I'm really getting sick and tired of hearing the Republicans blame Democrats for tax issues. There are all these "tea parties" planned across the nation as a protest to taxing.
I don't have a problem with protesting taxes. I think that it should be very very difficult for our government to raise our taxes because by making it difficult to raise them, they'll think long and hard about spending it.
What I'm sick of is hearing the Republican party, i.e. the "conservative" party, blame the Democratic party, i.e. the "liberal" party for any necessary tax increases.
Does the Republican party really think we are that stupid? It wasn't the Democratic party that charged us into Iraq to fight an $80 Billion/month war. Nor was it the Democratic party that initially proposed bailing the banks out of this financial mess they created. Who, exactly, did the Republicans think was going to pay for this?
But, of course, par for the course, the Republicans have absolutely no ability to self reflect. They really believe that if they continue the same rhetoric used over the last 8 years, that they are going to magically be popular again. It would seem that the tea parties are not generating as much support as they initially hoped.
Perhaps because we see the Republicans as the cause of the tax increase as opposed to a solution.
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
The case FOR bonuses is wrong.
This morning's edition of the New York Times includes an article by Andrew Sorkin whereby he is arguing for the AIG bonuses. The gist of the argument, which we've all heard a hundred times, is that if bonus contracts are not upheld here, then no one will have faith in them.
The problem with this argument is that everyone wants to overlook the fact that AIG failed. You take away the bailout money that was handed to them by the government and AIG is yesterday's news. It's like the government served as a loyal body guard and took a bullet to save the company. Only, AIG wants to pretend that that part of it didn't happen.
Liddy is on record saying "We cannot attract and retain the best and brightest talent to lead and staff' the company 'if employees believe that their compensation is subject to continued and arbitrary adjustment by the U.S. Treasury,' he said."
The key word in this previous statement that is absolutely incorrect is arbitrary. There is absolutely nothing arbitrary about the Government's stance on this issue. AIG accepted a bailout because they failed. They made very very poor decisions and were facing death. And now they want to continue, business as usual, and reward everyone as though they had succeeded. I'm curious, if AIG did not receive the bailout money, would the bonuses still have been paid?
This AIG fiasco is just one example regarding the need to allow those who are failing to fail. If you want the successful businesses of America to thrive and set examples of the right way of doing business, then it is imperative that one allow the bad ones to fail. Yes, even if those bad businesses are very big. Because, believe it or not, all those experienced employees along with the viable clients of those failing big businesses will go over to the companies that are doing it right. And those growing businesses will quickly fill in the gap left by the failing ones.
People, we don't function in a vacuum. Bailouts only make it possible for the offenders to continue to make the same mistake over and over again.
The problem with this argument is that everyone wants to overlook the fact that AIG failed. You take away the bailout money that was handed to them by the government and AIG is yesterday's news. It's like the government served as a loyal body guard and took a bullet to save the company. Only, AIG wants to pretend that that part of it didn't happen.
Liddy is on record saying "We cannot attract and retain the best and brightest talent to lead and staff' the company 'if employees believe that their compensation is subject to continued and arbitrary adjustment by the U.S. Treasury,' he said."
The key word in this previous statement that is absolutely incorrect is arbitrary. There is absolutely nothing arbitrary about the Government's stance on this issue. AIG accepted a bailout because they failed. They made very very poor decisions and were facing death. And now they want to continue, business as usual, and reward everyone as though they had succeeded. I'm curious, if AIG did not receive the bailout money, would the bonuses still have been paid?
This AIG fiasco is just one example regarding the need to allow those who are failing to fail. If you want the successful businesses of America to thrive and set examples of the right way of doing business, then it is imperative that one allow the bad ones to fail. Yes, even if those bad businesses are very big. Because, believe it or not, all those experienced employees along with the viable clients of those failing big businesses will go over to the companies that are doing it right. And those growing businesses will quickly fill in the gap left by the failing ones.
People, we don't function in a vacuum. Bailouts only make it possible for the offenders to continue to make the same mistake over and over again.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
It always happens in threes - they say
Ever since I was a child, whenever there was a plane crash, I can remember my brother saying: "They say it happens in threes". You count one, then the other, then the third.
So, I began counting when Continental Airlines over ran the runway in Colorado on December 20th 2008. How fabulous that there were no fatalities. Then, the second one US Airways, January 15th 2009, a "crash landing" in the Hudson River. Again, no fatalities. Wow, we're on a roll here. Could it be that third one would follow the same fate as the first two?
I was so saddened to hear that the third one, February 12, killed everyone and even some on the ground. I guess the rule of three has nothing to do with casualties just the event itself.
The eerie thing is that I flew to Washington D.C. on Continental Airlines on the 23rd, just 3 days after the Colorado incident. And then, I flew back to D.C. on US Airways on the 19th, just 4 days after the Hudson incident.
In spite of this, flying commercially has become so incredibly safe in this country. Just by the very fact that the first two incidents yielded no fatalities is significant in itself.
So, I began counting when Continental Airlines over ran the runway in Colorado on December 20th 2008. How fabulous that there were no fatalities. Then, the second one US Airways, January 15th 2009, a "crash landing" in the Hudson River. Again, no fatalities. Wow, we're on a roll here. Could it be that third one would follow the same fate as the first two?
I was so saddened to hear that the third one, February 12, killed everyone and even some on the ground. I guess the rule of three has nothing to do with casualties just the event itself.
The eerie thing is that I flew to Washington D.C. on Continental Airlines on the 23rd, just 3 days after the Colorado incident. And then, I flew back to D.C. on US Airways on the 19th, just 4 days after the Hudson incident.
In spite of this, flying commercially has become so incredibly safe in this country. Just by the very fact that the first two incidents yielded no fatalities is significant in itself.
Sunday, February 08, 2009
Saturday, January 24, 2009
The hoopla around the goofed Oath
Thursday, on the plane back from D.C. I was reading an article in the New York Times that explained why Roberts made the mistake he made while reciting the Oath of Office to Obama. Here is the article.
The reasoning makes sense if you speak another language. Apparently, Roberts is a stickler for grammar. He had memorized the oath of office but when he went to recite it to Obama, his mind wanted to correct the grammar of the oath. Here is the gist of the article:
In English, our future tense is expressed with two words. I "will go" to the store. In other languages, like French (and possibly Latin), future tense is expressed as one word. It is from the way the verb ends that one is able to determine if it is future tense or not. So, one is obligated to place the adverb after the verb. And that is what Roberts did. Habitually, he rearranged the sentence to place the adverb (faithfully) from it's original place of "I will faithfully execute" to "I will execute ........ faithfully". Apparently, Obama, too is a stickler for grammar and understood Roberts' mistake and even sort of smiled at it.
This article made sense to me but then I realized that past tense, at least in French is expressed in two words. It is a combination of the possessive verb (to have) or "to be" and the actual verb itself. For example the French would say instead of ate, "have ate". It's always 2 words. And, interestingly, the French place the adverb between the two. Deja vu is a very good example of that. It is formally J'ai deja vu. Which means "I have already saw". We use it in it's short form deja vu.
So, then, I wonder, if there is no "grammatical" error here. It would seem that when language allows the verb to be expressed with two words, it is acceptable to place an adverb between the two. I wonder what Roberts stand is on that rule for past tense verbs. The French are far greater sticklers about their language than we are and I can assure you if any word is misplaced in a sentence, the whole world would know about it.
The reasoning makes sense if you speak another language. Apparently, Roberts is a stickler for grammar. He had memorized the oath of office but when he went to recite it to Obama, his mind wanted to correct the grammar of the oath. Here is the gist of the article:
In English, our future tense is expressed with two words. I "will go" to the store. In other languages, like French (and possibly Latin), future tense is expressed as one word. It is from the way the verb ends that one is able to determine if it is future tense or not. So, one is obligated to place the adverb after the verb. And that is what Roberts did. Habitually, he rearranged the sentence to place the adverb (faithfully) from it's original place of "I will faithfully execute" to "I will execute ........ faithfully". Apparently, Obama, too is a stickler for grammar and understood Roberts' mistake and even sort of smiled at it.
This article made sense to me but then I realized that past tense, at least in French is expressed in two words. It is a combination of the possessive verb (to have) or "to be" and the actual verb itself. For example the French would say instead of ate, "have ate". It's always 2 words. And, interestingly, the French place the adverb between the two. Deja vu is a very good example of that. It is formally J'ai deja vu. Which means "I have already saw". We use it in it's short form deja vu.
So, then, I wonder, if there is no "grammatical" error here. It would seem that when language allows the verb to be expressed with two words, it is acceptable to place an adverb between the two. I wonder what Roberts stand is on that rule for past tense verbs. The French are far greater sticklers about their language than we are and I can assure you if any word is misplaced in a sentence, the whole world would know about it.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Tuesday, December 09, 2008
I'd rather be nobody in Texas
My sister was asked to help with a project that was assigned to girl in Nebraska. Her task is to collect stories from people who live in different states. I did one on Texas. Below is what I submitted, with some input from my sister.
******************************************************************************
I live in Houston, Texas. Texas brings up so many different visual images for various individuals. I remember one day I met a man from Paris while visiting the Seaport in New York City. I was about 27 and had shared with him that I had moved to the city from Texas because I just wanted to be a part of the Big Apple. He told me I was brave. I told him New York was not all that scary; and then he corrected me on his meaning. He told me that I was brave to live in Texas and then made reference to how everyone in Texas has a gun. This is one of many misconceptions about Texas.
Others think that Texas is covered with oil derricks from border to border, such that everyone has one in their backyard. Oh, if only that were true. I certainly would not protest to being an oil tycoon!
And then, of course, there is the landscape of Texas. Most believe that Texas is dry and arid, like a desert with tumble weeds aimlessly roaming the streets. They think of fiery Western sunsets accompanied with vibrant pink and purple clouds. And truth be told, one would find this in West Texas but East Texas is very much the opposite.
East Texas shares topography with its neighbors: Louisiana and Arkansas. The big thicket oozes across the Texas’ border providing a blanket of tall pines, swamps and wildlife. The coast of Texas is humid, green, wet and rainy. Houstonians call the months between May and September the “sauna season.” Before air-conditioning, city government offices closed down for the sometimes-deadly summer months. Residents of this part of the state begin dreaming of winter months by August.
And then, of course there is the Texas Cowboy. He is very much alive and well in both the eastern and in the western regions of our fair state. He has replaced his beloved horse with a pick up truck; and though he no longer wears the spurs and chaps, he continues to look great in his Levis and cowboy hat. The rodeo still comes to Houston in March every year, and it is a huge event that lasts around 20 days!
Let us not forget the space program. Houston, Texas is home to the Johnson Space Center. It is at JSC that the astronauts prepare for their missions in space. They start practicing their space walks at the Buoyancy Center, home of the world’s largest indoor pool. Once the shuttle leaves its liftoff platform in Florida, Houston’s command center immediately takes over and stays with the mission to the very end. And when astronauts come home, they land in Houston.
Texas’ documented history goes as far back as the early 1500’s when it was discovered by a Spanish explorer. That was the beginning of the various sovereigns over Texas. The first sovereign nation was Spain, then came France, then Mexico, The Republic of Texas, The Confederate States of America and then finally the United States of America. These sovereignties are the source of the famous “Six Flags over Texas.”
I am of the opinion that it is the people of Texas that make this state such a wonderful place to live. Texas folk are simply friendly people. I believe that it has to do with the pride we have in our hearts of this great state. We want everyone to love and cherish it as much as we do. So, we go out of our way to welcome newcomers to our home. After Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, Houston opened its arms to over 100,000 people displaced from New Orleans, most of whom decided to make Houston their permanent home.
There is of course a common saying that “everything is Big in Texas. It really is just a very big state; the second largest in the US (but Texans joke that if you take all the ice out of Alaska, Texas would be the largest). It takes a day to drive from the eastern border to the western border of the state. Let’s face it, Texas makes a great cookie shape. So much room for decorating! And the shape of this state is very distinctive. Why, I bet you could put the shape of Texas in front of anyone in the world and they would immediately identify it.
So, I guess it’s safe to say that Texas is a very special state, at least to those who have lived here for a long time. My family moved here when I was two and I find myself saddened by the fact that I’m not native. Most Texans consider me an honorary native Texan. I’ll accept that.
My very good friend and fellow transplant Texan, John DeMers, once said: “I’d rather be nobody in Texas, than somebody some other place.”
I couldn’t agree more!
******************************************************************************
I live in Houston, Texas. Texas brings up so many different visual images for various individuals. I remember one day I met a man from Paris while visiting the Seaport in New York City. I was about 27 and had shared with him that I had moved to the city from Texas because I just wanted to be a part of the Big Apple. He told me I was brave. I told him New York was not all that scary; and then he corrected me on his meaning. He told me that I was brave to live in Texas and then made reference to how everyone in Texas has a gun. This is one of many misconceptions about Texas.
Others think that Texas is covered with oil derricks from border to border, such that everyone has one in their backyard. Oh, if only that were true. I certainly would not protest to being an oil tycoon!
And then, of course, there is the landscape of Texas. Most believe that Texas is dry and arid, like a desert with tumble weeds aimlessly roaming the streets. They think of fiery Western sunsets accompanied with vibrant pink and purple clouds. And truth be told, one would find this in West Texas but East Texas is very much the opposite.
East Texas shares topography with its neighbors: Louisiana and Arkansas. The big thicket oozes across the Texas’ border providing a blanket of tall pines, swamps and wildlife. The coast of Texas is humid, green, wet and rainy. Houstonians call the months between May and September the “sauna season.” Before air-conditioning, city government offices closed down for the sometimes-deadly summer months. Residents of this part of the state begin dreaming of winter months by August.
And then, of course there is the Texas Cowboy. He is very much alive and well in both the eastern and in the western regions of our fair state. He has replaced his beloved horse with a pick up truck; and though he no longer wears the spurs and chaps, he continues to look great in his Levis and cowboy hat. The rodeo still comes to Houston in March every year, and it is a huge event that lasts around 20 days!
Let us not forget the space program. Houston, Texas is home to the Johnson Space Center. It is at JSC that the astronauts prepare for their missions in space. They start practicing their space walks at the Buoyancy Center, home of the world’s largest indoor pool. Once the shuttle leaves its liftoff platform in Florida, Houston’s command center immediately takes over and stays with the mission to the very end. And when astronauts come home, they land in Houston.
Texas’ documented history goes as far back as the early 1500’s when it was discovered by a Spanish explorer. That was the beginning of the various sovereigns over Texas. The first sovereign nation was Spain, then came France, then Mexico, The Republic of Texas, The Confederate States of America and then finally the United States of America. These sovereignties are the source of the famous “Six Flags over Texas.”
I am of the opinion that it is the people of Texas that make this state such a wonderful place to live. Texas folk are simply friendly people. I believe that it has to do with the pride we have in our hearts of this great state. We want everyone to love and cherish it as much as we do. So, we go out of our way to welcome newcomers to our home. After Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, Houston opened its arms to over 100,000 people displaced from New Orleans, most of whom decided to make Houston their permanent home.
There is of course a common saying that “everything is Big in Texas. It really is just a very big state; the second largest in the US (but Texans joke that if you take all the ice out of Alaska, Texas would be the largest). It takes a day to drive from the eastern border to the western border of the state. Let’s face it, Texas makes a great cookie shape. So much room for decorating! And the shape of this state is very distinctive. Why, I bet you could put the shape of Texas in front of anyone in the world and they would immediately identify it.
So, I guess it’s safe to say that Texas is a very special state, at least to those who have lived here for a long time. My family moved here when I was two and I find myself saddened by the fact that I’m not native. Most Texans consider me an honorary native Texan. I’ll accept that.
My very good friend and fellow transplant Texan, John DeMers, once said: “I’d rather be nobody in Texas, than somebody some other place.”
I couldn’t agree more!
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