Monthly Archives: December 2022

General Ramblings, Social Commentary

New year’s resolutions

There isn’t very much satisfaction in getting the world to accept and praise you for things that the world is prepared to praise.

Hopes for 2023. (Warning it’s a long opinionated read based on my personal experiences.)

From early childhood to Gen Z: Invest heavily in education – Providing high-quality education to all Americans, focusing on early childhood development. A teaching entrance exam similar in difficulty to the bar exam. Passing the exam would result in job security, a higher salary, and a guaranteed pension which would attract more people to the profession. All are deserved benefits and are embarrassingly lacking. (Side rant: Passing an exam should be a requirement to vote. If you don’t know who lives at 1600 Penn or who the VP is, you shouldn’t be voting.)

Speaking of childhood development. Teach young boys that true strength is about vulnerability—understanding what they are feeling, learning to express how they are feeling, and healthy outlets for anger. I can’t comment about girls – Having only boys, I’m not qualified.

For a more immediate change, we must not fail to grasp and address the modern realities of millennials and Gen Z sentiment. In chatting with them, it’s clear to me that they refuse the idea that this country is remarkable in its opportunities and potential. And disturbingly, it’s apparent that they manifest sympathy for the idea of socialism more than they do for capitalism. If we are to craft a new culture that is more in touch with 21st-century realities and opportunities, should we not focus our efforts on the young Americans who will craft that world? 

Fostering a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship: Encouraging creativity, risk-taking, and entrepreneurship can help drive innovation and the American economy forward. Don’t kill your start-ups and scale-ups; instead, listen carefully to their needs and act firmly.

Supporting small businesses: The expansion of government policies hinders economic growth and opportunity. The unchecked proliferation of tax and regulatory requirements is impeding new business formation and expansion nationwide. Even the well-intentioned government-sponsored programs that aim to bolster business formation and economic development are destroying the economic opportunity for our nation’s families. Small businesses are the backbone of the American economy and should be encouraged to succeed.

Smaller Government. Don’t legislate all of our choices.

Energy dominance. Another way to phrase it is “energy interdependence,” achieving this milestone is marked by export-led growth of oil and natural gas. And to bring this home for the typical U.S. household, the bottom line matters, and we have a lower cost of living, not to mention increased security and political benefits. 

Immigration: Provide a more straightforward path to Work visas, Green Cards, and Citizenship for those that meet the criteria to become active participants in the country’s success. Entry into the southern border is uninhibited — which is a far more sensible way to go than making the mistake of trying to immigrate legally, which comes at the cost of copious amounts of red tape, tens of thousands of dollars, and wait periods of a decade or more to become a resident or citizen. As someone who has been through the process, legally, I can unequivocally confirm that the system is broken. 

In closing, we can absolutely do better but only if we remove the yoke of the status quo.

By Shaun Sima
https://chef-pocket.com/aboutme/

P.S. I post for my edification as part of my dedication to jumping into the deep end of the internet brand pool. My posts are part raw life journal and part discovery of my voice.

P.P.S There isn’t very much satisfaction in getting the world to accept your viewpoint and praise you. If you only want to hear your opinion, talk to the mirror.

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Social Commentary

Hunting Rudolph

It’s getting out of hand – We are focusing on bubble-wrapping the world when we should be wrapping our feet.

If there is one thing that we can take away from this recent example of the western world gone wild, it is that if a song published in 1964 is genuinely offensive, we as a society are really really really slow to catch on.

50+ years later, we are finally paying attention to the so-called bigoted comments, verbal abuse, and name-calling contained in the lyrics of Rudolph, the red-nose reindeer. It’s hunting season on Rudolph.

Between the outrage for “Rudolph”, “Baby it’s cold outside” and “Charlie Brown’s Christmas,” those outraged are effectively trying to wrap the world in bubble wrap. Let’s scrutinize every prose and phrase to ensure our fragile sensibilities are not offended.

Oh, the irony!

We live in a society where rappers, pop artists and alike are propelled into the stratosphere of fame with lyrics condoning everything from violence to infidelity. They’re idolized but poor Rudolph has a big red target on his head.

If you’re that easily offended, chances are you were mollycoddled as a child by overprotective parents who insisted that you receive a ribbon or trophy for coming in dead last in your kindergarten 50m dash.

Who am I to tell you what to do or think (even though society tends to want to tell me what to do and think)?! I’ll tell you what I tell my young boys.

Find opportunities for joy in the world, not condemnation. Everyone has a right to their opinion, but no one has a right to determine yours for you. Don’t give up control over your thoughts, ideas or emotions, and above all – USE COMMON SENSE!

(A quick tangential detour to rant:

Being human is acknowledging our differences and accepting them, not asking Joe public to subscribe to the opinion that is the average of those that shout the loudest or have the most followers on instagram! If we blindly agree with what everyone else says is “right” then we are giving up our individuality. Please, I beg you with tears in my eyes, show me one example of a truly successful man or woman who was exceptionally good at being average. Don’t follow the pack!)

By Shaun Sima
https://chef-pocket.com/aboutme/

P.S. I post for my edification as part of my dedication to jumping into the deep end of the internet brand pool. My posts are part raw life journal and part discovery of my voice.

P.P.S There isn’t very much satisfaction in getting the world to accept your viewpoint and praise you. If you only want to hear your opinion, talk to the mirror.

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General Ramblings, Not So Private Thoughts, Social Commentary

Jesus was bullied.

Jesus was bullied, so was David and many others in the bible. Bullying is as old as time and will never be eradicated. There is no vaccine for the afflictions caused by the human condition.

People are social creatures. We all have the desire to fit in and to be liked. It might be an oversimplification, but the cause of bullying and the lack of abuse reporting by the victims stems from a desire to be loved. As social creatures, people search out ways to fit in, which provides the momentum for the bully, and unfortunately, it also leads to abuses going unreported.

As a child, I often stood out. Identifying a target is considerably easier if he/she is not following the crowd. Different gangs of bullies imposed different degrees and methods of torment. Some resorted to physical tactics to illustrate to their gang that they were an alpha male and “worthy” of being part of their click, while others succumb to peer pressure to execute a seemingly never-ending barrage of emotional provocations.

My response to the emotional bullies was never to engage, or at least try not to. It’s easier said than done. Their goal was to provoke a response from me and by not providing them that satisfaction, their immediate interest in me waned. They moved on. At least for the time being.

Physical bullies, of which there were only two during my entire schooling career, were those that laid hands on me in some form or another. It ranged from minor actions, such as tripping me up, to violence. I ignored the small stuff, but unlike the emotional bullies, the lack of response drove the physical bullies to escalate. One day, following a punch in the back that forced me to the floor, I stood up, turned around, and calmly punched the bully in the face, bloodying his nose. That was the last time anyone bullied me. I don’t advocate violence and would like to think that I exhausted every possible remedy before deciding to take that action. Sometimes, you need to shout in a language that your audience understands.

My advice to my sons, one of whom has already experienced some minor bullying, is never to act out of anger. When you give others power over your emotions, you give them authority over your life.

Bullying is never caused by the target of their unwanted attention. It’s never the victims’ fault! It is an overwhelming insecurity that drives bullies, and they overcompensate to fit in. To quench their anxiety, the fear that they won’t be liked and that in turn, will lead to them being ostracized, they act in a manner that they deem to be in alignment with the gang’s wishes.
“Gangs are where cowards go to hide.” Mickey Mantle.

Bullying is a much larger issue than we want to admit to, with nuances and consequences. Sadly, there isn’t a panacea to this problem. It’s ineffective and arrogant to apply adult logic and the experience that comes with time and hindsight to a mindset that doesn’t have that luxury. To attempt to do so is flat out wrong and skirting our responsibilities. This is not an adultescent issue, it’s a societal issue. As a society, as parents, we need to accept some responsibility for what our children do and hold them accountable.
Often both parents work; ipads and tv are acceptable babysitters and forget the quality time spent around the dinner table. Life is busy, complicated, and messy; frankly, we are oblivious to our surroundings. Have you ever driven to the store and wondered how you arrived there? Not remembering the traffic, turns, route? We all have. We put life on autopilot until someday something terrible happens to wake us up, and we do just enough to address the issue so that we can put life back on autopilot.

As a society, we have become more accepting and welcoming of the significant issues, but we are overlooking the small ones. Our children do what they see others do. We need to teach our kids to love each other and themselves. We need to demonstrate acceptance, and responsibility and exercise accountability. Making a difference starts at home and must be continued in class.

By Shaun Sima
https://chef-pocket.com/aboutme/

P.S. I post for my edification as part of my dedication to jumping into the deep end of the internet brand pool. My posts are part raw life journal and part discovery of my voice.

P.P.S There isn’t very much satisfaction in getting the world to accept your viewpoint and praise you. If you only want to hear your opinion, talk to the mirror.

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