An invitation to all that read this thread.

Fellow Ats members,

I invite you to move towards something positive, and to take action towards that positive outcome.

We spend so much time trying to move away from something negative, that the very problem we are trying to get away from - is the very thing that consumes us. It can often times be the first thing on our mind at the start of the day, and the last thing on our minds before we go to bed. This type of thinking is only destructive and will never lead to the changes we want to see. For every problem that we see, there's something positive to work towards, rather than something negative to work against - It may well sound the same, but it's been more than aptly studied that these are not identical - Not when it comes to the way our brain processes things, and what inspires us, motivates us, causes us to be something more..

I invite you to look at any problem you want to address in this world, and to work towards the positive variant of that issue.

When you do this, you'll see that all of us are far more alike than you'd have ever expected.

We all want to feel safer.
We all want prosperity.
We all want freedom.

Work towards those things, take any amount of true action and this world will be a better place.

Regardless if you accept my invitation or not - Thank you for being here.

-Deadlyhope

I hear ya, it's those other a-holes trying to screw us over. Who made that a problem?

it would help for people to be less sensitive towards themselves, and more sensitive to others.

sick of 'micro-aggression' stuff, or people taking offense and blaming (racism, sexism, hatred towards _____ group).

why do you say the white male looked at you mean because of your (race/gender/Hillary tee shirt)? maybe you parked crooked. maybe your cologne stinks. maybe your stereo is too loud. maybe he remembers you as the rude person at the grocery store that pushed your cart with thirty items into the '10 items or less' lane.

and, just for the sake of argument, if the white male that looks at you mean is doing it cuz he hates (black/gay/female/prog)...so what. haters gonna hate. there will always be a few dinosaurs in the hinterland.

I'm obese. I get all sorts of snorts and snarks over my appearance. I tune it out. can't waste time worrying about what strangers think.

no matter who you are some people won't like you, for many reasons, for any reason, for no reason. shrug it off. move on.

and don't answer hate with hate. that just continues the cycle.

a reply to: deadlyhope

Great message. Do you think it is acceptable to appreciate the bad as well? Without the bad & the negative, would good and positive even be possible? Not saying this world is confined to duelistic forces, there could be more.

I just think that sometimes the negative is also beneficial when used as a tool of self reflection but not when a person wallows in it 24x7.

a reply to: ClovenSky

I think recognition is different from appreciation - It's good to see that there's an issue, sure. Kids in Africa don't get enough sustenance - So, should we fight against hunger? Or should we strive to feed everyone we can?

The two may not be technically different, but it seems that human psychology dictates that moving towards good, in an optimistic and hopeful fashion - Allowing for creativity, intuition, invention, etc - Is far different from that of moving away from the bad. Surviving, fighting, struggling are not circumstances in which healing happens as often.

a reply to: ElGoobero

I suppose ATS has become a place of near political radicalism and I really do not have the answers to fix these issues you speak of - I'm not sure anyone really does. I would say the "good" to strive for would be strengthening the family unit, encouraging sensible discipline, and ensuring that we raise future generations to realize that sustained efforts, persistence, combined with ability all striving towards a goal is what brings results and reward - Not simply existing.

Though that is definitely just my own two cents, I won't act like it's worth more.

a reply to: deadlyhope

That is a really interesting point. I had never thought of moving towards a goal of goodness and moving away from bad were two different things. Hmmmm.

I have struggled with the idea of charity. Could just giving money to a charity without massive research be a bad thing? What happens if only a small percentage of the tithe reaches the intended target? Could your donations actually cause more corruption compared to the small portion of relief it produced?

If you just gave someone cash and they used it to further sink into substance abuse instead of food or shelter, would you share some of the blame for enabling? Where instead the good act would be to take them to a food establishment or hotel and directly pay, ensuring the effort was just.

originally posted by: deadlyhope
I invite you to look at any problem you want to address in this world, and to work towards the positive variant of that issue.

I liked your post. But i think i need to try to apply your concept to my personal life first, to become stronger, and then maybe address issues on a global scale.

a reply to: Finspiracy

That's perfect.

Become the greatest version of yourself - Let yourself grow to unimaginable heights, and once you yourself reach those heights, pull someone else up.

a reply to: ClovenSky

You make a good point - Charity is certainly a tough one.

I would say it's not too often cash that solves problems for the poor, it's a lot of different things, some of which require different amounts of funding. If I ran a charity, I would do all I could do clothe, shelter, educate, help those people find their talents, their passions, etc - I admit I wouldn't know exactly how to go about all of this.

A healthy diet, getting out of those circumstances - perhaps education, medicine, therapy, etc - There's a lot of ways a person, or even a nation can be helped that is not simply throwing cash into their hands. Plenty of people truly believe they cannot have or do not deserve a better life - Others have been through things some of us cannot imagine and just need help during this part of their journey.

I'll have to think of what exactly this would entail.

a reply to: deadlyhope

" We all want prosperity.
We all want freedom. "


Sorry to Burst your Bubble here , but American Progressive Liberalism today neither wants Prosperity for All , Nor Personal Freedoms for its Citizens . A Political Philosophy Diametrically Opposed to Traditional American Values . Until that Mindset is Corrected , I am Afraid that Division in this Country will continue until All Americans come together and Adhere to the Tenets of Free Speech and Public Discourse that Promote Prosperity for All who Dwell within its Boarders .

a reply to: ClovenSky

Speaking of the " Bad " in All of us , sometimes the Fear of Offending someone or some Group can lead to Greater Evils than one would expect .....


'Years of not wanting to offend anyone nurtured Islamic extremism in the West'




www.rt.com...

a reply to: deadlyhope

There resonates some basic truth from that OP.
Nice. Thanks.

a reply to: Zanti Misfit

I will disagree with you somewhat.

I think today's average progressive footsoldier does want prosperity, but they've been sold a false bill of goods. They've been brought up to believe that they can never have prosperity because there are wealthy people already, people who are too wealthy who have too much and it will forever prevent them from being prosperous.

It's the idea of a finite amount of wealth -- the one big pie idea.

So they think the only way they can ever prosper is to take violently from those people, not seek to produce themselves.

Rush wrote a good song about it.



Or another way to look at it is to say that if everyone needs $20 to get through the day and one man has $40 and other has none. The progressive/socialist answer is to simply take $20 from one to give to the other. The proper answer is to find out why the one man has nothing and see if there isn't a way to enable him to make his own $20 rather than to take $20 from the first man.

a reply to: deadlyhope

Thank you for this thread.

Had to read this today.

Edify in all you speak....seeing God's point of view, but don't tear down with your words, as most have fallen away to being combative...my son's wife told me yesterday she doesn't know why

a reply to: Zanti Misfit

Doesn't this just support my premise even more so?

They are fighting against oppression, fighting against bigotry, fighting for what they call freedom - They're literally burning things to the ground in the name of these fights.

That's not peaceful, positive, optimistic.. That's grasping onto the negative.

a reply to: ketsuko

The Creation of Wealth , along with the Prosperity it offers to the Citizens of these United States , is Freely given to those who make a Determined Effort to Attain them in a Constitutionally Protected Democratic Republic where the Rule of Law is Freely Obeyed by a Majority and Enforced by its Elected Officials who take an Oath to do just that . Once the Rule of Law is Downgraded or Ignored for Political Reasons , our whole System of Government is Subverted to the Point where inequality runs rampant among the Classes of People in the United States and has now become increasingly Unequal in terms of Income, Wages, Wealth and Opportunity . In any Free Society , it is up to the People en Masse to Demand their Rights be Acknowledged or Suffer the Consequences of their Inactions .

a reply to: deadlyhope

It's because they've been misinformed.

They've been taught that if they don't have, it's because someone else does have, not because they haven't made the proper choices to enable them to do for themselves.

They've been locked into a world that is wholly secular and wholly materialistic. All of their personal worth rests solely on what they have for themselves. Consequently, they try to keep up with the Joneses.

Well, not everyone can do that, nor should they have to. It's a false way of being. You need only enough to be content: to have food, clothing, shelter. If you have those things, you should be able to be content with what you have, even if it's less, much less than what the Joneses have.

We are the only country in the world with fat poor people walking around with cell phones and designer jeans whose kids have video game consoles that they play on flat screen TVs.

But really, the problem is greed all around in individuals. People want more than they need so they covet and envy and that makes them hate. It's easier to hate and try to take than it is to do for yourself. It's easier to believe you are oppressed and a victim if you don't have than it is to do for yourself.

I have no Argument with your assessment there , and it is Spot on . A very Sad Commentary on the present condition some Americans have to live under .........(