Mourning for the United States of America

When something tragic happens in your life, either micro or macro, it is normal to mourn.

Sometimes events leading up to a tragic moment leave you in a state of lethargy, feeling that upcoming events are completely out of your control.  This is what happened to me on the lead up to passage of the recent Health Care Reform Act.

• I watched as our government had meetings behind closed doors to consider legislation that will fundamentally change our country.
• Special deals were made to change votes.
• Misinformation was spread about a bill that we knew little to nothing about.
• Misinformation included:  ”The bill will decrease our national debt, The bill will decrease our health insurance payments, and There are 33,000,000 U.S. Citizens who do not have health care.”

Then the Bill was passed.

As a dream, I would describe it as finding myself in a professional wrestling ring and being body slammed by a professional wrestler.  My breath was knocked out of me and I was left delirious.  I was unable to formulate my thoughts.  I just tried to figure out how the heck I got there. (Dream Over!)

I now understand it wasn’t just one bill.  Not just this one particular bill, although this one bill was bad enough.  The real blow was two-fold:

• The realization that, in my life time, our country has been moving away from belief in Liberty, In God We Trust, and From Many One and we have been replacing those with Equality, Sectarianism, and Multiculturalism.  The repercussions are too difficult to elaborate on here.
• And the realization that this one bill could be the final nail in what I always believed to be American exceptionalism in an attempt to make sure we are more like France or Holland.

I slept, and people who share my belief’s slept.  We didn’t fight for our beliefs, we didn’t explain our beliefs, I’m not sure we even knew exactly what our beliefs were.  We were faced with an opponent that knew exactly what their beliefs were and they were not sleeping.

Now, as the country turns sharply and fundamentally toward larger and larger federal government control, even in the face of a constitution that clearly spells out the limited role and authority of the federal government, I see that my beliefs are on the precipice of being extinguished.

I haven’t posted here in some time because I just could not find the words and still can not.

Our founders were wise and created a county with the ability to achieve greatness.  It was the wisdom of our founders to give citizens a “mid-term election” and a chance to right the ship.

I don’t have much hope in the upcoming mid-term election because I believe we have gone too far, but voters will be given one last chance to say, “We want to improve America, not fundamentally change America.

The choice, as always, is ours.

CDsailor

Winning at Retail

Will Amazon win the retail game?

I like the store down the street!  I like all the stores down the street and I’ve always been willing to spend a little more and take my business to them, but more and more Amazon is getting my business.

Why?  The why is simple, when I need something, they usually have it!

Today I needed a vacuum belt to fix my vacuum cleaner.  I took off the broken belt and headed to my local hardware store.  They had a few belts but no reference chart so I could chose the right belt.  I asked the clerk and he didn’t know what to do.

I drove to a vacuum repair place, but it was closed and had no posted hours of operation anywhere, and I really looked.  I even called the cell number on the door but got voice mail.

I left the vacuum store and headed to another hardware store and found the same small inventory of belts and no reference chart available.  There was no clerk available either even though the store was pretty quiet on an early morning.

From there I drove to Best Buy because that is where I bought the vacuum cleaner, but they didn’t carry the belt either.

No local store could help me.  No local store knew where I could find the correct model number and none offered to order it and have it for me in a few days.

When I got home I looked up the belt model number at the manufacturer’s site and went to Amazon to buy it.  The belt will be here in 2 days with no shipping costs using Amazon Prime, and it couldn’t be easier.

How is Amazon winning my business?  The reason is the small retailer doesn’t yet acknowledge that along with his merchandise he is selling service.  Service is why people want the small retailer to survive and prosper, and today I found little service to be had.

Sooner or later the small retailer will wear me down and I’ll go to Amazon first.  When that day comes the small retailer will lose a valuable customer and an enthusiastic cheerleader.

CDsailor

Senator Bunning and The “One Way Press.”

ABC News reports that Bunning ends his Filibuster!  Unemployment is extended.

Is the press lazy, or unprofessional, or is it that the press is just one-sided?

We all know what a filibuster is.  The Senate needs 60 votes to pass legislation.  This limits the majority party in the Senate from ignoring the minority party in the Senate.  Simple enough.

And so the headline was confusing to me.  One person can not filibuster, as a matter of fact it takes 41 Senators to filibuster so why the headline?  By the way,  the Senate had enough votes to pass the bill with or with out the Senator’s vote!

Right away I know the author of the article is giving me more opinion than the facts of the story.

One line of the story talks of Bunning’s “obstruction.”

How can one man obstruct a bill?  Well ABC didn’t mention it, but I found out later that it is a Senate procedure called “Unanimous Consent.”  I never heard of it either and ABC didn’t think it was important enough to include it in their article.  What was important was that Senator Bunning is blocking people’s unemployment insurance.

ABC Article

What is Unanimous Consent?  Since the press isn’t going to tell me, I’ll just find the link to the US Senate.  Unanimous Consent is simply a procedure that a Senator (in this case Senator Reid) can request if he feels a bill must be passed immediately.  If everyone agrees, that’s that, but if one Senator disagrees, then well, I guess you don’t have Unanimous Consent.

So Senator Reid was perfectly within his rights to request Unanimous Consent and Senator Bunning was perfectly within his rights to object.  But if you listened to me there would be no story and no one to be called heartless!

Press here for ABC News acting very unprofessionally and blocking Bunning’s elevator on his way to the Senate floor to explain his objections.

The story to ABC news is why aren’t you spending money, how could you not spend money on something so important.  This attitude reflects many in this country.

So what was Senator Bunning’s problem if everyone was ready to go along?

Senator Bunning’s best line was, “There comes a time when 100 senators are for something that we all support.  If we can’t find $10 billion to pay for it, we’re not going to pay for anything.” 

Now how are you going to argue with that!  100 Senators agree, but refuse to find the money in other programs and instead will kick the can down the road and add it to the deficit with all the other garbage.

Does Senator Bunning deserve all the bad press he is getting?

Is Senator Bunning heartless and doesn’t care who suffers?

I think we should listen to his words.

Our latest budget is 1 Trillion Dollars!  Isn’t that a thousand billion dollars?  Isn’t there 10 billion to cover this bill somewhere in there?  How about reducing the dollar amount of the bill by eliminating some other things in the bill that are not related and passing a smaller bill?  Have we used the word One Billion Dollars enough times now that it no longer has any meaning?

In my home One Hundred Dollars has meaning even though we can afford One Thousand Dollars without putting it on a credit card.

This Senator Bunning story points out a classic problem in society today.  We want our government to spend money, our political representatives want to spend money, and so spend we will.

It is unimaginable that a day will come when there will be no one left to buy America’s debt,  it is unimaginable that a day will come when the U.S. dollar just isn’t worth that much on the world market.  It is unimaginable that a day will come when all the U.S. can do is print more money and the world will look at our dollar as just printed money, backed up by nothing.

Should I point out some things we thought unimaginable in the latest housing crisis?  That was another post!

Senator Bunning was making a legitimate point that few are willing to listen to.

I never heard of Senator Bunning before, I don’t know his politics, I doubt if I would agree with him on most issues, but in this case Senator Bunning was tarred and feathered for no particular reason.  I think that says a lot about our society and I think it is a shame.

CDsailor

Forgiveness

I’ve been taught the importance of forgiveness from the time I was a boy.

My church has taught the importance of forgiveness all my life.

I’m not sure when it was that my definition of forgiveness started to vary from a new definition of forgiveness.

It could have been that news story long ago, where a student was shot and killed on a high school campus.  The next day the sign in front of the school said that the school forgave the murderer!

“What an interesting comment,” I thought.

I believe that I do not have the ability to forgive a person for his transgressions on another.  I believe that forgiveness must come from the person wronged.  This is one reason why murder is the one unforgivable sin, because there is no one left but God to forgive.

The school can forgive the murderer for the hurt he brought to the school, but somehow I don’t think that is what they were thinking.  If they were, maybe the sign would read “We forgive you, and pray God will too.”

There was another thing that bothered me about the sign at the school.  It was up for all to read the day after the shooting.  I would have thought a time of mourning would be appropriate before a time of forgiveness.

Whether I’m reading this school right or wrong I don’t know, but it does seem rather clear that the school and I have a fundamental disagreement on forgiveness.  I’m cynical enough to believe that the sign was the idea of a few administrators and was meant to show their goodness to the community.  In other words it was more of a self-righteousness act than an act of forgiveness.

My core belief remains the same.

If a burglar breaks into your home, the government can arrest and punish him, they can set him free, they can force him to return your stuff and repair your house but they can not forgive him.  Only you can forgive him and I hope the burglar seeks your forgiveness and sincerely wants to make you whole.

Forgiveness is a wonderful thing, both receiving and giving forgiveness is a wonderful thing.  Therefore I will never cheapen the worth of forgiveness by granting it to anyone but the person who has been wronged.

If forgiveness can be granted by others than the person wronged, why wouldn’t churches set up a council on forgiveness to forgive people who will not ask for forgiveness from the people they wronged?  How about a government agency on forgiveness to make sure we forgive people who have wronged others but were unable or unwilling to seek their forgiveness.

Hey, a government agency on forgiveness.  It would be one less thing an individual would have to concern himself with, and instead empower the government in this area.  I think a lot of people would like it.

OK!  You get my point.

Seek forgiveness.  Be forgiving, but understand you don’t have the right to forgive a person for their transgressions against another.

CDsailor

Newfoundland / Labrador Premier Makes Health Care Points

Premier Danny Williams was lucky, he had the United States to go to!

In the Canadian Press article, Premier Danny Williams makes a few good points we should all listen to.  Take a second to read this short article.

Canadian Press

1. Canadian doctors first told him his heart problem was “moderate” and to come back in 6 months.  (We can expect the same)
2. Back for a visit in eight months the problem became serious and immediate treatment was required.  (We can expect the same.)
3. Treatment in a Canadian hospital would require a waiting period. (We can expect the same.)
4. Each one of two procedures required breaking bones.
5. A Florida hospital and surgeon could do the procedure immediately without breaking bones.
6. Premier Danny Williams was glad he had the United States as a second option. (We can not expect the same.)

It might be wise to wait until Canada repeals their public health care policies before we enact our own.

CDsailor

Simpathy and Suspicion and Toyota

GM ownership, and union support by the Obama Administration makes one suspicious of the government actions against Toyota.

Many years ago, I tuned in to Motor Man Leon Caplan on KABC Radio here in Los Angeles, and was listening to the discussion of all things motorized.  The subject turned to unexpected acceleration in automobiles.  Leon said that he had been called as an expert witness to testify in many unexpected acceleration cases and found that most were caused by poorly installed floor mats!

Floor mats can get pushed away from the seat and up and under the pedals of a car.  Some times the floor mat can get crinkled up in a position below the brake and above the accelerator pedal so that when you step on the brake the floor mat pushes down on the accelerator.  In other cases the floor mat could prevent the accelerator pedal from returning to its idle position.

This is what happened in a case involving a San Diego Lexus dealer who installed an unapproved floor mat upside down in a loaner car!

In this case in San Diego, the pedal jammed and a horrible crash killed four people.

Holman W. Jenkins Jr. reports in the Wall Street Journal that Toyota issued recalls and service bulletins related to floor mats before this accident.  If this is true, it would seem the broader fault would be the dealer, the specific fault would be the installer, but no fault should fall on the manufacturer.

Today the congress is holding hearings to make Toyota and its CEO Aklo Toyoda squirm.  They will make the point that the problem is some type of bug in the electronic part of the accelerator that no one can find.

Few members of congress will doubt the testimony of Clarence Ditlow, a trial lawyer, who will testify today, and few will suspect that an electronic glitch that can’t be found might not be there.

It should be noted that some cars have a brake override so pressing on the brake overrides the accelerator’s action.

It should also be noted that environmental standards forced the installation of the electronic part of the accelerator that has a glitch that no one can find.

About a week ago, Mrs. Sailor looked up at me and said, “What do you think of this Toyota thing?

I said, “It looks very suspicious.”

I could be wrong, but it looks as though the government might want to take Toyota down a peg or two to prop up GM.

I’m rooting for Ford, who should have won, would have won, but the government stepped in.

CDsailor

Raising Sea Levels

Well maybe not.  “People make mistakes and mistakes happen in science,” said Mark Siddal at the University of Bristol.

Read Guardian Article

The bottom line is a 2009 report confirmed a 2007 report from the UN’s IPCC that the oceans could rise between 7cm and 82cm by the end of the century.  The report used data over the last 22,000 years which should, at least, raise an eye brow!

Now there is a formal retraction. 

Don’t expect to hear about this in U.S. media.

CDsailor

Ash Wednesday

Yesterday I stopped by my favorite coffee shop to get my afternoon cup of coffee and noticed that one of my favorite baristas had gone to Ash Wednesday Service.

I immediately thought how unusual the mark of ash is in Southern California when it used to be pretty common.  The Church I attend didn’t even have an Ash Wednesday Service.

Take a look at a cute video by clicking below.

Joe Biden on Ash Wednesday

CDsailor

Bipartisanship

President Obama asks for more bipartisanship when considering his health care bill.

There is a lot to say on this issue, at least two or three more posts, but for now let’s do the math.

In the Senate there are:

• 100 votes, 60 votes are controlled by Democrats and 40 votes are controlled by Republicans.  This is, of course, before the Massachusetts election.
• President Obama’s health care plan showed no bipartisanship and instead the vote was straight down party lines.

Now let’s add the proper amount of bipartisanship.  60% of Democrats change their mind and vote for the minority and 40% of the Republicans change their mind and vote for the majority.

The final vote in favor:

• 24 Democrats and 16 Republicans for a grand total of 40 votes in favor.

The final vote opposed:

• 36 Democrats and 24 Republicans for a grand total of 60 votes opposed.

President Obama’s health care bill fails.

Since that didn’t work out so well, lets just say that 50% of Democrats will decide to become more bipartisan and 50% of Republicans decide to become more bipartisan.

The final vote in favor:

• 30 Democrats and 20 Republicans for a grand total of 50 votes in favor.

The final vote opposed:

• 30 Democrats and 20 Republicans for a grand total of 50 votes opposed.

President Obama’s health care plan fails again.

Anyway you cut it, President Obama’s call for bipartisanship will not work.  That is unless Republicans are more bipartian than Democrats but since it is the Democrat President calling for bipartisanship, wouldn’t you think that more Democrats would follow his lead than Republicans? 

President Obama must mean something else when he calls for bipartisanship.

CDsailor

Unstigmatizing Food Stamps

A New York Times article notes New York’s  success at taking the stigma away from food stamp recipients by replacing the old stamps or funny money with debit cards.

New York also recruits people to sign up for food stamps declaring it’s good for farmers and good for business.  It’s almost a civic duty!

It got me thinking.  What stigmas are left?  Does society stigmatized any behavior?

• Smoking Cigarettes is probably the biggest stigma of all.  There may be a bigger stigma against cigarettes than doing illegal drugs.
• Scientific articles opposing Global Warming seem to be stigmatized.
• Public expression of Christianity is being stigmatized.
• Opposing anything on “moral grounds” is stigmatized.
• Sport Utility Vehicles are stigmatized.

It may be that as we get more “sophisticated” we’ll stop stigmatizing behavior and attempt to stigmatize thought.

To the “unsophisticated” mind thought is just thought but actions or behavior needs to be controled.  To the “sophisticated” mind, it is thought that needs to be controled.

In both cases labels are how we attach stigmas.

In the old days the labels were:

• Lazy
• Unreliable
• Unkempt
• Self absorbed
• Uncharitable
• Lack of control
• Impolite
• Foul mouthed

Todays labels are:

• Racist
• Sexist
• Homophobe
• Anti environment
• Anti science
• Neanderthals (meaning anyone who disagrees with me)

CDsailor