SpotOnWithTrivedi

You know...I really don't care how you lean

2012-01-27T21:02:00.010-05:00

It's interesting that my brother asked me if I agreed with everything in the Constitution, having noted before that the Founding Fathers were certainly better than the Smothers Brothers but fell short of the Three Stooges in terms of great groups in history. Okay. I fib. He didn't really say they were worse than the Stooges.

Funny thing is, I haven't responded to him yet. I think he makes a good point. Just because a group of old, dead guys said something 200+ years ago doesn't make it golden, evergreen. However, it doesn't necessarily make it irrelevant, either. As an old boss has said to me many, many times, "Arp, it's usually in the middle." C'est vrai!

We are a centrist nation. Not hard left, not hard right. Not strict constitutionalist, not Timothy-Leary zealots. So, as I dig deep and consider my younger brother's parry, I find myself dazed and confused. By the way, I wanted to say Zagnuts instead of zealots back there, but my instinct for prim and proper got the best of me. For those of you that get the Zagnuts reference...right side, middle of the ribs to you!

Where was I? Yes. Centrist America. No, no, I didn't say Central America. Centrist. I sometimes shudder at the prospect of us shimmying on that narrow ridge between right and left. We're too daft to understand that right or left is not the endgame. Yes, I know, the principles of each side is what we know to be the endgame. But let's consider this bit of folly: We all want the the other side to be on our side and vice versa. Despite the pure insanity (and idiocy) of that notion, we would all be pretty damn bored if it actually happened. Imagine? No name calling, no negative advertisements, no Pelosi/Gingrich sound bites, and no perfunctory insults hurled about during Bill Mahr's show.

What's all that mean? The fight between right and left - I like to call it the fight between wrong and wrong, but I digress - has become more about entertainment and human beings viciously cannibalizing one another. For what? That great feeling one gets from being correct and/or from watching modern-day gladiators wage a battle of neatly-packaged gaffes and stutters. It's a pretty sad state of affairs.

By the way, I still think the Founding Fathers are pretty awesome. They weren't perfect, right or left, but they had the courage to put it out there and create a system which has evolved (devolved?) into what it is today, right or wrong. We, the people, have much work to do to keep it headed in the correct direction.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. Oh...write, call, or email your congressperson and tell them to support term limits.

A don of another day

2011-08-07T19:22:00.005-04:00

"I have murdered sleep."

I read these words so many years ago I hate to consider how time has changed me, changed the world, and changed how time itself treats us both. Though there are many interpretations of this now hallowed line from Shakespeare'sMacbeth, I received yet another one today.

During a discussion this evening at a spiritual class, a nice lady asked the teacher who or what decides justice? Who makes that final, fateful decision? "God?" she asked. Our teacher is a funny man, but a very, shall we say, straightforward man. His brow ruffled and everyone knew there was a major dissertation coming down the pike.

I'll spare you the details, but it came down to this: the ultimate judge and jury is the tandem of cause and effect. For every cause, there is an effect. In the case of Macbeth, in a figurative sense of course, he murdered his own sleep even though he vaulted to royalty by murdering another. He can no longer rest peacefully. He will always feel the burden of guilt. He will always be dead even when he is alive. Cause and effect. Whether we like it or not, our actions today will face an increasingly hard or beautiful action at some point. Our ignorance of and desire for peace throughout the world will nullify much of the good that we sow. Our demand for things will far outstretch our ability to provide for those things. Our tradition and ritual only take from the earth and from each other time, energy, and intellect with the resulting reality only wanting more. "Chasing the high," as Tony Schwartz, CEO of The Energy Project, puts it, will get us nowhere but to the next high and the next one.

As the discussion climaxed, our teacher explained that we were, indeed, very lucky. Though we may not have much, as say compared to a mafioso, we had peace knowing we could get up, walk gingerly to our vehicles, and drive home in absolute safety. A don does not have that peace. That simple bit of heaven on earth is gone. "Even sitting here, under this window," teacher said, pointing to the transom above, is too much. Who has his aim on me, thinks the don? Who wants me dead? He has murdered sleep, too. His peace is gold-plated, perhaps, but it is fleeting.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace and bounty for all. Abundance thinking is a good thing.

Troubling week

2011-08-05T19:51:00.005-04:00

Did you think, for one moment, they wouldn't raise the ceiling? Did you sense that the political bordellos of DC were out to milk the limelight yet again? I watched the debt ceiling debacle unfold from afar. No, I don't have cable TV. Yes, I'm just a little eccentric. I digress.

At the end of the day, the shogunate in our heralded capital got nothing accomplished that could not have been accomplished by just deciding to cut the this year's budget immediately. We have cemented that it is quite alright in this country to live beyond one's means and then celebrate jubilantly afterwards. The political cranes did very little heavy lifting this past week. They simply pushed the mortar around. You know it. I know it. Sadly, they know it. So what's new?

The tea party folks certainly stood their ground. As a libertarian, I'm a little put off by the tea party crowd. But that's just me as many in my party appear to be moving in that direction. I do see their influence growing, not ebbing, as we approach 2012. That spells danger for centrist Republicans. Splinters in the offing?
Obama further distanced himself from his core, or did he? He managed victories in the weeks and months prior: gays in the military (what a waste of breath...like we didn't already know that to be the case) and Osama's demise. Though the latter is not a core ideology closer, it certainly doesn't detract from Obama's role as commander-and-chief.
There seemed to be very little noise from Republican presidential candidates. They all pretty much said the debt ceiling raise was dead on arrival, but then, well, even they had to relent when their fellow Republicans voted for the increase or shuck and jive to kowtow to the tea leaves.
Tim Geithner continues to leave me unimpressed. Well, perhaps that one's not really new.

At the end of the rainbow (and you thought I'd let the gay rights issue alone), we all have a government that's running and will be able to pay its bills. Awesome. There's still very little discourse on moving heaven and earth to lower our expenses, passing along more of the people's hard-earned income to, wait for it, the people, and limiting the role and power of government in our daily lives. It's a glass ceiling if you ask me. You and I, well, we are, tragically, the rats in the hold.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace and bounty for all. It's far less expensive than regime change.

The flywheel turns

2011-05-07T21:47:00.003-04:00

At the present time, I am undergoing a bit of spiritual rebirth. It will be slow. It will be painful. I may even decide, eh, it's not worth it and ask for permission to go back to the womb, warm and secure, of just being. What strikes me about this process of rebirth is that I don't truly know very much about how to live life: what to make of it, how to develop stronger relationships, and how it all functions. It is very complex. It has more than we can ever have of it. Think about that: we can never have all of life. Why do we struggle so to advance just that single notion, knowing full well it is an unrealistic desire never to be filled?

When we bring this to the public stage - this wanting, desire, drive for it all - it really starts to devolve us instead of helping us to evolve. We become focused on rights instead of action. We veer from the right path to the easiest path. We take when we need to give. Extraction is the core theme and not gratitude, benediction, and investment.

Philosophy and religion aside, this is part of the problem with life. The desire to have it all creates so much complexity and agita that we end up with less, in terms of real bliss and happiness, than where we started. Why? That time is gone. Those moments to cherish with family and friends....gone. That decisions to advance the beachhead or stifle the competition or take out a nation had far-reaching and, in some cases, devastating consequences then, now, and tomorrow.

The latter, miraculously, can still be changed. We still have influence. We can still provide leadership. Instead of deciding who has chosen path A or B or C to salvation, and which one is better, why do we not concentrate on acting on the premise that all people are born good and it is our job to help them stay there, or perhaps if they have strayed, which most of us have, to find the path again.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace and happiness for all.

Meh...it's late

2011-05-06T23:40:00.003-04:00

I want to go to sleep really bad. But I have several things to say:

Don't debate when you can act. Time is wasting.
Don't worship when you can teach. I believe there's no greater way to honor God than teaching something to someone. Something good of course.
Don't play before you practice. I've tried it. It sucks.
Give direction and not pity. A culture of pity leads to many bad things.
And this one is for me: I'm full. Say out loud now...I'm full.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace.

Table 1297. U.S. Foreign Economic and Military Aid Programs: 1980 to 2008

2011-05-05T21:30:00.002-04:00

http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/2011/tables/11s1296.pdf

It doesn't make me angry. It doesn't even make me sad. It disappoints me that a nation, a nation that espouses the benefits of liberty and the glory of liberty-loving people, entangles itself in many, many side deals. What are we after? Peace? Commerce? Oversight? Unconditional acceptance? It is no wonder that we provide welfare to the world-at-large in much the same way we provide it here at home. It needs to stop. As I wrote about a few days ago, let the real change begin.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace.

To photo or not to photo

2011-05-04T22:45:00.003-04:00

You know, I really don't care. Show us the photos of OBL or don't. Let's stop talking about it. With all the crazy things that have happened in this country over the last 5 decades, perhaps a showing to a group of journalists, as indicated on one of the talk shows I was listening to today, or a small group of chipmunks might be warranted. Whatever! Let's move on. The man is dead, we have an economy to save, and we have much work to do on reforming our own tired, byzantine military-industrial-government complex.

Be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace.

Sabre-rattling is expensive...in many ways

2011-05-03T21:25:00.005-04:00

I was listening to POTUS today on SiriusXM. Pete Dominic's show always provides some interesting thoughts to consider. Today, a gentleman indicated that we have only subdued swords with more swords and we should continue to expect the same dysfunctional behavior in the future.

Amen.

When will we learn? My guess is that we'll never learn. The esteemed senator from Georgia was spouting off about how we will hunt down the offenders and finish them off as they sleep or some such spin. And then what? We wonder and worry about what will happen. We are somehow offended when they say the same and rattle sabres at us? We pound our chests some more. We raise our swords high. More sons and daughters will die for what?

And...and it costs a whole heckuva lot of money to keep this going. When is this going to stop? When are the American people going to be repaid? When are we going to stop using the marketing ploy of death traded for freedom? It's crap, folks. We continue to devour others' liberties and freedoms to uphold ours on a planet that provides only one destination for all of us: death. What a pity we will spend life's reserves continuing in this manner. Sad.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace.

Change starts...now!

2011-05-02T21:27:00.003-04:00

A quick note this evening on saving us from ourselves. Today proves to be a day that will long be remembered as May Day for Osama bin Laden. He died today. What's more important, if I may be so bold, is that we should learn from this and create a better place. Less war. More free trade. Less aid. More teaching and training. Less regulation. More punitive action. Less subsidy. More subsistence. Less I. More we (voluntarily, of course).

We have the power, each one of us, to make for positive change in this world. I don't always succeed. In fact, I almost always fail. But, from that failure, I learn. I learn that we cannot win when others lose and we cannot tolerate doing to others what we would not want done to us. Our foreign and domestic policies must be simplified and modified to better reflect the straightforward nature of our Constitution. I know. Easier said than done.

Be vigilant out there. Based on most news outlets, the fat lady is just warming up. Eyes and ears open, folks, eyes and ears open.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for PEACE!

Well...then...you die

2011-05-01T20:57:00.004-04:00

A couple of weekends ago, a gentleman I've been following spiritually told the following little story (or something close to it):

A man, Robert, walks up to me and asks if I can write his eulogy. The man has heard that I'm a decent writer. He knows little about me, though, and how direct I can be. Regardless, he goes on to ask me to write a great eulogy that is both effective but brief. So, I begin: Here lies Robert, a man that has sought those things that he did not have (Robert looked at me, plainly unamused), a man that fought ferociously to keep what he had; then Robert died. Robert, clearly not happy with my attempt at meeting his needs, walked away embittered.

As you know, we tend to discuss political and socio-economic subjects in this blog. How does this little story relate to our political reality? Well, on the surface, one might conclude that it doesn't really connect. However, if one digs a little deeper, I think there is a vein of tangible wealth.

As a nation, not unlike other nations, we live our political and bureaucratic lives wanting many, many things - things for our people, things for our allies, and things from our enemies. It is only natural that our citizens also fall in step with this approach. This mercantile spirit rages, day and night, throughout the land. The welfare state mushrooms for both the individual and corporation to reap many goodies. The things that we get we work very hard to keep. I guess, as a free-market guy, I'm generally okay with this. However, there is a slight twinge in my side, now and again, every time I see just how far this aggregate mercantilism has gotten us. Debt. War. Corruption. Anxiety. Wash and repeat.

I know there are good things as well: places to see, people to meet, and passions to play through. But, are they enough? Is all of this political aggrandizement good for us? Are we better off? I guess the answer, one that I can't stand to hear, is, "I don't know." That, in itself, has cause for some alarm. Now, where is that bell?

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. On a decidedly different note, I'm very proud of my little brother, the poet, for completing his MFA. That is all.

More of the same

2011-03-13T23:06:00.004-04:00

Is there nothing more interesting for 60 Minutes to air than some half-ass segment on the notorious "curveball" double agent (or whatever he was or is)? It's clear that the war in Iraq is a catastrophe of epic proportions. It's clear that we were lied to, either by our own government (I vote yes) and others (yes, again). But then, what's new?

As I'm listening to this segment, on the radio mind you, and as my stomach churns, I begin, anew, to question our government, past and present, and how much they have crossed the boundary between leadership and overlordship. We are a country run by an elite few that care not about your freedom or mine. We are a country made up of many citizens that think they will become part of this elite few so they can have the opportunity to limit our freedoms. Our access. Our ability to choose for ourselves the lives we so choose. Gay, straight, poor, rich, soul, rhythm & blues, or good old rock-and-roll. This is who we are. Or is it?

I'm eager to see what happens in 2012. I've all but given up on "change we can believe in" or the new promise with America or whatever is in the next cup of tea offered to us. There is no plan, boys and girls, and there is no desire to let freedom ring.

Man, that feels good.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. The preceding blog entry once again points out the need for term limits. Please call or write your representative - national, state or local - and demand real change. Merci.

What would you do if you weren't afraid?

2011-01-31T21:26:00.005-05:00

A quick question tonight: what would you do if you weren't afraid? Kiss a man? Jump off a cliff (attached to a big rubber band, of course)? Shake hands with a leper? Sleep with the enemy? Run for office? Understand the other's perspective? Walk a mile in another person's shoes?

After I lost my job in 2002, a gentleman asked me this question. His name was Bill. I remember this question to this day. I don't always connect all the dots when I ask myself this question, but it propels me nonetheless. Tomorrow, upon waking, ask yourself the same question. Then make a list. Then complete the list. Then take it to another level. Ask your spouse or significant other. Ask your kids. "Son, what would you do if you weren't afraid?" "Sweetie, what do you think you can accomplish if you set aside fear?" There is always a measurable amount of practical fear. "Whatever you do, don't tug on Superman's cape." Then there is the worried-for-nothing type of fear which we all must overcome. Again, what would you do if you weren't afraid?

That is all.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. Today is my Mama's and Mami's (maternal uncle and aunt) 40th Anniversary. I dedicate this blog entry to them.

Fighter planes and pyramids

2011-01-30T12:46:00.005-05:00

So, another bit of civil unrest spikes in the Middle East. A government, often supported by this country, missteps against its own people. Egypt. A delightful land, so I am told. Turmoil rages, it seems, without abandon. Surprised? I guess I am always surprised. Disappointed? I guess I am, but I think that if I cared enough to think about it, I should have expected this sort of the thing to happen. A single, supposedly freely-elected man has run the country since the last president of Egypt, Sadat, lost his life by an assassins many bullets in 1981. Thirty years. One man. One party. Shocking.

Today, another interesting event took place in Egypt amongst the bloodshed and show of repudiation. Several fighter jets, F-16's I believe, provided by our country flew over Cairo, allegedly as a show of force by the military. Interesting bit of irony, isn't it? We sell arms to our friends around the world who then use it against their own people. I wonder what is next. A coup d'etat? A final separation from liberal, pro-democratic (with a single man in charge for thirty years, one can easily debate whether it is a democracy) method of governance and slow retreat into theocracy? Have you read this script before?

We must stop interfering with other nations. Arms, advice, and money - all of it must stop. Just as we argue that our own people should not be fed the fish but instead allowed to find it and catch it for themselves, so too must we argue for sovereignty for all nations and fair and equitable trade. I know it's a long shot. But what we have now is not...I repeat...not working.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. The preceding blog entry once again points out the need for term limits. It certainly applies for Egypt. It needs to apply in the United States. Please call your representative or senator and ask that they introduce measures in Congress to limit the terms of elected officials.

The promise of nobility

2011-01-16T12:33:00.006-05:00

I'll start with a quote today. Here it is:

"There can yet be a silver lining to the Tucson massacre if we stop trying to exploit it for political purposes and instead seize upon it as a fresh chance to change our culture of violence — too much hate, too many guns, too many killings. The bitterness in politics is part of this larger trouble. There is no evidence it prompted Loughner — and the finger pointing should stop — but we knew long before Tucson it must be cleaned up. In coming weeks, President Obama should invite GOP leaders as well as chieftains of entertainment and news, the NRA and others to see if we can reach a higher plane. America will always be rough and tumble — that's in our DNA — but generations past have proven we can also be a noble people." - David Gergen, as quoted in Time magazine.

I could not have said it better. I applaud Gergen's suggestion that our leaders come together and work towards greater civility. Glass-half-full perspectives are wonderful. Look, I like Mr. Gergen immensely. I think he is articulate, intelligent, and honest. However, the challenge is determining what will push us towards greater nobility and away from harsh rhetoric and water cooler snipes at our fellow American for simply thinking, looking, or talking differently from one another. Perhaps my glass is only a quarter full (in more ways than one, I'm sure some of you will say), but I think it's a tough road. Duplicity at the top tends to make its way down. Or is it the other way around? Hollywood and DC surely have their moments of almost unfathomable misbehavior, but there are certainly more of us than there are of them. Bottom up, I say, is where it has to start. Where does it end?

Look, when a politician is out of line, forgiveness is certainly the mark of a decent human being. It should be exercised. However, firm, and regrettably, permanent censure must be the action. There should be consequences. It seems that too many lofty persons just simply walk the plank and land in, well, a spa as opposed to the crushing tide of the ocean below. It sends a mixed message. It amplifies the notion that there is a huge double standard in this country. It undermines the notion of nobility. It forestalls civility in its tracks.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. Don't forget to call those darn representatives about term limits. It'll do us good!

The Time cover

2011-01-15T20:36:00.003-05:00

So, our Tucson killer shows up on the cover of Time magazine this week. Why? Freedom comes with responsibility. Now, the press might say that they have the freedom to print whatever they wish. True. No arguments. However, I'll argue that with the power of the press comes great responsibility. Response-ability.

We have a great deal of freedoms. Perhaps we should have more. We have a great deal of responsibility. We should exercise it better. It's a powerful conduit to positive change...responsibility. Without it, well, we get what we get these days: somebody's 15 minutes.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace.

Everyday teams

2011-01-14T23:22:00.007-05:00

Teamwork. Oftentimes overused. Many times abused. Seldom perfected. This country, including this citizen, conjure teamwork best at moments of crises. That has to change. It must become the soup du jour every day. Our individual talents must be coalesced for the betterment of society. Not by edict. Not by conscription. By choice. That is all.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. I almost forgot...please contact your congressperson or senator and demand they bring legislation implementing term limits to fruition.

Pep rallies are okay

2011-01-13T08:50:00.005-05:00

It was called a pep rally. I'm sure many thought it was a shameless display for Democrats. It's odd given that Arizona is, by and large, a red state. The event last night to honor and remember the fallen last Saturday can be whatever the crowd gathered wants it to be. Was it a political show? Was it vote baiting in advance of 2012? Sure it was. As I mentioned a few blogs ago (here), there is always someone out to make some sort of gain, whether it be from tragedy/crisis or from something positive and spectacular. But that's what politicians get paid to do - suck the marrow out of life for their own gain.

The people in the crowd are a little different. They are looking for somebody to lead. They are looking for someone to help them through this terrible event. For now, they'll look past the, what was the term used yesterday? Ah, yes, blood-libel. They'll not seek blame. They'll not worry about those things. They want to grieve. They want to cry. And yes, they want laugh and cheer the memories of those that have fallen. It's a free country. They can do less perhaps than what I would like, but they have that freedom.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace.

It's a blood sport, you bloody imbecile

2011-01-12T19:56:00.006-05:00

Blood-libel? I didn't know it was connected to anything remotely Jewish. I now know that it is. I question a couple of things:

Why do we still listen to anything coming from Sarah Palin?
Why are we trying to blame her, regardless of what else she spews, for causing the death of those innocent folks on Saturday? There is little direct causation (in the true legal sense of the word).
When are we going to learn that using words or phrases involving blood probably won't yield very much good?

To me it is still about a lack of leadership in this country. People go to the White House, the House of Representatives, and the statehouse for the wrong reasons. They think they go to serve others, but what seems to happen is that they just end up serving themselves.

Where is true leadership when we need it? Staring in the mirror, playing with their hair and hoping their blood-soaked hands don't sell them down the river? Not.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. Bloody fine day, right? "Uh, right."

Nature vs. Infrastructure

2011-01-11T22:25:00.004-05:00

I'm just as tired as you are of driving on horrible roads, dealing with long-term construction projects that gum up the works, and acid reflux. How do we solve our infrastructure conundrum? More government works projects? Perhaps. Much of our infrastructure is owned by the government.

But what is the real problem? The real concern? The power of nature. Sure, we can spend lots of money to rebuild the decaying bridges, roads, pipes, and buildings of our wonderful nation. But, I'm curious about one thing: won't they just decay again? Why do we think we should expect different outcomes from the same inputs? Shouldn't we be spending our time thinking of ways to create things - solve long-term problems - where there is less and less obsolescence in the final product? Take a golden opportunity to stand back, and realize there's $2T worth of work to be done and ask why can't it be done differently.

That's all for tonight. If you're in the northeastern US, then I hope you make it around tonight and tomorrow safe and sound.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. Winter is indeed in da haus!

I'll have some vitriol and a side of lost opportunity, please

2011-01-10T21:21:00.003-05:00

"Don't let a good tragedy go to waste?" Wow. This was a new interpretation, by Neal Boortz, of something that Rahm Emmanuel had said about not letting a good crisis go to waste. Now, Boortz was not, in my humble opinion, legitimizing either statement. However, he paints an interesting picture: that any shade of the political spectrum is ready to pounce on a negative situation for political gain. I think he's right.

Now, in the name of freedom and liberty, one might agree that it's okay to do this. It's low, but hey, it's a free country. Have at it. I think it borders on the shameless. There is a great deal of discussion going on about how the rhetoric fuels the flames of political rivalry. Well, one can imagine that there would be some level of name calling and general discontent between two groups of people that don't see eye to eye. And there is always someone to lay blame when something goes awry. I think it is next to impossible to show a causal link between what a prominent politician says to what an apparent lone gunman does on a sunny morning in Tuscon, AZ.

However, it's not just the prominent politician spewing this negative language. It's not just the other side, the prominent other side, trying to lay blame. It is all or some of us caught up in this nasty business. But we learn it from our leaders. We see. We hear. We do. The real crisis - the true tragedy - is that we lack leadership in this country. Not Obama. Not the Bushes. Not Clinton. Not even Reagan. Not all the others. They've sold this country down the river. They've pitted citizen against citizen for their own unworthy gain.

And we plod along, hoping one day that some great political savior will save us from ourselves. I'm waiting. How about you?

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. Put down your arms, folks. Violence only begets more violence.

Jam-proof governing

2011-01-09T14:10:00.008-05:00

So, I watched me some Michael Moore on CNN today. Something about the Pubs unable to accomplish anything given the numbers. I watched Speaker Boehner's chat about the shootings. I also put together our new shredder. It is, supposedly, jam proof.

Wouldn't that be nice? Jam proof governing. No limitations. No roadblocks. No one to bother with needless machinations about getting reelected. Smooth sailing. I've discovered that a jam proof government would require too much in the way of common sense to actually get anything accomplished. But, I think we ought to give it a go. What's the downside? More filibuster, more sabre rattling, and more bogus pomp and circumstance. Here are some thoughts:

Have real debate about real issues. No more of this saving owls and deciding what an individual can do with his or her body or what religion is best or has the most holidays. Let's focus on the big rocks. Little rocks often jam up the critical path to solving the country's largest problems. Prioritize (easier said than done, I know).
Declare Election Day in November a national holiday. Let's get as much grease into the system as we can. For me, a person who rarely used to vote, it's imperative that more and more of us vote. If we can't have the day off, then let's move it to a weekend day. It won't solve the problem, but perhaps it will undo some of those pesky jams. Let's forego tradition with this and get more people in the fray. Perhaps some people don't want more people to vote? Now that type of thinking should be punishable.
Limit bills to 100 pages or less, 12 point font, and 1 inch margins. If you can't write a bill in that amount of space, then you need to rewrite. Enough said.
Anything that has to do with a foreign nation is automatically de-prioritized for the next two sessions of Congress. We can't work with others until we fix working with one another first.

As you know, I could go on. However, I'd love to hear from you on what ideas and thoughts you have on the topic. This really falls under the KISS paradigm (keep it simple silly/stupid). We all need a KISS from government before we get...well, I don't really want to say that here.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace - Signed, feeling shredded in Short Hills.

Evil strikes again

2011-01-08T20:09:00.006-05:00

First and foremost, my heart felt condolences and prayers go out to those that suffered today in Arizona.

Second, we must apply the maximum sentence to those that committed this heinous crime.

Third, we need to work towards more of a collaborative society. We have built a society that is based on win/lose (to use Dr. Covey's terminology). In order for someone to win, someone has to lose. We need to throw that sketch out and start again.

Fourth, be forever diligent in your families and communities. If you know or sense something is awry with your fellow man, then speak up. Contact someone. Don't wait.

Fifth, I have heard too many times how the other side are idiots. It doesn't matter which side we are talking about. They are not idiots. They have differing views. Use a little wisdom that gets handed to you through your day of worship, if you worship, and have a little room to disagree but not hate. I think too many times that's not the case. We laugh and we snicker and we let it roll off, but my sense is that it is much deeper. I could be wrong. I have been wrong in the past. I shudder to think that I'm right, which indicates that some of us are carrying around a great deal of rage, bias, and dislike for those that don't see the world as we see it. Why? What is the gain? Even at the lowest levels of subsistence in this country, we have much as compared to our fellow earthlings. But it's not enough.

Finally, pray. To the wall, to your god, to mommy, or to nothing whatsoever. Humbly request to the wind if you have to that peace comes to our time and our peoples.

Also, I apologize for something I said yesterday. It was said in jest, but given the events of the day, the shoe throwing comment from yesterday's post was clearly not appropriate. Funny perhaps, but not appropriate. Maybe not even that funny. I'll leave that judgement to you. Again, I offer my sincerest apologies.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. Call your representative or senator today and urge him or her to introduce and support legislation backing term limits...peacefully, without taking up arms. Please.

I want this, I need that...and then BOOM! A beautiful snowfall

2011-01-07T21:26:00.011-05:00

Snow always has the power to make one reflect. The veil of white and trees, the cold air, and the wind just rattle your cage and jar your emotions. So, as the snow fell today, slowly at first and then with a wee bit of strength, I thought about the climate. The cold. The heat. The rain. The snow. I know there is a great deal of chatter about climate change, global warming, and greenhouse gases. It's an interesting conversation. There are those that believe that big business, with aid of governments the world over, have caused much of the damage in the pursuit of more and more profits. Hmm...in the pursuit of more and more profits. Left by itself, that's not such a bad thing.

However, let's look at it in context of modern day economics. Demand the world over has increased dramatically as the population has swollen. People want/need more things. Companies create the things that people want/need. Companies have to stay in business. Profit builds capital, and yes, satisfies shareholders (who are also made of the same people), and the cycle starts again. The disconnect for me, as I have slowly learned, is that the want/need threshold has somehow become blurred. But, that's not really the big issue. The big issue is that we have demanded more and more at lower prices. I'm not defending the big corporates (for it is they that market to us, knowing full well which things are alluring and why), but they are reacting to our demands (again, we maybe too bloody stupid to actually think for ourselves, having the need to always give into marketing's charms). So, what does that mean?

Well, I'm all for the open market, and I'm certainly not here to tell you what to do. However, might I suggest a few things? Like it matters what you think...this is my damn blog. Here goes (most of this is common sense, but it's the snow that made me say it):

Buy American. Okay, okay. I have a German car, many items from China, and an Indian wife (I didn't buy her and so that doesn't really count). I need to do better.
Buy closer to home. We try when we can to consume our foods from local providers. There are some great community gardens. One of my favorite sources to find community supported agriculture is the following site, http://www.localharvest.org/csa/. I think we are going to try one the farms here in New Jersey this year. They provide chard. I'm not sure what chard is, but darn it, I'll learn. This goes hand in hand with #5 below.
Vote and pray for peace. War is very wasteful. Not only does it suck resources out of economies the world over, but it just silences the progress of many wonderful souls lost because of it.
Laugh. Well, okay, what does that have to do with the environment? I'm not sure. Say no more.
Drink more water. The less processed beverages we drink (which I daresay we don't need), the less energy will be consumed. This is a theoretical notion, but I'm going to stand by it. Now, do we need cleaner water? Yes. Can we solve this problem? I don't know. If we drink less of the processed stuff, the less waste will come from less process, and the water will get better? Maybe.
Watch less TV in favor of more reading and endless games of UNO and Scrabble (both need to be followed by those little trade mark symbols, which I don't have the ability to add in this program). We may end up finding that we sway our lives more so than THEY sway our lives if we watch a little less of the boob tube. Just saying.
Write in the dark. If only I had a camera, then I could show you.
Play in the snow. It's silly, but I hear it is good exercise. It helps reduce fat. Again, if only I had a camera, then I could show you. And then perhaps not.

Those are some ideas. They're not the best. They're not the cheapest. Some didn't turn out as funny as I had hoped. But let's understand this (still my blog!): the decisions that you and I make in turn drive the decisions made by governments and corporates alike. If nothing else, there's more of us than them. We can just kick the crap out of them.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. Call your representative or senator today and urge him or her to introduce and support legislation backing term limits. If that doesn't work, then throw a shoe.

Have you read your Constitution, young man...or woman?

2011-01-06T20:55:00.004-05:00

I'm delighted to report tonight, much later than most bloggers and news outlets I'm sure, that members of the HoRs (all pun in intended) read the constitution today. A glorious day, truly, has passed before our eyes and most of us were out working for a living. A shame to have missed it.

Well, now let's consider the setting and the players in the context of the document itself. First, we have gone well beyond "common defence" and continue to do so everyday that our troops trot across the sovereign soil of other nations. I'm just being a strict constitutionalist. That's all. That's what today was about, right? A show of force in favor of a strict interpretation of the United States Constitution.

My strict interpretation of the Constitution is that the "common defence" clause (words 24 and 25 of the Constitution) refers to the defense of our soil, our territory, and our citizens. The body that read the Constitution today has repeatedly voted to go against the Constitution and provide for the general defence of other nations, other causes, and in some cases, others that now and in the future hope to do us harm. I love that old elastic clause. It allows our legislators to do just about anything they want. It doesn't matter what the words say, it only matters what we can keep from the public and get done. Elastic clause. Boxers or briefs?

Let's move on to words 26 - 29: "promote the general Welfare." Promote. Not afford. Not provide. Not mandate. Not dole out. Promote. You know, like Nabisco promotes it's cookies or Spielberg promotes a movie...to move it forward. No guarantees. No promises. No national health care, public or semi-public. No food stamps. No regressive tax system. Again, right or wrong, those darn waste bands keep stretching and stretching so the donkey and elephant can squeeze in together...and make donphants? Elenkeys? Sorry. That wasn't very funny.

The hard work continues, folks. Words in the original, unamended Constitution: 4,543 (not including the BoRs). Both parties, especially the one that mandated the darn thing be read, can't even make it out of the first damn paragraph without having completely tossed every ideal, every rational element, and every edict out. What a sham! What a terrible, terrible sham! You'd think Hollywood producers were buzzing around DC today, waiting to see which figure would start weeping. This parading of the Constitution for cameras was truly revolting.

You are at the mercy of 538 individuals, by and large, that don't give a rat's ass about you and our Constitution. If you look long enough (about 5 seconds), you'll already find evidence that promises made in the latest election cycle have been set aside. The Pledge has left the building..."The Pledge to America" that is. If you look hard enough, the progressives are doing everything they can to continue to inflate the deficit, and subsequently the debt, by continuing to mandate programs that are not yet funded and that are, by and large, in an inelastic world, unconstitutional. If you look hard enough, you'll see that we are hanging by a very thin fiscal thread.

That's okay. Read on, ladies and gentlemen, read on. We'll be here, working for a living and parting with our tax dollars so that you can pat yourselves on the backs for reading a 200-year-old document out loud. And after you've read it, go fill that prescription for new glasses on our nickel. Read on.

Goodbye, Gibbs...well, sort of but not really

2011-01-05T18:53:00.006-05:00

Gibbs, I'm sorry to see you go. I'm also sorry that you won't be the whipping boy for the popular press. I'm not surprised that you are not really leaving politics. It's interesting that you are going to be taking an office pretty close to where you work now and advising the president, which you do now. However, what's interesting is that it all feels...well...shallow and a little political (go figure...it's DC).

I understand that you've been running on all cylinders for about 3 years now. Tough on the family and tough on the body, I'm sure. Not everyone likes you. I think you're an okay press secretary. Nothing over the top, but acceptable. What I don't understand is all this shifting sand at a time when the nation seeks a little permanence, a little stability. But I guess the elixir of political power and continued advantage gets to every president, and he (and perhaps she at some point in the future) must reserve his best people not to serve the country but to help him (or her) get reelected.

Something tells me that your departure is really symptomatic of a greater pestilence in our nation's capital: self-aggrandizement at the expense of service to the nation. It's okay, Gibbs. We won't hold it against you in 2 to 6 years. We probably won't even remember you. Not that the lack of remembrance will be in a mean-spirited manner, but we literally just don't remember press secretaries.

Good luck, Gibbs. And oh, tell the president to put on some jogging pants and a decent shirt for goodness' sake.

The olive branch and Pi

2011-01-04T21:30:00.007-05:00

The olive branch extended the President they can't stand and have pretty much indicated they'd like to ride out of town. Check. Bill to repeal health care debacle to pass House. Check. Fumble bill to repeal health care debacle in Senate. Ah, the mighty, mighty Republicans must be in power, or at least close enough to smell it.

I read a couple of articles today on what the Republicans hope to accomplish, which will be done, of course, by sidestepping parliamentary rules and such (nothing like taking the low road and showing those Dems who's in charge!). Then, there was this interesting read about Obama cutting loose the old guard and bringing in the new. Interesting on first blush, but then a little less interesting when you see that he's going to be starting up his reelection campaign any moment now.

I speak about term limits often. I say something every night in fact (it's kind of like Bob Barker and his spay/neuter call to action, but just a different type of cut). I often wonder what would happen if we just focused on the issues. What would happen if we had a real plan and we focused on it instead of always worrying about our position and power? What would happen if there were legitimate debate in Congress? It is a deliberative democracy, is it not? Well, I would argue that it is a deliberative republic, but then we'd just be splitting hairs.

I don't know about you, but I don't really see anything radical coming from the 112th Congress to change the people that govern and the way they govern. I'm actually a little down about it. Then, I think about my daughter, who today realized what Pi was and was excited to learn about it all by herself. If she could only understand how circular real life truly is. Ah well, I'm sure she'll realize it some day.

I borrowed something blue today...ceiling paint

2011-01-03T21:31:00.007-05:00

Well, okay, I didn't. As it turns out, I was out of money and had no opportunity to raise my debt ceiling.

How is that we Americans must abide by some level of constraint but our politicians continue to gorge themselves on a bunch of new spending? That's right. Spending.

The most fundamental reason for this? We've transferred too many of our liberties to the larger, and I would say darker, forces in our society. That's right, Darth, the dark side. And no, it's not a race thing.

We've outsourced. Don't you get it? We don't know how to handle our own damn selves and so we just turn over the reins. Give it up. That which is so precious and, it seems, so limited in quantity - our supposedly inalienable freedoms, our God-given liberties - gone.

Deftly, and by and large with our consent, these tokens of providence were taken from us. We voted them away through our own elected officials and by sitting in front of the damn TV, doling out dollars to the mighty marketer. Republicans and Democrats alike are to blame. Amazing. It's not a culture war. It's not a drug war. It's not a war on terror. It's a war on you and me. That, my friends, is the leviathan of the day. We're in play to be played and we're just as happy as squid for it. Right? Fat (really fat...the scale this morning...not good), dumb, and happy.

Don't take it. Oh, and turn off the TV. I've now stepped off my soapbox.

Why don't we lower the debt ceiling?

2011-01-02T19:20:00.005-05:00

I heard this ominous message today on the radio. That message was that if we don't raise the debt ceiling bad things will happen. We, the United States of America, will default on its obligations. Really? Good.

It's about time that this comes home to roost. I know this is unlikely to happen given our lack of courage to do things that are right as opposed to doing things that are easy. However, I would like for us to consider not only not raising the debt ceiling, but lowering it. Let's actually cut our spending and borrow less. Principal repayment. Novel concept, isn't it?

Think about it, folks. If we don't put the brakes on soon or later, then we will continue our slow but apparently willful and determined descent into a worsening financial situation.

That's the short and sweet of it. As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. Call your representative or senator today and urge him or her to introduce and support legislation backing term limits.

The 112th, 1st Session Agenda...maybe

2011-01-01T17:00:00.009-05:00

I'm going to go out on a limb and predict something: Congress will return to session in the coming week or so and spend a great deal of time pounding its chest about 1) the victory in November and 2) the legislation passed before it left for its winter siesta. That's great. I'm glad they're going to gloat. At $800,000 per day for the cost of their service (The quotient of $174K times 1.3 (for benefit burden) times 538 all divided by 150 days), it's likely money well spent. Right?

So, then, where was I? Ah, yes. After their ham and turkey have digested, our fellow citizens will get about to the business of the people. What does the session promise to deliver? Here's what I see.

More blather about health care. My guess is the Republicans will try to overturn it, but when push comes to shove, the less fortunate, who make up both parties, will speak up and everyone will understand the implications that votes are on the line and then back off. It should have never been passed in the first place. We need incentives for healthiness. Holding breath. Turning blue.
Energy independence. I sense that this will come up again, climate change and all. Look. We have choices to make. Better, more energy-efficient choices or less. I see nothing coming from those wanting changes in energy policy. If there is, it will be, as other legislation has been, lip service to real problem: America has decided to outsource its buying power to other nations in the interest of letting everyone play in the sandbox. Until that stops, we're lucky if candle prices remain steady.
Debt ceiling. We love debt. I see continued mushrooming of our national debt. We'll still get our $4 lattes and sigh when we read how inflation is running rampant and interest rates are climbing higher. Who's getting all that interest? Not you and I.
Pork fat. I don't see a tremendous amount of change in Washington. I think there will be continuation of earmarks and pork barrel projects. Some owl somewhere is thankful. Look, I like owls. I do. I don't like government being their caretakers. "Well, then, who should be their caretakers?" comes the question. Other owls, of course.

I'm sure we have had these topics in the past and they will surface in the future. The ultimate outcome: more or less the same as it has been for the last fifty years. Still pounding that chest? Does it hurt? It's okay. Congressional health care perks are the tops.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. Call your representative today and urge him or her to introduce and support legislation backing term limits.

Tomorrow

2010-12-31T19:56:00.008-05:00

Many resolutions will be made tonight. Many toasts will transpire. If you're lucky, then you'll share a nice kiss with someone you love. But what about tomorrow?

Tomorrow is tough because our hope is to make it better than today. Tomorrow is wiser for it knows what you shall...tomorrow. Tomorrow requires a skill set so unimaginable in order to overcome its uncertainty that we mere mortals simply cower and run. Alas, we cannot. What tomorrow does not have is the ability to make today all we want and more. You do.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. Happy New Year!

Let the good times...roll!

2010-12-30T22:54:00.000-05:00

As we wind down another year, 2010, I can't help but think that there are better times ahead. There is a great deal of ambition in us. There is an abundance of charity in the world. There remains those who seek peace at any cost. Perhaps there are those that seek to remedy our ills without needlessly taking a sliver of gold from us, too. I believe that times will get better, but will they ever be the best of times. What defines the best of times?

In the 1986 film The Best of Times, Robin Williams and Kurt Russell play a comedic duo hellbent on reliving a football game from their youth. It's not a great movie, but it will do for a cold, winter's night treat with you and your better half. Unlike my perspective, the movie is more retrospective, stating, it appears, that the best of times have come and have gone. What a sad way to live? Will we be defined by a bobbled pass twenty years ago?

As 2011 arrives, think not about lost opportunities, failed attempts, and the tremor of defeat. Think about progress and a plan of action to improve yourself, your family, and your community.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. Please enjoy New Year's Eve and all the good things it has to offer!

The Plan: Pure Excitement

2010-12-29T23:00:00.005-05:00

In the last installment, the notion of create-ivity managed to gain my fancy. Today, I shall speak of pure excitement. Why is it pure?

Well, I would like you to dig deep, within your creative self, and find that sense of childhood excitement - pure, innocent, and unwavering. Let your mind wander there. Don't be all adult-like and stuff. Put It out there.

We must get excited about positive change in this country. Excitement is the wind in the sails of our great creative vessel. Without it, we lack the spirit to continue in the right way. I believe much of the energy propelling change today is quite negative in its makeup. We are driving ourselves to a place called forward through casting fear, animosity, and ad hominem as our oarsmen. That's a shame. People must use the positiveness of laughter, storytelling, and scenario-building to gain energy and momentum.

With the creative spark buoyed by pure excitement, it is now time to turn our attention to more boring material such as collaboration and project management.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. Oh, laugh a little why don't you.

The Plan: Create-ivity first!

2010-12-28T18:51:00.012-05:00

Creativity seems to be running rampant these days. With all the gadgets, MFA degrees being handed out (my little brother earns one in May!), and modern art on display, it appears creativity is on the rise. I'm a little disappointed however. Though someone can piece together the image of a human being sliced up into several pieces shrouded in at least thirty different pastels, we are loathe to try anything generally considered creative in American politics. I think we've run into solution provider's block. I say it that way because we, myself included, have plenty to write and have continued to do so. We've continued to think, write about the thinking, and even televise it and cast it on a pod. But don't you wonder about the lexicon of American politics and if it has gone, well, stale?

Let's have a look:

Democrat
Republican
liberal
conservative
tax and spend
fair tax
elastic clause
forefathers
strict Constitutionalism
emancipation
class warfare
culture war
filibuster
bipartisanship
partisanship
rights
lobbyist or lobbying
progressive
regressive
caucus

inalienable

general welfare

common defence

liberty

freedom

I could go on. Someday, I just might. But, I think you get the picture. I'm sure there are some big, fancy words that I've left out. There are some names I could have used, but then I'm trying to cleanse myself of those dirty little words. But, really, don't you think we've just talked, written, and blogged ourselves into a big, empty corner, one which waits for us to seek the fetal position, hoping that somehow or some way our side wins.

I promised you that I would give you a plan of action in my last blog entry. This is that first step. We must be more creative. WE must be more creative and collaborative in seeking the ultimate solution. I listed both bipartisanship and partisanship. I'm not talking about either one here. In seeking bipartisanship, there is always a sense of compromise or quid pro quo. Our eager politicians, our representatives, are ready to trade a steak for a potato or vice versa. That just doesn't seem appropriate or ethical to me. Do what is right for the sake of doing what is right.

I think being more collaboratively creative (if I may use a cornucopia of consonance) will help all of us to define what is right. It may end up that right is a little bit left and left is a little bit right. And hear me out. I'm not speaking of a centrist model, that which merely takes a little bit from each side, smooths out the edges, and throws it up on the table of political alchemy hoping that the elixir works. I'm talking about new thought and a new perspective on governance guided by the proactive document that set all this in motion years ago. Here's a term for you to chew on: collaborative republic. Let's start there (an interesting web page here). More to come.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. Here's to hoping I work with you some day soon!

Regret: an ounce of prevention

2010-12-27T21:32:00.009-05:00

When you look back on it all, does it really seem that important that you had your way? When you sit, perhaps alone and caged up in the new medical reality, will it all be worth it? Regret is a powerful antidote for doing stupid things. Unfortunately, it's often administered much later than one might desire it, setting off a chain reaction that leads down a path of, well, more regret.

As we look out over the fields of battle of American politics, we see many lost souls, strange bedfellows, and horrendous greed and thuggery. Yes, I've written about this before. But, in this context - this context of regret - can we hope to see the errors of our way and actually do something about it? Can we, in all the chaos, develop a plan of action that will keep liberty and freedom intact while raising us to new levels of learning, leadership, and charity?

I think it can, but it must start with you and with me. It must start with your family and mine. It cannot and will not start with some large enterprise, public or private. As we all face regret at some point, only we, the people, will do anything to navigate the vessel of mankind in another, truer direction. Governments and corporations do not have this sense of regret for they have a way out - tax and spend and spend taxes, respectively. I don't have these luxuries. Do you?

Next up: a preamble to this plan of action.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. With no regret for having written this, I bid you all a safe and sound Tuesday.

Spoken and heard, Mother dearest

2010-12-26T23:00:00.008-05:00

In all of her glory, Mother Nature has spoken loudly and plainly today in the region. It's snowing and snowing. There is no doubt about her conviction. There is no play in her tone. She means to provide no compromise, but rather just her awesome wrath mixed with, to some degree, idyllic grace. Honest.

It is a pattern we see less and less of in modern society. Political and social correctness make up, it seems, the majority of our interactions, both verbal and written. There seems to be much in the way of compromise. Compromise is a good thing if it is for good things. Alas, what is good for me is not always good for you? But there is something about being just that I think stands out from what is good for you and good for me. Finding that win/win dimension does not always mean compromise. It doesn't always mean finding common ground. It always means that integrity and fairness take priority.

What is just? What is the natural law way of doing things that preserves our sense of self, community, and liberty? I'm sure there will be, as there has already been, millenniums of debate over this topic. But ask yourself this question: what would you do if you weren't afraid? You would treat others as you would like to be treated. No dispensation for hue or height. No dissimilar bag of treats for the number of wrinkles on your skin. No separate but equal clause. No difference. Everything is based on the enduring human spirit and its desire to overcome barriers and do so without just constant complaining and crowing about what you do or don't have.

Mother Nature does not treat any of us any differently as it snows outside. Why should we be any different in how we treat one another? I guess because we can. That doesn't make it right.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. From underneath Mother Nature's white blanket, I bid you safe travels on this winter's night.

Pundits-r-us

2010-12-26T03:37:00.004-05:00

With the holiday nearly a memory and a winter storm brewing for the Northeast, all at this late hour, one wonders what to say. I know. This is the second time I've whined about what to say and how to say it. I certainly don't consider myself a pundit. Punditry, though often helpful, seems to be rampant these days, doesn't it? Pundit is a word of Indian (slushie not tepee) origin. As with many terms, we have conveniently applied to anyone in the popular, or perhaps not-so-popular, media who can wax poetic between various advertisements.

So, truly, there is not a list of requirements to be a modern day pundit. "Have mouth, will speak" pretty much covers it. It is the rate at which punditry tends to grow and take priority in our media matters today, well, that bothers me. Are we really not into the news of the day to conduct our own research or justify the decisions of our representative lawmakers? Are we that unlearned? Apathetic? Tired of the news cycle? Overwhelmed? Perhaps all, some, or none of the above may apply. Perhaps I have missed something.

One may ask: Arp, what the hell are you doing out here everyday waxing and waning? Solid question. I feel like it. I'm exercising my right to free speech. I love to see myself write (or in other terms, hear myself speak). If I've never said it before, then let me say it now: check every source and fact spouted by a "pundit" before taking their waxing and waning as gospel. That includes my rantings and ravings. Especially my stuff.

With that said, I'm going to leave a little room for some slumber today.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. Happy Boxing Day!

Prayers for peace

2010-12-25T00:03:00.006-05:00

I'm going to keep this one short. Today is Christmas. Great day, admittedly. But then, every day is a great day for life is a great thing. Whether you are godless or very near to God, I think it is okay to pray. To ask earnestly (i.e., "to pray" in several dictionaries) for peace is all that I ask that you do. It's really not very hard and you don't really have to believe in anything or anyone except in the human spirit.

That is all.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for, you guessed it, peace. Merry Christmas!

Forgiveness is golden

2010-12-23T21:26:00.011-05:00

Forgiveness. One of my old, dear friends writes, "everyone is a work in progress, including yourself. What a horrible place the world would be if we all just held things against each other every chance we get." Well said, Meredith.

So, why don't more of us practice what my dear friend speaks of today? I'm sure it has much to do with our own sense of mortality, deep desire for owning things, and natural biases and all things prejudice. How can we break this chain? How can we unconditionally, in an agape sense, love our neighbor and not hold every little or big thing against them? And these grudges - the unwillingness to forgive - last not days, weeks or months. They last through generations, through epochs. That's a shame. In my eyes, it's sinful and is at the center of what is wrong with the world.

Now, I don't subscribe to the view that the world is a horrible place. One might even venture that there is more forgiveness than there is systemic blame and punishment. What bothers me is that the religiosity of our peoples - the faith in a greater power and his or her written word, enshrined in your gilded book of choice - has itself become as divisive and unforgiving as the flock it leads. It is easy to say, "well, we're just humans." But it is not actually easy to be humans. With all things human that spin through our daily cycle, we're bound to leave the day just a little shaken, a little stirred, and a little less willing to cross that sometimes impassable bridge between I and We - that narrow ridge - so we just hold on to that feeling forever. It becomes ours. Again, something owned rather than given away.

What is the solution? Be human...yes. Try harder...yes. Love they neighbor...yes. Wear more absorbent socks...definitely. In my recent readings, one interesting little word comes to mind: responsibility. However, the author, Stephen Covey, spins it a little differently. He asks us to think about it as response-ability. We are all equipped with the ability to think before we respond. Wage peace before war. Whisper not shout. Chew first and then swallow. Listen and then speak.

At this time of year, think about your response-ability and reach out to those that you hold a dim candle to and fire one up. Forgive. Then, do it throughout the year just for sherry and giggles. Thanks again, Meredith.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. Forgive...yes. Forget...NEVER! Just kidding. Happy Holidays!

But how much will it all cost?

2010-12-22T21:08:00.007-05:00

I am a huge fan of David Gergen. He's intelligent, articulate, and reasonable in his approach to politics. His latest post (http://www.cnn.com/2010/OPINION/12/22/gergen.obama.turnaround/index.html?hpt=T1) speaks mightily of the mighty lame-duck session that has just passed. I agree with him. Obama has made some great strides in the last few weeks by cutting across the grain and parting with the Democratic playbook. Plus, Mr. Gergen's writing, to me anyway, feels like writing from a bygone era - cherished, hallowed, and rare.

But how are we going to pay for all of the duck soup? Massive expenditures. Continued tax cuts, which I think are great, are nothing without trimming expenses. We are now going to raise the debt ceiling? Mr. Obama's "stunning turnaround" might be a nice way to end a year of unspeakable defeat, but it is not what will lift this country out of the mire it now finds itself entangled. I hope and pray for a different course, but look out across the great divide and just don't see it. Oh, and I'm an optimist.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. For those of you traveling for the holidays, please do so safely!

Speechless...not

2010-12-21T21:18:00.006-05:00

Wow, I just can't think of anything to say. I've no opinion on anything. Has it come to this? I mean...there is the whole Korean thing. I could say that we should stay out of it and let them blow each other to bits. China will emerge as the true victor and they'll still be half an Earth away. Then there's the guy that molested kids in Haiti. Nice. Well done. Burn him. Twenty years is not enough.

I could comment on the whole food poisoning claim from some Al Qaeda splinter group, but then that would just play to their "hey, we're-really-bad-guys-come-get-us" routine that is, well, a bit stale. I could pierce the whole veil of secrecy surrounding Wiki Leaks. Unfortunately, there is no veil. I hate it when that happens.

As I sit here, feeling defeated and a bit cold, I recall that much of what we do in this world is about prevention. It's about planning. Getting it just right on paper so that when we get in the field, we have anticipated the potential hot spots. Unfortunately, many of our plans involve the control and domination of others' sovereignty. So do theirs, but hey, do we really need to be the copycat country when it was the United States that invented modern, blow-your-ass-back-to-the-stone-age warfare?

I wish I had more to say.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. In a state of misanthropic zeal...0kay...not really. I hope your holiday preparations are coming along nicely!

Resolutions abound

2010-12-20T23:06:00.008-05:00

What are you hoping to accomplish in the New Year? The year 2011 starts in just 11 days. I bet you that next week you'll be running around, trying to figure out how much weight to lose and how to get better organized. I will, too. Did so last year and, well, it's not working the way I hoped on either front.

What I'd really like you to focus on is calling your representative or your senator and asking them to grow a set of cojones and make some tough decisions next year. Here's what I might be requesting:

Stop the two wars you are currently funding. Now. Oh, withdraw our troops from other foreign lands and send them the invoice.
Pass a bill initiating term limits. Self discipline will serve us well. Not you. US!
Take a pay cut. Nah. Take two pay cuts.
Stop the war on drugs. Uh, it's not working. Prices are too high, and well, when that happens profit occurs and folks don't typically leave a profitable enterprise. Just saying.
Pass a fair tax bill that phases in over the next 5 , maybe 10, years.
Make Lewis Black the Secretary of State.

These are the 6...scratch that...5 things I think I will whine and complain about when the 112th kicks into high gear. It's not much. I don't think it is too terribly difficult to accomplish. Alright, it might be somewhat difficult. I think there is a little money to be saved. We can redouble efforts at home to solving our homeland's issues. I know...novel idea.

Look, I know very little of this will see the light of day because of #2. Our lawmakers wouldn't/couldn't serve you if their lives depended on it; unless of course you were part of the 6,000 earmarks mentioned in the last attempt at fiscal heresy.

Ring...ring....hello, may I speak with Representative...

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. From the guard post just outside of New York City, I hope you all get two for Tuesday and it's all good!

Did you bring your dance shoes?

2010-12-19T19:22:00.006-05:00

Are we spoiled? Is this generation too much for its britches? With all the things we have, all the places we've been, and all the money we've made, are we beyond what our parents and grandparents hoped for us? Most would answer, resoundingly, "hell no!" I'm not so sure about that. I'm also not sure if my socks match.

From my lowly perspective, I guess there is more that I want to accomplish. There is always more money to be made. I'd like to see a couple of places yet, but if I don't, then I guess that might be alright. It's not that I've given up. It's not that I'm not happy with all I've done. But there is still this small part of me that wonders whether or not too much is simply too much.

Now, for those of you hoping...pining even...that I say we should redistribute all the largess down to those less fortunate souls, I say don't hold your breath. For those of you thinking that I've given into the dark side of supply-side economics, breathe easy. It's amazing that less than 100 years ago most people were okay with just tilling the land/working at the factory, sipping a soda or having an ice cream with family, and calling it quits at 9:00 or 9:30 in the evening. My brother, almost at my insistence, reminds me that we can't go back to those days. Hence, the title of this is post is not about time travel or Barry Goldwater or even fedoras.

I just look at all the progress and ask: is it all worth it? What is the ultimate goal? Why all the complexity, painstaking analysis, and economic gymnastics? Perhaps I will never answer my own question. Perhaps we will all just dance the final dance when Iran or North Korea or some other rogue regime decides to pull the trigger. Maybe we'll dance the last dance when cancer is cured and my kid's kids live to be 100 without adding any plastic to their bodies. Either way, I think I asked for a pair of dancing shoes for Christmas. So, I guess I'm covered.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. From a post-Thai supper sense of animated suspension, I bid you all a great week ahead!

An interesting couple of weeks...no doubt

2010-12-18T22:26:00.004-05:00

There is some sense of calm this evening. I'm not quite sure from where it stems. Perhaps it is the time of year, perhaps it is my lack of sleep, or perhaps it just is. Isn't that interesting? The thought of things being just because, well, they are.

Today, in this country, we changed some things that just are because, well, they just are, and forged a different path. I figured it would come sooner or later, but it is interesting that it comes at a time when so many deals are being made in Washington. I don't mean to take away from the striking down of such an overtly callous law such as DADT, but it does seem odd that there's been some interesting compromise going on inside the Beltway over the past few weeks.

Perhaps it's just me, but stranger bedfellows have rarely been seen. Don't forget...we let the national debt increase by some $700B (chump change?) by continuing Dubya's tax cuts and by cutting nothing (that would be political suicide for either set of loathsome creatures). Democrats and Republicans parried over a spending bill that had earmarks from both parties. We killed an immigration bill in a country made up of mostly immigrants from one era or another. I'd shake my head, but that would just be pointless.

Regardless, much was accomplished today in the name of freedom. Maybe there is more to come. Cheers.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. From the river and the woods of New Jersey, I bid you all a great weekend!

Now not later

2010-12-16T23:01:00.002-05:00

I want it today, Da! Can't we go today, Da! I love you now, Da, but next week...yeah, I'll still love you. We all want it now not later. Our food. Our health. Our...ahem...relations. There is very little left that can't be left for later.

Is our country going down this path? I'm convinced that it is. The financial markets remain the poster children for the now movement. If you did poorly this quarter, then you're just not worth a damn. But are we doing this with our own lives? Our own communities? Our own families?

The consumption culture in the world today, I believe, represents the proof that, yes, we are wholly focused on instant gratification. Okay, so you learned nothing new. "I've known that, Arp. Tell me something I don't know!"

Stop. Just stop. Plan. Think about the future. Begin with the end in mind. Don't settle for the quick score. Now and later, life will still be precious, fleeting, and exuberant. Patience, grasshopper, patience. I feel better.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. Is it me or is it bloody cold out there? Take care, everyone.

Earmarks...say it with me...E...A...R...M...A...R...K...S

2010-12-15T21:05:00.004-05:00

6,000 earmarks. $1.2 trillion omnibus spending bill. Wow! I predict that Obama will sign this bill. Why? Well, there are are many Democratic items on the menu. As it turns out, there are also some Republican items on the menu (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/12/14/AR2010121407208.html). In fact, Cornyn and Thune sparred with reporters today about their own earmarks (http://www.npr.org/blogs/itsallpolitics/2010/12/15/132083977/reporters-jump-senators-for-perceived-earmark-hypocrisy). I'm sure he would love to please both parties, particularly his own after dismounting from the donkey recently by siding with Republicans and their desire to continue tax cuts (or, in my mind, continue deficit spending...either way, we're getting screwed).

Did we really change anything in November? Are we really this gullible? Stupid even? We are a nation that pays money in to get the same money back out but with less to show for it. Why? Waste. Billions of dollars of waste. Corruption. Greed. There is much to be done in this country, with the first being to rid Congress of its existing base of lame-ass, self-aggrandizing blowhards. Term limits. Cut spending. Term limits. Cut spending. Term limits. Cut SPENDING! Serenity now!

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. Waiting to see the whites of their eyes in 2012, I bid you all good tidings.

Automobile? Automobile?

2010-12-14T21:47:00.002-05:00

Ah, yes, Sixteen Candles. What an excellent movie! Grandpappy's car ends up in some riverbed or some such place and the chinaman (no offense to anyone) laughs uncontrollably. Did he have auto insurance? Probably. Forty-nine states - New Hampshire sits this one out - mandate auto insurance. So, why is there such a big brouhaha about health insurance? I posed this earlier in a discussion group I take part in fairly regularly and there was one response: it's the first law that requires someone to do something for simply being alive. I think the gentleman's words were anyone with a pulse would be required to have health insurance. One chooses to drive. One, therefore, chooses to buy auto insurance. It is not forced upon him or her. Interesting argument to say the least.

I don't think any insurance of any kind should be forced upon any party, be it at the state level, federal level, for breathing or not for breathing. But what about the damage done to my vehicle? The loss of life? The long hours at the body shop? Insurance drives up the cost of things because in most cases it means that payment will be made and be made without any doubt being cast. There is no free market when insurance, namely third-party insurance, gets in the way of things. It also allows us to readily move forward in life without so much as a care because we know that no matter how fast we drive, how much we eat, smoke, or have unprotected sex (that was for effect :-0), our insurance will come to the rescue. But that is what it is supposed to do, right? Advance without thinking of the consequences of our advances.

Perhaps, goes the song. Perhaps it's not so bad, this insurance thing. Let the state mandate it. Let the Federal government mandate it. After all, it's only there to protect us from one another. Yes, it is. Why? Because we have lost some part of us that seeks to protect not only ourselves but the others around us. Pass the buck to the insurance agent at larger and larger premiums (read, "larger and larger profits") and let's get on with life...with abandon and with little or no responsibility to our fellow man. Amen.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. From the just west of the Big Apple, I bid you all good tidings.

adt

short hills, nj

Copyright 2010 all rights reserved arpit d. trivedi

The blindingly obvious

2010-12-13T22:10:00.008-05:00

Fair taxation. Seems like a nimble little topic. My fellow libertarian activists have been bantering back and forth on the topic all evening. Much of the discussion is in favor of a strong fair tax, or a VAT (value-added tax). The more important matter, brought up by one of the members, was cutting expenses. I agree. It is blindingly obvious to me that we must cut expenses. Changing the tax code in advance of reducing expenses is, I think, sheer stupidity. If we think we're beholden to sovereign governments now, then I'd hate to think what would happen if we cut revenue without cutting expenses. Where to start? That's a tough one. Where does the government truly have a role to play in girding our daily lives and the daily lives of corporate citizens (ahem)?

Here's a short list. It's not an end-all-be-all list, but it's a start. I'd love to hear from you on these cuts, which are presented in no particular order.

Defense. Stop nation building.
NASA. Space? Really? Movies good. Space station bad.
Corporation for Public Broadcasting and NPR. If you like it so much, then pick up a pen and a checkbook and make it happen. You can call it what you will, but fund it differently. By the way, I love NPR.
Tax breaks for all religious groups. Pray, worship, and proselytize all you want. Please don't do it on my nickel.
Home interest and home property tax deductions. Owning a home is not a God-granted right. Toil and toil some more, save up some money, and then buy.
Drug war. If you're going to have a drug war, then let's have an alcohol war, prostitution war, gambling war, chocolate war, salt war, gun war, and my favorite, a gay war. Let's run that tab way up. It can't be won. Period. (I love you, man, but it can't be won)
Federal or any funding of election campaigns.
Corn and all other corporate subsidies, including any and all corporate or personal bailouts.
Amtrak needs to survive on its own. I love train travel. It needs more than my love or my neighbor's.
NEA.

Those are just a few. I'm sure there are more. If we don't cut spending, we will not be able to pass on a better country to our children than the one our parents and grandparents passed down to us.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. From the wind and the snow, I bid you all good tidings.

Another year of battle

2010-12-12T21:07:00.007-05:00

Iraq. Afghanistan. Korea? Iran? Nation building is a corrupt and pitiful way to live. Sharing our sometimes rancid, sometimes incredible culture with the rest of the world like addicts share needles in cold, dark alleyways just doesn't seem to be a very good way to live. This is especially so given that sharing said needles is illegal (sigh). Nation building illegal? Hmmm.

As we begin the second year of this decade, one must consider the culture we continue to invest in in this country. It is a culture that believes that our freedom must be exported to other countries that may not want that same freedom or us in their country. I understand the whole war-on-terror theme, no matter how truly outrageous it is, but I don't understand why there is such hypocrisy in the American bosom. How come we don't want the European way or the South American way (socialists be damned!) in our country when we are perfectly willing to sell it through our DoD, DoS, and other various and sundry extensions of our republic?

I guess I missed the day in class where they had this lesson on nation building. This long, sordid chapter has done nothing but entangle us in horrific wars and questionable economic deals, leaving much of what truly drives an economic engine, production capability, the one major export. Yes, I'm sure there is plenty of argument for us continuing to meddle ("Germany would be ruling the world by now if we hadn't"). But should we?

So, another of year of battle, on domestic and foreign lands will, undoubtedly, continue. And I will continue to moan on about less is more. Less involvement there means more involvement here.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. From the eastern front of New Jersey, I bid you all good tidings.

An Open Letter to the Congress of the United States

2010-09-23T21:43:00.003-04:00

I wrote this some time ago on Facebook, but thought, "what the hell" and post it again, here, for your viewing pleasure.

An Open Letter to the Congress of the United States

August 2, 2009

Dear Madames and Messieurs,

It is so sad to see you go, even if it is for a month. I'm sure you will miss me as well. I'm sure you will miss my rantings and musings on your ill-gotten gains. I know you can't wait for me to submarine your zealous desire to continue to serve in a role designed to be largely volunteer in nature. I can appreciate that you will enjoy returning to my off colour comments about Czarina Pelosi and zie Fuhrer Johann Boehner. And let's not forget all my Facebook friends and sparring partners. I'm sure you will miss them and their lucid and insightful commentary on your hapless careers. So, while you enjoy luring your largely uneducated and ill-informed constituency through fear mongering and loathing of the other party into the abyss that is health care reform, energy renewal, and titillating stimulus, let me tell you what I will be doing.

First, I will be enjoying what remains of this summer with my family. You remember them right, your family and family values. I won't be committing adultery or hanging out with the pages during my time this summer. I mean, it sounds like fun, but...nah...not for me. Second, I will be working. I work as hard as the next guy and gal, and as I pointed out earlier, for $680,000 a day for 137 days per year, you folks "work" as well. During your month off, I'm sure the payola you receive from various interest groups, PACs, and foreign "dignitaries" will certainly keep you afloat. Third, I will be writing about you. That's right. For the next thirty days, I will write something every day to let people I care about know how important it is to keep your influence limited and to limit those that influence you.

Finally, I pray that when you return, you will avail yourself to this letter and find a conscience. A conscience that enables you to vote without regards to the influence peddlers, the special interest 'johns' that frequent your mahogany bordellos morning, noon, and night. A conscience that seeks to simplify government policy and administration should also be a broader initiative. All I see is the disruptive forces of chaos, complexity, and characterless posturing.

In closing, I am a pretty simple guy that believes in simple government. You know:

"form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty"

You have defaced this fairly simple phrase - Republicans and Democrats and many in between - to the point that its image is only a cold, distant reminder of what was intended by the people. You have ladled the lard of conscious corruption upon our Constitution for too long...too long.

Welfare is not meant to be the means by which corporations and those less learned and unwilling to work to take from the rest of us again and again.

Justice is not providing for opportunity because of difference but insisting that the difference is one's insatiable and ETHICAL pursuit of opportunity.

Common defence is meant for this land and the shores herein...not the sands of Iraq, not the mountains of Afghanistan, and not the fertile fields of Deutschland. Those are indeed sovereign nations. We need not meddle. That in turn leads us to mount a dedicated focus on domestic tranquility - less crime, higher education, and a nation inspired by an abundance mentality and not one deprived due to scarcity thinking.

The pursuit of liberty is endless. I am convinced of this. People will never truly be free unless we learn there are limitations. The respect for one another - on the road, in our schools, and in our workplaces - must be the ultimate sacrifice and does, indeed, limit our liberty. That, I guess, is why we have laws. For we, and you, cannot handle liberty. Mutual respect is a thing of the past. Until we cross that bridge - nay, gird that bridge - then no perfect union can be had.

Happy summer.

Sincerely,

Arp D. Trivedi
Cincinnati, OH

P.S. Thanks, little brother, for the inspiration.

Quickie on health care reform

2010-05-03T17:23:00.005-04:00

It's not a right. Period. I don't see it in the Constitution and I don't believe that all the elasticity in the world can make it so. Regardless, some of us will inevitably try to assert that it is a right.

With all the talk of reform, we have completely forgotten the foundation of our health care system - the family doctor. Our self-inflicted pain comes not purely because of all the testing and legal battles that ensue, but because we have made the family doctor a poor bedfellow compared to her colleagues of specialists. The team leader is the lowest paid physician on the Hippocratic ladder. Why?

I don't really know the answer, but it all seems to stem from this painful realization that no problem or joint is small enough and specialty is required. The level of knowledge needed to eradicate even the smallest pain demands a very high price. On top of this, we seem to neglect the fact, as does this writer, that health care reform starts right here, in the mirror. This is where the family doctor is most needed. I thank God every day I have a great one.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. I shall try to do the same. From the last day of my thirties, I bid you all good tidings.

Butter is better!

2010-04-25T00:46:00.007-04:00

I know, I know. It's been a LONG while. There are other things - family, work, self - that fill in the little capillaries between writing excursions. I guess, too, I've not been that passionate about any one thing lately.

As I write this, there is still nothing. However, I do like butter. I like freedom. I like the freedom to eat butter. Now, I'm sure people like salt. I read somewhere that there is about to be an infringement on one's ability (nay "right") to eat as much salt as they like. I think that is ill-advised. Did I mention that I like butter? I also do not eat margarine. I gave it up, cold turkey, for butter. Do I eat a lot of butter? I don't think so. But, when I desire a creamy, salty spread on my toast in the morning then it shall be butter. If I want an omelet sans olive oil, then I will use butter (it really does give it a richness that deserves more of an audience). Cakes and cookies deserve only le beurre.

I hope there is not a butter battalion that comes for my butter. That would be devilish indeed. Can you imagine it? I feel there will be hipster bureaucrats, prancing about with des stylos, adorned with oddly-shaped shoes, and lamenting their debt coming after my butter. Notepads chock full of accusations about my girth and lavish demands for butter. "Why me?" I will ask. They will stop, cold in their tracks, and exclaim, "butter is better, you damn fool!"

"Let them eat butter!" I say.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. I shall try to do the same. From the other side of midnight, I bid you all a good night.

Freedom from war

2009-11-23T22:17:00.001-05:00

I did not have a GI Joe when I was a child. However, I did have a battalion of those green army figures. I remember simulating battles in the "hills." The hills were made up of blankets piled high with the nooks and crannies serving as caves and various turrets for my fighters. Not very romantic, bloody, or technologically advanced, but it got me through many a night as an only child (which, by the way, was cured when I was 12 1/2 with the advent of my baby brother).

Fighting has come a long way from those hills. The fight has taken freedom away from us in every conceivable manner one can imagine. Let us explore this concept, which I imagine runs counter to many of the ideals held by the readers of this blog entry.

First, war leads to overspending. There is no plane, missile, or submarine cheap enough. Your funds will be confiscated. "Fine," you say. You will gladly hand over your funds so that our government can fight the bad guys. When they line up for the next hand out, what excuse do you have to offer? I should hope it would be "it's all gone." Instead, like sheep to slaughter, we continue to write the check, buoy our poor troops (which they justly deserve some buoying), and spend, spend, and spend some more. This is making me thirsty.
Second, it typically means that the soils of other sovereign nations will be tread upon by our very expensive troops and their machinery. I do not know about you, but I sure would not want anybody else's troops on our turf. Somehow, perhaps through the continuing fascination with manifest destiny or just the sense that we are indeed better (Can anyone say pride? Deadly sin? "How 'bout a Fresca?"), we continue to go over there when we should be working on fixing over here. Our exportation of wrath demeans us as a nation and as a people. I am all for protecting our territory. Our territory does need protecting. The hills of Afghanistan do not pass the test under my definition of our territory.
In most cases, it is unconstitutional. War Powers Act and all, the US continues to deny the Founding Fathers' assertion that only Congress has the ability to declare war. It is okay though. I mean who would not want to change the rules and usurp the highest law of the land. Greed, anyone? Just do it. Swoosh!
Finally, and I have already mentioned it, it takes the attention away from pressing issues at home: education, healthcare, and infrastructure to name but a few. Who is going to solve these issues? The Iraqis? The Turks? A teacher, a nurse, and a carpenter from Mogadishu?

As we work our way through the seven deadly sins, I must stop and take a breath. We have already committed the most dangerous one and that is pride. Many argue that from the sin of pride blossom many of the other sins. From pride, we restrict the ability of others to live their own lives because we believe our life to be so much more important and so much more redeeming. Look around you. Is it? Are we fighting the right battles? Are we clawing for the best hill on the battlefield? Is all this blood worth this way of life? Are we indeed taxing and spending our way into oblivion?

The resounding, single answer that I always hear is "yes, of course it is," to all of those questions. I am sorry. You cannot have it all because there is just no damn place to put it all (thanks, Steven Wright)! Freedom from war will in fact give us freedom from many other vices. More importantly, it will free up countless dollars that can go back to the citizens of this nation. Let us declare war dead and have its funeral as opposed to the funerals of our brothers and sisters. As Danny DeVito states in Other People's Money, "now that's a funeral worth having."

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. I shall try to do the same. From the shortest hills I know in these parts, I bid you all a good night.

Space is a flight of fancy...well, perhaps a leap of fancy.

2009-06-18T22:02:00.001-04:00

Several weeks ago, I watched with awe, with my wife and daughter in tow, the landing of Space Shuttle Atlantis at Edwards AFB. I have seen a launch, again with the same tandem in tow, from a rooftop in Orlando. It is all quite amazing. A great deal of pride and unrestrained curiosity overcomes me when I see such things. Alas, amazement and glee are not enough to prove an item's ultimate worth to society. It is even more important given the priorities that await us.

I speak of the space program. I understand that on many fronts the space program has created a great deal of good for mankind. The following page (http://techtran.msfc.nasa.gov/at_home.html) offers the many benefits gained from the space program here in the United States, which is primarily funded through NASA. I respect and honor those accomplishments. I also hope that we continue to fund the space program in such a way that enhances life on Earth and only for that purpose.

This wicked fascination with the far reaches of the galaxy, the water molecules on Mars or wherever, and the like do not, in my opinion, merit the expenditure and the waste we have seen over the years. The Hubble Space Telescope, which is estimated to cost $7 billion dollars over its life, is, according to some, a cost-effective space vehicle. $7 BILLION...say it with me, now. Humbug.

I recently read an article that described our new ascent to the Moon. Haven't we been there already? Isn't it dusty and devoid of life? Isn't Andy Kaufman the man on the Moon? Yes, I'm sure that millions of the world's denizens are enriched by the many space-age beds we sleep on each night, but our ancestors survived just fine on bit of straw or some cotton mattresses. Can't we try to conserve the water we have HERE instead of spending countless man hours and dollars trying to find it on barren planet?

Space provides a clear shot for our enemies or perhaps to our enemies. I think our pursuit of outer space is a misplaced game of cowboys and Indians or cops and robbers. We have been robbed of many other more precious things in life because of these silly expenditures. Because of our romantic enchantment with that which we cannot have, we've completely taken for granted what we do have. Stop the madness today.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. I shall try to do the same. From that little corner where sanity meets craziness, I bid you all a good night.

It's reigning religion...again

2009-05-22T23:28:00.016-04:00

Each man or woman to his or her own, I say. It is what we are granted by our Creator and our constitution. But somehow there's this mob, this mob cloaked in tangled words and marginal prophecies that insist we give up ourselves for the church, the temple, the mosque...pick your house of worship. Leave it be already.

What's even more ludicrous is that this nation and many other nations are founded on the principle of freedom of religion. FREEDOM. I love to say that word. Freedom to worship or not worship. Freedom to write blog entries criticizing wholesale religious proselytizing. Freedom to pray for positive change in our time.

Instead, we continue to have so-called freedom lovers that demand religious hegemony play an active role in government. Our god is much better than your god - neh neh ne na neh neh. By all means, we must invoke our god's spirited catechism in each and every aspect of YOUR life. Freedom is simply, at this point, thrown out the window. One's own freewill, individuality, and even the esprit du corps are all put at risk. Much of this comes from those that want maximum freedom - freedom from socialism, freedom from taxes, and the ever interesting, freedom to bear arms (see my blog entry, The Bad Things in Life http://spotonwithtrivedi.blogspot.com/2009/03/bad-things-in-life.html.

Why then push, as a drug dealer pushes, your goods on the rest of us? What's so compelling? Why all the divisiveness? The extremism? The insane amount of PRIDE (a mortal sin in most world religions) in one's own religious dogma? Please, someone explain! Explain without quoting any sort of religious verbiage - men wrote those words. Please speaketh for thyselfeth. How does one rationalize what I see as hypocrisy - OURS is better than YOURS - with the notion that saying that, in and of itself, is also sinful.

Religious fervor is a means of dividing all of us from what it is supposed to uphold and cement - kindness, charity, and love towards others. For those that care (and based on the number of blog followers, there's not much interest), I will be over here in the corner of my flat, praying that we don't annihilate one another on the grounds of god greed. Dang! Another deadly sin rears its ugly head.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. I shall try to do the same. From the home office just outside the gates of the most affluent suburb in Cincinnati, I bid you well.

One measure of obscurity...coming right up?

2009-05-22T19:43:00.009-04:00

"I've seen better days, I've seen worse."

Ah, what it was like to be a youngster. Music. Mayhem. Movies. The rhythm of each and every age changes for a reason. We skip beats, part with the harmony of nature, and misread the notes of our poets and scholars. Conversely, some of us still manage to create wonderful song - song full of direction, hope, and, in the words of Rush, mystic rhythms.

I wonder how future generations will look back and judge us. How will they measure us? Will they see the good? Will they see the generosity of those that give and give and give some more? Will they understand that we had our own demons, our own worst enemies, and our own nightmarish confrontation with war, poverty, and xenophobia. Will they tolerate us in a historical context?

The not-so-demure, and let's not forget diminutive, Napoleon Bonaparte stated that "glory is fleeting, obscurity is forever." We have lived through our own Golden Era three times since I was born. Glory giveth and glory taketh away. Divorce continues to escalate in our country. Malfeasance and corruption permeate each and every level of government and industry. Glory, as it is, rests in the hands of God, some say. I just soon keep it that way.

Obscurity is something else altogether. Irrational actions, choices made for the sake of glory, have left our generation, and I will argue the generation before it, bereft of principle and lacking a heightened sense of intellect. Are we doomed to obscurity because of our desire to attain so much glory and indeed so much gold today at the expense of future generations? No. We will continue to be remembered, ladies and gentlemen, as the people - the society - that diminished the leadership of a once great nation. It was tough writing that sentence, folks. We have fallen so far - regardless of religion, race, or financial standing - that we have disgraced not only ourselves but all generations to come.

So, why so glum? Why all the negativism? Why so blunt? Until we wake up and "shake the tree", admit that there is something wrong with our country, and work under the rule of law, we are doomed to repeat the sins of our past. More government or less government will not solve the problem. Taxes are not the almighty terror. God will not save us again and again, indiscretion after indiscretion. Security should not be in the defense budget, but in the health and human services budget.

Our ability to manage our freewill better, to exemplify to others our genuine tolerance of others, and to pursue higher learning or vocation without abandon will, I hope, let us slip into obscurity. What I mean is human nature seldom remembers the good. As long we continue to be good people, harmonious and diligent, I'm okay with obscurity. As it stands now, it will be a tough song to write.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. I shall try to do the same. On this Memorial Day weekend, remember those that have served and those that have fallen for us, and pray fewer and fewer men and women have to make the ultimate sacrifice.

A...ahem...quickie on consumption

2009-05-13T23:33:00.004-04:00

An interesting conversation between some bank analysts revealed an interesting factoid (probably a little more "oid" than fact, but hey, can't have everything). So, it turns out, that for the past 25 years...let me say that again...25 years...we, as a nation, have been earning $85 - $90 and spending $100.

Not only is this scary in terms of its historical precedence, but it only demands that we consider that this economic circumstance may yet again prevail. We're animals after all. Predators...shoes, shirts, houses, cars...our prey and nothing to restrain us but our freewill. Well, hell, that's no good. We're doomed. On top of it, the government is giving all sorts of entities free passes - companies, citizens, and even other government folk.

Save. Period. Buy with cash. Period. Don't let the marketers betray you and this country. In other words, don't let 'em screw you. Quickie...over and out.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. I shall try to do the same. From between the thunder boomers, I bid you and your family the very best - cash and carry, of course - that life affords you.

The mirror has many faces

2009-05-12T19:57:00.001-04:00

It's that same, shrill sound again. Crying babies? No. Screaming mothers? Maybe. Whiny politicians? Uh...no. That's right, folks, the sound emanating from your inner soul is that shrill sound you hear. There are many causes for it...babies, moms (and dads and kids...and....and), and yes the politicians (who, by the way, are laughing all the way to the offshore bank). The most central cause of it is dissatisfaction with your fellow man. That's right...mirror, please. Take a real long, hard look. See that person in the background...the one hovering over you with a big grin and a steak knife...they're the source of all of your ills. And perhaps last night's fish, but I digress.

The enlightenment came and went. The Sixties were all about love, but ultimately created nothing but the Eighties, Nineties and today. They were all about the guy, or gal, in the mirror. The person that takes and takes and takes. Rampant materialism and consumption encumbered by even more crime, corruption, and cronyism. We're all left wondering what's next? What will happen to the human race as we race and race and race. The substantive element in this entire conversation is the changing face of human nature. The de-evolution of our very nature is underway. We have little mutual respect for one another. We seemingly believe that laws are simply guidelines - follow, don't follow, it doesn't matter.

I guess this is a pretty negative post. But ultimately, it is a challenge to you and to me - don't let the mirror represent reality. Change the view. Command attention by doing the right thing. Make people nervous and angry by denying them a compromise on your values. At the same time, don't expect every person's values to be the same in terms of a given structure. If the golden rule is in effect, praise Allah/Jesus/God/Vishnu or whomever you do or do not choose and be thankful that good prevailed over evil. And don't forget, we, you and I, are not without blame. At the same time, you and I have the will and the courage to prevail and prevail we must.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. I shall try to do the same. From my perch above the trees, I bid you and your family all the best.

Seems like old times...

2009-04-15T21:00:00.001-04:00

As some of you have come to know, I'm a huge movie fan. One of my favorite movies is Seems Like Old Times (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0081480) starring Chevy Chase and Goldie Hawn. This romantic comedy has tons of great lines, fantastic character actors, and a nice steady pace of slapstick. Reminds me a bit of government, replete with the great story lines, characters that don't go away, and the same old, fall-down-the stairs slapstick form of wielding power.

I have to admit that I was a bit hopeful that the Obama administration would make substantive change to how our government takes care of business, specifically fiscal business. Something about "change we can believe in" was thrown around quite often. I'm sure I possessed the same hope for previous administrations. So, my indictment here is not of a specific president or administration. My fight is with the fundamental tenets of our constitution. We must make some changes to our constitution to make a better future for our government, the woeful entity that it is, and for our future generations of bloated, spoiled kids and grand kids (Alas, I'm a bit bloated and spoiled, but I'm working on changing that!).

Term limits. I've said enough already, I know. If there is one thing I despise it's some fat, old, bloated senator who's been living off the tit for some 50+ years. It's not a class warfare statement. They just don't know better.

It is time we instituted term limits in this country across the board. Along with proportional taxation, reduced government scope, and localized living, we must, as a people, herald in a generation of citizen legislators. Time and money...sorry, a shit pot of time and money...should not be spent campaigning for the next round of Mother's Milk. Get on with the business of the people, debate the facts and the issues, relegate the influence peddlers to the brothels and prisons they so richly deserve, and engender great thinking in this country once again.

Why is it so difficult? Why are we, as a people, so careless here? We're lazy. It's too easy to just hit the same button in the booth. Also, we've gotten used to the nice things our fat cats catch for us - roads, bridges, jobs - that swim about in the murky waters of Washington that we cannot get for ourselves. Woe is us. B/S! I'm over the old times. Bring in the new times.

Ah well, I'm back, folks. As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. I shall try to do the same. From the Nasti, Sic Semper Tyrannis (thanks, little brother, for another great round of ivory-tower conversation)!

The bad things in life

2009-03-11T20:06:00.007-04:00

I've never taken drugs. I don't plan on taking drugs. I don't own a gun and, God willing, I won't have to. But you know what, I'm okay with all of the rest of you indulging. Freedom is a terrible and wonderful thing. It often puts us in very odd places. It often finds me at odds with my fellow citizens. That is the beauty of it, right? The freedom of argument (without being shot, I hope!) is a wonderful thing.

Over the last few days, a couple of things have gotten under my skin. Eleven people died in Alabama and another 15 died in Germany. Both were pretty senseless. My heart goes out to the families of the injured and slain. On the other hand, we appointed a new drug czar here in the United States of America. Awesome. Billions - BILLIONS - of dollars will be wasted trumpeting one ill (guns) and outlawing another (drugs). Just leave them be. Regulate, yes. Outlaw, no. (Tax the hell out of them both? Not sure about that). That's the price of freedom. It's not about some poorly worded amendment to the Constitution. It's not in deference to those hoping to cure cancer through cannabis.

For those on the right that seek to shelter your right to guns, you've got to part with the other freedoms that bother you - drugs, abortion, stem-cell research. Get over it and move on. For those on the left, guns are a way of life. Outlawing them will not cease to quell the violence, voluntary or involuntary. Free markets should not be outlawed either. For those of us squarely in the middle, and I believe the luckier bunch, we simply must continue to guide our wayward friends in their respective corners and help them understand that they are moving forward no time soon. We are never going to stop the bloodletting that comes from drugs, guns,and yes, free markets, by simply outlawing them.

The law governs what we can and cannot do. I'm so glad that we, as a civilized society, have laws to outlaw the "freedom" of rape, murder, incest, embezzlement, and the like. Of course, in the past we have, because of our lack of common ethos, sought to ignore certain laws, bend others to meet the needs of our donors, or simply repealed them altogether. Therein lies the ultimate problem - the degradation of our common ethos. If we can ever come to grips with the fact that freedom requires a strong moral fiber, then perhaps we can all live peacefully - armed or unarmed, high or low - together. But ethos should not involve the legislation of morality and the banning of all the bad things in life.

So, no more drug czars, no more NRA boneheads, and no more stimulus packages. Let's get on with the more important items - growth, innovation, search for fine cuisine, and, most importantly, serving one another. Let freedom ring!

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. I shall try to do the same. From the home office in Cincinnati, OH, I bid you and your family all the best.

In the fish bowl

2009-03-05T19:22:00.008-05:00

"We're just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl...year after year." - Pink Floyd

Our very existence here on planet Earth is exactly as Mr. Pink described it. We are in fact tied to our fish bowl, forced to live with one another, or perhaps as some would have it, live off one another. So, the fish bowl serves as great context for how we should manage our world, manage our relationships, and stick to a plan.

The burning question for me is: if there is just the one fish bowl, with God looking in on his floating fanatical fishes, how can we not manage to work things out amongst us? Ah, you see, God inadvertently put fish that eat one another in the bowl together. I'm not blaming God. I'm questioning the rationale and I'm also beginning to understand that God too practices laissez-faire economics.

People - and this is not a rant about the environment or helping the common man or even your neighbor - this is it! This is all we got (I heavily discount the ridiculous and bloated excess of the space program as totally bogus). If we start there - if everyone can agree on this simple fact - perhaps logic and reason will prevail. Just use common sense, put your politics aside for a moment, and think about these three words: this is it.

So, just a few more comments about the fish bowl for the practical fish bowl owner:

The water has to be changed every once and a while. It's true people. Just admit it. If not, the fish, you guessed it, die.
There must be enough food, but not too much. Again, death ensues.
All the fish should have access to the food. A bunch of dead fishes just make life, well, fishy.
Fish that want to eat other fish should not be entered into the fish bowl environment.

I think if we all worked together - free markets and all, values laden and all - I believe we can truly overcome the first three. Number 4 is the tough one. See, there are some groups of people (or "schools of fish" if we elect to keep with our metaphor) the world over that simply are not content with the food they have, the car they drive, or the homes they own. Others are simply jealous of those that have all those things. Others are just hell bent on destroying the fish bowl at any expense. How do we change them? Can we change them? Should we change them?

I believe that at some point we must christen a new era - buy a new fish bowl, if you will - where there are simple rules to engender simple, yet fulfilling outcomes. That will take discipline, a long term commitment to rational behavior (yes, we will all have to go to school, learn a skill or craft, and feed ourselves and our families), and a focus on more important things - family, community, and, of course, a clean fish bowl. It will also take a firm approach to those that disrupt the general welfare of others. It will take, most of all, trust.

As I look back on this entry, I admit that much of it is idealistic (Idealistic? Sure, why not? It's a free country) and perhaps a bit silly. What is not silly, and in fact very real, is the self-inflicted complexity of life itself. Out of our own sheer greed, desire, or compulsion, we've bloody fallen into the deep end (of the fish bowl?). Simplify, folks. The economy will, in grand elastic fashion, mold itself to our new found freedom. The politicians will have fewer throngs to pander to. I promise you we will all be much happier.

Now, that's a fish bowl worth swimming in every day.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. I shall try to do the same. From inside the murky fish bowl right beside you, I bid you a good night and a wonderful Friday.

A new design

2009-03-04T22:03:00.004-05:00

move forward slowly
to a time where the shade tree cools our tempers
and its fallen splinters serve as kindling for new fires

see it through gently
to an empire where the people rein in fear and greed
and its many fallen angels who stood to be kings

dream it aloud soulfully
while my heart beats, the drums of new warriors speak
and our prayers are answered, and our sons and daughters
are not left broken, not left weak

this is a place i want to share
this is a design i want to trace

adt
cincinnati, oh

Copyright 2009 all rights reserved arpit d. trivedi

Gordy speaks

2009-03-04T19:51:00.011-05:00

"Values free." The two strongest terms in Gordy's speech today. That's right, Gordon Brown, the Prime Minister of Great Britain, spoke to a joint session of Congress today and, quite frankly, did a fine job. First of all, it was an absolute pleasure to simply listen to him speak. As I have stated before, we have drifted too far from our language, plain old English, and Gordon Brown again accentuated the need to uphold it each day in our schools and our companies (http://spotonwithtrivedi.blogspot.com/2008/11/return-of-kings-english.html). Second, the common heritage that we share, us and the Brits and so many others in the Commonwealth, is undeniable and unbreakable. Third, Mr. Brown asserts throughout his speech, both directly and indirectly that we can live free - markets, nations, and peoples - but we cannot and shall not live "values free." Finally, Mr. Brown, similar to Mr. Obama (Mr. Obamer?) positions the multi-pronged investments in energy, education, and human talent (by extension, health care/welfare) front and center in his global New Deal. Banner fine idea, lads. Who is going to pay for it? That comes later, of course. Regardless of the painful realities, it was a fine speech - a speech that still leaves me with a bit of doubt. Read on.

This common heritage, and indeed this common language, should be utilized to lift us out of our murky and sordid economic woes. Tied to this common heritage are many other peoples and languages. From the islands of the West Indies to the peaks of the Himalayas, in times of world war and fleeting peace, the Americans and the Britons have influenced a great many peoples. What I heard in Mr. Brown's polemic was that all this is quite good and certainly deserves the recognition. He goes on to say that "we must build tomorrow today" and that the events of the day "have forced us all to think anew." I agree.

What bothers me is that the common heritage of our two countries had been mired in imperialism, rogue influence peddling, and, finally and most recently, supporting incalcitrant and disingenuous war mongers. So, in thinking anew, we must seek out a values-based commonality. The almighty quid or dollar is not our Lord and Savior (in this house, we say "paisu maro parmeshwar ane hoon enu das" - Money is my God and I his Servant). I have a great deal of hope but I lack faith in these words.

Can we move ahead towards freedom and free markets girded by core values? Can we truly, as Mr. Brown suggests, invent our way of this chasm? Can we do so without always being led by money? Can we distance ourselves from our history in such a way that we do not repeat its most expensive mistakes? For all of our convictions, our piety, and our words, we often -I often - do "pass by on the other side." Our values-free approach has done much to dampen the hearts and minds of our peoples. Has it gone too far?

Mr. Brown, in his attempt to serve as an inspiration, did give me hope. In our renewed desire to better education, preserve our environment, and invest in our general welfare, we must show leadership. We must not get so absorbed with who pays what (though necessity will demand that debts be repaid). Environmental dominion - our reign over the earth - requires leadership. Who gives a rat's ass whether or not there is global warming? Taking care of the earth should be tantamount to anything else! Taking care of her people comes next.

I'm slowly changing, folks. Many know me as a pretty strong advocate of laissez-faire economics and bold initiatives in taxation. And to a great degree, I still am that advocate. But, there is more to life than economics. Thank you, Mr. Brown and friends alike, for continuing to show me a different perspective.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. I shall try to do the same. From across the pond and by the river, I bid you a good night and a glorious Thursday. Cheers.

Can't sleep, little brother

2009-03-03T21:39:00.003-05:00

can't sleep, little brother
put my head back on the hay
golden, the chaff of my life

can't sleep, little brother
where is my soul, in rest or in motion
can't sleep, little brother?
did you see my house of cards?
did you dream of a better place?

can't sleep, little brother
is it too late to borrow a bottle
or a movement from Brahms
the rhythm stokes my embers
and the fire keeps me awake

can't sleep, little brother
is life this grand?
it is in my heart, brave but worn
the comfort calls for me
i'm so torn

sleep, little brother, sleep

adt
cincinnati, oh

Copyright 2009 all rights reserved arpit d. trivedi

Burden of our fears

2009-03-03T21:28:00.006-05:00

settled down, inside the window sill
can't hope for anything better tonight, dear
except the dewdrops of you in passing
here i sit, hear me now
one last time

turn it off, outside the prison walls
can't look for anything bigger today, dear
except the smile on your face in the rain
here i sit, hear me now
one last time

cradled, minuet lilts and fades, keeps me warm
saddled, hate spills from the damper like a drum
and my heart breaks
one last time

for those of us that have lost the gain of our lives
i'll carry you on my shoulders, wipe your tears
it just steals away the night, this burden of our fears
but for me
i'm settled down, inside the window sill
dazed yet sobered by her love
one last time but forever
one last time and forever

adt
cincinnati, oh

Copyright 2009 all rights reserved arpit d. trivedi

“Art of the long view”

2009-03-03T20:56:00.003-05:00

Amazing words were uttered by our President today – “long-term perspective.” Good night!

No, really, I can’t leave you hanging like that. When questioned about the stock market today, President Obama remarked, correctly I think, that he cannot allow himself to be frustrated by the day-to-day, hour-to-hour fluctuations of life’s biggest poker tournament – the free market and all its brood – the Dow, the NASDAQ, the FTSE. You get my drift, right? Long-term thinking has been completely missing from our modern dialogue, with the last eight, nay sixteen years, completely devoid of thinking about a practical future for us all.

Instead, President Obama suggested that one take a long term view of the market, and encouraged the market to invest given such cheap prices (Unfortunately, Mr. President, the market is not yet done with the losses it has been facing for the better part of a year). But it is not out of knee-jerk fashion that we should invest. On the contrary, Mr. Obama suggests we should go long. That would indeed be a very new concept for many of us that can’t look past the next ten tasks in our planners.

Many years ago, I read a fantastic book entitled The Art of the Long View: Planning for a Future in an Uncertain World by Peter Schwartz. It continues to have an influence on me in that it discusses the concept of scenario-building, something I do every day in my work. It's titles seems to have influenced our fearless leader. Though I do not agree with all of Mr. Obama’s policies and aims, I do understand and agree with his long-term perspective. The devil will always be in the details. Ultimately, it will be a little art, a little science, and a little dance.

As I listen to Mr. Obama, it is clear that an overwhelming shift of the burden in this country is taking shape. The rich, who I daresay have had it pretty nice, will have to pay more for their position in society. On principle alone, I cannot accept this. We should all pay the same percentage, plain and simple. We should all pay on the top line and kill all the lawyers and accountants. I digress or do I? Science will play a major role in revamping the current tax system. Our collective future cannot be sustained by a progressive tax system – it is unfair and it is unwieldy. Proportional taxation must move front and center in our long view.

Art, or artfulness, seems to be one of Mr. Obama’s key strengths. He is erudite, articulate, and positioned as a man of the people. Though many of his foes in Congress see through the “man behind the curtain”, he has had an almost unthinkable impact on the general public. To some extent, I’m intrigued by his cult of personality as well. Will this be enough? Will the long train ride of energy, education, and healthcare carry the very long day ahead of us? Will we make it over the hill to the Promise Land? The ultimate answer from this lowly writer is “I don’t know.” And that’s downright scary.

But let us take Mr. Schwartz’s thinking to heart. Let us understand several possible scenarios that lie waiting in the darkness for all of us. Let the dance begin.

First, there is Scenario A, which I will call “The Chilling Afterglow”. In Scenario A, we continue down the same pathway on which we currently tread – individualistic greed driving unchecked consumption which in turn is accompanied by academic endangerment (I regret all the big words…I was on a roll). We will continue to look at the short view, mesmerized by its lofty returns and hope that somehow our kids will have a better future. Not all bad, but certainly not all good from my vantage point.

Second, there is Scenario B, which I call “Kumbaya”. Kumbaya is the ever present specter of socialism and collectivism. Though no modern free market country is currently free of all socialist accoutrements, they sure would like to be. Maybe the term “they” is too strong a term. Perhaps the term “we” best summarizes my point. But this is a little more than just some socialistic aspects. There are aspects of Mr. Obama’s long view that begin to reek of government takeover. There is too much Keynesian politic for my taste and at no income level do I want to be a burden to society. I should always pay my fair share.

Third, is Scenario C, which I call “Practical Governance”. Practical governance imagines a time when government truly lives up to its initial premise – of, by and for the people. It also means that the people must better govern their behavior and understand their ultimate place in the cycle of life. It neither contemplates complete government control or the chilling afterglow imagined above. Is it naïve to think we can make this journey, find the Promise Land? I think it is. Truly, I am concerned not only about my daughter and her generation but I worry about my own.

So, Mr. Obama, I am buoyed by your call to action and your long-term view of things. It is an amazing time to be an American. It is my hope that all of us should live long to dance to another song. But let us be careful not to invoke one single song on the masses, or worse yet, charge outrageous fees to play the song at all. Dance away!

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. I shall try to do the same. From inside the window, I bid you a good night and a fantastic Wednesday.

Stumbling into misconceptions

2009-03-03T19:24:00.003-05:00

The deliberate and wrongful articulation of our country’s construction of government belies everything taught to me. The foundation upon which we live and govern ourselves is not, as many on the Hill would lead you to believe, a democracy. In the strictest sense, we are a true and rich republic. For the sake of political hegemony, the Left has continued to charge that no we are indeed a democracy of, for, and by the people. Hogwash!

We are, ladies and gentlemen, a representative form of government. We always have been, from those sultry days in Philadelphia to the point at which my morning paper was delivered today. Inevitably, we continue to stumble around, falling into misconception and outright misrepresentation of this fact. So what? Who cares? I do. You should.

Before you begin prejudging this entry, let me concede that the following paragraphs take shots at both sides of the proverbial Aisle. All sides will have their share of love and war. What is more important is the preservation of our Union, the betterment of our way of life, and the continued operation of our republic form of government. In the hands of the people, our country will recede into misfortune and lawlessness. In the hands of a democracy, Robespierrean turmoil will ensue and a revolution like none we have seen will be our comeuppance. In the hands of Republicans, we are doomed to continue a cycle of greed/boom and greed/bust. Patience, oh Dems and Pubs, patience - you shall have your share!

Our way of life

What is “our way of life?” Let’s examine this. I start with history and work forward. Though the time of our forefathers were certainly not perfect in any country or at any time throughout the ages, there were standards of living, decorum, and discipline. There were certainly acts of duplicity and corruption that ensued in all the epochs before ours. But, I will assert, the people had a sense of duty, a commitment to valor, and a preservation of tradition and social custom. Recently, and not much different to prior inaugural addresses, President Obama spoke of “our way of life.” Mr. Obama has had a tremendous impact on the nation. His appreciation of the language, his dress, and his conduct in public has inspired many young men and women in our country. That is good. But our way of life – crime, abuse, corporate greed, and even presidential usurpations – have little left in them to be admired. We, I, curse like sailors. We put academics after the booster club and professional/collegiate sports affairs. Is this the way of life we seek? Okay, I’m on my high horse. I am not perfect. No one is perfect. But the goals we set should inspire us to a new way of life.

In terms of the republic versus democracy argument, what does this matter? There are a couple of things. First, the American people are not yet prepared, even after two hundred plus years, to self govern. We must be beholden to the elite, and sometimes corrupt, group of elected officials to help us navigate the waters of high stakes politics. However, life is not simply an activity that continues unchecked and misguided. Therefore, we must have limitations on those that govern – balanced budgets, term limits, and campaign finance, to name a few. Earmarks should be a thing of the past. Ultimately, the public informs its representatives of these limitations. Of course, good luck getting any of this passed. Remember, they’re criminals and thugs, all of them.

The Union will become more perfect if we set forth policies and practices which look at all of our ills logically and set about vetting each one based on need. I’m sure the states will have a field day with this. I can imagine there is a ranking or priorities of projects – bridges, levies, schools, etc. Based on the need of each local jurisdiction and in fact the level of deterioration of the asset should drive the need for funding. We must work hard to preserve our Union – its foundation, its roads, its schools and the like. However, we must do it critically, with an eye to frugality and indeed to better project prioritization and management.

As we continue to operate our republic, we must do so with a sense of obligation and duty. Every dollar should be accounted for at each turn. Every dollar, I say. This last round of stimulus was an absolute farce, as I’m sure many other spending attempts before it were also farcical. (Don’t kid yourselves, Republicans, there’s been just as much waste on your side of the aisle and just as much “redistribution”). I believe term limits and other limitations on the career-minded elected body will do much to curb this. Perhaps it will enhance the greed (“let me get as much as I can while I can” mentality). It will likely be a cold day in hell when such limitations past, but a boy can dream, right?

The congressional cartel, the cornerstone of our republic, is broken. Until we fix it, I can understand why so many want to utter the word democracy. Let the people rule! The saving grace is that right now there are only 538 idiots running the country. If the people were running it, we’d have millions of idiots. I hate to say it, but we’re doomed, doomed I say.

More to come…tonight even!

The Sacred Art of Politics (a.k.a. prostitution)

2009-02-05T20:24:00.006-05:00

"Executive Order -- Ethics Commitments by Executive Branch Personnel" was signed by our new president on January 21, 2009. I was mildly impressed. After 16 years of unethical behaviour and, frankly, sexual deviance in the White House, it was nice to see someone stand up for doing the right thing. I suggested two breaths ago that I was "mildly" impressed. Making bold statements like this ultimately leads to getting caught in one's own snare. It is inevitable.

Enter Bill Lynn, the new deputy secretary for the Department of Defense, and now former Vice President of Raytheon. The snare is set. Mr. Lynn has lobbied heavily on behalf of Raytheon to secure contracts for the shareholders and employees of this defense contractor. In deputizing him, the Obama administration has successfully found an exception to the rule before the ink has even dried. I'm sure he is a great guy. I'm sure he has tremendous intellect. I'm sure he'll go back to lobbying once he leaves DoD. Shameful, I say, shameful.

My detractors, which shall go nameless, suggest that the last eight years have been burdened with such exceptions and underhanded dealings that this pales in comparison, so let it fly. That's not good enough. It is also not good enough that we will now sequester Mr. Lynn in such a way that his role and actions do not influence areas where he once peddled influence, where he once prostituted himself and his company to gain the almighty dollar. All of it is the red-light district to me.

Folks, isn't it about time we did away with influence peddling outright? Is there not another system we can create that allows companies to speak to their products and services without the unscrupulous nature of the political lobby interfering? There is such a system. Ready. Drum roll please. It's called the market - the free market in fact. It's so amazing that companies that espouse the free market system turn and do everything in their power to subvert it. They give so much money to both Pubs and Dems to counteract the very root of our economic system: freedom.

Mr. President, don't make these types of mistakes again and again (see Geithner). It is unbecoming, Harvard education and all.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy only what you need, and work diligently for peace. I shall try to do the same. From the Queen City, I bid you a good night and a happy Friday.

Inspired by the uninspiring

2009-01-16T21:54:00.007-05:00

It is not often that something so uninspiring could indeed inspire me to write. Tonight, I was witness to a crime at our local mall. I had been waiting outside a Claire's boutique when I notice a rent-a-cop position himself just outside the store next door. I imagined something was afoot.

Seconds later, a young - very young - black girl exited Claire's. She was followed by a young, white female worker. The rent-a cop deftly moved into position, and both he and the store worker seized the young black girl. The perpetrator was accompanied by a teenager, who immediately spilled his guts and asked her to give back the goods. The young lady would have none of that because of course she had nothing in her purse.

Alas, the group moved to a now vacant mall kiosk and the young lady deposited what looked like a dozen or more Claire goods on the table. She then proceeded to call someone - parent, sibling, or friend - to come to her aid. Just as we were getting ready to leave, someone approached that knew her. There was no shame, no anger, or no contempt on this person's face. She looked as if she had no clue.

Folks, greed, corruption, and thievery have spread throughout our culture. We have few decent role models. We are obsessed with sports and television. We care less and less about intelligence and smarts, but more about haute couture and having fun. We have "dumbed" down the nation to such an extent that I believe that we are beyond salvation. But somehow, some believe we are still the greatest. Some believe we are the standard when it comes to culture, government, and market dominance. We can be, folks, but we are not. Some believe that it's okay to have pink hair, to flaunt multiple piercings, and to not pay your taxes only to become the Secretary of the Treasury years later. Having the most things and doing whatever one wants does not set the standard.

A 12-year-old girl, in broad daylight (okay, mall "daylight") was apprehended for stealing. The horrific part is that an 8-year-old recently killed two men. This is expression? This is freewill in action? This is the human experience?

Pull up your pants, wear your hat like it's supposed to be worn, stop using your mouth as a gutter and get over the notion of "expressing" yourself. Hold yourself and your offspring accountable and seek a higher standard in life. Speak and write clearly, walk upright, and for God's sake, obey the bloody law. That is all we have left.

As for the young girl, pray for her, people, pray for her.

As always, be thankful for what you have, buy (this used to read "take") only what you need, and work diligently for peace. I shall try to do the same. From the southern rim of the arctic breach, I bid you good night.

The Sandman is as high as a kite!

2009-01-02T10:30:00.007-05:00

It is often that I have the opportunity to meet some pretty interesting people. With my travel schedule, and the abundance of thin air at 35,000 feet, interesting people just fall out of the sky. In one of my recent entries, we had two new characters, Rocks and Plastics. Today, I'd like to introduce the Sandman.

With all of the wartime activity taking place, it is no wonder that service men and women are often seen on planes. God Bless them all. No matter my political or economic views of our wartime activities, the people in the theater of battle and on the ground are to be applauded for their valiant efforts. As I was returning home on New Year’s Eve 2008, I had the opportunity to meet one of these fine soldiers. The Sandman is a senior logistics officer in the US Army. A career man if you will. In an effort to repay some of my debt to our troops, I gave up my exit row seat to this man that had been traveling for nearly 30 hours, cooped up on various flights. So, there it is. I move up to the row in front of his. Across the aisle from the Sandman is the gentleman who lends us the rest of the title to the current article. He is an older gentleman, and best I can make out, a former New Yorker turned Floridian. Can't swing a dead cat without hitting one those, can you?

As one can imagine, the Sandman is eager to get home to his family. He's just been blessed with a granddaughter. His wife can't wait to see him. She has forbidden him to return after his final 90-day tour. The Sandman is a gentleman - articulate, generous in his time with the New Yorker, and just, well, decent. Why then is he the Sandman and why is he as high as a kite?

The high as a kite reference comes from the New Yorker. I had not heard it in so long. The reference was to a drinking binge the New Yorker had undergone in Europe some 35 years ago. One could tell the New Yorker love to tell tales. But the Sandman reference refers to what?

He smelled like sand. According to the Sandman, everything about him was sand - his food, his clothes, his pillowcase, and even his piquant odor. I was bemused. It is not all that important that he smelled like any one thing. It was important that he realized it and that it was a symbol of something much greater than all of us on that plane - commitment, courage, and absolute capitulation to the desert. The Sandman had sent his pillowcase home to his loving bride and begged her to understand the infernal aroma of his ways. She was convinced that the sandmen were for real.

It is real, folks. Whether we like it or not, it is real, it is happening today, and we must not let our energies wane in bringing peace to our world. As the Sandman finally relayed the underlying goal of war is peace. The goal of war is not more war. The reality is that the last eight years have followed a pattern of war should mean more war. Peace is pink slip for those fighting the war and that would just be unfathomable.

So, as the Sandman departed the plane as high as a kite, I too thought of getting home early to my family. But I also thought of the many brave men and women fighting for peace. Peace, damn it, peace is what we need. There is plenty for all of us if we work at it. If we do not find it, we are, as they say, doomed to repeat the sins of our forefathers. We stand at the edge of reason, waiting to fire yet another shot heard around the world.

As always, be thankful for what you have, take only what you need, and work diligently for peace. I shall try to do the same. From Cincinnati, OH, Happy New Year!

High five for Christmas, ya'll!

2008-12-24T22:45:00.000-05:00

So, as my brother and sister-in-law conveyed to us the story of the high-five statue of Christ, the table burst into conversation about religion, the good and the bad of it. Yes, the humor in the story, particularly my brother's chuckle and his wife's admonishment of the same, is certainly amusing. It is amazing that the story of a high-five Jesus statue could indeed create such a stir, particularly tonight, Christmas Eve.

At a table surrounded with the religious and not-so-religious, one would imagine that a combustible environment was close at hand. As I imagined writing this next blog entry, I almost desired it, willed it even, to be full of entanglement, animosity, and comic antagonism. However, as I think about the image of the high-five Jesus, I am stirred by the vision having blessings delivered to the followers. I am in awe of what has been constructed all around us – the people, the trees, the oceans, and yes, the roads, power plants, and all the items we openly berate, but passively, almost subconsciously, hale as minimal requirements for the better life. There is no doubt in my mind that God exists.

But why is there such a loud, often painful running polemic about God? We constantly debate various things about God – his or her existence altogether, the “right” God, and worst of all, the “wrong” God. If I had a dime for every time someone said “your God,” I could buy God. More importantly, everyone tends to argue more about the path to God than the ultimate deeds to honor God and to benefit our fellow human beings and the planet we inhabit. So, on this Christmas Eve 2008, I shall speak more about God and why I think we should give him or her or it a break, high five all around, and pray for peace, humility, and a better human race.

Serving God has long been an issue for me. Does God really sit around counting deeds we complete or don’t complete; deeds that amount to nothing more than idol worship and God brown-nosing? I think it better we honor God by doing good deeds, working hard, taking responsibility for our own actions, and enjoying life but without the most recent excess. I truly believe God is not looking for sacrifices to serve God. Rather, God seeks for us to make sacrifices for our fellow men and women and for the preservation of this vessel we call Earth. All of us, including yours truly, need to make these sacrifices. In these sacrifices, we shall find peace. This is yet another high five for us all.

The path to God has always been an interesting discussion for me. I have obviously been on the wrong path according to many around me. How could a polytheistic religion like Hinduism compare to our beautiful and completely pure monotheistic religion(s) that shows a direct path to God? “Our path is the only path,” they say. I honor these individuals and their corresponding faith in God, regardless of the path. I am, however, in disbelief at the arrogance inherent in their rhetoric, particularly given that their respective religion(s) preach humility as a virtue. Take God’s blessings, the ubiquitous high five, to heart and leave the proselytizing aside.

Finally, on this Christmas Eve, pray for a better human race: a race that seeks greater knowledge and wisdom, a race that desires to be fair to those that live and breathe, and a race that takes only what it needs from its members and invests in a better environment for us all. This is not a political conversation, folks. This is not about right or left, red or blue, Congress or Labor, socialist or capitalist. This is God’s conversation. This is God’s desire. God gave us dominion over the garden. Let us honor God by cultivating it to the highest use and greatest yield.

As always, be thankful for what you have, take only what you need, and work diligently for peace. I shall try to do the same. From the subzero, riverside hamlet that is Iowa City, IA, I bid you all a good night and a very Merry Christmas.

Rocks, plastics, and a seat next to Al Gore

2008-12-23T16:30:00.005-05:00

Many of my friends know that I travel the country and do so often. In a recent cross-country dash, I met two young Americans that had studied hard, and, at a seemingly young age, reached some fairly stout heights in terms of affluence. We'll call one "Rocks" and the other "Plastics".

Rocks

On a recent leg from Syracuse to Atlanta, I had the pleasure of sitting next to an individual that is a geologist. Rocks works for a petroleum refining firm. He provides testing of rock samples, water samples, and the like as the firm looks for oil in California. Rocks, as made clear by his description of his work, loves what he does. He is energetic, focused, and tireless about his work. Regardless of what many of us think about the petroleum cartel and its various affiliates, there are wonderful people doing exceptional work for these companies.

What was even more interesting about Rocks is that he embodies the career choice my daughter might pursue. My daughter's interest in geology, mainly in rocks such as diamonds, grows every day. In talking with Rocks, who graduated high in his class, it is a great deal of work and has a supply/demand imbalance. How many people do you know that pursue a career in geology? Not many is my guess. I know of only one other in my own network. The pay, therefore, is very good as are the choices of location and type of position.

Ultimately, what did I gain from my 2-hour plane ride with Rocks? There is still a great deal of energy, passion, and intellect left in our public/private school network. I was beginning to lose faith. My faith is now stronger than it was prior to my trip and is further buoyed by my conversation with Plastics. Mind you, it's not completely confirmed, but it is stronger.

Plastics

On my next leg - ATL to DAY - I sat next to a gentleman that worked in polymers. Wow, polymers, I thought. He confirmed that he did work with plastics. A PhD in Chemistry, Plastics traveled the world working with his clients on various products issues. Plastics was a pretty straightforward young man - hybrid vehicle, independent views, and plastics research. He even sat next to Al Gore on a plane ride back from India, so he claims, and discussed, after much courage was mustered, global warming and the former Vice President's work on climate control.

By now, I'm in a bit of a dilemma. Which individual, Rocks or Plastics, did I admire less, even though both of them seem quite accomplished? Which did I admire more given their relatively young age and my perceived sense of their financial and career stature? At the end of it there is no dilemma really just a different reality.

Though we all begin our professional careers with the hope that we end up doing something noble and something to better the communities we serve, it doesn't always end up that way. Money is a wonderful motivator to do something else other than the noble. How often is it that we come across someone working in the field they studied? Are they happy? How often do we find ourselves working on something that truly serves nothing but the machine in which we all spin? Woe is us.

Be it rocks, plastics, or the seat next to Al Gore, the social contract compels us to do something...anything...to serve those around us. Be it a hamburger, a rock sample, a plastic mug, or strategic planning for financial institutions, we make the machine spin. The real question is the whether or not the machine is worth working for given all of the rust, the corruption, and the out and out lack of responsibility. I don't know. This is why I write. I hope to make some sort of difference. Add some new thinking to the overall conversation. When that spirit dies in all of us - whether we are made of rocks or plastic - all is lost.

Alas, be thankful for what you have, take only what you need, and work diligently for peace. I shall try to do the same. From the arctic hinterland that is Iowa City, IA, I bid you all a good night.

Under an efficient national government

2008-12-21T19:45:00.006-05:00

Amen.

John Jay argued that the American people would best be served by "an efficient national government." He argued this point strongly in the third Federalist paper which dealt largely with the influence of foreign powers. I believe he was certainly correct in his assessment that all of us would be better served by this efficient, central government. I daresay it extends beyond the concept of foreign powers and their influence, but more importantly, takes center stage in our own national economic, social, and political frameworks.

It is because of this lack of efficiency, closely followed by the unintended state of ineffectiveness, I can support neither of the candidates or the parties that sponsor them. Reform, true reform, is so terribly different from what the candidates are currently proposing that I simply cannot let either of them have my vote. They have no desire to limit the size of neither government nor its role in our day-to-day lives. I have heard nothing about a reorganization of government - employees, processes, or the various secretariats - that leads me to believe that true reform is up for debate. They both simply want more of the same - bigger government, larger loopholes, and vaulted power without constraint and no true check and balance. Mobilizing the true intent of government, demanding the proper structure and billet of resources, and maintaining this through the act of limiting the power of the elected will go a long way in serving our republic.

Let us begin with the true intent of government. We must redefine, within the context of the constitutional republic we inhabit, the true role of government. We must also begin with the end in mind: simple is better and less is more. The current reality is in stark contrast with this desired future state. I believe that government plays three crucial roles: national defense, regulating lawful activity and ferreting out fraud, and upholding general welfare without the welfare state.

National defense is a key element in this new model. We must not waiver in our desire to keep our nation free of international and domestic terrorists. This does not mean we should enter foreign shores to infringe upon the sovereign territories of other nations. This does not mean we should support various governments in their pursuit of a style of government that we uphold. As I believe government should meddle less and less in our daily lives it should restrain itself from the lives of our fellow global citizens. Now, this does not mean that we should not support efforts through coalitions we have collaborated with in the past and spent countless dollars to support. Also, I believe we should continue to provide intelligence and counter-intelligence services to our allies and insure that threats, once revealed, are quickly squashed by the local government or regional coalition.

The current administration vehemently opposes this sort of focus on national defense. Why? Self interest is the underlying driver. More war, more conflict and more engagement keeps them in power, our tether inextricably tied to their misdeeds. Ladies and gentlemen, it is not because we are trying to save the world. It is the opposite: we simply influence the rest of the world with our culture, our religion, and our form of government. National defense should be about protecting our citizens, our borders, and our natural resources. It should not be evangelical in its execution. It should be about defense and not offense.

A final word about defense is needed here. We must work harder in terms of diplomacy, economic sanctions, and galvanizing worldwide coalitions (without a heavy handed approach and without dispensing countless dollars). There is no worse leader than a leader that leads through bribery and coercion. This is not a leader at all. It is merely a bully, a self-aggrandizing fear monger. This should not be the United States of America.

Our second action item is the creation of a more streamlined system of regulating lawful activity, finding those that abridge the laws of our fair republic, and swiftly and with great resolve moving against them with the appropriate sanctions. As I mentioned, this needs to be a streamlined process. It is beyond comprehension the level of waste, the layers of management, and the bloated gravy trains we have created in our country when it comes to government. Neither of the two candidates will do anything about this. They cannot. The elected officials that work alongside them in congress have much too much to lose by dismantling the Christmas tree.

I would start with the tax system. All of us, rich and poor, black and white, and smart and not-so-smart have lived too long on the teat. Government is not the great equalizer. Government is not the last stop for those that abuse the system, do not study, or do not get off their dead asses and work. Everyone must pay their fair share. Whether you earn $1 or $1,000,000, you must pay the same amount of tax. I believe we should dismantle the entire tax system as we know it. You earn a $1, you pay 3 cents. You're done. Simple is better. Less is more. We shut down the IRS. We redistribute accounting resources in our companies to do other work. This entire system is a waste of money, time, and energy. It is fabricated to serve the needs of a monster that can be killed in one slice of the sword - utilizing our own courage and determination to make true change in our national tax and accounting infrastructure.

Finally, a critical assessment of "general welfare" needs to be made. We need to stop carrying those that do not seek out their own shelter of responsibility. Those that do not study, or work, or move into public service through Obama's new civilian work corps, must not be given the funds for nothing. Fraud is the number one perpetrator here. The same can be said of corporate welfare. Subsidies, earmarks, and general pork barrel spending must cease and desist. Means tested, measured, and monitored fiscal policy and execution must rule the day. I am all for the general welfare of our nation, but not at the expense of the greater good and not for special interest or for those citizens unwilling to seek out a better, more responsible way of life.

Efficiency must come from within and from outside of our government. We must all try to understand process, work flow, and organization in such a way that we seek to minimize waste and create cost savings while all the time enhancing effectiveness of service and service delivery throughout our government. Moreover, we must seek to make more efficient our state and local governments by minimizing the replication of school systems, municipal bailiwicks, and departmental fiefdoms. This is the call to action. This must be part of our national, strategic framework.

Alas, be thankful for what you have, take only what you need, and work diligently for peace. I shall try to do the same. From the frozen tundra that is Iowa City, IA, I bid you all a good night.

Return of the King's English

2008-11-11T09:50:00.003-05:00

After many long years of dealing with the fabrication of creative vocabulary, the fascination with multiple language forms, and the modification of the King’s English into thumb-ready bits and pieces from its wholesome original, it is an exciting precipices upon which we now stand. The incoming president’s use of the language, both in the verbal and written medium, has already initiated the process of renewal. It will be important that he and his leadership team establish a strong example for the rest of us. My hope is that the days of “strategery” are gone. I no longer want to read about the flood of cultural-centric English and the growing use of a bilingual message in our common, public arena. And please, let us have the courage to teach our younger citizens that English is the language. Later is not “ltr.” If we do not uphold our language, the President-Elect’s ability to galvanize the nation around a common mission will be lost. We must give and receive our communications in a single dialect. Because of this I believe our probability of overcoming our many woes will indeed increase.

The sitting president has not necessarily hurt us in our attempts to rally around a common language, but he has not helped us either. From “strategery” to “nucular” (I don’t even know how to spell it) we have allowed our chief public relations officer to mangle not just the language, but the intended and desired result of delivering the message. The incoming president has done much to allay my fears about this, but must be careful that he continues on the path he has forged thus far. He must uphold the language. It is important that we learn other languages. It is understandable that there will be different accents, different forms of speech, and other variants from the common language. The government must settle on a common language and not make exceptions to the norm. “You betcha” is an immediate disqualification.

With that being said, I continue to grow tired of being asked about English and Spanish. I grow tired of the improper use of the language and the notion that because of the color of one’s skin so too goes their language. Our school children must not be allowed to graduate without complete comprehension of the written and spoken word. We must make a stand that English is indeed the national language and in order to apply oneself in our United States of America, one must learn this language sufficiently, regardless of age, race, national origin, gender, or sexual persuasion. It is politically correct to demand this from our citizenry. I also believe that our citizens, in order receive certain public benefit, must be able to speak and write the language. Personal responsibility is the standard and it is the responsibility of each and every member of our union to incorporate English into their lives.

With this, I must say that there is too much slang in our daily lexicon. With the current Supreme Court argument pending, we must all endeavor to use slang less and less in our daily work and personal lives. It is unbecoming of an American. It undermines the common purposes we all embark upon every day. It marginalizes the human being in all of us. It detracts from the marrow of each and every dialog. It turns us into monsters of hate.

Finally, texting is out of control. The language is, bit by bit, being disassembled. It will be the youth of today that become the leaders of tomorrow. Parents and children alike must exercise some discipline. I know that is easier said than done. Just look out our current financial crisis. However, we must make an honest attempt. Why do 9, 10, and 11-year old children have cell phones? What is so important about shortening words? Are we that lazy? Are we that crunched for time? The proliferation of texting and other forms of communication like it will lead to a complete failure in communication. Communication that should uplift us, teach us, and guide us will be reduced to nothing but mere checks in the box.

Our common potential and our common future demand that we unite on this front. We must all learn to make better use of the language of our country and that language is English. A declaration saying so would be a wonderful first assault on the politically correct environment we currently inhabit. The President-Elect would send a message to all Americans that it is your personal responsibility to learn our language, use it, and teach it to others. The cost of printing multiple documents in multiple languages is only making our fiscal situation worse. The cost of teaching in multiple languages in our schools inflates the cost of public education. Let us stop this madness today.

The Weekend of my Discontent

2008-09-28T18:39:00.005-04:00

The Browns beat the Bengals. McCain, in my humble opinion, slightly edged out Obama in the debate, but that actually equates to a win for Obama. And the bailout seems to be coming of age, with both candidates supporting it. Palin found love for Obama in Philly, drawing the ire of her colleague, Senator McCain. She's fit to be dismissed. Enough people did enough bad things this weekend to warrant this latest entry. And so my discontent continues.

First, let's start with the gridiron mayhem. Our poor Bengals, who at 0-3 needed a win. A big win. I'm a huge fan of quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick, the second stringer from Harvard. He's gutsy, is not afraid of running, and showed it today by leading the team in rushing. He's certainly no Sarah Palin. He stepped into the role of leadership without revealing his limited experience. Ah, so he did throw an interception. We are all allowed a bad Philly cheesesteak now and then, right? Alas, the Bengals lost, capping off a rather somber weekend.

Second, and I think appropriate next topic, Sarah Palin. She has once again undermined her team by speaking the truly offensive: Obama's words. And without missing a beat, Senator McCain retracted what she said. I find myself an independent of sorts, which is really an excuse to be able to piss anyone off, but I must say that the Palin/McCain camp blew it. Sorry, did I just say Palin/McCain? As if he didn't have enough problems, retracting strong and courageous policy statements, even those that border on logical, just doesn't make sense. Senator McCain, you have made a mistake by allowing your team to select Governor Palin. And by the way, you unfortunately have to give her the ball every once and a while and let her run with it. That's what you signed up for in this election.

Third, the bailout seems to be in the offing. The pundits, even those that are generally against this plan, acknowledge that it must be done or terrible things will happen. As I have stated here before, let those things happen. Our free market and our republic depend on government staying the hell out of our business. Specifically, government need not craft a welfare state, whether it be in the pursuit of upholding those individuals that are less fortunate, voluntarily or involuntarily, and those corporations that have crawled up into the fetal position in the corner. It bodes of more governmental intervention and less delegation of responsibility to the people. Teach the men and women to fish. Don't just give them the fish, damn it!

Whew! Finally, the debate was an interesting mix of Harvard snobbery and articulation, strong-willed one liners, and courteous respect. Obama's cool and calm exterior, coupled with his speaking abilities, painted him as the junior Geek from Illinois. I thought that McCain was better prepared than I imagined he would be, and used the theme of inexperience to his advantage. Let's face it, folks. Obama is inexperienced. There's no arguing it. But what got me was the courtesy that Obama showed McCain several times throughout the sparring. At first, I thought it was a bit of a low point. Obama was not forceful enough. He didn't parry as often and as strongly as he has in the past. In hindsight, don't we have enough sparring, fighting, and war on the global stage to last a lifetime or two? Don't we need leadership that will stay the course in providing protection and (some) oversight, but also someone who will, when the time comes, let others speak and work to resolve issues through more diplomatic, and perhaps less expensive, channels?

So, my fellow Americans, my weekend of discontent has left me with a broken nose from the gridiron, a broken rib from the laughter invoked by Palin/McCain, a broken wallet with a slow leak thanks to Capitol Hill, and a strange sense that no one is in control and, worse yet, that no one is fit to take control.

With that, I bid you a good Sunday night and do sleep tight. Most of all, be thankful for what you have, take only what you need, and work diligently for peace. I shall try to do the same.

The Economics of Fast Times

2008-09-26T18:29:00.001-04:00

Incredibly, the earth spins at the same rate every day, and we make up for the 4-minute shortfall every 4 years. Undeniably, people do not move at the same speed, have the same countenance, or desire the same results in the time that it takes the earth to rotate about its axis.

The hard won lesson is the economics of fast times. We cannot move faster, or perhaps beyond, the sum of our income and net wealth. So we were lead to believe. And even though most of us have taken at least high school mathematics, we believed this notion that you could overcome the natural mathematics and achieve fast times with little or no downstream, negative impact. We believed that in fact it was okay to take out a loan that was greater than the underlying value of the real estate and the improvement, be it currently standing or proposed. We demanded faster even still. Let's take that out to 40 years versus 30 years. So, the deed is done. The river has now overflowed its banks.

Also, the economics of fast times suggests that every dollar beyond the limit (the sum of income and net wealth) has to be repaid at some sum greater than the amount by which we surpassed the limit. Interest, additional financing costs, and potentially even loss of equity play into this. But, that was never supposed to happen. Real estate is a fixed commodity, with only so much of it left. We cannot, technically, create more real estate. The value has to continue to rise. But how far should it rise? No farther than the lowest yield (interest rate) will allow. In my opinion, housing prices are very similar to bond prices, which are inversely related to bond yields. As the yield goes up, the price comes down.

Ah! The economics of fast times also catches us in its snare outside of our homes. Our cars, our manicured lawns, and our expensive habits. Prices rise, and, according to our central bank, rates should indeed rise to curtail inflation. Oh, but I have an adjustable rate mortgage. Rates (yields) rise and prices fall. What, pray tell, is the cure?

As you would have expected, and by the very nature that I don't wield a Harvard MBA, it is a very simple answer. The economics of slow times. We have ingested all we can hope to devour and ultimately we will have to purge ourselves of it. What will this ultimately lead to for you and me? Learning, I hope. Understanding the nature of people is really is what is at the heart of this meltdown. Capitalism is often called out as the ruthless, unrelenting monster in this tale. I give its detractors some credit if they only would add the phrase "and greed" after the term. I don't believe that capitalism by itself is the pensioner's executioner. It is the greed we have assigned to it that catapulted us into these most recent fast times. Our understanding, and admitting to it, will help us to see clearly what it is that is a matter and find reason before spending in the next cycle.

The Morning Before

2008-09-26T12:05:00.000-04:00

Just some quick thoughts here on the morning before one of the most important political debates of our generation. Whether you are a Democrat, a Republican, or of another political persuasion, it is important you realize that that this debate occur. The political process, regardless of how jaded we are by it, must continue with all its vigor. Regardless of the economic woes we face, this debate must continue. Also, regardless of affiliation, truly consider why Senator McCain suggested the delay. Look deep in your hearts and search your mind. I do believe it was to bring presidential politics onto the economic battleground and to put off the inevitable: a confrontation with an opponent that is more articulate and photogenic.

Well, that's all good and well. I certainly understand that articulation and good looks doth not make a good president. Is Obama the better choice? More experienced? Better able to lead? I truly don't know. From where I sit, it is not about the person but more so about the institution itself that needs to be reformed.

But why not let free politics reign? We keep speaking of free markets and the free press. So, Oxford, MS., let us hope that you have the opportunity to play hosts and hostesses to this evening's political supper. Let us also hope there is more than one guest at the table.

The Day After

2008-09-25T21:09:00.000-04:00

It's apropos that I write my first blog post the day after Senator John McCain declared defeat. Yes, that's right. In his supposed innocent move to defer the debate and to divert attention to the real problem, our economy, he has all but resigned himself to concession. Ladies and gentlemen, the real problem is not the economy. The real problem is us. We are the enemy. We have a society and a government out of control.

Why is it apropos? Well, truly, there is no other moment in recent political campaign history that stands witness to such a foolish move. This has finally sent me hurdling headfirst into the blog torrent. It's indecent and I must call him on it.

It is also apropos because the government, the media, and the people themselves refuse to grapple with the true crux of the problem. The true problem, of which I am party to, is that we have bloody lost control. We have lost control of government. It is awash in money and fringe benefits that clearly cloud judgement. Media is simply not as qualified as it once was in reporting the facts. Just give me the facts, man. Finally, we, the PEOPLE, have taken freewill to an all time frenzy.

The enemy is truly us.

First, let's consider our government, which, by the way, is a republic and not a democracy. If I hear democracy one more time, I'll "have to barf up a lung." Anyway, I spoke with a colleague today who insisted we should completely abandon term limits. Friends, this is completely ridiculous. His reasoning was that the lame duck nature of the presidency disqualifies the person in office from doing anything in his or her second term. The presidency was meant to be limited in the number of terms to keep power from accruing to one single individual for a inordinate amount of time. Though it is unlikely we will return to the imperialist rule that dominated the world less than 100 years ago, we must keep power in check. We must add term limits to the Congress. It is long overdue. Career politicians are like whores in an Old West saloon - drinking liquor, gambling, and well, whoring. Deliberate the facts, represent us in the clutch, and make the tough decisions based on what is right - what the politician believes is right.

Second, the media is equally out of control. They have become the entertainment. They are the center of their own storm. The phrase "fair and balanced" was created by marketers based on focus groups and survey data. You must consider yourselves as servants of the truth and not the creators of hegemony. You are neither the leaders or the followers. Another "-er" word comes to mind. You are reporters.

Finally, the people are squarely to blame. Whether they are people on Wall Street or people on Main Street. The excesses, again which I am party to, have completely transformed our society into a band of Bedouins, searching for the next one-day sale, the best rate on the house, and the flashiest ride we can find. Who cares? What about mathematics? Science? The arts? Education? Ah yes, education. This is fundamentally where the United States needs to make the most headway and it is the primary battlefield upon which the war will be won. We have all but turned over education to the PC. In 3rd grade, my daughter has a calculator? Why? My guess is that others the world over, particularly Asian children in Asian countries, add it up green - no calculator and no batteries - only brain power. With education slipping, wealth has continued to rise. And now we know why. It is artificial. We have outpaced our actual intellectual and productive capacity by borrowing against future generations' prosperity. Shameful.

So, on this day after, do sleep tight. Do wish John McCain well in the debate, which, God willing, will occur. Pray this bailout works, because it, in its most fundamental form, undermines our way of life and sets us in motion towards more irrational actions. Most of all, be thankful for what you have, take only what you need, and work diligently for peace. I shall try to do the same.