Brenda Skidmore's Health Tips

Have any of you ever been solicited to take a public opinion poll, in how you feel (emotionally) about America's current economic crisis? If if you haven't, it should not surprise you that the confidence of the vast majority of our population, who has been polled, agrees that our economic future looks pretty dismal. As a group of like-minded individuals that flock together,of those that see a dismal economic future, their confidence about today is not to high up on the scale of prosperity either.

This is what most media sources, purposely, focus on. They love to report negative news, it gives them more viewing attention.

That's a funny old thing about human nature, isn't it, that so many people can be lead down the road of negativity. It's amazing how, surprisingly,easy it is too. Be very careful of where you choose to get your trusted source of negative propaganda (whoops- I mean news).

I agree that our economic outlook picture has not been painted very pretty by many an individual's trusted media outlet source, there is, however, not much we can do about that. Some important things like over inflated oil futures, housing costs, and outrageous credit card debt are, unfortunately, the direct results of bad individual choices that a massive amount of our population has made for themselves. That is the cold, hard truth of it.

However, this downward economic spiral trend is going to have to continue to, completely, play itself out. Because of the many bad choices, that so many have made, they will find that they not only will live through this crisis, they will also come to see the sliver lining (so to speak) because of their poor choices. The enlightened among the masses simply see these acts of failures as 'life lessons' in learning how to use the opportunity of a failure to better oneself tomorrow. And, sometimes you do have to fall flat on your face, as tough as it is, to truly get the lesson. It is not going to be the 'end of the world'.

Four dollars a gallon gas just may be the very beginning of this nation's saving grace in enlightening massive amounts of people to think before they buy. Think about that for a moment. Of course, corporate America,along with our government's encouragement, has pushed the idea of spend...spend,spend. Many have fallen flat on their derriere by adopting this way of thinking.

When gasoline was cheap, and diesel fuel even cheaper, no one thought about how much of it they were using. Detroit was selling us, 10 years ago, on the prestigious idea of wanting to buy large gas-guzzling SUVs and large pickup trucks. Who doesn't like to sit up high when their driving around for fun? Forget that most people used them as main vehicles, and were not needing to frequently haul anything necessary around in them most of the time.

Now, just a few short years later, people ARE thinking about how to use less fuel everyday in getting to from point A to B. Every single day that passes now, there even more of these fuel guzzling vehicles on the market to buy, at discounted prices (no one seems to want them as badly), as people step down to buy more hybrid model vehicles, and just plain old cars. Yes, some of them are odd looking, but they are cars.

More people are walking, biking, or car pooling when possible. Hey, a lot of us are trying to change our country's economic future outlook. How? Just by changing their view of the PRESENT moment. You can either look at the glass that's presented to you as half empty or half full. You get to decide which way to look at it, and you can decide that today.

I'm a gal who, most of the time, sees the glass of life as half full. Here are some of the reasons why I think high gas prices will be healthier for us all.

* We are going to become a population that, consciously, appreciates and uses what available resources we have more carefully. Look at how big living green has become. A few years ago most considered it eccentric.

* Because of high priced fuel, those who live short distances away from shopping conveniences will get, at least, somewhat healthier by deciding they can walk, bike, or take public transportation to pick up forgotten items on their weekly shopping lists.

* Because many of our nation's people live in the 'heartland' (that includes me) will have to shop more carefully for our weekly necessities, including our food. After all, we have to use more fuel to fetch it as we have no other options. That is where shopping the internet can help everyone out a lot.

* Many will choose to eat a more vegetarian diet. Fruits and vegetables are healthier for you anyway. Especially, if they are home-grown, and they easier for mid-westerners to find at local farmers markets. Keeps sustainable foods sources closer to home, and uses lees fuel by not transporting it all over the place.

* Because field corn is not a natural diet for animals, or people to begin with, the high price of commercially raised beef is going to keep a lot of people from eating a nutritious food source. But, that will be healthier for all of us in the long-run because it will put many of us back in touch with our friendly, locally grass-fed beef cattle farmer/rancher.

* One last pearl of wisdom, we are all learning some important "life lessons' now. We are learning NOT to trust our people in government to do anything, remotely, serious about the high cost of fuel, high medical health care costs, or the current war that seems to be, falsely, propping up a failing economy. I believe we were most likely in trouble, economically, before the war began. Don't expect your elected officials to save you (you have to do that for yourself) because they are NOT going to cut-off their invested interests in America's corporate profits for your security issues. Get use to that idea, and get a life.

Sure, we were sold a few years ago on the economics of using corn for fuel. In my view, this is a better use for corn than in our food supply, but from an economic stand point it's more trouble than its worth. Besides, how many of you want to share what clean water resources we have left for the sake of being able to drive around, cheaper? You won't be able to do that unless you are properly hydrated every day anyway, or eat as well if there is no clean water to raise your meat and fruit & vegetables with.

The good news is, we really won't have to depend on the government to do it for us anyway. I believe this. We will enforce our own sanity upon ourselves.

In our political leaders attempting to play deaf and dumb to our needs, in securing our economic future, we are going to discover our brilliant intelligence. We are going to be able to do our own policing of the bad marketing strategies that have been handed to us for our discretion.

All marketing techniques no matter how truthful or untruthful, are all about choices you decide to make before purchasing anything. We are going to be able to cut through to the truth, and ultimately make better choices for ourselves. One of these days, sooner than you thought possible, the market will be catering to what you want, or don't want, in products in the near future. They just want you to continue to buy their stuff.

What are your thoughts? Do you have any good ideas as to how the high price of automobile fuel is going be healthier for us? If so, please leave a comment here, I'd love to get your take on this subject.