman who supports the way I am.
That should have been NOT be handed out but must be earned.
I'm very sorry to hear that Sid. I don't want to pick on your's or any religion but, all religions are based on man's interpretations of god's words and ideals. As far as I'm concerned, any religion that would tell a person they are not welcome in heaven just because of their marital status is a sad one indeed.
I was "born again" in Dec of 07. Now, supposedly, I'm "allowed" into heaven based on what? Once again, man's interetation of Jesus's words spoken over 2000 years ago. In my opinion, it's all a bunch of bulls**t.
It says in the bible that a man is judged by god based on his actioins as well as what's in his heart. Not just on saying X amount of prayers and a few words of acceptance of Jesus, or whomever else we worship. The bible also says it's not our job, as humans, to judge who is or is not holy enough. In my book Sid, you've earned your ticket to heaven many times over.
As far as joining any military, I wasn't allowed to because of ulcers. I had two years of training in electronics so, I was more than qualified to get a job with the military in electronics than in any other skill set they needed. I wanted to join the US Navy, and be stationed on one of our countrie's monsterous super carriers as an avionic tech. But, because of a health condition I had no control of, I knew I was going to be screwed out of a dream I had since grade school: to serve in the military.
When I graduated, I chickened out and went to college to get a degree in electronics instead. It really hurt and I was really ashamed of myself. Three years later, the Golf War broke out and I begged recruiters from the US Navy and US Coast Guard to lie about my health and help me sign up. They wouldn't. That hurt even more.
I've felt like less than a man ever since. I even became suicidal over it at one point. Sometimes I actually still cry like a little baby over it.
In 2003, when Bush ordered air strikes on Iraq, I tried again to get into the Navy and Coast Guard. Once again, I begged them to lie about my medical history but, they refused. I'm too damn old to join now. It's kind of a relief. It still hurts but in a twisted way this time.
Anyway, to add to your comments about your life experiences Sid, here in the US, there are so many citizens certified in CPR and First Aid it's mind boggeling. Whether or not they'd ever need those skills is impossible to know. But, will they use them when needed? In certain cases, very doubtful.
In reality, you don't absolutely, positively need military or paramilitary training to be able to help people in a really sticky situation. It does make a HELL of a lot of difference, and is sometimes much much safer, if you know what you're doing. But, it's not always necessary.
Humans still have our most basic animal instincts to survive. In most cases, we can do amazing things in even the worst circumstances. But, most people never give themselves enough credit for being able to help.
Our ability to think things through durring extreme, traumatic events is something that, as far as we know, only humans have. However, under those conditions, it's not always because people freeze up that they just stand around looking. Too often, they either give up because they think they can't help, or prefer not to get involved.
Sadly, in this f**ked up country, it's more often than not out of fear of getting sued. Even if you're helping somebody who many be in a life threatening situation, you might still get sued just for touching them.
I was once sent papers saying I was being sued by a woman's lawyer. Even though I tried to help keep her warm on a cold winter day while she was lieing in a parking lot. An idiot slid, on what he KNEW was an icey lot, into my car trying to cut me off from a parking spot.
His car bounced off of mine and slid backwards. As it did, his car hit this woman in the left leg just as she stepped behind it. I saw it all happen while sitting in my car. It was so quick.
One second she wasn't there. The next, I see his car slide backwards and BAM! She hit the ground as if she was nailed by an NFL nose tackle.
I got out of my car and walked over to her. On my way there, I yelled at the idiot driver who hit her, then a bunch of us huddled over her. We were trying to keep the freezing cold wind from blasting her.
As it turns out, her leg was broken, so she couldn't get up. I was freezing too. I could've just as easilly walked away and gone into the store. In fact, that's what I wanted to do. In the back of my head, I had a gut feeling I was going to get sued. But, I covered up her hands with something to keep her from getting frost bite and stayed there untill the ambulance got there.
But, it sure as HELL wasn't my fault. So, why did I get a notice I was being sued as if I caused her injuries? Because, that's how our f**ked up legal system works. Sue the person who caused the accident. And, sue anybody else involved. Inluding the guy who's car he smashed into. As they say, "It's the American way" right? Kiss my ass. I hope I get a window seat durring my flight to the Philippines because I'm going to flip this country the bird as we head towards the clouds.
I have yet to see a study done where people around the country were asked "what would you REALLY do?" when it comes to things this. But, I have seen a lot of crazy things happen to people, including on comeing trains. Out of maybe 20 bystanders, only one person takes action, sometimes. Even when risking life and limb.
All I know is, this bullshit has even made ME want to think twice about helping anybody. But, I can't do that. I'm the kind of person who CAN'T just stand by and watch something happen without trying to help. I don't care what the situation might be or how dangerous.
I hope, some day Sid, you'll be able to quiet down all the background noise and garbage rolling around in your head and give yourself a well deserved pat on the back.
Take care.
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