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Been There, Done That!

How often have you used the words above to describe the “deja vu” feeling of having experienced the exact same event or incident over and over again with the very same and often painful outcomes? I know I have and I’m sure many of you have. So why do we keep repeating the same cycle over and over again? Perhaps, it’s because of this.

“Been there, done that. Then, been there several more times, because apparently I never learn.” Unknown

I’ve done this many times over. This meaning, “I told myself I would never go through this and find myself in the same uneventful place again.” Like dating the wrong person with the exact same habits as the one I left behind. Then I find myself months down the road faced with the exact same situation but with another individual. I told myself I would never do cheaters, liars, control freaks and narcissists ever again but lo and behold, it never fails. They seem to come out of the woodwork as far as I am concerned and I am faced with the self-same situation only to scream, “What am I doing wrong?”

I think we are creatures of habit and therefore love embracing familiarity more than commonsense! What feels familiar is comforting. It gives us a sense of warmth and maybe even a feeling of “home.” You’ve heard the saying, “Home is where the heart is?” Well, not in this case! According to Isabel Buchbinder, “repeating patterns do not happen by coincidence. Repeating patterns are merely lessons which can be seen as an opportunity for us to evolve and grow.” The question remains, how often do you have to fall in order to grasp the lessons you have to learn? Unfortunately, there are no clear-cut answers. Some learn quickly and others not at all. I hope I am NOT in the “not at all” category but it sure feels that way at times.

Here again, Ms. Buchbinder has some good tips on how to break free and to move on to greener and more acceptable behavior traits. She says, “the reoccuring external situation is trying to get our attention so that we focus within and change this internal limiting structure and thus break the pattern. She adds, “don’t bleed on those who didn’t hurt you.” It just means heal yourself first before entering a relationship. This also means, “once you heal your subconscious limitations and traumas, you no longer repeat patterns and you will start attracting life situations which are more suitable for your well-being and more heightened state of life!”

“Life will keep on repeating the same situation through different circumstances until we have learnt the lesson.” Isabel

How do you break this self-fulfilling prophecy? Here are five steps from Isabel, not easy but worth the try.

The first step is to become aware of the pattern.

The second step is to observe the situation but don’t react.

The third step is to identify the lesson it is trying to teach us.

The fourth and perhaps the hardest step is to accept the situation, integrate, heal and let it go. Letting go takes forever in my world and even when I do, I keep looking back with one foot in the past and one foot in front.

The fifth step, if you’re confronted with a “repeating pattern” again, it’s just life wanting to know if you’ve learned the lesson and have fully let go. Lord, have mercy!

Be gentle with yourself, accept what you can’t change, learn from what you can and take the next step in the right direction. If you find yourself faced with the same old stuff from another individual but in a different body, don’t walk but RUN! and don’t look back.

“Break through that imaginary ceiling you’ve placed over yourself.” Unknown

AND

“Life has a way of making you repeat the same patterns until YOU choose to break the cycle.”

Have an amazing day.

The Musk Hoopla!

Trump’s major interview with Elon Musk almost got derailed because of a huge technical problem but it got back on track after a 40 plus minute delay and when it did, the bromance flourished between the former president and the Space X Founder.

The former president felt so safe in Musk’s presence that he went off-script and unleashed at least 20 false claims. He ran the gamut and let loose his falsehoods with Elon Musk giving him his undivided attention. The former Commander in Chief and all around liar gripped about crime rates, inflation, Global warming (of which he knows nothing about) and anything else he saw fit to throw into the mix. It didn’t matter if they were lies or gross exaggerations. Things like that don’t matter to a seasoned pathological liar and a true narcissist.

According to NPR, he told 162 lies and distortions in his news presser at Mar-a-Lago within 1 hour. The NPR team found at least 162 misstatements, exaggerations and outright lies in 64 minutes and that’s more than two a minute. “It’s a stunning number for anyone – and even more problematic for a person running to lead the free world.” They further added that, “what former President Trump did this past Thursday went well beyond the bounds of what most politicians would do.” The Musk interview was no different.

EU’s commissioner for Internal Market, Thierry Breton, cautioned X founder and Tech mogul Musk asking him to censor the interview to avoid “the amplification of harmful content.” He went on to say that Musk “has a legal obligation to comply with the Digital Services Act to fight the spread of misinformation as the man in charge of the platform used by over 300 million people worldwide.”

Musk’s reply went like this. “Take a big step back and literally f**k your own face!” The man is not a novice when faced with censorship. In July, EU charged X for failing to respect its social media laws. He also faced recent criticism for fanning the flames as far-right riots broke out in the UK claiming the perpetrator of the Southport stabbings was Muslim which was an untruth.

How smart is Musk? According to Noam Mendelssohn, a Software Engineer, “Elon Musk is not very bright. He’s an economic and business bully in the same line as Trump, but nothing more. Any engineer worth his salt, any person with basic physics knowledge or computer knowledge can shred his ideas.” He went on to add, “His solar plans are flawed, his calculations on his TED interview are about 100x off, Tesla was not his idea, he strongarmed his way in and his hyperloop idea being even worse.” So how did he make his money? Mendelssohn had this answer. “He has a hype that is believed by simpletons and he is making his money by being a snake oil salesman.” Two peas in a pod? No wonder the bromance took off like a rocket and is till flying around in space somewhere!

Joseph Costello, Harris campaign spokesperson, had this to say about the interview.

“Trump’s entire campaign is in service of people like Elon Musk and himself – self-obsessed rich guys who will sell out the middle class and who cannot run a livestream in the year 2024.”

The interview was a flop in more ways than one. Nothing new, same old lies, exaggerated insults coming from an “old” man who is trying to give his sagging and deflated campaign a helping hand but unfortunately for him, it is going to take more than what he has in that thing he calls a brain to do that!

Joyful Warriors vs. The Weird Duo

Kamala Harris and her running mate, Tim Walz say they are, “Joyful Warriors,” compared to Trump and his running mate, J.D. Vance whose campaign smirks of loom, doom and gloom.

According to Harris, they are looking at a future filled with optimism unlike Trump who she accused of being stuck in the past and preferring a confrontational style of politics and folks that is putting it mildly! Furthermore, she added that, “Someone who suggests we should terminate the Constitution of the United States should never again have the chance to sit behind the seal of the United States.”

Tim Walz is upbeat, energetic and has a perpetual smile plastered on his face and he is the symbol of joy itself. Add Kamala’s raucous laughter and her message of unity, community and working together and you’ve got a winning ticket. Walz coined the term, “weird” to describe Vance and it has taken hold in more ways than one. He also had some choice words to say about Trump saying the former president “mocks our laws, he sows chaos and division amongst the people and that’s to say nothing of the job he did as president.” A takedown like no other!

The two waltzed their way through the swing states, with glee, with humor and a positive message. Walz bowed, he waved, he grinned, he laughed and if he could have, he would have danced the night away. When it came to his turn to speak, he turned to Harris and said, “Thank you, Madam Vice-President, for the trust you put in me but maybe more so, thank you for bringing back the joy.” A breath of fresh air no less!

Donald Trump was looking at a sure second win just weeks ago but when Biden ended his bid for re-election, and handed the reins to his VP, the Democrats were back in command again. Harris nailed it when she asked this question. “Do we want to live in a country of freedom, of compassion, of rule of law? Or a country of chaos, fear and hate?” This was followed by the cry, “We’re not going back.” That was the nail in the coffin. Shawn Fain, president of the United Automobile Workers said, Americans are faced with “which side are you on’ moment” and he went on to say, he was siding with the “badass woman who stood with us on the picket line.”

Badass, she definitely is. More than that, if elected she would be the first female president and don’t let that loud, raucous laughter fool you. She raised $36 million in the first 24 hours after naming Walz as her running mate and that is a record haul. Just as her no-nonsense reply to her protesters, “If you want Donald Trump to win, then say that. Otherwise, I’m speaking.” Trump, on the other hand, was experimenting with more nicknames saying, “We’re going to evict crazy Kamala.” Harris is a giant compared to petty, name-calling, size mongering, temper-tantrum throwing Trump. If all he has to offer is just insults and who can hit better below the belt then the man doesn’t stand a chance!

Kamala Harris, The Truths We Hold: An American Journey

“My daily challenge to myself is to be part of the solution, to be a joyful warrior in the battle to come. My challenge to you is to join that effort. To stand up for our ideals and our values. Let’s not throw up our hands when it’s time to roll up our sleeves. Not now. Not tomorrow. Not ever.

Years from now, our children and our grandchildren will look up and lock eyes with us. They will ask us where we were when the stakes were so high. They will ask us what it was like. I don’t want us to just tell them how we felt. I want us to tell them what we did.”

The Meltdown!

He walked onstage as a fire-breathing dragon, his anger showing, his face red or maybe more orange ready to do battle but instead the minute he opened his mouth, it was more of the same. It was one insult after another and lies that no one could keep up with no matter how quickly they did the fact-checking. Trump looked old and feeble as he tried to recapture the momentum he had lost as Harris grabbed the limelight and showed him who’s the boss. He was an almost winner as the bullet grazed his ear which catapulted him to a sure win but alas, Kamala Devi Harris came in like a trojan horse and the man who loves crowd-size more than anything else and of course the word, “HUGE” was left dancing in the dust as he watched his winning streak go up in flames.

Trump held an hour-long conference which was meant to revitalize his downward spiraling campaign but as usual his mouth overloaded any chance he had of coming across as a true leader and instead he zeroed in on his arch rival, the lady who has for some reason got him by the b***s and is not planning to let go any time soon. He might as well have thrown in the towel because he had nothing to offer as to why he is the better candidate but instead he came across as a petulant child in a grown man’s body.

His monologues were rambling and not going anywhere, he was incoherent, his demeanour worn-out, tired and fading just like the man himself and his insults were just that, pure Trump. He didn’t need truth on his side, why would he when he had lies to bolster his confidence. He went on attack-mode and stayed there calling Harris “stupid,” and “incompetent.” It was like watching the pot calling the kettle black, if you know what I mean.

He gripped about Jewish Americans supporting Harris. His exact words were, “They should have their heads examined.” He didn’t add that the lady in question is married to a Jewish man which was all the more comical. The rambling went on and on and so did the insults. He added, “She’s not smart enough to do a news conference.” Really?!! Kamala Harris attended Howard University and graduated with a degree in political science and economics. She has “smarts” oozing out of every pore. Trump, on the other hand, once declared himself as a “very stable genius.” However, he has refused to release his school transcripts and according to presidential historian Barbara Perry, “I think he’s our most cunning president and I think there is a certain amount of intellect that that requires. So, maybe for some presidents, they make up for lack of native brilliance and intelligence with cleverness. And he obviously knows how to work a crowd, so I’m not going to take that away from him.” Stick that in your pipe and smoke it Donald!

All in all, it was a disaster of a news conference. He praised himself, patted himself on the back several times, threw grenades at his opponents, hunkered down in the mud and acted like the spoiled little brat that he is. He proved several things. He doesn’t know when and where to draw the line, doesn’t know how to take it on the cheek and move on AND most importantly, the convicted felon and abuser of women is a sore loser, a wannabe dictator and lastly, he is a disaster in the making and definitely not presidential material!

Trump’s Downward Spiral (Archives)

Update: I wrote this piece way back when he was eyeing his second-term, unfortunately he made it. However, the insults, the bullying, talking out of both sides of his you know what, the all about me concept, and add aggression to it and you get the full picture of his presidency. Oh, I forgot lying. He does it like a pro and without flinching. Is his presidency on a downward spiral? Looks like it but who knows? He might survive this debacle as well. One thing is for sure, Iran is giving as good as it gets and they have got his “goat” right now!

The man with the not so HUGE hands and the perpetual orange face decided to take it one further when faced with questions at the National Black Journalists Association Convention. Shocking is not the word for it but stupidity sure is. His answers did not make sense and his rant, well that is typical Trump.

He went from calling a reporter rude, nasty and wasting his time and as if that wasn’t enough he resorted to racial tropes saying that VP Kamala Harris “happened to turn Black” during her political career as if it was a pre-planned choice.

The man is old, his cognitive skills are declining, his IQ is questionable especially in light of his recent rantings on why Harris, a product of an Indian mother and a Jamaican father should NOT call herself BLACK! His vicious insults hit below the belt and he takes the saying, “When they go low, we go higher,” to a new all-time LOW. The man doesn’t even know what that means. His motto is, “When they go low, I go much lower and stay there to wrestle in the mud!” Perhaps, insults is all he has left of a crumbling political landscape as he watches it take a dive knowing full well that he doesn’t stand a chance against Harris, debate or otherwise.

Harris has made it crisp and clear. “If you’ve got something to say, say it to my face.” The gauntlet has been thrown, let’s see if the orange TV personality and former president will accept the challenge. One thing’s for sure, it will be a massacre of the worst kind. Going up against a former prosecutor is a daunting task but pair it with a much younger individual and you’ve got disaster on your hands. “Old,” “feeble,” and all the other derogatory insults he piled on Biden is coming back to haunt him and rightfully so. What goes around, comes around.

“Ding-Dong,” or not, Harris is ready to trump Trump and not in a subtle manner either. The lady has her wits about her and she knows exactly where to hit to draw the least amount of blood but enough to slay the dragon or rather an “old” and “feeble” man who deserves trumping. She is capable of doing it without so much as an insult or histrionics. The wannable dictator and convicted felon needs to be shown the door and who better than Kamala Harris to do just that.

Harris is well on her way to victory having garnered enough votes to become the Democratic Party’s presumptive nominee and having raised $310 million US in July, double the amount Trump did in the same month. She is gaining in strength and popularity and driving Trump off his rocker!

Rihanna said it best in her song, “Take a Bow,” and it goes like this.

“But you put on quite a show

Really had me goin’

But now it’s time to go

Curtains finally closin’

That was quite a show

Very entertaining

But it’s over now

Go on and take a bow.”

Hey Donald, don’t let the door hit you on the way out!

Insults Galore

Biden has dropped out and he has endorsed his VP Kamala Harris to run in his place. The Clintons have endorsed her saying that, “America’s future depends on it.” Former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama have also endorsed her saying, “Michelle and I couldn’t be prouder to endorse you and to do everything we can to get you through this election and into the Oval Office.” Those are nice words compared to what is coming out of the Republican camp.

It is a gloves off and let’s roll in the mud mentality combined with an all out assault. Nothing new here but is Trump running scared? Looks like it, doesn’t it? “She’s the same as Biden but much more radical. She’s a radical left person and this country doesn’t want a radical left person to destroy it.” The former President went on to add, “If she becomes president, Kamala Harria will make the invasion exponentially worse, and just like she did with San Francisco, just like she did with the border, our whole country will be permanently destroyed.” Can he go any lower? Oh yes, he can! “I call her Laffin’ Kamala. You ever watch her laugh? She’s crazy. You can tell a lot by a laugh. She’s crazy. She’s nuts.” Hmm…..takes one to know one uh? I guess her laugh is better than your constipated orange laugh which makes you look like a turtle at times!

Rightwing podcaster, Megyn Kelly threw this out. “She actually did sleep her way into and upwards in California politics and most women (and men) may learn that and see it for what it is: evidence of an unqualified political aspirant getting ahead based on smthy other than merit.” Really Megyn? You do have a smug way about you but your comment or rather insult just goes to show how low on the totem pole you can go. Perhaps that’s why you’re doing a podcast and nothing more.

Harris is smart. She is the first Black woman to be elected District Attorney, the first woman to be California’s attorney general, the first Indian American senator and the first Asian American VP. She is a trailblazer and a prosecutor to boot. She also has a degree in political science and economics and the lady has chutzpah and if that’s not enough, she is all of 59-years-old. She could and would run circles around the former 78-year-old president. He wouldn’t know what hit him except that he got trounced and to the bone.

If you’re wondering about the insults, the hot, heavy and nasty ones, it’s because as Socrates said, “When the debate is lost, insults become the loser’s tools.” It will be Trump’s turn to feel the heat as he faces off with Harris on that debate stage knowing full-well that nothing, not insults galore, not steroids or whatever he is on will be enough to put her in her place and I guarantee he’ll be shaking in his boots or whatever he is wearing. Laffen’ Kamala will be a formidable opponent and that folks is the honest truth.

The Manchester Uproar

Derek Michael Chavin, a former police officer, murdered George Floyd, a 46-year-old African-American, in Minneapolis, Minnesota on May 25, 2020 by kneeling on Floyd’s neck for about nine minutes while Floyd kept calling out, “I can’t breath,” and slowly snuffed out his life. During his tenure as a police officer, Chavin had 18 complaints against him and was involved in three police shootings and he had received two letters of reprimand for misconduct.

On April 20, 2021, he was convicted on all charges and was sentenced to 22 1/2 years in prison. He is just one of many officers involved in the killing of black males and for using excessive force while serving as a police officer. Police officers have always marched to a different drumbeat it seems, that of carrying a gun and a badge but when it comes to paying for their indiscretions, murder no less, they are untouchable or they walk off with a slight reprimand and are free to carry on as if nothing had happened while their victims lay six feet under, their voices silenced forever. Since 2015, police officers have shot at least 135 unarmed black men and women nationwide. At least 75% of the officers involved in the shootings were white. Excessive force and overkill was and is the name of the game. Willie McCoy, a black rapper, was sleeping in his silver Mercedes CLS500 outside a Taco Bell minding his own business when officers, six of them arrived and within minutes they had fired 55 shots in 3.5 seconds killing him. They put it down to “imminent danger,” and self-defense” would be the other and most often used excuse for the killing of unarmed black men.

Fast forward to what happened across the pond in Manchester, UK. A video has gone viral showing a police officer of the Greater Manchester Police kicking and stomping on a man’s head while he lay motionless on the ground. An older woman is seen trying to protect the young man on the ground. The uproar around this situation brings back shades of what happened in the US and the protests that ensued after the killing of black males in the US. As usual everyone especially the police are scrambling to come up with legitimate excuses for use of such excessive force BUT the video speaks for itself. The man has a cyst on his brain according to CT scans and his condition has worsened. Whatever happened before the attack by the police officer has nothing to do with this excessive use of force. The man on the ground was unarmed, motionless and no threat to any of the officers involved. Did racism play a part in this horrific and over-excessive use of force? Definitely.

According to a University of Birmingham report, “Police violence is not just a problem in the United States – it’s a reality in the UK, and at its core is “warrior culture among police officers. Warrior culture is defined as, “police officers defaulting to violence and aggression when conflicts arise.” It is, “largely characterized by aggression, machoism, intolerance, bias, suspicion, and detachment from policed communities,” which creates a ‘us versus them’ mentality. Furthermore, “policing research over many decades has consistently found that misogyny and racism persist in UK street policing culture.

The uproar is justified, the outrage more so. The officer or rather officers involved in this incident should lose their licence to practice or rather their badges should be taken away from them. They do not belong in a police force that is supposed to be out there to protect and to treat every individual equally and they certainly should not be condoned to go out and unleash the brutality they did. Having a badge and a baton does not give you the right to act with no principles and with such aggression. Shame on you!

When Murder Comes Calling

Wade Wilson’s jury voted in favor of the death penalty for the murders of Kristine Melton and Diane Ruiz on October 7, 2019. I am not talking about Marvel’s Deadpool character who is described as a wisecracking mutant mercenary. He is fun to hang out with but only in small doses. I am talking about Florida’s strangulation serial killer of the same name and hanging out with this character will silence you forever.

It took five years to bring justice to the case. His own father took the stand and testified that his son not only confessed to the murders but bragged about them. His exact words were, “I’m a killer – there are two people gone who are not coming back.” He further added that when he realized that his victim was still breathing, he ran her over with his car until she resembled spaghetti.

On October 7, 2019, a tattooless Wade Wilson, at least on his face met Kristine Melton 25 and her friend Stephanie Sailors at Buddah LIVE, a Fort Myers bar. They spent time together and later that night, Wilson strangled Melton as she slept. A short time later having killed one person, he was ready to kill again. The evil within him had awakened and he wanted to snuff out another life. He coaxed Diane Ruiz into his car and attacked her, beat and strangled her before pushing her out of the car and running over her repeatedly.

Melton was described as a cat lover and a great friend. Diane Ruiz was the mother of two sons, Brandon Cuellar 29 and Zane Romero, 19. She was described as “the heartbeat of the bar. She always had everybody’s back. She just had that personality that was really magnifying. She has this really loud laugh that you could hear it like a mile away.”

Perhaps that was what attracted Wilson to her or that she was readily available. Whatever it was that hearty raucous laugh came to a standstill later that night when evil in the form of Wade Wilson came calling. Was he remorseful? Not at all, he later told detectives at an interview, “I would do it again.”

The killer would later brag about the murders to the police, three days after the killings. He said his biggest concern after the murders was getting a burger and fries while one of his victims, Diane Ruiz lay silenced in a field, bugs eating her face.

Assistant State Attorney, Andreas Gardiner told the court, “This case was about killing for the sake of the killing. Strangulation is the epitome of life slipping through someone’s hands.” A different looking, Wade Wilson sat in court, his face emotionless, tattoos all over his face resembling Jared Leto’s, Joker character. There was a swastika tattoo on his face and one under his hair but it was that stone-cold look that caught everyone’s attention. He portrayed the killer image perfectly.

Defense attorney, Lee Hollander had his work cut out for him. All he could do was ask for mercy saying, “We are not claiming that he didn’t do it. I suspect the drugs. I’m not arguing insanity, I’m arguing the state is claiming premeditation. I’m arguing he’s whacked out of his mind for any of this.” That didn’t work.

Very little is known of this deadly character and his earlier years. What turned him into this remorseless killer? According to his biological father, both he and Wilson’s mother were teenagers when she became pregnant and Wade was placed for adoption after his birth. There was very little contact between him and his father during the growing up years. Is this a case of nature vs. nurture? “The main argument for nurture is that the environment is what makes us who we are.” It basically says that nurture is more dynamic and plays a more important role in one’s life. However, this debate is still ongoing. What makes a person so evil that taking a life is like eating burgers and fries that it makes you crave for more of the same?

Wilson will be housed in a cell measuring 6 x 9 x 9.5 feet in Florida’s death row at Union Correctional Institution until it is time to go meet his maker. He could choose Florida’s three-legged electric chair, “Old Sparky” or he could choose death by lethal injection when the time comes. If you ask me, both will be easy on the killer. His victims went through a worse fate. When murder came calling, two innocent lives were taken and that is the crux of the matter.

The Convicted Felon vs. The President

The battle of the Titans, it was not! To be brutally honest, it was two old men trying to prove who is the better candidate to hold the highest office in the land. One is currently holding office and the other, the convicted felon, wants the office back or rather the power and all it entails back in his clutches to do with as he pleases.

Who came out the winner? This was a hard one because the man who is known for throwing temper tantrums when he doesn’t get his way, walked on stage to do battle. He was poised, tanned (not orange this time), his hair tacked with some unseen material so that nothing was out of place and with the cat who had swallowed the cream smile plastered on his face, he opened his mouth and nothing had changed. The “all about me” attitude hadn’t changed and according to him, he was and is the only one who is capable of rescuing America from the terrorists, the only one who has the power to do something about border control and the only one America can depend on to make it the most powerful nation in the world. Sounds familiar? This is Trump over and over again. Make America Great Again means I will jump over hurdles and run hoops to be your one and only saviour!

Here’s the scary part. The man who applauded the Nazis as very fine people and the one who slept with a porn star, albeit he claims he didn’t but that is besides the point. Let’s not forget he is a convicted felon and the ONE who pushed and got the so-called “patroits” to storm the capitol, he was and is nothing more than a whole lot of hot air, not to mention a dangerous man when he is crossed. He is also the friend of dictators and a wanna be dictator himself. Trump is a liar, doesn’t get his facts right and he is known for misusing information to his advantage. If he gets control of the White House and uses it as his bully pulpit, Lord help us all.

Biden, on the other hand, was right when he said, “I’m looking at a convicted felon standing next to me.” Nothing more, nothing less. What’s a convicted felon doing vying for a chance at running the highest office in the land? The answer is clear and simple. There is nothing in the US Constitution to prevent a convicted felon from occupying the Oval Office if fairly elected. Time they changed that don’t you think? Moving on, Biden came on stage looking pale, unsteady on his feet and at times he seemed to lose his train of thought. His speech impediment made it seem more so. Nature is not kind as far as age is concerned, it slows your gait, you need time to think and standing on stage for over 1 1/2 hours is not easy either. In spite of all that, Biden did deliver some punches when it was necessary and it found its mark. He called Trump a liar, which he is. He called him an abuser of women and there is no doubt about that. He called him delusional, nothing further from the truth and a man of low integrity, well that is the honest truth.

The kid pretending to be a grown-up was easy to figure out. The vindictiveness was well-hidden but it was there hiding just beneath the surface. The cat has been let out of the bag a long time ago and his record as a vindictive and narcissistic individual has been proven. You don’t need a debate to show who is a better candidate. The record speaks for itself.

If I had to choose between a convicted felon and a man who stutters because he has a speech impediment, I know hands-down who I would choose. It’s not about how much hot air one can spew into the air and pull the wool over everyone’s eyes. It is about integrity, honesty and a clear-headed approach to issues which demand presidential acumen and not a private and personal vendetta. Words such as pale as death, disastrous, agonizing and much worse have been used to describe Biden’s debate performance but if you ask me that is nothing compared to the bully and the felon standing on stage pretending to be an outstanding citizen and one who is appropriate to take the helms of the highest office in the land. He is a walking nightmare and much much more!

My money is on Biden!

Mean People

Why are some people mean? What is it about them that makes them that way? By mean people, I mean those who love to kick you when you’re down, know your weaknesses and take advantage of them, take pleasure from your pain and say and do whatever is necessary to stop you from making your way out of the hole you’re in. Instead of giving you a helping hand, they would rather push you back in and walk away with a click of their heels, a clap of their hands and say, “Job well done!”

“There are some people who always seem angry and continuously look for conflict. Walk away; the battle they are fighting isn’t with you, it is with themselves.” Unknown

Are they born that way or is it something about them that makes them the way they are?

According to http://www.psychology.com, “Being mean is a product of insecure self-esteem. Research shows that being insulted makes people more likely to demean others. Freud argued that people cope with negative views of themselves by perceiving other people as having those same traits.”

At first glance, they seem ordinary enough even to the point of being nice but all that dissipates into thin air as time goes on and the relationship progresses. If it’s a friendship, you will see the mask slipping and whoever is hiding behind that mask steps out and you realize that you’ve made a big mistake. The mean streak within takes aim and nothing you do is ever right. Stomping on you is the name of the game and taking knocks at your self-esteem through harsh words or actions is their way of bringing you down to their level. One minute you can do nothing wrong and the next you’re dealing with an enemy. It’s not you, it’s them.

“The good thing about mean people is that you can walk away from them but they are stuck with themselves. I call that karma.” Unknown

Furthermore, their daily existence is dependent on bringing others down which in turn makes them feel better about themselves. You may sense that there is something wrong if there is constant conflict about the smallest of things. The way you act around others becomes a big issue and so does the way you smile, laugh and anything they can pick on they will. Making a mountain out of a molehill is a constant and when the storm passes, you’ll be left wondering and asking, “What just happened?” Nothing. It’s not you, it’s them.

Being mean is a choice and according to http://www.linkedin.com, “We are ALL human and don’t always get it right-no one is perfect and we all behave at less than our best at times. But for the most part, it is a premeditated and selective CHOICE on how we treat others.”

What triggers the meanness? I don’t think it is one particular thing. It could be envy, jealousy, wanting what they can’t have or a whole host of negative internal contributors. No one knows for sure but if you’ve had the unfortunate experience of coming in contact with one or more of these types of people, you know what I’m talking about. It is unpleasant to say the least and it will leave you questioning your own integrity and wondering if you somehow contributed to the unholy rage happening in front of you. It’s not you, it’s them.

Lao Tzu says, “Respond Intelligently even to Unintelligent Treatment.”

Ignore them, walk away, stop all contact, these are some of your options. Rudeness, screaming and shouting doesn’t help because it gives them the ammunition to fire back and that is precisely what they want, an avenue to get back at you. It is all about being mean so turn your back, shutting the door firmly behind you.

If all that doesn’t work, do this instead.

“Don’t let Negative and Toxic people rent space in your head. Raise the rent and kick them out.” Zig Ziglar

Nicely put Ziggy, the only problem is if you’re like me, I’ll be wondering if they’ve got a new place to go to!!!

Buddha says, “Be kind to unkind people. They need it the most.”

Whatever you choose to do, shut the door and move forward. You’ve got places to go and “nice people” to meet.