Time For Real Happiness

Everyone is forecasting the largest economic catastrophe since the Great Depression. There are many similarities. The news, government and it seems most people think this is an attack on the American Dream, our pursuit of happiness and that our lives will not be worth living. They focus only on the bottom two levels of Abraham Maslow's pyramid and equate this with happiness. My thesis for this post is that hard times makes us stop and try to figure what is true happiness as opposed to the propaganda spread by social scientists, government experts and advertising agencies.

The Great Depression and perhaps today are the two most significant times in the last century that the physiological needs (air, water, food, shelter, clothing), and safety needs (protection from crime, loss of income and/or retirement, health care) have been in serious jeopardy for a significant portion of the general population. Natural disasters like hurricanes, fires and earthquakes hit only an isolated area. Economic depressions hit the country (even the world) as a whole, thus having greater impact. In all of these tragedies there is loss of life, and great pain. This also produces great soul searching. People step back from the rat race, ask themselves if losing their house, car, furniture, etc. is really the end of the world?

In time all material things lost due to these circumstances, though missed, can be replaced. And when they look at how much energy and effort went into the accumulation of all they lost thinking that these things would make them happy they realize how foolish they'd been.

• Happiness is not a house, or a car, or expensive clothes. This only covers steps 1 & 2 of the pyramid.
• Happiness is not to be found in a job. Again this covers steps 1 & 2.
• Happiness is not found in the family. Steps 3, 4 & 5 all have to do with love, togetherness, emotional well being, accomplishment, serenity. Things we all need. Happiness, but just because we need it does not make for happiness.
• Happiness is not to be found in Religion or running away from it all.  Sidharta Guatama (The Buddha) chose enlightenment over temporary fame, chose poverty in order to focus on his mind and spirit. In Christianity those who retreated to monasteries or convents chose a small cell and meager food to devote their lives to prayer and meditation. Others chose a life of helping and serving others. Other religions have similar practices of either escape or altruism. Giving up steps 1 & 2 and 3 to focus on steps 4 & 5 doesn't mean you'll be happy either.

So then what is happiness if it's not any of the above. Happiness is all of the above (for some) and none of the above (for others)! There is no equation for happiness, you either have it or you don't.

 

For me, happiness is balance, completion, striving to reach a goal no matter if its ever reached. The good times are always the ones where you are climbing the hill not coasting down it. When you're coasting down it's easier to appreciate the good times than when you're focused on going up the hill. 

I like the visual of Maslow's pyramid. Happiness, what he calls self-actualization is not connected to the pyramid, it's removed and sits above. Is it possible to be happy and have little or none of the other parts of the pyramid -- yes. Is it possible to be happy and have all of the pyramid -- yes.

In summation in good economic times people get caught up in the acquisition of material possessions thinking this will make them happy. Hard economic times, disasters, or tragedies make us take stock of things that have real value not just monetary value. Real value like real happiness is unique to each individual. Read the Beatitudes, Jesus chose as blessed (happy) those society thought would be most miserable. Society can only use Maslow's bottom two steps as an indicator for happiness which is a pretty lousy yard stick. 

Each person has to figure out for themselves what makes them happy. This is a time where there's a collective "gut check." It's a time to be enjoyed, savored, appreciated not feared. It's a time to learn what really matters in life and focus on that instead of possessions.

Another one on the way

It seems that Grinnygranny and I are going to have another grandchild in six months. This is making for a full house. I never thought we'd turn into The Waltons, and most importantly that we would become the eldest generation.

My Apology

Definition: Apology (pronounced ap/a/low/gee) to defend vigorously.

Michael Manning left a comment on my last post. I've responded to it, but since many readers don't look at the comment section I've decided to print a portion of my response to his supportive comment.

Preamble to the point I want to make. Many people I encounter understand the difficulties of being a teacher today. Many wonder why people become teachers. First and foremost it's not about the money. Not everything in life is. A salary commensurate with the level of education is better in other fields. 

I was fortunate to get a college education on an athletic scholarship which did not leave me with a huge financial debt. This allowed me to become a teacher and weather the professions low pay. It takes about fifteen years before the salary really becomes a living wage. None of the other professions requiring the same level of education take this long and many have starting salaries higher than what a teacher makes at twenty years experience.

I fear for the profession and the future generations that need even more eduction that I did at their age, and for the well being of the country that needs a well educated society to advance us technologically and economically. I've seen too many baby teachers take a look at their first paycheck and realize they can't possibly live on it, after they make their college loan payments. The salaries of teachers have not kept up with the basic educational requirement for certification. That is the real problem facing education today.

My reason for being a teacher is part of my answer to Mr. Manning.

Every time I get disgusted with the hassles of teaching I start looking at other professions and figure if it was easy and wonderful they wouldn't call it work. All jobs have their unpleasant aspects. This one has many rewards (seeing students learn and graduate), security (a biggie in this economy), benefits (health and retirement) and summers off to spend with children and grandchildren and write. It may not be many people's cup of tea, but it's mine.

In The News

Reading the online New York Times today there was an article about the Chancellor of Washington D.C.'s public schools trying to abolish tenure. The woman is trying to get teachers to decide which economic package to sign up for, the tenure track with little money, or the non-tenure track with double the money. The extra money coming not from the taxpayers, but undisclosed private interests.

1. Tenure: a person after attaining three years of probationary teaching has the right to be informed of the reason for being terminated or fired. In other words if an administrator wants to fire a teacher they need to say why!
2. The red  herring being bantered about is that teachers unions are trying to save the jobs of bad teachers. Nothing could be further from the truth. If there is a teacher who is not doing his or her job, or is in violation of the contract, good riddance to them. All the union and tenure requires is that there has to be a good reason for the termination. How many workers feel that before your boss fires you that they should have a good reason for doing so? Come on raise your hand. Isn't that the way things should be done in the workplace?
3. Is anyone else bothered that a non-disclosed private source is funneling money into one of the largest public school systems in the country on the condition that tenure be abolished? Who's trying to buy our public schools? For what reason? What's next, mandated curriculum or they pull the gravy train?
4. When there is a teacher shortage that is only going to get worse as the baby boomers (like me) retire, why is there so much emphasis on how to get rid of teachers?
5. Public schools are too important for them to be placed in the hands of the highest bidder. Corporations have already seized our universities with their research grants and have turned them into their own research and development departments and in the process tying them up with contracts that limit their academic freedom. Do we need them grabbing high schools too?

Here's and anecdote:

When I was at another school the teacher in the next room had a student teacher. The student teacher blew up at her. He screamed and yelled, called her every name under the sun, and as a result he was dropped from the program. When I left that school a few years later to teach where I am now I was surprised that he was an assistant basketball coach here and teaching in my department. That year he blew up at the head basketball coach and they nearly got into a fist fight in front of the students. My classes were large and nearly half of my students came into my class from parents requests to get them out of his class, because he wasn't teaching them anything. I talked to the dept chair, told what had happened at the previous school and asked how he even got certified as he was dropped from the program. He came in the back door through the internship program and they grabbed him because he would coach. The next year he was gone. Two years later I attended a dinner as a sponsor for the department to honor a selected student, where they received an award. This teacher was there from a private school. It gets even better, last year I was at a career day representing Southwest Writer's Workshop with a fellow teacher from another high school. Sitting there with a lot of time to talk he complained that an assistant principle at his school was giving all the teachers living hell and he came from my school and they would sure like to send him back. I asked who he was talking about and when he said the name it proved to me where bad teachers eventually wind up -- as principles.

My Take

In a humorous approach, here's my take on the last three Presidential elections:

Dateline USS Enterprise-Earth

Stardate 111108.0930

• USS Enterprise-Earth has experienced eight years of inept and bumbling Romulan-Republican Captain Archer-Bush. Proceeding blindly into the unknown without a map even resorting to torture to get what he wants. The only reason he was in office was because the Federation-Democrats could only find Spock-Gore and Tuvok-Kerry, emotionless Vulcans, to run against him. The real disaster of this Captaincy was that Archer-Bush chose 7 of 9-Cheney a Borg as Science officer. 7 of 9-Cheney's attempt to assimilate the entire world has nearly destroyed the USS Enterprise-Earth.
  
• This last election primary pitted  Captain Janeway-Clinton against Captain Picard-Obama. It was nip and tuck, a knock down drag out, and even when everyone else was telling the scrapy Janeway-Clinton it was over she stood her ground to the very end. Janeway-Clinton's handicap in the race was that she had been stranded in the Delta Quadrant under countless attacks for years from the Romulan-Republicans and was a little too battle scarred for the crew. Pickard-Obama's approach was a "corporate board meeting leadership style" being inclusive to all members of the crew giving them a seat at the table. His confident, well reasoned fatherly manner galvanized the young, and previously dispossessed which has inspired the crew and USS Enterprise-Earth. Particularly his choice of Sisko-Biden as science officer, though not a star ship captain he does have years of command experience in Deep Space-Senate. 
• The Romulan-Republicans gave it a valiant try by bringing out of mothballs, over the hill Captain Kirk-McCain. His shoot from the hip, bed every female he picks up in a bar, swaggering maverick style was once very popular with the crew (after all they chose Captain Kirk-Clinton twice) why not a third time? Unfortunately Kirk-Clinton was wise enough to choose Spock-Gore a dependable Vulcan as science officer while Kirk-McCain was letting the little head think for his big head and chose Yeoman Rand-Palin. Bad choice, as she turned out to be vain, expensive and inexperienced and worst of all: upstaged him. For Kirk-McClain it just shows that age does creep up on even the most vibrant of mavericks.  There is grumbling by the Klingon and Borg factions of the Romulan-Republicans over who lost the confidence of the crew, but there will always be malcontents in any crew.
• With the USS Enterprise-Earth in the hands of the Federation-Democrat Pickard-Obama the crew has the audacity to hope for a resolution to the Federation-Cardassian conflicts, better living conditions and salary. 

Good Deal

For the Holidays, I'm offering Optimus: Praetorian Guard for $15.00 which is listed at 21.95 at both amazon.com and publishamerica.com. E-mail me at jtenebrae.com to make arrangements for a signed collectors item. I'll even pay for the shipping.

White Peacock

All thanks to my special twin: Anne Littlewolf who sent me these pictures. I hope she's working on a painting that would incorporate it.

Perfect weather

Today was the best it can get for golf. Not a cloud in the sky, no wind, fifty to sixty degrees, surprisingly not that busy on the course. Shot a good round and had nice company while getting the exercise. What makes life good.

Didn't have all that quiet of an evening last night. Penni's brother-in-law came over to help E on a computer and M's boyfriend showed up, so we had a house full.

Tonight C, E's girlfriend, fixed a nice dinner, Mom came over with a cake and we had a late anniversary party. Sat around and talked for a little while. It was nice.

A Quiet Evening

What I'm looking forward to tonight and for the weekend.

Thoughts

• Reading all the news articles and blogs have to say about the past election and being grateful that NM for once isn't having to wait a week to know who won which race I have to say something about it. 
• One thing you can say about Sarah Palin as she heads back to Seward's Icebox, it was nice to have a candidate for that high position that could have been picked for the Tonight show's Jaywalking.
• Everyone offering advise to President elect Obama: The din is so loud no one can hear you or remember what you wrote or said after ten seconds have passed.
• Ten weeks is one hell of a long time for all kinds of things (both good and bad) to happen. I will rejoice the day he takes office. I will not trust Bush or any of his storm troopers until the day I die.
• It would have been nice to watch the returns with those of like mind, but circumstances mostly quite good found us surrounded by truly wonderful and decent people that have political blinders. I tried to keep my mouth shut, but I did have to make a few snide comments about watching Faux News and why I would want to listen to comments by someone still in contempt of Congress. We went back to our room and celebrated our anniversary once Obama was declared winner.
• Too many people are rejoicing at the demise of the Republican Party. Not so fast. They were saying the same thing about the Democratic Party four years ago. The 2010 elections could just as easily reverse the political course as the 2006 one did. The electorate wants results.
• Today's lead article in the Abq Journal was about everybody rushing to buy assault rifles before they're banned. My father did that when Clinton was elected because all his VFW and State Defense Force buddies were just sure the big bad Democrats would take them off the market. When he developed Alzheimers I had to take his six hundred dollar AK-47 to a pawn shop that had ten of them in stock and they generously gave me twenty bucks for it. Clinton only stopped the sale of imported assault rifles, ones made in the U.S. were not affected. Had a Republican done the same thing he would have been praised for protecting American business. Let's see, ten weeks before he's sworn in and it took over ten years before the Brady bill was passed to require background checks on the sales of handguns. Yeah, Obama's going to be banning guns in the blink of an eye. At least it's nice to know one part of our economy is doing a brisk business.

30 years today

Everyone else may be glued to the tv to see how the elections going, but Grinnygranny and I are in Glorieta celebrating our 30th wedding anniversary. This is where we met, and where we have shared numerous joyous days and nights over the years.

We stopped off at the factory outlet mall in Santa Fe and we each bought an anniversary present. That way we get what we want while still thanking each other for the gift.

We're not alone as this is actually a retreat for all those that GG works with, and there was one meeting already and another scheduled in a few minutes. We've had a nice lunch and dinner in the dining hall with pleasant conversation and there will be a couple of meetings tomorrow before we head back. Nice to have a couple of days like this and I only had to use one personal day of leave.

Everyone is having to watch tv to see how the election is going when they all know the final tally is a good three to five days off in the tight congressional and senatorial races.

Favorite Author

First major book signing March 2007 at B. Dalton's in cottonwood Mall.

Halloween has become extremely easy for me this year. The English department came up with the idea that teachers should dress like their favorite author. When they ask me why I'm  not in costume I reply that I am. My favorite author is me. Duh!

My Mood

Just to look nice

Frieze from Cistine Chapel, Michealangelo

Things settling down

• Most of the heavy stuff E and M's boyfriend helped move for Mom. She's not completely out yet, but soon will be, her next problem is to try and find a place for all of it. I see a huge garage sale in the future.
  
• After a couple of crazy weeks at school things are back to as normal as possible on this stupid schedule.
• Weather's been nice the last few days, but a storm's supposed to hit tomorrow, hope it's gone by the weekend so I can hit the golf course. This is the best time of year for golf, you don't have to get up so early to beat the heat and the weather isn't as windy like it is in the spring, the only real problem is trying to find your ball under all the dead leaves.

The system

Belief in the system

After I wrote my last post, which I freely admit is biased by the fact I teach history at the high school level, I read an article in the latest Harper's Magazine by Roger D. Hodge entitled Creative Destruction.
The article is coming out this week, but that means it was probably written end of August or early September right after the conventions and the polls were showing a dead heat between the two major candidates.
Mr. Hodge was terribly upset that the race was this close and blamed it on the Democratic ideology that elections are about the People's will. In essence the major points of my last post. Mr. Hodge's assertion is this:

America’s
narrative concerns “democracy.”
According to the classic theory that
appears in our civics textbooks,
modern democracy is a political system
in which the people decide how
they wish to be governed by electing
representatives who carry out their
will. The ultimate source of authority
in the democratic system is thus
the individual voter, whose solemn
and heroic responsibility we celebrate
at every national, state, and
local election. The basic premise of
the classic view is that the people
rule, and so we are told ad nauseam
from the time we enter kindergarten—
and that, we tell one another
at every opportunity, is what
makes America the greatest nation
in the history of the world...

The direct
strategic corollary to this mystical
belief in rule by the people, and the
central flaw in the Mondale,
Dukakis, Gore, Kerry, and Obama
campaigns, is the idea that a party
can win a national election by appealing
primarily to Americans’ reason
and better instincts—to faith,
hope, and love—by presenting sensible
programs, together with respectful
criticisms of the opponent’s
record, detailed critiques of his policy
proposals, and polite refusals to
engage in the politics of personal destruction.

His attitude is that this is a school boys' dream and that the Democrats need to grow up and fact the real world of dirty politics or McCain and the Republicans will win agan.

I too was worried in those dark days of Sarah Palin's basking in media glory. Since the debates and a steady pulling away by Obama in the polls since then I am less concerned, but as Russ says at his blog the only poll that counts is in on election day. (Grinnygranny and I voted today -- so glad that is out of the way)

I am not the total idealist that Mr. Hodge would think all Democrats are. I believe in the system and trust its premise, and this election is supporting my belief. It was hard to swallow that "The People" drank the Kool-aid in 2004, but in 2006 there was a healthy dose of buyer's remorse. Candidates are now packaged and sold to the public like any other commodity. I've heard the story (unsubstanciated, but it sounds good) that Ronald Reagan in 1984 walked into the advertiser's meeting planning his re-election campaign and said, "I heard you were selling a can of peas, though you'd like to see the can."

The only blessing after eight years of Bushco is that he has left such a huge stench on the Republican brand that even the bumbling and inept Democrats should walk a way with a congressional landslide and regain the executive.

The article was written before the economic meltdown, so Mr. Hodge can be forgiven for his doom and gloom. After all there is a sure fire way that Democrats win elections: IT'S THE ECOMONY STUPID!

Rule of???

Scott Horton on his No Comment blog, David Iglesias when here speaking to the students, Bruce at Mainstream Baptist, and more bloggers than I can count are all decrying the need after bushco's raping of the Constitution to restore the Rule of Law. Which has had me pondering over the weekend (since I teach a high school class in law) What is the Rule of Law?

I don't think what we need is the Rule of Law.

We need a return to Common Law and move away from Civil Code.

Here is where I go back to being a basic high school history teacher. I cover the Constitution and no I don't make the students memorize the Pre-amble, like I had to when the same age, but it still says: WE THE PEOPLE...

Not God and the Ten Commandments, not Rome's twelve tables,  not even Alfred the Great's Dooms (which actually is closer to our legal system than the Bible). This country is founded on the RULE OF THE PEOPLE not the Rule of Law. We vote for and against those who make our laws and execute those laws, and if we don't like the laws they pass or the way they are executed we vote them out of office and replace them with people who respond to the WILL OF THE PEOPLE. 

Divine Right of Kings (or Presidents according to Roberto Gonzales) is what is at the heart of Bushco's raping of our Constitution. Under this kind of legal system (Civil Code) the leader (King, Emperor, whatever) is the law and everyone must obey their laws or suffer the consequences. That is a true Rule of Law. The law is king, because the King makes it. This is what we rejected in the Declaration of Independence referencing Natural Law.

In short we don't need a return to the Rule of Law, we need a return to the Rule of the People and the Spirit of the Law: our checks and balances so our next executive leader can no longer make it up as he goes along like Der Decider has for eight years. 

Civil Code (Letter of the Law) Legal system updated by Napoleon and used in all the countries he conquered or the colonies of those countries.  System was devised by Monarchs, Emperors, and dictators; earliest form Rome's Twelve Tables circa 600BC.

Common Law (Spirit of the Law) The law held in common by Germanic Tribes of Northern Europe. Since England (Germanic country) was not conquered by Napoleon the legal system used in all the British Empire. Everyone is subject to the law, even the ruler. Greatest examples being the Magna Charta, English Bill of Rights, American Declaration of Independence and the American Bill of Rights. Allows for Jury Nullification and Judicial Review.

The Spirit gives life, the Law gives death.  ---Jesus of Nazareth

The Wellness of the Soul

Penni had a very touching post on her caringbridge site today. It gave me a sense of warmth and tears at the same time.

Those who come by here please click on the link, read her post and leave a message on her guestbook, and if inclined offer prayer, it will be greatly appreciated.

Surprise speaker

I was notified yesterday that David Iglesias would be speaking to the students today. It was a shame that my Law class wasn't meeting today. I took my World History class to hear him and saw a number of my Law students in attendance, so on Monday we'll have something to discuss.

I was right by the door when he (Iglesias) walked in, shook hands with him, and he went on down to the stage. His wife and daughter were there as well. She was very gracious asking all of us what we taught. I gave her my card for Optimus.

He had a nice little talk about the importance of getting an education, working hard, and doing what is right, no matter how much that might hurt your career. It was a good message for the students to hear. Their behavior was very good considering every seat was taken in the auditorium and I knew some of them to be rather disruptive. He left plenty of time for questions and it was gratifying that the students had more questions than time allowed. It's a shame all of my classes didn't get to hear him.

Jumbled thoughts

• Penni seems to be doing well, I wish to express my deepest and warmest sense of gratitude to all those who have added her to their prayer list, and have left a message on her caringbridge site.
• Balloons went up Saturday morning and there was a balloon glow last night, too much weather between times. It was too windy this morning, but the rest of the week looks for good flying weather.
• I've posted some balloon pictures and an interesting op-ed piece quoting Kippling on the Captain's Log blog
• Paul Krugman had this to say about McCain's health care plan today in his op-ed piece: In short, the McCain plan makes no sense at all, unless you have faith that the magic of the marketplace can solve all problems. And Mr. McCain does: a much-quoted article published under his name declares that “Opening up the health insurance market to more vigorous nationwide competition, as we have done over the last decade in banking, would provide more choices of innovative products less burdened by the worst excesses of state-based regulation.” I agree: the McCain plan would do for health care what deregulation has done for banking. And I’m terrified.

Treading water

• Mom came home yesterday. She needs to get moved into her new house and Penni seems to have rallied enough for her to get some things done here.
  
• Finally got a new computer in my classroom. It's a desktop instead of a laptop, but it's better than using a computer meant for the students. I couldn't have my test generator programs on it and had to keep my grades on a flash drive.
  
• It's surprising how fast four bags (two bushels) of apples are disappearing. They are good!
• I keep running into supporters of McCain here at school, who are against Obama because he's a "Socialist." God in Heaven, so was FDR, if you use the Republican definition for socialist. "How horrible that anyone would dare think of regulating businesses again, just look at  how wonderful Wall Street is working right now! he said sarcastically."  Are these people living in the real world? A return to the New Deal that the Republicans have systematically dismantled since 1981 is the only thing that will save our economy.
• I supported Hillary Clinton over Obama in the primary, but made it clear I would support either candidate in the general election. Since that time (Feb of last year) Obama has been a pleasant surprise. He's grown into the position. I'm pleased to see that after the smoke screen McCain threw up in late August and early September that there is more distance between the two and Obama's numbers keep going up. I've noticed that in the local election races for Representatives and Senator that the sleezy, negative adds are working against the Republicans: about bloody time. Waiting for early voting to start so we can get that out of the way.

Too much of a good thing

Today was Grinnygranny's flex day, so I took a day off and we went up to Dixon's for apples. It was their first day. The apple orchard is just past the Cochiti Golf Course fifty miles from Albuquerque. It's down in a valley between two towering bluffs and the area is magnificent. Atn nine thirty in the morning about five miles from the small cinderblock building where you get the apples we hit bumper to bumper gridlock. It took two hours to get to the dirt road that leads down to the orchard. Auntypesty and I joined many others in hiking down to get in line for the apples. By the time we walked the three miles down, waited in the hot sun, got our apples and back up to the gate where the parking is, Grinnygranny and E's girlfriend with her child had finally reached it. We then turned around and went home. Four hours to get four bags of apples (half bushel bag for fifteen bucks). These are Champaign apples, and they are fantastic. There were still cars stacked up at the spot where we hit gridlock four hours earlier. Last year when we went on the second weekend they were out of Champaign apples after the first weekend. This year everyone decided to be there on the first day. It was nuts.

We've been going to get Dixon's apples for twenty five years. There have been years where they had a late frost and didn't open, but most of the time it's always been a nice drive, get the apples maybe have a picnic by the stream that runs through the area under big cottonwood trees then head back. It didn't take more than three hours from the time we left home and got back. Add two hours travel time to the four hours sitting in the hot sun and wasting gas it's just not worth it anymore.

Such a shame. Golden Delicious apples that you get in the grocery store come close to the Champaign, but not quite. We'll have to savor these while we can.

I don't think we'll go back again. Such a shame.

Penni's husband is posting on her caringbridge site. His posts are not encouraging. Please keep her in your prayers.

This was in the Saturday paper.

Sad news

Mom received a call yesterday that Penni is being put on stronger pain medication that will cause her to sleep most of the time. She left today to be with her for what time is left.

The hardest part right now is the waiting.

Grinnygranny's Mom, in Nebraska, was in the hospital for the last few days with Pneumonia, but is getting better and will be in a nursing home for a few weeks until she is well enough to go back into her apartment.

If all holds we're planning on going up to Dixon's on Friday to get apples. It's the first day they're open and if you want to get those Champaign apples you have to be there early.

Cassandra speaks again

To those without a classical education, Cassandra was the daughter of Priam who was blessed by Apollo with the gift of prophesy, but because she rebuffed the god's advances he cursed her by making it so no one would believe her.

Today we have an economic Cassandra, his name is Paul Krugman. Ever since Ronald Reagan proposed Trickle Down Economics he has eloquently and succinctly refuted the conservative economic philosophy of Phil Graham and all the other kingpins of their economics.

For the past seven years he has written article after article in the New York Times explaining just how stupid the tax cuts were, warned of the housing bubble years before it happened. Today is his latest explanation and prophesy. It's eye opening.

Cash for Trash

By PAUL KRUGMAN

Some skeptics are calling Henry Paulson’s $700 billion rescue plan for the U.S. financial system “cash for trash.” Others are calling the proposed legislation the Authorization for Use of Financial Force, after the Authorization for Use of Military Force, the infamous bill that gave the Bush administration the green light to invade Iraq.

There’s justice in the gibes. Everyone agrees that something major must be done. But Mr. Paulson is demanding extraordinary power for himself — and for his successor — to deploy taxpayers’ money on behalf of a plan that, as far as I can see, doesn’t make sense.

Some are saying that we should simply trust Mr. Paulson, because he’s a smart guy who knows what he’s doing. But that’s only half true: he is a smart guy, but what, exactly, in the experience of the past year and a half — a period during which Mr. Paulson repeatedly declared the financial crisis “contained,” and then offered a series of unsuccessful fixes — justifies the belief that he knows what he’s doing? He’s making it up as he goes along, just like the rest of us.

So let’s try to think this through for ourselves. I have a four-step view of the financial crisis:

1. The bursting of the housing bubble has led to a surge in defaults and foreclosures, which in turn has led to a plunge in the prices of mortgage-backed securities — assets whose value ultimately comes from mortgage payments.

2. These financial losses have left many financial institutions with too little capital — too few assets compared with their debt. This problem is especially severe because everyone took on so much debt during the bubble years.

3. Because financial institutions have too little capital relative to their debt, they haven’t been able or willing to provide the credit the economy needs.

4. Financial institutions have been trying to pay down their debt by selling assets, including those mortgage-backed securities, but this drives asset prices down and makes their financial position even worse. This vicious circle is what some call the “paradox of deleveraging.”

The Paulson plan calls for the federal government to buy up $700 billion worth of troubled assets, mainly mortgage-backed securities. How does this resolve the crisis?

Well, it might — might — break the vicious circle of deleveraging, step 4 in my capsule description. Even that isn’t clear: the prices of many assets, not just those the Treasury proposes to buy, are under pressure. And even if the vicious circle is limited, the financial system will still be crippled by inadequate capital.

Or rather, it will be crippled by inadequate capital unless the federal government hugely overpays for the assets it buys, giving financial firms — and their stockholders and executives — a giant windfall at taxpayer expense. Did I mention that I’m not happy with this plan?

The logic of the crisis seems to call for an intervention, not at step 4, but at step 2: the financial system needs more capital. And if the government is going to provide capital to financial firms, it should get what people who provide capital are entitled to — a share in ownership, so that all the gains if the rescue plan works don’t go to the people who made the mess in the first place.

That’s what happened in the savings and loan crisis: the feds took over ownership of the bad banks, not just their bad assets. It’s also what happened with Fannie and Freddie. (And by the way, that rescue has done what it was supposed to. Mortgage interest rates have come down sharply since the federal takeover.)

But Mr. Paulson insists that he wants a “clean” plan. “Clean,” in this context, means a taxpayer-financed bailout with no strings attached — no quid pro quo on the part of those being bailed out. Why is that a good thing? Add to this the fact that Mr. Paulson is also demanding dictatorial authority, plus immunity from review “by any court of law or any administrative agency,” and this adds up to an unacceptable proposal.

I’m aware that Congress is under enormous pressure to agree to the Paulson plan in the next few days, with at most a few modifications that make it slightly less bad. Basically, after having spent a year and a half telling everyone that things were under control, the Bush administration says that the sky is falling, and that to save the world we have to do exactly what it says now now now.

But I’d urge Congress to pause for a minute, take a deep breath, and try to seriously rework the structure of the plan, making it a plan that addresses the real problem. Don’t let yourself be railroaded — if this plan goes through in anything like its current form, we’ll all be very sorry in the not-too-distant future.

 

Pleasant weekend

Had a pleasant weekend. Golfed on Saturday and just took it easy on Sunday. Broncos and Cowboys won, so that's a plus.

Ann Littlewolf sent me some pictures by e-mail that just make your eye pop out. I posted them at the Captain's Log blog. Take a look.

Mom had E over to help get her new house ready before she moves in. The walls are being painted, weeds pulled up, a couple of trees taken down, and then the planting begins. Should keep the kids busy for awhile helping her out. 

M's boyfriend is going to school in Santa Fe, but he makes it home for the weekends which makes her happy. Not too sure his parents or we are that happy with it.

Penni's last post on her caring bridge has me concerned. She needs all our prayers.

Temporarily back to normal

Grade book is now up to date, and I'm making due. It will be a while before I get a new computerf from the tech department (I'm on the list). I miss the laptop, it had seen its better days, but you don't work with something for six years without a certain amount of attatchment. When I got it, boy was it miles better than the first one which had Window 98. This was XP with Office Professional, twice the speed, CDR and what even most laptops today lack an RCA jack which could hook up to a TV to show powerpoint and movies. Hard to think that before lightpros came down in price that was the best way to have students see a powerpoint presentation. Two years ago it crashed and I had to reinstall, it just never worked the same again. It was slower and I lost the video drive so it wouldn't show movies. By that time the school had purchased everyone cheap DVD players so that wasn't a problem. Still what was cutting edge just a few years ago is now little more than scrap and of little value. I had to go into all my e-mail addresses and other sights and change the passwords, which I should have done more often anyway. The computer I'm using now is so slow and freezes up anytime you try to get it to do more than one function that I'm ready to take a sledge hammer to it. The hunk of junk is wanting to install updates so I need to get off right now.

Long day

Walked into my classroom today to find it was broken into over the weekend. The laptop computer I've been using was stolen. It was six years old, had crashed and been restored, not the best computer in the world, but it did my grade book just fine. I had a backup disk, but it was over a week old and I've had to update it some, not a total grade meltdown.

Had to move over one of my desk tops with a huge monitor onto my desk. I won't get another laptop, but the Tech dept should get me a better desktop hopefully with a flat screen monitor.

The one drawback of being in a portable.

What were you doing...

In my generation the What were you doing? question was about JFK's assassination. For some it was MLK's assassination, or RFK's or John Lennin's maybe even the day Elvis died. In Oklahoma it's about the bombing of the Murrah Builing. The rest of the country seems to have amnesia on that one. This weekend it's the attack on the World Trade Center and Pentagon. I really have nothing to say about it that Bruce has not already so eloquently expressed in a speech delivered on the Oklahoma State House chamber on Feb. 11, 2003.


We must especially beware that any liberty we suspend for fear of terrorists could easily be forfeited for generations to come. The freedoms we enjoy in our democratic society are worth whatever dangers we will face, whatever risks we must take, and whatever sacrifices we choose to make. America must not retreat from two and a quarter centuries of hard won civil liberties. Never before have we settled for being the land of the safe and the home of the secure. We’ve always had the courage to strive to be the land of the free and the home of the brave.Instead of the frightful overreaction we have witnessed since September 11th, our nation would do better if it would respond to terrorism the way the people of Oklahoma responded to the bombing of the Murrah Federal Building. That bomb did not prompt us to surrender our civil rights or to infringe on the rights of others.
Unlike our federal government:
We did not suspend the constitution.
We did not send the police out to round-up, lock-up or expel all the foreigners and immigrants in town.
We did not hold suspects indefinitely without access to the courts or to counsel.
We did not tape conversations between suspects and their lawyers.
We did not suspend the laws requiring probable cause for wiretaps or search warrants.
We did not expand the role of the military in domestic law enforcement.
We did not torture suspects to obtain information, nor did we allow surrogates to torture suspects for information.
We did not create a military tribunal to try and execute suspects without applying the Constitution or state and federal laws.
We did not endorse assassination as an alternative to capture.
We did not create a private foundation to issue ID cards to all citizens.
We did not create a network of free-lance spies to report anything that might be considered suspicious.
We did not create a massive computer system to keep tabs on every aspect of our citizen’s daily lives.
And, we did not use the bombing as an excuse to suspend the first, second, and fourth amendments and then attack militias or invade white supremacist compounds to make them disarm.
What we did was to rescue survivors, clean-up the wreckage, rebuild our city and bring the criminals to justice.
The bombing of the Murrah Federal Building did not destroy the freedom-loving, risk-taking, self-sacrificing spirit of the people of Oklahoma. Neither should the criminal acts of a few terrorists destroy the freedom-loving, risk-taking, self-sacrificing spirit of our nation.
Since September 11, 2001 it has become commonplace to say that the world changed that day. Some things did change. Several thousand precious, unique and irreplaceable lives were lost and the lives of many more were irreparably harmed. I must object, however, to assigning any significance to the evil that transpired that day.
In my mind, the most important lesson to be learned from that day is to be found in the images of heroism and the examples of self-sacrifice demonstrated by the men and women of the New York City fire department and police department and others like them. We need to learn from the people who left places where they were safe and secure and walked courageously into harm’s way to rescue the victims of a grave injustice. From them we learn that there are some things in life that are more important than safety and more valuable than security. Only those who have learned that lesson have the capacity to truly calculate the price of freedom and security.

Science Under Attack

Michael Prescott (no relation) has an excellent article on the media tempest in a teapot over the Large Hadron Collider.

It seems like everytime science tries to advance there are the luddites screaming the sky is falling in.

I was reluctant to watch Fox's new show The Fringe because of the way they advertized it. A group of special agents to stop the evil scientists that are producing tissue regeneration, teleportation and other awful science. I called it the anti-Star Trek. In all of the Star Trek incarnations the science and technology advanced mankind (and alienkind) in the future and it was a good thing. It remains about the only part of Science Fiction that was positive instead of negative. The Fringe was interesting more about pitting 1960's idealized science against todays big corporation, greedy use of science. I was rather amuzed by one of the character's being Blair Brown when the special agents using the 60's scientist (released from a mental hospital) uses an old sensory deprivation tank right out of Altered States (which Blair Brown was in though in this show she's working for the big bad corporation)

It is still disconcerting that most Science Fiction is negative and one political party is able to get votes by leading the charge in denouncing science and fueling the general populations fear of it.

Technology is the practical  application of science. Think of all the nice technological gadgets that we just can't live without anymore: cell phones, lap top computers, the internet, video games, planes, trains and automobiles, air conditioning, etc. None of them would be possible without the science that blazed the trail. How can a society so tied to technology be anti-science?

Smooth sailing

Finally getting adjusted to the new schedule at school. I still think it is the stupidest schedule ever devised, and tell everyone within earshot what I think of it and how much better the 4X4 would have been -- not that anyone is listening.

Mom is signing the papers on her new house tomorrow and then there are the joys of packing and moving, but the rewards of getting her out of that awful apartment make it well worth it, and besides she'll be coming to get her couch and microwave that much sooner.
Last I heard Penni is doing well.
We're still trying to get M a job so she can start filling up the Windstar with her own money.
There was a nice truck parked at the car lot down the road from us. a new model, V8 engine with automatic transmission and very reasonably priced. I was thinking of trading in my truck (I don't drive it much except to the dump and the golf course, but I'm really tired of shifting the standard transmission.) anyway I took a look at it and decided to keep what I have, the windows were tinted so dark it would have been like driving in a cave.
E drives the truck some, his 3 year old step son really likes looking out and seeing everthing he can't see from his seat in the car.

Captains Log new look

I'm revamping my Captain's Log blog.

Last night at the Writer's to Writers meeting the presentation was in how to use the internet to promote our books, and the using blogs was brought up. I used to have the novels I'm working on blogged and did get some excellent comments that helped as they were in the creation process, but they got a little too unwieldy so I closed them down. Now I'm going to us Captains Log as a snippet blog. I'll be posting snippets of my writings. It will keep me working on the craft, the creative juices flowing and maybe more comments on my writing that will help me grow.

Political Post

I've purposely not mentioned the name of the Republican VP nominee, though I have given my impression of her. I would really rather not sully this blog by mentioning either of that party's candidates.

The Yikes blog summed up my thoughts pretty well:

Look at what’s happened since the closing night of the Democratic Convention. Sen. Obama gave what was indisputably a great speech — a historic speech. A speech that people should have been talking about for DAYS. But did they? NO, because politics is war, and McCain shot back immediately with his Gov. Sarah Palin assault rifle. And guess what has happened? For more than a week now all people are talking about is SARAH PALIN.
McCain had a full week of publicity for his campaign, while Sen. Obama pretty much fell off the radar screen.
And guess who is helping fuel the fire? The so-called progressive blogosphere.

Political ju-jitsu -- use the other person's strength agains them. The political party of indignation using the dems indignation to give their candidates a week of free publicity because they don't know how to shut the @#$% up. I've watched two Bill Maher specials on HBO and on both of them the women on his panel kept telling him to lay off of her, that any jokes he makes against her only makes him look like a bully and she gets the sympathy vote, and he's too stupid to listen.

For those who have been faithful readers of this blog during the primary season I supported Hillary Clinton, my choice was not supported by the others voting at the time. Time to move on. 

I had great respect for Barak Obama at the time and have seen him grow in the process. I felt that Clinton would weather a brutal mudslinging campaign better than Obama, but he proved by winning the nomination that he has the resilience to back bounce from the body blows leveled at him. He has my full support.

My take on this election is that it is a referendum on the American Spirit. The dividing line between the Democrats and Republicans is Reason and Superstition.

Reason is based on the real world and trying to figure it out in order to solve problems. Listen to Obama's speeches whether it's on race or the economy, or health care, terrorism or taxes. He difines the problem and lists ways in which they can be solved. I know, I know it's academic, dry, boring, makes the average listener actually have to think, but he approaches the American Public as equals and has a basic belief that we can vote for someone who knows what they are doing. 

The Republicans love to quote Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged, yet in that book is one of the best examples of how reason works I've ever read: "When two men disagree on a subject they may discuss and debate the issue, but they let reality dicide for them which one is right. One may be right and the other wrong, but both profit." (I didn't feel like scanning the entire book to quote this word for word, but you get the idea)
Notice what decides the issue is reality. This reinforces my opening statement: Reason is based on reality.
Notice Republican advertizing: It has a complete disconnect with reality.
Think of all the things in the last eight years that Bush has said that are unreasonable. "I know in my heart I'm right." concerning his invasion of Iraq.
"I looked it his eyes (Putin)..."

Are the current Republican candidates any different? They have a one size fits all explanation for everything: "He was a POW."

Superstition: is based on blind faith or "belief" which is determined by emotion. In politics the emotion that is played on is fear. The Republicans have used the fear card since 1948 and fall of China to Mao ZeDong. Richard Nixon's entire political rise was do to being a "Red baiter" 

Superstitious people don't think for themselves they get everything they need to know from an authority figure who has a simple solution to a complex question, and a catch phrase that acts as a manta. . 

God said it, I believe it, that settles it.

My Country Right or Wrong.

America Love it or Leave it.

 When you try to discuss an issue they only know the talking points they've been coached in and that's all they can say even if it makes no sense compared to the facts. If the facts don't fit their belief then obviously the facts are wrong. How else can you explain the disconnect for over a hundred and fifty years between the facts of evolution mentioned even in the Bible with Creationism? Why they still stubbornly insist Iraq had something to do with the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, when from all gathered facts Iraq in no way threatened us. Why? Because Bush said so, because Cheney said so and God elected them to office.
There is no arguing with a person who has their mind made up, don't confuse it with facts.


Will Obama reason with the American Public and will the voters look at the reality that Republicans have done to the system of government since Richard Nixon to destroy our checks and balances?

Will they understand the reality of the bankrupt policy of "Trickle down economics" refuted in 1896 by William Jennings Bryan in his Cross of Gold Speech, buried temporarily after the nightmare of the Great Depression and Roosevelt's New Deal, only to be revived by Ronald Reagan that has led to the last 28 years of Savings & Loan and banking corruption that is now culminating in the economic and real estate melt down?

Will they realize that in those 28 years the only time of peace and prosperity (with a ballanced budget) we've enjoyed came under a democratic presidency, who only had 2 years with a democratic majority in congress?
Will the voters look at the reality of so many other problems too numerous to list or discuss here or listen to the fake father figures that blame everything that has happened on the political party out of power for the last eight years and then say "Trust me?"

It's an election of reality versus media spin. A real nailbiter!

Time to relax

I thought this would be a nice weekend to golf every day. Actually the courses aren't that busy on this holiday weekend. I went out walked nine holes Saturday and tried to do 18 on Sunday. I made it to 12. It was misting and it came down rather hard while on hole 11, we waited it out and went on. On the next hole there is a steep hill to walk down after the tee box. On the way down I slipped on the mud hit my back on the ground and my back tightened up. I walked back to the club house, called grinnygranny to bring me a change of clothes as my backside had a half inch of mud all over it. The back's still a little sore today so I don't think I'll get in any more golf this labor day weekend.

Today is just take it easy, don't make any sudden moves and watch tv.

Smoke screen

Wasn't Obama's speech the other night wonderful. The very next day was anyone talking about anything he said? Nooooooo McCain has everyone buzzing about some dippy ex-beauty queen who's good at spouting the partly line: pro-life, pro-war, creationist, anti-environment, pro-screwthemiddleclass.

We did wake up to an Obama commercial with the old Sam Cooke song with the words "Don't know much about history, don't know much about biology..." with captions of all McCain's really stupid statements. It was priceless.

Convention

I remember watching the 1964 convention, the 1968, and all subsequent conventions. It used to be the only thing you could watch as there were only three networks and they had eight to ten hours of coverage per day. I remember the roll call votes with everyone getting a few seconds to promote their great state. All the speeches from people you had never heard of, but by the next convention were national leaders.

I know times have changed, that we now have thousands of different channels to choose from, but the coverage of the Democratic Convention this year has become little more than a sound bite. When the lone hour of primetime started tonight someone was giving a speech, a woman. I don't know who because you could only see her on the big screen behind Brian Williams who was saying something absolutely meaningless. I switched to PBS, they had people talking around a table, I tried CNN -- not even showing it, MSNBC had people talking. All that supposed coverage blocked over 90% of what you used to see, namely politicians most people had never heard of getting the chance to become known for future elections. It worked for both parties as a springboard for up and coming politicians. Now it's all about talking heads pushing their own agendas.

I kept asking myself while these guys and gals were talking almost non-stop about John McCain if they were aware that this was the Democratic Convention not the Republican Convention.

Early Birthday

It's still a few days until my birthday, but Mom took all of us out to dinner today. I chose a little Thai restaurant in the strip mall near where Mom lives. The food was plentiful and very good. While there Mom got a call from Penni. She's been in a hospice care center, but is expecting to go home tomorrow. To all of my readers if you haven't signed the guestbook at her caringbridge site please do so. It helps make her day when she receives loving messages.

On some good news my niece (Bruce's daughter) is expecting, Mom didn't say when she's due, but it's about time Bruce became a grandfather. I've got five years up on him in that department.

E gave me a miniature golf bag with a letter opener and pen & pencil set that look like clubs. It's nice.

Hamlet 2

Looked at the online New York Times today, like everyday, and they had a review of the movie Hamlet 2 which is being released today. I recognize a number of students dancing with the film's main actor in my school's gym. It was filmed here last school year, and for the most part was a very good experience for the school and community. The production made numerous improvements to our facilities, used our students as extras and were as unobtrusive as could be. The review of the movie is rather neutral, not praising, but not dissing too much either. For me when I get around to seeing it (don't go to the theaters much when in six months it'll be on satellite) the joy will be in seeing extras that are faceless and just background to everyone else, but they mean something to all those around here.

Olympic thought

I was looking at the medal count as listed by Yahoo today. It showed the U. S. at 79 total medals, China as 76 and Russia at 42.

The thought that came to mind was that during the cold war it was always U.S. and Soviet Union leading the medal count. What happened to Russia?

Then I looked further down the list: Ukraine -- 17, Belarus -- 11, Kazakhstan -- 8, etc

If all the countries that were apart of the old Soviet Union are added together it comes out at a whopping total of 104.

 I guess as for the olympics it's a good thing those countries aren't all together anymore. Just a thought.

Validation

I've been telling my students for years that the reason we need to study history is to be able to understand the future. It's our crystal ball without the mumbo jumbo. I usually quote Confucius: "In order to divine the future one must first study the past."

Today I was reading the We're only human blog put out by Psychological Science Magazine. They had an article about researching why we need memory and what makes us or helps us remember things. In order to test for this aspect of the human psyche they based their experiment on this premise: The only value of remembering the past is in illuminating the present or predicting the future. 

I particularly found it interesting that long term memory (though they didn't call it that in this study) is tied into survival. When they tested survival memory against all the mnemonic techniques for remembering that survival prevailed.

Now if we could just get our students in school to realize that what they are learning is just as much about physical, political, and economic survival as say being able to throw a football, shoot a basketball or hit a baseball we might have more avid learners.

The proof's in the pudding

Can this guy do anything right?

First tournament

These were the three guys I was paired up with for the golf tournament today. They took pictures of all the teams on the first tee box. You can see the Eastern slope of Sandia Mountain in the background. Of all the golf courses I've played it has the most magnificent setting. The tournament was a four man scramble (you play from the best ball hit out of the four so it speeds up play). Out of 47 teams we came in dead last. We got $25 gift certificates at the course pro shop. I picked out two coffee mugs with the course logo on them. It might be a backhanded compliment, but hey at least it was something.
It was overall a really fun day, though it was hot and long.
There was also an auction with all kinds of donated stuff up for bid. I bid on a nice woven basket of African artwork. It was filled with a wooden beaded knecklace (gave it to Grinnygranny), bamboo windchimes hanging from a coconut, a zebra mask, a giraffe mask, two wooden spears (about two feet long), a copper wall plate with a lion on top of a gazelle in relief, wooden salad spoon and fork with giraffes on top and two small wooden spoons with giraffes on top, and a multi-colored linen sheet with braided ends. The masks and copper plate should look nice on the wall of my classroom. The other stuff will be nice to show, but the spears I'll have to leave home. I'll have to figure a way to put them up on the wall so the toddler can't get to them.

The American Show Trial

Another aspect of The Gulag Archipelago is how Stalin staged show trials. The one thing you can say about Stalin was that he could put on a show and get the results he wanted. No one was fooled, but he got the conviction he wanted on the charges that were brought.

Dubbya will have to go down as the most inept, bumbling, incompetent political leader of all time. He can't even stage a show trial and have it come out right. No wonder he hates Hollywood.

Yesterday there was the first verdict of a prisoner from the Gulag Guantanimo. Here is some of what Scott Horton says about it.

The six military panelists acquitted Hamdan on the major charges of conspiracy, which were the only charges originally brought against him. They convicted him of material support on the grounds that he was in fact bin Laden’s chauffeur.

It seems the ability to drive a car can now get you put in prison for life.

As Matt Waxman, who as a senior official in the Rumsfeld Pentagon helped craft this system, has acknowledged, there was another defendant in that courtroom standing alongside Salim Hamdan: it was the American justice system. Judgment will be taken by history, and the case was played to a global audience. The first returns are in, and they are not positive... Even before the verdict came in, observers around the world were focused on the Bush Administration’s own contempt for the military commissions process. It had announced that it was indifferent to the judgment of the commission—if Hamdan were acquitted, he could continue to be held for life, a Pentagon briefer acknowledged.

If this doesn't make it a show trial, what does?

The former chief Guantánamo prosecutor has now openly acknowledged that an independent, objective prosecutor never would have charged Salim Hamdan, because he was an absolute nobody... That such a loaded, rigged system actually produced an acquittal on the only serious charges is evidence of the breathtaking incompetence of the Bush strategists.

DUHHHH!!!

The military commissions exist to try war crimes. Conspiracy is a war crime...And he was acquitted on these charges... But in the second round, “material support” charges were added—a crime invented after the fact, in violation of basic legal and constitutional norms. Notwithstanding vacuous Congressional pronouncements, “material support” is not a war crime. For obvious reasons—if it were a war crime, then the laws of war would be criminalizing entire populations...In fact, the whole thrust of the laws of war is just the opposite: it seeks to protect the large bulk of the population which is not directly engaged in hostilities. David Glazier has written an impressive summary of the issue, but Judge Allred’s own opinionmakes the case against his ruling sustaining the charge–he is unable to cite anyprecedent or authority in support of the Administration’s say-so... 

I (Horton) agree that prosecutors offered reasonable evidence showing that Hamdan was involved in material support to Al Qaeda. But the fact remains that this is not a war crime. In fact, the law is very clear on this point. That means not that Hamdan is innocent, but that the charge should have been brought in another court, not before a military commission.

The news media being the overpaid lapdogs of this adminstsation are only reporting the conviction and conveniently overlooking the pillaging and plundering of American justice, prestige and honor.

As Russ states on almost all of his blog entries: "Stop the Madness!"

A Writer Who Made A Difference

A great man passed away recently.

When I was in college taking Russian History the news was full of a Russian Pulitzer Prize winning author being allowed to emigrate to the U.S. and then releasing a book telling the world what it was like in the Soviet Union under Stalin. I still have my copy of that book. I've only read it once, but certain parts of it are still burned in my memory.

Stalin giving a speech to the Politburo (their Congress), when he finished everyone naturally gave him a standing ovation, then the NKVD (secret police) stepped onto the stage. Everyone stood clapping for hours until someone finally stopped. He was quickly arrested and sent to Siberia.

Solzhenitsyn began the book exploring the issue of blame. Who was to blame for the excesses, the pain, the lost lives, absence of liberty. He blamed the people, not the paranoid power drunk leaders. That it is up to the people to stand up for their rights.

Anyone who has read my blog for the last few years knows full well I haven't been silent concerning the abuses at Guantanimo, the loss of habeas corpus and my opinion of Bushco. I've quoted my brother who has been greatly vocal about the abuses of the Republicans and Moral Mafia. I've added links to Scott Horton and Harper's Magazine that have helped inform me concerning the legal excesses of our current justice dept, that would make Stalin and Beria feel warm and fuzzy.

In the last couple of weeks the one time war hero, congressional maverick has turned into a lap dog of the neocon constitutional demolition party. Megalomaniacs R Us didn't have to pass laws to silence the press, they bought it lock, stock, presses and studios. This election will determine if we are going to fight war in-perpetuity to make more money for the top 2% of our population. I'm counting on the people saying enough is enough and changing not just the executive, but cleaning out the legislative branch as well. Our courts and Civil Service will be infected for decades with the wild eyed true believers in the cult of personality that has bloomed around Bushco.

Then there is Mr. Hypocrite personified lecturing China on human rights yesterday. That also brought back something a college professor taught me over thirty years ago: "People don't listen to a speech, they listen to a speaker." 

Vacation over

Tomorrow it's back to the classroom, getting it ready anyway, the students don't report until the 12th. Grinnygranny and I went up to Paako Ridge to golf again. We only did 14 holes before a thunder storm came by, but we were ready to head in anyway. That is one tough course. It's beautiful, but those greens are surrounded by deep bunkers and have the ridges and size of them make for some high putting numbers. I'll be back there Saturday in a tournament, but it will be a four man scramble which makes it a little easier. I just hope I get paired with some guys that are better than me.
Right after I posted about seeing Fireproof I turned on the satelite and right there on Stars was Facing The Giants. I set the DVR to record it and we just watched it. Really good movie, if your into football movies.
Need to get some sleep and head off to in-service meetings in the morning.

Enjoyable weekend

Went to the Minister's and Family retreat this weekend through Grinnygranny's work. The main speaker was Michael Catt, who is the pastor of the church that made the movie Facing The Giants. He showed his latest picture Fireproof that's not released yet (he passed out a promotion package to all the preachers for them to promote it. I haven't seen Facing the Giants yet so I can't comment on it. Fireproof, was amazingly good. It's about a couple that's been married seven years and decide to get divorced. Kirk Cameron plays the fireman husband that at the direction of his father tries to save the marriage. He's given a Love Dare book where he has to do one loving thing every day for forty days. The Love Dare book is scheduled to be released in book stores as a companion to the movie. The argument that ends with their decision to get a divorce is extremely realistic and intense and the wife's reaction to the daily love dare is humorous. There are some very intense fire rescue scenes, good advice from family and friends and bad advice. If this movie is promoted and distributed through churches it should do a lot of good. I'm not sure how well it would be accepted in regular distribution, but it was well worth watching. Now I'll have to find a copy of Facing the Giants.

The hotel we stayed at was another story. With nearly 500 in attendance three working elevators for 17 floors were not enough. On the last day one of the elevators got stuck fully loaded and it took an hour to get them out. You had to pay in order to have wireless internet in the room, no complimentary breakfast, and the ice machine was always empty.

The hotel that the convention used three years ago is under renovation and when they have the next retreat three years from now they'll most likely go back to the other one. I always thought this was one of the finest hotels in the city, but I'm not impressed right now.