Integrity In Life Creates More Than Is Known.

What with all the fiascos in banking, government, even personal life, there is one theme I have noticed. A serious lack of personal integrity.

There is the old story of porkbarrelling in politics, and that goes to even the city or village level. When someone in an office is more interested in buying friends and buying influence than becoming a good leader, the whole of society suffers. Add to that secrecy and you have a very volatile mix.

The most obvious examples are those of Idi Amin, George Bush, and many others who abused the office of leader. What most everyone forgets is that there are really NO secrets that will remain secret. The truth will always come out, somehow, somewhere. Perhaps it is revealed from simple, honest, and wondering curiousity, perhaps it comes from wanting to find that very truth.

There have been people who have lived openly, honestly, with few, if any secrets, and they find that integrity is easy, almost automatic. What most people who keep things secret find out is that telling someone, even a stranger, of the secret, will take away the power, the condemnation that the secret holder fears. Try it! When you reveal a secret, most of the time people will shrug, maybe be surprised, but there is also a feeling of release of the power of the secret to bind us up, make us fearful.

The contrast between two people can be very stark. We instinctively know when someone is NOT telling us the entire story, the real truth, and we become suspicious, less trusting and definitely want to know the truth. When we try to keep something secret, we develop a habit of keeping more and more of those secrets. Yes, we can do this from very good intentions, to avoid hurting someone we love, to avoid revealing the whereabouts of someone who can be killed (think of the Holocaust and Schindler) and sometimes those secrets have to be kept. BUT, unless there is a literal life and death situation, secrets can cause more problems than just being honest enough to reveal what we know.

Integrity means taking these chances, taking the risk that someone may just understand and learn a lot by us being honest enough, strong enough, to allow someone to know what we may THINK is the worst of us. Again, think of Schindler. After the war, his story was revealed, the truth did come out. So, again, the secrets do become revealed.

Now, think of someone like O.J. Simpson. The evidence, for me, gives compelling truth that he did kill. He may have been found, in a court, to be innocent, but the underlying instinct we all use makes us want to avoid him, to question every word he utters. Our instincts may be far more accurate than any jury, court, or other official institution.

Integrity is part of our human heritage. We rely on it when we go to buy a new car, find a flawed product and expect to have the product either taken back or replaced. We rely on integrity to form a basis of our personal relationships. So where do things to haywire? When we try too hard to please, perhaps our parents, or our bosses and let our own integrity fail. When it comes to things like politics and business, integrity is often ruined, denied, and the outcome is that we find out the truth and feel betrayed.

This may be the one lesson that the world needs right now. That huge, deep, painful sense of being betrayed by Wall Street hogs, presidential secrecy in several countries, and above all the betrayal of the very people we choose to stand up for us in our elections has become pandemic, or so it seems.

Leaders are rare, it seems. Leaders will be honest enough to tell what we need to know, even if it shows our own failings, or our own successes. Leaders will be the ones who LISTEN more than talk, and actually want to understand the situation from all points of view, then take the path of BEST choice, not necessarily the most expedient, the easiest, or even the most profitable.

Business needs LEADERS, people who work and demand integrity within and from those who work with them. The plumber who is known by the locals as being the best, the honest person, is often the busiest, yet we will wait. The food server who is good, honest, and works to the goals of doing the best they know how, with honesty and integrity, are the ones we ask for. The business man who stands by his company, who works to improve not only the bottom line, but the working conditions, the spirit of his company, the integrity that will be his own bottom line, we all want to work for. Why? Because THEY LISTEN! They grow and learn!

Now, to the dark side of this. Torture, no matter where or who does it, violates all of us in some way. It violates our sense of integrity, our sense of human being. When someone like Cheney or Bush or Idi Amin or anyone else chooses to use their power to try to keep things like this secret, we find out, one way or another. The ripples of this DO go out, tarnishing the countries, the people, and, like each individual in any relationship, we feel betrayed, soiled, and the instincts of others around the world become suspicious, mistrusting and the entire population of whatever country has tortured is lessened in integrity. Not fair, maybe, but that is the price of living with a democracy, with elected officials. Idi Amin being the exception here.

The dark side is less obvious when it comes to business, because we don’t elect those people, but rely on them to be honest. But the ripples STILL go out. We all mistrust a company that will pollute then keep that a secret. We feel betrayed by companies that will hide dangerous practices, such as hiding the dangerous chemicals they use on our food, our land and put into our water.

So, for each individual, no matter whether you are president, prime minister, premier, or the local farmer, truck driver, student, teacher or business owner, take the time to check on your integrity. Are we living up to the goal of being honest and open? Are we listening and learning?

We WANT to have the farmer who will NOT use hormones that screw up our health, we WANT the teacher who demands the best from themselves and us, we WANT the business owner to have a decent company that we can trust, we WANT leaders to be open with us, to LEAD, not be bought out because of some monetary rewards or status. we WANT integrity.

Bush Puts Through Health Bigotry Law

I am honestly sitting here shaking my head at the antidiluvian measures the outgoing American president created in his last days of office. What this law does is make it blatantly apparent that Bush wanted to overthrow the decision of the U.S. Supreme Court re: Roe vs. Wade and make it possible for further governments to reverse that decision.  It also is apparent that this is a deliberate attempt to force the U. S. health system into a Christian only belief system.

The health measure he created and made into law by decree, without any possibility of debate is completely filled with bigotry. What this law does is make health providers, from doctors and nurses, to pharmacists and others the people who can impose their own bigotry and disdain for human life onto patients and clients.

Imagine this scenario. A person who has AIDS or is HIV positive has to see a doctor, and that person also happens to be gay. Well, according to this law, the doctor, the nurse and any others can refuse to treat, refer, or even see that patient because of their own “moral persuasion.” The providers can have the “moral persuasion” that being gay or lesbian is abhorrent. Now, add in the fact that the patient is possibly pregnant and wants to get some information on the genetics or have other health treatment and it becomes a total nightmare. This law gives health providers the means to impose harsh judgements on lives and the ability to deny any care whatsoever.

Or, imagine this one. A senior is looking for help with pain, and wants to be admitted to hospital for possible testing, but that patient is not a Christian, but perhaps pagan, or of another faith which requires special treatment. The health providers, including the hospital, can now deny that person the ability to have their community come in and provide any counselling or symbols. This could mean those who are Sikh being forced to have facial hair shaved, their turbans removed, and any prayer items removed from the room. Or, worse still, the patient is told, ” We cannot, with our moral stance, treat you at all. Find another place.”

When it comes to health care for women who face unwanted pregnancy, or have to find ways to deal with a health issue during pregnancy, the situation becomes very ugly if bigotry and religious belief come into play. I know there are some doctors who will absolutely refuse to refer, provide alternative information, or even talk to patients who face pregnancies that endanger the mental or physical health of a woman. This is blatant bigotry.

Doctors, pharmacists and others are in the field to provide health care, not judgement, bigotry and even racism with their medications. IF you are one of those who insist on being so narrow minded, then either limit your practice to patients who are of the same mind or get out. Find a position in another field, perhaps research, but DO NOT impose your beliefs on others, even if the outgoing president provides you the means.

It is time for Bush to get the hell out of power, and it is obvious that the beliefs of Bush are set in the early 1920’s, certainly not even close to current society belief and practice.

It is time that the American public understand some things. There have been people who are gay and lesbian since the time of Caesar, and there have been unwanted pregnancies since long before then. Women have aborted fetuses for centuries, either with medical help or without. OUR modern society is facing a huge problem already with overpopulation, scarcity of resources, and the idea that forcing another child to become part of an unwilling society is far more of a violation of their rights than stopping the process.

Each child born now needs to have at least 65 years of food, shelter, clothing, and work. For every child born now, there will be that much more drain on the finite resources of this small planet, and when that child is resented, avoided, or even worse, facing abuse because some “health professional” imposed religion on the mother, it becomes a very nasty world for that child.

I have no problem with parents who want to have children, but remember, those who are responsible parents are the ones who use birth control, limit the family, and make sure that every child they have is supported, loved and given the necessities.

Each year I see articles on the costs of supporting more and more families in poverty. The numbers increase every year, yet this law makes the likelihood of far more people either dying in agony from the bigotry, or living in poverty because of that same bigotry. Phooey. Time for our society to grow up, face the reality that we all have no other place to move to, this is the one and only planet we have! It is time to ensure that each person is given respect for their choices, their lives and their needs.

Bush Designs Pollution, Health Hazards, Guns for America

I honestly thought this was some kind of sick joke when I got some information sent to my email account, but when I checked with several sources, it is true.

The outgoing president is using his “executive” powers to put into law a whole bunch of stupid laws that guarantee fecal matter in streams and drinking water as well as increases in lead. He is also putting into law that truckers can work more than half a day on the road, which most people know is worse than driving drunk!

This is from the Guardian in the U.K.

Paul Harris, The Observer, Guardian.co.uk

George Bush is working at a breakneck pace to dismantle at least 10 major environmental safeguards protecting America’s wildlife, national parks and rivers before he leaves office in January.

With barely 60 days to go until Bush hands over to Barack Obama, his White House is working methodically to weaken or reverse an array of regulations that protect America’s wilderness from logging or mining operations, and compel factory farms to clean up dangerous waste.

In the latest such move this week, Bush opened up some 800,000 hectares (2m acres) of land in Rocky Mountain states for the development of oil shale, one of the dirtiest fuels on the planet. The law goes into effect on January 17, three days before Obama takes office.

The timing is crucial. Most regulations take effect 60 days after publication, and Bush wants the new rules in place before he leaves the White House on January 20. That will make it more difficult for Obama to undo them.

“There are probably going to be scores of rules that are issued between now and January 20,” said John Walke, a senior attorney at the National Resources Defence Council. “And there are at least a dozen very controversial rules that will weaken public health and environment protection that have no business being adopted and would not be acceptable to the incoming Obama administration, based on stances he has taken as a senator and during the campaign.”

The flurry of new rules – known as midnight regulations – is part of a broader campaign by the Bush administration to leave a lasting imprint on environmental policy. Some of the actions have provoked widespread protests such as the Bureau of Land Management’s plans to auction off 20,000 hectares of oil and gas parcels within sight of Utah’s Delicate Arch natural bridge.

The new regulations include a provision that would free industrial-scale pig and cattle farms from complying with the Clean Water Act so long as they declare they are not dumping animal waste in lakes and rivers. The rule was finalised on October 31. Mountain-top mining operations will also be exempt from the Clean Water Act, allowing them to dump debris in rivers and lakes. The rule is still under review at the OMB. Coal-fired power plants will no longer be required to install pollution controls or clean up soot and smog pollution.

Yet another of the new rules, which has generated publicity, would allow the Pentagon and other government agencies to embark on new projects without first undertaking studies on the potential dangers to wildlife.

Announcements of further rule changes are expected in the next few days including one that would weaken regulation of perchlorate, a toxin in rocket fuel that can affect brain development in children, in drinking water.
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Bush can pass the rules because of a loophole in US law allowing him to put last-minute regulations into the Code of Federal Regulations, rules that have the same force as law. He can carry out many of his political aims without needing to force new laws through Congress. Outgoing presidents often use the loophole in their last weeks in office, but Bush has done this far more than Bill Clinton or his father, George Bush sr. He is on track to issue more ‘midnight regulations’ than any other previous president.

Many of these are radical and appear to pay off big business allies of the Republican party. One rule will make it easier for coal companies to dump debris from strip mining into valleys and streams. The process is part of an environmentally damaging technique known as ‘mountain-top removal mining’. It involves literally removing the top of a mountain to excavate a coal seam and pouring the debris into a valley, which is then filled up with rock. The new rule will make that dumping easier.

Another midnight regulation will allow power companies to build coal-fired power stations nearer to national parks. Yet another regulation will allow coal-fired stations to increase their emissions without installing new anti-pollution equipment.

One lengthens the number of hours that truck drivers can drive without rest. Another surrenders government control of rerouting the rail transport of hazardous materials around densely populated areas and gives it to the rail companies.

One more chips away at the protection of endangered species. Gun control is also weakened by allowing loaded and concealed guns to be carried in national parks. Abortion rights are hit by allowing healthcare workers to cite religious or moral grounds for opting out of carrying out certain medical procedures.

Bush’s midnight regulations will:

• Make it easier for coal companies to dump waste from strip-mining into valleys and streams.

• Ease the building of coal-fired power stations nearer to national parks.

• Allow people to carry loaded and concealed weapons in national parks.

• Open up millions of acres to mining for oil shale.

• Allow healthcare workers to opt out of giving treatment for religious or moral reasons, thus weakening abortion rights.

• Hurt road safety by allowing truck drivers to stay at the wheel for 11 consecutive hours.

Bush says F U to the Country and All Citizens

What this looks like, to me, is Bush trying every trick in the book to sabotage the country, the new president, the endangered species act, the FDA, the Federal Environment Agency, and basically making everyone live in a garbage dump.

There is no good excuse, never mind reason, to pass this unless you want to work for one of the companies that will give you a job with them later. This is totally aimed, in my opinion, at Barack Obama, green energy and the value of the wildlife and ecology of North America, all being sabotaged by Bush.

What I cannot figure out is why on earth Bush would want to do this, other than total contempt for his own daughters and their children, the people who live in the rural areas, and above all, the families of truckers who may end up attending the funerals of either the trucker or someone that trucker killed.

Bush, you are one stupid Son Of A Bitch, and the man who threw shoes at you was insulting you, not target practicing.  That action was akin to throwing a used sanitary napkin at your head, with the blood of children, women and others killed on the napkin. Got it?

Savings and Loan Fiasco and Familiar Names, Bush and McCain

I don’t live in the US, so I was not totally familiar with the Savings and Loan events of a few years ago. So, I did some looking around and voila, some familiar names show up!

McCain pressured regulators for Keating, Lincoln Savings and Loan

It seems that the current candidate for president was part of the problem in Arizona and the Savings and Loan fiasco, as was a member of the current president’s family. McCain was “rebuked by the Senate Ethics Committee for excercising ‘poor judgement’ for intervening with federal regulators on behalf of Charles Keating, head of Lincoln Savings and Loan”

This certainly explains why McCain is not in favour of any regulations or laws covering monetary transactions. Yeah…………..just what the US needs at this point, someone who was in the inner circle of the Lincoln Savings and Loan fiasco.

The second person is Neil Bush, with the Silverado Savings and Loan, a member of the Bush family currently in power. No wonder I had a very strong feeling the last person to trust with making decisions about this current “crisis” was not able to make fair or even dispassionate decisions.

Then, I decided to follow this down the line, and voila, the same mechanisms, the same type of fraudulent practices are being used again, so I now KNOW this has become a business practice, with the names of the corporations the only thing that did change. Bloody wonderful.

So, twice the financial world has abused the people in the US, twice the taxpayers are being TOLD, not asked in a referendum, to cover the butts of the very people who have just gone from scam to another.

Time for the US to finally realize they do have the vulnerability to these practices, to put into place some strong laws, not regulations, and to limit the way some people hide the scams.

For crying out loud, how long will people tolerate this crap? It has now become the Paulson SEC-FED Septic Bank, with all the crap and paper being flushed out of site, like a drug dealer just about to be caught with the goods.  To carry this further, time to flush out these scammers and put them completely out of business, literally. Remove their licenses, remove their positions from corporate boards, remove them from any and all access to monetary funds whatsoever.