Two Children, Two Directions

I witnessed two events in recent days involving children. One profoundly uplifting, one profoundly disturbing.
I was walking from my home to the diner when I saw a little girl, maybe four or five years old, open the door and throw a plastic juice container out her front door onto the sidewalk, then slam the door. I made eye contact with her for a split second and I was amazed. There was no hint of regret for what she was doing in her eyes. She looked at me and proceeded to litter the sidewalk right in front of her home as if it was a perfectly normal occurrence.
This past Sunday I was privilged to witness the performance of a play called The Christmas Menorahs. I saw it at a temple in Montclair, NJ. It was a moving, hopeful, true story of a series of events that happened in Montana in 1993. A community came together to defeat the forces of hatred. It's as simple as that. The main players were children; educated, aware children who represent the best of what society has to offer. I watched in awe and prayed that my own children are growing up with this same kind of awareness. The play's humorous side focused on the differences between Jews and Christians and produced several full throated laughs. It was beautiful to watch the children execute their lines flawlessly and understand what they were demonstrating to the audience. The universal truths of love and knowledge can overcome any enemy, no matter how formidable. You only need to have the courage to display them for all to see and then it cannot be defeated. I wish every person elected to a position of responsibility could see this play. There would be less sadness in the world, less death, less hatred. What better Christmas present to give to the world than increased hope, especially in times like we face now.
I would like to think that the children in the play are more representative of the young generation than the child who is already jaded enough to throw trash out her front door. I hope the majority of parents are raising children to espouse the morals demonstrated in the play, rather than the callousness of that young litterer. Anytime I can see a display of the kind of awareness and maturity that a play like that brings out in children, I can look to the future with hope and believe that we will emerge from our present troubles a stronger, more moral nation. Therein lies our salvation. That is my Christmas wish for the world.

Maybe The Market Has Hit Bottom.......

....but we certainly haven't. We hit a new low on Friday. An innocent man, trying to earn some extra money for the holidays, was trampled by a frenzied crowd rushing to take advantage of early morning sales. The police are saying that suspects will be hard to identify. Anyone who was there should come forward to tell police what they saw. That is their obligation as citizens.
But the fact that a mob mentality could possess a crowd in such a fashion and cause a man's death because they have to have the lastest thing or a cheap piece of electronics is utterly absurd. It hearkens back to what happened at a Who concert in Cincinnati in the early 80's. Those were a bunch of drunken kids. I don't know the composition of the crowd at Wal-Mart but I imagine the average of the shoppers was higher than those people who attended the Who concert.
The main point, of course, is simple and is something I have been talking about since I started this blog. This country lacks self respect. If you cannot act in civilized fashion in a situation which is non-life threatening, you have no respect for yourself nor your fellow citizens. A society that emphasized a sense of decency instead of prioritizing retail sales would foster a mindset where a tragedy like this would not occur. And in the event that it did occur, you would have responsible citizens coming forward to identify those who would go so far as to trample someone to death in an effort to obtain the latest hot item.
President-elect Obama should take note of this incident and make a return to a spirit of civility a cornerstone of his social agenda. If people do not learn basic values as children, then they should be taught when they are adults. Every person who can be identified on that video, whether they are directly involved in this incident or not, should be required to attend a class on civility, and then should be required to provide eyewitnesses to show they are practicing what they have been taught. It is easy to say that that is wacky, but an incident like this demands drastic action.
How many fingers will the citizens of the world point at us to say that we are nothing but hypocrites when we try to impose American values upon the world, yet we allow someone to die at the hands of an ambivalent mob. Unless we return to a spirit of civility and self respect, we will have no way of proving them wrong.

Not Everything Has Changed

As a rule, I normally keep my literary life separate from my professional life, but, in this case, the irony of what happened to me on Wednesday makes it worth mentioning. I spend my days on the telephone trying to save companies money on their energy bills. It's a hard job because people are stuck in their ways and the idea of change frightens them. There are other reasons as well, but they are not germaine to the context of this entry.
A few weeks ago, I hit upon the idea of calling non-profit organizations. I figured that they would be one of the first rungs on the economic ladder to be squeezed as a result of current economic conditions, making them more willing to listen to cost cutting options. It's been true in a few cases. I've been able to arrange several meetings and a few of those meetings have resulted in sales. It makes economic sense to have a better handle on what your electricity costs will be when you're organizational viability is in question. Certainly, that is the case for many businesses across the economic spectrum at this time.
My normal approach is to view the organization's website and get an idea of what they do. Then I look for a staff listing hoping to find the right person to speak to. When I came across the site for the Center for Community Change, I was initially impressed. The home page has a picture of Barack Obama facing a crowd and the caption reads "The Meaning of This Moment." I looked at the staff directory and found the name of the Accounting Manager. I figured, what better organization to call than the Center for Community Change. Surely, they will listen to a concept to save money.
Wow, was I wrong. The woman who answered the phone in the New York office was named Margie. When I asked for the Accounting Manager, she asked who I was, and when I told her, her response was, "What makes you think he'd be in this office?" I responded by saying that I saw him listed as the Accounting Manager and I wanted to speak to him regarding cost cutting options. Her response was, "Well, I don't know you and I don't know your organization so I don't want to speak to you." Boom. Down goes the phone.
Since this happens to me a hundred times a day, I wasn't angry or depressed, but I was struck by the irony of the encounter. On the mission page of the website, under a section entitled "What We Believe" reads the following passage: We believe that only together – by sharing our hopes, connecting with each other, and taking action together – can we change our communities and nation for the better.
I had to laugh. I'm not expecting this woman to fawn over me and spend money in ten minutes on what I am selling, but the abruptness of a woman who works for an organization trying to affect social change by bringing people together struck me as completely inappropriate.
It perfectly illustrated what really does have to change in this country. We desperately need to return to a spirit of civility if we are ever going to realize the dream that the Center for Community Change is fighting for. Otherwise, their dream will remain a pipe dream, no matter how many organizational objectives they achieve. This lesson should be impressed upon Margie and everyone else in this country who feels they have the right to be rude to people just because they annoy them or they have the ability to maintain their anonymity. Everyone is a person deserving of respect. Only when that is accepted as Gospel truth will the real spirit of community that this organization seeks become even remotely possible.

Let's Take A Deep Breath

Okay. Barack has done it. Things will change. But let's not try to rush it. Some people are already acting as if they expect immediate results. Mr. Obama already has to temper expectations. I am happy, but I am also patient. I have to be. Spend four years in jail and you learn patience.
Unfortunately, not all of the results of this election were so laudatory. Three additonal states passed bans on gay marriage, including California, which I never thought would happen. I am not planning to marry anyone of my sex, but I fully support anyone who wants to and I think their union should have all the rights that marriage between a man and a woman has. My reasoning is this: The reason that I see that the religious right wants to ban gay marriage is so that they can say that they are winning the moral crusade. Well, the fact of the matter is that the moral crusade is being lost every day. Lying is so pervasive and does much more damage to society than the union of two people of the same sex. If this was a truly moral nation we would not be in the economic mess that we find ourselves in today. The people who invented the derivatives that have brought down long standing institutions created the instruments to line their pockets with money, not to protect anyone. We trusted them to be able handle the risks and they failed miserably. Then they don't even have the moral courage to admit their mistakes. They hide behind excuses and point fingers in circular fashion until no one knows who is responsible. This is the moral crisis we face every day, not the destruction of the institution of marriage.
The institution has self destructed on its own. The religious right recognizes this, so in order to soothe their egos they put a band aid on the problem by attacking a peripheral issue. The passage of a ban on gay marriage will in no way address the decay of heterosexual marriage that has been going on for decades.
Mr. Obama has much that he can do, and I expect great things of him. But if we are to truly restore our inner greatness, then we must recognize and confront the real issues that are tearing us apart, that led us to financial reckoning and that promise to render us an impotent power on the world stage in the years to come. Mr. Obama can not do that alone. That must come from all of us.
Final note: When I looked at the map of the election results it confirmed for me why I will never move out of the Northeast. And its not just because I love the change of seasons. The coasts voted for Mr. Obama and the heartland went for Mr. McCain. That is a bit of a generalization but it does contain a nugget of truth.

A New Reason for Hope

At the request of a reader, (yes, I actually have a few readers) I am enlarging the font in this blog.
Sometimes, it's great to be right. I said in September that Sarah Palin would be a liability to John McCain. Where would the race be today if he had picked Joe Lieberman, who would have allowed him to reach across the aisle to Independents and more conservative Democrats? We can only speculate.
Strolling past a TV on Friday night, I heard a commentator say this is arguably the most important election in 150 years. Not being a scholar in the area of presidential politics, I cannot agree or disagree with any legitimate authority. But it is clear that Mr. Obama's election signals the beginning of a new era of hope for the American people.
Given the economic possibilities, hope may be the most precious, intangible commodity around soon. I pray that we do not experience a lost decade similar to what Japan went through when their bubble burst. But if we do experience an extended period of contraction and retrenchment, our sense of national unity and pride will be severely tested. Then we will see if we degenerate into partisan squabbling and turf wars or pull together for the common good.
Another prayer that needs to be said is that no sick person assassinates Mr. Obama for the sake of his twisted agenda. I'm sure it's a subject already being discussed in some of the darker corners of our society. 9/11 is a national wound that has still not healed. Mr. Obama's untimely death would take even longer to recover from.
I was only two and a half when JFK was killed, but I remember my mother and many other people talking about where they were when they heard the news, like the moment was frozen in time. I want to remember where I am when Mr. Obama hands the reins of goverment over to a worthy successor, whether that person is a Republican or a Democrat. It may seem a little premature to look so far forward, but if a dire economic situation unfolds, the long term view may be the only ray of hope we have. That in itself would be a sea change in the American psyche, and would probably serve us well. It's too bad a crisis has to unfold before we can experience some positive evolution, but Mr. Obama is a worthy first step. On this day, I am behind him 100%.

Outrage Pays Off

Someone in government finally came to their senses. The executives of AIG are being asked to return millions in compensation. The money should be taken and given to the communities in which AIG operated. That would leave a lasting legacy that might help to overturn the perception of greed that has been burned into people's consciousness. Of course, the government will probably return the money to the pool being dug for the bailout of financial institutions. Which means that its possible positive effect will be negated. I understand why that statement might be questioned, but the government is allocating $700 billion for the bailout, so a few million dollars will not make a major difference to the bailout effort. The construction of a new park or a new wing on a school would probably help a lot more. The government seems to be very resistant to these kind of ideas. It represents the idea of socialism that they seem to be afraid of and that I think we need a lot more of. It would restore faith in government as a caring institution instead of this cold, faceless behemoth that is unresponsive to society's needs. The government seems to have no problem handing out tax breaks for business which they then abuse. I think its time to funnel money directly into people's hands. I don't advocate giving money away with no obligation. I think there should be some sort of education requirement to qualify for government subsidy. I don't want to use the word handout but that is exactly what it would be. The time has come for Americans to admit that everyone deserves an equal shot at a comfortable life, not having to live from paycheck to paycheck. Spreading money out this way would strengthen and widen the middle class, which has always been the backbone of American society. In previous generations, although they may not have been the intellectual leaders of the country, they were the moral leaders, providing stability order and a sense of community security. We need to return to these ideas if America is going to resume its position as a moral arbiter. The world is waiting for our example.

Socialism Is Not A Dirty Word

Nicholas Kristof's column the other day recounted a conversation he had with a woman in Beijing regarding the election of Barack Obama. It summarized the perception that many people abroad have of the United States and the state of our race relations. The point made was that the election of Barack Obama will send a sorely needed signal to many corners of the world that the United States is capable of electing someone besides a white man to its highest office. I am also hoping that it will signal a new era of change in the United States.
The word that has been tossed around on the campaign trail in the last week is Socialism. John McCain has done his desperate best to paint this as a dirty word that Americans should avoid at all costs. Barack Obama has not made such a strong statement, but it is clear that he does not want the word associated with his economic plans. I disagree. Maybe it is wrong of Mr. Obama to use the word Socialism because of the connotations that it stirs in the American mind, but Socialism is something this country needs, and now more than ever. With the gap between rich and poor growing ever wider and the apparent abandonment of moral principles that Wall Street has demonstrated in the pursuit of ever higher bonuses, the trickle down theory of ecnomic redistribution has shown itself to be a flawed idea.
The idea is simple but its effects would be profound. The redistribution of wealth would give the poorest among us added security. It would allow them to secure a better future for their children. Even if money is not given directly to people, it should be allocated to towns and cities on the low end of the economic scale for civic improvements, resulting in better schools and community facilities. There is no reason why millions of people should have to live a tenuous existence while others are paid ridiculous amounts and contribute nothing to the overall welfare of society. It's time for America to fulfill its promise to all its people and show the world that we have the compassion and the courage it takes to shine as an example of equality. I just hope that Mr. Obama can demonstrate the kind of vision it will take to return America to the position of moral leadership that it so easily abandoned in the past 30 years.

Fall of the Maestro

I can't blame Alan Greenspan for doing what he did. He made the assumption, like I did, that the people who invented these unregulated derivatives knew what they were doing and could control the markets they created. Unfortunately, we were both wrong. The people who invented these derivatives and the people who traded in them without fully understanding them had no moral compass and no concern for anything except the generation of a stream of income. This is a perfect example of lack of self respect. If you can act so selfishly and have no concern for the consequences, you have no respect for yourself. Of course, these titans of finance don't care whether they respect themselves. They use can use their millions of dollars as a salve to soothe their hardened consciences. Just look at how the executives of AIG were able to absolve themselves so easily, blaming the regulations for their problems. Their lack of introspective ability is shameful.
That is why I give kudos to Alan Greenspan for being able to publicly admit that his perception regarding the state of derivative markets was incorrect. The man was raised in a different America, when your word was your honor, before we became the largest debtor nation in the world and sold our integrity to the highest bidder. The situation we find ourselves in now is a result of our tendency to give people the benefit of the doubt, to believe that people are basically good inside, when we have really lost our soul. It's no wonder the world has lost its respect for us.

The Disciples of Nihilism

What a week for accountability. AIG needs more money, but their executives are so out of control, they hold a getaway for themselves and spend half a million dollars. And what happens to them? Nothing. There are no sanctions announced. No public condemnation reaches the ear of the average listener. And why? First, because Congress doesn't have the backbone to take a firm stand, and second, our elected representatives, who are supposed to be representing us, are probably jealous as hell that they can't do the same thing.
The President, the most incompetent man on earth, tells us that everything will be fine, but does he really know? We now have whole countries hitting the skids and Iceland doesn't even come to us to help them out. What does that say about our reputation abroad?
Maureen Dowd talked about the similarities to Rome in her column today, including a section in incomprehensible Latin. (Note: I took Latin for two and a half years in high school, but I hardly remember a word.) I've had the same thought for years. Admittedly, I was in love with the idea of derivatives when I worked for a Wall Street firm, but mostly because I thought there was at least someone with their hand on the controls. I believed in the system.
Okay, while you're laughing, I will say this. I was wrong. The system was inspired and run by Gordon Gekko types with no concerns except for the size of their wallets. In the spirit of un-accountability, they were happy to pass off the responsibility to someone else, comforting themselves with the fact that they could easily find someone else to blame if things went wrong.
This brings us back to AIG. In Congressional testimony this week, the executives of AIG flatly denied responsibility for the failure of their company. They actually had the nerve to blame the framework of regulations that they worked so hard to circumvent. One columnist I read put it so well; he said that's like blaming the fever on the thermometer. Even Maurice Greenberg, who spent years building AIG into a global presence and was at the helm when these derivatives became popular, sent a letter to Congress saying it was his successors' fault, which, as I said, they denied.
I think it's easy to see my point. Someone is responsible, and it's not the shareholders who got wiped out.
Here's what should be done: First, the executives who went away for the retreat and completely ignored their moral responsibility should be billed by the government, and the bill should be payable immediately, in cash.
Second, the executives who authorized the retreat should have to work without compensation for five years to help clean up the mess they made. Third, they should also have to stand on a stage in front of a national, primetime TV audience and apologize to their shareholders and the American people.
I know what you're thinking; don't hold your breath. But recommending this kind of public sanction by a member of Congress would show some real leadership and would lift their public ratings out of the high teens where they now reside. And we all know why they won't do it; because all they care about is getting re-elected and corporations and lobbyists pump much more money into Congressional coffers than Joe or Jane sixpack.
So what we have are elected puppets, whose noses are drawn to the dank smell of fresh money, whose eyesight is clouded by the comfortable blanket of indifferent, "objective" media, and whose ears are deaf to the cries of the people they are supposed to represent. The epitome of impotence. And yet they carry themselves with egotistical swagger based on a dying reputation for relevance.
Let's see how many incumbents get re-elected next month. Then we will see if the American people have the courage to hold their elected representatives accountable. It's got to start somewhere.

That Giant Sucking Sound

To say this has been a tumultuous week would be an understatement. First, we start with a loss of $1.3 trillion in value in the stock market, more than the value of the much discussed bailout package. I shudder when I think about it: In one day we lost more than the value of the bailout package that is supposed to save the financial system of this country, and the entire world for that matter. It puts a couple of things into perspective. Number one, if the financial system ever passes the point of no return there is no way to stop it. We cannot just keep pouring piles of money in sums that no one can actually envision into a poorly regulated system forever. Someday, the well will run dry. Second, all the assurances and the advertising of the financial sector meant absolutely nothing. When it came right down to it, the court jesters were at the wheel of the sinking ship, milking the investing and hard working public for every dollar they could while they paid themselves obscene bonuses for poorly executed diligence. The sucking sound in this case was the noise of wealth disappearing into thin air.
Second, we have the total absence of leadership in Congress. Our elected representatives could hardly have shown their lack of character more than by the partisan wrangling that took place while the bailout package was being debated. What was crystal clear was that they were in uncharted territory. Most of them had no idea what they were talking about. I don't necessarily blame them for this. Only the people who invented the derivative products that brought us to this point understand them. These derivatives were invented to circumvent regualtion in the first place.
What was also clear and tragically laughable were the reports of constituents who were calling to protest the fact that the bailout package rescued the very people who put us in this predicament without providing direct relief for the people most affected by it. They undoubtedly have a point. However, the vast majority of the people calling in have no idea what they are protesting and the people they elected to represent them have no idea of the scope of what they were contemplating. The whole thing is downright Shakespearian. The sucking sound this time was the notion of credible government evaporating.
The next perfect example of tragic theater was the vice presidential debate. Sarah Palin and Joe Biden stood on a stage and made a wonderful show of their egos, but they didn't discuss the solution to a single substantial problem facing this country. No wonder you couldn't find any objective analysis of the debate in the papers. The liberal papers said Biden won. The conservative papers said Palin won. The big loser was you and me.
The sucking sound this time was the sacrifice of meaningful discussion for the sake of empty entertainment.
Yesterday, there was a small piece of good news. As I read in the New York Times yesterday, a joint venture between PSE&G and a company called Deepwater Wind was approved to build a wind farm off the coast of New Jersey. The turbines will be placed 16 to 20 miles offshore, avoiding the complaints of idiots who say the sight of turbines damages their precious ocean view. I will state this emphatically. I love the ocean. I would never want to live anywhere that prevents me from getting to the ocean in a few hours. Sitting next to the ocean is an inspiring reminder of the power of God and Mother Nature and it should remain that way forever. But to complain that the view is spoiled because forward thinking people take advantage of an infinite resource to solve a pressing social problem is well beyond stupidity. I would love to sit in the sand and see turbines constantly whirring. It would be a reassuring sign that we have discarded our complacency and selfishness for the good of others and future generations. The sucking sound this time is wind being used to power homes, a sound I want to hear for the rest of my life.
So where do we find ourselves at the end of the week? In a position that remains just as insecure as it was at the beginning. Without leadership, without the courage to stand up and say that things are going to be changed in a meaningful way, we are nowhere. The financial industry, unless it is brought to heel, will find a way around any regulation and attempt to place us once again in a position of impending crisis. Unless the American people can shed their shortsighted approach and get that message to Congress, our problems will keep us in crisis or near crisis mode for generations to come. The sucking sound this time is the hope of future generations being blown into space.

Lost Youth

I usually don't read the local papers, but yesterday while enjoying breakfast at a local diner, a headline grabbed my attention. The article talked about a wave of crime to hit Jefferson Township this past summer and how three local teens were arrested. The author correctly pointed out that what gets lost in a situation like that is the sense of security that is supposed to present in a rural, pastoral town. The young criminals obviously have no respect for themselves or anyone else. Somewhere along the way, they decided that engaging in antisocial behavior is an appropriate form of expression for their rage.
Having been a guest of the NJDOC, I have two suggestions to make. First of all, no matter how much prison time they receive, there will be no progress toward rehabilitation without some sort of incentive. Young people, no matter how much they may deny it, need structure. If given the opportunity to languish during their prison time, that's exactly what they will do. This is the major flaw of the State prison system. Inmates need incentive to improve themselves. Upgrades in status should come when certain educational goals are achieved. Even if the inmate has only a fifth grade education, then that's where the process should begin. Morality and self respect are great motivators. If a person can be made to feel like they have some self worth, then rehabilitation is possible.
Second, when they are released, these young people should be ordered to perform extensive community service, specifically for the people whose lives and homes they damaged. This would need to be done under close police supervision, but could prove an invaluable service to both victim and perpetrator. If these young people can be made to understand what they have taken, they may be more reluctant to re-engage in their violent, antisocial behavior. It could provide an opportunity for them to gain some compassion and maturity. It's certainly not guaranteed, but it's better than throwing them back into the community and letting the level of resentment and suspicion fester for years to come.

Dollars and Egos

I have been busy all week so I haven't had the time to write entries. But it was actually a good time to take off because this week has seen unprecedented activity in the financial markets. I will give credit to my older brother for this one because he wrote me a letter months ago, while I was still in prison, saying that we were headed for a major crisis and his reasoning was sound as well: Americans have for too long lived well beyond their means and financed their lifestyle on the assumption that their house would be a perpetually appreciating asset. The mortgage companies played right into this assumption by designing mortgages with incredible risk, but risk that could be handled as long as the assumption held true.
Well, guess what. Markets correct and the housing market is no different. So now, we have a recessionary environment coupled with the highest inflation in more than a decade.
But the overheated dreams of Americans don't entirely explain the events of this week. Ego, throughout history, has been a very destructive force. Read Barbara Tuchman's The March of Folly. In our society, ego and greed have been elevated to admirable virtues. The selfish drive for more dollars has driven executive compensation to obscene levels. Americans have got to learn to say enough is enough. To justify these escalating salaries, profits became the main concentration of business, as they always have been, but normal risk parameters were blindly disregarded for the sake of bloated bonuses.
The living incarnation of this perverse principle is Franklin Raines, who fiddled his way to incredible compensation while cooking the books of what is supposed to be a highly regulated agency. It is not a good thing that he has been working as an advisor to the Obama campaign.
What can be done? The two sides of the argument revolve around the need for more stringent regulation, and I am definitely in favor of greater regulation of markets in order to prevent further convolution of prudent investment.
What is not being discussed is the central issue. Can we reform ourselves? Can we evolve into a society where the national welfare is the highest priority, instead of the source of the next dollar? Can we develop a true, honest sense of morality that is more than lip service? As Nicholas Kristof correctly pointed out in his columnn today, Richard Fuld, the outgoing chairman of Lehman Brothers, earned $17,000 an hour last year while he ran a 150-plus year old firm into the ground. How many different non-profit organizations can you think of in ten seconds flat that could have put that money to better use? Even one or two is enough.
You want to invest in the stock market, you want to earn a decent return on your money. You cannot be blamed for that. But you do share, a least a little bit, in the responsibility for the exorbitant pay packages that undeserving CEO's are awarded by boards who fail to exercise the proper oversight and diligence. The normal excuse given for these pay packages is that they are necessary to hire and retain the best talent for shareholders. On the surface, this is admirable. But the reality is that CEO's are earning three to five hundred times what their average line and staff worker earns and that is completely out of line with what percentage of the total profit they are responsible for.
Until Americans can have a real debate on the subject of morality in this country, there will always be more Franklin Raines. Jeffrey Skillings, and Bernie Ebbers. Even if we have the debate and establish a real sense of morality, those kind of people will still exist, but there would be more public condemnation and more severe penalties. No one, be it in the name of capitalism or pure greed, has the right to lead people into financial ruin. This is what these men have done. Jeff Skilling and Bernie Ebbers are in jail. Franklin Raines is an advisor to the Obama campaign. Something doesn't add up there.
Admitting that greed has always existed and always will exist is no excuse for not fighting it. We cannot make a legitimate claim to being an advanced society capable of moral leadership until we tackle the problem of greed and stop glorifying its excesses.
That is the challenge that should be undertaken in the wake of this weeks' financial turmoil.

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So, So Right

I know what people are going to say. I'm a Thomas Friedman junkie. But the column he wrote on Saturday said things that really needed to be said. The most important issue of this election is being made into window dressing. How awesome would McCain have been if in response to the hubbub over Obama's lipstick on a pig remark, he had spoken boldly about the time Obama was wasting on trivialities and laid out the specifics of a plan to turn America into a green country that will lead the world into a cleaner, more sustainable era and return America to the position of moral leadership it has lost. Instead, he retreats into the culture war arena and endorses a plan which cannot possibly work and will cost America its economic and political leverage.
The title of the column was "Making America Stupid." In describing the McCain campaign Mr. Friedman wrote, "It's a campaign now built on turning everything into a cultural wedge issue- including even energy policy, no matter how stupid it makes the voters and no matter how much it might weaken America." Mr. Friedman does not take the next logical step by saying that John McCain is not making voters stupid, many of them have been stupid all along, and are contented to remain that way. You have no idea how much it pains me to say that, but it's true. The religious right, to which McCain has sold his once maverick soul, represent the worst of anti-intellectualism in this country. Anyone who endorses "creationism" as a "science" to be taught in school willfully chooses to ignore the very facts right in front of them, and nothing they say from that point on can be taken seriously.
Anyone who has read my blog, and so far there aren't many of you, knows that I have a very strong faith in God. I firmly believe in God as "first cause." For those of you unfamiliar with that term, it means, in a nutshell, that God caused the Big Bang to happen, and, as a result, we have evolved in the proper order along the timeline God prescribed. Even St. Thomas Aquinas, back in the late 13th century, when they knew very little about the origins of the universe, referred to God in this way. I do not think that a man with as great a mind as St. Thomas Aquinas had would continue to argue a contrary opinion in the face of overwhelming evidence, as today's Creationists do. They simply don't have any firm intellectual ground to stand on.
The few evangelicals who have come out in favor of a "green energy" policy, and been vilified for it, deserve special mention. As St. Paul said in many of his epistles, those who believe shall be persecuted. Incorporating new ideas into the mainstream subjects you, unfortunately, to that same kind of intellectual persecution.
The final point of Mr. Friedman's column was the most powerful. We cannot possible remain in any pre-eminent economic position by jumping on the "drill, drill, drill" bandwagon. Mr. McCain is pandering to the very elements of our society that would advocate wasting billions to save the dying American auto industry, which continues to give people what it thinks they want instead of educating about what they should be doing. Let's have GM and Ford declare that it will produce nothing but "green vehicles" by the year 2015 and see the turn its fortunes would take. I'm sure it would produce some short term pain, as Mr. Friedman has pointed out is necessary, but in the end both companies would regain market share they have long since conceded. Just as any President who speaks too boldly is destined for one term, any CEO of GM or Ford who made this declaration would be summarily shown the door, but he would be proven correct in years to come.
This country used to think that way, but complacency and apathy have eroded our innovative spirit. When we wake up one day and find our standard of living lost for future generations, then the finger pointing will start. But will any of us have the guts to look ourselves in the mirror and admit we are all to blame? That is a question that needs immediate consideration.

A Book I Will Be Reading

The introduction of Thomas Friedman"s new book, "Hot, Flat and Crowded," immediately changes my reading priorities. Mr. Friedman's last book, "The World is Flat," was a thorough analysis of changing economic conditions, although possibly a bit too optimistic, as recent events have shown.
The new book changes direction slighthly and it is a timely change. Although the review by David Victor in the NYT points out the book's flaws, they seem to be far outweighed by its strengths. Mr. Friedman points out, as I did in a recent post, that Americans were once capable of pulling together as a nation to accomplish great things, but we have long ago lost that sense of cohesiveness. This opens the door for other, more committed, more collectivist, and less debt ridden countries to take the lead, when America should be stepping to the forefront. Mr. Victor frames the argument this way; "...buzz is not the same as revolution" How right he is.
Mr. Victor faults Mr. Friedman for his lack of specifics on improving leadership in America. I can't really say that I hold Mr. Friedman accountable for this deficiency. How else can we improve leadership in America unless we have politicians who aren't on a constant re-election campaign and who are constantly being bombarded by special interests with boatloads of cash who work against the country's long-term interests? I often hear it said that a politician who would propose the kind of solutions we need, which would have to hurt some people in the short term, would be committing political suicide. That causes me to ask, whose fault is that? If a politician was to propose a bold plan for moving forward that would cost billions and would disaffect some people, how should we react? Are we going to laugh, shake our heads and call him or her an idiot? Or are we going to finally realize that burying our heads in the sand and talking about tax cuts is a completely insufficient solution?
Mr. Victor also faults Mr. Friedman for not being thorough enough on the cost of our different energy options. That seems to me to be a Catch-22 situation. I don't think anyone can really offer an accurate estimate of these costs and anyone who does will be assailed with a thousand differing opinions. After all, it is not Mr. Friedman's responsibility to implement the changes we need, simply to make the public aware of them. Maybe if we had a truly visionary leader, he would appoint Mr. Friedman to head a newly formed commission with a blank check to lead an American green revolution. Then we might truly get some revolutionary results.
One thing is clear. The time to act is now. This world is desperate for some exemplary moral leadership. That used to be our natural realm. How quickly we re-assume that position, after years of neglect, will go far in determining the fate of our nation in the 21st century.

Seven Years After Disaster: What Have We Learned?

The events of 9/11/01 are burned in my memory. For purposes of this entry, they are not important. Rather, the events of the ensuing seven years are. I remember in the first ten or so days after, there was talk of a return to civility. It was short-lived. The first time I saw that it had passed, some guy cut me off on Rt. 23 and gave me the finger when I beeped.
Why is civility so difficult? The question is not even considered anymore. The idea belongs to a bygone age when shows like Davey and Goliath, The Brady Bunch and Dennis the Menace were popular. The question, "why can't we all just get along?" has become a joke, along with the phrase "family values."
Let's consider the question first. We can't get along because we have completely lost any sense of collective consciousness. All that matters is what Ihave and the hell with everybody else. I don't advocate the stifling of individual freedoms like the Chinese system, but, although I hate to admit it, there are a few lessons we could learn from them about collective will. All this talk about diversity being strength may be true enough, but it ignores the fact that Americans need to pull together to meet the challenges of the 21st century, or risk losing our standard of living. Alas, it is readily apparent that this has already begun. It is a sad fact that Americans no longer act until they absolutely have to, and then they are ready to accept patchwork, interim solutions instead of paradigm change.
Family values is an easier matter to explain, but no less difficult a problem to solve. Family values are a joke, because the family is a joke. My own life is a perfect example. I haven't seen my children in four and a half years. Should that really have been allowed to happen? If we truly lived in a society that valued the family, then some sort of authority should be in place to tell my ex-wife that the children's relationship with me must be maintained. But, beyond my own example, the demands of 21st century life in America put a huge, unnecessary strain on the foundations of the family, to the point where there isn't enough time to discuss values. Add to that the explosion of drug use, delinquency, teen pregnancy and glorification of recklessness by the media and it's clear that the family falls low on the list of national priorities. This is not true in other countries, and I think one of the reasons why is pure, American ego. We are not mature enough as a nation to listen to criticism without getting indignant. A true sign of character is the ability to accept constructive criticism and integrate it into subsequent behavior. Has this happened in American society? I see no evidence of it whatsoever. Americans continue to behave in a selfish, arrogant way that benefits no one and damages our reputation on the world stage.
Again, I know I hammer on this theme, but this type of behavior is a legacy of the 60's, when questioning values was in vogue, but the question was never really answered. It's fine to ask why, but to complete the process, a fitting substitute set of values needs to be put in place, and they never were. Civility went out the window with the loss of faith in government.
So as we pause to reflect on this national day of mourning, which should be a national holiday by the way, let us not dwell on the past, but let us make the day an opportunity to look toward a brighter, more civil future. That would truly be a lesson learned well.

A Perfect Example of the Need for More Accountability

The takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac announced this weekend will have wide reaching consequences, most of them good. The expectation is that some confidence will be restored to the mortgage markets and interests rates, which have risen lately, will fall back some. However, that in itself, will not stabilize falling home prices, which no one expected anyway.
But if you are a shareholder of either institution you should be extremely angry. Of course, it is partially your own fault if you hung on in hopes of a turnaround at this point when none was coming. The stock today dropped to under $1 a share, where it is sure to stay. (Caveat: I was a stockbroker for a major retail brokerage firm for seven years prior to my incarceration and recommended Fannie Mae at a price in the neighborhood of $60.) That does not excuse what happened though. The government immediately dismissed the chief executives of both firms, but their ridiculously unearned severance packages may still be awarded to them. Daniel Mudd, outgoing chief of Fannie Mae stands to pocket $9.3 in severance pay. Richard Syron, chief of Freddie Mac has an exit package worth $14.1 million. The artice in the NYT does quote an official of a large union, and probably a large investor, expressing his outrage over this possible outcome.
It should not be allowed to happen. Mr. Mudd has already taken home $12.4 million in compensation. He doesn't deserve most of that. Mr. Syron has already been compensated to the tune of $17.1 million. Same with him. The money set aside for their golden parachutes should be taken and divided up among the employees whose retirements are now ruined as a result of their respective CEO's mismanagement. That would still be paltry compensation compared to what their bosses have made, but at least it would contain a measure of morality and justice, something that has completely disappeared from daily American life.
Let's do a little math. I know it's a bit of stretch to assume that both men still have all the money they were paid, so let's take a figure somewhere in the middle. Let's say they both have $6 million in investable assets, and further assume that they can invest those assets to earn 7%, not an unrealistic assumption in today's interest rate environment. Very simply, $6 million dollars invested at 7% yields an annual return of $420,000. That works out to $35,000 a month. Let me ask you a question. Do you have $35,000 a month to live on? When you stop laughing think about the fact that the severance package would triple that annual income. Do you smell something rotten in that possibility?
Of course, who can forget the top rogue in this entire fiasco, Franklin Raines. This guy made more than $52 million in a 5 year period when he ran Fannie Mae. Of course, he did forfeit some stock options when they nailed him trying to inflate his own pay by cooking the books. That seems fair doesn't it? Okay, I didn't mean to make you laugh again. This is a serious issue.
But the whole mess perfectly points out the need for the American people to speak up and tell their elected officials that this crap can't go on. I'm sure we all know who is going to foot the bill for the takeover of these poorly run, implicitly trusted institutions. And why? Because we sit back and take it. I can't start a one man revolution and I don't advocate the overthrow of the government, but clearly the voices of the people need to heard more often, so I am doing what I can to impel protest. The following two links will bring you to a form where you can e-mail New Jersey's two senators and tell them that you are not happy about what happened and ask them why they weren't more diligent in their oversight:

http://lautenberg.senate.gov/contact/

http://menendez.senate.gov/contact/contact.cfm

There is another side to this whole affair, which as a former stockbroker, I have to mention. It was recently disclosed that a portfolio manager named Bill Miller, from the Legg Mason family of funds, a well respected family of funds, upped his stake in Freddie Mac recently when the stock was trading at $5. I can't imagine how that kind of decision fits into any acceptable risk parameters for fundholder money. The logic behind that transaction needs to be examined, and the examination should go beyond what was on Mr. Miller's mind.


**Information for this post was taken from today's NYT online version.

A Little Sunday Philosophy

Sundays always make me philosophical. I know most of the words the priest says in the Mass by heart, so my mind sometimes tends to wander. It always wanders to the same place first. I think about the children and when I have the Eucharist in my mouth (which I never chew), the children's safety and happiness are always the first things I pray for. The second prayer is that my reunion with them will not be too much longer in coming. More on that as time goes on.
After I am done reflecting on my longing for them, indulging in my own sadness, I look around at the faces of the people in the Church. I very often detect sadness in their faces too. I want to walk over to some of them and ask what is wrong. What is the source of their sadness? Sometimes, when indulging my own selfish sadness, I allow myself to think that no one could possibly be as sad as I am. Then, when I see the sadness radiating off the faces around me, one the one hand, I feel worse because I can't help them. On the other hand, I feel a little better, because I get a clear reminder that I am not the only person with sadness in my life. Joy is wonderful, but joy is fleeting. Sadness has more stamina.
However, today it was the readings from Scripture that really set my philosophical muse in motion. I think it's wonderful that Catholics, wherever they gather, get to hear the same Scripture. It's a sort of "super-communal" shared experience. But it still allows for individual interpretation. Listen to these two passages that were read today. The first is from the prophet Ezekiel, Chapter 33, Verses 8&9.
"When I say unto the wicked, O wicked one, thou shalt surely die, if thou does not speak to warn the wicked from his way, the wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at thine hand. Nevertheless, if thou warn the wicked of his way to turn from it, if he does not turn from his way he shall die in his iniquity, but thou hast delivered thy soul."
The second passage is from St. Paul's Epistle to the Romans, Chapter 13, Verses 8,9 & 10:
"Owe no man anything, but to love one another, for he that loveth one another hath fulfilled the law. For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet, and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. Love worketh no ill to his neighbor, therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.
I'm sure the first passage could be cited by evangelicals as a raison d'etre. But combined with the other passage and the sadness I saw on faces today, I came away with a completely different feeling.
Here is God, granting us free will, but holding all of us accountable. As I have said before, I don't feel it is anyone's right to try to tell someone else how to live other than providing them with guidelines, which is accomplished nicely by the laws of God and man.
What is our responsibility is to try to bring as much joy into this world as possible. Sadness is an extremely powerful force and joy often wilts at the sight of it. If you work to bring joy into this world and it does not inspire others to do the same, than they are the wicked of whom Ezekiel speaks. And no, making a lot of money does not automatically mean that you bring a great amount of joy into the world. The joy that money produces is often fallacious.
If bringing joy into the world is your highest priority, then you are automatically in agreement with both of these passages. The only reason to work to bring joy into the world is love of others, because the sadness that is so evident is such a deteriorating force that must be fought. To create joy is to fight the wickedness that brings sadness. The fruits of your labor can then be held up as an example to the purveyors of evil and sadness, thus preserving the sanctity of those labors and your soul as well.
To interpret the first passage as an evangelical would is to assume a vindictive God; an all powerful force that is constantly on the watch for transgressions, a being that would rather condemn than forgive. I don't see it that way at all. As the priest who gave the sermon in my church today said, Jesus Christ never gives up on someone. Jesus welcomed tax collectors and Gentiles to his table, because instead of automatic condemnation, he gave them the chance for redemption. Jesus showed them what a little faith, honesty and altruism could do. So as long as we work to bring joy into the world, despite our past transgressions, we always have a shot at final redemption. This is my preferred perception of the Almighty, and I can rest well at night knowing that bringing joy into the world, through increased knowledge and open discussion, is my own raison d'etre. When I can bring that kind of joy to my children once again, I will know that God has seen fit to smile on my efforts.

Link to Previous Blog

In response to a comment from Adonis, I am making this link available to the previous space where I had my blog. It was on Windows Live Spaces and I was getting no traffic there. In response to her specific request, there is a post there entitled THE NJDOC: WORTH THE MONEY? If she or anyone else wishes to read this previous post she can go to:

www.ageofaccountability.spaces.msn.com

In closing for the night, as an aside I would also like to say that Verizon Wireless Internet Access is a terrible service in the area in which I live. I get bunked off at the most inconvenient times and it's as slow as molasses going uphill in December. Thank you.

John McCain: Not Such A Maverick Anymore

By declaring Sarah Palin as his vice-presidential candidate, John McCain has completely shed his maverick status. First, the selection of Sarah Palin shows that he is selling his soul to the Christian right in order to win. Second, I don't believe a single word of the rhetoric he has been putting out lately about dismantling the influence of special interests in Washington under his administration. Third, his plan to drill America out of dependence on foreign oil is hopelessly outdated, and his eight conspicuous absences for votes on extending the tax credits for solar and wind power show that he is not tuned in to the economic need of this country on either a micro or macro level. These are the industries of the future, the 21st century growth engines that the microprocessor and software were for the last generation. The standard of living is declining right before John McCain's eyes and he apparently thinks that cheap oil will preserve it. He fails to recognize the damage being done by continued use of fossil fuels and their inevitable exhaustibility. By the time the new drilling begins to have an impact on the average price of a gallon of gas, John McCain's presidency would be over. It's impossible to think of Mr. McCain running for a second term at the age of 76. I think we should send John McCain out of town on a rail and let him quietly fade into political oblivion. The baby boom generation has not shown itself to be great leaders, but I'm praying that we will not wait until a late stage crisis to take decisive action.

My Worst Suspicions Confirmed

Sometimes it sucks to be right. When John McCain announced his VP choice last week, I did what everyone else with an active mind did and went to my favorite news sources looking for info on Sarah Palin. The first stories I read seemed positive. She cleaned house, she was a small town success story and a woman who gave birth to a child with a birth defect. That takes guts. But later in the day, the bad news started rolling in. My initial thought on why McCain chose her- to draw in disgruntled Hillary voters- was discredited. It became clear that McCain chose her to pander to the Christian right. This sickening feeling was confirmed when I read that head nutjob Ralph Reed was thrilled by McCain's choice. This is a group of nuts who do not represent the mainstream of American thought in any way whatsoever. These people feel they have a right to impose their will and their twisted views on all people. Thankfully, although Mr. McCain doesn't seem willing to recognize this yet, their influence in American politics is fading. Barack Obama's certain victory in November will be the final nail in the Christian right's coffin.

The reason the Christian right is so thrilled with the choice of Sarah Palin is that she is pro-life. It reinforces the idea that John McCain, if elected, would appoint Supreme Court Justices that would overturn Roe vs. Wade. Again, this is a position held by only one out of three Americans. The rest of us believe that a woman should be able to choose to end a pregnancy that is unwanted, that would cause the mother harm, that came about as the result of a rape, or that would send the mother and the rest of her family into economic distress. I also believe that it should be done in the first trimester, but I don't possess the medical knowledge to make a definitive recommendation on this point. There are enough unwanted children in the world already. Taking away a woman's right to choose is not only undemocratic, it is unchristian.

I am a Christian. I believe in God strongly. But I also believe that everyone has the right to choose what they will believe and how they will live their lives, as long as that choice does not interfere with the conduct of society's daily affairs. The purpose of life is to accumulate as much knowledge as possible and then pass it on to the next generation. Stifling scientific progress in the name of morality is not helping mankind's present condition. I don't want a whole bunch of clones running around, but to withhold goverment money for stem cell research that might help to alleviate painful and long running disease is crazy, and I don't believe a benevolent God would want us to do so anyway.

I wish John McCain had gone ahead and chosen Joe Lieberman for his VP. That would have made this a real race. I know things seem to be close now, but in the end Barack Obama and Joe Biden will triumph and a new era of national pride and vision for the future will begin.