tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23445120240465404242024-03-14T02:45:43.572-07:00My View From the BalconyPersonal editorial, opinion and collection of news-worthy facts in remembrance of times past, introspection and attention to current events and and forecast of times to come.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger28125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-7877183325489318062021-07-23T09:25:00.000-07:002021-07-23T09:25:42.171-07:00<p> </p><h1 align="center" style="text-align: center;">The Best of Intentions<o:p></o:p></h1>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;">July 23,
2021: Today marks the beginning of the International Olympics in Tokyo.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Olympics were originally scheduled for 2019
but were delayed for a full year due to the global Covid pandemic that, to this
day, has not been brought under control and has morphed into ever more virulent
strains that seem to be finding ways of penetrating the defenses of both the
human body and the best that medical science can throw up as barriers.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As the opening ceremonies get under way, it is
painfully obvious that these will not be the “usual” or “normal” games for the
32<sup>nd</sup> Olympiad.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hundreds of protectively
masked athletes enter an almost completely empty stadium, capable of seating
over 60,000 spectators.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One must admit
that the image projected is of a stage show where actors try their best to play
their parts hoping that, at the end of the data stream that is the internet or
the broadcast channel, there is an appreciative audience and those who will be
inspired for their years of training, sacrifice and efforts. In this regard, it
is a statement that in all things of such importance, “the show must go on”. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Also, it is a parody of the real life “theater”
that we are all part of where we must, through our best efforts and best
intentions, do all that we can to help our global “show” go on.<o:p></o:p></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-64319924996909085432021-02-26T08:14:00.000-08:002021-02-26T08:14:10.211-08:00<p> </p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><u><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">A
Clear and Present Danger<o:p></o:p></span></u></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">As one whose ancestors entered the then British colony
of Virginia in 1670 and who fought against Cornwallis at the Battle of the
Cowpens (January 17, 1781), I am hypersensitive to displays of corrosive power
based on lies, rumors and innuendo aimed at the democratic ideals of the
seminal documents of our land and the proven will of the majority of the
American populace. The current example of that corrosive power is now found in
the “tyranny of the masses” under the Trump banner and the outlandish
conspiracies promulgated by the likes of QAnon, The Proud Boys and The Oath Keepers.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">In recent Boston Globe Opinions by Evan Allen and Zoe Greenberg
(January 11, 2021)<i> “Trump’s presidency is ending, but his increasingly
violent movement remains” </i>and by </span><span class="bold"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 107%;">Renée
Graham (February 11, 2021) “<i>’Stop the Steal’ fueled white fears about their
country being stolen</i>”,</span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"> I had thgree conclusions:
First: on January 20<sup>th</sup>, 2021, many of the Trump supporters referred
to in the articles chose to secede from the United States of America mentally
and emotionally. Second: while weaponized by Donald Trump throughout his corrosive
presidency, divisive political thought over the last 400 years between various
segments of our population has been laying the foundation for our current state
of affairs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Third: “a nation divided
against itself cannot stand…”as Lincoln so eloquently stated during another
time in our history so fraught with division and danger.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">This situation poses a clear and present danger to the
domestic tranquility of our populace because it will continue to chafe against the
bonds that unite us until the costs of our warring posture is greater than the
cost of believing in our mutual worthiness and wellbeing <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Perhaps it is just another impact of the Covid-19
Pandemic that has left so much of our population bored and feeling unfulfilled
due to the totally negligent handling of the pandemic by the Trump
administration that threw so many out of work and shuttered so many businesses.
Maybe it was the fact that Mexico never did pay for the border wall.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe it was the fact that so many farmers
and fishermen and business owners ended up on the federal dole due to Trump’s
economic policies. Maybe it was the gradual realization that rather than
“Making American Great Again”, much of the goodness, beauty, stability, and
civility of America had eroded during the past four years which inevitably left
Americans poorer, more divided, more stressed and less hopeful than at any time
in the past quarter century.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And, maybe
it was the suspicion that our billionaire President really had been more
interested in his brand name than in the plight of the common men and women of
our country. Whatever it was, I believe it created a misplaced anger that
should rightfully be directed to Donald J Trump, the members of his family, his
aristocratic administration and a Republican controlled Senate that ignored the
signs and then created fantasy stories of cause and effect to fulfill QAnon,
Proud Boys, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oath Keeper and other anti-government
conspiracy theories..<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">After the events at the Capitol on January 6<sup>th</sup>,
it is time for Trump supporters to take a long look in the mirror where, if
they are honest with themselves, where their righteous anger belongs and how
close to the support of sedition they have come.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoBodyText"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Every four
years, we go to the national polls to elect our President and the rules for
such election are outlined in the Constitution for the United States and the
individual states. If most of the electors from the states cast ballots on
behalf of the popular votes of the states and those votes are certified by the
states, then, the recipient with the most electoral votes becomes the
President. We may not all like the result but, from that day on, our attention
must be focused on doing what we can to fulfill our part of “the American
Dream” under the new administration. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
National Election of November 2020 was not a “stolen election”! The votes, the
states, the courts and the Congress confirmed it. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoBodyText"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Unfortunately,
it will not be until the US Presidency and the Congress achieve a rapprochement
that we will begin to reduce the inherent danger to our democratic form of
government.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is a time when our
politicians must put aside Party and focus on the good for all of the country
or the clear and present danger will prove to be the prelude to wider and more disastrous
conflict.<o:p></o:p></span></p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-63377471061140373592019-05-10T06:57:00.000-07:002019-05-10T06:57:32.808-07:00It has been quite awhile since my last postings. This has not been without purpose for it is one thing to understand the mechanics of something and quite something else to attain understanding, appreciation and proper utilization. So, for the better part of the last year, I have been "exercising with" (for lack of a better expression) various social media platforms to ascertain just what messages in what formats are best utilized to clearly communicate to what audience.<br />
<br />
I must admit that the pantheon of social media platforms has been very active throughout all of 2017 and 2018 and whether established pattern or emerging trend there has been a virtual <i>Sturm und Drang</i> of information (real or fake) and opinion.<br />
<br />
We are within the first 50 years of the Modern Digital-era Renaissance (my term) that is defined by the nano-particularization of information, high-speed digital communication and the "internet of things". With respects to Alvin Tofler, we are truly in the Future Shock of the "Fourth Wave" and the rules and regulations, the governmental systems, the social and philosophical norms, the economic standards and rules for engagement in conflict and war are all under tremendous stress.<br />
<br />
It is my hope, through this blog to bring some clarity to the reader's <i>Weltanschauung </i>via thoughtful commentary and integration of the postings from various social media. Hopefully, the result will be both stimulating and enlightening for the author as well as the reader.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-45051100367824394782017-04-28T08:44:00.000-07:002017-04-28T09:05:03.598-07:00Trump's Abject Failure for a First 100 DaysWell, the first 100 days of the new presidential administration are upon us and we are about to get a slew of "report cards" from various sources. Most of us will probably need the next 100 days to sift through all of the reports and begin to understand the implications of actions taken to date; however, some of the initial ones are already scathing in their criticism. Please see the following link from the website of <i><b>The Center for American Progress</b></i>:<br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/general/news/2017/04/26/431299/100-ways-100-days-trump-hurt-americans/">https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/general/news/2017/04/26/431299/100-ways-100-days-trump-hurt-americans/</a>.<br />
<br />
Take a look at the list of the 100 ways that Trump and his administration have weakened our national security and standing with the rest of the global community of nations, severely threatened the future health and welfare of our children, virtually insured the increased limitations on personal freedoms and liberties, made the White-house the private play pen for his pampered family members and his hand-picked group of rich friends and aristocratic cronies. thrown our current scientific, educational and, by association, military capability into disarray and insured that our national deficit will grow by an amount not achieved in any prior administration, <br />
<br />
As one who is a direct descendant of family members who fought for our nation's creation and liberty during the American Revolutionary War, I am appalled at the conduct of our president and the other members of his dysfunctional administration who have invested far more time tearing down policies and processes rather than augmenting, supporting positive direction and initiating positive reform.<br />
<br />
All of our sons and daughters would do well to be very concerned for their future and all of us, their parents, must attend to the consul of Neil Postman, former NYU professor, who stated (and I paraphrase) Children are the message we send to a world we shall not live to see. It is up to us to make sure that that message is positive and life affirming. In my estimation, Trump's first 100 days have been an abject failure in that regard!Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-32060853755377640322016-11-21T09:46:00.004-08:002016-11-21T10:06:26.512-08:00The Past as Prologue - It's All About "Rights"<div class="MsoNormal">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">By the mid-1700s, our nation’s founding fathers had developed
a strong distaste for the wealthy, monarchical class of their former homelands in
Europe. The everyday thoughts and actions of the privileged class had become as
a yoke around the necks of common man. The heads of Europe were busy making their
kingdoms great while enriching themselves and their privileged fellow monarchs.
At issue was the size and power of European kingdoms. The new world colonies
represented to them little beyond profit, regardless of the cost in human lives
or suffering. Colonial cries for greater voice and representation in their own
affairs fell upon deaf ears of King and Parliament. Both were truly astounded when subjects of the
realm sought redress and ultimately separation. </span></div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt;">John Adams once stated that <i>"Power always thinks it has a great soul and vast views beyond the comprehension of the weak; and that it is doing God's service when it is violating all his laws." </i>Thomas Paine was even more to the point in the "Rights of Man" (1791) as he railed against the hereditary monarchical system that he viewed as <i>"...government through the medium of passions and accidents...and which reverses the wholesome order of nature...[by placing the]...conceits of [inexperienced privilege] over wisdom and experience"</i>. The cause celebre of the day was the issue of "rights". Which would be more important, those rights granted by king and Parliament based upon "trickle-down" associations of privilege or more egalitarian, inalienable rights shared by all men that had recently come into philosophical vogue on the pens of Voltaire, Montesquieu, Rousseau and Locke? The war fought between 1776 and 1781 established the United States of America but gave only partial answer to that question.</span></div>
</blockquote>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="background: white; font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Against privilege, usury and denial of fundamental human rights, those establishing the new nation would have to address the issue of "rights" again in 1860 when men of privilege in the southern states used their power to enrage their agrarian brethren to rise up in arms against the industrialized states of the northern United States. At issue was power over the U.S. Congress following our country's lust for "making America great" through fulfilling its "Manifest Destiny". Once again, the cause celebre was the issue of "rights" for over three and a half million people (U.S. census of 1850) whose ancestors had been forcibly brought to America and placed into slavery. The guiding words of the founding fathers were at odds with the reality of the day. As early as 1820, Thomas Jefferson, the man who had penned that famous line about<i> "...all men created equal..."</i> into the Declaration of Independence had concluded that America's failure to fulfill that promise to all men rang <i>"...as a knell of Union...like a fire bell in the night."</i> It would not be until after the deaths of over 600,000 on the battle fields of the Civil War that the issue would be put to rest. Unfortunately, as before in 1781, we had achieved only a partial answer to the questions that had led to the secession of the southern states of the Confederacy and the events of the next 130 years would prove that we had not yet fought the last battle for American Independence. </span><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The quelling of the southern states bid for secession
by 1865 was seen by intellectuals in Europe, such as Edouard de Laboulaye, as
statement of proof that the American political experiment viewed in the old
world as “the common law of free peoples” would survive; hence, following the
passage of the 13<sup>th</sup> Amendment to the U.S. Constitution in 1865,
Laboulaye proposed the creation of a statue, to be given by the people of
France to the people of the United States to honor America’s conquest of sectionalism
and racial divisiveness and its faithful protection of the inalienable rights
and freedoms of all peoples. Created by,
Auguste Bartholdi, the statue, now known as <b><i>“Liberty Enlightening the World”,
</i></b>was placed on a pedestal in New York Harbor and formally dedicated in
1886. At the base of the statue is a
plaque on which can be found a poem written by the American born daughter of
Jewish immigrants to the United States, Emma Lazarus, the inspiring last three
lines that read: <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">"Keep ancient lands, your storied pomp!"
cries she<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><b>Unfortunately, what are less known are the first two
lines that declare: </b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">“Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">With conquering limbs astride from land to land;<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name<o:p></o:p></span></i></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; text-align: center;">
<i><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Mother of Exiles.”</span></i></div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Now, one-hundred and thirty years after
the dedication of that statue in New York Harbor that proclaimed our “open door”
and our position as a champion of oppressed peoples, a symbol of hope to <i>“…masses
yearning to be free…”,</i> our national unity is racked by sectionalism, racial divisiveness
and fear that those seeking asylum on or shores only mean to do us harm. What
is at issue is the seeming conflict between two views of the promise to
immigrants contained within our own Declaration of Independence from Great
Britain. One view is that strength emanates from wealth and military power that
protect laws and that give citizens “rights”; hence, the recent statements
concerning immigrants by presidential candidate, now President-elect, Donald J.
Trump that imply immigrants have no “rights” and should be immediately deported
if within American borders illegally. Per
Trump, America has been “weak” and he will “make America great again”. The opposing view is that national strength
emanates from the unity of shared talents of all our peoples bound by a unique
set of democratic values. At our core, we are all immigrants; hence, <i>“We the people.…”</i> declared our independence
to establish a national government that derives its <i>“…just powers from the consent of the governed.”.</i> Ergo, immigrant thought and participation are
at the core of our national strength. Once again, the cause celebre deals with
the issue of “rights”. Do the people who enter our country “illegally” have any
“rights”? Does illegal entry, by itself, constitute "intent to do harm"? Do current immigrants coming to America have the same inalienable rights
held by those of our colonists who were British “citizens” as they “mutually
pledge[d] to each other [their] lives, [their] fortunes and [their] sacred
honor? Is citizenship within America to be solely defined by associations,
wealth, power or knowledge; or, can it be defined by the belief in and
adherence to the protection of those “inalienable rights” of all mankind? Just
what was the message given by our founding fathers?</span> </div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Recently, newly President-elect Donald J.
Trump gave an indication of his rather firm stance regarding the “rights” of
immigrants. In a Huffington Post article
(Nov. 18, 2016) concerning how President-elect Donald J. Trump’s call for
stopping the flow of unwanted immigrants might conflict with the message on the
plaque at the base of the Statue of Liberty, the Post quoted Trump as saying: <i>“…you have this frumpy old woman standing
outside our country and telling people to come here and stay as long as you
want.”</i> When the reporter quoted lines from the Emma Lazarus poem, Trump’s
reaction was <i>“Is that right? Really? Your
tired? Your poor? Your wretched refuse? Homeless? So, that’s how they got here?
When Europe sends their people, they’re not sending the best. Who needs these
people?”</i></span> </div>
</blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><i><o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">As a citizen of the United States and a student of history,
I feel that we are in for at least four years of opportunities to further
define and realize our national commitment to the protection of those “inalienable
rights” sought by our founding fathers. I do hope we can get it right this time
around for, if not, possibly we will see the beginning of the end of our unique
and wonderful experiment in democracy.
As our second President, John Adams, once stated: <i>“Democracy never lasts long. It soon wastes, exhausts and murders
itself. There was never a democracy that did not commit suicide.”</i> (<em>letter
to John Taylor,</em><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>1814).</span></div>
</blockquote>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-48623868513483221092014-04-11T09:34:00.002-07:002014-04-11T09:34:23.866-07:00Oaks From Acorns
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I have recently been reminded of an old adage shared
by my grandparents at a time seemingly long ago: “Great Oaks from little acorns
rise”. This most recent renewal of what is surely a tested truism began a week
ago following my “recruitment” by my wife to “assist” her preparation of slides
for a pending conference where she is to present material related to her
interest in and continuing involvement with cardiovascular wellness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I retain, in her eyes, the position of “family
technology guru” and “for better or worse” I guess I will always be that person
to be called upon when anything of an Information Technology issue arises.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am sure there are worse fates in life. Anyway,
I am beginning to digress and I haven’t really gotten to my main point which is
that, for those of you who thought about doing something and started and
stopped and started again and, then stopped again, it’s not too late to get
back up and start one more time, again. For, if your don’t stop and you keep
going like my newly found friend, Betty C. Jung [<a href="http://www.bettycjung.net/Blog2013b.htm"><span style="color: blue;">http://www.bettycjung.net/Blog2013b.htm</span></a>]
I am sure that, from your efforts will come achievement greater than you can
now imagine.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">As I scanned webpage after webpage looking for
suitable material to be used within the presentations my wife would make, I
chanced across Betty’s website and was immediately drawn in by its depth and
breadth of coverage of the health care and wellness issues for which it was
created.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This resulted in an exchange of
emails required for the seeking and receiving of permissions related to the
potential use of some of the material to be incorporated into slides and grew
into an email discussion related to etiology, methods and objectives for website/blog
creation and maintenance. What impressed me was the entire website/blog was designed
by, created by, updated and maintained by one person!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you have any interest in things of a
personal medical nature and have never visited her site, it would be well worth
the investment of a few minutes to check the site out at <a href="http://www.bettycjung.net/Blog2013b.htm"><span style="color: blue;">http://www.bettycjung.net/Blog2013b.htm</span></a>.
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Why am I telling you all of this? We all have
talents and we all have only so much time in which to use those talents to our
good and the good of the commonweal. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are times that we come to self-opinion
that our talents are not so great but we must never forget what Betty C. Jung
has shown to those who visit her site that the old adage is still true: “Great
Oaks from little acorns rise”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So, with
the talent and time that you have been given, go make an Oak!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-44530914616438415132013-09-02T15:26:00.001-07:002014-04-12T07:12:04.493-07:00Have we become too comfortable with security at the price of loss of liberty?<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">
</span></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><o:p></o:p></span><span style="background-color: black; color: white;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-themecolor: background2;"><span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white;">From business community use of RFI
and CCTV in malls and on public streets, to community law enforcement use of
drones for surveillance, to alleged NSA abuse of the 4<sup>th</sup> Amendment
to the U.S. Constitution through its internet cyber-spying, to use of racial
and ethnic profiling by both homeland security and large urban police
departments there has arisen a political mindset that fully ascribes to
security for all at the cost of personal liberty for none. While we in America
think this is a cause for current concern, the Orwellian surveillance present
in Great Britain gives us a glimpse of the future that might very well lie
before us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is surely a topic that
will be with us for many months and years to come; so, today I try to take a
brief look at public surveillance its growth and implications.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="background-color: black; color: white;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-themecolor: background2;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">According to the technology section
of the British publication, “<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Telegraph</i>” <span style="color: blue;">(</span></span><a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/10172298/One-surveillance-camera-for-every-11-people-in-Britain-says-CCTV-survey.html"><span style="background-color: black; color: blue; mso-themecolor: background2;">http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/10172298/One-surveillance-camera-for-every-11-people-in-Britain-says-CCTV-survey.html</span></a><span style="background-color: black; color: white;"><span style="color: blue;">)</span>
,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>there are between 5 and 6 million
Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras already installed in Britain or
roughly one camera for every 11-14 people in that nation!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In France, CCTV is used by the city of Nice
to issue parking tickets <span style="color: blue;">(</span></span><a href="http://singularityhub.com/2010/10/18/surprise-cctv-cameras-in-france-used-to-issue-parking-tickets/"><span style="background-color: black; color: blue; mso-themecolor: background2;">http://singularityhub.com/2010/10/18/surprise-cctv-cameras-in-france-used-to-issue-parking-tickets/</span></a><span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white;"><span style="color: blue;">)</span>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Interestingly, it is the Germans who are the
slow adopters of surveillance systems among the European community.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This appears to be partially because of the
legacy of Gestapo tactics used during the time of Adolf Hitler combined with
the oppression of the former East Germany by the Soviet Union following the end
of World War II.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-themecolor: background2;"><span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white;">In the United States, the World Trade
Center (NYC) and, more recently, the attacks during the Boston Marathon upon
unsuspecting populations has given rise to a public demand for greater safety
in public forums, governmental willingness to direct a large percentage of
public tax dollars to surveillance efforts and ever more sophisticated
technologies to perform biometric, voice, video and analytical chemical
surveillance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Increasing, we wear
clothes, use personal products and carry credit cards that have imbedded RFI
tags.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We get into our cars that have
position locater devices installed as part of the car’s integral components and
speak on our cell phones that also have GPS capability.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As we step into a down town street that has
both public and private video surveillance cameras we stop to take a picture of
a friend and note that the camera mode of the cell phone we are using gives the
exact location that the picture has been taken.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Interestingly, the national public outcry over Homeland Security use of
full body scanners has been long forgotten and lost in the midst of all of the
other intrusions into and restrictions on personal liberties.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-themecolor: background2;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;">The truth is that, Americans are
becoming ever more comfortable and accepting of this public awareness of our
movements and personal actions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>According to an April 2013 British Broadcast Corporation (BBC) news
story<span style="color: blue;">(</span></span><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-22274770"><span style="background-color: black; color: blue; mso-themecolor: background2;">http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-22274770</span></a><span style="background-color: black; color: white;"><span style="color: blue;">)</span>
, “While the US never embraced state-sponsored CCTV the way the UK has, it has
nevertheless used surveillance as a national security and law-enforcement
measure for years.” And, while the US effort has been a curious mix of private
and public surveillance strategies, the events of September 2001 in New York
and April of 2013 in Boston, with the resultant massive increase in funding for
both the NSA and Homeland Security were game changers. As stated by Jay
Stanley, a police analyst for the American Civil Liberties Union, in the BBC
story, the current trend “…is the introduction of the police-run cameras”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The article goes on to give the view of Ray
Kelly, Chief of the NYC Police Department, as he stated on MSNBC Television: “</span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-themecolor: background2;"><span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white;">The people who
complain about it, I would say, are a relatively small number of folks, because
the genie is out of the bottle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People
realize that everywhere you go now, your picture is taken."<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the reality is that those who create the
algorithms to select what information is worthy of viewing inevitably enter
into the world of “profiling” which, in its natural progression results in the
loss of liberty. And what isn’t said in the article or by Ray Kelly is that
virtually every email, every text message and every photograph you communicate
is also capable of being “watched”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-themecolor: background2;"><span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white;">Of
course, we are now talking about what is referred to as “social media”, where
it has become plainly obvious that the world, in general, and America, in
specific, is becoming desensitized to the potential for misuse of personal
information.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Facebook is only one of several popular modes
of social media that include Twitter, LinkedIn, Flickr and others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even ISPs and portals for the sending of text
and email messages through communication hosts such as AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile
are subject to scrutiny. All collect voluminous amounts of personal and metric
data on individual users. And, while there are supposed safeguards to prevent
misuse of all of the data, opinions and pictures that we ourselves upload onto
social media sites, the implications of the recent disclosures made through
articles in the British publication <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Guardian </i></b>based on information
obtained as a NSA contractor by Eric Snowden cannot lead us to any other
conclusion than that the national government holds the ultimate trump cards and
could, on pretext of stopping a terroristic act, seize whatever information it
wished from whomever it wanted, to be used in whatever way it wanted.<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-themecolor: background2;">So,
what is the “average citizen” to do? We cannot escape Moore’s Law and its
corollaries and our dependence upon ever sophisticated technology does require
new rules for both access and oversight. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>barbarians showing themselves at the borders
of our financial, energy, political, military and transportation systems we are
hard pressed to hear the words of Benjamin Franklin, one of our founding
fathers, who stated: “</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-themecolor: background2;">Those who would give up essential
liberty to purchase a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor
safety.” We desperately need our elected representatives to be more forthright
in their disclosures of what will and will not be safeguards for personal
liberties in our increasingly complex internet world lest we lose both our
security and our liberties.</span></span></span><span style="color: #eeece1; font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-themecolor: background2;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-77893933753629451392013-08-29T14:02:00.000-07:002014-04-12T07:06:42.688-07:00Is the USA Twerking its future away?<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white;">Like many others who have commented on Miley Cyrus’ VMA
performance this past weekend I too have some deep concerns; however, those
concerns do not run in the same vein as the supposed news mavens, YouTube gurus
and etiquette pundits. What currently passes for “expert” opinion on Ms. Cyrus’
performance is devoted to the “how could such a good girl go so wrong?” school
of criticism technique.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After all, she
was a “Disney product”, pure as “Ivory soap”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Did you see those hip movements?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They were so sexually suggestive! The dancing; wait a minute!, what
dancing? That was exhibitionism!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Miley
found a way to out Madonna Madonna! Who does she think she is, prancing around
in her underwear? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And the people in the audience,
did you see them, with mouths gapping wide.... a true OMG moment! Did your kids
see this?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What are we to tell them now?
Fourteen and fifteen year olds grew up wanting to be just like Hannah Montana. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh, woe are we!<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="background-color: black; color: white;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white;">I have a few choice questions and comments for those who
have offered their surface criticism of Miley Cyrus over the past week: Where
the heck have you people been for the last 20 years?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What rock have you been sleeping under that
you could not see the potential of such a performance as was given by Miley on
the MTV, VMA Awards show? Have you not heard of popular music stars such as
Nicki Minaj, Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre, Britney Spears, Lady Gaga, Beyonce, etc.? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Relative to modern day video music selections
of the same hip hop genre, what in Ms Cyrus' performance or the performances of those
who danced and sang with her surprised you?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Have you no awareness of the depths to which American music, culture and
character has sunk?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How many of you have
gone to a dance featuring songs with far worse lyrics and grinded the night
away?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If we are all so oblivious to the
world around us how could a “hit song” by Lady Gaga called “Pokerface” get over
162 million hits on YouTube? What a bunch of hypocrites we are becoming! If we
were to hold a mirror up in the face of our society would we see the strong
faces that made this nation? Or the loving ones who helped to raise us and
thought we held such promise?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or even
the person we once were who dreamed great things, held inside hoping for that
one break or wonderful moment when we could let our light shine?<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="background-color: black;"><span style="color: white;">On August the 27<sup><span style="font-size: x-small;">th</span></sup>, the day after the real
firestorm surrounding the<span style="background-color: black;"> Miley</span> Cyrus VMA performance hit, the Wall Street
Journal (WSJ) published an Op-Ed piece by journalist Juan Williams at the bottom of
page A15.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The article was entitled: “Songs
of the Summer of 1963 …and 2013”<o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
<span style="background-color: black;"></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: black; color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">( </span><a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324619504579028691595414868.html"><span style="background-color: black; color: blue; font-family: Calibri;">http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324619504579028691595414868.html</span></a><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="background-color: black; color: white;"><span style="color: blue;">)</span>
The article juxtaposed the aura of those folk songs so filled with hope,
longing for justice and faith in the future, surrounding and accompanying Dr.
Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech held on August 28, 1963 with
the current genre of hip-hop selections that are filled with sex, violence,
bigotry and greed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> For examples of the lyrics of the time in 1963, Mr. Williams refers to the songs of Bob dylan, Joan Baez, Woody Guthrie, Johnny Cash, Sam Cooke, Curtis Mayfield and the vocal group Peter, Paul and Mary. The WSJ </span> Op-Ed article is well worth
reading if you have not already done so.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And, it goes a long way to explaining how far we have come from that day in 1963 to this past weekend when Miley Cyrus was led into a
production for the VMAs that was at once both an affront to common decency and the
epitome of the “the best” that our egocentric, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>jaded,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>entertainment-driven culture is capable of producing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We have become a nation of schizophrenics fully
aware of the damage we do through our base treatments of others yet craving all
the more excess and hyperbole.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is
why the same pundits that castigate Miley Cyrus for her actions at the VMA show
this year will probably find themselves at some nightspot this weekend grinding
the night away to the sound of Lil Wayne as he croons about “hoes” and bitches”. That is also why we all need to seriously rethink the direction of our culture and our society.</span> </span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-79183282358518958192013-08-12T07:40:00.001-07:002013-08-12T07:40:12.600-07:00Rescuing Alice from the Labyrinth
<br />
<span style="font-size: 11pt;">Today, I am just "venting". <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 11pt;">I have a running love-hate relationship with
the financial community. It is the same sort as that Lewis Carroll's Alice
experienced with the Mad Hatter whose presence was necessary in her travels
through the labyrinth but whose intentions were not completely pure. My
frustration of the moment stems from the hassle encountered in approval of a
loan. You see, our family was one those that had to resort to a short sale of
its home during the recent "Great Recession". Some statistics
indicate that as many as 30% of all home sales between the end of 2008 and the
beginning of 2013 were either auctioned homes from foreclosures or short sales.
Homes that had been valued in the high six figures and that had depreciated in
value by as much as 20% of their 2007 appraisal value by late 2008 were selling
for as much as another 39% below their new valuation in foreclosure sales and
as much as another 23% if sold through short sales, according to </span><span style="font-size: 11pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">RealtyTrac<sup>tm</sup>
(<a href="http://money.cnn.com/2013/02/28/real_estate/short-sales/index.html"><span style="color: blue;">http://money.cnn.com/2013/02/28/real_estate/short-sales/index.html</span></a>)
Great swaths of America were negatively impacted and areas from California and Arizona
through the southwest to the central Great Lakes of Michigan, Illinois and Ohio
to the Middle Atlantic states of New Jersey and New York to the Southeast states
of Georgia, Alabama and Florida. Literally hundreds of thousands of sales were
involved and millions of people were affected.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Most of those affected were good, hard-working people who were caught in
the “perfect storm” of financial circumstances that resulted in the “Great
Recession” And most, like us, are doing the best they can to turn the corner
and contribute positively to the growth of a stronger American economy. Yet, like
us, they are continually frustrated by new challenges in the form of revamped
bank credit restrictions and credit bureaus that use antiquated algorithms that
were suited for the more stable financial world that existed before the Great
Recession.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The result has been a “chicken
and egg” driven economy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Which comes
first: the chicken or the egg?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The economy
needs buyers (70% of America’s GDP is from personal purchases) who depend upon
credit to make their purchases but who are stymied by the new banking
regulations and the old algorithms used by the three major credit bureaus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It has gotten so crazy that, even if you have
a nearly 30 year <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>perfect history of
making payments but you are one of those whose home was sold as a short sale you
are to be considered a<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“bad credit risk”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Interestingly, economists scratch their heads
and wonder why the economy is not healing faster.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It just seems to be sputtering along, stuck
in perpetual second gear.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, it seems
to me that greater effort needs to be expended to help those with historically
good credit histories get back into the purchasing and income generating
economies as quickly as possible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s
not an easy task in today’s economic and political climate. Neither is anywhere
close to what they were 30 years ago.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Thirty years ago most of that 70% of American GDP was taking place on “main
street USA” – not so today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thirty years
ago there was still a consensus of opinion that what was good for America was
of greater importance than what was good for the Democratic or the Republican
parties – not so today. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our economy is
more restricted and is influenced to a far greater degree by forces beyond our
own borders.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our political parties have
turned their every four year battle for the right to dictate policy into siege
campaigns hell-bent on proving the other party wrong or tripping the other
party up regardless to the cost in economic progress, human suffering or national
prestige. The end result is that money flows away from main street and away
from the people whose purchases and credit could help to heal and rebuild a
stronger American infrastructure.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
while everyone is fixated upon whether the Queen of Hearts or the Queen of
Clubs will win their campaign for dominance there is the very real potential
that “Alice” will be forever lost in the labyrinth.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"><o:p></o:p></span><br />
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-127478213489853862013-07-12T09:06:00.001-07:002013-07-12T09:06:52.801-07:00
<br />
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">Bring Back the Past to Fuel the
Future<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<br />
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">I share
no really dramatic comment today - just a renewed commitment to
more faithfully communicate the thoughts and opinions on where we’ve been, where we are at
present and where we are headed based upon current patterns and trends. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">To
paraphrase a monologue by Anthony Hopkins, from the movie <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u>Amistad</u></i></b>, in his
role as John Q. Adams: “[I]… have come to understand and to embrace the
understanding that who we are is who we were.” With the rearing I had and my love of History and Philosophy, it should not have taken me so long to reach such an obvious conclusion. But as Bobby Burns once said: "...the best laid schemes of mice and men, oft go astray..." and it seems as though, from the lyrics of an old Beatles's song, I have managed to follow a "...long and winding road" for a bit further than anticipated.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">I have long been a believer that all experience whether positive or negative can lead to the greater good and growth of the individual and so it must be in this case. The move of our family in 2012 that required the loss of my teaching position left me pretty much emotionally and intellectually adrift as I contemplated the how, when and where of "next career". Although demands of establishing the new residence and following through on extended family obligations has kept me busy, for the most part, there has been a feeling of "tasks left unfinished".</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif";">One of those aforementioned "tasks left unfinished" is the regular posting to my "Hayman's History Blog" and my absence was surely not without any national or international areas to comment on. The past year has brought significant challenges to personal liberty, national sovereignty and international stability. Additionally, there have been cultural, economic, technological, religious/philosophical and environmental forces that added significantly to the stress level of most peoples of these United States of America and of the greater world. So, beginning today, I hope to have daily postings on the issues of most importance to me and I hope to you too. Feel free to share your comments and, together, perhaps we can make a positive difference to make America and the greater world better for all of us and our progeny.</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-40548812488707977522012-08-31T07:26:00.002-07:002012-08-31T07:26:59.257-07:00I was recently struck as to how much of our lives is being reduced to 2-minute segments. Want to schedule an appointment, book a train, leave a phone message, look up some piece of information on Google, get back to that program you really wanted to see before the commercial interrupted you... It usually takes about 2 minutes! Any message that is longer has usually lost our attention or, if we are the source, has lost the attention of others. I find this to be interesting; although, at times, unsettling. I remember the hours spent on my grandparents' front porch seeking the answers to life, conquering my fears of the unknown, making great plans for "saving the world". I wonder when my 17-year old son confronts me with his questions if I will be granted more than 2 minutes to give my response. Guess my 2 minutes is about up....Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-76977403190996554392011-08-07T09:07:00.000-07:002011-08-07T09:15:56.822-07:00In Praise of American Youth<div>There are many who decry the current state of American youth. They see these young people as self-absorbed, lacking in “social graces” and totally unaware or uncaring of the larger world around them. I do not see this attitude to be true or, in the least bit, representative of the youth I have been privileged to be associated with as an educator within my history classes. I have found them to be inquisitive, insightful and very caring. Nearly all are truly looking for their place in the world, for a fuller understanding of their talents and the “clues” that will give them insight as to how they might make a difference in the world. My “proof” for my comments is contained in the following YouTube file that was the top place submission for a class project during the fourth marking period of the 2010-2011 academic year. The students had been tasked with selecting a theme of history and the development of a multimedia presentation that would show the patterns and trends over time from 1945 to the present day. They were graded by their fellow students and by a select group of school faculty in addition to my assessment. <br />The top submission focused upon the impact of humans upon their environment.<br /><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqHBsN_noxQ">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqHBsN_noxQ</a><br />When the classes held project review sessions at the end of the project, it was revealed that the top submission took over 60 hours to create and the average time for all of the 10 separate group submissions was 30 hours. Personally, I was humbled by what had taken place. All of the submissions showed quality development, pride in individual accomplishment and deep caring for the world they lived within. From my personal experience, I believe the future looks very bright with the capabilities of youth on such positive display.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-54530515857400595542011-08-05T11:38:00.000-07:002011-08-05T11:40:13.679-07:00The "King" Wears No Clothes!It should come as no surprise to Americans that our economic recovery is waffling; yet, we continue to listen to the drivel that daily ushers forth from the financial houses of our once great republic. “The economy is getting better.” “Consumers are starting to spend again and consumers represent 70% of the financial growth of America.” “The unemployment numbers are going down” (thank God that so many have given up looking for work, have expended their 99 weeks or have used their college degrees to secure a job in the local McDonald’stm, Burger Kingtm or WalMarttm). And the granddaddy of all of the lies: “All we have to do is raise the debt ceiling and our economy can get back to paying its debts and creating jobs” (doesn’t anybody recognize that “expanding the debt ceiling” is “expanding the debt”? and that, eventually, [this comment is not “G rated”] someone is going to have to pay the larger debt.). In spite of all of the happy talk of the beginning of good times to come and “surviving the “great Recession”, the stock market continues to flounder, the value of American homes continues to erode, the cost of basic necessities (i.e. Groceries, gas and health care) continues to skyrocket and the average American business or family finds itself unable to keep up; so, they are reduced to cutting back on “expansion plans”. <br />But wait! Don’t many of the American businesses and families have good credit ratings? Why don’t they borrow money, invest and expand? Wouldn’t that help the economy to grow? I’m sure that there are enough families and business that need or would like to have new buildings, new transportation, and new infrastructure items. A check with one of the major lending agencies reveals just why expansion is not taking place. A good credit rating is nice but the real driver these days in the minds of the banks is the “debt to equity ratio”. You see, it really no longer matters if you have a record of good on-time payments (aka: “credit rating”) for the “credit rating” of today is a whole amalgam of financial data of which the debt to equity ratio is the most important. Seems like the only lesson the banks learned from the recent financial debacle of 2008 is that “if you never lend the money, you never have to worry about getting it back”. So, by setting up Draconian litmus tests for granting credit, the banks never have to worry about the chance that a tipping point will be reached in market sector over speculation. Home loan rates are low but few loans are approved. Credit on credit cards is available but rates are over 20% (what we used to refer to as “loan shark rates”). Unfortunately, all of the new rules and regulations are terribly unfair to three important sectors of the economy: the young college graduate, the middle-income worker and the retiree within the society. All three of these sectors have reduced their expenditures dramatically to the point where expansion is not an option and just maintaining a personal financial balance is the only choice.<br />Who is to blame for this mess? While it seems to be the recent American passion to bash the president, the president is not the source of our troubles. And, while I would love to point the finger at the banks, I have to be sensitive to the fact that they have been given conflicting messages by the Congress as to how they are to help America to recover from the Great recession of 2008. No, the “King” in this kingdom is the Congress that has it within its power to force the banks to eliminate their Draconian user requirements and rates, change the tax code of the country in ways that would stimulate business, help middle-income families to afford either the new home or the new refrigerator, etc they would like for their older home, make the necessary adjustments to our aged entitlement programs that more accurately reflect modern living standards and employment environments, provide for greater educational access for more Americans and approve the massive peacetime projects that would further stimulate the national economy and reduce the unemployment rolls. It’s about time that the “King” stop talking and start enacting the legislation that is necessary to insure national success in recovery from the Great Recession of 2008. Eventually, it will not matter the political party of “the King” One “king” without clothes looks pretty much like any other! <br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-67637838807333517362011-07-22T09:23:00.000-07:002011-07-22T09:30:37.323-07:00Random Thoughts From the Morning Paper on July 22, 2011<br />The following items are thoughts from my reading of this morning’s New York Times (Vol. CLX…No. 55,474)<br /><br />Re: <em>Obama Closes in on Deal for Cuts in Boehner Talks</em> (page A1 and A12)<br />There is a real struggle over the size and appropriate function of government fueling the disagreements between Republicans (inclusive of their “Tea Party” faction) and Democrats that imperils the current budget discussions. Were the implications not so serious it would almost be farcical that the party that refers to Jefferson as one of its founding fathers favors larger, more intrusive governmental actions with preservation of federal entitlement programs and higher taxes and the party of Lincoln seeks smaller central government and greater authority for local and state governments with what amounts to a “scorched earth policy” to deny the party in power the resources it needs to address social, environmental and international policy issues.<br /><br /><br />Re: <em>Shuttle Ends Its Final Voyage and an Era in Space</em> (page A3)<br />I would hope that, in the absence of a large national space initiative America does not lose sight of the importance of national programs that can fuel the imagination of youth and stimulate both the educational and business sectors of the economy. Private efforts (NY Times; <em>In a Private Race to the Moon, Flights of Fancy Are in the Air</em> pages A1 and A3) are all well and good; however, their impact on the larger population will be minimal. Indeed, they may accelerate the growing chasm between the highly educated, financially wealthy, “empowered” segments of our republic and those millions who lack the access and resources to participate in private efforts. Space exploration is still very much in its infancy. Accountability within national efforts is to the populace; however, there is no parallel requirement for accountability among those who would seek to exploit space travel for their own corporate objectives in the face of competition with other private contractors. The great marketing mill of the world will turn private efforts into non-stop opportunities to attract investment and we have recently been treated to the bitter taste of the fare that attracts the financial markets. One of America’s real needs is a new and very public space initiative. There will be the naysayers who will state that our urban infrastructure and road systems are so much in need of repair that we cannot afford such and effort now. To those people I would submit that since 1955 the United States has added the interstate highway system, most of the urban infrastructure that exists today and 150 million people to its population in addition to successfully completing the Explorer I, Mercury, Gemini, Apollo, and Space Shuttle programs. <br />Most of my childhood was bracketed by America’s commitment to successfully place a man-made satellite into orbit and to land a man of the moon. I was the first kid on my block with a model of a Saturn V rocket that towered nearly three feet high in my bed room! My childhood days were filled in conversations with friends about the flights of Alan Shepard and John Glenn and, later, Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) programs: Mercury, Gemini and Apollo rekindled our link with the history for the foundations of Western culture while providing a moniker to attach our hopes for future achievement in a mission that was bigger than any ever accomplished in human history. I am aware that all of these required the input of private contractors but the focus upon a national (not corporate) objective was paramount.<br /> Late in the evening of July 20, 1969, I stood behind my grandfather’s chair in the little North Carolina town of Southport looking at a small black and white television screen as Neil Armstrong took his “…one giant leap for mankind”. The family oral history was that my grandfather’s father had been the head of the Kitty Hawk, NC lifesaving station whose crew had helped the Wright brothers to carry their plane to the top of a sand dune at Kill Devil Hills. I could feel “goose bumps” along my body in the realization that the aged man in front of me was witnessing the culmination of the journey that had begun on that cool December day in 1903. For me it was a moment of joy, reassurance and rededication to set lofty goals in the hopes that, through great effort, some day they might be realized. My nation had experienced many failures along the way but had never given up the ultimate goal. As a child I had learned two valuable lessons from our space efforts. The first was to set high standards and goals. The second was to treat failure as an opportunity to learn how not to do something so as to gain greater insight as to do the right thing that would help me to accomplish the goal. Not once did I think of any commercial concern and the only patches and logos on the space craft and the uniforms of the participants read: “United States of America”! <br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-35965524069354622352011-07-09T11:20:00.000-07:002011-07-09T11:31:21.303-07:00Standing Around with a Half Empty Glass and Missing the BoatWe have a nation that seems stuck on the shores of despair. As a teacher of America’s youth, this is troubling to me. I am a “Baby-boomer” but, from my current perspective, it seems to me that the “boomer” signifies more than just a large increase in the population of the United States in the years from 1946 through 1964. It additionally signifies the psychological, political and economic “boom” that was reflected in the struggle of our democratic principles against politically oppressive ideologies, our societal struggle against individuals and local conventions that would oppress our civil rights and our national focus upon “shooting for the stars” in the effort to place a man on the moon by the end of the 1960s. To paraphrase the words of a February/March 2007 American Heritage article (“10 Moments That Made U.S. Business”; pp 23-33), since the dawn of the industrial revolution, America has always been known for its “megaprojects” – “…projects of unprecedented scale and scope [ that] encouraged its entrepreneurs and politicians to think big.” These were big goals, with big price tags and the big potential for not only giving lots of people good, well paying jobs and improving the educational level of the main-stream population but also defining our collective national character. We were Americans and we were the ones who created the San Francisco Bay Bridge, the Panama Canal, the Empire State Building, and the Apollo Missions to the moon, conquered Polio, made blue jeans the first mass-class international clothing style, tore down barriers that had been erected for centuries against blacks and women and turned the music world on its head with our “Rock and Roll”. None came easily but all was positive and forward looking. Our sails were always filled with the fair winds of progress and our glass was nearly always half-full with the expectation of more and better things to come in the future. We stood on the shoulders of “The Greatest Generation” and represented the zenith for the “children of the Enlightenment”. What our nation’s youth of today are being treated to is despair served with a generous helping of malaise. <br />For “Baby-boomers”, it was the tight focus and emphasis upon lofty political, social, and economic goals that defined the important moments of our lives, caused us angst when our efforts fell short and tremendous joy when we exceeded our aspirations. What of our young people today? What great “megaprojects” inspire them? Our current news sources are absorbed with headlines that, quite frankly, are very scary to young people: Can we hope to defeat Al-Qaeda and the Taliban if all the troops come home? With the recent cut backs in police personnel, can we really expect to control the excesses of our population? How can we address our $14+ trillion dollar national deficit? How long will the current national and global recessions last? In the midst of our national financial troubles are we at risk of selling off our national heritage along with the corporate and land resources that are being purchased at bargain basement prices by international concerns? What can we do to humanely address the illegal immigration issue? How can we keep violent video games out of the hands of kids under 18 years of age? With all of the tools our schools should be able to have at their disposal, how long must our formerly world class educational system be seeking rescue from the decline in academic performance that is negatively impacting American technological leadership? Has our societal emphasis upon immediate gratification begun to erode core characteristics of goal orientation, sacrifice, innovation and entrepreneurial spirit? How is it, in a world of “globalization”, crimes and acts of bigotry are rampant? <br />Theirs’ is a bright and colorful façade behind which gather dark clouds of tremendous personal, national and international challenge. Theirs’ is a glass not so different from that of their parents and grandparents; yet, portrayed by the popular press as virtually always half empty and most likely to contain less than what the glass held the children of the past two generations contained. Theirs’ is a culture “Looking for Superman”, seemingly absent of sufficient answers to address the overwhelming number of media-touted, perceived and imagined problems. Rather than fair winds to fill their sails, they stand along the shores and watch the gathering clouds of the approaching storm.<br />What I have described is a travesty and what I feel is a national crisis. Youth need to see themselves as part of the answer for what ever the challenge. They additionally need to see themselves as fully competent and capable to address the cahllenges. Rather than constantly looking outward for someone to blame for our troubles or for help from some other source to solve our problems, we need to be looking inward as to what strengths we have that can be collectively used to address our challenges. We need to help our children to understand that just as there will always be challenges, there will always be answers; just as there will always be doubters, there will be those who believe in themselves and just as there is a chance for failure, there is an equal chance for great success. To paraphrase what John F. Kennedy stated during his 1961 inaugural speech, we all should be not so much looking as to what others can do for us as for what we can do for others. Perhaps, for the youth of today, the collective “drops” fusing together will fill their glasses and will provide the fair winds to fill their sails.<br /><br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-74921478989133389672011-07-09T06:18:00.000-07:002011-07-09T11:05:56.236-07:00The VerdictThere it was on the front page of the <em><strong>USA Today</strong></em> newspaper for July 8, 2011: “Poll: Two-thirds say Anthony is Guilty”. The story was written to drive home the point that, despite the verdict of the 12 men and women of the Orange County Florida jury that found Casey Anthony innocent of murdering her 2-year old daughter Caylee, the majority of Americans who were polled by the newspaper believed that Casey Anthony really was guilty. There were even individuals who were so incensed by the verdict that they immediately began to call for the felony criminalization of parental “…failure to notify police of a child’s disappearance, within 24-hours”. Such efforts not only totally miss the real import of the verdict and create a vigilante justice atmosphere but potentially create yet another avenue for the surrender of personal rights to those of the state. The real travesty here was that the jury seemed swept up in the enormity of their decision due to the media emphasis upon the case and opted to ignore the carefully crafted presentation of the circumstantial evidence to the contrary of their decision. This is not the first time the verdict in a high profile case has gone astray of where the evidence was pointing. It seems to me that we’ve been here before, in 1994, with victims by the names of Ronald Goldman and Nicole Simpson. In that case, the accused, O.J. Simpson, was found innocent in the criminal trial. Not satisfied with the verdict, the family of Ronald Goldman sued O.J. Simpson for libel in the violation of their son’s personal rights (“wrongful death”). O.J. Simpson was found guilty of the charges and, to the very day, is still held in prison. I am sure that, if there are those who, in their interest of addressing the wrongful death of little Caylee, wish to see justice served, their efforts should be directed towards a civil suit rather than the creation of another law to further restrict personal liberties. What we need to do is use the good civil protections already afforded to us to seek redress where we believe that justice for the individual has not been served. We also need juries who, although inconvenienced by time and media attention, are more deliberative in their search for protection of the rights of individuals who have had their rights abridged or taken away.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-35342283013709569862011-07-01T05:41:00.000-07:002011-07-09T11:05:56.273-07:00True Education is More Than the Sum of the TestsThere is a wonderful article by David Brooks entitled “Smells Like School Spirit” in the Op-Ed section of the NY Times (page A23) for Friday, July 1, 2011. It calls to mind one of the best films of the spring that was entitled “Waiting for Superman”. Both the article by David Brooks and the film point out that teaching is far more than what tests reveal and that true education is a construct of caring administrators who are adroit at risk-results decisions, classrooms staffed by dynamic teaching personalities and total school commitment to using the various subject disciplines as the means to infuse youth with quality character traits and a desire for knowledge. Only when assessment becomes a part of the learning process and not an end unto itself will both the school and the students be successful.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-86465698188843165712011-07-01T05:14:00.000-07:002011-07-09T11:05:56.291-07:00I Need My Space!<div>There was an article in the Wednesday, June 29th copy of the New York Times (page A12; "Debris Gives Space Station Crew Members a 29,000M.P.H. Close Call") that provided a moment of deep sadness for me. One of the paragraphs towards the end of the article indicates that, by some current estimates, there are as many as 500,000 pieces of artificial, man-made, material in near earth orbit. Some of the items are communication satellites, some are spent rocket boosters and some are pure "debris items" that are the result of collisions and component explosions. Regardless, these items are gradually filling up our near space with "space junk". To give you an idea as to just how much junk there is, refer to the following YouTube clip:<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43ac9gmR3fA">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43ac9gmR3fA</a>. I recognize the benefits that have extended from the technologies that placed most of the items in near earth orbit but it does seem to me that there will be a "tipping point" like trash thrown into a river ultimately destroys life below the surface of the water.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-45701104950893159732011-06-28T08:16:00.000-07:002011-06-28T08:28:05.007-07:00Supreme Court Rules on Violent Video Games<div>Yesterday, June 27, 2011, the Supreme Court stated its majority opinion on the matter of <em>Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association </em>which resulted in a media uproar over the stated perception that the upper court had issued a ruling that would allow children to purchase video games that contained graphic images of a violent and sexual nature. The ruling negated the California law upon which the brief was filed and other state laws that prohibited the sales to or ownership by children under the age of 18 of video games that depicted extreme acts of violence.<br /> <br />My opinion is that, while I abhor the subject matter of many of the violent video games on the market today, I believe that the seven justices who ruled for the majority were correct in their statement that the California law violated the protections offered by the First Amendment to the Constitution. In the statements of the justices can be seen that there were actually three issues involved. The first has to do with the right of free speech where the justices indicated that whether the content was descriptive as written (as in a book like <em>Uncle Tom’s Cabin</em>) or via projected images (as in a video game such as <em>Grand Theft Auto III</em> or <em>Final Fantasy VIII</em> content was protected by the First Amendment to the Constitution. The second has to do with parental responsibility for the actions of their children who are minors. The ruling, in essence, was a clarion call for parents to do what they are responsible to do and make the tough guardian decisions that they must for the protection of their family values and way of life. There is a recent movie entitled <em>“Waiting for Superman”</em> that summarizes the failures at the family and community level to take an active part in the education of their children for the benefit of the commonweal. It seems that our modern preoccupation is to wait for the hero, the “Superman”, to come and save us from ourselves. We throw up our hands, willing to give up our freedoms, in fear of the responsibility demanded for their protection, and willingly hand over our future and that of our children to the supposed beneficence of the monolithic state. The third issue extends from the second and involves the ethical standards of the family and the community at large. It should be noted that books, unlike video games, carry no cover posted warnings of their graphic content and there are numerous books considered as “classics” that describe in detail the horrors of mutilation or torture. As parents, we have a responsibility to challenge our children with “age appropriate” content suitable for the child we know and love. There are teenagers well under the age of 18 who can easily handle the content of <em>Uncle Tom’s Cabin</em>, <em>Grimm’s Fairy Tales</em>, <em>In Cold Blood</em>, or <em>Helter Skelter</em> and there are others who can’t. The point is that we as parents need to be communicating with our children and with each other to insure that the family and community standards are being maintained. It is not for the government to tell us what our ethical standards should be, what we should say, who we should say it to or how we should say what we wish to say. And, I firmly believe that that is the same as the current opinion of the high court of the United States in the case of <em>Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association</em>. The words of the First Amendment to the Constitution still ring true: <em>“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”</em></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-74909830096559734272011-06-26T11:07:00.000-07:002011-06-26T11:52:52.277-07:00<div>Wow! I could not believe that it had already been nearly two years since my last posting. It's not that there has not been anything to discuss (God knows that the numerous conflicts in Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya, the global financial financial crisis and the many social issues within the U.S. and throughout the greater world were the foundation of what could have been many good editorial postings), nor the fact that I had lost interest (for I surely have not lost interest). </div><div>In addition to a severely time restricted personal schedule there was the greater issue of having started the creation of a blog without a clear purpose in mind as to whom it would be directed and how it was to be used. It is a common mistake that seems to be the "right" of every American. My grandfather once gave me a book entitled "America: The Permanent Revolution", the premise of which that as the American bard Bob Dylan once mused "If you're not busy being born, you're busy dying" (viz. America is always at work re-inventing itself) the implication of which is that "purpose" and "utility" are ephemeral constructs at best. Even our founding fathers had no consensus of a clear vision as to what our national "purpose" would be beyond something more supportive of the character and industriousness of the individual citizen other than what existed in Europe at the time (ergo: why we spent so much ink and paper devoted to the subject of "rights"). As far as the desired "utility" of the governmental structure to be erected, they only wanted it to be strong enough to weather the storms of time and flexible enough to adapt to the anticipated change of future years. Most of those who were the founding fathers were "enlightened thinkers" who strongly believed that the child of reason was progress and progress would ultimately yield new challenges, the need for reflection upon "purpose" and new demands for new interpretations of "utility".</div><div>So, here I am hard at work, trying once again to re-invent my blog and, for the present, I see it as a means of communicating my personal interpretation of current and past events, personalities and ideologies with the hope that, eventually, I might be able to use it to strike up dialogue with family, friends, students and new acquaintances. It is my hope that I will be able to post at least weekly as a summary and critique upon the preceeding week and my "best guess" of the implications for the future. Feel free to add your comments. I will try to respond in kind as time permits.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-17920403867738664522009-09-03T15:16:00.000-07:002009-09-03T18:47:38.277-07:00I fear that my beloved America is on the fast track to second-nation-statushood (I know, that word doesn’t exist. I just made it up). The 5:00pm news report (Radio 880am, WCBS in NYC) had a piece on the U.S. President’s speech on education that is to be given next Tuesday during school time and is to be directed to children. Fifty years ago, when I was still in elementary school, if Dwight Eisenhower had come on the radio to talk about education, you can bet your boots that not one person would have objected. Everyone would have been tuned in for the broadcast. For gosh sakes, we’re talking the President of the United States. Our generation was of a mind to believe that the President should be given the respect that the elected leader of the most powerful country on the face of the earth deserved. In fact, we Americans were proud of the fact that we had never lowered ourselves to the second world status that the once mighty British had as was evident from their press-run-amok reports of parliamentary failings and royal family bloopers. Yes, that’s right, the same Britain that once “ruled the waves”, that mighty empire whose territories spanned the globe and upon whom “the sun never sets”. Yep, “that one” (to turn a McCainian phrase). Oh, they’re good as a backup when America needs a “known” representative to give credence to a coalition of the “just” in wars against Evil but when it comes to real moxie, America is the land of the free and the home of the brave and our institutions and beliefs are rock solid.<br /><br />Wow, what’s all that got to do with the President’s up and coming speech on education?, you ask. Well, as the radio report went on, it indicated that there is “some parent” who has objected to his child hearing what the President of the United States has to say about education. The “parent’s” objection was stated in an audio clip where the “parent” makes the verbal assertion that we must remember that “when Castro took over Cuba, the first thing he did was to make an address to the children….”<br /><br />Excuse me! What is the agenda of a radio station that would even bother to place the audio file of an unidentified “parent” making a claim that is pure unsupported opinion? Who is this parent who wishes to shield the precious ears of his child from the statements of the President of the United States? And why is it that a man, duly elected by the voting citizens of the United States cannot be afforded the respect that his position deserves?<br /><br />Our president, like the leaders of that mighty Britain years ago, all of a sudden has found himself in a world that has changed from what it was just 11 months ago. Transparency in government has brought with it equal access and attention to all parties that, in a time of stress and economic crisis, creates the illusion that position no longer demands nor deserves respect.<br /><br />The thirty or so years following Britain’s loss of its mighty empire were the grist from which sprang some of the best comedy the world has ever seen or heard. Perhaps, America is headed for a very funny time. Or, perhaps not. Perhaps a darker time is coming as was envisioned by Boutros Boutros-Ghali (in July 1996): “In so many spheres, the political leaders no longer have real sovereignty of decision making. But they have the idea that they themselves can still resolve the central questions. I mean, they have only the fancy, only the illusion that this is so”(<em><span style="font-size:85%;">p.954, History in Quotations by M.J. Cohen and John Major, Copyright 2008). </span></em>It would seem that Mr. Boutros-Ghali would have a point when even the President of the United States cannot make a speech on such a benign issue as education without public comparison of his actions with those of a third-world Communist state.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-74942887491561149152009-08-27T06:05:00.000-07:002009-08-27T20:16:14.903-07:00It appears that this Thursday, in his first pre-season game, Michael Vick will be returned to the ranks of those who play professional football for the NFL. As virtually every sports enthusiast and animal loving humane society supporter knows, Michael Vick was the highly salaried and visible member of the Atlanta Falcons football franchise who was deeply involved in the use of dogs for fighting. He has completed 18 months of incarceration for his actions and has recently signed with the Philadelphia Eagles in a two year contract to complete his return to the NFL.<br /><br />My own son, who has Guinea Pigs and is awaiting his first dog but who also loves sports was taken aback when the news broke about Michael Vick just over two years ago. As a regular patron of “the Animal Planet” TV program and avid reader of “Sports Illustrated” he has seen and/or read most of the coverage as it has unfolded. Mr. Vick’s travails have led to numerous conversations concerning the “rights” of both animals who are mistreated and humans who are accused of crimes (both against animals and against other humans).<br /><br />As an adolescent, my son is always interested in the images of “strength”, responsibilities of adulthood, the limits of authority, places of sanctuary in time of danger, severity of penalties for mistakes of violation of law and means by which the perpetrator of a crime can satisfy dues owed and be returned as a whole person to society. We have followed Mr. Vick’s progress with great interest and were very pleased that he was given a chance to play again. We are hoping that his new commitment to assisting the efforts for the proper treatment of animals will be aided by his return to football and look forward to seeing his talents devoted to winning efforts for both his new team and his commitment for the humane treatment of all animals.<br /><br />I salute Michael Vick for recognizing and trying to correct the poor record he had established among those who love animals. I salute Tony Dungy as an excellent mentor for Mr. Vicks rehabilitation efforts. I salute the Philadelphia Eagles for giving Michael Vick an opportunity to return to the profession that, it appears, he is best suited for. And, for those who plan to protest and continue to castigate Michael Vick, I would urge a little bit of Philadelphia’s historic commitment to “tolerance”. There could be much good gained by animal rights groups through Mr. Vick’s return to the NFL. What better platform to establish the needed peace between Mr. Vick and animal rights activists than as a member of the team that resides in the city of “brotherly love”.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-42295773649901831942009-08-26T19:45:00.000-07:002009-08-26T20:01:14.882-07:00Today is a sad day for Massachusetts and a sad day for America. Edward M. Kennedy is dead. He was part of a fabled family, suffered the loss of one brother to war and two to political assassination, experienced the humiliation of the Chappiquiddick affair, rebounded to champion the cause of access to heath care as an American right and was visibly supportive in the campaign of the man who would become the first African-American President in U.S. history. He was many things, but most of all, Ted was the best of the many Senators produced by the great state of Massachusetts. Just stop and think for a moment of the known Senators from that state: John Quincy Adams, Daniel Webster, Charles Sumner, Henry Cabot Lodge, John F. Kennedy and Edward M. Kennedy.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-44143317452486016172009-07-12T15:43:00.000-07:002009-07-12T15:46:44.380-07:00I happened to see a series of letters in a magazine the other day, the meaning for which I did not know. The letters were “RFID” and with all the other letters, numbers and symbols one must keep track of these days, somehow, the letters were “flying under the radar”; however, following a quick check of their meaning (thank God we still have open access on the internet through portals and search engines) I suspect that we all should pay closer attention to RFID.<br />In short, RFID stands for “Radio Frequency Identification” and is currently used by several well known manufacturers to track large portions of their inventories. They are microdot size chips with intelligent data storing capability that can be scanned by specialized readers. They became attractive to retailers because they are so small and inexpensive that they can be unobtrusively added to packaging for inventory management purposes. In reality they can be made about the size of the dot for the letter “i” in the word size or the period at the end of this sentence. Depending upon the functional purpose and the amount of the tracking or metric intelligence required they can be larger; however, so much information can be stored that they have become a key component of the new drive for national ID cards, secure area access cards, employee cards, personal health record cards and even secure counterfeit-proof currency. Beyond the tagging of inanimate products there is already use of the tags for pet identification and serious discussions are beginning on “tagging” of all criminals and, just possibly, all U.S. Citizens. I can hear the pitch now: “You never have to worry about accidentally leaving your passport behind. A biometric ID chip under the skin can be readily scanned as you go through the airport security screener." Oh, Joy! George Orwell, Aldous Huxley and Ira Levin must be thinking in the great beyond: “We told you so….”Check it out at <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J47hny8q_J4">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J47hny8q_J4</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2344512024046540424.post-68359116578651800982009-07-05T13:52:00.000-07:002009-07-05T14:16:44.082-07:00Wow! What a celebration of America's 233rd "Birthday" yesterday, the 4th of July. For the third year in a row, our family was priviledged to be in Boston, Massachusetts for the festivities and the fireworks. This year, the weather cooperated. Neil Diamond sang "They're Coming to America" and, that was the understatement of the year. Statistics show that the wave of immigration into America within the last 15 years will go down as one of the all time great surges in immigration; adding an immigrant population larger than that of the migration from southern and central Europe that took place at the end of the 1800s and beginning of the 1900s. Some of the larger cities, such as New York, have as much as 20% of their current population as recently immigrated. As with past increases in immigration this creates great change in America and change begets stress. Some have ventered the statement that this is not good for America but I believe that this stress is a vital part of what makes America ever strong. So, Happy Birthday America! May you always have an open door for those "...tired and huddled masses yearning to breath free".Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0