Andy's Reality Blog

I Pledge Allegiance

2010-06-08T11:05:00.004-04:00

I remember in school how we always started the day off with the Pledge of Allegiance. Now our kids don't even know what that is. We memorized it early in elementary school, now teenagers today can't get past the first sentence.

I guess the flag, the pledge, and this country offends too many people. Like I've said before, the good news is that one-way airfare out of the USA is reasonably cheap so if you don't like this country, you should consider leaving it.

And the winner is........OBAMA???

2009-10-09T09:18:00.005-04:00

So many people have tried to come up with reasons to justify Barack Obama winning the Nobel Peace Price and the $1.4 million award that comes with. NOBODAY HAS CONVINCED ME!

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Mother Teresa...these are names that standout as being deserving of the peace price and each of them received it after spending years working for peace and suffering greatly for peaceful causes.

I'm not saying Obama would never deserve the peace price, but give the man a chance to work towards peace. I'm not sure if he will do enough (none of us can be), but this award is given to him so prematurely, that it raises the question about the validity of this organization, not to mention their political motives. Can you imagine Mother Teresa being nominated 10 days after she was ordained as a nun? Or Dr. King 10 days after starting his part of the movement? It makes no sense.

We are still at war in the Middle East and regularly sending more troops that way. In fact, we're losing a lot of soldiers in Afghanistan every week and for some reason, most media outlets hide those numbers and avoid those stories. I wonder why. I recall when Bush was president, every soldier that was killed in the line of duty had their picture plastered on the news with excessive commentary about how we need to bring them home. I hate war, but under President Obama we're still at war and we are going to be for a long time. We will shift troops to different places, but we will still be at war. Gitmo is still open.

There has been little or no progress with advancing TRUE peace in the radical muslim world. They still hate us and they always will unless we succumb to Shariah law. As long as we allow freedom of religion, free enterprise, and women's rights, we aren't going to have these sought after wonderful relationships with countries like Iran.

There are so many people in this world devoting their lives to bringing peace to mankind and suffering greatly as a result. They aren't politicians. They aren't involved in scandals. They believe the sacrifice is worth the end result. But they don't have a popular name in the media nor do they have political ties. So they don't qualify for a nomination.

1.4 million dollars...and the rich keep getting richer.

And now let the accusations of racism begin. Plenty of idiots will call me a racist. Racism will continue to exist as long as it is perpetuated.

Thanks to all my friends, and especially my black friends from the neighborhood, Hughes, and college that have my back, even when we don't agree.

If you disagree with Obama, you’re a racist?

2009-09-10T08:04:00.002-04:00

Come on people! Wake up. President Obama is making some huge mistakes. There’s proof of it everywhere. The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office says that his stimulus bill will help short term, but will harm our economy long term by reducing the GDP. They also point out that his health care reform plan will increase the deficit, which he has already exploded in his short time as president (more than Bush and any president before him).

So Obama got booed in his speech last night by Rep. Joe Wilson. I find it to be disrespectful on the part of Wilson to do such a thing. I don’t condone his behavior; however, I understand his frustration. Obama’s speeches are wonderful; however, they are scripted and often inaccurate. As usual, he failed to give any specifics on how we are going to spend an additional $900 billion without adding to the deficit while he creates 53 new government agencies as a result of health care reform. There’s no way the government can trim enough fat to pay for the $900 billion reform while making government even larger.

Offering people a free ride on everything gets you votes, but doesn’t help our country in the long run. Health care needs to change. It needs reform. But not the type Obama and the radical Democrats are proposing. We need to regulate health insurance companies, not have the government compete with them. Obama claims that it is just like how the US Postal Service competes with FedEx and UPS. What he fails to mention is that the USPS is so inefficient and is in the red year after year, yet we throw more tax money at the inadequate government bureaucracy despite their inability to truly compete in the free market. Ever try to track a package with USPS? It sucks! FedEx and UPS turn a profit and provide a valuable service. The USPS takes taxpayer money and delivers my confidential mail to my neighbors.

So why am I a racist for disagreeing with Obama’s plan to reform health care? Is it because I’m white? If you answer is yes, then YOU, my friend, are the TRUE RACIST. And what about the black people who disagree with Obama's policies? Are they racist too? Or are they sellouts?

I did like Obama’s speech to students on Tuesday. It was a good message. But you have to remember that he pulled content out of his speech after criticism and had the White House withdraw suggested lesson plans that were to be distributed and recommended for use in the classroom that walked on the file line of partisan politics and maybe even indoctrination of our young people. We have to be supportive of our children and allow them to disagree with our president if they chose.

As for Bush, his era is over and has been for a long time, including his last 18 months of his presidency when he basically did nothing. I give him credit for keeping our country safe. He did a good job at that. However, some people criticize Rep. Wilson for booing, and others for being critical of Obama’s more radical policies, and unfortunately, the loons label those people racist. Look at what the democrats did to Bush while he was still in office. They completely agreed with him on the Iraq war and other policies, until it was time for reelection and the presidential campaign. These people are typical crooked politicians. If you believe the words that come out of Nancy Pelosi’s mouth then all I can do is pray for you. If you think Bush led us into the Iraqi war on his own and the democrats opposed, then you are delusional and I suggest you watch this video to refresh your memory of what really happened http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N5p-qIq32m8&feature=related.

Let me remind you that I am white, I disagree with several of President Obama’s policies, and I’m NOT a racist!

downsize the government!

2009-08-07T11:38:00.004-04:00

Unemployment is skyrocketing as companies lay off workers just to stay afloat. Did you ever notice that the government thinks it's immune to the economic downturn? They don't layoff...rather they get bigger. They employ more people than all of the manufacturers combined.

"I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them. " --Thomas Jefferson

If you are a truly honest person, you will readily admit that the government isn't very good at doing to much. Ultimately, the federal government should protect our citizens, our borders, our freedoms, and our constitution, yet their focus is everything but that. If you think government can and should take care of you, consider getting your head checked out.

Consider medicare, medicaid, social security, DMV/BMV, public schools, welfare, public housing...all are programs that are run by the government, or should I say have been run into the ground. If any American corporation were run like these government organizations, they would be shut down not only by the free market, but by the government!

Our founding fathers and early settlers came to America to escape from socialist systems that took advantage of their hard work and abused the very people it claimed to look out for. America is about hard work, opportunity, and dreams. Despite what you believe about this country and how media has influenced you to have negative thoughts, there isn't a place on earth as great as this one. I propose that if you like socialism, high taxes, government waste, government take overs of private industry, etc. then you should seriously consider moving to China, North Korea, Vietnam, Somalia, Afghanistan, Venezuela, or some European countries. Airfare is reasonably cheap, especially for a one-way ticket.

stop the racism - that means EVERYBODY!

2009-07-29T14:16:00.003-04:00

Let me start off by first saying anyone can be racist. There's no such thing as reverse racism and no one is excluded from being racist simply because of their skin color.

There been a lot of talk about the arrest of Professor Gates by Officer Crowley as being motivated by racism and racial profiling. To make matters more heated, President Obama added fuel to the fire by speaking too soon about the situation, labeling the police department as acting stupidly. All parties involved could've handled the situation different, but I have to say Officer Crowley did his job well, supported on site by other officers, including black ones. If one of the black officers had physically made the arrest, the story would've never made headlines.

Before you label me a racist just for saying a white officer was correct, just calm down because it's simply untrue. Those of you who know me can vouch for that. If you don't know me, read my previous blog to understand where I come from.

Gates knows he pushed the line, but I'm sure he had intentions that motivated him to do so. I recently had a malfunction in the middle of night with my security system, causing the police to show up and question my identity rather bluntly, then question my "story". I was so thankful, that despite their skepticism of me at first, they were there ensuring the safety of my family and property. If I had pissed them off by making a scene because it was my house, I probably would've ended up in cuffs, and rightly so. It's not like any of us cary a copy of our deed, mortage or rental agreement in our pocket (including Gates). These guys put their lives on the line to protect us, yet all the media reports is negative stuff, some of which is untrue. They didn't know I owned the house, just like they didn't have proof Gates was the legal resident of his home while he went on his tyraid.

Racial profiling exists...not doubt about that...and every incident needs to be addressed. But it doesn't exist in the Crowley/Gates case. A neighbor saw what appeared to be two black men breaking and entering so she called the cops...they showed up and did what they were supposed to. Gates went too far and I think he did so on purpose. People who commit B&E tend to be very dangerous, so if you were a police officer, you would act with extreme caution and detain any suspected individual, especially if they were fired up. It's so easy to judge the cops from a distance...just imagine what they have to face everyday. Most people wouldn't have the guts to do that job, nor would they have the patience to deal with the people who cry wolf and waste tons of tax payer money on investigations that lead to no where.

The fact is that a very SMALL percentage of black men commit a very LARGE percentage of violent crimes and the figures are terribly disproportinate. According to the Center for Healing Hearts & Spirits, black people represent 13.5% of the American population, half of them being black men (6.75%). Of black men, after you account for young boys and senior citizens who aren't committing the crimes, its reasonable to say that less than 2% of black men are commiting crimes, however, 43% of the murder victims in 2007 were black and 93% of those victims were killed by other African Americans. The goverment can't fix that...hell, the government can't fix much of anything. This is a social/community problem that can only be solved by strong black leaders. The media never reports on the good black leaders and the work they do, rather, they report on the black-on-black crime and place blame on everyone else other than the criminals themselves. Quite frankly, I wish organizations such as the NAACP did more to develop strong community leaders and social programs to address problems in the black community rather than spend so much time, money, and efforts protesting the government, private industries, and getting their politicians elected (chill out because that doesn't just mean Obama). They, like many other organizations, should get out of politics, which is such a corrupt arena, and get more involved in the community to stop teenage pregnancy, teach men what it means to be a father, instill the values of hardwork and education in young people, and promote racial harmony among all of us.

Our American history has a lot of good, and a lot of bad. We should learn from both and MOVE FORWARD. This is the greatest country in the world and we are so bleesed with freedom that others around the globe can't even imagine or comprehend it. There is so much opportunity for whites and minorities alike to succeed and ALL IT TAKES IS LOTS OF HARD WORK and nothing else.

I moved out of the ghetto and never looked back, not because most of the people living there were black, but because I don't want my family to be exposed to crime and danger. I have no shame saying I live in the burbs now because I worked very hard to get there. I'm not rich and I've never taken a handout. I didn't move to avoid black people. In fact, several neighbors are black famalies and a Mexican family just moved in. They are all great people and we are blessed to have them as neighbors. I strongly believe they represent the typical black family, but the media will never portray them in good light. Funny thing is, most people, including minorities get all their "information" from the media. Maybe you should question the media about their motives to always portray black people in a negative light. I think it is disgusting what they do and we all they they are typically far left extremist. Do you own research, don't rely on MSNBC to educate you, or should I say indoctrinate you.

Obama did the right thing by pretty much correcting his comments about Crowley and his police department. These guys as a whole aren't racist, and that includes the arresting officer. Colin Powell accurately said Gates should've been more cooperative and let the police sort things out rather than flying off the handle. We just need to work together as Americans, rather than against each other as White-American vs. African Americans. This is all so ridiculous. Just work hard and be responsible for yourself. Take responsiblity for your own actions and the consequences that come with them.

Fallen Hero

2009-07-21T10:28:00.007-04:00

I want to take a moment to remember Spc. Greg Missman, who was recently killed during combat in Afghanistan. Greg and I worked together for a few years at Chiquita. He was quiet, but funny. As an IT professional, Greg was extremely talented and reliable. He taught me quite a bit, probably without even knowing it or intending to. It was fun working with him, hanging out at lunch, and heading to happy hour after work. I'm saddened by his loss, but take great pride in knowing him and understanding why he rejoined the military. His family and the community should be proud of him for going overseas to make a difference. Whether you agree with the wars we are in or not, 99% of our soldiers are working hard to make a positive impact on peoples' lives. Greg was one of them.

Army Specialist Gregory James Missman
April 24, 1973 - July 8, 2009

How I Got Here

2009-07-17T16:13:00.005-04:00

I grew up in the inner-city of Cincinnati. The second and last child in a blue collar family, I watched my parents struggle to pay the bills and work hard to do so. After I was born, my mom decided to stay home and raise us. It would've cost more to take my older brother and I to daycare than what she made. My parents married right out of high school, but had the sense to wait many years before having children. What I love about their decision is that they knew they were poor and they didn't want to rely on other people to give them money to raise their kids...the other people primarily being the tax payers. To this day, I respect them for that decision.

Dad was a blue collar worker. Starting his young career off in a steel barrel factory, he then became a truck driver for the same company. After some years on the road away from the family, he returned to the factory and worked his way up the assembly line, eventually moving into management positions. His labor was hard and sometimes dangerous, but it put food on the table and kept a roof over our heads. Thirty-five years after his first day there, he was told the company was shutting down and he would need to find a job as a middle aged man. Although he was terrified, he did it, only to get laid off 5 years later. But he kept himself together and landed another job in his mid-fifties.

My parents never took a handout and taught us never to take one either. My brother and I have held jobs since our pre-teens. And we did hard work that paid little money, but it taught us so much. Of course, our family wasn't perfect, and we had our shares of ups and downs, but mom and dad instilled some values in us that I will instill in my kids - to work hard, love lots, appreciate what you have, and value life. To this day, my brother and I are very bashful...we don't want handouts of any form. We strive to earn what we want and appreciate what we have.

The neighborhood we grew up in was a rough one. We were one of the only white families around. Most of the neighborhood was black, but there were a few Mexican and Asian families scattered throughout. Now understand this before you make assumptions--my neighborhood was bad NOT because it was mostly black, but because it was just bad. A few bad apples spoil a bunch. The bad apples in my neighborhood made themselves known. Gang fights, crack houses, prostitution, and drug dealing was visible everyday. While our family got along with most neighbors, the ones doing the crime didn't like us at all. I remember my parents going out into the streets full of gang members to protect our property and their children. Looking back, I can't help but think they were crazy...now I understand. They were willing to put their lives on the line for their family and their community.

Although some may not like it, I consider myself as having the experience of a minority...not the full experience, but definitely an experience. I grew up in a black neighborhood and went to schools where nearly the entire population was black. And guess what??? I would never trade that experience for anything! That doesn't mean all my experiences growing up were great, but I sure did learn a lot from the good and the bad.

So through all the good and bad of my upbringing, I learned that they only way to escape from the temptations surrounding me were to work hard and earn the things I want in life, rather than allow someone to hand them to me. I did exactly that. While some of my friends in high school and in the neighborhood dropped out at young ages, got involved in the life of crime, embedded themselves in gang life, I was hitting the books and often fighting my way home from the bus stop. See, if I wore certain colored clothing, I would be attacked. Rather than run from these fights, my mom taught us to be tough and fight. I didn't always win the fights, but I sure did teach a lot of the thugs that I was a force to be reckoned with.

By hitting the books while continuing hard work in a factory, I made it through high school and earned a full ride scholarship to the University of Cincinnati in the Carl H. Lindner Honors-PLUS program. This opened up enormous opportunities for me, allowing me to meet many different people, learn lots, and travel abroad. It also boosted my professional carrer in Information Technology by landing me a coop job at Chiquita Brands International.

After 5 years at Chiquita, I became the IT Director at a local bank. During that time, I went back to school at Indiana Wesleyan University, where I earned a Master's Degree in management. After 5 years with the bank, I moved on to American Financial Group, then to Maple Knoll Communities, again as an IT Director. Finally, I started my own company with two partners specializing in IT Services and Solutions called High Performance Technology Solutions (HighPerformanceLLC.com).

This is a long blog post and I apologize for that, but I thank you if you've read this far. Honestly, this doesn't even scratch the surface of all that has happened in my life, but maybe, as you read my future posts, you will see how I developed the views I have today.

Life was often tough, but I made it. My family made it. And I'm here today and I am who I am because of the all the experiences I went throught--the good and bad. In high school, I heard a motivational speaker named Les Brown say something that has always stuck with me: "Just because you come up on the rough side of the mountain, doesn't mean you can't make it to the top."

The view sure is nice.

I broke down and started a blog

2009-07-17T10:34:00.002-04:00

Most who know me know I have a lot to say and I have a lot of opinions. After much debate with myself, I decided to start sharing my thoughts with you. As my audience grows, I expect to recieve hate mail and disturbing messages, but I am prepared from that, knowing that so many loons scour the internet in search of someone to attack. As a proud American, I take refuge in the fact that to me and many others, the constitution means something. Many men have died to defend my right to say what I feel and to live freely; to them, I dedicate all my blogs, although I know I owe them so much more--we all do.

My goal with my blog is not to attack others with different opinions, but merely to express my viewpoint and share ideas that many others share with me, but maybe have been reluctant to talk about in fear of being attacked. To those who disagree with me, don't do so with bitterness. Instead, consider having an open mind and open heart. If nothing else, value you the fact that we can disagree and still live freely, unlike others throughout the world.

This post isn't the time or place for me to address a wide range of issues...those will come very soon. I want everyone (left, middle, right / black, white, other / man, woman, child / gay, straight, bisexual) to know that we are ALL first and foremost AMERICANS. We need to remember our history-the good, bad and ugly and we need to value every aspect of it. We need to value each other and our rich experiences. We also need to consider our imperfections because we all have them-that includes me.

In writing this first blog, I've determined my next post will cover my upbringing. That will help you understand where I came from and how I developed the values and opinions I hold today. If you hate me for my values, then I will pray for you and promise you that I will never hate you for yours. I won't engage in back and forth bickering amongst rivals like you see in the media today. Anyone can sit behind a computer and bash others they don't agree with. Quite frankly, I find that cowardly.

So today is the start of a new era in my life-one where I expose myself a little...my child hood, my political stances, my religous beliefs, and my praises and constructive criticisms for those leading our neighborhoods, communities, cities, states, and nation. No politician is immune from criticism on my blog, and yes, that includes our current president. No one gets a pass for any reason, nor should they. As citizens, it's our duty to question our leaders and I will do exactly that.

All I can provide to readers is my honest and fair assessments. And all I can provide to the haters is prayers. Some of them will make me laugh, I'm sure of it. I hope you stay tuned and enjoy what is soon to come...