The stock market boomed yesterday. The Dow was up 250 points. The stated reasons were the better than expected earnings from Goldman Sachs and Intel and the overall sense that the economy was improving. While this was happening Chief Justice nominee Sotomayor was being grilled about her opinions on abortion. She refused to give a straight answer. I don't blame her. Most people respect the analysts who comment on the rise of the stock market but are skeptical of Sotomayor who was hesitant about stating her opinions.
We live in a society in which having an uneducated or biased opinion is considered better than admitting that you don't know. The way you present yourself is much more important than what you have to say. Dressing for success qualifies you as knowledgeable. Having money especially signifies that what you say is valuable. Most of us won't admit how much we are influenced by financial success and attractive appearances. The consequences of this are that we elect good looking, wealthy politicians to most of the important positions in our country. Fortune 500 companies are run by tall, good looking, smooth talking, well groomed, Ivy League graduates.
I'm not sure if this was the case before television. Abraham Lincoln was not known for his looks. I don't think Benjamin Franklin was especially dapper or rich. John Adams was on the short side. Teddy Roosevelt, if I remember wasn't especially handsome. Neither was Herbert Hoover or William Howard Taft. In the post TV era though we had presidents with movie star looks, Kennedy, Reagan, and Clinton. The Bushs' had old money and connections.
It doesn't seem that we are going to be able to solve our problems until we put a greater emphasis on intelligence and especially wisdom. We need leaders who actually can think and are willing to admit weakness. Obama is a charismatic character with a good looking wife, cute kids, and a pleasing appearance. He, at least, has a sense of humor and seems willing to show humility.
The big question is whether or not he will have the courage to recognize when he makes mistakes and be able to correct them before they cause too much damage. I also wonder whether he will be able to see the degree to which government controlled businesses and projects are wasteful and inefficient.
It is one thing to have a good idea with a worthwhile goal. It is another to execute successfully. From what I have personally seen in the mortgage modification programs, the small business programs, and the energy conservation initiatives, things are way out of control. It is going to take a major effort to get them back on track. I find myself in a difficult position. I feel those who criticize Obama are not objective but neither are those who support him. I want to believe that Obama can make a difference but I have not yet seen any evidence that he has what it takes.
Showing posts with label politics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label politics. Show all posts
Monday, July 20, 2009
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
An Important Book
I just completed an excellent book, Infidel, by Ayaan Hirsi Ali. It is an inspiring story of a Muslim women from Somalia who rebels and overcomes the incredible oppression of her family, religion, and culture. I usually don't like to recommend books or restaurants unless I can give someone the book or pay for their meal but I thought this was an especially valuable book.
Aside from the fact that it was well written and interesting it actually impacted my thinking. After 9/11 I had believed that anti-muslim sentiment was overblown and that for the most part, muslim fanaticism was restricted to a small percent of the muslim world. Islam is the second largest religion in the world with over a billion adherents. It was hard to believe that a mainstream religion could support war, terrorism, suicide bombings, killing of all Jews, and the total oppression of women. It was possible that a small percent of muslims might participate in these practices and even that a larger percent, maybe ten, would sympathize with these ideas. What I didn't think was real was that these anti-humanistic views could be a fundamental part of the basic belief structure of a world religion.
Now I know you shouldn't believe everything you read or see on TV, but this book struck me as being a sincere, accurate, account of muslim thinking. It pointed out that the major theme of the Koran, the holiest muslim text, was that the purpose of life on earth was to submit to Allah's laws, and that life on earth was a test to determine our place in the afterlife. There are constant references in the Koran to the necessity to destroy non-believers and that what happens to us on earth is insignificant compared to the glory of our eternity with Allah in heaven. The suicide bombers, who crashed planes into the World Trade Center were not isolated fanatics but the embodiment of fundamental Islamic thinking.
Ali's purpose, in writing this book, was to make the world aware of the cruel and unreasonable nature of Islam , especially of their treatment of women and of their potential threat to world peace. In her attempt to get this message out she hooked up with a Dutch film maker (some descendant of Van Gogh) to make a mini-documentary. It was called Submission I. Shortly after it was released Van Gogh was brutally murdered. A letter threatening Ali was stuck in his chest by a knife. Since that time she has been in hiding protected by the Dutch secret service.
As I write this I feel a little internally disturbed because it goes against my basic world view that there could be this degree of bad stuff in a religion that is followed by so many people. I have always been suspicious of campaigns that vilify any groups of people. I have come to believe that governments and those behind governments, if they exist, oftentimes create enemies to increase their own power. When there is a clearly defined bad guy, the government becomes more important as a protector. This tactic has been effectively used for thousands of years by governments and power groups. The threats of communism were greatly magnified (according to information released by the CIA) by the US to justify the governments actions and expenditures for the Cold War. Jews, blacks, Christians, witches, American Indians, have all been used as scapegoats to rally the masses against a common enemy and strengthen those in power.
However Hitler was really a bad guy. There have been other wackos throughout history who needed to be stopped and ignoring them was costly. I am not totally sure what is the real threat of Islam. After reading this book, though, I am a little more concerned that this could be a real problem. I am going to do more research to try to get an even clearer perspective. I would like to know what the Dalai Lama thinks.
Aside from the fact that it was well written and interesting it actually impacted my thinking. After 9/11 I had believed that anti-muslim sentiment was overblown and that for the most part, muslim fanaticism was restricted to a small percent of the muslim world. Islam is the second largest religion in the world with over a billion adherents. It was hard to believe that a mainstream religion could support war, terrorism, suicide bombings, killing of all Jews, and the total oppression of women. It was possible that a small percent of muslims might participate in these practices and even that a larger percent, maybe ten, would sympathize with these ideas. What I didn't think was real was that these anti-humanistic views could be a fundamental part of the basic belief structure of a world religion.
Now I know you shouldn't believe everything you read or see on TV, but this book struck me as being a sincere, accurate, account of muslim thinking. It pointed out that the major theme of the Koran, the holiest muslim text, was that the purpose of life on earth was to submit to Allah's laws, and that life on earth was a test to determine our place in the afterlife. There are constant references in the Koran to the necessity to destroy non-believers and that what happens to us on earth is insignificant compared to the glory of our eternity with Allah in heaven. The suicide bombers, who crashed planes into the World Trade Center were not isolated fanatics but the embodiment of fundamental Islamic thinking.
Ali's purpose, in writing this book, was to make the world aware of the cruel and unreasonable nature of Islam , especially of their treatment of women and of their potential threat to world peace. In her attempt to get this message out she hooked up with a Dutch film maker (some descendant of Van Gogh) to make a mini-documentary. It was called Submission I. Shortly after it was released Van Gogh was brutally murdered. A letter threatening Ali was stuck in his chest by a knife. Since that time she has been in hiding protected by the Dutch secret service.
As I write this I feel a little internally disturbed because it goes against my basic world view that there could be this degree of bad stuff in a religion that is followed by so many people. I have always been suspicious of campaigns that vilify any groups of people. I have come to believe that governments and those behind governments, if they exist, oftentimes create enemies to increase their own power. When there is a clearly defined bad guy, the government becomes more important as a protector. This tactic has been effectively used for thousands of years by governments and power groups. The threats of communism were greatly magnified (according to information released by the CIA) by the US to justify the governments actions and expenditures for the Cold War. Jews, blacks, Christians, witches, American Indians, have all been used as scapegoats to rally the masses against a common enemy and strengthen those in power.
However Hitler was really a bad guy. There have been other wackos throughout history who needed to be stopped and ignoring them was costly. I am not totally sure what is the real threat of Islam. After reading this book, though, I am a little more concerned that this could be a real problem. I am going to do more research to try to get an even clearer perspective. I would like to know what the Dalai Lama thinks.
Friday, May 8, 2009
How is Obama Doing
How is Obama doing? I spoke to two close friends about this in the last 24 hours. One felt that the world was in terrible shape and that Obama was a real hope. The other felt that the world is in bad shape and Obama is destroying America. This is a tricky question. How is Obama doing?
First of all one might ask does it matter? It could be that politicians are all the same and that what they do does not affect the future of our society. It could be that there are other forces that are controlling our future and that politicians, including Obama, are influenced by these forces. These forces might include the collective consciousness of the American people and of the world population, forces that are aligned to whatever or whomever created us, astrological or other planetary influences, spiritual forces, evolutionary forces, forces of history and destiny, or other forces that we that we may not be aware of.
If Obama and/or other politicians are just puppets or actors in a theater of some unknown creator than we need to ask another question How are things going in the world? Are they improving? Are they getting worse? I will save this question for another time and get back to the question about Obama.
For arguments sake let us assume that it does matter how Obama is doing and that his actions do have an impact on the state of our world. Lets evaluate him on his economic actions, his foreign affairs actions, and the state of mind of the American people, our mood since he has taken over as President.
The question of the mood of America is obviously subjective and personal. In this matter, from my point of view there is an improved state of mind in the U.S. with Obama. There are many people who don't like him and feel that he too socialist and too soft on terrorism, but, for the most part, I believe that the majority of Americans are positive towards him and what he is doing. This might change if the economy gets much worse or some unforeseen crises occurs, but right now, May 8,2009 at 3:14 PM with the dow up over 150 points, the weather getting nicer, and the Swine Flu fears declining, the American state of mind is improved and improving.
In regard to the economy my opinion about Obama is not as favorable. I believe he has a viewpoint that the Government should help the people. I agree with that. I believe that he feels that the way we can help the people is through stimulating the economy by giving trillions of dollars to various programs and individuals. I also agree with this. What I am not sure of is whether or not he is effectively managing the distribution of this money. I have been involved with two programs that have been impacted by Obama's actions. One concerns mortgage adjustments and the other concerns energy conservation. Both seem a little out of control to me.
I am also not sure how clearly he sees the mathematical impact of his programs on future generations or even of its effect over the next ten years. It is one thing to have the noble idea that we must help everyone as much as possible in the fairest way possible. It is another thing to understand , from a numbers point of view, what is the best way to accomplish this in the long run. Obviously, in the short run, when you give away a lot of money this will have a positive effect, but I'm just not sure of the long term implications.
In regard to Obama's handling of foreign affairs and his effect on the world situation I am more positive. The most important goal at this time in world affairs is to prevent nuclear war. This is an unacceptable outcome. There are other important goals including fighting poverty, disease, discrimination, and crime.
I think that Obama has a deeper understanding of the big picture and a vision of how the world should be that is at a high level. He understands that we must learn to get along with each other. He realizes that the rhetoric about the danger of America showing weakness is true up to a point. We cannot put ourselves in a dangerous or precarious situation where our security is threated. However we must speak to our enemies and try to work out solutions with them until it becomes apparent that there is no hope and that they are an imminent threat to our safety. In addition we must conduct ourselves as a country in a way that commands the respect and admiration of all the world's people. I believe that Obama is on board with this thinking.
And I have some confidence in his handling foreign affairs.
All in all I would give him a B-. I am a hard grader, and he still hasn't proven himself to deserve any higher. He has shown me though some encouraging signs.
First of all one might ask does it matter? It could be that politicians are all the same and that what they do does not affect the future of our society. It could be that there are other forces that are controlling our future and that politicians, including Obama, are influenced by these forces. These forces might include the collective consciousness of the American people and of the world population, forces that are aligned to whatever or whomever created us, astrological or other planetary influences, spiritual forces, evolutionary forces, forces of history and destiny, or other forces that we that we may not be aware of.
If Obama and/or other politicians are just puppets or actors in a theater of some unknown creator than we need to ask another question How are things going in the world? Are they improving? Are they getting worse? I will save this question for another time and get back to the question about Obama.
For arguments sake let us assume that it does matter how Obama is doing and that his actions do have an impact on the state of our world. Lets evaluate him on his economic actions, his foreign affairs actions, and the state of mind of the American people, our mood since he has taken over as President.
The question of the mood of America is obviously subjective and personal. In this matter, from my point of view there is an improved state of mind in the U.S. with Obama. There are many people who don't like him and feel that he too socialist and too soft on terrorism, but, for the most part, I believe that the majority of Americans are positive towards him and what he is doing. This might change if the economy gets much worse or some unforeseen crises occurs, but right now, May 8,2009 at 3:14 PM with the dow up over 150 points, the weather getting nicer, and the Swine Flu fears declining, the American state of mind is improved and improving.
In regard to the economy my opinion about Obama is not as favorable. I believe he has a viewpoint that the Government should help the people. I agree with that. I believe that he feels that the way we can help the people is through stimulating the economy by giving trillions of dollars to various programs and individuals. I also agree with this. What I am not sure of is whether or not he is effectively managing the distribution of this money. I have been involved with two programs that have been impacted by Obama's actions. One concerns mortgage adjustments and the other concerns energy conservation. Both seem a little out of control to me.
I am also not sure how clearly he sees the mathematical impact of his programs on future generations or even of its effect over the next ten years. It is one thing to have the noble idea that we must help everyone as much as possible in the fairest way possible. It is another thing to understand , from a numbers point of view, what is the best way to accomplish this in the long run. Obviously, in the short run, when you give away a lot of money this will have a positive effect, but I'm just not sure of the long term implications.
In regard to Obama's handling of foreign affairs and his effect on the world situation I am more positive. The most important goal at this time in world affairs is to prevent nuclear war. This is an unacceptable outcome. There are other important goals including fighting poverty, disease, discrimination, and crime.
I think that Obama has a deeper understanding of the big picture and a vision of how the world should be that is at a high level. He understands that we must learn to get along with each other. He realizes that the rhetoric about the danger of America showing weakness is true up to a point. We cannot put ourselves in a dangerous or precarious situation where our security is threated. However we must speak to our enemies and try to work out solutions with them until it becomes apparent that there is no hope and that they are an imminent threat to our safety. In addition we must conduct ourselves as a country in a way that commands the respect and admiration of all the world's people. I believe that Obama is on board with this thinking.
And I have some confidence in his handling foreign affairs.
All in all I would give him a B-. I am a hard grader, and he still hasn't proven himself to deserve any higher. He has shown me though some encouraging signs.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Is Barack Real
I never was interested in politics. I never watched the news. I had no idea who Sean Hannity was or Bill Maher. I was somewhat familiar with Rush Limbaugh, although I had not heard him speak. This all changed with Barack Obama. Although i liked Hillary and felt she would bring something new to politics I was intrigued with Barack, his meteoric rise, and the potential that he truly might be a politician who would be honest and could be trusted.
I did not believe that politics mattered. It seemed to me that the Democrats and
Republicans were basically the same. I believed that the primary difference was the way they marketed themselves. They did market research to determine what the American people wanted and then geared their appeal to telling the people what they thought they wanted to hear.. I did not see in any of the presidents or presidential candidates anyone who showed any spark of creativity, sensitivity, or commitment to a higher level of thinking and being. There was no one who inspired my imagination, who motivated me, or gave me a sense that there could be real change.
I am hopeful that Obama is real, that he has some grand plan and that he has surrounded himself with a team who actually know what they are doing and can get things done. He has been in office now for almost two month and it seems to me that he has set in motion a number of different plans to help stimulate the economy and improve the overall financial picture of the American people. Whether they will work or not we will see.
I would like to believe that that there is something to believe in. It has been obvious to me for many years that there are fundamental problems in our society and that most of those in positions of power and influence are more interested in what is in it for them and and how they can maintain their position and its benefits without taking much risk. The results of this is that we have gotten ourselves into a real mess, that we have devastated our economy and that now we are vulnerable to significant struggles and suffering in the years ahead.
The reasons for our troubles may be normal cyclical declines that have always occurred within great civilizations or they might be the culmination of continuous abuses of our resources, our money and credit, and the constant brainwashing that has turned us into consumption machines. If Barack Obama is going to gain my confidence he is going to have to confront these abuses and point out the obvious truth about how our leaders have let us down. If he does this I will get behind him 100 percent and contribute any way I can to helping and supporting him. If I see he is the same old politician without real vision or courage I will sink back even more deeply into my hermetic existence.
I did not believe that politics mattered. It seemed to me that the Democrats and
Republicans were basically the same. I believed that the primary difference was the way they marketed themselves. They did market research to determine what the American people wanted and then geared their appeal to telling the people what they thought they wanted to hear.. I did not see in any of the presidents or presidential candidates anyone who showed any spark of creativity, sensitivity, or commitment to a higher level of thinking and being. There was no one who inspired my imagination, who motivated me, or gave me a sense that there could be real change.
I am hopeful that Obama is real, that he has some grand plan and that he has surrounded himself with a team who actually know what they are doing and can get things done. He has been in office now for almost two month and it seems to me that he has set in motion a number of different plans to help stimulate the economy and improve the overall financial picture of the American people. Whether they will work or not we will see.
I would like to believe that that there is something to believe in. It has been obvious to me for many years that there are fundamental problems in our society and that most of those in positions of power and influence are more interested in what is in it for them and and how they can maintain their position and its benefits without taking much risk. The results of this is that we have gotten ourselves into a real mess, that we have devastated our economy and that now we are vulnerable to significant struggles and suffering in the years ahead.
The reasons for our troubles may be normal cyclical declines that have always occurred within great civilizations or they might be the culmination of continuous abuses of our resources, our money and credit, and the constant brainwashing that has turned us into consumption machines. If Barack Obama is going to gain my confidence he is going to have to confront these abuses and point out the obvious truth about how our leaders have let us down. If he does this I will get behind him 100 percent and contribute any way I can to helping and supporting him. If I see he is the same old politician without real vision or courage I will sink back even more deeply into my hermetic existence.
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