The Emerald Rose

No if, ands, or buts,….unless you are a lazy, “you owe ME” type! We work for a living here, AND WE WORK HARD!!

I read a quote from one of my favorite people, Voltaire, this morning. It is familiar to people the world over, it goes “I may disagree with what you say,…BUT I will defend to the death, your RIGHT to say it!”

That is America, but the problem is simply put in a discussion I had with some folks the other day,…..we can talk about ANYTHING, whether its’ true or not, nor whether it is reputable or is harmful, or even if it’s pure SPECULATION! What we don’t do well, as an entire COUNTRY is to calmly LISTEN, DISCERN, and ASK THE PERTINENT QUESTION(S) so as to fully understand and be knowledgeable in the issue in question.

Our biggest problem is that we make everything to EMOTIONAL and “discussion” can only do one of two things, escalate into closed minded arguments, or denigrate to factually baseless emotional arguments. Either way the value of discussion is gone!

Simply put the use of todays media, their obsession to be #1 in the almighty ratings, grab the largest “audience share” or in simple terms the biggest percentage of available money to insure their future jobs, and the ownership or “stockholders” and their ROI (return on investment) of the almighty DOLLAR.

Also that seems to be the prevailing philosophy and modus operandus

What an interesting premise for a TV series,….I’ll temporarily call it “The Founders and the Flounders”. And then assign the task of the “Founders” to be magically transported “legendary heroes”, like Nathan Hale, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, and other early and perhaps not that well known “Founders” of our country, and have them transported to today’s United States to work as “interns” doing assignments as “teaching assistants, or “Substitute Teachers”, in History, Government, and other subjects in today’s schools, as well as English, Literature, and “writing skills” in today’s schools.

We are so busy formulating our immediate “judgement” on issues and items in the world we no longer strive to understand them, and more importantly search for the CIVILIZED, and TRUE HUMANITY of making proper decisions , and GOD FORBID, do our own thinking and demonstrate the essence of learning both sides and DEFENDING both sides as that subtle art of “REAL LEARNING, and the REAL TRUTH”, of those matters are, but more importantly, fostering and propagating them, or being able to “defend” them, or “support” them.

That is an ages old art, the new an acronym for it is termed “Forensic eloquence,….an it is the greatest form of teaching and learning ever conceived. And when I say “ages old art” it goes back to the Greeks, the Romans, and is VERY popular at colleges and most advanced High School areas, it’s popularly named “DEBATING”.

Not to be confused with legislative “bulls**t! Sometimes it can take weeks, or months to build your position, and in forensic debating which can sometimes be done on a “luck of the draw” basis , you might have to be a Proponent on the assigned topic OR. an Opponent so either way you. MUST be prepared at all times. It is PURE and proper “debating” of the position, or you can’t ever win. The team of judges are sometimes unknown, but their comments are worth a “FREE RIDE” to Harvard. Princeton, Yale or any other great college. There is no “provoking” other than pure PROOF of your position. Would that our Senate, and Congress were to learn and understand THAT is the most effective form of communication of this earth. I was on the Debating teams in HighSchool and to this day (50+ years into the future) still build my arguments and defend them as well that way!

Research, research and more research and GREAT notes on index cards for quick reference during a debate. It fosters your learning to RESEARCH, MAKE NOTES (with citations so they may be verified) ORGANIZE, and then speak publicly with out the “um, ah, or let me check my notes.

We would be able to INCREASE the success levels of our younger folks today a THOUSAND FOLD,…..if they leaned how to debate things properly and not storm off, and be as ignorant as they have been developing,…..I’m just saying!

The entire process can be a giant leap for your life career, and understanding of almost everything.

Like them or not a lot of successful people live by this comment, take Donald Trump, Ronald Reagan, Dwight D. Eisenhower, and most of the newspaper columnists and editorialists from days gone by, “Not buxom , coiffed and well made up and dressed ‘Talking Heads” we see on TV today. Most would fail miserably if they had to argue anything without prior knowledge, pages of notes and “Directors and Producers”

A trained forensic speaker, has their own style, but their evolution has been their trademark, and why they live on in History. Doubt me? Read “THE FEDERALIST PAPERS” and their replies, “THE ANTI-FEDERALIST PAPERS”, the complete debates of BOTH SIDES, and most written by the FRAMERS of our own Constitution.

Consider their educations, where they learned, and what they learned,….and after you sit down and get to know them , how they thought, how they developed their “PRO’S and CON’s ,……then sit down and scratch your head and ask yourself,…..why were they so smart even with the time they were born and how they lived.

I suggest one book to make the point. QUESTION: What major part of the government is NOT really part of the US Government, but has MORE CONTROL over it that the Presidency, the entire Congress, Democrats and Republicans alike?

Read the book “The Creature from Jekyll Island”

Hope I got you thinking and let me know what you think!

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11/2/2018