Dare To Ask Talk And News About Our Differences 
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Adam, let me answer your question with a question – how can anyone know what your views are? You didn’t express any. The next question I would ask of you is why is this so important to you? Beliefs, positions and opinions are basically things we espouse based upon personal knowledge, religious teaching, parental influences, environmental influences and peer group influences to name a few. Typically, our beliefs change over time as we mature and add to our list of experiences. What you may feel about an issue today may well be completely different from the way you feel about the same issue in 5 years. If you feel that you may be perceived as pompous by those around you, perhaps it is because you are approaching a time in your life when your belief systems are about to change and you are questioning whether or not this is normal? It is. In my lifetime, I have observed my own opinions changing as I added to my list of experiences and knowledge. Here, in America, regardless of whether you are pompous, naive, inexperienced or immature, your beliefs are what they are. The perception of them rests with the listener. If you believe that your opinions are based upon demonstrable fact, it is unimportant whether or not others agree with you. You may be pompous and I may not agree with you, but you have the right to your own opinion. Likewise, I have the right to ignore them.
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Name : Pete S., Gender : M, Age : 51, City : Orlando, State : FL, Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College,Interesting question, Russell. Perhaps there is a body of research on this topic that would provide you with a more direct answer. My opinion is that race is not a factor in the type of or tendency toward violence, either in general or specifically. Nutty people, like ice cream, come in all different flavors. We can see people from all different walks of life and different races engaging in different kinds of violence. Not all whites are mass murderers, not all blacks or Mexicans are gang-bangers or drug runners. Each of us make choices based upon a variety of factors of which education, socioeconomic scale and environment are certainly factors.
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Name : Pete S., Gender : M, Age : 51, City : Orlando, State : FL, Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College,Priya, I think that what you are noticing is different people’s sense of taste. We all notice different things about different people – sometimes we notice eyes, or hair, or clothes, or figure. That’s why there are different flavors of ice cream.
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Name : Pete S., Gender : M, Age : 51, City : Orlando, State : FL, Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College,I’m a simple person, Courtney, and simple people like simple things. Bottom line, don’t make it an issue. If someone REALLY wants to know if you are black or Native American, what they are really asking you is about your ethnic background. Unless you want to participate in the promotion or continuation of racism, all you have to do is smile and say ‘I’m American’. Your ethnic heritage is your business. I love Tiger Woods’ response when reporters asked him about his ethnic background, he responds that he’s ‘cablinasian’. If you aren’t aware, Tiger is basically a self-contained United Nations. He’s Chinese, American, Black, Indian and Asian – cablinasian.
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Name : Pete S., Gender : M, Age : 51, City : Orlando, State : FL, Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College,The good news, Denise, is that what you are experiencing is not race-related. The simple fact is that men hate to be caught checking out an attractive female. I do it myself and have to laugh at me for it. It’s silly, I know, and is probably a learned behavior from high school when we didn’t want the girls to know we might be attracted to them or think they are cute. If you are experiencing this a lot, relax, it means you’re a ‘looker’. That’s a good thing. 🙂
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Name : Pete S., Gender : M, Age : 51, City : Orlando, State : FL, Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College,Jason, I’d like to tell you that legalizing drugs would be a great idea but, the reality is that nothing could be more destructive to a society than legalizing drugs. Let me tell you a true story about a country where cocaine was considered not only legal, it was considered beneficial to use. Since there were no taboos against its use, everyone eventually began to use cocaine to excess. How could it be bad?, they thought, it made you feel so good. Because they craved ‘feeling good’ so much, they began to spend more time with their drugs and less time with the necessities of life. Eventually, the crops were left to die and rot in the fields, manufacturing stopped so there were no goods to sell. With no goods to sell, there was no money for taxes and the government went broke and failed. Even the ruler of the country became addicted to ‘feeling good’ and stopped placing the needs of his country above his own need to ‘feel good’. The problem was that when the drug wore off, the good feeling went with it. The country in this story, Jason, was China and the time was the late 19th century. China was conquered by the British who just walked in and took over. That’s why drugs shouldn’t be legalized. If they took down a country like China, what do you think they will do to sports?
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Name : Pete S., Gender : M, Age : 51, City : Orlando, State : FL, Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College,I think racism stems from several causes – white people fear blacks because they’re ‘different,’ meaning not white. Blacks are angry at whites because of their history of slavery in this country. The government doesn’t help any by focusing on race-related issues. For example, when you fill out your census form, you will be asked your race. This information is only used to promote racism and develop meaningless statistics showing that one race has something different than another race. If we focus on skin color alone, we degrade all people to the status of crayons. I’m not a crayon, and I suspect you aren’t, either. If we really want to eliminate racism, we can start by seeing each other as humans and not colors. When we can relate on that level, our differences assume a much different character.
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Name : Pete S., Gender : M, Age : 51, City : Orlando, State : FL, Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College,Good question, Crystal, hopefully I can help you sort out a good answer. First, let’s qualify what is meant by ‘elderly’. I’m 51 and my wife is 42. We married 6 years ago and it is the first marriage for us both. Neither of us has children and we agreed that we didn’t want them because we were kind of set in our ways and didn’t have the best childhoods ourselves. Is our quality of life worse? Beats me. We go to the theme parks in Orlando on a regular basis, we engage in recreational activities and enjoy the time we spend together. We compensate, to some extent, by having pets – LOTS of pets. We are the proud parents of 2 dogs, 11 cats, 4 birds and fish. All of those critters are as special to us as another family’s children are to them. If there is a difference in the quality of our lives as oppsed to those with children, well, I just don’t see it. By the way, who says you have to be ‘old and alone’?
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Name : Pete S., Gender : M, Age : 51, City : Orlando, State : FL, Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College,Interesting question, Sonia, one more people should ask. On the positive side, different cultures revere those who have succeeded and championed on the playing field. We love the combat, whether physical or mental, of seeing contestants in a game best their competition in a well-played game. On the negative side, once most atheletes leave school and turn professional, in my opinion, they turn into overpaid crybabies. I get tired of hearing overpaid professional atheletes complain about how tough their lives are or how they can’t get by on several million dollars a year and need more. In the early 80’s, there was a basketball player in San Antonio, Texas named George ‘The Iceman’ Gervin. George, at that time, was earning around $360,000/year and complained that it was just too hard to live on that kind of money. At that time, I was living reasonably well on less than 1/10th of that. Well a radio station in Dallas, Texas took up a collection for George as a joke. After 1 month, they collected $0.63 which they sent to him. Sports just ain’t all that.
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Name : Pete S., Gender : M, Age : 51, City : Orlando, State : FL, Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College,Good question, Jenna, it strikes on multiple planes. Let’s see, where to begin. Obviously, from a 15-year-old’s perspective, adults are getting on your nerves with all their ‘rules’ and you are questioning their function in society. That’s a good thing, it means that you are beginning to get involved in the larger world outside of that which you have known for the past 15 years. In other words, you’re growing up. To be sure, adults don’t always have the right answer, whether it is to maintain peace or anything else. We haven’t done such a great job in the past, look at all the wars and conflicts we have had in the history of the world. These conflicts weren’t initiated by kids, it was by the adults who were supposed to make the best decisions for all of us. One thing that most intelligent adults recognize is that life is a continual learning process. Just because we finished school doesn’t mean that we stopped learning. That accumulated knowledge is supposed to provide us some insights on life and how to maintain the peace. It doesn’t always make us right, it only makes us experienced. Someone much smarter than I once said ‘those who don’t know their history are condemned to repeat it.’ If we apply what life has taught us and we know our history, we should be able to do a better job of maintaining the peace. Therein lies what I believe is the root of the issue for you, Jenna. Most of us slept through history and don’t pay any attention to it now, therefore, we are repeating it on all levels of society.
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Name : Pete S., Gender : M, Age : 51, City : Orlando, State : FL, Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College,Interesting question, Dan. I think that to get a good understanding of this issue, you need to examine works of literature such as Oedipus Rex. If you recall the story, Oedipus, who was abandoned at an early age, unknowingly murdered his father and married his mother. When he learned the truth, he blinded himself because his own image in a mirror was too horrible for him to accept. Nature, literature and religion all record the basic taboo of having sex with one’s mother. Even in the animal world, this taboo is never violated. Nature often retaliates such an act by creating an offspring of such a relationship who is either deformed, severely handicapped or stillborn. The utter degradation and sin of such an act is considered by virtually every culture on this planet as the most vulgar act any male can commit. Thus, when one calls another a motherf****r, the recipient of the curse has been called the lowest thing on earth. I think that is the origin and meaning of the curse.
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Name : Pete S., Gender : M, Age : 51, City : Orlando, State : FL, Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College,Clearly, Alex,you have different priorities than the other kids with whom you have spoken. Computers, TVs and car are all nice representations of living a prosperous life full of things, but they can never replace having friends, outside activities or knowledge. Perhaps you like to read or skateboard or engage in other activities. There’s nothing wrong with that. It most likely means that you have other interests which may well lead you to found the next billion-dollar company when you are 22. Most wealthy, creative people have little time for the ‘luxuries’ we obtain in life, they’re busy creating the next major achievement in their lives. Things will always be things. But, things are just that. Unless you are an extremely shallow person (and I doubt that you are) the things that others value are meaningless to you. If someone else feels comfortable surrounding themselves with things, that’s their choice, it doesn’t mean that you have to be like them. Travel your own path; in the long run you’ll appreciate your own achievements more because you didn’t go along with the crowd.
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Name : Pete S., Gender : M, Age : 51, City : Orlando, State : FL, Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College,This is a tough question, Adam, I applaud you for asking. I’m not sure that anyone has an answer. My opinion is not so much the right to bear arms in America, but more the fact that our society has deteriorated to the extent that can’t express ourselves freely anymore. To get attention or let people know that we are angry or hurt, we grab the easiest thing we can find to gain attention. Look at everything that happens when someone uses a gun – they get to have their picture on TV and they get their names read on the air and printed in the paper. For someone who doesn’t feel very important, this makes them important. We can stem the tide of gun violence here and in other countries by teaching people to think about their actions and the consequences they bring. It’s not the best solution, but it’s a start.
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Name : Pete S., Gender : M, Age : 51, City : Orlando, State : FL, Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College,The Japanese tea ceremony seems a little silly to outsiders, but it is a very formalized occasion in Japan that is rooted in custom and ceremony. The tea ceremony is performed for formal occasions or for special occasions or people. It is an indication of great respect and has a series of very specific steps which must be followed in sequence. Because it is such a formal ceremony, it is not performed casually. The ceremony is mainly a customary sign or respect and is not, to my knowledge, related to religion, politics or anything else. Hope this helps, C.P.
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Name : Pete S., Gender : M, Age : 51, City : Orlando, State : FL, Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College,Wow, Lamar, you really know how to get right to the core of the issue. Having ‘been there and done that’, let me offer you some insights that you will probably reject because it doesn’t fit with what we men like to think about ourselves. Here’s the simple fact – you’re chasing the wrong women! I did the same thing and had the same thoughts as you. Then I met and married my wife at the tender age of 45. It was the first marriage for us both because we both had the same experiences as you. It isn’t a problem with all women any more than it is a problem with all men, it’s just that you’re looking in the wrong room. You don’t have to be a jerk to get a girl because the girl who wants a jerk will NEVER appreciate you. Be who you are and, most importantly, be patient. The right girl will come along eventually and, when she does, you’ll know – believe me, you’ll know. Remember this about the women seeking ‘bad boys’, most of them have pretty poor self-image and are seeking someone who will treat them in a way which reinforces that poor self-image. They don’t know how to respond to someone who doesn’t know how to make them feel bad about themselves, that’s why they’re not interested in you. Hang in there, man, and just be the nice guy that you are. In the long run, both you and the right girl you find will both appreciate it.
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Name : Pete S., Gender : M, Age : 51, City : Orlando, State : FL, Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College,
