- This topic has 11 replies, 3 voices, and was last updated 14 years, 3 months ago by
.
-
Posts
-
-
I want to wish everyone a safe and happy Memorial Day weekend I want to thank our veterans and give my thanks and well wishes to all our allied forces who are defending our way of life.
-
I would like to second the sentiments expressed by Mr. Ross. I have the utmost respect and honor for America’s soldiers. Yes, the same soldiers that air raid villages and kill women and children according to John Kerry.
My greatest regret in life is that I wasn’t able to join the armed forces because I was a colossal dumbass as a kid and racked up a bunch of felonies being a dumbass.
Did I mention that I used to be a dumbass? Still am on occasion.
I actually wanted to be a Navy SEAL. And not because of the mystique or the glamour or crap I’d seen in movies, but because their training was the most grueling. To me it would have been like winning the Olympics. And imagine having the honor of working with a bunch of guys with my work ethic. Couldn’t have imagined a better job. Unfortunately, I made a few huge lapses in judgment.
It incenses me to no end to hear people cavalierly denigrate the character and honor of our troops. We have the greatest and most honorable soldiers in the world. Period. They ain’t perfect, but they’re as close as any group of humans can reasonably be expected to come in an imperfect world.
How about the 3 Navy SEALS that were court-martialed for allegedly punching the walking human debris responsible for killing and hanging those four contractors from a bridge.
So to America’s fighting men and women, let me encourage you and remind you of one thing: You possess a trait in only one of you that all your slanderers and libelous loser critics do not.
Honor.
We have a *volunteer* force. This means that you people willingly ante up with your lives in the battle for and defense of freedom. Not just for Americans, but for the oppressed the world over.
Imagine a world without America – without America’s soldiers to divine ideals for which she stands.
This is truly a horrific vision.
God bless every single one of you.
People may debate whether we should be fighting this war or that war, but it’s really irrelevant because you still fight for what’s right. America is the only country in the world to kick the crap out of her enemies and then give them their country back *AND* pay for them to rebuild it.
And we’re imperialists? It’s disgusting and repulsive to listen to these degenerate elitists speak of your sacrifice in this way.
Iraq was a worthy cause. Don’t ever forget Saddam Hussein being dragged out of a hole in the ground in his underwear. Nobody said that changing regimes was a cake walk. Or that getting disparate groups to a common ground could be mastered with a few tips from Dale Carnegie.
Look at America’s own founding and Revolution. That was a mess. We had the failed Articles of Confederation before the Constitution was born. Only 40% of the population supported the Revolution. Look at the Civil War.
Democracy is a pain in the ass to set up. Dictatorships are so much easier because you don’t have to give a crap about what anyone thinks.
So, my most sincere honor and gratitude to all of you serving America with your lives on the line. NOBODY is putting their life on the line to whine and moan and throw potshots at you.
These people are cowards. They’re not even brave enough to stand up to institutional thinking and peer pressure to risk even the approval of their similarly indoctrinated peers to pursue intellectual honesty. It’s trendy and chic for them to hate you.
Pay them no mind. Screw em all. Do not allow them to dampen your spirits and resolve.
You are honorable men and women without equal anywhere on planet earth.
Happy frickin Memorial Day. You will never be forgotten.
-
Five memorable Memorial Day Quotes:
1. Decoration Day is the most beautiful of our national holidays…. The grim cannon have turned into palm branches, and the shell and shrapnel into peach blossoms. -Thomas Bailey Aldrich
2. I have never been able to think of the day as one of mourning; I have never quite been able to feel that half-masted flags were appropriate on Decoration Day. I have rather felt that the flag should be at the peak, because those whose dying we commemorate rejoiced in seeing it where their valor placed it. We honor them in a joyous, thankful, triumphant commemoration of what they did. -Benjamin Harrison
3. These heroes are dead. They died for liberty – they died for us. They are at rest. They sleep in the land they made free, under the flag they rendered stainless, under the solemn pines, the sad hemlocks, the tearful willows, and the embracing vines. They sleep beneath the shadows of the clouds, careless alike of sunshine or of storm, each in the windowless Place of Rest. Earth may run red with other wars – they are at peace. In the midst of battle, in the roar of conflict, they found the serenity of death. I have one sentiment for soldiers living and dead: cheers for the living; tears for the dead. -Robert G. Ingersoll
4. Spirit, that made those heroes dare
To die, and leave their children free,
Bid Time and Nature gently spare
The shaft we raise to them and thee.
-Ralph Waldo Emerson
5. Changing the date merely to create three-day weekends has undermined the very meaning of the day. No doubt, this has contributed a lot to the general public’s nonchalant observance of Memorial Day. -VFW (Veterans of Foreign Wars)
-
We are all going to die. But a lot of us pretend we’re not going to, and we live in cocoons of complacency seeking comfort.
Peace and freedom are incredibly fragile, and at any moment any one of us – soldier or not – may be called upon to defend it, be it from crooks or terrorists or whomever.
Soldiers remind me of this fact; that this world, despite the veneer of sophistication, is far from civilized. We act civilized, but at heart we battle the same dark forces in a mortal struggle that has never ceased since time began.
Evil exists, and it must be opposed. As long as it prowls the earth the lives of each one of us are in jeopardy. Soldiers remind me that this world is not the civilized place that professors in plush leather chairs imagine it to be. It is a rough dangerous place ruled by force.
Rush Limbaugh has an undeniable truth of life: The world is ruled by the aggressive use of force.
This has always been true, and it will remain true. Force requires violence and it requires death. It requires sacrifice.
However civilized and technologically advanced we may become, war will never become obsolete. Those of us who cannot or will not defeat the dark forces at work in our own hearts will have to be defeated by the rest of us who have overcome them within and now must confront them without.
It is easy to live in willing denial of the darkness around us. Soldiers remind us that there are enemies out there. And these enemies have to be killed. Or they will kill us.
People are going to die. You may even die. But it is better to die with honor, in support of dignity, than to live with the shame of apathy, turning a blind eye on the needs of others.
Tyranny is a natural state, just as negative thinking is. Freedom requires a constant, violent drop step forward, if you will. A determination to defeat.
Political correctness is nothing more than incremental surrender; buying time – for the enemy. There is nothing politically correct about putting a bullet in your enemy’s head.
This is the reality we live in, however removed from violent struggle you may appear to be. Evil can raise it’s head at any time and in any place. A soldier isn’t just ready to meet that challenge, but they have signed up to go and find that challenge. To seek it out and destroy it.
There is no America without her soldiers. There are no civilized, intellectual debates and naive pontifications without some guy somewhere brutally draining the life from the enemy. War is hell, and no amount of sophistication and enlightenment will change it’s ugly reality.
Soldiers are more alive than those they defend because they are willingly sacrificing their lives.
Jesus said that what you try to keep you will lose, and what you are willing to lose is what you will keep.
In Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai, it echoes the same sentiment when it says that a samurai who leaves his house hoping to live will probably die, but the one who is ready to die will probably live.
It is this notion of sacrifice which sets a soldier apart. There is no honor without sacrifice.
And, frankly, all the words in the world do these men and women no justice.
-
[quote:3909wfed] My greatest regret in life is that I wasn’t able to join the armed forces because I was a colossal dumbass as a kid and racked up a bunch of felonies being a dumbass. [/quote:3909wfed]
Prevail, great post as usual, and you touched on something that bothers people when they evaluate their lives: the road not taken.
When I was a senior in HS I was a highly recruited athlete. One place that had their hooks in me was the Naval Academy. Appointment and all, I was about 80% ready to go. But as fate would have it, I blew out my knee senior year and while the Academy would till take me, I chose not to go and decided to go to Lehigh University, a highly competitive liberal arts school in PA.
For years, I regretted the decision on focusing on sports and not on service. I looked take jobs that earned me a good living and allowed me to train, compete and live in the NYC area.
For years I looked at my knee injury as a setback. But it was just the opposite. If I continued on my path we wouldn’t be having this conversation. I would not have met the people I met, trained where I trained and experienced all that has allowed me to do what I do today. I would not be living the lifestyle I enjoy now and above all I would not have met my wife. In retrospect, my injury was the greatest thing to ever happen to me. Who knows what life I would be living, but it sure as hell would not be half as great as it is right now.
Shit happens for a reason. The world is always trying to tell us something. The more significant the event, the louder the world is yelling at us. Hell, losing my father and father in law a few years ago hit us pretty hard, but their time was done on this earth and it is my time to step up. When it comes my time to “get in the box” there will be others ready to take my place (if its worth taking).
We are the sum of our experiences. The world has a plan, it’s our job to figure out what that plan is.
-
[quote:h8buh5cr]
For years I looked at my knee injury as a setback. But it was just the opposite. If I continued on my path we wouldn’t be having this conversation. I would not have met the people I met, trained where I trained and experienced all that has allowed me to do what I do today. I would not be living the lifestyle I enjoy now and above all I would not have met my wife. In retrospect, my injury was the greatest thing to ever happen to me. Who knows what life I would be living, but it sure as hell would not be half as great as it is right now.[…]
The world has a plan, it’s our job to figure out what that plan is.[/quote:h8buh5cr]
Your statements are very profound and also reflect a realization I’ve come to.
And it’s this: God (the world, universe, cosmos, whatever) does indeed have a plan. In fact, it’s not a plan at all, but an assignment. It’s a mission, a duty, and an honor. The hardest part is figuring out what the hell it is.
I’ve come to realize that regret and failure are pretty much identical illusions. My mistakes have all served to funnel me towards my purpose. For example, having a rap sheet with felonies on it has closed many, many doors to me. And no one is to blame for this but me. I don’t cry about it, but it used to piss me off because I knew I could outperform anyone in any job. I have a unique ability to master anything quickly.
As a result, this forces me to evaluate options I might never take seriously. It’s like a giant cosmic funnel – please excuse the Oprahfication here – channeling me to a single point of purpose.
I think I would have been the ideal soldier, for example, because only people with extremely high ideals and cemented notion of self are going to be able to hold up under pressure without coming apart. Plus, my work ethic has not been matched by anyone I’ve ever met.
I imagine God up there thinking, “this guy works so damn hard, he’s going to end up succeeding at the wrong thing.” This is paradoxical, because only I am responsible for my bad decisions and lapses of judgment, but I’ve come to realize that all of these were factored into the plan. Not that I fully realize what the plan is, but I’m getting an idea of it.
I’ve been fired from jobs after being told I was an incredible worker, but their policy didn’t allow for felons. That’s tough. But I forge ahead.
By the way, having been locked up before many years ago, I can tell you that there are many good men with criminal records who I would trust more than a lot of the deceitful people I’ve worked with who don’t have records. A lot of the guys in jail aren’t evil men, but they had bad influences and they made bad decisions. That’s why I’m not quick to condemn everyone. I don’t judge by appearances. I used to work for a mortgage firm and I can tell you that this bunch of degenerate rats and snakes were *FAR* worse than the “criminals” I was locked up with. Don’t even get me started.
This is why I evaluate people on their character, which is composed of their honesty and their discipline. An honest man takes responsibility for their bad decisions and doesn’t play the victim. Inmates would ask me what I was in for, and I’d say, “for breakin the law.” Other guys would spend years trying to find legal loopholes to excuse their stupidity. Me? I just admitted it, took the hit, and got the hell out of there. I despised the ones who wouldn’t admit their responsibility. I did not want to become them.
But I believe all of this has served to funnel me towards my assignment. We all were created for a specific purpose, mission, and assignment. I think that the only thing required is a willingness to accept that assignment, even if it is not fully known. That willingness and mental acceptance of a higher purpose will guide you down the right paths consciously or not. And sometimes going down the right path means you have to go down the wrong path and meet a dead end.
My focus can actually be a weakness because I will meet a dead end and proceed to get even more focused and pissed off at it, intending to annihilate it. Then I realize that maybe I ought to take a damn hint and go another way. It’s hard to know sometimes whether to try again or to try something else.
An example would be my previous marriage. I am an honorable and loyal person. Occasionally to a fault. I married my ex because I got her pregnant – seemed like the honorable thing to do. But sometimes one mistake doesn’t mean you compound it with a worse mistake. She was clearly not the person I was to be with. Now here I am paying child support, which I could have been doing all along anyway, saving my daughter a whole lot of pointless drama. However, this colossal failure served to very, very clearly define for me precisely what kind of woman I’d actually want to marry. My ex was my opposite in every conceivable way, from healthy eating, to fiscal discipline, to positive thinking, etc.
I realized that you are *not* responsible for changing another person; they have their own decisions to make and all the pep talks in the world are wasted on the wrong people. I mean, hell, even Jesus was sold out by a guy he personally mentored for three years – and this guy saw him do miracles and walk on friggin water. I mean, what else do you need?
My honesty is my greatest strength because it means that I learn the lessons. It’s also the secret to my resilience, which a guy described as a bouncing ball that hits the pavement and bounces back even higher. I get over stuff incredibly fast.
I think the analogy of a funnel is pretty apt. Through life you’re bouncing off the walls of this funnel which is gradually narrowing to a single point of focus and purpose.
So, I’ve done immoral things for which I take full responsibility, but the weird thing is that my bad decisions have actually served a good purpose to point me in the right direction.
However, if I was the kind of person to play the victim and blame others for my failed opportunities, then these things wouldn’t have served to point me in the right direction. And every door that shuts helps me to rule out going down another dead end path.
This is why I stay positive and keep in mind my general objective of prospering and helping others. Everything then gradually aligns in that direction. I don’t have to work out the details.
And one thing I’ve learned is that you cannot anticipate opportunities, but you can expect them. Who the hell knows what opportunities will arise 5 seconds from now or 5 weeks from now.
Opportunity is the reason no one should ever give up. People get depressed because they see no opportunity right now. But the nature of opportunity is that it is always appearing at any moment. You have to expect it and look for it. Kind of like a fight, where you wait for your opening and then you explode through it. Or like a running back who takes the handoff and comes to a dead stop behind the line of scrimmage, before exploding though the hole created by the offensive line.
When you come to dead stop in life, it ain’t over. Wait for the hole – look for it. Then hit it.
So, I regret certain things in a moral sense, but then, ironically, I’m glad these setbacks took place to keep me from going in a wrong direction.
I believe there is nothing I couldn’t succeed at. Which is actually not a great blessing, because then you’ve got so many damn options to weed out. So I think that I could have easily succeeded at the wrong thing. And, ultimately, it wouldn’t have been satisfying or fulfilling.
What appealed to me about being, for example, a Navy SEAL – or similarly elite soldier – was the balance required. These guys are the ultimate well-rounded people. They’re physically honed and mentally sharp. These guys are like Olympic athletes crossed with professors. Very intelligent. That’s also what appealed to me about Bruce Lee – this guy was such a physical masterpiece, yet such a brilliant thinker as well. That balance appeals to me.
But there are other ways to apply this. And we all are unique, not made to be imitations or replicas of others, but inspired originals and pioneers, provided we have the balls and honesty to be ourselves.
This topic could probably never be exhausted, unless I keep writing and you run out of Red Bull.
I keep it simple: Expect to succeed, and expect to find your purpose, and it will happen. Just keep that positive attitude and events will conspire to bring it about. Some of those events might be failures, so don’t be surprised or dejected by them.
And, to you, Mr. Ross, I appreciate your wisdom and continuing inspiration. It only serves to reinforce my initial impression of you as an honest guy, which is why I gave the SDTS a shot. I wasn’t disappointed. I never really know what I’m lookin for, but when I find it I immediately recognize it. Character is readily apparent. Lot of sleaze bags out there.
-
For years I thought we floated around in the world, no path, no destiny, no real purpose other than to succeed. These were the ideas of ignorance. Nature is build up of systems. Biological, Ecological, everything is in balance and everything affects one another.
Our existence is NOT the exception. It is not random. To think that things happen with out any rhyme or reason is ignorant.
While a child dieing is tragic and no less painful, I have to believe that this happens for a reason in the grand scheme of things. All good and bad happen as part of a system. I don’t grieve less, I don’t celebrate less. Success and tragedy should be celebrated and mourned.
People who don;t believe in a plan, purpose or connection tend to feel less connected and accountable for their actions since they don’t believe in God, a higher force, the subconscious collective or whatever they are calling it these days. They can justify their actions that are self serving and egotistical. They lack humility.
When you find something greater than yourself to give to, the world works. These ideas can be taken to the religious extreme, but then again, that would be self serving.
Life is not an accident and events don’t happen randomly. For every action comes a definite reaction.
BTW, did you read The Alchemist? It talks specifically about this. Even though the author may be crazier than a shit house rat, the book is on the money.
-
I have not fully read The Alchemist, but I am familiar with it and I have read parts of it. A lot of this stuff relating to the intangibles and the invisible world really seem weird as hell, but the stuff really is true.
A person who doesn’t believe in or serve a higher power/purpose basically makes themselves their own god. It’s a sociopathic mentality. There’s a book by Robert Greene called The 48 Laws of Power, and this book should really be called Sociopaths For Dummies. It’s all about how to scheme and manipulate your way to power and success. It’s frankly a sick frickin book.
We live in the Era of the Traitor where everyone sells each other out for pleasure and power. We seem to have lost that sense of purpose and higher calling that defined the founding of America. America was not founded by sociopaths. Many of these people sacrificed all of their possessions and land to oppose the British Empire in support of higher ideals.
All the great fathers of Socialism rejected God. And as their students have infiltrated government, media, academia and so on we’ve seen a huge moral and literal decay in those areas which they control. I imagine it’s a bit harder to reject God if you’re a soldier and you face death at any moment.
I don’t believe that anything is accidental and meaningless. In fact, there isn’t a single negative thing that has ever happened to me that I couldn’t trace back to a mistake of judgment on my part – even if it wasn’t my fault. Maybe I let someone with bad character get too close, maybe I ignored an instinct. Maybe I let my emotions override my good sense.
I feel it tremendously empowering to take personal responsibility for everything that happens to me and to learn the lessons behind these things.
Most people are ignorant of the impact the invisible things have on the visible things. I believe that what fills your mind fills your life. Negative thinking quite literally attracts negative situations. You attract what you respect.
I believe that God only controls the laws that govern our world. These laws carry blessings if we abide by them, and they carry consequences if we ignore them. Without laws there would be no universe and no earth; laws give everything their structure and place and harmony. The law of gravity, the law of thermodynamics, and the laws of morality, for example.
This is also why I watch what I say because words take shape once spoken, therefore, I only want to speak those things that I actually want to experience. Every word and thought is basically a prophecy of what will come. Good or bad. I don’t tolerate people who are negative. Period.
God does not arbitrarily pick winners and losers. He sets the world in order with laws and then we choose to follow them or to ignore them.
I believe that God has given every person incredible creative power to sculpt their worlds and their lives. We are not victims at the mercy of the winds of fate.
The foundation is your mindset. No matter what happens you have the power to dictate your mindset. And your mindset is a magnet attracting to it whatever it contains. Every battle is a mind battle. Doubt versus faith. Focus versus distraction.
This is why the creeping tentacles of Socialism pose such a clear and present danger, because this worldview teaches people that they are victims incapable of self-determination and that envy is the highest ideal.
The irony is that Socialists – and many of them are such without having a clue what Socialism means – believe that faith in God is crutch yet, if you ask me, being dependent on some distant intellectual elite is worse than a crutch – it is slavery. Faith in God is the most empowering mindset one can have because through your faith you realize the value and the power inherent in yourself, and you realize that you cannot fail to succeed.
Faith in God also fills you with a sense of duty, honor, and responsibility toward your fellow man. Who really cares more about the poor, someone who gives of their own resources, or someone who steals from another, embezzles some of it, pays off cronies, and then uses the rest to buy power?
If I really believed that there was no purpose in this world beyond serving myself and gratifying my every desire, I’d take a leap off a bridge. What would be the point?
There’d be none. Only a sense of a higher power and purpose can sustain a person and give their life meaning.
My favorite TV show as a kid – and probably of all time – was MacGuyver, because I loved the way this guy would just make somethin out of what *appeared* to be nothing. This is how I see life. We’re all surrounded by odd bits and ends which, upon further reflection, we can use to create something greater. But most people aren’t looking.
I believe that every man, however desperate his circumstances, has assets and talents – something – that can be harnessed for their success. I don’t believe that God leaves people without a way out, no matter how many bad mistakes they’ve made. There is always a way. Somehow.
But you’ve got to look for it. Believe in it. It starts with thinking and speaking right.
The other key is that one’s success is a function of service. God set the world up such that your success won’t just prosper you but it will benefit and enrich others at the same time. The SDTS is a great example. Great product, great potential for profit. But it’s also a great benefit to others.
Socialism is basically a worldview of envy that derives gain by looting. It is a worldview of taking instead of giving. Gimme, gimme, gimme, instead of, “how can I improve someone’s life?” As such, it is a worldview that kills innovation and technological advancement because such innovation can only be produced by people looking to solve problems for others. If you’re looking to leach off of the producers, pretty soon producing becomes a liability, and production and innovation disappears.
The demonization of the oil companies is a great example. These guys provide the fuel for the engine of society, and they’re paying about two-thirds of their profit in damn taxes. They are not villains. They provide a very necessary *service* for the rest of us hypocrites who like riding around in comfortable vehicles, instead of huffing it on our ten speeds.
People act like they are owed a job, like their boss is running the Salvation Army or something. Like it’s evil to lay off people.
If people approach life from a standpoint of *service* they won’t take things for granted, they won’t have an entitlement mentality, and they’ll be looking for how they can contribute instead of looking for what they’re not being given.
I believe that what you sow your reap. This is a universal truth. Whatever you are lacking in your life is what you are not sowing. Everything requires an investment of some kind in order to flourish.
I’ve gone on again. But I think nowadays people need to hear this.
The *only* compliments that ever mean anything to me are ones regarding my character, like being told I’m a stand-up guy. Not what nice clothes I have – even though i don’t wear fancy clothes – or whatever.
My character is a service to others and it reflects my respect for God.
In a way, faith in God is much like military service. Soldiers must honor a chain of command. So, even though I was not able to join the military, in another sense I am indeed a soldier honoring my chain of command – which includes those in authority over me on earth as well, which God expects us to respect – and answerable to a higher rank. A soldier doesn’t get to just do whatever the hell he wants if he gets tired or doesn’t feel like it at a given moment. There are clear boundaries and operating principles.
This way of thinking has *really* changed the way I live. I don’t even violate the speed limit anymore – well, most of the time, gotta watch it sometimes – because I recognize that chain of command on earth has to be obeyed so long as it isn’t immoral.
And, by the way, we’re reaching a point in America where the federal government is routinely violating it’s own constitution, bringing us to a point where, if they continue unchecked, they will have to be opposed on legitimate moral and Constitutional grounds. This election in November couldn’t be more critical for this country.
I used to be a guy who didn’t much respect any authority. I got by with this attitude because I always got results. I didn’t follow rules, and I did whatever the hell I wanted. Ironically, I always had the insane work ethic, so my mentality was “screw the rules, I’m moving from point A to point B in the most efficient way I can.” My motto was literally “I’m a magician: I show you my results, not my methods.”
My mentality is still “screw the rules,” to a degree, but I’ve learned to discipline it. That’s why the SDTS appealed to me. Martial arts are largely a bunch of mindless rules. Be suspicious of rules that complicate, rather than simplify.
Now, however, I realize that I am morally compelled to follow authority even if it’s inconvenient, and even if the guy is a bumbling bafoon. There is a chain of command, from bosses to law enforcement to the President straight on up to God. All authority figures will ultimately answer to God for how they executed their authority. And if one doesn’t respect authority, one cannot themselves be qualified to be given authority.
This is a huge change in the way I used to think. I think most people have no concept of respect for authority or a divine chain of command that also involves people. And people, being people, are not always going to be perfect and imbued with angelic wisdom.
Anyhow, all of this basically reinforces the notion of service as a way of life, and mentality. Not, how can I get over on you for my own personal gain, but how can I improve your life so that we both benefit.
Geez, I really could keep going, but I’ll allow you a bathroom break, shower, and possibly a quick meal.
Every person is a solution to a problem. Find the problem you were created to solve.
-
When I started this forum I did it with HUGE reservations. The obvious purpose was to add a human component to the SDTS and the rest of the SDC programs. I kept the forum public to help generate sales by fielding questions and concerns from non-members and current members alike.
My reservations were obvious as well since most forums usually become overrun by trolls, haters and perpetual adolescents. Since you never know who is on the other keyboard, some times you would find yourself in an argument with a 12 year old. Needless to say there were more cons than pros.
We’ve done a pretty good job of eliminating some of the riff-raff. There are times I’ve kept them on longer because I still try to give someone a chance even though they don’t have a clue but all in all we’ve been pretty good up until now.
Prevail, I’ve got to tell you your posts are well thought out, well written and insightful. There have been times where you’ve posted and I could not have said it better myself. I think a lot of the longer members on the board will agree, you are a welcome addition to the forum and have raised the bar.
So in short, thanks for your contributions…now I have to go it something to get the love fest out of my system.
Damian
-
You know, I was slightly embarrassed after my last post, because I re-read it and I’m thinkin, “Dear God, I just wrote a frickin novel here. I gotta cut it back a bit.” One problem is the fact that I type 60+ words a minute, so I can get carried away with the volume if I’m not careful.
Anyhow, one reason I added my picture is because I hate the anonymity of the internet. People become tough guys and general assholes because there’s no restraint. My picture is up so that you know I’m not afraid to put my damn face behind what I say.
I have a term for the way the evil lurking in peoples’ hearts seems to bubble to the surface on the net: Deranged Public Restroom Syndrome. I call it this because the same trash and wanton filth you see spewed on the internet is the same crap you see in public restrooms written on the walls.
The point is that when no one is around your true self comes out. I’ve taken to writing inspirational benedictions, blessings, and positive messages on bathroom walls to counteract the trash. That’s who I am when no one’s looking.
I’ve been tempted to respond with obscenities on the web a few times. Then I realize it’s pointless.
I mean, just check out YouTube. If you don’t like a guy’s video, just click away. Is it really necessary to leave obscene, bigoted, and all around nasty comments?
I enjoy this forum because I find it to have substance. I do not really post stuff on the net, although I used to have a blog which I quit doing because it took way too much of my time. I actually tried video posts first because, believe it or not, I actually hate writing. I prefer talking off the top of my head. I hate writing, but I really like inspiring others. I realized video posts are inconvenient because you can’t just skip through them like you can with written posts. Information that’s not quickly accessible might as well not exist.
By the way, if I am able, I intend to make it to your seminar the weekend of June 26/27. Your last email makes it 7 seats left.
Anyhow, I must say, it really is an honor to have come across the SDC. I like how non-chalant the name is; you didn’t try to pick some lame name for it. I refuse to watch any movie whose title contains the word “ninja.” Same idea.
It’s a bit odd, because I rely a lot on my instincts. And something clicked in my head when I came across the SDC link on the Alex Jones site. By the way, that makes it even weirder because Alex Jones and friends are often out on the deep end of reality, and I usually don’t check that site out. But I remember coming across another self-defense system that was priced at like one/tenth of yours, but my instincts told me no-go. Then, for some reason, I had no problem dropping $500+ or whatever it was on your whole series – not including the Guardian thing, which I haven’t gotten to yet because I’m trying to methodically work my way through the discs in the proper sequence.
Like they say, “real recognizes real,” and I’ve developed a pretty decent sixth sense about things and people.
Without having met you, I’m confident in stating that you’re an honest, honorable person. I respect that to the fullest.
It’s the simplicity of the SDTS that really gives it it’s credibility. I am still amazed at how powerful yet simple the concept of the drop step is. That is utter genius. It’s so simple I thought, “why in the hell hadn’t I thought of that?” I mean, the drop step is truly a brilliant thing. Like I said, with the drop step you could tie my hands behind my back, and I’m confident I could do real damage with my head, shoulders, hips, and legs. I cannot overstate how important that one single, simple, brilliant technique is.
Really, it could even be applied in MMA as well. In fact, many of the SDTS techniques could. I wonder why they don’t opt for the ground position you have in module three. I saw GSP use it against Hardy to get back on his feet after Hardy had managed to get on top of him. I mean, you have no ability to maneuver with both legs flailing in the air like a damn turtle.
I like to say that when a genius says something it’s so simple that you think, “why didn’t I think of that?” but when an intellectual says something you think, “what in the hell did that guy just say?”
There’s no question in my mind that the SDTS is the most efficient and effective self-protection system. Not only that, but it is superbly organized, and is not just a mish mash of techniques. Very clear, very simple, very methodical. Anyone can use this.
I’m going to get your Family Safe DVD at some point in the future and give it to my daughter and ex-wife (she has custody). I don’t even need to know what’s in it to know that it’s top notch. Such is the benefit of a good reputation and character.
I better stop now before Obama’s internet Czar starts redistributing my words to people who don’t have as many words.
-
Don’t worry, we’ll hold a space for you in June no matter what.
when I stumbled into the SDTS content in 89 I had the same exact reaction you did “why the hell didn’t I think of that”. This is one of two reactions. The other is “that can’t possibly work.”
When you’re searching for the truth you give reaction 1. When you’re trying to justify your past decisions you give reaction 2.
This is the same reaction that people have when confronted with the truth. There will always be people who GET IT and people who are not ready or incapable of getting it.
Imagine if Jesus popped up in Times Square and started converting water into wine. How many people would believe? How many people would doubt? How many people would hold on to their beliefs?
Martial arts and self defense are exactly like religion since it deals with mortality subject matter. People invest time, money and faith in their system.
To me self defense is more like science (though I don’t believe science and faith are separate). It’s analytical and based on fact and physics. It has a high percentage of success or a low percentage of success. Self defense wither takes long to learn or is simple and easy to learn. It can be learned by the vast majority of people or a few people. The SDTS was built for simplicity, ease of use and effectiveness. It might not impress too many people on youtube, but hey, that’s not where I do my fighting.
Regarding the wonderful world of the net…everyone has an opinion and everyone is an expert. I do however enjoy taking these knuckleheads to task and confronting them. Its my guilty pleasure. The HATE MAIL section is completely self indulgent and of course comical.
Anonymity removes accountability. Calling yourself “ultimate death machine” and having an avatar of MAD MAX will never get you taken seriously. Years ago on Bullshido (the strong hold of the Deranged Public Restroom Syndrome) there were guys who were “coming down to my studio” to see how good I really was.
Guess what happened…NOTHING. It never does. In the 20 years of having a retail studio I never had a “challenge”. This is very disappointing since I kind of trained for it.
After all is said and done a lot more is usually said than done. Most people like to talk, few people take the walk.
Lastly, the problem with the net is that it’s in writing (which makes it more believable) and it comes up on a google search, which adds credibility to the unsubstantiated statements. So most research on a particular subject in based on an opinion of someone you have never met on statements that are never verified. The opinion your reading may just be (and usually are) the rantings of a deranged lunatic. That’s why you have to find out for yourself.
This is the reason I offer the free trial. So I can cut through the bullshit and get the product in your hands. If you’re ready and your serious, you’ll like it. If not, send it back and have a nice day.
Information is too much, too fast and unsubstantiated. This is a huge problem.
-
Well, given your generosity, I now feel duty-bound to attend. I’ll send the registration in a week or so.
The curse of the internet is also it’s blessing. Yeah, everyone can write their opinions, supported or not. But I love reading the diversity of opinion, and sorting through it.
The media hates the internet for this reason; they no longer have a monopoly on the ideas we all have access to.
And the whole point of the internet is to expose yourself to as much as possible, thereby gaining a more well-rounded perspective of reality. Not everyone has to be a Ph.D. to make me think.
I find that Truth resonates. It has a power. It’s like God has put an encrypted authenticator in each one of us, and if we are truly open to the Truth – which means being open to being wrong – then we will recognize Truth when see it. Or read it.
The blessing of the internet outweighs the ignoramuses. And, really, we’re all ignoramuses to a degree. But most of won’t admit it.
I believe every single person has a unique take on the Truth – or a different aspect of it – to offer and, therefore, I like hearing from everyone. Even fools can say something absolutely brilliant every once in a while.
For example, I am a political Conservative, so I have a huge list of Conservative blogs and commentators and such that I check out when I have the time. But I also read Liberal sites like the Huffington Post, or Daily Kos, for example.
By the way, a great news site is the Drudge Report, an amalgamation of news articles from around the web. This, to me, is the future of news; no one organization holding a monopoly on content.
If it wasn’t for the web I wouldn’t have found your company. And I found it on the least likely of sites. Alex Jones is a bit out there, but I find that being open-minded means that I recognize value even when it’s hidden amongst other dubious information.
Anyhow, I appreciate your generous gesture, and I will demonstrate that appreciation by attending. See you the 26th.
-
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
