“If you are prepared” — I wish the following video was satire, but it is very real. The FBI actually produced this video a few years ago. You can even go to fbi.gov/survive to learn more. It seems that profits from the sales of guns and weapons are just too much to expect the…

Everyday life in the dying American empire — As a child growing up in the 60’s and 70’s, I was raised to believe in the American Dream. My parents had benefited from programs like the GI Bill, and were employed in workplaces with strong unions. …

From cradle to grave — PROMPT #1: The first stage in the five stages of change is pre-contemplation. In this stage, an individual or collective is unaware, or not as aware, of a problem and the need to change it. In this stage there is no intention for change. …

Don’t let the US Congress inform your definition of socialism — Most US citizens are naive about the manufacturing of consent, and end up stating opinions that they think are their own, when in fact, all they have done is connect the dots that the ruling elites have so cleverly placed along the paths of their everyday lives. In this land…

Because I’d rather spend my time on things I can change — “That’s not fair!” Most children employ this phrase several times a day. Expressing frustration when things don’t turn out the way we want, is a normal part of human development. …

The ruling elite keep power to themselves — Most programs to help the poor, end up making the rich richer. Every time I hear that the State and corporate developers are “revitalizing” an area, I notice that more people end up homeless. Buildings chosen for renovation, with promises of “affordable housing” for the poor, mostly become luxury condos…

Looking inside ourselves for solutions — Each of us, born with a specific DNA pattern and then shaped by our environment and life’s circumstances, has our own unique view of the world. In the words of Anaïs Nin: “We see the world as ‘we’ are, not as ‘it’ is; because it is the “I” behind the…

A bookclub suggestion via RaWBC — Andrew Gaertner and Laura M. Quainoo created a bookclub for Medium writers, with the hashtag rawbc . That link will take you to some of the reviews of books read over the past months. …

And greed comes in every color — In his book Dear White America: A Letter to a New Minority, Tim Wise asks “white” America to recognize white privilege, to understand that the story of the United States is the story of white supremacy. He writes of the myth of meritocracy, pointing out that black people and white…