At this point there is little I can do but wait until I'm given a thorough diagnosis. It seems that I'm destined for some medical procedure, but I've been lead to believe that I'll be around for a while. Regardless, I'm now in-tune with the fact that there are only so many days we have this Earth. Every one of them is a precious gift. I need to redefine my priorities to make the most of them.
Saturday, August 2, 2014
Health Issue
During my annual physical I learned that I have a heart problem. The extent of the problem has yet to be defined; I see a cardiologist next Tuesday. To say that I'm not concerned would be disingenuous. It's certainly disconcerting to consider one's own mortality. It's not a fear of death that scares me, but the prospect of leaving my wife and daughters behind. Suddenly faced with the realization that our time together is finite has my mind racing.
Much has changed...
I haven't posted for quite a while. During that time much has changed. Perhaps the most important thing is that I've capitulated to my wife's request to be less transparent; to share less of what I think or the experiences that have influenced my thoughts. I suppose it is the reason I haven't made a post in a long time.
Regardless, I feel a need to put my thoughts "on the line" (if you're a fan of The Internship). So this brief post is a warning.
B2
Regardless, I feel a need to put my thoughts "on the line" (if you're a fan of The Internship). So this brief post is a warning.
B2
Monday, November 5, 2012
Walk the Walk
Over the weekend I learned that someone is having a difficult time financially. I've never meet this person. She is an acquaintance of my wife. Regardless, I felt compelled to help. The circumstances are unimportant. There is no need to mention her struggles, or the relationship she and my wife enjoy. The only fact that's germane is that this person is in need and I am able to help.
There have been times in my life when strangers have extended a helping hand to me. It was just five short years ago that my daughter Meghan was involved in a serious accident. In that difficult time, my family was embraced by family and friends, but it was the actions of complete strangers that changed me forever. Nearly every day for six months a check would appear in my mailbox. Many times it would be from someone that I never met. The US field hockey community adopted my family and supported us until it was clear that Meg would fully recover.
Today I feel a solemn responsibility to give back when I can. Unfortunately, it seems that there is no shortage of people experiencing tough times. Unlike those who politicize the events that result in hard working people resorting to public assistance, I try to recall the kindness of strangers and say to myself "there for the grace of God go I". There is no shame in needing help.
I've been vocal in my support for the President and willingness to pay a little more to help our nation pay down its debt. On the eve of the election I restate the desire to do my fair share and ask everyone who reads my BLOG to look in the mirror before pulling the lever. Regardless of who wins the election I'll continue live the Christian covenant as my brother's keeper. Maybe one day it will be you that needs my help. It's my sincere wish that you don't need to suffer the kind of life altering tragedy I did to understand what this means.
There have been times in my life when strangers have extended a helping hand to me. It was just five short years ago that my daughter Meghan was involved in a serious accident. In that difficult time, my family was embraced by family and friends, but it was the actions of complete strangers that changed me forever. Nearly every day for six months a check would appear in my mailbox. Many times it would be from someone that I never met. The US field hockey community adopted my family and supported us until it was clear that Meg would fully recover.
Today I feel a solemn responsibility to give back when I can. Unfortunately, it seems that there is no shortage of people experiencing tough times. Unlike those who politicize the events that result in hard working people resorting to public assistance, I try to recall the kindness of strangers and say to myself "there for the grace of God go I". There is no shame in needing help.
I've been vocal in my support for the President and willingness to pay a little more to help our nation pay down its debt. On the eve of the election I restate the desire to do my fair share and ask everyone who reads my BLOG to look in the mirror before pulling the lever. Regardless of who wins the election I'll continue live the Christian covenant as my brother's keeper. Maybe one day it will be you that needs my help. It's my sincere wish that you don't need to suffer the kind of life altering tragedy I did to understand what this means.
Monday, October 29, 2012
Gotta Get out of NJ - sort of
I plan to work another 15 years, not because I have to, but because I love it. Regardless, I hate NJ and want to find someplace to buy a second home that will allow me to change my primary residence and cease paying NJ income tax. I'll never truly escape because my family is here, but it is time to accelerate the search.
I really like Nevada, have a friend and golf buddy already there. If Bryn moves to CA this will be a no-brainer. The following is a list of criteria:
- cost of living
- property taxes
- unemployment rate
- violent crime rate
- climate
- population growth of the senior demographic
Talk to me Ed!
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Romney & Company Shipped Every Single Delphi UAW Job to China
OK. Now I'm pissed!
I've said many times that Romney is the most dishonest politician of my lifetime. Not corrupt, dishonest.
Just last week he said during the debate, "I would do nothing to hurt the US auto industry." This is yet ANOTHER BLEEPING LIE!
Here's the facts as reported in this week's The Nation magazine cover story "Mitt Romney's Bail-out Bonanza," the Romneys are in a special partnership with the vulture fund that bought Delphi, the former GM auto parts division.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=RwG_sBQU7OQ
The Romney vulture fund investment syndicate shipped every single UAW production job - every job - to China.
The truth? On June 1, 2009, the Obama administration announced that Detroit Piston's owner Tom Gores, GM and the US Treasury would buy back Delphi. The plan called for saving 15 of 29 Delphi factories in the US.
Then Romney's vulture funds pounced.
The Nation discovered that, in the two weeks immediately following the announcement of the Delphi jobs-saving plan, Paul Singer, Romney's partner, secretly bought up over a billion dollars of old Delphi bonds for pennies on the dollar.
Singer and partners now controlled the company - and killed the return of Delphi to GM.
These facts were revealed in a sworn deposition of Delphi's Chief Financial Officer John Sheehan, confidential, but now released on the Web.
Sheehan said, under oath, that these speculators threatened to withhold key parts (steering columns), from GM. This would have brought the auto maker to its knees, immediately forcing GM's permanent closure.
The extortion worked. The government money that was supposed to go to save jobs went to Singer's hedge fund, Elliott Management Corporation and its partners, including the Romneys. Once Singer's crew took control of Delphi, they rapidly completed the move to China, sticking the US taxpayers with the bill for the pensions of the Delphi workers cut loose.
In all, three hedge funds run by Romney's million-dollar donors have pocketed $4.2 billion, a return on their "investment" of over 3,000 percent - all care of the US taxpayer. The Romneys personally earned a minimum of $15.3 million, though more likely $115 million - a range their campaign does not dispute.
Frankly, I DON'T SUPPORT the way Obama allowed speculators to crank the US taxpayers for $12.9 billion in subsidies - losing almost all the auto parts jobs in the process.
But when I heard Romney, tell the nation, "I would do nothing to hurt the US auto industry," it really pissed me off. This guy cannot be trusted! Everything that comes out of his mouth is a carefully conceived fabrication designed to fool the low-information voter.
Hello, anybody home?
I've said many times that Romney is the most dishonest politician of my lifetime. Not corrupt, dishonest.
Just last week he said during the debate, "I would do nothing to hurt the US auto industry." This is yet ANOTHER BLEEPING LIE!
Here's the facts as reported in this week's The Nation magazine cover story "Mitt Romney's Bail-out Bonanza," the Romneys are in a special partnership with the vulture fund that bought Delphi, the former GM auto parts division.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=RwG_sBQU7OQ
The Romney vulture fund investment syndicate shipped every single UAW production job - every job - to China.
The truth? On June 1, 2009, the Obama administration announced that Detroit Piston's owner Tom Gores, GM and the US Treasury would buy back Delphi. The plan called for saving 15 of 29 Delphi factories in the US.
Then Romney's vulture funds pounced.
The Nation discovered that, in the two weeks immediately following the announcement of the Delphi jobs-saving plan, Paul Singer, Romney's partner, secretly bought up over a billion dollars of old Delphi bonds for pennies on the dollar.
Singer and partners now controlled the company - and killed the return of Delphi to GM.
These facts were revealed in a sworn deposition of Delphi's Chief Financial Officer John Sheehan, confidential, but now released on the Web.
Sheehan said, under oath, that these speculators threatened to withhold key parts (steering columns), from GM. This would have brought the auto maker to its knees, immediately forcing GM's permanent closure.
The extortion worked. The government money that was supposed to go to save jobs went to Singer's hedge fund, Elliott Management Corporation and its partners, including the Romneys. Once Singer's crew took control of Delphi, they rapidly completed the move to China, sticking the US taxpayers with the bill for the pensions of the Delphi workers cut loose.
In all, three hedge funds run by Romney's million-dollar donors have pocketed $4.2 billion, a return on their "investment" of over 3,000 percent - all care of the US taxpayer. The Romneys personally earned a minimum of $15.3 million, though more likely $115 million - a range their campaign does not dispute.
Frankly, I DON'T SUPPORT the way Obama allowed speculators to crank the US taxpayers for $12.9 billion in subsidies - losing almost all the auto parts jobs in the process.
But when I heard Romney, tell the nation, "I would do nothing to hurt the US auto industry," it really pissed me off. This guy cannot be trusted! Everything that comes out of his mouth is a carefully conceived fabrication designed to fool the low-information voter.
Hello, anybody home?
Stream of Consciousness
So I've been considering how to best identify the general theme for my BLOG. My readers are probably equally confused. Posts have ranged from my struggle to conquer personal demons, to my political perspective, and understanding of economic theory. It should come as no surprise to those who know me that my posts have jumped from one topic to another. My daily life is often a self-inflicted jumbled chaos. I can't sit still. My mind races to either analyze what's been done, or to plan how to best prepare for events on the horizon.
Sometimes the chaos intrudes upon my dreams, with entire sleep cycles lost to an invasion of job stress or the excitement of anticipation. I wish I knew how to turn off the images that flash uncontrollably in my head, but I don't. Instead I toss and turn all night, or awake suddenly at 2:00 AM fully alert. On these occasions I've no option but to rise and act upon what ever issue is assaulting my psyche for control of my thoughts. Last night was one of those nights!
I went to bed at 11:30 and fell fast asleep. To the best of my knowledge it was restful, until 2:30 when I awoke for the first time. From that point forward, until I got out of bed at 8:30, a freight train of sounds accompanied the lighting storm of images that agitated all attempts at sleep. No single thought won the battle. It was just a constant stream of consciousness that tortured me until I my only option to stop the "noise" was to get out of bed.
Perhaps stream of consciousness should be the ongoing theme. It seems a natural extension, the essence of who I am. Stream of consciousness is a form of interior monologue which claims as its goal the representation of a lead consciousness in a narrative. This representation of consciousness can include perceptions or impressions, thoughts incited by outside sensory stimuli, and fragments of random, disconnected thoughts. Stream of consciousness writing often lacks "correct" punctuation or syntax, favoring a looser, more incomplete style.
Do I have any other choice?
Sometimes the chaos intrudes upon my dreams, with entire sleep cycles lost to an invasion of job stress or the excitement of anticipation. I wish I knew how to turn off the images that flash uncontrollably in my head, but I don't. Instead I toss and turn all night, or awake suddenly at 2:00 AM fully alert. On these occasions I've no option but to rise and act upon what ever issue is assaulting my psyche for control of my thoughts. Last night was one of those nights!
I went to bed at 11:30 and fell fast asleep. To the best of my knowledge it was restful, until 2:30 when I awoke for the first time. From that point forward, until I got out of bed at 8:30, a freight train of sounds accompanied the lighting storm of images that agitated all attempts at sleep. No single thought won the battle. It was just a constant stream of consciousness that tortured me until I my only option to stop the "noise" was to get out of bed.
Perhaps stream of consciousness should be the ongoing theme. It seems a natural extension, the essence of who I am. Stream of consciousness is a form of interior monologue which claims as its goal the representation of a lead consciousness in a narrative. This representation of consciousness can include perceptions or impressions, thoughts incited by outside sensory stimuli, and fragments of random, disconnected thoughts. Stream of consciousness writing often lacks "correct" punctuation or syntax, favoring a looser, more incomplete style.
Do I have any other choice?
Saturday, October 27, 2012
The Energy Independence Myth
I'm so sick of hearing people bitch that the price of gas has risen under Obama! Listen up numb-skulls - oil prices are determined on world market just like the prices of wheat and corn. When a drought in Asia sends up the price of wheat, we will pay more for wheat in the United States even though we are a huge net exporter of wheat. Similarly, when the world price of oil skyrockets, people in Canada pay more for gas even though they are energy independent, as would we in the USA if we were energy independent.
A lot has been made of the Obama's lack of support for the Keystone Pipeline from Alberta, Canada to the US' Midwest and Gulf Coast. I won't support the POTUS or debate this issue because I lack sufficient information to take a side. Unlike most people I know, I won't espouse an opinion unless it's based on thorough analysis. I never speak unless I'm certain of what I'm saying.
Depite my inability to offer an opinion on the merits of the pipeline, I can say with aboslute certainty that it would have no impact on our price of gas. All one needs to do is look at what Canada is paying. The country is energy independent. Canada has also been celebrated by Republicans as having courageous politicians that have been willing to kick environmentalists in the teeth. How has this benefited the people of Canada? They only have to pay $4.00 a gallon for gas.
Anyone that has studied economics understands that being energy independent doesn't mean anything unless the country is at war and somehow cut off from foreign oil supplies. If this is our concern then drilling out our oil and gas now would be assinine. It would mean that the resources would not be there if we ever face such a crisis. I'd like to take credit for this suggestion, but it is a reality that was taught to me by an economist I follow - Dean Baker.
I wish others would take some time to santize their conclusions before sharing them with the world!
A lot has been made of the Obama's lack of support for the Keystone Pipeline from Alberta, Canada to the US' Midwest and Gulf Coast. I won't support the POTUS or debate this issue because I lack sufficient information to take a side. Unlike most people I know, I won't espouse an opinion unless it's based on thorough analysis. I never speak unless I'm certain of what I'm saying.
Depite my inability to offer an opinion on the merits of the pipeline, I can say with aboslute certainty that it would have no impact on our price of gas. All one needs to do is look at what Canada is paying. The country is energy independent. Canada has also been celebrated by Republicans as having courageous politicians that have been willing to kick environmentalists in the teeth. How has this benefited the people of Canada? They only have to pay $4.00 a gallon for gas.
Anyone that has studied economics understands that being energy independent doesn't mean anything unless the country is at war and somehow cut off from foreign oil supplies. If this is our concern then drilling out our oil and gas now would be assinine. It would mean that the resources would not be there if we ever face such a crisis. I'd like to take credit for this suggestion, but it is a reality that was taught to me by an economist I follow - Dean Baker.
I wish others would take some time to santize their conclusions before sharing them with the world!
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