tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33307674.post6818524191820376150..comments2021-07-22T13:05:28.814-05:00Comments on The Jackalope’s Voice: Respect Belongs To The IndividualNancy Coppockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01938274161807178689noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33307674.post-12906125047137892122007-09-06T07:37:00.000-05:002007-09-06T07:37:00.000-05:00From what I have seen respect is neither 'earned' ...From what I have seen respect is neither 'earned' nor 'demanded' it is granted by each person to others that demonstrate, in their activities, that they are to be resprected as they respect others. Anyone who demands respect cannot do so, and all the good works in life may earn one little or no respect at all... if one acts respectfully towards oneself and others that is then apparent in the actions taken by that self.<BR/><BR/>To be respected one must be capable of self-respect and then able to extend that self-respect to others. It is a grant that shows the quality of the character of the individual. That was MLK's dream - to judge people by the content of their character, not the color of their skin. It was a challenge across the racial divide which asks: in the projection of hatred, why are you so noble in that judgement? And to the other: if you accept such hatred as fact, what does that say about yourself?<BR/><BR/>An individual cannot help but to be biased - bias is showing preference and discrimination amongst things. To say the state of food can be done in an unbiased way, is to put forth that rotten food is just the same as wholesome food. Once the quality of food comes into question then it is up to individuals to determine what they tolerate and enjoy in food. That is discrimination based on bias. In a republic of free people, however, we act not just as individuals, but as a community that comes together to form a Nation. To Jefferson this is a paramount right even before all others:<BR/><BR/>"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed,"<BR/><BR/>The truths are self-evident, no matter the source of them and the rights that follow just the same. To secure these rights people come together to form government. While each is endowed with their rights it is only by creating society and social context that then makes government possible. To do *that* a society can be biased and discriminate about who is or is not part of it. The rights are universal as are the rights to come together into separate groups and societies and then form just government.<BR/><BR/>The US Constitution uses a structure to set forth what will be done by government. It is a simple and straightforward structure:<BR/><BR/>1) Responsiblities to each part of government is identified,<BR/><BR/>2) Just means to carry out such responsibilities is put forth,<BR/><BR/>3) Rights are granted to government to carry out that responsibility by those just means.<BR/><BR/>And if your rights do not cover your responsibilities you are *still* responsible to carry them out. It is a structure with clarity that sees all rights belonging to the People save those few granted to government. Amendments IX and X reinforce the early verbiage in the main document so as to underline that the People are the source of rights for government. That said, in these latter days, we have had many ask where is the "bill of responsibilities"? The things you are to do for those around you...<BR/><BR/>It is, of course, contained within the exact same document as the structure of it is extended to the thing as a whole. <A HREF="http://ajacksonian.blogspot.com/2006/04/preambling-and-what-it-tells-you-about.html" REL="nofollow">We miss that completely</A> in modern times as we think the Constitution ONLY talks about government. It does not. Reading the document from start to finish clearly states what each individual in society must adhere to... it lays out the responsibilities and who must do them:<BR/><BR/>"We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America."<BR/><BR/>We the People take on these following responsibilities so as to ensure that this compact amongst all the People, called the Constitution, will be carried out. This is not what we are telling government to do, this is our statement about ourselves, as a Nation and individuals, what we will do in our lives to ensure we have a Nation of equals amongst us. We set forth federal government as one form of government to help achieve these goals. We set forth just means for this government to achieve these goals in its functions. And we grant few rights to such government to do those things the People deem necessary for the common society.<BR/><BR/>In all cases, even with those things granted to governement, We the People take responsibility for what is done in Our name to meet these goals.<BR/><BR/>To get 'respect' one must first look to meet these goals for the common society. These are the things we set out for ourselves, as individuals, to achieve and strive towards, even though we are frail mortals. We cannot reach perfection, but we can achieve 'a more perfect Union' with our fellow citizens and People and keep those high goals because they are worth having. MLK reminded us of that, and asked us if we were actually living UP to what we had stated we would do. To get respect one must work to achieve these goals, even in failure, and be judged on your ability to actually do that by your peers.<BR/><BR/>One does not 'earn' or 'deserve' or 'demand' respect: it is granted by those who use the bias given by society in that founding document to discriminate between activities. One can gain respect by respecting those outlooks and working to be in more perfect Union with those around them.<BR/><BR/>But that is just one man's view in this republic. Others may differ.A Jacksonianhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07607888697879327120noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33307674.post-40219845771004820562007-09-05T13:47:00.000-05:002007-09-05T13:47:00.000-05:00Respect is a raw material all men possess to be de...Respect is a raw material all men possess to be developed according to the will and ability of the individual. Development of our respect is through freedom of choice. An individual can not be forced to develop respect anymore than a soul can be forced to love the Lord your G-d with all your heart and believe that above Him there is no other.<BR/><BR/>I believe we have gone a bit off track by thinking respect is earned. That takes a bit away from the concept that we must develop our own respect by adherence to the lasting traditions and values.<BR/><BR/>Upon development of a mature respect, when we choose to share our respect, as in the story Mr. Baxter tells in his comment, we plant seeds to be developed in the other individual's respect.<BR/><BR/>In another way, when we pledge our respect to say a political candidate, that means the value of our respect is added to the recipient's. The recipient didn't "earn" our respect because true respect is not for sale. It is one man of honor and integrity recognizing another. It is an acknowledgement of the development of mature respect. <BR/><BR/>I may be straining at a gnat, or even worse, being a bit Rand-ian but the concept of earned respect marks a certain ability to manipulate others into doing what you want them to do. I think we need to return to the freedom of recognizing the qualities of respect; integrity, truthfulness, honesty, reliability, honor...the list goes on in others and reacting accordingly, our culture will change for the better.Nancy Coppockhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01938274161807178689noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33307674.post-14888799288648608592007-09-05T12:43:00.000-05:002007-09-05T12:43:00.000-05:00So, respect is something you earn by your conduct;...So, respect is something you earn by your conduct; it is not something you demand or that a politician demands on your behalf.<BR/><BR/>But of course people with their own self-respect aren't dependent upon politicians, and that's not good.Christopher Chantrillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04115398168797134843noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33307674.post-74545815244925347582007-09-04T17:06:00.000-05:002007-09-04T17:06:00.000-05:00The Mathematics of Life ...The Mathematics of Life<BR/> <BR/>In ancient Israel, the pre-born human being was<BR/>considered to be a person and, at birth, one-year<BR/>old. The wisdom of Israel held that the value of <BR/>the single life defined the value of the Twelve <BR/>Tribes of Israel.<BR/><BR/>History records that when the individual person<BR/>is of expedient non-value, the value of the plural<BR/>unit, the whole society, becomes regressive and <BR/>expendable.<BR/><BR/>Today, there are those who say, "Abortion is<BR/>such a messy negative subject." The American<BR/>new age holocaust is what it is. Regardless of a<BR/>sophisticated rationale it is a form of cannibalism<BR/>- devouring one's own kind - and has no place in<BR/>a free humane society based on individual worth.<BR/><BR/>If the individual is worth zero what will our Nation<BR/>be worth? Isn't the whole the sum value of the<BR/>parts - the individuals who make it up?<BR/><BR/>Is there any other kind of human? After all, isn't<BR/>every "group" merely a verbal convenience about<BR/>individuals?<BR/><BR/>Ask any ten-year old, "If one equals zero what<BR/>does twelve equal?"<BR/><BR/>If each individual is worth zero what will society<BR/>be worth? The consequences accrue to each and<BR/>every individual in our Country.<BR/><BR/>Dear Reader: Don't you qualify as an individual?<BR/>Are YOU prepared to be weighed in the balances<BR/>of your own choosing? The perverse cause<BR/>produces the perverse effect. Obviously and<BR/>sadly it is happening.<BR/><BR/>Dear Trendy-One: Are there any questions about<BR/>our Nation? YOUR future? How about arithmetic?<BR/>The next step down? Assisted suicide. Murder +<BR/><BR/>"The fool foldeth his hands together and eateth<BR/>his own flesh." Ecclesiastes 4:5Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33307674.post-43548254639124550852007-09-04T16:32:00.000-05:002007-09-04T16:32:00.000-05:00YES, Nancy,Your comment, "To truly appreciate resp...YES, Nancy,<BR/>Your comment, "To truly appreciate respect is to recognize and accept the rules and spiritual foundation that created it," is Right On. It was not initiated by man, but, it can be destroyed or maintained by each of us. Consider;<BR/><BR/>Carl V. "Sam" Lamb and I served side-by-side as rifle-squad leaders; Fox Company, 'Chesty' Puller's 1st Marines, 1st Marine Division. He wrote a book about our experiences in the Korean conflict, 1950-1951. He included my remarks about an incident in which one of our people threatened to punch-out a fellow squad-leader-guideon who had black skin. <BR/>The page follows:<BR/> <BR/> + + +<BR/> <BR/>THE LAST PARADE<BR/> by Carl V. "Sam" Lamb Page 296 (ref: 1951)<BR/> <BR/>James Fletcher Baxter<BR/> <BR/>"Sam" and I had a lot in common. We both resisted evil. After I<BR/>got out of the hospital, Big Jim Causey told of driving along<BR/>in his police cruiser and hitting a black man in his head <BR/>with his pistol. He thought it was funny how the guy sprawled<BR/>into the street. When he made this comment we were in a card <BR/>game. I didn't say anything, but then he said he was going to<BR/>kick the ____ out of Joe Goggins and I had heard enough.<BR/> <BR/> I said, "If you're going to try that, you'll have to go through <BR/>me to get to him. I'm willing to give my life for a country<BR/>that values each individual. If that isn't true, I don't want <BR/>to fight for that country - but, it is true, so I'm not going <BR/>to let you rob me of the very good reason I may lose my life <BR/>tomorrow or next week. If you attack him, you attack me. I <BR/>may lose, but I guarantee I will make it very expensive for <BR/>you to get to him. Let me know what you decide."<BR/> <BR/>He got up from our card game and said, "I'll have to think <BR/>about it."<BR/> <BR/>I said, "Let me know. I'll be here."<BR/> <BR/>He came back a little later and said, "You're right. I was <BR/>wrong." I thanked him for his manliness.<BR/> <BR/>Joe Goggins came to me later and thanked me. He had wet eyes.<BR/> <BR/> + + +<BR/> <BR/> 5/10/07 JFB<BR/>Shortly after the above event, Jim Causey was called home for family <BR/>member medical problems. On his way back to the States, he passed <BR/>through a Naval medical facility. While there, he ran into my brother, <BR/>Sgt. Howard "Barney" Baxter, 5th Marines, who had just been sent <BR/>stateside for his Chosen Reservoir frost-bitten feet.<BR/> <BR/>Causey told my brother what had happened and said "how much it <BR/>had changed his life." He said Joe and I had forgiven him and he <BR/>would "never go back to the old collective point of view." He was <BR/>really joyful because he was honestly able to forgive himself! He <BR/>became a more manly man - a good Marine - with honor.<BR/> <BR/>I'm pleased the Rutgers women accepted Imus' apology. They, and<BR/>others, need to forgive. We all need to grow. Good examples are<BR/>always in short supply. God bless my Country and its Individuals.<BR/> <BR/>vincit veritas<BR/>Jim Baxter<BR/>Sgt. USMC<BR/>WWII and Korean War<BR/>5th Grade Teacher - 30 wonderful years! '57- '87<BR/>semper fidelis<BR/> <BR/> ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++<BR/> <BR/>INDIVIDUAL VALUE - Gift of Y'shua JESUS<BR/>by James Fletcher Baxter<BR/> <BR/>The Old World method of measuring human value was, <BR/>and still is, by the group. Whether tribe, clan, <BR/>city-state, color, ethnic, or gender, the Old <BR/>World, ancient and modern, measures by the plural<BR/>unit. Individuals had and have no value of them-<BR/>selves but only as they were and are part of a <BR/>collective.<BR/> <BR/>When Y'shua Jesus died on the cross, the veil of <BR/>the Temple at the Holy of Holies parted from the <BR/>top down. The individual believer in the congrega-<BR/>tion had, for the first time, a face-to-face, one-<BR/>on-one relation with his Creator. The Creator, <BR/>Himself, had validated each individual for the <BR/>first time.Thus, the Individual became the corner-<BR/>stone for later human value measuring systems: <BR/>socio-political, philosophical, religious, educa-<BR/>tional, economic, etc., henceforth and forever. <BR/>Western Civilization, America, English Law, civil <BR/>Rights, the 'democratic' process, etc., all sprang <BR/>from that single event. (Greco-Roman 'democracies' <BR/>were 95% slave throughout their entire histories.) <BR/>Biblical principles are still today the foundation <BR/>under Western Civilization and the American way of <BR/>life.<BR/> <BR/>Many social systems attempt to borrow ideas of <BR/>"democracy" without the basic premise in The Indi-<BR/>vidual. Such a system is only superficially and <BR/>temporarily 'democratic.' The cornerstone of the <BR/>democratic process is The Individual and the <BR/>cornerstone of the value of The Individual is <BR/>Y'shua Jesus! It is not possible to have one with-<BR/>out the other. There is only One Source - there is <BR/>no other.<BR/> <BR/>It is additionally interesting to note that all <BR/>value measuring systems are based on the single <BR/>definitive unit of the system. Ex: Number, Time, <BR/>Distance, Weight, Heat, Money, Angle, Volume, etc. <BR/> <BR/>Only humanism makes the abusive error of measuring <BR/>human value by the plural unit and attempts to <BR/>build social structures, relations, and institu-<BR/>tions thereon. Such man-made systems can only be <BR/>abusive and oppressive because in reality there <BR/>are only individual persons. Groups or collectives <BR/>are merely convenient verbalizations about indi-<BR/>viduals. They are not reality.<BR/> <BR/>I have yet to see a 'group.' All I have ever seen <BR/>are individuals.Have you ever seen a group - or is <BR/>it a verbal convenience? Reality is only in the <BR/>individual person. And, such a validation never <BR/>derived from a human source without the initiative <BR/>of the Creator. (The French Rationalists of the <BR/>18th Century favored the fruit - but rejected the <BR/>branch, tree, and root.)<BR/> <BR/>Today, wherever Y'shua Jesus is rejected, the <BR/>group or collective is still the basic way of <BR/>measuring human value - or human non-value.<BR/> <BR/>We thank the Lord God for revealing His validation <BR/>of each individual person. We thank Him for creat-<BR/>ing each person uniquely, in His image, and call-<BR/>ing each one to a courageous ascension by Y'shua <BR/>Jesus, who said, "I AM the Way..."<BR/> <BR/>Praise the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and<BR/>His Son of Man, Y'shua Jesus.<BR/> <BR/>Reference: Exodus 25:30,40 Hebrews 9 Matthew 27:51 <BR/>Mark 15:38 Luke 23:45 KJV<BR/> <BR/>vincit veritas<BR/>Jim Baxter<BR/><BR/><BR/> <BR/>Q: ? "How many more Columbines and VA Techs<BR/> before we 'get it?' " jfbAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com