So far this is pretty much a "one man show," but I keep on plugging, hoping to start a conversation. So, if you please, jump on anywhere in this collection of random thoughts. Today I'm sparked by all the people I've been encountering lately who actually want to talk about what's going on in our world. I am also encouraged by all the people lining up for possible service to our country in the White House. And, as always, I'm grateful for every brave guardian of my freedom at home and abroad.
All this noble effort to make good on life reminds me of a time when I thought everything was always all right - and of a song that still rings true to me:
Say, say, oh playmate,
Come out and play with me
And bring your dollies three
Climb up my apple tree
Shout down my rain barrel
Slide down my cellar door
And we'll be jolly friends
Forever more more.
Say, say, oh playmate
I cannot play with you
My dolly's got the flu
Boo hoo hoo hoo hoo hoo
Can't climb your rain barrel,
Can't slide your cellar door
But we'll be jolly friends forever more.
- Words and music by Saxie Dowell, Copyright 1940
Friday, June 24, 2011
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
The Missing Money
We, the people, clearly need all the help we can get to keep an eye on where our money is going. I find this Economics professor's articles particularly helpful, for instance:
Thomas Sowell
The Missing Money
6/21/11
One of my earliest memories of revulsion against war came from seeing a photograph from the First World War when I was a teenager. It was nothing gory. Just a picture of a military officer, in an impressive uniform, talking to a puzzled and forlorn-looking old peasant woman with a cloth wrapped around her head.
He said simply: "Don't you understand, madam? The village is not there any more."
To many such people of that era, the village was the only world they knew. And to say that it had been destroyed in the carnage of war was to say that there was no way for them to go back home, that their whole world was gone.
Recently that image came back, in a wholly different context, while seeing pictures of American seniors carrying signs that read "Hands off my Social Security" and "Hands off my Medicare."
They want their Social Security and their Medicare to stay the way they are -- and their anger is directed against those who want to change the financial arrangements that pay for these benefits.
Their anger should be directed instead against those politicians who were irresponsible enough to set up these costly programs without putting aside enough money to pay for the promises that were made -- promises that now cannot be kept, regardless of which political party controls the government.
Someone needs to say to those who want Social Security and Medicare to continue on unchanged: "Don't you understand? The money is not there any more."
Many retired people remember the money that was taken out of their paychecks for years and feel that they are now entitled to receive Social Security benefits as a right. But the way Social Security was set up was so financially shaky that anyone who set up a similar retirement scheme in the private sector could be sent to federal prison for fraud.
But you can't send a whole Congress to prison, however much they may deserve it.
This is not some newly discovered problem. Innumerable economists and others pointed out decades ago that Social Security was unsustainable in the long run, including yours truly on "Meet the Press" in 1981.
But the long run doesn't count for most politicians, since elections are held in the short run. Politicians' election prospects are enhanced, the more goodies they can promise and the less taxes they collect to pay for them.
That is why welfare states in Europe as well as here are facing bitter public protests as the chickens come home to roost.
It has been said innumerable times that nobody already on Social Security will lose their benefits. But it needs to be spelled out emphatically, so that political demagogues will not be able to scare retired seniors that they are going to have the rug pulled out from under them.
Retired seniors have the least to fear from a reform of Social Security, since neither political party is about to take away what these retirees already have and are relying on.
Despite irresponsible political ads showing an old lady in a wheel chair being dumped over a cliff, the people who are really in danger of being dumped over a cliff are the younger generation, who are paying into Social Security but are unlikely to get back anything like what they are paying in.
The money that young workers are paying into Social Security today is not being put aside to pay for their retirement. It is being spent today, paying the pensions of the retired generation -- and it can't even cover that in the years ahead.
What needs to be done is to allow younger workers a choice of staying out of a system that is simply running out of money. Nor can the system be saved by simply jacking up taxes on "the rich."
Generations of experience have shown that high tax rates that "the rich" can easily avoid -- through tax shelters at home or by investing their money abroad -- do not bring in as much revenue as lower tax rates that keep the money here and the jobs here.
Since the law does not allow private pension plans to be set up in the financially irresponsible way Social Security is, that is where young people's money should be put, if they ever want to see that money again when they reach retirement age.
Thomas Sowell
The Missing Money
6/21/11
One of my earliest memories of revulsion against war came from seeing a photograph from the First World War when I was a teenager. It was nothing gory. Just a picture of a military officer, in an impressive uniform, talking to a puzzled and forlorn-looking old peasant woman with a cloth wrapped around her head.
He said simply: "Don't you understand, madam? The village is not there any more."
To many such people of that era, the village was the only world they knew. And to say that it had been destroyed in the carnage of war was to say that there was no way for them to go back home, that their whole world was gone.
Recently that image came back, in a wholly different context, while seeing pictures of American seniors carrying signs that read "Hands off my Social Security" and "Hands off my Medicare."
They want their Social Security and their Medicare to stay the way they are -- and their anger is directed against those who want to change the financial arrangements that pay for these benefits.
Their anger should be directed instead against those politicians who were irresponsible enough to set up these costly programs without putting aside enough money to pay for the promises that were made -- promises that now cannot be kept, regardless of which political party controls the government.
Someone needs to say to those who want Social Security and Medicare to continue on unchanged: "Don't you understand? The money is not there any more."
Many retired people remember the money that was taken out of their paychecks for years and feel that they are now entitled to receive Social Security benefits as a right. But the way Social Security was set up was so financially shaky that anyone who set up a similar retirement scheme in the private sector could be sent to federal prison for fraud.
But you can't send a whole Congress to prison, however much they may deserve it.
This is not some newly discovered problem. Innumerable economists and others pointed out decades ago that Social Security was unsustainable in the long run, including yours truly on "Meet the Press" in 1981.
But the long run doesn't count for most politicians, since elections are held in the short run. Politicians' election prospects are enhanced, the more goodies they can promise and the less taxes they collect to pay for them.
That is why welfare states in Europe as well as here are facing bitter public protests as the chickens come home to roost.
It has been said innumerable times that nobody already on Social Security will lose their benefits. But it needs to be spelled out emphatically, so that political demagogues will not be able to scare retired seniors that they are going to have the rug pulled out from under them.
Retired seniors have the least to fear from a reform of Social Security, since neither political party is about to take away what these retirees already have and are relying on.
Despite irresponsible political ads showing an old lady in a wheel chair being dumped over a cliff, the people who are really in danger of being dumped over a cliff are the younger generation, who are paying into Social Security but are unlikely to get back anything like what they are paying in.
The money that young workers are paying into Social Security today is not being put aside to pay for their retirement. It is being spent today, paying the pensions of the retired generation -- and it can't even cover that in the years ahead.
What needs to be done is to allow younger workers a choice of staying out of a system that is simply running out of money. Nor can the system be saved by simply jacking up taxes on "the rich."
Generations of experience have shown that high tax rates that "the rich" can easily avoid -- through tax shelters at home or by investing their money abroad -- do not bring in as much revenue as lower tax rates that keep the money here and the jobs here.
Since the law does not allow private pension plans to be set up in the financially irresponsible way Social Security is, that is where young people's money should be put, if they ever want to see that money again when they reach retirement age.
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Keeping our Balance
I'm sorry to see so many people stressing out on all the talk about politics. I'm glad to see the thorough review of the fundamentals that divide America. My roots are midwest Democrat morphed to ag based California Republican. Both political perspectives were grounded (you should pardon the pun) by people who understood the American Dream is doing for ourselves so we can help those who can't.
Whatever FDR had in mind during his reign, it's clear to me that he didn't have much faith in "ordinary" American capitalists. In any case, the current Mid-East mess supposedly powered by cries for democracy should raise the level of public understanding as to why America is a Republic.
I'm pretty sure most Americans know we need to keep our balance by electing home-grounded citizens to conduct our public business - speaking of which, shouldn't we take a clue from Texas, not to mention our first President George Washington, and return public service to a part time job? Really, how many rules and regs do we, the people, need to mind our own business?
Whatever FDR had in mind during his reign, it's clear to me that he didn't have much faith in "ordinary" American capitalists. In any case, the current Mid-East mess supposedly powered by cries for democracy should raise the level of public understanding as to why America is a Republic.
I'm pretty sure most Americans know we need to keep our balance by electing home-grounded citizens to conduct our public business - speaking of which, shouldn't we take a clue from Texas, not to mention our first President George Washington, and return public service to a part time job? Really, how many rules and regs do we, the people, need to mind our own business?
Friday, June 10, 2011
Never say die, say I
Who knows what good we may do by talking about what goes on in this world? I like to think, like the drip, drip, drip of water on stone, that people who try to puzzle things out together may be of some use to better human practices.
So, last night when Bill O'Reilly appeared genuinely distressed over the hammering U.S. Representative Weiner is getting for behaving so badly in office and was struggling with others over why the Congressman is getting more criticism than Schwarzenegger, I couldn't resist giving him my take on the matter. Although I never expect my e-mail to get a hit at Fox News Channel on the "The Factor" letter segment, I would like to know what somebody thinks of my opinion, so I'm copying the note here:
"Bill, I can't figure how you missed this! It's not a question of who behaved worse. Weiner has brought heavy public criticism upon himself for not resigning from public office. Schwarzenegger isn't on the public dime anymore. What employer in his right mind retains an employee who wastes company time and money on sleezy business practices?"
If nothing else, likely somebody will get a kick out of noting that I misspelled the word "sleazy" - further proof that everyone needs an editor. So, please, everyone, feel free to jump in here any time!
I had no clue how to blog until I got this sweet challenge from my middle kid to jump into a new way to bide my time. I like to imagine that this adventure might be as good for others as it is for me.
So, last night when Bill O'Reilly appeared genuinely distressed over the hammering U.S. Representative Weiner is getting for behaving so badly in office and was struggling with others over why the Congressman is getting more criticism than Schwarzenegger, I couldn't resist giving him my take on the matter. Although I never expect my e-mail to get a hit at Fox News Channel on the "The Factor" letter segment, I would like to know what somebody thinks of my opinion, so I'm copying the note here:
"Bill, I can't figure how you missed this! It's not a question of who behaved worse. Weiner has brought heavy public criticism upon himself for not resigning from public office. Schwarzenegger isn't on the public dime anymore. What employer in his right mind retains an employee who wastes company time and money on sleezy business practices?"
If nothing else, likely somebody will get a kick out of noting that I misspelled the word "sleazy" - further proof that everyone needs an editor. So, please, everyone, feel free to jump in here any time!
I had no clue how to blog until I got this sweet challenge from my middle kid to jump into a new way to bide my time. I like to imagine that this adventure might be as good for others as it is for me.
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Who Knew?
Boy, talk about scary e-mail! I just received notice of the "12 Deadliest Garden Plants." I was really surprised to see hydrangea on the list. Not only do I have a brightly blooming pot-full on my patio where my youngest grandchildren often play when they visit, but hydrangeas are staples in their very own pretty backyard.
Sooooo, I'm glad to have found the following references, among others that give me some breathing room. The Royal Horticultural Society Encyclopedia says "All parts of hydrangeas may cause mild stomach upset if ingested; contact with the foliage may aggravate skin allergies." Not so scary after all, right? Still, worth noting from elsewhere that other garden favorites of mine, azalea and iris, are also considered to be toxic plants, as in:
"Most people know about the very poisonous plants like mistletoe, deadly nightshade and poison ivy, but as a safety precaution, you should also know about other toxic plants like iris, azalea and hydrangea which might not necessarily kill, but could still poison someone and make them feel very ill. Paradoxically, many potentially harmful plants, including Irises, are also considered to have healing properties."
Talk about that old saying, "what doesn't cure you kills you," which now that I've looked it up, apparently exists only in my mind, but at least I've found my point in this quotation:
"Some cures are worse than the dangers they combat." — Lucius Annaeus Seneca
All this has me thinking, wouldn't it be nice if everybody knew that about Obamacare?
Sooooo, I'm glad to have found the following references, among others that give me some breathing room. The Royal Horticultural Society Encyclopedia says "All parts of hydrangeas may cause mild stomach upset if ingested; contact with the foliage may aggravate skin allergies." Not so scary after all, right? Still, worth noting from elsewhere that other garden favorites of mine, azalea and iris, are also considered to be toxic plants, as in:
"Most people know about the very poisonous plants like mistletoe, deadly nightshade and poison ivy, but as a safety precaution, you should also know about other toxic plants like iris, azalea and hydrangea which might not necessarily kill, but could still poison someone and make them feel very ill. Paradoxically, many potentially harmful plants, including Irises, are also considered to have healing properties."
Talk about that old saying, "what doesn't cure you kills you," which now that I've looked it up, apparently exists only in my mind, but at least I've found my point in this quotation:
"Some cures are worse than the dangers they combat." — Lucius Annaeus Seneca
All this has me thinking, wouldn't it be nice if everybody knew that about Obamacare?
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Watch out . . . because, in both the words and tone of a very scary character in a Stephen King movie, . . . "I'm baaaack!" Oh, wait, according to a movie trivia website, nobody ever famously said that. The line Jack Nicholson delivered so memorably in “The Shining” was, “Heeeere’s Johnny.”
Wonder why it is that my image of that scene is faulty and whether that should give me pause for talking today about anything that’s going on in the world? Oh well, it's probably just as well I am amusing myself rather than complaining, like I hear many of my fellow seniors are doing, that U.S. Representative Paul Ryan is trying to dump me off a cliff.
See, the thing is, I've been thinking I'd have my own very pleasant little say on this blog once a month - just in case I could engage others in my fun. But, since I haven't stirred up the interaction I'm always hoping for, I'm taking the advice that I just spout off to myself whenever I'm so inclined.
It took yesterday - my very own observance of D-Day - to remind me that time waits for no one person to just Do it - do whatever it is that rings his chimes. What rang mine was celebrating the wedding anniverary of my son and daughter-in-law and recalling other reasons, as well, for me to celebrate life on this day.
Primary for me, obviously, is that that my dad was born on June 6, 100 years ago. And then, that takes me back to June 6, 1944, where, at six years old, I observed my parents' hopes for the successful invasion of continental Europe by Allied forces during World War II. Bringing this event even closer to home is my pride in my soldier grandson currently out in the desert perfecting his contribution to our best hopes for repelling despotism.
So, since everything that matters to me is all about best hopes for everyone, including preserving the American Republic, perhaps it's no wonder that today I'm posting a rant. I simply can't get over hearing the president of the land that I love deliver an Economics 101 lecture to the world in the company of the German Chancellor who I admire extravagantly for not strangling him on the spot.
I just can't help but wish President Obama knew what the valedictorian of Exeter High School's graduating class deftly pointed out last Friday, that everyone has unique gifts to contribute to the American Promise. Perhaps then he would quit acting like we, the people, need to be entirely under his care. As for the appalling behavior of U.S. Representative Weiner now playing in the wide world of "what now?", if he doesn't make the case for getting smarmy sex gamers out our public business, I'm afraid you're just going to have to throw this mama off the merry go round.
Okay, I feel better now. Likely it's just as well I bailed out on the stress test I was supposed to take today because my back is creaky - scheduled just for drill by a cardio doc who, after all, has to cover his own butt. All I had to do was spout off to get back to my usual certainty that the future is still safe in the hands of the kiddies. As for whether I ever stir up any conversation on this blog, at least I'm taking care of myself here - and what good can I do for the world if I can't do that?
Wonder why it is that my image of that scene is faulty and whether that should give me pause for talking today about anything that’s going on in the world? Oh well, it's probably just as well I am amusing myself rather than complaining, like I hear many of my fellow seniors are doing, that U.S. Representative Paul Ryan is trying to dump me off a cliff.
See, the thing is, I've been thinking I'd have my own very pleasant little say on this blog once a month - just in case I could engage others in my fun. But, since I haven't stirred up the interaction I'm always hoping for, I'm taking the advice that I just spout off to myself whenever I'm so inclined.
It took yesterday - my very own observance of D-Day - to remind me that time waits for no one person to just Do it - do whatever it is that rings his chimes. What rang mine was celebrating the wedding anniverary of my son and daughter-in-law and recalling other reasons, as well, for me to celebrate life on this day.
Primary for me, obviously, is that that my dad was born on June 6, 100 years ago. And then, that takes me back to June 6, 1944, where, at six years old, I observed my parents' hopes for the successful invasion of continental Europe by Allied forces during World War II. Bringing this event even closer to home is my pride in my soldier grandson currently out in the desert perfecting his contribution to our best hopes for repelling despotism.
So, since everything that matters to me is all about best hopes for everyone, including preserving the American Republic, perhaps it's no wonder that today I'm posting a rant. I simply can't get over hearing the president of the land that I love deliver an Economics 101 lecture to the world in the company of the German Chancellor who I admire extravagantly for not strangling him on the spot.
I just can't help but wish President Obama knew what the valedictorian of Exeter High School's graduating class deftly pointed out last Friday, that everyone has unique gifts to contribute to the American Promise. Perhaps then he would quit acting like we, the people, need to be entirely under his care. As for the appalling behavior of U.S. Representative Weiner now playing in the wide world of "what now?", if he doesn't make the case for getting smarmy sex gamers out our public business, I'm afraid you're just going to have to throw this mama off the merry go round.
Okay, I feel better now. Likely it's just as well I bailed out on the stress test I was supposed to take today because my back is creaky - scheduled just for drill by a cardio doc who, after all, has to cover his own butt. All I had to do was spout off to get back to my usual certainty that the future is still safe in the hands of the kiddies. As for whether I ever stir up any conversation on this blog, at least I'm taking care of myself here - and what good can I do for the world if I can't do that?
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