THE END OF AN ERA -- THE "BENEDICT" PAGES

So, my readers...this is my last "official" entry for my class.

I want to thank Jeff Benedict for encouraging me throughout his class to learn to appreciate the world around me a little bit more, and to know how to became an active observer of what is going on in today's world.

All of my postings up until this point are now officially dubbed the "Benedict" pages.

The class was a glorious challenge and I feel that it stretched my "thinking muscles" and strengthened me in ways that I never would have thought of.  He managed to take me down from my permanent location of sitting on the fence and actually make decisions and points, and forced me to learn how to defend my side.  This is something that I've never been comfortable with, but now that I know how to jump down from off of that post, I think I'll do it a little bit more.

Jumping fences is more fun than just sitting on them and watch others jump them.  I used to think that jumping fences was boring and tiring, that there was no point in tiring one's self out with all of that ridiculous leaping and frolicking.

However, I've discovered that it's not tiring.  It is a constant recharging that comes with each leap and bound over to the field on the other side of that fence...but every now and again, I need to sit on that fence-post and remind myself that I will always, at heart, be an extreme objectivist...

(Except when it comes to horses)

Over and out.

Without Reservation

So, I read a book recently that raised my hackles.  It was called "Without Reservation", by Jeff Benedict.

Apparently, these days, in order to form a tribe it's as easy as forming a club.  If I start ranting now, I'll never stop, so let me get straight to the point:  the government is stupid.

This might be a blatant and outrageous thing to say, but after reading about all of the things that they allowed, I have lost my faith entirely in the system.  They know that the documents "supporting" the tribe's "heritage" have been tampered with to make it look like they have native blood in them of a certain tribe...which they don't.  And they don't do anything about it.

I just, I just...

Why?  Why do I even bother put any trust in the government, or in those that claim to uphold the law for the people?

I had to write an essay explaining how I thought that one of three men was the most influential on getting the Foxwoods casino off the ground (which is kinda what the book was about), and I just simply got disgusted about half-way through writing it.  I also got disgusted about haf-way reading through the book.  I finished the book, but I was sick to my stomach as I read through the rest of it.

How can people believe all of this stuff?  It just...sickens and apalls me that people actually believe this stuff, and manage to convince themselves they're doing good.

Every person involved was either in it for money or for....wait, no, money just about sums it up.

I guess I went on a rant/tangent anyways.  Well, I tried to contain myself, but this kind of stuff just makes me sick, as I said earlier.  I just can't stand it.

Can you?