Methinks Thou Dost Pro-Tweet Too Much Wednesday, Dec 3 2008

Hopefully Wild Bill Shakespeare’s spectre will forgive me for snatching and bastardizing that line, but it’s apropos of my topic.

Not to pick on anyone in particular, especially not my regular “Tweeple,” but lately I’ve noticed SO many people using social media to promote their professional careers (and that is a very good thing, so don’t take the following statements the wrong way).

But, as with all good things, it is entirely within the realm of possibility to have TOO MUCH of it. When you’re using social media, especially tools like FaceBook and Twitter, to promote your profession to the exclusion of all else, it can be detrimental to your goals.

For example, I recently un-followed 7 people on Twitter simply because, in 5-6 months of following them, I didn’t see a single personal tweet. Every one of their Twitter updates was completely sterilized of anything that would convey to their followers that there was a PERSON on the other end, typing in updates, rather than some hybrid of business software/company yes-man automaton.

Now, I can see using sites like LinkedIn, Plaxo, or Plurk for this purpose, because they are generally regarded as professional media, rather than strictly “social.” But FaceBook and Twitter (and the various plug-ins, add-ons, tweaks, frills, and apps that are associated with them) are identified, and should be used as, social media.

“Social” means just that: interaction on a personal level. Promoting your business/professional interests and being a normal human being (who engages in chit-chat, banter, teasing, discussion, and sometimes even absurd random thoughts) are not mutually exclusive concepts. And those who treat them as such may end up running across many more people like me who are annoyed by it.

I guess the bottom line is this: it is absolutely possible (and almost certainly more profitable) to be yourself AND your business, all at the same time. You are already aware that multi-tasking can save you a lot of time, and so it follows that “multi-tweeting” can save you a lot of face, while putting a personal face on your profession, “personal branding,” if you will.

I wish those 7 people I un-followed had done so. And, after reading this, I hope you will.

Because, if you’re reading this, I probably know you (at least through the internets).

And, in the words of Borat, I’d like to see you “making much great success.”

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Steamy November Romance Thursday, Nov 27 2008

Who says Spring & Summer have a monopoly on torrid romances? Love can bloom in any climate, and the heat of that passion can become a raging wildfire… even in the depths of a frigid November, as this poem will indicate quite clearly…

As he laid her down firmly,
So gently he caressed,
His hands roamed over her body,
Pausing on her sweaty breast.
She lay there, unmoving,
Ignoring his sighs,
As he gazed at her neck
And her shimmering thighs.
The space between them was calling,
Begging to be filled.
She knew that he was stalling,
Delaying her thrill.
The gleam in his eye told her
That he was in control,
As his hands moved on her thighs,
Moving toward her glistening hole.
He knelt down and peered inside
Where all was dark and murky.
He spread her legs open so wide,

*

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And then he stuffed that turkey.

Wait! What were you thinking?

Gasp! Shame on you! Pervert!

Happy Thanksgiving, everybody!

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Ballooning Bailout of the Bailout? Tuesday, Nov 18 2008

I hate to say “I told you so”, but, quite frankly, I did. So, suck it up.

I was opposed to the idea of a Federal government bailout before it was hip. Remember when Bear-Stearns and IndyMac were going under, way back when? You guessed it. I was against Federal government intervention. A lone voice crying in the wilderness.

Of course, I didn’t have this blog then, so I couldn’t broadcast it beyond my circle of friends & family. Back then, I opposed it on principle. Upon further investigation, I now wish more people had realized the implications.

As I’ve stated elsewhere on this blog, if Bear-Stearns’ collapse had not caused the classic over-correction that was initiated by the Feds, it would have gone under and triggered lawsuits. The legal process would have then been forced to put a monetary value on the assets the company held, thereby pressuring the Securities & Exchange Commission to repeal the asinine mark-to-market provision in the equally ridiculous Sarbanes-Oxley bill, thus giving the rest of the financial sector the ability to assign value to Mortgage-Based Securities. And the chain-reaction of mortgage & credit meltdowns that happened later, simply would not have.

Remember, the credit crisis was caused by bad consumer debt in the mortgage field, not by the fact that it existed, but because the loan guarantors and MBS holders were prohibited, by mark-to-market, from assigning real-world dollar values to those creatively-structured assets.

Anyway, that is all secondary. The point is this: once Congress and the Bush administration started the snowball rolling with the first bailout (Bear-Stearns), did we really expect its momentum or mass to diminish? We have effectively opened Pandora’s Box, much to the dismay of many who didn’t foresee this chain reaction.

Just look at the number of entities who have stepped forward since the “Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008″ was passed (and the pricetags attached to each): the state of California ($7B), the state of Massachussetts ($6B), the city of Detroit ($11B), AIG (ANOTHER $25B), CitiGroup (if they acquire Wachovia, upwards of $250B). We can also expect to hear from the entire airline industry, student loan companies, Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac, the United Auto Workers (under the guise of Ford, GM, & Chrysler, and more on that in a future post), and every major credit card company. Nice, eh?

Water under the bridge? Of course. Hindsight is 20/20? Naturally. Still, with seemingly untold trillions of dollars being doled out by governments around the world, the question has been, and will continue to be, begged: “Where does it end? Or does it?”

See what the two-party political system has left us with? And the blame can be placed equally on Republicans and Democrats. A country that was, a short 2 weeks ago, screaming for “change we can believe in,” is now contemplating how much change they’ll be left with, once this economic Titanic rights itself.

Perhaps it’s time for a third party? They certainly can’t screw things up any worse.

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My Platform Friday, Nov 7 2008

Just a quick post to test the waters here. As I’m writing this, the state Board of Elections website is showing Democrat Tom Perriello with about a 600 vote lead over Republican incumbent Virgil Goode in Virginia’s 5th Congressional District race.

The results will be certified on November 24th, and if the margin is less than 1%, the losing candidate can request a recount. I’m quite certain that, with a margin that small, a recount is inevitable.

If Virgil Goode manages to lose his seat in Congress, it will be entirely his fault for not running on the FairTax, especially in the economic “perfect storm” this country is facing. By not informing his constituents of the details of the FairTax, he left that soft underbelly exposed to be exploited by Perriello’s deceitful dagger.

So, while this may seem premature, I have filed the preliminary paperwork with the Libertarian Party to become their nominee for the seat in 2010. Call it a trial balloon, if you like, but here is my initial platform for that race. I’d appreciate some feedback on these points, because I think they will appeal to a very broad range of the political spectrum. See if you agree.

#1- The FairTax. In the last 2 weeks of the ‘08 campaign, Tom Perriello launched ads attacking Goode for his co-sponsorship of the FairTax legislation. While disingenuous, they were, nonetheless, effective. Who wants to pay 23% more for everything when their budgets are already strained?

Well, no one, of course! At least not when that is the only caveat. By not letting people in on the fact that the FairTax also eliminates ALL Federal withholding from their paychecks and provides relief for the tax payable on life’s basic necessities, Perriello has distorted the FairTax into something no one could even imagine supporting. Very clever, but it won’t work with me in the race.

Because I’ve studied the FairTax extensively over the last 6 years, and I (unlike Goode) know how to explain it to people, in sound-bite-sized portions, if necessary. That is why I will make it the centerpiece of my campaign. It will be my mission to bring the facts about the FairTax to 5th District voters between now and November of 2010. Because, once it is explained, Democrats and Republicans alike can’t help but see how much more sense it makes than our current monstrosity of a tax code.

#2- If given the honor of being elected to Congress, I will make it my goal to convince leaders of the other two major parties that our Republic cannot stand much longer under the oppressive weight of the Federal bureaucracy. A 10th Amendment Review Committee is not only advisable, but is quickly becoming a necessity.

So I will work tirelessly to bring a majority of Congressmen over to support establishing a commission of economists, businessmen, and experts on Constitutional Law and public policy to identify areas in which the Federal government has run afoul of the 10th Amendment. There are numerous things that are controlled from the Federal level that were once taken care of (and much more efficiently) at the state and local level.

A return to 10th Amendment restrictions will create more government efficiency, transparency, accountability, and responsibility, both in fiscal and civic arenas. We cannot spend our way out of problems created by massive spending. After all, isn’t doing the same thing, and expecting different results, the definition of insanity?

#3- Marginalize and, ultimately, cripple the influence of lobbyists on Capitol Hill. While the FairTax will effectively derail the influence of those lobbyists whose sole purpose is to game our incomprehensible and corrupt tax code, that process is a lengthy one. Something else must be done, in an immediate and decisive fashion, to set up a roadblock on either end of Gucci Gulch.

I will propose and fight for tough legislation to censure and remove elected officials caught illegally dealing with lobbyists so that scandalous behaviors exhibited by those such as Ted Stevens and Jack Abramoff will never be able to take place again. This corrupting influence has doubled just in the last 8 years, and was an untenable problem even before that. Enough is enough.

#4- I am NOT a lawyer. Lawyers are FAR over-represented in Congress. Well over 40% of House members and over 60% of Senators are lawyers, or have practiced law in the past. In a country that seemed so ready in ‘08 to embrace “change,” how foolish is it to send the same old political class to represent us in D.C.?

Put another way, why do we believe that people who practice law should be entitled, or even allowed, to make laws? This seems a bit counter-intuitive and highly counterproductive to me. Also, in my opinion, this runs a bit contrary to the Constitution’s “Separation of Powers” clause. Just sayin’.

Anyway, there’s my initial rough draft platform. Much more will follow, but for now, let me know what you think.

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Lynchburg Tattoo Convention ‘08- Recap Friday, Oct 31 2008

Okay, here it is, as promised. I know, I know. The event took place almost a week ago. Gimme a break. I’ve been working mandatory 12 hour days. Just be happy I got around to it at all. :p

Last Saturday at Central Virginia Community College, area tattoo artists got together to show off their styles and drill some ink into willing Central VA flesh.

I saw several artists that I’ve known and worked with over the years, and some whose reputations have preceeded them (both good and bad).

Zeus Vance from Imagine Tattoo was there. (He apprenticed under Dave Hotchkiss, the man who did 9 of my 13 tattoos over about 8 years.) By far, I’d have to say he’s my favorite local artist (but only because Dave isn’t around anymore).

Some of the talent there was new, and made me realize how much this town has changed since the tragic passing of Jerry Falwell last year. At least 4 new tattoo shops have opened, just in Lynchburg, in that brief year and a half. It’s a good thing, even if some of those shops are a bit dodgy, in my estimation.

The premiere tat shops in Lynchburg are still Caspian on Wards Rd. (whose owner, Dave, organized the convention. And major kudos to him for dealing with the logistical hassles.) and Imagine Tattoo in the Briarwood Business Center on Rt. 221.

Another quick plug for Zeus at Imagine: The all-day special. $400 = as much pain as you can stand for 10 hours. An appointment is necessary to, as the ad says, “Rent an artist for the day.” 434-316-7200 for more info. And no, I’m not getting paid (money OR ink) for that. But I AM planning to take advantage of that sometime in the near future. My 10 year old idea for a full back piece just keeps nagging at me.

I.C. Studios from Madison Heights was there, and I have to say that the owner, “Spider”, has gotten quite a bit better since he screwed up my left arm several years ago.

Billy Powell from Ink Works was there, and I walked right past that booth. I’ve seen equal amounts of good and bad work come out of his shop, but that’s not why I didn’t stop. I have a prejudice against that guy, which goes back about 13 years. He used to work for Dave Hotchkiss at American Ink and Dave had to fire him for stealing. I know that was a long time ago and people change, but I can’t bring myself to overlook stealing from someone who gave you a shot and took you under his wing like that. It’s just not right. But, I digress.

Studio No. 7, a new shop in the Forest Crossing Center on 221, had a small booth set up. One of my old co-workers from about 8 years ago is apparenty working there now. He never struck me as the tattoo type, but people will surprise you, I guess.

One of my current co-workers was there getting his first tattoo. (You always say “first tattoo,” because it’s highly probable that there WILL be more. It’s addictive. I know this from experience.) His artist travelled all the way from Rocky Mount for the convention. Eddie Yeary, from Cherry Bomb Tattoo. I’d never heard of him, but JUST DAMN, the guy is really good. His portrait work is very impressive.

Another artist, that I’d heard of years ago, was there as well. Harry Aron, from Harry’s Tattoo Shop in Danville. This guy’s work has impressed me ever since I saw one of his portraits about 6 years ago. It was a pleasure finally meeting him. I swear, some of his work looks like photographs. Almost like it was airbrushed on, from how smooth and well-defined the outlining looks. I believe I’ll have to get an Aron piece before long.

Anyway, all in all, it was a great event, and it was good to see competing shops come together in one venue. Yes, to promote themselves and their own art, but also to show mutual respect for each other. I hope this event continues to be held, and grows with each passing year. Fine Art- it’s not just for chapel ceilings anymore.

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Kids: Feeding Their Adventurous Spirits (And Yours) Friday, Oct 24 2008

My Twitter friend, Heather (relocatedyank on Twitter), recently wrote a story about her childhood that caused some musings on my part. You can read it here:

http://www.desperatelyseekingreviews.com/2008/10/20/faith-trust-and-pixie-dust/

Here’s the comment I left, lengthened a bit for purposes of this post.

Okay, I read it over there >, but I’m leaving the comment here ^.

Just because.

That was an ever-so-charming story. I could almost see in my mind a miniature version of you skipping along sprinkling sawdust around, whispering “Faith, trust, and pixie dust.”

Better still, I could see MY daughter doing the same thing, like I’ve seen her do so many clever and imaginative things similar to it. It always makes me smile and want to just give her the biggest snuggly-hug ever.

It also makes me reminisce longingly about flights of fancy I had when I was a kid. Back before reality took hold and made that sense of constant wonderment vanish and fade as something to almost be ashamed of.

“That’s childish.” “Grow up.” – Things too often said to children by parents and figures of authority.

I’m glad that both of my kids are so imaginative and creative, and I actively encourage it, because I feel it sets a good strong foundation for being able to “think outside the box,” as it were, to solve difficult problems later in life.

But it’s not enough to simply watch what they come up with, and encourage it, and adore them all the more for it. You can really get SO much more out of it when you allow yourself to take off the “responsible grown-up” hat for a while.

Get down there with them. Have a tea party, sitting at the teensy little table with Dora and her football-shaped head, and the teddy bear whose voice, for some reason, sounds just like a little deeper version of your daughter’s when he talks, even though his mouth doesn’t move, and the big green frog with the fur worn off of his underarms from being carried around so much in a bear-hug from behind because he’s so big.

Wait for the tea kettle to “heat up” on the Disney kitchen stove-top, and remember to say “please” and “thank you,” or she’ll correct you. She may even put you in time out if you don’t eat all of your invisible cookie that she “saved over a hot oven all day long” to bake for you. And Mr. Ribbit ate all of his food, so he can go play.

It’s not enough to appreciate their wonder, you need to experience it with them. It is very fulfilling. And it’ll keep you young and focused. It helps put things in perspective, and makes you realize, with just a little more clarity, what is really important in life.

Heather’s story makes me long to be able to hold my kids a little tighter, to love them a little more, and to protect them a little longer from that inevitable loss of innocence that happens FAR too early in our fast-moving society.

I know I can’t shield them for much longer, and that saddens me greatly. But, thanks to her tale, I have more of a resolve now to enjoy each of their imaginative moments that much more, while they last.

So, thank you for that, Heather.

And thank you, dear reader, for reading this. I will post more of the adventures of my little ones on here, as time permits.

Kids are truly a joy, if you can step outside of your adult reality for a moment, and try to see what they see. You’ll be amazed how young it makes you feel.

The ridiculocity of work, work, work and rush, rush, rush becomes a little easier to take, too, when you are looking forward to helping your son change the wheels on his bike so that it will fly like Elliot’s bike did.

Because he knows if anybody can make it work, you can. You don’t need a cape or the ability to shoot webs. You’re Daddy or Mommy, after all.

And when you can relate and join in, you ARE a superhero.

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Apropos Lyrics for Prez Race ‘08 Tuesday, Oct 21 2008

So, I was working this past Saturday (yes, I generally work 6 days a week, with plenty of overtime. A practice I plan to curtail as much as possible, if we elect a President in 2 weeks who has designs on “spreading the wealth around.”) While there, I was playing an old CD. UltraSpank’s Y2K release entitled “Progress.”

A few of the songs had lyrics that seemed apropos of our current political climate and some of the central characters in it. So, I decided to post them here, and explain the connotations they brought up in my mind.

See if you agree.

2. Crumble

Staring at the empty
I need to move along
Choose to see it your way
Leaves me all alone
I need to find a reason
I need to find the answer
I need to pick it apart
I need to make sense to restore confidence
So what so what you’re too good
For what for what you once stood
So what so what you had it all
So why so why the big fall
Leave you all behind me
Leave you all alone
With all there is before me
Where do I belong
I need to rise above this
I need to pull the rug out
I need to rip it apart
I need to make sense to restore confidence
So what so what you’re too good
For what for what you once stood
So what so what you had it all
So why so why the big fall?
Look at you now
Wouldn’t you know
Try to save face
Time won’t erase
Permanent
Evidence
Now
Crumble

That kind of embodies the sentiments of many Americans who have come to the conclusion (and rightly so) that the Republican Party has left them. “So, what? You’re too good for what you once stood?”

In my mind, the consequences of their actions (namely turning away from fiscal and personal responsibility), leaves me with no choice but to embrace the Libertarian Party (which Reagan once called the soul of conservatism), even if it means the GOP may crumble.

3. Stuck

Find me wherever
I hide myself away
Always there beside me
Despite my efforts to shake
I must lose this shell
Unleash myself
Brand new
Own me forever
Strip my life away
Always there beside me
despite my efforts to break
I must lose this shell
Unleash myself
Brand new
Try to shed my skin
Tearing me within
From you
Lift me
Above this
Climb to nothing
Must be something
To redefine me when I fall apart
And sure to find me when I’ve gone too far
To pick up the pieces when they come apart
To realign me on my way

That song makes me think of Barack Obama and the facade his campaign has constructed around him. He has tried, pretty successfully, due to his willing accomplices in the media, to distance himself from his radical associations and create his current image as a candidate more palateable to the American electorate.

It seems, with his recent comments to “Joe the Plumber,” that the precisely applied veneer is beginning to peel around the edges. Perhaps it’s a case of “too little, too late,” though.

5. Smile

I don’t know enough about you
To leave myself wide open
And I don’t know when I’ve had enough
To remove myself from you
Try not to think it out
Try not to act it out
Cut it shut it keep it down
Never let it leave the ground
I gather up what you’ll give
But it never helps fill the sieve
Because I don’t know enough about you
To leave myself wide open
Try not to think it out
Try not to act it out
Cut it shut it keep it down
Never let it leave the ground
It doesn’t matter anyway
When it’s all said and gone away
Accumulate experience
Accumulate experience
Time goes by and within it’s smile
You think you’d find a way
But it seems so hard to pick apart
It is so far away
It’s only what it means
And never what it seems
It’s only in the eyes of me
It circles to the end
It lives to upend
That’s only when it starts again
Time goes by and within it’s smile
You think you’d find a way
But it seems so hard to pick apart
It is so far away
Time goes by
It seems to hide
It is so far away
And all the while
It beams this smile
It is so far away
It is so far

This song, again, is about Obama and the media’s perfect willingness to go along with the game, giving only the appearance of trying to ask and answer the important questions.

It’s fairly telling that, a mere two days after her selection, it seemed that we knew the entire life story of Governor Sarah Palin, thanks to the impressive investigative skills of the media. In the past week, they have once again proven themselves useful, digging up all the dirt we could ever care to sink our hands into, relating to “Joe the Plumber” (who, need we be reminded, isn’t even running for anything).

Yet, we know absolutely nothing about Obama that hasn’t been filtered through the prism of what his campaign feels we voters should know about him. In almost two years of campaigning for America’s highest office, we still only know the very basics of Obama’s past, thanks, once again, to the impressive penchant of the media to selectively scrutinize.

6. Click

It seems to be so obvious
That you know what I don’t
Take me through this emptiness
Where you can build a home
Bleach the imperfections
Plating them in gold
Make that big connection
Filling in the mold
Where would we be without you
To show us what to see
Such a great example of
What it ought to be
Free indeed
We know you are
Free in deep
You can’t hide the scar
So it has to be this way
Shows exactly who you are
Thought you’d make it
Thought you’d take it
On your way
Look around sometime
Suffer me
Suffer me
It has to be
What a waste of time
Sympathy
Is leaving me
So it has to be this way
Shows exactly who you are
Given away
Pushing the gray to start
Told it has to be this way
So it has to be this way
So what

Once again, relating more to the media’s glaring bias, rather than candidate Obama himself. The “So, what?” at the end is important to me, signifying what this quadrennial beauty pageant seems to make most voters forget: namely, that the real seat of power in this country is the legislative branch.

Specifically, the House of Representatives, where all taxing and spending bills must originate, and which has the unique distinction of being able to be completely reformatted every two years. But we never take advantage of that. Damn, we’re blind.

8. Crack

I don’t know what’s growing on the inside
But I do know how it looks from the outside
Surprise…suffer
Never before…until you dropped
Arrogance has swept you off your feet
As you celebrate the many ends you meet
Surprise…suffer
Never before…until you dropped to the ground
In the mess you built for yourself
You bury your fingers
In the shards of what you once prided for
Carry your need to feed
Upon your shoulders
Crack
You can’t support
The weight of your mistakes
Building walls in accolade of your wins
You missed the world that lives beneath
Your chin
Never before
Bury your fingers
In the shards of what you once prided for
Carry your need to feel
Upon your shoulders
Crack…you can’t support
The weight of your own mistakeses

This could apply to whichever candidate emerges from the aftermath of November 4th with a Senate seat still in their possession. It fits both equally, if they lose.

12. Where

There
Somewhere out there is a better day
Somewhere out there has to be
Better than today hopes to be
Anyway
To be a part of anything
Shows me what I’ve missed
To be a part of all the answers…
My wish
Stand there before me
With your emptiness, emptiness
So true to form
So true to all I’ve missed from you
To be a part of anything
Shows me what I’ve missed
To be a part of all the answers…
My wish
I’ve run from you before
And closed this door
To be a part of anything
Shows me what I’ve missed
To be a part of all the answers…
My wish
I’ll miss you anyway
And I’ll miss you anyway

This sort of sums up my hopes that, whichever way the race turns out, there really IS a better day out there in America’s future. Whichever candidate loses, we, as the American electorate, will miss them, having dealt with them clogging up our usual hum-drum lives of mindless sitcoms for almost 2 years.

So, from here until the election, I will refrain from posting about Presidential politics. I’ve had enough of this general Ridiculocity to last me a long time, and I suspect that you, dear reader, have as well. (Of course, I reserve the right to renege on that declaration, should something drastic come up that I cannot reasonably avoid commenting on.)

I would say, “May the best man win,” but that die was already cast in the GOP primaries, and I fear that we came up snake-eyes on that roll.

Still, I’m voting on principle, and preparing a short-run of bumper stickers for those I know who are joining me in that stance. They will read: “Don’t blame me, I voted for neither jackass.” Let me know if you need one.

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Feedback Appreciated Saturday, Oct 18 2008

Due to the wide variety of click-through referrers this blog gets, it’s nearly impossible for me to tell if I have regular readers, or just a range of random surfers stumbling onto my page.

That being the case, I love it when someone takes the time to leave a comment. (Except for spammers. And you know who you are, progressiveinsurance, onlinepoker, netcasinogambling, and all you “debt helpers” that spammed my bailout rants. Go away! Far! And stay!)

Anyway, now that I’ve got THAT out of my system.

There are several reasons that I enjoy the comments. First, I like the fact that what I have written has caused the reader to think, and to such an extent that they feel compelled to let me know what they thought.

Positive or negative, it doesn’t matter. It’s just rather fulfilling to know that you’ve been moved somehow.

Secondly, the vast majority of the comments are well thought out, and give me a sense of the reader’s frame of reference. That is always helpful in trying to construct another entry that may appeal to that same person again, whether it be through subject matter or delivery style.

And, in the tertiary (but by no means less important), it lets me know who my readers are, and gives me a chance to connect with them, if they have a site and leave a follow-up link.

I have added a couple of names to my blogroll, and fully intend to add more. I have no problem doing this for people I find interesting and thought-provoking. And I would hope they’d do the same for me, but that’s not why I do it.

In this age of social- and new-media, it is important to gather facts and opinions from a wide array of sources, simply because no one person or network is going to give you all of the angles of every given topic.

It would do us all a world of good to remember that everyone has an agenda of some kind. And some of them will do everything in their power to keep it hidden from you.

To paraphrase the great lexicographer and satirist, Ambrose Bierce, “a journalist is one who diligently seeks out the truth and proceeds to dispel it with a tempest of words.”

So, speaking of agendas, and hiding them behind words, I suppose I should finally get to my agenda(s) for writing this post.

#1, to thank those who have left comments, or will in the future.

#2, to encourage you to continue posting comments, or begin to.

And #3, to ask for feedback on whether I should leave off of the political posts for a time and concentrate on posting essays and poetry, both lighthearted and poignant, for your enjoyment.

Please give an opinion. It only takes a minute.

And, in advance, I thank you.

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Wrong Question! Thursday, Oct 16 2008

“Who is John Galt?”

This was the opening line and an oft-repeated question in Ayn Rand’s epic, Atlas Shrugged. But for the millions worldwide who have read this masterful manifesto, that question has been answered.

Of course, we know he was the man who moved the motor of the world, and brought it to a grinding halt. When government went too far in their efforts to institute the policy of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels (”From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs.”), the men of productive effort, led by Galt, shrugged off the unjust yoke.

That’s a hell of a way to sum up a book of over 1,100 pages, I know. Digesting the Cliff’s notes version into a single paragraph like that. But I did it for a reason. Mainly because my goal here is not to write a book review, but rather to identify the question we should be asking.

That question is much the same as the first, but the interrogative must be changed. The real question is not “Who is John Galt?”, but WHERE is he? Because if there was ever a time we needed John Galt, Ragnar Danneskjöld, Hugh Akston, and Hank Rearden, IT IS NOW!

Hell, I’d even settle for the seemingly aloof Francisco D’Anconia, at this point.

Several months ago, when our misguided Congressional “leadership” was harrassing oil executives about their “excess” profits (with a few even calling for nationalization of the entire industry), I was screaming to the hills, “Where is Ellis Wyatt when we need him? Set fire to the derricks and let them just try to extract the oil with their own ingenuity!”

But there was no one around to hear it. Just as no one heeded the words of Ayn Rand fifty years ago. Prophetic now, in retrospect, isn’t it?

Warren Buffett and Bill Gates are actually lamenting that they don’t pay enough in taxes! WTF? Is this AMERICA?

There is some shred of light still making it through the Iron Curtain that is descending rapidly over our land. The lone figure of Dagny Taggart still stands, fighting against this dangerous trend toward complete socialism.

I’m speaking figuratively, of course, but that last supporter of Liberty is embodied in Bob Barr, Libertarian presidential candidate, and the movement that stands behind him.

But my fear is that the call will be heard far too late to do any good, even if the airwaves are taken over, just as in Atlas Shrugged.

So, the best encouragement I can offer, at this late stage of the game, is to get your escape plan ready. With a little luck and a LOT of preparation, maybe we can make it to Galt’s Gulch to ride this thing out.

Godspeed, voyagers! And I hope to see you there.

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Average Joe’s Debate Thursday, Oct 16 2008

The third and (thankfully) final Presidential debate is now in the can and relegated to YouTube and posterity. It featured both candidates at a table, and, muffled though it was from their seated positions, both could still be heard talking out of their respective posteriors.

McCain came out as the salty old sea dog fighter, hitting Obama with Ayers, ACORN, and Plumber Joe in a brutal salvo. It was like McCain was T.J. Combo from the video game Killer Instinct, while Obama (literally) looked like Spinal.

Obama/Spinal got in a few good thrusts and parries with the sword and shield, but you could tell he hadn’t quite figured out the correct button sequence to get the sword to flame. T.J./McCain racked up several 29- and 42-hit combos, but it got him a little winded.

By the end of the night, it was apparent that the debate was a toss-up. Even now, after sleeping on it, I can’t figure out if Bob Schieffer or Plumber Joe emerged victorious.

I’m not even sure why I stayed up to watch this thing, other than for sheer entertainment value. I’m not an undecided voter. I’ve already made up my mind that I’m not voting for either one of these hacks, for reasons I have addressed before and may well bring up again later. That being said, I DO want to call your attention to a few things that angered me a bit during the debate.

John McCain needs to stop bringing up two things: campaign finance reform and the culpability of “greed on Wall Street” for the current economic mess. I cannot fathom it even crossing my mind to cast a ballot for someone who seems proud of the fact that he sought to undermine the second most important item in the Bill of Rights, namely, freedom of speech.

As far as “greed” goes, as someone who sits in a tiny corner of the political spectrum (Objectivist Libertarian), I have long abhorred the bastardization of the word “greed” to connote evil. Rational self-interest (lately renamed “greed”) has been the main motivational force that has been both the foundation and the engine of the U.S. economy.

Without “greed”, we would never have been a superpower, either militarily or economically. So, Senator, please STOP!

Obama, on the subjects of compulsory and confiscatory taxation, and when referring to the halls of jurisprudence (Supreme and otherwise) keeps talking about “fairness” and “equality.” Save it, Karl! And tell your buddy Friedrich to get a clue, while you’re at it.

Taxation is solely for the purpose of funding governments. Period. That is has become a tool for social engineering, vote buying, and rent-seeking is a testament to how far downhill our country has travelled from its founding principles, and all since the word “democracy” was introduced and proliferated.

As far as courts go, the words “fairness” and “equality” should be seperated from them by the Grand Canyon. The purpose of courts is to interpret the letter and intent of the law and pass down a verdict accordingly. As someone who studied Constitutional Law at Harvard, Senator Obama should be fully aware of this fact. And I hope like hell I am not the only one scared to death that he doesn’t seem to remember something so important. That is the height of Ridiculocity.

Anyway, just my four ha’pennies. Until next time.

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