"Oh, My (fore)Father"

There is a standing joke among some of my friends that I am a white Mexican. This is attributed to my Spanish and ethnicity. What they don't realize is how closely Mexico figures into my family. My great-grandfather emigrated there around the turn of the century to escape religious persecution. There he lived until the political turmoil caused by Pancho Villa caused him to return to the States. Shortly after returning, my grandfather was born. Had he waited a little longer my grandfather would have been Mexican by birth, and thus I would have been part Mexican.
While he lived in Mexico my great-grandfather accomplished many things. He studied law and became a somewhat successful lawyer. He raised his family. He practiced his religion. He loved his church and gave himself fully to its service. It seems almost a trait of generations long past to devote oneself so fully to a religion.
Part of living in Mexico and serving his church included translating hymns from English to Spanish. I remember as a child, living along the border we would often sing songs in church in both English and Spanish, looking through the hymnbook to find his name printed above the hymns he had translated. It gave me immense pride to think someone in my family had so meaningfully contributed to the church. Those hymnbooks have since been replaced by ones that give only credit to the author and songwriter.
Today, while at church, I saw one of the old school hymnbooks. It took me back to my childhood as I rifled through the pages. I asked for, and received, that book so I can keep it and show it to my children when they are older. I want them to appreciate their heritage and know of the devotion their forefathers had. I want it as a reminder to me to strive harder.
As I flipped the pages I came upon one song he translated. It happens to be my favorite hymn, although not because he translated it. I don't know why it is my favorite. I have always loved the music and words. So I was happy that it was he who translated it.
I hope great-grandpa's brand of old school dedication can be passed from me to my children.

Light It Up!

Have you ever stared into a fire, one made from real wood or charcoal and not natural gas, and been mesmerized by the dancing colors? I do it whenever I am around that kind of fire. It fascinates me to watch the embers change from bright yellow to varying shades of red to black or gray. And that all happens as you watch. The wind currents move and shift and cause the coloring to do likewise. I have often wondered what it would be like to be down at that level watching it all happen.
Yesterday I got that chance. I wasn't in an actual fire, but the countryside seemed like it on my drive to and from South Carolina yesterday. The trees are changing color from greens to yellows and oranges and reds. Some have already burned out and have no leaves left. But the wind was pretty strong yesterday and it seemed like the landscape was behaving like the fire previously mentioned. Each breeze caused the countryside to roll and ebb in color. The yellows seemed to give way to the reds and then back again. I can understand why people think of fall as their favorite time of year.

Please forgive the quality of the pictures. It was a little tough to drive and snap pictures at the same time with my cell phone.

Kicking and Screaming

How do you spell 'emasculate'? Seems like a funny question in a written article, but I pose it for a very good reason. I propose we change the spelling of that word...not the meaning, just the spelling. I propose we change the spelling to: M-I-N-I-V-A-N.

The reasons I have are few, but powerful. First, there is nothing about the adjective 'mini' that appeals to men. There is no real good reason why, we just don't like that word. There aren't a lot of men driving around a Mini Cooper, and that is as close to cool as the word gets. We also don't like maxi. That was ruined by women.

VAN - what is it with that word that made car manufacturers think it would appeal to a man. Nothing. I think it was targeted at women. Thus, another reason for changing the spelling of emasculate. Men like acronyms for their vehicles, like SUV. We will drive an SUV because it sounds cool, and has both sport and utility in the acronym. It says "I'm going to have some manly fun and at the same time be useful." That is what we are all about. SUV carries some amount of freedom in the name.

I think car makers originally thought of Family Utility Carrier, but shelved that one for obvious PR reasons.We recognize the utility of the minivan. Many of us come around to coping with a minivan. But we never get over having one. That is why we look at a Porsche with such affection. We wonder what it would be like to take a curve and not worry about how top heavy we are and will the juice in the back spill if we go too fast. There is no back. The Porsche is all about speed and quickness. Now you see me - *zoom*.

We love our families, we really do. We don't know what we would do without them. There is no sacrifice that is too great for our families, but something gets put on the alter to be sacrificed.

And that is the position I find myself in today. We recognized a need for an emascualtion, I mean minivan. I have actually recognized it for quite some time now, I have just resisted, kicking and screaming. So today we divested ourselves of the SUV and bought a minivan. My feelings were succinctly encapsulated by my good friend when he said, "Welcome to that point that no man wants to gets to." (He has been to the same altar before me.) So here I am - minivanned.

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Through new eyes

I have taken a long break between posts, as my editor has reminded me numerous times. What can I say other than I lacked any kind of inspiration to write. Last week a muse inspired me to compose this one.

We went to the beach last week, my wife's family and us. It was the first time since Grace was born that we had been to the beach. We've taken other vacations with Grace, but the beach is one we had been a number of times before she was born. This time might have been the best so far!

The beach through the eyes of a toddler is a wonderful place. Grace had a look of amazement as the waves came in and washed around her feet. She couldn't get enough of the water. She loved running around and finding sea shells, looking at the birds fly through the air, sitting under an umbrella and watching her brother play in the waves. We took her to the pool and she loved jumping in.

We made a trip from Ocean Isle, NC to Myrtle Beach, SC. There my father-in-law and I took Grace to the aquarium. What an adventure. I wish I could paint a sufficient picture to capture the rapture that was in her eyes. Every tank held new and wonderous fishies. There were sharks that gracefully glided overhead so she could watch. There were saw fish that relished relaxing on the canopy of the tank we walked though. There were lots of pretty colors swimming silently, pausing for her to admire. She even got to "pet" a horseshoe crab and loved it. She ran from one tank to another. She dashed all over the pirate exhibit. When we were ready to walk out she walked through the gift shop with us, picking up each fish shaped toy before spotting another and moving to it. We announced we were leaving and she announced she was not yet ready. She made a valiant effort to spend more time there, but we prevailed.

At the end of it all we decided, my father-in-law and I, that if for no other reason this trip was worth the time and money just to watch her having a grand time with her new experiences. I hope that as we go about our daily activities, mundane though they may be, that we will stop from time to time and imagine the experiences as though it was our first, and most wonderful, time. That is what stopping to smell the roses means. So stop. Smell. Enjoy.

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Truth vs. Reality

I heard a great quote today. The great physicist Albert Einstein said "Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one." The mediocre engineer Aaron said "truth is truth, no matter when it was realized." So when is something a truth and when is it not? When is it a persistent illusion?

A truth is immutable. It never changes and can not be altered. Gravity attracts two masses. Death comes to all. Taxes come to some. Those that don't get taxed want to raise taxes on those that do.

Everything else is a persistent illusion. It is to this topic I wish to devote my meager intellectual juices. There are many people who have an agenda and wish to push their illusions off onto the rest of us. If they say it often enough, we should begin to believe them. They speak from a position of authority, or so they believe. Their authority comes not from their own merits or achievements, but from others who came before them. Others who worked hard to establish credibility and honesty. Most of the folks I am thinking of are reporters. They report the "news" on a daily basis. (By the way, news is something that is new. A new development. Anna Nicole Smith is dead, and has been for a while. Can we PLEASE not run any more stories about her, her children or her sordid life?!)

The news people from a few years ago strove to be fair and mostly honest. They saw themselves as the fourth estate; keeping a watchful eye on government so the rest of us could dedicate ourselves to worthy and noble pursuits. Somewhere along the way they realized their power and have nearly abandoned the fair and impartial mantra they used to have. Lately the news outlets have allowed themselves to become purveyors of propaganda. They mingle truth with the politics of man. Both sides are guilty of this. Even NPR (National Progressive Radio (yes, the P stands for public but who are they kidding?)) broadcasts with a slant on their news and stories.

The deterioration of trust and authority continues. Documentaries used to be something that reported a story, fairly and accurately, giving more attention than a news cast could do. I think of the documentary movies my Dad shared with me that showed how people, nice average people, could be turned into monsters. A study that showed that by having an authoritative figure take responsibility normal people could knowingly inflict intense pain and suffering on someone else. Or the study that was planned for a couple weeks and had to be stopped after 2-3 days because the students who participated altered so greatly. (That was a study where 1/2 the students were prisoners and 1/2 were guards. The guards became abusive while the prisoners began to withdraw within them selves.) Those were some great documentaries.

What do we have today? We have "An Inconvenient Truth." Why is it a truth? Because someone said so. Who? Well, the guy that invented the internet! Certainly we should believe him when it comes to climate. We have "Farenheit 9/11." And now, from the same person that brought you "Farenheit 9/11" we are about to be treated to "Sicko." The person who made this documentary took ten ill rescue workers from the Ground Zero rescue effort over to Cuba for treatment. (It is illegal for an American to travel to Cuba and do business, unless one is a journalist. To call Michael Moore a journalist is a stretch that even Detective Gadget couldn't pull off. By taking the workers over to Cuba, he not only broke several laws himself, he caused ten other sick people to break laws too. For money.) So he could make a movie and make some money. A movie that passes an illusion off as a truth.

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Oh Perfectness!

That title is in honor of my sister. She commented the other day that my wife's and my blog entries about our kids seem too sweet, too perfect. I know my kids aren't the only sweet ones out there. We have some friends with two boys who are just as cute as can be. It's always fun to hear about what Nate and Grant have been up to.

My kids can be a handful sometimes, but there are times they are the sweetest things ever. I was reminded of that earlier tonight. Grace went to bed before she could kiss me goodnight. She was awake in her room, talking to herself and occasionally making some kind of sound that resembled a brief cry. I went up to check on her and she was wide awake. I turned on some music and we danced for a bit, we rocked in the chair a bit and then she and her teddy-bear went to bed. She smiled at me as I walked out and, judging from the baby monitor, went to sleep about 10 minutes later. (My sister is probably looking for an insulin shot after that story.)

I'm sure I'll have some difficulties in the future. Grace is already letting the neighbor kid hug and kiss on her. I'm obviously going to have to keep an eye on her. But I'm going to ride this train as long as I can. A friend of mine back in Raleigh told me one time he had an understanding with his wife. He was going to spoil his daughter while she was young, because when she became a teenager he knew she was going to hate him. I'm not going to spoil Grace too much now and I'm not conceding the hatred just yet. But I want to enjoy the good times while they last.



This was Grace in an Easter outfit.


Noah sleeping, I wish I could figure out his patterns already.

Greetings from Sherwood Forest

I was making my annual pilgrimage through Sherwood Forest recently. Everyone does it around this time of year. And until this year I thought everyone also got stopped by a band of merry men. Apparently the band has changed a little bit. First off, not every traveler was getting stopped and shaken down. I then contemplated that and figured probably 10% wouldn't get shaken down because Robin Hood would be looking out for the bottom earning 10.

I counted. It wasn't 10%, it was 40%. Robin Hood was letting 40% of the people get through scot(sp?) free! On the bell curve that seems a little lopsided. As I stood in line waiting my turn to get shaken down I found out from those emerging that another 20% hardly lost a thing. So we are at 60%, right? It turns out Robin Hood targets 40% to pay everything he wants.

Now here is where my blood starts to boil. Robin Hood is supposed to redistribute the ill gotten gains from the rich to the poor. My gains weren't ill gotten. My wife and I worked our tails off for what we got. We don't mind paying a tribute to Mr. Hood to help out the less privileged, but he seems to be mighty generous with our money. In fact, there was a pamphlet in the Sherwood Forest visitors center that, in extremely fine print, said he, Mr. Hood and his jolly band of junket traveling fat cats, plans to increase their shake down in 2010.

I know there are some reading this that find themselves in the aforementioned 60% to whom the band, and may I say that Little John looks a lot like Nancy Pelosi, don't harass. Count yourselves lucky! But recall the question from yore; "Ask not for whom the bell tolls, it tolls for thee." Today you may not be paying, but you will soon, whether it is in tribute to Hood or by losing a job because the economy simply can't sustain itself on such a wildly unbalanced distribution.

I also want to send a note of caution to those who don't pay tribute to Mr. Hood. Don't complain when others don't pay tribute either. If someone makes it into the Forest, documented or not, and doesn't pay, that doesn't increase what you ain't payin. So unless you payin, you ain't complainin.

So I'm traveling lighter now. We're bloodied and missing a suitcase or two. We're headed back home to work and try to survive this year before Little John screws things up too bad. (sHe was just saying how misunderstood the French are and how nice they are. We should just try to understand them and surely they won't want to cross the channel and conquer us, rape the women and pillage the country. Lord, how naive do they get? She even donned a headscarf like the French wear and called it Macaroni.)

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An Inconvenient Diatribe

Please pardon me for jumping on the current events bandwagon for a few minutes. I am reaching my limit of militants and need to vent.
On the radio this morning I was listening to some feedback from an interview conducted earlier in the week. The show was CNBC's Squawk Box and the interview was with Laurie David, producer of an Inconvenient Truth, and Sheryl Crow, a crooner. The topic of the interview was global warming, because movie producers and crooners are experts on this subject. As the interviewer asked questions about differing points of view, differing from what the documentary documents, Laurie declared debate over and the science resolved! She went on to post on her blog that the interviewer is a militant.

Holy Schnikies! That just ruffles my feathers a bit. The gall of some movie producer to declare debate over because 2000 scientists in 150 countries agree with her. Come on, Dow Chemical employs more scientists than that! Debate over? Who is she to end debate? She is the wife of some guy that made a comedy sitcom about nothing (Seinfeld) and went on to make an inane HBO "comedy" about his own life. It's like the thinking in that left coast crew is this: "We made a movie. And not just a movie, but a documentary! A documentary is like a movie based on real events, but it stars people who don't know how to act. And that makes it all fact and we won an Oscar, so we are validated" Arrgh!

Here is a blast from the past taken from the truth vault. "All planets and stars revolve around the Earth." It was a truth. Debate was over because everyone who was an authority said that was the way things were. But there was a scientist who took a long hard look at the facts and determined that in fact the Earth revolved around the sun. Talk about inconvenient. Of course Galileo Galilei was persecuted and called a heretic because he disagreed. All of the scientists were against him. But now there is a new truth regarding the order of what revolves around what. (The newest thinking is the world revolves around Hollywood.) There are others from the vault. World is flat, I didn't inhale, etc.

The real inconvenient truth is that Laurie David, Sheryl Crow, Arianna Huffington et al are no different than VP Dick Cheney. Dick has Iraq, they have global warming. And both are/were misguided. Both push(ed) for action without thinking very hard about the consequences while decrying the perils of not doing something immediately. And both will lead, inexorably, to a decline in civilization.

So there it is. Militants be warned that just because you call something a truth doesn't necessarily make it one. You are all alike, left/right, progressive/conservative. And those of us moderate folks want to shoot you. hehe

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Reflections on the sun

I was watching a program about the sun today and learned some very fascinating facts. For those who haven't already changed the blog channel, I'll share some of those with you and why I think them noteworthy.

1) This isn't a fact but a quote by Galileo Galilei. He said "The sun, with all those planets revolving around it and dependent on it, can still ripen a bunch of grapes as if it had
nothing else in the universe to do." I found this to be a very inspiring thought applicable to each of us. It illustrates a basic responsibility we each have to nurturing. By ascribing human qualities to the sun we can say that even while it maintains the balance of the solar system it still provides nurturing light and warmth to things like grapes so they can grow up and be all the can be. As adults we should be like the sun. We should accomplish our normal duties of providing for the family, being responsible citizens. We should also take the time to nurture children and others with our good example and mentoring.

2) The sun has a temperature of 6000 degrees Kelvin at its surface. The temperature increases as you get further away from the surface of the sun. Scientists don't know why this is the case, but it brings another chance for a metaphor. We should expend good amounts of energy to those nearest us. However, in order to increase our influence further from our intimate relationships, we need to burn a little hotter. By this I don't necessarily mean emotionally hotter. Instead, our influence should be warmer, more loving and understanding.

3) If you look at the sun with an unaided eye you see a nice bright sphere. It is warm and perfectly white at midday. However, if you look through an x-ray, infra-red or UV filter you see dark spots and light spots, explosions and magnetic fields. This holds true for people as well. If you observe someone from a far and only through the very narrow lens of your personal experience with them they will appear a certain way. When you get closer to them you learn of their "light spots and dark spots." This doesn't make them a better or worse person, it just means you know them better. This is a perfect argument to avoid judging people.

On that subject, my wife and I were discussing people and insecurities. I have told her that I am, in some respects, an insecure person. This has surprised her before and she asked what were my symptoms of insecurity. I showed her that the lens through which to observe my insecurities was over-compensation. I want to be accepted and so in socially intense situations tend to try to force others to like me by telling jokes and stories. Many would observe me to be an extrovert and a jerk. However, when the lens is applied, they would understand what is really happening and be able to adjust.

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I'm from the Valley! Nature Valley?

Those who know me know my wife is going through a transition time. We recently had our second child. Man, kids bring so many changes - late nights changing diapers, hours spend watching Barney or Dora, blowing endless bubbles for some amusement. But it has also brought other changes. I love my wife; I love our kids and I wouldn't change any of them for anything in the world. But some of the changes are taking some getting used to.



Recently I talked about wraps, so there is one thing. Then, there are the requirements for a stroller. I have been lectured on the need for appropriate foot apparel for infants and children (often costing what I pay for size 10 men's shoes). Lastly, there is breastfeeding.



Where do I start on that? I saw all of my siblings breastfed, so it came as no surprise that the equipment had a practical purpose. What did come as a surprise was the militancy some women have in favor or breastfeeding. Slowly my wife went from not wanting to be seen with a baby in a position that might remotely be considered in feeding position. That has now changed to where some modesty is required, but onlookers are ignored. I'm cool with that.



But now I hear talk about nurse-ins. Am I in the 60's? Did I marry Al Nelson with boobs (for those who don't know Al, count yourself lucky you don't now have a mental image to cope with, for those that do, seek counseling urgently!)? In what alternate universe did I awaken? Myspace has declared pictures of breastfeeding babies to be obscene, and has taken to removing them. (To wit, pictures of the equipment while not in action are ok.) So the "lactivists" out there want to stage a virtual nurse-in. They post pictures of themselves feeding their child, or someone else feeding, daring the Myspace people to remove their pictures. My response to both sides is the same..."huh?" Why are the pics of a nipple covered by a babies mouth obscene, and why are the women up in arms? Must be a chick thing.



If there is something I have learned it is if there is a virtual something, there is a real one too. And here in town someone got upset because a judge forbade her from nursing her child in the courtroom. So, you guessed it, a nurse-in was in the offing.



I think everyone should take a step back, take a deep breath and be nice to each other. Women feed children with their breasts. It happens. It was meant to happen. If it wasn't, women would be marsupials and could tuck a kid into a pouch. Let them cover and nurse happily. Can't we all just get along???

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Wrap it up!

Did he wear a wrap? You know, Brad Pitt wears a wrap. Maya Wrap, Hot sling, Hoochie Wrap. It seems that wraps are everywhere, and I'm not talking about food enveloped in a tortilla. I am talking about sheets you tie over your shoulder so you can hold a baby inside. They are all the rage these days among "happening" people.



Unfortunately, I am not a happening person. I have never been happening. These little papooses (or should we Latinize the Indian word and make it papoosi?) are ok. They seem fairly functional. I just can't bring myself to wear one. In the same vein, I have never been able to hug a tree, which is a prerequisite to wearing a wrap, I think.



I support my sweet wife as she tries to do what is best for the baby. If she feels that wearing a wrap and toting 'lil pup around on her hip, I'll help out as I can. Heck, I tolerate cloth diapers (although I don't change the stinky ones). I hear about innumerable studies on co-sleeping, breast feeding, attachment parenting, hemp clothing (I told her if I come home and discover that she is trying to grow her own supply of hemp, I'm walking away) and whatever else is out in the netosphere. But I don't care if Brad Pitt wears a wrap, I won't. I also won't walk around the house nude, which apparently was a problem for Brad.



And until my better half can figure them out, pray for us (but prayer is another blog). We will either master the darn things or set up a second hand hammock store.



P.S. Lest anyone think my wife is a walking ad for Nature Valley's product line, she assures me she isn't. She commits that major granola sin and throws away Al cans. (That's right, I used the periodic abbreviation for aluminum, I'm a geek and embrace my geekiness.) And though it is a small miracle, she doesn't own, and never has, a pair of Birkenstocks. She has probably owned every other brand and type of shoe, but not those. They are too ugly (my opinion, not necessarily shared by my shoe loving wife).

The little things

Anyone that knows me knows my wife recently gave birth to our little boy. I have been contemplating what I should write about this event. My wife talked a little bit about it on her blog and I don't like to duplicate. Besides, I am the daddy and I have my own thoughts.



Thought number one: I'm getting too old for this. I love the kids. They are two of the three best things that have happened to me. I was never sure I wanted kids. I wouldn't trade mine in for anything. But I'm no spring rooster. And besides, I don't know if I can watch my wife suffer on deaths gate again. (Yes, that is a little dramatic, but when you consider all the difficulties she's gone through with these two bundles of joy, you know I'm not exaggerating that much.) I love her too much to think about losing her. So maybe that is one and two.



Thought number three: Kids will change you. As I mentioned, I wasn't sure I wanted any kids. They are noisy, messy, stinky and distracting. They are now why I love to get up in the morning. You can't beat the smile on a little ones face when she is waking up, looking around and sees you. Sony should make a game that includes making a little baby smile and laugh. There is really no greater feeling.



Thought number four: I am one lucky guy. I can't say I am the luckiest guy cause my friends and I have talked about our families before out on the golf course. I know they consider themselves pretty darn lucky too. Besides, luck is a subject for an upcoming posting. But I've got one daughter whose face lights up when she hasn't seen me for a while and I walk in. I have a son who will hopefully behave similarly. And I have a wife who is better than me. So I am lucky to have all that.



Thought five: I have a great set of role models in my parents and siblings. The older I get the more I realize how hard the 'rents had it. And I certainly didn't make it any easier on them. Still, they did a darn good job raising the eight of us. My hat is off to them and my thanks out to them for the wonderful examples they set.



I think that is it for now. I have some other thoughts I'll put you to sleep with in the near future, but for now I have family on my mind. I'll leave you with a picture of the new one. Be good to your families. They, more than anything, are worth getting right. (There is no first time, there is only one time, so work hard and get it right more often than not.)

Decisions, decisions

The 2008 election cycle has begun already. I can't really think of a more depressing statement than that, but there it is. We have now almost two full years to judge people who are putting on a show and trying their best to be anyone but themselves. I think Hillary is a great example of that. When asked what her favorite movie is, she replied that her people would think about it and get back on that one.

So in the next nearly two years we need to consider and choose a candidate we think will represent our values while in office. This means we need to determine what our values are. The politicians will tell you there are many issues that distinguish them from eachother.

They look for people who aren't "single issue" voters. This is supposed to be some sort of insult, as if to say that having a favorite issue makes one "low brow" or ignorant. I for one am a single issue voter, and I'm not afraid to say what that issue is. It's the economy.

The economy weighs heavily on my mind, and I fear what the wrong person will do. At the turn of the century our economy was slowing down. In 2001 our economic center was attacked and our economy suffered because of it.

In 2003 tax cuts were enacted and they had the desired effect. Right now tax receipts significantly exceed expectations. We are at what economists consider full employment. The stock market continues to surge and reach new highs. The news outlets don't talk about that very much, but it is all true and can be checked.

So what I want is someone who won't screw it up. The Leffer curve works. When tax rates were lowered, tax receipts increased because we were too far to the right of the curve. So while I need to care for my family I want someone that isn't going to push us back to the right side of that curve. That will increase tax rates, lower tax receipts and increase unemployment. All things I'd like to avoid.

For those that espouse the domestic agenda of wealth redistribution (aka Robinhood syndrome of taking from the rich and giving to the poor) I offer the following observation. If unemployment is low, wages will necessarily rise and the poor will gain a greater amount of income. Wealth in our global economy doesn't need to be a zero sum effort. We can all win, with the right strategy.

The second item of concern to me relates to health care. But rather than demanding govenment regulations and price impositions, I'd rather see something done about tort law. Law suit abuse is one of the largest causes of rapidly escalating health care costs, and such abuses place America in as much danger as unions have as late. Unions had their place served America well back in the day. Today, I believe they are sucking American business dry. Lawyers are doing the same through lawsuits for hangnails misdiagnosed, etc. So tort reform is the second issue.

Sure, there are other issues; abortion, stem cell research, global warming. Those are all things I don't really care too much about. Yes, I have personal feelings, but the resolution of any or all of those items won't put a single scrap of food on my families table. If you can think of a solid reason I should move those items up on my list, please feel free to write me a note. Good luck, and may you choose something that doesn't screw things up for me and mine.

Moral Compass

I won’t go into the convoluted train of thought that brought me to this subject. I will say the topic came to me in my most cherished thinking time of day. This is a time when I wash the cares of the world from me and ponder whatever comes to mind. If you don’t have such a time, I highly recommend finding one. It can provide clarity to cloudy thought and enlightenment on abstract topics.

What occurred to me today was the metaphor of the moral compass. Since everyone should know what a compass is I won’t delve into that definition. The comparison to something related to morals and values seems obvious. A moral compass points in the direction indicated by one’s value system.

This gets especially interesting when I extend the metaphor and contemplate battlefield tactics and the ways one can be led astray. A compass is really only useful when used in conjunction with a map. Without a map it is a pointer. It points somewhere undefined. (In mathematics undefined is depicted as ∞, what we call infinity outside of math. I think that is interesting.)

There are many maps one can use, depending on the value system. For the sake of brevity I will stick to a religious map, scripture. Scripture is word from God provided to man could find his way back to God. Following the scripture should lead one back to his maker. But a compass is needed to navigate the map, a moral compass.

The moral compass is that which points in the proper direction. It tells us right from wrong. Scripture is sometimes thought to do this, but it doesn’t. Scripture delineates right from wrong, but it is the moral compass that “whispers” in our minds when something we are contemplating is right or wrong. This moral compass is also known by other names, notably the Holy Ghost, light of God.

Now back to the interesting part about battlefield tactics. An enemy will try to confuse and disorient in order to gain an upper hand. For example, since maps are readily had, as are compasses, I might want to set up a base near a large iron deposit. This would cause the compass to begin to point in the wrong direction. Since I wouldn’t want my enemies compass to point right at me, I’d put my base in the opposite direction from that deposit. I would know how to navigate, but my enemy wouldn’t and I’d have some surprises waiting nearest that deposit. I would also make sure there was a well worn path leading towards the deposit. This lulls the enemy into thinking they are on the right path and causes them to discard their map. Without their map and with their compass conflicted, they are now lost and ripe for picking.

So it is with our own moral compass. If we discard our map and rely solely on our moral compass, it can become disorienting with outside influences. Things we want, influenced by people we know, can cause our moral compass to point in the wrong direction. We ignore that voice in our mind because the voice of our own desire, screams louder. “Take the candy, you want it and you should have it!” “It feels good, so it can’t be wrong!” And soon we are on a well worn path, ignoring our map and following a deviate compass. We are on a path that will surely lead to destruction. We are ripe for picking.

We can rescue ourselves from this predicament if we recognize the error and correct it. It may take some work to extricate ourselves. The path back could be much tougher than the one that led in.

Our return is only as good as the information we have available. For example, were I to want to navigate my way to the North Pole, I could grab a map and a compass and begin traveling. However, what would happen is I would end up miles from the North Pole, and wind up at the magnetic North Pole. Without knowing the difference between magnetic north and true north I would be totally lost.

Scripture is similar in this regard. The canon we accept as the Bible, for those Christians out there, was established in the 4^th century at the council of Nicea. This was a group of men deciding if the writings they had in front of them were holy or not. Simply following it would lead us to a place close, but not our actual destination. We need the help of prophets communicating with God to tell us the difference between “magnetic north and true north” on our map. We have that today, and with the help of the Book of Mormon we can find our way to our ultimate destination.

Those are the thoughts I pondered in my thinking time. It was maybe a 15 minute thought journey. I’ll let you know of others as they occur to me; as long as they aren’t work related (I sometimes ponder work things in my thinking time).

Hubris Americana

Hubris isn’t anything that is singular to America. However, the American hubris is different in nature to that found almost anywhere else in the free world. The “American dream” isn’t really unique to America. It is more readily attainable in America, but is a dream shared by all.

Americans demand the right to be free from persecution, yet many feel justified in persecuting others. They put forth many arguments put forward in an attempt to justify this persecution. They are the same arguments that have been put forward since this great country began over 200 years ago to villify certain groups of people. These arguments have been used to oppress and repress peoples and relegate them to a position in our society where we can maintain our superiority. We need the labor these groups bring to fuel our economic growth, yet we hate them because we need them, and because they seem, in our categorical way of seeing foreigners, “so different.”

The current issue of “illegal” immigration is a perfect example of this. In our hubris, Americans have decided some transgressions are more egregious than others. Speeding through a residential neighborhood to get to the grocery store is OK. Leaving ones car in the fire lane while one runs in to grab a few groceries is OK. Crossing an arbitrary border in search of work is a vile transgression worthy of being hunted down, humiliated and deported. Never mind that the transgression is a violation of administrative law and not a felony nor a misdemeanor.

What is the fear of others that drives us to such passionate persecution? Were the Mormons or the Cherokee so evil it was necessary to run them from their homes and force them to march across the country so they could continue to live? Were the Irish all that bad, in the end? What about the Polish or any other eastern European nationality? In retrospect all these groups have brought good to our nation, despite coming in larger numbers than we wanted and none ever really threatened our national well being.

The truth be told, our segregation of peoples during times of immigration leads to more problems than if we just welcomed and accepted them. Gangs and organized crime often grow out of such segregation. Poverty and drug dependence among these groups are, in part, an outgrowth of this segregation. And yet we continue to segregate and discriminate in the name of national security and national “unity.”

In the end, we eventually come to accept these “strangers,” integrate their customs and culture into our own, and claim superiority over the rest of the world for our “melting pot” culture. We took pizza and made it an American staple. Sausages and sauerkraut are common at football game tailgate parties. Tacos and fajitas are now almost more commonly sought than hamburgers.

Many “solutions” have been proposed to rid ourselves of these new “strangers.” The most ridiculous and indicative of American hubris is a wall along our southern border. But those who call for this wall only want it on our souther border because illegal immigration surely has no provenance from a country whose citizens are mostly white and speak English.

A second solution isn’t really a solution at all, but maintenance of the status quo. This means we keep our ridiculous quotas on immigration in place and refuse to recognize the need for labor our economy has. A third solution has been proposed, one that radically changes the way of thinking – open the borders and allow a “free flow” of immigrants on a temporary basis and more orderly basis.

It is this last proposal that has the most chance of effecting any real change on “national security.” An open border policy shouldn’t be interpreted as allowing everyone to cross wherever they want. Instead checkpoints are established where a person can be checked. With computer databases and agreements with friendly countries we can verify a person isn’t a criminal before letting them in to contribute to our growing economy. Criminals and agents from unfriendly countries would be turned away. The only way for them to gain entry for whatever nefarious purpose would be through other, monitorable channels, such as are now used by all. By opening the borders through checkpoints, only criminals would try to cross anywhere other than the checkpoints.

The positive to this plan, other than the obvious benefit to our economy, is that it would reduce human trafficking. Though it would be an exaggeration to label all this trafficking as slave running, that does occur. Illegal human trafficking presents the lecherous with opportunities to abuse and mistreat those whom they are trafficking.

It is time to overcome our hubris and embrace our brothers to the south. We should accept their contributions to our economy, accept their taxes, and accept their food. We should reject the notion they present a danger to our security or our way of life.

Progress?

Siince the beginning of time man has been surrounded by crap. The first big step came with the realization that leaves work better than rocks. That was followed by digging holes in the ground to cover what was left behind. This led to indoor plumbing. However, one has to be trained to use indoor plumbing, and until one is trainable, a diaper is needed.
Diapers used to be cloth, with pins that poked the poor, tired parent who wasn't paying attention or who was struggling to keep things in the general vicinity clean. Not only that, but what was one to do with the dirty diapers? Rnse the diaper in the toilet and heap it with others in a filthy wet pile. After a period of time, the pile of filth moved to the wash machine. Then came the single greatest invention in the history of parenhood - disposable diapers.
Some have determined disposable diapers are not healthy! There are nasty things in the diapers, they say. No S@#%! Disposable diapers are made from things that don't decompose quickly and cause bad things to happen.
The progress made in the last 50 years is in jeopardy because disposable diapers are...disposable. Use the old cotton ones, they say, it is safer and healthier. Has anyone really put some serious thought into that? Festering piles of wet, used diapers in my house are safer than piles of diapers buried in the ground? How do we know all those oil deposits aren't from dinosaur diaper piles? The oil pipes don't get clogged with dino bones. Maybe 15 million years from now our disposable diaper dumps will be the oil our progeny live off of.
Diseases used to kill people because they didn't have good hygene. They would s#$% where they ate, so to speak. Then came indoor plumbing and waste treatment and diseases reduced. Disposable diapers came along, and further reductions. Now we are told disposable diapers are bad. Really? We should replace the festering piles of filth in our homes because some crunchy nut thinks the absorbent material is bad, or the plastic shell has some kind of something that caused cancer in rats when the rats were injected with it.
I think we need a study commissioned by Congress, to establish the health benefits and detriments to disposable diapers. Maybe a bi-partisan commission could interview the folks from Nature Valley to fully understand their claims. After all, who better than the politicians who are experts in s#$%. (Al Gore probably invented s#$%!) The CDC could be contacted for their opinion. Then we could be informed with substantiated evidence on the best course of action.