134

134 members of your United States House of Representatives voted against a bill for greater shareholder input into CEO compensation.  All aboard the gravy train.  Actually this bill passed the House but I can’t imagine what happens in the Senate where you have to be a millionaire to think about running. 

Election 2008

  I make the following vows for the election cycle of 2008.  I hope anyone who reads this will follow suit.

1.  I will not believe or disbelieve statements made about any candidate without checking it out for myself (I don’t care if it is someone who I agree with bashing someone I hate.  We have a need for truth)

2.  I will not allow myself to be sucked into formulating opinions about candidates positions based on votes taken out of context (no credence nor quarter shall be given to political adds claiming someone voted to raise taxes infinity times)

3. I will not vote for any candidate that balks in the least about debating his/her opponent (if candidates are shy about sharing their message in an open forum where they have to actually formulate answers to questions and respond to criticism, I don’t believe they are capable of doing the job)

4. I will not believe any message, add, billboard, poster, pamphlet, email or any of the other garbage put out there by 527s, PACs, or anyone else not subject to the (minimal and insufficient) campaign rules of the FEC

5. (This will be the most difficult for you partisans)  I will not vote for candidates who attack their opponent personally to the detriment of having a debate about the profound issues affecting this country. 

The news should make us ashamed…

I read, on Yahoo, an article that describes a study of the workforces of the world and how much they whine.  I can understand France being number 1 because, well, no explanation needed.  For the United States to be in the top five should make us all ashamed of ourselves.  We have the highest standard of living in the world, and yet we complain.  This is a travesty.  It is too bad that the rugged, frontier, pull yourself up by the bootstraps mentality has been replaced by the woe is me, victim, the world owes me attitude.  We have become to reliant on government, litigation, and lotteries.  To get something, it should be earned. 

Now, lest some right-wing, Darwinian, capitalist come along and peg this as a diatribe for unbridled capitalism I must beg to differ.  I also read an article on CEO compensation that listed the top 10 in America.  These salaries are not based on production nor contributions to a company.  They are purely a handout in an old boys network of corporate greed.  Boards that agree to such compensation at the expense of stockholders should investigated for fraud.  They think nothing of firing thousands of workers to cut costs when the most obvious useless cost is sitting at the head table. 

I guess what I am trying to say is that the attitude of many needs an adjustment.  CEO’s and entry level alike should be sent to other parts of the world when they get to unhappy with what they have. 

If anyone really cared…..

If anyone really cared about abortion in this country things would be much different. 

 If the anti-choice crowd actually cared about preventing abortions they would acknowledge that legislation would not stop abortion.  All of the time and energy used to try to legislate abortion will be for naught.  Before Roe vs. Wade there were abortions.  Legal, no.  Did they happen?  Yes.  If they really cared they would be trying to prevent abortion.   Anyone with common sense knows that you would reduce abortions by eliminating the conditions that make that choice seem like the best option.  Fighting poverty, providing support to pregnant mothers, educating about birth-control, and promoting adoption would all be more effective than the garbage that takes place now. 

 If the anti-life crowd really cared, they would acknowledge that abortion is a choice, but a sad choice to have to make.  Any woman that is put in the position of making that choice sees no other option.  Abortion takes a sad toll on women, emotionally and physically.   It should stop being promoted as a safe happy way to make your problems go away.  If the anti-life crowd really cared about the people whose rights they vow to protect, they to would be working to make abortion a choice, but one used less often. 

 If anyone really cared about the women and their babies the political posturing and negative crap would end and both sides would go forward working to limit abortion as a worst of bad options.  Too often we look to legislation as a way to end something that can be prevented by removing the conditions that promote it.  How many social problems could be ended by merely reducing poverty, making education accessible, making sure kids have medical coverage, and making sure everyone has enough to eat.  Go lobby Congress if you must but don’t expect that it will solve the problem.

Most disheartening…

I think what I find most disheartening is that we are always finding ways to react to problems rather than solve them.  If our children aren’t learning we should test them more.  If we are causing global warming lets find ways to adapt to it.  If health insurance isn’t covering everyone lets find a way to supplement it.  Prescription drugs are too expensive lets import them from Canada.  If politicians are attaching unneeded amendments with lots of money, lets not stop it lets make sure anyone can know about it.  Hey here is an idea, it may be expensive, hard, require sacrifice and even a little leadership, but how about we try to solve the problems for once. 

Doomed to Repeat it….

Anyone who remembers their Civics class may remember the names: Paine, Locke and Hobbs.  These were political philosophers who understood the meaning of society and how it needed to be set up in order to operate well.  At that time the world was full of monarchies and individual rights were not at all recognized.  I believe today the pendulum has swung to far.  So far, in fact, that people are so wrapped up in their individual rights that few are willing or even see their responsibility to others and the greater society.  I am sick of people who think that rules do not apply to them, people who want to be cared for because they unwilling to do their part.  I am mostly sick of people who have an obscure skill which, for some reason, is highly valued in our economy and instead of being grateful become self important buffoons.  One politician, it was John McCain I think, talked about being part of something greater than ourselves.  It is time for some of us to pull our heads out (so to speak) and see the bigger picture. 

Comparison Shopping

Don Imus said something stupid and insensitive.  While I find this appalling, though not rare, I pause to wonder what other people in the public eye have done and said and kept their jobs.  Well, where to begin, the Vice-President shot a guy in the face.  President Bush has a DWI, John McCain was one of the Keating 5, Hillary Clinton has Whitewater and Bill Clinton (insert your favorite White House intern joke here)?  Allen Iverson killed a guy, Ray Lewis obstructed justice and Mike Tyson (we won’t even make a list) lead a laundry list from the world of sports (Sports Center could give us a list of the week).   Mel Gibson (antisemitic), Robert Downey Jr. (I don’t have enough room here), and Nick Nolte (have you seen that booking photo) come from the world of movies.  How about music?  Michael Jackson (shut up nothing was proved except dangling a baby over a balcony), Ozzie Ozboure (bat under glass anyone, oh yeah and peeing on the Alamo) and Brittany Spears (how do you install a car seat?) give us some examples. 

With the state of the world, you would think the media would find something with substance and meaning to report on rather than some two bit talk radio jockey making a dumb-ass comment on the air. 

What might have been….

Why do we save people from themselves.  Apparently, some dumb-ass lost a bet on the Superbowl and the result was that he had to legally change his name to Peyton Manning.  A judge has ruled that this young man will not be allowed to change his name after all.  His parents are relieved.  The judge said it is to avoid confusion but the real reason was to give this kid an out.  Why do we do this.  We are constantly saving people from making bad decisions or rescuing them when they do.  When we rescue people from the small mistakes, they don’t learn.  Then they make bigger ones.  Don’t climb on the top step of a ladder, don’t eat a frozen pizza without cooking it, don’t bet a legal name change on the Superbowl.  Have some freaking common sense.  Life is rough, get a helmet!

Here is one thing that is wrong…

…with corporate America.  I received a privacy notice from the company with which I have my student loan.  I have to fill this out and send it back.  There are three options.  I can let them send any information they want to all of their “corporate partners”, or I can let them send only “certain” information to their corporate partners.  The third choice is that I do not want them sharing my information.  If I do not send the form back, they take that to mean I give them permission to send, sell or Publish my information (that part about publishing might be an exaggeration).  Permission should be needed to share my information.  Silence is not permission.  In this day of the almighty dollar when companies have enough trouble not “losing” or having my information stolen, I don’t see the need to give them the power to make additional money off of me at the risk of the security of my information.  We should shut it down.  The only way a company should be able to share my information with anyone outside of the immediate reason it was given , is if I have signed a statement authorizing it.  End of story.  I hope you enjoyed my rant of the day.  Thank you for visiting common sense. 

In case you thought the judiciary was above reproach…

I heard a commercial that a bill has been introduced into the Minnesota Legislature that allows homeowners to defend themselves against intruders.  I am not a huge law and order guy, but I have always found it backwards that a homeowner can be sued by an intruder.  In my opinion, when you unlawfully enter a premises you forfeit any right to a civil suit.  I applaud the opportunity for some common sense to be injected into our system.  Our system certainly doesn’t use what is right for a blue print of what is legal.  It is time for a reduction in legal shenanigans and an increase in correct legal decisions.