In this day and age, freedom is the single most important value this country provides its people.  However, people in this country seem to be willing to hand over their freedom to drive as more and more cars are coming closer and closer to self driving. Don’t you like being in control of a vehicle anymore?  Having that power in your fingertips and toes to control your life and destination. Having that quick rush of adrenaline the minute your foot kicks the accelerator to a higher gear.  That feeling is sheer bliss for the millions of car fanatics out there.  If the self-driving trends continue, those people will probably be forced to “drive freely” on a NASCAR Track.  Can you believe the nerve of those Self-Driving futuristic bastards?  Taking this sheer bliss and power away from the American people!  The funniest part is that I am not a huge car fanatic.  Frankly, I would love if my car could drive on it’s own.  But, I’m afraid we are moving closer and closer to a world where that freedom will be taken away.  And I don’t like my freedoms to be taken away.   If self-driving cars became law, who would be the ones most affected by it?  Those car loving, freedom loving people out there, that’s who.
            A group of my friends consider themselves to be car fanatics.  They hold a different kind of passion for automobiles than the average person like you and I.  Some would consider it love, but it’s definitely an emotional bond to the freedom and control a car provides.  Don’t you believe it would be criminal to take something like that away from people like my buddies?  In my opinion, I believe it’s no one’s right to take another’s passion or love away from him or her.  Big Brother had implemented many laws over the years to take our freedom away in the name of safety from ourselves.  But there is a point where this has to stop.
            Have you noticed the significant changes in the most recent “Fast and the Furious” movies?  Remember how the old ones were all about illegal street racing.  This was powerful because illegal street racing could be done by anyone (illegally, of course).   No matter who you are, with a vehicle, anyone could bring out a little rebel self.  The first “Fast and the Furious” was famous because it showed the freedom Americans had.  We take for granted the control we have in driving.  We all could start an underground street-racing league if we wanted.  Sure it is entirely impractical and illegal, but the truth is we all could if we wanted to.  The film “Fast and the Furious” took a beautiful passion and brought it to life for millions of Americans.  Now with the newer films, they have taken the realism and relations with the American people out.   What made the franchise so successful in the first place was showing the American people the power they had and probably didn’t realize.  Such a shame they had to turn the movie franchise into unrealistic action films. 
            And to add more fury to the fire, what if self-driving vehicles could be hacked?  So all of us are going to hand over our rights to drive with thousands of haters in this world?  What if we had enemies or people who didn’t like us and they wanted to take us out of commission?  You mean to tell me they could hack my car and run me off a bridge from the comfort of their own home?  Are you shitting me?  All this time protecting people, who love driving, I completely forgot the true risk involved.  If we won’t be driving, do we trust our lives to something or someone who doesn’t have an equal mortal risk or care?  I highly doubt Siri is going to have a funeral and mourn over me when I pass.  Quite honestly, Artificial Intelligence could cost me my life either deliberately through the hands of another or via a malfunction.  That’s fucking terrifying!
            As a country, America is not ready to hand over driving rights.  The reason has nothing to do with oil, electricity, and/or renewable fuels.  The reason is because we value our freedoms and lives more than any Artificial Intelligence could.  Truth is I love being alive!  So, I am not letting anything or anyone that I don’t trust, be in control of my life.  Would you?  It’s only a matter of time before our government finds out millions of car loving Americans would rather be in control of their lives, than be permanent passengers.    

     This blog is targeted at those over protective under-disciplined parents out there.  Let’s start by stating, you people are doing more harm than good for your children.  Believe me, some of us have met your children and they have the social skills of an ape and the drive of a snail.  Befriending your kids has been so difficult that I felt obligated to write a post about it. 
     The kids, who were rarely disciplined, will eventually get humbled before they enter adulthood.  Without the discipline they should have received from their parents, the “humbler” ends up being “Life” for the child.  If you don’t know by now, “Life” tends to be a lot less forgiving on your child then you are.  Although it might be difficult to punish your children, it is critical for your child to recognize their shortcomings and learn to make the right decisions.  Too many millennials have an entitlement that stems from never being “put in their place.”  Parents who place structure and discipline on their kids tend to not be best friends with their children.  But that is okay.  I grew up disliking my mother to the point of what I thought was hate.  Everything I did was to prove to her I was worth a shit.  Although my mother was very supportive, she always was the one that had to “put me in my place” or humble me. 
     As I got older, I learned to value those times my mom was the bad guy the most.  She knew I hated and feared her everyday.  Despite my “hatred,” she was teaching me valuables lesson that I needed to learn.   The first and most important lesson was that I am not the only person with the only right perspective on this planet.  When I was fucking up, my mother woke me up.  Not because she was being the bad guy.  My mother knew the gifts I had and would never let them go to waste.  Through structure and discipline, I learned to find greater goals than my childhood self could have ever imagined. 
     Through the lessons I learned from my parents, I developed a sense of humility that gave me the power to establish incredible friendships. For the first time, as an only child, the absence of siblings disappeared. Naturally, I began treating all my friends as brothers and sisters.  It became a habit.  I just wanted everyone to look out for me as I looked out for them.  Beliefs didn’t matter if we looked out for each other, because we simply cared.  When others struggled making friends due to a lack of humility, I was gifted in it and helped them to understand their challenges.  My mother gave me that beautiful gift through being my perspective bad guy throughout my childhood. 
     My childhood perspective of discipline was so single-minded now looking back at it.  However, now I understand truth behind being punished or “grounded”. This was the proof there were other, better options out there to the sometimes-careless decisions I made growing up.  Maybe I didn’t think I was in the wrong or making the wrong decisions, but someone else (My Mother) could have a completely different perspective.  Simple, and yet those lessons kept gifting me loyal friendships and a drive to succeed based on a common perspective of humility.  Lord knows my parents could have chosen to always be the good guys.  However, if they had.  Jason Franklin would have never been the self-proclaimed legend he was born to be.  Yeah, here in America we can give ourselves self-proclaimed titles.    
     So, thank God for the structure parents place on their children.  May those children promote humility and understanding to the rest of the world. The future parents out there must remember to provide structure and discipline.  This WILL inevitably help your child in life.  I hope America refrains from populating this world with children who deserve ass beatings.

     Have you ever pondered how you should live your life?  That is, should you live fast (lead) or should you die slow (follow)?  From my perspective, it is better to live fast.   In order to live fast, you must be a visionary freeing yourself from the oppression of others.  Lives for visionaries move differently than those who choose to follow the visions of others.  For visionaries, life tends to be an adventure each day, uncovering new ways to change the world.  Although there are risks with trying to change the world, most visionaries stay faithful to their vision.  Whether their visions end up working or not, the fact that someone can stay faithful to a belief or vision they have is a remarkable feature.  For the people who choose to die slow through following others, it is time someone tells you the real risks you may experience and the joy you may lose.
            Not all visionaries and leaders are good people.  Some can have terrible visions that don’t make the world a better place.  In fact, they make it much worse.  If a person has a vision to cause harm to the world, you would think it would be easy to recognize, right?  Unfortunately, not always.  History has shown that to be true.  Following people may put you at risk for contributing unknowingly to evil.  I say unknowingly because, although it might not be your fault, you are giving up your personal freedom when you choose to follow someone else.  Following another’s vision keeps you from the root source of the truth within the vision.  If the vision isn’t yours, make sure you know the truth before following whole-heartedly.   If you don’t, you are taking a big risk.
            If you choose to die slow as a follower, make sure it is with a leader whom you know for a fact is admirable.  Too many leaders today forget the key qualities it takes to lead.  If you end up being a follower of a corporation or another’s vision, make sure it is a vision you are willing to dedicate your life to.  Make sure your leader is a person who holds his/her peers to an equal level of respect.  He or she must be able to take full responsibility for the people who are following them. (Yes, this means they need to be able to sacrifice for the greater good of their following).  If your leader shares these qualities then you are very lucky and I pray that you keep up the good work.  If not, time to reconsider what you want your life story to be about.  Please don’t make it just about making money.
            I encourage everyone to be a visionary, but the truth is that not everyone will be.  That is what makes the world work.  In order for someone to be a successful visionary, they must have a strong following.  In order to have a strong following, the visionary must have all the qualities it takes to lead.  Above all, the followers must believe in the vision to support it and give it meaningful power.  A vision with no following is entirely fiction.  A following with no vision is chaos.  Chaos hasn’t, and will never reign as long as there are good-hearted leaders on this planet.    

     Whether you’re rich or poor, everyone will eventually have to experience a loss.  Life tends to humble humanity naturally through death.  It doesn’t matter if you were the best person in the world or the worst person; most everyone knows or will know what it feels like to lose someone.  Losing is always hard; especially if that loss is a person you cared deeply for.  The reason why I am writing this is because I lost a person I cared deeply for this week.  But I understand why I am so sad.  It is because of how much this person played a part in my life and how much they had to do with who I have become.  This person taught me critical things, things I have engrained in myself that make me who I am today.  If that isn’t love, I don’t know what is.
     There are several reasons why I consider myself a good person and many of those are from the lessons I learned from the family member I lost.  I realized something in that moment of sorrow following her death.  That is, good people are still here today because of the good people who raised them.  Loved ones have kept good teachings alive to pass on.  Forget about religion!  The fact that people pass down lessons to their families to be good is what makes this world an incredible place to live.  The person I lost was a great person who taught me how to be great because she wanted me to be great.  If that’s not love, I don’t know what is. 
     I lost a person who always saw the best in me.  Lord knows I have just as many flaws as anybody, and yet she saw none of my flaws as flaws.  This woman, no matter what, would look at me as a perfect being.  How can you not strive to be perfect when there is someone on this earth who believes you are?  To this day, I am still trying to reach the best I can be because I would never want to disappoint her.  If that isn’t love, I don’t know what is. 
     The worst part about losing someone is that it also comes with critical lessons to be learned.  Among all, we must learn to adapt to the world without them and learn to continue to grow as people.  We must learn to celebrate the times we had and the things we learned from our angels rather than dwell in sadness.  Always remember life is precious, and so is time.  One day someone is going to collect all our debts in the ends of our lives, financial debts and emotional ones.  Let’s just hope we have led a good life so that person or persons dealing with our debts love us and are willing to manage those debts for us. 
     It makes me happy to know there is a place out there for angels.  My prayers go out to the one I lost and to my family, who are also suffering, as well as all the people who have lost loved ones.  May they all rest in peace.  The memories never die with the deceased.  If that isn’t love, I don’t know what is.   Love you Grandma…

     I wish this world was as simple as everyone thinks it is.  I wish friendships could all be beautiful and perfect.  But for the obliviously optimistic people out there like myself, not all of them are.  Unfortunately, it took me 25 years to figure that out.  Oh well, better late than never.  Anyway, I wanted to make a post for those of you who need to get a better perspective on your friendships.  I will explain to you what I call the Friendship Paradigm.  This paradigm will show you that the friendships you have, might not be the friendships you think you have. Don’t worry, I am not a downer, just an informer.
     If you are a kid/person who has always thought every single one of your friends is a true friend, then this post is for you.  Let’s talk in the matters of perspective.  For example, let’s say I have two friends named Michael and Steve.  In front of my face, Michael and Steve are friendly and seem to always get along with me.  So, my perspective is that they are good friends.  However, what if once I leave, Michael and Steve go on a two-hour flame parade, disrespecting me like I was the butt of a roast.  Would you consider those people to be my friends?  Would they be my friends even if I never knew what they were doing?  Chances are they are not really doing that when I leave, however, you may have no way of ever figuring out how they truly feel about you.  They may tell you that you are the greatest, but who knows if they are just feeding you some bullshit line.  So, given that, I started to look at friendships in a completely different way.
     To be friends with people, you must be willing to disclose something unnoticeable about yourself.  By doing that a bond and strong foundation will be developed through trust.  I am not saying you need to divulge huge secrets about yourself, but you need to prove you are credible and honest to “your friends” and they need to do the same to you.   If a friend is unwilling to do this, well then, chances are they are dissing you behind your back.  However, if that is not the case, once you develop bonds like this, you will be much less likely to find yourself in different friendship realities.  You and your friends must be true to each other always or else the friendship will fail as a result of a faulty foundation.  Of course, you can always beg forgiveness if you falter, but let's try not to get in that situation.
     It is critical to have your friends on the same page as you are.  It is possible to truly cancel people out of friendships without them ever knowing it.  It happens all the time.  If Michael and Steve wanted to put on a false front, they could if they wanted.  Thus, completely cutting me off from an honest friendship and putting me relationally “up shit creek.”  I may still think I am friends with them and that they care about me.  But, in reality, they don’t.  They are just using me.  So, for all of you people who have a friend that you dislike but can’t disrespect them to their face, I am calling you out.  If you don’t like someone, don’t abuse their presence because you can.  At least be adult enough to tell them why you don’t like them and move on with your life, but (more importantly) let them move on with theirs.

     ​I am 25 years old and I am tired of “normal” network television.  I swear I spent the last year using my cable for just sports events.  Sports is literally the only reason why anyone my age should ever watch network television.  Once someone told me I could binge watch pretty much anything without ads, anytime I wanted, normal network television died to me.  I’m serious, dead like my favorite show as a kid, “All That.”
​     No one tells me when to watch a particular show and what my opinions should be.  I get to make those decisions for myself, and it is revolutionary.  When I hold a remote control now, I feel like I really have the power!  This makes me ask  “why should we watch regular television anymore?”  If we are told the news isn’t always honest and it floods us with commercials, why watch it?  The news seems to drive Network TV…. from the morning news and talk shows to the evening news, to the Dateline like docudramas.  If you watch that stuff, well you are becoming less informed and more opinionated and divisive.   Well, my generation is starting to recognize the rationale behind those questions and issues.  Today, there is so much more information and knowledge available to you at your fingertips through the internet and through alternative broadcast options and that is giving more power to the people.
     The constant growth in options such as Netflix, Hulu, HBO GO, Youtube, etc., is kicking the crap out of old corporate network’s asses as we speak.  Who would have ever thought it was possible for these Network’s to ever be threatened.  Shoot, now if I ever want to hear the “Real Personal Perspectives,” I just hop on YouTube.  And when I do that, I can hear it from every angle, not just the one that a given network is trying to push down my throat.  Maybe it’s just my generation, but we are sick of hearing from outdated hateful individuals who don’t have open minds.  Can we all at least agree that all the “line drawings” that all these network shows seem to be generating are getting old and preventing us from moving humanity forward?  I know at least a ton of my peers feel the same way (if that counts for anything).
            These are some exciting times for America and the rest of the world.  People now have freedom of knowledge through the technological advances this country has brought into the world.  The powerful people who were controlling public opinion through information are losing their hold on us.  It’s only a matter of time before these old opinionated networks become a thing of the past.

     Has anyone ever wondered why so many major inventions and technological advancements occurred in America rather than other countries.  America has been around for just a little over 200 years.  So many other countries have been here for thousands and thousands of years.  And why has technology and infrastructure advanced so far so fast?  Could it have something to do with the American dream that we all talk about?  I mean, come on now, maybe there is really something to it.  Maybe if people are given the opportunity to try anything, then that gets their creative juices flowing.  At least that’s what I believe.   If you look back in our short history, we can see so many inventions from electricity to the light bulb, from the automobile to the airplane… to the cotton gin, telephone, robots, lasers, personal computers… and it seems like fucking everything.  Hell, we even invented social media.   America is tops for bringing ideas to market.  It is because of who we are, our culture, and most importantly, our freedom.   I think now more than ever, people really need to hear that. 
     For those of you who think our government is a complete failure, look at the facts.  Our government, although not perfect, found a way to let visionaries be visionaries.  They allowed them to develop their ideas and be heard.  Again, I am not saying our government is perfect.  I’m just saying our government seems to be under a TON of scrutiny, but let’s look at the positives.  The way our country is established has given the world all these great inventions and advancements.   You’re Welcome!  Other empires/countries had thousands of years to move from horses and carriages to something else.  But it took Henry Ford in the good ole USA to make it happen.  Now remember I’m not saying America is perfect, but we are trying.  America always tries.
     God knows this country has and will have a ton of problems now and in the future.  The best part about this country is that we at least try to attack the tough problems.  Sometimes the tough problems don’t have quick answers, but they do need to be acknowledged and worked on.   
     So, let’s not get hysterical and complain about all the problems we have in this country (which are a lot).  It is time for this country to take ownership and do what this country always seems to do.  We always move forward.  We move forward socially, scientifically, technologically, and, hell, even spiritually if you’re into that.  God bless the choice America gave its citizens. We can choose to be visionaries or not.  Either way America can and will move forward.

     Just the other day I was watching the movie Talladega Nights.  I ended up dying of laughter (as always) at the infamous “Baby Jesus” scene.  As I watched the scene, I couldn’t help but notice how different the perceptions of Jesus were between the two main characters.  One character pictured Jesus as a baby, and the other pictured him as a lead singer of a rock band.  Although they both probably share similar religions, they both can’t be right in their perceptions of Jesus.  I know these are fictional characters but there are a lot of people who assume Jesus was a certain way.  Not everyone on the planet can have the correct perception of what Jesus was like.  So, let me give you my opinion.
     Jesus was probably a normal man who was very kind and compassionate.  I think it’s fair to say Jesus was a great speaker, but what about his personality?  In my opinion, I know Jesus was making people laugh left and right along the way.  I know he did not have a personality like some of those “joyful people” we see at the DMV.  If he did, that would just be very disappointing and no one would have wanted to talk to him.  I’d hate to think the one and only perfect man had any issues making people laugh.  We see all those paintings of him so serious.  I am guessing he actually had a great smile and smirk, but, of course, those paintings must be hidden away some where.
     Just by reading the Biblical Scripture, it is obvious Jesus had a magnetic personality.  To gain as many followers as he did, he must have been entertaining.  I am sorry but I don’t care if you turn my swimming pool into wine, I’m not listening to you if you sound like (monotone) Ben Stein.  Right?  I’m sure, in between all those parables, Jesus had some real “knee-slappers.”  It’s just so unfortunate no one thought to write those down.  If they did, we could have had priests that spoke the good word with a stage presence like Eddie Murphy.   No one got a chance to write them down because everyone was probably rolling on the floor dying of laughter.  I mean, that’s what I would have been doing.  So, I guess we will never know the funny stories Jesus told his disciples.  Those stories were probably locked away from the public for reasons I will never understand.
     Anyway, all I am saying is that I know Jesus had a sense of humor.  And thank God for that.

     Have you ever met anyone who can “Dish it but not take It”?  If you have, then you know the amount of caution that must be used when dealing with these types of people. Through experience, I have learned to cope with these individuals and befriend them as well.  Now, how many of you have shown up these soft asses in a drinking game or actual sport? Then because they don’t know how to lose properly, they end up ruining your day or night?  Yeah, I was guessing a lot of you would have had this same experience.  Anyway, I wanted to write a post to address those people who make big things out of little things and ruin things for others.  You know who you are.  Learn from your flaws!  Don’t run away from them!  My generation desperately needs to learn to have thicker skin so they can become better people.
     For those of you who cannot say or hear one thing bad about yourself without reacting negatively, we are onto you.  If you are confused, let me help.  Have any of you guys been to a party or function where there is a guy that passively pats himself on the back?  This guy would say things like, “Hey Mike, Remember that time I carried the team in beer pong and you made that last cup at the end?  That was dope!”  It doesn’t take a genius to notice, through misdirection, this moron wants everyone to get the message that he carried the team on his back.  I’ve also noticed most of these individuals are constantly chasing physique perfection (they go to the gym a lot) or directly telling others how great they are.   They are hoping to receive more masculine respect through physical intimidation.  For more than 2000 years, people have been using this technique and, for some reason, very few have called them out on it.  For those of you who go to the gym for personal or true health reasons, I am not talking about you.  Don’t worry, you’re chill.  I go to the gym sometimes myself….
     Are the people who deal with these people just supposed to keep their mouths shut?  In my opinion, if you do, then you are just an enabler.  These people will then be unaware of their effect on people, act like children and continue making the same mistakes going forward.  I always believed that you must risk it for the biscuit.  Some of you might not want to call these individuals out because you don’t want to hurt the relationship.  If that is the case, then I understand.  But personally, I like to be told when I’m fucking up.  It doesn’t take a genius to notice that my peers have a better third-person perspective than me.  They are the only people who know how to make me better as a person.  I would be dumb to not listen to them to know my strengths but, more importantly, my weaknesses.  Listen, all I am saying is that we all need to try and get better.  If you are a grown man and/or woman getting hysterical when someone confronts you over your stupid shit……   Stop, you look dumb as hell.  If you are the people who don’t want to speak up, well then I guess we will have to deal with these power complexes for another 2000 years.

​Have you ever questioned history and wondered how some of these people we label as pure evil garnered such huge followings?  These people, including some of the most well-known dictators and evil politicians, molded by their own perspectives and beliefs, felt like they were doing something good for society and mankind.  I know that popular media and American History tells us to hate these individuals because of the evil things they did (which is understandable), but why, in many cases, were they loved enough to be praised by millions?!
            All I am saying, is that they all seemed to be (in their minds and the minds of many others) the messiahs of their people.  If their people looked at them in that regard, then they must have had some good intentions to make their people feel as though they would be “saved.”  If these “self-proclaimed” messiahs wanted to be remembered as the messiah, then they would really have had to save their people.  If they lost or didn’t save their people, because of the violent actions and atrocities they committed through their journey, then they were not the messiah they claimed to be.  Instead, they were monsters trying to force the world to fit their own selfish perspective.
            I think a great example of this is the magical realism that was displayed during the age of Pablo Escobar.  Pablo believed he was the messiah of his poverty-stricken country of Columbia.  He was great for knowing and, most of all, loving the people of his country.  He wanted to help his people so much that he vowed he would do anything to improve their situations.  So, he got into the drug business to bring his country out of poverty.  Let’s be honest, if it was the only way to heal your people’s financial hurt, would you do it?  If you can’t understand that then let me ask you what would you do if that was the only thing you could do to give your family the lives they deserve.  Yeah that’s what I thought...  Unfortunately, with Pablo and others like him, greed took over at some point and he lost perspective for why he was doing what he was doing.
            This world is cursed in a reoccurring hateful phenomenon.  As a half Jewish descendant, I can easily say that Hitler was an incredibly evil individual.  But based on his accomplishments, Hitler was honored by his people and had a miraculous following!  How?!  I know there are a lot of “technical” reasons, but he must have also convinced somebody that he was a good-hearted savior!  Some evil villain can’t come up to me and say, “I am going to destroy the world and kill millions.  Now give me money and follow me as I do so.”  I’m going to be like, “Get the hell out of here with that Bullshit.”   Like Pablo and so many others, Hitler was destroyed.  Isn’t this proof that dictators and/or politicians who display evil actions to try to change the world, will always, in the end, be defeated by good. 
            Even evil people like Hitler and Pablo must have started out preaching great things on how they could make their world a better place.  As they preached great things and worked for the greater good they reached their highest of highs.  Then when their way of making the world a better place turned sour, it was all bad news for these men.  Sometimes I think, “Man, this world has a great way of humbling people who try to change the world into their selfish perspective.  Don’t you love it?”  It doesn’t matter how powerful or rich you become, the second you start making decisions to make the world fit you (and not you fit the world), is the second you sign your death warrant.
            AHHHHH! I can’t get over how much I love how this world humbles the humbled!