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Hatred (or hate) is a word that describes the intense feelings of dislike of something or someone. For example, one can have a hatred of inanimate objects (e.g. vegetables, bicycles, tables, chairs, etc…) to hatred of other people, and/o entire groups of people.

I’m saddened almost daily by the level of hatred in America; forget about the rest of the world because this is a horrible problem we have right here at home. I don’t necessarily think it (hate) is at an all-time high, but rather it is being overtly displayed more and more. You probably encounter some level of hatred everyday, but you’ve gotten so used to it, therefore, ignoring it for the most part.

Why should I have to deal with blatant hatred?

That is a question we all need to ask ourselves as well as look into the mirror to see if we are one of the many who could be increasing the negative atmosphere.

People Simply Hate Obama

There are many people who hate our president. The sentiments go from being scared of what his policies are doing to our country, to wishing he fails and ultimately, getting killed while in office. Political parties have, and will probably always have, an impact on how people feel about the government. Some people will simply go along with whatever their party believes – something I think lacks individual thinking and decision making. I can understand why someone would be against President Obama because the Democratic way isn’t to their liking and that is where my understanding stops!

I have this feeling that many people don’t like President Obama because he is a black man.

In response to a resolution apologizing for slavery, someone commented saying, “The ni.ggers in the whitehouse. Whatelse do they want?” That is such a short sentence, but it reveals some deep-seated racial hatred to have the nerve to say that in a public forum. Obviously, this person associates the word “nigger” with a black man, more specifically, the President of the United States. Also, he/she feels as though President Obama’s election should mean “they” (Black people in general) don’t need anything else. That is dripping with hate.

I’m not a Republican and I, too, don’t agree with everything President Obama has done. So where do I fit in? I would like to think I fit in as someone who can think independently and judge people on what they do rather than who they are or the color of their skin. Truthfully, I think idiots come in all races, sizes, nationalities, etc. Speaking of idiots…

I am absolutly dumfounded when people have such outspoken and strong feelings about President Obama as if he turned the country upside down as soon as he took office in January. My amazement continues when some of those same people skip over the eight years George Bush Jr. was in office and also try to blame Bill Clinton for the current issues. It’s like these people have selective amnesia as it relates to the 8 years in between.

As of April, 4, 2002 American soldiers have died in Iraq, but former president George Bush Jr. is kicked back in his Texas mansion. Since we went there on false pretenses, or a big fat lie, why can’t Bush be charged with 4,262 counts of murder? Although that may be extreme, I don’t think it is as extreme to think one man has destroyed our way of life from January 20, 2009 to the present, July 2, 2009. That is just silly. He’s only been in office less than six months! Even sillier, if President Obama did exactly what Bush did for the last eight years, many people (mostly Republicans) would still feel the same way.

Not So Heavy, But Still Filled With Hate

Why do people have so much disdain for Barry Bonds, but don’t feel the same way about Roger Clemens, Alex Rodriguez, etc.? All of them have admitted using or have been accused of using steroids. Although I am referencing baseball players, drug use – recreational and performance enhancing – and crime, are rampant in virtually every sport. How does someone come to the conclusion of hating one athlete, but not feeling the same about others? Barry Bonds, who has never admitted to using steroids, but has been accused of using the drug, has hit more home runs than anyone in history and many people would like to have his record erased. But Rodriguez, who readily admits to using steroids during his career, could very well break Bonds’ record. However, noone seems to be calling for his record to be erased. Why is that? Does it have to do with race?

Hate is often driven by envy or by someone who goes against the grain and that is what this baseball example shows. Barry Bonds doesn’t like the media and in turn the media trashed him every chance they got. Since people amazingly believe everything the media prints or talks about, many people have adopted the same feeling towards Bonds. I have personally met Bonds and he was nice to me. Should I jump on the bandwagon and believe the media or should I judge the man on how he treated me?

I’m not sure what happened between Michael Jackson and the various children he was connected with, but a court of law didn’t find him guilty of molestation. But some people are doing their best to drag him through the mud before he is even in his grave. Others have made comments like, “Michael Jackson can’t hold a candle to Elvis.” Please! Can the man rest in peace?

It Will Probably Never End

We could probably talk about different examples of hate until we are blue in the face and it will never end. This isn’t relegated to national politics, sports or the entertainment world. Hatred like this happens in our local neighborhoods, jobs, clubs, schools, stores, restaurants and churches. Since there is about a zero chance of it being eradicated totally, we can at least be mindful of others.

I have had a recent experience where I needed to show tolerance for someone who isn’t like me. I charged down one path and did not encounter the attitude I was expecting, which really blew me away. Without going into detail, I told my wife that I may have to reach out to this person because now I know where their heart is and I could be of help. Eventually, it will make me feel better because it will take far too much energy for me to show hate.

Hate is an energy draining emotion and is taking far too much time on the Internet, TV and other news media. We should have something better to do.

Happy Wednesday everyone! Wow, this past week has been eventful, hasn’t it? Especially, with the shocking deaths of Michael Jackson and Farrah Fawcett. Because there’s been so much coverage concerning Michael’s and Farrah’s death, I will not include anything about them in this week’s WordPlay Wednesday. I will, however, try to make the list contain a broad range of topics.

As usual, for those of you who are new to 7DayBuzz, here is how WordPlay Wednesday works: We present five topics to you. All we ask in return is that you comment on each topic, but use only five words. Also, your comments should be as descriptive as possible with the five words you choose to use. Okay, here we go…..

1) Venus and Serena Williams Reach Wimbledon Semi-Finals

2) Former Saturday Night Live Comedian Al Franken Finally Named Winner of Minnesota Senate Race – Democrats Now Control Senate

3) Vibe Magazine is the Latest Casualty in this Bleak Economy

4) Burger King’s Latest Ad Is Sexually Explicit

5) Senate Approves Resolution Apologizing for Slavery and Segregation BUT Does not Authorize or Support Reparations

Michael Jackson wasn’t on the music scene for approximately 12 years, surely this was his decision because the world would have sat up and noticed anything he put out. How many albums, hit songs, videos, concerts and dance moves did we miss out on because of this? For someone in a lot of debt, like Michael Jackson, I would think it would make more sense to work and make money instead of doing whatever – I don’t think for one minute that Michael Jackson ever lived like he was $400 million in debt. I’m left wondering why Michael Jackon, and other artists to a lesser extent, choose to have extended periods of inactivity. What do you think?

I don’t have the slightest clue as to why someone would choose to not exercise a God-given gift, a gift that pays them money and could cement their place in history. Michael Jackson is the most obvious and current example of this and after reading about what promised to be an amazing show in London, I’m scratching my head. Once the mourning has lessened, I hope someone in his family will suggest putting footage of his upcoming show together on a DVD.

I would think there are many factors that hold up the release of albums, but Michael Jackson would be the performer who could easily jump over any of those hurdles and put out new material. Would his record company tell him to stay at home and not make a new album? Certainly not since they know full well that he could remake nursery rhymes (no jokes about that) and sell a million copies. They also wouldn’t have any problems finding producers willing to give up their best songs for MJ. Imagine Michael Jackson calling you and telling you he wanted to record one of your songs, but was only willing to pay half the going rate. That would be an easy answer. So what could possibly keep him from recording and what did his daily activities consist of?

If you are Michael Jackson, you aren’t getting up and going to the mall (unless they shut it down for you), so what do you do all day every day? I would think business affairs could only take up so much of your time and he probably had people he paid to handle stuff like that anyway. So did he sit around and watch TV all day? I think it would interesting to know what his days were like.

Where is Prince? I know he was on an awards show a year or so ago, made an appearance on American Idol a couple of seasons ago and can be spotted here and there at Lakers’ games. I also know that he has a bad history with record companies and may be distributing material on his own. But I would still think he should have new videos, concert dates or something in the mainstream. Although he is eccentric, many consider him a musical genius and anything he puts out would be successful.

There are others – successful artists not on the same level as Michael Jackson – who seem to take extended breaks between projects, but I still don’t get it especially since their pockets aren’t as deep as Michael Jackson’s. I can understand the need to relax/vacation after a grueling schedule, but as a consumer I can say that inactivity can hurt as much as being too active. It is a balancing act to walk the line between saturating the market and leaving people high and dry long enough to the point where they don’t care. Obviously, the ability to sing, dance and/or act doesn’t mean people have the sense to know when it is time for new material.

Oh well. At least their absence allows another artist to do well. I bet Kobe Bryant has shot a basketball since his team won the championship. He is aware of what can happen when he rests too long.

Something To Look Forward To

– Make sure you come back tomorrow for Wordplay Wednesday. Can you express yourself in 5 words or less? Tomorrow you will have your chance.
– We are going to have to talk about hate very soon. From Barack Obama to Barry Bonds to Michael Jackson and more, people are hating with an inconsistent bias that is mind boggling.

Whether you loved him or thought he should’ve been convicted of crime, you can’t deny that Michael Jackson’s death elicited some sort of emotional response in you. But, how strong was that emotion? Was it strong enought to make you want to chase someone around a bus with a knife because that person did not feel the same way about Michael Jackson that you did? Well, there is at least one person who can answer yes to this question.

Henry Wideman, a 54-year-old man, of Miami, Florida, was riding a bus in Miami when another passenger, James Kiernan, read out loud a text message informing of Michael Jackson’s death. The bus driver decided to voice his opinion by stating, “Michael Jackson should have been in jail long ago” and Kiernan responded with, “the world just lost a great musical talent.”

Henry Wideman decided to join the conversation and began cursing at Kiernan, who in turn, cursed back at Wideman. Wideman then pulled out a knife and began chasing Kiernan down the bus aisle. Yes! Wideman chased Kiernan down the aisle, with a knife because he disagreed with Kiernan! So, what did the bus driver do? He called dispatch, pulled over and waited for the cops who arrested Wideman and charged him with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

Now, keep in mind, this all happened because of emotions concerning Michael Jackson! I’m sure this is not the only incident where emotions were raging concerning Michael’s death, but if you were on the bus with Wideman and Kiernan, what would you have done? Of course, I think Wideman was totally in the wrong, but there may be some of you who agree with him so I cautiously ask the question, whose side would you have been on – Wideman or Kiernan?

Let me divert your attention from what’s happening in society today to TV. Specifically, Bravo TV.

I have a confession. I absolutely LOVED Bravo’s Housewives of New Jersey! These women are pure entertainment – especially Danielle and Theresa! Every week, I was like, what could they possibly do that will top what they did last week, and every week, they showed me! In case you were not a watcher, the primary cast consisted of Danielle, Theresa, Jacqueline, Dina and Caroline. Caroline and Dina are sisters and Jacqueline is their sister-in-law. Theresa is Dina, Caroline, and Jacqueline’s long-time friend. And Danielle, well let’s just say Danielle is the outsider – her only friend is Jacqueline.

Just to give a brief recap of the show, Danielle and Dina hated each other. Throughout the season, they sniped at each other and talked about each other. Poor Jacqueline was in the middle of Dina and Danielle’s teen-age antics and she tried to be the peacemaker because Danielle was her friend and Dina is her familiy. But, that just didn’t happen. My-oh-my, what’s a girl to do!

Now onto Theresa. She said she tried to like Danielle. I didn’t see that. I honestly feel like Theresa jumped on the bandwagon, because well, Theresa, I feel, is a straight up follower! In fact, from what I saw, Theresa is the type of person who won’t like you if her friends don’t like you. In my opinion, people who are like that are just worth your time, but anyway…..

Throughout the short season of the series, Danielle held her own with Dina. She didn’t have a problem with anyone else, but Dina. But Caroline (Dina’s sister) and Theresa had issues with Danielle. Before I go on, let me speak on Caroline. She is Dina’s big sister, and felt it was her duty to protect Dina from Danielle. Whatever! Dina gave as good as she got! Caroline stuck her nose in where it didn’t belong, just like Theresa and Caroline was the oldest of all of them! She should’ve known better! She should’ve been the one who was peacemaker, but…..

Okay, on to Theresa who acted like the unflattering stereotype that people have of Italian women! You know, the one who thinks she’s a classy lady, but in reality, well classy is not an adjective that is used to describe her. She wore too much makeup, she spoke to freely about her and her husband’s sex life (I won’t repeat what she said), she spoke about the unlimited amount of money they had, she acted dim-witted at times, yadda, yadda, yadda. I could go on and on, but here’s what really got me!

On the final show, Theresa decided to have a dinner party and she decided to invite Danielle even though she doesn’t like her. Can we say “just for TV?” Anyway, at the dinner, Dina and Caroline double-teamed Danielle and who jumps in the fray? Yep, Miss no-class Theresa. Now, keep in mind, that I’m skipping over a lot of things that were said and done on the show, but I just want to get to the point where Theresa decides to flip a table and pretty much show how proud she is that she did it. Unbelievable! She did it when she tried to put down Danielle concerning a book that written about Danielle. Well Danielle pretty much made Theresa look stupid when she told her, “Pay attention, please!”

Theresa’s mouth dropped! Then she started cursing and finally flipped the dinner table. But she had the nerve to ask some of people at the party if she looked good doing it and was she classy when she did it! Huh?!! In in the infamous word of Danielle, “Seriously?!!!!!”

If you all haven’t watched it, you should really watch it, if just the last show! It is classic TV entertainment, to say the least! Also, if you watched it or if you watch it, please comment on this post so I can know your thoughts……

Hey everybody! Guess what today is? It’s Wordplay Wednesday!

If you are new to 7DayBuzz, here is how WordPlay Wednesday works: We present five topics to you. All we ask in return is that you comment on each topic, but keep your comments to no more than five words.

Here are the five topics for today:

1) Kobe and Lakers Win Championship — Without Shaq!

2) Sarah Palin Accepts David Lettermen’s Apology

3) Same Sex Partners to Receive Federal Benefits

4) Women Dine, Dash and Then Crash into IHOP

5) Los Angeles Provides Free, Mail-In, STD Kits

Remember, your comments are only to contain 5 words or less.

With increasing debt in the country and less demand for the US dollar, inflation seems inevitable over the next few years. Banks are approving loans to those with good credit at very low interest rates; for now.   Saving your cash in a low interest account will only devalue your assets even more.

What should you do? It is time to take advantage of as many of these loans as possible.  I’m not saying to go out and buy frivolous liabilities but purchase assets with these loans.  Go purchase a house, don’t prepay off your debt this year, and buy things that have real value (i.e. gold, silver). By purchasing durable goods with the dollar now, these goods will sell for a larger dollar amount later. Not because your goods will be worth more but because the value of the dollar will be worth less. Waiting to pay off your debt is also a good idea. By waiting your debt’s value becomes less especially if your debt has a fixed interest rate.

There are many great investment opportunities still out there right now; I understand they are not for everyone. But if you spend a little more now, the dollar amount you will receive in a few years will be greater and the value of debt you owe will be less.

I was watching CNN earlier today and they were talking about an award show wherein the winners had to keep their acceptance speech to a minimum of five words or less.  I thought that was interesting, but effective, especially since people have a tendency to get long-winded on award shows, if you know what I mean.  So I thought to myself, why don’t we try that out on 7daybuzz and viola, here we are!

This is how it’ll work:  We will present five topics to you, and what we ask in return is that you comment on each topic, but keep your comments to no more than five words.  This will be fun and plus, it will give you a chance to show off your vocabulary skills!  We will only do this on Wednesdays so you all will have all week to wonder what we’ll talk about on Wednesdays.  The topics will be what’s happening in the news (popular and well, maybe a little odd).  Okay, so here are the five topics for today:

1)  Jon Voight calls President Obama a “false prophet”

2)  Barry Bond’s wife files for legal separation

3)  Bankruptcy judge allows Chrysler to sell to Fiat

4) Orlando Magic trounces Los Angeles Lakers

5)  Banks to return $68 billion in bailout money

Remember, your comments are only to contain 5 words or less.  Let’s see who can be the most descriptive!

This week, Newsweek decided to put Oprah on their cover. But, it wasn’t to celebrate Oprah, it was to disparage her. The cover of the magazine (see for yourself) depicts an angry-looking Oprah and is titled, “Crazy Talk: Oprah, Wacky Cures & You.”

Obviously, this picture is not flattering to Oprah and it definitely makes her look a little ‘crazy;’ hence, the headline.  But is it fair?  The writers of the article,  Weston Kosova and Pat Wingert, are of the belief that Oprah uses her influence to promote certain health remedies that could be dangerous to viewers.  Now, granted, Oprah does have a lot of clout amongst her viewers, and she does seem to have the ability to sway people to see things her way, but this article may be stretching things a little too much, don’t you think?

 I mean, just because Oprah has allowed Jenny McCarthy to voice her opinion that vaccinations caused her son’s autism, in addition to showcasing a viewer who admitted swallowing 60 supplements a day, does this mean that Oprah is of the same belief?  Not really.  In fact, I know quite a few people who believe that vaccinations cause autism,  and they’ve felt this way long before Jenny McCarthy appeared on Oprah. 

You would think, based on my defense of Oprah, that I am a fan.  Well, believe it or not, I’m really not.  I think her topics, as well as her show are, for the most part, boring.  But, that’s neither here nor there.  I do recognize that Oprah is a talk show host presenting a slew of topics — some of which you may agree with, and well, some you may not. 

Oprah defended herself against the Newsweek article with the following response, “”For 23 years, my show has presented thousands of topics that reflect the human experience, including doctors’ medical advice and personal health stories that have prompted conversations between our audience members and their health care providers.  ”I trust the viewers, and I know that they are smart and discerning enough to seek out medical opinions to determine what may be best for them.”

What do you think about this?  Can Oprah easily sway people?  Or are the authors of the Newsweek article just trying to stir up more buyers for the magazine by putting Oprah on the cover?

The comment section on this site has really been giving me fits and I think I may finally have it fixed!  The two problems with the comment section were Internet Explorer and in some cases the ability to post comments period.  After much trial and error, I think everyone will be able to comment on posts and the comments should look the same on every browser.  If not, please send me let me know via the “Contact Us” link at the top of the page.  I apologize for taking so long to fix this and I hope it has not turned anybody off too much.

It is Friday, the end of another work week (for some), and I want to take the time to talk about two sites I frequent.  I also want to wind down the week and talk about something I saw on TV that is kind of stupid to me.

KleverKathy

Kleverkathy.com is a blog where you can let your hair down and talk about a variety of things.  Yes, I’m bias because Kathy is my sister, but she is still doing an excellent job.  The good thing about her blog is the flexibility she brings to it.  If there is something you want to talk about, I’m sure an email to her will get it on the blog – it has to be something reasonable though.

Whenever you have a little time, go over and see what she has to offer.

JealousBrother

I’m sure you have had a debate with someone where you chose one thing, they chose another and you went back and forth about your choice.  Ryan, the owner and operator of Jealousbrother.com thought enough of disagreeing to create a site just for it!  The site has many categories and the good thing about the site is the users create the content.  If you want to start a rivalry – what the debates are called on the site – create and account and have at it.  Just the other night I created a rivalry about sportsmanship in sports and if shaking hands should be part of the post-game routine.  I haven’t been back in a few days to check on my rivalries, but anticipating the viewpoints others may have is part of the fun.  Go to JealousBrother and see for yourself.

This Is Just Stupid

For the low, low price of $229.90 you can airbrush your way to flawless makeup.  OK, I’m not like that, but I do stay up late and have to watch what is on TV.  LuminessAir is basically an airbrush gun that applies makeup – allegedly flawless makeup.  Since I’ve never put makeup on, I cannot say this product is bogus with 100% certainty, but I do have a fair amout of common sense.

The main part of this system that made me think it is bogus is what the women were doing during the demonstration.  One woman had that “QVC smile” plastered on her face with teeth and everything.  Another woman was applying it to herself and was going all over her face…with her eyes open!  This is where my common sense kicked in.  Can someone tell me how you can apply makeup with an airbrush and it mysteriously doesn’t go into the mouth and eyes?  I would think some of it would go on the edges of the hair too.

Something smells fishy.

Congratulations

I’m going to end my saying congratulations to my niece and nephew, Kandace and Chris.  They are both high school graduates!  I’m not going to go so far as to say I remember changing their diapers, but I do remember when someone else was changing their diapers.  Congrats and have fun this summer before you have to buckle down for college.