If we look at the current US decline, it all seems to come down to corruption, that is, in the sense that a definition of corruption is when something meant to do one thing, is affected by another influence.
The system should be simple, with the people of each area voting for, and getting their geographical best interests represented by the individual that obtained most of their votes.

The problem throughout the so-called democratic world is that the above is not what is occurring.
What is occurring is that the parties promote individuals, who are then of course influenced by that party that was the one responsible for them obtaining candidacy, and there is a party expectation that the individual will behave in a manner beneficial to the party.

Note that nowhere in the method of candidate selection is there any real system that would promote only those candidates that the people want, unless those people are active within the local party. And anyone active within the local party is under pressure from the head office of the party to promote the candidacy of individuals who will vote as the party would wish.

Going a step further and looking into what the party might wish, then it becomes like a race car sponsorship. Each party gets funding from sources such as corporations or unions, and so is under pressure financially to do as those corporations or unions would wish. So, taking out all the middleman stuff, it is as if the corporations or others such as trade unions control what the politicians do, say, and vote for in governmental matters. Just follow the money. Again, the voters get left behind.

If we take the party situation right out of things, what do we have? Well, the single party can get it's money from anywhere, and it will then go to the head office to be distributed as the head office wishes. This means that if a union wanted a certain candidate to be promoted, they would be out of luck if they needed a guarantee that the money they donated would have the same level of influence it does now, as the funding would be thinned out. So, there would be less point in corporations and unions trying to influence politics by throwing money around, and this being the case, the funding would probably dry up to some degree. Then funding could be provided from taxes. And the taxes could be provided by the corporations who have more funds available due to not using their profits to influence politics. This in turn might mean that the candidates are selected locally by those people interested enough to attend meetings, so hopefully would be the ones best qualified to represent the local people from the constituency represented.  See the shift? The people get the candidates they want to stand for election, and will get to vote for the candidate that is  most likely to represent the matters that are important to the voters.

There is a snag, of course, and that is how do you get a multiple party system to vote for something that will lessen the power of the honchos within that system, and replace it with a system that is more representative of what the people want.
Oh! I know! It is called revolution. Hmmm, Cuba did that. And they have better percentages of both health care and education than the so-called democratic countries - actually 100% free health care and a 100% education rate among children.

T-Shirts are great to have, especially in summer. I personally like the thicker higher quality type, and I prefer them while they are new - I have no idea how some people keep their clothes so sparkling white, and might never know.
Bluecotton.com have a great website where t-shirts and sweatshirts and all kinds of stuff like that can be bought online. I am not talking just ordinary stuff, they will personalize it for you with a company logo, or a family reunion announcement, even the name of your Church or other group. I always think that sweatshirts look better with embroidered logos etc, rather than just printed - the problem with printing is that it does fade a bit with time, or maybe I just keep my t-shirts too long! Hmmm, I am just thinking , maybe I can get a bulk order in, and surprise the Missus, and save some money on custom t-shirts with her business name on them. She doesn't read my blogs right now, as she is too busy, so I hope that you can all keep a secret!

We have two completely different lifestyles here in Canada, one is the winter, when I just hide from the cold, and hope that the cars have no problems that need working on.
And the other is the summer. Now, during the winter, I am always waiting for the summer to arrive so I can get out and get things done, but the reality is, it is too hot, too humid, and there are too many bugs around.
I have a hornets nest in the edge of the house roof, right near where the pulley for the clothesline goes, so that when the clothesline is moved, it disturbs the hornets and then the clothes drying has to be abandoned.
The trick is to wait for dark, then put out the clothes, and bring them in as it gets dark the next day!
The shed needs painting, I have a welding job to do on my old classic car, as well as keeping up with the lawn mowing. I know what is going to happen - suddenly it will start raining and getting cold, and fall will be here, and I can put off those jobs until next summer, when I can NOT do them all over again!

Speaking of skateboarding and snowboarding, and that kind of stuff, I know that it seems early to think of winter right now, but, guess what, it will soon be here. I have made a kind of pact with myself, I don't like to call it a New Year's Resolution, to get more exercise, and so I am currently doing more walking than I have in the past.
I also want to keep this up during the winter, so I will be getting some proper clothing, instead of just depending on regular uninsulated jeans. Burton, the winter sports and Burton snowboards people, are the products to go for in proper winter clothing, because the quality is right there.
Actually christysports.com is the place to go, because they carry more than just Burton products. They have Obermeyer and Spyder as well as many other brands. Well worth an early viewing - get in there and grab some stuff at the current prices.

My brother in law has been in Canada just over a year, and has only just got around to seeing about taking driving lessons.
He got his beginners license the other day, but for the last little while, since the snow went away, he has actually been using a skateboard as a serious means of transport!
What a SuperHero!
Of course, living in the city helps a lot, he can roll along a bit better there than out in the country areas - there are simply just more places he can skateboard, places where there are not so many little rocks and pebbles as there are around where I am.

Massage beds can now be considered to be more than the name would tell. The Takemi Jade Vista 5000 Massage Bed has what they call Far Infrared, to penetrate deeper and give greater relief than you can get by other methods. This in turn releases toxins, allowing the body's own chemicals to deal with the problems that the body might have accumulated.

MuchMusic TV Station Has Moronic Sound Engineers
I watched a movie last night, or rather, I attempted to watch it.
It was hard work.
The sound was actually a full 200% of the movie sound level when the ads came on.
I couldn't mute it quick enough.
The TV Station was the Canadian MuchMusic station, which unfortunately seems to have excellent programming, and inattentive morons for sound engineers.
For even more about this, check this out:

CEO's Are Idiots
Because it is not limited to the TV station, it goes right through the system where advertisers are foolish enough to pay money to have ineffective advertising.

Trade shows might become more important as companies fight for a larger share of markets that might be shrinking. On the company level of course, it is the retailers who have to be impressed by the product, as well as by the percentage profit gained by that particular product compared with competitive products. For that reason, it is important to make a good first impression, and a good and appropriate looking tradeshow booth is a good piece of groundwork towards that goal. It has to be a good vehicle for carrying the advertising material such as brochures, and it has to have space so that things are not crammed, yet have intimacy to make the prospective clients comfortable. Or, it might be that all you require are a few banners, or maybe a brochure holding stand, and so whatever your needs, you can get assistance in your decisions at godfreygroup.com.

I have just done a little bit more to my bathroom after fitting new bath taps (faucets) and in so doing, having to take down a wall that was behind where the taps were located.
So, I ended up with wallboard that was half smashed out, and so I kind of patched some panels in there, then filled the edges with plaster stuff that I got from the hardware store.
Well, overnight last night it started to dry OK, but then shrunk, - or should that be shrank? - leaving small cracks.
So, I carry on, filling, then once it is dry I will be sanding.
Now, if the Missus wasn't so busy doing her new business, I could get her to sand it by just leaving it to drive her crazy, then she would do a desperation sanding job on it!
But, I guess I will be doing the sanding.

I was checking out this lawyers blog, from southern California. Los Angeles Criminal Lawyers Blog | California Criminal Defense .
It makes sense that the best defense can be provided by a former 'attacker' - in this case, former prosecutor in the same court system that they are now active in as defenders of people. The blog is interesting for raising and/or discussing some very interesting legal points as well as social issues.