Slaves…

By the reign of Pope Zacharias, (745-752) Venice had established a thriving slave trade, buying in Italy, among other places, and selling to the Moors in Northern Africa, even though Pope Zacharias had forbidden the traffic of slaves out of Rome.

For the African-Americans, who believe that Americans kidnapped their ancestors and brought them to America to be slaves, think again. As abhorrent as slavery is, the Americans actually bought the African slaves from their own family. And, there were Christians who were sold into slavery to the Muslims.

So, to be succinct, EVERYBODY was a slave at some point. Don’t think you’re lone rangers in this, you’re just the only ones who are screaming for restitution payments 150 years after your ancestors were liberated.

 

What’s the harm in…

Oversleeping is more harmful than I ever knew.

We all know that a good nights sleep is healthy, and lack of sleep, not so much. But, the problem is that sometimes too much of  a good thing can bring about a whole raft of health problems.

Problems such as:

Impaired Brain Functioning and Mental Health: Sleep is important in the brain, as the brain clears out the waste, balances neurotransmitters and processes memories at rest. Both extremes, too much and too little rest may have an effect on mood and mental health.

Degenerative Diseases
Research indicates that getting too little or too much sleep may be tied to increased Alzheimer’s disease risk factors and studies found that long sleepers may be at increased risk of developing dementia.

Depression and Mental Health
Oversleeping is considered a potential symptom of depression. While many people with depression report insomnia, approximately 1.5% tend to oversleep.

People with long sleep durations are also more likely to have chronic depression or anxiety symptoms compared to normal sleepers. A recent study also found that sleeping too little or too much seemed to increase the genetics of depressive symptoms when compared to normal sleepers, 7-9 hours a night.

Increased Pain

While many times it can seem intuitive to rest more when we’re in pain, research shows that in some cases too much sleep can worsen those symptoms. Back pain can worsen from too little activity or spending too much time in bed. Sleeping in a less than optimal position or using an old or unsupportive mattress can also make back pain worse. Combined with staying still for a long period of time, these factors mean that you could awaken with worse back pain especially when spending longer amounts of time in bed.

Oversleeping is also linked with higher rates of headaches. Referred to as a “sleep headache,” sleeping in may trigger migraines and tension headaches. The cause isn’t necessarily sleep itself, but, some studies have linked it with caffeine withdrawal or increased stress.

Impaired Fertility

In a study of Korean women undergoing in vitro therapy found that women who slept seven to eight hours had the best chances of conceiving. The moderate sleepers had the highest pregnancy rates (53%) compared to those sleeping six hours or less (46%) and those sleeping nine to eleven hours (43%). Study authors suggest sleep outside the normal range could be affecting hormones and circadian cycles, impairing fertility.

Cognition
Using data from Lumosity brain-training, researchers found that cognitive performance on three different games all peaked when people slept around 7 hours worsening with more or less rest. Other studies have also found memory impairment and decreased cognitive function with longer sleep.

Impaired Glucose Tolerance

Glucose tolerance refers to the body’s ability to process sugar, and impaired glucose tolerate is  associated with insulin resistance puts you at risk factor for type 2 diabetes and heart disease.

With all of these problems, why would anybody really want to sleep that long? I started studying the problems of oversleeping when I thought that more sleep was the answer to taking more pain pills for my failed back syndrome, unfortunately, it never really worked, and may have made me a pre-diabetic.

The moral? Try not to over, or under sleep, it’s not worth the problems.

 

African-Americans and the Republican Party…

The civil war started, because of uncompromising differences between the free and slave states. The war was really over the North’s desire to preserve the Union.  Also, Lincoln thought slavery was an atrocity and wanted to abolish it forever. Also, did you know that he actually issued the Emancipation Proclamation twice?

The first time on September 22, 1862, and when the south refused to yield, again on January 1, 1863. This was a man who wasn’t kidding about how much he hated the idea of keeping slaves, although, it only covered the southern states. The proclamation declared that all person’s held in slavery in the south are now and ever will be free. Lincoln was a republican.

The reason I bring that up, is because, most of the African-Americans now a days, seem to be Democrat. I would’ve thought you all would be Republicans, considering the fact that a Republican was the one who freed the slaves, and no Republican wants to reverse that law. Even though the proclamation wasn’t ratified immediately, it wasn’t ratified until December 6, 1865, 7 months and 29 days it’s issuance.

Also, why would African-Americans back in the day, choose Washington, as their last name. I mean, they probably didn’t choose it, but they chose to keep it, and George Washington was a slave owner. So, why not change the last name to something like Lincoln? At least then, they would be associated with the man who actually freed the slaves, not owned them.

I also don’t understand why African-Americans today want to be paid restitution for the fact that over a hundred and fifty years ago was the last time any of their ancestors were slaves, and allow me to be one of the first to tell you, that pretty much all nationalities have been slaves in some shape and form in the 152 years since your ancestors were slaves, ALL OF THEM, but even though some are wanting restitution payment, They have the distinction of being a nationality that the Germans wanted to wipe off the planet, the south didn’t do that. For the most part African-Americans were kept alive and fed, as they would be useless, if they were starving or dead.  Also, the Jewish holocaust survivors didn’t wait 150 years to request restitution, and the ones who received it only received around $7,000 each it expired on June 4, 2004  some 59 years after the end of world war II, not 139 years after the end of the war.

So, maybe keep that in mind, when you’re belly aching about your people being slaves, and maybe remember that it truly could have been worse.

Celebrities with bad personal hygiene…

1. Joan Rivers, I’ve read, has forgone deodorant for spraying her pits and clothing with Vodka and water, which she believes will ward off odors.
2. Russel Crowe, the fact that Joan Rivers is the one that brought Russell Crowes B.O. to the forefront is truly strange, being that she seems to have the same problem.
3. Robert Pattinson once told a UK tabloid that he has such a hectic schedule that he will only wash and change clothes when he, himself can’t stand the air around him. Can you imagine what that’s like for other people around him?
4. Johnny Depp, even though Johnny Depp, himself, has never admitted having a hygiene problem, others have spoken about the fact that he doesn’t like to shower and goes days without one.
5. Jessica Simpson, now here’s one you would never believe, but Jessica Simpson went on “Ellen” and admitted that she doesn’t like how slippery her teeth feel after brushing them, so she doesn’t. Jessica flosses and uses mouthwash but without brushing her teeth, she will surely lose them young.
6. Matthew McConoughey, apparently hasn’t used deodorant in 20 years. Can you imagine how ripe he must get? Apparently, Kate Hudson, one of his co-stars, begged him to wear some and even offered to let him use hers, but was told by Matthew that women love his natural scent, because he smells like a man. Matt, there’s a reason woman like things like deodorant and cologne on men, we don’t like the caveman smell.
7. Brad Pitt, here’s one you would never guess. Apparently Brad Pitt is so against regular showers that one of his co-stars had to teach him to wipe down with baby wipes to reduce the odor.
8. Courtney Cox apparently was told that if she doesn’t stay ahead of it, she smells like a truck driver, which she apparently likes.
9. Anderson Cooper has admitted wearing the same jeans every day without washing them.
10. Cameron Diaz is always caught in stained clothes with sweaty pit stains. Cameron told Splash news that she wears the same clothes for four days and then discards them, she also admitted to not wearing deodorant for about 20 years. Yuk.

Obamacare in Trump’s America…

Repeal and replace Obamacare. Sounds easy, no? Unfortunately, it isn’t as easy as it sounds. In order for congress to repeal and replace Obamacare, the republicans must maintain 218 members of the house and 50 senators.

The republican party alone, includes free market conservatives, pro-business establishment, members from states that actually benefitted from Obamacare, and states in which Hillary Clinton won. They also need to satisfy President Trump, who has veto rights, at the end of the day.

These are not small tasks, but at the end of the day, I still have hope that it will succeed. Think about what Pres. Obama and Nancy Pelosi said to get that bill passed. “If you like your doctor, you can keep him.” That was a lie. “If you like your healthcare plan, you can keep it”. Another lie. “You have to vote the bill in before you can see it”. Would you buy a house or car, sight unseen? I wouldn’t, so why did our government?

Out of 316,128,839 Americans over the age 18, 12.7 mil. are currently being covered by Obamacare, a plan where you have a choice of one doctor, where you pay more out, because you’re paying for the people who can’t. A plan where some of the medications that people really need are not covered at all.

Are you as incensed as I am about this? Are you angry that there are people aged 18-27 who are still on their parents plan? When did this country become a nanny state? Used to be that when a person became 18, they were forced to grow up and get their own plan, now they get to stay children until 27 years of age.

If this makes you as angry as it makes me, comment, tell me what you’re thinking. Maybe, we can come up with the answer together, because the government can’t seem  to do it.

This is still America. The majority should still rule. We still have a voice, so stop being silent, because the only way to affect change is to be heard!

I look forward to hearing from you all, please speak out.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day

I hope that this post finds you all well, and I would like to the first to wish everybody a fun and safe St. Patrick’s Day.

I know that most people look at this holiday to get shit faced, but always remember these three  things. 1. Pub culture was never about getting drunk,” said Professor Christopher Dowd of the University of New Haven, “It was about socializing, usually around music or storytelling.” and 2. There are always a huge population of amateurs out of the streets, so if you’re out and drunk please what ever you do, don’t drive.

Call a cab or uber driver, so at least you will know that you’ll make it home safely.

3. Eat Irish, the typical Irish meal consists of corn beef and cabbage, colcannon (which is a potato dish, shepherd’s pie, Irish soda bread and last but certainly not least Irish boxly  a potato pancake, and Dublin coddle, a mixture of potatoes, onions and sausage topped with bacon.

I just wanted, very much, to tell you to have a fun and safe holiday.