This world is ordered by the spirit of reason, this reassures me about everything else. When you are given a great, superior intelligence, it is necessary to give glory to God. Some deny God, but have a great pride of intellect, and pride often goes before a fall. Therefore, one’s punishment is greater than most. There are diverse ways to restore pride, which are well known but seldom understood in this context. We may, for example, have said something which later appears silly to us—off the point, inconsiderate, too arrogant, or too apologetic—and we may forget about it, deny that we said it, or content that it meant something quite different. Akin to such denials are distortions of an incident—minimizing our share, omitting certain factors, emphasizing others, interpreting them in our favor—so that in the end we are whitewashed and our pride is unscathed. The embarrassing incident may also stay in our mind unchanged but be whisked away by excuses and alibis. Somebody admits having made a nasty scene, but it was because he had not slept for three nights or because others provoked him. He has hurt somebody’s feelings, was indiscreet or inconsiderate, but his intentions were good. He has failed a friend who needs him, but it was because of lack of time. All these excuses may be partly or wholly true, but in the person’s mind they do not serve as extenuating circumstances for a failing but erase it altogether. Similarly, many people feel that to say they are very sorry about something sets everything right. #RandolphHarris 1 of
All these devices have in common the tendency to refuse responsibility for self. Whether we forget something we are not proud of, or embellish it, or blame somebody else, we want to save face (retain respect; avoid humiliation) by not owning up to shortcomings. The declining of responsibility for self can also be hidden behind a pseudo-objectivity. A patient may make astute observations about himself and give a fairly accurate report of what he dislikes in himself. On the surface, it seems as though he is perceptive and honest about himself. However, “he” may be merely the intelligent observer of a fellow who is inhibited, fearful, or arrogantly demanding. Hence, since he is not responsible for the fellow he observes, the hurt to his pride is cushioned—even more so because the flashlight of his pride is focused on his faculty for keen objective observations. Others do not care for being objective, or even truthful, about themselves. However, when—despite the diffuse evasiveness this attitude entails—such a patient does become aware of some neurotic trends, he may make a neat distinction between “him” and his “neurosis” or his “unconscious.” His “neurosis” is something mysterious that has nothing whatever to do with “him.” This sounds startling. It is for him not only a face-saving but a life-saving, or at any rate a sanity-saving, measure. The vulnerability of his pride has assumed such extreme proportions that he would be split wide open by owning up to his disturbances. #RandolphHarris 2 of 36
So much for the devices employed to restore pride when it has been hurt. However, the pride is both so vulnerable and so precious that it also must be protected in the future. The neurotic may build an elaborate system of avoidances in hope of circumventing future hurts. This too is a process that goes on automatically. He is not aware of wanting to avoid an activity because it might hurt his pride. He just avoids it, often without even being aware that he is. The process pertains to activities, to associations with people, and it may put a check on realistic strivings and efforts. If it is widespread, it can cripple a person’s life. He does not embark on any serious pursuits commensurate with his gifts lest he fail to be a brilliant success. He would like to write or to paint and does not dare to start. He does not dare to approach girls lest they reject him. He may not even dare to travel lest he be awkward with hotel managers or porters. Or, since he would feel like a nonentity with strangers, he may go only to places where he is well known. He withdraws from social contacts lest he be self-conscious. So, according to his economic status, he either does nothing worth while or sticks to a mediocre job and restricts his expenses rigidly. In more than one way, he lives beneath his means. In the long run, this makes it necessary for him to withdraw father from others, because he cannot face the fact of lagging behind his age group and therefore shuns comparisons or questions from anybody about his work. #RandolphHarris 3 of 36
To endure life, he must now entrench himself more firmly in his private fantasy-world. However, since all these measures are more a camouflage than a remedy for his pride, he may start to cultivate his neuroses because the neurosis with a capital N then becomes a precious alibi for the lack of accomplishment. These are extreme developments and pride is not the only factor operating in them, although it is one of the essential ones. More often, avoidances are restricted to certain areas. A person may be quite active and effective in those pursuits in which he is least inhibited and which are in the service of glory. He may, for instance, work hard and successfully in his field but shun social life. Conversely, he may feel safe in social activities, or in a Don Juan role, but would not dare to venture into any serious work which would put a test his potential capacities. He may feel safe in his role as an organizer but avoid any personal relations because he would feel vulnerable in them. Among the many fears of getting emotionally involved with others (neurotic detachment) the fear of injuries to pride often plays a prominent part. Also, for many reasons, a person may be particularly afraid of not being glamorously successful with the opposite gender. He unconsciously anticipates—on the case of a man—that when approaching women, or having pleasures of the flesh with them, his pride will be hurt. Women then present to him a potential threat (to his pride). This fear can be powerful enough to dampen, or even crush, his feelings of attraction to them and thereby cause him to avoid heterosexual contacts. The inhibition thus generated does not alone account for his turning homosexual, but it is indeed one of the contributing factors to a preference for own’s own gender. Pride in many diverse ways is the enemy of love. #RandolphHarris 4 of 36
Pride does not look up to God and care about what is right. It looks sideways to man and argues who is right. Pride is self-will as opposed to God’s will. It is the fear of man over the fear of God. Humility responds to God’s will—to the fear of His judgments and to the needs of those around us. To the proud, the applause of the world rings in the ears; to the humble, the applause of heaven warms their hearts. Pride is a very misunderstood sin, and many are sinning in ignorance. In the scriptures, there is no such thing as righteous pride—it is always considered a sin. Therefore, no matter how the world uses the term, we must understand how God uses the term so we can understand the language of holy write and profit by it. “And upon these, I write the things of my soul, and many of the scriptures which are engraven upon the plates of brass. For my soul delighteth in the scriptures, and my heart pondereth them, and writeth them for the learning and the profit of my children,” reports 2 Nephi 4.15. The central feature of pride is enmity-enmity toward God and enmity toward our fellowmen. Enmity means “hatred toward, hostility to, or a state of opposition.” It is the power by which the adversary wishes to reign over us. Pride is essentially competitive in nature. We put our will against God’s. When we direct our pride toward God, it is in the spirit of “my will and not thine be done.” As Paul said, they “seek their own, not the things which are Jesus Christ’s,” reports Philippians 2.21. #RandolphHarris 5 of 36
Manipulators never have learned the secret of balance between authentic surrender and honest striving. They are instead junior gods who try to run their lives and the lives of others by control and manipulation. They have a deeply rooted attitude of distrust in themselves and others. Even their passive, helpless manipulations are a form of striving for omnipotence, in that the helpless one always controls and directs the active ones in his or her life. The active demanding and “shoulding” of a manipulator are also forms of omnipotence that display a deep distrust of other persons’ potential for independent action. Actualization is the alternative that offers humanness. It offers belief in oneself and in one’s full potentials, valuing one’s limitations, and loving oneself despite these limitations. Actualizers balance their polarities of love and anger, weakness, and strength, allowing each full measure in their day-to-day experience. Actualizers believe that their organisms, as made, can be trusted to work in their efforts to cope with the problems of living. Possibly the most important idea we can offer is that the human need not to be a manipulator and, equally important, need not be a helpless victim of manipulation. With awareness, manipulation decreases and actualization increases. A basic concept of Gestalt therapy is of the “continuum of awareness.” This means that one can learn to focus on the ever-changing moment and express what she or he is experiencing from moment to moment. What we focus on now seems to be summarized in three dimensions: (1) Here vs. There (someplace else), (2) Now vs. Past or Future, and (3) Feeling vs. Thinking. The therapist, in helping a patient learn how to sharpen her awareness continually asks her to finish this statement: “Here and now, I am aware that _______.” #RandolphHarris 6 of 36
The patient then describes what she is feeling, thinking, and sensing in the here and now. Her thinking consists either of remembering the past of planning the future. Her sensing is what she is now seeing or hearing. Her feeling is the emotions she is experiencing at the time. People must learn to be obvious. The manipulator customarily does not see or hear such small things as movements of hands and feet, facial expressions, posture, and intonation in his or her voice or in the voices of others. However, as he is guided to raise his awareness through exercises such as the above, he moves from deadness to aliveness. Instead of relying on calculated manipulations to deal with others, the manipulator is helped to trust his spontaneous reactions to his world. Why is awareness so important? The reason is that awareness is the first strep to change. Awareness really does not require striving. It requires looking and really seeing, listening, and really hearing, touching, and really feeling. If you are really listening to what the person is saying, it is impossible to manipulate someone. Sometimes awareness even comes when you play your phony, manipulative role when seeking external support. Especially in the safety of a therapeutic setting, you can critically experience your manipulative roles—be your own “snotty, little self”—no matter how foolish or ridiculous they may be. #RandolphHarris 7 of 36
The awareness comes when you both intellectually admit your phoniness and at the same time experience it emotionally. You can then experience the self-defeating quality of manipulation and become freer to create from these roles the complementary, actualizing behaviors. By asking a patient to experience her dependent manipulation, and then by asking her to be the “wise therapist,” the therapist gets her to discover and respect her own wise, actualizing potential, which lies deep within herself. So, we see that the road to emotional health runs through the expression of manipulative behaviors, not through rejection and striving for change! Awareness of the futility of manipulation leads to the power of self-actualization. Persons’ self-concepts are open to influence by views that other people have of them. Beliefs about oneself are not based on conclusions arrived at through independent self-study, but rather are derived by listening to what other people have said about one’s nature. If we listen to them, other people define us to ourselves. Thus, one’s mother says, “You are lazy, like your father.” The child did not know he was lazy until he was told. Once he believes that his is his essential nature, he will act as a lazy person is expected to. When other people attribute traits to a person, their descriptions function like hypnotic suggestions, inducing or persuading the individual to conform with the others’ view. If the others define the person as weak or bad, this vulnerability to others’ influence is a liability; it is also an asset, because one can attribute strength and goodness to a person, who then will discover he or she can be strong and good. #RandolphHarris 8 of 36
When all others, including the patient sees themselves as weak, dependent, and worthless, psychotherapists exert a beneficial influence upon their patients by seeing them as potentially strong and self-reliant. People constantly define one another, thereby confirming one another’s self-concepts, for better or for worse. Listen to everyday conversations between parents and their children, between close friends, or between spouses: “Carter, put your coat and hat on; you know you are weak and will catch a cold.” (Carter is being led to believe that his body will not tolerate temperature changes without risk of pneumonia.) “Paris, you are such an obliging and generous girl—you could never refuse anyone or say an unkind work.” (Paris is being condemned to a life in which she cannot lose her temper or do anything to please herself; her nature has just been defined for her.) A husband may define his wife as follows: “Here, dear, let me balance the checkbook; you know you could never add two numbers together.” (She is confirmed in a view of herself as silly, helpless, and impractical.) Besides the biological and psychological characteristics of the human organism which allow the preprogrammed script to become the master of personal destiny, societies are set up in such a way as to encourage this lack of autonomy. This is done by means of the transactional social contract, which reads: “You accept my persona or self-presentation, and I will accept yours.” #RandolphHarris 9 of 36
Any abrogation of the social contract, unless it is one specifically permitted in each group, is regarded as rudeness. The result is a lack of confrontation: confrontation with others and confrontation with oneself, for behind this social contract lies a hidden individual contract between the three aspects of the personality. The Parent, Child, and Adult agree among themselves to accept each other’s self-presentation, and not everyone is courageous enough to change such a contract with himself when it is advisable. Lack of confrontation is seen most clearly in the case of schizophrenics and their therapists. Most therapists (in my experience) say that schizophrenia is incurable. By this they mean: “Schizophrenia is incurable by my kind of psychoanalytic therapy, and I am darned if I am going to try anything else.” Hence, they settle for what they call “making progress,” and like the well-known electrical manufacturer, progress is their principal product. However, progress means merely making the schizophrenic live mor bravely in his crazy world, rather than getting him out of it, and so the earth is full of brave schizophrenics living out their tragic scripts with the help of not so brave therapists. Two other slogans common among therapists are also common among the general population: “You cannot tell people what to do,” and “I cannot help you; you have to help yourself.” Both are outright falsehoods. You can tell people what to do, and many of them will do it and do it well. And you can help people, and they do not have to help themselves. They merely must get up, after you have helped them, and go about their business. #RandolphHarris 10 of 36
However, with slogans such as those, society (and I do not mean Arisiety, I mean all societies) encourages people to stay in their scripts and carry them through to their often-tragic endings. A script merely means that someone told the person what to do a long time ago and he decided to do it. Especially if you have children, this demonstrates that you can tell people what to do, and are in fact telling them all the time. So, if you tell people to do something other than what their parents told them, they may decide to follow your advice or instruction. And it is well known that you can help people become inebriated, of die from death by suicide, or end someone else’s life; therefore, you can also help them stop abusing alcohol, stop them from dying from death by suicide, or stop killing other people. It is certainly possible to give people permission to do certain things, or to stop doing certain thins which they were ordered in childhood to keep doing. Instead of encouraging people to live bravely in an old, unhappy world, it is possible to have them live happily in a brave new world. Acceptance of a teaching ought to come from a deeper level than surface attraction only. There ought to be an understanding also. The power of the mind needed to find truth is not commonly possessed. Those who lack it can benefit by the discoveries made by the self-actualized. However, they ought to test them in their own life-experience to confirm whether they be true. #RandolphHarris 11 of 36
Other men also have striven for self-mastery, have sought for truth since centuries ago. He should take advantage of their discoveries and secure the benefit of what they have learned. Whatever is learnt from this valuable heritage of the past must still be applied in the present to make it a living force in one’s own existence. This brings it to fill meaning, instead of remaining half-lost. Thos earlier statements of truth have their value; but it is unwise to forget the time and place of their making, for we must remember our own too. It is not by wholesale swallowing of traditionally accepted doctrines that we are going to expand our intelligence. Amid such diversity of schools, the bewildered student would do well to pause and study the history of thought before choosing among the many rivals competing for his favor. Amidst such a chaotic welter of ideas, he should look rather for a master key which will reconcile them all than for a single satisfying system, because undoubtedly each has its special contribution to make towards the case of Truth. The key exists and search will find it out. There may be no sense of recognition, no feeling of ancient familiarity with these teachings, and yet they may have a strong appeal and attraction for him. It is not enough in these days to quote scripture. There are many who do not hold it in awe and who consequently remain unconvinced. It is now necessary to quote facts also. #RandolphHarris 12 of 36
He need not share the timid concern for consistency. He need not be imprisoned forever in views which he held long ago. If at different periods of his life, he has slowly changed or abruptly altered his world-view, he need not be intimidated by his own past record. Had he not been a seeker, quite probably this would not have happened, and he would have remained sunk in the ignoble complacency of thoughtless orthodoxy. Do not believe merely because the written statement some educated person has produced. Why not accept the best of the past? It is at least as valuable as the best of the present, while having the added advantage of having been tested by time. These writing have roused some sleeping minds, and galvanized some sleeping souls. With that their work was done: teaching must be sought elsewhere. In the 1820’s among the first Russian revolutionaries, the Decembrists, virtue still existed. Jacobin idealism had not yet been uprooted from the hearts of these gentlemen. They even practiced conscious virtue: “Our fathers were sybarities, we are Catos,” said one of them, Peter Viazemsky. To this only added the opinion, which will still be found in Bakunin and the revolutionary socialists of 1905, that suffering regenerates. The Decembrists remind us of the French nobles who allied themselves with the third estate and renounced their privileges. Patrician idealist, they deliberately chose to sacrifice themselves for the liberation of the people. #RandolphHarris 13 of 36
Even though their leader, Pestel, was a political and social theorist, their abortive conspiracy had no fixed program; it is not even sure that they believed in the possibility of success. “Yes, we shall die,” one of them said on the eve of the insurrection, “but it will be a fine death.” It was, in fact, a fine death. In December 1825 the rebels, arranged in formation, were mown down by the cannon fire in the square in front of the Senate at St. Petersburg. The survivors were deported, but not before five had been hanged, and so clumsily that it had to be done twice. It is easy to understand why these ostensibly inefficacious victims have been venerated, with feelings of exaltation and horror, by all the revolutionary Russia. If not efficacious, they were exemplary. They indicated, at the beginning of this chapter of revolutionary history, the ambitions, and the greatness of what Hegel ironically called the beautiful soul in relation to which Russian revolutionary ideas were, nevertheless, to be defined. In this atmosphere of exaltation, German thought came to combat French influence and impose its prestige on minds torn between their desire for vengeance and justice and the realization of their own impotent isolation. It was first received, extolled, and commented upon as though it were revelation itself. The best minds were inflamed with passion for philosophy. They even went so far as to put Hegel’s Logic into verse. #RandolphHarris 15 of 36
For the most part, Russian intellectuals at first inferred, from the Hegelian system, the justification of a form social quietism. To be aware of the rationality of the world sufficed; the Spirit would realize itself, in any case, at the end of time. That is the first reaction of Stankevich, Bakunin, and Bielinsky, for example. If not intentional, then the Russian mind recoiled at this factual complicity with absolutism and, immediately jumped to the opposite extreme. Nothing is more revealing, in this respect, than the evolution of Bielinsky, one of the most remarkable and most influential minds of the 1830’s and 40’s. Beginning with a background of rather vague liberation idealism, Bielinsky suddenly discovers Hegel. In his room, at midnight, under the shock of revelation, he bursts into tears like Pascal and suddenly becomes a new man. “Neither chance nor the absolute exists, I have made my adieux to the French.” At the same time, he is still a conservative and a partisan of social quietism. He writes to that effect without a single hesitation and defends his position, as he perceives it, courageously. However, this essentially kindhearted man then sees himself allied with what is most detestable in the world: injustice. If everything is logical, then everything is justified. One must consent to the whip, to serfdom, to Siberia. To accept the world and its sufferings seemed to him, at one moment, the noble thing to do because he imagined that he would only have to bear his own sufferings and his own contradictions. #RandolphHarris 16 of 36
However, if it also implied consent to the sufferings of others, he suddenly discovered that he had not the heart to continue. He set out again in the opposite direction. If one cannot accept the suffering of others, then something in the world cannot be justified, and history, at one point at least, no longer coincides with reason. However, history must be completely reasonable or it is not reasonable at all. This man’s solitary protest, quieted for a moment by the idea that everything can be justified, bursts forth again in vehement terms. Bielinsky addressed Hegel himself: “With all the esteem due to your philistine philosophy. I have the honor to inform you that even if I had the opportunity of climbing to the very top of the ladder of evolution, I should still ask you to account for all the victims of life and history. I do not want happiness, even gratuitous happiness, if my mind is not at rest concerning all my blood brothers.” Bielinsky understood that what he wanted was not the absolute of reason but the fullness of life. He refuses to identify them. He wants the immortality of the entire man, clothed in his living body, not the abstract immortality of the species become Spirit. He argues with equal passion against new adversaries, and draws, from this fierce interior debate, conclusions that he owns to Hegel, but which he turns against him. These are the conclusions of individualism in revolt. #RandolphHarris 17 of 36
The individual cannot accept history as it is. He must destroy reality, not collaborate with it, to affirm his own existence. “Negation is my god, as reality formerly was. My heroes are the destroyers of the past: Luther, Voltaire, the Encyclopedists, the Terrorist, Byron in Cain.” Thus, we rediscover here, simultaneously, all the themes of metaphysical rebellion. Certainly, the French tradition of individualistic socialism always remained alive in Russia. Saint-Simon and Fourier, who were read in the 1830’s, and Proudon, who was imported in the forties, inspired the great concepts of Herzen, and, very much later, those of Pierre Lavrov. However, this system, which remained attached to ethical values, finally succumbed, provisionally at any rate, during its great debate with cynical thought. On the other hand, Bielinsky rediscovers both with and against Hegel the same tendencies to social individualism, but under the aspect of negation, in the rejection of transcendental values. When he dies, in 1848, his thought will moreover be very close to that of Herzen. However, when he confronts Hegel, he defines, with precision, an attitude that will be adopted by the nihilists, and at least in part by the terrorists. Thus, he furnishes a type of transition between the idealist aristocrats of 1825 and the “nothingist” students of 1860. It is not easy to struggle against ancient and strong-rooted errors. For some of the seeming escapes turn out to be merely another kind of error. #RandolphHarris 18 of 36
When it comes to the award-winning Sacramento Fire Department, practice is the only way to perform effectively for the rare occurrence of high-risk incidents. Just as important are the everyday events they respond to. Lack of training on the common occurrences leads to bad habits, the use of antiquated techniques, complacency, and, often, injuries. The adage, “If you do not use it, you lose it” applies to emergency responders. Training reinforces their actions and knowledge of how to handle a given situation, and how to improvise when they have never seen it before. Without training, the Sacramento Fire Department is forced to improvise every day. A well-trained responder has a distinct effect on the outcome of a call. Fire teams are divided into two-officer buddy teams. Buddy teams support and watch out for each other during operations. The Sacramento Fire Department must be able to engage a fire, put it out, save lives, and protect themselves not only from the fire, but also from seedy elements in the community that they might be targeted by. Firefighters, paramedics, and EMTs must be tacticians. They cannot rely on a book to solve tactical problems. The understand and use initiative in accomplishing the mission…The art of making sound decisions quickly lies in the knowledge of tactics, the estimate process, and the crew’s techniques and procedures. #RandolphHarris 19 of 36
The award-winning Sacramento Fire Department of today has changed. The modern, trained crew member uses traveling techniques, movement formations, and cover and concealment to advance and defend objects with the fewest possible casualties and to limit any property and environmental damage. Knowing how to move during an emergency is key to staying alive. However, before an emergency officer or medical officer moves, one must know where they want to move next. Stay on the route that their leader selects for them. Then, identify their next position that is nearby. They select their route to their next position so they are exposed to the least amount of fire. And they do not rush into situations without first having a plan. Firefighters, paramedics, and EMTs must afford themselves a degree of protection from the scene or from direct or indirect danger, such as gun fire. Depending on the situations, sometimes they have to find cover so they can be concealed from enemy observation. Concealment means the enemy cannot see them, but concealment does not protect them from situations where there might be a fire and a gang war going on. Emergency crews have sometimes been the target of an ambush. The lower crawl offers them the greatest protection with the slowest movement in these situations. The low crawl is especially useful when crews must move quickly and have less than a vertical foot of cover and concealment to get out of the kill zone and survive. #RandolphHarris 20 of 36
If the Sacramento Fire Department never improves their level of service, they remain stagnant. Therefore, they are cognizant of what needs evolve in their jurisdiction and how the rest of the industry is reacting to their needs. They must reevaluate what they do and how they do it, and make appropriate alterations in their techniques. Much like lobbying for better equipment, the Sacramento Fire Department must also lobby for improved services. “There are several things that have made me angry. What makes me most angry is the needless loss of life to fire. Over the years, as a journalist more than as a firefighter, I became involved in fire safety and fire prevention. I learned as much as I could about it, and I wrote many stories on the subject. What always strikes me, especially at the major disasters, the big multideath fires that I have covered as a reporter or been at as a firefighter, is that in every case the loss of life did not have to happen. But they failed to heed the lesson of the past. They failed to pass the fire codes that would prevent this from happening, or they failed to make them retroactive. They failed to put sprinklers in the buildings where you have the potential for a high loss of life—high-rise hotels, office buildings, the theaters, nightclubs, nursing homes. #RandolphHarris 21 of 36
“I have been to fires in all of those types of places. I have never been to a major fire disaster in which the loss of life would not have been prevented had the building met the standards we know a building should meet—which is to be protected by automatic sprinklers. There has never been a multideath fire in a building fully protected by a properly installed and operating sprinkler system. The indifference to fire safety in this country is probably the most depressing thing of all. People look at fires as bad luck, and fire the insurance will cover their loses. They are not concerned about the loss of lives more than they are concerned about saving money. The real bad luck was that people were in a place that should have been protected, and that they were in a city or a state that had failed to pass and enforce the laws that would have saved their lives. I see to many cases in which the people who build, own, and operate the buildings have the political influence and the money to block the passage of proper fire codes and proper inspections. One of the things the fire service has to do through the news media is to create a public opinion that is concerned about fire safety. When that happens, you get results. The metaphor of the phoenix rising from the ashes has been misused as a reason for allowing fires to ravage communities and properties. #RandolphHarris 22 of 36
“People are always trying to put an optimistic spin on a tragedy when prevent would have been the key to protecting lives, property, and the environment. In many cases, we need to just do want is right and not turn try to turn a tragedy into a reflection on the bright side. When a life is unnecessarily lost, there is nothing good that comes out of it. A beautiful life was cut short, a person never got to retire and enjoy their grandchild, a piece of history was lost, or a modern work of art was destroyed. After a disaster is your best chance to get a retroactive fire code passed that will correct the problem that caused a multideath fire. It’s a slow process, but I think we have been making progress in recent years. Another thing that is tremendously important about the fire service is leadership. Most of the guys I served with who went on to career officers, some of them top-ranking chiefs of their departments, were dedicated people who came up through the ranks, but who also did all the studying they had to do, and they worked hard to get where they are. I think that modern leadership has an opportunity to overcome so many problems of the past. In the old days we had leaders, chief officers, who were good firemen, but they weren’t necessarily good leaders and administrators. Today, a fire chief has to be much more than a good officer on the fireground. We’re starting to see that type of diversity develop now, chiefs who are good all-around leaders. I think that the salvation for the fire service, with all the problems that face us today, has to come from that wiser, more enlightened, more sensitive leadership. Many of the problems we face today wouldn’t be there had there been an enlightened leadership that was willing to change with the times, twenty and thirty years ago. Unfortunately, too many were not.” #RandolphHarris 23 of 36
If you see a fire truck stopped in the street without the lights on, be very careful. Sometimes there is an emergency and you should not pass the fire truck. It might be a good idea to safely turn around and go another way because if you hit someone and they happen to die, you could be charged with manslaughter. Sometimes fire fighters are getting back into their vehicle and if you pass the apparatus, you may collide with a firefighter who is on foot. Also, be sure to look at their signals, sometimes emergency vehicles are in motions, albeit, slowly, and drivers try to pass them, and this could lead to a dangerous situation. Also, if you are in an intersection when you see an emergency vehicle, continue through the intersection. Drive to the right as soon as it is safe and stop. Obey any direction, order, or signal given by a law enforcement officer, or a firefighter. Even if they conflict with existing signs, signals, or laws, follow their orders. When their siren or flashing lights are on, it is against the law to follow within 300 feet of any fire engine, law enforcement vehicle, ambulance, or other emergency vehicle. If you drive to the scene of a fire, collision, or other disaster, you can be arrested. When you do this, you are getting in the way of firefighters, ambulance crews, or other rescue and emergency personnel. The concept of professional courage does not always mean being as tough as nails, either. It also suggests a willingness to listen to other peoples’ problems, to go to bat for them in a tough situation and it means knowing just how far they can go. It also means being willing to tell the boss when he or she is wrong. #RandolphHarris 24 of 36
California is the third most expensive state in the nation. A single person making an income above $100,000 is now consider low-income in five counties in California. This distinction now applies to individuals living in Santa Cruze, Santa Clara, San Mateo, San Francisco, and Marin counties. In 37 percent of counties, a family of four living on a six-figure income is now considered low-income. In fact, Governor Gavin Newsom of Democratic controlled California, brags about being the world’s “fifth largest economy,” but it also facing a $12 billion deficit, looking to cut $747 million for state worker’s pay, pushing to keep medical insurance for illegal immigrants, but wants to cut medical for anyone who has assets over $2,000 and the state has the largest homeless population in the nation. If they are all officially counted, California has approximately 4 million homeless people. The highest home prices in the nation, the highest taxes and the most unfriendly business regulations known to man. The average home price in California is nearly $1,000,000.00 USD, while the average salary is $96,036.00, meaning that most Californians cannot even afford to buy a home. California is having an affordability crisis. In 2025, many people in California saw their bills increase by an estimated $500 a month. This includes things like food, automobile insurance, homeowner’s insurance, electricity. In fact, more than 3 million people in California are facing household hardship, and more than 300,000 of them are facing eviction soon. This comes at a time when California is having a shortage of affordable housing. This is caused by nearly half a century’s old laws that discourage homes sales and encourage higher rents. #RandolphHarris 25 of 36
Meanwhile, China, where we are sending all our jobs and money has more than 50 ghost cities. Ghost cities are regions will housing has been overdeveloped to the point that these places are uninhabited. Because California is so hostile towards people and businesses, more than 360 companies have fled the state since 2020. Businesses like Chevron, SpaceX, Oracle, and Hewlett Packard are amongst the names on that list. Also, more than 500,000 people a year are abandoning California because it is too expensive to live in, Gavin Newsom has criminalized homelessness and actually started arresting people without homes, crime is out of control, and they are losing their jobs due to companies relocating. More than 100 companies have announced layoffs in California for 2025. Intel is cutting 15,000 jobs, PayPal 2,500 and Meta has terminated 4,000 employees. The California crisis created by Democrats is driving up home prices and mortgages and rents all over the nation and the world, making living unaffordable for all, and advocates say the crisis is far from over. Accordingly, California has more than 3.5 million illegal immigrants. Having the Southern American boarder open and not having American farmland protected, not producing beef, poultry, fish, fruit, produce and dairy in America, and without American goods and services being our number one manufactured and selling items, America has created a dangerous and significantly elevated risks to national security, national economic security, and national public health. Some people may believe that these claims are overstated, but by not routinely monitoring Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CEVs) or other security relevant alerts, such as end-of-life of machinery is how the Oroville Dam Crisis occurred in 2017. #RandolphHarris 26 of 36
Other crises that have occurred due to neglect of critical infrastructure is the 2025 Palisades fires because Southern California ran out of water, when they are located next to an ocean and they could have simply created desalinating plants to help with the water shortage. The water is so plentiful that it is currently eroding land and causing homes to fall into the sea. Desalination has been identified as one technology that will help solve California’s water scarcity problem. Desalination is a cost-effective technology that can transform an abundance of salt water into a reliable supply of potable, fresh water, which is a great way to fight climate change and have enough water for our region’s water requirements. Ras Al Khair, Saudi Arabia is producing 1,036,000 meters (273,682,192) per day of desalinated water. As we see gangs fighting with federal law enforcement, states and cities refusing to honor federal laws, and politicians showing an utter disregard for the Constitution of the United States of America, anarchy is becoming increasingly common. Anarchism is a cluster of doctrines and attitudes centered on the belief that government is both harmful and unnecessary. Derived from the Greek root anarchos meaning, “without authority,” anarchism, anarchist, and anarchy are used to express both approval and disapproval. The anarchist denies man-made laws, regard property as a means of tyranny, and believe that crimes is merely the product of property and authority. #RandolphHarris 27 of 36
However, the anarchist would argue that their denial of constitutions and governments leads not to “no justice” but to the real justice inherent in the free development of human sociality—the natural inclination, when unfettered by laws, to live according to the principles and practice of mutual aid. Anarch is also a form of treason. Treason, the crime of betraying a nation or a sovereign by acts considered dangerous to security. In English law, treason includes the levying of war against the government and the giving of aid and comfort to the monarch’s enemies. In the United States of America, treason was defined restrictively by the framers of the Constitution. Treason against the United States of America “shall consist only in levying War against them, or in adhering to their Enemies, giving them aid and comfort,” which is something that many politicians are currently guilty of. The American government should know all exploitable vulnerabilities and fix them prior to the situation becoming a crisis. Failure to take such mitigating actions is dangerous and significantly elevates risk to national security, national economic security, and national public health and safety. The American government must understand that significant time and resources must be invested in America. They must also encourage corporations to plan for both mitigating safety vulnerabilities in the short term and eliminating them in the long term. For instance, a company might begin by reaching out to the federal, state, or local government and requesting tax incentives to provide security to dangerous communities, to help the government repair bridges and potholes. #RandolphHarris 28 of 36
America needs an approach to eliminate safety vulnerabilities in American cities. There needs to be a road map by the end of 2025, outlining a prioritized approach to eliminate crisis situations in America. There is enough money to send aid to foreign nations, but the American government does not have enough money to care their infrastructure, provide adequate resources, nor end the affordable housing crisis. Nor is there enough money to fund other national critical functions (NCFs). These bad practices of putting America and Americans last is considered exceptionally risky, particularly to national security, national economic security, and national public health and safety. In 2024, Americans spent $100 billion on Japanese cars. As a result, the American automobile trade deficit with Japan was $39 billion. The maximum percentage of your gross income that you should earmark for a monthly mortgage payment is calculated at 28 percent, and no more than 36 percent of your gross income to all debts, including mortgage. If you take 28 percent of the median household income per home in Sacramento County, homeowners can only afford a mortgage of $2,070.23 per month. And if you take 36 percent of their gross income to all debts, including mortgage, they should be devoting no more than $2,661.72 a month to these debts. Mortgage lenders must be using some kind of sorcery to get buyers into these expensive homes. To afford one of these homes using traditional guidelines, a household would need to gross $11,280.24 per month or $135,362.88 per year, but the median household in Sacramento County is grossing $7,393.67 or $88,724.00 and that typically means two to four people in the home are working and contributing to the mortgage. #RandolphHarris 29 of 36
Home prices in Sacramento County are rivaling the Bay Area. Historically homes in the Bay Aera have been more expensive because they have higher paying jobs, a larger population, and the Bay Area is a tourist destination. Contributing to the housing affordability crisis is Gavin Newsom who has been lavishing illegal immigrants with taxpayer funded resources and cash aid. The State of California has a budget deficit of $12 billion because Governor Gavin Newsom Granted 700,000 illegal immigrants free health care, which cost taxpayers of $3 billion annually. At the same time, Newsom cut vital programs for veterans, school children, the disabled and the homeless. Additional, Newsom seems to uneducated about economics and is proposing to fast-track his plan to build a $20 billion water tunnel beneath the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, which would eliminate environmental reviews, and limit avenues for legal challenges. Gavin Newsom only cares about the environment when his policies allow him to raise taxes and restrict freedoms. To further highlight this illustration, Mexico has been causing one of America’s worst environmental disasters. Fifty million gallons a day of industrial chemicals, untreated sewage, and trash flow from Tijuana, Mexico, into southern San Diego County daily. This toxic waste has been turning up on Imperial Beach, and is causing the miles of white sands to become polluted and the ocean breeze to smell of poop, which has been sickening residents and wildlife and costing San Diego millions in the form of lost tourism and health problems. The problem has been going on for more than a century. #RandolphHarris 30 of 36
However, Mexico’s pollution of California has become a severe public health crisis as the population of Tijuana has drastically increased, in recent years, and the waste treatment plants have no longer usable. Some of the beaches in San Diego have been closed for more than three years, and evidence suggests that even breathing the air may be harmful, as toxic particles in the water can become airborne. Yet, even though Gavin Newsom has been governor for six years, he has not rushed into action to stop this very preventable environmental disaster. Why? Because he is not getting kickbacks from China and Mexico, not being gifted mansions and cars, and he cannot tax the struggling California taxpayers to clean up this mess. Simply, it is not profitable for him. Gavin Newsom has been a total tyrant with no regard for taxpayers and does not have a mind for business and should be impeached as soon as possible. He has criminalized poverty, increased taxes, increased tax on gas, and insurance rates so high that people are struggling to survive. In addition to Gavin Newsom’s increased gas prices starting 1 July 2025, the war between Iran and Israel is going to further exacerbate the prices of gas and cause more inflation and economic hardship for people in California. While everyone is making war over America and who belongs here and who she belongs to, so many people forget about the people who are Indigenous to this land. Open boarders have allowed hundreds of thousands of cartel operatives to infiltrate reservations across the United States of America, and use the isolated lands as havens to traffic fentanyl pills and other drugs into the country without protection from federal authorities. #RandolphHarris 31 of 36
Drug cartels have been threatening the health and safety of Native American communities. The trafficking of the dangerous and illegal drugs into their territories is leading to a second genocide. The overdose rate for Indigenous is 42 percent higher than the national average. A recent bust on Montana’s Blackfeet Nation’s Tribal Reservation resulted in the seizure of more than 700,000 fentanyl pills, which was the largest bust in Montana history. Recently, the Blackfeet Nation had to declare a state of emergency after facing 17 overdoses in just one week. There are only 6.8 million Native Americans left in the world, which is 2 percent of the American population. We should be doing more to protect these proud and honorable people; they should not want for anything. People rush and give away resources to illegal immigrants, but totally disregard the Indigenous people of this land, as their race silently fades away into extinction. We must secure our boarders and increase federal funding to Native America tribes so we can save this precious population. Meanwhile, Gavin Newsom has given billions of taxpayer dollars away to illegal immigrants and protected them from law enforcement, while arresting law abiding Americans because they cannot afford to pay rent or mortgage and the homeless shelters are unsafe, overcrowded and have restrictions on who is allowed inside. He also has totally ignored the cartel problems on American lands. Clean air, water, land and preserving our heritage extremely important. #RandolphHarris 32 of 36
We cannot just allow criminals to kill off the people who are native to this land and do nothing about it. Wars have been started over governments who tax citizens without representation. Taxation without representation is what led to the American Revolution. If Gavin Newsom is not stopped, next he will euthanize the poor and sterilize the disabled. Gavin Newsom has wars and fires breaking out on the streets, but goes out of his way to arrest people who have no place to live. This monster is unfit to be governor and must never be allowed to be President of America! Stop Gavin Newsom now! Save California and impeach this unreasonable man. Meanwhile, with President Trump, we are seeing crime rates sharply decrease. President Trump just signed the “HALT Fentanyl Act” into law, which permanently classifies the narcotic as a “Schedule I drug” under the “Controlled Substances Act.” Also, President Trump recently secured $10 trillion in investments for the United States of America. Additionally, in May of 2025, the United States of America collected a record $100 billion in tariff revenue, and that number will increase to $300 billion by the end of 2025. President Trump has also been nominated for a Noble Peace Prize for making Iran and Israel crease fire. As you can see, President Trump is creating solutions and remediating problems to protect America and the American people, while Governor of California, Gavin Newsom, is making life hard on American citizens and causing economic hardship and totally ignoring Mexico polluting beaches in San Diego. If elected president for an unprecedented third term, to make housing more affordable and to offset the cost of homeowner’s insurance and auto insurance, President Trump plans to abolish property taxes. #RandolphHarris 33 of 36
Much like the land crisis in Las Vegas, we could also run out of land to farm and will not be able to grow or cultivate our own food. We can protect American farmland and support American farmers by buying American made beef, poultry, dairy, and produce. Also, country of origin labeling is very important so Americans can know where their food is coming from and can support American farmers and ranchers. As money flows, it influences further investment. Save the land that sustains us by protecting American farmland. Once the land is built on, we lose it forever. And in the future, there may be food wars. Also, to ensure that we have farmland and buildable land for future use, we need to start limiting the number of people allowed to immigrant to America. Perhaps with the immigrants we do allow into America, there needs to be a diversity program to make sure we have a population that equally represents all races of people. If Americans continue to spend money on American products, then more need to be made to keep up the inventory. When investors notice these goods are selling, it gives them the confidence to pour more money into that local business. It shows that people want these goods made in America and pressures investors to keep these goods and services in America. The jobs stay here, the business stays in American, wages naturally increase, and more money is invested to keep up with demand. This reduces the burden on the taxpayer. When you support American businesses, that money stays in our economy and can help to reduce the national debt. The government creates debt by borrowing from businesses in the private sector or from foreign countries. It also increases the national debt by spending more than it gains in tax revenue in a fiscal year. #RandolphHarris 34 of 36
When people shop locally, more tax money stays in the economy and goes to the government. This way, it keeps more money in our national economy and keeps more jobs located in American which also sends more taxes to the government, which can again help to reduce the national debt. When you buy foreign goods, these companies usually have lighter tax loads or exemptions, meaning less money for the nation debt, plus you are helping to strengthen these foreign nations by send more money overseas. Buying American made products is also better for the environment and helps to reduce the carbon footprint because these products do not have to travel nearly as far. Furthermore, American companies and manufacturers are held to much higher standards on pollution. American companies must be more careful about air, land, and water pollution and have proper ways to dispose of waste. Moreover, please remember to respect law and order and treat your elders with the utmost dignity and kindness possible. And take your education seriously so that you will be successful in life and make your family proud. It is inborn in the human minds to wish to know. If this begins with the endless surface questions of a child’s curiosity, if it continues into deeper questions of a scientist’s probing investigation, it cannot and does not stop there. For the higher part of the mind will eventually come into unfoldment, that union of abstract reflective thought with mystical intuition, which is true intelligence, which needs and sees a view of the whole of things. And so, the knowing faculty enters the realm of philosophy. #RandolphHarris 35 of 36
As you can see, President Donald Trump and his pledge to “Make America Great Again,” is exactly what America needs to save the country and the American people. And yes, diversity is important, so you can see why it is also important to preserve blonde hair and blue eyes as the people with these characteristics are becoming a minority in America. We must think before we can understand the soul’s existence; we must understand before we can realize it. The earliest beginnings of thought, as apart from instinct, when it was itself still but a lurking tendency, belong far back in primeval time. The human intellect as we find it today, so rich and developed an instrument for the consciousness of the ego, did not arrived at this fulness without a series of graduated stages. We have had plenty of scientific thinking, business thinking, and political thinking long enough, but we have had very little inspired thinking. That is the world’s need. The intellect is cradled in selfishness but runs the evolutionary track into reason where it will one day finish at the winning-post of selflessness. As a reminder, parents, pleasure teach your children love America and be patriotic citizens and to buy goods and services made in America. It is also important to respect law and order and treat your elders with respect. Also, to make sure they have all the resources required, please donate to the Sacramento Fire Department to help improve our national security. “Oh, thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand between their loved home and the war’s desolation! Blest with victory and peace, may the heav’n-rescued land Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation! Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just, and this be our motto: ‘In God is our trust.’ And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave.” #RandolphHarris 36 of 36
Experience an unforgettable journey back to the time of kings and queens with this entry ticket for The Winchester Mansion in Santa Clara, California which was the residence of Heiress Sarah L. Winchester. Take advantage of this fascinating experience. After tour, there will be time enjoy the mansion’s splendor at your own pace. You might even discover secret passages. Or, perhaps you will see Mr. Hansen, Mrs. Winchester’s head foreman.
Please come and enjoy a delicious meal in Sarah’s Café, stroll along the paths of the beautiful Victorian gardens, and wonder through the miles of hallways in the World’s most mysterious mansion.
For further information about tours, including group tours, weddings, school events, birthday party packages, facility rentals, and special events please visit the website: https://winchestermysteryhouse.com/
Please visit the online giftshop, and purchase a gift for friends and relatives as well as a special memento of The Winchester Mystery House. A variety of souvenirs and gifts are available to purchase. https://shopwinchestermysteryhouse.com/
Although the actual mansion is much older, we wish to wish the Winchester Mansion a Happy 102 years of giving tours, and express our gratitude to our families, ancestors, spirits, and friends and to our many associates and clients, whose lives touched our lives and whose ideas helped us to grow. We would also like to thank our employees and care takers for putting the technical ideas of this estate into conversational style, and we are, of course, extremely thank to all of our patrons for helping to keep the legacy of the Winchester Family alive. The Winchester Mystery House is full of surprises. What was your favorite, “Oooh!” moment during your visit at the mansion? (And for those of you who still have to check it off your bucket list… we will hopefully see you soon.) https://winchestermysteryhouse.com/
Harris Plumbing, Heating, Air, & Electric has been in business for 30 years. How many businesses can say that? We take pride in everything we do – no matter how big or small the service call might be. We’re here to help your home be as safe and comfortable as possible for you and your family. We take that responsibility very seriously as a company. Harris will ensure you have the information you need to decide what to do next, whatever your home is facing. We’ll perform a diagnosis and detail what issues are present before starting any work. This gives you a personalized quote and service plan specific to your home’s needs – not some random quote based on the best guess. The only way we can do our best work is to make sure we handle the issues at hand. https://www.callharrisnow.com/about-us/
Ah, yes. The BMW 3 Series. Happy 50th birthday to the most iconic BMW ever! It is really hard to decide on a BMW model. However, the 3 series is a favorite of everyone. All the upper-class suburban families had one in the 1980s and 1990s; everyone from teenagers and housewives, to executives and diplomats. Now that they are larger in size, but still sporty and luxury, the audience has grown tremendously. These are very stylish cars and reliable cars, which is why BMW continues to dominate the luxury car space.
With its top ranking in Consumer Reports’ Auto Brand Report Card and consistent market share growth, BMW has demonstrated its ability to produce high-performing, reliable vehicles that meet consumer demands. BMW stands out due to its focus on driving dynamics and engineering excellence. While other luxury brands prioritize comfort and opulence, BMW is known for creating cars that are fun to drive and offer a unique connection between the driver and the machine. This is why BMW is known as the Ultimate Driving Machine. https://www.brianharrisbmw.com/
Randolph Harris San Francisco Taxation & Mergers
Randy advises clients with regard to business transition, taxable and tax deferred mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, restructuring, integrated tax planning, federal and state tax controversy resolution, and real estate transactions. https://www.jmbm.com/l-randolph-harris.html
Park Haven
Rancho Cordova, CA | low $500s
Now Selling!
Welcome to Cresleigh Park Haven; the newest home community in Rancho Cordova.
Nestled in the heart of Rancho Cordova, Park Haven is a thoughtfully planned community offering 71 homes —perfect for those seeking comfort, convenience, and more time to enjoy life. Located adjacent to the beloved Exploration Park, this neighborhood blends modern living with outdoor adventure right at your doorstep. See an example here: https://www.instagram.com/p/DMIR0kwMFhb/
Choose from five beautifully crafted floor plans ranging from approximately 1,342 to 2,547 square feet, with options for 3 to 5 bedrooms, flexible living spaces, and open-concept layouts designed for today’s lifestyles.
Whether you’re a first-time buyer, growing family, or looking to simplify without sacrificing style, Park Haven offers a home that fits your needs.
Enjoy the ease of a maintenance-friendly yard, the charm of a close-knit community, and the everyday convenience of nearby parks, trails, shopping, and top-rated schools. At Park Haven, you’ll find more than just a house—you’ll find your place to thrive. Park Haven – Cresleigh Homes
Your dreamy primary suite at Residence 4 at Cresleigh Bluffs is seriously giving ✨main character energy✨https://www.instagram.com/p/DMXuktBJq4G/
Randolph Harris II International 