Marshall's Thoughts: an Inside Look at how I draw my Opinions and Conclusions.

Marshall — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 21:03:16 -0600

Over my 40 years I have come to realize I think very different from most people. It started to become clear to me at a very early age, because many older people would listen to me and ask my opinion. Even in my early teens, I would think what is the reason someone would do or make certain comments and would try to figure out what would be the reason, whether I agreed with it or not. So you could probably imagine I was a pretty serious kid, even though I had a pretty good sense of humor with my close friends. Also, I have always been a person that my family and friends would come to when they needed an honest opinion or advice. They would confide in me because I am VERY honest and direct, so they know I will give them the best opinion or advice I could. I make it very clear to Family and Friends if I am asked a question, I will tell them what I really think without sugar on top. I have always said "if you don't want my honest answer to your question, DON'T ask!" So I have been able to help, comfort, and solve many problems for other people that are or were close to me. However, I also noticed that I didn't have the the same luck for my own issues, because many people can not understand what makes a person like me tick, so I would find myself talking over people I would try to confide in. So eventually I realized, it was NOT worth even talking about my issues, if my Wife could not help me, then I would just have to deal with whatever it was by myself.

I feel like my biggest asset and problem in some cases is I talk from the Center. I believe there is ALWAYS 2 sides to an issue/problem. Again, I think there is ALWAYS 2 sides to an issue/problem; however, there is NOT 2 sides to the FACTS. The hard part is how do you find what the FACTS are and help the person see the FACTS for themselves if the FACTS can be found. So when I talk to someone about their problems/issues, it is usually relatively easy for me to help them because I actually put myself in the shoes of all the parties involved. I really believe most of the problems we have are based on Selfishness and the lack of ability or desire to understand where others are coming from on an issue. Most of us have been taught to think exclusively about ourselves, and what is best for ME, MYSELF and I! It is almost impossible to solve problems with a ME, MYSELF and I, outlook, especially due to the fact that most solutions are somewhere in the middle, which usually requires a person to at least consider the other sides of the issue.

So when I think about an issue on a larger scale, like National Issues, I would initially find myself not getting the same response as I would get on personal issues. If I was allowed to fully explain the point I was trying to make, after listening to others points of view I would usually eventually get an extremely positive response to whomever I was talking to. They would usually state something like "I never thought of it from that point of view." Also many people would tell me, maybe you should get into Politics! Which to be honest, I really never considered Politics because as I stated previously I am very HONEST, and I don't think the American Public is very receptive to HONEST people in Politics, and I am NOT willing to sell my soul. I do believe that is changing, but we have a long ways to go. Eventually I figured, if I am NOT going to get into Politics, how could I help more people and bring some light to Important issues that not only dealt with the problem, but actually dealt with creating a Solution.

I eventually decided I would create a FREE Call-In Internet Radio Show called MarshallTalk, hosted by myself with a couple Guest Host. It became pretty popular very quickly, and soon after the Internet Radio Show went live, I decided to add an Internet Blog, so that more people could participate if they were unable to get in during the Broadcast. After broadcasting for about 3 or 4 months, I found it to be too expensive to keep the Radio Show Online, especially due to the fact, that I was doing it as a Hobby, and only have a couple sponsors. Also, during this period, I became very iIl, so I had to stop broadcasting immediately. After returning to good health, I could not afford to keep it Online, because I was unable to secure more Sponsors. NOW, I am BACK after a Year Hiatus, without the Radio Show, just me writing my thoughts on a range of important issues including those that are controversal. I am not really shy about any major issue; however, I do understand some issues are much harder to obtain consensus on.

So I ask that when you read what I write in this Blog, keep in mind I am trying to see it from a non-bias perspective; however, I do realize that many people are not even open to trying to understand anyone's perspective besides their own without any deep thought. Of course, usually this is a result of some personal issue. Here are some Examples: Can a Politician tell you exactly what they actually think about every issue? Does every person that claims they are Religious, actually believe in it, or do some of them use it for their personal agenda? Is every person that say they are not sexist or racist, actually being honest? These are just a few examples of what I mean. Many times what people say is totally based on how they think it will help them.