When I set out to start this blog, I didn't know what direction it would go in but I knew that it would be a place where I could express my political views without all the partisan rants from either direction that I read in many other blogs and forums. As it turns out, with the exception of a few posts about my "consulting" gigs, it's been pretty much a platform for me to express my liberal/progressive leanings.
However, out of my surely vast and loyal crowd of readers, I'd say at least 50% are afraid they might hurt my feelings, 25% could care less LOL and up to 25% are too busy with life to tend to their own blog let alone read mine.
So I've decided to go in a different direction... and a different blog. I'm still going to keep this one and make commentary when the mood strikes me. I don't want to publish yet another open diary for the masses... but I do think a more light-hearted approach might draw some interaction.
I'm thinking that the theme will be two of my biggest passions in life: travel and music. In particular, I think I will chronicle some tales from the Summer of Love Tour that Cathy and I ventured out for. I have a lot of (mostly illegible) notes from the trip and it would be nice to share them in print. Who knows... it may become a semi-professional marketing device for my future ambitions as a travel agent.
I'll probably need some help designing the cover page as you can obviously see I did not have any imagination - or skill - in designing this one. Anyone... can ya help a brotha out??? :)
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Why Is It?
Why is it that the "typical" liberal would like government to be involved as much as possible... except when it comes to social/personal issues?
Why is it that the "typical" conservative would like to government to be involved as little as possible... except when it comes to social/personal issues?
Why is it that the "typical" conservative would like to government to be involved as little as possible... except when it comes to social/personal issues?
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Now That's What I Call "Fair and Balanced"!
Despite the fact he always reminds me of Kermit the Frog, I have to commend Fox News Channel anchor Shepard Smith for channeling his inner Alan Colmes when interviewing GOP Senator John Barrasso of Wyoming regarding the inclusion of a public option in health care reform:
SMITH: Over the last ten years health care costs in America have skyrocketed. Regular folks cannot afford it. So, they tax the system by not getting preventative medicine. They go to the emergency room in the last case and we all wind up paying for it. As the costs have gone up, the insurance industry's profits, on average, have gone up more than 350%. And it is the insurance companies which have paid, and who have contributed to Senators and Congressmen on both sides of the aisle to the point where now we cannot get what all concerned on Capitol Hill seem to believe and more 60% of Americans say they would support, which is a public option. This has been an enormous win for the health-care industry, that is an unquestioned fact. But I wonder, what happens to the American people when we come out with legislation now which requires everyone to have health care insurance -- or many more people -- but does not give a public option? Therefore millions more people will have to buy insurance from the very corporations that are overcharging us, and whose profits have gone up 350 percent in the last ten years. It seems like we the people are the ones getting the shaft here.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/06/fox-newss-shepard-smith-g_n_311627.html
SMITH: Over the last ten years health care costs in America have skyrocketed. Regular folks cannot afford it. So, they tax the system by not getting preventative medicine. They go to the emergency room in the last case and we all wind up paying for it. As the costs have gone up, the insurance industry's profits, on average, have gone up more than 350%. And it is the insurance companies which have paid, and who have contributed to Senators and Congressmen on both sides of the aisle to the point where now we cannot get what all concerned on Capitol Hill seem to believe and more 60% of Americans say they would support, which is a public option. This has been an enormous win for the health-care industry, that is an unquestioned fact. But I wonder, what happens to the American people when we come out with legislation now which requires everyone to have health care insurance -- or many more people -- but does not give a public option? Therefore millions more people will have to buy insurance from the very corporations that are overcharging us, and whose profits have gone up 350 percent in the last ten years. It seems like we the people are the ones getting the shaft here.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/06/fox-newss-shepard-smith-g_n_311627.html
Nazism + Communism = Socialism?
It appears that the doomsday wing of the conservative movement has succeeded in getting a lot of press by equating Obama's would-be "socialist" policies with the repressive regimes of Communist-era Russia and Nazi-era Germany. I'm sure that there are more informed people out there (including some well-intentioned Republicans) who realize that a better comparison would be to the many countries in Western Europe that adhere to various degrees of socialist policy, not to mention our neighbor to the North.
Instead of drawing a fake Hitler mustache onto Obama, they could have attached fake muscles a la Hanz and Franz from the old Saturday Night Live skits. Or instead of referencing Russia's hammer and siecle, the protestors could have drawn inspiration from the flags of Norway, the Netherlands, France and other countries who coincidentally draw from the same red, white and blue palate.
Perhaps when it comes down to it, it's the common theme of one-party rule that Germany once represented - and that Russia is apparently backsliding into - and fear of the long-term effects of such an arrangement here in the USA. I could certainly respect that as I endured the same concerns for six years. I would hope that's something conservatives would think about if <shudder
By the way, here's a list of the best countries to live per the United Nations. By my count, it appears that at least seven of the top ten countries have universal health care and/or other socialist policies. An easier-to-read summary can also be found here.
Instead of drawing a fake Hitler mustache onto Obama, they could have attached fake muscles a la Hanz and Franz from the old Saturday Night Live skits. Or instead of referencing Russia's hammer and siecle, the protestors could have drawn inspiration from the flags of Norway, the Netherlands, France and other countries who coincidentally draw from the same red, white and blue palate.
Perhaps when it comes down to it, it's the common theme of one-party rule that Germany once represented - and that Russia is apparently backsliding into - and fear of the long-term effects of such an arrangement here in the USA. I could certainly respect that as I endured the same concerns for six years. I would hope that's something conservatives would think about if <shudder
By the way, here's a list of the best countries to live per the United Nations. By my count, it appears that at least seven of the top ten countries have universal health care and/or other socialist policies. An easier-to-read summary can also be found here.
Thursday, October 1, 2009
I Like Ike!
Quote:
It's great to know that during the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, the wealth of the 400 richest Americans, according to Forbes, actually increased by $30 billion. Well golly, that's only a 2 percent increase, much less than the double digit returns the wealthy had grown accustomed to. But a 2 percent increase is a whole lot more than losing 40 percent of your 401k. And $30 billion is enough to provide 500,000 school teacher jobs at $60k per year.
Collectively, those 400 have $1.57 trillion in wealth. It's hard to get your mind around a number like that. The way I do it is to imagine that we were still living during the great radical Eisenhower era of the 1950s when marginal income tax rates hit 91 percent. Taxes were high back in the 1950s because people understood that constraining wild extremes of wealth would make our country stronger and prevent another depression. (Well, what did those old fogies know?)
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/les-leopold/the-forbes-400-shows-why_b_306228.html
It's great to know that during the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, the wealth of the 400 richest Americans, according to Forbes, actually increased by $30 billion. Well golly, that's only a 2 percent increase, much less than the double digit returns the wealthy had grown accustomed to. But a 2 percent increase is a whole lot more than losing 40 percent of your 401k. And $30 billion is enough to provide 500,000 school teacher jobs at $60k per year.
Collectively, those 400 have $1.57 trillion in wealth. It's hard to get your mind around a number like that. The way I do it is to imagine that we were still living during the great radical Eisenhower era of the 1950s when marginal income tax rates hit 91 percent. Taxes were high back in the 1950s because people understood that constraining wild extremes of wealth would make our country stronger and prevent another depression. (Well, what did those old fogies know?)
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/les-leopold/the-forbes-400-shows-why_b_306228.html
Monday, September 7, 2009
Glenn, Kanye and Me
By now most everyone is aware of the recent claim that Glenn Beck made regarding President Obama on the Fox News Channel. Needless to say, I found this rather outlandish considering Obama's maternal family, the people in his administration, and his success in drawing significant support from voters of all ethnicities when he won the election. My first thought (and probably second, third and fourth thoughts as well) was that the Fox News executives should demand that he apologize for his incredulous statement under threat of dismissal. The fact that he apparently not only hasn't apologized but hasn't even been suspended is rather telling and shocking to me.
But then I remembered what Kanye West said about George Bush following Hurricane Katrina. I have to admit that at the time I wondered whether there was more than a kernel of truth to that accusation, conveniently ignoring the prominent positions that Colin Powell and Condoleeza Rice each held in the Bush administration. In retrospect, I believe that Bush was not a racist but perhaps a classist. But getting back to Kanye, I wouldn't have been surprised if he suffered a Dixie-Chicks style backlash which would have effectively ended his career. Instead, these days you can't go more than ten minutes on a pop station, let alone an R&B/hip-hop station, without hearing Kanye on a track. Even I must admit that I have enjoyed some of his songs over the last few years.
So it appears that Glenn and Kanye, despite their inflammatory accusations of Presidential-sponsored racism, will each continue to have successful careers due to the support of fans who ignored if not even believed these falsehoods. And that, I believe, truly makes for a sad state of affairs here in America.
But then I remembered what Kanye West said about George Bush following Hurricane Katrina. I have to admit that at the time I wondered whether there was more than a kernel of truth to that accusation, conveniently ignoring the prominent positions that Colin Powell and Condoleeza Rice each held in the Bush administration. In retrospect, I believe that Bush was not a racist but perhaps a classist. But getting back to Kanye, I wouldn't have been surprised if he suffered a Dixie-Chicks style backlash which would have effectively ended his career. Instead, these days you can't go more than ten minutes on a pop station, let alone an R&B/hip-hop station, without hearing Kanye on a track. Even I must admit that I have enjoyed some of his songs over the last few years.
So it appears that Glenn and Kanye, despite their inflammatory accusations of Presidential-sponsored racism, will each continue to have successful careers due to the support of fans who ignored if not even believed these falsehoods. And that, I believe, truly makes for a sad state of affairs here in America.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Playing Catch-Up
Hello to everyone out there in Bloggerville!
I just realized that it has been exactly three months since I posted my last blog. Of course, my most loyal readers (ha!) already know behind the scenes that I had quite a busy time preparing for, enjoying, then recovering from a rather busy summer season. But now that I have the time and wherewithall, I wanted to share a few thoughts before what could potentially be a busy fall on the local front. I'll be touching on a number of things, some of which I may expound on later.
First: the Summer of Love tour. That's what Cathy and I called our 37-day, 6550-mile cross-country trip with a not-so-subtle nod to the 40th anniversary of Woodstock. One big difference between that event and ours is the only time we got "high" was in the mountains of the "four corners" states. We even managed to survive both of our family reunions located on opposite ends of the country, hers being in Jackson, MS, mine being in Los Angeles. The logistics of attending those events as well as the Vegas BBW Bash spurred us to hit the road instead of the runway. It was definitely a once-in-a-lifetime experience to be able to spending that amount of time traveling through 27 states. While I figure that we'll be making pilgrimages to visit family in Dallas - or at least as far as Jackson - I don't think we'll be planning anything that extravagant again in the foreseeable future. I especially won't need to relive spending two weeks in Vegas. I'm grateful to Cathy for letting me indulge in my sightseeing for the first few days while she mostly enjoyed having her feet up and off the brake and pedal. I still think I'll need to leave the Bash property every so often, but I think I'm more likely to repeat my favorite things to see and do in Vegas than to find anything new there. I do suspect that we will be expanding our social circle which I feel would be a plus.
Wow... is 2009 The Year of the Grim Reaper or what? They say "death comes in threes" but this year, it's more like the dozens! Some of the more poignant passings for me include: Farrah Fawcett, with whom Cathy shared a common bond of an unfortunate illness; John Hughes, the "Judd Apatow" of my teenage years; and, Michael Jackson, if only for the surreal coincidence of staying in a hotel in Hollywood on the night before his memorial service. And of course, my most loyal readers would think me remiss if I didn't mention the loss of two members of the Kennedy clan.
The domestic agenda of President Obama and the Democratic-controlled Congress seems to be mixed in public opinion if not also in its effectiveness. As much as I dislike the idea of corporate welfare, I believe that simply letting the banks and auto makers fail would have had a ripple effect of millions in job losses that would have cost taxpayers more in the end than the stimulus package. And while necessity may well be the mother of invention, not everyone has the entrepreneurial skill and spirit to rely on themselves instead of an employer.
Regarding health care, I consider it to be the right of every American citizen and legal resident. I believe the status quo is not working, unless you're either an upper-income employee who is happy with their coverage... or the insurance company CEO who is happy with their bonus. While I think a government-funded "public option" should be in the mix, I'm not opposed to state health co-ops as a compromise, despite the unflinching views of both staunch Republicans and Democrats in Congress. I do think that GOP proposals like capping doctor malpractice judgments and opening up insurer competition to all fifty states would have potentially detrimental results for most citizens. One of the best models to build on, ironically, would the one that Republican Mitt Romney implemented while Governor of Massachusetts; it makes sense that everyone should pay into it, just as long as everyone is covered. I am surprised he hasn't received more news coverage these days. Or if he has, it must be on news media that I don't frequent.
Peace.
I just realized that it has been exactly three months since I posted my last blog. Of course, my most loyal readers (ha!) already know behind the scenes that I had quite a busy time preparing for, enjoying, then recovering from a rather busy summer season. But now that I have the time and wherewithall, I wanted to share a few thoughts before what could potentially be a busy fall on the local front. I'll be touching on a number of things, some of which I may expound on later.
First: the Summer of Love tour. That's what Cathy and I called our 37-day, 6550-mile cross-country trip with a not-so-subtle nod to the 40th anniversary of Woodstock. One big difference between that event and ours is the only time we got "high" was in the mountains of the "four corners" states. We even managed to survive both of our family reunions located on opposite ends of the country, hers being in Jackson, MS, mine being in Los Angeles. The logistics of attending those events as well as the Vegas BBW Bash spurred us to hit the road instead of the runway. It was definitely a once-in-a-lifetime experience to be able to spending that amount of time traveling through 27 states. While I figure that we'll be making pilgrimages to visit family in Dallas - or at least as far as Jackson - I don't think we'll be planning anything that extravagant again in the foreseeable future. I especially won't need to relive spending two weeks in Vegas. I'm grateful to Cathy for letting me indulge in my sightseeing for the first few days while she mostly enjoyed having her feet up and off the brake and pedal. I still think I'll need to leave the Bash property every so often, but I think I'm more likely to repeat my favorite things to see and do in Vegas than to find anything new there. I do suspect that we will be expanding our social circle which I feel would be a plus.
Wow... is 2009 The Year of the Grim Reaper or what? They say "death comes in threes" but this year, it's more like the dozens! Some of the more poignant passings for me include: Farrah Fawcett, with whom Cathy shared a common bond of an unfortunate illness; John Hughes, the "Judd Apatow" of my teenage years; and, Michael Jackson, if only for the surreal coincidence of staying in a hotel in Hollywood on the night before his memorial service. And of course, my most loyal readers would think me remiss if I didn't mention the loss of two members of the Kennedy clan.
The domestic agenda of President Obama and the Democratic-controlled Congress seems to be mixed in public opinion if not also in its effectiveness. As much as I dislike the idea of corporate welfare, I believe that simply letting the banks and auto makers fail would have had a ripple effect of millions in job losses that would have cost taxpayers more in the end than the stimulus package. And while necessity may well be the mother of invention, not everyone has the entrepreneurial skill and spirit to rely on themselves instead of an employer.
Regarding health care, I consider it to be the right of every American citizen and legal resident. I believe the status quo is not working, unless you're either an upper-income employee who is happy with their coverage... or the insurance company CEO who is happy with their bonus. While I think a government-funded "public option" should be in the mix, I'm not opposed to state health co-ops as a compromise, despite the unflinching views of both staunch Republicans and Democrats in Congress. I do think that GOP proposals like capping doctor malpractice judgments and opening up insurer competition to all fifty states would have potentially detrimental results for most citizens. One of the best models to build on, ironically, would the one that Republican Mitt Romney implemented while Governor of Massachusetts; it makes sense that everyone should pay into it, just as long as everyone is covered. I am surprised he hasn't received more news coverage these days. Or if he has, it must be on news media that I don't frequent.
Peace.
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