Sunday, April 27, 2008

The Tree of Knowledge - Food for Thought!

"And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil....And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.-- Genesis 2: 9, 16-17 "
The concept of "knowing" good and evil can be best understood as being emotionally entangled with the struggle of determining the difference.
Prior to Eating the Fruit:. Adam and Eve were not aware of their own nakedness.
Fast forward to current times - Some say, the Fruit of the Tree of Knowledge is made available to the Masses:
Prior to Television/Internet:
. Families Content to stay in hometowns or farms.
. Children obeyed their parents, stayed outside and played.
. Children worked at home or in town.
. Living in Poverty Acceptable (e.g. trailerparks, innercity, farms)
. No need for Computers, TV, Cellphones, Videogames
. Sexual and Spousal Abuse remained family secrets.
Prior to the Civil Rights Movement:
. Jim Crowe laws were the law of the land. Back of the bus. Separate Eating, Drinking, Entertainment.
. Minority Voting Supressed.
. Hate Groups thrived and openly wrought violence against Blacks and other minorities.
Prior to the Woman´s Right Movement:
. Unequal Pay
. No right to own property
. No right to Vote
. No Sexual Revolution, Free Love
. Mothers stayed at home with their children
Prior to a thriving Multi Cultural Society:
. Sheriff Arpaio´s Racial Profiling Sweeps, Tent City, Chain Gangs
. Latino Citizens harassed and racially profiled.
. Heinous, Crony Owned Detention Centers, Entire families as prisoners.
. Exploitive Employers chaining workers to machines, refusing breaks, stealing pay.
. Backlogged, Broken and Corrupted Immigration policies.
Some could say, prior to the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge being introduced to the masses, the White Male controlled the Earth. However, as more and more people, male and female, become educated and knowledgable, the more people realized that all People are created equal and the fruits of All the Trees are available to All of us. The key is in understanding we can thrive in a multi cultural, male and female society as long as we understand we are All Equal and treat each other with Respect.

33 comments:

Anonymous said...

Everything under "thriving multi-cultural society" is nothing but lies, dee.

Anonymous said...

"Some could say, prior to the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge being introduced to the masses, the White Male controlled the Earth. However, as more and more people, male and female, become educated and knowledgable, the more people realized that all People are created equal and the fruits of All the Trees are available to All of us. The key is in understanding we can thrive in a multi cultural, male and female society as long as we understand we are All Equal and treat each other with Respect."


One could call you a cosmopolite. The problem is your mis-understanding, thinking we all could live in a multi-cultural society. We can and have been living in a multi-racial society, separated in racial enclaves, yet sharing mono-cultural traditions. Only recently has food, mostly, crossed the line into multi-culturalism.

Anonymous said...

"In 1991, Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr., a former advisor to the Kennedy and other US administrations and Pulitzer Prize winner, published a book with the title The Disuniting of America: Reflections on a Multicultural Society. Schlesinger states that a new attitude — one that celebrates difference and abandons assimilation — may replace the classic image of the melting pot, in which differences are submerged in democracy. He argues that ethnic awareness has had many positive consequences to unite a nation with a "history of prejudice"; however, the "cult of ethnicity", if pushed too far, may endanger the unity of society. According to Schlesinger, multiculturalists are "very often ethnocentric separatists who see little in the Western heritage other than Western crimes." Their "mood is one of divesting Americans of their sinful European inheritance and seeking redemptive infusions from non-Western cultures.""

I would say that this fits Dee to a "T".

Anonymous said...

Those were very wise words by Schlesinger, liquid. He makes a lot of sense. Yes, it pretty much fits dee's agenda and the rest of her ilk. The saddest thing is that they know what they are advocating and are looking forward to the prospect of the results. If this were happening in their own Latino countries, they would put a stop to it real fast.

Anonymous said...

Wow Liquid how shocking, you find a book with words like ethnocentric and separatists, I've got to tell you that just shocks the holy h*ll out of me, what's next, giving examples of how Joe Arian Arpaio dishes out justice (sarcasm), oh and more surprising that pat (or parrot) is in total agreement of this cr*p

Anonymous said...

Speaking of Knowledge, I refer to a new report just released by the American Legion on their strategy to deal with illegal immigration. The
American Legion is a highly respected organization in the U.S. that has over 2 million members, all veterans of the armed services of the United States.

Here is a link:
http://www.legion.org/documents/pdf/illegalimmigration.pdf

Dee said...

Anon, Cosmopolite is an interesting word. A citizen of the world.
I dont know how old most of you are or how much you interact with business people. I work for a very large corporation. A large corporation is similar to a university in the fact the people in a large, successful corporation are diverse. We employ brilliant people from all over the world. We conduct business via conference calls. Our teams are in the US, Europe, Middle East and Asia. We flip on our laptops and conduct business every day. Most of us are in the US and mostly all are citizens. The names are very diverse. I may work with Mary, John, Jane, Boris, Madhavi, Shakeera and Julie on a project. Any hours. Any days. We are Multicultural! This is same whether we are Microsoft, AOL, Google, Verizon, General Motors, Citigroup, Exxon and Walmart!

Dee said...

Liquid, My view is the opposite of ethnocentric. It is multicultural where we are ALL equal.
No one superior or inferior.
All equal.

Anonymous said...

Dianne, your link didn't work.

Dee, the question is how many of those people you have mentioned have assimilated into the traditional society, language and culture of America and how many have not? Do they speak their native langauges and practice their native cultures at home or do they openly flaunt them out in mainstream America and refuse to blend in? Blending in and assimilating is the melting pot that has made America a cohesive nation, not standing out and dividing ourselves into ethnic enclaves.

Dee said...

Dianne,
I read through the document by the American Legion. It is not too extreme, although many of the sources of data are from the typical ANTI extremist websites. Some of their solutions are agreeable. Example: Secure borders through trained BP. Additional support through trained Military reservists. Employer Sanctions. Registration programs. Accountabilty by elected officials. They do not include "sanctuary" aspects. No specific clauses for full fence. Encourage use of technology. They disavow alliances with MMs and non trained personnel.

There are three areas I do not agree with. I don´t agree sweeps which promote racial profiling. I don´t agree with Detention Centers especially for Families and I don´t agree with what they term as "no amnesty."

Other than these three items, much of what they say is probably acceptable to the masses.

Dee said...

Gosh Pat. You and blend in. If you go to Miami, Atlanta, St. Louis, Detroit, New Orleans, or San Antonio, YOU won´t blend in! Sheesh!

Dee said...

This whole post illustrates how our world has evolved. The tree of knowledge is open for business and available to all the eyes of the world. We all know that if we are educated we can compete and become an equal member in business.

Before the tree of knowledge was available to all people, those without access believed what those in power told them. They were powerless, afraid and uneducated and stayed that way.

I remember the song, "How you gonna keep em down on the farm after they´ve seen Paree." You can no longer keep women or minorities from becoming educated and going elbow to elbow in business and in the world. We ARE all equal and nothing will change us to revert back to the times of old.

Anonymous said...

I'd blend in just fine in most of those cities. The ones I wouldn't would be the areas of those cities where the people refuse to use English as their primary language, dee.

Most people I know of today are no longer trying to hold women or minorities back from achieving success. You are the one living in the past if you think so.

Anonymous said...

Glad you read it Dee. Sorry, Patriot, but you can easily access the report on the website of the American Legion.

I also agree with much of what is stated in the report. They put a heavy emphasis on homeland security.

I've come to the conclusion that amnesty is not a viable option. I lean more towards a temporary worker program (expansions of what we have and better) which is also what the Legion supports. When I say "better", I mean better for the immigrant as well. They should not be treated like slave labor and should be paid decent wages. Of course they should also be given the chance to apply for citizenship like everybody else in the world. First thing we need to do is clear up the backlog we have of everybody who is already waiting in line and then beef up the entire program to make it more accessible, within limits we can accomodate. Temporary workers should be given some sort of priority for time worked.

Anonymous said...

diane, I am confused on one of your ideas. You say you are in favor of a temporary guest workers program and yet you say they should be able to apply for citizenship. I see nothing temporary in that. Did I miss something?

I think we need to implement the Save Act and after the four year period of it's completion assess what we might need in additional foreign workers. We would get a clearer picture after that because many illegals will have left and many of those jobs filled by citizens. I also think we need to keep in mind our population growth and get away from a population driven economy.

I also am more in favor of a temporary worker's program rather than permanancy and citizenship. Of course under certain circumstances citizenship should be allowed. I also think we should have fair quotas from many different ethnic groups rather than just one. This will also assist in assimilation and keep the melting pot going rather than the salad bowl phenomenum which breaks down the cohesiveness of our society.

We must also seek to re-interpret the 14th Amendment so that birth citizenship is only rewarded if one parent is a citizen.

Dee said...

Dianne, I agree we need to bring them out of the shadows and if that means into some sort of Guest Worker status then they get in line, I agree to that as well. I do agree with deporting felonious criminals especially anyone with violent or drug crimes.
Back in Michigan, my husband and I used to go to the American Legion every month or so. My brothers are members. We used to go play cards or to dances with them. Lots of very nice and good people, mostly retirees go there.

Anonymous said...

wow Diane, as an ANTI you agree with allot of the PRO's point of view, and out of all (3) of the ANTI's in here you are DEFINITELY the most polite, however in past posts I don't agree with you pointing out articles of criminals specifically of hispanic race to profile them as almost saying that all ILLEEEEEGALS are hispanic or all ILLEEEEEGALS are criminals, i think there were a few articles, don't like that kind of profiling

Anonymous said...

Whats the matter Anon1, are you mad because I didn't put your name next to Dee's? Or is it that you don't understand what a Cosmopolite is? All I did was make reference to a book, and here you are shooting the messenger. Intelligence still isn't one of your strong points is it!!?

Dee said...

Liquid, It was the 1st anon that called me a Cosmopolite. Did you accidently post as Anonymous?

I thought it was an interesting term. I hadnt used it in this context and I had to look it up myself.

Actually it is a very thought provoking term.

Dee said...

Pat,
I worked in many of these cities and I am not sure you would fit in. Each area has their own culture and their own charm. All unique. All different.

You would stand out like a sore thumb.

Anonymous said...

lol, looks like your busted "anonymous," you could've also used "Supreme Intelligence" on that post and we would've gotten more of a laugh at least, and liquid

Dee said...

Anon 1,
Liquid is very intelligent and I like debating him. I would say, next to (and tied with) Ultima, he is my toughest opponent and we would probably be friends except for this issue.
I like you too Anon 1!!! We see eye to eye on the Immigration issues and on many political issues.

Anonymous said...

Yes, I missed placing my name above. Next time, I will make sure it is there. Yuk it up Anon1, it might be your only chance.

Anonymous said...

Dee said...

Cosmopolite is an interesting word. A citizen of the world.


It's used in the term based on my previous posts, not as a citizen of the world but as having a worldwide view rather than limited or provincial scope or bearing.

Your multi-cultural fallacies are confused with diversity. In the United States, multiculturalism is not clearly established in policy at the federal level. At the state level, it is "sometimes associated" with English-Spanish bilingualism.

In the United States especially, multiculturalism became associated with political correctness and with the rise of ethnic identity politics. In the 1980s and 1990s many criticisms were expressed, from both the left and right. Criticisms come from a wide variety of perspectives, but predominantly from the perspective of liberal individualism, from American conservatives concerned about values, and from a national unity perspective.

Another critic of multiculturalism is the political theorist Brian Barry. In his 2002 book Culture and Equality: An Egalitarian Critique of Multiculturalism,[36] he argues that some forms of multiculturalism can divide people, although they need to unite in order to fight for social justice.

Anonymous said...

Wrong, dee! If they are speaking English, I have no problem with them unless of course they are killing a goat in their backyard as part of their culturall practice.

Anonymous said...

By the way dee, the cities you mentioned also have their traditional neighborhoods which represent the mainstream society of America. A whole city doesn't represent one big ethnic enclave.

ultima said...

Sheriff Joe is a page out our past when there was such a thing as law and order. He should receive the highest honor our nation can bestow to civilians. He is the only guy tough enough to even begin to solve the illegal problem since congress, ICE and the Border Patrol have been unable to do so. Tough problems require tough measures.

Our so-called thriving multi-cultural society was epitomized recently by multiple shootings in Chicago. Shades of Al Capone and the Italian era of Chicago crime bosses.

ultima said...

A NEW CONSTITUTION

We the sensible people of the United States, in an attempt to help everyone get along, preserve the wonderful country in which we are privileged to live, restore some semblance of justice, avoid more riots, keep our nation safe, promote positive behavior, and secure the blessings of debt-free liberty, prosperity and quality of life to ourselves and our great-great-great-grandchildren, hereby try one more time to ordain and establish some common sense guidelines for the terminally whiny, guilt ridden, delusional, and other liberal bed-wetters. We hold these truths to be self evident: that a whole lot of people are confused by the Bill of Rights and are so dim they require a Bill of NON-Rights.

ARTICLE I: You do not have the right to a new car, big screen TV, or any other form of wealth. More power to you (Oliver) if you can legally acquire them, but no one is guaranteeing anything.

ARTICLE II: You do not have the right to never be offended. This country is based on freedom, and that means freedom for everyone -- not just you! You may leave the room, turn the channel, express a different opinion, etc.; but the world is full of idiots, and probably always will be. You may be one of them.

ARTICLE III: You do not have the right to be free from harm. If you stick a screwdriver in your eye or mishandle a hot cup of coffee, learn to be more careful; do not expect the tool manufacturer or restaurant to make you and all your relatives independently wealthy.

ARTICLE IV: You do not have the right to free food and housing. Americans are the most charitable people to be found, and will gladly help anyone in need, but we are quickly growing weary of subsidizing generation after
generation of professional couch potatoes and welfare parasites who achieve nothing more than the creation of another generation of professional couch potatoes and welfare parasites. You do not have the right to expect everyone else to take care of you!

ARTICLE V: You do not have the right to free health care. That would be nice, but from the looks of public housing, we're just not interested in public health care.

ARTICLE VI: You do not have the right to physically harm other people. If you kidnap, rape, intentionally maim, or kill some one, don't be surprised if the rest of us want to see you fry in the electric chair or get the needle.
ARTICLE VII: You do not have the right to the possessions of others. If you rob, cheat, or coerce away the goods or services of other citizens, don't be surprised if the rest of us get together and lock you away in a place where you still won't have the right to a big screen color TV or a life of leisure.

ARTICLE VIII: You do not have the right to a job. All of us sure want you to have a job, and will gladly help you along in hard times, but we expect you to take advantage of the opportunities of education and vocational training laid before you to make yourself useful and then, get a JOB!! We expect that you will postpone getting pregnant or having a family until you have the skills and knowledge needed to support a family.

ARTICLE IX: You do not have the right to happiness. Being an American means that you have the right to PURSUE happiness, which by the way, is a lot easier if you are unencumbered by an over abundance of idiotic laws created by those of you who were confused by the Bill of Rights.

ARTICLE X: This is an English speaking country. We don't care where you are from, English is our language. Learn it or go back to wherever you came from! Nothing in this article may be construed to prohibit the study or private use of foreign languages but all official business of government at all levels shall be conducted, printed or published only in English. Citizenship will be granted only to those who demonstrate the ability to read and understand complex ballot issues in English. Voting privileges are reserved for citizens fluent in English. Immigration priority will be given to applicants who demonstrate such fluency.

ARTICLE XI: You do not have the right to change our country's history or heritage. This country was founded on the belief in one true God. And yet,you are given the freedom to believe in any religion, any faith, or no faith at all; with no fear of persecution. The phrase IN GOD WE TRUST is part of our heritage and history, and if you are uncomfortable with it, TOUGH!

ARTICLE XII: Regardless of employer magnets and spineless politicians, you do not have the right to enter this country without the proper documentation. If you do enter this country illegally, we will use all means at our disposal to apprehend, detain, and expeditiously repatriate you at your own, your employer’s or your homeland government’s expense. Workplace enforcement using E-verification is specifically authorized. Employers who fail to use the system or fail to detain those with name/ssn mismatches will be subject to two years in jail for the first offense and 5 years for each additional offense. An illegal alien who returns will be confined at hard labor for not less than two years.

ARTICLE XIII: The 14th Amendment notwithstanding, children, born in the U.S. of parents who are here illegally, are citizens of the country of origin of their parents. Children born in the U.S. of parents who are here legally as citizens or permanent residents will be granted birthright citizenship when they attain the age of 21 or at age 18 if they enlist in the armed forces for not less than 4 years.

ARTICLE XIV: You do not have the right to have more children than you can reasonably support and educate. You do not have the right to impose the burden of additional children upon other taxpayers. Tax exemptions are limited to no more than two children per woman. Unused tax exemptions may be bought and sold.

ARTICLE XV: Foreign agricultural workers with temporary work permits must return to their homelands when the harvest is in or when their visas expire. Failure to do so permanently bars the workers for returning after they have been apprehended and repatriated. Children born of temporary workers are not entitled to birthright citizenship unless they enlist in the armed forces for not less than 4 years and demonstrate a thorough knowledge of our history, heritage, culture, language, flag, constitution and other relevant laws.

Dee said...

Ulty,
Very clever ANTI Constitution! I am glad Oliver and I inspired you!

Im glad you posted it on your blog too! That way it will get the credit it deserves.

As any hard working, contributing American would say, I only agree with about half of your ammendments, but the document is very clever and makes your point.

Anonymous said...

Great job, Ultima! I only disagree with a couple of points and they are about tax exemptions being bought and sold. I agree with your 2 children maximum tax exemption per family but I disagree on being able to sell the unused ones.

Another point I disagree on is temporary worker's whose children are born in this country being able to gain citizenship through military service.

Otherwise, great job and your Constitution makes a lot of sense.

Anonymous said...

Ultima, is this "NON Constitution" hanging on your refrigerator door? hehe, you should also add "these apply only to the commoners, I am still KING of the castle!!"

Dee said...

Ulty,
You know if you would have taken the Bill of Rights then changed the specific bill to the ANTI view (number by number), you could publish it in an ANTI Constitution on your website, refrig, book, et al.

Dee said...

so you could do something like:

Amendment I
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.


ANTI Amendment I
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech for CITIZENS, or of the CITIZEN press; or the right of the CITIZENS to peaceably to assemble, and for CITIZENS to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

etc.

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