WHO WOULD IT BE?

WHO WOULD IT BE?
By Jim “Gymbeaux” Brown, August 16, 2026

 

There was a very intriguing question asked on Facebook today, August 16, 2026. 

If you could thank one Coast Guard member today, who would it be? 

Before you write the question off because you may not have served in the Coast Guard, think about the question and the career path that you have chosen. You can easily substitute a very different type of profession or even a company’s name that you worked for in lieu of Coast Guard.  

It is a question that WILL make you THINK! Personally, I had two careers that I retired from plus I have done a considerable amount of writing in the form of real estate training courses and Nuggets for the Noggin like this one. In fact, over the past thirty-five years, I have written well over one thousand such Nuggets which will be the topic of another Nugget very soon. 

As to the question, my first career was serving in the U. S. Coast Guard. Over the next twenty years, I was EXTREMELY fortunate and I emphasize the word extremely because not everyone could be as lucky or as fortunate as I was. I had the best of the best to supervise, train and guide me to the point I eventually retired from the service as a Lieutenant having entered as a Seaman Recruit. That may not mean much to people who have not served in the military, but trust me when I tell you that was quite an accomplishment for which I am very proud. 

Over those twenty years, I can list at least six Coast Guardsmen that were exceptional at what they did and of the six, there was one that helped me the most. It was a matter of luck, of timing and my own perseverance but the catalyst was “the one person” that was most responsible for me serving the twenty years and retiring as a Lieutenant. To non-military people reading this, to be selected for a special Limited Duty Officer program that promoted only one or two people each year in their specialty to Lieutenant was indeed an honor and an exclamation mark on a successful career. 

When I saw the question on Facebook, it caused me to pause for two reasons. First, it gave me the idea for this Nugget. Second, and the most important reason of the two, is that it caused me to stop and think about those twenty years and who within the Coast Guard community would be the most responsible for any success that I was able to achieve. For any of my fellow Coasties that might read this, your name was probably on the list of six names that I reduced my selection to, so please do not take it personally that your name is not the “one name” of the person who helped me the most. The reason I listed the person’s name is because he took a young 20-year-old, with no specific skills other than being able to type, and guided me to do the work he and others assigned me. He guided me towards advancing through the ranks. He guided me regarding working with others, especially very senior Coast Guard Officers like the Admiral who was our District Commander. 

I graduated from Coast Guard Boot Camp as a Seaman Apprentice (E2 on the pay scale). The only skill I learned in the first three months of service was how to cut up fallen trees. I was assigned to the Coast Guard Radio Station across the Mississippi River from New Orleans. I arrived in New Orleans weeks after Hurricane Betsy struck the area and there was damage everywhere. At the Radio Station, which sat on a HUGE parcel of land in the middle of nowhere, there were fallen trees blocking the dirt road that completely encircled the station. For three months I cut up trees to be hauled off. I accomplished two things during those three months. First, I put on twenty-five pounds. Secondly and the most important one, I caught a severe case of poison ivy working in the jungles at that time.  The ONLY solution to the poison ivy was to transfer me away from what was causing my skin to break out and blister over most of my body. This was one of those “life lessons” we hear about. When one door closes, another door opens. 

The Radio Station door closed for me, but the Eighth Coast Guard District Personnel Office opened. That is when I met my selectee who became the one person who helped me to grow my career the most and gave me a chance, primarily because I could type. That one person was YN1 (Yeoman First Class) Carl Seale (who eventually retired as a Chief Warrant Officer (W4) specializing in Personnel Administration. I sat down at a desk and a brand-new potential career opened in front of me. Carl guided me to what I did. He explained why certain things must be completed in a certain way and that errors were not acceptable. He also set an example for me. His uniform was always impeccable. At the time I was single, living on my own in a two-room apartment. Yes, I said two rooms, actually three if you count the bathroom. It had a small, very small kitchen and a living room with a pull-down Murphy Bed. I was twenty-one years old, living on my own in a town two thousand miles away from what I called home and earning about $100 a month, yes, you heard that right, $100 a month. 

From that humble beginning with Carl’s help and mentorship, that twenty-year-old unskilled worker bee made it through being promoted to Petty Officer, Third, Second and First Class and eventually to Chief Yeoman. From there I was promoted to Chief Warrant Officer (W3) and eventually to the LDO Lieutenant at which pay grade I retired. 

This is the sad part that the question generated, at least for me. I have never said Thank You to the one person most responsible for my success. Why do you suppose that is? I have a thought, but it may only apply to me. My formative years were in the 1950s and early 1960s. I do not remember “GRATITUDE” ever taught by anyone. Is that not what this is all about? Showing someone YOUR gratitude for the help THEY provided on your path to SUCCESS?  To be 100% honest with you, I self-taught myself about gratitude when I read the book The Secret.  By the time I read the book I had already retired from the Coast Guard and was well on my way establishing a second career in the real estate business. By the way, there is that ONE PERSON who also helped me towards the success I achieved in the real estate business and that was Dr. Tom Hill of RE/MAX Dixie Region. 

This Nugget is about two different subjects, first identifying that one person and then second, telling them how much they have meant to you and your career. As for showing gratitude, the book The Secret (I highly recommend reading it) discussed the Gratitude Stone. In the book, it was just a random stone you might find anywhere alongside the road. Instead, I chose a glass stone like the ones you see at the bottom of a fishbowl. I purchased a bag full of them at Hobby Lobby.  First, you make certain that you take the gratitude stone with you wherever you go 24 hours of every day! No exceptions! Every time you see the stone or touch the stone in your pocket or purse, you are to stop, think, and give thanks/gratitude for something or someone at that moment in your life.  For the last half of my real estate career, I would give a glass stone attached to a business card size instruction card on how and when to use the stone. People remembered that stone and thus they remembered me, something everyone in sales wanted to have happened.  I used the stone for years.  Why I stopped, I am not certain, but I will carry it again; it is a great habit to practice! The glass stone takes up very little room in your pocket or purse. You see it first thing in the morning when you get up and again the last thing at night when you go to bed. Being grateful for what you have is far more productive than listening to the news first thing in the morning and last thing at night. 

The goal for everyone should be to be always conscious of occasions when it is appropriate to be thankful/grateful and to show how thankful/grateful someone has been to you. As an example, my parents taught me to write thank you notes to people who give you gifts or did something for you. Writing thank you notes has become a thing of the past and everyone ought to consider restructuring that habit. When was the last time you received a handwritten thank you note?  Me neither! 

So……..with all that said……. 

WHO SHOULD YOU BE THANKING RIGHT NOW!
 
WHAT ARE YOU WAITING ON?

Your Future and How to Get There!

 

Your Future and How to Get There!
By Jim “Gymbeaux” Brown, August 10, 2026

“Hope is NOT an effective strategy!”

Dr. John Maxwell 

“To succeed at whatever you wish to do or become,

think with the end in mind!”

Jim “Gymbeaux” Brown 

 “Your thoughts makes all things animate and inanimate work to bring you want you want; but your personal activity must be such that you can rightly receive what you want when it reaches you.” 

Wallace C. Wattles 

By “thought”, Wattles is referring to learn to “think in a certain way.”  Wallace is the author of several really great books written in the early 1900s which are more valuable in 2026 than ever before! 

The graphic above proves the point that a picture is worth 1000 words!  The best time to think about your future begins around the age of 10 if not before.  What will your life look like by the time it is finished?  A better question would be, what do YOU SEE your life looking like by the time it is finished?  Far too often, people’s lives are directed by what “others” see them doing rather than what THEY see them doing. 

"Find a job you enjoy doing, and you will never have to work a day in your life" 

Mark Twain 

The road to success is therefore quite simple.  Begin at an early age to identify the type of work you want to see yourself doing.  It was over 20 years ago that I learned that there were students beginning their college education with a goal of performing a job that may not even exist by the time they graduate.  You can interpret that in two different ways.  Either the job has not yet been created, or technology will have made the job obsolete.  In 2026 there are thousands if not millions of college graduates who are unemployed in their specific field of study that they majored in and for which they have acquired massive debt to complete.  That is NOT a good place to be – ever! 

My advice to the youth of today is to seek multiple avenues to pursue.  For example, learning a trade skill is never a bad idea even if you desire is to be employed in a position that requires your mind over the completion of a skill.  I refer to this as having a “Plan B.”  In other words, it is not a good idea to “put all of your eggs into one basket.”  As an example, you may be the best quarterback that ever-played football and your goal is to play in the National Football League.  Given your skill set, that might be the most beneficial path for you to follow.  That would be Plan A.  However, as we all know, football is a sport that can be and oftentimes is harmful to your health.  A sudden injury could bring an end to your desire to play in the National Football League, your Plan A.  If you had put all your efforts (eggs) into that one goal (NFL Career), you would find yourself unemployed with no Plan B.  The more topics you become well versed in, the more valuable you become to others and to yourself. 

As an overall objective, I would suggest that you begin with the end in mind.  What do you see your life looking like by the time it is finished?  Where do you see yourself living?  What are you doing for fun?  What are you doing to keep yourself busy?  What are you doing to ensure you have an adequate income well into your retirement years?  What WILL your life look like when it is finished?  Do you have a plan? 

If you can paint a mental picture of that life you can envision, you can reverse engineer that image and ascertain what one thing should you be doing at this very moment that if done will serve as a puzzle piece that fits perfectly into to your life’s overall picture that you have envisioned.  Once that one piece is put into place, what is the next “one thing” you should be doing at this moment in time to add to the picture you have begun to complete? 

Gary Keller, co-founder of Keller Williams Realty International, has written a book “The One Thing.”  It details how you identify what the “one thing” is that you MUST do right now that will lead you to the next “one thing” that must be done next!  It then becomes a simple matter of “rinse and repeat.”  Imagine your life’s picture when it is completed as being that of a completed puzzle.  Each puzzle piece would represent one step in your life’s journey that when they are all put together becomes the completed life you have desired and worked to achieve throughout your life. 

If you notice in the graphic at the beginning of this Nugget, the boy has not only identified the important aspects of his life, but he also planted seeds in each of the various categories (rows).  His first decision is what does he do next?  Does he sit back and “hope” that they get enough sunlight, that they get enough water, that they get enough fertilizer or does he take action necessary to ensure the seeds get enough of these things that would all but ensure their growth? “The Secret” is a book certainly worthy of reading and many have.  Even I could pick out one glaring omission in the book.  It instructs the reader to set goals, to think about what they want and suggests that the universe will more than likely bring them what they seek.  But no where in the book does it say you have to take some form of action to turn your “wants” into “receipts!”  To accomplish anything takes some form of action.  That is why Dr. Maxwell’s quote above is so critical to understand, “Hope is NOT an effective strategy!”  It takes a vision, a goal, an objective and then that is followed up with some form of action; a movement towards achieving what you want to achieve. 

I have used myself as a training aid as to the value of (1) identifying a need/want.  (2) Identifying what the end looks like.  (3) Identifying the steps that must be taken between steps (1) and the completion at step (3) and beyond.  To this end, I refer to you my Coast Guard career.  By the time I completed Boot Camp, I KNEW EXACTLY what I had to do to be eligible for a promotion to the next pay grade.  I also knew exactly what I had to do to acquire a specialty that would enable me to be promoted beyond just the next pay grade.  In other words, I knew I was under contract for the next four years of my life so why not make those four years the best that I could?  I immediately ordered and began working on the required correspondence course that needed to be completed prior to being promoted.  I had a choice of applying for a Class A school or learning on the job.  This was a path that some of the service ratings could do while others required you to attend a school.  I could type rather fast without errors so one specific specialty seemed to fall into place, that of the Yeoman specialty.  Being a Yeoman in the military might better be understood if you were to refer to it as the “company clerk.”  A record keeper.  A personnel administrator.  To acquire that rating while serving in the field required that I “strike” for the position under the direct supervision of experienced Yeomen in the field, which I did.  I completed the correspondence course for YN3, was recommended by my Commanding Officer, passed the service-wide examination and was promoted to YN3.  

This started a routine for me.  Before I took the examination for YN3 I had already ordered the course for Second Class Petty Officer, YN2.  That was also true for First Class Petty Officer, YN1 and eventually Chief, Petty Officer YNC.  At the time that I was a YN1 taking the YNC course, I applied for and was recommended to be promoted to Chief Warrant Officer.  I was promoted to Chief Yeoman and two months later promoted again to Chief Warrant Officer.  The point of this is that (1) I knew exactly what I had to do and when I could do it. Then (2) I did them as quickly as the time would permit me to complete them.  As a result, I was promoted through YN1 as fast as anyone could have been promoted.  The competition for YNC was much tougher and therefore took a bit longer to be promoted but the process was the same. 

It is the PROCESS that I want to convey to the reader.  I KNEW what I had to do.  I set a personal goal of doing it as quickly as time would permit.  I kept my nose clean, as they say.  I did my work as professionally as I could and that resulted in getting good recommendations for advancement from my various Commanding Officers.  One “life lesson” learned along the way was that the more you make yourself irreplaceable on the job, the more valuable you become to the people you work for and the people who work for you.  This all occurred long before Gary Keller wrote the book The One Thing but looking backward, that is exactly what I did throughout my Coast Guard career.  I identified the ONE THING that if done would lead to identifying the next “one thing” that needed to be done and then the next, etc.  The list of completed “one things” resulted in a very successful Coast Guard career.  I advanced from Seaman Recruit in Boot Camp through Seaman to Yeoman Third Class to Chief Yeoman, to Chief, Warrant Officer (Personnel Administration) and was ultimately selected for a rare promotion to Limited Duty Officer – Lieutenant the grade at which I retired after twenty years. 

I know with certainty that this process works because I did the same thing as I progressed into the real estate business.  There was ALWAYS the ONE THING that if done, would lead to the next ONE THING that cumulatively would lead to the completion of a goal/objective I pursued.  IT WORKS!  

Therefore, your goal, should you decide to pursue it, is to (1) find the ONE THING you must be doing right now.  (2) create a mental image of what your life will look like when it is finished.  Breakdown the period from where you want to be in the future back to the current moment in time. Once you have accomplished that, you can identify the many steps you MUST take to make things happen in your life that must happen for you to get to where you want to go.  BUT FIRST – YOU MUST KNOW WHERE IT IS YOU WANT TO GO!  The following is a great poem.  I wish I knew who wrote it.  The message is clear as a bell! 

WHERE’RE YA GOING? 

High in the Sierra Mountains lives an old man
Who, from their hermitage, looks down in pity
Upon other people of higher mental aspiration.
One day he rescued a little group of Swiss mountaineers
Lost deep in the mountains’ fastnesses.
When told where they were, they exclaimed in disbelief,
“But how did we get here?”
To which the old hermit replied,
“If that question ain’t got no answer attached to it,
I ain’t got none that fits.
If you is goin’ anywhere in particular
Up here, yu’d better figger fust how to get thar.
Cuz by jest goin’ afore ya know where yere agoin’
Ya can get to a powerful lotta places ya might not wanta be.”

-Author unknown

Gary Keller also said many times that YOU MUST be LEARNING BASED because if you are not Learning Based, you are IGNORNANT BASED and that is the mindset of a loser.  You MUST be constantly learning.  You must want to become better at what you do, and you achieve that by reading, studying your craft, attending seminars, and listening to appropriate podcases.  The more you learn the more you know and the better you will perform.  Since my early 40s, I established a personal goal of reading 2 books a month.  I read on average 3 books every month.  Reading explains how when you are facing a problem, suddenly from out of nowhere the solution appears in my mind.  At first, I had no idea where these solutions came from but then I realized that you rarely truly forget anything.  The information is there, lying dormant within your subconscious mind.  You put it there through your reading, courses taken and podcasts listened to.  Then if as if by magic, the information appears when you need it most. 

“YOU can READ…for a change; or YOU can read…for a CHANGE!  The choice is yours!  Choose wisely!”

Jim “Gymbeaux Brown 

There you have it!  You can CHOOSE a purpose filled and successful life, or you can LIVE an unplanned life of happenstance and struggle.  The choice you make that will grow the quickest will be the one you voluntarily choose to feed the most as the graphic above suggests!  The choice should be obvious and a “word to the wise should be sufficient!”  You are wise, are you not? 

I would be remis it if I did not recommend you read the book Where Are You Going? (available on Amazon) co-authored by Lou Vickery and Jim “Gymbeaux” Brown (yes that is me).  The book goes into much more depth on living the life you desire through self-analysis and goal setting.

“Success leaves clues!”  Anthony Robbins.  It truly does.  The information is out there!  All YOU have to DO is open your mind and LET IT IN!

The Final Stretch

 

THE FINAL STRETCH
Written by Pam Erwin Moreton, with comments from Jim “Gymbeaux” Brown
May 26, 2026

DISCLAIMER: Normally I write the Nuggets I post but sometimes I post what other people have written, and this is one of those occasions. I can only wish I had written what Ms. Moreton posted on her Facebook feed; it is outstanding and very much, ON POINT! Read it and decide for yourself! I have included my own thoughts at the very end of her article.  Please, read on!

Written by Pam Erwin Moreton

“When I turned 63 last year (64 in March) I sat in my favorite chair, looked back at my life, and thought to myself.

“So… this is the beginning of the final stretch.”
And slowly, the truths I had avoided all my life began to surface.
Kids? They’re busy writing their own story.
Health? Slips away faster than sand through open fingers.
The government? Just headlines, promises, and numbers that never change your daily reality.
Aging doesn’t hurt your body first — it hurts your illusions.
So, I sat down with myself and carved out a handful of bitter but necessary truths.

Kids don’t save you from loneliness.
Children grow, life pulls them in every direction, and you become a memory they visit when time allows.
You smile… and yet something inside you remains strangely hollow.
Kids bring joy — but they are not a shield against loneliness. 

Health is not forever. 

One day, the outings you once jumped into with enthusiasm feel like a marathon.
You realize health was never a background character —
it was the main pillar holding your life steady.

Retirement and money 

Retirement is not a reward — it’s a reality check.
Depending on the system is like standing on thin ice.
Bills grow, needs grow, prices grow… but support doesn't.
So, I rebuilt my life on new rules — honest, sharp, practical rules for living with dignity. 

Rule 1: Money is more reliable than anything else.

Love your kids, cherish them —
but don’t make them your retirement plan.
Save for yourself.
Even small savings create big freedom.
Financial independence is dignity. 

Rule 2: Your health is your real job.

Nothing else matters if your body refuses to cooperate.
Move. Walk. Stretch.
Guard your sleep like treasure.
Eat cleaner. Reduce the poison disguised as sugar and salt.
Illness doesn’t discriminate,
but it respects those who take responsibility for themselves. 

Rule 3: Create your own joy.

Waiting for others to make you happy is the fastest way to heartbreak.
So, you learn to enjoy the small things —
a peaceful breakfast, a good book, music that warms the soul.
When you know how to make yourself happy, loneliness loses its power. 

Rule 4: Aging is not an excuse to become helpless.

Some people turn aging into a performance of complaints.
And slowly, even those who love them start stepping away.
Strength is attractive.
Resilience is magnetic.
People respect the ones who stay capable, not the ones who surrender. 

Rule 5: Let go of the past.

The good old days were beautiful — yes.
But they’re gone, and there is no return ticket.
Clinging to the past steals the present.
Life today may look different, but it still holds moments worth living.

Rule 6: Protect your peace like it’s your property.

Not every argument needs your voice.
Not every insult needs your response.
Not every relative deserves access to your emotions.
Peace is expensive.
Protect it from drama, negativity, and draining people —
even if they're your close ones. 

Rule 7: Keep learning something — anything.

The day you stop learning is the day you start aging.
A new recipe, a new word, a new app, a new hobby —
your brain needs movement just like your body does.
Learning keeps you young.
Stagnation makes you old. 

Strength and freedom still belong to you.

Aging is an exam no one can take for you.
You can adapt, rebuild, and rise stronger…
or sit back, complain, and wait for someone to rescue you.
And if ....
No one comes to rescue you ....
Stand up for yourself ...
Because you still can…
And that single truth is enough to transform the rest of your life.” 

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As stated in the Disclaimer, I can only have wished that I wrote what Ms. Moreton has written; it is outstanding! For readers of my Nuggets, they know that I cannot help myself because I want to add to something even as good as the above information is and this is no exception. 

I turned 81 in 2026, and I can attest that what Ms. Moreton writes about is so true. For me, that would have been over TWENTY years ago and the items she puts forth only increase over time. 

The one item NOT itemized is that I believe that you must acknowledge and plan for the fact that you will live into your 70s, 80s and even 90s. Therefore, it is my opinion that everyone ought to work to eliminate all debt that can be eliminated as soon as possible. I am NOT a financial advisor. I just know that being debt free is more calming than being in debt!  Worrying about how you are going to pay your bills when the income suddenly becomes less than what you have thought would never end, can be hazardous to your physical health AND your mental health. Home loans, car loans, student loans, needless credit card debt should be paid off ASAP! I learned this lesson late in life thanks to one simple sentence by Gary Keller, co-founder of Keller Williams Realty International. "Lead with REVENUES, NOT with EXPENSES!" Keller would also say if you cannot pay cash for something, don't buy it unless you absolutely MUST buy it, which is rarely the case.  Required dental work would be such an example; something you cannot put off!  A GREAT tip comes from Joe Tye who coined the phrase, DDQ, Direction-Deflection-Question. It is simple and works almost every time it is used. Ask and answer the question. “If I buy this, will it lead to my goal of being financially independent?” If yes, buy it, If NO, don't!  I used this principle to lose weight.  “If I eat or drink this item, will it lead to me achieving my desired weight of ____?”  If yes, eat or drink it.  If not, do not!

LOUISIANA ELECTION DAY! MAY 16, 2026

LOUISIANA ELECTION DAY!  MAY 16, 2026
Written by A. G. Crowe, annotated by Jim "Gymbeaux" Brown, May 15, 2026

THIS NUGGET APPLIES TO EVERYONE ACROSS AMERICA, NOT JUST IN
SLIDELL, LOUISIANA. THE PLEDGE TO PAY FOR A FULL PAGE AD ONLY APPLIES TO THE SLIDELL AREA FOLKS, JUST SO YOU KNOW.

PERSONAL DISCLAIMER: I have been writing and posting Nuggets on this blog since 2008. I have been writing Nuggets since the early 1990s and have written more than 1000 of them most were originally written by me. The ones NOT posted where lost due to a computer failure. Occasionally I would post a Nugget (article) written by someone else which the case for this Nugget. It was written by a former Louisiana State Senator and friend, A. G. Crowe and it is a good one with Saturday, May 16 being primary election day in Louisiana. Sadly, this being an election date NOT involving a President of the United States, about 3 out of ever 10 Louisiana voters will be voting on Saturday. For the record, my wife and I already voted via absentee ballot. What that means is that 70% of eligible Louisiana voters will be deciding who our next U. S. Senator from Louisiana will be. As a disabled veteran, I find that deplorable and disgusting that so few people actually seem to care but then will be so quick to complain. With all that said, the following is the article by A. G. Crowe!

AN IMPORTANT MESSAGE TO THE CITIZENS/VOTERS OF SLIDELL

(From the “Someone has to stand up and say something Department!”)

A.G. Crowe, Former Louisiana State Senator

5-9-26

People typically choose a political party based on the values and beliefs they identify with. Likewise, they usually vote for the candidates they believe best represent those same values.

Slidell is widely known as a conservative city with strong traditional values. The majority of its voters identify as Republicans because they believe the Republican Party more closely reflects those values and principles. Certainly, there are conservatives in other parties, but it is important to remember what many Republicans believe their party stands for and why those beliefs matter to them locally here in Slidell.

Many conservatives point to several national issues that directly impact Slidell.

• Border Security: WHAT DOES THAT HAVE TO DO WITH US HERE IN SLIDELL? Republicans argue that Democratic border policies allowed millions of illegal immigrants into the country, creating concerns about public safety, a strain on our local resources, and future political influence or votes. Illegal immigrants ARE showing up at our local Slidell hospitals and ARE enrolled in our public schools utilizing resources that are supposed to be reserved for citizens . WE are paying for that. Is that fair? What party is responsible for this problem? The Democrats and their open border policy, disguised as the “humane thing to do” but really designed to get more votes. Is that appropriate, especially when millions of people are legally in line waiting to come into the US the right way? Many residents believe immigration enforcement should be strengthened, including cooperation between local law enforcement and federal agencies through programs such as 287(g). ICE WORK IS STILL ON-GOING HERE LOCALLY. WILL A DEMOCRAT ELECTED IN SLIDELL OPENLY & CONSISTENTLY ENDORSE 287(g) ENCOURAGING SLIDELL POLICE TO WORK WITH ICE TO GET RID OF VIOLENT ILLEGAL OFFENDERS OR BE PRESSURED BY THE PARTY TO DO WHAT THEY DEMAND?

• Support for Law Enforcement: Conservatives often criticize “defund the police” movements led by Democrats and believe law enforcement agencies should be fully supported, funded, and respected. Many voters deserve to know whether local elected officials will strongly support the Slidell Police Department and public safety initiatives.

• Government Shutdowns and Political Conflict: Many conservatives believe Democrats have used government funding battles and political gridlock as leverage against President Trump and Republican policies, creating disruptions that affect everyday people right here in Slidell. REMEMBER THE LINES AT THE AIRPORT? WE CAN THANK THE DEMOCRATS.

• Political Violence: Democrats' aggressive anti-Trump rhetoric is inspiring unstable individuals to commit acts of violence. DO WE WANT TO BREATH LIFE IN TO THE PEOPLE THAT RECENTLY DEMONSTRATED AT THE MAYOR'S PRAYER BREAKFAST RIGHT HERE IN SLIDELL? DEMOCRATS FUELED THESE CONFLICTS ALL OVER THE COUNTRY AND RIGHT HERE IN SLIDELL! POLITICAL RHETORIC SPEWED NATIONALLY IS HEARD BY LOTS OF PEOPLE EVERYDAY RIGHT HERE IN SLIDELL.

LET’S BE HONEST.

EVERY LOCAL ELECTION MATTERS AND PARTY AFFILIATION MATTERS. PARTY LABELS ARE THERE FOR A REASON. IT IS FOR THE PURPOSE OF TELLING VOTERS WHAT YOU STAND FOR. IF YOU STAND FOR THE POLICIES OF THE DEMOCRAT PARTY THAT BELIEVES IN TAKING THE LIVES OF INNOCENT BABIES, MARRIAGE OTHER THAN ONE MAN AND ONE WOMAN AND RACIAL GEREMANDERING FOR POLITICAL GAIN, THEN VOTE FOR A DEMOCRAT.

Choosing a political party is a conscious decision. A candidate consciously chooses to identify with a party and the ideology that comes with it. Recently, a Democrat-appointed member of the library board voted against restricting age-inappropriate material in our Slidell library, material many parents believe could expose innocent children to pornographic content. Fortunately, enough conservative Republicans on the board voted in favor of restricting access to that material. IT WAS A DEMOCRAT THAT DID NOT WANT TO PROTECT OUR CHILDREN.

And to those on the far left who have read this far........this is not about book banning or book burning. It is about protecting children from inappropriate content! Don’t use our innocent children to support your lies!

So why should anyone be surprised when elected officials act consistently with the party and ideology they chose to align themselves with? That, my friends, is a Democrat who will predictably function, at every opportunity, as a Democrat.

In today’s world, if you choose to be or vote for a Democrat, you are joining with the likes of Kamala Harris, Hakeem Jeffries, Chuck Schumer, Bernie Sanders, AOC, Gavin Newsom and Nancy Pelosi. Is that what we really want in our local leaders? WOULD THE CITZEN/VOTER OF SLIDELL ELECT SOMEONE WHO SHARES THE POLICIES AND BELIEFS OF THESE PEOPLE? I THINK NOT!

If you are a Democrat and proclaim that you DO NOT believe as your national party advocates, THEN CHANGE YOUR PARTY OR OPENLY DENOUNCE THEIR POLICIES! Millions of people all across our nation have already done so.

You can be the nicest, smartest, most popular and the most effective public servant on the planet but THESE ARE NOT THE REASONS TO VOTE FOR YOU. IT IS YOUR PARTY LABEL AND ITS POLICIES AND PLATFORM THAT IDENTIFIES YOU AND THE LABEL THAT YOU CHOSE TO PROUDLY WEAR.

Studies have consistently shown that local races can influence the direction, values, and priorities of the broader political system. Every elected office at any level counts!

No matter your political affiliation, study the issues carefully, ask candidates direct questions, and vote according to the values and principles you believe are best for Slidell, Louisiana, and the future of our country.

I will end with this pledge since there is still time to vote.

“If you are a Democrat candidate seeking any office in St. Tammany Parish and will publicly denounce the policies and direction of today’s Democrat Party and will sign an agreement to change your party affiliation from Democrat, I will personally pay for a full-page advertisement in the Slidell Independent endorsing your campaign.”

Can You See It?

 

CAN YOU SEE IT?
IT’S RIGHT THERE
IN FRONT OF YOU!
By Jim “Gymbeaux” Brown, April, 28, 2026

“You can bring a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink!”
12^th Century, actual origin unknown

 This Nugget is brings a horse (you) to the water (the information) and there is no way to make you read it just as it is impossible to make the horse drink the water. Like the water, the information is there. All YOU have to do is, let it in!

The Frog in the Pot

If you drop a frog into a pot of boiling water, it will instantly jump out to save itself. But if you place that same frog into a pot of cool water, where it feels safe and comfortable, it will settle in. Then, if you slowly turn up the heat…the water warms little by little. The frog adjusts. It does not notice the gradual change.

The temperature keeps rising and still the frog adapts…until eventually, it becomes too weak to escape. By the time the danger is obvious, it is too late.

Over the past sixty years, America has become the proverbial “frog in the pot.” It began in the late 1950s when The Communist Party USA (yes, they are still alive and operating) put their final changes on “The Communist Goals for Taking Over America.” You can read them at:

http://www.rense.com/general32/americ.htm.

I learned about the forty-five goals when I read the book The Naked Communist written by W. Cleon Skousen. To say it was a revelation, would be a gross understatement! To make it even more dire, the document was made part of the Congressional Record verifying that our members of government were made aware of the goals. Regardless, it appears that no one put any emphasis on the forty-five goals and the ultimate outcome, the takeover of America without firing a shot, IF they were ever achieved. If you do not want to read them, you can watch them at:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n4bE23W0PB0

I am aware that most people, certainly not you, will NOT take the time to access either the written list of goals or the video.  The goals are so important, I am posting them below.

Before you read them, please consider what Vladmir Lenin said,

"Give me your four-year-olds, and in a generation I will build a socialist state."

I have emboldened the specific goals that have already been achieved and are obvious to anyone who reads them. The question that everyone ought to ask themselves is, Do I believe in any of these goals? If so, you may or are part of the problem!

Pay attention to Goal #17 which reads: Get control of the schools. Use them as transmission belts for socialism and current Communist propaganda. Soften the curriculum. Get control of teachers' associations. Put the party line in textbooks.

Goal #17 has created a self-refueling engine that has created a never-ending line of teachers who consciously or unconsciously teach Communist philosophy in our schools. As Lenin said, we hand off our children to schools and teachers and expect them to teach our children reading, writing and arithmetic. However, it should be obvious that our children are gradually fed Marxist/Communist ideas. This teaching only becomes more in depth in grades 7 through 12. A graduating high school senior goes to college and continues the indoctrination through their graduation from college. This is the key to the silent takeover of America when college graduates become the future teachers of the next generation of children attending elementary/high school and college. Can you see that this is a possibility if not a reality? If the college student does not start a teaching career, they eventually become executives in corporations, the news media and Hollywood and the indoctrination continue.

The ONLY WAY to break this cycle, assuming you agree that the cycle exists, is for every parent to get involved with the education of their children and learn what they are taught in school. I can honestly say that as I grew up in the 1950s and 60s, I had never heard of anyone in any of the schools I attended being confused about their gender. Divorces were extremely rare and not that easy to obtain. I had never heard of any student ever attacking a teacher. No one to my knowledge ever questioned the honesty and transparency of a Catholic priest regarding sexual abuse of children; it was a non-subject!

The Communist Goals for Taking Over America are like warships and submarines. The warships know there is always the potential for danger. The submarines silently search for the enemy warships and approach them in silence. It fires its torpedoes toward the warships and the ships and crews are not aware of the lurking and eminent danger until it is too late. I would guess that very few Americans are aware of the Forty-Five Communist Party USA goals. The Party represents a submarine. The goals are the submarine’s torpedoes. Americans have been sitting ducks (warship) and are unaware that danger has been on their doorstep for over sixty years!

THE COMMUNIST GOALS FOR TAKING OVER AMERICA

1.  U.S. acceptance of coexistence as the only alternative to atomic war.

2.  U.S. willingness to capitulate in preference to engaging in atomic war.

3.  Develop the illusion that total disarmament [by] the United States would be a demonstration of moral strength.

4.  Permit free trade between all nations regardless of Communist affiliation and regardless of whether or not items could be used for war.

5.  Extension of long-term loans to Russia and Soviet satellites.

6.  Provide American aid to all nations regardless of Communist domination.

7.  Grant recognition of Red China. Admission of Red China to the U.N.

8.  Set up East and West Germany as separate states in spite of Khrushchev's promise in 1955 to settle the German question by free elections under supervision of the U.N.

9.  Prolong the conferences to ban atomic tests because the United States has agreed to suspend tests as long as negotiations are in progress.

10. Allow all Soviet satellites individual representation in the U.N.

11. Promote the U.N. as the only hope for mankind. If its charter is rewritten, it demands that it be set up as a one-world government with its own independent armed forces. (Some Communist leaders believe the world can be taken over as easily by the U.N. as by Moscow. Sometimes these two centers compete with each other as they are now doing in Congo.)

12. Resist any attempt to outlaw the Communist Party.

13. Do away with all loyalty oaths.

14. Continue giving Russia access to the U.S. Patent Office.

15. Capture one or both of the political parties in the United States.

16. Use technical decisions of the courts to weaken basic American institutions by claiming their activities violate civil rights.

17. Get control of the schools. Use them as transmission belts for socialism and current Communist propaganda. Soften the curriculum. Get control of teachers' associations. Put the party line in textbooks.

18. Gain control of all student newspapers.

19. Use student riots to foment public protests against programs or organizations which are under Communist attack.

20. Infiltrate the press. Get control of book-review assignments, editorial writing, policy-making positions.

21. Gain control of key positions in radio, TV, and motion pictures.

22. Continue discrediting American culture by degrading all forms of artistic expression. An American Communist cell was told to "eliminate all good sculpture from parks and buildings, substitute shapeless, awkward and meaningless forms."

23. Control art critics and directors of art museums. "Our plan is to promote ugliness, repulsive, meaningless art."

24. Eliminate all laws governing obscenity by calling them "censorship" and a violation of free speech and free press.

25. Break down cultural standards of morality by promoting pornography and obscenity in books, magazines, motion pictures, radio, and TV.

26. Present homosexuality, degeneracy, and promiscuity as "normal, natural, healthy."

27. Infiltrate the churches and replace revealed religion with "social" religion. Discredit the Bible and emphasize the need for intellectual maturity, which does not need a "religious crutch."

28. Eliminate prayer or any phase of religious expression in the schools on the ground that it violates the principle of "separation of church and state."

29. Discredit the American Constitution by calling it inadequate, old-fashioned, out of step with modern needs, a hindrance to cooperation between nations on a worldwide basis.

30. Discredit the American Founding Fathers. Present them as selfish aristocrats who had no concern for the "common man."

31. Belittle all forms of American culture and discourage the teaching of American history on the ground that it was only a minor part of the "big picture." Give more emphasis to Russian history since the Communists took over.

32. Support any socialist movement to give centralized control over any part of the culture--education, social agencies, welfare programs, mental health clinics, etc.

33. Eliminate all laws or procedures which interfere with the operation of the Communist apparatus.

34. Eliminate the House Committee on Un-American Activities.

35. Discredit and eventually dismantle the FBI.

36. Infiltrate and gain control of more unions.

37. Infiltrate and gain control of big business.

38. Transfer some of the powers of arrest from the police to social agencies. Treat all behavioral problems as psychiatric disorders which no one but psychiatrists can understand [or treat].

39. Dominate the psychiatric profession and use mental health laws as a means of gaining coercive control over those who oppose Communist goals.

40. Discredit the family as an institution. Encourage promiscuity and easy divorce.

41. Emphasize the need to raise children away from the negative influence of parents. Attribute prejudices, mental blocks and retarding of children to suppressive influence of parents.

42. Create the impression that violence and insurrection are legitimate aspects of the American tradition; that students and special-interest groups should rise up and use ["]united force["] to solve economic, political, or social problems.

43. Overthrow all colonial governments before native populations are ready for self-government.

44. Internationalize the Panama Canal.

45. Repeal the Connally reservation so the United States cannot prevent the World Court from seizing jurisdiction [over domestic problems. Give the World Court jurisdiction] over nations and individuals alike.

NOW DO YOU SEE IT?