"Earnings vary based on effort."
This is a simple disclaimer at the start of an ad for some 'build wealth' seminar, but should they really NEED to put that kind of disclaimer there? Really? I mean shouldn't that be obvious? Isn't that true with EVERYTHING in life?
Have people really gotten to the point where the idea that working harder increases earning potential is so foreign to them that they have to put a disclaimer to say that if you don't work very hard at this you aren't going to earn as much as someone that works harder? Do people expect to earn the same as someone working 60 hours a week by working 2 hours a week? The sad part about it is that yes, some people do.
I don't know anything about the seminar in question, but there aren't any real methods of wealth building that just let you do nothing and make money. One could argue that proper stock investment allows you to build wealth while doing nothing, and to some degree that is true. Stocks, particularly dividend stocks, pay you regardless of your effort. But someone that invests X amount and then does nothing will NOT earn as much as someone that invests X amount and then spends the time to research and manage those investments to minimize risk and maximize profit.
It's a no brainer. Someone that works at something more is going to do better at it, there's just no getting around that fact. And yet, you know as well as I do that if they didn't prominently state that 'earnings vary based on effort' someone (or more likely lots of someones) would sue them because they thought that they would suddenly just start making more money without any work on their part.
Because some people want to believe that there is some way of making large sums of money that doesn't involve any real effort on their part. And, generally speaking, that's what most seminars of this type are playing on. The idea that you can go to this seminar, likely buy a starter kit for a couple hundred bucks and start raking in money. I'm not saying that seminars are scams, many of them offer legitimate ways of making money, even a LOT of money, but ultimately the people that will make the most money are the people that put in the most effort.
Because regardless if it's a stock buying system, home flipping, or selling widgets you're going to have to put in the effort if you want to get the most out of it. There is no easy, fast, secure way to make a big income, there's just work. That's why if you want a good income, find a way to make money doing what you love, and love what you do, because earnings vary based on effort.
Thursday, January 15, 2015
Thursday, January 08, 2015
The war on freedom of Expression
It seems lately that a lot of factions have been taking a shot at freedom of artistic impression. From the North Korean Cyber-Attack over the movie "The Interview" to the terrorist attack on Charley Hebdo in Paris just yesterday. These aren't the first time that such groups have resorted to threats and violence over opinions and views that they don't want to see expressed. What I find almost more disturbing than these attacks is the responses to them.
With the hack attack on Sony Pictures over "The Interview" their response was 'okay, you win, we're not going to release the movie ... just don't hurt us.' And it wasn't just Sony, several movies related to North Korea have been shut down including a documentary about life in a North Korean internment camp based on the life of someone that escaped.
No! Wrong answer ... BAD Hollywood, no cookie for you.
Now Sony did (I suspect under pressure from the Administration) release the film to theaters on schedule, but the canceled movies are still canceled. While the attackers may not have prevented that particular film from being released they still managed to STOP THE DEVELOPMENT of several other projects, one of which was a TRUE STORY. Yes, that's right, with nothing really more than a THREAT they have stopped the truth.
They won. They told the film companies that making movies that they disapproved of would not be allowed, and they got the movie companies to SELF CENSOR themselves so as to not 'offend' the North Korean government.
Likewise news agencies around the globe are now self censoring the cartoons that prompted the attack on Charley Hebdo in Paris yesterday. They're saying, on the one hand, that they stand with the magazine against this oppression. But on the other hand saying 'but we won't show the images because that might upset people and cause US to get attacked too.'
In other words 'Yeah! You stand up to them Charley! We've got your back! From over here, under the table where we hope the bad guys don't look. If you get attacked we'll feel bad for you while we say that you asked for it by provoking them in the first place.'
Yeah, that's right, some are saying, in essence, that they deserved to be attacked because they chose to print material that they knew that Muslims would find offensive. (Mind you it's okay that the magazine also published things that OTHER religions frequently found offensive, those religions don't attack, murder and behead people when they get offended.) Yes they published those cartoons, they were (and are) a satirical magazine ... they made satire from news headlines. Just like political cartoonists here in the US often OFFEND different groups of people with their Satire it was natural that they offended people from time to time. That they wouldn't be intimidated into 'protecting' a particular group or religion was their strength and what we should respect most.
Some people say 'is nothing sacred' ... and the answer is in a multicultural world such as we live in, no. Because what is 'sacred' to my culture isn't sacred to another. Should they be 'banned' from commentary on it because I or others from MY culture might be offended by it? If you do that then we're very quickly going to run out of topics of discussion, because anything has the potential to offend someone, particularly someone of a different culture.
If you're going to set aside a group and say that 'we can't offend these people' then to be honest and fair then you have to treat ALL groups the same. If you can't offend Muslims then you can't offend Catholics or Baptists or Jews or Buddhists or Hindus, or or or or or or or .... and on and on.
It is one thing to respect a people or culture. It is something completely different to FEAR them to the point that you won't allow something to be printed because it might offend a minority of them. And remember that's mainly what we're dealing with ... a MINORITY of Muslims. The radical minority, but still, realistically a minority. They just happen to be a minority that has no qualms about killing indiscriminately, that does not in any way value the lives of themselves or anyone else, and has zero respect for anyone else's opinions or rights. These are people that if you show them that they can push you around and that you'll let them, they'll just push harder and more frequently ... the answer isn't to fear them, the answer is to show them that you will not fear them and that they have no power over you.
Be louder.
With the hack attack on Sony Pictures over "The Interview" their response was 'okay, you win, we're not going to release the movie ... just don't hurt us.' And it wasn't just Sony, several movies related to North Korea have been shut down including a documentary about life in a North Korean internment camp based on the life of someone that escaped.
No! Wrong answer ... BAD Hollywood, no cookie for you.
Now Sony did (I suspect under pressure from the Administration) release the film to theaters on schedule, but the canceled movies are still canceled. While the attackers may not have prevented that particular film from being released they still managed to STOP THE DEVELOPMENT of several other projects, one of which was a TRUE STORY. Yes, that's right, with nothing really more than a THREAT they have stopped the truth.
They won. They told the film companies that making movies that they disapproved of would not be allowed, and they got the movie companies to SELF CENSOR themselves so as to not 'offend' the North Korean government.
Likewise news agencies around the globe are now self censoring the cartoons that prompted the attack on Charley Hebdo in Paris yesterday. They're saying, on the one hand, that they stand with the magazine against this oppression. But on the other hand saying 'but we won't show the images because that might upset people and cause US to get attacked too.'
In other words 'Yeah! You stand up to them Charley! We've got your back! From over here, under the table where we hope the bad guys don't look. If you get attacked we'll feel bad for you while we say that you asked for it by provoking them in the first place.'
Yeah, that's right, some are saying, in essence, that they deserved to be attacked because they chose to print material that they knew that Muslims would find offensive. (Mind you it's okay that the magazine also published things that OTHER religions frequently found offensive, those religions don't attack, murder and behead people when they get offended.) Yes they published those cartoons, they were (and are) a satirical magazine ... they made satire from news headlines. Just like political cartoonists here in the US often OFFEND different groups of people with their Satire it was natural that they offended people from time to time. That they wouldn't be intimidated into 'protecting' a particular group or religion was their strength and what we should respect most.
Some people say 'is nothing sacred' ... and the answer is in a multicultural world such as we live in, no. Because what is 'sacred' to my culture isn't sacred to another. Should they be 'banned' from commentary on it because I or others from MY culture might be offended by it? If you do that then we're very quickly going to run out of topics of discussion, because anything has the potential to offend someone, particularly someone of a different culture.
If you're going to set aside a group and say that 'we can't offend these people' then to be honest and fair then you have to treat ALL groups the same. If you can't offend Muslims then you can't offend Catholics or Baptists or Jews or Buddhists or Hindus, or or or or or or or .... and on and on.
It is one thing to respect a people or culture. It is something completely different to FEAR them to the point that you won't allow something to be printed because it might offend a minority of them. And remember that's mainly what we're dealing with ... a MINORITY of Muslims. The radical minority, but still, realistically a minority. They just happen to be a minority that has no qualms about killing indiscriminately, that does not in any way value the lives of themselves or anyone else, and has zero respect for anyone else's opinions or rights. These are people that if you show them that they can push you around and that you'll let them, they'll just push harder and more frequently ... the answer isn't to fear them, the answer is to show them that you will not fear them and that they have no power over you.
Be louder.
Wednesday, January 07, 2015
First real Ramble of the New Year
Well ... I'm not going to talk about things in the past. Ferguson, and the protests surrounding it seem like ripe grounds for a rant, but you know what. It's done. I'm sick of it and the people around it. What I will say about it (and some other incidents) is that we in this country need to look at the media as a whole. They a quick to judge and slow to correct themselves even when shown to be absolutely wrong. (And often times even if they DO correct themselves no one sees it and so the 'false' information keeps getting quoted and passed around anyway.) There was a time when the news was just that, news. It was the events both local and national that you NEEDED to know about; you might not LIKE to read/hear it, but they weren't reporting it for you to like or dislike, they were reporting it so that you would KNOW about it. Then it became something more like entertainment and sensationalist. Go over the top, hit our emotions to get us mad, or sad, or sympathetic about an issue. Now it has taken the next step ... in many cases it is trying to get us to think a certain way. The media plays loose with the facts because it know that almost no one is going to check up on them. It will pick a side in a story and do everything it can to make that SEEM like the right side, even when evidence is brought up to show that the narrative that the media is pushing is a lie.
Now 'journalism' is about the 'narrative' and young journalists, when it's pointed out that the facts don't support the story and that the whole thing is a fabrication, say things like 'Well I don't think that it's a good idea to let the facts of a story dictate the narrative.' (This was said by a journalism student a month or so ago in regard to the fact that a gang rape story published by Rolling Stone was debunked.)
Wait ... what?
Did you not just say that you don't think that a 'journalist' should report the truth and the facts. Did you not just say that you believe that a 'journalist' should LIE to people if it better fits the narrative that you're trying to push?
Let me give you a hint. If the FACTS don't support the narrative then you don't HAVE a narrative, you have a work of fiction. Fiction comes from 'creative writing' classes not 'journalism' classes. Maybe you've been attending the wrong courses at your school. Or maybe you've been mixing the two and getting confused about which is which.
I mean, how am I supposed to take them seriously if they're just going to make up stuff to fit the agenda that they're trying to push? Want to say that a minority is oppressed by greedy corporations that exploit their hard work and pay them pennies but can't actually find any evidence of this? No problem! Just make up a 'story' and get it published (or better yet post it on the internet and then use it as a 'source' on Wikipedia or get quoted in a magazine or 'news' paper site. You're golden then.)
No one will question it ... and if they do, you can just smear them by saying that they're part of the oppression. That they are 'victim shaming' or racist for suggesting that the story might not be factual or accurate. Again, you don't need facts to back any of that up, you just need to further the narrative. Get enough traction and maybe you can get Michael Moore to make a documentary about it.
Okay apparently I lied ... I did end up ranting about things in the past .... deal with it.
Look ... when I'm not rambling here or over on the Gaming Corner I write fiction ... I don't need to be competing with 'journalists' too.
Now 'journalism' is about the 'narrative' and young journalists, when it's pointed out that the facts don't support the story and that the whole thing is a fabrication, say things like 'Well I don't think that it's a good idea to let the facts of a story dictate the narrative.' (This was said by a journalism student a month or so ago in regard to the fact that a gang rape story published by Rolling Stone was debunked.)
Wait ... what?
Did you not just say that you don't think that a 'journalist' should report the truth and the facts. Did you not just say that you believe that a 'journalist' should LIE to people if it better fits the narrative that you're trying to push?
Let me give you a hint. If the FACTS don't support the narrative then you don't HAVE a narrative, you have a work of fiction. Fiction comes from 'creative writing' classes not 'journalism' classes. Maybe you've been attending the wrong courses at your school. Or maybe you've been mixing the two and getting confused about which is which.
I mean, how am I supposed to take them seriously if they're just going to make up stuff to fit the agenda that they're trying to push? Want to say that a minority is oppressed by greedy corporations that exploit their hard work and pay them pennies but can't actually find any evidence of this? No problem! Just make up a 'story' and get it published (or better yet post it on the internet and then use it as a 'source' on Wikipedia or get quoted in a magazine or 'news' paper site. You're golden then.)
No one will question it ... and if they do, you can just smear them by saying that they're part of the oppression. That they are 'victim shaming' or racist for suggesting that the story might not be factual or accurate. Again, you don't need facts to back any of that up, you just need to further the narrative. Get enough traction and maybe you can get Michael Moore to make a documentary about it.
Okay apparently I lied ... I did end up ranting about things in the past .... deal with it.
Look ... when I'm not rambling here or over on the Gaming Corner I write fiction ... I don't need to be competing with 'journalists' too.
Tuesday, January 06, 2015
Wow
Not a single post in 2014 ... that's actually kind of sad.
However, I do intend to write more in 2015 (though technically with this one post I've already achieved that goal). Both here and over at my Game Corner. 'The Wife' and I have decided that it's time to get serious about some things, and I think that getting back to writing here will, hopefully, help me focus some. I'll be writing over at the Game Corner more as well since part of what we're trying to get serious about is game design and, hopefully, development. (No don't expect to see a MMO announcement from us any time soon....)
Here I'll still be posting my views opinions and rants on various events and life and people in general. The contents of both blogs are my opinions formed through my life experiences. I don't expect everyone to like them or agree with them. Hell most people won't even read them, but that's not the point of writing these. It's a way to vent and express myself and celebrate the fact that I can do so.
Feel free to join me ... discuss, argue, agree, disagree, etc in the comments. I ask only that you leave personal attacks (toward me or any other commenters) out of it. Keep it civil and on topic and we'll all get along fine.
2015 is just getting started ... and so am I.
Happy New Year everyone.
However, I do intend to write more in 2015 (though technically with this one post I've already achieved that goal). Both here and over at my Game Corner. 'The Wife' and I have decided that it's time to get serious about some things, and I think that getting back to writing here will, hopefully, help me focus some. I'll be writing over at the Game Corner more as well since part of what we're trying to get serious about is game design and, hopefully, development. (No don't expect to see a MMO announcement from us any time soon....)
Here I'll still be posting my views opinions and rants on various events and life and people in general. The contents of both blogs are my opinions formed through my life experiences. I don't expect everyone to like them or agree with them. Hell most people won't even read them, but that's not the point of writing these. It's a way to vent and express myself and celebrate the fact that I can do so.
Feel free to join me ... discuss, argue, agree, disagree, etc in the comments. I ask only that you leave personal attacks (toward me or any other commenters) out of it. Keep it civil and on topic and we'll all get along fine.
2015 is just getting started ... and so am I.
Happy New Year everyone.
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