But it's a disease...

So I've been sitting here, thinking...Why do I need a new tub. Oh, wait, that's a different rant. Now a word about Timex...Damn...I did it again. Let me say a word about Teddy Grahams...Crap!!! I can't keep my mind straight. It's like I'm lost in a cloud. I have no direction. There's something missing. I need a fix. Maybe a nice warm hit of crack? How about some weed? Maybe some LSD? No, no, wait...I got it...Heroine. But who will pay for it? Surely not me. I can't keep a job. Maybe my family? They have money. But they've shut me out. Maybe I can steal it...But I might go to jail. Maybe I can sell myself? But who will buy? Maybe I can trade something? But I have nothing.

DAMN!!!!!!! It must be this disease called addiction.

Now, let me get back to reality. In my 33 years on this planet, I have known and lost several people I loved. Some to natural causes, some to acts of violence, some to tragic accidents, and friends I lost to terror. But for all those I have lost, I have also gained. I am in a way, a better man for knowing all of them, and the lessons that they taught. Lessons through their action, words, lives and their deaths. But I have also lost a few to this "so called" addiction to drugs and other substances.

When I say "lost", I don't always mean death. Some are lost to me, their families and to society. For example, the most prevalent example is my cousin Frank. Frank is now 39 years old and has been a junkie since he was 13. He has cost his parents, literally, millions of dollars, millions of tears, and years off their lives. However, I can not feel pity for them. Why? Because like millions of other people effected by a drug addict, they have treated him like he has a "disease". The really odd thing, is that both his parents have had their own battles with a real disease, cancer. Joey has been suffering from prostate cancer for many years. In and out of surgeries, treatments, and a world of pain. Tess has suffered from colon caner for the last 2 years. And yet, the amazing thing is that they continue to treat their son as if he has a disease.

Now, Frank was not born a junkie, he was just born stupid. Frank did not acquire this disease through exposure to a carcinogen, or get this disease through heredity, or by any natural cause. He, like every other addict, received this blessing by being a total moron. He voluntarily picked up a drug, and used it. He was not part of a government study, or a clinical program, or even the victim of some villain who forced him to smoke, snort, inhale, inject, absorb, eat or drink a substance that would keep him trapped in a world of delusions.

Frank does NOT have a disease. Nor does any other addict. They may get a disease, as a result of their addiction. But by no means does addiction constitute a disease. I am completely disgusted by all of these people who continue to say that addiction is a disease, and that addicts are the victims of it.

By referring to addiction as a disease, misguided people have forced into our culture the idea that drugs are acceptable. How? By not demizing the addict, they have taken personal responsibility out of the hands of the individual, and placed in squarely in the hands of society. If there is an addict in a community, it is now the fault of society for not caring for, nurturing, and healing him or her. Forget the fact that narcotics, for the most part, are illegal, and that the addict has broken the law. Forget that nobody, but the addict, put them into that position. Forget that we as taxpayers, now have to foot the bill, again and again, for these people to get treatment. Forget that the return rate is overwhelming. Forget that the families left in the aftermath of a life destroyed, have to pick up the pieces and rebuild.

Let's face it people. By referring to addiction as a disease instead of a crime, we have completely undermined the potential for cures of legitimate disease. All of the money spent on "programs", and treatment, and medication, all of witch by the way are useless, is being diverted from scientific research that is trying to find cures for genuine diseases. Try telling a 6 year old suffering from cancer, or lupus, diabetes, blindness, deafness, spinabifida, or a host of other tragic ailments, that the funding he or she needs for a cure is being spent on some 39 year old, who up and decided that he needed a fix because his mommy didn't hug him.

I have had enough of good people, with bad luck, falling victim not only to their real diseases, but to the misguided failure of society. For me, if I had to make a choice between a 115 year old lady, and a 25 year old junkie girl, both of whom needed a transfusion, that I was the ONLY match for, well guess what. Grandma is coming home!!!

And now for the moral. I have always known 2 brothers and a sister. I have known OF a brother and a sister. Now, I know them all. Guess what? My brothers...Not addicts, but have dealt with disease. One sister...Not an addict, but has dealt with disease. Me, addicted to nicotine...MY FAULT...NO EXCUSES!!! Lastly, a newfound sister, complete Junkie, alcoholic, and God knows What else...NOT HER FAULT...ALL KINDS OF EXCUSES...

My family, fractured. My father mislead, and blinded. My real sister, still my only sister. My brothers..Always there. My mother... Broken hearted. And me...Staunch in the fact that addiction is not a disease.

So much damage, in so little time. My family has almost been destroyed because of one worthless addict. Like countless other families, we have an enemy in our midst. But only like the wise family, we recognize the enemy, and will not let them in. So to all those who's lives have bee obliterated by someone with a "disease", I say to you, lock the doors, and windows, change the locks, and stand guard over all worth keeping. Garbage belongs on the curb, or in the dump.

This is not my most poetic post, but it sure is one of my most honest.

Bad breath, and very grumpy.

Last week, I lost a very dear friend. For the better part of eleven years, he was a huge part of my life. He gave me so much more than I could have ever given him. He was grumpy yet cuddly, goofy yet smart, deaf yet aware, loyal yet a loner. For all the years prior to meeting him, I wanted a friend like him, but was not allowed. And although not mine from the start, he became mine at heart. I likened him to Oscar Madison. You couldn't help but love him.

He and I shared a very special bond. Somewhere, in time and space, we were able to transcend what we knew, and share a thought. His thought lead me to him and I brought him home. It's as if I could see through his eyes, and feel the sun on him. He was lost and afraid, and we were lost and afraid without him. He spent his life free from worry, and devoted to few. I can't say how much I loved him, because I still do. I will always hold close to my heart all that he was, and know that he is. I will see him every day, not only when I think of him, but when I see the friends he leaves behind. Love is universal, it does not pass with the ones who pass, but stays and spreads to who remain.

To my friend, whom words will never do justice...I Love You Chopper

And now, a word about food..........

Food. Mmm Mmm Mmm........Yummy Food!!!

I love food. Not quite a rant, but a genuine thought,

A new day to complain...

The funny thing about life is that you never know what each day will bring. I never started a weblog to spew all kinds of personal grief, but it is what we find in our personal lives that profoundly effects our view of the world. In recent months, my family dynamic has undergone severe changes in both it's quality, as well as quantity. I don't want to get into the details of it all, but I can say that my current situation has given me a lot to be grateful and sorry for. I have become more grateful of the people who's unwavering support have helped guide me thru the rough shoals of the familial harbor. But for all that I have come to appreciate, I have become aware, and sorrowful of events, attitudes, and perspectives that some of my family have kept hidden. To say that I feel like a man without a country, and leader of a nation, all at the same time is an understatement.

I have spent too much of my precious time sitting idley by as the world passed on, and me doing nothing to slow or change it's coarse. It was during that time, that I was blind to the events surrounding me. I tried, unknowingly, to be a peacekeeper, when I should have been being a warlord. I directed all of the justice, I should have focused on my family, on to the world I could control. Spending so much time eigther unaware, or uncaring, of the happenings in my life at home, I have allowed the floodgates to now be opened, and the swells have engulfed my life. I have, but a few life lines, within my grasp. The brothers I have always know, the sister I need to know better, the mother who's love cannot be mistaken, the brother who I never knew, the friend who I call my brother, and the woman who loves me unconditionally.

With all that I see I have lost, I have learned to see what has always been there, as well as all I have gained. Life is a journey that we take in the dark. Each step we take is a step in cement, for we can always retreat, but can never erase the evidence we leave behind. The best we can do is struggle on, and see where the road takes us. Some roads are long and smooth, while others are short but termultious. We each have our own path, but we must always look not only forward but behind. Sometimes, to go further, we must cut free the weights we drag and carry on with only what we need. Love, honor, duty.

In life, just remember who loves you, and be true to the ones you love. Hold on to the lifelines, they will guide you down the road.

And now...Returning from a world wide tour.....

Yes, it is me. Mr. Opinion. I have returned to once again seed the land with my thoughts and views, in order to grow a better future. Nah, I'm just gonna keep writing about what pisses me off. Today, although I have a few subjects to choose from, I will just say, I have returned. Tomorrow will mark the first day of a new series of thoughts. I will continue to pick a topic and expose it for the lies it espouses, or just something I'm ticked off about. So until the geological mass within the third orbital path of the the yellow star, completes one full rotation on it's polar axis, I shall render on to you a bid of well being and fondness.

Prayer for the pets

In the last week, I have been so heart broken. Not only for the innocent victims of Katrina but for the pets that were left behind. I myself have 2 dogs. Brutus a 7 year old 105lb Chow-Mastiff mix, and Cleo a 2 year old Springer Spaniel-Pitt Bull mix. My girlfriend has 3, Chopper, 15 year old border collie, K.C., a 6 year old Border Collie, and Jax, a 2 year old nut job. I cannot imagine a situation in my or my girlfriends life, where we would allow ourselves to be stripped from our beloved pets. I don't want to go getting judgmental, but to the rescue workers who are forcing victims to leave their 4 legged families behind, I say this to you. Every time a police dog took a bullet for an officer, or a search and rescue dog gave his life while pulling someone out of a collapsed building, or a St. Bernard dragged an avalanche victim from the snow, our animals earned, with their blood and loyalty, our respect enough to help them in their time of need. So for all of you who let a dog drown when you could have saved them, I wish that in your time of need, a dog saves you. Look him in the eye, and thank him for his selflessness. Let you live with the burden of failing where they give their lives to help. May God bless the souls of the lost, and keep them close to his heart.

I will return to my usual self after a message from our sponsor.

Death of the language...

I decided to post one "word" a day. I say "word" with a certain level of sarcasm. I think there is an ever evolving virus in the English vernacular. What's worse is that I have no way to name the virus. The one thing I know is that the words I present to you will show their true value when you picture them being said by a 60 year old white man. The words I will list, and only one a day, are some kind of conglomeration of slang that I cannot see being accepted into society but are anyhow.

Today's word is...And get ready for it...Here it comes...Stand back....The crap is about to hit the fan...O.K....Here goes.....This is the one and only time I will ever allow myself to type, or heaven forbid, say.......BLING BLING.

damn, that really hurt. No, seriously, that nearly killed me. I cannot take anymore of this friggin(said in case children read this) syllabic sound. I can't bring myself to say it is a word because really, it isn't. Don't call me a hypocrite for using "friggin", I did that out of respect. Every day, it seems like our culture is under attack from every corner of our own society. I'm not saying "our" culture to describe one race or another, but rather describe the American Culture. I thought that it was bad enough that the word "like" has been interjected into every single conversation as a replacement for concise expression. "She was like, and I was like, and they were like, and we were like, and the dog was like, and the toilet was like" Come on now people, can't we have conversations where it's not a guessing game to figure out what we are all trying to convey?

I hate to think that the language we have had is being altered for the sake of being "hip". Now, I know that our American history, our ancestors both recent and ancient have made our language evolve into something that barely resembles it's origins, but there has to be a line somewhere. Now from the days of the Plymouth settlers, we developed new words. But, these words developed as our lives did. They were invented to describe things people never saw, but there was a difference. Maybe you remember a little thing called ROOT WORDS? Ahhh....Now you see. Root words, and conjunctions are what other words are made of to develop a new word. Most new words developed in the last 200 years were compiled from existing definitions of other things. Or, some words were developed with a root word who's origins come from Latin, Spanish, German, or another descendant language.

But now, words are being developed to sell a counter culture, or just to further separate people into different classes. I offer to you all the fact that as this language continues to splinter, a more serious rift between classes and races will occur. Now I'm not saying that we have to go back to the days of Ye, Thowe, Nay, Yea, and all that, but somewhere, we have to understand that all of this slang terminology that we continue to accept or deny will adversely effect out nations future. If we don't reinforce common grammatical discipline, we will have a culture that is not the world leader, but a culture struggling to be understood not only by the world or by ourselves.

Picture this if you will, and then I will stop. You are the owner of a business and you have to hire someone for a position that deals with customers. You have to candidates for the position, each with identical education, experience, age, for the most part identical. You say the following to each;

I'm glad that you applied for the job, now tell me about yourself.

The first candidate says;

Well, I am a hard working, outgoing type of person and I feel that I would be an asset to your company. I think this is a good avenue to further my experience and my career.

The second candidate says;

Yo Yo Yo, I'm da bom. Yeah Yeah Yeah my nizzle, I'm da sh*t, I bring much to da game, so I can gets my props and some BLING BLING.

Now who would you hire? By the way...The candidates are both 40 and white. Color doesn't matter. Black, white, brown, yellow, red. This is not about race, to me it sounds as ridiculous from a black teen as it is from a white 30 year old. After all, I will post more words that will show that whites have done far more damage to the language than any other race. I can't remember the last time I heard P-Doody(or what ever he calls himself these days), say he was coming out with a new video that was "like, totally awesome dude".

P.S. to prove my point, Bling was identified when I ran the spell check. Any Questions?

Seat Belts and Helmets

Hello kids!!! Today, is not really a good day for me but I'm here, once again, to share my point of view with who ever might read this. I started this blog as a way to vent some frustration and to better articulate my point of view. I find that writing allows me to delve into a subject more profoundly than speaking. Not that I am the type of person who has a vocal deficiency. Today, I want to get to the subject of seat belts, and helmets. I am both an avid driver and motorcycle rider, so I know from where it is that these thoughts come from.
This past week, while a passenger, I was traveling to the New York State Fair, with my girlfriend, and my best friend and his girlfriend. At one time during the journey, we were pulled over and ticketed for going 85 in a 65. Now, bitch as we might, the officer was in the right. Although traveling at a law breaking,high rate of speed, we were keeping with the flow of traffic. But, safe as we were, speed does kill in many instances, so I have no gripe. Also, it was Pete who got the ticket, so how would you feel.
I give this example of a law because it has it's merits. By traveling at a high rate of speed, you can in fact cause an unintended injury to someone else. However, I have never heard of, read, seen, or had been given an example, where a bystander or fellow motorist was injured or killed by someone who was not wearing a seat belt or a helmet. Nowhere have I ever heard that a driver, while involved in a crash, was propelled out of a windshield, and struck a pedestrian. Nor have I heard where a biker was thrown from his steed, and flew head first into a crowd causing an injury to someone else, where a helmet might have made it better.
My whole reason for this rant is that I believe in every fiber of my body that seat belt and helmet laws are direct threat to our individual rights as free Americans. If I choose not to wear a seat belt, and am injured or killed, it is completely my fault. I may not have caused the accident, but my personal protection is up to me. If I crash on my bike, and my head is ruptured on the curb, I cannot blame the curb. My life, is my freedom. Your life is yours. I do not believe that anything you do, that does not pose a risk to someone else should be regulated by any city, state or federal regulation. Now, I'm not saying that you should take your 3 year old child and toss him into the back of your Hummer2 and let him bounce around the back seat like a beach ball. No, you should be required by law to protect a minor from injury as their life is in your hands. But I believe that once your able to vote, drive, or die for your country, you should be able to make decisions that affect your life and it's continuation.
The whole argument comes down to weather or not we will continue to elect polititians that will pander to insurance companies, who want nothing more than to increase premiums while decreasing payouts. It is the insurance companies behind the lobbies to control your personal behavior. As long as humans are an unpredictable species, they will sponsor laws to limit our freedoms so they can make insurance mandatory for every little aspect of your life. There are so many laws that I can get into, but I will save them for further rants. Most of what will be posted to this web log are unjust issues that most people just accept as a way of life. It is my point of view that unless your hurting or posing a risk to someone else, the government has no right to infringe upon us. Remember this next line, it will give you a clue to an upcoming topic. The people should never fear their government, it is a government that should fear it's people.

Oprah Meets Katrina

Once again the wonderful Ms. Winfrey has dedicated herself to exploiting the victims of Kartina for the sake of ratings. I have seen many old video clips of Oprah when she was a reporter back in Chicago, and it seems that she is trying to connect to her roots. For a brief few moments yesterday, while surfing thru the channels, I stumbled onto ABC and saw what I thought was a news program. To my dismay, it was the Oprah show. Ms. Winfrey decided that she would bring her "stylist" or who ever the hell he is to the storm aftermath, and throw her considerable weight around. She made it a point to bully her way into the Superdome to "inspect" the carnage. Mind you, she had to be escorted by police and National Guard members. Why? What point did she have to make? How did she intend on helping the homeless, feeding the hungry, consoling families? The point is, she didn't. Her intent was to drum up ratings at the cost of other peoples suffering. While she's touring the devastation, she is taking time from law enforcement officials, who already have enough to do. Look, I appreciate all that some of the celebrities have done in the face of such trauma, but sometimes, a celebrity can do more with a check than they can ever do with a film crew.