TheWiseOldFart

Op-ed by TheWiseOldFart I was a much younger man. One day I was reading the newspaper and all the news was so bad, so depressing, I thought to myself: “God made one, big mistake: He created man.” I didn’t even know that He knew it until I happened to read it in Genesis one day. I was mostly interested in the New Testament, and the teachings of Jesus Christ. [6 The Lord regretted that he had made human beings on the earth, and his heart was deeply troubled. 7 So the Lord said, “I will wipe from the face of the earth the human race I have created—and with them the animals, the birds and the creatures that move along the ground—for I regret that I have made them.”] The difference in what I felt was about the animals, our oceans, the earth, and the sky. Prior to the industrialization of our planet, mankind killed animals for necessity: food, clothing, and even housing. When I was much younger, I learned that men killed animals for sport, and abused them for “fun.” I began paying attention ...

My wife and I are older Americans struggling to survive on a fixed income. The good and bad news is that our total income is slightly above the poverty line. This prevents us from receiving free healthcare, and other services reserved for the poor. However, we have survived many difficult times and will continue to do so as long as we are together. This is not intended to be a story about complaints and government failure, although there are many. This is about what I hope will be my legacy. I didn’t begin writing until I was forced to retire for the last time in 2011. My last “real job” ended in 2008. However, in 2009 I was hired by the Decennial Census, and worked for the government in various capacities until the end of 2010. From then until now, I have been officially retired with the exception of my new life as a writer. My initial effort was my first novel, “A Little Murder in the Biggest Little City.” I believe it was good for a first effort, but I learned from every new endeavo...