Ernie Garland: Blog

Morpheus: I imagine that right now, you're feeling a bit like Alice. Hmm? Tumbling down the rabbit hole? Neo: You could say that. Morpheus: I see it in your eyes. You have the look of a man who accepts what he sees because he is expecting to wake up. Ironically, that's not far from the truth. Do you believe in fate, Neo? Neo: No. Morpheus: Why not? Neo: Because I don't like the idea that I'm not in control of my life. Morpheus: I know *exactly* what you mean. Let me tell you why you're here. You're here because you know something. What you know you can't explain, but you feel it. You've felt it your entire life, that there's something wrong with the world. You don't know what it is, but it's there, like a splinter in your mind, driving you mad. It is this feeling that has brought you to me. Do you know what I'm talking about? Neo: The Matrix. Morpheus: Do you want to know what it is? Neo: Yes. Morpheus: The Matrix is everywhere. It is all around us. Even now, in this very room. You can [...]

 
The word “right” implies a certain entitlement; something a person does not have to earn.  Our Declaration of Independence lists our “inalienable” rights as “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”  The role of any government is to guarantee those rights and to protect its citizens from having those rights infringed upon, nothing more. What is also implied by these ideas is the “right” of personal responsibility.  We are all given a level playing field; equal opportunity to enjoy life, liberty and to pursue happiness as we see fit.  America is the land of equal opportunity for all, but not the land of equality per se.  In any arena of equal opportunity some will always excel over others.  Different intellectual and physical skills as well as the level of that skill and the desire to excel all play a part in achievement.  Our problem as a culture has been to confuse equal opportunity with equality [...]

The dozen red roses arrived unannounced. Sitting in an unadorned green vase and accented with ferns and Baby’s Breath, they were beautiful and elegant in their simplicity. The flowers were carried into our department by a volunteer and set on the counter amidst the “Oos” and “Ahhs” of the nurses. Quickly they crowded around to read the name on the attached card.
            “They’re for you!”, one said as she looked my way, smiling.
            Curiosity and quiet suspicion rose up in my mind as I quickly ruled out my wife as the sender. While she loved to get flowers from me, she knew I only got them for her because I knew she liked them. To me they were a waste of money. She has never sent me flowers. Why would she start now after many years of marriage? Could it have been one of my staff? I doubted it. Not that they didn’t [...]