[Russ_Boston]

I find it weird when I hear someone say that they have a problem with homosexuality. To me it is a complete non-issue. But I can understand from a gay person's standpoint that it is an issue when they are harassed or otherwise discriminated against. I cringe whenever I hear anything anti-gay.

You could replace the words gay or homosexuality in the previous paragraph with race or ethnicity or gender and I would feel the same.

"Can't we all just get along?" - Rodney King

[Boomer]

Born.

Boomer of Few Words

[livsea2]

When I was a youngster of about 11 or 12 a neighbor, Mr. Durning walked up to me and smacked me in the back of the head. Pretty hard too, and said "if I ever hear you say that word again, I'll give you double!". I had uttered a foul word on the basketball court and oops he heard it. What's the chances that would happen today? ZERO! Parents don't discipline their own children today let alone friends and neighbors children. It takes a village? There are no villages any longer! ( well there is a village but no children there but I digress) My point of course is that we as a society are not doing our job, everyone has a responsibility with regard to values. But hey I want to move to the villages so I guess I too am shirking my responsibilities by " running away" from children!?! ???

[gfmucci]

Great point about discipline, manners, etc. When we speak of "values" everyone has a different definition. It's a broad term. Respect, discipline, manners, work ethic, self-reliance, traditional sexual morality...these are the specifics of "values" I have been referring to.
BTW, we were surprised by the number of children (and grandchildren) here, especially in the squares.

[SABRMnLgs]

What I notice is a slide toward mediocrity. I don't want to say, "In my day" so I won't but let me present an analogy here. In days gone by kids playing ball were either good enough or not good enough to play. If you were not that good, guess what ...you didn't play. That made you work harder and longer. The end prize being you got to play finally. As we slide toward mediocrity, everybody has to play or we make up some "T-Ball League" with no outs, metal bats, et al. Now everyone is equal.
Wait a minute!!!! Other side of the coin. I've worked my butt off practicing long and hard and am very good at playing ball. Now some other kid who plays only half as good as I do and is to lazy to get any better, gets to play in my place? What's the advantage in working and practicing if others, who don't are playing when I should be? I might as well not work hard or practice hard if others, who are not as good are in my place. I might as well side toward mediocrity since I am no longer rewarded for my long and hard work practicing.
Moral ..... one is sliding his way down while others are pushing another up. So we can be "equal".
A couple other things .............................. Turn off your damn cell phones in a restaurant and take off you hat when you enter a building or sit down at a table for a meal. Geeeeez. Decline of values AND etiquette!
Jerry Jackson (Calumet Grove)

[Russ_Boston]

I like those analogies. Totally agree with the cell phones in the restaurant. At least put them on vibrate and take the call outside. I'm OK with hats, I think it is common among my younger friends.

[efrahin]

Sure we have a declining in values. FIX the families and the problem will be solve. All we have are disfunctional families. What do you expect?. What is a kid to do when he gets home and there is no mother or father there; because there are both working and/or there is only one parent?.

[Russ_Boston]

Saw this in today's online Sun:

http://www.thevillagesdailysun.com/a...festyles02.txt


Might fit with this thread.

[samhass]

Russ, It sounds like "The more things change, the more they stay the same" school of thought.
I think it's way more polite to tell someone to ------off than to bomb them. As a race we are still hideously immoral because we continue to kill one another.