What to Hang for Christmas?

I am hanging hope for Christmas, once again this year, not because I'm brimming over with enthusiasm for the run up to the 2012 national elections which began last month the day after the mid-term elections. It's because of my conviction that this world belongs, as it always has, to the God who created it. What else can one cling to after the first decade of the 21st century which began with 9/11 and moved immediately into two wars, a worldwide recession and still growing tensions between the partisans of Islam, most of which are stuck in the 13th century, and the West. One has to go back to WW II to find a world more messed up and confused. We're showing increased signs of weariness, stagnation and corruption after a tumultuous century of conflict and financial stress, but I'm still not going to hang black crape.



Life expectancy has increased, thanks to vastly improved nutrition, sanitation and health care. Stunning scientific achievements have been made, long with clear progress on human rights. Democracy triumphed over deadly challenges from fascism and communism, but only at horrific cost, and so it goes, two steps forward, one step backwards, if we're lucky. There will be no breather in which we can revitalize ourselves. Indeed, there is now solid evidence that our system of governance needs major tweeking to improve effectiveness and that our laissez -faire, free market economy has developed some serious problems. As anyone who has read previous blogs knows, I have no confidence in Wall Street moguls and most of the nation's business leaders. Greed has triumphed in America and most of them will do whatever it takes to generate ever larger profits and personal gain, regardless of their heritage, education and privileged position. They must be regulated wisely and sooner or later they will be.

Yet, underneath it all, there is the intrinsic goodness of the American people. We are a goodhearted, god -fearing , hard working people who have fine traditions and a solid underpinning. Our recent Thanksgiving holiday reminded me of the atmosphere on the ground of a Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, or a city wide blackout or even a national tragedy. The people are kind, the cops good humored , the spirit palpable. Many years ago, during the first terrible Ethiopian famine, I was raising money by phone for UNICEF and I encountered this unique American spirit in talking to people all over the country, as TV images of vultures hungrily eying emaciated babies on the verge of starvation, spread by time zone from east to west. People gave with enormous generosity, reducing me to tears with comments like "Here's $25. and I think my husband has $30. left on his Visa" or "Would you take $5? I'm very ill, but I can go without a meal without killing myself." As I looked around the crowded phone bank room, I saw many workers wiping their eyes. That's why I'm not hanging crape this year. Never conquered America is still strong enough to survive and revitalize our failed institutions (the church, the markets, the Congress, etc.) and our ineffective, self -aggrandizing leaders. Furthermore, every 12 hours we get a real time image of the glory of our planet and the work of His hands.

Torture and Pregnancy

A large mural in the Tower of London depicts a naked man facing a festive crowd on Tower Hill gathered for whatever pleasure can be found in watching him be hideously tortured, his body burned and mutilated alive and finally dismembered for display in various cities as evidence of the monarch's authority and power. It's a scene of utter degradation. I looked for the man with the pointy beard, he was surely there, but the faces were too indistinct. Ironically, a few miles to the north, Shakespeare was writing "Good night sweet prince, and flights of angels sing thee to thy rest."



After 9/11, an understandably panicked American government led by an inexperienced president to whom nuance was equivalent to weakness, let torture become a part of America's fight against Al Quaeda. He was poorly advised by people anxious to tell him what he wanted to hear, or to encourage his "cowboy" attitude, and he was unable to discriminate about the advise given to him.

There is no place for torture in American policy. It is a barbaric practice of a bygone era of which most nations who once used torture to enforce a monarch's control are not proud. At the foundation of America, various rights and freedoms were guaranteed to prevent the abuse of power to which we descended after 9/11, for the Founding Fathers knew that executive power was to be feared and that "absolute power corrupts absolutely."

There must never be an MOS for torture. The idea of American soldiers, those honored and sturdy, freckled faced farm boys from Kansas who won WW II, engaged in torture is an affront to everything that is American. We cannot be a great shining city on a hill and practice torture any more than we can claim to be a unique and wonderful, historic experiment in governance with notions that the president can do whatever he wishes in a time of emergency, including torture. We became a nation because we were fundamentally repulsed by the idea of any man or woman having such enormous and cruel power.

I can hear a conservative reader snickering at my naivete, but a recent book authored by Charles Fried, a very conservative former solicitor general of the United States under President Reagan, and his father a law professor, expressed very similar sentiments. Fried, the younger, who graduated from my college a couple of years after me, differed from his father in only one material way. Fried, the elder, felt that the Bush Administration's sins regarding torture were so egregious that in order to restore the nation's honor, they needed to be clearly identified and those responsible punished. I understand why President Obama decided not to drag up this dreadful stuff, but it was a serious mistake. Republicans, who impeached president Clinton for his reprehensible sexual adventures, wouldn't have hesitated a minute had the situation been reversed. Sex sullied President Clinton's personal honor; torture besmirches America's honor and as of today, no one has has admitted to the disgraceful decisions involved or been convicted of any misdeed, let alone punished. On the contrary every effort has been made to justify torture and belittle the "timid souls" who condemn it. I am pleased to say that group includes me.

The Frieds made clear in their lawyerly analysis what any thoughtful person understands instinctively: torture is very seldom effective and situations wherein torture might save the country are exceedingly rare, contrary to the TV series, "24" which appeared to legitimatize torture once a week. My belief is that there are no situations that warrant torture and no disasters to be avoided as horrible as the one that destroys our national personna, and everything we stand for, while concurrently taking us back 500 years in the progress of civilization. A democratic nation can no more use anonymous torture just occasionally, than a woman can be a little bit pregnant.

Military Justice Oxymoron

Military justice is in the news again with the dismissal of dozens of charges against a terrorist who was tried in a federal court and nevertheless convicted on one charge that will put him behind bars for a minimum if 20 years. Evidence that would have likely convicted him of more serious charges was tossed out by the judge because it was tainted by various illegalities, including likely torture. Several prominent Republicans are currently using the so called defeat of the government as proof that President Obama should have had him tried in a military court where convictions are easier.

I have some small experience with military justice and it is of interest only because it pertains to the culture of the military jury pool, so to speak. Though I am long out of the US Army, I doubt very much if the culture of the Army has changed materially. Cultures change slowly and, if anything, I believe prejudices may have hardened. The attitudes to which I refer are not just confined to junior officer ranks either. I believe they go clear to the top, but they may be tempered by the gray hair to be found in the most senior ranks.

When I reported to duty in Germany, as a "butter bar" lieutenant, I was handed several duty assignments. Among them was Defense Counsel for the battalion, probably because I was a graduate of a distinguished Ivy League university. Almost immediately, I noticed a slight prejudice for the prosecution. "Bring the guilty bastard in" was my introduction. The fact that one of the board's officers was giving me the finger as he was sworn in was another indication even the dullest defense counsel might have noticed. In a different case, a negative verdict was reached in something like 19 minutes, a record I was told. It didn't take long before I got angry, and on the first case that wasn't a negative slam dunk, I used that wonderful education to secure an acquittal, the first one anyone in my battalion could remember. The level of justice had been raised a tiny bit and hereafter the cases were argued more seriously. There were always good natured, out of session pleas from the "judges" to move things along because "Happy Hour starts in 20 minutes" or "to can the exculpatory evidence stuff because you know as well as I that he's as guilty as sin." I knew what was going to happen as soon as the battalion commander commented briefly and with a slight smile on my victories, and sure enough I was appointed Trial Counsel and put in charge of prosecuting future cases. Nothing really wrong about that, but it all left me a bit dubious about the average level of justice one could expect in the military justice system. Maybe prejudice learned as junior officers diminishes with age and higher rank, but I'd hate to have to depend on it for my freedom or life.

There's another dimension to this issue, of course; could a civilian court handle a terrorism case? The answer is, of course and the proof is there for all to see. We have plenty of tough, fair judges who will honor our heritage and produce justice. We've always had plenty of these men and their ranks are now being supplemented by brilliant women. There were similarly explosive cases in the last century and most were handled with great aplomb. Harold Medina's guidance of a famous communist case in the 1940s comes to mind. Today's terrorist trials have been made more difficult by their nature and the fact that we bungled the first round with secret detentions in foreign countries and torture under which most people would admit to just about anything. The more acts of terrorism are assigned to solo ideological unkowns, the more reason they should be tried locally as part of the criminal justice system. To do otherwise will weaken our American character which now wears a bit of tarnish that needs to be removed. I believe it was a mistake not to identify the previous administration's brand of justice for what it was, a disgrace of American values.

No Where To Go

I am a faithful Presbyterian and have been all my life. I go to church many miles from my home because there are essentially no other Presbyterian Churches to go to in my home town. The two biggest have been torn, no shredded, by the misdeeds of their pastors and have caused me and my loved ones much pain.

I've been a practicing Democrat for the last 50 years and now I don't really have a place to go with my anger, no rage is a better word, and frustrations with the weak, unruly and selfish bunch who call themselves the democratic leadership. Not President Obama, who could have led them to glory if they'd given him even half a chance, but the Blue Dogs, the poseurs, and penny ante congressmen and senators who always put their interests first and squandered the oppurtunity of a life time. They deserve to be defeated, even by the dismal ranks of the Republican tide of lying, cynical, midgets who did them in and who will now resume their do nothing destruction of the Republic.

Anyone who is not convinced that things can change rapoidly in American politics has not been watching the last 2 years of American history. What is equally clear is that is that our two party system is dead, not dying, but deceased. Government today is smoke and mirrors. Policies are determined on Wall Street in New York and brokered in Washington to the highest bidder. Is it any wonder that the middle class has been destroyed and that the rich have gotten enormously richer, recession be damned? News has become propaganda, issues lost in packaging and sloganeering.

For me, it's time for another political party. The democrats deserved defeat. I can no longer trust them to deliver any more than I can imagine the Republican party of Mitch McConnell, Dick Armey, John Boehner, Sarah Palin and Rand Paul coming up with anything I'd vote for. Someone needs to step up to the task and I'll vote for him or her. It has to be soon, however and my guess is will be Mike Bloomberg, a man with a name, a brain and big bucks.

People are going to have to trust a new party to overhaul the tax code fairly so that it protects American ideals, supports the elderly, the indigent and disabled while encouraging investment and growth. People of all stripes feel cheated and ripped off today, so if deductions for mortgages and charitable gifts are changed or eliminated, for instance, their loss will be offset by new moves to make union organization automatic or similar efforts to strengthen the middle class. Efforts to cut the national debt and/or balance the budget by skinning the middle class will unacceptable. Our next leader is going to have to know how to communicate broadly and specifically in the clearest terms, for the Republicans have proved beyond a shadow of doubt that packaging, style and slogans rule the day. I'm ready to follow a new leader if he/she will show me where to go.

Celestial Navigation

A number of my good friends have been sailors. They've built boats with their own hands, raced them and been U S Navy officers; they're familiar with the stars, warm bridge coats and short watches "before the rising sun." Many of them have also been fine athletes, because sailing requires discipline, concentration and stamina.



Despite the awful jokes about God playing golf, I think He particularly likes athletes because they are using the wonderful minds and bodies He gave them for a decent purpose and refining their skills. I appreciate athletes, too, and I've always ranked them mentally as simply good athletically, good athletically and scholastically and, at the top of the heap, those who are fine athletes with excellent minds and an understanding of God's loving relationship with His people.



Throughout the New testament there are numerous references to an athletic approach to living life, "running the good race, the victor's crown," etc. We are instructed on how to dresss for combat ("put on the breastplate of righteousness, the helmet of salvation, etc. "and the terms of the conflict are painted vividly. In defying sin, we are fighting all the powers of Hell. This makes every day a noble effort rather than just another game to be won or lost. Best yet, in the game God is interested in, one can lose again and again and still win, not with a desperate pass with a terrible name, but a redemption that lets us join Christ's victory at the finish line.

The game I am thinking about goes on long after we lose the ability to be good sailors or golfers. Are we still thinking about wins, as we move into our late 70's and beyond? Unless you are a household name, your experience is seemingly worth zero; a silver star or a knighthood? Forget it. Who knows, who cares? But I think, if one's motive is pure, there are innumerable things that can be done at almost any age to score big. That is certainly the way God planned it.

At the very least, many older people hope they can die well, being cheerful and without complaint. (If there is anything I am certain about it is that literally no one wants to hear about anyone's poor health.) Maybe they can still rescue someone from a car wreck, but that would probably require a small miracle. Surely, however, seniors can think up a good idea or two. Start up a charity in your basement like one of those mentioned recently in the NY Times Magazine. I like the idea of quietly or anonymously supplying some family or young person with direct financial aid, no strings attached. Share a trip or cultural event with some promising young person in school who can't afford such an experience. I have been a recruiter for my college for years, and I am pained to say that those kids who can afford mind expanding experiences almost have to score higher than those who must help tend the family's store whenever they have a free moment. Focus on women, too, they are still a long way from parity with men and they can surely do better. Who knows, when all the planets are aligned properly, what good things might happen right up to the very end.

Written for the Ages?

Below is a list of books and documents that I feel are written for the ages and not subject to question or careful revision.





Don't see it? Good. It's not there. Not the Holy Bible, not the Constitution of the United Staes, not E=Mc2.



As you might guess from blogs I have written, I am a repenting sinner and a practicing Christian who believes every word of the Apostle's Creed. I do not, however, believe in countless statements in the Bible that make no sense today and seem incompatible with the Good News of Jesus Christ, which itself represents a New Covenant offered by God to His people, after the Flood.



Antonin Scalia, the Associate Justice of the Supreme Court best kown for his strong belief in strictly interpreting the US Constitution, is a legal scholar I can't argue with, but common sense tells me his cause is basically flawed. It simply doesn't allow for the explosive changes that have legitimately occured in the world we live in, which is led by the United States of America. We've ammended the Constitution many times and we should not be afraid to do so again. In the meantime it needs to be interpreted not merely recited.



Einstein's famous formula concerning relativity looks like a winner in the Truth Forever category, but who really knows? He apparently made plenty of mistakes and the day may come when his best idea will simply be tossed on to the scap heap of science. And Einstein won't mind because he was seeking truth, which is what counts.

I am weary and wary of people who have got all the answers. Politicians who sound so earnest, ministers and priests who are supremely confident that they know God's mind and heart positively annoy me. They have disappointed so many times, it's a wonder many of them are again given the time to speak. Many of the events I see coming could turn the world upside down. We need people with the depth of perspective to respond with fresh wisdom and courageous action.

Test Time for America

It's here! Finally, inevitably. Test time for America.


No, I don't mean the mid-term elections, now only 15 days, 7 hours and 43 minutes away, as our pretend press corps reports 24/7 from some redoubt in Iowa. It's our equivalent of the famous Battle for Britain.

Americans are furious and scared at the moment, outraged with government at all levels and politicians of both parties and they have every right to be angry. They have been betrayed by religious leaders, predatory business people, even sports heroes and they are throwing wild punches right and left. They are enduring 2 wars they don't want and reeling from terrible financial losses, too, while 15 million are unemployed. Capitalism needs some adjustments. Soon, if worse distractions like riots, assassinations, and terrorist attacks don't intervene, they will more calmly come to understand what has actually gone wrong and who specifically is responsible. The goodness and greatness of our people will burst through and we will settle down as a nation to repair the damage and live with the wonderful things we have. That's my hope and prayer because we are of the same blood as our valiant English cousins and those indomitable pioneers who made this country great. This could be one of "our finest hours."

But not if we don't get coherent political leadership. This is no slap at President Obama, whom I admire and respect. I simply see no chance whatsoever that either of our two political parties can handle this crisis. Democrats have been craven and reckless, impossible to lead, while Republicans have been criminally irresponsible and cynical beyond belief, especially when a crisis is at hand. We must have a 3rd party as quickly as possible and I absolutely don't mean the Tea Party.

First, there has to be a public debate about what kind of a country we want to be. The ideological garbage has to be dumped as it clashes with the tides of history. Example: women, composing half of the human race, have been striving for equality with men for thousands of years. They will not be denied, so forget about repealing Roe v. Wade. The country has accepted that people can have different lifestyles, so knock off the bigotry on gays. Legalize sex and drugs; they've been around forever and regulation causes more problems than it can ever prevent. Americans want Social Security and Medicare and Medicaid and when the actual truth is known about Obama Care 42 million Americans will want it. We do not want a country where 24% of the wealth is owned by 1% of the people. We do not want bedroom police peering into our homes. Pass legislation that America can never go to war for more than 90 days without starting a national draft. Change the rules of Congress so that a disciplined or spiteful minority cannot block important legislation. Stop perpetual political campaigning and get the special interests out of campaign financing. Bite the bullet and raise taxes without partisanship. These are some of the preconditions for an effective 3rd party. The future leaders are there in people like Mike Bloomberg, David Petraeous and many more. We're in an existential crisis with no time for posturing and pettiness.

America has never been occupied by a foreign power. Our cities have never been bombed to rubble. Our people have never been enslaved or dominated. We will pass this test because we have to. It has already been brutally painful and more difficult days and years lie ahead, but we'll do it and be stronger for the effort.

Rejoice!

As a retired professional fund raiser, I can attest to how hard it is to raise zillions from some of America's wealthiest people. But, I'm not Warren Buffet or Bill Gates. When these guys come calling, all bets are off. Even so, when I read back in June, that Warren and Bill were out to convince 30 fellow billionaires to agree to giving half of their fortunes away, I couldn't help but think "Good luck!" I just didn't appreciate the power of one mogul asking another to do something grand. Regardless the fact that they have succeeded is fantastic news that can't receive too much applause. It's nothing less than a ray (gold, of course) of pure sunlight in a very cloudy sky. Now, if each of those 30 will go after just one more over achiever, just imagine the possibilities. Bravo Warren and Bill!

Rejoice!

Bullying in schools is as old as the Devil. And not just in hazardous duty schools. Nor is it just a boy thing. We've all heard just how nasty young "ladies" can be. The suicide of a Massachusetts girl after months of email brutality made it clear that cyber bullying and sexting were new threats to civility and decency in our schools. Bullying is also a factor in our offices and factories that predates Ebineezer Scrooge. Overbearing bosses abound as they rant and rave to harrass and humiliate subordinates into achieving production goals no matter what. Now, at last, this wretched behavior has been targeted for elimination from the US Dept. of Education on down through most of our states and school districts. Huge progress has also been made in business, too, though many employees may still feel trappped by the scarcity of jobs. No matter how long it takes to eliminate bullies wherever they may be, these unfortunate people now have scarlet "B's" on their foreheads for all to see. That's progress, folks.

Rejoice Greatly

Civilization has been on a roll recently, it would seem, and now the decency that is one of it's halllmark is being extended to animals! Finally! Thank you, Humane Society of the United States, Professor Peter Singer of Princeton and many others for your tireless work and leadership. Chickens and veal calves are the major beneficiaries of this particular break through in which leadership states like California and Ohio have agreed to ease up on tight caging of chickens over the next 15 years. By 2017 veal calves will be unchained! The European Union is quite a bit ahead of us, but this too, is significant progress to balance the ledger a bit These are all God's creatures, over which He gave us dominion, and I am certain He is pleased. Again, I say, rejoice.

What's Up at the Chemical Plant?

Everyone knows that we humans are walking chemical plants. As children, we recognize that our bodies are growing and as teenagers we can tell really fascinating things are happening. Lost in the beauty of our new bodies, we pay little attention to our heads and the different ways we deal with others. The changes keep right on going until even the most casual observer has to be aware of different management at the factory.

I mention these stunning insights because I have been thinking recently about the roots of partisanship that are afflicting our body politic as probably never before. For years, men whispered that women could never lead well and consistently becasuse of regular problems Mother Nature gave them. The difficulties men experienced were, of course, perfectly acceptable and unworthy of comment. So what if some guys became querulous, predatory and didn't play well with others?

I know what drives Reps. Bachmann, Boehner and Cantor and the assorted people seeking office (though the crop this season includes some of the most absolute nut cases ever seen). It's naked ambition. But what about rich, old men like Sens. Cornyn, McCain, McConnell, etc.? (I literally can't think of Democratic senators who are as repugnant and outspoken.) What hormones are driving them to lie, misinform, bluster and block any move that runs counter to their political beliefs this year? It can't be conviction, surely, no sudden recognition that we're spending a lot of money. Is it possible they're on steroids or is the politics bug like malaria, once bitten it can hide in your bodyand return occasionally forever? I know the power, fawning and perks are fantastic for members of congress, but enough to put party over country and pandering over serious legislation on vital issues? I just can't buy it. Maybe it's the same spotlight fever that keeps performers on stage when they should have retired; I could understand that. Maybe some of them think they really are defending something they personnally believe in deeply, like traditional marriage or anti-abortion laws. That, too, would make sense to me. And maybe it's racism! Now there's a possible resentment buried deep that needs to be camouflaged lest it bite back. I wonder how many Americans just don't want to see a black man in the White House, let alone a handsome, young and fit black man with a beautiful family, good manners, a fine education and intellect who represents the USA well and has an ambitious agenda to move the country forward? Eureka! I've got it!

Hello, Plant? Find a cure and make it snappy!

Where Angels Fear to Tread

I am writing today first to all my friends and aquaintances who are Roman Catholics, and secondly, without any authority whatsoever, to all Catholics on behalf of all Protestants. In both cases, I want only to express my sorrow for what I believe has been a period of terrible suffering and embarrassment for both groups and the way they have responded to these problems with renewed faith and courage. From what I can tell, nothing will ever stop Catholics from practising their ancient and marvelous faith, not priests or bishops or blundering senior clergy, nothing.

Every Christian prays that through God's Grace he will be strong and faithful when the pressure points in life descend upon him. Last week may have represented such an event for many Catholics when the Vatican announced new rules for the handling of priests charged with sexual deviancy. Not only were the new rules the bare minimum that might have been expected, the Church's leadership gratuitously inserted into the mix the assertion that seeking the ordination of women is a sin equivalent to pedophilia! What a needless insult to 50% of the Church's membership! What an arrogant and clueless response to terrible problems that have been gnawing at Roman Catholicism. The next pope will need the skills and charisma of two John 23rd's.

We in the Protestant Church have long been plagued with scandal, but our more democratic forms of government make it much easier to deal with. In addition, Protestant churches that disapprove of the work of their governing bodies have ways to fight back. They can withold money, join another church or even go independent without fear of excommunication, eternal damnation and the like.

Many years ago, I spoke quietly and sincerely to a friend whose wife I had known forever. They were experiencing severe problems. I said only that I knew he was suffering and that I was sorry. He was courteous but denied that there was any discomfort in his life. I mention this only because I decided a long time ago, it was probably better to risk being indelicate than to appear indifferent. And so, dear Catholic friends, if I have displeased you with these words, please forgive me. Fools step in ...

Tea and Sympathy

On NPR this morning, a Michigan Teapartier was criticizing the groundbreaking for a new plant that in 18 months or so will be manufacturing Chevy Volt batteries and employing about 400 people. What was bothering him was the fact that the government had been involved in selecting the site and had provided some of the startup money. In his view government shouldn't be doing such things, even now when so many are unemployed.

To me his criticism meant several things. First is the fundamental weakness of the Tea Party movement: members seem to want doctrinal purity that is terribly impractical and won't work in a crisis. Give 'em sympathy, but let the system work out unemployment problems. Then came the realization that this country is impossible to run, particularly in this day of continuous news, opinion and bitter partisanship. There are probably 50 people for every Teapartier who think the government should be doing something much bigger and doing it faster. The hell with doctrinal purity, just give me a job. In the same vein, this guy was no one of importance; what was he doing on NPR? These thoughts were followed by the realization that Americans are very ignorant of how our system really works, despite all the talk about sausage being made.They don't like the fact that both Republican and Democratic parties bailed out the big banks, even if the government gets most of the money back. Have they been so focused on welfare queens all these years not to know that corporate welfare has always dwarfed human welfare, disability payments, food stamps, etc.? Forget about the trillions of dollars given recently to AIG, GM, Chrysler, the big banks and brokerage houses, corporate welfare goes back forever. Just as a reference point, start with the Mining Act of 1872 whereby big mining and oil companies can use government land for $5.00 and acre, take oil and minerals and pay no royalties! Think aid to tobacco and sugar companies, just to name a couple of biggies. I won't even mention companies involved in defense work, or broadcasting, but the Savings and Loan bailout of 30 years ago caused a little kerfufel coming in around $500 billion and might have been an indicator of things to come. Is it possible, what we're seeing today is also an indicator of something even bigger? If the reform bill about to pass congress is only the beginning, I'll be happy. There's much more to be done and huge hurdles to be overcome from the usual suspects who will be fighting for their special interests with their last breathes.

Gracies

Having established unilaterally, in a recent blog, that what most people want in life is Peace, it's time to be more specific.
God will do what He pleases, of course, but in most cases I don't think the arrival of Peace comes with trumpets blaring. One knows he has Peace when he has received enough Gracies to know that Father is communicating.

What's a Gracie? It's a monogrammed favor from the Maker of Heaven and Earth. It's a hint, an act of Grace, but it is so subjective a thing that it has a little signature attached to it that clearly identifies it as being only for you. An example for me, for instance, would be a gift of music whereby I heard something I didn't know and fell instantly in love with it. That happened once with Mozart's Zaida and more recently as I was recovering from a miserable eye opertation and suddenly found much, much more than I had ever known was in Faure's Requiem.

What would a Gracie be for you? The interesting thing here is that we see everything so differently than the common stereotypes indicate, be they male and female or ectomorph, endomorph, mesomorph, Type A or B and so on. People love each other for the most absurd reasons the mind can imagine. They worry about issues no on could guess. So a Gracie for one person might be a reference to a lock of hair or a pair of size 15 sneakers. What it means is that the Lord God loves you and knows you individually as his own and is telling you gently so as not to scare the living daylights out of you with horns and burning bushes. I'll trade you all the Presidential cufflinks in DC plus all the Papal blessings at the Vatican for one little Gracie, thank you.

Rotten in DC

To even the most obtuse observer of the Washington, DC scene, it's clear there is something rotten there that we've been trying to overlook far too long. Our government is struggling with monumental issues with one hand tied behind its back, and more.

The core problem is money, campaign finance reform, to be specific. Campaigns for high office should be financed by the government so that exceedingly wealthy people who want a new challenge or whatever, can't simply lay out $100 million and become a governor, senator or judge. (No judge should ever have to run for office.) In addition, campaigns for national office should be limited, as they are in many other western countries, to 3-6 months. No more continuous 24/7 campaigns that never end and require ever greater time devoted, not to governing or legislating , but to fundraising. It's going to be hard to make much progress on these matters until the Supreme Court is persuaded that corporations are not people. As it is, the High Court has just made it infinitely easier for corporations to influence legislation using stockholder money. This makes corporations super persons. Let's give them names like Watson for IBM, Jack for GE, Mickey for Disney, Uncle Dick for Halliburton, Jamie for JP Morgan Chase. These men will be able to spend whatever it takes to continue Wall Street's dominance of Washington, thanks to the Roberts Court.

Unfortunately, there is much more to be done to improve congressional effectiveness. I have always been for term limits that would force lawmakers to leave office after say two terms as a senator (12 years) and 3 as a congressman (9 years).
Election to office should not be a lifetime meal ticket. Term limits should be law and any expertise denied the nation because of shorter tenure can be easily overcome by an improved civil service and a steady supply of new talent.

Archaic rules should be changed, especially in the Senate where secret holds on nominations make it impossible for a new president to establish control over the government. Earmarks should be transparent and greatly reduced. Ethics Committees should be reconstituted and required to work in the open. Filibuster rules should be changed to prevent the tyranny of the minority that can immobilize a determined opposition.

And that's just for starters. The country has to break the grip of Special Interests before we can return to our ideals and the phenominal promise they hold. Business can't be rigged so that only a tiny percentage of people benefit and that will mean heavy, determined lifting for many years. The same goes for farming, mining, oil and coal. The subsidies have to go, the playing fields levelled. Until then, it's just going to be more of the same - "Double, double toil and trouble; Fire, burn and cauldron bubble."

Greed

Gordon Gekko notwhithstanding, greed is NOT good. Indeed, greed is quite rightly one of the Seven Deadly Sins, up there with Pride, Lust, Wrath, etc. It's symbol is a gross hog, not to be confused with the charming Wilbur of Charlotte's Web. Nor is greed to be confused with ambition or concentration. It is not an asset or attribute. Nothing wholesome comes from greed.


Greed is often expressed as a forceful effort to acquire or experience an absolute, controlling, or unhealthy amount of a commodity (gold, Renaissance paintings, real estate, stock, pork bellies (!) and/or certain experiences like sex, fame and so on. Like pornography, it's sometimes difficult to quantify, but we know it when we see it and it's not pretty. Greed is not an integral part of Capitalism or the American dream. It is not mentioned with our freedoms of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. It's allowed along with bad table manners, but not prohibited like driving without a license. One may be deeply motivated to succeed by observing a neighbor imitating Al Capp's cartoon character, J. Roaringham Fatback and cruising to work in a chauferred Rolls Royce, but few are inspired by the billionaire Hunt Brothers trying to corner the silver market many years ago. They were out for more money, of course, but had they succeeded, they would have enjoyed the buzz when they walked into The Oilman's Club. Greed can be deliciously macho at any age.


What my friends who believe in the usefulness of greed are really thinking of is good ole "trickle down economics," that nostrum beloved by President Ronald Reagan. Give a zillionaire another zillion and, according to economist Reagan, he would open a plant in Nigeria, hire 5,000 locals and lift the entire region out of poverty. The altruistic mogul would use the money for the benefit of society, insist on high labor standards and pay fine dividends to stockholders at the same time. It was baloney, of course, but a wonderful fantasy all the same. Trickle down didn't work and never will, regardless of the guise in which it comes. Greed is fuel for the zillionaire, but there are no statues to it, now that it has finally been understood for what it is. My belief is that the average zillionaire would take a windfall and hide it in Switzerland, to avoid paying taxes on it, as so many have done in the past.

Greed is in the headlines today, because of the beyond incredible greedy behavior of leading business executives (think BP) politicians and wannabes worldwide in it's thrall over a period of many years. Indeed, what we are seeing today is little different than what we have seen seemingly forever. Even young people in America today know something of the sins of the Vanderbilts, the Morgans, the Harrimans, et al. who stopped at absolutely nothing to achieve their fortunes and then used charity to buy extensive redemption. The people at the very top seem to always want more. Ambition fanned by the media (Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous) becomes greed, power begets the need for more power and the beat goes on. As the gap between the classes widens, the potential increases again for unrest and violence. A single assasination triggered World War I; another today could represent a devastation unlike any other experienced in the United States. No possible benefit of greed, currently beyond my imagination, can justify so much evil, real and potential.


So where does this greed come from? Is it a virus? Not likely. My wife says it springs from fear, a deep concern about returning to poverty or seeming to be weak - whatever condition created the condition in the first place. That makes sense to me and she should know as a practicing LCSW and Addictions Counselor with many years experience in dealing with emotionally troubled people, to say nothing of 40 with me.


I wonder if Gordon would be as sure about greed today as he was years ago. My guess is "Yes." That's the way Masters of the Universe think and always will.

Peace

I received an email recently from a wise friend that ended with the close, "Peace". Usually what friends write is Stay well, Love, Sincerely, Regards, As ever or simply Bye now. But "peace" is really it, isn't it? That's the true goal of our lives, not health, not wealth, not glory or honors that fade. The email called to mind that I've been wanting to write something about peace. And what a time to do it. These days I brace myself when turning on the TV news. The whole world seems to be wallowing in war and rumors of war, rebellions, fnancial tribulations, unemployment, enviromental disasters, bizarre suicides, sensless murders, terrible betrayals, political crises and so on. It's hard to feel peaceful.

Saint Paul began his letters with the words "Grace be unto you and peace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ." Sometimes the wording was mixed a little but the meaning was absolutely clear. These were gifts from our Triune God of infinite value and they were and are FREE. No merit was or is involved. So can one have a horrible day at the office, in the school yard, at home in the nursery or in the deep valleys of shadows in Afghanistan and still be peaceful? The answer forever is "yes!" Can one be experiencing the worst kind of fear, disappointment, depression and trauma and still find peace? Yes, absolutely. That's why it's called Peace that passes understanding. "My peace I give to you" was Jesus' promise and His promises are true. I've witnessed Grace and Peace and experienced it, as the simplest of lay persons, and so can anyone reading this. In fact, many people may have witnessed and experienced Grace and Peace without even knowing it. When one comes to be aware of the gift, it's significance can still be shrouded. What it means is that nothing else, nothing, means anything and that the knowledge that everything will be all right engulfs you. God is in charge: it's His world, it was His before time and will be when time no longer matters. Why? He loves us and wants us to love Him. That's the "Good News." Think about it!

Bye now, and Grace be unto you and peace from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Atlas Flopped

Thank you Rand Paul! You have done everyone a service, albeit unwittingly, by revealing why your brand of Republicanism, and Republican philosophy in general, isn't relevant to America today. With people like Dr. Paul in charge, things would be very different. The states would control education, for instance, so that more than even now, Texans could teach one thing and Pennsylvanians could teach something else. Goodbye, Dept of Education. And so long Environmental Protection. You're not needed. Trusty business leaders would surely police themselves just like the Wall Streeters did. (Remember Alan Greenspan's shock, shock, that they didn't?) It's inspiring to hear Dr. Paul explain that mining accidents happen. Guess those widows and children should stop their weeping and just be thankful that they had jobs even though they knew every day in the mines might be their last, so poorly were they regulated. How about oil spills? Joe Kennedy, the father, famously said that business men were bastards, but of course he was a Democrat. He knew that profit hungry corporations would seldom be really good citizens, do more than give money away, without the Sheriff watching. Rand Paul doesn't think we need those pesky watchdogs.

But it's on the social side of national issues that Dr. Paul has been of particular service to the country. If elected, he's made it clear he would surely champion the Republican dream of repealing the New Deal and it's most recent offspring, ObamaCare, to say nothing of Medicare, Americans with Disabilities, etc. He doesn't feel private business owners should be required to do anything they don't want to do, like desegregating their restaurants. And on it goes. Left to Dr. Paul, this country would only be partially desegregated even today. It's really difficult to envision the mischievous results of power in his hands. There's always Newt Gingrich, who compares Obama to Hitler and Stalin, and defends his position!

Thank you also, Dr. Paul , for helping us decide what kind of a Constitution we want, as America moves into the 21st Century. Strict observance would save so much trouble. If the problem wasn't envisioned by the Founding Fathers, Dr. Paul would just let nature take it's course. Why you could probably abolish half a dozen other governmental departments and hundreds of agencies in the interest of economy and he and his friends would never notice a difference. Too bad about the others, but someone has to be on the bottom of the ladder. Right? Wrong!

Another Greek Tragedy

The economic collapse of Greece undermines one of my favorite theories. In the past, I have frequently excused America's errors on the fact that we are such a young and immature society. What excuse is there for today's Greek tragedy?


One of the few textbooks I have retained over the years is The Echo of Greece by Edith Hamilton. It outlines the glorious, unmatched contributions to western culture made by the likes of Socrates, Plato, Homer, etc.. Indeed, there are few Americans who don't know where the Olympics began, and so on. This is surely a mature society with a history going back 3, 000 years. So what happened? Surely, there's a lesson for us.


I'm no more professionally qualified to conduct a critical examination of a nation with an ancient culture, than the guy who is contemplating emergency brain surgery in the ad about the importance of getting a good night's sleep at Holiday Inn. I have read many detective novels, however, and so let's round up the usual suspects.


My two brothers are ex-warrior officers, men who served well in the military. One was a a professional soldier in 3 wars and, the other was a member of America's elite 82nd Airborn Division, who made countless jumps. They subscribe to the maxim that there are no bad soldiers, just poor officers. With this in mind, I'd start with the leading Greek politicians of the late 20th Century. Then I'd gather the foolish people who elected them, who abandoned their magnificent heritage and loved being pandered to with "vacation bonuses" and the like. Each government apparently outdid every predecessor in lax tax enforcement and unbounded optimism. Fiscally, there wasn't an ounce of Spartan discipline to be found.

We're much smarter here, of course, and still seemingly content to let a handful of bankers pretty much run everything so that one half of one percent of the population makes more in a day than members of the underclasses, like me do in a month. Let them enjoy their $9,000,000 bonuses and drink their $350 glasses of wine. Huge changes are on the way.

The Death of Wall Street

When one dies of natural causes, it is likely that an undertaker will prepare the body in question for burial or cremation. It's been a reliable business for millenia.

If you live in most of the civilized world and have money, it is as hard to avoid some involvement with Wall Street as it is to avoid the men in black. Financial exchanges have been around almost forever, too. The Wall St. we know today, however, is on the way to the undertakers. In recent weeks, it has been authoritatively denounced as a casino run for the very few at the expense of the many, and far worse. (See my blog Vol. 6 #123.) There is a good chance that some of it's leaders will ultimately go to jail, despite the best lawyers billions can buy.

Yesterday, a computer glitch may have caused untold disasters for many, whose "bodies will be floating to the surface," today and in the days to come, as one commentator put it. The market plunged seemingly out of control for a short period of time. Why? Because the vast majority of daily trades on the NYSE are done by computers responding to formulae created by those bright young geeks who invaded Wall Street and displaced many of those nice white haired old men from the Round Hill Club. Fortunately, the collapse didn't last and I'm certain someone will be saying soon that the system worked, but it didn't.

I bet the average American doesn't know about all those geeks and algorithims, but it doesn't really matter because the average American isn't going anywhere near Wall Street for the forseeable future. Nor should he! Wall Street is no place for the ABOVE average American either. It's for pros only. They apparently know that the books of a fine company can be easily cooked, that the AAA ratings can be purchased or influenced and all the other games that can be played. Maybe that's why the pros are abandoning the old ways and focusing on the games. At the moment, the picture is sickening. Something huge is happening, tectonic actually, that is going to lead to systemic changes in the way we in the western world think and live. It's going to take a while, but it's coming.

"Guns Don't Kill..."

The NRA people like to pronounce on a regular basis, that "guns don't kill, people do," and of course they are right in this: someone has to pull the trigger. By the same reasoning, Credit Default Obligations don't destroy either, it's the people who sell and buy them that make poor decisions. Society demands certain standards from people of all sorts who sell things that can be harmful and dangerous under certain circumstances, whether they be guns, liquor or super sophisticated securities.

The spotlight is now on Goldman Sachs and other big Wall Street bankers, as well it should be. The Wall Street they dominate is a travesty of the one I knew. Over and over, on April 27th, I heard Goldman officers tell the Senate Banking Committee (with scarcely concealed disdain) that they were merely market makers, selling to experienced investors what they wanted, regardless of the quality of the investment instrument. There was no concern about suitability or restraint. What could possibly be wrong with that? Gosh, nothing, unless you look at Goldman's efforts to sell CDOs to, say, Greece.

Today's news is that Greece's economy is in a "death spiral" that will greatly damage the European Union and inevitably, the United States. Is it possible that those Greeks weren't quite as sophisticated as "Fabulous Fab", or his bosses? Regardless, impeccable Goldman showed them how to bury debt, keep it off the books, by pledging future revenue no one would ever notice as missing. If they want to buy it, why shouldn't we sell it? The reason is all too evident. The profit motive is enormous, too huge, by a mile. When I was in the Street, I saw people sell dull stuff to their grandmothers for a fat commission. The stakes for "$9,000,000 bonus Lloyd" and "Fab" are much, much, higher and they want every dollar in circulation, even the small change of gullible orphans and widows who became targets of opportunity at an airport. The hell with morality and restraint. They are as uncontrollable as individuals in seeking ever more millions as any drunk in need of rehab. Accordingly, they must be heavily scrutinized and regulated. A hefty bank tax would be fine. So would a windfall profit tax. That's my take.

Children in Very Expensive Clothes

Greed and the pursuit of power have been very much in the news recently. I've read and heard reports, false I hope, of the expense account extravagances of a major bank president and a legendary short seller in the mortgage market. My conclusion is that they are really children in very expensive clothing. Why, for instance would a titan of industry, well into his career, want a $350 glass of wine at lunch? Of course, it's to show off, to establish himself as extraordinarily special, an Alpha dog, and that's hard for me to understand. The same goes for partying with $500 bottles of champagne, unless perhaps the celebrant has just made it into the mega buck world, which is not the case in this instance. I've known many bank presidents, but only one major New York bank president on a social basis. A mature leader type, he wouldn't have dreamed of such ludicrous posturing and nouveau riche behavior. Up on a dinner dias with other big shots, he would describe himself as a "spear carrier." There's something for Wall Streeters to learn here.

I've never made it to anywhere near what today's big bankers make, but because of my own privilege and work, I've observed and known many powerful business leaders and super wealthy types, some quite well. They are predominantly normal people who do not show off and wouldn't dream of lighting a cigar with a Benjamin. They may live in big houses or have a Rolls or a jet on hand, but they are rarely gauche and seldom wasteful. So what is going on with these guys in the news? They are simply today's royal monarchs and they want to be recognized accordingly.

Leaders like the bank president and Wall St pro referenced above aren't worthy of the name. They have little sense of professional responsibility and no more regard for the public than those 17th century monarchs they resemble in so many ways. It is the public that they are out to bilk with some new credit card gimmicks that will entrap them. The public will also buy the securitized mortgages that have been designed to fail. Frankly, I think I prefer the old robber barons to the new breed which I have come to see as a threat to national, if not international, security. After the financial sector is broken up and/or reformed, these people need new, less expensive clothing. Orange jumpsuits would be fine. And hold the wine.

Easter Gifts

I've heard of fathers who have promised their children a new car, or a month in Europe, if they graduate from college and/or stay free of drug or alcohol abuse. These anxious parents don't want to offer too much or too little. So they try for an incentive that is extremely attractive, but not overboard ridiculous. Strong incentives work sometimes, but not always, I guess.

At the Crucifixion, Jesus offered the thief dying on a cross next to him forgiveness and the ability to be with Him in paradise that very day! How's that for generous? "My peace, I give to you," said Jesus, on another occasion. What gifts!! Imagine positively knowing that EVERYTHING is all right, and always will be. Imagine being free of fear and stress. Imagine delight and contentment, despite whatever misery or misfortune the world delivers at any given time. If you believe in Jesus as the Son of God, He has promised that you will have eternal life with Him in Heaven. That's all there is to it. That's the greatest gift possible and somehow it just doesn't seem to register accurately on us. God doesn't measure out his gifts carefully to find just the right balance. He goes hog wild! Bingo! You're in! Forget the bucks and the toys. You've won the jackpot. Happy Easter!

Sustainability, What The World Needs Now

Sustainablity is a word of many meanings that is not in common use. In it's modern meaning it has been around for 20 years, or more, but mostly in environmental circles. I prefer the definition that "sustainability is improving the quality of human life within the carrying capacity of supporting eco-systems" but that only hints at the complexity of the word. It should also be noted that sustainability can be seen as a "call to action, a task in progress or a journey." That makes it a "political process."

Sustainability is what the world needs now! In considering the mess in which we find ourselves today as Americans, there is no simple fix. There is no way that a man/woman on horseback could enter our political life, a la Ross Perot and try to lead us to the promised land of milk and honey. Nor is there any way, this side of unification to defeat an alien invasion, that I can see our nation, let alone the rest of our churning world, arriving anytime soon at a level of understanding and altruism that would bring about a better day for Americans and/or humanity.

Nor is this a time to bet the farm on "the brightest and best." Though I will always believe in the leadership superiority of service oriented graduates of America's great colleges and universities, their track record has been spotty. And the present political climate in Washington could defeat Alexander the Great. What we need is dedicated and competent leadership AND a voluntary, nationwide commitment to be much better citizens and to live up to our best, renouncing greed and selfishness. Such a momentous development could come to us as a cause and sustainability could well be it, especially if there were enough power behind it to get the attention it deserves.

I see this great new effort as a mass movement from the bottom up that rests on simple, sincere, sacrificial, personal action that is sustainable and self-rewarding. For some it could be as little as shorter showers, or not eating meat on Monday, a la Paul McCartney. For the more affluent, it could be publicly adopting the Buffet-Gates philanthropy and inheritance models, or just deliberately shuffling off some conspicuous consumption like extra residences or memberships and eschewing the million dollar birthday parties. These manifestations of conspicuous consumption would come to be seen as disgraceful and odious. Multiplied by millions of people, this could be big and transforming. One could affirm one's willingness to be part of the movement by awarding oneself a new wrist band to advertise the issue and promote solidarity, as well as accountability. We now have ways to reach billions of people and to help them get beyond mere personal greed. Putting it differently, we are able to discourage greed, to make it un-cool (and less profitable through taxes on bloated bonuses) and to increase the attractiveness of altruism. Our children and grand-children are ready for more than pure personal gain as the overriding goal in life. Are we? If not now, when?

Conspiracy Theories

No, this is not about that dreadful day in Dallas when Jack Kennedy was assasinated: it's bigger!

When I was just a boy, I discovered that if I had a question about something, several other people did also. I was never alone in ignorance. So, if a well educated, experienced, business oriented news junkie like me suddenly and grudgingly comes to the conclusion that he is, after all, a babe in the woods who has spent most of his seventy-five years as an unwitting victim, that's newsworthy. And that's where I am. Others are sure to be there with me, by the millions.

I'm writing now, not about paranoia, but about clear, hard facts that indicate a vast majority of the American public has been duped and victimized in business, politics and current issues for decades! No, I don't believe NASA staged the moon visits or that 9-11 was an Israeli plot. But I do believe that Wall Street is a giant fraud and that Congress has been largely bought and paid for so laws could be quietly passed that enrich just a tiny power elite. Wall Street owns D.C.

The proof of this seemingly cynical appraisal is everywhere today. The Great Recession has helped shine a bright light on many of the tricks and gimmicks practiced by banks, credit card companies, health insurance and drug companies, etc. Thousands of lobbyists have manipulated and dominated our government and our people. promoting myths like increasing the minimum wage would destroy businesses and indeed they helped to keep wages stagnant for 30 years! They turned regulators and circumvented regulations. The result has been nothing less than pillage of the public. And they do it with glee and disdain for their uninitiated victims. Remember those Enron guys laughing as they rigged energy markets? They were the "smartest guys in the room," right? But they got caught after enormous damage had been done. Usually, no one is held accountable or punished and often when they are they come back in a few years. Justice is inconvenient politically. The norm today is that execs of companies that fail receive bloated bonuses as if they had managed in triumph. Think Lehman, Goldman, Merrill, B of A, AIG! The list is endless. Hedge fund managers are raking in billions even now, as the Dow rebounds towards 11,000. The damage their managements have done is incalculable not only in the U. S. but in Britain, Ireland, Spain and Greece. Everywhere greed is worshipped.

Let me be more specific about this great disillusionment. When the average person invests, he looks for an undervalued, stock with bright prospects and competent management. He will surely check price performance charts and earnings per share relative to other similar securities. How 20th century! How uninitiated! The real players are counseled by mathematicians with formulas and indecies that have nothing to do with what used to be investment basics. But they're the ones that count today. These Wall Street whiz kids are catering to the big players and using tools and tactics even the likes of Robert Rubin don't understand. After decades of coaxing Joe Sixpack into the market, Wall Streeters today couldn't care less about him and his stupid friends, like me.

Let me go further. The average American has been deeply disappointed by virtually all of his interfaces with business and government. He may have been victimized by his realtor, his mortgage broker, and his contractors. The government agencies who are supposed to be watchdogging his interests have let him down egregiously: from the NYSE to the SEC which couldn't spot Bernie Maddoff, to the Fed under Alan Greenspan. Home appraisers can no longer be trusted and neither can the credit agencies like Moody or Standard & Poor. Balance sheets mean little, since debt can be hidden and postponed, not only for coorporations but sovereign nations as well! Accountants, even the biggest and best, are too subservient to their masters for whom they are also doing private, personal work. Today, we can't even have confidence that our food and toys are safe. Greed calls the shots in everything and corruption is everywhere from the Boy Scouts to sports heros. Even our cars may be unsafe. Where can anyone turn? Well, there's the church, isn't there? Isn't there? Be sure, however, to trust only the Lord, Jesus Christ. Too many tears have been shed over his wayward priests and bishops, grandiose evangelists and saintly hypocrites.

How is this different from ancient Rome? Not much, I would think. But I will never lose faith in America or hope for the future. These are very hard, very dangerous times, but all is not lost. What the world needs now follows and it is much more than "Love, Sweet Love."

Unintended Consequences

One would think that after watching the unintended consequences caused by the "go it alone," " history is what we say it is" policies of George W. Bush, American politicians would be expert on things that can go wrong when they play their games. Nope, Republicans today are no different than they were before, when Karl Rove was the "Architect" and Tom, "The Hammer" DeLay was running the House. To hell with the risks? So what if the stakes for the country are huge? Such things didn't stop them before.

Soo, when Barack Obama became President, promising change and new ways in Washington, Mitch McConnell, that crafty senator from Kentucky, saw a wonderful opportunity to regain Republican power. "We'll make sure NOTHING happens, nothing," I can hear him saying. "We'll break him on Health Care Reform," said Sen. DeMint of South Carolina. We won't boycott, but we won't let anything significant happen the President might conceivably take credit for, even if we liked it a few months ago. Forget the needs of the nation.

And so it goes. According to Sen. McConnell, the country is headed for Socialism and financial disaster. Obama has broken his campaign promises and can't be trusted to accomplish anything, he says. The "hopey-changie" thing isn't working, agrees Sarah Palin, as she rakes in as much as cash as possible for every swipe she takes at the President. And then there's Glen Beck and Sean Hannity trying to outdo each other in discrediting the President and government in general. Former VP Dick Cheney screams that the President has weakened the country and is soft on terrorism, despite the remarkable similarities between the way President Obama and President Bush dealt with captured terrorists.

Here's where the unanticipated consequences come in. Much of this kind of criticsm should stop at America's shores, as they used to. It surely serves to encourage our enemies abroad, but now they are also fueling America's crazies, from the KKK to the Skinheads and Minute Men, as well. Membership is up in extreme groups all over the country and people are buying weapons and ammunition as if they were preparing for World War III for fear the Administration will seize their beloved AK47s, or worse. Horrifyingly, they are very close to calling for assasinations, indeed they HAVE in some isolated instances, showing up at Tea Parties armed to the teeth, and the like. Census Takers are scared and so are IRS workers, after a plane was crashed into their building in Austin, TX recently. Even federal Fish and Game officers are nervous in many places in the West. I won't mention the latent interest in secession that Gov. Perry has been supporting in Texas, or the energized efforts of the Texas State School Board to rewrite American history through legislation concerning their twisted views on the Bible and American history. Wow! All that because an Afro -American was elected President of the United States and Republicans lost power.

I don't think Republicans want assasinations, but by being total legislative obstructionists and waging a viscious war of deliberate misinformation, they may well get even more serious unintended consequences. Anyone for a third party dark horse, another Texas zillionaire? How about someone risably unqualified like the opportunistic former governor of Alaska to represent us abroad. (What do Sen. McCain and Dr. Frankenstein have in common?) Or maybe we should just go with good looking neophytes wherever they crop up. What a travesty of leadership, what a sickening response to the huge challenges facing our country and the world! Will Americans buy it? I don't think so. Where does partisanship become malfeasance or worse? Let's hope we never have to find out.

Faith of Our Fathers

I was raised a Christian and a member of the Presbyterian Church. My parents read their Bibles and went to church faithfully. They believed in God and they communicated well by example; they both prayed by their bedside every night! My father didn't swear or use bad language. Neither drank. They were kindly, generous people and possessed many virtues. They surely influenced me to believe in God, but that's not the real reason I believe as strongly as I do.

What does believing as a Christian mean? As with all religions, it seems like a big stretch, saying that a woman had a baby through a miracle and that Jesus was divine, that in fact He rose from the dead and ascended into heaven. Indeed, St Paul, himself, said that if there was no resurrection, Christianity is a sick joke. C. S. Lewis, who wrote Mere Christianity, goes further and says that in view of what Jesus himself said, He was either the Son of God or as nutty as someone calling himself a "poached egg." As for me, I believe every word of The Apostles Creed.

And I'm in the company of about a billion living people, not to mention all the heroes and geniuses, both men and women, who have testified to their belief in God in the past and fill the churches and cathedrals of the western world. God lives and He/She loves me, moi, myself, just as He did those people down through the ages! He wants me (and you) to call him Abba, Hebrew for daddy, by the way, not your majesty or Your royal Highness. Isn't that great?

Other people aside, my conviction comes from the fact that God has, unbelievably, deigned to reveal himself to me, not in a vision or a burning bush, to be sure, but in INNUMERABLE minor miracles and acts of kindness! Imagine it? It's almost scary! You'd be impressed, I bet, if I told you I was a friend of The President or the Queen of England or Manny Ramirez, I think. How about being loved by God!!! And then there is my enormous personal privilege and good fortune. I am, after all, an American, free, healthy, top of the food chain, etc. Why am I not a Haitian or a Bangladeshi? And what do I do about that incredible difference?

I don't have adequate space for an accounting of these mini-miracles mentioned above. They convinced me long ago and they range from getting an excellent VP job on one interview, through an incredible twist of fate, avoiding a pitfall that could have ruined my career, circumventing several serious sins that God did not wish me to commit, and even more bizarre stuff! On one occasion, I felt so strongly that God wanted me to do something important that I turned around in the middle of the road to get on it. What an honor to be asked by God to do something, anything.

In addition, there have been so many times when my spirit was divinely restored after some terrible blow that I can't count them! A couple of these minor miracles had a humerous overtone, too, a certain signature. In one case, for instance, I needed a substantial infusion of cash and I got it almost to the dollar by complete surprise and from an unimaginable source! (Someone wanted to buy mineral rights my family didn't even know we owned.)

Let me give you details of another incident. I drove into New York to meet with some people at my company, a large national brokerage house, where I was a Limited Partner. I intended to do some major political scheming to get ahead in the company. I was planning to work hard against another guy up for promotion, knife him you might say. That kind of corporate infighting is routine, unfortunately, but it definitely wasn't my style and God didn't want me doing that kind of stuff. So, when I stopped on a street in New York for literally a couple of minutes to phone ahead from a booth (this was before cell phones) that I would be a little late due to traffic, my car was TOWED away for illegal parking!! I was around the corner only a few feet away; the tow required exquisite timing! When I realized what had happened I started laughing because I realized that God was talking to me, and why.

Christianity also appeals very strongly to me on an emotional level. It is all about LOVE, not fear or vengeance, whim, Karma, etc. and it comes to us in literature of huge power and appeal that is nothing less than romantic and maybe miraculous in itself! Few would quarrel with the thought that Shakespeare's works of 500 years ago represent a pinnacle of western culture, but the Bible is even more beautiful, inspirational and dramatic! "I am who AM", God declares to Moses. "Forgive them, Father, for they know not what they do," says Jesus. Dying hideously on the cross, He tells one thief expiring next to him that he would accompany Him that day to Paradise. And then there is the single most poignant one word utterance in Literature when the risen Christ says a single word, "Mary," to that woman who loved him and had come (on what was to become Easter Sunday) to the cave in which Jesus had been layed after the Crucifixion. It goes on and on throughout both the Old and New Testaments, the highest possible drama written magnificently and surely inspired by God himself: the Annunciation, the Resurrection of Lazarus, the other miracles, the lovely Psalms, David dancing in his underwear before the Lord, etc. Maybe it's hard to believe, but millions do.

Here's the clincher for me. Even for the most privileged, life is enormously difficult and often very painful, even tragic. What person with a brain would like to face life's uncertainties alone, a tiny boat on a heavy sea, when he/she can move with confidence and calmness supported by He who made heaven and earth coming to us in the form of the Holy Spirit? Jesus specifically promised that, after He returned to Heaven, He would send such a Counselor to those who believe in Him. God does not prevent bad things from happening to good people, but He will help us mightily in dealing with what happens in life. The Holy Spirit brings to believers what the Bible calls "peace that passes understanding" without which I could not survive.

Many times, as life goes on, one wonders "how does that person do it" in responding to some terrific challenge? I stood in a long line of well wishers one time, after a funeral service, to express my sympathy to a father whose teenage son had just died in a skiing accident. He was calm, composed and gracious. How did he do it? The answer is that his strength came from above. The ultimate wisdom for living is to trust in God for EVERYTHING all the time, ESPECIALLY when things are going WELL. The ultimate stupidity, actually evil, is intentional separation from God. That's usually called rebellion, because we know deep down the relationship we should have, just as we know right from wrong. Anyone who wishes to have this strength, this reserve, this endurance, this Grace, it's yours FREE! Go it alone at your own peril. Not much of a choice is it?

Let me be even more specific. Unexpected daily events can throw me for a loop quite easily. How about you? Suppose I break an arm or leg and then a storm blows a tree down on my car. In a flash, I'm upset. Then suppose someone close to me gets seriously sick or my job goes South, or someone leaves the front door open and a cat I'm very fond of gets run over. Maybe a friend abandons me or I find a hate (another) letter on my doorstep telling me what a lousy job I'm doing on a local board. Suddenly, I could be feeling absolutely awful, sleepless, discouraged, unappreciated and miserable and there's very little I can do about it. To whom do I turn? My mother and father have been dead for years, relatives and friends have their own problems and most really don't want to hear about mine. That's human nature. "My help comes from the Lord," says the psalm. "Cast thou thy burden on the Lord and He will give you rest," says the scripture. And it works again, and again and again. Thanks be to God!

Elections, All Day Everyday

Once upon a time in our nation's history, two men would stand on something (a stump maybe?) at election time and give talks about how they felt about issues of the day. Then there would be a vote of the people and one was elected. Bingo! That was pretty much it.

Today it's grotesquely different, and I think, unsustainable.

If you want to win an important election today, you start years ahead of time. First, work against all census efforts that might hurt your candidacy and discourage voter registration for the same reason. It's important to have a governor of your persuasion in office and it may be necessary to redistict the area you wish to serve so that as many of your potential constituents are of your party as possible. (Florida is one of the most brazenly sliced up states in the Union.) And that's just for starters. A complete election manual for aspiring congressmen would be as thick as the Manhattan phone directory. It would cover the pre-game tinkering, the election itself and the all important post election battle, should the contest be close. Remember Gore v. Bush?

Let's think for a moment about pre-game activities. Of course, you will most likely want to purge the voter registration rosters of any undesirables like former prisoners or those who may have moved recently and not told the voter registration people. If it helps, move to permit servicemen and women a ballot that requires minimum authentication. Then it's time to scare as many potentially hostile voters as possible. Spread word that the police will be looking for scofflaws at the polls, or people behind on child support payments, or that people might have to pay a fee for something, anything, to discourage turnout. Pass a law, if possible, that will require picture IDs be presented along with voter registration cards. Maybe even send in State Police troopers before elections for some reason to intimidate people in certain districts, especially minority areas. Use robo calls too, to spread misinformation about polling sites being moved or just plain lies and innuendos. (Remember the ad featuring a pretty, white gal suggestively asking Harold Ford, a black congressman of quality and experience to "Call me up sometime, Harold" in order to fan latent racism wherever it could be found.) Get lots of people out to demonstrate near certain polling places. Tie up your opponent's telephone lines on election day. Whatever it takes.

This would also be a good time to line up some Texas zillionaires to run major dirty trick projects, like the Swift Boating of John Kerry. Look for a possible third party candidate who might siphon off a percentage point or two from your opponent. Ralph Nader elected G.W. Bush, you may recall. Maybe have another mogul challenge your opponent's citizenship or produce "evidence" that he went to grade school with Charles Manson. Alert friends in the media to make sure whatever you do has "legs." Slice up the rolls and send something to every segment to split off as many people, one by one, as possible.

The actual campaign itself is a thing of amazing complexity, requiring 18 hour workdays from hundreds of staffers who organize turn out, make sure that people not of their candidate's persuasion are stopped at the gate and that the crowd is in a state of screaming frenzy when the great man or woman finally arrives to speak. The event has to be picture perfect for the next news cycle or friendly newscasters will have to use file footage of a more telegenic previous event (by mistake, of course)to make things look wonderful. What a bizzness!

Now for the post game effort. Of course your candidate has teams of lawyers in all iffy counties and states to challenge voter tallies, demand recounts and round up friendly judges. These teams will be able to field busloads of outraged citzens acting "spontaneously," to intimidate vote recounting sites and posture for the press. Like riot squads, they should be prepared to deploy anywhere on a minute's notice, complete with placards, banners, etc. The objectives here are to delay the declaration of a winner as long as possible. If your party controls the Supreme Court, see if you can drive the case to Washington.

Regardless of the outcome of your election, when someone has finally won, delay state certification as long as possible. It will weaken the winner politically and financially before he/she even gets seated and sworn in. Never stop. Every move will disgust some future candidate and demonstate that any candidate must have boat load's of money. Then get some rest quickly and prepare for the next cycle. It's only two years away and there's lots to be done.

What I've described above is democracy run amok. The process is weakening our country and wasting huge amounts of money and legislative energy. Campaigns should be financed by the federal government and restricted to a period of 6 months at the very most.

Route 6666

Many years ago, a good friend invited me to lunch with him and an older friend of his, someone he thought might want to hire me. My friend's friend was wealthy, polite and extremely well connected. He was also a dominant trustee of a prestigious local hospital. In talking about hospital problems, he dropped a bombshell about the cost of indigent care; he was opposed to it. "If they can't pay for services, they shouldn't get them. That's the way it should be, survival of the fittest, natural selection." I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Needless to say, the power broker and I never got together again.

That's good old 19th century conservatism, all right. Didn't one of Charles Dickens' beloved characters say "Are there no work houses" in speaking of the poor and hungry? This brand of conservatism dies hard and it is alive and well in the Republican Party today. Andre Bauer, Lt. Governor of the distinguished state of South Carolina spoke out on the subject of aid to Haiti recently along these lines. His grandmother had told him to stop feeding stray animals because they bred, especially those that didn't think too much farther than their next meal or breeding opportunity. Hard to believe in AD 2010. I wonder if she also might have said. The Haitians are nice people, but I hear (whispering now) some of them are Catholics.

In Hector Berlioz's beautiful opera, "The Damnation of Faust" there's a spot where the Devil himself is carrying Faust down to hell on horseback. The music vividly mimics the sound of horses' hooves and a male chorus sings meaningless words representing the chaos that is part of hell. I wonder if Mr. Bauer ever hears strange music or if he thinks beyond the next speech, or if he thinks at all?

Stare Decisis

Even if you are one of those who regard Latin as the Mother Tongue, Stare Decisis is a term seldom heard, unless you are watching Senate hearings on the nomination of a supreme court justice, like say, John Roberts, the sitting Chief Justice of the United States. On those occcasions, however, that short Latin expression pops up in every other sentence. It means "decided law", one's respect for precedent and one's determination to maintain long standing judicial findings. That's important because without it, our laws might swing widely every time control of the court changed. Nominees who lack sufficient respect for Stare Decisis might legislate from the bench which is a tendancy of the dreaded "Activist Judge". A synonym for "Activist Judge", of course, is (gasp) Liberal.

The big story of last week wasn't the election in Massachusetts of Scott Brown to the senate seat held for decades by Teddy Kennedy, but rather the Supreme Court's 5-4 decision overturning decades of state and national precedent concerning campaign financing by corporations, unions and special interest groups. Henceforth, they will all enjoy the free speach privileges of individuals, as they refer to donating to political campaigns. Now you know how money really talks and corporations (including foreign corporations with US subsidiaries) may use stockholder money to support state and national political campaigns, as they see fit. Wow! Want foreigners lobbying for our judges? Stare Decisis be damned!

Can the victorious conservative justices, led in spirit by Chief Justice Roberts, be serious? Can anyone believe that what this country needs now, or anytime, is more special interest money flowing into the political process? Large corporations, and special interest groups already pay for the services of thousands of lobbyists to threaten and cajole 535 members of congress (11,500 is a careful estimate of the number, or a stunning 21.4 lobbyists for every single member of the House and Senate!). Now they will be armed with almost unlimited corporate dollars to put muscle into their work. It's an outrage and a gratuitous slap in the face to the country, especially moderates of both political parties. It wasn't a decision that had to be made either; it was a clear example of conservative activism, ideology uber alles. Thanks, once again, George W. Bush! Pax vobiscum.

"God's Work"

When Lloyd C. Blankfein, CEO of Goldman Sachs, does what he calls "Gods Work" he is a cheerful worker, I imagine. Not counting any psychic reward, in 2008 he earned approximately $8,012.00 per hour (60 hr. week), according to published reports! I, for one, appreciate what he does as a successful investment banker. During the current very painful recession we've all had many opportunities to observe how important the banking system is to the world of business and the American economy. But $2.08 million a month, $25,000,000 a year (actually $25,800,000 but who wants to count the small stuff?) That kind of compensation is literally the work of the devil because of it's almost certain corrosive effect on the recipient.

Early in my modest Wall Street career, I commuted from New Jersy to New York City by train, travelling aboard especially fitted out "club" cars that were positively luxurious by the standards of the long defunct Lackawanna Railroad. It was fascinating listening to my elders joking and joshing privately about the topics of the day as we zipped through Newark, studiously ignoring the riot smoke and turmoil often visible from the windows. Some of my co-commuters had been delivered to the station by limo to save time, of course. And to save more time, they usually ate in absolute splendor either at the NY Stock Exchange or a private club where they were recognized and known. They were marvellously insulated from the struggles of the outside world until at last the weekend arrived and they could retreat to even more exclusive country clubs for 48 hours where they were able to drink (Terry, the bartrender, knew their individual preferences by heart) and play cards until they were ready to join their ladies for dinner. Some, of course, preferrd to fly to Nantucket or the Vineyard, instead. Most weren't making more than a paltry million or two, chicken feed to Mr. Blankfein. Surely he must be doing something infintely more important now then they were then, but I'm not convinced.

I don't know Mr. Blankfein personally; he may well be saintly, but I'm pretty sure he was smiling, at least inwardly, when he referred to doing "God's work." After all, is it really God's work to sell complex financial instruments even to sophisticated investors and then work against them? It's okay to hedge against losses, but to use your company's money to work aggressively to make money on your customer's losses is a clear conflict of interest, a big N0-N0 on Wall Street.

No wonder average Americans are so angry. They are just beginning to realize, as am I, that Caveat Emptor applies to them far beyond what they thought was the case. They know they've been plundered by credit card companies who bought and paid for special privileges to do so and now they see that their "friend at the Chase" has been actively gouging them, too. So many laws and breaks have been given to businesses of all sizes, supposedly to encourage commerce, that it's hard to keep track of all the small nicks and scratches that plague Joe Sixpack and what's left of the middle class. Households need full time controllers these days just to see that each family gets what it's billed for, that services are performed/turned off when they are supposed to, that rebates and bonus points actually materialize, and so on. "It's a jungle out there," as one famous housewife allegedly remarked to her muscle bound husband. It's also very dangerous when the public becomes as bitter, cynical and volatile as it is today, not only about banks and Wall Street, but almost all our other institutions: the church with it's deviant priests and weeping evangelists (not to mention crackpots like Pat Robertson), congressmen and senators behaving disgracefully, sports stars cheating, the Supreme Court, the Red Cross, you name it. How easily we could desend from here into the unthinkable. No wonder blowhard talk show hosts are actually running the GOP. And people are angry when a decent leader tries even to begin to transform things. What a mess, dear Brutus!

H1N1600 Virus

The H1N1600 virus is found in the vicinity of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, ground zero for political power in the USA and the western world. This disease is more deadly than the bite of a pit viper. Symptoms include a fondness for motorcades, 21 gun salutes and the politics of personal destruction. There is no cure as yet.

It is because of this terrible affliction that a U.S. senator will publicly pray for the death or disability of a colleague so he will be unable to vote, say, for the reform of healthcare system in America or a US congressman will shout "You lie." at the president of the United Staes, as he addresses a joint session of congress. It is this sickness that is causing others to question the actual effectiveness of the American Constitution, that magnificent document that represents a milestone in the efforts of humans to govern themselves.

Aside from the monumental discourtesy and poisonous partisanship, what concerns me is that these leaders of the minority party may actually believe what they are saying! Does the H1N1600 virus also afflict the brain and memory? Were these people not aware of George W. Bush's fiscal profligacy? Did they not vote for 2 wars that were largely unfunded? Did they not participate happily in an historic 3 hour vote on a very costly extension of Medicare, so as to give party leaders extra time to pressure affirmative votes from Republican colleagues? Their hypocrisy today is on a Grand Old Party scale, surely, but there is an enormous difference between then and now.

Today we are just beginning to recover from a disastrous, worldwide recession for which the minority party cannot escape major responsibility. The surplus Mr. Bush inherited is gone. Americans have lost trillions. Pesident Obama is just as much a war time president today as President Bush was then, yet the Republicans are currently refusing to participate in governing the nation in virtually any way. They have been playing the most cynical and negative game possible in the cause of pure politics amd aimed at the destruction of the current occupant of the Oval Office. They want only to regain power so they can return to alienating the world, passing more tax breaks for the rich and pretending that global warming is a fiction of some fractious British scientists. Is there any cause, in a time of war and genuine crisis that could bring them to some kind of adult, responsible participation in government? Maybe a hostile invasion of aliens? Maybe not.Is it time to dust off the nuclear option?