Michael Crichton published a novel, State of Fear, which uses an eco-terrorism story to illustrate the way so many people are duped by junk science.
This book is about global warming, and the desperation of radical environmentalists to either make lots of money or influence government policy. They resort to eco-terrorism in an attempt to influence the masses.
The underlying message from Crichton is a sort of 'buyer beware', especially in the sense of buying junk science that is designed to make money and influence politics.
Global Warming is the top issue these days. Crichton uses real data from actual climate studies to show that the hype of the global warming issue comes from those who hope to profit from it, through wealth or political power. A fascinating proof of his point came from Columbia University, which actually changed their data after he published links to their climate studies in an attempt to make the data seem to support the global warming idea more dramatically.
From the link I provided above, you'll notice that he uses Eugenics as one of the more egregious examples of popular junk science. If you don't know who Margaret Sanger is, she happens to be the founder of Planned Parenthood. She formed that organization primarily as part of her Eugenics crusade. I'm not sure that the goals of that organization have changed all that much.
So many theories and "discoveries" from junk science continue to be pressed forward as matters of faith, not of disciplined use of the scientific method.
Such as homosexuality. How many take it on faith that gays are born that way? It started because the gay rights people consistently and loudly proclaim it as truth. So scientific research takes place that seems to support their contention. Does it, really?
For example, there has been no specific genetic marker for homosexuality. In fact, studies you've probably never heard about actually show the most likely factors that lead to homosexuality are environmental and experiential. Gays are more likely to have suffered sexual abuse as children, are more likely to have been raised in a single-parent home, influence of peer groups, etc.
But those studies get vilified and buried. Why? Because the topic isn't about science, but about popular cultural norms.
Likewise, anyone who dares study things like the differences between males and females is marginalized and made a pariah.
Even macro evolution - you know, the chart showing an amoeba morphing into a fish then an amphibian then a mammal then a monkey then a human - after all these years, there hasn't been a single discovery of a transitional species in the fossil record. But that doesn't matter, because the dogmatic faith in this evolutionary theory is the equivalent to those who believe just as fervently that all was created by God.
Beware of those who cite science in the pursuit of funds or political power. Al Gore, for example. Al's apocalyptic film about global warming has been ripped even by scientists who support the global warming theory as containing gross exaggerations, mischaracterizations, and even outright lies.
So which is true about Al Gore? Is he just a naive pawn of the radical environmental movement, or is he cynically and knowingly exploiting the issue to carve out his niche for another Presidential campaign. It has to be one or the other, so regardless of which is true, is this the kind of person we want as President?
Science is important, because at its best it helps us understand ourselves and the world better, and develop advances from cures to disease to technologies that improve all our lives. But at worst, it can be used to fool the masses into horrible and even inhumane governmental abuses.
So we all need to be careful about jumping on board the latest media-promoted fads without making the attempt to become informed about where the studies came from, who funded them, and whether they adhered to the standards of scientific method.
Friday, December 29, 2006
Thursday, December 21, 2006
If Christmas Happened Today
I was just thinking about the Christmas story, and about how it would be different if it happened in today's society.
A little girl who attends Middle School, or is a High School Freshman at the least, is a very devout member of her church and is known as well-behaved and a model student. When she gets pregnant, she says she's never done more than kissed her boyfriend. But she met someone claiming to be an angel who told her she would be giving birth to the Messiah. Does she even know what a messiah is?
Let's say her boyfriend is a bit older. He wants to break up with her because he knows he didn't get her pregnant, thinks she's crazy to tell this wild story about how it happened, and figures she is a very different person than he thought she was. But he has a vivid dream where an angel tells him it's OK. And he marries her.
These kids live in some small town in southern Indiana. A poor little town that's run down and kind of disrespected by most people. So anybody that hears her outrageous claim of virgin conception of the Messiah are beyond skeptical.
So they get married and decide to drive across country to have the baby in his grandparents' town, maybe somewhere in Kansas. They drive an old Ford Tempo that's barely holding together. Somehow instead of having the child in a hospital like everyone else, they pull off the road somewhere when she's in labor and she gives birth in an old barn.
There's some sort of bright light in the sky hovering over them, which brings people from around the midwest, who bring gifts for the baby.
The story spreads across the news media, which mostly makes fun of the whole story. But people everywhere make the trip to find the young family, to the point where the family has to run away to some undisclosed hiding place in South Dakota just to escape the crowds.
If something like this happened today, would anybody believe the little girl?
I think they'd be more likely to have her committed, blame the boyfriend, and give the baby up for adoption.
But maybe not, if it really was the Son of God.
Merry Christmas everybody.
A little girl who attends Middle School, or is a High School Freshman at the least, is a very devout member of her church and is known as well-behaved and a model student. When she gets pregnant, she says she's never done more than kissed her boyfriend. But she met someone claiming to be an angel who told her she would be giving birth to the Messiah. Does she even know what a messiah is?
Let's say her boyfriend is a bit older. He wants to break up with her because he knows he didn't get her pregnant, thinks she's crazy to tell this wild story about how it happened, and figures she is a very different person than he thought she was. But he has a vivid dream where an angel tells him it's OK. And he marries her.
These kids live in some small town in southern Indiana. A poor little town that's run down and kind of disrespected by most people. So anybody that hears her outrageous claim of virgin conception of the Messiah are beyond skeptical.
So they get married and decide to drive across country to have the baby in his grandparents' town, maybe somewhere in Kansas. They drive an old Ford Tempo that's barely holding together. Somehow instead of having the child in a hospital like everyone else, they pull off the road somewhere when she's in labor and she gives birth in an old barn.
There's some sort of bright light in the sky hovering over them, which brings people from around the midwest, who bring gifts for the baby.
The story spreads across the news media, which mostly makes fun of the whole story. But people everywhere make the trip to find the young family, to the point where the family has to run away to some undisclosed hiding place in South Dakota just to escape the crowds.
If something like this happened today, would anybody believe the little girl?
I think they'd be more likely to have her committed, blame the boyfriend, and give the baby up for adoption.
But maybe not, if it really was the Son of God.
Merry Christmas everybody.
Monday, December 18, 2006
Schism
The Episcopals are splitting, understandably so. This is a result of a battle between secular infiltration of the Episcopal denomination and those who desire to maintain their Christianity.
I've read quite a bit on church history. Schisms have been happening from the very beginning, with various sects forming and reforming based on competing ideas and principles. The split of the Church of England from Rome was particularly interesting. Martin Luther's rebellion against a corrupt Roman church was understandable in its historic context.
I believe that the secular takeover of American Episcopalians as well as many other large Protestant denominations will eventually lead to their downfall as viable religious organizations. Because when you no longer stand for anything, there's no longer a reason for people to affiliate.
Given the open war on religion from the American atheist left, I think it is a shame that those churches that still hold fast to the tenets of their faith are too absorbed in age-old interfaith disputes to unite together to save the faith from this national attack. I'm listening to the atheist political left, and they are no longer disguising their intentions - to drive religion out of American society by any means necessary.
As sad as it may be, I think other serious Christians in denominations being infiltrated and taken over by anti-Christian activists should either band together to reclaim their denominations or follow the example of those Episcopal churches that are abandoning their anti-Christian leaders.
I've read quite a bit on church history. Schisms have been happening from the very beginning, with various sects forming and reforming based on competing ideas and principles. The split of the Church of England from Rome was particularly interesting. Martin Luther's rebellion against a corrupt Roman church was understandable in its historic context.
I believe that the secular takeover of American Episcopalians as well as many other large Protestant denominations will eventually lead to their downfall as viable religious organizations. Because when you no longer stand for anything, there's no longer a reason for people to affiliate.
Given the open war on religion from the American atheist left, I think it is a shame that those churches that still hold fast to the tenets of their faith are too absorbed in age-old interfaith disputes to unite together to save the faith from this national attack. I'm listening to the atheist political left, and they are no longer disguising their intentions - to drive religion out of American society by any means necessary.
As sad as it may be, I think other serious Christians in denominations being infiltrated and taken over by anti-Christian activists should either band together to reclaim their denominations or follow the example of those Episcopal churches that are abandoning their anti-Christian leaders.
Saturday, December 16, 2006
The Wonders of Air Travel
This week included a much higher than usual amount of time sitting in airports and on airplanes. Usually I don't notice a lot because I keep my nose in a book when I'm traveling. But this time, the sheer number of hours made me a bit too restless to spend them all escaping in some best-seller paperback.
Most of the observations come from my abortive trip home at the end of the week. Checking in on Thursday evening, I discovered there was an earlier departure I could easily catch. So I asked the agent if I could switch to the earlier flight. She said sure, there were plenty of seats left. But I'd have to pay a change fee of $25.
I asked her, can't I just stand by for an open seat? There's no cost to the airline for me to sit in an otherwise empty seat on the 4:05 flight versus the 5:50 flight, right? She said sorry, can't do it.
The airlines never did this in the past. Apparently while they struggled financially in recent years they began looking around for ways to gouge more dollars from customers while still keeping their fares in line with the competition. So some idiot in a boardroom at Delta said, "let's just charge a fee whenever a passenger makes any itinerary change".
See, business travelers do it all the time. Because things happen to business travelers. Customers make last minute changes. Things come up. Business travelers routinely change their plans. So like the government, the airlines decided to stick it to the business travelers. They can afford it, right?
Anyway, I figured it was likely the client would challenge the change fee and I didn't want to pay it out of my own pocket, so I said,
"Never mind. Just keep me on the same flight."
So I went to the gate and settled in for my 2 hour wait.
The first thing I encountered was a bit of an obstacle course to get to an open seat in the gate area. The facing rows of seats nearest the window by our gate were about 6 feet apart. On the end of the rows were some young black guys. They might have been athletes, because that's the way they were dressed. Their large duffels were piled across the open space between the seats, creating an effective barricade. All the open seats in their row, which was most of them, could only be accessed by those brave intrepid souls willing to climb their barricade.
I was the first. I noticed a couple of women who walked up as if to try walking through to one of the many waiting seats, but they pulled back, either intimidated by the large black men or unsure how to pull their rollaboard suitcases through to the empty seats. I went ahead, stepping over their duffels with a long stride so I could avoid stepping on one.
Another gentleman followed my lead and followed the trail I blazed through the duffel bag mountain. As we reached our seats, I looked over and noticed one of the guys grabbing a duffel and stacking it on top of the others to make the obstacle more intimidating.
Nobody spoke. Nobody else tried to walk through until after the group boarded their flight (that would be the 4:05 they wouldn't let me on without a bribe).
That brings me to the next observation. When they boarded the 4:05, they called first for families with small children, first class, and elite passengers. This also made for an interesting sociological/anthropological field study.
There was a young couple with a wiggly baby, who gathered up their carry-on's and stroller and baby to board the plane just as the announcement for "pre-boarding" was made. My expectation was that they would be brought to the front of the line, because they were the prototype for the purpose of the "pre-boarding" concept.
Actually, they ended up at the back of a rather long boarding line. I watched with fascination as the "elite" passengers jostled for position in the line, while outwardly pretending their position in line was irrelevant to them. I waited to see if anyone in the line would notice the young family struggling to hang onto their active pre-toddler while keeping their carry-on bags and stroller with them. Somebody, anybody, noticing them and offering to let them through toward the front of the boarding line. Or maybe the gate agent, busily working over their computer monitor preparing to board passengers, might look up and notice the young family and invite them to the front of the line.
None of that happened. The "elite" passengers acted as if they were elite people, deserving of special treatment and disdainful of the rabble who couldn't board early like they could. I laughed to myself as I noticed the subtle dance, with passengers casually walking up near the front of the already-formed line to attemt to blend in while others blocked them with their bodies while trying to make it look like they just didn't notice.
I travel so much that I've seen the behavior of many of these folks in first class after they get on the plane. Sometimes they are complete jerks with the flight attendants, demanding to be served first, making silly requests, and even leaving their carry-on bag in the aisle for the flight attendant to stow somewhere.
Trying to think through these behaviors from a more scientific point of view, here are my conclusions. The black guys were making a statement in building their little barricade. Perhaps their attitudes about their minority status drives them to assert some power over others in places like airports, where they enjoy making people uncomfortable and inconvenienced.
The airlines create the "elite" monsters with their frequent flier programs, where they reward frequent fliers with early boarding and first class upgrades. This seems to create an attitude of entitlement, especially among the frequent fliers who are not otherwise wealthy. They perhaps long to be treated as important, and unwittingly become insufferable idiots as they vie to be the most elite of all the elite.
Adding insult to injury, here's what happened that Thursday night. My 5:50 flight was delayed to about 7:50, making it impossible to make my connection. I had to rebook for the first flight out Friday morning. When I went to collect my checked luggage, the agent returned from a rather long search to sheepishly inform me that my bag had been loaded on the 4:05 flight.
My bag didn't have to pay the $25 bribe, so it got home on Thursday night. I didn't get home until Friday night.
Gee thanks, Delta. Service like that, and you're in bankruptcy? I wonder why?
Most of the observations come from my abortive trip home at the end of the week. Checking in on Thursday evening, I discovered there was an earlier departure I could easily catch. So I asked the agent if I could switch to the earlier flight. She said sure, there were plenty of seats left. But I'd have to pay a change fee of $25.
I asked her, can't I just stand by for an open seat? There's no cost to the airline for me to sit in an otherwise empty seat on the 4:05 flight versus the 5:50 flight, right? She said sorry, can't do it.
The airlines never did this in the past. Apparently while they struggled financially in recent years they began looking around for ways to gouge more dollars from customers while still keeping their fares in line with the competition. So some idiot in a boardroom at Delta said, "let's just charge a fee whenever a passenger makes any itinerary change".
See, business travelers do it all the time. Because things happen to business travelers. Customers make last minute changes. Things come up. Business travelers routinely change their plans. So like the government, the airlines decided to stick it to the business travelers. They can afford it, right?
Anyway, I figured it was likely the client would challenge the change fee and I didn't want to pay it out of my own pocket, so I said,
"Never mind. Just keep me on the same flight."
So I went to the gate and settled in for my 2 hour wait.
The first thing I encountered was a bit of an obstacle course to get to an open seat in the gate area. The facing rows of seats nearest the window by our gate were about 6 feet apart. On the end of the rows were some young black guys. They might have been athletes, because that's the way they were dressed. Their large duffels were piled across the open space between the seats, creating an effective barricade. All the open seats in their row, which was most of them, could only be accessed by those brave intrepid souls willing to climb their barricade.
I was the first. I noticed a couple of women who walked up as if to try walking through to one of the many waiting seats, but they pulled back, either intimidated by the large black men or unsure how to pull their rollaboard suitcases through to the empty seats. I went ahead, stepping over their duffels with a long stride so I could avoid stepping on one.
Another gentleman followed my lead and followed the trail I blazed through the duffel bag mountain. As we reached our seats, I looked over and noticed one of the guys grabbing a duffel and stacking it on top of the others to make the obstacle more intimidating.
Nobody spoke. Nobody else tried to walk through until after the group boarded their flight (that would be the 4:05 they wouldn't let me on without a bribe).
That brings me to the next observation. When they boarded the 4:05, they called first for families with small children, first class, and elite passengers. This also made for an interesting sociological/anthropological field study.
There was a young couple with a wiggly baby, who gathered up their carry-on's and stroller and baby to board the plane just as the announcement for "pre-boarding" was made. My expectation was that they would be brought to the front of the line, because they were the prototype for the purpose of the "pre-boarding" concept.
Actually, they ended up at the back of a rather long boarding line. I watched with fascination as the "elite" passengers jostled for position in the line, while outwardly pretending their position in line was irrelevant to them. I waited to see if anyone in the line would notice the young family struggling to hang onto their active pre-toddler while keeping their carry-on bags and stroller with them. Somebody, anybody, noticing them and offering to let them through toward the front of the boarding line. Or maybe the gate agent, busily working over their computer monitor preparing to board passengers, might look up and notice the young family and invite them to the front of the line.
None of that happened. The "elite" passengers acted as if they were elite people, deserving of special treatment and disdainful of the rabble who couldn't board early like they could. I laughed to myself as I noticed the subtle dance, with passengers casually walking up near the front of the already-formed line to attemt to blend in while others blocked them with their bodies while trying to make it look like they just didn't notice.
I travel so much that I've seen the behavior of many of these folks in first class after they get on the plane. Sometimes they are complete jerks with the flight attendants, demanding to be served first, making silly requests, and even leaving their carry-on bag in the aisle for the flight attendant to stow somewhere.
Trying to think through these behaviors from a more scientific point of view, here are my conclusions. The black guys were making a statement in building their little barricade. Perhaps their attitudes about their minority status drives them to assert some power over others in places like airports, where they enjoy making people uncomfortable and inconvenienced.
The airlines create the "elite" monsters with their frequent flier programs, where they reward frequent fliers with early boarding and first class upgrades. This seems to create an attitude of entitlement, especially among the frequent fliers who are not otherwise wealthy. They perhaps long to be treated as important, and unwittingly become insufferable idiots as they vie to be the most elite of all the elite.
Adding insult to injury, here's what happened that Thursday night. My 5:50 flight was delayed to about 7:50, making it impossible to make my connection. I had to rebook for the first flight out Friday morning. When I went to collect my checked luggage, the agent returned from a rather long search to sheepishly inform me that my bag had been loaded on the 4:05 flight.
My bag didn't have to pay the $25 bribe, so it got home on Thursday night. I didn't get home until Friday night.
Gee thanks, Delta. Service like that, and you're in bankruptcy? I wonder why?
The Story Gets Stranger
I was out of town all week (gotta make a blog entry about that), but when I returned I heard the latest in the Barry Huckeby saga. The story has taken a bizarre turn.
Those who have followed the story about Barry and allegations he stole $3,000 from the gate receipts at a Columbus North high school sectional football playoff game probably already know the decision reached by the school board. The decision is incomprehensible.
Barry lost his positions as Assistant Athletic Director and Basketball Coach, but kept his teaching job. Of course, none of the details of the hearing they held last week were released, so the general public still has no information about the facts or evidence of the case.
What puzzles me is the nonsensical decision. If he's guilty of theft, he should have been terminated - end of story. If it was a misunderstanding, he should have been exonerated and returned to all of his duties. If he violated policy and procedures, but quickly admitted his errors and cooperated fully, maybe he would have been fired from the role of Assistant Athletic Director and/or suspended temporarily from the coaching position. But removing him from both the AD and coaching jobs while letting him keep the teaching job just doesn't make sense.
The ongoing problem is we really don't know the details. We don't know the evidence. We only know some vague and contradictory information that he indeed took some cash, in an amount somewhere between $100 and $3,000.
The school board's decision sounds a lot like a compromise. My logical best guess is that the board was split between retaining or terminating Barry, and they knew they had to come forward to the public united behind a specific resolution. So they compromised, letting him stay on as a teacher but taking away his responsibilities in the athletic department.
From my perspective, if he deserves to be fired as coach, he also deserves to be fired as a teacher. I can imagine a scenario where they decided he didn't have the skills or discipline to be an effective Athletic Director, so it could completely make sense if they terminated that role. But teacher and coach are pretty much the same to me - he should either be allowed to return in both or should be fired from both. Anything else, like the decision actually reached, sends the worst of mixed messages.
Welcome to Columbus, home of the Twilight Zone.
Those who have followed the story about Barry and allegations he stole $3,000 from the gate receipts at a Columbus North high school sectional football playoff game probably already know the decision reached by the school board. The decision is incomprehensible.
Barry lost his positions as Assistant Athletic Director and Basketball Coach, but kept his teaching job. Of course, none of the details of the hearing they held last week were released, so the general public still has no information about the facts or evidence of the case.
What puzzles me is the nonsensical decision. If he's guilty of theft, he should have been terminated - end of story. If it was a misunderstanding, he should have been exonerated and returned to all of his duties. If he violated policy and procedures, but quickly admitted his errors and cooperated fully, maybe he would have been fired from the role of Assistant Athletic Director and/or suspended temporarily from the coaching position. But removing him from both the AD and coaching jobs while letting him keep the teaching job just doesn't make sense.
The ongoing problem is we really don't know the details. We don't know the evidence. We only know some vague and contradictory information that he indeed took some cash, in an amount somewhere between $100 and $3,000.
The school board's decision sounds a lot like a compromise. My logical best guess is that the board was split between retaining or terminating Barry, and they knew they had to come forward to the public united behind a specific resolution. So they compromised, letting him stay on as a teacher but taking away his responsibilities in the athletic department.
From my perspective, if he deserves to be fired as coach, he also deserves to be fired as a teacher. I can imagine a scenario where they decided he didn't have the skills or discipline to be an effective Athletic Director, so it could completely make sense if they terminated that role. But teacher and coach are pretty much the same to me - he should either be allowed to return in both or should be fired from both. Anything else, like the decision actually reached, sends the worst of mixed messages.
Welcome to Columbus, home of the Twilight Zone.
Monday, December 11, 2006
Interesting Stuff from the Weekend
Just a few interesting items from this weekend:
Barry Huckeby had a hearing of sorts in front of the School Board. According to The Republic newspaper, the board heard details of the charges against him and his own defense in a closed session. The public doesn't get to find out about all of it until everything's complete. Apparently they will decide on his termination tonight (Monday). There's no new information being made public, as far as I can tell.
Colts fans, forget any delusions of a Super Bowl appearance for this year. I could run for 200 yards against that defense. They can't stop anybody. Their linebackers play like girls.
A little story from Mike Sodrel about the difference between Republicans and Democrats in Congress: When Mike beat Baron Hill, he was provided a small cubicle to use while getting settled for his term in congress. He was given the office space only after Baron's term was over. (This was when Republicans were in charge). Well, this time the Democrats are taking power, and they demanded that all of the congressmen who were defeated this time move out of their offices immediately and hand them over to their incoming replacements. JD Hayworth refused, telling them he is a congressman until December 31st, and if they want him out of his office before then, they can bring in the police to remove him.
I was a ringer in the tenor section for a church's Christmas cantata yesterday. It was pretty nice, a decent piece with a good brass sextet from IU playing along. Just challenging enough to make it interesting. Gotta sing again this evening for some old folks.
Barry Huckeby had a hearing of sorts in front of the School Board. According to The Republic newspaper, the board heard details of the charges against him and his own defense in a closed session. The public doesn't get to find out about all of it until everything's complete. Apparently they will decide on his termination tonight (Monday). There's no new information being made public, as far as I can tell.
Colts fans, forget any delusions of a Super Bowl appearance for this year. I could run for 200 yards against that defense. They can't stop anybody. Their linebackers play like girls.
A little story from Mike Sodrel about the difference between Republicans and Democrats in Congress: When Mike beat Baron Hill, he was provided a small cubicle to use while getting settled for his term in congress. He was given the office space only after Baron's term was over. (This was when Republicans were in charge). Well, this time the Democrats are taking power, and they demanded that all of the congressmen who were defeated this time move out of their offices immediately and hand them over to their incoming replacements. JD Hayworth refused, telling them he is a congressman until December 31st, and if they want him out of his office before then, they can bring in the police to remove him.
I was a ringer in the tenor section for a church's Christmas cantata yesterday. It was pretty nice, a decent piece with a good brass sextet from IU playing along. Just challenging enough to make it interesting. Gotta sing again this evening for some old folks.
Friday, December 08, 2006
Eye on the Prize
Since I couldn't get the early morning flight out, I'm hanging out in the hotel room for another half hour before heading to the airport and home. It feels like a long week. Maybe it's the cold and snow.
Next week includes a meeting with a company that may sign up to keep me exclusively for the forseeable future. Ordinarily it seems like I'd be excited by that prospect, but instead I don't really care. Sure, it can be comforting to know there won't be a dry spell in work for a long time. And less travel is always good. But on the other hand, what I like most about this consulting thing is the variety. The deal I'm working on will be more like becoming a corporate employee again, which is restrictive and boring, among other negatives.
What I do instead is look at the big picture. I have to continue to take everything I can get and work like a maniac until the boys are out of college, the house is paid off, we have decent vehicles, and enough put away in the retirement accounts. Then I can just do this consulting stuff for fun, maybe taking around a dozen days of work a month and doing whatever I want the rest of the time.
That time seems a long way off right now. I just have to hope I make it there in time to enjoy it.
Next week includes a meeting with a company that may sign up to keep me exclusively for the forseeable future. Ordinarily it seems like I'd be excited by that prospect, but instead I don't really care. Sure, it can be comforting to know there won't be a dry spell in work for a long time. And less travel is always good. But on the other hand, what I like most about this consulting thing is the variety. The deal I'm working on will be more like becoming a corporate employee again, which is restrictive and boring, among other negatives.
What I do instead is look at the big picture. I have to continue to take everything I can get and work like a maniac until the boys are out of college, the house is paid off, we have decent vehicles, and enough put away in the retirement accounts. Then I can just do this consulting stuff for fun, maybe taking around a dozen days of work a month and doing whatever I want the rest of the time.
That time seems a long way off right now. I just have to hope I make it there in time to enjoy it.
Thursday, December 07, 2006
They Don't Hide it Anymore
This speaks volumes about the identity and objectives of the political party in power.
I guess they aren't even trying to hide it anymore. Maybe it's because they don't have to.
Ever been out of the country? Ever seen how the rest of the world lives? Are you ready to reset our American living standard to that of Europe?
Maybe so. But I don't really believe it; I'm more inclined to believe most Americans haven't been there, haven't seen how the people live, and support the goals of that political party out of pure ignorance.
Speaking of ignorance, check out this article.
Add all this to the Iraq Study Commission deciding that we should ask for help from Iran and Syria, and I rest my case. The politicians are indeed clueless, incompetent, bought and paid for by those who want to destroy our country, or all of the above. The real WWIII is coming, and it will be much worse than WWI and WWII combined. I'm very sad for the terrible times ahead.
I guess they aren't even trying to hide it anymore. Maybe it's because they don't have to.
Ever been out of the country? Ever seen how the rest of the world lives? Are you ready to reset our American living standard to that of Europe?
Maybe so. But I don't really believe it; I'm more inclined to believe most Americans haven't been there, haven't seen how the people live, and support the goals of that political party out of pure ignorance.
Speaking of ignorance, check out this article.
Add all this to the Iraq Study Commission deciding that we should ask for help from Iran and Syria, and I rest my case. The politicians are indeed clueless, incompetent, bought and paid for by those who want to destroy our country, or all of the above. The real WWIII is coming, and it will be much worse than WWI and WWII combined. I'm very sad for the terrible times ahead.
Tuesday, December 05, 2006
Blog about Nothing
Here in the great white north I can't get warm anywhere but my hotel room. And I'm generally not one to get cold easily. It might be a great place to be in the winter if you like snowmobiling.
The cold I don't mind so much, but the real issue is the travel. It's an all day trip each way. So this week I use two full days to get here and back, and can only bill the three days I'm here. Next trip I'll have to give up Sunday and the following Saturday for travel to bill the full week.
Oh well, just part of life.
Trying to decide how much Christmas shopping to do. What to get, how much to spend, who all should get something anyway all part of the process. Christmas must be fun for the very rich, because if I were very rich, I would get nice stuff for all kinds of people. Just for the fun of it.
Right now I just wish I could go out and buy a decent vehicle to replace Jed. Jed's getting very old - well over 135K miles. Hard as I'm working, it would seem not to be all that tough. But whatever comes in just goes back out. Sigh.
I should also get business Christmas cards out to clients this weekend. I'll try to overcome laziness and get that done.
The cold I don't mind so much, but the real issue is the travel. It's an all day trip each way. So this week I use two full days to get here and back, and can only bill the three days I'm here. Next trip I'll have to give up Sunday and the following Saturday for travel to bill the full week.
Oh well, just part of life.
Trying to decide how much Christmas shopping to do. What to get, how much to spend, who all should get something anyway all part of the process. Christmas must be fun for the very rich, because if I were very rich, I would get nice stuff for all kinds of people. Just for the fun of it.
Right now I just wish I could go out and buy a decent vehicle to replace Jed. Jed's getting very old - well over 135K miles. Hard as I'm working, it would seem not to be all that tough. But whatever comes in just goes back out. Sigh.
I should also get business Christmas cards out to clients this weekend. I'll try to overcome laziness and get that done.
Monday, December 04, 2006
Voice in the Wilderness
I'm not becoming some bitter old guy. At least I don't think I am.
I generally think of myself as a pretty positive person overall. Given my circumstances, it seems to me there would not be many people who could hold it together. Not that I'm dealing with everything terrifically, but I think I'm doing the best I can. But my personal issues are none of anyone's business.
The concerns that get me blogging are more societal than personal, even though I meet more people that confirm those concerns than don't. I can spot a narcissist a mile away, but don't need to look that far, because there's one on every corner, so to speak.
The fact that this huge majority of Americans have no more than the shallowest notion of what the terror war is about, and what the stakes are in Iraq, gives me heartburn. Suppose after Gettysburg, popular opinion turned against the war between the states, and Lincoln was pressured by his political opponents to just give the Confederates what they want and quit. Or suppose that while Allied troops were giving up huge casualties fighting the Japanese Island by Island in the South Pacific, and political opponents successfully convinced Harry Truman to quit.
That's what's happening right now. Ignorant people who haven't bothered or can't grasp the global threats to our country seem to be driving the government down a path of capitulation in Iraq. As if we could just sort of say, "nevermind", and bid the Iraqi people good luck as we ship everyone home. Will we even bother to fight when the inevitable third world war ramps up as a result?
OK, rant over. I know, nobody cares. If I blogged about Tom and Katie or Brad and Angelina or Britney or Paris or Lindsey, I'd be more in tune with what people really care about. I suppose there's not much choice but to leave everyone to their clueless lives pursuing their own hedonism, drinking and toking, looking for sex, and dreaming about winning the lottery. I suppose actually having to think about world events just gives everyone a headache.
I'm really not so angry and bitter. I'm only trying to wake people up, even if I'm some voice in the wilderness.
I generally think of myself as a pretty positive person overall. Given my circumstances, it seems to me there would not be many people who could hold it together. Not that I'm dealing with everything terrifically, but I think I'm doing the best I can. But my personal issues are none of anyone's business.
The concerns that get me blogging are more societal than personal, even though I meet more people that confirm those concerns than don't. I can spot a narcissist a mile away, but don't need to look that far, because there's one on every corner, so to speak.
The fact that this huge majority of Americans have no more than the shallowest notion of what the terror war is about, and what the stakes are in Iraq, gives me heartburn. Suppose after Gettysburg, popular opinion turned against the war between the states, and Lincoln was pressured by his political opponents to just give the Confederates what they want and quit. Or suppose that while Allied troops were giving up huge casualties fighting the Japanese Island by Island in the South Pacific, and political opponents successfully convinced Harry Truman to quit.
That's what's happening right now. Ignorant people who haven't bothered or can't grasp the global threats to our country seem to be driving the government down a path of capitulation in Iraq. As if we could just sort of say, "nevermind", and bid the Iraqi people good luck as we ship everyone home. Will we even bother to fight when the inevitable third world war ramps up as a result?
OK, rant over. I know, nobody cares. If I blogged about Tom and Katie or Brad and Angelina or Britney or Paris or Lindsey, I'd be more in tune with what people really care about. I suppose there's not much choice but to leave everyone to their clueless lives pursuing their own hedonism, drinking and toking, looking for sex, and dreaming about winning the lottery. I suppose actually having to think about world events just gives everyone a headache.
I'm really not so angry and bitter. I'm only trying to wake people up, even if I'm some voice in the wilderness.
Friday, December 01, 2006
Equating Radical Islam with Fundamentalist Christianity
There was an atheist talking about religion, and I was curious enough to listen for awhile. Being a person of fairly strong religious conviction myself, I suppose I should have found his message insulting. Because, according to this leader of some sort of atheist organization in America, I'm a stupid uneducated troglodyte superstitious bigoted homophobic dogmatic ignoramus. I might have left out a few more adjectives to describe what the atheist thinks of me, but I suppose I recalled enough to get the point.
This guy was asked by the host if he was ruling out any possibility of a higher power or intelligent ordering of the universe. He said yes. His simple statement was that, absent empirical scientific evidence of the existence of God, there can be no God. With him, as well as many others I often hear railing against some imagined evils perpetuated by "organized religion", my first question is, what is it that happened to him in his life that has made him so hate Christianity?
His purpose was also made clear, and it should be noted by anyone who values their religious liberty. That purpose is the marginalization and eventual removal of religion from society. He has a quite Marxist philosophy in this area, believing not that people should be free to believe or not believe as they choose, but that the institutions of society should work hard to purge all their superstitious beliefs. By force of law, if necessary. Of course, this crusade begins in the public schools, which must use science education to convince all children that there is no God.
In this atheist's world, there is no difference between the Radical Islam factions that are currently wreaking havoc on people around the planet and a fundamentalist Christian. It doesn't seem to register with him that there aren't any Christians blowing themselves up in WalMart or flying airplanes into City Hall.
I discovered by listening long enough that this guy has no clue what a Christian really is, or what the faith actually teaches. His most often repeated example of why Christians are idiots was that many believe the world is only about 6,000 years old. His second example was that most Christians believe Christ will return to save the world in their lifetime. That most Christians are so ignorant as to have rejected macro evolution theory, which of course he regards as proven fact. And he was particularly upset at Christians who have suggested that events from 9/11 to Katrina might have been examples of God's wrath on our permissive society (homosexuality being the chief sin needing punished, by his inference).
What an amazingly distorted and ignorant view of the Christian faith he has. If I didn't go to church regularly myself, I would think from his description that Christian services were no different from Klan meetings. It seems that he has abandoned the very logical and critical thought he claims to value so highly in favor of his own particular brand of religion, called atheism.
I've found my own definition of an atheist. Atheist: A person who holds an intense hatred for organized religions and those who practice them, especially Christians. An atheist is a political activist, involved in an intense campaign to remove religion from society.
Delusional. And very sad.
It will make him angry, but I think I'll pray for him.
This guy was asked by the host if he was ruling out any possibility of a higher power or intelligent ordering of the universe. He said yes. His simple statement was that, absent empirical scientific evidence of the existence of God, there can be no God. With him, as well as many others I often hear railing against some imagined evils perpetuated by "organized religion", my first question is, what is it that happened to him in his life that has made him so hate Christianity?
His purpose was also made clear, and it should be noted by anyone who values their religious liberty. That purpose is the marginalization and eventual removal of religion from society. He has a quite Marxist philosophy in this area, believing not that people should be free to believe or not believe as they choose, but that the institutions of society should work hard to purge all their superstitious beliefs. By force of law, if necessary. Of course, this crusade begins in the public schools, which must use science education to convince all children that there is no God.
In this atheist's world, there is no difference between the Radical Islam factions that are currently wreaking havoc on people around the planet and a fundamentalist Christian. It doesn't seem to register with him that there aren't any Christians blowing themselves up in WalMart or flying airplanes into City Hall.
I discovered by listening long enough that this guy has no clue what a Christian really is, or what the faith actually teaches. His most often repeated example of why Christians are idiots was that many believe the world is only about 6,000 years old. His second example was that most Christians believe Christ will return to save the world in their lifetime. That most Christians are so ignorant as to have rejected macro evolution theory, which of course he regards as proven fact. And he was particularly upset at Christians who have suggested that events from 9/11 to Katrina might have been examples of God's wrath on our permissive society (homosexuality being the chief sin needing punished, by his inference).
What an amazingly distorted and ignorant view of the Christian faith he has. If I didn't go to church regularly myself, I would think from his description that Christian services were no different from Klan meetings. It seems that he has abandoned the very logical and critical thought he claims to value so highly in favor of his own particular brand of religion, called atheism.
I've found my own definition of an atheist. Atheist: A person who holds an intense hatred for organized religions and those who practice them, especially Christians. An atheist is a political activist, involved in an intense campaign to remove religion from society.
Delusional. And very sad.
It will make him angry, but I think I'll pray for him.
Wednesday, November 29, 2006
The Basketball Post
The season for my favorite sport has begun. As much as I enjoy watching football, my favorite sport as a player was always hoops. What would you expect, me being a kid growing up in Indiana during the heyday of high school basketball? That is, before the state athletics association went all PC on us and wrecked the high school game with Class Basketball.
I'll get to the Class Basketball travesty another time.
The season has started, and I've seen the Hoosiers and Pacers play.
Indiana is starting over this year with a new coach. Kelvin Sampson. Coming from Oklahoma, he had done fairly well in a football college and state. Will he be a good fit at Indiana? I think it's far too early to say.
The team is struggling, already 3-2 in the young season. Even so, the two losses were to a hot Butler team (Tim's extremely excited) and a close loss at Duke last night. They'll have a tough year, having lost Marco Killingsworth, who was probably their most promising player from last year. They also lost Robert Vaden, but I don't think that has the same impact on the team as Killingsworth.
Sampson seems to have done a pretty good job keeping the rest of the team intact, as other players, such as DJ White, were upset at Mike Davis' firing and threatening to leave the program with Vaden and Killingsworth.
Now he says, and I agree, that this team needs to find its identity. I believe that was a true statement over the last couple of years under Davis. Offensively, they still show a tendency to stand around and wait for somebody else to make a play. That's when they lose.
They appear to play hard on defense, but even so get victimized too often by not playing the tight team defense for which Bob Knight's teams were so well known.
The guy I am most impressed by is in no way their best player. Angelo Pizzo has to make another Rudy movie, this time titled 'Errek'. Errek Suhr (yes, I spelled it correctly) is every bit the basketball version of Sean Astin's Rudy, but much more. I think it's a better story.
If you missed the Duke game last night, you missed an individual performance worthy of a standing ovation. The Hoosiers were struggling in the first half, slowly but steadily falling behind to the Dukies. In comes Errek, who brings energy and toughness and heart. He makes steals, takes charges, feeds teammates, breaks presses. And he's the smallest, least athletic guy on the floor.
The second half, Kelvin Sampson kept his starter on the bench and stayed with Errek. As the second half progressed, I kept seeing Errek making great defensive plays against guys two feet taller. Making steals, taking charges, driving into the lane, exhorting his teammates. And the Hoosiers got back into the game, tying it and keeping it close to the end.
At the end, Errek stole an inbounds pass from Duke, who was trying to run the last few seconds off the clock. As the final seconds ticked off the clock, it was Errek who found the ball back in his hands from timid teammates who didn't want the pressure of taking the game-tying 3-pointer. He did his best to lean in and draw a foul with an impossible shot, but the referrees wouldn't cooperate.
Indiana lost, but they wouldn't have even competed in the game without Errek. And the game was played for the most part with the bigger, stronger, faster, more talented Hoosier guards sitting on the bench.
ESPN showed a shot of Mike Krzyzewski wrapping his arms around the Indiana guard to talk earnestly into his ear. Dick Vitale noted the special attention, and everyone could only imagine the the message of respect and encouragement passed from Coach K to the senior Indiana former walk-on player.
If coach Sampson is looking for leadership and an identity for this team, he would do well to start with the little walk-on from Bloomington named Errek Suhr.
After all that, I hesitate to even talk about the NBA's Pacers.
Yes, I've seen them play. And they're a mediocre .500 team.
Jermaine O'Neal is a great player, but he's not a team leader. He needs a big, strong guy at Center to take pressure off him. Al Harrington is talented, and seems thrilled to be back in Indy, but he's not a center. I like Jeff Foster, but he's a backup.
The Pacers don't have a reliable point guard. Tinsley is erratic, and his backups aren't the answer. Sarunas (I can't spell his last name unless I look it up) is a pretty good shooter when he's open, but isn't fast enough to play point in the NBA.
Steven Jackson is erratic and streaky as well. Not to mention in legal jeopardy over a fight and illegal discharge of a handgun outside a strip club at 4 AM during training camp. That incident all by itself speaks volumes about this team, and how serious (not) they are about winning in the NBA.
Reggie Miller lost a step his last couple of seasons. But he was still the team leader, and still hit the clutch shots when called upon. The Pacers don't have leadership, consistency, chemistry or the quality it takes to win championships in the NBA.
And I don't think we'll be seeing them return to top-tier status again for quite some time.
Too bad, because I think Rick Carlisle is a pretty good coach. Unfortunately, after this season, I think he'll be shown the door. And it won't really be his fault.
Too bad the NBA doesn't have walk-on free agents like Errek Suhr. It would make the league vastly more entertaining.
I'll get to the Class Basketball travesty another time.
The season has started, and I've seen the Hoosiers and Pacers play.
Indiana is starting over this year with a new coach. Kelvin Sampson. Coming from Oklahoma, he had done fairly well in a football college and state. Will he be a good fit at Indiana? I think it's far too early to say.
The team is struggling, already 3-2 in the young season. Even so, the two losses were to a hot Butler team (Tim's extremely excited) and a close loss at Duke last night. They'll have a tough year, having lost Marco Killingsworth, who was probably their most promising player from last year. They also lost Robert Vaden, but I don't think that has the same impact on the team as Killingsworth.
Sampson seems to have done a pretty good job keeping the rest of the team intact, as other players, such as DJ White, were upset at Mike Davis' firing and threatening to leave the program with Vaden and Killingsworth.
Now he says, and I agree, that this team needs to find its identity. I believe that was a true statement over the last couple of years under Davis. Offensively, they still show a tendency to stand around and wait for somebody else to make a play. That's when they lose.
They appear to play hard on defense, but even so get victimized too often by not playing the tight team defense for which Bob Knight's teams were so well known.
The guy I am most impressed by is in no way their best player. Angelo Pizzo has to make another Rudy movie, this time titled 'Errek'. Errek Suhr (yes, I spelled it correctly) is every bit the basketball version of Sean Astin's Rudy, but much more. I think it's a better story.
If you missed the Duke game last night, you missed an individual performance worthy of a standing ovation. The Hoosiers were struggling in the first half, slowly but steadily falling behind to the Dukies. In comes Errek, who brings energy and toughness and heart. He makes steals, takes charges, feeds teammates, breaks presses. And he's the smallest, least athletic guy on the floor.
The second half, Kelvin Sampson kept his starter on the bench and stayed with Errek. As the second half progressed, I kept seeing Errek making great defensive plays against guys two feet taller. Making steals, taking charges, driving into the lane, exhorting his teammates. And the Hoosiers got back into the game, tying it and keeping it close to the end.
At the end, Errek stole an inbounds pass from Duke, who was trying to run the last few seconds off the clock. As the final seconds ticked off the clock, it was Errek who found the ball back in his hands from timid teammates who didn't want the pressure of taking the game-tying 3-pointer. He did his best to lean in and draw a foul with an impossible shot, but the referrees wouldn't cooperate.
Indiana lost, but they wouldn't have even competed in the game without Errek. And the game was played for the most part with the bigger, stronger, faster, more talented Hoosier guards sitting on the bench.
ESPN showed a shot of Mike Krzyzewski wrapping his arms around the Indiana guard to talk earnestly into his ear. Dick Vitale noted the special attention, and everyone could only imagine the the message of respect and encouragement passed from Coach K to the senior Indiana former walk-on player.
If coach Sampson is looking for leadership and an identity for this team, he would do well to start with the little walk-on from Bloomington named Errek Suhr.
After all that, I hesitate to even talk about the NBA's Pacers.
Yes, I've seen them play. And they're a mediocre .500 team.
Jermaine O'Neal is a great player, but he's not a team leader. He needs a big, strong guy at Center to take pressure off him. Al Harrington is talented, and seems thrilled to be back in Indy, but he's not a center. I like Jeff Foster, but he's a backup.
The Pacers don't have a reliable point guard. Tinsley is erratic, and his backups aren't the answer. Sarunas (I can't spell his last name unless I look it up) is a pretty good shooter when he's open, but isn't fast enough to play point in the NBA.
Steven Jackson is erratic and streaky as well. Not to mention in legal jeopardy over a fight and illegal discharge of a handgun outside a strip club at 4 AM during training camp. That incident all by itself speaks volumes about this team, and how serious (not) they are about winning in the NBA.
Reggie Miller lost a step his last couple of seasons. But he was still the team leader, and still hit the clutch shots when called upon. The Pacers don't have leadership, consistency, chemistry or the quality it takes to win championships in the NBA.
And I don't think we'll be seeing them return to top-tier status again for quite some time.
Too bad, because I think Rick Carlisle is a pretty good coach. Unfortunately, after this season, I think he'll be shown the door. And it won't really be his fault.
Too bad the NBA doesn't have walk-on free agents like Errek Suhr. It would make the league vastly more entertaining.
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Sad News
Reports were out yesterday that births to unmarried mothers are at an all-time high. Something like 40%, if I heard correctly. Associated stories suggested kids are having sex at younger ages than ever, and there is an unprecedented number of unmarried couples cohabitating.
It is such a sad indictment of American society, where morality is a dirty word, right is wrong and wrong is right, bad is good and good is bad. In a country with cultural icons like Britney Spears and Paris Hilton, I suppose we shouldn't be surprised.
For the gay rights people to point to their opponents as hypocrites for tolerating the anything goes status among heteros, they aren't off the mark. I'm certainly one that openly expresses the opinion that homosexual behavior is disordered and morally wrong. The important thing is that I am consistent, as I believe and express the parallel opinion that multiple marriage and promiscuity are just as wrong.
No wonder we have such an epidemic of spoiled, undisciplined, and narcissistic people. Beginning with the post-war 60's generation, our culture has declined steadily through each generation until it now seems to have crumbled into Sodom and Gomorrah, or the last decades of the Roman Empire.
For a young, unmarried man or woman out there, what might happen if you decided to stay chaste until you found your permanent mate? I'm thinking the best outcome would be that you would quickly move through the shallow and narcissistic to eventually find a like-minded match. Without the pressure of sex and the particular way it blinds you to the real person you're dating, there's tremendous freedom to explore true compatibility questions.
The fundamental truth is that spouses who did not have multiple partners before marriage are must less likely to be unfaithful. Solid and committed marital relationships lead to children who are more likely to share the same values, be happy and successful, and raise solid children themselves.
Sadly, such truth is generally scorned or laughed at by most people. Knowing where we've been, I'm sorry for where we have arrived.
It is such a sad indictment of American society, where morality is a dirty word, right is wrong and wrong is right, bad is good and good is bad. In a country with cultural icons like Britney Spears and Paris Hilton, I suppose we shouldn't be surprised.
For the gay rights people to point to their opponents as hypocrites for tolerating the anything goes status among heteros, they aren't off the mark. I'm certainly one that openly expresses the opinion that homosexual behavior is disordered and morally wrong. The important thing is that I am consistent, as I believe and express the parallel opinion that multiple marriage and promiscuity are just as wrong.
No wonder we have such an epidemic of spoiled, undisciplined, and narcissistic people. Beginning with the post-war 60's generation, our culture has declined steadily through each generation until it now seems to have crumbled into Sodom and Gomorrah, or the last decades of the Roman Empire.
For a young, unmarried man or woman out there, what might happen if you decided to stay chaste until you found your permanent mate? I'm thinking the best outcome would be that you would quickly move through the shallow and narcissistic to eventually find a like-minded match. Without the pressure of sex and the particular way it blinds you to the real person you're dating, there's tremendous freedom to explore true compatibility questions.
The fundamental truth is that spouses who did not have multiple partners before marriage are must less likely to be unfaithful. Solid and committed marital relationships lead to children who are more likely to share the same values, be happy and successful, and raise solid children themselves.
Sadly, such truth is generally scorned or laughed at by most people. Knowing where we've been, I'm sorry for where we have arrived.
Monday, November 27, 2006
The Controversy Continues
Something I noticed from the newspaper articles is that I have probably been mis-spelling Barry's name. I've been spelling it Huckaby, but the newspaper spells it Huckeby. The best choice is to go with the newspaper's spelling, even though it is plausible that they have it wrong.
The story and its associated controversy continues. The Republic published several letters to the editor, many supporting Barry Huckeby and strongly suggesting that his dismissal is heavy-handed and based on some sort of political power struggle. His supporters tout the coach as a great and caring teacher, coach, and person, who couldn't possibly be guilty of the theft of $3,000 in football gate receipts.
Others either suggest everyone just let the process take its course, or take the stand that if he indeed stole money, he should be dismissed and prosecuted.
Again, given my own detached and objective view of the situation, I continue to line up with the latter. Innocent until proven guilty should rule, but the authorities should not just accept the office supply defense and drop the whole thing.
I wonder where those who claim he only took $100 to reimburse himself for the purchase of office supplies (even a specific reference to printer ink) got their information? It certainly is not public information. Did the Republic purposely omit this information, as at least one has suggested? Or is it simply rumor, being spread among supporters of the coach. These sorts of rumors can sometimes take on a life of their own.
Let's assume for a moment that it's true that Barry took $100 out of the gate receipts to buy printer ink for the athletic office. If the commentor on my previous post on the topic somehow has inside information, then it is also true that Barry produced a receipt as proof. It raises a series of additional questions:
Did Barry produce the receipt immediately prior to being accused of the theft, thinking it was an acceptable procedure for purchasing supplies? Or did he produce the receipt after he was accused (or caught), in an attempt to create a plausible defense?
Did he inform anyone, most importantly Hedy George, before, during, or after the fact, that he was taking some money for office supplies?
Who is in charge of purchasing office supplies, such as printer ink, for the athletic office? If Barry needed new ink cartridges, why didn't he just follow normal requisition procedures to acquire what was needed?
Where's the other $2,900?
A commenter suggested that this is nothing more than some sort of nasty political conflict between Barry Huckeby and Dr. John Quick. I'm trying to make sense of that charge logically, but no logical explanation presents itself. I don't understand why a new coach and assistant athletic director who had been on the job only a couple of months would already be actively feuding with the superintendent of the school corporation who just hired him. He hadn't even started official basketball practices yet.
The idea that these are trumped-up charges from powerful people in the school district, who exploited a minor violation of accounting procedures to fire a coach they had just hired, just doesn't make any logical sense.
If he openly pulled $100 out of the gate receipts to buy some supplies, and turned in the receipt the next day, it was a stupid thing to do, but would not merit his arrest and termination. On that basis alone I can't buy that story, because the reasonable response of the administration would be to demand he reimburse the $100 and follow proper procedures for requisitioning of office supplies. It stretches credibility that anyone would be prosecuted and fired for such a procedure violation.
On the other hand, I also have to take the other recent commentor with a grain of salt. Whether or not Barry is some sort of pathological thief and liar cannot be objectively confirmed, so whether or not it might be true is sort of irrelevant at this point.
I can't logically agree with his supporters and their contention about a vindictive conspiracy to ruin Barry's life and career. None of that makes any sense. Barry's an experienced teacher and coach, and there's no way he wasn't aware of the proper procedures for purchasing office supplies and handling gate receipts. If he had told Hedy George that night that he was going to take $100 to buy some printer cartridges, then she would have either told him go ahead, or that it's not acceptable procedure. If the facts are that he took money, didn't tell anyone, and produced the receipt after being accused, then it's theft. The remaining question comes down to how much did he actually steal?
I do think that the process should be allowed to play itself out. I'm looking forward hopefully to eventually learning what happened to the $2,900 that's still missing, whether Barry was forthcoming about his printer ink purchase or if he did it to try to cover up his theft, and what the school board decides about his dismissal.
The story and its associated controversy continues. The Republic published several letters to the editor, many supporting Barry Huckeby and strongly suggesting that his dismissal is heavy-handed and based on some sort of political power struggle. His supporters tout the coach as a great and caring teacher, coach, and person, who couldn't possibly be guilty of the theft of $3,000 in football gate receipts.
Others either suggest everyone just let the process take its course, or take the stand that if he indeed stole money, he should be dismissed and prosecuted.
Again, given my own detached and objective view of the situation, I continue to line up with the latter. Innocent until proven guilty should rule, but the authorities should not just accept the office supply defense and drop the whole thing.
I wonder where those who claim he only took $100 to reimburse himself for the purchase of office supplies (even a specific reference to printer ink) got their information? It certainly is not public information. Did the Republic purposely omit this information, as at least one has suggested? Or is it simply rumor, being spread among supporters of the coach. These sorts of rumors can sometimes take on a life of their own.
Let's assume for a moment that it's true that Barry took $100 out of the gate receipts to buy printer ink for the athletic office. If the commentor on my previous post on the topic somehow has inside information, then it is also true that Barry produced a receipt as proof. It raises a series of additional questions:
Did Barry produce the receipt immediately prior to being accused of the theft, thinking it was an acceptable procedure for purchasing supplies? Or did he produce the receipt after he was accused (or caught), in an attempt to create a plausible defense?
Did he inform anyone, most importantly Hedy George, before, during, or after the fact, that he was taking some money for office supplies?
Who is in charge of purchasing office supplies, such as printer ink, for the athletic office? If Barry needed new ink cartridges, why didn't he just follow normal requisition procedures to acquire what was needed?
Where's the other $2,900?
A commenter suggested that this is nothing more than some sort of nasty political conflict between Barry Huckeby and Dr. John Quick. I'm trying to make sense of that charge logically, but no logical explanation presents itself. I don't understand why a new coach and assistant athletic director who had been on the job only a couple of months would already be actively feuding with the superintendent of the school corporation who just hired him. He hadn't even started official basketball practices yet.
The idea that these are trumped-up charges from powerful people in the school district, who exploited a minor violation of accounting procedures to fire a coach they had just hired, just doesn't make any logical sense.
If he openly pulled $100 out of the gate receipts to buy some supplies, and turned in the receipt the next day, it was a stupid thing to do, but would not merit his arrest and termination. On that basis alone I can't buy that story, because the reasonable response of the administration would be to demand he reimburse the $100 and follow proper procedures for requisitioning of office supplies. It stretches credibility that anyone would be prosecuted and fired for such a procedure violation.
On the other hand, I also have to take the other recent commentor with a grain of salt. Whether or not Barry is some sort of pathological thief and liar cannot be objectively confirmed, so whether or not it might be true is sort of irrelevant at this point.
I can't logically agree with his supporters and their contention about a vindictive conspiracy to ruin Barry's life and career. None of that makes any sense. Barry's an experienced teacher and coach, and there's no way he wasn't aware of the proper procedures for purchasing office supplies and handling gate receipts. If he had told Hedy George that night that he was going to take $100 to buy some printer cartridges, then she would have either told him go ahead, or that it's not acceptable procedure. If the facts are that he took money, didn't tell anyone, and produced the receipt after being accused, then it's theft. The remaining question comes down to how much did he actually steal?
I do think that the process should be allowed to play itself out. I'm looking forward hopefully to eventually learning what happened to the $2,900 that's still missing, whether Barry was forthcoming about his printer ink purchase or if he did it to try to cover up his theft, and what the school board decides about his dismissal.
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
We All Get a Raise!
Hooray for the kind-hearted Democrats, who have stated that their first legislative priority upon taking control of the congress will be to increase the minimum wage!
What a wonderful group of people, who really care about those stuck on the low end of the wage scale. They are about to force the evil corporations to pay their entry-level workers more. Who could possibly oppose such a fair and understanding law, especially since the evil GOP has blocked any attempt at raising it from the currently outrageous rate of $5.15 for how many years now?
I was just wondering:
Exactly who is being forced to work for $5.15 an hour right now? I'm very curious, because in my community it's well known that you can't hire anybody to do anything for less than around $6.50 starting rate. Well, maybe you can hire an illegal for less, but that's another topic.
What is the new minimum wage rate going to be? I've heard varying numbers, ranging from $6.15 to $7.50. I think I even heard somebody advocating $8.50. Certainly we don't want our entry-level workers having to endure hardships at these piddling amounts. Why not make it $20?
I did take Economics in graduate school, so even though it wasn't my best subject, I think I did pick up just enough to understand what happens when the government raises the minimum wage. Here's what we will see unfold over the next two years, as this fantastic new law goes into effect nationwide:
Employers will cut back on hiring of students and other temporary and seasonal workers. Employers will balk at paying the extra hourly rates because those workers are now getting too expensive. They will turn to temporary agencies for more experienced workers or do without for those jobs they were providing as part of their community service outreach.
Employees will get restless. After all, when the minimum wage goes up, everyone at the next wage tier will find themselves at or near minimum. That's not fair - why should an entry-level new hire earn almost as much as the employee with one or two years experience? Those employees will demand, and get, commensurate raises.
The domino effect kicks into place. Every wage worker demands a raise commensurate with the raises taking place below their level because of the new minimum rate mandated by law. The increased labor costs in turn put pressure on employers to outsource more work, cut back on their workforce, and/or raise prices. Those companies who can't keep up with the wage inflation will close.
So what happens when the federal minimum wage is increased? Best-case, a slight temporary increase in unemployment rates, a temporary inflationary period, and everyone makes a little more per hour, but their cost of living increases at the same time. So there's no real improvement in the quality of life for anyone at either end of the wage scale, but there will be lots of new people in the unemployment line.
Worse case, if the minimum wage is increased quickly and dramatically, a recession follows. Outsourcing to India and China explodes, companies hire even more illegal workers as long as they can get away with it, layoffs and plant closings happen everywhere, and small businesses close up shop. Everything costs more, so even workers who kept their jobs will feel the pinch of higher prices. Because with a dramatic wage inflation, the labor market will become saturated with laid off workers, which lets employers fill scarce available jobs at lower pay rates than before. In the end, everyone is worse off, at least until the new baseline is set.
I'm sorry, I must be wrecking the celebration. Go back to your party.
See you in the real world when the party's over.
What a wonderful group of people, who really care about those stuck on the low end of the wage scale. They are about to force the evil corporations to pay their entry-level workers more. Who could possibly oppose such a fair and understanding law, especially since the evil GOP has blocked any attempt at raising it from the currently outrageous rate of $5.15 for how many years now?
I was just wondering:
Exactly who is being forced to work for $5.15 an hour right now? I'm very curious, because in my community it's well known that you can't hire anybody to do anything for less than around $6.50 starting rate. Well, maybe you can hire an illegal for less, but that's another topic.
What is the new minimum wage rate going to be? I've heard varying numbers, ranging from $6.15 to $7.50. I think I even heard somebody advocating $8.50. Certainly we don't want our entry-level workers having to endure hardships at these piddling amounts. Why not make it $20?
I did take Economics in graduate school, so even though it wasn't my best subject, I think I did pick up just enough to understand what happens when the government raises the minimum wage. Here's what we will see unfold over the next two years, as this fantastic new law goes into effect nationwide:
Employers will cut back on hiring of students and other temporary and seasonal workers. Employers will balk at paying the extra hourly rates because those workers are now getting too expensive. They will turn to temporary agencies for more experienced workers or do without for those jobs they were providing as part of their community service outreach.
Employees will get restless. After all, when the minimum wage goes up, everyone at the next wage tier will find themselves at or near minimum. That's not fair - why should an entry-level new hire earn almost as much as the employee with one or two years experience? Those employees will demand, and get, commensurate raises.
The domino effect kicks into place. Every wage worker demands a raise commensurate with the raises taking place below their level because of the new minimum rate mandated by law. The increased labor costs in turn put pressure on employers to outsource more work, cut back on their workforce, and/or raise prices. Those companies who can't keep up with the wage inflation will close.
So what happens when the federal minimum wage is increased? Best-case, a slight temporary increase in unemployment rates, a temporary inflationary period, and everyone makes a little more per hour, but their cost of living increases at the same time. So there's no real improvement in the quality of life for anyone at either end of the wage scale, but there will be lots of new people in the unemployment line.
Worse case, if the minimum wage is increased quickly and dramatically, a recession follows. Outsourcing to India and China explodes, companies hire even more illegal workers as long as they can get away with it, layoffs and plant closings happen everywhere, and small businesses close up shop. Everything costs more, so even workers who kept their jobs will feel the pinch of higher prices. Because with a dramatic wage inflation, the labor market will become saturated with laid off workers, which lets employers fill scarce available jobs at lower pay rates than before. In the end, everyone is worse off, at least until the new baseline is set.
I'm sorry, I must be wrecking the celebration. Go back to your party.
See you in the real world when the party's over.
Saturday, November 18, 2006
Weekend Update
Just to complete the thread of High School Football commentary, the game might have been a bit worse than expected. The victor was about 98% certain before the game started, but 59-0 was disappointing.
The North team was clearly rattled early, giving up 3 easy touchdowns to Warren Central in the first quarter. The first two were after North fumbles. It rattled the offense, and the defense was getting knocked around pretty soundly. Things continued to go badly, and the game was over at halftime, the score 35-0.
Something interesting about such games, where one team is so clearly and obviously superior. WC could probably beat a lot of college teams - not Division I, but quite possibly Division III and below.
Mike Hladik, the quarterback, was suddenly throwing a lot of balls over the heads of his receivers. Sometimes when he was rushed, but mostly it just seemed he just had too much adrenaline. When he was on target, the receivers suddenly developed stone hands. Brandon Butler, the wide receiver who I think has the single-season and possibly career receptions record for Columbus North, dropped nearly every pass. He nearly made some impossibly difficult catches, which you can't fault him for being unable to hang on, but he also dropped balls thrown to him into his hands and in the open.
Even the punter, Conor Koslowski, was shanking the ball out of bounds in the first half. The player who didn't have the lapses of the rest of the offense seemed to be the running back, Alex Turner. He was responsible for the fumble at the beginning of the game, but ran hard and strong for plenty of yards the rest of the way.
I've had the unfortunate experience myself of getting up against a team that's way beyond your own in size, strength, and speed. The psychological impact of that is this: You don't want to be embarrassed, and you tell yourself that you can beat these guys - all you have to do is play to your potential. That's when you start pressing. You think more about what you're doing, try to do more than you've been able to do before, and start trying to make the "big play" to help your team.
Instead, things just get worse. You think your effort is above and beyond anything you've done before, but you're failing miserably. You're out of synch, and all of a sudden you can't even seem to do the simple things right. It's almost as if you've forgotten how to play the game. The frustration mounts, and it seems the harder you try to recover, the worse things get.
That's what I saw with Columbus North. They reached that frustration point when they fell behind, and started pressing. Hladik tried to throw harder and it just resulted in overthrows and balls too strong for the receiver to handle. Butler thought about running with the ball after the catch, so he didn't make sure he had the catch first and the ball just skipped through his hands. The defense overpursued and got pulled out of position so the other team's running backs could run right past them.
I wonder how an athlete could overcome the tendency to press when things aren't going well, and learn to play with intensity but still play within their capabilities? If I were a psychologist and could figure this out, maybe I could earn big bucks as a consultant to professional athletes. Seems like a fun profession as well.
Hmmm.
The North team was clearly rattled early, giving up 3 easy touchdowns to Warren Central in the first quarter. The first two were after North fumbles. It rattled the offense, and the defense was getting knocked around pretty soundly. Things continued to go badly, and the game was over at halftime, the score 35-0.
Something interesting about such games, where one team is so clearly and obviously superior. WC could probably beat a lot of college teams - not Division I, but quite possibly Division III and below.
Mike Hladik, the quarterback, was suddenly throwing a lot of balls over the heads of his receivers. Sometimes when he was rushed, but mostly it just seemed he just had too much adrenaline. When he was on target, the receivers suddenly developed stone hands. Brandon Butler, the wide receiver who I think has the single-season and possibly career receptions record for Columbus North, dropped nearly every pass. He nearly made some impossibly difficult catches, which you can't fault him for being unable to hang on, but he also dropped balls thrown to him into his hands and in the open.
Even the punter, Conor Koslowski, was shanking the ball out of bounds in the first half. The player who didn't have the lapses of the rest of the offense seemed to be the running back, Alex Turner. He was responsible for the fumble at the beginning of the game, but ran hard and strong for plenty of yards the rest of the way.
I've had the unfortunate experience myself of getting up against a team that's way beyond your own in size, strength, and speed. The psychological impact of that is this: You don't want to be embarrassed, and you tell yourself that you can beat these guys - all you have to do is play to your potential. That's when you start pressing. You think more about what you're doing, try to do more than you've been able to do before, and start trying to make the "big play" to help your team.
Instead, things just get worse. You think your effort is above and beyond anything you've done before, but you're failing miserably. You're out of synch, and all of a sudden you can't even seem to do the simple things right. It's almost as if you've forgotten how to play the game. The frustration mounts, and it seems the harder you try to recover, the worse things get.
That's what I saw with Columbus North. They reached that frustration point when they fell behind, and started pressing. Hladik tried to throw harder and it just resulted in overthrows and balls too strong for the receiver to handle. Butler thought about running with the ball after the catch, so he didn't make sure he had the catch first and the ball just skipped through his hands. The defense overpursued and got pulled out of position so the other team's running backs could run right past them.
I wonder how an athlete could overcome the tendency to press when things aren't going well, and learn to play with intensity but still play within their capabilities? If I were a psychologist and could figure this out, maybe I could earn big bucks as a consultant to professional athletes. Seems like a fun profession as well.
Hmmm.
Friday, November 17, 2006
It Probably Doesn't Matter
I'm just wondering what's in the minds of the GOP in Congress. They just lost their majorities in both houses. You'd think it's time for fresh blood and new ideas.
Guess not.
They brought back Trent Lott. They kept Boehner in the House as their leader.
So, I guess that means they don't want new faces or new ideas. Boehner might or might not be a great guy, but when I've seen him on television he seems to have the charisma of a dead fish. If they had actually chosen Mike Pence, maybe they would have had a chance to rebuild and communicate a fresh message. But the good ol' boys won, obviously.
Could it be they don't mind being beaten by Democrats?
I suppose it doesn't really matter. Everywhere I look, all I see are power-drunk democrats celebrating with their sycophant news anchors. The news guys (and girls) aren't even bothering to talk to republicans, except perhaps their favorite, John McCain.
Party on, dudes. (Did I get that idiom right? Gotta brush up - the hippies are in charge now.)
Guess not.
They brought back Trent Lott. They kept Boehner in the House as their leader.
So, I guess that means they don't want new faces or new ideas. Boehner might or might not be a great guy, but when I've seen him on television he seems to have the charisma of a dead fish. If they had actually chosen Mike Pence, maybe they would have had a chance to rebuild and communicate a fresh message. But the good ol' boys won, obviously.
Could it be they don't mind being beaten by Democrats?
I suppose it doesn't really matter. Everywhere I look, all I see are power-drunk democrats celebrating with their sycophant news anchors. The news guys (and girls) aren't even bothering to talk to republicans, except perhaps their favorite, John McCain.
Party on, dudes. (Did I get that idiom right? Gotta brush up - the hippies are in charge now.)
TGIF
It's finally Friday. I'll catch the Semi-State game between Columbus North and Warren Central. Cathedral at Columbus East across town will probably be a more competitive game, but North's our school.
If I remember correctly, Warren Central's closest game this season was a 41-21 win. The rest of their schedule were blowouts. North's got high hopes, but the best I can hope for them is that they lose by 20 points or less.
There's no way to really game plan for Warren Central, because they're just bigger, stronger, and faster than any other high school team. I'm guessing that Coach Bless and his staff will load up the defense on the line of scrimmage in an attempt to stop WC's running game. The hope would be to at least slow down the running game and maybe force some passing, which might give them a chance at a turnover or two. On the Offensive side, North has to score every time they get the ball. If they can keep WC's offense off the field, or at least keep up with them by matching touchdowns, maybe they could steal a win with one more score.
Having both Columbus teams in the Dome next weekend for the state championship games in 5A and 4A is a great dream, but unfortunately is highly unlikely. East might make it, but even they will have a tough obstacle in Cathedral.
Anyway, Saturday we'll be at the Lego Robotics competition. Hopefully the kids are ready to make a good showing. Then off to Canada and back just in time for Thanksgiving.
If I remember correctly, Warren Central's closest game this season was a 41-21 win. The rest of their schedule were blowouts. North's got high hopes, but the best I can hope for them is that they lose by 20 points or less.
There's no way to really game plan for Warren Central, because they're just bigger, stronger, and faster than any other high school team. I'm guessing that Coach Bless and his staff will load up the defense on the line of scrimmage in an attempt to stop WC's running game. The hope would be to at least slow down the running game and maybe force some passing, which might give them a chance at a turnover or two. On the Offensive side, North has to score every time they get the ball. If they can keep WC's offense off the field, or at least keep up with them by matching touchdowns, maybe they could steal a win with one more score.
Having both Columbus teams in the Dome next weekend for the state championship games in 5A and 4A is a great dream, but unfortunately is highly unlikely. East might make it, but even they will have a tough obstacle in Cathedral.
Anyway, Saturday we'll be at the Lego Robotics competition. Hopefully the kids are ready to make a good showing. Then off to Canada and back just in time for Thanksgiving.
Thursday, November 16, 2006
Iraq Decision
The Democrats now seem to feel relatively free to speak their minds, now that the election is over. And from what I hear, they are of many diverse minds when it comes to the Iraq war.
The spectrum goes from the "Get out Now" group to the "Send More Troops" at the other end.
In a way, I think the President played it well, by inviting the new Dem leaders over for a visit, then telling them he'd listen to their ideas on Iraq. It seems to have worked pretty well, because they sure have a lot of ideas.
For what it's worth, here's what I'd do. If we could get other countries to help, that's great, but in general, we should have enough troops there to accomplish the mission in cooperation with Iraqi forces.
First, seal the borders. No weapons may cross. Anyone trying to cross somewhere other than an authorized checkpoint will be shot. Suspected foreign fighters from Syria and Iran will be arrested, interrogated, and released back to their home country when they are deemed not a threat.
Next, pacify the citizenry. City-by-city, house-by-house, Iraqis backed by US and other troops will search for weapons and IED's, which will be siezed and destroyed. Every city will then be occupied by troops, who will arrest anyone found with a weapon or bomb or generally disturbing the peace.
Muqtada al-Sadr will be arrested, tried and executed for being an anti-government militia leader. His army will be disbanded and disarmed. Likewise, Sunni insurgents will be disarmed and arrested.
Once the violence has been stopped, American and other forces will pull back and leave Iraqis in their place. Eventually, Iraq will be an independent, peaceful, and friendly country. America will have permanent bases there, just as they do in Germany and Korea.
The choice is really very simple. We either choose to do what it takes to finish the job or we quit. And the inevitable consequences of quitting, which would present Iraq to Al Quaeda and Iran on a silver platter, are unacceptable. So we finish the job, boldly and aggressively.
The spectrum goes from the "Get out Now" group to the "Send More Troops" at the other end.
In a way, I think the President played it well, by inviting the new Dem leaders over for a visit, then telling them he'd listen to their ideas on Iraq. It seems to have worked pretty well, because they sure have a lot of ideas.
For what it's worth, here's what I'd do. If we could get other countries to help, that's great, but in general, we should have enough troops there to accomplish the mission in cooperation with Iraqi forces.
First, seal the borders. No weapons may cross. Anyone trying to cross somewhere other than an authorized checkpoint will be shot. Suspected foreign fighters from Syria and Iran will be arrested, interrogated, and released back to their home country when they are deemed not a threat.
Next, pacify the citizenry. City-by-city, house-by-house, Iraqis backed by US and other troops will search for weapons and IED's, which will be siezed and destroyed. Every city will then be occupied by troops, who will arrest anyone found with a weapon or bomb or generally disturbing the peace.
Muqtada al-Sadr will be arrested, tried and executed for being an anti-government militia leader. His army will be disbanded and disarmed. Likewise, Sunni insurgents will be disarmed and arrested.
Once the violence has been stopped, American and other forces will pull back and leave Iraqis in their place. Eventually, Iraq will be an independent, peaceful, and friendly country. America will have permanent bases there, just as they do in Germany and Korea.
The choice is really very simple. We either choose to do what it takes to finish the job or we quit. And the inevitable consequences of quitting, which would present Iraq to Al Quaeda and Iran on a silver platter, are unacceptable. So we finish the job, boldly and aggressively.
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
The Story Unfolds
The Republic newspaper published an update on the Barry Huckaby story today. New facts are that he admitted to stuffing a couple of fifties into his pocket when preparing the bank deposit from the football sectional gate proceeds. He was booked on theft charges and bonded out. He's pled Not Guilty, despite his admission to taking at least $100. His attorney says there's an explanation for everything, which will all come out at trial.
It seems to me that it doesn't matter whether he skimmed of a hundred bucks or three thousand. Theft is theft. It could raise an interesting question about where the other $2900 might have gone.
Still a mystery is the basic question, "What was he thinking?". Was it common practice to skim cash from sectional football games where he came from? What made him think he could get away with it?
The story did say that he was alone in the Athletic office, preparing a bank deposit with the gate receipts from that night's football sectional. Just a practical bit of advice for BCSC and Columbus North: May I suggest that you institute a policy that all proceeds from school events be handled by at least two people until the money has been counted and the bank deposit prepared and properly secured.
Such a policy would be more likely to insure that theft won't happen in the future. Unless both of the individuals handling the money decide to steal it together, it would be a built-in deterrent. It would also assure a witness who could substantiate or refute any potential charges of theft.
Given the information presented, the best logical explanation is that Huckaby was in the office by himself with a wad of cash. He impulsively stuffed some of it into his pocket, thinking nobody would miss it. And he got caught. I wonder if he's now feeling great remorse at having given into the temptation, or if he's just sorry he got caught and blaming the school administration for blowing it all out of proportion? The statement published in The Republic from his attorney would seem to suggest the latter.
It seems to me that it doesn't matter whether he skimmed of a hundred bucks or three thousand. Theft is theft. It could raise an interesting question about where the other $2900 might have gone.
Still a mystery is the basic question, "What was he thinking?". Was it common practice to skim cash from sectional football games where he came from? What made him think he could get away with it?
The story did say that he was alone in the Athletic office, preparing a bank deposit with the gate receipts from that night's football sectional. Just a practical bit of advice for BCSC and Columbus North: May I suggest that you institute a policy that all proceeds from school events be handled by at least two people until the money has been counted and the bank deposit prepared and properly secured.
Such a policy would be more likely to insure that theft won't happen in the future. Unless both of the individuals handling the money decide to steal it together, it would be a built-in deterrent. It would also assure a witness who could substantiate or refute any potential charges of theft.
Given the information presented, the best logical explanation is that Huckaby was in the office by himself with a wad of cash. He impulsively stuffed some of it into his pocket, thinking nobody would miss it. And he got caught. I wonder if he's now feeling great remorse at having given into the temptation, or if he's just sorry he got caught and blaming the school administration for blowing it all out of proportion? The statement published in The Republic from his attorney would seem to suggest the latter.
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