Liberal Arts Majors are Suckers! — Sgt. Tony Ludlow, blog post for 7/30/2015
“No, that’s a bad idea.”
There’s a story about a Marine Corps Major General (2 star) in WWII that goes something like this.
Fearing that his subordinates would hold back from telling him the complete truth or would withhold their true feelings because of the General’s rank and their subordination, the General sought out an old friend’s counsel.
During WWI, he was but a Corporal in the forests of France sharing the rigors of trench warfare with his good friend, Frank, also a Corporal. The two of them would distinguish themselves in that war and both received medals for valor and bravery. After the war, Frank went on to make his fortune in the shipping industry while the other remained in the Marine Corps and rose up through the ranks.
The General reached out to Frank and compelled him to join his staff, giving him a wartime promotion to Brigadier General (1 star). Frank’s primary job, and taking no pay for it, was to tell his old friend the truth. He advised him in a way that no other subordinate dared, namely, telling the General when he was wrong, telling him “no,” and keeping him accountable. The General had complete and absolute trust in Frank and knew that Frank’s counsel would not be clouded by ambition or limited by parochialism. Frank would be able to say, “No, that’s a bad idea” and never have to worry about the things a true subordinate would struggle with.
Donald Trump currently sits upon the pyre of GOP presidential hopefuls, mostly because he has a war chest full of cash, answers to no one, and dominates the news with some of the most bombastic, insulting, and inflammatory shenanigans ever seen since Thomas Jefferson accused John Adams of being a hermaphrodite.
The old philosophers and theologians would refer to The Donald as a man who is “a law unto himself.” He needs no one and he answers to no one. And he could, if he were as intelligent as his unknown and alleged fortune suggests, buy the Presidency. It wouldn’t be the first time the man with the most money got elected. But he’s a side-show to the big show who’ll suffer under the weight of his own poor judgment and drop out eventually, but not before he embarrasses himself before an international audience that already thinks Americans are arrogant, egotistical, narcissistic bullies. Donald Trump has become the face of the “Ugly American.”
When no one ever says “no” to you, and when those in your inner circle never challenge you, the excesses in every area of your life will stack up like the proverbial house of cards.
And it’s not just The Donald. Movie stars, sports stars, popular musicians, and most of those who reign supreme upon their own little empire suffer from this. The number of sports stars who squander away millions of dollars and end up with nothing at the end of their careers is so vast that we’re no longer surprised when we hear another story about another high paid athlete who lost it all and filed for bankruptcy, abandoned by friends and alienated from family.
The Old Testament book of Proverbs contains a number of passages that teach, in essence, that there is wisdom and success in having many counselors. Of course the number of counselors isn’t the real secret to success, it’s in gathering wise counselors around you. Having too many counselors can be just as detrimental to good judgment and decision making as having none.
Our counselors don’t always appear in the form of people with whom we interact. The sources of our news, our continuing education, our faith-based assemblies and congregations, and our community and civil awareness groups are also sources that mold our world view, shape our local views, and subconsciously dictates our inner dialog and attitudes.
The voices we listen to influence our decision making. Our parents taught us that bad company corrupts good morals back when the voices we heard had been vetted by responsible journalism and integrity. In those days lies, half-truths, and slander were restricted to the tabloid papers like the National Enquirer. Today the voices of Babylon are indistinguishable from those that come from legitimate scholarship and truth. The opinion has now been elevated to truth and fact shares equal billing with fiction.
Who counsels you? From what source do you get your advice and instruction? What are the qualifications of those you rely on for counsel?
Recently a friend — I’ll call him Larry — asked what news sources I consult and which ones I avoid. I told him the television news networks I watch and the radio programs I listen to are NBC, CBS, CNN and NPR. He asked because he said that he thinks I’m balanced in my views. He asked what print (both paper and electronic) I read to stay informed. I was flattered that he asked and was happy to share with him.
Larry also asked me if I could summarize the benefit of a college education and I said: writing that requires students to produce academic papers that have points that follow logic and reason, that lead to conclusions supported by research with sited legitimate sources and evidential proof is, in my humble opinion, the greatest benefit of a college education. The practice of writing research papers compels people to hone the skills necessary to think critically, analyze fairly and factually. The result being they require the same of the news and opinion sources they consult or passively allow into their lives.
I had an interesting conversation with a guy — I’ll call him Mike — a few years ago, a proud graduate of an SEC college. I was sort of half whining/half bragging to him the way we do about enduring some hardship. You know, like telling someone how you ran 10 miles in 100 degree heat with 3000% humidity. Or how you tell your kids that you had to walk 10 miles to school in the snow uphill both ways. In this case, I said something to him about having to write a ton of papers as an undergrad. I told him that I averaged 15 papers a semester, not including grad school papers and two master’s theses. Not an exaggeration. He just laughed and said, “What a sucker you humanities majors are, I only wrote 5 papers the whole time I was in college!”
I didn’t think of him as “lucky” or me as a sucker.
As a high school history teacher, I graded over 125 term papers per semester. Teachers whose subject areas require term papers get really good at grading them. The difference between garbage and scholarship, between faulty logic and sound research and evidence, are seldom difficult to find, usually within the first paragraph. If the first paragraph or two is crap, the following 10 pages will be the same. Brilliance in the first page almost always means brilliance throughout.
I urged Larry to try hard to get balanced, fair, and diverse information. Avoid extremes, I said. Opinions and information coming from only one or two sources can lead to misunderstanding and manipulated ignorance. In point of fact, it leads to being duped, scammed, and misled.
It’s said that every pastor needs a pastor, every counselor needs a counselor, every teacher needs a teacher … and all of us need the insight and perspective of trusted advisors and professionals to make informed decisions about our money, our life, our community, and our country.
Gather your counselors carefully. Opinions are cheap and everyone has them … and they’re not all equal. I was told by more than one person in 1999 that USMC Fitness Boot Camp would never work. After all, no one had ever heard of “boot camp fitness,” so why would someone think that it would work, especially if that person would never attend a 5:30am fitness class … led by a psycho Marine? I didn’t listen to the fearful or timid or those who’d never taken many risks.
Never take counsel from your fears, nor from the fearful, nor from your ignorance, nor from the ignorant. And never give an ear to those who try to lead or influence you through either.
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TODAY’S NUTRITION TALK
by Gunnery Sergeant Ashley Holloway, Registered Dietitian, LDN
(A Registered Dietitian has a BS in Food Science, followed by a one year internship through an accredited university, and then with the recommendation of the internship program’s supervisor, a national examination is required. After that, an RD must have continuing education units annually in order to remain active and registered. An RD is an expert, not a hobbyist or a “food enthusiast.”)
Most of the USMC Fitness Boot Campers I know are quite concerned about their health and nutrition. One question that these health conscious people often ask me often is whether or not they need extra vitamins or supplements. If you eat a healthy, balanced diet full of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and lean meats, a person more than likely does not need any nutritional supplements or vitamins at all. A vitamin supplement will most likely improve performance only if a person is deficient in that nutrient or vitamin to begin with.
The main reasons someone could be deficient in a vitamin is:
1. Restricting calories for weight loss
2. Unusual eating habits, such as eating mainly fast foods
3. Eating less than five fruits and vegetables a day
4. Smoking and/or drinking too much alcohol
5. Having a disease that reduces absorption or the metabolism
of certain vitamins
Most people get enough vitamins from their diet, but if someone is getting too few vitamins from their diet, the most common deficiency is some of the B-complex vitamins: Thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, Vitamin B-12 (vegetarians) Vitamin B-6 and folate and the antioxidants Vitamin C, Vitamin E, and Beta Carotene.
If a person is deficient in a vitamin because of the reasons listed above, they should try and correct the imbalances in vitamins/minerals not through a supplement, but by correcting their diet. Vitamins from foods are better because the foods that contain these vitamins usually contain extra nutrients and phytochemicals that pills do not. Although most people do not need a vitamin supplement, taking one will most likely not cause any harm as long as the supplement contains no more than the Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) or Adequate Intake (AI) for vitamins on a daily basis.
One Boot camper in particular wanted to know if Coenzyme Q10, Glucosamine, and Omega 3 fatty acids would be beneficial. Coenzyme Q10 is found in every cell in our bodies and it helps convert the food we eat into energy and also serves as an antioxidant. But there is no need to supplement with a pill because Coenzyme Q10 is found in many of the foods we eat. Scientific studies have found no benefit from taking Coenzyme Q10 pills.
Glucosamine claims to help with arthritis, reduce inflammation and protect joints and tendons from injury. There are many European studies that show the anti-inflammatory benefits of Glucosamine, but more studies are needed in the United States. Because of this reason, the Arthritis Foundation has stated it cannot recommend Glucosamine as a treatment for osteoarthritis at this time.
Omega 3 Fatty acids have been shown to be beneficial to the hearts of healthy people and for those already with heart disease. But you can get the amount of fish oil you need by eating two servings of fish a week, particularly fatty fish. If you already have heart disease or high triglycerides, you may need additional supplementation. You should not take more than 3 grams of Omega 3 fatty acids a day without a doctor’s supervision, because increased intake could cause excessive bleeding in some people.
If you want a way to see if you are getting enough vitamins and minerals from your diet, be sure to check out the informative website: www.choosemyplate.gov. Click on SuperTracker. Here you can assess your food intake. The online dietary assessment provides information on your diet quality, related nutrition messages, and links to nutrient information. After providing a day’s worth of dietary information, you will receive an overall evaluation by comparing the amounts of food you have eaten to current nutritional guidelines, including vitamins and minerals You can keep track of you diet for up to one year, a wonderful tool.
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To your optimum health and fitness!
SEE YOU ON THE QUARTERDECK!
Tony
Sergeant Major Tony Ludlow
USMC Fitness BOOT CAMP, Commanding
Mailing address: 4888 Southern Ave., Memphis, TN 38117
Cell Phone: 901-644-0145