The approximation of a smile

Facebook as a stock share probably means it will need to become more commercial. Becoming more commercial is why I left eBay and watch less movies and TV. Now it is rare for my e-mail to include a personal letter, but there is a whole herd of commercial spam. I don't tweet because being terse and limited in word count makes sense to me mainly for cussing. My hope for my electronic life is for connecting with others, enjoying creativity, and finding nuggets of knowledge, news, or interesting discussion. Sometimes it is about the search, journey, and discovery. But it is also about having the patience not to de-friend Frankenstein. With a constant fear of being hacked and other sordid technological mysteries and miseries. And the reality is that the electronic world has to contort punctuation in order to offer the approximation of a smile.

Remembering the dreadful 9/11 decade...

On the 10th anniversary of 9/11, it seems like the past 10 years, which could be called the 9/11 decade, have been rather dreadful for America.

Sept. 11, 2001 was a horrible day. I can't think of any other national moment where, as a TV viewer, I was able to watch the ongoing terrible tragedy. We were glued to the TV sets, listening as news anchors and reporters attempted to fill in the gaps of informaton, watching the smoke from one of the World Trade Center towers, then the appearance of a second large plane hitting the second tower, then the collapse of both buildings. The plane attack on the Pentagon building and the plane crash in a Pennsylvania field meant that a massive terrorism attack had been coordinated against America.

The stories of heroism and sacrifice by people ranging from the fiirefighters and other emergency response people at the sites of the attacks to those on the United flight who stormed the plane cockpit to try to end a hijacking and to thwart a diabolical plan are truly amazing and inspirational.

Of course, America had experienced moments of terrorism before, particularly the home-grown variety, with the terrorism of the KKK in the South all through at least half of the 20th century and the violent attack by a monstrous renegade on a federal building in Oklahoma City. Certainly, the attack on Pearl Harbor by the nation of Japan prior to WWII was a jarring national moment leading to war, as was the case with 9/11.

While a quick U.S. military response to dislodge and punish the Taliban government in Afghanistan for its accommodation of al Qaida bases and the Osama Bin Laden terrorists seemed appropriate, the military reach then went beyond the mission, reaching into Iraq to topple a dictator and then back into Afghanistan, to prop up a weak leader, all with the steady drumbeat of fear. Fear was the biggest winner in the 9/11 decade and was that what the terrorists wanted?

The result has been two seemingly endless wars, thousands of U.S. soldiers as well as Iraqi and Afghan civilians killed, and huge expenditures in defense spending (from the monthly billions in war expensive to the creation of the Department of Homeland Security to the massive increase in war contractors and war profiteers).

There were more problems and troubling issues over the decade, such as the hopefully short governmental embrace of torture, thanks to moronic leaders like Dick Cheney, who turned the higher moral ground of a democracy on its ear and made me, many other Americans, and the rest of the world wonder what had happened to the American conscience. There were secret prisons and the use of rendition. There was political demogaguery to exploit fears at every turn, rampant from politics to the media.

Then there have been the effects on the "homeland," a term that the Bush administration brought into the American lexicon but a term that I have always disliked as it has a "Nazi Germany" ring to it. America is my country. I care about what happens to my country, just as I care about what happens in the world.

Because of one criminal with explosives in his shoe, we all now take off our shoes at airports and go through the "naked" scanners and let the security officers bark at us and feel our bodies through our clothes, as though that's the expectation for air travel. (We have one unemployed person...No, wait...100,000 unemployed people...No, wait...1 million unemployed people...No, wait...14 million unemployed people in our country and what do we do collectively to end that problem? Is it because fear apparently isn't part of how people and politicians view unemployment?)

My fears are somewhat different from those of politicians on a debate stage. When I look out into my college classes and see the honorable ROTC students in their military fatigues, I fear for them. Will they have to go to a pitifully unstable place like Afghanistan or Iraq, and be part of what looks to be as hapless a military adventure as the Vietnam War was but longer? I fear for those students because I am not sure if American political leaders and even true military leaders command those wars or if instead the wars have become a business venture for the benefit and profits of contractors within the military industrial complex. When there are more contractors on the ground than there are soldiers...when the contractors are paid 10 times what the soldiers would get for the same work required...I seriously wonder, and dread that 9/11 has reached beyond now a decade. How long will those wars go?

Bin Laden never believed that his militia was capable of defeating the American military. The numbers and weaponry and budgets would never make it so. But he saw the American reach as similar to the old Soviet reach and hoped it would break us financially as it had done to the Soviet Union. And in 2008, he lived long enough to almost see the collapse of the American economy, probably saved from a great depression by a huge expenditure (and debt). It took nearly 10 years to find bin Laden, who was then killed. So, a person who advocated violence came to a violent end. There's a lesson for the world.

As for 9/11, there were many heroic stories that need to remembered.

Following the 9/11 tragedy, there have been some encouraging aspects. Hopefully, the American network of law enforcement is working better together for coordinated security. And I recently saw a report about how the better construction of buildings could at least prevent a towering building from collapsing. The report noted that if a plane had flown into a building like the Empire State Building, with its better foundational and cement structural support from the older days when buildings were made tougher, it would have been unlikely for the building to collapse. So, it might cost more to make stronger buildings, but, especially for skyscrapers that are at risk from planes, internal fires, earthquakes, or other problems, the safety for people is worth the expense.

As I hope nothing happens in a "terrorism" way today on the 10th anniversary of 9/11 to elevate a renewed fear and its consequences, I also hope America can escape the fears and traps of the dreadful 9/11 decade.

Accidental surfing and depressed endurance...

The first four paragraphs are about accidental moments in surfing on the TV. The last two paragraphs are about being subjected to a Republican TV debate...

In switching TV channels, I hit CBS, I think it was, on the evening of the Tony Award show. "The Book of Mormon" won the Tony for best Broadway musical play this past week. It is a play by the guys who created the cartoon series "South Park" on cable TV. At that particular moment, the song "I Believe" from the play was being performed, which noted that, among other proclamations according to Joseph Smith, the Moses with the tablets for the LDS church, Jackson County in Missouri is the site of the Garden of Eden.

One day, I landed on a TV channel where conservative author Ann Coulter was being interviewed. Semi-interviewed actually, as Coulter was avoiding anything personal. But she did repeat her idiotic statement about public school teachers being "tax-paid parasites." I wonder why Republicans never say she should apologize for her off-the-wall rudeness. Do they agree with her?

I landed on MTV one day with the show "16 and Pregnant." It apparently is a reality series about 16-year-old girls dealing with a pregnancy. I watched it for 20 minutes mainly because it was like watching a train wreck. Wow, parents should require their teenagers to watch that show. No teen would want to get pregnant nor hopefully even want to be around a potential loser of a boyfriend if they watched one or two of those shows. It is the best promotion for "abstinence" that I have ever seen!

I saw another bunch of talking heads on TV continuing to fuss over the Congressman Anthony Weiner scandal. I know I made my share of blog fun at his expense. I mean, geez, how many naked chest shots would someone want to take of themselves and then share? If you are a model, go for it. But if you are politician, I don't think a naked chest adds much to understanding the issues. But the more I think about it, the more I wonder why he should resign from his position. It is true that he will probably be rather ineffectual legislatively in being associated with tawdriness, though others have risen beyond their scandals and transgressions, such as Bill Clinton and Newt Gingrich. I can see Weiner having to give up his cell phone with a camera and to stop using Twitter. Please do! I hope he's already done that. Beyond that, this "scandal" is sexless. At least as far as we know now. Maybe it is good if any "scandal" can remove a politician from office. But it makes me wonder if the media aren't just playing to tabloid mentality by chasing the congressman down the street. As they used to say about Bill Clinton and his scandal compared to George Bush and his war, "At least when Clinton lied, no one died." The Weiner scandal is a mere Vienna sausage in the realm of meaty matters. Sorry, I couldn't resist!

And do young people today also use immediate technology in various regretful ways...and will it come back to haunt them later on? The immediacy of technology in the hands of some college students in bars at midnight might mean the future of electronic messaging devices will include the feature of a breathalizer in order to prevent their use at ill-advised times.

Going to CNN for the recent debate by the Republican presidential candidates was not accidental. I always feel like it is my duty as a citizen to keep up with national politics...and consequently I have watched a lot of bad TV in process. I thought the TV debate on CNN was badly orchestrated for the most simplistic and boring sound bites yet to bite viewers. There wasn't much that the short-answer format provided, but it is understandable that if there'd been a longer answer period the candidates probably would have just droned on with canned rhetoric. So, it was lose or lose for the viewers. For the longer questions, often the wrong candidate addressed them. I already knew how Ron Paul, the only anti-war candidate probably up there, would respond to the Afghanistan War. The quick questions to supposedly give us more of the personal side of the candidates were stupid. "Conan or Leno?" Geez, who cares?! It reminded me of the famous "Boxers or briefs" question to Bill Clinton. Like that made a big difference, either. Better quick questions could have been "their favorite book, or most recent book they have read, or, like with some of those questions from Katie Couric to Sarah Palin, what Supreme Court case they believe in or their favorite Supreme Court justice. For more personal questions, I would like to know if all of Mitt Romney's sons are still Mormons and if they all married Mormon women. Just curious, as to see if the Romney immediate household is the least bit religiously diverse. The quick questions at the debate were just bubble-gum. I hate being bubble-gummed by the media.

In a word, I would define the Republican TV debate as "depressing." About the only issue that the candidates were for was cutting taxes for corporations. Otherwise, they were against almost everything. Against NASA, against the EPA, against the auto industry bail-out, against unions for workers, against separation of church and state, against the government spending any money on social programs, against abortion rights, against gay marriage, against...against...and against. If those candidates are the future, why did they sound like the past? And not just recent past, either but decades-ago past, if not longer. Wow! Depressing!

More questions than answers...

Does it ever seem like sometimes the TV news provokes more questions than answers? I guess I am just too curious.

For instance, about that Bin Laden computer with the porn on it. What kind of porn? I'm just curious about him being curious, considering that he had multiple wives and 20-some children. When did he have time to surf the web and plot for terrorism? Who's taking care of those children now? Did he have life insurance? Did he need to recruit terrorists or just father them? Questions, lot of questions.

Speaking of fathering, there is the latest scandal involving former California governor and actor Arnold Schwarzenegger. It very well could turn out that the so-called "love child" may be less spoiled than usual next-generation Kennedy clan. And what kind of a term is "love child"? Aren't most children, within marriages as well, results of love and/or sex, too?

Here's what bothers me about the timing of the Schwarzenegger scandal...Prior to Schwarzenegger's election as governor, the Los Angeles Times wrote about 12 women who accused him of sexual harassment over the years. His wife Maria Shriver came to his political rescue by declaring that he had "changed." He wins. He becomes a pretty awful governor, but he lasts through his term. And his secret never emerges (not even with all the California tabloids) until after he's done with gubernatorial politics. And then the news of his affair with another woman 14 years ago surfaces. Then Maria and Arnold split up, and it is all over the news. Hmmmm. Messy and curious. I imagine there are less people now wanting to change the U.S. Constitution to allow foreign-born politicians, like Schwarzenegger, to run for president.

One other scandal came up again in the news--The Catholic Church released its report about priest sex abuse. The church hierarchy basically couldn't find an answer for it--though "enabling" and "covering up" might have been good choices. Or maybe outdated 16th century male hierarchy and policy (like celibacy) and discrimination against women in leadership could have played roles, do you think? But the report apparently blamed the 1960s and the sexual revolution. Hmmmm. Curious. I kind of think a lot of people would like to blame the 1960s about a lot of problems.

And how about those Republicans? They didn't want to eliminate the tax credits for the big oil companies, though the companies make record profits almost every quarter and gasoline prices have doubled to $4 or more because of good, old Wall Street spectators. Remember Wall Street--the greedy place that the nation bailed out. Wow, what a group--Republicans, oil companies, and Wall Street. What a group!

An April entry for a busy month...

I've been so busy that I thought I should post at least one entry in the blog for April. So, here are some random thoughts...

• I can tell everyone in advance that there is one TV event that I don't plan on watching. It is the so-called "Royal Wedding" of the Queen of England's grandson and his girlfriend. No thanks! If expenses for royals were in the American national budget, that would certainly be the easiest item to cut. I give great thanks to George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and all others who helped in breaking America's ties with royalty.


• I enjoyed recent trips to Springfield, Mo. (with nine college students for the MCMA convention) and to Chicago (with faculty members for the Higher Learning Commission conference).


• The current TV show that has the most references to Wyoming is probably "Supernatural" on the CW channel. One of the co-stars, Jim Beaver, was born in Laramie.


• A "bodhran" is an Irish framed drum. (The Ridge River String Band recently played one at the college. A dulcimer was also played.)


• The longest word in the Old Testament is 18 characters long. It is "Mahershalalhashbaz." In the New Testament, the longest word is 16 characters long and there are three of them (covenantbreakers, fellow-prisoners, and unprofitableness). That is according to a website about the King James Bible.


• I like Richard Hawley's song "Tonight the Streets Are Ours." I heard it first when watching the documentary about graffiti artists called "Exit Through the Gift Shop."


• Some recent movies that I liked: "My Boy Jack" about Rudyard Kipling's son who goes off to war; "Howl" about the life, poetry, and poem censorship trial of poet Allen Ginsberg; "Get Low" starring Robert Duvall and Sissy Spacek; "Devil," a scary movie about people stuck in an elevator; and "Triage" starring Colin Farrell as a photojournalist.


• I predict that the awful pencil-headed dictator of Syria will be forced out by his people by the end of the year. Or hopefully sooner.


• I would like to attend one theater event where rude, inconsiderate young people, who hear the theater announcement to turn off cell phones but refuse to do so, don't sit near me. Is it possible?! How do they develop such obsessions that they can't disconnect from a piece of equipment for at least an hour or two?


• My quote: "Sometimes going through the motions gives me motion-sickness."

Buy products made in the country if you want to help your community and neighbors...

Interesting information from ABC News shows and its recent series about "Made in America"...

• In the 1960s, nine out of 10 products in America were made here. Now 50 percent of products sold in America come from foreign countries.
• If every American spent $64 more per year for U.S. products specifically, 200,000 jobs could be created.
• The number of Americans working in manufacturing is at a 70-year low.
• There were 55,000 U.S. factories that closed during the Bush years. Jobs gone, tax-base also gone.
• In some Chinese factories, workers make $14 per day.
• Leo Gerard, president of the U.S. Steelworkers Union, noted that low-priced goods meant poison in children's toys, lead in steel, and other conditions that actually lead to high costs in other ways.
• There is only one lightbulb brand now made in America and its major obstacle is getting on the shelves of places like Wal-Mart.
• There is no American factory that makes wind turbines from start to finish. (My comment: That could be a great opening for a factory in a place like Medicine Bow, Wyo., which should also seek out an inventor of the prototype of a portable wind turbine/solar energy unit for rooftops, back-door steps and in "energy" gardens that hooks to portable heating and air conditioning units for individual homes, and manufacture those, too.)
• After 25 years of record trade deficits, America went from the top producer to the top creditor nation.
• The ABC News segment, with Diane Sawyer and David Muir, went to an average American family's home to find out how much within their home was actually American-made. After checking the entire livingroom, all that was left that was made in America was one flower vase (and the kitchen sink in the kitchen). Then the news show went about redecorating the house with American-made products only, finding just as many good bargains nationally. The new bedroom set cost was $1,699 as compared to the previous bedroom set cost of foreign-made products at $1,758.
• Senator John McCain was on ABC This Week on Sunday, still touting the unfair and unequal idea of "free trade." There is no such thing as equal free trade, because wages, product safety and standards, work conditions, economy are all different depending upon where a person lives and works. It comes down to where a consumer wants to invest or send their money. Some might want to help workers in foreign countries as a response of generosity and humanitarianism in hopes of lifting up the workers there. But if a person wants their own local and national economy to be good and sound, with fair wages to workers, the best way is to buy locally.

Cut this, cut that...How about keep this, if it works, and add this, as an improvement...

A quick post for a busy month...

I just watched ABC's This Week news program and, for what I think is the second week in a row, there was no "In Memoriam" segment. That segment usually provides a quick review of the famous people who died during the previous week. It is a way of memorializing a historical or cultural figure and informing the rest of us about their passing as well as their achievements.

As much as I appreciate the show's attempt to cover the democracy revolutions now occurring in the Middle East countries--certainly an important subject--I still liked the short "In Memoriam" segments that no other TV news had.

Instead, I had to endure an extra minute or two of Republican governors blabbering at a round-table about budget cuts. Budget cuts are a ridiculous subject ever since the Congress failed to cut the tax breaks for the very wealthy. Now politicians and news media want us to believe that there is serious intent for cutting budgets? Give me a break!

For the minute that I had to listen to Arizona Governor Jan Brewer say that government is "a necessary evil," I could have been learning something factual about the nation and world.

I would add that just as it is not likely that it is a wise idea for a football team to be headed by a coach who hates football or a farm to be run by a farmer who hates farming or a school to be managed by a principal who hates education, why in the hell do we have to put up with politicians who hate government but then want to run it? They will run it all right. And likely right into the ground.

Budget-cutting won't bring about good jobs. Good jobs--not Wal-Mart or McDonalds jobs, by the way--are the key to driving a healthy economy. When Gov. Walker of Wisconsin wants to eliminate collective bargaining and make unions in this nation weaker, that is not going to help the nation in the long-run.

The politicians can cut till the cows come home and probably will, but that won't create jobs, make for a better society, or improve the economy, any more than buying a car made in Japan will. Creating jobs and buying products made in the country and town where you live will impact and improve the nation's economy. Everything else is meringue and baloney. If they aren't careful, the budget-cutting will just lead to a recession or even a depression.

But if someone would be so wise as to put some regulations and limits on runaway corporations who have "socialized their losses" but "privatized their profits" as author Michael Lewis noted in his book "The Big Short," then that would also certainly be a step in the right direction.

I know I covered a lot of territory here. From the small to the large. But it's all about framing and ideas. Keep it, if it works or if it has been a promise to people, such as with pensions, and add it if it's an improvement. If "cutting" is the only part of the mentality, then spiraling down in quality, content, accomplishment, progress, and the future will be the outcome.

Thoughts about the Tucson tragedy...

It has been a week now since the terrible shootings in Tucson, Arizona, when a single shooter killed six people, including a 9-year-old girl, and wounded 14 others, including Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. Here are a few observations...

One of the quotes about the young girl named Christina Taylor Green, who was starting to show an interest in politics and public service, from President Barack Obama's speech on Jan. 12 at a memorial service in Tucson following the tragedy: "We should do everything we can to make sure that this country lives up to the expectations of our children."

Sarah Palin provided a defensive and idiotic (again) moment when she talked about "blood libel" after being chastised for having a "crosshairs" map on her website, which included a "targeting" of Gabrielle Giffords' district in the past election. When Giffords had earlier criticized the "crosshairs" map, Palin flippantly shrugged it off and continued to speak in gun language as though she thought it was cute. After the tragedy, Palin's website removed the map. While Palin isn't to blame for the actual shooting, her map could have influenced crazy people with guns and it does point to Palin's lack of good sense, wisdom, and intelligence. She didn't have the vision to see that the vitriol of her map and rhetoric could be detrimental to American society and might come back to haunt her. I think that says a lot about the unworthiness of her leadership qualities.

The thinking of some gun owners is quite ridiculous. Some gun owners say that if other people, also with concealed guns, had been there, they could have shot the shooter before he fired 30 bullets in just seconds. Well, there was a man with a concealed gun who came out of the Safeway Store near the time of the shooting and he ran to the scene, but thought that one of the heroes who taken the shooter down was the culprit. He said that if he'd used his gun immediately, he might have shot the wrong person. !!!!

Americans shouldn't have to carry around a gun in order to be safe in this country. That would turn a good country into a chaotic one like Somalia or other Third World countries where every person is armed. Who wants to live like that or in a place like that?!

There is definitely a need for stricter gun laws. The Assault Weapons Ban should never have been allowed to expire by Congress. Yes, I know. Outlawing guns won't work as there are too many around and it is a right for good citizens to possess a gun. But if stricter laws and more procedural steps keep even one more tragedy from happening, then it is worth it and Americans should get reasonable and be glad that guns and violence are better controlled and reduced.

It has been interesting to see the Tucson locations in the recent news coverage. I went to the University of Arizona as a college student. I worked in the late evenings, sometimes from about 9 p.m. to midnight, in the library and copy center at the University of Arizona Medical Center, where Congresswoman Giffords was taken and has been receiving care. One time, for about 30 minutes, I got stranded in the library's elevator when it misfunctioned and stopped. I think I finally had to use an emergency phone in the elevator box to call for help. The only other student at the library's front desk wondered where I'd been after the elevator finally came back into service. Another time, in walking to my apartment several blocks away late one colder desert night from the Medical Center, I experienced a somewhat unnerving incident that people don't think about happening in a city. I was walking home--everyone else in homes along the streets were, of course, sleeping, for the most part--when this pack of loose dogs started following me. One of dogs even started to nip at my gloves. Eventually, the dogs went running away. But it was a bit unnerving. No, I didn't need a gun. But the presence of a loud whistle or a can of pepper spray might have made me feel a little better. Another time I was walking down a street and a little old lady called out to me for assistance. She was near her front door. She was very elderly and frail and she had stepped into a flowerbed and couldn't, without some support, lift her feet only about an inch to get back onto the sidewalk and back into her house. I helped her mainly by just holding onto her hand to steady her as she managed to gain her footing onto the sidewalk. It took a while, but neither of us were in a hurry. I will always remember the squeeze of her hand. Despite her obvious declining health, I could feel her spirit and life in that grasp. For the most part, I enjoyed being a college student in Tucson. I traveled all over town, feeling perfectly safe, in the bus system. It was a nice city and university. The people were nice as well.

I also remember visiting the McKale Center, where the recent memorial was held, when it first opened and on occasions. It was a big arena, mainly for sports though sometimes the class registration process, going from academic discipline table to table for classes, would also take place there, at the University of Arizona.

Observations, as 2011 begins...

Here are some observations for the new year, also based on the previous year...

The "R" in Republican stands for "rich."

I would have to be insane to vote for a Republican or a Tea Party candidate. Definitely, voting for them is out of the question. If I ever indicate I will, please grab a net and a taser and then get me some mental health assistance quickly.

My biggest problem this year may be trying to find some progressive candidate to support and ultimately vote for. I am not interested in voting for a centrist Democrat just to avoid the alternative of a more conservative candidate. I have done that before, and then never liked the results.

It is not surprising to me that the American economy is down. I went to Wal-Mart recently to purchase a baby gift and could find only one item in all of the large section of the baby items that was made in America. If the country doesn't make anything, then how will it be anything but an importing consumer? It's like Facebook is the new American model of business. Maybe even better as a model is Farmville. For both, people send time and time and more time creating a scrapbook profile or purchasing a fake cow and never produce anything real and substantial that anyone else would want.

If social networking ever becomes financially rewarding, some people will make millions....Well, I guess Facebook creator Mark Zuckerberg already has. But not so much for Facebook users yet. Maybe the way to make it work involves advertising. If some company that sells cheese pays a Facebook user to, for example, use the word "cheeseball" in order to entice readers into going out and buying cheeseballs, then you could start seeing notes that read: "Hey cheeseball, I cheeseball am cheeseball so cheeseball ready cheeseball for a cheeseball weekend." Hmmm. I think I have hit upon a new viral, guerrilla advertising approach.

Moment of supreme disappointment: Learning that someone has died and left you their farm. Only to find out that it is their farm on Farmville.

I have already been exercising this new year with two marathons. The Three Stooges marathon was on AMC and the "Twilight Zone" marathon was on the Syfy channel.

The bumps, falls, and mishaps of life would be a lot easier to take if they were accompanied by those Three Stooges-type sound effects.

It is a blessing if your sense of humor is greater than your sense of smell.

The unofficial person of the year 2010 could be Pat Down, the ubiquitous airport security person.

The Photo of the Year...

The photo that should be sent to everyone this holiday season to adorn their desks and tables is the one of Prince Charles and his wife Camilla with their astonished expressions when their Rolls Royce limousine on route to the theater was accosted by college students protesting tuition hikes in Great Britain and unkindly uttering "Off with their heads!"

It was a wildly entertaining photo, meant to become as good a holiday tradition for everyone's viewing as Jimmy Stewart's movie "It's A Wonderful Life."

Now, let me repeat part of the facts of that moment: The royals. In their Rolls Royce limousine. On their way to the theater.

And the second part of facts: Students in the street, hoping to afford an education.

Prime Minister Cameron, the current British leader from the political conservative right, is looking more and more like the Herbert Hoover of Great Britain. That means that Liberal Party leader Clegg, whose support was necessary for Cameron to ascend to leadership, is looking more and more irrelevant. For an American comparison, it would be like Cameron is the Republicans and Clegg is Obama. Of course, the royals are the main constituency of the Republican Party which is the 2 percent group of millionaires that the Republicans here so dutifully support, as was the case with the recent proposal for the extension of the Bush tax cut for the wealthy.

Wow, if the Bush tax cut extension for the wealthy does indeed get passed by the Republicans and Obama, despite the protests of progressive Democrats, then someone needs to send around a memo that says, "Got the tax cut again. Bless your lucky stars. And spend like hell." The memo needs to encourage all those millionaires, in the absence of their self-sacrifice for the nation, to do their darnedest to buy another car or two and an extra 3-D TV and some new laptop computers and the latest texting gadgets for their kids in college, to take a trip to Yellowstone Park, to hire another maid and gardener, and to expand that company that hires so many workers. In other words, to spend like crazy so that the economy improves and more middle-class people can find jobs and leave the unemployment lines.

And, of course, that's where it is especially important to include with the memo the photo of the royal distress and surprise of Prince Charles and his wife, as it wouldn't be good if that photo comes to define the future.

Grace, disgrace, jellyfish politics, and journalism resources...

Some random thoughts on the news of our times...

It is certainly sad to hear of the death of Elizabeth Edwards, a health care activist and political leader in her own right. She died of cancer yesterday. Though she played a supportive role in her husband's campaigns, she would have been the better candidate. She had the passion and also the integrity. Through her illness and the scandal of her husband's affair, she showed spirit, resilience, and grace. She was inspirational and will be greatly missed by an America with so many needs for activists and courageous voices.

As a journalist and educator, I believe that the best resources that American journalists now have number six in general terms. They are: 1). The First Amendment; 2). The U.S. Supreme Court decision of New York Times v. Sullivan; 3). The Freedom of Information Act; 4). Shield laws when they are strong; 5). Sunshine laws for meetings and records; and 6). WikiLeaks, which comes new just this year to my list.

The jellyfish experts and the spelunkers were right. President Obama caved and sold-out to compromise with a Republican minority once again for some bewildering reason. This time concerning his willingness to extend the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy. That would be $60 billion per year that goes to the top 2 percent of income holders in America while the nation can't afford it. That amount of money is equal to what the U.S. could provide if it wanted to provide free college for students or $500 per American in a check rebate, according to a recent New York Times list of possibilities. If either political party were truly serious about reducing the budget deficit, this was the best first sacrifice to start the national effort going. Instead, President Obama gets rolled over again, like a bowling pin. Any new suggestion of where the budget should be cut now--usually aimed at the middle-class or people below the poverty line--would be a cruel and ridiculous joke. I do believe that it is essential that a candidate from the left emerge to challenge Obama in 2012. Perhaps Russ Feingold, Howard Dean, or others. Someone who is a real, actual progressive who isn't likely to dump a principle for a quick compromise. Obama appears to be weak and spineless. That won't be difficult to run against. I don't think Obama will win the 2012 election, so the Democratic Party is crazy if it provides him with the nomination. We expected FDR and we got Hoover who likes the banks. We were hoping for Harry Truman and instead got Bill Clinton and the love of the middle ground that always seems to be farther to the right and to satisfy the Republicans most of all. The middle-class desperately needs to have a better choice for the future.

President Obama's presidential slogan in 2008 was "Yes, We Can." Well, for his next presidential campaign for 2012, for accuracy it probably should be "Yes, We Cave." (My brother noted that phrase and I just had to use it here.)

I recently told PayPal to take me off their e-mail list as I don't intend to use that service, especially in light of their response to the WikiLeaks controversy. PayPal said it was intimidated by the U.S. State Department. Well, that's too bad...and I won't miss their promotional e-mails. I also recently asked to be taken off the Organizing for America e-mail list by the Obama campaign. Enough of that, too.

Information Station...and Comments....

Information and random thoughts:

• Here's a record achievement that no nation should want. Today marks the day that America tied, with the conflict in Afghanistan, the amount of time that the Soviet Union gave to its unsuccessful war in Afghanistan: Nine years and 50 days. The Soviet Union left Afghanistan in 1989. On the PBS News Hour, 10 more faces of young American soldiers who were killed in the war were shown.
• Because my nation can't seem to ever find or sustain peace for any good length of time, I gave up purchasing Peace-On-Earth-themed Christmas cards for the second year in a row. I don't want to participate in a cruel fraud. Some day, it will really be a joyful occasion to actually send out "peace" cards because it is true. But at this point, I won't wish for something that our leaders can't or won't accomplish. It feels too much like being a sorry character in "Waiting for Godot."
• Speaking of Christmas cards, I almost returned a box of Hallmark cards today after I saw that they were produced in China. So, then I looked at a box of Designer Greeting cards and those cards also were produced in China. Can I return two boxes? Then I looked at the last box of Christmas cards that I had purchased which were UNICEF cards. Guess what? They were made in the U.S.A. Well, how about that?! Good deal! And not only that, but also it said on the box that the purchase of the box will "help UNICEF provide seven notebooks for schoolchildren, opening up a world of possibilities through education."
• I can't think of anything I would want to buy that would ever turn me into a Black Friday shopper waiting in early morning hours for a store to open (or for a shopping stampede).
• Wal-Mart has the worst selection of books that I have ever seen. I went there today and they had multiple books by or about Sarah Palin and Glenn Beck and not much else. An awful selection!
• Newsweek magazine listed the "Power 50" of political media personalities who make the highest income annually. Here are the top 10: 1). Rush Limbaugh, $58.7 million (he makes more money per year than the combined salaries of all the members of the U.S. Senate); 2). Glenn Beck, $33 million; 3). Sean Hannity, $22 million; 4). Bill O'Reilly, $20 million (I bet those top four are loudly supportive of the extension of the Bush tax cuts to the wealthy.); 5). Jon Stewart, $15 million; 6). Sarah Palin, $14 million; 7). Don Imus, $11 million; 8). Bill Clinton, $7.7 million; 9). Keith Olbermann, $7.5 million; and 10). tie with Rudy Giuliani and Laura Ingraham, $7 million each. I guess this list means that there is a big-money market for conservative chatter. That's scary. It also means that "Demagoguery sells."
• "Exodus for Hunger" is a book by the Rev. David Beckmann of Bread for the World. He said recently on TV that the world produces enough food to feed every person on the planet. He said the big hunger increase in America is because of high unemployment. About 15 percent of all American households had trouble putting food on the table and needed the help of food banks, he said. One in four children lives in a household that runs out of food.

Irritating candidates: "Up" yours...

If I hear one more woman candidate say, "Man-up," I am going to run from the TV screaming like a girl.

What exactly is the female equivalent to the sexist remark? I know it isn't "grow a pair" as that refers, in a positive or negative way depending upon how it's stated, to comparing the quality of courage to the male anatomy, though women do have some anatomical pairs, too. On the other hand...or both hands...everyone and apes have thumbs. But while "thumbs-up" can mean approval or good movies, it is gender neutral.

But, concerning the question, it can't be "woman-down" as, though it is an opposite to "man-up,"
that's also a descending direction. Or maybe that's the purpose of the remarks anyway: to sting and to insult.

Maybe it is just the equal "woman-up," though I am not sure what that defines. If "man-up" means being more of a man, then I guess "woman-up" would mean being more of a woman. But what does any of that mean, beyond stereotypes and narrow gender notions? For men, they need to throw a football, drive a pickup, and spit? For women, they need to cook, have a baby, and wear a dress? Oh, the old days of Archie Bunker.

As much as I am annoyed by Missouri Democrats who claim in their political ads to be pro-gun, pro-life, and anti-Obama-care, I would be willing to use the term "Democrat-up" if I thought it would actually do any good. Too late for that.

I know there can be "giddy-up" for cowboys, but that usually involves a horse, too. And there's often "spit-up" for babies. There's "leg-up" for achievers...or for dogs.

But where else would it work? "Mature-up" for senior citizens. "Young-up" for young people. "Rich-up" for wealthy people. "Poor-up" (or "poor-down," like "trickle down" from the Reagan years) for the middle and lower classes. "Straighten-up" for straight people. "Gay-up" for gay people. "Black-up" for African Americans. "Hispanic-up" for Hispanics. "Catholic-up" for Catholics and "Protestant-up" for Presbyterians. "Large-up" for big-sizes. "Skinny-up" for beanpoles. I don't think any of it works, except...

..."Shut-up!"

Words born today...yesterday and tomorrow...

This just in for 10/10/10....

There are only two more years to go when a person could write 11/11/11 and 12/12/12 before it will be a long time to the next 1/1/01 (and some of us won't be around to see the next century). But our words have the opportunity of living into cyberspace and time, carrying on the DNA of thought, opinion, humor, and truth.

For that reason, meet my son...or daughter...named "Words," born on 10/10/10 and hoping to be seen, heard, valued, appreciated, enjoyed, and shared for years and decades and vast time to come.

Words Roberts was born on a pleasant day in a free country. He is strong. She is beautiful. They are happy to have a voice.

Just for the record: Inventions...

Inventions or concepts that started here...

1). The Roberts pyramid...In journalism education, there is a newswriting style known as the inverted pyramid style. It is an upside-down pyramid which explains that the first sentence, or lead, of the story is the important, containing the 5 W's (who, what, when, where, why) and how or how much and sometimes an attribution. The inverted pyramid style of writing is old, dating back to the Civil War days, when news stories told in traditional ways of story-telling, like a fictional story, had to be changed in order to get through before telegraph wires were cut. When I use the inverted pyramid structure as a teaching tool for basic news reporting students, noting that they should eventually write more leads in the structure of nut graphs or featurized leads, I do incorporate a separate inverted pyramid to get them thinking about their lead. Thus, it is an inverted pyramid of important elements within an inverted pyramid of story structure. As the Roberts inverted pyramid concept is intended just the lead, the students are told to consider which one of the elements of the 5 W's and how or how much is most important and to start with that. It does seem to work in helping them design their leads. Usually, leads aren't started with the when or where elements. Usually, the leads begin with the who, what, why, or how much.

2). Pitch Golf...Many decades ago, in my book "Sage Street" and for my weekly newspaper, I wrote a column about my sports innovation of the exciting, but inexpensive game of "Poor Person's Golf." It is the golf game wherein people don't use fancy and expensive clubs to hit the golf ball down the golf course. Instead, they get to throw the ball. Then there is no need for anything but a golf ball. How many throws would it take for you to get down the course to the first hole? And what would be the likelihood of a pitched hole-in-one? They are all challenges in my "Poor Person's Golf" game, which is probably is need of a higher-brow name. Thus,..."Pitch Golf." While I haven't yet gotten a call from the PGA, I did encourage a recent college graduate who is golf club management to give it a promotional try. I am hopefully that it will catch on, especially in a tough economy.

3). We-Mail...I just saw on the Internet that a website called WeBuzz.Im or something like that has a new service called "We-Mail." Alums of a journalism newsletter that I have been writing for years should recognize the word "We-Mail" for its use for the We-Mail newsletter. The We-Mail idea, of course, is that we hear from each other, as a social network of alums using e-mail...Our mail to each other about news which is then turned into one for all--We-Mail. If a company has trademarked it, then it is legally theirs. But, just for the record, that phrase was one I've been using for journalism alums long before a Google search could find it referenced by others.

I have a few other inventions, concepts and developments--one that's even in fashion, if you could imagine--but maybe I actually should get patents and trademarks before I describe them in words. Inventing is tough work!

Baffled by mysteries of popular opinion...

Sometimes I am baffled by the mysteries of media, politics, pop culture and life. Here are some examples...

1. Actress Lindsay Lohan recently made the TV news and I had one question: Why? I know it had to do with court, and that's always public record, but otherwise why would we care about an actress whose work I can't even cite in terms of one memorable movie or TV show. If it were Meryl Streep or Sissy Spacek or Hilary Swank, yes, those are actresses of measure, with awards to show for it. They'd be worthy of TV air time, for the good or the bad. But Lohan? Give us a break.
2. The Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu recently met with President Obama. I heard news anchor Chuck Todd on MSNBC say, "They both need each other." Netanyahu seems like a real yahoo and not in a positive sense, if you ask me. Maybe those guys need each other in some political sense, but as for the greater picture, I can certainly see that Israel needs the U.S.; I just don't see how the U.S. needs Israel. Israel needs the U.S. for the billions of foreign aid we give them and because American religious fundamentalists would have a fit if America didn't stand by Israel even when it doesn't deserve it. On the other hand, if Israel had good sense, it would have forged peace with all of its Arab neighbors decades ago. That's the best way to a secure future. Instead, Israel has been a thorn in the side of peace negotiations and has ruled under the arrogant terms of "might makes right" and the non-Golden rule of "We treat you like we wouldn't like to be treated." America has taken a beating because of that friendship and there are two wars going on that are rooted in the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. Of course, the Arab countries of the Middle East add to the dysfunctional politics because they are almost all commanded by dictators (and there's no future to that) and a conservative religion that wants to dominate political law. The best thing that ever happened in America was the concept of separation of church and state, which allows people to have whatever religion they want but denies the religious pulpit from narrowly ruling the government or society. Can you imagine if Baptists or Mormons determined the course of American political law? Oh, the horrors!
3. Queen Elizabeth visited New York recently. Ironically, near the Fourth of July, the date in 1776 when America fortunately gave the rule of royalty the boot. At least the modern royalty there doesn't have any real political power. Here's the difference between the Brits and me. They like their royals. I think they are wasting their money.
4. I saw a recent news report that teens in Texas were biting each other as a sign of affection (?!!! -- I guess because there are vampires in the "Twilight" movies). So-called "tween" girls (those beTWEEN teenager and diapers, I guess) enjoy the "Twilight" book and movie series. I always think it is good if people are reading books. As for the movies, I have watched two in the "Twilight" series (the first one because I was curious and the second one because I wanted to give it another chance) and I guess I would review those movies as "dull, slow, and boring." But I have never been part of the crowd when it came to movie series sequels that others liked. For some of the most boring movies I have ever watched, I would list these series titles: "Harry Potter," "Twilight," and, probably worst of all, "The Pirates of the Carribean," as well as the series of "Star Wars" movies, with the exception of the first one which was worthy because it set a higher standard for special effects. Thank goodness some series movies have hopefully come to an end, such as the cruel Hannibal Lecter junk (the first one was worthy for acting and scare), the exhausting "Indiana Jones" action, and the repetitive Friday the 13th and Nightmare on Elm Street slasher nonsense.
5. I really like Morgan Freeman as an actor. He is in a lot of great movies. But here's something I have never figured out. CBS News is using Morgan Freeman's voice as the introduction to Katie Couric on the evening news. Freeman's voice replaced the voice of Walter Cronkite. Though he is deceased, Cronkite is still the absolute best in news anchoring and reporting. Freeman is a great actor, but he's no Cronkite, especially concerning journalism. So, why would CBS choose to replace the voice of Cronkite? Wouldn't you think they'd want to keep that association?

And that's the baffling news and bewildered commentary for this news cycle!

The Elizabeth Edwards interview...

I watched the Elizabeth Edwards interview on the Larry King show tonight on CNN. And I was impressed with her. I have always been impressed with her, though. Certainly, she is resilient (her book is titled "Resilience") and, based upon her attitudes, perspectives, and outlook on life, I would say she is also a wise person.

She would have made a great presidential candidate because she cares about people and issues, and was probably the best spokesperson for national health care on the 2008 campaign trail. Though her husband John Edwards let his libido get the best of him, Elizabeth Edwards was correct about how her husband's last campaign led the way on important issues, such as health care, poverty, and employment. He pushed the other candidates (Obama and Hillary) on those issues, though Obama and Hillary still seem pretty clueless about them. Obama wouldn't have been elected if it hadn't been for Edwards splitting the vote and, after he withdrew from the race, his supporters going to Obama. That might still irk the Hillary supporters, but Hillary failed because she tried to go right when the better path was going left. I am still hopefully that Obama will find his wings of spirit and fly progressively...I am hoping.

Elizabeth Edwards has gone through her share of hellish moments (the death of her son, her ongoing battle with cancer, and the infidelity of her husband), but I think she has done it admirably and with grace under the circumstances.

Elizabeth Edwards said she was hoping for at least eight more years, when her younger children will grow into adults. I hope she gets those years and more. Nobody knows how many years they have left. As she noted, a person has to live each day with joy and appreciation. From even the bad things that happen, she said, you can learn and find something to appreciate. That's indeed wisdom.

Prospects of a 5-4 Supreme Court for a long, long time...

My first impression of Elena Kagan, the U.S. Supreme Court nominee from President Obama, as she is before the Senate confirmation hearing, is "lightweight." I hope that's a wrong impression, since she's likely to be on the Court for a long time.

Kagan told Senator Feinstein that the two recent 5-4 Supreme Court decisions about guns is now established law. Well, you know, the Supreme Court can reverse decisions that prove to be bad. It can and it has in the past. I have read about the court's first decision that required school children of Jehovah's Witnesses to say the Pledge of Allegiance and salute the flag back in the 1940s despite the group's belief that it was a violation of their right to religion (believing that pledges and flags are like graven images and idols as described in the 10 Commandments). Several years later, after the court saw that its decision had caused all kinds of violent assaults upon Jehovah's Witnesses who continued to refuse the order because they couldn't get a sudden agreeing sign from God, the court completely reversed the ruling in the next case, siding with the Jehovah's Witnesses. After all, the best line in the Pledge of Allegiance is "And liberty and justice for all" and there can't be liberty if some people are forced to do something against their beliefs.

Then some old Republican senators (like John McCain--geez, aren't we lucky that he wasn't elected president) were unhappy about Kagan throwing the military recruiters off the Harvard campus because of the discriminatory "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, though she later caved on that issue in order to keep federal funding for the university. So, Kagan tries to go in a weird orbit around the issue by saying something nonsensical about military recruitment actually going up that year at the university. Wow, I was sitting there, wanting someone with a tad bit of fight within them, to answer those fossil senators, "Yes, we threw the military recruiters off the campus and may have saved some lives of the young people temporarily at least before you learn-nothing-from-Vietnam-War senators were able to send them off to the no-win quagmire of the Afghanistan War." (Oops, I know that isn't very politically correct of me. After all, we have to be very nice to military recruiters so they can send our young people off to endless wars. !!!! Insert your four-letter word of choice here.) Anyway, Kagan wasn't anywhere close to that with her almost-apologetic statements, so she will probably get confirmed with namby-pamby flying colors, though she probably would be confirmed anyway, as I think the Democrats have a majority of votes (though that's always questionable nowadays as well).

The U.S. Supreme Court is going to be a dreary institution for a long time, I have a feeling, with more 5-4 conservative decisions ahead for our country that instead needs progess socially, culturally, and politically.

The paper shredder lasted an hour...

I went to Wal-Mart recently and purchased a paper shredder, made in China, for $12.95. It was just the top part of a shredder, as I didn't need a whole unit that included a bucket for the resulting confetti as I already had one from a previous shredder.

I brought the shredder home and started on the task of shredding some bill stubs and other papers that I didn't want to otherwise throw away into the town dump, fearing worries about identity theft, though frankly I am not sure why anyone would want my identity in the first place since it hardly benefits me.

I shredded about 10 pieces of paper. Then the button on the top to make the shredder shred wouldn't work. It would run the shredder in reverse, allowing the paper to spit back out of the machine. but it wouldn't shred in natural shredding order.

In one day. No, in less than one day. In one hour, the Wal-Mart $12.98 paper shredder, made in China, was broken.

I know there's the saying about "getting what you pay for," but I still do live in a world where $10 is a sizable chunk of cash. It can mean about two and a half cartons of milk, or a gas tank half-full, or about half of a three-month subscription to a community newspaper, or at least 10 cans of the cheaper chicken noodle soup. It can mean whether the last week of the month is buoyant or restrictive. I don't like wasting $10, let alone $12.95.

So, here's my question to the quiet masses of American consumers who end up buying junk from Wal-Mart, made in China, because it is at a reduced price: Have you ever purchased anything made in the modern China that was a long-enduring, quality product, otherwise beyond the realm of junk? I don't mean a jar from the Ming Dynasty. I mean something produced in a factory in modern China?

Anything produced in a factory in modern China. And where the workers are woefully paid and probably forced to work long hours standing on their feet, which is probably why American chain stores find such joy in doing business in the Chinese market? And a person can't help but hope that one day the Chinese workers will get ticked off enough to kick that old-man Commie-Capitalist government and all of the complicit, douche-bag American companies out of there.

When I was a boy, I remember that all of the junky trickets and souvenirs, like a buffalo salt shaker from a tourist shop in Yellowstone Park or a gas station near an Indian reservation, was "made in Japan." Back then, "made in Japan" denoted junk. Though I never did jump on the bandwagon about how Japanese-produced cars became better than American-made cars and don't believe it to this day, Japan was able to raise its product quality identity as it developed technology, mainly media products, and took the lead in the creation of interesting but pointless robots.

So, now, it's apparently "made in China" that carries the stigma of junk, brought to us by chain stores like Wal-Mart. Thus, I should have known better when I purchased the paper shredder that shredded paper for less than an hour.

(Please send in your list of high-quality and/or long-lasting products made in modern China to this column, though I would be really surprised if anyone has any such products.)

Notes from the Boat (That We're All Riding in)...

Some thoughts about the news...

• I have been impressed with the news coverage about the Haiti earthquake and aftermath by Anderson Cooper and the news reporters at CNN. That is good broadcast journalism.
• For now, I would like to commend Google with its latest threat to pull out of China if it has to continue to filter out words and images that upset the communist dictatorship. It is about time, I would add. Where is Microsoft and Yahoo and the others in also standing up, finally, for freedom and rights? When all the American Internet companies hurried into China, their goal, of course, was one greedy measure: $. Since then, the companies have gotten deserved criticism for being complicit in censorship and the jailing of activists. China should allow the photo of the Tank Man at Tiananmen Square to be accessed on its computers. And everything else that comes with a real worldwide web. China's tricky mix of communism and capitalism has shown that capitalism doesn't equal democracy. But we knew that with all the other dirty little dictators around the world that like to enhance their coffers while they step on people's rights. Now, we will see if Google stands for something greater, in terms of ethics. I hope I will commend Google later for standing tall. I know I will not be using the "Bing" search engine of Microsoft and others until those companies gets some ethical guts, too.
• The win by Republican Scott Brown in the Senate race in Massachusetts was interesting in many ways. I wondered if sports (baseball knowledge) mattered; apparently it did to some voters there. I wondered that if the woman candidate had been the centerfold rather than the man candidate, how would the media and societal response have been different? But I don't think Brown's victory means the Republican Party is now in a better place. I think it means that incumbents or those coming from the incumbent party (in the case of Martha Coakley) need to worry. It will only take a few conservative "nothing" votes by Brown to put him into the disappointment category, unless he has figured out a way to attain populist progress after an election.
• President Obama (and all the conservative national media) need to quit chasing the unicorn. A unicorn is mythical and doesn't exist. So, is the idea that going to the political center to produce watered-down, crap legislation is the way to lead or to attain real progress for the nation or to have any legacy of greatness.
• All a person has to do is look at the major issues and see whether those issues naturally and progressively go to the right or go to the left. Health care--Do we want the status quo on that when other nations in the world do better to provide health care for their citizens? No. So, which way do you go? Of course, you go left, providing more coverage. Most people in this country wanted universal health care. Most people wanted the public option in the latest debate. Why wasn't that the way the politics went? It went to the center and has nearly strangled Obama's campaign idealism as seen by his voters. The wars--Go to the right andthat means adding more troops and spending more money on war. Go to the left and that means leave doing the mission swiftly and getting out. (The use of troops as peacekeepers and rescue assistance in Haiti was a better use of money if the Pentagon wants to think of ways to sustain its huge budget.) Those are just two examples of why conservatism doesn't work. Look at any generation. Is any current generation more conservative or more liberal than their parents? They are almost always more liberal. That's the path of history.
• After the U.S. Supreme Court, by a 5-4 vote, decided that limits on what corporations can spend on political campaigns are against freedom of speech, I pulled out my wallet and looked inside it to see how much free speech I had. Hmmm. Not very much there. But I never figured, even before, that my amount of financial power would ever equal the power of Microsoft, Time Warner, Disney, or Exxon. That's why I write, why I blog, why I try to voice my opinion in any way I can, knowing that money also talks. The U.S. Supreme Court did no favors to the status of the American citizen by blessing corporations with one more advantage. Does it also then mean that corporations that are largely controlled by foreign countries, such as China, or have great interests there will get to try to influence American politics? I hate to think, though I guess it could backfire, too. Probably an endorsement to an issue or candidate by a corporation linked to a foreign dictatorship or agendas would be a kiss of political death.