Hot

Yes, we are alive and well in AZ despite the heat. 105 on Sunday (first day over 100) and 110 on Monday. First time in recorded weather history that we went over 110 on just the second day of 100+. Not much foreplay.

I am reminded that you don't have to shovel it however.

Tax Rebate

I received a letter the other day (my wife got hers last week) saying that I would get my tax rebate in a few days. I had, of course, received the money 3 days earlier. Gotta love efficiency.

They spent $42m telling us we were going to get it and then send two letters to my house to say it is nearly here, so I wonder what these new letters cost? Totally unreasonable.

Wild West Update (2nd)

Three months ago in AZ our forward thinking elected officials were going to vote to permit students, staff, and faculty to carry concealed weapons on to school campuses. There was some thought that more guns made our children safer. Huh? (blogged in mid-Feb on this subject)

Apparently for a year at least, the legislature has decided to leave it alone and not vote on it - thus smartly keeping more guns out of our schools. Did they get an injection of common sense? No - they realized that the majority of the voting public didn't like it and, this being an election year, they decided to table their vote.

Round one goes to reasonableness and common sense.

The Land of the Sheep

The next days will be interesting. I learned this morning that my household is now on the hook for more than $500,000 in federal government liabilities. Hmmm, how are my wife and I, along with our two teenagers going to pay for our part?

The Republican President and Democratic led Congress allowed us to believe that the federal deficit was a mere hundreds of billions per year, not the 2.5 trillion it actually was last year. I'll bet you that we will hear each side blame the other and rabid supporters of each side will say, "see I told you so." Of course, no answer is simple and accurate. This is complicated and it will require real work, not fingerpointing to fix.

Thankfully we won't have the Republican President Bush around anymore, but we will have either John, Barack, or Hillary around. Notice that they all are part of the juggernaut known as the Senate that has allowed this to happen.

We allowed this to happen, thus the finger must be pointed right at us, the electorate. Why? Think of Sheep following blindly the shepherds.

Arghhhh!

This morning in the AZ Republic (leading newspaper in America's 5th largest city) I received a circular for Fry's Grocery store that was in Spanish. Arghhhh! I don't want to buy carne fresca and naranja, I want to buy fresh ground beef and Oranges.

We have shopped at Fry's for the 21 years we have lived in AZ. To continue or not?

Will I follow my "heart" or my "pocketbook?"

Probably the pocketbook I am ashamed to admit. I should wrap my frequent buyer card in the circular and send it to Kroger's HQ. For those of you in the mid-west, Kroger owns Fry's.

Democrats Put to the Test

It appears highly likely that Barack Obama will win the Democratic party nomination. He has a money machine set up that is apparently second to none and is getting young people interested in the electoral process.

In this blog many months ago I wondered aloud at how people will vote when they are casting a secret ballot. Will our deep rooted prejudices sway our votes?

Moderate Democrats, more likely to support Hillary, will be the key. Will they go with Senator Obama from their party, or will they go with Senator McCain who is probably closer to Hillary in his "centrist" being.

If these Dems go for McCain, does it mean they are prejudiced against blacks, half-blacks, men, Illinoisans, etc? Or does it mean that they think Hillary and John are more alike than Barack and Hillary? So many interesting questions.

Traditionally Senators don't do well in Presidential elections - that long voting record seems to get in the way. Since both McCain and Obama are Senators, this will not be a factor.

If Senator Obama gets the nod, and the young people continue to fund him and more importantly, get out and vote, then Barack has a good chance to beat John in the general election. After all, the far right doesn't like McCain, he is committed to Iraq, posturing against Iran, and says he knows very little about the economy, etc. If the young folk don't fund him and vote (which is typical), then Obama will be smoked.

This will be interesting.

Step-up-at-the-big-moment-ness

I used "Step-up-at-the-big-moment-ness" to describe George Bush in my last post. I also said I would explain what I meant. Clearly I am not a fan of George Bush and his very poor presidency. In my life time, only Jimmy Carter was worse.

However, George does have two good qualities:

• A desire to do well for his country (even though he failed miserably)
• "Step-up-at-the-big-moment-ness" - After 9-11 terrorist attacks this country was literally paralyzed. George understood that leadership was imperative at that big moment in our history. By standing on the pile of rubble in NY city and addressing the rescue and clean-up workers he showed leadership. However, when he walked out to the mound at Yankee Stadium and threw out the first pitch when baseball resumed, he showed that it was time for us to live our lives. He encouraged us to boldly go about our business. He showed leadership above his natural ability. It is a leadership that he has not shown since. However, at that moment, George's actions were critical and he found the strength to pull it off.

The Composite Candidate

Time Magazine has an interesting picture composed of the 100 most influential people in the world (their list not mine.)

I have been lamenting that the candidates for president are pretty weak. In fairness, if you put all three together, they might make a good president. Building on that theme, I decided to build the Composite Candidate.

Wish me luck!

The Composite Candidate would have:

• Intellect like Condoleza Rice. The world is complicated and some brains would be helpful.


• Economic Sense like Ross Perot


• Big Dreams like Martin Luther King - cost him his life and he apparently knew it would


• Love of the US like Ronald Reagan - Made me want to wave a flag.


• Concern for the land, sea, and air like Al Gore - he invented concern


• Political Skills like Ronald Reagan - all important if you want to get something done


• Shrewdness like Bill Clinton - the cad got elected twice and oversaw good economic times


• Toughness like Teddy Roosevelt - Rough Riders and all that


• Compassion like Princess Diana - think of her hugging AIDS patients when that was scary


• Sense of fair-play like Robert Kennedy - that cost him dearly


• "Step-up-at-the-big-moment-ness" like George W. Bush (see latest post for explanation)


• Vigor like John Kennedy - the Camelot part, not the Marilyn Monroe part


• Inventive like Steve Jobs or Bill Gates - they make invention possible


• Sense of Humor like Robin Williams - LOL


• Moral compass like Mother Theresa (even with the doubts)


• And finally the je ne se quoi of Princess Diana - the "it" factor (joins Ronnie as the only two quality person)
  

There you have what I consider to be the most reasonable candidate in the country. Try it for yourself.

Gotta Laugh!!

It is only reasonable to have a good laugh. I wish I had dreamed up this stuff, but I didn't.

WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?

GEORGE W. BUSH: We don't really care why the chicken crossed the road. We just want to know if the chicken is on our side of the road, or not. The chicken is either against us, or for us. There is no middle ground here.

BARACK OBAMA: The chicken crossed the road because it was time for a CHANGE! The chicken wanted CHANGE!

JOHN MC CAIN: My friends, that chicken crossed the road because he recognized the need to engage in cooperation and dialogue with all the chickens on the other side of the road.

HILLARY CLINTON: When I was First Lady, I personally helped that little chicken to cross the road. This experience makes me uniquely qualified to ensure -- right from Day One! -- that every chicken in this country gets the chance it deserves to cross the road. But then, this really isn't about me.......

AL GORE: I invented the chicken!

OPRAH: Well, I understand that the chicken is having problems, which is why he wants to cross this road so bad. So instead of having the chicken learn from his mistakes and take falls, which is a part of life, I'm going to give this chicken a car so that he can just drive across the road and not live his life like the rest of the chickens.

ANDERSON COOPER - CNN: We have reason to believe there is a chicken, but we have not yet been allowed to have access to the other side of the road.

JOHN KERRY: Although I voted to let the chicken cross the road, I am now against it! It was the wrong road to cross, and I was misled about the chicken's intentions. I am not for it now, and will remain against it.

NANCY GRACE: That chicken crossed the road because he's GUILTY! You can see it in his eyes and the way he walks.

PAT BUCHANAN: To steal the job of a decent, hardworking American.

MARTHA STEWART: No one called me to warn me which way that chicken was going. I had a standing order at the Farmer's Market to sell my eggs when the price dropped to a certain level. No little bird gave me any insider information.

DR SEUSS: Did the chicken cross the road? Did he cross it with a toad? Yes, the chicken crossed the road, but why it crossed I've not been told.

ERNEST HEMINGWAY: To die in the rain. Alone.

JERRY FALWELL: Because the chicken was gay! Can't you people see the plain truth?' That's why they call it the 'other side.' Yes, my friends, that chicken is gay. And if you eat that chicken, you will become gay too. I say we boycott all chickens until we sort out this abomination that the liberal media white washes with seemingly harmless phrases like 'the other side. That chicken should not be crossing the road. It's as plain and as simple as that.

JOHN LENNON: Imagine all the chickens in the world crossing roads together, in peace.

ALBERT EINSTEIN: Did the chicken really cross the road, or did the road move beneath the chicken?

BILL CLINTON: I did not cross the road with THAT chicken. What is your definition of chicken?

COLONEL SANDERS: Did I miss one?

DICK CHENEY: Where's my gun?

AL SHARPTON: Why are all the chickens white? We need some black chickens.

Where are the Leaders?

Last week George Bush, ex-oilman and current US President, gave a "major" speech on energy. As Gomer Pyle would say, "Surprise, Surprise, Surprise!" - George called for drilling for more oil in the Alaskan reserves.

Chrysler is experiencing a 20% decline in sales because 70% of their vehicles are trucks, SUVs, etc. So the American people, who cannot afford $4-5 per gallon gas, have begun to say, "enough already."

There is no mystery why Toyota is now the number one car manufacturer in America. Quality car that gets good gas mileage and holds its value for resale. Honda, Nissan, etc. enjoy the same advantages and will one day pass the "big 3".

So why would George be so thick headed? He still owes his presidency to oil interests. When George took office, he should have put forward an energy policy to be executed over 20 years or so. One that would not cripple our economy and also would have preserved the environment. A leader with his oil credentials could have had a tremendous positive effect. We would be 8 years into the 20 years already.

Instead, he blames Democrats and offers the same lame ideas on energy. The only reasonable thing left to wonder - Where are the leaders in this country?

The Environment

Going Green is HOT! Good. I read this morning that companies are beginning to worry about the earth's well being. Again, good.

Those who think clean air is overrated, that we have an endless supply of animals to kill (and if they die off, who cares), that oil is king, and that destroying the world's forests is a good idea, etc. must be thrilled with the conflicting info about a couple of supposed good green ideas.

I use two examples: One huge - one small. First, using corn to replace oil seems like a great idea to me. Apparently however, it is a factor in the spiraling food costs and shortages around the world. Brazil is tearing down the rain forests (oxygen producing places) to grow more corn to feed the frenzy. Apparently the overall costs in terms of resources is amazingly high to create the corn fuel. Seemed like a good idea.

CFL bulbs, on the other end of the spectrum, are now all over my house. They last longer and cost a fraction to run. They save energy big time. However, they still burn out occasionally and we cannot just throw them away. They have Mercury in them. If they break, they are a bummer to clean up - again because of the Mercury.

So what is a person who is legitimately trying to "do his part" supposed to do? What is reasonable?

I don't know, but what I do like is that at least the inventors are trying something to help. They are not just saying, "oil is great, oil is plentiful, the air is clean enough, and we don't need those pesky animals anyway."

Myanmar

Another tragedy and another chance for the US to try to do good. Of course, our assistance will not help the actual people left with no clean water, destroyed homes, etc. It will help the military government and the people of the world will go on hating Americans.

With maybe 22,000 dead, I guess it is only reasonable to keep trying to assist - err on the side of caution, so to speak.

Here is another case of a people being destroyed by their government - a military group with terrible human rights violations and that traffics in opiates. Nice!

We will send the money and goods, sleep better for it, and the military government will either use it for their own consumption/use or claim credit for it with their miserable citizens.

There is no reasonable answer except to send the aid and then begin to worry about the hurting folks right here in the good ol' US or A. There are plenty!