Way too many topics in this title! But the point here is not an in-depth analysis. It is, rather, an attempt to recognize the forces at work and see them in a bit of logic.
Few of us who voted for Mr. Obama BELIEVED he really meant for there to be change. It was the same scenario when Minnesota elected Jesse Ventura, a pro wrestler, to the governorship. He was voted in NOT because people truly believed in him, but as a message to our politicians that 'business as usual' was getting tiresome. We wanted something better, and we knew it had been a long time since anyone in government had tried to supply 'better' without getting neutered by the system.
As for Obama, a president who spends trillions to bail out corporate banking while executives walk away with large salaries and bonuses, and a president who backs nuclear power plants whose waste cannot be safely disposed, is either caught in the web of American politics or never meant for real change to take place.
I've long thought I was closer to being a Democrat than a Republican but, like many Americans, I've come to think there is little difference in what gets accomplished by either party. So what's the point?
My previous post about the 5 year plans created by China was intended as food for thought and not as an argument for communism. However, I would like to point out a couple of obvious things about our 'democracy' that are holding us back as a nation dedicated to progress. It may seem like I am attacking the Republicans, but I hope it will be seen that it is really just intended to improve the state of the nation.
Republicans of my acquaintance seem to contradict themselves. They ask for smaller government, less regulation of business, and a free hand to pursue wealth as properly befits a market economy. They go on to say that government inefficiency is a major evil in society and that, if the government wishes to supply a service, it is best left to the business world to supply the service as they will do so more efficiently. It seems to follow logically that ... government should be run more like a business.
Wait a minute, though. Running government like a business, in the interest of efficiency, economy, and goals means a top down hierarchy, concentrated power that must be obeyed once decisions are made, and very importantly, maybe most importantly.... a business plan.
How can we have concentrated power, efficiency, economy of effort and wealth, and goals for the future in a two party system that seemingly passes power back and forth faster than a ping pong ball changes sides of the table?
Yes, folks, you heard it here first. Ping-pong-power-politics.
Now, when I look at the problem in this light, I am a Republican. Our country needs a business plan in the government....but not just directed at business. It needs to address business, political reform, environmental protection, ownership and usage of natural resources, and a host of issues that I can't even comprehend, much less explain.
One of the first and largest issues such a plan would have to address is "just who is the boss here?". Anyone who objectively looks at much of the modern western world can recognize that big business considers politics to be one of the many tools in its toolbox. Everyone knows beyond any doubt that businesses donate to politicians whom they believe will further their interests. All very legal, and even reinforced in a recent US Supreme Court decision guaranteeing corporations the right to do this.
I'm sorry, but I find this bass-ackwards. Doesn't it seem more logical for business to be a tool in the hands of a government acting in the interests of the people, rather than for the government of the people to be a tool in the hands of business?
Corporations benefit greatly by continued inefficiency in government. They perpetuate the myth that pro-business government is good for employment. A government without power over business allows them to continue to operate in their own interest. Yes, they do provide jobs and in this sense, the myth is true. But there is money to be made, employment to be created, and improvement in the state of the world to be had in creating industry that serves the people more than it serves corporate profit.
Corporations operating outside of government regulation follow only the whims of the market, whims often created by powerful and expensive advertising campaigns ... and their own plan to survive in the "survival of the fittest" world of capitalism. This survival is ever dependent on making more money, gaining more power, controlling more aspects of their environment to ensure their continued success. In short, operating primarily in their own best interest. The jobs they create lure people into backing pro-business government without telling them that the this solution to unemployment is, ultimately, a short term solution in an ever evolving society that needs to take into account the fact that, as technology increases, there will always be less work next year than there was last year.
The fact is, we need a lot more than a 5 year plan to face the challenges of limited resources, pollution, food production, over-population, and many more. Business will seldom act outside of its own goals unless it does so because we demand social responsibility.
So....what'll it be? Government the tool of business, or business the tool of the people?
Monday, March 28, 2011
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
China's 5 year plans
This is, in no way, intended to defend communism, nor to promote either capitalism or democracy. The goal is to make you think just a bit about what you believe.
It can, at times, be difficult to get a photo without working to find an angle that excludes construction, repairs, or places that need one or the other. This says two things very plainly.
1. There is a lot that needs doing.
2. There is a lot being done.
Things are being done at a pretty incredible rate. The feel of China has something of what I imagine the USA to have been in the early stages of our economic boom.
My questions for you are:
Can the United States, with it ping-pong-power politics, ever do something so logical as to formulate a 5-year plan?
Given 3P politics, could a single administration put together such a plan in 4 years that would not have its primary goals so compromised as to be virtually worthless?
Are Americans so blind (and, perhaps, arrogant) that they are unable to admit there MAY yet be some things they could learn from the rest of the world?
I think...No, No, and, I hope,...NO!
It can, at times, be difficult to get a photo without working to find an angle that excludes construction, repairs, or places that need one or the other. This says two things very plainly.
1. There is a lot that needs doing.
2. There is a lot being done.
Things are being done at a pretty incredible rate. The feel of China has something of what I imagine the USA to have been in the early stages of our economic boom.
My questions for you are:
Can the United States, with it ping-pong-power politics, ever do something so logical as to formulate a 5-year plan?
Given 3P politics, could a single administration put together such a plan in 4 years that would not have its primary goals so compromised as to be virtually worthless?
Are Americans so blind (and, perhaps, arrogant) that they are unable to admit there MAY yet be some things they could learn from the rest of the world?
I think...No, No, and, I hope,...NO!
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Disclaimer and driving in China
I'm in China, making observations about the Chinese. Nothing is meant to offend, but probably will, which will probably be the case when I start making observations about the Americans, the Brits, Africans, and the Arabs. The world is often a laughing matter, let's enjoy it.
Have you ever happened across a child on a busy street? He/she will be totally involved in some activity of great interest, moving forward to see better,....and suddenly, without warning or taking any care to avoid anyone around, reverse directions and cause all within range to make adjustments to keep from injuring the tiny, unsuspecting soul.
This is how the Chinese drive...in China.
As there seem to be no traffic 'laws', only traffic 'suggestions', some of the rules of the road might be (who knows?) as follows.
Turn signals exist, but are apparently very vulnerable to wear and tear. The number of people I have observed using them in our seven months residence here can be numbered in single digits. Entirely optional.
Merging lanes is done by looking nonchalantly into a mirror, it matters little which one as the information it contains is irrelevant, and slowly moving in the direction you wish, regardless of the amount of traffic that might be in your way. If anyone perceives you are inconveniencing them more than they are concerned about doing so to you, they will politely honk their horn, which you may ignore.
If, however, they honk less politely, you should, at least, consider showing some concern.
Left hand turns across traffic, again, do not require use of signals. Nor do they require any actual opportunity, to make said turn, to exist. All that matters is that, like doing a merge, you state your intentions slowly enough that people can figure out what you wish to do. As many as possible will do all they can to cut you off and get by before you impede their progress, but once you have succeeded in pushing far enough into opposing traffic to make their progress impossible...they will stop for you. Gently...almost lovingly.
You are, most likely, getting the idea, but one more example may be enlightening. Passing other vehicles is an activity that is also unburdened by traffic laws, lane considerations, or anything else that might resemble a real guideline. You may pass on the right, left, against oncoming traffic, and at any speed you care to risk. What matters most is....'Were you there first?'.
The result of this system gives a US citizen the feeling of driving in a nation of teenage drivers...the 'me first' mentality which sometimes exists in the supermarket line, the bank line, the 'any' line, does overflow into driving.
What is interesting is that it results in as few accidents as it does, and seems to result in little or no 'road rage'. Drivers are intensely aggressive about trying to get ahead of every single car they can manage. Yet, failure to do so is handled philosophically. I have yet to see or hear a driver do more than mutter a bit over some minor defeat which would have Americans flipping out and flipping off.
So come on over, learn some Chinese, get a driver's license. Put some fun back in your life.
Have you ever happened across a child on a busy street? He/she will be totally involved in some activity of great interest, moving forward to see better,....and suddenly, without warning or taking any care to avoid anyone around, reverse directions and cause all within range to make adjustments to keep from injuring the tiny, unsuspecting soul.
This is how the Chinese drive...in China.
As there seem to be no traffic 'laws', only traffic 'suggestions', some of the rules of the road might be (who knows?) as follows.
Turn signals exist, but are apparently very vulnerable to wear and tear. The number of people I have observed using them in our seven months residence here can be numbered in single digits. Entirely optional.
Merging lanes is done by looking nonchalantly into a mirror, it matters little which one as the information it contains is irrelevant, and slowly moving in the direction you wish, regardless of the amount of traffic that might be in your way. If anyone perceives you are inconveniencing them more than they are concerned about doing so to you, they will politely honk their horn, which you may ignore.
If, however, they honk less politely, you should, at least, consider showing some concern.
Left hand turns across traffic, again, do not require use of signals. Nor do they require any actual opportunity, to make said turn, to exist. All that matters is that, like doing a merge, you state your intentions slowly enough that people can figure out what you wish to do. As many as possible will do all they can to cut you off and get by before you impede their progress, but once you have succeeded in pushing far enough into opposing traffic to make their progress impossible...they will stop for you. Gently...almost lovingly.
You are, most likely, getting the idea, but one more example may be enlightening. Passing other vehicles is an activity that is also unburdened by traffic laws, lane considerations, or anything else that might resemble a real guideline. You may pass on the right, left, against oncoming traffic, and at any speed you care to risk. What matters most is....'Were you there first?'.
The result of this system gives a US citizen the feeling of driving in a nation of teenage drivers...the 'me first' mentality which sometimes exists in the supermarket line, the bank line, the 'any' line, does overflow into driving.
What is interesting is that it results in as few accidents as it does, and seems to result in little or no 'road rage'. Drivers are intensely aggressive about trying to get ahead of every single car they can manage. Yet, failure to do so is handled philosophically. I have yet to see or hear a driver do more than mutter a bit over some minor defeat which would have Americans flipping out and flipping off.
So come on over, learn some Chinese, get a driver's license. Put some fun back in your life.
Monday, March 14, 2011
Engrish
My traveling partner, and wife (Paula, and...uh.... Paula)...and I are now in China for a year teaching English, and I have, for some reason, avoided recording any impressions other than occasional e-mails to friends. During many other trips it has been fairly easy to jot down some daily thoughts, but here it has been more difficult.
Perhaps I burned out on journal-keeping while on the Appalachian Trail, or find too many things to think about each day, or wonder at my own possible audacity in commenting on the oldest civilization known to man. Any and all of these could contribute, but now...I'm off my dead ass, and will try to toss off a few notes of observation without getting too bogged down.
Gotta love the Engrish!
We wondered at this SO much early in this trip. SO easy to ask someone before committing this to being viewed by thousands of people, SO easy to ask before spending lots of money getting hundreds or thousands of copies of something printed and scattered across the country. It seemed the Chinese were too proud to ask for help.
Maybe they are....or maybe there are other possible explanations. Like...'Hey, no big deal, as long as it's understood.' Maybe some of us 'good' students who took grammar, spelling, and punctuation way too seriously (because we were good at it) need to just lighten up a bit...eh?
Perhaps I burned out on journal-keeping while on the Appalachian Trail, or find too many things to think about each day, or wonder at my own possible audacity in commenting on the oldest civilization known to man. Any and all of these could contribute, but now...I'm off my dead ass, and will try to toss off a few notes of observation without getting too bogged down.
Gotta love the Engrish!
We wondered at this SO much early in this trip. SO easy to ask someone before committing this to being viewed by thousands of people, SO easy to ask before spending lots of money getting hundreds or thousands of copies of something printed and scattered across the country. It seemed the Chinese were too proud to ask for help.
Maybe they are....or maybe there are other possible explanations. Like...'Hey, no big deal, as long as it's understood.' Maybe some of us 'good' students who took grammar, spelling, and punctuation way too seriously (because we were good at it) need to just lighten up a bit...eh?
Introduction
Many would find pointless the decision to record my thoughts and impressions as coming from a source less than learned, by many standards...perhaps even my own, and possibly justly described as rife with naivete and an idealism more appropriate to a college freshman. To this I can only answer that I find a certain satisfaction in thinking I may have retained enough faith in humanity, in the face of past and current events, to remain idealistic. Whether this be due to continually reading about many educated and intelligent people working hard to improve the state of the world, to an unadulterated bull-headedness, or to some combination thereof, I can only make an inaccurate estimate.
The former paragraph would be devoted to the world at large. As to those of the population, severely limited in number, who actually know my background, the common complaint might be in defining myself as a farm boy. None could challenge the fact of living my first four years on a tiny Iowa farm, but may bridle at the idea that, having then moved into the metropolis of Grand River (pop. ~300), my point of view may have become tainted by city life.
As the son of the postmaster, I escaped not only our outdoor toilet, but slopping the hogs, shearing the sheep, pulling the heads from chickens, endless rounds of the fields on a tractor, and many other of the countless joys of country life, retaining only the light exercise of hauling bales of hay to be placed in the barn or in outdoor stacks...one possible avenue for young men desiring monetary gain during the summer months and, in my case, the means of paying college expenses through graduation...this having the added advantage, in my mind, of granting a certain freedom and individualism in not working for some outside employer though, of course, there were many as we traveled from farm to farm. Odd...and telling, how we tell ourselves what we most want to hear.
To keep this introduction within the scope of modern attention spans, I'll wrap it up with a brief warning. Though small town life might seem more a breeding ground of conservatism, it seems to have, in more than a few cases, been equally capable of spawning a certain amount of liberalism...perhaps my own. Some will accuse me of this, socialism, communism, anti-capitalism, class prejudice, and idiocy. I only hope to escape that which I see as the greatest evil...the inability to try to see another point of view. You are certainly free to judge, hopefully not too harshly.
The former paragraph would be devoted to the world at large. As to those of the population, severely limited in number, who actually know my background, the common complaint might be in defining myself as a farm boy. None could challenge the fact of living my first four years on a tiny Iowa farm, but may bridle at the idea that, having then moved into the metropolis of Grand River (pop. ~300), my point of view may have become tainted by city life.
As the son of the postmaster, I escaped not only our outdoor toilet, but slopping the hogs, shearing the sheep, pulling the heads from chickens, endless rounds of the fields on a tractor, and many other of the countless joys of country life, retaining only the light exercise of hauling bales of hay to be placed in the barn or in outdoor stacks...one possible avenue for young men desiring monetary gain during the summer months and, in my case, the means of paying college expenses through graduation...this having the added advantage, in my mind, of granting a certain freedom and individualism in not working for some outside employer though, of course, there were many as we traveled from farm to farm. Odd...and telling, how we tell ourselves what we most want to hear.
To keep this introduction within the scope of modern attention spans, I'll wrap it up with a brief warning. Though small town life might seem more a breeding ground of conservatism, it seems to have, in more than a few cases, been equally capable of spawning a certain amount of liberalism...perhaps my own. Some will accuse me of this, socialism, communism, anti-capitalism, class prejudice, and idiocy. I only hope to escape that which I see as the greatest evil...the inability to try to see another point of view. You are certainly free to judge, hopefully not too harshly.
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