Pat – Page 4 – No Hate No Violence

Depression, there is a way out.

If we don’t have depression ourselves, we all know somebody who does and know there are answers to battling depression and that there is a way out. I strongly suggest you give this video a try. It is on depression and how simple some people have been able to change the angle on how they deal with their depression.

Watch Here:

Johann Hari | TEDGlobalLondon

Some people require medication and some people think they require medication. I love the idea and power in meeting in a group with people who are battling similar issues as you. He shows how you can get together as a group, kind of like AA, which has been instrumental for my recovery as an alcoholic and it’s got no professionals in it helping whatsoever just a bunch of alcoholics that talk to one another. It’s by far the most successful way to deal with alcoholism for some people. Not everybody makes it, but when people battling a similar problem, whether it be alcoholism or depression come together and form a tribe and talk with each other it creates a better path for success. Having a variety of people that are at different mile markers with their depression makes for a strong and supportive tribe. You can’t just have people who are in the trenches of their depression, you also need those who’ve found a way out to help guide the others.

Most of us are depressed because of some kind of anxiety or situation that we are in, could be our job, could be from watching too much news or feeling like you are alone. This can create anxiety that leads to depression and believe it or not there’s people in this country that hate each other for having different beliefs. People should be able to believe in other things than you and without ending your friendship. This movement is about changing our thinking and having a more positive attitude (please see attitude article, it’s a big part of our No Hate No Violence movement).

I haven’t had feelings of depression for a long time since I created a positive attitude, even in bad situations I look for solutions. I don’t sit and dwell, and if I don’t like the politics of the person I’m talking to, we just debate. I love debating but not arguing, because I’m not trying to change their opinion. I just make sure I am listening and hear their thoughts and ideas. I make sure never to overreact to whatever it’s about, so I stay pretty calm all day. Now in my younger days, I would get frustrated, I’d have anxiety, I’d have upset stomachs, which would lead to depression which would lead to drinking and if I wasn’t self-medicating I would have some psychiatrist or psychologist giving me medications to numb me.

Now I don’t want any of you thinking it won’t get better as you get older because it does. If, you take to right steps in helping yourself. Listen to his two videos and I highly recommend if you have a relative or a friend or somebody you know struggling have them read this article. It’s a good thing to talk with others that have your same problem, especially if they have found solutions, and let them show.

Really listen to these speeches because they are very thought provoking.

Stop Thinking Do Something!

Give us your thoughts

San Francisco: A Great Example of Political Hate and Redirection of Real Problems

The anti-NRA people always amaze me. Recently the NRA was called a terrorist organization in a story involving one supervisor and the San Francisco city council.

One of the worst run cities in the country. Refusing to ask for federal help, I don’t mean money, as that doesn’t help.

Hate is not the answer, talk to the NRA. I bet not one member of the city council ever directly talked to the NRA about their concerns or have listened to their ideas and policies that could help them.

So, as a long-time member of the NRA, and Democrat, (35% of their members, your constituents are democratic members) you are calling me a terrorist.

That is the most ridiculous thing in the world to even think about. If anybody would really do their homework, the NRA is one of the most caring as it relates to second and first amendment protectors in the country. They have been trying to get people to look at the needs of the mentally ill, for years. There are lots of things they are for. They’re just waiting to work with Congress to get some things accomplished.

I do think there’s more things they should do. Maybe I don’t agree with everything they do, but I agree for the most part with what they do regarding gun safety, gun safety classes, protecting rights, and seeing that guns are in hands of the right people. We have such great laws out there now that, if they were ever enforced, we wouldn’t have near the gun deaths

But to call them a terrorist group is unbelievably naive. A lot of Democrats are NRA members. I am one. It’s not a Democrat or Republican issue. It’s not a gun issue. It is an issue of law-abiding people versus non-law-abiding people.

Why doesn’t anybody ever talk about the shooter? Where were the security guards in El Paso?

We talk about the guns instead of the shooters. The shooters are all mentally challenged at some level or another. No one in their right mind would do any of these things. Don’t forget, 90% of all gun shootings are pistols, not AR15’s.

I think that our efforts should be on education. If I have any criticism of any of the pro-gun people, including the NRA, it’s not educating the general population enough to not let the radicals dictate the agenda. Blame the media for this, they won’t get the message out. The Democrats have been defining the Republican party for 30 years because the Republicans and the NRA can’t get their message out on the liberal media.

I understand they have a huge challenge. The NRA does, the Conservative parties do. They can’t get any coverage because what they will cover is one person calling us a terrorist and a council that went along with her. This is just amazing to me how naive people are about what the NRA really is and what the NRA really stands for.

As for the totally failed San Francisco city council they need to communicate and find solutions by listening to all people possible before making uninformed decisions.

Hate rhetoric never works toward a solution, it only exacerbates it with negative results and no solutions. No hate No Violence hopes for honest respectful rhetoric. If you talk to your adversaries it can only improve the results, maybe not perfectly but better than hating just to hate.

Stop knee jerk reacting and start talking.

What are your thoughts?

Where Do We Go From Here?

THROUGHOUT LIFE, we’re all faced with the same existential questions that author Leroy Nelson examines in his thought-provoking book, “Answers To: Where Do We Go From Here?”

I’ve had the privilege of enjoying 25 years of friendship with the author. I am amazed at the incredible amount of information he has managed to pack into this well-organized read on a subject we all wonder about. I am sure this book will leave you feeling as good as I did when I finished reading and pondering the questions raised throughout the book.

“Answers To: Where Do We Go From Here” isn’t written just for older adults; the author’s calm and thoughtful voice speaks to everyone from their teen years on up. People of all ages contemplate but rarely discuss the important issues that Nelson brings to light. Is there a human spirit? If so, where does that spirit go when our bodies die? Is re-incarnation real? Is there a Heaven and Hell? These are questions all of us wrestle with as we navigate life’s ups and downs, its peaks and valleys, its triumphs and defeats.

One thing remains the same though, namely, no one person has the right answer for everybody. Though most people follow one of the world religions, every one of us has our own unique beliefs. And those deep-seated beliefs (including our faith) will either provide us comfort or distress when our time to leave this world comes.

It’s clear throughout Nelson’s writing that his main goal is to get each reader to examine their own faith, to test their own beliefs, and to be comfortable in whatever views they have regarding death and what, if anything, follows after.

He eloquently and thoughtfully provides insights from different religions, different scientific and medical figures, and ordinary people who have experienced extraordinary circumstances. His casual, yet witty style of writing allows readers to participate in what feels like a late-night chat with a long-time friend. As such a friend, he wants to draw us out on a topic most of us tend to avoid – our own death. That’s what friends do.

Lauren Pries, a former Director for nohatenoviolence.com, said that while reading this book she found herself fascinated not only by the incredible accounts of Near Death Experiences (NDE) but also found herself on a journey of looking introspectively and reflecting on a similar experience she once had. That’s how this book affected me too – it helped me look inside and examine my life in light of what I already sort of knew but wasn’t really looking at clearly.

It’s clear that Nelson has put immense thought into writing something that provides both an opportunity to learn about the various schools of thought and an opportunity to work through ones’ own feelings regarding death of the body and the extended prospects of one’s spirit.

Inquisitive, intriguing, and stimulating on a relatable level – “a call to caring not only about our own death but about our family and dear friends”.

Those words best describe this book for me, and I hope that you will experience the same joy, newly aroused curiosity, and sense of inspiration that I did after reading this deep-thinking author.

Patrick Lockhart, Founder https://www.nohatenoviolence.com

Thank You To Our Heroes

Today marks the 18th year for remembrance of the September 11^th terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Washington, D.C.

Four planes were hijacked by Al Qaeda terrorist killing all of the passengers onboard and thousands on the ground. It was a moment in history that we never imagined would ever happen since the attack on Pearl Harbor during World War II.

It is a moment in time we will never forget.

From that horrific day emerged a country united in patriotism. All of the first responders who so valiantly worked to save as many lives as possible were immortalized as heroes to everyone. We idolized them. They were our heroes.

We want to recognize and say thank you once again to all of the brave men and women who have survived to tell their story and to all of those who gave their lives to save others then and now.

You will forever be honored and respected.

And never forgotten.

We Can Do Better

I think the Democrats and Republicans could help us get back on track and away from all the negativity and hate if they would just lower their rhetoric. We can do better.

They need to reach across the aisle and work with each other. Have face to face conversations or debates away from the media. They need to focus on getting the right things done rather than what kind of exposure they can get for their own re-election. The more respected politicians don’t go to the press all the time. They’re too busy making things happen by actually listening and doing the work.

I get that the Democratic party isn’t always conspiring with the mainstream media. But they are definitely in cahoots with each other.

Their constant same rhetoric is teaching our children how to lie, deceive, never answer a real question, or give any real facts.

They don’t report the facts because it might not fit their narrative and it’s teaching our children how to do the same which creates hate. All of this anxiety is a source of depression, and bullying. A lot of these issues I blame on the politicians in general–parents who really aren’t doing the right job of parenting.

We need to teach our children to be curious about everything.

Not how to think. We are all responsible for raising our kids with good morals and as they say, it takes a village. Especially when it comes to single parents and at-risk youth. They need our help.

We as parents should demand from ourselves and our leaders, media, and teachers that we be better role models and examples. The way we’re acting right now needs to stop. Think about the future we are creating. What can we do to improve it?

Let’s stop talking and do the right thing.

Minimum Wage Was Never Intended to Support a Family

Minimum wage was never designed or intended to be a way to support a family. It was a wage that would get an employer to hire some unskilled labor and teach them about working; how to work, how to be organized, how to do whatever it is that they do to get a promotion, or a better job.

I think that we should look at doing something like guaranteeing raises for five years. Increase the minimum wage up to whatever the states think it should be, but each employee should get at least a $1raise per year for every year they work at the same company with the same employer up to $5 or five years. So, if you started at $10 in five years you’ll be making $15.

I wouldn’t do this with the states that have a really high minimum wage. Those higher minimum wages are hurting the smaller businesses causing them to have to cut back on employees or close. Look up states that have done this. It has hurt their employment.

Everyone always talks about minimum wage and not the average wage. At Walmart you would be at $22 after five years that’s what no one ever wants to talk about. They only want to talk about the starting wage.

Let’s make this what it was meant to be. A positive way for an unskilled person to get a job. Then, grow their salary by learning and working hard.

Bringing Tolerance to Religion and Politics

It can be easy to think that certain core beliefs are irreconcilable. You see it with religion and with politics: people are so strongly invested in their beliefs that it seems they’ll never work together.

But there is hope, and that’s by finding our common ground in avoiding hate and violence. You see, most people do not believe in hate or violence. It doesn’t matter whether you follow Judaism, Christianity, Buddhism, Islam, or atheism. It doesn’t matter whether you’re on the far right, the far left, or someplace in the middle. The majority of people simply don’t want to live around hate or violence.

It wasn’t always this way, and that change didn’t happen overnight. Take Christianity. It took centuries to move away from the ideas of the Crusades and the Inquisition, a move that’s still in progress. But armed with that big idea of no hate or violence, progress has been made and continues to be made to this day.

What happens if we take that idea and apply it to politics? Most people do not actively want violence or hate in their community and their country, yet we find it in our political and religious discussions.

We have to find a way to take the hate and violence out of our politics and out of our religious disputes. The only way to do that is to work with compromise and tolerance, or the old “give and take.” It might sound old-fashioned, but it’s stuck around because it works. If we’re trying to resolve an issue, then we need to work together. You help me on a bill, I help you on a bill, and in turn we help the people. It’s not entirely what you want and not entirely what I want, but it’s progress. And it’s done without hate or violence.

That’s how democracy is supposed to work. It’s how democracy used to work and how it can work again for everyone. No matter what your religious or spiritual belief, you want society to get better. Like most people, you want something that will help improve everything for everyone.

We need to share our similarities and celebrate our differences. The only way to get there is to embrace compromise and respect, and to reject hate and violence. If we all agree to work toward this ideology, then things would get better. For all of us.

Look! Shiny Object! Or is it Just Fake News?

Trump needs to get out of the “fake news” business. I think he’s played that one as far as it can go. I understand his position of defending himself and calling out the media, but it is eroding the middle. We all know “fake news” is alive and real. But calling it out constantly only spurs on the hate and spite with everyone.

I think so much good has been accomplished, but it seems to get covered up by reactions to the President’s tweets. For every good deed that this Administration accomplishes the press re-directs the American people’s attention to another tweet or reaction that the President has had to “fake news”. We the American people have fallen victim to “Look! Squirrel!” or “Look! Shiny Object!”.

While I support the right to free speech 100%, our lack of tolerance for one another and their opinions has risen to an all-time low in how we treat one other. The amount of disrespect that has been shown by our media has been a complete embarrassment to our country. This is what we are teaching our children. That this is okay and acceptable. I think it is morally wrong. We need to make sharing misinformation shameful. Or as a line in the article How Your Brain Tricks You Into Believing Fake News by Katy Steinmetz in Time Magazine says: we need to make sharing misinformation as shameful as drunk driving.

The President needs to focus on ways to keep the momentum going on those truly good things that are being accomplished. He needs to stop reacting to the negativity so much. Let’s lead by positive example. We also need to hold our cards closer when it comes to what information we are letting the world know about our business. They don’t need to know our every strategic step.

Cut back on all the tweets and weekly press conferences. All we get from the press on those is a forever long commentary and dissection of what words he used and how he said them. But nothing about what was actually said.

The press conferences and political debates need to be limited and they need to have a standard code of ethics similar to that of a college debate team. Could you imagine if they followed those same rules?

Respect others
Adhere to a high standard of competitive ethics
Maintain a courteous and sporting attitude

Debaters aren’t allowed to manipulate the facts. Can you imagine if our press and politicians were held to the same standards? We the people could actually make far more better-informed decisions.

Thank You For Then And Thank You For Now

Today marks the 17th year for remembrance of the September 11^th terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. Four planes were hijacked by Al Qaeda terrorist killing all of the passengers onboard and thousands on the ground. It was a moment in history that we never imagined would ever happen since the attack on Pearl Harbor during World War II. It is a moment in time we will never forget.

I hope that today, as we currently live in a country where our politicians and media strive to divide us, that we remember September 11, 2001. How we united as a country. How we refused to be a victim. How we honored our first responders. How we became stronger as a nation.

It frightens me to think of how much our country’s mentality has changed to such extreme intolerance of others. Especially the use of social media and intolerance of the media to promote violence against the police and to encourage victimology. We have extremists promoting a socialist government. What happened to our pride and our unity as a nation? America the great? America the land of the free? No one in this country is a victim unless they choose to be.

But there is still so much greatness happening in our country. Many are standing up and questioning all of the rhetoric that has been thrown at us. I have a tremendous amount of respect for the #Walkaway Campaign for promoting individual thinking and refusing victimology. It is such a powerful message. It reminds me very much of how we felt 17 years ago today. Empowered and determined.

We want to recognize and say thank you once again to all of the brave men and women who have survived to tell their story and to all of those who gave their lives to save others then and now. You will forever be honored and respected. And never forgotten.

A House Divided Against Itself Cannot Stand

So much in life revolves around attitude. And only we are responsible for our attitudes. The world presents us with situations. But it’s our choice. We choose how we will react to it. No one else makes that choice for us.

In a time when so many are certain that our country is divided, I think we need to take a closer look at ourselves. If this country is truly divided, then it is our own fault. We have no one to blame other than ourselves for allowing ourselves to react the way that we are.

The world is never going to agree on everything. That is what makes it so beautiful. If we were all the same there would be no uniqueness and life would be boring. So, why is it so hard for us to not accept others for who they are? We need to embrace our uniqueness.

The great thing about attitude is that you can always change it. It’s never too late. In a constantly evolving world that continues to become more and more enlightened, we always have the ability to change things.

One of my favorite presidential quotes is from Abraham Lincoln: “I don’t like that man. I must get to know him better.” Imagine how much less hate and violence there would be in the world if more people adopted that mind set? If we took the time to learn about someone rather than cast hate toward them because we don’t like them or what we think they believe, or we don’t understand them.

It seems fitting that perhaps we should reflect on what our country’s great leaders have told us. The following quotes are some of my favorites:

“To be good, and to do good, is all we have to do.”

~ John Adams

“If you could kick the person in the pants responsible for most of

your trouble, you wouldn’t sit for a month.”

~ Theodore Roosevelt

“Pessimism never won any battle.”

~ Dwight D. Eisenhower

Click “Presidential Quotes” to view the inspirational quotes from all 45 of our presidents.