j_war06

Yeah, it is your responsibility when they are young like that, but if they are old enough to drive then it is a stress reliever. You dont have to be worried about being late work, or taking off early or anything like that. My parents went to work at about 7 am in the morning, and my mom would get off around 4 and my dad about 2. Not to mention my senior year I would have needed a ride to college and back. I went to school from about 9-12 my senior year, then college from 12-1:30 on M-R, and I got out at 12 on Fridays, so it would have been difficult to make those arrangements.

Just to throw this is in, if my parents were to have taken away my cell phone or my car keys my senior year, I really wouldnt have cared because that would have burdened them. Like, not the cell thing, thats no big deal, I would break mine and be weeks at a time without a phone, so that was no big deal for them to take it. But my car, if they were to take away my car, then they would have had to take off work and take me to school, and pick me up from school, and God only knows what hours because of play practice. I mean you cant miss that, then you dont get a recommendation for college. OR they would have to take me to do everything I had to do and they would have had to rearrange their whole schedules and punish themselves trying to punish me. I really didnt get in any trouble in highschool except breaking curfew, and I was grounded once for that, and it was my sophomore year. Im grown and live on my own and my parents still threaten to put me over there knee, which doesnt work for every kid, but it has worked on me my entire life lol! Discipline is such a hard thing to do because it is different for every kid, what my parents should have done to me is take away my TV, because I cant sleep without it, but I guess they never thought of that...

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU MOUSECRAZY! I know you probably do not completely agree with my views, which I will admit are somehat radical, but I do agree with what you are saying here. That quote was full and busting out of political agenda and accusations rather than facts. SO ONCE MORE< THANK YOU

Actually, I want to thank you for using actually in depth thought, I dont care whether someone agrees with me or not, I just wanted someone to ANALYZE it, and know what is being within the text. I appreciate this tons. Actually, I do believe that people, by nature, are bad. Hear me out on this, all people have mischevious thoughts, whether they are minor or major all people try to do something that they shouldnt. It is a thrill and adrenaline rush, that is not to say all people want to murder, or rape or whatever. I do mean that everyone has their sins. They have probably cheated on something in school, they have sped in their cars. That doesnt make them a bad person, but they have broken the law which we associate with being bad. This is really hard to explain. Philosophy is so deep when one actually thinks about the subjects that are presents within the text of a work.

I dont know everything, if I did I wouldnt be in college.......Im not trying to say I know everything, I just know what I am talking about when discussing certain great thinkers because I go to that class and/or study it all the time because it is my passion and I dont know everything about it, thats why Im still in the class and taking more. I just wanted to prove that even negativity can be turned around and shown in a different light, and used for good.

You have to take parts and use the symbollism in his words and the wisdom that he shares since he is a philosopher, and therefore is higher ranked than any one other than other philosophers, therefore you must respect his thought since he can put it all together in a reasonable manner, and therefore he must have some good thoughts which one can take from his speaking. I do not mean to say anyone should be Machiavellian, but instead take from his works and learn and grow and pick out the parts that pertain to certain instances, rather than the whole thing. You have to pick apart paragraphs and decide what you want to believe in, and how to apply it to our government in today's time. My eyes are open, I know what the hell Im talking about I do this indepth study every single day, its what I do, I dont work, I study...

This is totally off topic from the quote that I used. Point is he was a great political thinker. Would you rather Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, St. Thomas, St. Augustine, Marx (whom I despise), who? All people have their great flaws in their perception of the world. The problem is the people who think that it rains gumdrops and daisies, and everything can be fixed with one switch of power. That is the true ignorance. Machiavelli's advice is good, just because you do not fully understand what is being said (obviously) or context that it is used in, does not mean that I or anyone else is ignorant. I like Machiavelli, as a matter of fact Im using his theory to write a paper about abortion in the United States right now. You guys need to see beyond the obvious and look in depth to the reality, get past the cover the shell of a politician and see into them. They all lie, cheat, scandalize, but thats because they must to win the vote, which is contradictory I know, but they must make EVERYONE a friend, which is impossible, so therefore they make neither friends nor enemies. OPEN YOUR MINDS! And I swear if you are a teacher and you had to look up Machiavelli in a dictionary or encylcopedia, then wow is all I have to say, wow. Ive known of Machiavelli for somewhat 3-4 years now.

The rich are rich because of good business decisions. If they inherited it, then they have either wasted it to nothing or are still rich due to wise decisions. Business is run in a particular way, and if you get rich you get rich. But labor ends up paying badly for citizens trying not to live on the government, but for noncitizens or those living off the government they pay pretty well and that is the majority of ppl who work those jobs, so therefore the raises will not be raised by much because ppl are content with their wages. I do believe that many professions are underpaid, including teachers, but it also depends what school district you teach at, many teachers at many schools make a lot of money. An average teacher, with experience, probably makes a little more than my mom does every year. I mean, we have everything we have ever needed and/or wanted and are happy. However there are other professions that should be paid more

The trick is, the time you spend not in class, you read. Class is ridiculous, all the professors do and talk about their own agendas and repeat what the book says. When I do go to class I sit on the internet and chat on AIM MSN MySpace, etc etc and on and on...I still partake in discussions, but I would rather study here than listen to an agenda about some stupid nasty birds in Mexico. You know? I go to my poli sci classes, because that is my major, but other than that, I dont go half the time. But that is off topic, just an example...In reality you can not tell her to go to college, but like I said you can bargain with her to try it. I KNOW its a lot of money to waste if she decided not to go, but just think of the hardships you could save her down the road if the outcome is positive. Once she is 18, and if she moves out, then its her life to live. I know its hard, my parents are dealing with it right now too. I go out to clubs almost every night, but I dont tell them so that they dont worry because they are far away. I am happier and healthier than Ive ever been in my entire life and its thanks to college allowing me independance. In this day and age, you have to go get a degree to do almost anything, plus she probably has a serious case of senioritis, she will eventually make the right decision if it was in her head before, it didnt just disappear

Wow, thats true rebellion lol, Ive seen my friends go through that (them doing it ofcourse and always remembered how much they would regret it, and they do). She will snap into it sometime, I promise, but if you just standby, she will not snap out of it.

Im 19, and have many older friends. I have had "relationships" if you want to call it that with guys that are 23, 25, 26, 24 and so on...But I know my responsibilities to myself and to others, and therefore use reasonal judgement on my actions, I dont let it get in the way of school. But ofcourse I live on my own, and am out of that rebelious stage in life, which I never went through. I was a homebody in high school, so I never really did any of this, but my friends did, and I see what happens. Help her make decisions and be a friend, but advise her as a parent if that makes sense? Be both, try to like this guy, maybe he can help out, but most likely he will not, unless he is super special. Let her experiment and see the consequences, but if it gets bad, lay down a few rules, but not too harsh, you dont want her to think you are JUST doing it because you may not like her BF, but rather because you are concerned for her future and her education, which should be true.

Where I live I can get a whole 2 bedroom 2 bath town house for about $800 a month in a nice neighborhood. Yes it does matter, it is always a good idea to analyze hypothetical situations, otherwise there is no point in making them if you do not ask questions about them. What is the point if your are not going to raise questions? Also, Machiavelli's point is that you neither make friends nor enemies as a politician, but rather carress or annihiliate whoever the need maybe to do so. It is political thought, it is an amazing thing. You have to look at it in theory and apply it to today's issues in order to understand the art of philisophical thinking, and not take its literal meaning. You must use your enlightenment to understand the issue and think in depth rather than what comes to the top of your brain, but thank you for actually reading the piece. Also, Iraq was fine, they were no threat to us in reality, now North Korea they are a threat, but Bush had to finish his daddy's business and jumped on them, although there was no actual reasonable cause. Why is the US concerned with other countries' business? Anyways this is off topic, sorry

I just know that I moved off to college and realized how stupid I was to be serious in highschool, and how immature I was back then. College, living on my own, made me grow up so fast, I dont want to mess with anyone like this guy she is discussing, while in highschool I would have. I see it happening with all my friends, they have been away from their bf/gf for a couple months, with little contact, they are all breaking up and being happy. BTW, you dont have to go to class to pass, just know what you are doing

No that is ridiculous ^ I just graduated last year. She thinks she's in love, trust me, but in reality if she is to move off to another town, not even very far away, and goto college she will become more mature than to act the way she is now. If you can bear with it, and make an agreement with her that she moves and goes to college for at least one year, not in the same town as her bf, I promise you will see change

Where is the child support. Cities pay more than towns, do you think I wanted to move 7hours away from my hometown and all the family Ive ever known? NO, but I had to. Why didnt she have more college? 2 years is nothing these days.

Thank you very much, this is really how I feel too, but they wont understand this

also I love how everyone skipped over my quote as if it werent even there

They should move to a cheaper city, like the one I live in. Why didnt she finish highschool? Its free...Why didnt she go to college? Doesnt she have parents or other family? Why is she single?

Wow! I have found that since college, I really dont see as much discrimination against me, I get job offers all the time, I get hit on a lot, and I really have a blast. I dont ever feel too uncomfortable around others, although I am still mentally scarred from the past...hmmm....this is interesting, is it because I have lost more weight? Would it be different if I still weighed the same? Is it because I am in a sorority? Or are people really more open-minded here than in my old town? I dunno, but I like it

What are yall doing to have that high of an electric bill? seriously tho? my house in Jasper is like $100, and the barn that my friend owns, which is huge with a rodeo arena, is like $300. I would definately make a few phone calls and see if these charges are correct

one more thing for now... "...I say that every prince must desire to be considered merciful and not cruel. He must, however, take care not to misuse this mercifulness. Cesere Borgia was considered cruel, but his cruelty had brought order to Romagna, united it, and reduced it to peace and fealty. A prince, therefore, must not mind incurring the charge of cruelty for the purpose of keeping his subjects united and faithful; for, with a very examples, he will be more merciful than those who, from excess of tenderness, allow disorders to arise, from whence spring bloodshed and rapine; for these as a rule injure the whole community, while the executions carried out by the prince injure only individuals. And of all princes, it is impossible for a new prince to escape the reputation of cruelty, new states being always full of dangers. Wherefore Virgil through the mouth of Dido says: [hard necessity and the newness of my realm, compel me to do such things and to protect my borders everywhere] (The Aeneid) Nevertheless, he must be cautious in believingand acting, and must not be afraid of his own shadow, and must proceed in a temperate manner with prudence and humanity, so that too much confidence does not render him incautious, and too much diffidence does not render him intolerant. From this arises the question whether it is better to be loved more than feared, or feared more than loved. The reply is, that one ought to be both feared and loved, but as it is difficult for the two to go together, it is much safer to be feared more than loved, if one has to be wanting. For it may be said of men in general that they are ungrateful, voluble, dissemblers, anxious to avoid danger, and covetous of gain; as long as you benefit them, they are entirely yours; they offer you their blood, their goods, their life, and their children, as I have before said, when the necessity is remote; but when it approaches, they revolt. And the prince who has relied solely on their words, without making other preparations ruined; for the friendship which is gained by purchase and not through grandeur and nobility of spirit is bought but not secured, and at a pinch is not to expended in your service. And men have less scruple in offending one who makes himself loved than one who makes himself feared; for love is held by a chain of obligation which, men being selfish, is broken whenever it serves their purpose; but fear is maintained by a dread of punishment which never fails. Still a prince should make himself feared in such a way that if he does not gain love, he at any rate avoids hatred; for fear and the abscence of haterd may well go together, and will be always attained by one who abstains from interfering with the property of his citizens and subjects or with their women. ....I conclude, therefore, with regard of being feared and loved, that men love at their own free will, but fear at the will of the prince, and that a wise prince must rely on what is in his power and not on what is in the power of others, and he must only contrive to avoid incurring hatred, as has been explained." THE PRINCE, Niccolo Machiavelle This is just something to think about when deciding upon politics and who to vote for. One must remember such political thinkers when deciding who will rule their city, state, country, whatever, a ruler is a ruler, and is therefore a prince....But Im not going into all that, however just consider the above.

Im not a Republican, but I do lean in that direction. I am a Free Enterpriser, I do not strictly vote one way or the other, I vote according to who I feel fits the bill best. People can help who they become, Ive seen it happen numerous times

I lived in a town that was roughly 60% black, I dont care what anyone else says, if you havent lived there you dont know the statistics, and 45% white, and 5% other races. I saw it abused mostly by the black people, I have many black friends dont get me wrong, just in Jasper that is who abuses it the most, oh and the white trash who keeps popping out babies and has like 5 before she's 20 all with different daddys. It is the lower class people who use it, and Jasper is lower class (and I dont mean black people are lower class, just many in Jasper are). I believe if it is used for a good cause then use the money and give it to help, but people should make arrangements because you never know when you are going to die, so make arrangements, keep a savings account in case of any emergency, use investments, I just really believe you become who you want to be, your family doesnt determine that. YES I agree that it is harder to be motivated to go to college when your parents and generations before that have lived off welfare entirely and solely for years, but get some go in you and strive to be who you want to be, instead of selling crack at the end of MLK street (true story btw). I dont understand how an electric bill can be $500.00 Im not saying your lying, I mean that is rather impressive. Your house must be huge. I just know that I have no pity for the poor, they got in that position some how, and they can find a way out. As for me, I am the first generation in my family to attended college and Im doing perfectly fine. Ive never had any other thought than to go to college and make myself more successful than my parents (whom got along ok without a college education). And I dont mean this to sound cruel, but it wasnt the government's fault your father died, please dont hate me, it sounds heartless I know, but if my father died tomorrow (or my mother) I would not expect one penny from the government. They pretty much forced us to take FEMA money which we in turn gave to other victims that were friends of ours who had lost their houses. Once again tho, hurricane survival couldnt be helped, and neither can the death of a loved one under most circumstances, fate is what it is and one can not escape that, however the government is for the betterment of the country not select individuals. I suppose I just grew up around the wrong kind of welfare use. When my friend got pregnant at 16 years old, she didnt even use the WIC program or anything, she realized it wasnt the government's fault that she and her partner were irresponsible and therefore worked to pay the bills, and still does. The government only rewards the poor, not the ones that are striving to beat that. One good example... My friend who has been brought up in a VERY low income home (about $15,000 a year) whose father has run off on several occassions and has multiple children (yes she was brought up white trash basically) has become more than that. She and her sister decided they were not going to be like the rest of the family and use the government. She has worked for every penny she has for the last 4-5 years, both girls do. She has supported herself allt hrough highschool. When they filed for a grant with FAFSA, they were denied on the basis their parents were married, solely that purpose. They cant afford school, but they are making it somehow. She always made enough to have what she needed and most of what she wanted. She learned to manage money and become responsible, unlike her parents. So I know from my friend's experience that it is possible

See, I did not mean in any way to totally catagorize senior citizens as morphine addicts and I apologize for that. The area of law I go into deals with politics. I know what you all are saying, and I will tell you that my children will never go to public schools, I grew up in them and I hated them, if they want to try it for a year or whatever I will let them make that decision, but until they can make that decision they will be privately schooled. I do support Perry in every way, I feel he is more qualified than anyone else in this race, he is more prepared to take on the leadership role and has that personality, while the others seem more like sheep following others to graze. Yes people died in Jasper from the hurricane, no it was not reported as starvation, it was reported as "natural causes", it was mostly lack of medical attention. I am a firm believer that my money is my money, if someone else wants that money, then they should earn it. Not file papers to get government money and sit around watching free cable that they are stealing from the neighbors all day long. I believe people make themselves and they control their success. As long as the world revolves around money (and it always will until it inevitably is explodes from the heat of the sun and thinning Ozone) then thats what people should think of. I pay for my school, no one else. I pay for all my own things and I earned that money and saved it for 10 years before college in investments and such. I think that when taxes are taken from your check they should go towards fixing public things, (schools, highways, parks, etc...) not to individuals. The government should set up something like a 401k to where they take a certain chosen amount from each check and put it away until you are of age to draw it, that way your money is not wasted on others and then there is always the fear that there will be no money left for us, that is why I am for this plan. Ive heard several times through high school and in Pols classes that there will be no more money left for my generation for SS, I would rather have my own, which I will ofcourse. Although it should not be the government's issue to make sure that every person who does not have a PS3 has one, they are not Santa Claus. Im sorry, in Jasper this is what I saw, and I see it where I live now, people misusing the government's money (which is theirs since we release it to them). I dont mind the sales tax here, its no big deal, in fact I am a firm supporter of the sin tax although I both smoke and drink, if that money can go to something that helps the public then I am happy, but to individuals who cant handle their own money and therefore have to spend someone else's money, you are not getting one red cent from me anymore. I no longer work for a corporation and I officially work for myself on a strictly cash only basis. I dont make a lot of money doing what I do, but it works. I am a middle class American, and I feel that the lower classes get all the treatment. They are catered to day in and day out, and do they ever better themselves, no, they just breed a new generation of poor and maybe eventually one will get a sports scholarship to go play for a college and maybe wont get kicked off the team for possession of illegal substances. I know that I am young, but my opinion counts too and I definately know what is going on in the US, I study every single day, past and present, and even future. I am not an advanced student, and I do not know everything, but I do know how I feel and I feel like the middle-class is forgotten about too often. Its hard for me to go to school and pay that 3000 dollars per semester plus afford to live plus housing. As for electricity, screw it, we need it use it in a conservative manner and you should be fine. My parents pay about $70-$100 a month in utilities for a 2200 square foot home, thats not that bad. We need it, or at least I do, so I use it. I live where all my utilities are paid, so I can use it all up as much as a I want. But if I had to pay them I would invest in some candles and only turn the lights on at night. Just pay it, prices will fluctuate up and down forever, I LOVE TEXAS we have a lot of really nice things going for us and we tend to be slightly respected (even the people who say they hate us must respect us in some way because they have something to hate us for, and therefore consider it threatening to be around us in some way, I know weird to explain this theory on here). Anyways, Texas is a great state, we have everything anyone could need and more.....Oh BTW, Public Schools should focus more on the behavior of the children rather than the teachers, if you want better teachers focus on universities, but students cause themselves and others to not be able to learn.

So if he doesnt care about children or education or the state at all, why did he come to my small town and shake all of the Texas Scholars' hands and do a speech, as well as sit and talk with us like a normal human being. Why did he come to my little bittie town and talk about the hurricane and try to make arrangements for help. WE WERE ALL STARVING and the elderly were dying because no rations of food or Water or gas were getting to Jasper, and when he got there and saw the situation he immediately declared a disaster zone and the dying stopped. I know I know this is his job, but you all are accusing him of not doing his job, where as from my point of view he is because he kept my town alive. He also made my classmates and I feel honored to have him at our Texas Scholars luncheon, he spoke to the boys about football, and the girls about college and their future. I remember that day well. I support Rick Perry, I always have, in fact Im rather not broke. I dont see why I would be? I dont really have to spend my money on anything, and if I do its cheap, it isnt affecting me and I dont see it affecting everyone else. Go live somewhere that you have to pay higher and more taxes, then see how expensive Texas is. The world's prices are going up, mainly because the US is pissing everyone off, not because some miniscule State Governor is meddling and scamming... Rick Perry does not value children, education, teachers, or the working class. Want to know why we have so much money in the state coffers now, with more pouring in all the time? Because Rick Perry cut Medicaid to millions of poor Texas children and elderly. He skimmed money off dedicated programs (special license plate sales, lottery, utility assistance,etc) and added it to the general fund. Now he wants to do away with the business tax, which hasn't even gone into effect yet. Let me tell you guys something about the poor and the elderly. The elderly are paid through national government, that is a national government program, you know how I know? BECAUSE I PAY FOR IT! I give them every dime (not to offend anyone, but this is my opinion only). That is my money, I should get to put it in my own fund for when I am old, not to support someone's morphine habit. They should have been more prepared, their parents should have been more prepared, its the baby boomers and they eat up more money than my ciggerettes and booze do in a pay check (when I had a job). I am not a Republican or a Democrat, I am a Free Enterpriser. I believe that 95% of the poor in this country are poor for a reason. I come from a town where the median income for a whole family (2 adults, to children) is $22,000.00 a year. YES A YEAR. Had they moved to a city they could probably have the same job, making twice that much a piece. Had they finished FREE HIGH SCHOOL they would get better job offers, and possibly financial aid to AT LEAST go to technical school. I feel no pity for these people because I have to provide for them, I do not work to better them, I work for my money. My grandfather died by not taking advantage of social security and going to the doctor, he was too proud to take other people's money, and I admire that, althogh I wish he was around and I didnt understand at first. I understand now. I could say that roughly 80% or more of people on government funded relief Should not qualify for it. I go through my town and see people in shacks with holes in the roof for a house, but drive a custom purple 2005 cadillac with 20" spinning dubs, hydrolics, and custom interior, two twenties in the back. Do you have any idea how much money that is! ITS A LOT! A WHOLE WHOLE lot. It is ridiculuous. Not to mention everytime I go to the dr. in Jasper there is always this old man trying to get pain meds for a "burn" on his back. But the burn wasnt that bad, and has been healed for about 5 years, but he still goes to get pain meds just to waste the govt. money to feed his addiction to prescriptions INSTEAD of using the government's money to seek professional help in a mental health care facility or an addiction specialty centre. I dunno I could go on and on for days on the state of national and local government and why it is that way, and why it is not Perry's fault. And by the way, Ben Stein is a smart ass BEEEEP BEEEEEP. lol! And Chris Bell has ZERO personality and therefore should have ZERO public appeal, I want someone who says what they are going to do, and at least sound like they mean it, while I dunno what Chris Bell is saying half the time, I just want him to start saying "Bueller, Beuller, Beuller" and "Red eyes, Clear eyes". Honestly people the selection of politicians is slim this election year