Manns Medium

Many people seemed quite confused about the value of a relationship, any relationship, so today I would like to try and help some understand what makes relationships. For some it’s the interaction, for others it’s the distance you travel mentally and emotionally and for others it’s the results at the end of the day.   Believe it or not relationships are those things and so much more but the common thread that holds it all together is past experience. An example is in my past I met a real true angel named Susan.   She showed me what life, love and happiness was all about.   I did not know that then because I had never experienced it before.   I thought it was all about choosing a mate and sticking with them through thick and thin but when it became apparent that it was solely my idea and not one shared by those sharing a relationship with me, that idea soured.   Because that was my only idea of a relationship, I flopped around like a fish out of water f...

Now this is quite rich, an aide tried the Snap Challenge and failed but still deems himself the Snap Challenge Champion after one week, why this is so rich is because he discounts all those who have been surviving on Snap for years.   Take a look at the article written by Igor Volsky for Think Progress titled “Aide to Republican Congressman Fails to Live on Food Stamps for a Week” “An aide to Rep. Steve Stockman (R-TX) failed the so-called “SNAP Challenge” last week, just days after accusing Democrats of “intentionally buying overpriced food and shopping at high-priced chains.” The aide, Donny Ferguson, accepted the challenge in response to dozens of Democrats who lived off the program for a week to draw attention to the inadequacy of the average benefit of $4.50 per day. In a press release issued by Stockman’s office, Ferguson initially bragged that he “was able to buy enough food to eat well for a week on just $27.58, almost four dollars less than the $31.50 “SNAP Cha...

Rep. John Boehner has an opportunity to create a legacy that will live on long after many of us.   He has a chance to turn his party (The Republican Party) around.   There are those whose only concern is to wipe out all of the hard work others have done to make our country great and Boehner has a chance stop them in their tracks.   Like any addiction, the addict must want to change before change can be affected.   Those currently controlling the strings of the party do not wish to change.   John Boehner, by getting the immigration bill, the American Jobs Act, and stopping the squeeze on America even if it takes working with Democrats.   Republicans are looking for anyone with the heart to lead in the taking back of their party; John Boehner could be that person.

As a dad who has fallen behind on child support, I was very interested in your story yesterday.  It taught me that people often hide behind personal attitudes and use the law to justify their bias.  There are so many saying that it is all about the kids, which I strongly believe is a lie and a cover.  If it really was about the kids, courts would mandate visitation instead of money, parents would seek to unite kids with their missing parent, unless that parent refuses to have anything to do with the child, or has shown signs of abusing the child.  Money does not raise a child nor does it replace the love, attention and closeness of a parent.  You speak of deadbeat dads and you make is sound like anyone who falls behind on child support, does not love, care for or would give their life for their child.   Now the object is to take away driver's license, so how could a decent dad ever find and secure a job depending on rides from other people or RMTD...

The number one question is all of media centers around Edward Snowden who some say, bravely risk his life to bring us this revelation that our government has been spying on us in a most horrendous way.   The question of hero or traitor is being banned about like a tennis ball with each side presenting their takes and depending on whom you talk to or who is interviewed, one may walk away wishing to believe each separately.   News flash, Edward Snowden is no hero. Check you history America before you go tagging Mr. Snowden with the title of hero.   My fellow military members are heroes.   Firefighters, police officers, teachers, whistleblowers-on occasion, employers, employees, single moms and dads, unselfish givers and activists are but a few examples of heroes and Edward Snowden is nothing like any of them.   You see, heroes run toward the battle not away from it.   Heroes stand up and make attempts at fixing the problem; they do not sneak or sell th...

My journey began the day that I was born but I did not know it.   From the moment I opened my eyes and took my first breath, a plan of my life was formed and I began walking it the first moment I took my first step. Many of us look to what we have accomplished as a measure of our life but I have come to know that it isn’t what we have accomplished that makes our lives fulfilled, it’s who we have comforted.   We go through life looking for that brass ring and waiting on that dock for our ship to come in, what we fail to realize is that all that time we were looking for that brass ring or waiting on our ship, God had place that silver spoon in our hands and had already given us that boat to get to that other side.   We use the spoon to feed ourselves and the boat to fish with but we refused to cross over for fear of missing that ship. God was with me from the day I touched my first dead body and he supported me through all of the good and bad times before and after...

Turn on your television to any national news channel and all you may hear is this argument about the need for security pitted against the desire for privacy or the roles of journalist versus the attention span of the public.   Each argument has its merits and each has its flaws but the one thing that each of the warring factions seem to ignore is that nether has to suffer complete defeat and a compromise is well within reach.   Stop with all of your “the world is ending” drama, step back and think and be amazed at how easily all these issues can be resolved. Case in point, first we must all be willing to re-define the definitions of these words that we wreckfully toss about as if we are auditioning from some bumper sticker.   We must look to our past not to repeat but to learn from.   With all of the intelligence being wasted on just chasing our tails, going around in circles and never solving anything, surely that intelligence could be used to once again solv...

The debate today is the balance between keeping America safe from terrorists to honoring the privacy of all Americans.   With the NSA now being exposed to have mined billions of data which can be considered extremely private by some are now being looked at as being only personal by many.   The questions now are how to and what would you call a real balance between the two. For those who might think this is criminal and should be stopped immediately, the first question must be what do you have to hide?   Are you cheating on your wife or partner and wish not to be discovered?   Are you afraid that if you say anything negative about your government, you would soon be followed by the Men in Black or hear black helicopters? Or are you just an average person who feels that the government should be prohibited from mining your data without your permission?   What would you say if I told you that all the government receives are a group of phones numbers and no con...

When I first read the article titled “ Churches Sever Ties With Boy Scouts For Accepting Gay Youth” written by David Crary for the Associated Press, I was furious but the more I read, the more it became clear to me that these so-called churches are doing nothing but fulfilling the scriptures as written and taught by Jesus himself.   I say this to the Boys Scouts of America, hold your head up and hold it high, a man more worthy of reverence endured something quite similar to what you may be experiencing now, that man was Jesus Christ. The article reports that “In suburban Atlanta, northern Idaho and a number of other places, churches have moved swiftly to sever ties with the Boy Scouts of America in protest over the vote last month to let openly gay boys participate in Scouting.   But the exodus could soon swell, depending on the outcome of the Southern Baptist Convention’s annual meeting next week in Houston.” Baptist churches in Elizabethtown and Rineyville, Ky., Helen...

There used to be a time when being conservative was a good thing.   It was a time when you never rushed into anything and was quite detailed in your decision making.   You would not seek to waste anything including opportunity but that was before others decided to redefine the term and tag others, especially Republicans, with it.   Here are just a few examples of those labeled conservative and how they are truly not and giving those of us who are a very bad name.   Take for example this story titled “ Federal Appeals Court Judge Said Blacks, Hispanics ‘Predisposed to Crime,’ Lawsuit Alleges ” by Nicole Flatow.   It is written “Chief Judge Edith Jones, a federal judge who, until recently, led what are arguably the nation’s most conservative federal appeals court said blacks and Hispanics are more prone to commit crimes, according to a lawsuit filed this week. Although the remarks by U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit Judge Edith Jones were not rec...