Regret

Regret is a funny thing. It can make you do something you would otherwise regret, or it can keep you up at night months after the regretful even happens Odds are though, you’re the only one still worrying about it. The only one who still hurts every time the subject is brought up or even crosses your mind. And you can’t move on or fix the situation until you forgive yourself for whatever you did, and most of the time that’s the hardest thing to do bar none. The road to self-forgiveness isn’t easy though. You have to accept what you’ve done and understand that it wasn’t life changing or that relevant to your everyday life. Odds are the only reason you felt guilty in the first place is because you built your hopes up so high that when you wound up failing you had no choice but to only take away that you are a failure. But the great thing about regret is that you don’t need someone’s approval or forgiveness, only your own. And without that you’ll end up regretting everything you attempt to accomplish. With it though, you wont regret a thing.

Guest Post from Becca

Love is the scariest thing to deal with. I know, I’m a 16-year-old girl, of course I think I love anyone that can come into my life and make me feel special. Well, to be honest, before I figured out that I might love someone I thought everyone that was below the age of 20 and said they were/are in love was full of shit. The worst thing about it is laying out all your feelings is getting the “oh ok” reply. It’s one thing to pour your heart out to someone who you haven’t talked to in a month – but another to get a response that you’re not satisfied with. Being in love (or at least considering it) isn’t something I’m used to or something I’ll ever get used to. It’s like I’ve got all these feelings…and I have no idea what to do with them, especially when the feelings aren’t 100% returned. Don’t get me wrong, this kid definitely likes me – but not to the extreme level where my feelings are. At the same time, I don’t necessarily know that. And that’s ok, just not the easiest part of this. Actually I almost passed out when I told him how I feel. It takes some serious courage to admit to someone that practically hates you that you’re in love with them – especially in the situation that I’m in. I think the thing that will always scare me is the fact that (yes this will sound cliché) he’s got all of me. There isn’t one thing I haven’t told him. He could pretty much break me in one second if he really wanted to. Luckily, he’s not that type of person. Yeah, this goes against all of my morals to depend on a guy as much as I am now. Actually, most of this whole thing goes against my morals (including writing about love). But sometimes a girl like me needs a little moral breaking every once in a while. I always used to think love was something that people depended on so they had a rational reason to feel the way they do about someone. I was never really into stuff like that. I always sorta thought people felt the way they did and that was that. Now I guess I could see how it would help rationalize people’s feelings. It doesn’t help much though, love is probably the most irrational thing I can think of besides sex… and that’s not something I have ANY experience in. I’m not really into talking about love. I actually really hate that I might feel it for someone. I don’t think it’s something that someone my age should have to deal with. But I guess things always happen for a reason. And so it goes …

-Becca

Being Tested

Everyone faces upset in his or her lives. Sports, grades, being popular, everyone has them. Some people face few. They coast through life without a real thought on how to improve their lives or the lives of others. Then there are some with almost nothing but upset in their lives. These are the people who fight tooth and nail for every single breath they take. Every corner they turn is filled with hopelessness and despair. People ask the question why some have it easy and others have it rough. It’s simple. Every human is tested every day. The ones who live life easily are tested to help out others who don’t live with such luxury. Those who fail are the stuck up, fat-ass, corporate CEOs who screw a company over and receive a golden parachute for doing such a great job. Those who succeed and pass the test are the ones with a family, live an incredible life in the suburbs. These are people who didn’t sell out to get to the top just to make a buck. Those who don’t have it that easy are tested in a much more severe way. They have to live every moment, knowing the world is against them, and still walk with a spring in their step and a grin on their faces. They have to live life happier than anyone else. People who fail this are those who live life in a haze, just floating through. Those who succeed through this test however have the biggest payoffs out of anyone. These are the people who do what they love and succeed at it. They’re the presidents, the actors, the musicians, and the athletes. They are the happiest people in the world. Because from the darkest sadness comes the brightest joy.

Being Happy

Over the past few weeks I've been thinking a lot about happiness. What it means to be happy, how you can be happy, if you can even be truly happy. And I’ve realized that happiness is something that gives people a purpose for living. Being happy makes everything else seem a little brighter, the sun shines a little longer and the rain is just a little happier. But not everyone experiences happiness. Some people can get away from something and be happy, playing baseball or dancing for instance. Others find bliss in the arms of their loved ones or just being with their best friend. Others however are not so fortunate. I for one have only found tiny moments of bliss throughout my short lifespan. But sports don’t give me that kind of pleasure anymore and I don’t have many loved ones who can, or who even try to cheer me up. So I have to create my own happiness. I realized after a few days of looking at the sky that stargazing got me part of the way there, and a beautiful girl always did the rest. And I guess the universe was smiling down at me when I ended up with both at the same time. It’s these types of moments that give me the fuel I need to keep going and continue my optimistic outlook on the world. Without things like that I'm not sure what I would do. So to those people, who are in a rut right now just like I am, find those moments, those seemingly insignificant moments that make your day, and roll with them. You never know what happiness can truly do.

The Most Dangerous Countries in the World

Looking at the world today, there are a number of countries that can be considered the most dangerous. There is the most dangerous today, and the most dangerous tomorrow. Today there are such countries as Iraq, Yemen, or Pakistan. All equally dangerous in their own right. Dangerous to the world of today. However I want to focus more on who is the most dangerous for the world of tomorrow. What is being done today that could materially affect the next generation in a negative way. Well I'll just take you through what I think are the top few of these countries.

Two weeks ago I wouldn't have put Russia on my list, but because of what came to light with the Russian spy ring I feel obligated to at least discuss their potential danger is espionage. We found just nine spies and another in hiding. From what has been released to the press and public they were simply trafficking mundane information that the Russian government could've gotten themselves by opening up a new york times. But this is simply the tip of the iceberg. These spies have been undercover for over a decade, that being said isn't it completely possible that there could be tens or hundreds more spies lurking in every single seemingly American household? I understand that this is highly unlikely but didn't we say the same thing about russian spies after the cold war? In terms of danger Russia is basically the king maker in a potential WWIII. Meaning that if Russia plays their cards right, they can avoid one for the entire world. If they play them wrong, they start a Nuclear WWIII because of their illegal undercover Espionage rings. So to any Russian spies, try not to get caught.

Second on my list I would easily classify the entire middle east as one whole country in this sense. I know that its several different countries and not all of them have the same military advances but none the less, one country is just as pivotal as the next in terms of danger. If one country does create enough nuclear weapons do wage a war then the other middle eastern countries will be tasked with stopping them from getting the opportunities to use those weapons. Obviously morals wont be enough for them to step in and physically stop them from detonating a weapon of mass destruction but it would be for their own safety as well because most of those countries have a history with all the others, and they would be the first target of a nuclear bomb. In the same vein countries in Africa such as the Republic of Congo or Somalia could have similar results play out.

Finally, the most dangerous country for the future of the world, is the United States of America. Before I continue I need to make it clear that I am as patriotic as the next guy. I would gladly serve my country in battle and in NO WAY am I anti-American. But we are still the most dangerous country for the future of this world. America is currently researching a technology that would enable us to send terminator like robots into battle instead of live humans, and we could simply have people sitting on their asses playing Call of Duty Modern Warfare 6. Except in this case it is REAL WARFARE. If we develop this technology then who can possibly stop us? No one else has this kind of power or resources to build a legitimate robot army. The only solution would be if a Nuclear country fired off a warhead, of course if that happened the entire wrath of the United States military would be unleashed on them. But thats beside the point. If we complete this technology and have this army, eventually we are going to have a Nazi Germany situation in America. NO I dont mean a holocaust. I simply mean that we are going to elect someone we think would do good for our country but instead uses the powers of the American government and military for their own evil purposes to take over the world. Then who would stop them? Who would stop us?

The Stars

This post is a little different from my others. Although I'm sure its gonna come back into some sort of rant it'll start differently. I just got back from a trip to the deserts in Texas collecting moths and other insects. I saw incredible specimens but the one thing that really stuck out to me was the sky. Wether it was the day or the night. Looking up I could rarely tell that humans even existed. Even if it was just for fifteen seconds I drifted off into a serene worry free world where problems didn't matter. Then a plane would fly by and i would be snapped out of it. The most incredible was undoubtedly the night sky though. Just lying in the desert or on the grass looking at the night sky seeing the stars took me away. This world is fucked up enough right? So why cant we gaze at a different one for a while. When I looked at the stars I could imagine any world I wanted. Wether it be a world full of beautiful super models or just one without so many worries or problems it took me away. Have you ever tried that? Lying under the stars with a girl right next to you just trying to figure out which one is more beautiful? In those moments I didn't have a worry in the world. Even when I'm not in the texas desert the stars take me away. Its the last place that mankind hasn't manage to ruin or taint yet. It's just as beautiful now as when the constellations were thrown into the sky. And that wont change for thousands or billions of years. So grab a girl or a guy and just go lay there. It really takes the edge off of life.

The Two Party System

I hate the two party system. It takes away any chance for real change in America. When the democrats have a life changing idea, they can’t push it through the senate because of the republicans. When the republicans have an amazing fix for a problem the democrats immediately stop it from happening. Most of the time the senators vote against something isn’t because they disagree, but because they’re not in the same party. And I thought we had come so far in eliminating discriminations. If I can sue someone for not hiring me because of my race, religion, or gender, why is it still legal for this countries so called leaders to do the same? Granted it may be because they do actually disagree, but then again don't you have to probe racism or sexism too? The parties cause these problems. Senators are pressured by their respective parties to vote in favored of whatever their party agrees with those few brave men who vote against their parties, those modern day heroes who truly embody the ideals of America and the American revolutionaries, having the right to speak out and vote in favor of your opinions instead of simply being a puppet of the grand old party or the NPR party, not being a true politician.
I’m sure anyone reading this is going to think I’m nuts, “everyone has their opinions and supports them”. But that’s not true because we all dream, as children to fix the world don’t we? We all imagine our ideals and we think of ways that make the world a better place. And those few who go into a position that could actually change something, a position of power, all believe that they’re going to defy the odds and stereotypes to change the world. And they all start out trying too. But then it slowly changes. A small compromise here or there again and again until the law and politics just become another way to make a buck. Its incredible really, how little most politicians actually believe in what they say. They’ve gone from pure innocence to corrupt men and women saying anything to keep their power. There’s a simple fix though. Limit the amount of terms anyone can serve. Make it two, or two non-consecutive terms. Hell reduce it to one. Make politics for the people again instead of just more jobs for the people in it.