Things we can't talk about

I haven't blogged in a while.

It's not that I've been busy, although that is the truth of it. More to the point - I haven't wanted to write anything.

Maybe it's just me, but I have been realizing that people in general seem to be locked into the reality that their filters create - myself included. So what's to talk about? We cannot debate anything political, religious, economic, or ecological now, without getting mad at each other, and the remaining material for conversation is rather drab.

Politically it's Obama or Not Obama (I'm of the latter persuasion). There is no in between. I chuckle when I hear interviews of "independents" and "moderates". In 2 sentences they explain why they are voting left. So there's really no reason to separate them from the left.

Ecologically it is either Global Warming or What's the Rush? I fall in the "What's the Rush?" crowd for several reasons. 1) the science is not settled. 2) the data has been shown to be thoroughly tainted again and again for political and ideological reasons. 3) 30 years ago I was bludgeoned with Global Cooling (remember, you baby boomers?). So the debate is NOT "over", as Hilary likes to say - it is only just begun. But we can't talk about it. It just makes us fight. One is either a Warming-ite who believes in total life-style transition to save the planet, or a skeptic who favors doing nothing until better information is available.

Religious discussion is taboo. No religious discussion is safe from animosity. It's a shame. With all its problems, organized religion has probably done more to further civilization than any other organized effort, be it government or movement. America's founders promoted freedom of religion. Today's buffoons demand freedom from religion. In this atmosphere it's best to pray behind closed doors and hope for change.

Economic conversation is unfeasible. Again, it's left and right. Either the government should control everything or nothing. Taxes should be a means toward improving the nation or as a way to control behavior. I favor sensible spending and limits on the amount anyone should be required to pay, and that rates should be objective, not arbitrary.

The tiresome fact is, that whichever way a body believes now - there seems no manner of persuading him or her to even consider arguments from the other side. To each side the other is ignorant bordering on moronic, stubborn, unrealistic, and even malicious. Each side hunkers down in their trench, even while wondering why we can't get along better or learn to compromise.

Let me give an example on health care. To the left, a bill providing care to everyone is desired, and the means to get it is to tax everyone more. To the right, the only changes that are needed are to increase competition among insurance providers, and to limit payments for malpractice suits and make those who launch frivolous lawsuits liable for court costs if or when they lose.
The right looked at a bill prepared solely by Democrat leaders in charge of both houses of congress. It was a hard pill to swallow, but Republican leaders said they could support the bill if a few changes were made, namely: take out the federal funding for abortion, and increase competition among providers. Otherwise, go ahead and raise taxes and provide care to everyone.

Well, it has become a fist fight, and lot's of bruising is going on. The Democrats have lost three valuable seats - two governorships and Ted Kennedy's (!) seat over this fight, but they will not change one word in the bill. In fact, they wonder if they can pull an end run around the legislative requirements and accept the Senate bill for later change through reconciliation. One can only imagine Republicans trying to pull such a stunt - especially when current polling pits 70% of Americans against the bill in its current form.

See what I mean about trenches? Are there Republican examples? Sure! But I AM a Republican, so I'm not going to go there - you will have to find them on your own.

The point is - I am watching friendships die and family relationships sour over this growing rigidity and antagonistic populism. It makes me sad that one can no longer reasonably discuss differences and then go have fun at other pursuits. I wonder if this isn't how our civil war got started. A few arguments in the field or around the dinner table, divided leadership in government, absence of willingness to seek common solutions, and finally - bloodshed.

So - let's stay friends. Let's visit. Let's do stuff. But when it's time for talking, please let's stay away from the following topics:

government
taxes
health care
education
religion
justice system
terrorism
war
economy
ecology
science
children
immigration
transportation
politics
food
sex
literature
news and current events
cars

There's plenty to talk about other than those argumentative topics.

Music and sports, for instance.

Except that I think Lady Ga Ga should be banned and that football players should have their salaries capped at no more than $100,000 per yer.
How about you?

Jimmy Jones
Stafford VA

Too Early to talk Impeachment?

Well, I think it might be time to start the discussion.

We have:
- government nationalization of private industries (ex: GM),
- government persecution of individual citizens (ex: Rush Limbaugh),
- executive branch bypassing the legislative branch (ex: 34 unaccountable czars)
- economic destruction (ex: $7 trillion new debt)
- government dictation of religious conduct (ex: forced taxpayer support of abortion)
- denial of participation in the democratic process (ex: exclusion of Republicans from committee)
- coercion of the press (ex: townhall hosted by ABC at the WhiteHouse without participation by any opposing parties)

It's a small list, but actually quite impressive given the hoaxter has only been in office for 9 months!

Let's go ahead and start getting the papers drawn up. Perhaps after the 2010 elections we can get a vote on a solid set of charges, and a full trial in the Senate.

52 and fragile too!

So I spent 2 years and 4 months learning the Korean martial art of Tae Kwon Do - literally: "hand foot way", or close to that. I started at the White Belt, or "no knowledge" belt, and progressed through many colored belts at the rate of 1 every 2 or 3 months. Along the way I learned how to do pretty moves like you saw in Karate Kid or Mulan (sort of), used my hands, feet, elbows, fingers, and head to break boards, and studied 1 on 1 sparring (kicking each other until somebody gets hurt) and overall kicking - front, side, back, high, low, spinning, and jumping.

Also along the way I hurt myself frequently and substantially. I stubbed toes, rolled ankles, tore muscles, sprained wrists, cut my hands and feet, suffered headaches, and finally, broke my arm. You see, the problem for me is that I am 52. Most of my Tae Kwon Do classmates are between 6 and 16. A few are between 18 and 20, and a couple are in their 30's. One other person is also 52, and that person has experienced damages along the lines of those I regularly incur. We get to stretching, jumping, kicking, and practicing form movements, and suddenly in my head I am 18 again. If the kid in front of me kicks a board held over his head, I see no reason that I cannot reach a board the same height. I try. Not quite. I try again. I am certain I can do it! I give the good Korean scream which means "one of us is going to die right here right now!", and I jump and kick with everything I've got! POP - uh, oh, something's not right in my left calf...PPPPPAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Voila, I am on the ground, writhing. The Master of the school rushes over. He can fix me. Unfortunately, the method he uses has been banned by the Geneva Convention. He palms several short acupuncture needles. He lifts my leg straight up into the air as I lie on my back. I scream louder. He pays no attention, and begins swatting his palm, needles out, into my torn calf. WOWWWWOOOOOWWWWOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWW!
And he doesn't stop. Every now and then he does pause and wipe his hands on a towel. I see blood. Blood on his hands, blood on the towel. Where is he getting it from? HA! He has made my calf a pin cushion!. He finishes and we towel remaining blood off my leg. We wrap the calf in ace bandage. I am about 3 weeks healing up from that one. Who knows, without the acupuncture I may have been 4 or 5 or 6 weeks. Oh, did I mention I could barely walk for 2 weeks?

Once recovered I'm back to spraining joints and pulling muscles. Finally, after 2 years and some months I am ready to test for the Black Belt! I am psyched. I am ready. I do 100 pushups. I do 100 jumping jacks. I do 100 of several other exercises each. I do forms. I demonstrate kicks, and then I am ready for the finale: breaking boards. "How many" they ask, as I flex my macho fist. I am going to demonstrate my strength, speed, dexterity, and pure power! "FOUR", says I! "Are you sure?" "Do you want three?"
"FOUR" I affirm.
Right arm up.
Focus
Concentrate
Screammmmm KiiiiiiYAAAAA! The boards split like kindling. I am triumphant!
Hmmm. The arm feels funny - it's tingling and aching. What a smack I delivered!
Next boards up for a side chop. Should I do it? There's a little voice....
My pride and machismo is at stake. Of course I will do it!
Focus
Concentrate
Screammmm KiiiiiiYAAAAA! The boards fly across the room, broken.

I'm ecstatic. But my arm is throbbong. I look down. It is red, and swelling up in a weird and disgusting fashion. I sit. A fellow student, who is also a nurse says "you better take that to the emergency room - I think you broke it!"

I wiggle my fingers. I move my arm. Ow! But they move. I promise to go as soon as testing is over. I have other breaks with my feet and my left arm. They all go OK.

On to the ER. Yep. Ulna is snapped clean thru. Dang it. Old, brittle bones. No one breaks their arm chopping a few boards! Why me?

So I am in a brace, with a plate and 9 screws in my right arm. My left rib hurts where I fell on it during sparring. Huh? It didn't hurt during testing! Why now?

I know. It's because I'm 52. I shouldn't be jumping around like I'm 18. But I can't help it. Something tells me I've learned nothing. As I ease back into classes, heading to my 2nd degree black belt, I find I'm: kicking harder, jumping higher, and spinning faster. Heads up, bones, one of you may be next! Can't let some KID do better than me, after all. Right?

We're losing the race, because we are running backward

South Korea's economy is having trouble. In their words. Their public debt has risen. It is 33% of their total GDP. Compare them with us. Our public debt is now a staggaring 81% of our GDP (which is emormous by itself), thanks to the buffoon in the White House and his cronies running [ruining?] every branch of our federal government. How is Korea addressing their economic troubles? 2 ways: They are lowering interest rates, and they are cutting taxes. That's it. No borrowing. No "stimulus." No nationalization of banks, mortgage lenders, car companies, and health care. They are embracing free market principles, while we race to see how fast we can adopt those of the old Soviet Union.

I just visited South Korea for a whirlwind cross-country tour. What I saw at every turn was a country dedicated to progress, growth, and an increase in quality of life. Their infrastructure is renewed, modernized, and grown on a daily basis. Their public availability and use of technology is amazing. Their auto industry is going gangbusters, and they are encroaching on their world competitors by leaps and bounds. They have 4 car companies: the well known Hyundai and Kia, and Daewoo and SSangYong. The latter makes cars in partnership with and based on Mercedes platforms. So well in fact, that Mercedes forbids marketing in Europe of these cars. In 2 weeks, I saw thousands of cars, of which one was American. And that one car was a 5 or 6 year old Mercury Sable.

I had internet everywhere I went - high Speed. I watched people on cell phone conversations using video. I visited restrooms which were numerous, spotless, modern, and sanitary, even in the country side. I stopped at rest stops across the country which had vast play areas, numerous stores and restaurants, entertainment, and information centers. All stocked. All busy. All thriving, and all spotless. I immediately compared that to Virginia's announcement that we are closing a number of our rest stops along I95 because we can't afford them. Literally folks, you can spend a week's vacation at a Korean rest stop.

The food was amazing. The meat was fresh. The produce was just-picked and organic. The cars were, for the most part, fairly new. Every family I visited had 2. The internet was fast. The stores were stocked with goods and packed with people. Everyone was fit and skinny. I think we counted 8 overweight Koreans in 2 weeks. The first thing I noticed when we arrived back in the US was that almost all of the people in the airport were obese, including me. Ugh.

We have two things going for us, as far as I'm concerned, but we are rapidly removing that advantage. We have space, and we have natural resources. But we are fencing off the space, and forbidding the development and use of our resources in the name of, well, they say ecology, but actually, in the name of socialism and behavioral control. We would rather see 10 thousand farmers lose their farms and go on the public dole than risk extinction of a 2-inch nondescript minnow http://westernfarmpress.com/mag/farming_california_reels_savetheminnow/

We would rather see the economy crash and burn than build a few more nuclear plants, burn clean coal, or drill and refine more of our own vast oil resources. We would rather hit the bottom of international education ranking than exchange sex education for math and science. Our current "leadership" seems more willing to communicate and negotiate with communist North Korea than with our ideological and economic partners in the South. It makes me weep.

As I watch us race to ruin, listen to our leaders tell us to "sit down and shut up and take what's good for us", witness the repression of free speech and debate of ideas, I am alarmed to think of where we will end up. In 2002, then president Bush was met with vigorous demonstrations and vitriol at public stops. I don't remember the press having anything to say except for how "American" these protests were. Now that we have poll after poll telling us that a majority of Americans question or oppose the national health care plan, I see the press quietly agreeing with the White House and Democratic leaders in congress that Joe American should just stop with the protests and debates, and let the leaders ru[i]n things.

Well, not me. I like how Korea is doing things. I think we should model them. They shout and push and shove in their legislative sessions! Perhaps it is time we started doing the same. I think I will find myself a couple of nearby town hall meetings, pull on a pair of boxing gloves, and head on over. What's the worst that could happen? I'd get arrested? Well, then maybe that's exactly what needs to happen. There is not enough jail space to hold us all. They might have to start shooting us - like the Soviet Union or Iran. Won't THAT look nice on TV?

So you wanna be a doctor...

Hey, I started late. My 'rents enrolled me in a semester at George Mason in 1976. I didn't want to go, and I was more interested in beer than anything else at the time. I flunked out right away, and mom and dad moved on to the next kid. I was free to do what I liked, and I did, until I had to sober up at the young age of 24.

My older brother Mike convinced me to take a few computer classes in an effort to as he put it: "get my head out of the rock and roll star clouds and get a real job..." (sorry if I misquoted that, Mike, it was a long time ago). I said "with what money?" Well, Mike offered tuition for 2 classes as a gift, and that seed money turned out to be very valuable. I decided to get an associate degree in computer information systems. I was frustrated that when I scheduled out working full time and going to school at night - the degree would take 6 years. A wise friend of mine told me "so what? 6 years will go by anyway - you may as well be in school". Six years later, almost to the day, I collected an A.A.S. (associate in applied science), magna cum laude.

I also got married, bought a house, and launched a computer career. after a couple years, the school bug bit me again, and I entered an undergraduate program, again in computer information systems. 3 years later, I earned a B.S. in my chosen field. THen I bought a bigger house, and my wife delivered a beautiful baby girl for us. I was out of the education business for 10 years.

A flurry of events coincided to again push me to consider enhancing my education. I chaecked out Masters Degree programs at various schools. What field? I had two degrees in Information Systems, so I decided to go the business route, and chose to go fo rthe MBA. It took 2 years, and I graduated with a 4.0 GPA. The school had no honor society, so I could not tag a 'Magna' or a 'Summa' onto it, but I'm happy none the less that my grades were so good.

The MBA was complete. I had momentum. Should I go for the doctorate? I asked friends and peers. Generally the answer was negative. "It is really tough." "It will strain your marriage." "It is pure insanity." Then there were a few that said - "It is very hard, and it takes a long time. You need support from your family and friends and work. But you CAN do it, and the reward is unmeasurable. It is achievement, awareness, capability, and understanding all wrapped up into one package."

So I aplied for the loans, signed the papers, and enrolled. That was 2 and a half years ago. In another year or year and a half I expect to complete my dissertation, walk across the stage, and get hooded as a doctor of management (DM). It has been tough. Really tough. It has strained my marriage. It has worn my nerves to a frazzle. It has affected my performance on the job. All but my very closest friends and my wife have said "quit, if it's so much trouble!" But I will not. I will finish, and it will be a crowning achievement, in my view.

The few that have continued their support will be listed in my acknowledgements. They are invaluable. As were the ones that advised me: "It is tough, but you CAN do it, and it is worthwhile.". They are my champions and my heroes. They are the people I model myself after. Simply put, I want to be like them. Do you? If you are thinking of a phD or a doctorate, I have this to say: "It is tough. It takes a long time. And it takes away from all other aspects of your life. But you CAN do it. And I believe the results will be worthwhile."

I'll let you know in another year. Until then - pray for me, if you will!

Jimmy Jones

Let's pretend it's warming up

We may need to soon, as we try to convince ourselves that we are warm, even as we shiver. The main problem right now is that the sun is not being cooperative in helping man turn the Earth into a gigantic ball of fire. Solar activity (sunspots and flaring) have been decreasing since 2002, and it seems that aside from all the screaming, these phenomena contribute the most, by many magnitudes, to global warming.



Less Sun activity means reduced solar winds, longer-lasting and more frequent cold advection around the polar ice caps (yes, they will grow), refreezing of freshwater bodies such as the Dutch canals and portions of the Thames, and reduction in ariable land for food production. Climate scientists including NASA solar physicists, climatologists, geophysicists, and other professionals predict that another full solar cycle, which concludes sometime in 2012, should be enough to provide strong indications for which side is right, the warming fanatics or the cooling advocates.



The reason I use these two descriptive terms (fanatics and advocates), is that global warming ideology permits no debate at this time. Try to debate the point with anyone who tells you you should stop using incandescent bulbs. Count the sentences before they call you "ignorant" or worse. Those of us who believe that the science is incomplete are not allowed to participate in the conversation.

Look at the climate legislation that just passed the US Congress without one single member of the House, Democrat, Republican, or Independent, having read the bill.



By around 2020, I believe we will have a firmly established trend of either global warming or cooling. In the mean time we need debate and peer-reviewed study - not political grandstanding. We need to hold off on decisions that materially affect the economy and the national well-being, such as the boondoggle that just made it through Congress. We need to return the debate to the scientific, not political arena.



Let us take that step in the Senate, and throw this piece of legislative junk in the trash, where it belongs. We can do it even though Al Franken was allowed to steal his Senate seat. Since Kennedy and Byrd are out for medical reasons, the vote need not be fillibuster-proof. If Republicans can act together (hear me, Olympia and Susan?), we can help protect America from its non-representing representatives. I hope this will be the case. In any event, I am stocking up on 1,000 incandescent bulbs and dimmer switches, so I can at least enjoy my lighting until I pass away. When I'm dead, I won't hear my kids and grandkids screaming at me for bequeathing them such lunacy as this climate bill.

Great Global Warming Quote

Nothing from me - just thought this guy was worth quoting. Not that any GW fanatics will be able to understand it at all...

"In the ice core record, CO2 increase has always lagged behind temperature rises and the lag involved is estimated to be 400 to 800 years." [emphasis mine] "There has never been a period when a CO2 rise has preceded global warming. I have seen it argued that the past 30 years has been so exceptional that it MUST, for the first time in the history of the globe, be CO2 driving the warming trend. That is an assertion of such low probability that it should require very powerful evidence to support it. I have seen no such evidence. Indeed, on a cursory inspection the slow but steady increase in atmospheric CO2 is clearly not coming through in a slow but steady rise in global temperatures. Instead we see rises and falls in global temperatures that bear no obvious relationship to the steady rise in CO2 unless one puts the cart before the horse and announces that there is no other possible reason and the trend period adopted is carefully chosen to suit the proposition." - Stephen Wilde

The whole article can be seen at:
http://climaterealists.com/index.php?id=1041