All Posts Tagged With: "social justice"

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Pay Day Loans and Porn

There are scavengers among us. They prey on the poor, the oppressed, and, strangely enough, the military. There are some things that the poor, the oppressed, and the military have in common. Loneliness, desperation, and a lack of money. I think that it is time to call a rat a rat.
Two of the industries that [...]

13Dec2008 | bryan | 0 comments | Continued
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5 gifts that can change the world

It is that time of year when I scramble to get the last gifts before all of the other saps try scrambling to get the last gift, thus, I beat the crowd  My family has been trying to get away from the obligatory knick-knack purchases that we have always ended up getting for those that [...]

9Dec2008 | bryan | 3 comments | Continued
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Barack Obama – The Color of Water

These are troubling times of war and of economic despair. Yet there is a sense of hope. 50 million people in this country lack health care. Yet there is a sense of hope. We speak of immigration as if we are talking about cattle. Yet there is a sense of hope. Hope transcends troubles. Hope [...]

30Oct2008 | Ohg Rea Tone | 5 comments | Continued
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Anecdote – Stoking Flames of Conversation

The Fireside often presents reason in the form of anecdote. We are not alone. Anecdotes are the parables of modern discourse. They are not scientific, not products of statistical analysis. Anecdotes offer insight by personalizing issues. Anecdotes are used to wrench the gut, to appeal to the human emotion, to define issues in terms of [...]

1Apr2008 | Ohg Rea Tone | 0 comments | Continued
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Big Oil holds Delta hostage

The oil industry is holding all of us hostage. Delta Air Lines is a recent example. The Associated Press reports Delta is offering ‘…voluntary severance payouts to roughly 30,000 employees…’ Delta hopes to cut 2,000 jobs. Why?
Let’s define a scenario that makes our math easier to understand. For the sake of argument, let’s say that [...]

19Mar2008 | Ohg Rea Tone | 1 comment | Continued
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Christ, or Anti-Christ

Son,
Take a look at the State of the World. Look at the role of religion in world events. Look at the disparity of faiths represented by the candidates for President of the United States. Who or what is running this show?
The term, Anti- Christ, is mentioned in the Bible very briefly. I think it is [...]

29Jan2008 | Ohg Rea Tone | 0 comments | Continued
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Payday Loans and Bounce Rates

Son,
The Payday loan business is just that, a business.  They are like any other business.  They make money by having a steady stream of customers.  And, like other businesses, they measure their success.  I would sure like to see their statistics.
We write essays for this online magazine.  We measure our success in the same manner [...]

22Dec2007 | Ohg Rea Tone | 0 comments | Continued
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Boston Legal on Predatory Lending

Son,
I enjoy the TV program Boston Legal. Their stories are right out of the headlines. Last evening one of their ‘legal’ cases surrounded home foreclosure.
Clarence, an employee of Crane, Pool?, and Schmidt, was two months behind on his mortgage payments because his interest had ballooned to 12%.? He had originated the 100% loan at 2%. [...]

21Dec2007 | Ohg Rea Tone | 1 comment | Continued
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Dead Immigrants

Son,
We have become a disgusting society. Reader – prepare yourself for some sarcasm – this struck me as a blatant disregard for human life – read on. The banner headline on MSNBC as we speak is “Unidentified bodies often buried at taxpayer expense.” Heaven Forbid! What have we come to? Doctor Stern (Someone being interviewed [...]

28Sep2007 | Ohg Rea Tone | 5 comments | Continued
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Economic Conservative or Social Liberal?

Son,
I like to tell people that I am an Economic Conservative and a Social Liberal. Are these opposing forces? That depends on how the News Media defines the terms. The problem with labels is the inflexibility of thought or compromise.
When I think of Economic Conservative I think of being cautious with my money. I don’t [...]

20Sep2007 | Ohg Rea Tone | 1 comment | Continued
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No Child Left Behind

Son,
The local news paper reported today that federal funds must be taken from the most impoverished schools. The money will instead be used for staff training. The shift is a consequence of special education students failing to meet the standards set by the No Child Left Behind legislation.
Mixed feelings abound – probably because the newspaper [...]

14Sep2007 | Ohg Rea Tone | 0 comments | Continued