Showing all posts in The Point

Freedom of navigation exercises are ingenious. Where there are contested waters, but recognized internationally as international, a country may sail its warships through just to keep the habit of sailing in free waters whenever, wherever we want.

Exercising a right is one way of retaining it. If someone opposes, exercise the right more loudly and more often. Habit and familiarity enforce laws and rights without having to say why. Where there’s conflict brewing, sometimes the best way to preserve the path to peace is to keep the path beaten down by walking down it as often as we possibly can.  · · · →

One of the worst things we can do is help people who don’t want it. The Good Samaritan must help the injured victim on the road, of course without question! But, helping any old chap who only needs help because he refused every chance to help himself doesn’t make anyone a Good Samaritan.

Unneeded help has the effect of making people dependent. Before you help someone, first ask yourself if your help will result in more independence or in more dependence on you. If the result will mean someone can’t live without you, it’s better to leave bad enough alone.  · · · →

When Frankie did it his way, he took the blows for it. Expect the same. Valiant men and women get beat up because valiance stands for what it believes. Those who cower get crushed eventually anyway, but overcoming fear of the present with greater fear of the alternate future is another discussion.

If you believe a thing, you’ll get assailed for it. Don’t whine and complain when you do, otherwise people will doubt your faith, history will ignore you, and whatever you stood for won’t matter anymore. We all get beat up; it might as well be for standing up.  · · · →

We can’t wait forever. We shouldn’t wait forever. Preparation has an end. And, that end is the beginning. It comes when it chooses to, whether we are ready or not. It waits for us; we don’t wait for it. The beginning chooses its time, lending us opportunity to be as ready as we want. Once it’s here, we no longer can be because the beginning starts whether we want it to or not. We don’t have a choice.

Watch out. Look out. Read the signs and times. Heed the warnings and read the waves. Prepare yourself to dive in ready.  · · · →