I guess I could start with my favorite "how women think" joke, but I will resist for the sake of brevity, and my own personal safety. Say what you will, but the reason these jokes are funny is they are based, in some part, on reality. Women think differently than men do. Go ahead and start writing your letters to me now, but deep down you know it's true. I'm not saying the way women think is better, or worse, it's just different. To pretend otherwise is to deny reality.
I am not saying there are no exceptions to the rule, there certainly are. They are some of the most interesting people I have ever met. However, in most cases, women are wired to "feel" more in their thinking than men. Most men are wired to stay on a linear thinking path, a little more detached from their emotions. Except House Speaker, John Boehner, that guy cries all the time.
If you are already on the second paragraph of your hate-mail to me, just listen for a minute. It's not about intelligence, it's not about ability, it's about how our brains are wired. I have met, worked with, and worked for, some brilliant, strong, successful women. I have also met, worked with, and for, some men who were dumber than a sack full of hammers.
My point is I understand how most men think; I'm one of them. Women on the other hand; I have no clue. Dawn, my wife of 22 years, God bless her, can attest to this fact. Now, add preadolescence to the mysteries of the female mind, and I am so out my league it's not funny. This is where my daughter comes in.
There is a pretty big gap between our children, Steven is 17 and Abbie is 10. Steven and I have a close relationship; we share similar interests in music, guitars, sports and most other things. Abbie is her mother's daughter; they are two peas in a pod. I call her my wife's mini-me. They even look alike, which is good news for my daughter, and they have many of the same personality traits.
They are the true animal lovers of our household. Abbie and Dawn can spend all day out in the barn with the horses. While I love all the critters on our place, being raised on a cattle ranch, their charms have worn off a bit for me. I have the scars to prove it. The closest Steven wants to get to our cows is sitting down at the dinner table with a bottle of A1 steak sauce.
Our family schedule has always been crazy. Being a co-owner of a small business, Dawn has worked on Sundays for many years. Abbie would usually go with her to our business at Gibson Ranch Park in Sacramento. They spent most Sundays together from the time Abbie was a baby. Steven and I would usually go to church, go shooting, watch football, or just hang out together on Sundays. This fall, all that changed. When the park closed this August, we moved all of our animals back home. For the first time in years, I have been able to spend the whole weekend with the entire family. It has been very cool, but we have had to adjust to the new routines.
One thing I am learning about parenting is its ever changing job description. I was getting pretty good at being the game-watching, question-answering, ball-throwing, chauffeur guy. Now I am the ATM/dispenser-of-wisdom-to-be-ignored guy. At least I am for my son. For my daughter, I am not sure what my direct role is, other than being someone to snuggle with on the couch, being the lifter of heavy things, and being the one going outside to find out what made that loud noise at three in the morning
Spending more time with Abbie has been very educational for me. Still, if the kids are doing separate activities, I usually take Steven and Dawn usually takes Abbie. I guess it is just a natural mother-daughter, father-son thing, but I am going to make an effort to change that.
As a father, spending time with you daughter is a big deal. I have spoken to many women whose fathers were not present in their lives growing up, even when they lived under the same roof. It can have a terrible effect on a young woman's self image, and the way she relates to men as she grows into adulthood.Boys and girls need both parents fully involved in their lives. I should be just as involved in Abbie's volleyball as I am in Steven's music.
I have my work cut out for me because Abbie is into everything; softball, volleyball, piano, 4-H, and about a dozen other activities. Steven is into music. Playing, recording, editing, the boy loves music and wants to make a career out of it. They are very different individuals. Both have different talents and distinct personalities. While I can relate to Steven easier, I once was a 17 year old male, I have no idea what it is like to be a pre-teen girl. I guess I'll just have to be the best dad I can be for her. The first step is just being there.
I don’t think I will ever understand Abbie the way I might understand Steven, but that's not what's really important. I’m supposed to love her for the person she is, the person she is growing into, and to be there for her no matter what.
I'm trying to do just that, but I need to try harder.
Monday, February 28, 2011
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
I can't hear you
I discuss and debate politics quite often, maybe too often. Over the years, my views have changed as I read, learned and participated in the world of politics. Growing more conservative in my views over the past twenty years or so, I have had plenty of practice debating, defending and rethinking what I believe. This is a good thing. Some of the greatest insights and discoveries I have made came by this process.
Socratic questioning is one of the best ways to uncover how you came to believe what you believe, and whether your beliefs are logical. After all, what good are beliefs you really don't understand, and cannot defend?
Having political discussions at work usually consists of me debating everyone else. That's fine. The truth is the truth, and facts are facts no matter how many people are saying you are wrong. That’s the issue I have the hardest time with. When you debate people who "feel" and "believe" something using their own set of assumptions, along with their own personal facts, the debate breaks down.
When you talk about federal spending and spending cuts with a person who thinks half the budget goes to the pentagon, you are in for a long, frustrating conversation. When you point out that Medicare will be broke in a few short years, the person you're debating says the solution is to put everyone on Medicare and eliminate private health insurance. Oy vey.
To quote the warden in Cool Hand Luke, "Some folks, you just can't reach."
Sometimes, the folks hardest to reach are those supposedly on your side. A great example of this was the first draft of budget cuts proposed by house Republican leaders last week. After winning in November on a platform of cutting 100 billion from President Obama's 2011 budget, the House leadership proposed 32 billion in cuts. Many conservatives hit the roof, myself included.
You don't understand they said, the budget year is almost half over, and the 32 billion was all we could cut right now, blah, blah, blah. Seriously? 32 billion is a rounding error when you are looking at a 1.5 Trillion dollar federal deficit out of a 3.8 Trillion dollar budget. When the stuff hit the fan in Speaker Boehner's office this week, the leadership magically found the 100 billion in cuts they promised.
Now, that is a really big number right? That is going to make a huge dent in the deficit right? No. Let me explain.
If, and that is a big if, the house gets their 100 billion in cuts, the deficit for this year will go down from 1.5 Trillion to 1.4 Trillion. It is like having congestive heart failure, being 150 pounds overweight, and your doctor telling you to lose that extra 150 pounds or you are going to die. Losing 10 pounds in a year is a start, but you should be losing much more, much faster. At this rate it will take another 14 years to reach a balanced budget, let alone reducing our overall debt.
I'm sure even the ten pounds is too much weight to lose for some groups. The SEIU and NEA and every other public employee union will be fighting these reductions tooth and nail. I’ll bet you will soon hear radio ads in scary voices telling you the Republicans are trying to balance the budget of the backs of "X". You name it; teachers, the elderly, children, police and firemen, polar bears, we just can't afford these draconian cuts, call you representative now!
At least that is what they'll say. Just remember, in 2006 the entire federal budget was 2.6 Trillion dollars, with a deficit (the difference between what the government takes in taxes and what they spent) of 249 billion dollars. Ah, the good old days. President Obama's 2011 budget is 3.8 Trillion with a budget deficit of 1.5 Trillion dollars. What the Republicans in the house are asking for is to cut the budget from 3.8 Trillion to 3.7, and the deficit from 1.5 to 1.4, isn't that horrible?
How will the federal government manage?
Socratic questioning is one of the best ways to uncover how you came to believe what you believe, and whether your beliefs are logical. After all, what good are beliefs you really don't understand, and cannot defend?
Having political discussions at work usually consists of me debating everyone else. That's fine. The truth is the truth, and facts are facts no matter how many people are saying you are wrong. That’s the issue I have the hardest time with. When you debate people who "feel" and "believe" something using their own set of assumptions, along with their own personal facts, the debate breaks down.
When you talk about federal spending and spending cuts with a person who thinks half the budget goes to the pentagon, you are in for a long, frustrating conversation. When you point out that Medicare will be broke in a few short years, the person you're debating says the solution is to put everyone on Medicare and eliminate private health insurance. Oy vey.
To quote the warden in Cool Hand Luke, "Some folks, you just can't reach."
Sometimes, the folks hardest to reach are those supposedly on your side. A great example of this was the first draft of budget cuts proposed by house Republican leaders last week. After winning in November on a platform of cutting 100 billion from President Obama's 2011 budget, the House leadership proposed 32 billion in cuts. Many conservatives hit the roof, myself included.
You don't understand they said, the budget year is almost half over, and the 32 billion was all we could cut right now, blah, blah, blah. Seriously? 32 billion is a rounding error when you are looking at a 1.5 Trillion dollar federal deficit out of a 3.8 Trillion dollar budget. When the stuff hit the fan in Speaker Boehner's office this week, the leadership magically found the 100 billion in cuts they promised.
Now, that is a really big number right? That is going to make a huge dent in the deficit right? No. Let me explain.
If, and that is a big if, the house gets their 100 billion in cuts, the deficit for this year will go down from 1.5 Trillion to 1.4 Trillion. It is like having congestive heart failure, being 150 pounds overweight, and your doctor telling you to lose that extra 150 pounds or you are going to die. Losing 10 pounds in a year is a start, but you should be losing much more, much faster. At this rate it will take another 14 years to reach a balanced budget, let alone reducing our overall debt.
I'm sure even the ten pounds is too much weight to lose for some groups. The SEIU and NEA and every other public employee union will be fighting these reductions tooth and nail. I’ll bet you will soon hear radio ads in scary voices telling you the Republicans are trying to balance the budget of the backs of "X". You name it; teachers, the elderly, children, police and firemen, polar bears, we just can't afford these draconian cuts, call you representative now!
At least that is what they'll say. Just remember, in 2006 the entire federal budget was 2.6 Trillion dollars, with a deficit (the difference between what the government takes in taxes and what they spent) of 249 billion dollars. Ah, the good old days. President Obama's 2011 budget is 3.8 Trillion with a budget deficit of 1.5 Trillion dollars. What the Republicans in the house are asking for is to cut the budget from 3.8 Trillion to 3.7, and the deficit from 1.5 to 1.4, isn't that horrible?
How will the federal government manage?
Monday, January 17, 2011
"Paul's Letter to American Christians" - Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
I have always found the speeches of Dr. King to be inspirational and thought provoking, even if I didn't always agree with everything word he wrote. His thoughts on socialism etc; but his sermons are where I have always found his true fire, and brilliance. Again, even if there are a few thoughts I would love to have discussed with him. Here are few excerpts from one of my favorite sermons, a fictional letter from the Apostle Paul to American Christians.
You can read the whole sermon here, it would be a few minutes well spent.
"But America, as I look at you from afar, I wonder whether your moral and spiritual progress has been commensurate with your scientific progress. It seems to me that your moral progress lags behind your scientific progress. Your poet Thoreau used to talk about "improved means to an unimproved end." How often this is true. You have allowed the material means by which you live to outdistance the spiritual ends for which you live. You have allowed your mentality to outrun your morality. You have allowed your civilization to outdistance your culture. Through your scientific genius you have made of the world a neighborhood, but through your moral and spiritual genius you have failed to make of it a brotherhood. So America, I would urge you to keep your moral advances abreast with your scientific advances."
"I understand that you have an economic system in America known as Capitalism. Through this economic system you have been able to do wonders. You have become the richest nation in the world, and you have built up the greatest system of production that history has ever known. All of this is marvelous. But Americans, there is the danger that you will misuse your Capitalism. I still contend that money can be the root of all evil. It can cause one to live a life of gross materialism. I am afraid that many among you are more concerned about making a living than making a life. You are prone to judge the success of your profession by the index of your salary and the size of the wheel base on your automobile, rather than the quality of your service to humanity."
..."Always be sure that you struggle with Christian methods and Christian weapons. Never succumb to the temptation of becoming bitter. As you press on for justice, be sure to move with dignity and discipline, using only the weapon of love. Let no man pull you so low as to hate him. Always avoid violence."
You can read the whole sermon here, it would be a few minutes well spent.
Monday, January 03, 2011
The price of advice
We all receive advice. Sometimes we solicit this advice, sometimes we do not. Usually, it is given free of charge and in most cases; it is worth the price paid. There are the times when you think back on a bit of wisdom you were given and say, that was truly good advice; I wish I had followed it.
The degree to which you follow advice usually depends on who is giving it, and the state of the relationship between you and the giver. Let me explain.
I remember some rather sage words of wisdom passed down to me from my father. Some of which I followed, some of which I did not. Here are a few.
"There are plenty of broke horses in this world, why don't you go find one." This was told to me while I was wadded up in a heap, stuck halfway under my father's truck, after being bucked off a green two year old horse.
"Well, you better learn fast, I want this hillside cleared of brush by noon." After I said I don't how to drive a D-8 bulldozer. I think I was still in grade school.
"What the hell are you thinking; you don't use a gas engine inside a barn full of hay." It didn't seem that stupid at the time, but I was fourteen.
"Don't drink on an empty stomach; you won't worth a damn in the morning." He was right.
His advice was meant to be informational, or inspirational, or something. I took most of it, mainly out of sheer terror. Being a father, he was trying to keep me alive, when he wasn't putting my life in peril. I did learn a great many things from my father, but when I was a teenager, I started to think I knew it all. Fast forward thirty years, and now I am the one dispensing advice to my kids.
I remember a few years ago I was talking to my friend Butch; he asked how old my son was. When I told him he was fifteen, he said, “Walt, you are about to become the dumbest person on earth." Well, at least I was warned.
I believe this metamorphosis happens innocently enough. It all starts one day when your kids find out something you told them is not true, or they know something you don't. The gears of rebellion begin turning.
They think if mom and dad are wrong about this, I bet everything they tell me is a load of beans. When this new paradigm sets in, as a parent you just turned the corner from smart person to dumb person. Enter the know-it-all friend or worse, the know-it-all teacher who finds glee in bursting their young intellectual bubble. In many cases, these new influences are the ones full of beans, but they have convincing arguments, and point to "facts" or other sources to back up the point of view. It can be a confusing time for young people.
This is when their cool, slacker buddy tells them to forget their engineering degree to wander across Europe for a year. Forget about college and go to work for a non-profit so they can help save the world. Conversely, this might be the time when you as a parent tell them they have give up on their dreams of becoming an artist, musician, professional athlete, mime, kangaroo trainer, etc, and get a "real job."
Somewhere in the middle of all this, they ask for advice from people they know and trust. Here is where it gets tricky; sometimes they go looking for the advice they want to hear. Honestly, there are no right answers, but there are some that are far worse than others.
College can be a great decision. However, working as an assistant manager at Taco Bell to pay off your sixty thousand dollar college loan for a degree in art history may not be the smartest move. Earning a degree with "engineering' at the end of it, probably will. Passing on college for a career in a field that you are passionate about is a tossup. If you can pay the rent, and keep the bills paid doing something you love, that is a wonderful thing. When you are sixty five and have no retirement savings, or a house that is paid for, this might be the price you have to pay for all those years of enjoyment.
When you finally hit twenty five or thirty, you start to rethink the advice you followed, and the advice you passed up. I have found the best advice comes from people who have been down the road you are traveling. Or from folks who chose short term expediency over their long term goals, and regret it to this day. Sometimes there isn’t any substitute for years of experience from a wise person.
Here are two things I do know; don’t take diet advice from a fat guy, and don’t take financial advice from a guy living in his car.
The degree to which you follow advice usually depends on who is giving it, and the state of the relationship between you and the giver. Let me explain.
I remember some rather sage words of wisdom passed down to me from my father. Some of which I followed, some of which I did not. Here are a few.
"There are plenty of broke horses in this world, why don't you go find one." This was told to me while I was wadded up in a heap, stuck halfway under my father's truck, after being bucked off a green two year old horse.
"Well, you better learn fast, I want this hillside cleared of brush by noon." After I said I don't how to drive a D-8 bulldozer. I think I was still in grade school.
"What the hell are you thinking; you don't use a gas engine inside a barn full of hay." It didn't seem that stupid at the time, but I was fourteen.
"Don't drink on an empty stomach; you won't worth a damn in the morning." He was right.
His advice was meant to be informational, or inspirational, or something. I took most of it, mainly out of sheer terror. Being a father, he was trying to keep me alive, when he wasn't putting my life in peril. I did learn a great many things from my father, but when I was a teenager, I started to think I knew it all. Fast forward thirty years, and now I am the one dispensing advice to my kids.
I remember a few years ago I was talking to my friend Butch; he asked how old my son was. When I told him he was fifteen, he said, “Walt, you are about to become the dumbest person on earth." Well, at least I was warned.
I believe this metamorphosis happens innocently enough. It all starts one day when your kids find out something you told them is not true, or they know something you don't. The gears of rebellion begin turning.
They think if mom and dad are wrong about this, I bet everything they tell me is a load of beans. When this new paradigm sets in, as a parent you just turned the corner from smart person to dumb person. Enter the know-it-all friend or worse, the know-it-all teacher who finds glee in bursting their young intellectual bubble. In many cases, these new influences are the ones full of beans, but they have convincing arguments, and point to "facts" or other sources to back up the point of view. It can be a confusing time for young people.
This is when their cool, slacker buddy tells them to forget their engineering degree to wander across Europe for a year. Forget about college and go to work for a non-profit so they can help save the world. Conversely, this might be the time when you as a parent tell them they have give up on their dreams of becoming an artist, musician, professional athlete, mime, kangaroo trainer, etc, and get a "real job."
Somewhere in the middle of all this, they ask for advice from people they know and trust. Here is where it gets tricky; sometimes they go looking for the advice they want to hear. Honestly, there are no right answers, but there are some that are far worse than others.
College can be a great decision. However, working as an assistant manager at Taco Bell to pay off your sixty thousand dollar college loan for a degree in art history may not be the smartest move. Earning a degree with "engineering' at the end of it, probably will. Passing on college for a career in a field that you are passionate about is a tossup. If you can pay the rent, and keep the bills paid doing something you love, that is a wonderful thing. When you are sixty five and have no retirement savings, or a house that is paid for, this might be the price you have to pay for all those years of enjoyment.
When you finally hit twenty five or thirty, you start to rethink the advice you followed, and the advice you passed up. I have found the best advice comes from people who have been down the road you are traveling. Or from folks who chose short term expediency over their long term goals, and regret it to this day. Sometimes there isn’t any substitute for years of experience from a wise person.
Here are two things I do know; don’t take diet advice from a fat guy, and don’t take financial advice from a guy living in his car.
Thursday, December 23, 2010
The new True Grit
First off, no it's not as good as the original. In some ways it's better. I love John Wayne, and the role of Rooster Cogburn seemed made for him. While I like his lighter, more smart-ass portrayal of Rooster Cogburn, Jeff Bridges is wonderful as the grizzled, worn down, and very flawed US Marshal. As much as I think Matt Damon is a pompous ass hat, comparing his acting ability to that of Glen Campbell's is like comparing LeBron James to me on the basketball court. The role of Mattie Ross is a toss up, I like Kim Darby's spunk in the original, but Hailee Steinfeld's intensity and drive brings new depth to the role.
The new True Grit is darker, dirtier, rougher, more authentic and grittier; definitely a Coen brothers film. There are no back-lot production scenes, everything looks worn out, used up, rode hard and put away wet. You can easily imagine how bad Rooster Cogburn's room in the back of a Chinese market smells. Everyone in the movie, except Hailee Steinfeld, looks like they were dragged face down through a sage brush patch; very real and in desperate need of professional dentistry.
The new film leaves out some familiar scenes, including the final cemetery scene, but replaces them with something even better. It's not as neatly wrapped up as the original, but this is the Coen brothers, and the ending does come full circle.
I really can't say that I like one over the other, although I am so much more familiar with the 1969 version. The new one is, well, it's new. It's kind of like getting a new dog that replaced and old favorite. All you remember are the great times you had with the old dog, never the time he chewed up you new boots. It's easy to find some things in the new film you don't like about , but then again, I have fast-forwarded through the Glen Campbell scenes in the old one too.
Go see it, and keep in mind, the Duke will never be replaced, but I think he would like it.
The new True Grit is darker, dirtier, rougher, more authentic and grittier; definitely a Coen brothers film. There are no back-lot production scenes, everything looks worn out, used up, rode hard and put away wet. You can easily imagine how bad Rooster Cogburn's room in the back of a Chinese market smells. Everyone in the movie, except Hailee Steinfeld, looks like they were dragged face down through a sage brush patch; very real and in desperate need of professional dentistry.
The new film leaves out some familiar scenes, including the final cemetery scene, but replaces them with something even better. It's not as neatly wrapped up as the original, but this is the Coen brothers, and the ending does come full circle.
I really can't say that I like one over the other, although I am so much more familiar with the 1969 version. The new one is, well, it's new. It's kind of like getting a new dog that replaced and old favorite. All you remember are the great times you had with the old dog, never the time he chewed up you new boots. It's easy to find some things in the new film you don't like about , but then again, I have fast-forwarded through the Glen Campbell scenes in the old one too.
Go see it, and keep in mind, the Duke will never be replaced, but I think he would like it.
Monday, December 20, 2010
Cows don't care about Christmas
Once, I applied for a position at UC Davis as a farm maintenance worker/reserve milker. I am fortunate I did not get that job; I think the cows are fortunate too. That position went to a full time UCD milker who wanted to do something different, and he was definitely qualified for the milking part of the job. In time, I did get a job in the Animal Science department, and talking to my co workers did nothing but reinforce my belief that the job of a milker is no fun.
When I tell people I live in the country, people mistake me for a farmer. I always correct them saying I have a cattle ranch, therefore, I am a rancher. Then they ask if my cows are milk cows. My answer is always this; do I look crazy to you?
Growing up, we had a milk cow. Bessie was her name, and as cows go, she was a very nice cow. This did not save her from my constant derision and hostile feelings. I hated milking Bessie. Getting swatted in the eye with her swishing tail, having the stainless steel bucket almost full, just to have her step in it or knock it over were some of my least favorite parts of the job. Milking cows by hand should be banned by some sort international criminal court on the basis of its cruelty; to the milker.
Thankfully, I was spared this job by my constant sniveling and complaining, and when the new Albertsons super market was built in Redding, Bessie was retired.
Cows need to be milked twice a day. Rain or shine, flood, famine, pestilence, or alien attack from outer space, the cows must be milked. The job at Davis is a ten hour, four days a week, split shift position. Three to eight, and three to eight. Yes, that means getting to work at 3:00AM, herding the enormous bovines into the milking parlor, prepping their bags, and working them through in groups until all eighty or so have been milked. This should take you to 8:00AM, and then you head home. After a nap, you come back at 3:00PM and start the process all over again until eight that evening. Sounds like fun, right?
This should give you an insight into my choice in cattle operations. My cows are for eating. I raise them, sell them, and eventually they end up in cellophane packages at your local supermarket. All I have to do is feed them. While feeding them is much quicker than milking them, they do need to be fed twice a day in the winter. Winter, as you may know, is very wet. Feeding cows (or horses) in the rain, for lack of a better word, sucks.
We feed with an old ATV that pulls a small trailer. After we load up the hay bales, we head out to the pasture to feed. This should be easy, but it's not.
We are hampered right now with having horses, cattle and a small gang of goats in our pasture. And a llama. I take no responsibility for the goats or the llama; any questions should be forwarded to my wife.
All animals have a pecking order, both inside and between species. On our ranch, the horses, especially Polly the Percheron mare, are on top. The cattle follow behind them in the pecking order and the llama just waits until everyone is finished to sneak a bite. The goats are like an inner-city gang. They all stick together and muscle their way into the middle of the feeding area. When the horses try to run them off, they scatter, only to reform their gang. Eventually the horses just give up and let them eat next to them.
When you drive into the field, the horse come running up and start trying to pull the hay bales off the trailer. Horses have a full time job being nuisances, and they seem to thrive at their occupation. Once you are half finished with feeding, the cows arrive and start scratching their heads and necks on the hay bales, the ATV, and you if you're not careful. Cows are always itchy, I'm not sure why, but it's a fact. The worst part is when the goats decide they want to ride on the trailer and help you feed.
On a regular day, this can be amusing. On a day when it's raining sideways, there's no humor involved. Trying to find the least muddy place to feed, running the gauntlet of kicking horses, scratching cows and hitch-hiking goats, all while be pelted with rain makes for a miserable day. These are the times when you question the wisdom of living in the country. You imagine living a small condo in town. Then you remember having neighbors, separated by a few sheets of drywall, and you come to your senses.
This Christmas, I will be out feeding the cows, although I should admit that my wife feeds the critters more that I do these days. In the winter it's dark when I leave for work and dark when I get home. On my days off my wife makes sure I get back into the rotation. Nevertheless, this Christmas we will open presents, make breakfast, and then head out to feed. Anyone who owns livestock will be doing the same. I hope it isn't raining cats and dogs, but we will go out either way. I am just glad I will not be getting up at 3AM to milk cows. All across the world, and right here in Yolo County, there will be people who will be doing just that, making sure Santa gets has a glass of cold milk for his cookies. Merry Christmas milkers.
When I tell people I live in the country, people mistake me for a farmer. I always correct them saying I have a cattle ranch, therefore, I am a rancher. Then they ask if my cows are milk cows. My answer is always this; do I look crazy to you?
Growing up, we had a milk cow. Bessie was her name, and as cows go, she was a very nice cow. This did not save her from my constant derision and hostile feelings. I hated milking Bessie. Getting swatted in the eye with her swishing tail, having the stainless steel bucket almost full, just to have her step in it or knock it over were some of my least favorite parts of the job. Milking cows by hand should be banned by some sort international criminal court on the basis of its cruelty; to the milker.
Thankfully, I was spared this job by my constant sniveling and complaining, and when the new Albertsons super market was built in Redding, Bessie was retired.
Cows need to be milked twice a day. Rain or shine, flood, famine, pestilence, or alien attack from outer space, the cows must be milked. The job at Davis is a ten hour, four days a week, split shift position. Three to eight, and three to eight. Yes, that means getting to work at 3:00AM, herding the enormous bovines into the milking parlor, prepping their bags, and working them through in groups until all eighty or so have been milked. This should take you to 8:00AM, and then you head home. After a nap, you come back at 3:00PM and start the process all over again until eight that evening. Sounds like fun, right?
This should give you an insight into my choice in cattle operations. My cows are for eating. I raise them, sell them, and eventually they end up in cellophane packages at your local supermarket. All I have to do is feed them. While feeding them is much quicker than milking them, they do need to be fed twice a day in the winter. Winter, as you may know, is very wet. Feeding cows (or horses) in the rain, for lack of a better word, sucks.
We feed with an old ATV that pulls a small trailer. After we load up the hay bales, we head out to the pasture to feed. This should be easy, but it's not.
We are hampered right now with having horses, cattle and a small gang of goats in our pasture. And a llama. I take no responsibility for the goats or the llama; any questions should be forwarded to my wife.
All animals have a pecking order, both inside and between species. On our ranch, the horses, especially Polly the Percheron mare, are on top. The cattle follow behind them in the pecking order and the llama just waits until everyone is finished to sneak a bite. The goats are like an inner-city gang. They all stick together and muscle their way into the middle of the feeding area. When the horses try to run them off, they scatter, only to reform their gang. Eventually the horses just give up and let them eat next to them.
When you drive into the field, the horse come running up and start trying to pull the hay bales off the trailer. Horses have a full time job being nuisances, and they seem to thrive at their occupation. Once you are half finished with feeding, the cows arrive and start scratching their heads and necks on the hay bales, the ATV, and you if you're not careful. Cows are always itchy, I'm not sure why, but it's a fact. The worst part is when the goats decide they want to ride on the trailer and help you feed.
On a regular day, this can be amusing. On a day when it's raining sideways, there's no humor involved. Trying to find the least muddy place to feed, running the gauntlet of kicking horses, scratching cows and hitch-hiking goats, all while be pelted with rain makes for a miserable day. These are the times when you question the wisdom of living in the country. You imagine living a small condo in town. Then you remember having neighbors, separated by a few sheets of drywall, and you come to your senses.
This Christmas, I will be out feeding the cows, although I should admit that my wife feeds the critters more that I do these days. In the winter it's dark when I leave for work and dark when I get home. On my days off my wife makes sure I get back into the rotation. Nevertheless, this Christmas we will open presents, make breakfast, and then head out to feed. Anyone who owns livestock will be doing the same. I hope it isn't raining cats and dogs, but we will go out either way. I am just glad I will not be getting up at 3AM to milk cows. All across the world, and right here in Yolo County, there will be people who will be doing just that, making sure Santa gets has a glass of cold milk for his cookies. Merry Christmas milkers.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
How to lose an election you just won.
As I sit down this evening to write, the lame duck session of the 110th Congress is considering two big bills. They are trying to pass a 1.2 Trillion dollar Omnibus spending bill, basically a budget for 2011, and then they take up the tax-rate deal the President worked out with congressional Republicans.
The Omnibus spending bill is a 1,924-pages filled with over 6,000 earmarks, totaling in excess of 8 Billion dollars. For the next few weeks, Democrats are still in charge of both the Senate and the House. They are trying their best to get the remainder of their budget-busting wish list passed before the GOP takes control of the House of Representatives in January. This is no surprise to me, the rout Democrats took in November has not made a dent in their philosophy; spend all you can, as fast as you can, and worry about paying for it later. In this case, the Democrats don't even have to worry about being held accountable for this round of reckless spending, they won't be in charge when the bill comes due.
My worry is the Republicans. When President Obama met in secret with the current GOP leadership last week, the President came home with a nice new cow, while Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Minority Leader Boehner came home with a pocket full of magic beans. I understand the President can be persuasive, but did he use Jedi mind-tricks on McConnell and Boehner? Why would they agree to another round of non-stimulating stimulus just to postpone Obama's plan to raise tax rates for only two years? Oh sure, they did get a few concessions in the deal, but as soon as word hit the street, Democrats were already piling on Corn Ethanol subsidies, windmill subsidies, rum subsidies, and other pork to gain enough votes to try to get this deal through the Senate.
Do Republicans remember the Pledge to America they took when they were running to unseat Nancy Pelosi and her gang? I certainly do.
Page 21 of the pledge says the Republicans will "Act Immediately to Reduce Spending" and to "Cut Government Spending to Pre-Stimulus, Pre-Bailout Levels." How about "Reading the bill," remember that? You can find that one on page 33 of the pledge. Does any of this ring a bell?
Look, I don't expect much from the Democrats, but if the first votes by Republicans, after the American people put a shot across the bow of the big-spending government, is to increase the deficit, I have absolutely zero confidence in the leadership of the GOP. I have been listening to pundits and talking heads explain why this is a good deal; they fear a government shutdown and negative fallout from an early standoff with the President. Talk about tone deaf; cutting spending is exactly what the country just told you to do.
I don't fear "the political fallout" from a government shutdown or a fight with the President. Just wait until Americans open their paychecks on January 15 and see the Obama tax increases; the Democrats will fold up like a beach chair. Republicans can extend the current tax rates in January when they take control of the House; if you don’t believe me, ask Bill Clinton. When President Clinton says he thinks the Republicans will be in a stronger position to bargain come January, I rest my case.
I know, I know, I don't understand the finer points of legislation, and the inner working of Washington DC. You're right, I do not understand this at all.
No more wild spending sprees, no more non-stimulating stimulus, no more 2,000 page bills passed in the middle of the night. No more.
Get it?
The Omnibus spending bill is a 1,924-pages filled with over 6,000 earmarks, totaling in excess of 8 Billion dollars. For the next few weeks, Democrats are still in charge of both the Senate and the House. They are trying their best to get the remainder of their budget-busting wish list passed before the GOP takes control of the House of Representatives in January. This is no surprise to me, the rout Democrats took in November has not made a dent in their philosophy; spend all you can, as fast as you can, and worry about paying for it later. In this case, the Democrats don't even have to worry about being held accountable for this round of reckless spending, they won't be in charge when the bill comes due.
My worry is the Republicans. When President Obama met in secret with the current GOP leadership last week, the President came home with a nice new cow, while Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and House Minority Leader Boehner came home with a pocket full of magic beans. I understand the President can be persuasive, but did he use Jedi mind-tricks on McConnell and Boehner? Why would they agree to another round of non-stimulating stimulus just to postpone Obama's plan to raise tax rates for only two years? Oh sure, they did get a few concessions in the deal, but as soon as word hit the street, Democrats were already piling on Corn Ethanol subsidies, windmill subsidies, rum subsidies, and other pork to gain enough votes to try to get this deal through the Senate.
Do Republicans remember the Pledge to America they took when they were running to unseat Nancy Pelosi and her gang? I certainly do.
Page 21 of the pledge says the Republicans will "Act Immediately to Reduce Spending" and to "Cut Government Spending to Pre-Stimulus, Pre-Bailout Levels." How about "Reading the bill," remember that? You can find that one on page 33 of the pledge. Does any of this ring a bell?
Look, I don't expect much from the Democrats, but if the first votes by Republicans, after the American people put a shot across the bow of the big-spending government, is to increase the deficit, I have absolutely zero confidence in the leadership of the GOP. I have been listening to pundits and talking heads explain why this is a good deal; they fear a government shutdown and negative fallout from an early standoff with the President. Talk about tone deaf; cutting spending is exactly what the country just told you to do.
I don't fear "the political fallout" from a government shutdown or a fight with the President. Just wait until Americans open their paychecks on January 15 and see the Obama tax increases; the Democrats will fold up like a beach chair. Republicans can extend the current tax rates in January when they take control of the House; if you don’t believe me, ask Bill Clinton. When President Clinton says he thinks the Republicans will be in a stronger position to bargain come January, I rest my case.
I know, I know, I don't understand the finer points of legislation, and the inner working of Washington DC. You're right, I do not understand this at all.
No more wild spending sprees, no more non-stimulating stimulus, no more 2,000 page bills passed in the middle of the night. No more.
Get it?
Wednesday, December 01, 2010
How we learn
If you go to an office supply store today, you will more than likely see a huge display of new office furniture. They look great, all set up with the fake plants and books on the shelves, like a model home in a new development. You think to yourself, this would look nice in my home office. So you take the tag up to the register and purchase your new modular desk set, with matching file cabinets. To your amazement, the clerk brings out two boxes, the size of a coffee table that weigh eighty pounds apiece, and crams them in into your trunk.
When you open the boxes at home, you find twenty sheets of particle board with a vinyl, wood-grain sticker on one side, and an assortment of pieces and parts. You also receive a set of instructions, written by someone for whom English is a second language.
"Part A going into the Part B screwing tight by application of three of Part C screws," etc. Look,if they are going through all the trouble to ship this stuff half way around the world, is it too much to ask that the instructions make sense? I have assembled a few of these in my day, and I can honestly say the instructions are much better than they used to be. At least today they use pictures.
Computer hardware and software is another story all together. The instructions are in English, or high-tech English to be exact, detailed in every way, and almost completely useless. The instructions are so complex, unless you have a degree in computer engineering given out in the last two years; you are going to have to call tech support to get it working.
Not everyone is challenged when it comes to instructions and instruction manuals. I know people who will open a package, actually read through the entire manual, and referring back to it a few times during the process, will build or install anything the correct way, the first time. I hate these people. I really do.
I learn by doing, or to be more precise, I learn by screwing things up. I have a history of building things only to have to tear them apart, twice, and then rebuild them the right way. It is a bit frustrating, but I have resigned myself to this particular way of learning. As you may imagine, I would not make a good bomb technician, parachute packer, or high-rise building engineer. I am pretty good at thinking outside the box and coming up with new ways to get things done, but the tiny details sometimes elude me. Most of the time it’s messy, but it usually works.
There is another way to learn; by watching other people screw up. Like I said, I am great at screwing things up. You could say I have a black belt making mistakes. However, screwing up office furniture, and Jeep engines are minor inconveniences. I am talking about watching people wreck their lives.
Having seen people make bad decisions that affect not only their lives, but also the lives of their family and friends, has made me very aware of the real life consequences of my own actions. Believe me; I made my share of really bad decisions over the years, and I probably have a few more in my system that will come out somewhere down the line. The point I am trying to make is if there are lessons to learn from someone else’s mistake, learn them well. It is much less painless.
It is easy to armchair quarterback someone's life from afar. There is an endless supply of celebrities who seem to make a career of making destructive choices. It is harder when the people screwing up their lives are close to us. No matter how hard we try, no matter how much we care for a person, we are usually unable to stop them from making a wreck of their lives. It can be devastating. Sometimes, the only possible good that comes out a terrible situation is being able to learn from their mistakes.
From completely irresponsible financial decisions, terrible relationship decisions, or falling into destructive addictions, these are real life situations that are happening all around us. If you spend a few decades on this planet, you will see most everything. I have seen firsthand how to screw up your life with any number of poor decisions, and I have tried to learn from them, and not to repeat them.
There are a few things I don’t want to learn by doing.
When you open the boxes at home, you find twenty sheets of particle board with a vinyl, wood-grain sticker on one side, and an assortment of pieces and parts. You also receive a set of instructions, written by someone for whom English is a second language.
"Part A going into the Part B screwing tight by application of three of Part C screws," etc. Look,if they are going through all the trouble to ship this stuff half way around the world, is it too much to ask that the instructions make sense? I have assembled a few of these in my day, and I can honestly say the instructions are much better than they used to be. At least today they use pictures.
Computer hardware and software is another story all together. The instructions are in English, or high-tech English to be exact, detailed in every way, and almost completely useless. The instructions are so complex, unless you have a degree in computer engineering given out in the last two years; you are going to have to call tech support to get it working.
Not everyone is challenged when it comes to instructions and instruction manuals. I know people who will open a package, actually read through the entire manual, and referring back to it a few times during the process, will build or install anything the correct way, the first time. I hate these people. I really do.
I learn by doing, or to be more precise, I learn by screwing things up. I have a history of building things only to have to tear them apart, twice, and then rebuild them the right way. It is a bit frustrating, but I have resigned myself to this particular way of learning. As you may imagine, I would not make a good bomb technician, parachute packer, or high-rise building engineer. I am pretty good at thinking outside the box and coming up with new ways to get things done, but the tiny details sometimes elude me. Most of the time it’s messy, but it usually works.
There is another way to learn; by watching other people screw up. Like I said, I am great at screwing things up. You could say I have a black belt making mistakes. However, screwing up office furniture, and Jeep engines are minor inconveniences. I am talking about watching people wreck their lives.
Having seen people make bad decisions that affect not only their lives, but also the lives of their family and friends, has made me very aware of the real life consequences of my own actions. Believe me; I made my share of really bad decisions over the years, and I probably have a few more in my system that will come out somewhere down the line. The point I am trying to make is if there are lessons to learn from someone else’s mistake, learn them well. It is much less painless.
It is easy to armchair quarterback someone's life from afar. There is an endless supply of celebrities who seem to make a career of making destructive choices. It is harder when the people screwing up their lives are close to us. No matter how hard we try, no matter how much we care for a person, we are usually unable to stop them from making a wreck of their lives. It can be devastating. Sometimes, the only possible good that comes out a terrible situation is being able to learn from their mistakes.
From completely irresponsible financial decisions, terrible relationship decisions, or falling into destructive addictions, these are real life situations that are happening all around us. If you spend a few decades on this planet, you will see most everything. I have seen firsthand how to screw up your life with any number of poor decisions, and I have tried to learn from them, and not to repeat them.
There are a few things I don’t want to learn by doing.
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Gratitude
On Thanksgivings past, I have written about the ever changing way America celebrates this holiday. We have certainly strayed a long way from George Washington's original proclamation about this being a day of prayer and thanksgiving to God for the blessing and benefits He has bestowed upon our nation. I'm not sure what giant, cartoon-character balloons, parades and NFL football have to do with thanking God, but I loved watching the parades as a kid and still enjoy the Cowboys game while waiting for the turkey. Anyhow, this year I wanted to talk about gratitude itself, and the many ways it is manifested in our lives.
Giving thanks, being thankful. What do these words mean to you? If someone holds a door open for you, gives you a compliment, or passes you the cranberry sauce, saying thank you is just common courtesy, it is not what we are talking about here. Real gratitude comes when you change the focus of your attention. Real gratitude is turning from the universe of me, to think about others.
We spend most every waking hour wrapped up in ourselves; egocentric in other words. I am probably guiltier of this than anyone. What do I want? How does this affect me? Why is this happening to me? How do I get what I want? These are the questions that fill up our thoughts and take up most of our attention. While it is our human nature to focus on ourselves, here is a question you might want to contemplate this Thanksgiving; how did I get where I am today?
As much as we like to think that we are the authors of our success, everyone had some help. Most of us had plenty, even if we don't realize it. Certainly, there was a lot of hard work and effort, but I could not begin to count the hundreds of people who helped me get where I am today. It is easier to recount the individuals who have helped us out, they shared their love, support, and encouragement, gave us a chance, or gave us a second chance. They have a face, they are familiar to us. Sometimes we forget those Americans who came before us, like our founding fathers and our fallen soldiers, whose shoulders we stand on today. We owe so many, so much, it is good that we should stop and give thanks.
Back to George Washington's point; our gratitude should always start with almighty God. When was the last time you sat down to give thanks to God for the blessings in your life?
Like most families in America, before we sit down to eat our Thanksgiving meal, we will say grace and thank God for our families and the meal. Thanksgiving might be one of times, like Christmas and Easter, where people who normally don't say grace, do it out of a sense of tradition, or because it's a special occasion. Let me pose another question. How would our lives change if we reflected on our blessings, and focused on that feeling at least once a day for the next year? I would bet that small change of perspective could lead to the most content year you may have ever experienced.
This year has been a challenge for many in our community. No matter what life brings us this coming year, turning from the universe of me, to appreciating all the people and all the blessings we have, can make every day just a little bit better. And some days, just a little bit better is what we really need.
I feel so grateful today to have a loving family and great friends. To all the people I have met since I started writing this column, thank you. Your encouragement keeps me going. To those who hate my writing, thanks for keeping me on my toes. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving.
Giving thanks, being thankful. What do these words mean to you? If someone holds a door open for you, gives you a compliment, or passes you the cranberry sauce, saying thank you is just common courtesy, it is not what we are talking about here. Real gratitude comes when you change the focus of your attention. Real gratitude is turning from the universe of me, to think about others.
We spend most every waking hour wrapped up in ourselves; egocentric in other words. I am probably guiltier of this than anyone. What do I want? How does this affect me? Why is this happening to me? How do I get what I want? These are the questions that fill up our thoughts and take up most of our attention. While it is our human nature to focus on ourselves, here is a question you might want to contemplate this Thanksgiving; how did I get where I am today?
As much as we like to think that we are the authors of our success, everyone had some help. Most of us had plenty, even if we don't realize it. Certainly, there was a lot of hard work and effort, but I could not begin to count the hundreds of people who helped me get where I am today. It is easier to recount the individuals who have helped us out, they shared their love, support, and encouragement, gave us a chance, or gave us a second chance. They have a face, they are familiar to us. Sometimes we forget those Americans who came before us, like our founding fathers and our fallen soldiers, whose shoulders we stand on today. We owe so many, so much, it is good that we should stop and give thanks.
Back to George Washington's point; our gratitude should always start with almighty God. When was the last time you sat down to give thanks to God for the blessings in your life?
Like most families in America, before we sit down to eat our Thanksgiving meal, we will say grace and thank God for our families and the meal. Thanksgiving might be one of times, like Christmas and Easter, where people who normally don't say grace, do it out of a sense of tradition, or because it's a special occasion. Let me pose another question. How would our lives change if we reflected on our blessings, and focused on that feeling at least once a day for the next year? I would bet that small change of perspective could lead to the most content year you may have ever experienced.
This year has been a challenge for many in our community. No matter what life brings us this coming year, turning from the universe of me, to appreciating all the people and all the blessings we have, can make every day just a little bit better. And some days, just a little bit better is what we really need.
I feel so grateful today to have a loving family and great friends. To all the people I have met since I started writing this column, thank you. Your encouragement keeps me going. To those who hate my writing, thanks for keeping me on my toes. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving.
Monday, November 22, 2010
Coach Singletary, watchin' the film....
Coach Singletary, that was quite an embarrassing loss yesterday. What happened out there?
Well, I don't want to jump to any conclusions, we will have to check the film and see where we went wrong.Check to see what coach? I mean it's pretty clear to anyone who watched the game, you were beaten in every aspect of the game. Why do you need to watch the film?
Well, we need to watch the film to see what parts of the film we need to watch closer.Coach, that really doesn't make any sense.
Is there any chance you could watch the film first, and then hold the press conference so you can answer our questions?Tuesday, November 09, 2010
Sanity will eventually come to California
Americans delivered a message to their political leaders last Tuesday, and here in California, we sent a message too. The message California voters sent to the politicians in Sacramento is; we believe in you to solve our problems, and we gave you all the power you need, so get it done.
Basically, the Democrats just assured themselves a beat-down in the 2012 election. Why? They control everything now. They will not have Republicans to blame in two years. With Jerry Brown sitting in the Governor's seat, Democrats hold huge majorities in both houses, and with Prop. 25' allowing a simple majority to pass a budget filled with higher taxes, Democrats are in complete control of the Golden State. Sound familiar?
If the Democrats succeed in taxing their way to prosperity, they can crow all they want. They will hold political power for generations. By next summer, around budget time, it will become increasingly clear they are not going to succeed. Why? The Democrat's core belief of raising taxes on the "rich" all the while spending money they don't have on programs that don't work has never succeeded, anywhere on the planet. We are about to find out what happens when you take the handcuffs off big government Democrats, backed by public employee unions and liberal special interests, in the middle of recession. This is going to get ugly folks.
As the rest of the country starts to climb out of this economic recession, California will wallow in budget deficits, higher taxes and a continuing toxic business climate. California is borrowing 40 million dollars a day from the federal government to keep unemployment checks flowing. We have sold bonds (borrowed money) to pay for the fantasy of high speed rail, green energy, along with a host of other happy sounding money pits that continue to add to future deficits. California voters have bought into the Democrats' argument that all we really need is never ending stream of ever increasing tax revenues. This scenario is pure fiction, but I guess Democrats can always hope. As I say all the time; hope is not a plan.
Watch the freeways in the next few months; you will see a more than a few moving vans heading out of the Golden State. These are not just backwards rednecks leaving this progressive utopia; many of these folks will be small business owners. You know, the "rich" people who actually create jobs. They will join a not so small group of business owners who have moved to states like Arizona and Texas. These are business friendly states, states who do not paint hard working, successful people as villains who must be punished for their prosperity. They welcome new business to their state with open arms, and they are taking some of the best and brightest from California.
So as business flees higher taxes and crippling red tape, Democrats will be faced with paying back the teachers unions, public employee unions, and the big environmentalist groups with a smaller number of "rich" people to extract taxes from. How will they get all this new tax money? From you and me. Get ready for new taxes on everything. Higher gas taxes, sales taxes, energy taxes, unemployment taxes, car taxes, you name it, and the taxes on it will be going up. Will raising all these taxes bring new jobs to California? According to Democrats, it's a sure thing, you can count on it.
As we have seen from President Obama, Speaker Pelois and Majority Leader Reid, you can print money by the train load, and you can borrow trillions from China, but you can't print jobs. Here is something the Democrats fail to grasp; small business creates the vast majority of new jobs in America. If you want to grow something, grow the private economy. Small business owners are not the ATM for states like California, they are the engine that makes the economy run. Could we not treat them like a piñata to be smacked around until all the candy falls out. Good grief.
The lesson we should learn over the next two years is this; if you have to choose between bigger business and bigger government, choose the one who makes the money, not the one who spends it. The former makes the latter possible, not the other way around.
Basically, the Democrats just assured themselves a beat-down in the 2012 election. Why? They control everything now. They will not have Republicans to blame in two years. With Jerry Brown sitting in the Governor's seat, Democrats hold huge majorities in both houses, and with Prop. 25' allowing a simple majority to pass a budget filled with higher taxes, Democrats are in complete control of the Golden State. Sound familiar?
If the Democrats succeed in taxing their way to prosperity, they can crow all they want. They will hold political power for generations. By next summer, around budget time, it will become increasingly clear they are not going to succeed. Why? The Democrat's core belief of raising taxes on the "rich" all the while spending money they don't have on programs that don't work has never succeeded, anywhere on the planet. We are about to find out what happens when you take the handcuffs off big government Democrats, backed by public employee unions and liberal special interests, in the middle of recession. This is going to get ugly folks.
As the rest of the country starts to climb out of this economic recession, California will wallow in budget deficits, higher taxes and a continuing toxic business climate. California is borrowing 40 million dollars a day from the federal government to keep unemployment checks flowing. We have sold bonds (borrowed money) to pay for the fantasy of high speed rail, green energy, along with a host of other happy sounding money pits that continue to add to future deficits. California voters have bought into the Democrats' argument that all we really need is never ending stream of ever increasing tax revenues. This scenario is pure fiction, but I guess Democrats can always hope. As I say all the time; hope is not a plan.
Watch the freeways in the next few months; you will see a more than a few moving vans heading out of the Golden State. These are not just backwards rednecks leaving this progressive utopia; many of these folks will be small business owners. You know, the "rich" people who actually create jobs. They will join a not so small group of business owners who have moved to states like Arizona and Texas. These are business friendly states, states who do not paint hard working, successful people as villains who must be punished for their prosperity. They welcome new business to their state with open arms, and they are taking some of the best and brightest from California.
So as business flees higher taxes and crippling red tape, Democrats will be faced with paying back the teachers unions, public employee unions, and the big environmentalist groups with a smaller number of "rich" people to extract taxes from. How will they get all this new tax money? From you and me. Get ready for new taxes on everything. Higher gas taxes, sales taxes, energy taxes, unemployment taxes, car taxes, you name it, and the taxes on it will be going up. Will raising all these taxes bring new jobs to California? According to Democrats, it's a sure thing, you can count on it.
As we have seen from President Obama, Speaker Pelois and Majority Leader Reid, you can print money by the train load, and you can borrow trillions from China, but you can't print jobs. Here is something the Democrats fail to grasp; small business creates the vast majority of new jobs in America. If you want to grow something, grow the private economy. Small business owners are not the ATM for states like California, they are the engine that makes the economy run. Could we not treat them like a piñata to be smacked around until all the candy falls out. Good grief.
The lesson we should learn over the next two years is this; if you have to choose between bigger business and bigger government, choose the one who makes the money, not the one who spends it. The former makes the latter possible, not the other way around.
Monday, October 18, 2010
Gridlock, sweet gridlock.
Barring a miracle of old testament proportions, on January 3, two thousand eleven, the next congress will be sworn in under new leadership. The House of Representatives will be in Republican control, and even if the Senate remains in Democratic hands, it will be by the slimmest of margins. With President Obama in the oval office for another two years, the next congress will be ruled by one principle; gridlock.
Now before you go getting in a huff, let me tell you why this is not such a bad thing. Gridlock means you have to have both side on board before anything is done. Gridlock means one side cannot push through its agenda unilaterally. Gridlock means the days of Democrats passing Cap and Trade legislation, or mandating twenty percent of America's green energy comes from recycling magic unicorn poop are over. Gridlock can be frustrating at times, but it is a real check on power.
Remember 1992? Remember when President Clinton, with a Democratic congress, governed way to the left in his first term and gift-wrapped both houses of congress back to the Republicans in 1994? For everyone who points to the Clinton era as proof that Democratic policies work, just remember who controlled the purse strings of the nation during those times. It was the GOP. Well, to be exact, it was the real GOP, the ones who actually knew how to cut spending and grow the economy.
All spending bills start in the House of Representatives. Whoever controls the House has control of the nation's checkbook. Remind me again who has been in control of the national checkbook since two thousand six? Oh yea, Nancy Pelosi. How has Nancy done with the national checkbook? Forget the checkbook, how about the nation's credit card? But, I digress.
As much as I like the thought of Nancy Pelosi getting her credit card yanked, here is the real problem with gridlock. Doing nothing isn't a real good option right now.
I know that Republican's will propose spending cuts, and probably pass them in the House. If they get through the rules and procedures of the Senate, they await a certain veto from President Obama. My prediction is the Republicans will pass legislation, President Obama will veto it and the GOP will try to run out the clock until the 2012 election, when they hope to gain back the White House.
I am not sure we can wait two more years to start tackling the structural problems that await the nation with Medicare, Social Security, other entitlement spending. In a year of voter anger, tea parties, incumbents going down to political novices, the only hope we have is the Washington insiders (in both parties ) start getting scared. When politicians have to worry about their constituents anger, that is a very good thing. Scared politicians can actually work through the gridlock to get things done if they know it's the only way to save their jobs.
So how will this new crop of Republican revolutionaries do? Time will tell. Establishment Republicans, like House Minority Leader John Boehner, will try to buy them off them with committee memberships and big offices to bring them into the fold. I hope these new Republicans rally behind new leadership, say Paul Ryan, or Eric Cantor. Republican retreads like Boehner are not the ones to bring independents and Reagan Democrats together with the Republican base to form a solid majority.
To win the back the White House in two thousand twelve, Republicans will have to walk the walk for the next two years. I hope they have comfortable shoes, they will need them.
Now before you go getting in a huff, let me tell you why this is not such a bad thing. Gridlock means you have to have both side on board before anything is done. Gridlock means one side cannot push through its agenda unilaterally. Gridlock means the days of Democrats passing Cap and Trade legislation, or mandating twenty percent of America's green energy comes from recycling magic unicorn poop are over. Gridlock can be frustrating at times, but it is a real check on power.
Remember 1992? Remember when President Clinton, with a Democratic congress, governed way to the left in his first term and gift-wrapped both houses of congress back to the Republicans in 1994? For everyone who points to the Clinton era as proof that Democratic policies work, just remember who controlled the purse strings of the nation during those times. It was the GOP. Well, to be exact, it was the real GOP, the ones who actually knew how to cut spending and grow the economy.
All spending bills start in the House of Representatives. Whoever controls the House has control of the nation's checkbook. Remind me again who has been in control of the national checkbook since two thousand six? Oh yea, Nancy Pelosi. How has Nancy done with the national checkbook? Forget the checkbook, how about the nation's credit card? But, I digress.
As much as I like the thought of Nancy Pelosi getting her credit card yanked, here is the real problem with gridlock. Doing nothing isn't a real good option right now.
I know that Republican's will propose spending cuts, and probably pass them in the House. If they get through the rules and procedures of the Senate, they await a certain veto from President Obama. My prediction is the Republicans will pass legislation, President Obama will veto it and the GOP will try to run out the clock until the 2012 election, when they hope to gain back the White House.
I am not sure we can wait two more years to start tackling the structural problems that await the nation with Medicare, Social Security, other entitlement spending. In a year of voter anger, tea parties, incumbents going down to political novices, the only hope we have is the Washington insiders (in both parties ) start getting scared. When politicians have to worry about their constituents anger, that is a very good thing. Scared politicians can actually work through the gridlock to get things done if they know it's the only way to save their jobs.
So how will this new crop of Republican revolutionaries do? Time will tell. Establishment Republicans, like House Minority Leader John Boehner, will try to buy them off them with committee memberships and big offices to bring them into the fold. I hope these new Republicans rally behind new leadership, say Paul Ryan, or Eric Cantor. Republican retreads like Boehner are not the ones to bring independents and Reagan Democrats together with the Republican base to form a solid majority.
To win the back the White House in two thousand twelve, Republicans will have to walk the walk for the next two years. I hope they have comfortable shoes, they will need them.
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Waiting in line, made faster by more lines? I'll explain
Most days I wander through my day oblivious to my surroundings. I know that is a shock to some of you, but I believe many of you do the same. In our modern world, we are constantly surrounded by technology, even if we don't realize it, and even if we hate it.
Having once been a working cowboy, (yes they make horses big enough to haul me around) I have met my share of people for whom anything with a microprocessor is a "gadget" and gadgets are not to be trusted.
A waterproof digital watch with an alarm clock and stopwatch function? No thanks, get that plastic piece of crap away from me. I have a Timex that I bought at a Sears ten years ago, it works fine. A smart phone? I wouldn't know how to turn it on. An iPad? I would never use it ( pssst, what's an iPad? )
Now some of this hostility and apprehension is warranted. When many of these technological breakthroughs came to the market, some we not ready for prime time. A bad first-experience with a gadget that was supposed to make life easier, or replaced something that worked well, leaves a bad impression.
No matter your comfort level with technology, you simply cannot escape it. As I said, it's all around us. The good news is, technology does make our lives better, and I can prove it.
Have you ever heard of Bernard Silver, or Joseph Woodland? I hadn't either until I started doing a little research. These two gentlemen have made an impact our lives in a very real way, and we don't even know who they are. The way we buy things, the way stores stock their products, the way business is done around the world is all made possible by their invention. So what did these guys invent? The barcode.
I know, how does that funny looking little line-thingy on a can of soup affect my life? In more ways that you can imagine. Let's go into a tech-saturated home for a minute. Let's say you want to order a new book or DVD online. You go to a website, buy the DVD, and in three days, or tomorrow if you want to pay the extra shipping, you can be watching your new DVD. Behind the scenes, that barcode is the key to you munching away on your popcorn as you enjoy Die Hard 7.
The retailer puts a product number barcode on the DVD and tracks how many are in inventory, how many are going out that day, how many they need to restock and by when. The warehouse guy pulls the order, scans the DVD, and packages it. The package now gets a new shipping barcode and heads down the road. The retailer, the shipping company, and even you, can track that package through the entire process. That shipping barcode will be scanned a dozen times in different local receiving centers, airports, regional shipping centers, down to the delivery guy, scanning it as he hands it to you while you're still in your slippers.
Without the humble barcode, the selection and availability of every product bought through a retail store would suffer and the price would go up. Efficiency is the name of the game in retail, and barcodes are a primary way to collect, track, sort and manage data. Not to mention how much they speed up checkout! Remember the clerks punching in the price of every item at the grocery store, if you are over 40 you do.
So how about the not so tech savvy guy? Well, that wheel bearing for your combine uses that same type of bar code to get from the factory where it's made to the John Deere dealer and into your hands just in time to finish the harvest. Not bad for bunch of little lines eh?
There are hundreds of technological breakthroughs we use in our everyday lives. Some you will never even notice, and some you say, why didn't I think of that.
So the next time you are in line at The Nugget and someone stops the process to write a paper check, and you start tapping your foot thinking this is taking forever, just think about Bernard Silver and Joseph Woodland. If not for them, a full basket of groceries used to take about five minutes to ring up, if the checker had fast fingers.
Having once been a working cowboy, (yes they make horses big enough to haul me around) I have met my share of people for whom anything with a microprocessor is a "gadget" and gadgets are not to be trusted.
A waterproof digital watch with an alarm clock and stopwatch function? No thanks, get that plastic piece of crap away from me. I have a Timex that I bought at a Sears ten years ago, it works fine. A smart phone? I wouldn't know how to turn it on. An iPad? I would never use it ( pssst, what's an iPad? )
Now some of this hostility and apprehension is warranted. When many of these technological breakthroughs came to the market, some we not ready for prime time. A bad first-experience with a gadget that was supposed to make life easier, or replaced something that worked well, leaves a bad impression.
No matter your comfort level with technology, you simply cannot escape it. As I said, it's all around us. The good news is, technology does make our lives better, and I can prove it.
Have you ever heard of Bernard Silver, or Joseph Woodland? I hadn't either until I started doing a little research. These two gentlemen have made an impact our lives in a very real way, and we don't even know who they are. The way we buy things, the way stores stock their products, the way business is done around the world is all made possible by their invention. So what did these guys invent? The barcode.
I know, how does that funny looking little line-thingy on a can of soup affect my life? In more ways that you can imagine. Let's go into a tech-saturated home for a minute. Let's say you want to order a new book or DVD online. You go to a website, buy the DVD, and in three days, or tomorrow if you want to pay the extra shipping, you can be watching your new DVD. Behind the scenes, that barcode is the key to you munching away on your popcorn as you enjoy Die Hard 7.
The retailer puts a product number barcode on the DVD and tracks how many are in inventory, how many are going out that day, how many they need to restock and by when. The warehouse guy pulls the order, scans the DVD, and packages it. The package now gets a new shipping barcode and heads down the road. The retailer, the shipping company, and even you, can track that package through the entire process. That shipping barcode will be scanned a dozen times in different local receiving centers, airports, regional shipping centers, down to the delivery guy, scanning it as he hands it to you while you're still in your slippers.
Without the humble barcode, the selection and availability of every product bought through a retail store would suffer and the price would go up. Efficiency is the name of the game in retail, and barcodes are a primary way to collect, track, sort and manage data. Not to mention how much they speed up checkout! Remember the clerks punching in the price of every item at the grocery store, if you are over 40 you do.
So how about the not so tech savvy guy? Well, that wheel bearing for your combine uses that same type of bar code to get from the factory where it's made to the John Deere dealer and into your hands just in time to finish the harvest. Not bad for bunch of little lines eh?
There are hundreds of technological breakthroughs we use in our everyday lives. Some you will never even notice, and some you say, why didn't I think of that.
So the next time you are in line at The Nugget and someone stops the process to write a paper check, and you start tapping your foot thinking this is taking forever, just think about Bernard Silver and Joseph Woodland. If not for them, a full basket of groceries used to take about five minutes to ring up, if the checker had fast fingers.
Saturday, October 09, 2010
Facing the arithmetic
In the midst of the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln was in a terrible situation. The union army had suffered loss after bloody loss and the President had replaced the head of his army several times. Although the union army had vastly superior numbers, better material, and every other conceivable advantage, Lincoln could not find a general to defeat the enemy. After the disastrous rout at Fredericksburg, Lincoln confided to his staff, "No general yet found can face the arithmetic, but the end of the war will be at hand when he shall be discovered."
A case in point; General George B McClellan.
After losing the first major battle of the war at Bull Run, the dapper, highly educated McClellan was named General in Chief. He was the darling of the newspapers, brilliant when it came to organizational structure, and preparing his army for battle, there was only one problem; he was tentative in battle. Always overestimating the enemy's size and strength, he would vacillate and demand more troops and more supplies.
McClellan's failure in the Peninsula Campaign earned his demotion. He was replaced by a string of generals, who were in turn, soundly defeated by the confederates. Lincoln faced the unenviable choice of bringing McClellan back. McClellan reorganized the army and through incredible circumstances, and stout fighting by his men, defeated General Robert E. Lee at the Battle of Antietam. With Lee's army in retreat, McClellan failed to pursue the confederates, and they escaped back to Virginia. McClellan could have won the war that day, but he did not, and the nation would suffer through three more years of bloodshed.
Lincoln understood that the war was not about gaining or holding territory, the war would only be won when the confederate army was defeated, down to its last man.
In 1864, Lincoln finally found the general who could face the arithmetic. Ulysses S. Grant was no one's idea of a Major General. At the start of the war, he was working as a clerk in his father's tannery shop in Galina Illinois. His early reputation was one of a hard fighting, simple man, who was prone to drinking. In Grant, Lincoln found the one general who knew how to win the war. Engage the enemy, never let him regroup, and use your superior numbers to the best advantage.
After taking overall command of union forces, Grant was defeated in his first encounter with Lee at the Battle of the Wilderness. The nation waited for another retreat back to Washington, but Grant would have none of it. The next morning, instead of retreating, Grant pressed on toward the confederate capital. He would simply fight the confederates on their turf and grind them into submission. He did.
I know what you must be thinking, “thanks for the ninth grade history lesson, but so what?” I want to talk about this November's elections.
I know who I am voting for and which campaigns I am going to contribute to, but similar to the two thousand eight election cycle, there will many, many new voters going to the polls this year. What will they be voting for, and more importantly, what will they be voting against? Just as people voted for change when they cast their ballot for Barack Obama, this year many will be voting for a change to something else. The Republicans in Washington are licking their chops, as they should be. If the GOP can't win the House this year, they should just go home.
Here is my question; are we going to be voting for the second command of George McClellan, or are we voting for U.S. Grant?
The Tea Party is filled with U.S. Grants. Sure, some of them have rough edges, and they do not have the polish of seasoned politicians, but that is the point. The GOP, and more importantly the nation, needs people who will stand up for the founding principles. Yes, these new Republicans will say some unflattering things, and yes, they will fall into traps set by the media, but they will press forward, always forward. The Washington Republican establishment had better start recognizing the tidal wave of anti-politics-as usual sentiment heading their way, or they will be looking for life rafts when it hits.
When the national party keeps backing the establishment, moderate, GOP candidates against this new breed of Republicans, they are showing how out of touch they are. If we lose a few seats this cycle by backing new blood, we lose them. The worst thing the Republican Party could do right now is to gain control of Congress with the same crew who spent their way right out of power.
There is a political storm brewing out there. This storm is tired of broken promises; it is tired of spending away our children's future. This coming storm wants smaller government, less taxes, and people who are willing to make tough choices, and stand behind them. They are looking for a government that can face the arithmetic.
Have no illusions, if the GOP gains control and actually propose spending cuts, the media and the Democrats will howl with disapproval. This new breed of Republican, the ones who have those Tea Party roots, they can take the heat. The moderate, milk toast, Washington insider Republicans will wilt under the pressure.
Midway through his command, Grant was labeled a butcher, a cold-hearted beast who cared little for the soldiers who were dying. The reality was this; Grant knew what had to be done to win. That is exactly what he did.
Let's vote for a few Grants this November.
A case in point; General George B McClellan.
After losing the first major battle of the war at Bull Run, the dapper, highly educated McClellan was named General in Chief. He was the darling of the newspapers, brilliant when it came to organizational structure, and preparing his army for battle, there was only one problem; he was tentative in battle. Always overestimating the enemy's size and strength, he would vacillate and demand more troops and more supplies.
McClellan's failure in the Peninsula Campaign earned his demotion. He was replaced by a string of generals, who were in turn, soundly defeated by the confederates. Lincoln faced the unenviable choice of bringing McClellan back. McClellan reorganized the army and through incredible circumstances, and stout fighting by his men, defeated General Robert E. Lee at the Battle of Antietam. With Lee's army in retreat, McClellan failed to pursue the confederates, and they escaped back to Virginia. McClellan could have won the war that day, but he did not, and the nation would suffer through three more years of bloodshed.
Lincoln understood that the war was not about gaining or holding territory, the war would only be won when the confederate army was defeated, down to its last man.
In 1864, Lincoln finally found the general who could face the arithmetic. Ulysses S. Grant was no one's idea of a Major General. At the start of the war, he was working as a clerk in his father's tannery shop in Galina Illinois. His early reputation was one of a hard fighting, simple man, who was prone to drinking. In Grant, Lincoln found the one general who knew how to win the war. Engage the enemy, never let him regroup, and use your superior numbers to the best advantage.
After taking overall command of union forces, Grant was defeated in his first encounter with Lee at the Battle of the Wilderness. The nation waited for another retreat back to Washington, but Grant would have none of it. The next morning, instead of retreating, Grant pressed on toward the confederate capital. He would simply fight the confederates on their turf and grind them into submission. He did.
I know what you must be thinking, “thanks for the ninth grade history lesson, but so what?” I want to talk about this November's elections.
I know who I am voting for and which campaigns I am going to contribute to, but similar to the two thousand eight election cycle, there will many, many new voters going to the polls this year. What will they be voting for, and more importantly, what will they be voting against? Just as people voted for change when they cast their ballot for Barack Obama, this year many will be voting for a change to something else. The Republicans in Washington are licking their chops, as they should be. If the GOP can't win the House this year, they should just go home.
Here is my question; are we going to be voting for the second command of George McClellan, or are we voting for U.S. Grant?
The Tea Party is filled with U.S. Grants. Sure, some of them have rough edges, and they do not have the polish of seasoned politicians, but that is the point. The GOP, and more importantly the nation, needs people who will stand up for the founding principles. Yes, these new Republicans will say some unflattering things, and yes, they will fall into traps set by the media, but they will press forward, always forward. The Washington Republican establishment had better start recognizing the tidal wave of anti-politics-as usual sentiment heading their way, or they will be looking for life rafts when it hits.
When the national party keeps backing the establishment, moderate, GOP candidates against this new breed of Republicans, they are showing how out of touch they are. If we lose a few seats this cycle by backing new blood, we lose them. The worst thing the Republican Party could do right now is to gain control of Congress with the same crew who spent their way right out of power.
There is a political storm brewing out there. This storm is tired of broken promises; it is tired of spending away our children's future. This coming storm wants smaller government, less taxes, and people who are willing to make tough choices, and stand behind them. They are looking for a government that can face the arithmetic.
Have no illusions, if the GOP gains control and actually propose spending cuts, the media and the Democrats will howl with disapproval. This new breed of Republican, the ones who have those Tea Party roots, they can take the heat. The moderate, milk toast, Washington insider Republicans will wilt under the pressure.
Midway through his command, Grant was labeled a butcher, a cold-hearted beast who cared little for the soldiers who were dying. The reality was this; Grant knew what had to be done to win. That is exactly what he did.
Let's vote for a few Grants this November.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
The missing ingredient.
Driving down the road one day, I happened upon a radio program that caught my attention. The guy on the radio was talking about relationships, and how we always want what we don't have. As the miles ticked by, I listened to him recount his college dating experiences. It seems whenever he returned from a date, he would explain to his roommate what he thought the most important feature or trait in a woman was. Every time he came back from a date, the most important thing changed. Looks, personality, sense of humor, warmth, spirituality, you name it; the most important thing seemed to be a moving target.
One day he came back and proceeded to tell his roommate what the latest "most important thing" was, when his roommate stopped him cold. "Do you know what the most important trait in a woman is?" his roommate interrupted. “It's whatever trait your latest date lacked.”
I began to think about this as I continued down the road. The longer I ran that thought through my own experiences, the more it rang true.
No matter how great a person is, every human being has shortcomings, character flaws or some missing ingredient. Everyone; you, me, Mother Teresa, everyone. If you were ever shocked by a marriage breaking up, or a couple who split up when they seemed perfect for each other, you have to ask, what happened? Maybe there was no single incident, or as we hear so often, maybe they grew apart, or fell out of love. Looking back, I wonder if the idea of that missing ingredient came into play.
If you would, please play along with me here. Imagine your perfect mate. Physical attributes, height, weight, hair color, personality, spiritual make up, political views, moral compass, even thoughts on family size. Do you have that picture in your mind? Good; now you have to give up at least two of those things. You still get everything else, just the way you want them, you just have to give up a few of those things from your list. In a few short months, or maybe a few years, how much would you be willing to wager that the things you focus on will be those missing ingredients?
Why do we do that? Why would we focus on the negative when there are so many good things all around us? I understand that people change, and there are some real horse's asses out there, people you should run, not walk away from. However, I know too many wonderful people who have split up, and I find it hard to imagine why. When two people, who once loved each other, look at each other and only see the bad things, and can’t see the things that drew them together, it is very sad.
Like I said, we all have faults; however, we tend to overlook our own faults because we know our intentions and motivations. We don’t intend to hurt people, but we do. When we do hurt someone we ask for forgiveness, or at least I hope we do. When we are hurt, forgiveness becomes a little harder. We stop seeing the good in them, we start focusing on their shortcomings.
So, is it as easy as just looking for the good in your spouse or significant other? I really do think it is a big part of staying happy and staying together. Another big part is not always concentrating on each other's faults. I know I am guilty of this, and I have exactly zero room to complain when it comes to faults and shortcomings. There isn’t a day that goes by when I don’t thank God for my wife. If I do forget how lucky I am, and start taking her for granted, it’s because I’m an idiot.
I know she has overlooked many of my shortcomings in our twenty-three years of marriage. I hope she can still find some of those things she once saw in me when we first met. I know I still see them in her. All those little things, those ingredients are the good stuff, the glue that holds us together.
You can spend the rest of your life, searching for that elusive missing ingredient; there are plenty of people who do. They may find someone who has the missing ingredient from their last relationship, but that new person will be missing something different.
If you have ever been drawn into that downward spiral of continually focusing on the negative aspects about the person in your life, take a step back. Take a fresh look. Both of you maybe in this same spiral, and you might have to look hard to find those ingredients that first caught your attention, but they are there. Look for the good, concentrate on that for a while. You may be surprised what you see when you start looking for it.
One day he came back and proceeded to tell his roommate what the latest "most important thing" was, when his roommate stopped him cold. "Do you know what the most important trait in a woman is?" his roommate interrupted. “It's whatever trait your latest date lacked.”
I began to think about this as I continued down the road. The longer I ran that thought through my own experiences, the more it rang true.
No matter how great a person is, every human being has shortcomings, character flaws or some missing ingredient. Everyone; you, me, Mother Teresa, everyone. If you were ever shocked by a marriage breaking up, or a couple who split up when they seemed perfect for each other, you have to ask, what happened? Maybe there was no single incident, or as we hear so often, maybe they grew apart, or fell out of love. Looking back, I wonder if the idea of that missing ingredient came into play.
If you would, please play along with me here. Imagine your perfect mate. Physical attributes, height, weight, hair color, personality, spiritual make up, political views, moral compass, even thoughts on family size. Do you have that picture in your mind? Good; now you have to give up at least two of those things. You still get everything else, just the way you want them, you just have to give up a few of those things from your list. In a few short months, or maybe a few years, how much would you be willing to wager that the things you focus on will be those missing ingredients?
Why do we do that? Why would we focus on the negative when there are so many good things all around us? I understand that people change, and there are some real horse's asses out there, people you should run, not walk away from. However, I know too many wonderful people who have split up, and I find it hard to imagine why. When two people, who once loved each other, look at each other and only see the bad things, and can’t see the things that drew them together, it is very sad.
Like I said, we all have faults; however, we tend to overlook our own faults because we know our intentions and motivations. We don’t intend to hurt people, but we do. When we do hurt someone we ask for forgiveness, or at least I hope we do. When we are hurt, forgiveness becomes a little harder. We stop seeing the good in them, we start focusing on their shortcomings.
So, is it as easy as just looking for the good in your spouse or significant other? I really do think it is a big part of staying happy and staying together. Another big part is not always concentrating on each other's faults. I know I am guilty of this, and I have exactly zero room to complain when it comes to faults and shortcomings. There isn’t a day that goes by when I don’t thank God for my wife. If I do forget how lucky I am, and start taking her for granted, it’s because I’m an idiot.
I know she has overlooked many of my shortcomings in our twenty-three years of marriage. I hope she can still find some of those things she once saw in me when we first met. I know I still see them in her. All those little things, those ingredients are the good stuff, the glue that holds us together.
You can spend the rest of your life, searching for that elusive missing ingredient; there are plenty of people who do. They may find someone who has the missing ingredient from their last relationship, but that new person will be missing something different.
If you have ever been drawn into that downward spiral of continually focusing on the negative aspects about the person in your life, take a step back. Take a fresh look. Both of you maybe in this same spiral, and you might have to look hard to find those ingredients that first caught your attention, but they are there. Look for the good, concentrate on that for a while. You may be surprised what you see when you start looking for it.
Friday, September 10, 2010
What would we think about us?
As I sit down to write this on September 10, 2010, I wonder what tomorrow will bring. Do you remember the outrage, the sorrow, and the shock of that day nine years ago? I am curious if any one of us could have predicted, on this ninth anniversary, what we would be talking about today.
Did you think we be talking about some backwater Pastor of a 50 person church in Florida burning copies of the Koran? Who would have thought the only real debate about building in lower Manhattan would be the discussion surrounding the building of a Mosque?
With the image of the falling towers still freshly burning into your memory on that fateful day, what would you think if you were transported nine years into the future and walked down the sidewalk of lower Manhattan, picked up today's newspaper or watched the evening news? Would you be shocked about what we are concerned with, or would you be more shocked by what we have lost sight of?
Would that transported 9/11 American give a rip about the Koran burning Pastor, President Obama's approval ratings, the start of the NFL season, or the legalizing of marijuana. I am pretty sure they would not. They would be asking, did we kill Osama Bin Laden? Did we kill the rotten SOBs who were behind the attacks? Why haven't they built anything at Ground Zero? Are we even at war? What the hell is going on with you people?
I understand that life goes on and we must look forward, but sometimes I think we would rather believe that 9/11 was some one-off, singular act that we can just choose to forget. If we do forget who attacked us that day, we do at our own peril. The radicals have not gone away, but reading the newspapers and watching the news today, you could conclude that terrorism is a back burner issue.
We are at war, and that seems to get lost in all the headlines screaming for our attention. The soldiers and Marines out on patrol in the Kandahar area are just as brave, just as hot, and just as miserable living out of a rucksack in a tent as the troops who beat back the insurgency in Iraq. When we say, "Never forget" this isn't aimed solely at those who perished on September 11. Remember the troops as well; they are trying to kill those who would love to bring us a much bigger sequel to 9/11.
So, nine years later, I wonder what we would think of us? Maybe some are glad that we have moved on, and have "gotten past" 9/11. For some of us "never forget" is just a bumper sticker slogan. For those who lost loved ones on that day, or any day in the last nine years fighting this war against Islamic radicals, it means much more. It also means a great deal for those who have family and friends serving on the front lines.
I am putting out my flag tomorrow in remembrance, but I also think I will make a donation to Soldier's Angels. As the events of September 11, 2001 fade from our memories, I hope I never forget who is fighting for my freedom today.
Did you think we be talking about some backwater Pastor of a 50 person church in Florida burning copies of the Koran? Who would have thought the only real debate about building in lower Manhattan would be the discussion surrounding the building of a Mosque?
With the image of the falling towers still freshly burning into your memory on that fateful day, what would you think if you were transported nine years into the future and walked down the sidewalk of lower Manhattan, picked up today's newspaper or watched the evening news? Would you be shocked about what we are concerned with, or would you be more shocked by what we have lost sight of?
Would that transported 9/11 American give a rip about the Koran burning Pastor, President Obama's approval ratings, the start of the NFL season, or the legalizing of marijuana. I am pretty sure they would not. They would be asking, did we kill Osama Bin Laden? Did we kill the rotten SOBs who were behind the attacks? Why haven't they built anything at Ground Zero? Are we even at war? What the hell is going on with you people?
I understand that life goes on and we must look forward, but sometimes I think we would rather believe that 9/11 was some one-off, singular act that we can just choose to forget. If we do forget who attacked us that day, we do at our own peril. The radicals have not gone away, but reading the newspapers and watching the news today, you could conclude that terrorism is a back burner issue.
We are at war, and that seems to get lost in all the headlines screaming for our attention. The soldiers and Marines out on patrol in the Kandahar area are just as brave, just as hot, and just as miserable living out of a rucksack in a tent as the troops who beat back the insurgency in Iraq. When we say, "Never forget" this isn't aimed solely at those who perished on September 11. Remember the troops as well; they are trying to kill those who would love to bring us a much bigger sequel to 9/11.
So, nine years later, I wonder what we would think of us? Maybe some are glad that we have moved on, and have "gotten past" 9/11. For some of us "never forget" is just a bumper sticker slogan. For those who lost loved ones on that day, or any day in the last nine years fighting this war against Islamic radicals, it means much more. It also means a great deal for those who have family and friends serving on the front lines.
I am putting out my flag tomorrow in remembrance, but I also think I will make a donation to Soldier's Angels. As the events of September 11, 2001 fade from our memories, I hope I never forget who is fighting for my freedom today.
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
The lightning round
I know I haven't written a piece for a few weeks, but I have a good excuse. Well, not really a good excuse, but here it is anyway. I am busy moving 18 years worth of horse/cow/ranch stuff from our business in Sacramento back home to Esparto. That is a piece for another day, and I assure you, I will write it. It's a case of government mismanagement that should make you pretty angry. I know our long time customers, the local community and most everyone associated with Gibson Ranch are very upset right now.
So, what have I missed? Let me go straight to the lightning round, where the questions and answers come fast.
What's your take on the Ground Zero Mosque?
That is a tricky one for me. Do I think they should build it two blocks from ground zero, on the site where the landing gear from one of the hijacked planes crashed through the roof of the building? No. It is terribly insensitive to the victims’ families, and it is my thinking that the area of impact around ground zero should be treated more like a national battle field. I don't want the Ground Zero Virgin Atlantic store, the Ground Zero Wal-Mart, or the Cordoba Mosque built there. How about just a great big office building with a memorial park around the 16 acre site?
On the other hand, it is private property, and the local zoning agency, even if they are a bunch of hand-wringing, politically correct, ninnies, has approved the building site.
I think the offer to give the Imam another site, a little further away, is the right thing to do, and he should take it. If this Imam is truly concerned with 'building bridges' between our cultures, he won't build this bridge so close to the grave site of the thousands killed by people acting in the name Islam. Maybe he is just angling for someone to offer twenty million dollars for the building and he takes his fifteen million in profit and opens a franchise of Cordoba Mosques around the city. It is amazing how doubling or tripling your money seems to belay your outrage about religious freedom.
Bottom line; you have the right to build it, it' just not the right thing to do. Not by a long shot.
What do you think about President Obama's "Recovery Summer?"
Who ever came up with that idea should be fired immediately, if not sooner. 14.6 million People without jobs and an unemployment rate of 9.5% does not a recovery make. At this pace, if we borrow and spend another ten trillion dollars, we might get back down to 5% unemployment in a few years. The people know who owns this economy now, and his name isn't George Bush.
What about all the combat troops leaving Iraq?
I guess it is a good news story, but it really isn't a true story. The fawning media is reporting all the combat troops have left Iraq, and President Obama has kept one of his campaign promises. I don't know who is happier, the people at MSNBC or the insurgents who want to topple the Iraqi government.
In fact, we still have 50,000 soldiers stationed in Iraq. Barring a miracle of biblical proportions, a considerable amount of them will remain in Iraq for the foreseeable future. Basically, the combat brigades have been reassigned with new designations. The 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team of the 25th Infantry Division is still deployed in Iraq; they just call it an Advise and Assist Brigade. Same soldiers, same weapons, different name. Nice try, but it kind of reminds of the aforementioned recovery summer. Call it whatever you want, but it is what it is. As long as the Iraq government squabbles, fights and creates a leadership vacuum, we will have to prop them up, or watch the country completely collapse. I would love to see all our troops come home, but unfortunately, we are there for the long haul. You can call the troops there peacekeepers, ambassadors of good will, or The Salvation Army, but the fact remains, Iraq is still a very dangerous place.
Last question; what do you think about the November election, will the Pelosi, Reid and the Democrats lose the Congress?
Ask me on Halloween, but right now it doesn't look good if you have 'D' next to your name. I would say the GOP gets the House of Representatives for sure, and comes very close in the Senate. Let's see if the Republicans can actually come up with a message that resonates with the voters other than "we are not Obama." We saw how well that worked in the last election when Democrats ran on the "we are not Bush" platform. You can win an election, then what?
Cutting spending, reducing the growth of government, if not an outright reduction in size, is great to talk about, but much harder to do. It takes a political will, a good deal of courage, and a tough chin, because it is going to be a fistfight when you start taking even a little slice off someone sacred cow. I hope the Republicans are up to the task. We will see.
So, what have I missed? Let me go straight to the lightning round, where the questions and answers come fast.
What's your take on the Ground Zero Mosque?
That is a tricky one for me. Do I think they should build it two blocks from ground zero, on the site where the landing gear from one of the hijacked planes crashed through the roof of the building? No. It is terribly insensitive to the victims’ families, and it is my thinking that the area of impact around ground zero should be treated more like a national battle field. I don't want the Ground Zero Virgin Atlantic store, the Ground Zero Wal-Mart, or the Cordoba Mosque built there. How about just a great big office building with a memorial park around the 16 acre site?
On the other hand, it is private property, and the local zoning agency, even if they are a bunch of hand-wringing, politically correct, ninnies, has approved the building site.
I think the offer to give the Imam another site, a little further away, is the right thing to do, and he should take it. If this Imam is truly concerned with 'building bridges' between our cultures, he won't build this bridge so close to the grave site of the thousands killed by people acting in the name Islam. Maybe he is just angling for someone to offer twenty million dollars for the building and he takes his fifteen million in profit and opens a franchise of Cordoba Mosques around the city. It is amazing how doubling or tripling your money seems to belay your outrage about religious freedom.
Bottom line; you have the right to build it, it' just not the right thing to do. Not by a long shot.
What do you think about President Obama's "Recovery Summer?"
Who ever came up with that idea should be fired immediately, if not sooner. 14.6 million People without jobs and an unemployment rate of 9.5% does not a recovery make. At this pace, if we borrow and spend another ten trillion dollars, we might get back down to 5% unemployment in a few years. The people know who owns this economy now, and his name isn't George Bush.
What about all the combat troops leaving Iraq?
I guess it is a good news story, but it really isn't a true story. The fawning media is reporting all the combat troops have left Iraq, and President Obama has kept one of his campaign promises. I don't know who is happier, the people at MSNBC or the insurgents who want to topple the Iraqi government.
In fact, we still have 50,000 soldiers stationed in Iraq. Barring a miracle of biblical proportions, a considerable amount of them will remain in Iraq for the foreseeable future. Basically, the combat brigades have been reassigned with new designations. The 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team of the 25th Infantry Division is still deployed in Iraq; they just call it an Advise and Assist Brigade. Same soldiers, same weapons, different name. Nice try, but it kind of reminds of the aforementioned recovery summer. Call it whatever you want, but it is what it is. As long as the Iraq government squabbles, fights and creates a leadership vacuum, we will have to prop them up, or watch the country completely collapse. I would love to see all our troops come home, but unfortunately, we are there for the long haul. You can call the troops there peacekeepers, ambassadors of good will, or The Salvation Army, but the fact remains, Iraq is still a very dangerous place.
Last question; what do you think about the November election, will the Pelosi, Reid and the Democrats lose the Congress?
Ask me on Halloween, but right now it doesn't look good if you have 'D' next to your name. I would say the GOP gets the House of Representatives for sure, and comes very close in the Senate. Let's see if the Republicans can actually come up with a message that resonates with the voters other than "we are not Obama." We saw how well that worked in the last election when Democrats ran on the "we are not Bush" platform. You can win an election, then what?
Cutting spending, reducing the growth of government, if not an outright reduction in size, is great to talk about, but much harder to do. It takes a political will, a good deal of courage, and a tough chin, because it is going to be a fistfight when you start taking even a little slice off someone sacred cow. I hope the Republicans are up to the task. We will see.
Friday, July 30, 2010
The upgrade generation
I am old. Not, moss growing over me as I sit in my rocking chair decrying all these new-fangled inventions old, just middle aged old. I am, however, old enough to remember when the things you bought would last. It’s not that you didn’t want to upgrade to something newer, it’s just the thing you bought was well made, still worked, and you really couldn’t justify upgrading it. This concept is completely foreign to most people raised in the computer/cell phone generation.
See if this sounds familiar. You can’t wait for the two year contact period to end so you can get the free upgrade on the latest and greatest new smart phone. Remember when you upgraded to your current phone? Remember how this phone was so great, so superior to your old phone? Now, it’s just a phone. It doesn’t have the ability run the coolest new applications, or apps as they say, and it doesn’t stream live video. No matter. Twenty months ago, it was the latest, cutting edge device, and it was free when you signed up for a two year contract. Now, it’s a piece of junk.
The same goes for gaming consoles. I’m old enough to remember staring in awe at the white dot flashing across the screen of my Pong game. Then came all the gaming consoles. Atari, Nintendo, Sega, Playstation, Xbox, and now, Wii. If you have a Playstation1 today, it might as well be a boat anchor.
Don’t get me started on computers. My laptop I bought back 2003 is a doorstop. Actually, I upgraded the software, and until recently, it still did some of the accounting work for my church. It is almost useless now. It still runs fine, it’s in great shape, but the technology has evolved so rapidly, it's now functionally obsolete. The dual processor PC that I bought two years ago is showing its age, as the once lighting fast processor speed and vast memory are now just enough to keep up with the latest software.
If it has a central processor, you had better enjoy fast, because soon it will be off to the high-tech scrap heap. For my son’s generation, this is this way the world works. You buy it, use it, and start looking for its replacement immediately, or at least in a few months. This was not always the case.
Before, iPods ,iPhones and iPads, there were radios, rotary phones and books. A transistor radio would last decades. If you go to a Goodwill store, you can probably pick up an AM radio made in nineteen seventy-four. Take it home, plug it in, and it will still work. If you had one those heavy, Bakelite rotary phones from the nineteen sixties, you could hammer a nail into the wall or crush the skull of a burglar with the handset, and it would still work. On my bookshelf, I have a pocket Bible given to me as a gift. It was printed in nineteen thirty four. It still works too.
Being in the telecommunications field, I have to stay up on the latest technology. Nevertheless, I am also a fan of artisanship, craftsmanship, of finely made things, things that will last generations.
I have a Winchester shotgun that is twenty years older than I am. I refinished the stock last year and it looks wonderful. It will last a few more generations, and break a few more thousand targets if I take it out the safe enough times. I have a saddle that was made for me seventeen years ago; it’s just now getting broken in. If I could find a nineteen forties era Martin guitar, or a nineteen sixties Fender Stratocaster, or Gibson Les Paul, I would sell all three dogs, both cats, and a few cows, to buy a handmade guitar like that. Well, I would have to clear it with the boss first, but she knows how much I would love to have one.
In our single serving, microwaved, high-speed data driven world, is there still an appreciation for well-made things?
Do you ever look at a piece of handmade furniture and appreciate the detailed joinery, how every piece was hand fitted, shaped, sanded, and rubbed with eight coats of finish, to get it just right? Can you look at a nineteen fifty nine Chevrolet Impala, or a forty nine Mercury Coupe and enjoy the lines, the style, the beauty of a classic car? Have you ever taken the time to read a poem by Whitman, or become wrapped up in a book by Falkner? Can you stand at the foot of a stone bridge and take in the imagination of the designer, the skill of the stonecutter, the hand fitting labor it took to make that bridge, one hundred years ago?
I hope we are not becoming so caught up in the next new thing, the latest improvement, the newest wonder-gadget that promises to make our life better, or more likely, to keep us entertained, that we forget the simple beauty of a well made thing.
See if this sounds familiar. You can’t wait for the two year contact period to end so you can get the free upgrade on the latest and greatest new smart phone. Remember when you upgraded to your current phone? Remember how this phone was so great, so superior to your old phone? Now, it’s just a phone. It doesn’t have the ability run the coolest new applications, or apps as they say, and it doesn’t stream live video. No matter. Twenty months ago, it was the latest, cutting edge device, and it was free when you signed up for a two year contract. Now, it’s a piece of junk.
The same goes for gaming consoles. I’m old enough to remember staring in awe at the white dot flashing across the screen of my Pong game. Then came all the gaming consoles. Atari, Nintendo, Sega, Playstation, Xbox, and now, Wii. If you have a Playstation1 today, it might as well be a boat anchor.
Don’t get me started on computers. My laptop I bought back 2003 is a doorstop. Actually, I upgraded the software, and until recently, it still did some of the accounting work for my church. It is almost useless now. It still runs fine, it’s in great shape, but the technology has evolved so rapidly, it's now functionally obsolete. The dual processor PC that I bought two years ago is showing its age, as the once lighting fast processor speed and vast memory are now just enough to keep up with the latest software.
If it has a central processor, you had better enjoy fast, because soon it will be off to the high-tech scrap heap. For my son’s generation, this is this way the world works. You buy it, use it, and start looking for its replacement immediately, or at least in a few months. This was not always the case.
Before, iPods ,iPhones and iPads, there were radios, rotary phones and books. A transistor radio would last decades. If you go to a Goodwill store, you can probably pick up an AM radio made in nineteen seventy-four. Take it home, plug it in, and it will still work. If you had one those heavy, Bakelite rotary phones from the nineteen sixties, you could hammer a nail into the wall or crush the skull of a burglar with the handset, and it would still work. On my bookshelf, I have a pocket Bible given to me as a gift. It was printed in nineteen thirty four. It still works too.
Being in the telecommunications field, I have to stay up on the latest technology. Nevertheless, I am also a fan of artisanship, craftsmanship, of finely made things, things that will last generations.
I have a Winchester shotgun that is twenty years older than I am. I refinished the stock last year and it looks wonderful. It will last a few more generations, and break a few more thousand targets if I take it out the safe enough times. I have a saddle that was made for me seventeen years ago; it’s just now getting broken in. If I could find a nineteen forties era Martin guitar, or a nineteen sixties Fender Stratocaster, or Gibson Les Paul, I would sell all three dogs, both cats, and a few cows, to buy a handmade guitar like that. Well, I would have to clear it with the boss first, but she knows how much I would love to have one.
In our single serving, microwaved, high-speed data driven world, is there still an appreciation for well-made things?
Do you ever look at a piece of handmade furniture and appreciate the detailed joinery, how every piece was hand fitted, shaped, sanded, and rubbed with eight coats of finish, to get it just right? Can you look at a nineteen fifty nine Chevrolet Impala, or a forty nine Mercury Coupe and enjoy the lines, the style, the beauty of a classic car? Have you ever taken the time to read a poem by Whitman, or become wrapped up in a book by Falkner? Can you stand at the foot of a stone bridge and take in the imagination of the designer, the skill of the stonecutter, the hand fitting labor it took to make that bridge, one hundred years ago?
I hope we are not becoming so caught up in the next new thing, the latest improvement, the newest wonder-gadget that promises to make our life better, or more likely, to keep us entertained, that we forget the simple beauty of a well made thing.
Monday, July 05, 2010
A sure bet.
I have never been a big gambler, although I do remember my first trip to Reno as a high school senior. At seventeen years old, I was six feet tall, two hundred twenty pounds and looked much older than I was. My father, for reasons I still haven’t figured out, gave me some of his winnings and turned me loose to gamble. Those first few hours, I was struck with an unbelievable run of beginners luck. I had no idea what I was doing, but I had chips all over the craps table and kept winning with the longest odds. At one point, I had over a thousand dollars in front of me, and thought I had found my new occupation; professional gambler. I was wrong.
Somewhere around three in the morning, I had lost most of the money, but still had a few hundred to take home. My next trip to Tahoe a few years later, when I was twenty-one, I lost all my money in the first twenty minutes at the casino. I had to spend the rest of the day walking around South Shore with just the lint in my pockets. It was great lesson for me to learn. The odds are always with the house.
Casinos are built not on luck, strategy, or skill, but on built simple mathematics. The odds are always with the house, even with the “best” games, your disadvantage is just a little smaller. People continue to gamble, even when they know the odds are against them, because they do have some chance of winning. However, the longer you play; the odds will always catch up to you.
What about a bet where the odds are 100 percent against you. Would you still make that bet? If you were certain to lose, would you go “all in” and bet everything you have?
With that end in mind, I would like to ask a question. I believe it is one of the most important questions you can ever answer. How will I spend my life?
I’m not talking about a career or a profession, I am talking about how you will spend the minutes, hours, days and years that will make up your life. What will you spend them on?
As human beings, we have a one hundred percent fatality rate. We are all going to die. There is no way out of this wager, we cannot elect not to play, we are in this game from the day we draw our first breath. Our bodies will all return to the earth in one way or another. All the possessions we have acquired over the years will be passed down, sold, or simply thrown away. Every physical thing we hold as important, or essential, will become meaningless to us. As a friend of mine is fond of saying, “I've never seen a hearse heading to the cemetery followed by a U-Haul trailer.”
This is the wager we are making, every day when we wake up. We seem to be betting that all the stuff we have, all the money we saved, and all the good times we chase after will mean something to us when we come to the end of our lives. This is a suckers bet.
Having had the privilege to officiate the funerals of a few friends, I can tell you from experience, what matters most is what you do for others. With your family, your friends, your community, or your world; do you make a difference? Do you spend all your time, talents, efforts, finances and attention on yourself, or do you leave any room for others?
I know people who spend their entire lives with the goal of an early and comfortable retirement. They work hard to build that 401k so they can one day relax and “enjoy life.” Their focus is spending as much time as they can, doing whatever they want to do. Golfing, traveling, a beach house, collecting classic cars, gardening, or just watching the sunset each evening. This is how you are going to spend your life? What a waste.
As I said up front, I’m not much of a gambler, but If you want to make a wager, how about this. When you are lying in a hospital bed someday, and the doctor is giving you the bad news, I’ll bet the BMW in the garage, or the size of your house will not matter to you at all. What will matter is the peace that will come from knowing you did right by people, that your life had purpose. That you made a positive difference with the people around you, and especially with those you never met.
Sure, you can leave your fortune to charity, or have a lecture hall named after you at your alma mater, but it isn't the same as being actively engaged in making someone's life better right now. Religious or atheist, whether you believe in an eternal life or not, what you do on this planet matters. There are an unlimited number of organizations that would love to have some of your time, talent, and yes, financial support. There is also the neighbor down the street who is going through a tough time, the young person who needs a positive role model or mentor to help them, or a child living in desperate poverty whose life you could change forever with the money you spend at Starbucks each month.
Find a way to contribute to others. Find a way to spend some of those those precious days in a way that lifts others up. This is not about guilt. This is about making the most of your life by helping others. This is about living your life to its fullest.
Somewhere around three in the morning, I had lost most of the money, but still had a few hundred to take home. My next trip to Tahoe a few years later, when I was twenty-one, I lost all my money in the first twenty minutes at the casino. I had to spend the rest of the day walking around South Shore with just the lint in my pockets. It was great lesson for me to learn. The odds are always with the house.
Casinos are built not on luck, strategy, or skill, but on built simple mathematics. The odds are always with the house, even with the “best” games, your disadvantage is just a little smaller. People continue to gamble, even when they know the odds are against them, because they do have some chance of winning. However, the longer you play; the odds will always catch up to you.
What about a bet where the odds are 100 percent against you. Would you still make that bet? If you were certain to lose, would you go “all in” and bet everything you have?
With that end in mind, I would like to ask a question. I believe it is one of the most important questions you can ever answer. How will I spend my life?
I’m not talking about a career or a profession, I am talking about how you will spend the minutes, hours, days and years that will make up your life. What will you spend them on?
As human beings, we have a one hundred percent fatality rate. We are all going to die. There is no way out of this wager, we cannot elect not to play, we are in this game from the day we draw our first breath. Our bodies will all return to the earth in one way or another. All the possessions we have acquired over the years will be passed down, sold, or simply thrown away. Every physical thing we hold as important, or essential, will become meaningless to us. As a friend of mine is fond of saying, “I've never seen a hearse heading to the cemetery followed by a U-Haul trailer.”
This is the wager we are making, every day when we wake up. We seem to be betting that all the stuff we have, all the money we saved, and all the good times we chase after will mean something to us when we come to the end of our lives. This is a suckers bet.
Having had the privilege to officiate the funerals of a few friends, I can tell you from experience, what matters most is what you do for others. With your family, your friends, your community, or your world; do you make a difference? Do you spend all your time, talents, efforts, finances and attention on yourself, or do you leave any room for others?
I know people who spend their entire lives with the goal of an early and comfortable retirement. They work hard to build that 401k so they can one day relax and “enjoy life.” Their focus is spending as much time as they can, doing whatever they want to do. Golfing, traveling, a beach house, collecting classic cars, gardening, or just watching the sunset each evening. This is how you are going to spend your life? What a waste.
As I said up front, I’m not much of a gambler, but If you want to make a wager, how about this. When you are lying in a hospital bed someday, and the doctor is giving you the bad news, I’ll bet the BMW in the garage, or the size of your house will not matter to you at all. What will matter is the peace that will come from knowing you did right by people, that your life had purpose. That you made a positive difference with the people around you, and especially with those you never met.
Sure, you can leave your fortune to charity, or have a lecture hall named after you at your alma mater, but it isn't the same as being actively engaged in making someone's life better right now. Religious or atheist, whether you believe in an eternal life or not, what you do on this planet matters. There are an unlimited number of organizations that would love to have some of your time, talent, and yes, financial support. There is also the neighbor down the street who is going through a tough time, the young person who needs a positive role model or mentor to help them, or a child living in desperate poverty whose life you could change forever with the money you spend at Starbucks each month.
Find a way to contribute to others. Find a way to spend some of those those precious days in a way that lifts others up. This is not about guilt. This is about making the most of your life by helping others. This is about living your life to its fullest.
Monday, June 28, 2010
Why elections matter.
This week brings the confirmation hearing of President Obama's nominee for Associate Justice to the Supreme Court. The nominee, Elena Kagan, will undoubtedly be a fitting replacement for Justice Paul Stevens. Stevens was one of the most liberal members of the court, and Kagan seems to be cut from the same cloth. Although her paper trail is a bit harder to track than most nominees are, I am certain the President and his team have done their homework and know the views of Ms. Kagan quite well.
The theatrics of the nomination process are now in full swing, as conservative members of the Senate Judiciary Committee will be trying to get Ms. Kagan to own up to her liberal views. This is nothing but politics, and anyone paying attention knows it. From a political standpoint, the nomination is brilliant. Kagan has never served as a sitting judge, has very little in the way of legal writings, and has a very narrow paper trail that could be used against her. She does have reams of paper from her time as an Associate White House Counsel and policy adviser to President Clinton, and in current roll as Solicitor General for President Obama. However, if you think the Clinton library is going to make her solicitor’s documents public, don't hold your breath.
From all indications, Ms. Kagan is an incredibly smart person. Professor, Dean of Harvard Law School, and her time working in two White House administrations make for an impressive resume. She is nowhere near my choice for an Associate Justice, but she is the President's nominee, and he won the election. That is the long and short of it.
Elections matter.
There was a time, not so long ago when the President picked his nominee, and unless there were huge red flags, allegations of corruption, mental capacity, or shady dealings in the nomination process, the President's pick would be seated on the court. This is not the case today.
Ever since the nomination of Robert Bork, and to a lesser extent Justice Clarence Thomas, these nomination hearings have become very contentious. Robert Bork had mountains of past decisions and opinions as a circuit judge, Solicitor General, as well as being an anti-trust scholar. During his confirmation hearings, Bork was very candid. He answered the probing questions with his honest opinion. Basically, he hung himself with a rope of his own making.
Elena Kagan once thought the Bork hearings should serve as a role model for the process. She thought his honesty in answering direct questions was very educational, and helped the committee come to an informed decision. I doubt there will be much openness or very many direct answers to the Senator's questions when she in front of the committee this week. This is the game where you try to get the nominee to give that one juicy sound bite so you can beat them relentlessly with it for the remainder of the hearings.
With the last three Justices taking the place of their similar-minded predecessors, the balance of power on the court has remained the same. It is a four-four split, conservative and liberal, with one Justice, Anthony Kennedy the one swing vote.
Barring a conservative justice retiring during the Obama presidency, when Justice Kennedy retires, that is when you will see the no holds barred, battle-royal to replace that all important swing vote. Whet that day comes; the confirmation hearing of Elena Kagan will seem like a taffy pull.
The theatrics of the nomination process are now in full swing, as conservative members of the Senate Judiciary Committee will be trying to get Ms. Kagan to own up to her liberal views. This is nothing but politics, and anyone paying attention knows it. From a political standpoint, the nomination is brilliant. Kagan has never served as a sitting judge, has very little in the way of legal writings, and has a very narrow paper trail that could be used against her. She does have reams of paper from her time as an Associate White House Counsel and policy adviser to President Clinton, and in current roll as Solicitor General for President Obama. However, if you think the Clinton library is going to make her solicitor’s documents public, don't hold your breath.
From all indications, Ms. Kagan is an incredibly smart person. Professor, Dean of Harvard Law School, and her time working in two White House administrations make for an impressive resume. She is nowhere near my choice for an Associate Justice, but she is the President's nominee, and he won the election. That is the long and short of it.
Elections matter.
There was a time, not so long ago when the President picked his nominee, and unless there were huge red flags, allegations of corruption, mental capacity, or shady dealings in the nomination process, the President's pick would be seated on the court. This is not the case today.
Ever since the nomination of Robert Bork, and to a lesser extent Justice Clarence Thomas, these nomination hearings have become very contentious. Robert Bork had mountains of past decisions and opinions as a circuit judge, Solicitor General, as well as being an anti-trust scholar. During his confirmation hearings, Bork was very candid. He answered the probing questions with his honest opinion. Basically, he hung himself with a rope of his own making.
Elena Kagan once thought the Bork hearings should serve as a role model for the process. She thought his honesty in answering direct questions was very educational, and helped the committee come to an informed decision. I doubt there will be much openness or very many direct answers to the Senator's questions when she in front of the committee this week. This is the game where you try to get the nominee to give that one juicy sound bite so you can beat them relentlessly with it for the remainder of the hearings.
With the last three Justices taking the place of their similar-minded predecessors, the balance of power on the court has remained the same. It is a four-four split, conservative and liberal, with one Justice, Anthony Kennedy the one swing vote.
Barring a conservative justice retiring during the Obama presidency, when Justice Kennedy retires, that is when you will see the no holds barred, battle-royal to replace that all important swing vote. Whet that day comes; the confirmation hearing of Elena Kagan will seem like a taffy pull.
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