Saturday, April 29, 2006

168

I'll leave you to guess the significance of the number.

Have I mentioned I'm sort of hooked on "24"? Even though it's gotten totally ridiculous the last few episodes, I still won't miss. Oh well, I guess I'm easily entertained.

Here's the week in review:

Last Saturday I put in 12 hours at the office trying to get everything done before my trip. Didn't get everything done but made progress. Then wondered where my weekend went.

Sunday I got up early to pack and head to the Indy airport. Tried to get Tim out of bed, because he said he wanted to get back to Butler early. But wasn't surprised when he wouldn't get up. Finished packing, drove to airport, flew to Reno, drove from there to Minden. Minden's near Carson City and Lake Tahoe. Got first class for both legs, but have no idea why. Makes the trip 10 times more comfortable though, so I'll take the upgrade anytime. Called home and found out Tim went back to school Sunday night because he slept all day. Hopefully that helped him recover from his illness.

Monday, got up at 5 and worked on the computer and made telephone calls until time to go to work at 8. Stayed in Monday night, partly to catch "24" and partly because I was tired. Went to sleep right after the show ended.

Tuesday, got up at 5 again and worked in the hotel room until 8. Went to work and worked all day. Found it strange that I kept sneezing throughout the day. People I was working with noticed, thought I was allergic to some of the desert plants that were blooming. Stayed in Tuesday night because was even more tired and sinuses were acting up, and made sure to catch Idol because they had Andrea Bocceli.

Wednesday woke up feeling rotten. Checked email and took my time getting ready, and was at least functional for the work day. But by mid-afternoon, was really suffering. Tried to pretend I was fine, but don't know if I pulled off the ruse with the clients. That night went straight back to hotel room after buying a couple bottles of gatorade and some benadryl. Popped the pills and marveled at the altered states they caused before falling asleep. But made sure to at least catch Bocelli's performance at the beginning of Idol first. I still admire his voice, but gotta say he doesn't sing English language songs well enough to be understood.

Thursday I felt a little better after sleeping in until 6. Didn't bother with email that morning, although found out later I should have. Of course. Made it through the day slightly better than Wednesday, said goodbye to the folks at the client. Nice people. Back to the hotel, called local movie theatre thinking about maybe catching a movie that night. Ultimately there was nothing playing that caught my interest and I didn't feel up to it, so I popped a couple benadryl and went to sleep after watching the Bulls embarrass the Heat.

Friday morning, slept in until 6 again, packed, went down to the restaurant for a nice big breakfast. On my way back to the room, a naked woman popped out of one of the rooms just as I was walking past in the hallway. Wierd. I just kept walking and tried to pretend I didn't see her. Even told myself, "You didn't just see that". Can't help wondering why she did that.

Checked out of the hotel, drove back to Reno, where I filled the rental car before returning it and checking in for the flight home. Flew home through O'Hare, watched "Narnia" onboard to pass the time. Right ear was increasingly difficult to keep clear, and descent into O'Hare was painful. For some reason, the descent into Indy was even more painful. Made it home by about 10PM, though, which was a lot better than the 1AM last trip. But I regret the illness a little, because otherwise I probably would have made another trip up to Tahoe, and possibly checked out Virginia City, although it looks like it might be a tourist trap.

It's Saturday afternoon, and I'm back in the office, wasting time with this post when I have several things that have to be done before Monday. Mostly all that's left of my illness is an earache and cough. And I won't be able to sing at church tomorrow. But I think I got off easy compared to poor Chris, who's had a bad time with the chicken pox all week.

That's my week. Think traveling sounds interesting or exotic? Sometimes it can be, but mostly it's more like this.

Saturday, April 22, 2006

2B2B

Too busy to blog.

Way behind. Too much work, too little time. Saturday is trashed. Sunday is travel all day.

Be back in a week, maybe.

Wednesday, April 19, 2006

Observations

Through observation, I've learned that people are divided into two groups. Group 1 takes responsibility for their lives, while group 2 blames everybody else.

Examples:

Group 1 strives to improve their income or find a job they love by working hard, studying, and persistence. Group 2 is angry with their boss, government, parents, white men, or others for trapping them in their crappy, low-paying jobs.

Group 1 responds to needs of poor in their communities by volunteering and contributing to the most effective charity groups. Group 2 complain about the poor and think the government should take care of them using taxes confiscated from "rich" folks.

Group 1 knows that faith and family are what matter most in life. Group 2 hates the values of Group 1, are cynical toward religion, and feel religious "fundamentalists" are "judging" Group 2's for their sexual promiscuity, serial marriages, homosexuality, and abortion.

Group 1 loves freedom and respects those who protect that freedom. Group 2 would willingly trade freedom for a government dole and hate all things military.

I don't categorize people except by these groups. I've noticed real hatred seems to exist mainly with people from Group 2. Their hatred is generally directed at members of Group 1, and if racial, is mostly directed at white male "oppressors". They hate people of faith, political conservatives, members of the military, wealthy people, fat people, smokers, SUV owners, CEO's.

For me, hatred is not part of my emotional inventory. I don't feel hatred for anyone. Supporting border enforcement in no way means I hate hispanics. Opposing gay marriage, and for that matter believing homosexual behavior is wrong in no way means I hate gays. Supporting equal opportunity while opposing race-based preferences in no way means I hate black people. For people who act in a hateful manner toward me or in my presence, I generally feel sorry for them. I might even pray for them. Because hatred consumes people, prematurely ages them, and is generally a waste of time and emotion.

If you happen to read this and think you might fit at least some of my description of Group 2, might I suggest you give Group 1 a try? I think you will find it liberating.

Monday, April 17, 2006

Globalism

What's the real reason for the Iraq war?
Why is almost everything we buy these days made in China?
Why won't the politicians in Washington do anything about illegal immigration?
Why are gas prices so high?

I could come up with more questions, but those are the hot ones these days. And the answer isn't because Bush sucks, as so many ignoramuses are fond of repeating.

The more correct answer is - globalism. Bush Sr. was a globalist. So was Bill Clinton. And the current president continues the tradition.

The basic goal of the globalist is to make all the countries in the world so economically intertwined that nobody will want to go to war with anybody else again. The U.S. invests heavily in third world countries around the world, not out of altruism, but in an attempt to keep them relatively stable and beholden, and help their regimes hold off the anarchists and radical Islamists that seek to destabilize them.

Are you worried about Red China deciding to attack the U.S.? Not that they absolutely will not, but the economic ties between China and the world's largest consumer market will at least make the communist government think twice about biting the hand that feeds their own growing economy. Ever hear of the National Debt? Guess what foreign country holds a significant portion of our country's debt? You got it - China.

Which brings us to Iraq. Why did we choose Iraq for invasion after we drove the Taliban out of power in Afghanistan? Because of Saddam's complicity in 9/11? No. Even though Saddam harbored and financed Al Quaeda, so do Syria and Iran. Because of Saddam's possession of WMD? Partly. And yes, he had WMD and badly wanted nuclear weapons. The issue isn't that we didn't find them because Bush lied, but that we didn't find them most likely because he moved them into Syria, Iran, or both.

The bottom line is that Iraq, Iran, and Syria all represent rogue regimes bent on world destabilization. Iraq and Saddam were merely the most obvious choice. If we removed Saddam in Iraq, it would send a message to his neighbors that they can't get away with their destabilizing agendas. Which are the destruction of Israel and expanding Islamic rule throughout the world.

Endangering the mission in Iraq is the American anti-war left. Their continuous Bush bashing and demonstrations and anti-war rhetoric has been successful only in encouraging the so-called insurgents. But right now it seems we may succeed in Iraq despite their efforts to undermine the war. U.S. casualties are way down, the Iraqi government is on the brink of becoming organized and capable, and there's an excellent chance that Iraq will become a stable ally in the middle east. That is, unless the wackos get enough power in Washington to mess things up.

I would argue that the anti-war left created the current problems in Iran. Iran has been emboldened by the internal strife in America, which has led them to believe that we are so divided over Iraq that we won't have the will to stop Iran from pursuing their own evil agenda. I'm not sure, but they may be right.

Now oil prices. If you watch TV, you would think that fat oil company executives sit around their offices every day thinking, "How can we screw more people today and make even more money?". The reality is that oil is a commodity sold on the world market. The market sets the prices, so when Iran refuses to stop their uranium enrichment along with open threats of their intent to destroy Israel, the market gets nervous and bids up prices.

Then there's the new communist dictator in Venezuela, which has fairly significant oil supplies, but their new dictator is destabilizing the market. Or Russia, where Putin took over oil production and handed it over to the corrupt and inefficient government, slowing output well below levels available previously.

Finally, there are America's own environmentalists, who are so powerful that they have successfully blocked further development of our country's own oil supplies. There is potentially enough oil offshore and in other parts of the country that could have a great impact on supply. But we can't drill for any of it because the powerful environmental lobby has effectively blocked it. (Who said oil companies were so powerful?) Add to this the lack of refinery capacity, also blocked by environmental hurdles, and you have $3 gas.

Illegal immigration? Of all the other globalist policies you want to blame on Bush, I'd say this might be the most legitimate example. Illegal immigrants lower wages for the rest of us, place a big burden on taxpayers by swamping our education, healthcare, law enforcement, and social services agencies, and threaten sovereignty. It's not that our laws are inadequate - there are actually plenty of laws on the books related to border enforcement, sanctions against employers who hire illegals, etc. It's just that the government chooses to look the other way, for a variety of their own reasons, none of which have anything to do with the overall welfare of the country they are supposed to protect and serve.

Bush is a globalist. That means he might dream of a united world someday, where there are no borders, no war, and economic opportunity for every person on the planet. You may have heard about his ideas for creating a European Union-style economic trade bloc of the Americas. His goal is to build a single currency and cooperative government structure for all countries from Canada in the north through Central America to the south. Open borders is only one part of that dream.

What I'm getting at is this: If you want to hate Bush, at least know why. You don't really have much of a choice on the globalist agenda; it has been steadily moving forward for the last 20 to 25 years. If you don't like it, here's a news flash: Electing a Democrat president won't change that. Kerry is also a globalist. So is Hillary. And pretty much everybody else who wants to be president in 2008.

I believe we can stop illegal immigration only if enough Americans band together and demand it of our politicians. That doesn't appear to be happening, so get ready for it to get worse instead of better.

We will either have to go to war with Iran (and possibly Syria) in the next few years, or face the alternative which includes nuclear war with Israel and nuclear terrorism here in the U.S. I wonder if we have the will to stop Iran in time, or if we'll have to live through an episode worse then 9/11 before we act?

We can't make gas prices lower, unless we somehow get our own oil fields opened up to exploration and drilling again. Stabilizing the middle east could also help, but that's a long-term solution. But there are too many ignorant citizens and politicians that put their own power ahead of the interests of the country for that to happen.

We can't bring manufacturing back home from China. Because we like buying cheap stuff at Wal Mart. And China won't let us, because they own a big chunk of our country already.

Friday, April 14, 2006

Weekend Update

It was a pretty good week. Spent in the Carson Valley, which is the Carson City area (Nevada). Surrounded by mountains, and a short scenic drive up over the mountain to Lake Tahoe. Very nice.

Hotel was OK, but it's got a casino and the cigarette smoke permeates the entire place, even up to my room on the third floor. And the bed is old and saggy, so I have the worst cramps behind my shoulder blades. And you can't get a newspaper anywhere, which feels sort of like withdrawal to have to go a full week without being able to read the paper with breakfast.

Working on the Canadian issue, I had a conversation with someone who said one of the attorneys they talked to just said I should try again. That according to Canadian laws, there's no reason they should have turned me around in the first place. I suggested that I wouldn't do that, given they told me I was subject to arrest if I tried again without the appropriate permits. I'm trying to force them to get me that permit.

Driving around, I found a radio station that was all liberal talk. Decided to give it a chance, you know, find out whether they had anything to say. An hour was all I could stand. There was never a substantive discussion of a single issue. Not one. Unless you consider Bush-bashing an issue. The entire hour - and I am in no way exaggerating - was all about the evil George W. Bush. The host went on and on, then had guests on the show to continue the process.

Here's the theme for the hour:

Bush is stupid
Bush is a criminal
Bush is a torturer of innocent Muslims
Bush has killed hundreds of thousands of innocent people
Bush spies on his political enemies
Bush should be impeached and imprisoned
Bush is a war monger
Bush stole both elections. Therefore he isn't really the President.
Bush caused global warming and is bent on destroying the planet
Bush is incompetent
Bush hates blacks, gays and poor people in general
Bush's policies are all about making his fat cat friends rich
Bush is a fascist dictator

And the one I found most ironic: Bush is divisive, a hater, and suppresses free speech.

So my attempt to understand what liberals would do differently if they were in charge, listening to this radio station didn't provide a single answer. Unless you consider hatred of Bush a political philosophy.

Time to pack up and head to the airport. Home for Easter, hoping the boys show up.

Friday, April 07, 2006

Friday Ramblings

So happy for Friday after a bizarre week.

Got a call late last night asking me to take on the Dubois Seven Last Words of Christ on Good Friday. I'm a last minute replacement, and won't be able to rehearse because I'll be in Nevada all week. But it's kind of cool to be asked. As I recall, there's a dramatic ending that's very difficult, and I have to be on my toes to pull it off, or risk booting the whole performance if I don't get it right. Better take it with me to practice this week.

Heard the Senate compromise on their immigration bill fell apart because of the usual partisan maneuvering. That's good, because it was a stupid bill. I'm wondering if the majority of the senate are idiots, if they think most of us are idiots, or most of us really are idiots. It's frustrating to see them posturing and trying to play to varied constituencies by building new expensive bureaucracies and set rules that the illegal immigrants and companies that employ them will ignore.

If we weren't all a bunch of idiots, we should fire every Senator (bye-bye, Lugar and Bayh) and replace them with people who actually look out for us.

Been feeling isolated and ignored lately. I don't know, maybe it's because I've been isolated and ignored lately.

I want a new car.

Lake Tahoe should be beautiful this time of year. I'll be there Sunday, I think.

Wednesday, April 05, 2006

Wetback

So I got turned away at the border. I went across and showed the customs agent my letter, which was supposed to guarantee me entry. Instead it got me an unpleasant interrogation by an ugly woman with an attitude in Canadian Immigration.

It ended with, "You can't just come to Canada and work. Don't come back without the proper documents or you will be subject to arrest." So much for our friendly neighbors to the north.

So now I have to jump through a bunch of hoops to get proper documentation under NAFTA to enter Canada. On the positive side, once I have those papers I should never have to worry again about getting hassled at the border. But it sort of blew up my plans for this week.

Nothing like being stuck in Detroit for two days. I couldn't even go to the Henry Ford museum because I had to be ready to get a possible phone call telling me all was clear to try again. So I sat in the rental car all day Monday and for two or three hours on Tuesday, just hanging out and listening to the radio and waiting for my cellphone to ring.

The possible upside to this bad experience is that once I have the right paperwork, I might be able to get all the Canadian accounts for the software company. Because they laid off all their Canadian consultants and don't have anybody to serve the clients up there anymore. I never expected to be a Canadian specialist, but whatever pays the bills.