(17)In light of others sometimes you just cannot do anything righ

The United States is a Democracy not an authoritarianship. Mitt Romney raised question and concern of authoritarian style leadership being on the rise in the United States and was worried that it could get worse. Why did he express this concern? Maybe due to the need for control and the hunger for power. Driven by rule and compliance often these leaders can become so consumed that they themselves do not follow the rules. Maybe due to an external locus of control, and motivated by greed and apathy. In this mode it may be difficult to look within, but it surely takes understanding owns own feelings before one can understand the feelings of another person. I myself am a very modest individual that is high in empathy, so it is natural for me to put myself aside and to look past faults of others. In other words it comes natural to understand others unconditionally without the need of placing my own judgement upon them. I find this important, because it prevents stereotyping, labeling, and, categorizing people. Simply put I do not generalize others to groups or categories by labeling them, because I take the effort to understand them for the uniqueness of there very being. Of course this includes a lifetime of experiences that they have developed, learned, grew and matured through. I find this human experience is recognized through human dignity, integrity, and is only achieved when an individual can put their own self aside (opinion, attitude) to allow for genuine encounter that is free from prejudice (prejudgment). It is this integrity that allows for respect and respect is simply acknowledging others for the accomplishments that they have achieved in their own lives. It is here that we can cross the threshold of prejudice to truly accept others for who they are rather than what we want to see them as.

A quote I recently found interesting is "human nature has a much greater genius for sameness than originality". America is best for its Democracy and merit because it allows for originality whereas other nations limit positive growth maybe due to neurotic, pessimistic, closed-minded thinking. I have gone back to school and have accumulated knowledge that I can use to discriminate my own thinking and thoughts. I have used this foundation of knowledge to understand others objectively based on the different situations that I come across in daily living, and this has helped me a lot. I chose to sacrifice my own personal time to engage in this learning process at a higher level, and did so as a way to give back due to the gratitude that I have experience from my own life. Truly a blessing. Even more, I hope that others may find the nature that allows for originality in their own lives that leads them to a philosophy that not only coincides with their creative endeavors, but opens doors to their highest potential as well.