Oppression, being a version of abuse, requires an intervention from outside. The U.S., unfortunately, is too tolerant of abuse, perhaps because the line between discipline and abuse is so thin. No doubt, those lacking in self-discipline perceive restraint as abuse. But, there again, an external perspective is needed to decide. Perhaps we can say that self-discipline rests on a foundation of social support, which both promotes and keeps it from going overboard.

While I have some sympathy for our agents of law enforcement confronting the fact that the rate of violent crime has fallen about half in the last twenty-five years, a reality that gives rise to the fear of being summarily sent to the ranks of the unemployed, agency response has to be judged as totally unacceptable. The answer to less crime being committed should not be to define more behaviors as crimes.
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Wherefore?

There may be several reasons:
1) Some people do not appreciate being born.
2) Some people could have been terminated in the womb and don’t appreciate that they weren’t.
3) Those that exist in an ineffable present think to themselves “I could have been aborted” and that frightens them to this day.
4) The transit through the birth canal is fraught with danger and the sensation leaves the transient in a state of fright ever after.
5) Women provide comfort and succor and then suddenly call a halt.
6) Women who are disinclined to be compliant are an annoyance.
7) Mother Nature is a harsh mistress who expects to be compensated for her work.
8) Reciprocity may be genetic. But, if so, it seems obvious that it sometimes gets lost in translation.

The point of representative democracy is that not everyone has to participate all the time. However, what seems obvious is that people who think holding public office is a benefit and a source of power are not just in the Republican party. In fact, holding public office is one of the (six) duties of citizenship which, because this is a free country, citizens are free to avoid. Nevertheless, public service is a duty, not a boon. Turning the duty down is not like refusing another piece of chocolate cake. Consider that it is even possible to avoid providing support (another of the six) by paying taxes. All that’s required is to just not use the official currency and rely on good will and barter instead.

I have two concerns: one is procedural and the other is substantive.

First, the communication sent to neighbors within 200 feet of this proposal to turn the north shore of the Satilla River into a suburban enclave for people who like to shoot things, is both misleading and insulting.
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That’s what the fundamentalist pastors provide in the Religious States of America. What is “Make America Great Again” but ego-fluffing on a grand scale? All talk, no action. The dude in the White House mimics the verbiage he hears. Without an audience, he has nothing to say. Call and response. It is the familiar lingo in the Religious States of America. They’re not literate. They’re aural. And literal. The latter is probably the consequence of not understanding that symbols stand for something. So, for example, dollars cannot be perceived as obligations.
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The states, all counties and municipalities are corporate entities. Corporations are artificial bodies designed for two main purposes — to perform specialized functions and to disguise or limit individual responsibility, especially for mistakes. The latter is ultimately beneficial because it overcomes the problem of individuals being intimidated from further action as a result of making a mistake. So, corporations keep things moving.
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