System test in progress...

I have been giving some thought lately to how I want to use this forum. So far I have enjoyed taking the time to construct opinion pieces regarding thoughts that have been swimming through my mind. I like talking about things that do not always come up in everyday conversation, and some that do. It is fun to go off on a jag about things that are meaningless, but a part of our society nonetheless. I like talking about sports, movies and other ridiculous entertainment items just as much as everyone else. And with the new NFL season beginning soon and my Steelers preparing to defend their championship, I can almost guarantee that I will be writing more about the NFL. Scratch that, I guarantee it. Like everyone, I am distracted from more important issues by entertainment. In the grand scheme of things, does football really matter? Does the actions of one team playing a children’s game really matter? No, it does not. But it is fun, and what is life without a little fun?

And that is what entertainment should be. It should be fun. We should enjoy the distraction it provides, but that is it. It should be distraction, not focus. Too many of us focus on it with a zealot’s attention. We are all guilty of it. I find it disturbing sometimes how much useless information I have absorbed over the years. Sure, it makes playing Trivial Pursuit interesting, but is it something for which to be proud? I guess it depends on your point of view. One thing that is fun is coming up with titles for these little written jaunts. I must say, it does make me feel creative and a bit goofy and it is immensely enjoyable. But I digress from my point.

While I like the entertainment and distractions life has to offer, I enjoy more thinking and writing about more important subjects. I like to think that by sharing these thoughts, it may spur discussions and ideas in others. I would like to believe that maybe with a little more thought on things like these, we would all start paying more attention to how the world is and want to change. And with these ideas and discussions circulating more, actions would start taking place of the discussions and we as a people would really start to make our world a better place. But mostly, I like to think I can start becoming the person I want to be.

I have thought that this could be a good moral compass for myself. I have always thought of myself as a good person who tries to do the right thing. And for the most part I am. I am helpful to my friends and family, I look out for those I care about, I try to be polite and courteous to everyone I meet, no matter how much they may irk me or treat me poorly. But I would like to be more than that. I would like to affect real change. Get others thinking and acting as well. Putting time and effort forth to making things better to the point where paying attention to nonsensical things like sports and entertainment will not be a distraction, but a focus. And by that I mean we have made the world so much better, that as a world society we have put aside our differences and want to enjoy a better world. An impossibility, maybe, but we have to strive for something better. I want to make a positive mark on the world so when I leave this mortal coil and move on to the next life that awaits us all, I can say with honesty that I tried and left a better world for those that come after me. Now, I am far from perfect. Like everyone, I have made bad decisions in my life, treated people unfairly and poorly at times and let petty slights and emotions get the better of me. I have allowed myself to focus on the wrong things in life and got myself angry for things that matter not in the macrocosm of the world. But I know I have the capability to be something more. I do not want to think I am a superior human being and come from a superior place than most just because I think these things. No way. I am just as good and bad as most people. I just want to keep focused on things that matter, and I think I can help myself with this forum. Now, like most things, that sounds great in theory, but how will practice go? I don’t know. I have no ability to predict the future. And come November when I am probably writing my 9000th article about the Steelers and have written 1 in that time about other ideas, this will probably look like a fairly stupid post. But you know what, I still would like to try. I think there is a balance there that we all can strike. A balance between enjoying the fruits of our society with entertainment and theme parks and films while at the same time working to improve that same society by improving and encouraging education, meeting each other halfway in our differences in culture, religion and belief systems as well as putting some focus on science and exploration and learning more about this fantastic world, galaxy and universe in which we all reside. As the saying goes, knowledge is power, right? I do not believe it is impossible to have this kind of world. And I would like to try. But like everyone I need to remind myself of these things. I guess that is what I would like of this. A reminder that no matter what nonsense is going on out there, there are more important things in the macrocosm of things that we should all ponder and strive for while enjoying our world as well. Shouldn’t we all do that? Perhaps if we all had a sticky note like that, we could rid ourselves of our petty problems and make the world better.