Visiting the Stumpnocker     

   What? You never heard of a stumpnocker?

   Neither did we until Wednesday when Mrs. Donut's 
cousin chose a meeting place about midway between 
our homes. It had been a couple years since we've seen her and her husband, Jerry.   
  
   Ignoring well-known restaurant chains in Inverness, Florida, she picked the Stumpnocker. 
We found directions on the Internet. 

   A stumpnocker is a small fish, usually called a sun fish, or crappie. There are boats and a beer by the same name. Florida has a number of restaurants, like Stumpnocker on the Square, Stumpnocker by the River, etc. 

   With Mrs. Donut's sister and husband, we six entered this rustic looking restaurant for lunch. Inside were a couple alligator hides nailed to the wall, and other Florida things. Inside an old public phone booth was a Superman costume.

   Don't 'nock the name. Our food was delicious. Four of us ordered chicken pot pie, a nice surprise with a small salad. I may never again bother with a grocery-store pot pie.  

   While cousins reminisced and caught up on "relative" matters, Jerry, who grew up near Cleveland, and I recalled our youth passions for the Indians and Browns. We remembered ball players of the 1950s, and Jerry recalled going to old Municipal Stadium on bus trips arranged for kids. One could see a major league game for about $3, until players unionized and changed everything for the better, for themselves. Okay. 

   When I brought up football, I learned that Jerry too was in the stadium for the 1964 NFL championship (the super game before the Super Bowl), when the Browns beat the Colts, 27-0. I still have my ticket stub. Cost of admission: $10. 

   As we heard on All in the Family with Archie Bunker, "Those were the days." 

        Jimmy

Hiring for $uccess      

   Old stereotypes for hiring employees are...just old, says John Boitnott, a journalist and digital consultant. He thinks hiring employees might be the most important part of any business, and it's not easy. Here are his seven characteristics that today's strong employees share:

Ability to adapt. The best employees can swiftly adapt to changing realities. Learning new things is more important than existing knowledge.

Culture fit. A strong culture is where everyone collaborates and thrives. Creating this culture starts with the hiring process. The "fit" is just as important as intelligence or qualifications. 

(Google and the U.S. Government seem to do this well. JD)

Openness to new technology. Employees have to understand the role technology plays. Those who embrace new advances spur innovation and growth. 

Honesty. This is old, but still vital. Honest employees enhance relationships with colleagues and customers. Those willing to admit their shortcomings and protect company reputation are apt to succeed.

Able to take criticism. People who can take criticism in a constructive manner will improve, be easier to work with, and create less drama. No one is perfect. 

Passion. Those who are internally motivated simply do more. They have drive for what they are doing, the self-starters, not motivated by hours or pay. They spread the wealth around them. 

Action oriented. Top employees value actions over words. They test things and get moving. 

Our thoughts: Some of the above traits

could well apply to any endeavor, 

non-business committee, etc. 

       Jimmy

Religious Persecution by Nation

   The following countries are designated persecutors in matters of religion:

   Burma (Myanmar), China, Eritrea, Iran, North Korea, Pakistan, Sudan, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.

   Others in question: Central African Republic, Nigeria, Russia, Syria and Vietnam. Will the USA make the list some day?

Someone Thought of This    

   If women work the same jobs for less pay, why do companies hire men and pay them more?

   When Muslims leave their homes for non-Muslim countries, are they Islamophobic?

   If there is no biological gender, why march for women's rights? 

   How did Russia get the DNC to steal the primary election from Bernie Sanders?

   Democrats think super delegates are okay, but they have a problem with the Electoral College. 

   If you don't want the FBI involved in elections, don't nominate someone who is being investigated by the FBI. 

   And one more: If we don't have to stand for the national anthem, why do we have to stand when a judge enters the courtroom? 

       Jimmy

The Earth Is Round ...Information       
   
        In 1995 Jeff Bezos sold his first book on Amazon.com. He shipped it from his garage in Seattle.

   Amazon wasn't about books. It was about using customer data to offer personalized service. Once the company amassed a customer profile based on book preferences, it could use that information to sell customers most anything. 

        For six years critics watched Amazon fail to make a profit. It's strategy paid off beginning in 2001, and now Amazon is the No. 1 retailer. 

   Google, Apple and Facebook also ballooned on the power of information. A blogger in USA Today wrote, "Now your devices have turned into tools for governments and corporations to keep tabs on you." 

   For Christians, the concerns may be moral and political, writes Janie B. Cheaney in WORLD magazine. 

   A fired Google staffer filed a class-action suit against the company, calling out the "culture of group think." He notes required seminars in approved opinions, put downs of Caucasian males, denigration of Christians and Republicans, and harassment of any employee who dares express non-Google views. 

   Google, Facebook and Apple are imposing their ethics on the public, Cheaney writes. Apple has removed some Christian apps from its online store. YouTube (Google) has blocked certain videos. Facebook censors decide what gets published. (We think - not sure - our Bible-based blog didn't make the cut Saturday/Sunday. Cheaney says bloggers may be blacklisted.) 

   Editors can manipulate people who are not clear about what they think, she writes. "Know what you believe, and why. Know the truth, and it will keep you free."   

      Jimmy



     

   

A Fear That Conquers All      

   Fear of God is a good fear. 

   Those who don't fear him cause most of our other fears. Even "acts of God" -nature's bad boys - and disease, resulted from our rebellion in Eden. 

   In Psalms we learn that - 

The eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him.

The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him. 

 Fear the Lord, you saints, for those who fear him lack nothing.

Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord.

   God's promises are conditional. We might assume He requires fear/reverence in part because, without consequences, our inclination is disobedience.

   In life, bad things happen to "good people." There are many troubles (Hebrews 11:36-40). God brings testing and allows persecution (Matthew 5:10). We go through many hardships (Acts 14:22). 

   Then, victory! The Lord delivers us, either by intervention here (Hebrews 11:33-35), or by victorious death and eternal life.  

   We don't minimize today's tragedies, hardships, sadness and pain. We keep our spiritual eyes on Jesus. With him, in the end, we win. Forever and ever.   

      Jimmy

Number One (worldly) Fear     

   Following up, all 80 of the fears listed in the survey are threats - real or imagined - to ourselves in one way or another. They vary in likelihood, in severity, and some fears apply only to certain lifestyles or habits. Some, like sharks, are totally avoidable.

   We agree with the 74.5 percent of Americans who say "corrupt government officials" is a fear. Here, we define "corrupt" as those who would have a "world state" replace our nation state, and "universal persons" replace U.S. citizens - the "common good." They're acting in plain sight every day. 

   This, we're told, is a bi-partisan cartel, the establishment dividing us "deplorables" into tribes (diversity), replacing democracy with central control:
     political parties
     media
     political professionals 
     pollsters 
     academics 
     bureaucrats 

< Hypocrites >

   We don't worship Donald Trump. But, friends, he is all that is standing between democracy and oligarchy. Look it up. 

   Originalist Supreme Court justices can slow the tide, but lesser players collectively don't have power enough to fend off the entrenched who are looking out for themselves. It's human nature. 

   If all 74.5 percent of Americans who fear government officials voted that way, democracy might be safe. But, we want these same "corrupt" officials to give us things, so we play into their hands. (For every dollar we give government, it keeps 70 cents for itself.)    

Tomorrow: The good fear 

Don't miss it

      Jimmy

Who's Afraid of the Big Bad...?   

   The No. 1 fear among Americans, according to a 2017 survey 
by Chapman University...government officials.  
                                                    👿  
   Three quarters of Americans fear government officials. Half or more fear government, Trumpcare, pollution, and running out of money. On the list of 80 fears, those named by 30 to 48 percent include world events and threats, nature and various financial setbacks. About 48 percent fear climate change.

   Twenty-some percent fear harm to person or property, and other acts of nature and its creatures. Illegal immigration that we hear so much about concerns 20 percent. 

   Below 20 percent are Americans concerned about police brutality, whites losing majority status, large volcano eruption, people talking behind their backs, clowns! ghosts! and zombies! 

   The ranking does not correlate with the level of actual risk. For example, 25 percent fear sharks, which account for a handful of deaths per year throughout the world, while only 3.7 percent fear dogs, which kill 25,000 per year. Insects don't worry as many people (20 percent) as sharks, but mosquitoes kill 50,000 per year. 

   Twenty percent fear dying. There's a wonderful cure for that. READ THE BIBLE! 

   Yeh. Maybe some people see too many ghost & zombie movies.

   As for us...spare me the drunk driver. How about you?

        Jimmy