It was almost like a song

When I was a kid (unbelievable as that is) I had this song that I would play over and over again until my brother would threatened to throw the record down the hill from our house in Shady Dale in Holston Hills, Knoxville. My brother didn't but I did eventually stop playing that record over and over again. I moved on to The Statler Brothers- I had 4 of them to play over and over again instead.

The Song: Ronnie Milsap- It was almost like a song.
Now other than being a huge romantic fool that I am, the reason for this was (are you ready for it?)
I could play it on the piano, my first pop song I could actually play!

This also would prove to drive my brother nuts since I played that song on the piano over and over again until 1980-something.

So naturally you are going to ask (yes, even you Larry) Mike what does this have to do with the price of coffee in Starbucks in eastern Bangladesh?
Well I tell it in another way.

Almost is like Close. You know close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades. 
So does almost, at least almost always. 

if I were to list the 3 things I have missed in life so far you might get the point of my meandering musings.

1. Love. 

Yep, I never have been in love (well not that I know of) [okay that's not entirely true]

What I am talking about is reciprocal love. I have loved girls (middle school) and I have thought I loved in High School. I could have sworn I was in love in College, and then I wanted to be in love with a woman that I had been friends with in High School. 

I mean I have had flings, flirtations and near misses. But it feels like a lifetime since I looked across a table and recognized love in another persons eyes, Love for me and felt the same way about that person.

2. Kissing

Corny, yes, but when it happened it felt as necessary as breathing. I haven't kissed another person (and I mean real kissing not pecking or that dry crap you reserve for friends, relatives and people you are about to betray.)

At least I got to experience the kiss. It is a feeling I will never forget nor want to.

3. being thin.

ironic and probably not what you were expecting (sex) but in a way more like for me than the other two. I was one of those people I came to hate (well not hate) later. 

"I'm so fat." or "I need to lose weight."

when in truth I was more out of shape or dumpy then plumpy.

Then life, stress, depression and later sleep apnea came along and made my imagined problems reality. Now I am fat and need to lose weight and its hard since none of the causes of the original 200 plus pounds went away. Right now I feel the fat. Makes me want to scream.

The "solution" is easy to say. near impossible to achieve.

So. all three things could be a song or songs.

There are songs. 

But for me they are almost like a song

unless

I think about the horseshoes angle

Falling in love is never something that you plan 

(ask just about anyone who has ever been or still is)

The funny thing is I would have listed Sex until I got to it- then I realized I would sooner live without sex than the other three. Don't get me wrong. SEX is Important. it just not as important otherwise half the population would be jumping off the ship of life for the lack of it or the lack of time for it. How many people complain that even in a serious relationship it takes the backseat to everything else. Also it is important to take note that Sex happens because of love (I could expound on this but that would be another blog on love and sex and sex without feeling).

Take it like this, Love is more important than sex, it ALWAYS IS. You might beg to differ but I ask you this, can you honestly say that it is not for both parties or all parties involved. Take a look at history, books, movies, poetry, music. The end argument has the same result. At least 1 person thought that it was love however sterilized, dirty or brief.

Anyway, these are the things I miss and have missed.

It was almost like a song, (and I will improve on the song) but it was almost to sad to write.

I have just written it.

The argument for love.

in the end it is always about love.

and that is life according to Mike.

It was his Birthday, but it's my blood

"Inconceivable!"

 "I don't think you know just how much that word means"

Ok I concede, I am not Inigo Montoya: their conversation went more like this:

[Vizzini has just cut the rope The Dread Pirate Roberts is climbing up] 
Vizzini: HE DIDN'T FALL? INCONCEIVABLE. 
Inigo Montoya: You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means. 

WE are talking about my brother, OF COURSE.
Okay so you are confused.
(get used to it)

^This Guy is my older brother^

He once could have been referred to as my "big" brother but as you can see

that is a little stretch these days.v

That dude in the middle is Vizzini- except of course he is more like Fizzik

not so smart

ok, hang on a second, let's make a visual comparison

Now that's better, the big guy for the uninformed is Fezzik the giant, the old dude (I meant balding- I swear) is Vizzini and the hairy guy is Inigo.

If I were to draw a more accurate comparison, my brother has had hair a lot like Inigo, I am balding and have a meticulous mind like Vizzini and my father (yeah the old guy) is about as funny as Fezzik.

which reminds me of the character dynamic as follows:

Inigo Montoya: That Vizzini, he can *fuss*. 

Fezzik: Fuss, fuss... I think he like to scream at *us*. 

Inigo Montoya: Probably he means no *harm*. 

Fezzik: He's really very short on *charm*. 

Inigo Montoya: You have a great gift for rhyme. 

Fezzik: Yes, yes, some of the time. 

Vizzini: Enough of that. 

Inigo Montoya: Fezzik, are there rocks ahead? 

Fezzik: If there are, we all be dead. 

Vizzini: No more rhymes now, I mean it. 

Fezzik: Anybody want a peanut? 

Vizzini: DYEEAAHHHHHH. 

Anyway, where was I? 

Oh yeah, I was talking about this guy

down

down

down

here 

Stephen not to be confused with Steven or Steve.

He's my brilliant and awesome brother - when he is not being infuriating or annoying

or more like a brother you read about or see in the movies now that I think about it.

After all is said and done

I love him.

(with the possible exception of the toy trauma he caused when I was new to the world that I have blocked out but that's another story entirely)

It's his Birthday today.

This is my favorite picture of him.

He looks thoughtful and at peace which I know must come hard for him.

He, unlike me has found his true calling.

(the double chin, however goes a long way to helping my self-esteem issues)

So Happy Birthday Brother. Wish I had enough money to produce your mega- soon to be blockbuster movie

but

I don't

Instead I will immortalize you in this blog

"Don't lose your head."

amazing things you never knew

Just read the following on a Facebook Post.

I knew some of it, but not as much as I thought

DID YOU KNOW?
What IS The Main Ingredient of WD-40?
Before you read to the end, does anybody know what the main ingredient of WD-40?
No Cheating.....

WD-40 ~ Who knew!

I had a neighbor who bought a new pickup.
I got up very early one Sunday morning and saw that someone had spray painted red all around the sides of this beige truck (for some unknown reason).
I went over, woke him up, and told him the bad news.
He was very upset and was trying to figure out what to do....
probably nothing until Monday morning, since nothing was open.
Another neighbor came out and told him to get his WD-40 and clean it off.
It removed the unwanted paint beautifully and did not harm his paint job that was on the truck. I was impressed!

WD-40 who knew?
"Water Displacement #40".
The product began from a search for a rust preventative solvent and degreaser to protect missile parts.
WD-40 was created in 1953, by three technicians at the San Diego Rocket Chemical Company.
Its name comes from the project that was to find a 'Water Displacement' Compound.
They were finally successful for a formulation, with their fortieth attempt, thus WD-40.
The 'Convair Company' bought it in bulk to protect their atlas missile parts.
Ken East (one of the original founders) says there is nothing in WD-40 that would hurt you.
When you read the 'shower door' part, try it.
It's the first thing that has ever cleaned that spotty shower door.
If yours is plastic, it works just as well as on glass.
It's a miracle!
Then try it on your stovetop.
It's now shinier than it's ever been.
You'll be amazed.


WD-40 Uses:
1. Protects silver from tarnishing.
2. Removes road tar and grime from cars.
3. Cleans and lubricates guitar strings.
4. Gives floor that 'just-waxed' sheen without making them slippery.
5. Keeps the flies off of Cows, Horses, and other Farm Critters, as well. (Ya gotta love this one!!!)
6. Restores and cleans chalkboards.
7. Removes lipstick stains.
8. Loosens stubborn zippers.
9. Untangles jewelry chains.
10. Removes stains from stainless steel sinks.
11. Removes dirt and grime from the barbecue grill.
12. Keeps ceramic / terracotta garden pots from oxidizing.
13. Removes tomato stains from clothing.
14. Keeps glass shower doors free of water spots.
15. Camouflages scratches in ceramic and marble floors.
16. Keeps scissors working smoothly.
17. Lubricates noisy door hinges on both home and vehicles doors.
18. It removes that nasty tar and scuff marks from the kitchen flooring.
It doesn't seem to harm the finish and you won't have to scrub nearly as hard to get them off.
Just remember to open some windows if you have a lot of marks.
19. Remove those nasty Bug guts that will eat away the finish on your car if not removed quickly!
20. Gives a children's playground gym slide a shine for a super fast slide.
21. Lubricates gearshift and mower deck lever for ease of handling on riding mowers...
22. Rids kids rocking chair and swings of squeaky noises.
23. Lubricates tracks in sticking home windows and makes them easier to open.
24. Spraying an umbrella stem makes it easier to open and close.
25. Restores and cleans padded leather dashboards in vehicles, as well as vinyl bumpers.
26. Restores and cleans roof racks on vehicles.
27. Lubricates and stops squeaks in electric fans.
28. Lubricates wheel sprockets on tricycles, wagons, and bicycles for easy handling.
29. Lubricates fan belts on washers and dryers and keeps them running smoothly.
30. Keeps rust from forming on saws and saw blades, and other tools.
31. Removes grease splatters from stovetops.
32. Keeps bathroom mirror from fogging.
33. Lubricates prosthetic limbs.
34. Keeps pigeons off the balcony (they hate the smell).
35. Removes all traces of duct tape.
36. Folks even spray it on their arms, hands, and knees to relieve arthritis pain.
37. Florida's favorite use is: 'cleans and removes love bugs from grills and bumpers.'
38. The favorite use in the state of New York, it protects the Statue of Liberty from the elements.
39. WD-40 attracts fish. Spray a little on live bait or lures and you will be catching the big one in no time. Also, it's a lot cheaper than the chemical attractants that are made for just that purpose.
Keep in mind though, using some chemical laced baits or lures for fishing are not allowed in some states.
40. Use it for fire ant bites. It takes the sting away immediately and stops the itch.
41. It is great for removing crayon from walls. Spray it on the marks and wipe with a clean rag.
42. Also, if you've discovered that your teenage daughter has washed and dried a tube of lipstick with a load of laundry, saturate the lipstick spots with WD-40 and rewash. Presto! The lipstick is gone!
43. If you spray it inside a wet distributor cap, it will displace the moisture, allowing the engine to start.

P.S.
As for that Basic, Main Ingredient.......
Well.... it's FISH OIL....
Who would have guessed 



and the actual answer is...
maybe.

thanks to my father for not taking the Internet at its word,
he did some "digging" and
found what the current owners of the magic stuff claim/say about their product
link
WD-$0 Speaks

Sometimes I cannot tell you how sick I get of hearing about the "Welfare state"

what is the actual percentage of Americans who are on welfare (as the uninformed keep calling it)? A tax return is not an entitlement. For instance for a single male to get food stamps he HAS to have a job where he works AT LEAST 15 hours a week and believe me it is not much money, definitely not enough to eat for a month. And if he makes too much money or works more hours- they cut it down accordingly.
 Welfare State is largely a myth held up as an excuse by those who want to avoid the real reasons for poverty and desperation that exists in this country and around the world. Now that is not to say that there are not those who do sit on their butts as you have termed it and do nothing... although all of the good for nothings I know end up working pretty hard to trick the system into getting food and money. What I see when I look around is that as a country we have raised a couple of generation of children who believe that they are entitled to, deserve it, require instant gratification, are too selfish to put effort in earning their own way. Our media/TV/Advertising is targeted at those kids and their parents purporting the idea that a person deserves that credit, that car, their entire settlement, benefit right now and by golly they need to get it.
What you end up with is people who think/believe that they deserve to be taken care of by the state/community/parents/families/our taxes. They are not the poor or the homeless per say. I have  seen them come from  all walks of life. Keep in mind that when the media talk about the homeless and show the beggars and vagrants that only makes for 1-5% of the homeless in this country. There families living in tents, cars or worse where 1 or both parents have lost their jobs, had their house foreclosed on, can't get work and ended up on the street. Or have a disability and can't get of the disability (which for the record is extremely hard to get on in this country- it often takes years for a person to get on disability- usually takes a lawyer and years of negotiation to get on it - and then the lawyer  walks off with a tidy sum of the disability to boot.
If you really want to know, it's been studied and then largely ignored by those who are most vocal about it. The poor and homeless are not nor ever were the druggies, alcoholics, frauds and criminals that everyone seems to believe them to be. Don't believe me, take a look at the great depression in the US and the homelessness created by the dust bowl and over farming in the late 20's and 30's.

I remember a book I had to read for Education, can't remember the exact title, but it was really telling about how poverty works in America and why  it is a largely unsolvable problem in this country.
Giving people money- charity- will not  work and it is  not what most  people actually want.
What do they want Mike?
They want a chance to work, they want a chance to get that job, they want a chance to learn/train to become more than they are.
Don't believe me?
How come so many of the  recruits to the army over the years have come from the poorest- most desperate parts of this country? 
Because the Army  (and  the military) has been  and will continue to be the single best way for those people to change their circumstances. The bad news?
The Military never took just anyone and no recruitment standards are a lot higher. AND it's no breeze to stay in once you get there.
I almost signed up for the ROTC. I stopped because I had (at the time) decided to be a Christian in every pacifist definition of the word. The irony for me is that I would have been disqualified soon  if not immediately because I have depression and sleep apnea- I  had no idea at the time and the depression was not diagnosed until 3 years later, the sleep apnea did not get recognized or diagnosed for almost a decade. 
But like  others I saw a way to be more.
After all, when I was going to join, the Army slogan was "Be all you can be."

The  problems with poverty is not so much  that people are lazy or unwilling to work as they find themselves trapped in it. I have relatives who grew up in it. They had to get help to get out, they  had to have the opportunity  presented to them. A few of them did not escape, or found  that they could not. The problem for some of them is attitude and responsibility. 
Ask yourself this simple question. Do you take responsibility for yourself, your well being, your health, your  children?
If  you are responsible then how did you become responsible- you are not born that way, it is a learned behavior.

I have seen the poor, I have been in a food line with  the needy. They are not a bunch of lazy people seeking entitlement. They are all of us, often there by circumstance than by a lack of involvement. The food lines (waiting for free or low cost foods) are not for the faint of heart or spirit and often take hours of standing and waiting in order to take home food that most of the biggest complainers about the Poverty/Welfare state would  never pay for or eat.
These people who find themselves there take what they get, are mostly grateful for what little they can get/afford.
These people often look defeated, you hear them  talking  about standing on street corners with "those other people" (that everyone complains about-  Immigrants/illegals) hoping  that the guy who comes by looking for workers will choose  them. if they are lucky, they get chosen and work all day for next to nothing like $20-40 bucks (a  good day's pay  in those  circumstances) mind you it won't buy more  than 2 bags of groceries from just about any grocery store UNLESS you buy the absolute cheapest processed food you can  get in your cart.

So don't tell me about the Welfare State. Most people don't get  enough help to last 1 month never mind a year WITHOUT cheating the system. 
I  suspect many try and only a handful are successful at it. They get caught  and made examples of- so that they CRITICS can point their little finely manicured fingers at them and declare "See that is why we can't have a WELFARE STATE!"

It's crap. It's junk. It is ironically the opposite of what Christianity and about every  other major religion states in their respective Holy Books.

Any Society or Civilization has a duty to take care of its own.
I find it ironic that proponents for "Right to  life" are often also against the welfare state.
If you don't get the irony there then go find a wall and beat your head against it- then  you will know how I feel about this.

And that is life according to Mike.

Now I have to go find a nice dumpster to forage for lunch!

Stop the world and I will Mind-meld with you

STOP THE WORLD

AND

I  WILL MELT WITH YOU

OR THAT OTHER GIRL IN THE CORNER

The world surrounds us and our societies are at  war with our human natures and cultures and ethnicities...

and I am alone.

So  what's new? Nothing so much as I am mournful and melancholic about the solitude I find myself in.

I did it to myself. I had to have standards, I  had to "live" with my mother. I moved to TN timbucktwo. I see  the irony of it all.

Writing about weddings has done me in, and then  I had to go and get this song stuck in my head.

Well here I am playing my cello in the wilderness. which  reminds me of another song thing. 

After listening to that, my lovelorness has mellowed into something that makes me feel like this great painting by Lynn Noelle Rushton, (http://www.dallasartsrevue.com/members/R/LRush/Rushton.shtml) credit.

Imagine, if you  will or must, what seeing a sculpture like this (yes actually this  one- The Kiss by Rodin) does to a preteen boy who has just discovered girls.

Or one like this, same trip to Europe. Ruined for  life is  what it does.

 Now take  all that and mix it together with a picked on lonely and awkward boy with a  largely absentee father who at times is very romantic with his mother,  drop him in a coed boarding  school in the middle of the Veldt in Africa and  let  him loose to began dreaming and experimenting with a bunch of rejected children also at the boarding school. I look back now and miss those blissful nightmarish  days where I felt strong unbridled emotions and fumbled my way through learning to kiss and dream of touching girls. As  it turned  out in the end, in some ways the best and worst 2 years of my life. I "loved" 3 or 4 girls (and I remember their names). 

• Olyvya who was my  first kiss (but only in complete privacy)- I botched it in classic style of a boy wanting to do an open mouth kiss. She gave me another chance  later but while it was a more memorable closed mouth kiss. The awkward fumbling of that evening in the tiny school  library will forever haunt my memory. Did I love her? Yes- I believed it back then. I love her now,  but  for almost completely different and thus inexplicable reasons. 
• Kim Spiller. She seemed to be forever ingrained in my memory and yet now I cannot really pull her to memory in  focus anyway. I can still remember her holding me, the incredible excitement. I wanted to love her and eventually  did. We had this one thing in common we  both really wanted each others best friends. I guess I should have known and maybe I did. Bart Ridder was with Natasha Springett. She wanted Bart and I wanted Natasha and they wanted each other as much as 13-14 year-olds want anything. We pecked each other more  than kissed at first and somewhere in our desires  for others we found we desired each other  (probably in our desire to be with someone else).   I hope that if she should remember me, she thinks  of me fondly instead  of the 'we're breaking up' letters we exchanged frequently. 
• Natasha Springett, who had more troubles  than any girl should ever have. I  hope  she found peace and her brother as well. She was  a dark beauty and had a natural way of being appealing almost all the time, even when she was screaming at Bart. I  wanted her and had  no way to express it. I wrote her poetry for years and years before I knew  she was the one  who I was writing about. Natasha was all perception  on my part. I remember a  movie where the guy wants a girl and constantly dreams about her and then finally gets to talk to her and finds that  she isn't anything  like what he had thought. (Can't remember what  that movie was). I touched the edge of what I thought  Natasha was and  then  like all dreams she  was gone.
• Gillian. Poor Gillian, who was as plain  in appearance and  innocent of being everything she was accused of. How I wronged Gillian. I could burn in Hell for what I did to her and all for nothing. It was  the first time in my life that I realized how much a few words could  damage or damn  someone. I loved her after a fashion. She probably was worthy of a deeper more forgiving love. I told her how I felt  about her and she responded but some kids found out and I was made the butt of their sneering  so I snubbed Gillian to save face (it's sad that I would be forced to  relive  it over and over again in movies and TV for  all time). I later apologized but you really cannot take words back. If  I could  have I would have loved her just  to make up for what I had done- which is of course all  the wrong reasons for love.

 

 A few years later,  I fell  for  my  fist American Girl and thus set in motion my wanting the one girl I had a snowball's chance in Hell  of every getting any reciprocation from. Her name was Meshelle Houston, she was never even remotely mine, just the beginning of a long and  fairly fatal string of girls and later women I would want and never  have a shot with.
I missed Wendy Smith, apart from the  fact she was  coupled with a perfectly likable guy. But she  haunts my dreams and imagination because she seemed genuinely interested  in me. 
So  I dedicate this  to  her, not for  what is or even what was- but rather for  the promise of what could have been  if I had been anything other than what I am.
What am  I?

Let's see take this  guy

add this guy

and this guy

a little of this  guy

and a little of this guy

and  bit  of  guys this guy acts as

combine that with the perseverance and honor of Nevarre

the humor and skill of the  Dread Pirate Roberts

The  brilliance and wiliness of Vizzinni

if  you need me to explain this one, go back to  the top

foolishness and  ineptitude this portrays

Just added this for effect

multiply by  wanting this, the romance and willingness to defy the odds

And you get this as a result, Mikemummbled (without the bump) the one and only Michael  van Vuuren. 

Man, I really need to get a theme song!

Heck,  I suspect I feel better.

Let's do this all again tomorrow!

and

(wait  for it)

THAT'S LIFE ACCORDING TO MIKE.

Thought on Weddings and being Single

MARRIAGE AMONGST THE RUINS OF SINGLENESS 

Saturday, I shot a wedding.... by shot I don't mean I went out with a bushmaster .223 assault rifle and upheld all the lousy reasons  that I have remained single.... no actually I videoed a wedding filled with beautiful people and not so beautiful people.

It was so beautiful and thus fairly depressing

going home alone.

Michael, forever the bridesmaid never the bride... thank the stars!

I  guess it should be groomsman and not the groom, save that I have never even been that. 

I ranked up as usher at my brother's wedding. zip at  my neice's wedding, semi photographer at a cousin's wedding. you  can see where this is going...

 

Let me not to the marriage of true minds

Admit impediments. Love is not love

Which alters when it alteration finds,

Or bends with the remover to remove:

O no! it is an ever-fixed mark 

That looks on tempests and is never shaken;

It is the star to every wandering bark,

Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken.

Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks 

Within his bending sickle's compass come: 

Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks, 

But bears it out even to the edge of doom.

   If this be error and upon me proved,

   I never writ, nor no man ever loved. 

People get married.

Couples get married.

This is  the way  of things.

Not my way of things apparently.

I  suspect I will end up  being like  that woman in 27 dresses,  although I am  way past 27 by now. of  course, I have  only videoed 4 weddings where I knew anyone there.

I video the one above. this is my favorite picture from  that wedding. I love them both, and  wish them well. I know that some of  what I want is a matter of compatibility. On  the other hand much  of it seems  to be luck.

 This  is me

Me blowing bubbles. 

this is me, single and largely unloved in the romantic way, anyway  wondering that for someone who would have termed  himself a  romantic to  not  be  or for  the  most  part ever been in a  romance.

 

Wanting what "everybody" wants

wanting to be with someone

makes me think of Queen. A  song:

As snug as a bug in a rug, We all need somebody to love... right?

I love my cat.

I'd love somebody  to love. 

The romantic in  me calls out for this, but more than this  (yes another  song comes floating up from the past) 

There is definitely something about weddings that make  me think of songs that formed the core of my  sense of passion.

It's  the moment he slides  the ring on, the moment that she bites her lower lip and admits that you are the only one she  has ever loved. It's the moment in almost  every "Rom-Com" movie where you know that dreams could come true.

We  want to believe that people will stay happily married.

I want to believe/pretend that if only I wanted it  bad enough that it could happen to me

that is without all  that messy complicated stuff.

yet

I am missing the crucial ingredient for my wish cake.

The Girl.

Now that is life-  at least at this  moment- life  according to Mike.

Should we ban Banning

AMERICANS LIKE  TO BAN THINGS!!!

What is with this phenomena. If you are afraid of something, then you should ban it.
lets  make  a list of things I know America has banned over the years.

1. Alcohol:  Prohibition as the legal act of prohibiting the manufacture, transportation and sale ofalcohol and alcoholic beverages. In 1920, the USA banned Alcohol. Prohibiton lasted until 1933. It didn't  work, created more crime  than it  solved and society suffered at large for it. We still practice it in various places. Still  I am for controls on Alcohol consumption and  production. 
2. "Illegal Drugs" Marijuana, weed, mary jane,  etc. perhaps the  most laughable illegal drug of all time. The worst thing that can  be said about  weed is that it is really high in tar and stinks to high heaven. I  have personal experience with this drug in  as much as I have seen it used at many levels  and while never having consumed of  it directly, have still gotten  high off of it second or third hand. Under those effects, I  almost made some awful decisions- fortunately one of the weed smokers stopped me (maybe unfortunately). I won't say the drug is harmless or non-addictive. Pot-heads are like other addicts in as much  as they become increasingly despondent and dependent on their next fix. I  have yet to see or hear of a violent pot-head. you  see ads on TV that say Pot-heads are forgetful and  that maybe true but I have yet to see a shootout involving the  use of marijuana. Growth and sales yes (different degree entirely). Should Marijuana be legal. The short answer is yes. The long one is it should  be controlled like any other drug...like tabacco, alcohol.
3. "illegal drugs" the hard stuff, heroine, opium,, cocaine. The War  of Drugs has been going  on since Nixon declared it officially in 1971. Only  recently, Obama removed the use of the term "war on  drugs" and now  they (the  feds) refer to it as  something else. In June 2011, the Global Commission on Drug Policy released a critical report on the War on Drugs, declaring "The global war on drugs has failed, with devastating consequences for individuals and societies around the world. Fifty years after the initiation of the UN Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, and years after President Nixon launched the US government’s war on drugs, fundamental reforms in national and global drug control policies are urgently needed."^[13] The report was criticized by organizations that oppose a general legalization of drugs. However, the ban and controls  were actually  set up with Prohibition and In 1930, the Federal Bureau of Narcotics was created.  Yep, it  probably  will go down  ass the dirtiest, craziest world war ever not fought anywhere. More money and more people have been killed in it. There could have  been a better way to deal with the rising issue since it led to substance creation like:
4. "illegal drugs" Homemade substitutes mostly fueled by the pharmaceutical companies. Meth, Extasy, designer drugs, crack, smack, crystal meth, date rape  drug, etc. Need I say  more. Make some things harder to get and human inventiveness comes  out of the wood work. Prohibition led to homemade gin,  junkyard whiskey, prison brews, because if you can ferment it, you can drink alcohol baby!
5. Books. My personal favorite. This country has made an art form out of book banning and book burning. In fact, it is still the most common form of banning alive and well. For all the good it has done and all the harm it has done as well. The  irony like most things that are banned, is that the banners never read the book in question and do it on word of mouth from an anonymous source most often. I have seen book banning personally. In high school, in Tennessee (think  Bible Belt  Buckle) my high school banned AD&D on the basis of a Southern Baptist Deacon who caught his son  with a copy of the Fiend Folio (probably the best drawn/illustrated  monster manual ever) and called the school and all D&D books were banned from then on. You couldn't even have discussions or a club. if you were caught with a D&D book it was detention and the book was confiscated. The fall out, every fantasy book was scrutinized and viewed like drug paraphernalia! Ironically, it just made  me want to play  it more. Catcher in the Rye and  The Tropic of Capricorn are stilled  considered banned books. I have read both and it's laughable to consider what could have made them so controversial especially when you consider the tripe and despicable stuff that those same schools make students read now as part of the curriculum!  take a look  at The Chocolate War or Are You There God,it's Me  Margaret sometime.
6. Assault Rifles. hotly contested eventually reversed. Gun control does  not  mean banning it. But you cannot convince anyone of that. I  have  already pretty much covered this one in earlier posts.
7. Cop-Killers. Armor  piercing bullets. When dum dums and splatter slugs are not enough. I  put this  up in the range of  exploding  bullets, and nuclear tipped shells. No human being needs  armor piercing bullets unless your bears/deers and neighbors are prone to  wearing Kevlar and bulletproof vests. The only people who really  need this bullet need it to kill US troops and Police Officers.
8. Smoking. Finally. Well  smoking  in public.  let the smokers smoke but ban the smoke that I have had to inhale over  the years, the same smoke that has  settled on my clothes that makes  me nauseous to the point of  being ill. When I have to go to a smoker's house I wear an  outer shirt and sit as far away from  them  as possible without being  rude, close to a door or ventilator  (not  that it helps much). After  I leave, I strip off the outer clothes  or bring spares. Sometimes I have to shower to get it off of me.  How many smokers do  I know? Several, but I am related to 3 of  them and they  are pretty heavy smokers to boot. I wish they would quit for  their health for their children, for mine. 
9. Abortion. Good Golly what a mess, and what an ordeal since legalized abortions do  actually limit the number of back room abortions  that go on when  the ban is  in place.

          I could go on but I  pretty much have made the point  I wanted  to make.

          In general, Banning is bad and seldom works effectively.

          instead we should try to find a middle ground. usually understanding the item/action in question will lead to better alternatives. We should ban banning.

and that is life according to Mike