Mindconnection eNL, 2009-09-06

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Brainpower | Finances | Security | Health/Fitness | Factoid | Product Highlight | Thought for the Day

Did you know that there are 1,048 people named James Bond in the United States? How many folks have your name? Just type it in and find out: http://ww2.howmanyofme.com/.

As you can see, even our names don't really say that much about us. Unfortunately, our culture (such that it is) has a fixation about (mis)labeling things. What does it say about me as a person if I have label X or label Y? Ask those 1,048 people named James Bond what they do for a living, and I doubt any of them drive around in futuristic vehicles catching bad guys. Probably most of them don't even own a tuxedo.

The state-run mudstream media are great about misusing labels in their propaganda efforts. To avoid being duped, drop the labels. Focus on the facts, if any, behind whatever is the latest scheme the politicians are trying to shove down our throats.

Labels aren't the only brain-deadening abuse of language. Many other types of abuses exist. For example:

• Euphemisms. Calling an economic nightmare with millions of layoffs a "recession" instead of "the only possible outcome of criminally rampant federal spending" prevents dealing with the problem. The people spending our economy into a massive pit should be arraigned on the proper charges for these crimes, but instead the blame goes to "business cycles."
   
• Misnomers. Changing the "Carnage" in Daylight Carnage Time to "Savings" makes this traffic-fatality inducing bit of poor public policy somehow appear benign. It's not, and the people behind it should not only be ashamed but be indicted on several thousand counts each year of conspiracy to commit manslaughter. It's not that they don't know this lunacy kills and maims massive numbers of people with each clock change, as they have been told by several citizen advocacy groups. It's obvious from their refusal to correct the problem that they desire that outcome. So they lie about it with this misnomer. Do we really want these people in office?
   
• Emotional labels. This is a favorite of the "it makes no sense but we want to do it anyhow" crowd. If a label evokes an emotional response, that's your first clue that a propaganda attack is under way. It's also a good clue that the person promoting the particular viewpoint has no facts or logic so resorts to emotional "arguments" instead. In this context, it's impossible to do a cost/benefit analysis or evaluate ROI. The "winner" is nearly always the one who can shout the loudest or in some other way beat down the opposition rather than prevail on substance.

Labels and other language abuses are tools for slipping past your mental defenses, the same way a Slim Jim is a tool for slipping a car door lock. Be alert for these tools, and neutralize them. Stephen R. Covey has a name for people who use such tools: manipulators. When you encounter a manipulator or a manipulative misuse of language, don't let it have the intended effect of neutralizing your brain power.

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No nursing home for us. We are checking into the Holiday Inn! With the average cost for a nursing home care costing $188.00 per day, there is a better way when we get old and feeble.

We have already checked on reservations at the Holiday Inn. For a combined long term stay discount and senior discount, it's $49.23 per night. That leaves $138.77 a day for: Breakfast, lunch and dinner in any restaurant we want, or room service, laundry, gratuities and special TV movies. Plus, they provide a spa, swimming pool, a workout room, a lounge and washer-dryer, etc. Most have free toothpaste and razors, and all have free shampoo and soap.

$5 worth of tips a day will have the entire staff scrambling to help you. They treat you like a customer, not a patient. There is a city bus stop out front, and seniors ride free. The handicap bus will also pick you up (if you fake a decent limp).

To meet other nice people, call a church bus on Sundays.

For a change of scenery, take the airport shuttle bus and eat at one of the nice restaurants there. While you're at the airport, fly somewhere. Otherwise, the cash keeps building up.

It takes months to get into decent nursing homes. Holiday Inn will take your reservation today. And you are not stuck in one place forever, you can move from Inn to Inn , or even from city to city. Want to see Hawaii? They have a Holiday Inn there too. TV broken? Light bulbs need changing? Need a mattress replaced? No problem. They fix everything, and apologize for the inconvenience. The Inn has a night security person and daily room service. The maid checks to see if you are ok. If not, they will call the undertaker or an ambulance. If you fall and break a hip, Medicare will pay for the hip, and Holiday Inn will upgrade you to a suite for the rest of your life.

And no worries about visits from family. They will always be glad to find you, and probably check in for a few days mini-vacation. The grandkids can use the pool. What more can you ask for?

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Another benefit not mentioned is the free broadband Internet.

What lessons can we draw from this? I think a primary one is when we make important decisions, we need to Do The Math.

Had voters Done The Math last year, the senator with the worst spending record (and an F rating from every citizen watchdog group) would not have made it past the Primaries, much less have been put in a position to blow nearly a trillion dollars during his first few weeks in office.

He had to notice the economy was in a shambles from the debts left by his two predecessors ($5 trillion and $9 trillion, respectively), so what on earth was he thinking by plundering us even further? This was the single most expensive disaster in the history of humankind. And yet, he's still in office.

Let's not forget to Do The Math the next time there's any election of any kind. When you drive by a Holiday Inn, maybe it will remind you to discuss this with others.

• Being lean rather than fat--this prevents mechanical balance problems that exist when you carry a belly.
• Working your core. Most gym rats don't do this. If you do squats and/or deadlifts and breathe properly, you will feel the exercise in your pelvic floor while also building a girdle of muscle (see photo at right) around your midsection.
• Practicing posture correction, consciously, throughout the day.

But what if you already have back pain? There's good news. Jesse Canone of the Back Pain Institute has just released a book called The 7 Day Back Pain Cure.

I haven't read it yet myself, so I can't brag about how wonderful it is. But we've posted articles from Jesse on our Supplecity site, and he's a very well-informed individual on issues about back pain. Which is why I ordered my own copy and encourage you to order your copy today.

As regular readers know, I'm 48 years old in the picture (above, right), taken in December. I don't diet down for summer. I don't have good genes for maintaining a lean body, I really have to be conscientious and disciplined about it. That doesn't mean I suffer, eat bland foods, or starve myself.

At www.supplecity.com, you'll find plenty of informative, authoritative articles on maintaining a lean, strong physique. It has nothing to do with long workouts or impossible to maintain diets. In fact:

• The best workouts are short and intense.
• A good diet contains far more flavors and satisfaction than the typical American diet.

Nor does it mean being hungry all the time (you are less hungry on six small meals a day than three large ones), being weak from hunger (on a proper dietary regimen, you will have much more energy than otherwise), or "giving up pleasures" (I have no idea where this concept comes from, unless a person considers being sick a "pleasure.").

During that time, the Pentagon spends $478.8 million of YOUR money on "acquisitions" that never see the light of day. This phenomenon is known as "corporate welfare" and "pork barrel spending."

So, how much money is this? It's enough to make millionaires out of 480 people, if you round up. Start making a list of 480 people you know, and see how long that takes you.

The ReadingPen TS contains both the Basic and Advanced dictionaries, so this one pen covers all reading levels.

Enhancements include playback of entire paragraphs, educational word games, touchscreen, virtual keyboard, and USB connection to PC. This reading assistive pen helps students improve their comprehension, vocabulary, and language fluency. Scan and hear text; hear word definitions.

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