The Fireside Post
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Feature Article #1

Taylor Swift is “New Money”

The headlines state that Taylor Swift gave $100,000 to the family of a shooting victim at the KC Chiefs Super Bowl Parade. The media reports she is worth around one billion dollars. The media (Forbes) also reports the Hunt family, owners of the Chiefs, are worth around twenty-five (25) billion dollars. There is no report […]

| February 19th, 2024 | Continued

Feature Article #2

Pondering the Impact of Individuals on History

There are two broad categories of historical interpretation. Generally they are narrative history and chaos theory. Narrative history comes into focus with biography. Often a biography of a historical character, usually a leader during times of strife, will suggest that that person was responsible for navigating through the crisis. Chaos theory says that the conditions […]

| January 20th, 2024 | Continued

Feature Article #3

The Fireside Continues for another 3 years

Well, Executive Administrative CEO type decisions have overruled the Operations Manager. The firesidepost has been funded for another three years. Life goes on. It is great, we started this adventure in 2007 – we might make it to 20 years.

| October 6th, 2023 | Continued

Feature Article #4

Shutting Down thefiresidepost.com

The hosting service for this site has become too expensive. Also, bluehost, the host of this site has double billed us – they billed my son and they are billing me. They like to automatically charge your credit card. They did send me a notice saying they were charging me at the end of October […]

| September 22nd, 2023 | Continued

Feature Article #5

COVID – Three Days In

Sunday night, January 16, I went to bed with a slight headache. I did not take any medicine for the headache. Fever and chills visited me through the night and Monday morning (MLK Holiday) I went to urgent care. By then my symptoms were headache, cough, runny nose, fever, chills, and some body aches. I […]

| January 19th, 2022 | Continued

Feature Article #6

Psychology, Cognitive, Jung, Literature, Astrology – What’s It All About

My life has been invested in the search for sanity. That search took many paths. Currently my discussion with others on the same journey has included comparisons of the different yet divergent paths. I am a lay person – mostly. After I retired from a career in information systems I entered a counselor-in-training program at […]

| October 11th, 2021 | Continued

Feature Article #7

I’LL BE THERE

DON’T KNOW WHERE THERE IS BUT I’LL BE THERE

| August 14th, 2021 | Continued

Feature Article #8

Another Homeless Man Dies

James (not real name) and his younger brother Bud preferred drinking in the shade on a hot day.  Their friends Wayne and Keith and other homeless people sometimes joined them. The old police station at 710 S 9th still has the radio tower.  The base is about twenty feet by twenty feet and the tower […]

| August 12th, 2021 | Continued

Feature Article #9

Struggling with Family Prejudice In The Time of Trump

I am old; a senior but not yet elderly. My adult life has been a quest for sanity. I have said that many times, but I am just now beginning to understand what sanity means. Sanity is an escape from family of origin dysfunction. Sanity is discovering and alleviating ignorance and prejudice – racism, homophobia, […]

| July 26th, 2021 | Continued

Feature Article #10

Rescue Dogs and Christians

A friend said, “My favorite breed of dog is Rescue”. I have had a couple of rescue dogs; they are like Christians, you never know what you are going to get. Our first rescue dog was in 1971. We called her Pal. She was a pal, snuggling and warm and loving. She had black curly […]

| July 11th, 2021 | Continued

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About this Magazine

This magazine started as a conversation between a father and a son.  You will encounter some of that conversation as you look through the archives, but mostly you will find discourse about a great many subjects  that embracea  great many views about the world.  Take a look around, and see what happens when you dare […]

Other Recent Articles

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Hogan’s Heroes as the Trump Administration

Imagine Jimmy Kimmel as Hogan. Hegseth is Colonel Clink. Rubio is Sergeant Schultz, “I know nothing”. Hogan is defiant, even mocking of the fascist regime. Hegseth is the great boot liker. Rubio pretends to be innocent:

1Dec2025 | | 0 comments | Continued
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Sam Harris on Religious Irony

I am using this forum today to simply share a video that made sense to me:

1Dec2025 | | 0 comments | Continued
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Ailments, Aging, Attitude

I am 75 years old. I am also 75 years young. Attitude? My life has engaged a couple of chronic, life-changing, medical conditions. Some are minor, meaning that I just have to take regular medication – Blood pressure and hypothyroidism. Some are more life changing. I have a condition called Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT). It is a […]

20Jul2025 | | 0 comments | Continued
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“A Known Homosexual” – It is Time to Protest!!

OK – I admit that I have a friend who is a ‘known homosexual’. Yes, I admit, I talk to him when I see him, Yes, even in public. He looks like a regular person so people who see us talking probably don’t know – so that makes it OK to speak to him in […]

7Apr2025 | | 982 comments | Continued
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Protesting Injustice – the Paradox of Civilization

I have written about this before. It is a tough subject for me because my judgement seems to fail to understand appropriate degrees of protest. How much can you piss people off before you are deemed ‘across-the-line”? When we speak of social justice we are talking about the advancement of civilization. The more just a […]

26Feb2025 | | 1,072 comments | Continued
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Remembering Mom and Her Music

I was fumbling around on youtube this morning and found this Patti Page rendition of Tennessee Waltz.    My mother introduced me to this song.  She was not trying to – this was one of the songs she sang while wringing out the laundry in her wringer wash machine.   Hearing Patti Page sing this old song […]

10Dec2024 | | 1,045 comments | Continued
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When It Feels So Right, But Is So Wrong

We begin to understand the indignity of denial. When we continue abrasive, cruel prejudices in denial of the truth we diminish our humanity. It appears that some people enjoy their prejudice. It only appears so. Those people live in fear. They fear opening Pandora’s Box. They fear the evil that will surely befall them if they abandon their sacred values. The real indignity is in holding on to those values which are negative, hurtful, and unjustified.

6Sep2020 | | 776 comments | Continued
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Chronic Maladies Get Brushed Off as Just Aging

I have a condition called peripheral neuropathy – in both legs and some in my right arm. I have to wear braces to walk. This condition ‘came on’ in my late sixties. I am not diabetic. I was an outpatient at St. Luke’s Neurology in KC all summer (2019). After extensive testing from everything from […]

16Feb2020 | | 41 comments | Continued
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Medical Care, Penny Wise – Dollar Foolish

The past two weeks saw me struggling with the local medical community. In short, I was misdiagnosed three times in a span of five days resulting in delayed treatment and extraordinary unnecessary costs. Welcome to the modern world of administering health care based on dollars rather than sense. On September 19, 2019, I noticed a […]

3Oct2019 | | 1,237 comments | Continued
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The American Ideal of Meritocracy

My father was a working man. He taught us through osmosis that loyalty to an employer was a good character trait. He also, as an unintended consequence of his success, taught us that work-over-time pays off. I have seen this in some of my friends too. Is this an example of meritocracy? The title of […]

18Mar2019 | | 1,189 comments | Continued
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Depression is

Kate Spade, now Anthony Bourdain….the numbers continue to rise. But the only time anyone talks about suicide is when a celebrity is struck down by THIS AWEFUL DISEASE CALLED DEPRESSION!!! They say we (society) need to TALK about IT. Yet, those who suffer from IT feel so ASHAMED they often keep IT to themselves. They […]

8Jun2018 | | 1,657 comments | Continued
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Trump’s Fox Rant

Trump is a horrible embarrassment to our nation. dfgdfgdsfdfd

27Apr2018 | | 977 comments | Continued
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Well Dang, I Have Foot Drop

I have a diagnosed medical condition that I did not know existed a month ago. I am using the proper noun “I” often because this is all about me.  I believe this problem has existed for some time because I wrote about it in 2012. Humor is often my escape from the cruelty of reality.  […]

9Apr2018 | | 24 comments | Continued
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I Wrote My Own Story

This whole series of essays has explored the nurture and nature of my life.  Some attempt to sort out nature and nurture necessarily meant writing less than favorable events in my family.  All has been true.  Which brings us to a sticking point, a conflict of philosophy – that of individual accountability and responsibility.  There […]

20Feb2018 | | 1,021 comments | Continued
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Letting Go

Anyone following this trail of essays on mental health might find themselves feeling sorry for this old fool.  That is not my intention.  About ninety-eight percent of my troubles have been the consequences of my own decisions.  Does that make them less painful?  No.  Becoming aware of consequences directly related to one’s own decisions relieves […]

17Feb2018 | | 1,224 comments | Continued
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Kelly Ann Conway on Domestic Violence

Kelly Ann Conway, some sort of advisor to the President of the United States, was on CNN this morning.  She was present on the set of State of The Union with Jake Tapper.  A little back story – A Presidential aid, Rob Porter, has been accused by two ex-wives of domestic violence.  He denied the […]

11Feb2018 | | 20 comments | Continued
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Seaside Beginning

Seaside Beginning– By Steven Michael   I see you on the windowsill, looking onward to the sky. You stare into the brightest days with ember eyes;   Wishing upon movement. I remember how you looked at me, daydreaming of yesterday’s forever. Like chalk butterflies, like seaside goodbyes,   How they crashed into our lives like […]

9Feb2018 | | 31 comments | Continued
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Immature, or Mentally Ill?

Anyone following this string of articles about my mental health might be growing weary.  I struggle to find the correct words.  I am generally fond of words and know how to use them, but exploring mental health is difficult terrain to cross.  It finally comes down to this: I am a senior citizen – what […]

8Feb2018 | | 1,052 comments | Continued
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The Individual, Mental Health, and Maturity

Previous posts have explored my personal mental health from both nature and nurture.  Clearly it is difficult to sort out cause and effect.  How might we look at any adult and determine cause of poor behavior?  Individual humans throw a curve ball at stereotypes.  We do not know why two soldiers experiencing the same trauma […]

7Feb2018 | | 1,373 comments | Continued
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Family As A Barometer – The Highs and Lows of Life

Most of us do not like to talk publicly about our families. When we do we are praising someone for a public accomplishment, like being on the honor role at school or getting a promotion at work. The underbelly of family life generally is taboo. And why not? It is nobody’s business what our family […]

1Feb2018 | | 1,119 comments | Continued
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Chemical Changes To Behavior

Mental health is a concern to many.  In our modern world we see acts of unstable mental wellness often.  These episodes come in the form of mass shootings, the killing of innocent children, tent cities of homeless people along river banks, road rage, and other acts of humanity that are less than humane.  Even so, […]

14Jan2018 | | 37 comments | Continued
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Serenity and Social Justice

I like the idea of social justice.  Probably because there are many opportunities to challenge society, to fight with others, to maintain the moral high ground, to bask in the righteousness of being right all the time.  Social Justice has been a ball and chain in my life. Check this out: I just googled who […]

6Jan2018 | | 1,297 comments | Continued
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Aggravated With Medicare And The Health System

Right off let me be clear, I am a senior.  That is somewhere between middle age and elderly.  My health insurance is Medicare with a United Health Care supplement.  As I have aged I have experienced more aches and pains resulting from the active utilization of my body parts.  Did I mention that I have […]

1Jan2018 | | 35 comments | Continued
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When We Are Filled With Hate And Fear

What are the common denominators with people who are filled with hate and fear?  What are the symptoms? What are their political views? What is wrong with them??? They were abused as children.  That is the one common feature of the hateful and fearful.  Their parents tried to beat them into respectful adults.  Or the […]

27Dec2017 | | 34 comments | Continued
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Name Your Demons – Remove Their Power

The title of this article is not an original thought.  My understanding of the concept is new, fresh, and enlightening.  It took a horrendously emotional event to break the barrier of denial that held my life captive.  Denial is not a bad thing.  Denial is an emotional regulator – denying reality the power to destroy.  […]

18Dec2017 | | 1,047 comments | Continued
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Feelings! Legitimate Or Not

In cognitive behavioral treatment we learn to think, then feel, then act.  Some folks get into trouble when they feel, act, then think.  My personal notion is that we always think first; the question is why do we think such negative thoughts that result in hurt feelings and thus bad behavior? I did four years […]

15Dec2017 | | 29 comments | Continued
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Life Lessons, Set In Concrete

The ‘twoness’ of humanity is all around us.  The good and the bad, the ying and the yang, the frailty of human character.  My father, as I have said before, was both a great man and a monstrous brute.  I do not know if his greatness won the final battle – but I suspect it […]

13Dec2017 | | 21 comments | Continued
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Poverty And No Birth Control

I have written about the ‘twoness’ of parenthood.  The paradox of love versus stress.  My parents were not different than other parents.  They loved us even when they were unable to express the love overtly.  When my father came home from the War in Europe he reunited with my mother, they were promptly married, and […]

9Dec2017 | | 11 comments | Continued
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Twoness, The Paradox of Parenthood

I am a young Senior citizen.  As such one might deduce that my parents were part of “the greatest generation”.  That would be correct.  My parents grew up during the depression.  My father fought in World War Two.  Have I mentioned that there were seven children in my family?  My mother stayed home to raise […]

7Dec2017 | | 23 comments | Continued
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No Yellow Ribbons Here

What are some words used to describe me?  Intense, forceful, resolute, aggressive, difficult, stubborn, unyielding, Aries – You get the idea – My history is one of confrontation and unforgiving in-your-face anger. There are regular videos on facebook of soldiers returning home unannounced to reunite with their families.  The families choke up and well with […]

5Dec2017 | | 19 comments | Continued
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Thomas Franklin, New Fireside Contributor

Thomas Franklin and I became friends in 2006.  He was an inpatient at a Substance Abuse Treatment Center where I served as a counselor.  That program was a 21 day residential care.  There was a stipend program at the Center.  This allowed up to two clients to remain residents, receive free food, and free intensive […]

2Dec2017 | | 31 comments | Continued
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Baseball Rebellion

I did not play baseball as a child.  I hardly knew such a thing existed.  One Spring day, long ago, I was wandering the St. Joseph, Missouri, streets with my brothers.  As we passed the Noyes Baseball Field I noticed several of my school mates dressed in uniform and playing baseball on the well manicured […]

26Nov2017 | | 15 comments | Continued
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In Defense of the St. Joseph, Missouri, School Tax Levy 2017

Larry Koch is a member of the St. Joseph, Missouri, School District Board of Directors.  There is a levy on the ballot and the following was a facebook post by Mr. Koch.  I thought it was well thought out and well written. There are two issues: 1) Does the school district need more money? and […]

22Oct2017 | | 15 comments | Continued
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When The Emotionally Unbalanced Vote, They Always Vote For The Extreme

Lookout Friday! Here they come!  The emotionally unbalanced have found their candidate.  Donald Trump is someone who should never have happened in America – but he has – and it is because one political party began catering to the emotionally unbalanced about forty years ago, and the fall of economic prosperity by American citizens fed […]

20Oct2017 | | 19 comments | Continued
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Stand For Defense of Constitution

From a post by Nancy: Well… Can’t speak for all Americans, but sometimes I get peeved and as an American that loves my freedoms and ability to choose my actions and beliefs… Demanding and legislating that everyone must stand for the Anthem is the WRONG way to go. Should proud citizens of the USA show […]

20Oct2017 | | 22 comments | Continued
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Kansas City City Market, Beignet, and Moody Football Fans

We invested a day at the Kansas City City Market.  Today, in fact.  A Sunday and the Chiefs are playing – but we have a DVR and are recording the game.  We are at the market to meet family and are hoping that we do not inadvertently hear the score of the game.  We did […]

17Sep2017 | | 16 comments | Continued
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Chief’s Football Analysis by PEG

Well….I must comment on the KC Chiefs victory last night. Those of you who know me well….after being a lifetime fan, who remembers watching the Chiefs Win the Super Bowl in 1970, know the Chiefs lost my unconditional love after they lost 1998 AFC Divisional Home Game (13-3, home field advantage, 1st round bye) to […]

10Sep2017 | | 14 comments | Continued
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The Moderate White American, Shameful Acts of Cowardly Comfort.

That title represents bold words for a one-eyed-fat-man.  I have two eyes.  I am also the alter-ego of an old white man – and my fellow white people, intelligent political moderates, have come up short in the advancing civilized struggle for morality and justice. People throughout my life have been weary of any direct confrontation […]

3Sep2017 | | 26 comments | Continued
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TRUMP – Despicable Me in Orange Hues

From a friend: Why does Trump always go after women by attacking their looks?? What mirror is he looking in to??? He is a vile, ugly, fat slob that looks like a cartoon character in Batman , except he does not need any makeup. He has goggle marks around his eyes from his fake spray […]

1Jul2017 | | 22 comments | Continued
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A Visit To The ER

I cut my finger.  Or perhaps I should say my finger was in the way when the door was closing.  I thought for a moment the finger was broken but it turned out to be only a bone deep cut.  My deductible for an ER visit is seventy-five dollars – what to do?  After a […]

12Jun2017 | | 20 comments | Continued
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