It seems to me that the two political parties in DC play by different sets of rules. One party is willing to distort the process, block all progress on actions that do not align with their agenda and drive compliance with their ideology from their members. The other party is concerned with process and procedure, expresses a willingness to compromise and has a diverse range of individual beliefs that sometimes do not align with party ideology.
The funny thing is, at least from my view, there is no need to identify which party is which.
Tuesday, January 31, 2017
Sunday, January 29, 2017
Right to Work for less
It's like groundhog day in NH politics. Every two years, a so-called Right to Work bill comes before the NH Legislature. This has happened in NH for the past 20 plus years. Why? Because the anti-unionists only have to win once - labor must win every time. So they keep coming.
The argument this year is that so-called Right to Work will bring businesses to NH. I just don't get it. The default position of Taft-Hartley (the law that gave birth to Right to Work) is that agency fee must be negotiated between the employer and the employees. It must be agreed to by both parties - that's how contracts work.
So, if you own a business, and you support so-called Right to Work-type environments, why would you agree to a contract that allows it? What our elected officials are telling us is that business owners prefer a law that prohibits agency fee (simply a portion of union dues that non-members pay to cover the costs of negotiating and administering a collective bargaining agreement from which they benefit) rather than simply not agreeing to it as part of a negotiation.
This makes no sense to me.
The argument this year is that so-called Right to Work will bring businesses to NH. I just don't get it. The default position of Taft-Hartley (the law that gave birth to Right to Work) is that agency fee must be negotiated between the employer and the employees. It must be agreed to by both parties - that's how contracts work.
So, if you own a business, and you support so-called Right to Work-type environments, why would you agree to a contract that allows it? What our elected officials are telling us is that business owners prefer a law that prohibits agency fee (simply a portion of union dues that non-members pay to cover the costs of negotiating and administering a collective bargaining agreement from which they benefit) rather than simply not agreeing to it as part of a negotiation.
This makes no sense to me.
Saturday, January 28, 2017
Bullshitter-in-Chief
Excellent article over at The Conversation about Trump as bullshitter rather than liar, and why that is much more dangerous.
It seems to me that we've created a culture of citizens who are constantly in bias confirmation mode. It's a hyper-partisan environment that reminds me somewhat of how we view our sports teams and sometimes even our families. We're constantly scanning the environment for information that supports our view of our sports team or political point of view, and we easily dismiss or ignore contrary information. Even if we might benefit from that knowledge.
I know that I am susceptible to this phenomena. Less so now that I've eliminated almost all sources of broadcast news, radio and television. My news is now limited to an occasional scan of newspapers and a blog or two. Combined with a daily meditation program, I think I'm blunting the spoon-feeding of emotion that we call journalism.
On the other hand, I also understand that there are real-life implications for the agenda that our dear leader has. Real people will be impacted in harmful ways. The funny thing is, I simply don't get the sense from Trump that he cares about any of this - one way or another. Almost in the same way that I have no interest in camping or knitting. The sense I get is of a person who wants to take advantage of a population looking for information to confirm their bias and their fear of others.
That's what makes his bullshit so dangerous.
It seems to me that we've created a culture of citizens who are constantly in bias confirmation mode. It's a hyper-partisan environment that reminds me somewhat of how we view our sports teams and sometimes even our families. We're constantly scanning the environment for information that supports our view of our sports team or political point of view, and we easily dismiss or ignore contrary information. Even if we might benefit from that knowledge.
I know that I am susceptible to this phenomena. Less so now that I've eliminated almost all sources of broadcast news, radio and television. My news is now limited to an occasional scan of newspapers and a blog or two. Combined with a daily meditation program, I think I'm blunting the spoon-feeding of emotion that we call journalism.
On the other hand, I also understand that there are real-life implications for the agenda that our dear leader has. Real people will be impacted in harmful ways. The funny thing is, I simply don't get the sense from Trump that he cares about any of this - one way or another. Almost in the same way that I have no interest in camping or knitting. The sense I get is of a person who wants to take advantage of a population looking for information to confirm their bias and their fear of others.
That's what makes his bullshit so dangerous.
Stoned
Nothing upsets the apple cart quite like physical discomfort. I've had quite a week.
Woke up on Tuesday morning, around 4 a.m., feeling like I was being stabbed with knitting needles in my side. It was not fun. I had a good sweat going and the pain was spasmodic and taking my breath away. It was searing, primal pain.
Naturally, I woke my wife up and told her that I thought my appendix was bursting and I needed to go to the ER at Concord Hospital. Luckily, this is only 1.5 miles from my house.
It wasn't that easy, though. It had been freezing raining all night and there was about 2" of ice on the truck. I was useless in trying to help clear everything. Not only was I in severe pain in my side, but I also have something going on with my right shoulder - not sure what it is, but it has basically left me with the use of only my left arm.
We made it to the ER. I think the intake person had my diagnosis right off the bat, but didn't share it with me. By this time, while I'm giving my info, my side pain has increased to an almost intolerable level.
After they wheeled me into the exam room, the ER doc told me she suspected that I had a kidney stone. They pumped me up with morphine and threw me into a CT machine (can't wait to get the bill!). The scan revealed that it is a kidney stone - a relatively small one at 2 mm. The bad news is that most people begin to feel the pain of stones as they enter the bladder. My stone was just leaving the kidney...yikes.
In any event, my stone is journeying down the ureter, from kidney to bladder. Occasionally, I feel a bit of cramping in my lower back that reminds me that the little bugger is there, but, for the most part, I'm pain free. I'm told to expect some issues where the ureter connects to the bladder, as it narrows at the junction. Can't wait.
Woke up on Tuesday morning, around 4 a.m., feeling like I was being stabbed with knitting needles in my side. It was not fun. I had a good sweat going and the pain was spasmodic and taking my breath away. It was searing, primal pain.
Naturally, I woke my wife up and told her that I thought my appendix was bursting and I needed to go to the ER at Concord Hospital. Luckily, this is only 1.5 miles from my house.
It wasn't that easy, though. It had been freezing raining all night and there was about 2" of ice on the truck. I was useless in trying to help clear everything. Not only was I in severe pain in my side, but I also have something going on with my right shoulder - not sure what it is, but it has basically left me with the use of only my left arm.
We made it to the ER. I think the intake person had my diagnosis right off the bat, but didn't share it with me. By this time, while I'm giving my info, my side pain has increased to an almost intolerable level.
After they wheeled me into the exam room, the ER doc told me she suspected that I had a kidney stone. They pumped me up with morphine and threw me into a CT machine (can't wait to get the bill!). The scan revealed that it is a kidney stone - a relatively small one at 2 mm. The bad news is that most people begin to feel the pain of stones as they enter the bladder. My stone was just leaving the kidney...yikes.
In any event, my stone is journeying down the ureter, from kidney to bladder. Occasionally, I feel a bit of cramping in my lower back that reminds me that the little bugger is there, but, for the most part, I'm pain free. I'm told to expect some issues where the ureter connects to the bladder, as it narrows at the junction. Can't wait.
Sunday, January 22, 2017
Every Little Thing Gonna Be Alright
Staying away from the television and emotion-laden news reports has proven to be good for my emotional health. To gain viewers and ratings, the 'news' shows simply push and tug at our emotional triggers. This is particularly true of cable news and you should avoid these travesties at all costs.
Please don't feed the animals. That's what I'm reminded of when I think of the people who watch Fox or MSNBC. These channels are providing political programming that serves to enrage people by engaging their lizard brains and causing anxiety. There's no cerebral engagement going on here - it's pure tribal and primal.
The further you get away from this commentary, the less impact most of the B.S. has on you. Sure, it's possible that the ideologues who hold political office are pursuing their agenda. And it's equally possible that this agenda is at odds with yours. But getting wrapped up in the anxiety and fear being propagated by the cable programming is not the solution. It's not even part of the solution and in most cases is making things worse as it solidifies a hyper-polarized environment.
The solution is to get involved. Volunteer for an organization you believe in - help advocate for them at the legislature. Talk to your friends and family about the work you're doing. Post your volunteer activity on social media to inspire others to follow suit. Donate money to the cause and work hard.
Make a difference. Don't worry about a thing.
Please don't feed the animals. That's what I'm reminded of when I think of the people who watch Fox or MSNBC. These channels are providing political programming that serves to enrage people by engaging their lizard brains and causing anxiety. There's no cerebral engagement going on here - it's pure tribal and primal.
The further you get away from this commentary, the less impact most of the B.S. has on you. Sure, it's possible that the ideologues who hold political office are pursuing their agenda. And it's equally possible that this agenda is at odds with yours. But getting wrapped up in the anxiety and fear being propagated by the cable programming is not the solution. It's not even part of the solution and in most cases is making things worse as it solidifies a hyper-polarized environment.
The solution is to get involved. Volunteer for an organization you believe in - help advocate for them at the legislature. Talk to your friends and family about the work you're doing. Post your volunteer activity on social media to inspire others to follow suit. Donate money to the cause and work hard.
Make a difference. Don't worry about a thing.
Saturday, January 21, 2017
President Camacho
I dunno if I'm going to be able to stand four years of Trump. The first press conference his administration holds was to sling propaganda and lies about the number of attendees at his inauguration. The press secretary insisted that it was the most attended event in the history of the world - this despite demonstrable evidence to the contrary. There are pictures...although, according to Trump, they've been photoshopped.
Trump also took a quick trip to Langley to speak at the CIA. The president packed the hall with his supporters who cheered and applauded his speech to create the illusion that CIA professionals were in his corner. It is textbook manipulation by a dangerous demagogue - very Orwellian.
We're in for a helluva ride, folks. Trump's approval ratings are in the mi-30's. This is an unsustainable level where one catastrophe leaves the new president isolated and under siege. Lincoln once said that you can fool some of the people all the time and all of the people some of the time, but you can't fool all of the people all of the time.
Let's hope he was right.
Trump also took a quick trip to Langley to speak at the CIA. The president packed the hall with his supporters who cheered and applauded his speech to create the illusion that CIA professionals were in his corner. It is textbook manipulation by a dangerous demagogue - very Orwellian.
We're in for a helluva ride, folks. Trump's approval ratings are in the mi-30's. This is an unsustainable level where one catastrophe leaves the new president isolated and under siege. Lincoln once said that you can fool some of the people all the time and all of the people some of the time, but you can't fool all of the people all of the time.
Let's hope he was right.
A Time To Act
Kelli and I participated in the Women's Rally in Concord today. We arrived around 10 to a packed Statehouse lawn - some estimated the crowd at 5,000 plus. It was a great turnout.
I was very moved at the diversity and peacefulness of the crowd. The mood was supportive and energetic with a strong sense of defiance - we are not moving backwards. Maybe there's an awakening happening. Maybe not.
Rallies are good for bringing people together to share our hopes and dreams for a better country and world. But a rally does not move the needle much if there is no call or move to action afterwards. We need to pack hearing rooms at the legislature and folks to turn out to phone banks to call neighbors. People need to contact legislators and run for office. None of this matters if the rally simply melts into the past.
There was an unbridled enthusiasm at the Statehouse today. The weather was great and people of all ages, colors and ethnicity were united, if for only a few hours. None of us are strong enough to stand against the machine alone. But together, together we have a chance.
We are better together.
I was very moved at the diversity and peacefulness of the crowd. The mood was supportive and energetic with a strong sense of defiance - we are not moving backwards. Maybe there's an awakening happening. Maybe not.
Rallies are good for bringing people together to share our hopes and dreams for a better country and world. But a rally does not move the needle much if there is no call or move to action afterwards. We need to pack hearing rooms at the legislature and folks to turn out to phone banks to call neighbors. People need to contact legislators and run for office. None of this matters if the rally simply melts into the past.
There was an unbridled enthusiasm at the Statehouse today. The weather was great and people of all ages, colors and ethnicity were united, if for only a few hours. None of us are strong enough to stand against the machine alone. But together, together we have a chance.
We are better together.
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