I cringe when people call for “free” things, like healthcare, housing, food, etc. Just like education, healthcare has skyrocketed because the government put their hands in it. Social security is also a joke. It’s one big Ponzi scheme. If you die before you touch a penny of what YOU put in, you can’t leave it to someone.
And all the “free” stuff people think European countries have, they don’t realize how much taxes people pay into it. People work 2-3 jobs, like paying into it in Switzerland and rightly get government retirement. Most of them will never own a home unless it was willed to them.
We built this country without income taxes and all the regulations. We never would have grown fast like we did with a government like what we see in California.
@BoyGeorge@edsheeran It’s amazing watching you not caving to the world’s approval. What a spine. People are trying to shame you and hurt you to bend your knee. I don’t see you crying over it.
People say:
"I wish one middle-class income could support an entire family like it did in the 1950s."
Okay. Then take the entire 1950s package—not just the parts you romanticize.
• No Netflix, Disney+, Spotify, or endless subscriptions
• One small TV with 3 channels, if you're lucky
• One basic car for the whole family
• No yearly vacations or cheap flights across the country
• No smartphones, laptops, gaming consoles, or internet
• Every meal cooked at home from scratch
• Kids sharing bedrooms
• A house under 1,000 sq. ft. for a family of 4–6
• One bathroom for everyone
• Little to no air conditioning in many places
• Clothes repaired, reused, and handed down
• Eating at restaurants was an occasional luxury, not a weekly habit
The comparison isn't just income.
The average household today consumes far more space, technology, entertainment, travel, convenience, and services than the average household did 70 years ago.
That doesn't mean housing, healthcare, and education aren't more expensive today—they are.
But when people compare lifestyles across generations, they often compare a 1950s income to a 2020s standard of living.
Those aren't the same thing.
If you want the economics of the 1950s, you have to accept the lifestyle of the 1950s too.
This was filmed last Monday morning at Veterinary Clinic in Richmond, Virginia.
The officer is Sergeant Paul Greer. He's 44 years old with the Richmond Police Department.
The dog is a nine-year-old German Shepherd named Kodak. Paul's K9 partner for eight years.
Paul and Kodak were paired when Kodak was fourteen months old. They went through sixteen weeks of handler training together in Chesterfield County. They worked patrol, search operations, and community events together for eight consecutive years. Paul estimates they logged more than eleven thousand hours on duty together.
Kodak retired from active service fourteen months ago when his health began declining. He went home with Paul, as K9 partners typically do when they retire. Paul converted the back bedroom into a dog room. Kodak slept on a memory foam bed beside Paul's side of the bed.
Over the past several months, Kodak's condition worsened gradually. His mobility declined. His appetite became inconsistent. Paul's veterinarian, Dr. Sarah Malone, had been monitoring Kodak carefully through regular visits and was honest with Paul each time about what she was seeing.
Last Sunday evening, Paul sat with Kodak on the back porch for a long time. He called Dr. Malone afterward.
The appointment was Monday morning at nine.
Paul wore his uniform. He told his wife he wasn't sure why, exactly. It just felt right. Like Kodak had always known him in it. Dr. Malone and her technician gave Paul as much time as he needed. He sat on the clinic floor with Kodak in his arms for a long time before Dr. Malone prepared anything.
Paul's wife stood in the corner filming quietly. She knew Paul would want to remember it.
Paul was holding Kodak close, talking to him quietly, when Kodak did something that made everyone in the room go still.
Kodak lifted both front paws. Slowly. With great effort. And placed them on Paul's shoulders.
He held on.
Paul pulled Kodak closer and pressed his face into Kodak's neck. Neither of them moved.
Dr. Malone paused. Stood completely still. Her technician stepped back.
The room was completely quiet.
Paul stayed there holding Kodak for a long time after that.
Dr. Malone told us: "In twenty-two years of practice, I have never paused during a procedure. I paused Monday morning. That dog raised those paws with everything he had left. That was not a reflex. That was a goodbye. And I wasn't going to rush it."
Paul's department honored Kodak with a formal tribute on Tuesday. A post on the department's community page has been shared over forty thousand times.
Paul told the department chaplain: "Eight years on the street together. Through everything. And at the very end, when he could barely move, he lifted his paws and held on. He was telling me it was okay.
That we were okay. I'll carry that for the rest of my life."
*Some partnerships are bigger than the job. Some goodbyes carry more love than any words ever could.”
@MtnDogMan@BuzzPatterson I don’t have hurt feelings. I’m just saying you’re rude. The point was calling everyone else “dicks”. Then acting like one.
Have a good day.
@MtnDogMan@BuzzPatterson Is so hard for you to look back at any time and ignore the good? It’s also rude to tell someone to shut up. Is it sincerely hard to be polite?
I grew up with all of this literally in my backyard. I grew My dad was in the military so I was more aware of the Russian issues and my family is from Key West during the 80s I am almost a decade older that Mr. Reynolds. The worst effects of the whole Cuba mess (make no mistake, the country has always been a mess) was having to alert Cuba when KW was having 4th of July and the Mariel Boat Lift. Legal, Cuban American citizens protested this the loudest. These criminals unleashed on the US fueled the cocaine dealing/“wars” and opened the door to other South American drug operations. I spent the majority of my life in South Florida. Yet, among even the bad, there was a lot of hope.
I am so grateful to have grown up in paradise even among the stuff that will ALWAYS be going on in the world. That’s why the 80s is so nostalgic to many as a much simpler and peaceful time. The world wasn’t in a major war and we didn’t have internet at the time.
Ryan came into his teens during the 90s. That’s when darker music, grunge, etc took over. As well as opening up the great world of the Internet. But I seriously doubt he was affected by these events. Sure, they were the bad guys/villains in movies, but it’s like they were more of a caricature. I doubt he was feeling the effects of the Cuban Missle Crisis in South Florida while growing up in Canada.
Russia. Before this, Vietnam, Korea, WW2, etc. The world will always have strife and never be a peaceful paradise while there is evil in. But parts of it experience that while others aren’t like that.
I’m reading “A Shepard looks at Psalm 23”. I haven’t gotten to that chapter on this line of the Psalm. And I can’t wait!
Every line in Scripture is rich in meaning. Understanding the context, author, and current culture/civilization/era is crucial to get get a deeper connection with our Lord and savior, Jesus Christ.
I have to admit, I always wondered what this part of Psalm 23 meant. I thought “He anoints my head with oil” was figurative language for God keeping the Psalmist healthy. I never knew this parallel.
Anoint my head with oil
“Sheep can get their head caught in briers and die trying to get untangled. There are horrid little flies that like to torment sheep by laying eggs in their nostrils which turn into worms and drive the sheep to beat their head against a rock, sometimes to death. Their ears and eyes are also susceptible to tormenting insects. So the shepherd anoints their whole head with oil. Then there is peace. That oil forms a barrier of protection against the evil that tries to destroy the sheep. Do you have times of mental torment? Do the worrisome thoughts invade your mind over and over? Do you beat your head against a wall trying to stop them? Have you ever asked God to anoint your head with oil? He has an endless supply! His oil protects and makes it possible for you to fix your heart, mind, and eyes on Him today and always! There is peace in the valley! May our good good Father anoint your head with oil today so that your cup overflows with blessings! God is good and He is faithful!!”
@howertonjosh@RyanGosling I thought the same thing. I was hoping it would be At The Movies but one more weekend. The past weekend’s movie The woman and the Sea was excellent. I do wish you would publish your preaching transcript.
HISTORY LESSON ON YOUR SOCIAL SECURITY CARD:
Just in case some of you young whippersnappers (& some older ones) didn’t know this. It’s easy to check out, if you don’t believe it. Be sure and show it to your family and friends. They need a little history lesson on what’s what and it doesn’t matter whether you are Democrat or Republican. Facts are FACTS.
Up until the 1980's, Social Security cards expressly stated the number and card were not to be used for identification purposes.
Since nearly everyone in the United States now has a number, it became convenient to use it anyway and the "NOT FOR IDENTIFICATION" message was removed.
Franklin Roosevelt, a Democrat, introduced the Social Security (FICA) Program. His promises are in black, with updates in brackets.
1.) That participation in the Program would be completely voluntary [No longer voluntary],
2.) That the participants would only have to pay 1% of the first $1,400 of their annual Incomes into the Program [Now 7.65% on the first $90,000, and 15% on the first $90,000 if you’re self-employed],
3.) That the money the participants elected to put into the Program would be deductible from their income for tax purposes each year [No longer tax deductible],
4.) That the money the participants put into the independent ‘Trust Fund’ rather than into the general operating fund, and therefore, would only be used to fund the Social Security Retirement Program, and no other Government program [Under Johnson the money was moved to the General Fund and spent], and
5.) That the annuity payments to the retirees would never be taxed as income [Under Clinton & Gore up to 85% of your Social Security can be taxed].
Since many of us have paid into FICA for years and are now receiving a Social Security check every month — and then finding that we are getting taxed on 85% of the money we paid to the Federal government to ‘put away’ — you may be interested in the following:
Q: Which Political Party took Social Security from the independent ‘Trust Fund’ and put it into the general fund so that Congress could spend it?
A: It was Lyndon Johnson and the democratically controlled House and Senate.
Q: Which Political Party eliminated the income tax deduction for Social Security (FICA) withholding?
A: The Democratic Party.
Q: Which Political Party started taxing Social Security annuities?
A: The Democratic Party, with Al Gore casting the ‘tie-breaking’ deciding vote as President of the Senate, while he was Vice President of the US
AND MY FAVORITE:
Q: Which Political Party decided to start giving annuity payments to immigrants?
A: That’s right! Jimmy Carter and the Democratic Party. Immigrants moved into this country, and at age 65, began to receive Social Security payments! The Democratic Party gave these payments to them, even though they never paid a dime into it!
Now, after violating the original contract (FICA), the Democrats turn around and tell you that the Republicans want to take your Social Security away!
And the worst part about it is uninformed citizens believe it! If enough people receive this, maybe a seed of awareness will be planted and maybe changes will evolve. Maybe not, though. Some Democrats are awfully sure of what isn’t so — but it’s worth a try.
How many people can YOU send this to?