What's In A Name -Part III (see 2008)

So a hotel owner in New Mexico is under fire for asking some employees to change their name. Actually, he was asking employees (presumably from Old Mexico) with hard to pronounce names to go by something else while answering the phones.
Is that really so wrong? He wasn't asking them to literally change their name, but just to pick a nickname for work. I don't think it is racist to try to provide good customer service. We are all off-put when we are talking to someone and have no idea how to pronounce his or her name.

In grad school the Asian kids and the Indian kids didn't mingle much outside their own groups and I think the hard-to-pronounce names were part of the problem. How do you start up a conversation with someone when you are afraid of offending him or her by slaughtering the name?

When the waves of immigrants first came to America on boats the U.S. officials didn't tolerate difficult names. If your name was unpronounceable to an American you were given a new name.
Immigrant: "Mhy neme esk Petrovich Groskyovski."
Customs Official: "Peter Grossman, welcome to America."

I think this really helped in the assimilation process. When you have a melting pot, you need something to tie all the flavors together. In our case it is the English language. If your name just doesn't work in English and you want to live the the United States, come up with a nickname. And for God's sake learn the language. If I decided to go live in Japan for some reason, I'm pretty sure I would be fluent in Japanese within a year.

Reform is a good thing.

I figured out why people who watch Fox News want to retain the right to die or go bankrupt if they need medical attention. They are conservative, and change frightens them. They are willing to protest loudly to keep things the way they are, or better yet send things back to the way they were. Glenn Beck is rallying the right wing troops to take things back to the beginning of America when things were so great. Let me clue you in; things sucked back then for average citizens. Apart from the top tier of society, people were repressed and led miserable existences until we had reform.

In the past, before any major reform occurred in the U.S., be the issue slavery, civil rights, or labor rights, brave people had to stand up for what they believed in and often suffered for doing so. They suffered at the hands of those that wanted to maintain the status quo benefitting their interests. Whose interests are the conservatives defending this time? Pharmaceutical companies are supporting health care reform, so it seems only insurance companies have something to lose. So, why are average people protesting the mere attempt to improve our health care system? The only logical argument I have heard is that it may further burden the deficit. Obama stated plainly that he would not sign a bill that increased the deficit, so why not hold him to that and let congress try?

Beck’s solution for America’s problems is to incite people to gather together to make sure nothing gets done. Um…what? Seriously, he is telling his automatons to protest any legislation until Washington promises to not be corrupt anymore. What a charlatan.
Politics have not gotten more corrupt since the signing of the Declaration of Independence. There have always been corrupt politicians and there always will be, because positions of power attract the corrupt. Luckily, the founding fathers were bright enough to put checks and balances in the U.S. Constitution, but they didn’t have all the answers back then (e.g. blacks were counted as 3/5 of a person for census purposes). All we can do is try to make our country a little better each generation. Please don’t protest progress just because you fear change.

H.R. 3200, Stick to the Facts People

The spokespeople for middle America are a pack of fickle mush-heads. Instead of offering alternatives to the health care bill or saying “Hey, we think adding this or getting rid of that part would be a good idea,” all they can come up with is misinformed, fear based rhetoric. Those protesting the Health Care Reform Bill apparently think there is nothing to fix. If you like your health care, what are you protesting? No one is trying to take anything from you, because all current coverage is protected under the bill.

Those people with signs depicting Obama likened to Hitler have never read the proposed bill. I know this because a mind that could make that connection is clearly illiterate. I have read much of the bill (it's over 1000 pages), and I assure you there are no provisions for “death squads”. What the barely-literate Ms Palin was referring to is offering people the opportunity to speak with a physician or nurse practitioner in order to make informed decisions about long term care. This would include providing information about services and benefits, living wills, hospice, etc. - sounds like the Gestapo, right? My only concern is that the bill does increase the availability of vaccines, so the mind control drugs that our government infuses in flu shots will be more widespread. In truth, it is a very good piece of legislation that protects our rights, and the majority of Americans should be applauding it to drown out the extremists.

Critics of reform are saying, “We already have the best health care in the world.” True, the United States has the best technology and the most skilled surgeons, but that argument is being made by those that can afford it. Now, because Pres Obama wants to offer a little of the best to the poor, he is being called a racist socialist. Excuse me?! Because there are more rich white people than rich minorities and he wants to tax the rich, apparently that makes him racist? His mother is white for hell’s sake. It is not socialism, because no one is talking about leveling the playing field. The wealthy will still be wealthy and in control, but I think it’s great that the IRS is finally cracking down on hiding money in foreign accounts. Don’t get me wrong because I love capitalism, but our Constitution was created to promote fairness in all things (when you include the amendments, of course).

Idiots and lobbyists (is that redundant?) are clamoring so much that the White House is backing down from insisting on a public option. The public option is the only way to give all Americans access to decent health care. Anything less would just be a reshuffling of the current failing system. Just as I feared, it seems we are going to get some watered down reform bill that will be criticized for not doing enough even though it will be the fault of the critics if it doesn’t.

By the way, Limbaugh and Beck…get bent.

Way to go Bill

Fitness Tip

Don't dive into cold water with overworked muscles.

I found this out the hard way last weekend. A couple of friends and I hiked in about 7 miles to an alpine lake. Prior to this, I was sedentary for about three weeks due to having minor surgery. It was a beautiful day and when the fish weren't biting, we decided to go for a swim. I swam out to an island and felt great until I started back.... Both my calves completely knotted up and I had to flail back to shore using only my arms. The hike out was excruciating and I'm still sore.
The only way I'll ever sign on for a triathlon is if it involves a heated pool.

Gender Relations

I was reading Howard Zinn's "A People's History of the United States," and it describes the culture of the Iroquois Indians, which is fascinating. The Iroquois had a matrilineal society, which should not be confused with matriarchal. Family lines were traced through the mothers and when a man would marry he joined the family of his wife. Chiefs and tribal leaders were men, but they were selected by the women and could be ousted by the women. If a woman wanted a divorce, she simply left her husband's things outside the hut. Women grew the crops and men hunted.
I reflected on this and thought... maybe they were on to something.
What if our society functioned like that? What if men held all the political offices, but only women could vote? I'm not advocating it, but I think it could work.

Men would govern, but if they deviated from the will of the women they would be replaced. It would provide a balance like two kids sharing a dessert; one gets to cut and the other gets to choose the first piece.

Some feminists want everything to be exactly equal for the genders in every aspect of society. No rights denied, but also no special treatment. The Equal Rights Amendment was never ratified because rational minds prevailed. It is OK for men and women to be different, because we are different. I'm not just talking about extra appendages or lack thereof. We are wired differently. Women are more empathic and therefore better able to console an upset child. Men are stronger and are better able to build things and defend their families. Obviously, these traits lie on a bell curve. There are women out there who could kick my ass, and there are men out there that weep openly when a fictional character in a movie loses a loved one. I'm talking about the gender differences of the majority, which are many and beneficial to our society; I say embrace them.

It’s Time to Stop Coddling North Korea

=

I am aware that we are fighting actual wars on other fronts, but the North Korea threat must be addressed.

We spent years negotiating the shut down of N. Korea’s nuclear program, but they obviously never had any intention of giving up their nuclear ambitions. It is likely that they have acquired enough weaponized plutonium to make a few nuclear bombs, but they do not have the technology to deliver a nuclear attack by missile…yet. Maybe, just maybe, we should nip this one in the bud.

As if the nuclear issue was not enough, Kim Jong Il's government in Pyongyang is currently holding two American citizens prisoner for possibly stepping over their border. These female journalists have been sentenced to 12 years hard labor. Why are we standing for this?

Also, N. Korea recently launched a cyber attack aimed at shutting down U.S. and S. Korean government websites, and it’s not the first time. How is that not an act or war, or at least cyberwar?

Nearly all of congress backed Cowboy W. when he said we should invade Iraq based on: they probably have chemical and biological WMDs; this foreign country’s leader had threatened the United States; and the leader of this dictatorial government was brutally oppressing his own people. I think the argument against N. Korea is far greater. I am not suggesting that we repeat our mistakes and go it alone, but we need to do much more than politely suggest the world should tell them they are being naughty. We need to economically pressure China to force N. Korea to back down. Maybe we should launch a cyber-counteroffensive. President Obama announced he would appoint a chief cyberguardian, but maybe what we need is a Secretary of Hacking Jerk Countries. The best defense is a good offense.

Something needs to be done now, because if we don’t, then our greatest fear of the Cold War could be realized. We could have a psychotic, dulusional supervillian with his finger on the button holding the world hostage.

People Who Need to Go Away

Sarah Palin- bless her she may by trying. Please don’t resurface in 2012. You are a joke of a public servant, and your offspring should be poster-children for sterilization, not abstinence.

Dick Cheney- you had your chance and you f#$ked up America. Now sit down and shut up! If you are that bored, go back to your lair, put on a monocle and hatch plots against Adam West, but leave Obama the hell alone.

Joe Jackson- this man is one of the most worthless humans alive. We’ve all heard the stories about how he was physically and mentally abusive to his children, and that he exploited them for profit, but he has sunk to a low off the charts on Newsweek’s Indignity Index since his son’s death. A reporter asked how he was holding up and he said “Great…but we lost the world’s biggest star.” Not his son, but his meal-ticket. To another reporter he used the moment to hype his newest record label-disgusting. I was never a Michael Jackson fan, but I do pity him and blame most of his immaturity and narcissism on his father.
So media, please let him rest in peace after the memorial. I really hope they aren’t digging up dirt for the next year. It’s not a slow news year-there are plenty of relevant things on which to report.

Lastly,
Thank you Norm Coleman for going away gracefully (if not expediently), and not taking your legal challenges any further. Coleman had every right to take it as far as he did; it’s just unfortunate that MN has been missing a senator for 8 months. Congratulations to Al Franken. You are good enough, smart enough, and doggonit, people might eventually like you, Senator.

Turn to Dust Already

Isn’t it time to force Larry King into retirement? “But he’s a national icon” you say. Well, when the Washington Monument becomes unstable enough to be a danger to the public, they’ll tear it down. The dinosaur King has outlived his usefulness, assuming he was ever useful. I think 7 or 8 wives have found him worthless or maybe they just wanted his net worth. Anyway, I got on this rant because this morning I clicked on CNN to get recent news on post-election unrest in Iran and the latest brinksmanship threats from a nuclear armed N. Korea, when up popped Larry F-ing King hyping his latest guests, the Jonas Brothers. Really?! You have nothing better to contribute to society than hyping homely asexual douchebags who would cry if ever forced to sing in front of Simon Cowell?

I am in no way promoting American Idol, by the way. I think it’s ridiculous that millions of Americans waste 2 hours a week watching amateurs compete for the right to sing music that will be forgotten in a decade. You could spend those hours at the symphony listening to music that is actually capable of reaching your soul. Or you could at least watch Afghan Idol which is actually poignant because last season a girl was assailed with threats of an honor killing because she dared to do a little dance after she was voted off.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=105528017
-Wait I’m on a serious tangent …back to Larry King. Why is he still on my TV? His recent guests include Kathy Griffin, David Cook, the American Chopper guys, and the spokesperson for the octuplet mother. That is pandering to the nth degree.

And while we’re on the subject of worthless media personalities, we all need to boycott Nancy Grace. That disgusting woman sensationalizes stories of missing children for her own personal fame. She doesn’t investigate the crimes, she just preys on our deepest fears and exploits details of child abduction that do nothing to help solve the cases, only to shock viewers and grab ratings. If I ever see her on the street, I'm going to kick that bitch in the nuts.

A Sad Day for Democracy

My deepest sympathy goes out to the Iranian people. They are currently being beaten and jailed for daring to hope for a better tomorrow. It saddens me that so many people had their dreams of a brighter future crushed by governmental corruption. They were so optimistic last week when it looked like the reformist party of Moussavi was ahead in the polls 3 to 1 over Ahmadinejad. Then, as you know the “President” just made up a number for the results on election day and threw out the real ballots. At least he wasn't stupid enough to give himself 100% like Saddam used to report.
Iran is a unique mixture of theocracy, democracy, and dictatorship. Although I was pleased at the optimism displayed recently, I knew there would be no real changes in Iran as long as Ayatullah Ali Khamenei remains Supreme Leader of the country. Ahmadinejad, or whoever is President, ultimately answers to him and he is the one who sets national policy. The president of Iran is like a manager charged with keeping the store running, but when it comes to deciding whether or not to stock plutonium on the shelves the Supreme Leader is the store owner and makes the call. Khamenei is calling for an investigation into the election results, but he’s probably the one who rigged it because he didn’t want to deal with someone who wants to deviate from the hardliners.
The U.S. certainly can not and should not act militarily against Iran, but it is time for the U.N. to get serious about punishing them.

All play and no work make Lindsay...something, something

Some days it's hard to draw the line between work and play. It is always satisfying to enjoy your day of work or to have worked really hard to have fun on your day off.

(I am working in one of these pics-can you guess which one?)

Fitness Tip of the Week

Drink water, and lots of it. Always bring more than you think you'll need when working or playing outdoors. Temperatures shot up here last week and I got seriously dehydrated while working outdoors. During the winter I had been bringing a 1-liter bottle to get me through the day, but in the heat it was not enough. Dehydration makes us stupid and lazy, so even if you are just sitting on your couch, drink fluids (besides beer) to give yourself a fighting chance of ever getting up.
The Mayo Clinic recommends drinking 2 liters a day to replace lost fluids, but of course you may need more if perspiring.
Also, ditch the throw-away bottles. Even if you recycle, they are incredibly wasteful. If you hate the taste of your tap water, sink-mounted filters work well and are cheaper than buying bottled water long-term. Nearly all reusable bottles now sold are Bisphenol A (BPA)-free, so there are no excuses not to use one. Get one for your coffee while you're at it.

-Stay active and play hard-

Ms. Hasselbeck, kindly shut up

Okay, it’s time Elizabeth Hasselbeck got her comeuppance. I assure you that I do not watch The View, but I saw a video clip of an interview in which she claims to be “peeved” at the fact that liberals were “giddy” over Bristol Palin’s pregnancy. Sarah Palin’s daughter is actually going on tour promoting abstinence as a viable option. Really?! That’s like...like an unwed mother giving a lecture on abstinence! -I couldn't think of anything more ridiculous as an analogy.

Yes, it does please us to see hypocrites called out, but I don’t think it is schadenfreude as much as taking satisfaction in justice being done. When a conservative U.S. Senator with a history of voting against gay (civil) rights gets busted for soliciting gay sex in a public bathroom or from one of his paiges, that is karmic. When an ultra-conservative radio personality turns out to be a drug addict, it is a poignant reminder that he does not have the right to pass moral judgment on others (although he continues to do so). These people hide under the guise of protecting morality but they are themselves repressed, and taking it out on people who just want tolerance and equality.

Ms. Hasselbeck went on to say that the pageant contestant (Miss CA, I think) was being unfairly criticized for voicing her opinion against gay marriage.
I’m sorry Elizabeth, but believing some people should be denied the same civil liberties as you is not an opinion, it is amoral. This country is strengthened by people of faith, but America’s true resilience comes from our tradition of separating church and state. Many religions do not place women on equal ground with men, but because of that separation from our government, women have equal rights in all things. Churches may discriminate however they wish, but when it comes to legal secular rights, no one can be excluded.

I won’t stoop to using the names that pop into my head whenever I hear one of Elizabeth’s uneducated rants, but it’s really a shame that the sweet girl we were all rooting for in season 2 of Survivor turned into a raving hateful zealot.

I've said this before, but the true irony is that moral conservatives have been on the wrong side of human rights issues many times throughout American history. Looking back forty or fifty years from now, the defenders of civil rights will be vindated over the gay marriage issue, just as they were when they stood against the moral majority and made them understand that differences such as skin color and gender do not make people inferior.
I am encouraged by the fact that each generation is more tolerant and accepting. We just have to wait out the haters and hope that their death bed will allow us to wake up to Dr. King’s dream.

100 Days

Before we begin to rate our new President, let us not forget the colossal weight on his shoulders.

The following is my updated version of Billy Joel’s song,
“We Didn’t Start the Fire”

Dick Cheney, Condi Rice, Red China, World Trade
The Decider, Don Rumsfeld, Iraq was a no-go

Bin Laden, Taliban, Climate Change, Pakistan
North Korea, South Korea, Flu from Mexico

Detroit broke, vaccine, England's got the same queen
Hamas in the Gaza Strip, Somali Pirates, Mafia

Iran wants The Bomb, Baghdad, Pyongyang
Banks fail, Hunger swells, Poverty in Africa

CHORUS
He didn't start the fire
W. left it burning
with our heads all turning
He didn't start the fire
Obama didn't light it
But he’s trying to fight it

Vlad Putin, Medvedev, Russians still in Georgia
Mogadishu, Failing States, Never-ending Wall Street slide

Foreign debts, Injured Vets, AIDS, Crack, Pricey Jets
Palestine, Israel, Jihadists taking sides

Drug Cartels, Pope Benedict, Bathroom Politician sex
Troop withdrawal, Suicide, China owns the USA

Trading Gap, Afghanistan, Budget Gap, Sudan
Benazir blown away, what else do I have to say!

CHORUS
He didn't start the fire
W. left it burning
with our heads all turning
He didn't start the fire
Obama didn't light it
But he’s trying to fight it

The Addict

As I sit at my work desk,
my body begins twitching.
It does not want to be still,
there is a mental itching.

Quite involuntarily,
random muscles are firing,
They want not to be idle,
knowing what I’m desiring.

The urging is visceral,
to deny is futility
The growing monster within,
he demands utter parity.

I give in to the burning,
and go where no one can see.
All my paperwork can wait,
to the locker room I flee.

I open up my satchel,
and get all that I will need.
I strap music to my arm,
and I eagerly proceed.

It takes several minutes,
for the feeling to kick in.
Then I start to perspire,
and feel quite flushed in my skin.

Biochemicals do their work,
and I start to feel weightless.
My body is powerful,
for my soul is now gateless.

As I begin to come down,
off my endorphin-laced high,
Pain mixed with tranquility,
is my reward and the why.

I can feel a throbbing pulse,
slowly fade behind my eyes,
My escapist drug of choice,
is in fact just exercise.

Farm Subsidies Do More Harm than Good

Farm subsidies are an outdated response to the Great Depression, but in this global recession, the last thing we should do is undermine global trade by over-subsidizing our farmers and giving them an unfair advantage over poorer nations.

Subsidies may help some struggling small farmers, but the vast majority (3/4) of these tax-funded handouts is given to the largest 10% of farms. This program needs to be revamped, scaled back, or just plain cut from the budget. In this recession, demand and production of food will drop, but we fat-assed Americans eat twice as much as we need to be healthy so there is no danger of famine.

Farmers in western desert states are given incentives to grow thirsty crops that require flood irrigation, which is just asinine. Water is becoming our most precious resource and we need to rethink all the wasteful practices in agriculture when in comes to water rights. States are allowed to set their own rules, but perhaps the EPA should step in when states have decades old policies than are detrimental to the global environment.

Last year, $687 million dollars was given to farmers in CA and AZ alone. Through loopholes in the law, some wealthy Americans who don’t even farm or happen to be deceased still collect subsidies. If we intend to make any headway in paying down the national debt and jump starting our economy, maybe we should stop giving the “Haves” more money to hide in offshore accounts and create healthcare-bearing jobs for the “Have-nots”.

Assault Weapons?!

In the wake of the hostage situation in NY and the news of U.S. weapons being used in the Mexican drug wars, I decided to look up current gun laws. I'm sure many of you are aware, but I was shocked to find out that Congress let the assault weapon ban lapse in 2004. What?! They didn't even try to extend it. I remember in 1994 Pres Clinton signed the bill banning semi-automatic "assault style" weapons which have no practical use other than to wage war or commit terrorism. The ban was a good thing, but apparently in was only in effect for 10 years.
This is an issue that needs to be taken up again. It is as if we all got tired of fighting the powerful lobbist of the NRA and just gave up. Now don't get me wrong, because I am not proposing that we ignore the 2nd Amendment.

"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed."

I am suggesting, however, that the words 'Arms' and 'infringed' can be interpreted to benefit the common good. Some things must be regulated and kept out of the hands of private citizens for the safety of us all. No sane person would argue that private citizens should be allowed to own a nuclear weapon. If we can't constitutionally prevent people from owning assault weapons, we should at least stop selling them. People have the right to bear arms, but the government has the right to dictate which weapons should be sold to the public. Just block the selling of guns and ammunition for these extreme weapons which were designed for the sole purpose of killing as many humans as possible.
Responsible people with a clean background check (criminal and mental) should always be allowed to purchase guns for hunting and home defense. However, no one needs to defend his home with an AK-47 or a TEC-9, and hunting with these weapons is just absurd.

Let's Go Green!

Mr. Obama is facing a ridiculous number of challenges all at once. I have an idea that could tackle several of them at once: immigration, prison overcrowding, budget deficits, and drug-related violence in Mexican border towns.

I would like to preface this by saying I do not condone drug use in any form and am not an advocate of using marijuana. I think the drug makes one lazy and I don't use it or like it. Of course I have tried it; anyone who says they haven't tried it is either lying, over 50, or a fundamentalist religious zealot.

Here's my Plan:

1-Let's legalize marijuana in the U.S. and convince Mexico it would be in their best interest to do the same. Of course it should only be legal for persons over 21 and law enforcement could focus on more serious problems. This would loosen the stranglehold of the drug cartels. Sure, they will continue to smuggle and sell other drugs, but weed is a major source of their income.

2-Let the FDA regulate it so it is safe (to my knowledge, no one has ever overdosed on pure marijuana).

3-Tax the sh!t out of it. Revenue from taxing marijuana could drastically stimulate the economy.

4-Release all non-violent criminals who are in prison for possesion or use of marijuana. It costs tax payers much more to house a criminal than to keep tabs on him on probation.

5-Let Mexico grow the marijuana. It would create jobs there and lessen the need for Mexicans to cross the border to find work.

Some say you should not legalize marijuana because it is a gateway drug, and if you legalize one drug it will be a slippery slope to legalizing all drugs. Where do you draw the line? I'll tell you- you draw the line at marijuana. It is less dangerous than either alcohol or tobacco. Most other illigal drugs are synthetically produced and create a physical addition (weed is merely a mental addiction). Chemical dependence like on meth or heroine leads to an increase in the crime rate because junkies will do anything for the next fix. Potheads on the other hand or nonviolent. They may not ever amount to anything, but they are not hurting anybody. Why not let them them help pay down the national debt?

Snowplay

A friend and I took advantage of perhaps the last major storm of the season and got out in the backcountry powder.


Exhausting and exhilarating.

On the lighter side

I was upset today by stories emerging from Sudan and Zimbabwe and considered penning my thoughts on the subject, but it was making me physically tremble, so I switched gears to maintain my sanity and thought of pleasant memories. There’s nothing wrong will forgetting about the ills of the world occasionally, right?

So here is something on the light side, or rather the wrong side of the light-read on.

I thought back to one of the best weeks of my life (before I knew of the absolute joy and contentment of marriage), my senior trip. The year was 2 B.C.* and my friends and I were 18 with the accompanying gallons of hormones built up. There were about a dozen of us (half of which were female) from my high school that had convinced our parents we deserved a week in Hawaii for a graduation present. This was it; the big show. The first time any of us would be left completely up to our own devices for a whole week with no parental supervision. Luckily, my older siblings had worn down my parents’ resistance to things that were physically or morally dangerous. Before I got on the plane my Mom gave me a hug, gave me that all-knowing-mom glare and told me to “be good.” My friend Craig’s mom on the other handed each of us guys a bandolier of condoms and told us to stay safe and have fun.

Oh yes, there would be underage drinking and debauchery; we were on a mission to do everything we had never been able to get away with before. It was the Mormon equivalent of Amish Rumspringa.

Actually, my fondest memories of that week are the wholesome activities we engaged in and not the checking off of the seven deadly sins. We did it all: snorkeling, sailing, surfing, cliff diving, dancing (both at night clubs and at a luau), shopping (for the girls’ sake, of course), and we visited the Dole pineapple plantation and Pearl Harbor (not to equate the two in significance).


We were on the island of Oahu, and we heard about a great spot called Hanauma Bay, so we rented some scooters and took off for the beach. I have no idea why any company would rent anything to an 18 yr-old male, let alone a vehicle. For some reason the rental fee didn’t include helmets, but we were indestructible so that didn’t matter. A couple of my buddies raced motocross back home so these poor little scooters were pushed far beyond any safety and durability standards they may have had. We were jumping off curbs playing cat and mouse with maniacal grins on our faces. I happened to get the fastest scooter which topped out at a blinding 40 mph. We eventually found the bay and had a great time playing in the water all day. In the evening, we hiked around to a point overlooking the ocean and stopped to watch the majestic beauty of Mother Nature. –Then she tried to kill us.

We were on a cliff 20-30 feet above the ocean when a rouge wave suddenly appeared 10 ft higher than the cliff. I instinctively crouched down and grabbed a hand hold on the rock. I was able to hang on, but I watched helplessly as three of my friends were being pushed on a water slide of death toward the edge of the cliff. One of them was about a foot from the skull-crushing drop when the surging sea finally relented. If you want to see where we almost died, cut and past these coordinates into Google Earth or Maps.

21 16' 8.5"N 157 41' 24.8"W


Here’s the Aesopian lesson: enjoy nature, but never turn your back on it.

Shaken, but laughing by the time we remounted our hogs (the scooters, not the girls with us who were very cute) and headed back to the hotel. Once we regained the city, we decided to drag race. If you have ever been to Waikiki, Hawaii then you know that traffic lights are on the side of the road, rather than overhead-I did not. At least that was my excuse to the cop, because I must have noticed the lights when we used one on the previous block as a starting gun. I was way ahead of everyone laughing over my shoulder when I heard the pull-over siren. Apparently I had gone 38 mph through a red light without even slowing down. It really sucks to be pulled over on a scooter because you can’t even slink down in your seat to hide your face from passersby. Luckily, I only got a warning a great story out of it.

I could go on and on about the strip poker game or the party cruise, but we all took an oath on the flight home…What happens in Hawaii, stays in Hawaii. You know, long flights are surprisingly enjoyable when you are with a group of your friends and there are enough empty seats on the plane to comfortably lie down. Ah, memories- thanks for listening, I feel much better.

*Before Cindy

Bobby Jindal...

....is a douchebag.

His 'response' to Pres. Obama's speech last night made me a little ill. First of all, it wasn't a response at all because it was just an attack on the stimulus that was obviously prepared before Obama's speech was ever delivered or even read. That means Republicans aren't even listening. How can our President breech the partisan gap when the other side is metaphorically sticking their fingers in their ears and humming while he is trying to speak sense?


Secondly, "Bobby" isn't even his real name, it just plays well in Louisiana. His name is Piyush Jindal, but he couldn't put Piyush on his gubernatorial election signs because it sounds like a terrorist name to elderly white folk (kinda like Barack). Sure people might have thought "Barry" was more accessible, but that would be pandering and Barack Obama is above that.

Republicans are sooo pleased with themselves that they have an Indian-American poster boy. Too bad he's an insincere self-serving prick. I just got a creepy feeling from him, like it was all rehearsed and part of his long-term plan to become President. This is not partisanship talking because I got the same vibe from John Edwards between the last two elections when he was on his well choreographed crusade to help poor people.

The third reason Mr. Jindal is a douche is that he painted funding items such as volcano monitoring and magnetic levitation trains as silly and wastful. FYI-Volcanoes, unlike earthquakes can be predicted, which can save thousands of lives and millions of dollars. Yellowstone is currently in a state of unrest and if it blows it will make our anthropogenic contribution to climate change seem like chump change. Maglev trains have been used successfully for years in European and Asian nations and are a very viable solution to the gridlock between LA and Las Vegas.

So 'Bobby', you can take that folksy smarm and shove it up your ass.

Endangered Children

This is not light reading… sorry.

I heard a very disheartening story on the radio yesterday about child prostitution. Like any rational parent, it made me uncomfortable so I almost switched to some mindless music, but then I thought “this problem exists because people don’t want to hear about it, let alone address the underlying causes.” I forced myself to listen as a young woman recounted her days on the street as a twelve-year-old prostitute. Her mother had abandoned her and she ran away from a group home and found herself in the company of evil, opportunistic people. She was taken in by a pimp and forced to have sex and use drugs. Eventually, she had to endure one of the most inhumane things imaginable when her pimp traded her to a dealer for drugs.

You may be thinking this story takes place in a third-world country, but no…these events took place in the United States, and similar stories of horror are currently being imposed upon the innocent in many countries the world over.

The girl in this true story was saved from probable death when the drug dealer was pulled over by police while she was in the backseat. The police did not initially behave as rescuers and she was jailed as a criminal. Eventually, she spoke to an empathetic counselor who realized she was a victim. She endured the most horrific crimes humans are capable of, and sadly, she is one of the ‘lucky ones’ who made it out.

The part of the story that made me the angriest was that of nearly 50 recently rescued children, only a few had even been reported missing. How could these parents not care about the fate of their child? Some have used the term ‘throw-away children’ to describe these poor souls that have no one to love them. A label that harsh should never be necessary to describe a fellow human being.

This must not be tolerated. The vulnerable must be protected and the criminals must be punished. The parents who irresponsibly have children, then give up on parenting when it proves to be hard are also criminals. There needs to be more education, prosecution, and possibly intervention. I am not suggesting a pro-Big Brother agenda, but I would like to live in a world where becoming a parent by birth took as much effort, responsibility, and dedication as adopting a child. A child is the most precious thing on this Earth and it saddens me that anyone could ever think of discarding them.

Save Saturn!

In 1990 a new car company was launched that claimed to be a “Different Kind of Car Company.” I was skeptical until a friend asked me to accompany her while shopping for a car because she was afraid the salespeople would try to bully her. The salesman who greeted us was the opposite of the stereotype you’d expect. He informed us that he did not work on commission and that Saturn had a no-haggle policy. If you have ever been car shopping you know how stressful it can be to negotiate a price. They incentivize their employees by offering them ownership (stock) in the company, so that it is in their own interest for the company to thrive. A fair sticker price was set and you either chose to pay it or not (as all retail should be in my opinion). He did not try to pull us into a back room to talk about monthly payments or force a test drive on my friend. He was enthusiastic about his product and proceeded to tell us how his company had designed and built the engine, chassis, and body of their cars all from scratch with safety and reliability in mind. He answered all our questions and then smiled and gave us his card and a farewell handshake. My friend thought it over at her leisure with no pressure and eventually bought one a few days later.

I bought a used Saturn sedan several years ago and have been very happy with it. We also bought a Saturn mini-van last year after we realized our wagon wouldn’t accommodate 3 car seats. I emailed the dealer and the manager personally responded and said he didn’t have one, but would try to find one for me, which he did. He went out of his way to track one down at auction and presented me with a vehicle in immaculate condition and charged me $3,000 dollars less than I was expecting to pay based on the Kelly Blue Book.
I talked my mom into buying one several years ago and she recently bought a newer one and is very pleased with the reliability.

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I have always been impressed with Saturn and am saddened that GM is dragging them down with their shortsighted policies. GM will stop making Saturn cars in 2011, so the dealers are scrambling to find another manufacturer to produce their vehicles so they can save the Saturn name. It’s unfortunate that if this American company is to survive it will probably take a foreign manufacturer to step up.
This company truly is "different" so the next time you need a new or used vehicle I urge you to give Saturn a visit. Also, whenever we make purchases these days we should think about buying products that will help keep and create jobs in America.

Bailout gone awry

I was incensed to learn that Wall Street employees were paid out $18.4 billion in bonuses last year. Why in THE hell are the taxpayers funding bonuses to Wall Street bankers?! Average people are being laid off with no job prospects and executives are getting extra $$ for running their businesses into the ground and losing money for their customers.
The New York comptroller stated that it is unclear whether taxpayer money was used for the bonuses, but the paper trail is irrelevant; companies that got bailout money from the U.S. Government because they claimed to be on the verge of collapse gave their executives reward money on top of their grossly overinflated salaries. They should be reprimanded, not rewarded.

The only conceivable reason I can think of for the bonuses is to keep around executives who fully understand how we got into this mess, so they can dig us out. I'm sorry, but that's like beating a dead horse with the poisonous snake that bit him.

The concept of a bonus is to reward a person for doing his or her job well. Guess what, ya didn't do your job well. I hope Pres Obama & Sec Geithner send some heads rolling because it is unacceptable that these people are getting extra while the rest of us get bent over a barrel for their mistakes. I say take the money back. Fine these companies and let them sink or swim on their own.

Fitness Tip of the Week

Get out and play!

PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN

As I listened to our new President this morning, the words to "God Bless The USA" kept popping into my head. I remember singing that song as part of a children's choir and feeling a warmth in my chest and tears in my eyes. Today that visceral experience was revisited as I absorbed the palpable patriotic pride flowing from millions of my fellow Americans.

If tomorrow all the things were gone I'd worked for all my life
And I had to start again with just my children and my wife
I'd thank my lucky stars to be livin' here today
Cause the flag still stands for freedom
And they can't take that away

And I'm proud to be an American
Where at least I know I'm free
And I won't forget the men who died
Who gave that right to me
And I'd gladly stand up next to you
And defend her still today.
Cause there ain't no doubt I love this land
God bless the USA.

...Lee Greenwood

Fit New Year

Happy New Year to all! It seems like forever since I have been part of the Blogosphere (I am referring of course to the blogging community and not Rod Blagojevich's Lego head).

How is everyone doing with their resolutions? I think it is a great tradition to give up something bad for you to begin the new year. Identify the thing that is most prominently preventing you from reaching your fitness goals and ban it from your life; it could be french fries, beer, sugar-soda, cigarettes, chocolate, white bread, cheesecake, mayonnaise, chicken wings... whatever it is dragging you down, 86 it and you will feel better.
I managed to maintain my weight during the Holidays and now I am back on track with my exercise program.

My stats: 217#, 28%