Skip navigation

Monthly Archives: July 2012

Zimmerman


The recent Tv appearance of George Zimmerman to explain what happened on that fateful evening that Trayvon Martin was killed is designed  to show Mr. Zimmerman as a better (different) person than he may be. It is possible that he remembers the events the way he states and it is possible that since he is under the advice of counsel he is stating his testimony within the range he can. While  his statements may or may not be correct, the one thing we must understand is : Trayvon will never have his say.

Gaudy Patter.


“The cheaper the hood, the gaudier the patter” This was a line from a Bogart movie. Which I have heard many times yet it never registered until a recent viewing. It resonated possibly because of the constant reporting on  the Dupublican candidate for President. The seeker has a scripted set of lines and answers to any and all questions and the responses become so ritualistic as to be unbelievable. Sometimes these answers are structured to fit each location or area so the line from the movie  seems to fit. This campaign amounts to a shouting match that America seems to love. I deduced this love affair from the many “reality” , Guru, personal and judge shows that air daily. I understand that people will decide based on their gut feelings, information, misinformation, personal biases but rarely facts. Each candidate’s writers attempt to one up on the others while extorting the correctness in voting for their “guy”. The reality is that there will never ever be a perfect candidate for President. There will be candidates with better qualifications but none across the board perfect. The purpose of campaigns is to showcase the strengths and abilities of the candidate not their race, religion or wealth yet these are the basis of many campaigns nad tend to confuse potential voters while creating the air of daytime TV fodder as described previously. I suggest that we all dismiss the TV appearances and pay more attention to the written word from several sources to get a clearer idea of who each candidate is. If you really look you will see all manner of lesser non running affiliates of each side injecting just enough dirt to cause a diversion which is quickly put to rest but a distraction none the less. If a blurb from someone gets media coverage it could be gaudy patter gone viral.

S.O.B.


As I was looking at a movie on the Telly, I heard people use the phrase S.O.B. several times.  I thought about this and concluded that phrase  is more often used as an insult or expletive. Looking at the possible origins of the word B***h.    bitchn. A female canine animal, especially a dog. Offensive . A woman considered to be spiteful or overbearing or The word “bitch“, literally meaning a female dog, is a common slang term in the English language, especially used as a denigrating term applied to a person. So in anthropological terms or cold scientific ones a woman can be a bitch with no other connotation than being a female and sometimes a female parent. Using these terms and explanations we all could be S.O.Bs or D.O.Bs, though usually S.O.B. is used as male and female insults. There are several other modern day definitions that need no  coverage here  but do exist in several dictionaries. When the phrase wells up in you or in conversation it would be wise to reconsider your usage as you could be insulting someones parent.

The Economy In A Nutshell


This current Presidential campaign has allegations of the President’s policies failing in the effort to kick-start the economy. Part of the issue is incomplete or totally erroneous information regarding the cause of the crisis.In 2003-2005 we had low-interest rates that led to a flow of funds into the U.S mortgage markets as Foreign central banks bought U.S. dollars which aggravated the housing boom and the subsequent bust. This investment in U.S. dollars was influenced by the Fed’s low rates. These low rates caused a housing boom in Spain, Ireland and Greece. These booms and subsequent busts started the European debt crisis which is now threatening the U.S. economy. What needs to happen now is for the Fed to pay close attention to the economic events in Europe especially the global capital flows and the reactions of the other central banks to the Feds decision to set interest rates very low for extended periods of time. This is a short version of an article written by Mr. John B. Taylor an economics professor at Stanford U. The Congress and Mr. Romney should be reading the same information I do to get a clear idea of why the economy is so slow in recovering. Keeping in mind that our current economic situation started before  Mr. Obama ran for the office but Congress (if they knew) ignored(?) the situation and now seeks to blame Mr. Obama for their failings. What comes to my mind is that our sitting Congress is composed of Neer do wells who have slacked in their jobs for so long that it seems Ok to do it but will readily throw some one else under the bus and continue their irresponsible ways. Our economy has been sliding own for some time with the advent of outsourcing by many companies long before the economy caught up and spiralled downward. Understanding that we (voters) expected our elected officials to look after us but we also failed to do our due diligence in paying attention to what they are doing. This upcoming election needs to be about Congress more than the 2 candidates since Congress has the power to make meaningful changes and approve or alter any proposed changes. We as voters can demand term limits that allow new thoughts to come about and we need to make that demand. My suggestion would be a One (1) term of 13 years, with no pension benefit, a cost living increase on par with the average worker and medical benefits that are the same as any other government worker. Certain privileges should be rescinded, such as Franking ( free postage), per diem for overtime,  free air flights except for  certain Congressional business and a bi monthly account of funds used for the performance of Congressional duties.

Accountability


Freedom without accountability is irresponsible. We have given our Congress the freedom to advocate and act for us. This arrangement has been in place for years. We only raise an uproar when it affects us personally. This behavior  on our part has led to the current political crisis (yes crisis). Our Congress has acted with the tacit freedom of action we have given it. We were happy when they attacked certain segments that we felt endangered us but failed to see the pocket picking performed by the very body we allowed to do this work for us. The current group is composed of headline grabbers whose actual work is belied by the rampant issuance of truthful appearing sound bites. If it were possible for a deceased person to spin in their graves, then think about what the founders of America are doing now. Our Congress has become no more than soul sapping bandits without masks. We have not held them accountable and we are now seeing the results. We have been showered with misinformation while the Congress pledges  allegiance to special interests because they donate more money to their campaigns. The Congress has spent more time and money pointing the finger at one another, the opposite party and who ever the President is than actually doing their work. We have rewarded them by re electing them time after time. We are the public and it is our tit they are latched on to.

What about before?


One of the erstwhile members of Congress has taken issue with the Olympic teams uniforms and their manufacturing origin. This may seem a humorous happenstance or maybe just poor judgement but look at the country of manufacture on a great quantity of goods used in America. This Country has  been crunched by the outsourced manufacture of hard goods, clothing, footwear and more with no squawks from the Congress who purport to look after the American people. Could it be that as long as no one important speaks up, its OK?  Did anyone consider the consequences of having the clothing made somewhere other than the USA? I would imagine Mr. Lauren (Ralph) gave it no thought as where the merchandise would be produced as he may have used this source before to produce his own goods. So I say What about before when clothing made outside the U.S. was beginning? I personally do not like the way Chinese made Levis or wranglers fit. I am not so thrilled with certain shoes either, my size is 8 in most shoes or 9 in Chinese or Bangladesh.

Where Did We Go Astray?


In the formative years of the U.S. our founders wrestled with problems similar to what we are experiencing now but on a smaller scale. The difference is , even though these men had issues with one another’s views and perhaps lifestyles, they managed to put aside  those issues not related to Governing and setting up a Government and got the work done.  Despite their differences these men saw the importance of working for the (new) nation instead of against one another.  This is something that either died or gone into hibernation these days.I am wondering what is wrong with our “modern” day Congress? Our elected officials have allowed their personal interests and opinions to muddy the waters to a point of distraction. No one of us will ever completely approve of one another but most of us find ways to work around or with the issue to get the work done. It seems that the “learned ” Legislators , “Scamocrats and Dupublicans” seem to have forgotten what they were elected to do. The title of this writing is “where did we go wrong?” We went wrong when stopped paying attention to what our representatives were doing or not doing. We have allowed ourselves to be side tracked by Race, culture and religion all of which have nothing to do with good Governing. We can’t seem to get reasonable governing in spite of ourselves. An understanding of how this happened emerges from the fact that England outlawed slavery in 1777 and we made that slide step almost 200 years later and still not completely. The current occupiers of the legislature have apparently forgotten why they are in that building. We have had many years of discord in the Congress and almost always to the disadvantage of the voters. The idea that the melting pot has lost its heat indicates how far away we have moved from the tenets of  the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. It is my belief that voters need to hold those 500 plus representatives accountable by asking hard questions and demanding true answers rather than lip service.

My Opinion


“Readers are leaders”,  as quoted by a national printed material circulation company. Apparently this is lost on many people as many would rather access the continuing flow of TV ads, talk shows and web based information rather than read what is written and compare it to what is being said. Recently I was reading the different takes on the Health care act and its effect, I quickly realized that even the soon to be administrators of this program have not bothered to get the facts and how it would affect their state. If the public continues the trend of not reading everything related to an issue then we are pretty much lost in the shuffle of misinformation and innuendo. The NRA took a segment of time on Sunday to push the same message of fear not unlike the fears of “People of Color”and  other ethnic groups moving  into neighborhoods and work places. I am not against firearm ownership (being one myself) but I am against using scare tactics on issues instead of facts. I am against using the same tactics of misinformation for political gain while the truth goes unspoken. I use the NRA as an example because I was once a member but dissolved that contact when I realized the effect of their disturbing messages reached the level of the gun shows I attend  occasionally. President Obama has been blamed for everything from ammunition shortage to firearms shortage and neither is true. What really happened is the demand for these items exploded when the rumors that the President would take away our firearms when he was running for election, that made the shortage not the then soon to be President. The end game here should be that we all need to expand our sources of information and have a balanced idea of what happening around us. There are hundreds and possibly thousands of organizations, companies and powerful individuals  working to alter our opinions and thinking (remember “1984”?) and we can stop them by giving heed to what is being said and verifying it with information from other sources. Do not allow yourselves to “conned” into poor decisions or inaction. Read!

Retail Woes


In these modern times , the retail sector has suffered along with other companies and the public. What appears to be evident is that the retailers have lost sight of the source of their income. This source is the on the ground, workers who clerk, stock, receive, ship and purchase goods. Above them are the assorted managers who provide training and merchandising expertise. After that are the corporate workers who if they have worked in the same retail field provide assistance in maintaining the integrity of the store and good relations with the suppliers by assuring proper product placement and availability. If this tier has never had any retail experience then much of what they do is counterproductive. This anti production results in employee disenfranchisement and terminates in lost sales. The higher tier of management (boardroom, CEO’s, etc) where the most crucial decisions are made (fortunes made and lost) have a high responsibility in keeping close tabs on what the middle tier is doing or not doing but many times they focus on the store level where there is less of a need for attention but the information available is more pertinent. There are several CEO’s now who have no retail experience (or in their companies field) and cannot visualize what is required to continue successful management of their companies. The last truly well managed company I can remember working for was a national hardware chain managed by the 2 originators. Upon their departure much of the worker oriented culture left with them leaving the dregs as it were to run the shop. Without a quality support no building can stand and neither can a business.

Check The Facts


There is a website that checks and clarify the facts put out by political candidates and elected officials. The website is: www.politifact.com. It would behoove us all to look at this site to insure the information we are bombarded with has some basis in fact.  It is not important that your preferred candidate is proven wrong or proven to be in error, what is important is having the correct information to make an informed decision in the voting booth. There are more uninformed voters than dumb or stupid voters. The political community  (all parties and factions) depends upon people not investigating their statements and acting on poor and  erroneous information. There may be some folks in Congress who deserve our trust but none of them are in leadership positions.