society
From Abduction to Glorious Survival
(Written originally) July 25, 2017 From my Father’s ancestral line I have 5 times, Great Grandfather John Cooke II born June 28, 1752. He, along with Eleanor “Nellie” Goodall (his future wife) born April 6, 1756, were kidnapped from London as young teens, with a promise of a fun day aboard a ship sailing down […]
25Jul2024 | Nancy Belle | 0 comments | Continued
When I Was Just a Little Girl
Originally WrittenFebruary 17, 2015 When I was just a little girl I asked my mother, what will I be Will I be pretty, will I be rich Here’s what she said to me…. Que Sera, Sera, Whatever will be, will be The future’s not ours, to see Que Sera, Sera What will be, will be […]
17Feb2024 | Nancy Belle | 0 comments | Continued
Slavery Was Not About Race!
From my Father’s line I have a 5th Great Grandfather John Cooke. He along with Nellie (his future wife) were kidnapped from London, as young teens. Both were promised a fun day aboard a ship sailing down and back again on the Thames River. They never saw London or their families ever again. They were […]
25Jul2021 | Nancy Belle | 1 comment | Continued
Lost Family
I have an Aunt (I never met her) Grandpa Clark’s oldest daughter Mary Elizabeth Clark b. November 3, 1904 in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. I haven’t found records that state when she began working for American Reduction Company in Pittsburgh, but I do know she worked there because her occupation and place of work are on […]
12Aug2020 | Nancy Belle | 0 comments | Continued
Born White
I have lived going on 71 years. Life has been tough with most accomplishments, good or bad, having been a hard row to hoe. I can say, I never thought I would see the day that so many things that people do or claim to be, is because ‘They were born that way’. I’ve always […]
3Aug2019 | Nancy Belle | 0 comments | Continued
Formal vs Self Education
Not many days ago… I was engaged in political debate with a person, who was quick to point out their higher learning and acquisition of a Bachelors and Masters, in something or other fields. I’m next to sure this was done to show their opinion was better formed and backed up because of same. I […]
27Jan2019 | Nancy Belle | 3 comments | Continued
Implication vs Assurance
I’m addicted to Facebook, no point in denying it! All my friends and family see me there everyday. Mostly I’m addicted to sharing my thoughts on anything and everything. Social media has given me an opportunity to not leave this world without showing out. I know you think I said that wrong and it should […]
9Jan2019 | Nancy Belle | 1 comment | Continued
Illegal Immigrants and How to Not To Do Anything About It
I am a hoarder of information, documents, letters, email, etc. Today I was forced to dig into the my archives for information someone wants, someone who had it, but didn’t take care of it. Any who I digress. While digging into the ramparts of my OLD emails, I found this little gem, from May of […]
28Jun2018 | Nancy Belle | 0 comments | Continued
Free Ranging Kids
The Clark Station on Mitchell, this was ‘Our Gangs’ pit stop on the way home from playing at Devil’s Backbone. My cousins and I would spend the day playing dirt clod war at ‘Bird Heaven’ or playing at mountain climbing on the 12th street side or sliding down the grassy steep hill on cardboard or […]
10Jun2018 | Nancy Belle | 2 comments | Continued
Scapegoat Politics…
Just some things rattling in my head this morning…. Today I see headlines about Marco Rubio being booed at a gathering to discuss the recent school shooting. Booed and pinned down to say yay or nay to the NRA, pinned down to say guns were responsible for the recent and past shootings. This is disturbing. […]
22Feb2018 | Nancy Belle | 1 comment | Continued
Why? It’s More Than Guns
I don’t mean to disparage the intent of the Florida survivors who are now passionately pounding the anti-gun message. Yet, immediately after the shooting, I saw and heard several young people who claimed to know the shooter. They, with disdain in their voices, described a person who was off, didn’t fit in, was a juvenile […]
21Feb2018 | Nancy Belle | 1 comment | Continued
Almost a Certainty
William Merritt Scotton, Sr. and Genevieve (Clark) Scotton, were married Wednesday, August 24, 1938 in St. Joseph, MO. She was a few months from 18 years and he was a couple of months into 21 years. They met by chance because he and Dorothy Castile were cousins and Genevieve and Dorothy were best friends. Merritt […]
23Jan2018 | Nancy Belle | 0 comments | Continued
Equality Is Not Tangible
I am all for equality between the sexes. Always have been, I guess. As a Baby Boomer, I have seen a whole lot of it not being that way. Equality is easily defined on paper and somehow in life it gets spread out, the lines get blurred and more difficult to find the easy divisions […]
16Nov2017 | Nancy Belle | 0 comments | Continued
Who Pulled Your Chain
Pardon my OCD a moment please. Sometimes I get intrigued (my chain gets pulled) by words and/or phrases I hear or read. The phrase in question “Shut your mouth your mind is hanging out” was spoken by one cowboy to another in a movie my husband was watching yesterday evening and I, by consequence, was […]
25Oct2017 | Nancy Belle | 0 comments | Continued
NFL, NASCAR and America
So the Divisionaries continue to divide… It’s true that NASCAR has only had 4 black drivers in its history, notably one being a black woman. Yet, the popularity of the sport fades in the light of Football. Where 64% of Americans claim to be fans. Break that down to 73% of men and 55% of […]
26Sep2017 | Nancy Belle | 4 comments | Continued
A 1964 Christmas Story
It was 1964. Life hadn’t been great. This particular year had been mostly a nightmare. My Mother and Stepfather had separated. Finances were next to non-existent. Me being able to attend school became a burden for my Mother. At only fifteen, I was resigned to possibly, never finishing high school. I was the oldest of, […]
12Dec2016 | Nancy Belle | 1 comment | Continued
Aren’t We Done Yet?!
I can recall earlier Presidential campaigns that were contemptuous to say the least and how I really, really could hardly bear the wait till the first Tuesday of November. This year is the worst I could ever have imagined. Although, recent postings on social media show us there is nothing new in this world and […]
4Oct2016 | Nancy Belle | 0 comments | Continued
Oh Lord Won’t You Give Me?
I loved and love Janis Joplin. I like the song she sang, Mercedes Benz, because it reminds me of a Church I attended with a friend when I was about 16. It was located in South St. Joseph. There was a neon sign outside proclaiming PENTECOSTAL SOMETHING OR OTHER CHURCH. A bright white two story […]
31Jul2016 | Nancy Belle | 0 comments | Continued
Does Race Really Matter?
Transcript from Walla Walla Union Bulletin, Walla Walla, Washington December 20, 1950 Seattle (AP) – A blow on the head with a baseball bat in a neighborhood altercation was fatal Tuesday to Merritt Scotten, 33 year old Seattle pipe fitter. He died of a skull fracture Saturday night. Leon W. Venson 28 a neighbor has […]
25Nov2015 | Nancy Belle | 1 comment | Continued
Barking Dogs and Refugees
Nearly thirty years ago, I was living through a particularly rough patch of life. My husband and I were divorcing. All the usual ugliness that comes with divorce was going full force. My family was literally diminishing before my eyes. My oldest son was in the Navy on board the USS Forrestal which was in […]
18Nov2015 | Nancy Belle | 0 comments | Continued
The Cost of Illegal Immigration
Sometimes, I think with my heart and project my motherly instincts and experiences in an effort to understand others. In the case of illegal immigrants, I have often thought, if I were a Mexican mother living in the deplorable poverty and enduring the crimes that, reportedly, occur in Mexico. If the opportunity came, I would […]
13Nov2015 | Nancy Belle | 1 comment | Continued
Starbucks vs Christmas Cheer or Lack of
OK, here’s my tilt on the subject. I don’t recall Starbucks declaring an affinity to any religion. Not that they haven’t, I just haven’t heard anything about it. They are a business in the business to make money by making coffee. I have never had a Starbucks product. Probably never will, I find spending more […]
12Nov2015 | Nancy Belle | 0 comments | Continued
Life After Tuberculosis
As suggested by a good friend and cousin of mine, I will try to shine a light on a personal experience regarding Tuberculosis, the “Curse of King Tut”. The year was 1965 early Autumn. My mother’s estranged husband was taken to Mount Vernon, MO. This was at the time a ‘sanitarium’ for individuals with ‘lung […]
31Oct2015 | Nancy Belle | 3 comments | Continued
Trial of John Doy
TRIAL OF JOHN DOY.In the month of January, 1859, Wm. A. Newman, of Platte County, had a favorite servant to run away from his home, in Weston, to Lawrence, Kansas. Dick being an active, intelligent and skillful carpenter, Newman offered a large reward, and in the month of February, 1859, at a point fourteen miles […]
9Jan2015 | Ohg Rea Tone | Comments Off on Trial of John Doy | Continued
Alcohol is Not a Truth Serum
My volunteer work takes me to the front lines of the war on addiction. Yesterday I was quietly minding my own business, in a place known for alcoholism traffic, when a staggering drunk passed by. Ron was a happy drunk. He laughed when he told the obvious, “I’m pretty drunk”. Personally, I don’t believe anyone […]
26Jul2013 | Gary Clark | Comments Off on Alcohol is Not a Truth Serum | Continued
On Alcoholics Anonymous – A Letter From Prison
Corresponding with an inmate in the Missouri prison system can be rewarding – and it can be heartbreaking. My friend Joey is again in prison. Joey is not a criminal – but four DUI’s will get anyone some time behind bars. I met Joey when he was in Drug Court. He was my client. As […]
22Apr2013 | Gary Clark | 1 comment | Continued
Jung and Alcoholism and Drug Addiction
Carl Jung was a genius on the level of Albert Einstein. Jung might say that he and Einstein were able to tap their unconscious and the collective unconscious for what appear to be ideas of the human imagination. Jung’s work now defines an entire branch of modern psychology – in his lifetime he captured the […]
18Feb2013 | Gary Clark | Comments Off on Jung and Alcoholism and Drug Addiction | Continued
Trayvon Martin – Racism – and the Media Message
We live in difficult times. The murder of Trayvon Martin in Florida has refocused our Nation’s conscience on racism. After a month of media review it appears that the murderer, George Zimmerman, was an over zealous wannabee-police-officer neighborhood watchman. Zimmerman was looking for his chance to be a hero. He saw a young black man […]
24Mar2012 | Ohg Rea Tone | Comments Off on Trayvon Martin – Racism – and the Media Message | Continued
Buy American
There use to be a time when there was no need to campaign for “buy American”. Buying American made products was the norm especially in the 1950’s when our country was strong pre and post war. But those times are gone and the reality is they will probably never return – at least not with […]
13Nov2010 | Cole James | 3 comments | Continued
Youth Violence – Not Just Fight or Flight
Mark Twain used youth violence as a humorous anecdote necessary to the maturing process of young boys. In The Adventures of Tom Sawyer two boys (one is Tom) confront each other on the street; they taunt, tease, dare, and then scuffle. Tom is victorious when the other boy cries ’nuff!’ Not one sociologist at the time raised a stink about Twain’s portrayal of youth violence.
22Aug2010 | Ohg Rea Tone | 3 comments | Continued
The Short End of The Regulation Stick
The hard earned emotions of our life influence our thoughts. They distract us from our initial purpose. I often begin a post and when finished I have to change the title to reflect the actual post – the burr under my saddle led me off course. Many of us have burrs under our saddles that […]
5Jul2010 | Ohg Rea Tone | 1 comment | Continued
Intellectual VS Emotional Struggle With Death Penalty
I am not a great intellectual liberal – just an average intellect liberal. I try to understand issues at practical and ethical perspectives. For instance, it is unethical to bomb cities – but I agree that Harry Truman was right to use the A-Bomb for extremely practical reasons – he avoided the imminent invasion of […]
23Apr2010 | Ohg Rea Tone | 1 comment | Continued
The Criminal Paradigm, Fiddling around on the Roof
We were watching the old Topol character in Fiddler on the Roof. He portrays a man who struggles with tradition, struggles with the idea of changing ideology, struggles with changing his cultural prejudices. The movie is so universally accepted because all people relate to changing times and changing cultures, and the gut wrenching emotion those […]
16Apr2010 | Ohg Rea Tone | 8 comments | Continued
Taxing Tobacco
Tobacco taxes our health care system with many chronic ailments. And tobacco is taxed by the government. On Wednesday, April 1, 2009, the federal tobacco tax on a pack of cigarettes will go up $.62, from $.39 to $1.01. This must surely be a good thing, right? Well, like other efforts at social engineering, it cuts two ways.
30Mar2009 | Ohg Rea Tone | 2 comments | Continued
The Curious Case of Nadya Suleman – Octo-Mom
Is Nadya Suleman crazy, or what? She had six children by in-vitro fertilization, then had a whole bunch of frozen embryos implanted, resulting in eight babies at one birth. She now has fourteen children. She has no husband and no job. She lives with her mother in a home that is about to be foreclosed. Is she crazy, or what? This is a case of immaturity meeting Dr. Frankenstein.
25Feb2009 | Ohg Rea Tone | 5 comments | Continued
A United Methodist Perspective
I am a United Methodist. My wife and I joined a United Methodist church in Sugar Land, Texas before moving to Nashville, TN, and when we moved to Iowa, we transferred our membership to a church that was just down the street from our house. We went through the ceremony for becoming a member of […]
16Feb2009 | bryan | 2 comments | Continued
Homeless Community
This writer has worked and volunteered at the same social service agencies dedicated to cleaning up the river banks, to rescuing the downtrodden, to saving the helpless, threading the eye of the needle as a gateway to Heaven. We will walk through the Pearly Gates and God will thump us on the forehead with his middle finger, look at us in disgust, and then invite us in to the ultimate shelter from damnation. We will be seated in the middle row, the homeless will have front row seats.
9Feb2009 | Ohg Rea Tone | 3 comments | Continued
The Changing Face of Etiquette
As we, our culture, are catered to by technology and the marketing machine, we begin to feel more entitled to the things that we consume and the benefits of our service industry. The idea of serving others is lost on those who become complacent with being served themselves.
20Jan2009 | bryan | Comments Off on The Changing Face of Etiquette | Continued
Breed Specific Legislation
BSL is another rights stripping phenomenon that has gained momentum through fear tactics. This is another example of individual’s willingness to accept anything from the media as the gospel truth. BSL has snowballed in that last couple of years. What this type of legislation does is either outright ban a certain breed of dog or […]
3Jan2009 | Cole James | 2 comments | Continued
Drug Court – Systemically Flawed
A quick check of the court briefs in the local newspaper gives startling evidence of losing the war on drugs. The paper reported six people sentenced to prison – all for drug charges – five methamphetamine and one cocaine. We are talking about rural northwest Missouri. The first Drug Court was established in Dade County […]
21Dec2008 | Ohg Rea Tone | 2 comments | Continued
The Modern Retreat to the Castle Keep
The worry is not that we are getting more or less safe, but that our perceptions of safety are changing. We have recreated the walled and gated villas of the past and, between our fenced yard, our attached garage, and our parking garage at work, can go entire days and weeks without seeing someone from our neighborhood, let alone someone from around town. We are creating a sense of safety that is grounded in separation rather than reality. We are raising a generation of children who are housed in homogeneous zones that have a comfortable, rhythmic vibration of sameness.
20Dec2008 | bryan | 2 comments | Continued
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 […]
13Dec2008 | bryan | Comments Off on Pay Day Loans and Porn | Continued
The Poverty Paradigm – Misunderstanding Charity
We talk charitably about social justice, often with the liberal view of defending the disenfranchised. Taken out of context we might be seen as classic do-gooders who only enable irresponsibility. That is the common refrain for shallow, heartless capitalists who do not realize that there is profit in assisting the impoverished. Dr. Muhammad Yanus, an […]
12Dec2008 | Ohg Rea Tone | Comments Off on The Poverty Paradigm – Misunderstanding Charity | Continued
Thoughts on Misunderstanding Charity
The holiday season is upon us, and everyone is geared up for the giving season. I think that a conversation on the merits of charity is essential at this stage of the game. I read an article on Trying To Follow a while back about clothing drives. It has some great fodder for conversation. In […]
12Dec2008 | bryan | Comments Off on Thoughts on Misunderstanding Charity | Continued
A Chat About Laughing – A Social Regulator
My son and I chat every day – usually on line – (We live in different States). Sometimes we cut and paste the conversations into an article, usually when it is relevant to something that is being discussed here at The Fireside Post of when it is relevant to a current event. This one is […]
9Dec2008 | bryan | Comments Off on A Chat About Laughing – A Social Regulator | Continued
Axioms of Simple People
The world often seems over populated with simple people. Simple people generally expose themselves rather quickly. They may be conservative or liberal, Democrat or Republican, Christian or atheist, black or white, rich or poor. We recognize them through their life axioms. The simplified axioms seem harmless on the surface – but that is the problem. […]
8Dec2008 | Ohg Rea Tone | Comments Off on Axioms of Simple People | Continued
The Scout Initiative: Naming Social Injustice
I have been thinking more about how to deal with social injustice, and I dug up this clip from To Kill A Mockingbird. There are layers of great stuff in this clip: There are several examples here of the actions that make a social movement. When Atticus learns that the Sheriff is not around, he […]
6Dec2008 | bryan | 1 comment | Continued
A Conflict of Ethics
All of us have ethics. We may not think consciously about them – but we have them. Sometimes these ethics are in conflict with each other – when that happens we find Hamlet, struggling with self doubt, pondering, “To be or not to be?” Ethics do not follow a smooth continuum of linear progression, with […]
6Dec2008 | Ohg Rea Tone | Comments Off on A Conflict of Ethics | Continued
OJ – Celebrity Tragedy
OJ Simpson has been a darling of the media for forty years. Few celebrities reach this level of achievement, we might think of Elvis and the Beatles. We could debate the similarities of these celebrities – rags to riches, riches to rags, stardom and tragedy. But OJ is strikingly different. Elvis Presley was a confused […]
5Dec2008 | Ohg Rea Tone | Comments Off on OJ – Celebrity Tragedy | Continued
Keeping up with the Jones’
Economists tell us we need credit to make the world go round. Rarely is anything bought with cash anymore. Unsecured credit is available everywhere you look. We all want the next big thing before our neighbors. So do we become our surroundings? Most of us have been there or are close to someone who has. […]
11Nov2008 | Cole James | Comments Off on Keeping up with the Jones’ | Continued