Dishonest People.

 I have come to expect certain behaviors from my ex where my children are concerned.

Whenever it was time for visitation, previously, she had no issues meeting at the designated place for drop off and pick-up... Now, however, she has been refusing, insisting that I purchase plane tickets and fly them out, an extremely expensive mode of transportation and with her habit of not paying anything back, even when court ordered, it would all be on me.

Naturally I pushed the issue because I could not afford that, and she knew it; I also pointed out that the Parenting Plan specifically said that driving and meeting halfway was the primary method of exchange.

After this I received no response, which has been typical for the last couple of years as she will often wait until the last minute to give any response.

She had been using Covid as an excuse not to grant visitation after this, citing safety because of numbers.

I pointed out she had them enrolled in football, they had played games, and also researched the number of cases in her area, pointing out that they were nearly the same as mine.

No response after that either.

Following the Parenting Plan I filed taxes and claimed the children.

I received an E-Mail from her stating I had no right to claim the children and that if I did not pay her the money she would take me to court.

It was news to me since we had agreed on the Parenting Plan that I could claim them at that time... Whatever, she hasn’t been following the Parenting Plan anyway... I simply responded by stating she never responded to my E-Mail inquiring about Spring Break and asked when I could speak with the Children as I had tried to call and received no answer.

I received a response stating that I was looking at serious charges for defrauding the Government and that I would be held accountable.

It is interesting that she is most concerned about the money, but did state that the ‘kids had been looking forward to this all year and I had just taken it away from them without a word,’ odd, taken what away? They were looking forward to taxes? Was it meant to pay for something for them? This is why communication is important.

There were a number of red flags here, to be honest the red flags started going off when she suddenly started to refuse to meet at the drop off/pick up spot and began to demand that I purchase plane tickets.

What is going on? She seems desperate for the money and it feels as though it has little to nothing to do with my children.

It turns out she is on Probation in an entirely different state than the one she is supposed to be in.

A deferred sentence for a charge of ‘Possession of Dangerous Drugs’ that carries a minimum sentence of five years in Prison if she does not meet the stipulations of the Deferred Sentence... Which requires her to stay in that state for a minimum of 36 months... Which ends in 2022.

She has drug tests, a Probation Officer, probably Treatment, plus court fees.

Which means the children are not residing with her... Interesting... I had to investigate to find this out as she was actively trying to keep this from me.

I also asked a Tax Professional about what she said regarding ‘serious charges’ and they said that she would need to file a paper form with the IRS and they would send me a letter asking if the children were filed in error, to which I file an amended return and pay back the difference to the IRS... Further, it sounded as though she was attempting to extort more money than she would have otherwise received so it was best to let her file and complain, then pay the money back to the IRS rather than give it to her.

With what I now have I am looking into Lawyers in the state of their residence to see what can be done about custody because it is truly not fair to them, or to me, to have to pay for her mistakes in more ways than one.

The odd thing is that I did not have to use much self control to remain calm as I somehow felt there was something off and it had likely been exactly as described above.

Unfortunately it is likely taking a toll on the children... As it has been on me... So something needs to be done.

That means that, in the end, the battle itself is a form of payment on their part, and mine, for her mistakes.

Thoughts on the Pandemic #2.

We are told how to combat this present situation via Social Distancing and voluntary Quarantine on a daily basis, provided one-sided reports that only highlight the negative side of things, businesses are closed, parks are closed, theaters are closed, all aspects of social living are closed... All from the pulpit of Press Conferences with the power elite standing shoulder to shoulder, barely a foot between them.

In the audience? Reporters, seated next to one another with their questions at the ready, having already decided how to spin their stories as mandated by their wholly owned Corporate Overlords.

The person at the podium touches the podium endlessly, then gives way to the next person, who also touches the podium endlessly whilst using the same microphone.

All of these people are relatively old, certainly within the ‘at risk’ age range, yet none of them are too concerned, but they are all certainly concerned with what the public at large are doing... Whether or not they are complying with their commands and what sort of restrictions need to be further mandated in order to ensure compliance to the letter.

This is not just true of Presidential Press Conferences, but all Press Conferences across the country and throughout the world.

After they are complete these people make their way through crowded corridors in old buildings toward offices and meeting rooms where they further discuss the issues and measures.

They get in their cars, which usually have drivers and Security, proceed to drive home, where they usually have family and attendants to see to their needs.

They still hold large gatherings, they still go about life as normal, free to do as they please without a second thought.

At one event it was revealed that a member of the Vice President’s Staff had tested positive for the virus, was there concern? No. Just a comment after the fact that the Vice President would undergo testing as a precaution... That was that... No other signs of concern.

The signs of concern come when the masses do not do as they are ‘asked’ to do. Threats of further restrictions in tones reminiscent of stern parents disappointed in the behavior of a child.

Yet no one finds these observations interesting or telling, or even of much more at all. The observations are truly illustrative of how well the program is working.

Now there is talk of suspending Constitutional Rights entirely via Martial Law, at least on some media outlets. How much truth there is to that only time will tell. 

If that happens the path to tyranny will be complete and my even writing things like this will be outlawed.

People are asking for more restrictive measures, shelter in place, and becoming angry, extremely angry, with those who hold different views and would rather determine for themselves what is right to do or not do.

It is SUPPOSED to be the other way around. The Government is supposed to work for the people and it is supposed to be small with very little sweeping power.

Sure, it should have the resources to handle emergencies and threats, but it is supposed to operate for the people, by the people.

It is also not supposed to be able to suspend Rights and Liberties, it is only supposed to be able to make educated suggestions and keep the peace where necessary should violence erupt and that is only to protect those Rights and Liberties.

Should a person put another at risk of anything? No. Should a person be able to decide whether or not they stay inside? Yes.

Should a person be given the opportunity to work? Yes. Should they be forced to work if they are high risk of infection? No.

Seriously. There are less extreme measures that can be taken and this pandemic is not even on the level of some we have already faced.

It should also abide by its’ own suggestions, each person in Government should be able to live the example of what they would suggest others do, if they do chose to do it, rather than mandating others live a specific way while ignoring their own mandates entirely.

Thoughts on the Pandemic #1.

There are endless accounts of News Stories meant to promote panic and fear, but the thing that should truly frighten a person, or give them pause at the very least, is how easily liberties are being suspended coupled with the fact that people are willingly subjugating themselves to larger Government controls... Out of fear.
Many have said it is a choice of civic or social responsibility, but the choice is presented thus ‘either comply willingly or be forced to comply.’

There is no true choice there, only the illusion of choice; the only option is compliance with no real idea as to how long this mandate will be in place.
Many will justify the means by the end result and feel that the controls will go away once everything is under control, indeed they may, but in the mean time they deride any individual exercising their God Given liberties almost in the light of sub human, some going so far as to call for their detention in the name of the Greater Good.
All we need do is look back through history to see that this justification only ever brings tyranny, suffering, and death.

Some will say that what we face now is unprecedented. Is it really? There seems to be an outbreak of something new every few years, people die, sometimes more people, sometimes less, sometimes old, sometimes young.
Time goes by, News Feeds capitalize on each crisis until it gets old, then it fades, solutions are found, or it just simply fades, in either case life returns to normal and people go on obliviously living their lives until the next crisis... Almost like a very predictable movie script.

The virus, itself, is not unprecedented, we have been here before and, in point of fact, faced much worse.
People will believe otherwise, generally because they tune in to the media and shut everything else off without critically examining what they are allowing their minds to be fed.
Programmed to see the worst of things, the worst outcomes, herding along with the rest with zero control over the minds with which they had been gifted and so easily handed over to the care of others who feed them with brand names, trending memes, ideologies, etc.

The truly unprecedented thing, which is not even truly unprecedented, is the length to which Governments are being allowed to go, the powers they are being granted as people huddle by themselves for safety, security, and health, doing exactly what they are told to do.
Yes, there is a virus, but one needs to ask, where did the virus originate? It almost seems too coincidental that it happened to originate in a region controlled by one of the most brutal Totalitarian Regimes on the planet and, even less coincidental, that the only solution with which we are presented is also Totalitarian to its’ very core.

Social Distancing has suddenly become a trending catch phrase fueled by fear and sheer panic as people retreat into the unconsciousness of their reptilian brains and buy up all the toilet paper in the world, a testament to the death of all logic and rationality.
The virus, itself, is seeing a higher recovery rate, globally, than it is deaths, but the virus itself has already been mutated by the media into a Psychological Disorder and may yet cause more suffering, death, and destruction on that front... If people do not take a step back and get ahold of themselves.

Some are saying it is here to stay, some are saying lives will not go back to normal, all the typical things people say when there is a crisis.
What tells me otherwise is the fact that the normal narrative and behaviors continue just barely beneath the surface. Nothing has truly changed and it will all bounce back in a fairly short amount of time I gather, although some things may linger for a while, they, too, will vanish.

This is NOT the end of the world. This is NOT EVEN the end of normality as we know it, it is just a blip on the TelePrompTer of history just like all the others that have come before.
We are not experiencing a Swine Flu level event, nor a Zika level event, we are, however, experiencing a Totalitarian level event complete with all the Psychological trimmings of Propaganda and Panic yielding division and suspicion via fear itself.

It could easily be taken care of by mandating the media stop inciting panic in the masses so that they stop panic buying everything and stop flooding hospitals over a slight case of the sniffles.
Those most at risk could take shelter and be forgiven for missing work while they receive a basic income from the Government to ensure their livelihoods are secure without a great impact to the economy or life while a solution is pursued.
Supplies could be given to them with little to no direct contact, store hours could be set aside to accommodate them, areas could be designated only for them, it really is not that hard to think of ways in which these people could be protected without disrupting life in general for everyone else.

What about everyone else, you might ask? They are not the most at risk and the vast majority of people are surviving with zero ill effect, despite what sensationalist media would have everyone believe.
The media pushed the panic in how they presented things and the Government made it worse by reacting in the way they did rather than responding from a place of reason and rationality.
In the case of the Media one only needs to go as far as to study the views of those in charge AND see where they are getting most of their funds in order to understand why they are pushing the panic narrative.
Indeed many within this very media have often said they wished for a recession and economic collapse so that they could get rid of the current Administration. Now many who share their views are praising how things are being handled... Not because they are out for our well-being, but because it is exactly what they hoped for to begin with.

Why is the Government following suit? Likely because they did not have much time to think of proper solutions (even though it only took me a few seconds to come up with alternatives to outright Totalitarianism).
It is what it is, though, and people are moving along with the herd mentality, giving way to the mob. The panic is going to continue for now, and may even escalate in the days ahead, which will lead to massive increases in crime, from robberies, looting, murder, rape, home invasions, car jackings, and brawls in the street over supplies and territory.
That is a worst case scenario if controls do not ease up and the panic does not simmer down. Law Enforcement will not respond as they once did.

Law abiding citizens will huddle, frightened, in their homes while those who care nothing for the law will suddenly see an opportunity to do whatever they feel like doing to whomever they feel like doing it to.
On the flip side, Law Abiding Citizens might feel no alternative but to take from others and, certainly, many will see no alternative but to protect what and whom they have with extreme prejudice.

That is if things are allowed to go on beyond the timeframe already cited and people continue to cling to their own fear as though it were their only security blanket.
Some might justify this as realism, it isn’t, some who cheer on these measures will say they are not panicking, they are.

In the end, you control yourself, when you take that back the world will change and solutions, real solutions, will be discovered and implemented.
At THAT point the world will be changed forever and nothing will truly be the same, and that is change for the better.