Sorry to all...I have been gone on vacation for nearly a week and therefore have not been posting. There has been a lot happening lately, and fear not dear readers for I will get caught up. Expect to see several post a day over the next few days. Keep the comments coming, they are insightful and appreciated. Happy reading,
RR
Thursday, April 27, 2006
Tuesday, April 18, 2006
A Little Something about Nothing
It would be my sincere hope that if today is the first day you are reading this blog that instead of reading this post you skip down to some of the previous post. For hopefully there you will find something that resembles an intelligent thought. Or simply come back tomorrow, as I hope to return to some sense of normalcy.
I have been sitting here this evening trying to come up with something interesting to write about. Okay, so that is not entirely true, I haven't been sitting here this evening, as much as I have been sitting her for about five minutes. I guess I am not in the mood to bring my normal gravitas to the events of the day. So instead I do suppose that I can take up some of my time, and if your reading this yours, by simply writing about nothing. Nothing is such a fickle thing, however, and such a tough concept to embrace that I have all but given up on making it make any sense. Now lets be clear nothing is a very distinct and unusually coy concept that cannot be easily examined, much the less explained away. For nothing, as you all know is more than simply the lack of anything.
Now if one were to take the previous statement to be true, then you would still be left with the question of what in fact nothing is. This takes us to one of my most favorite quotes of all time "It depends on what your definition of is is." Wow, talk about priceless. If I were to talk double as much as he talked triple, than I would have to quadruple my words just to stay even. Ah none the less, it appears that I have filled up a couple of paragraphs with nothing, that is to say not the lack of something, but an entirely different thing.
That reminds me of a pet peeve of mine. I really cannot stand it when someone says that I have something just like that only its different. Now I am not going to be so elementary as to point out the outrageous faux paux in that statement, but suffice to say that it is difficult for something to be the same and yet different. Then again, what really makes one thing different from the other? Now to answer that question we have to examine the level that we really want to dive into such a random and entirely inconsequential argument. For to examine what makes things different is all in the eye of the beholder. Now granted that some eyes are better than others, the difference may in fact be something, or it may be nothing at all. Again please keep in mind that nothing and the lack of something can co-exist and share a meaning, however that meaning is completely different in each individual case.
Well I suppose that this incessant babbling has turned into complete rubbish, and my circular logic has become quite square by now. With that in mind I bid you all a fair evening, keep doing what it is you do, don't do, or do nothing, for as we have illustrated above, it really just doesn't matter.
I have been sitting here this evening trying to come up with something interesting to write about. Okay, so that is not entirely true, I haven't been sitting here this evening, as much as I have been sitting her for about five minutes. I guess I am not in the mood to bring my normal gravitas to the events of the day. So instead I do suppose that I can take up some of my time, and if your reading this yours, by simply writing about nothing. Nothing is such a fickle thing, however, and such a tough concept to embrace that I have all but given up on making it make any sense. Now lets be clear nothing is a very distinct and unusually coy concept that cannot be easily examined, much the less explained away. For nothing, as you all know is more than simply the lack of anything.
Now if one were to take the previous statement to be true, then you would still be left with the question of what in fact nothing is. This takes us to one of my most favorite quotes of all time "It depends on what your definition of is is." Wow, talk about priceless. If I were to talk double as much as he talked triple, than I would have to quadruple my words just to stay even. Ah none the less, it appears that I have filled up a couple of paragraphs with nothing, that is to say not the lack of something, but an entirely different thing.
That reminds me of a pet peeve of mine. I really cannot stand it when someone says that I have something just like that only its different. Now I am not going to be so elementary as to point out the outrageous faux paux in that statement, but suffice to say that it is difficult for something to be the same and yet different. Then again, what really makes one thing different from the other? Now to answer that question we have to examine the level that we really want to dive into such a random and entirely inconsequential argument. For to examine what makes things different is all in the eye of the beholder. Now granted that some eyes are better than others, the difference may in fact be something, or it may be nothing at all. Again please keep in mind that nothing and the lack of something can co-exist and share a meaning, however that meaning is completely different in each individual case.
Well I suppose that this incessant babbling has turned into complete rubbish, and my circular logic has become quite square by now. With that in mind I bid you all a fair evening, keep doing what it is you do, don't do, or do nothing, for as we have illustrated above, it really just doesn't matter.
Sunday, April 16, 2006
We are no longer "Un-American"
An interesting thing happened this past week; one of the administration's most effective weapons was rendered useless. No it wasn't a bomb or a fighter jet, but rather a very strong weapon against those who's opinions do not fall in line with the motives and actions of the Bush administration. Following comments from several retired Generals criticizing Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and the handling of the war in Iraq, it suddenly became okay to criticize the war. Up until this point in time the President of the United States, the right wing talk radio, and of course our friends at Fox News had found an effective way to stifle any criticism of the Bush administration or the war; simply label all people who disagree as Un-American. However, after this past week the administration must realize that the "Un-American" label can no longer be applied to those who share their dissenting opinions.
The idea that those who disagree with Bush Administration policies are somehow unpatriotic or Un-American is in itself ludicrous, albeit very effective. Now I have to say that as spins go this was a very good one. In fact this administration has been perhaps the best in history at rebutting, labeling, and ultimately marginalizing those who disagree with it. Through the vehicle of talk radio, Democrats have become "leftist-liberals", those who disagree with the war are "unpatriotic", and anyone who disagrees on social policy suddenly "lacks values". Of course no one wants to be labeled as unpatriotic or told they have no morals or values. In this regard the right wing spin machine has succeeded in shutting down objections to policy and practices that would otherwise be criticized extensively. From a strategic standpoint this playbook has served the administration well. A shift is about to occur, however, as it is dangerous if not politically suicidal to accuse retired general officers of being unpatriotic.
Finally someone is saying the right things, and coming after Rumsfeld for the right reasons. This is no left-wing partisan attack, but rather a demand for accountability from the man who runs the Pentagon. This has been a long time coming and it is amazing that the Democratic leaders in congress could not come to this resolution earlier. It is not about whether one agrees with the war or not. The issue is whether this process was managed in the right way, and if it was not, who is accountable? Frankly, I believe that the man at the top of the organization should shoulder the responsibility, but asking for the resignation of Rumsfeld is a good start.
For those of you who are still not with me, let me illustrate it in another way. As a manager of a business, I have to make decisions every single day based on information brought to me by others. If I make a bad decision, regardless of who brought me the information, I am accountable for it. This could mean that I am reprimanded, disciplined, or even fired. The debate over the Iraq War should not be whether or not we should be there, but rather, was the decision to go to war the right one. Since the beginning of the war the administration has changed its reasons for going to war three times. First it was all about WMD, then we heard about regime change, and now we are there to bring democracy to Iraq (I do believe that democracy must come internally from the people, but that is a conversation for later). The simple fact of the matter is that the President acted on bad intelligence and that both he and those responsible for the bad intelligence should be held accountable. In the same vein, Rumsfeld should be held accountable for his lack of planning and mismanagement of the war.
Now, I am not naive enough to believe that we can simply bring our troops home at this point. However, when you have general officers speaking out against the Secretary of Defense, everyone should be listening. These are men who have devoted their entire lives to the service of their country. These men understand better than anyone how to run a war and what is necessary to be successful. The idea of politicians and appointees ignoring high ranking military officers harkens us back 30 years to a different war. Did we learn nothing then that could help us now?
The idea that those who disagree with Bush Administration policies are somehow unpatriotic or Un-American is in itself ludicrous, albeit very effective. Now I have to say that as spins go this was a very good one. In fact this administration has been perhaps the best in history at rebutting, labeling, and ultimately marginalizing those who disagree with it. Through the vehicle of talk radio, Democrats have become "leftist-liberals", those who disagree with the war are "unpatriotic", and anyone who disagrees on social policy suddenly "lacks values". Of course no one wants to be labeled as unpatriotic or told they have no morals or values. In this regard the right wing spin machine has succeeded in shutting down objections to policy and practices that would otherwise be criticized extensively. From a strategic standpoint this playbook has served the administration well. A shift is about to occur, however, as it is dangerous if not politically suicidal to accuse retired general officers of being unpatriotic.
Finally someone is saying the right things, and coming after Rumsfeld for the right reasons. This is no left-wing partisan attack, but rather a demand for accountability from the man who runs the Pentagon. This has been a long time coming and it is amazing that the Democratic leaders in congress could not come to this resolution earlier. It is not about whether one agrees with the war or not. The issue is whether this process was managed in the right way, and if it was not, who is accountable? Frankly, I believe that the man at the top of the organization should shoulder the responsibility, but asking for the resignation of Rumsfeld is a good start.
For those of you who are still not with me, let me illustrate it in another way. As a manager of a business, I have to make decisions every single day based on information brought to me by others. If I make a bad decision, regardless of who brought me the information, I am accountable for it. This could mean that I am reprimanded, disciplined, or even fired. The debate over the Iraq War should not be whether or not we should be there, but rather, was the decision to go to war the right one. Since the beginning of the war the administration has changed its reasons for going to war three times. First it was all about WMD, then we heard about regime change, and now we are there to bring democracy to Iraq (I do believe that democracy must come internally from the people, but that is a conversation for later). The simple fact of the matter is that the President acted on bad intelligence and that both he and those responsible for the bad intelligence should be held accountable. In the same vein, Rumsfeld should be held accountable for his lack of planning and mismanagement of the war.
Now, I am not naive enough to believe that we can simply bring our troops home at this point. However, when you have general officers speaking out against the Secretary of Defense, everyone should be listening. These are men who have devoted their entire lives to the service of their country. These men understand better than anyone how to run a war and what is necessary to be successful. The idea of politicians and appointees ignoring high ranking military officers harkens us back 30 years to a different war. Did we learn nothing then that could help us now?
Saturday, April 15, 2006
Immigration....Isn't it Simple???
Of course immigration is a simple issue, if by simple you mean incredibly complex, controversial, and without an easy solution. I have to say that my thoughts on this issue have evolved the more that I step back and look at all perspectives and angles.
When I initially saw the thousands of people demonstrating across the country I had a hard time coming to grips with what they were protesting. Illegal immigration is just that, illegal. What is there to protest when one is breaking the law. Yes, I had heard all of the arguments about how crucial this group of people is to our economy. How in many cases they take the jobs that others won't do. How they work for less which helps American businesses earn more and therefore grow the economy. Still I thought to myself, if I broke the law I would most certainly be punished for it. Why should immigrants who break the law be treated any differently.
I continued to hear the arguments against immigration; the strain on social services, the fear of terrorism, and my favorite, the issue of language. All of these are compelling arguments against allowing foreign persons to enter our country.
Then I stepped back for a minute and was hit with a whole new perspective. Who's country was this? Where did the current 300 million US citizens come from? To be sure, that majority were born here in this wonderful country, but what about their parents? Grandparents? Great Grand Parents? In case I need to give anyone a history lesson, almost all of us trace our family tree across an ocean. America was built on the backs of immigrants and slaves. The quintessential American tale is that of an immigrant who came to our shores with nothing, only to build a business and become a huge success. So what has changed? Has our nation become so large that we can no longer accommodate any more people? Hardly.
What has changed is our view of our country and what it means to be an American. It was okay for millions of Europeans to come through Ellis Island looking for a better life, but is it not okay for Mexicans and others from south of our border to cross the Rio Grande on the same quest?
The answer lies in what our nation has become, what we value, and how we view the rest of the world. We are the Bad-News-Bear's team that grew up to win the championship and then forgot what it meant to struggle, to be mocked, and to grow from it. We no longer see the value of nations outside of our own, and most certainly don't value their cultures or peoples. America is no doubt the greatest nation on the globe, unchallenged be it technologically, economically, or militarily. In our climb to the top we have forgotten where we came from and what helped our nation grow. The Irish and Chinese immigrants who built the railroad, the many eastern European scientist that helped us end the Second World War, and thousands of others who came to our country, built their businesses, and in the process made this nation the most powerful in the world.
All of the reasons why we are hearing to keep people out are simply there to mask the xenophoebic fears of an elitist society. The social argument is bunk. Any economist will tell you that the work performed by illegals more than outweighs any social drain. Plus, many of these illegal workers pay into social security and Medicare and will never be able to take advantage of these programs because of their illegal status.
The argument for securing the borders because of possible terrorist infiltration is a valid one. However, closing our border to the south will not make America any safer. To date no foreign alien charged or convicted of terrorist activities has entered the United States via Mexico, and none of the 9-11 hijackers entered the country illegally.
Lastly, the belief that by opening our southern border we would be overrun by Spanish speaking peoples and therefore loose English as our predominant language is completely ignorant . A recent article published in Time (March 20th, 2006. p. 89) points out that over seventy percent of all third generation Mexican-Americans speak only one language; English. America has demonstrated for over 200 years that we are a nation who takes the best from our immigrants and then assimilates the rest.
As I said, it is a complicated issue with no easy solution. However, in the increasingly globalized world, we must realize the impact of our domestic policy not only within, but also outside of our borders. Yes, we must always protect the interest of American citizens first and foremost, for that is the job of our government. However, we cannot be short-sided in our analysis of how our decisions effect the rest of the world. People must have the most basic necessities to survive and nations must have strong economies to be politically stable. It is time that we practice the principle that our parents taught us; do to others as you would like them to do to you. Think about yourself on the outside looking in, and then decide what policy you would choose.
When I initially saw the thousands of people demonstrating across the country I had a hard time coming to grips with what they were protesting. Illegal immigration is just that, illegal. What is there to protest when one is breaking the law. Yes, I had heard all of the arguments about how crucial this group of people is to our economy. How in many cases they take the jobs that others won't do. How they work for less which helps American businesses earn more and therefore grow the economy. Still I thought to myself, if I broke the law I would most certainly be punished for it. Why should immigrants who break the law be treated any differently.
I continued to hear the arguments against immigration; the strain on social services, the fear of terrorism, and my favorite, the issue of language. All of these are compelling arguments against allowing foreign persons to enter our country.
Then I stepped back for a minute and was hit with a whole new perspective. Who's country was this? Where did the current 300 million US citizens come from? To be sure, that majority were born here in this wonderful country, but what about their parents? Grandparents? Great Grand Parents? In case I need to give anyone a history lesson, almost all of us trace our family tree across an ocean. America was built on the backs of immigrants and slaves. The quintessential American tale is that of an immigrant who came to our shores with nothing, only to build a business and become a huge success. So what has changed? Has our nation become so large that we can no longer accommodate any more people? Hardly.
What has changed is our view of our country and what it means to be an American. It was okay for millions of Europeans to come through Ellis Island looking for a better life, but is it not okay for Mexicans and others from south of our border to cross the Rio Grande on the same quest?
The answer lies in what our nation has become, what we value, and how we view the rest of the world. We are the Bad-News-Bear's team that grew up to win the championship and then forgot what it meant to struggle, to be mocked, and to grow from it. We no longer see the value of nations outside of our own, and most certainly don't value their cultures or peoples. America is no doubt the greatest nation on the globe, unchallenged be it technologically, economically, or militarily. In our climb to the top we have forgotten where we came from and what helped our nation grow. The Irish and Chinese immigrants who built the railroad, the many eastern European scientist that helped us end the Second World War, and thousands of others who came to our country, built their businesses, and in the process made this nation the most powerful in the world.
All of the reasons why we are hearing to keep people out are simply there to mask the xenophoebic fears of an elitist society. The social argument is bunk. Any economist will tell you that the work performed by illegals more than outweighs any social drain. Plus, many of these illegal workers pay into social security and Medicare and will never be able to take advantage of these programs because of their illegal status.
The argument for securing the borders because of possible terrorist infiltration is a valid one. However, closing our border to the south will not make America any safer. To date no foreign alien charged or convicted of terrorist activities has entered the United States via Mexico, and none of the 9-11 hijackers entered the country illegally.
Lastly, the belief that by opening our southern border we would be overrun by Spanish speaking peoples and therefore loose English as our predominant language is completely ignorant . A recent article published in Time (March 20th, 2006. p. 89) points out that over seventy percent of all third generation Mexican-Americans speak only one language; English. America has demonstrated for over 200 years that we are a nation who takes the best from our immigrants and then assimilates the rest.
As I said, it is a complicated issue with no easy solution. However, in the increasingly globalized world, we must realize the impact of our domestic policy not only within, but also outside of our borders. Yes, we must always protect the interest of American citizens first and foremost, for that is the job of our government. However, we cannot be short-sided in our analysis of how our decisions effect the rest of the world. People must have the most basic necessities to survive and nations must have strong economies to be politically stable. It is time that we practice the principle that our parents taught us; do to others as you would like them to do to you. Think about yourself on the outside looking in, and then decide what policy you would choose.
And today it begins.....
So I do suppose that I have ignored this trend for as long as possible. I was very resistant to start a blog. I mean, really, who reads this crap anyway. Nonetheless, this is the new communication medium and it is far easier than writing, researching, and submitting an article to be published. As many of you know, I am far to busy to do that at this point in time, so instead I can share my perspective with all of you in a free and easy format. My intention is to address the issues of the day through my own eyes. To perhaps share a new opinion or give a different perspective from the other sources you may read.
There are so many things going on in our world everyday, and unfortunately, we have been trained to ignore the vast majority of them. We have our own lives, work to be done, children to feed, houses to clean, and occasionally recreation to enjoy. All of this is well and good, but as I grow older and progress both in my personal and professional lives I have found that there is still a large part of me that is unsatisfied. I know that I will not be the man to cure AIDS, to bring about peace in the Middle East, or to foster the next great technological revolution. However, I do believe that I have something to contribute to our society and am terribly frustrated at my current path. As many others have, I have fallen into the trap of the everyday. I now find myself at a job that was never intended to be a career. I have to wonder how many great thinkers, artists, and innovators are stuck in the trap of the everyday. How many have sacrificed their hopes and dreams and instead settled for a life of comfort without rewards.
My goal is to bring about a change to my current dilemma, to come out of the cave and run towards the light. This blog will chronicle my hopeful move from frustration to fulfillment. I have a passion for current events and for the political process in all its glory and deceit. I want to share the passion and believe that I can have an impact on someone at the end of the day. I have to say, that I am not optimistic, however, I do believe in perserverance and persistence, and that with the billions of people who live on this planet at least one person has to find this entertaining or amusing.
There are so many things going on in our world everyday, and unfortunately, we have been trained to ignore the vast majority of them. We have our own lives, work to be done, children to feed, houses to clean, and occasionally recreation to enjoy. All of this is well and good, but as I grow older and progress both in my personal and professional lives I have found that there is still a large part of me that is unsatisfied. I know that I will not be the man to cure AIDS, to bring about peace in the Middle East, or to foster the next great technological revolution. However, I do believe that I have something to contribute to our society and am terribly frustrated at my current path. As many others have, I have fallen into the trap of the everyday. I now find myself at a job that was never intended to be a career. I have to wonder how many great thinkers, artists, and innovators are stuck in the trap of the everyday. How many have sacrificed their hopes and dreams and instead settled for a life of comfort without rewards.
My goal is to bring about a change to my current dilemma, to come out of the cave and run towards the light. This blog will chronicle my hopeful move from frustration to fulfillment. I have a passion for current events and for the political process in all its glory and deceit. I want to share the passion and believe that I can have an impact on someone at the end of the day. I have to say, that I am not optimistic, however, I do believe in perserverance and persistence, and that with the billions of people who live on this planet at least one person has to find this entertaining or amusing.
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