I’ve changed my mind.

Is it a good thing or a bad thing to change your mind? The world of politics has made changing your mind a despicable thing. The right-wingers will automatically call you a flip-flopper.

Everyone knows that the world is flat. We have been taught that for centuries. Even the all-knowing church supports that belief. I have stated my support for that premise time and again. But, recently, I opened my mind and listened to some new information that was provided to me. It comes from a dubious but also credible source and is sound in its logic. It goes against everything that I, and everyone else, have believed all of our lives. Based on this new information, I changed my mind. I now am a flip-flopper and believe the world is round.

Should I be ostracized? How can I defend myself simply by stating that I have learned new information and now question my past position.  If I have been a person that you have trusted in the past, will you trust me in the future? Everyone learns at a different speed. Not everyone receives the same information at the same time. Not everyone wants to learn new information. It is easier to be comfortable in your old, traditional beliefs. People are too busy to be bothered to explore new concepts completely. We rely on our trusted and respected spokespersons to think for us. In today’s world that generally means the talking heads on television. This is especially true when they tell us over and over again that they know best.

I constantly change my mind. I seem so sure of myself and my opinions as I go along in life but then new information happens and then I end up changing my position. Many things that I know and believe today are variations or even the opposite of what I knew or believed years ago.

We need to stop being so overly critical when our leaders change their minds. Instead, we need to find out why they changed their mind. Take the time to see if it was a legitimate reason or just a political ploy to appease someone. We need to open our minds to the possibility that things might be different. Let’s stop being fanatical about our beliefs and shed our blinders. Change can occur without our comfortable place in the world ending.

Right now I believe it is okay to change your mind. Tomorrow might be a different story, though.

Shredded Peace effort

It is interesting how some people so violently oppose the concept of peace. It seems that their anger and frustration escalates when someone else is trying to smooth things out and make this a better world for everyone.

It is understandable how violence, either personal or distant, can upset a person. What is more interesting is that people that justify using force to gain peace rarely consider alternatives. They seem to think that only equal or superior violence will stop the violence that has been inflicted upon them. This is the shoot first and ask questions later mentality. They have no interest in finding out why the other person was upset and resorted to violence. They also don’t understand that their retaliation will set off the same level of resentment and anger among the friends and relatives of those squashed in the name of revenge/justice.

What brings me to start to write about this is an incident that happened to me a few weeks ago. I parked my car at the library and proceeded to do my volunteer work there. A couple hours later I went back to my car to see that someone had slashed my tire cover. I surmise that it was their violent message in response to my bumper sticker that was on the tire cover. It was a message urging peace to this nearly decade long violent war we have been waging.

End this endless war

The person could have left a note under my windshield wiper indicating their disagreement with my bumper sticker. But they resorted to using an act of violence to convey their message. Does that make that person more right in their opinion? Is that person now more powerful and satisfied by this action? Will that action make this a better world or even a better Morro Bay in which to live?

Political goof

It is early in the election season for Morro Bay. There are still a couple weeks for people to take out papers in order to run for mayor or council member. Some are already hard at it. Right now three people have pulled papers to run for mayor, Bay News editor and political gadfly, Neil Farrell; my way or no way Bill Yates; and one term council member Rick Grantham.

One of the sore spots in Morro Bay government that often gets mentioned by citizens is the fact that many of our highly paid managers live somewhere else, not in Morro Bay. It is felt that they just don’t have the same sense of ownership and pride that a resident has. Now, I am not making a judgment on this because everyone is different and has their own reasons for living and working where they do. I only bring this up because this perception has been an issue in Morro Bay more than once.

So, I see this email from mayoral candidate, Rick Grantham, and go to his website. Guess what I notice on the contact page? He is using a San Luis Obispo address for his campaign. WHAT!!?? Doesn’t he know anyone in Morro Bay that is willing to work on his campaign and use a Morro Bay address for campaign central? Is he totally oblivious to the friction that I described above about out-of-towners running this town?

Politics 101 – Try to relate to your voters.

Follow-up: After this info became public I received an email from Rick with his explanation and he informed me that he has now changed the address on his website to a Morro Bay address, his own. No further comment is needed on my part.

A Sign To Change Access

Public be Damned

This is how the public is greeted for a good portion of the day and evening on O’Connor Way. Night students cannot get to class. Employees need to find an alternative route. The general public is pushed aside.

Is it REALLY necessary?

Paintballs RULE

This sign on Foothill Blvd. shows the restrictions on the public but also shows the important nature of having a paintball park situated on an active National Guard Army Post.

Must be nice to be allowed to place your sign for a commercial business in the public right-a-way that is designed and restricted for traffic signs. I wonder if any laws are being broken allowing Gladiator Paintball Park to advertise this way?