Gone, Gone the Damage Done

The financial costs of hurricanes Helene and Milton will exceed anything we’ve experienced in a single hurricane season.  The loss of lives is also significant and still counting. For many survivors, their world has been turned upside down and may never recover.  This would certainly be the case in many mountain communities in Western North Carolina.  The devastation there is almost unimaginable.  Parts of the Florida Gulf Coast have been transformed.  Some residents have had enough and will move inland or out of the state.  Hurricanes are a reality for Florida and there will be more.

 

The politics of hurricanes and hurricane relief are in full swing.  The Right is pointing fingers at what they claim is a poor response.  That poor response being the result of federal agency incompetence along with too much money spent on immigrants and other nations.  The Left’s response is they are doing a good job and those who claim otherwise are misinformed or worse, spreading that misinformation.  The Left is also seizing on these disasters to once again make their case that human caused global warming, largely caused by fossil fuel, is the real problem.

 

At the risk of being labeled a “climate change denier”, it’s worth pointing to the data. This is a link to some very interesting data from the NOAA National Hurricane Center U.S. Hurricane Strikes by Decade (noaa.gov).  You can read it for yourself and reach your own conclusions, but I would draw your attention to the note just below the data records.

There are two sides to the hurricane story.  The mainstream version claims that even IF we are not having more hurricanes, we are having more major hurricanes. Again, the data to support that claim is questionable at best.  One thing is certain. Hurricanes are doing more damage now than in the past.  The same can be said of tornadoes and hailstorms and wildfires. Today there are simply more people and more structures in places where hurricanes (and tornadoes and hailstorms and wildfires) are most likely to hit.

The questions we must answer:

_1 How much has human activity contributed to climate change?

_2 How much can humans do now to change the climate to something more favorable?

_3 Should we spend more money trying to change the earth’s climate or spend more money preparing to live with the earth’s climate?

_4 And of course the most pressing question: What can we do for the folks who lost so much to Helene and Milton?

                                                             Galveston, Texas 1900

The Experts Can Be Wrong. (Perhaps more often than not).

 

A lot has been said and written about how the “experts” got things wrong about Covid.  Experts being wrong is not all that unusual.  In recent history the “experts” have been wrong about quite a few things.  For over 100 years the experts have been saying the world would soon run out of oil.  Eventually, we will…but it’s yet to happen “soon”.  The experts gave us the “food pyramid” back in the 1950’s and now the new experts are saying the old experts were wrong.  In the early 20^th century the experts were confident that eugenics was the path to a better, healthier, more intelligent human race.  That path only ended up in global war and genocide.  For over 100 years the experts have come up with various ideas on how to “fix” the Middle East.  Thus far they’ve only made it worse.  And I can remember when the experts just knew it was bad for players to drink water during August two-a-day football practices.

 

As one grows older one is likely to deal with a more “medical experts”.  Fortunately, they tend to be right most of the time.  Unfortunately, when they are wrong it can really hurt.  A case in point, in the summer of 2022 I was having some pain in my right hip.  We were looking forward to a trip to Italy in September, so I decided to go to my orthopedic doctor and get it checked out.  Maybe he could give me a shot.  Or perhaps he would tell me the hip was arthritic and would most likely need to be replaced within a year or two.  I was prepared for the worst but then got good news. After he X-rayed my hip, he concluded that I just had tight hamstrings and glutes.  So, he sent me to another expert, a Physical Therapist, who gave me a stretching routine and some tips on improving my posture.  Go now and be well.

 

Dutifully I did the stretching and worked on posture.  My hip responded by getting worse.  So, I doubled down on the stretching and good posture discipline.  My hip got worse and soon my entire leg started to hurt.  A week before we were to leave for Italy I could no longer stand or walk for more than 5 minutes.  So that trip was cancelled, at no small expense.

 

I went back to my ortho doctor and he took X-rays of my back this time and said there was a problem.  So, I ended up with a back and spine specialist.  More X-rays and an MRI revealed a slipped disc in my lower back along with stenosis.  Serious but not necessarily serious enough to justify surgery just yet.  So back to the Physical Therapist and some new exercises.  With rest and some light exercises there was improvement.  We added more exercises and it immediately got worse.

 

My wife criticizes me for going to the internet for medical advice, but sometimes it pays off.  I discovered that one of the exercises the PT had me doing was exactly what I should not be doing with a slipped disc.  So, I stopped going to the PT.  I continued with some of the other exercises avoiding the bad one or anything that resembled the bad one and quickly got better.

 

For two years I’ve been ok and continued with the stretching that the “experts”, including those on the internet, recommended.  But recently after two weeks in Alaska, my hip and leg began hurting again.  So, I did even more stretching of the leg and hip muscles.  And it got worse. 

 

Then I stumbled across another internet “expert”.   Based on his information, it just confirmed that this was sciatica caused by the back problem, even though my back did not hurt.  NO surprise there.  But, to my surprise, this “expert” advised that stretching the hamstring and hip muscles was a bad idea.  The stretches might feel good in the moment, but only served to irritate the sciatic nerve.  He advised a different routine focused more on strengthening the glutes and lower abs.  Within a week, my pain eased up considerably and I am back on the road to recovery.

 

Bottom line, for over two years I have been doing what the experts advised.  And after some adjustments I was doing ok, until I wasn’t.  I’m pretty sure some of our Alaskan adventures fired up the sciatica and all my efforts to calm it down only made it worse.  At some point I may need surgery to fix the slipped disc.  But for the time being I have found a better way to deal with it.  The experts might know a lot about what has worked or could work, but remember they can just as easily be wrong.   

Another Installment of My Two Cents Worth…Election Edition

_J.D. Vance clearly won the debate vs Tim Walz but count on Trump to undo whatever positive momentum Vance’s performance may have generated.

 

_Democrats have been in full reset mode since the Biden debate meltdown. Tighten up the borders, increase support for Israel, cut interest rates, release more oil from critical reserves, keep Joe Biden out of the public spotlight as much as possible and promote Kamala Harris as an Obama-like transformational leader who will bring joy and good tidings along with hope and change.

 

_Whatever the real story is about Lt. Gov Mark Robinson’s alleged porn posts, North Carolina has gone from a toss-up or slightly red, to leaning blue.  Trump needs to win North Carolina and that might not happen now.  The election comes down to AZ, NV, GA, WI, MI, PA and North Carolina.  These represent 93 electoral votes.  Trump needs at least 51 of those.  But PA is the key.  Assuming he wins AZ, NV, GA and NC he’s still 2 votes short of the necessary 270 to win.  If he were to lose NC, but capture PA, he could still win. 

 

_The economy, the border, the Middle East and Russia/Ukraine are all negatives for the Democrats. And depending how long it goes on; the East Coast Longshoremen’s Strike could turn things against them.  But the Democrats have two big things in their favor: Trump and abortion.  Trump-hate alone may be enough to push them over the line.  Throw in the abortion issue which is probably 60-40 in the Democrats favor and it’s likely enough to keep them in the White House.

 

_The sad truth is when you look at Trump/Vance, Harris/Wolz; three of those four could not even fill a high-level leadership role in a major corporation.  Vance is probably the only competent one in the bunch.  America must do better when it comes to developing and selecting government leaders.

CONSEQUENCES

 

“I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.” – The Apostle Paul, Romans 7:15

In the context of Paul’s letter to the Christians in Rome, I certainly agree and can relate to what he’s saying here.  We must battle the world, the flesh and the devil if we are to follow Christ as He expects us to follow.  But when I consider what Paul says in this verse, I would amend it just a bit.  Indeed, people do what they may hate to do, but only after they’ve done it.  In the moment people do exactly what they want to do…or they wouldn’t do it.

 

You may argue that people do what they don’t want to do all the time because they have no choice.  But, people always have a choice.  Therefore, people often do what they don’t want to do even though they do have a choice. Your spouse asks you to take out the garbage.  You may not want to do it, but you have a choice…nonetheless, you better do it.  The alarm goes off Monday morning and you don’t want to get up and go to work. You want to stay in bed.  You have a choice.  What do you want more? To keep your job or stay in bed?  Ultimately you will do what you want to do in that moment.  That’s why some people don’t get up and some do.  In either case, the person is doing what they want to do.

 

People do what they want to do even when it’s not in their long-term best interest.  You say you don’t really want that second bowl of ice cream, but you’re lying to yourself.  You eat that second bowl because you want to eat it, and in that moment, you’re not seriously thinking about what’s best for you in the long-term.

 

People do all sorts of self-destructive things because they want to do it.  Drug addicts use drugs because they want to.  They want to because they are addicted.  They may hate what they are doing, but they are doing what they want to do.  And they have a choice.  It’s a hard, painful choice, but they do have a choice.  Young men join gangs and do bad things even though they may say they really didn’t want to.  No, they had choices.  None of those choices may be all that great or easy to make.  But they did what they wanted to do in the moment.

 

In today’s world we have made the mistake of telling people to make decisions based on their feelings.  You do you.  Live your truth.  What a crock.  There is right and there is wrong and if you don’t believe that, at least believe there are consequences.  You feel like taking out student loans to get a degree with little or no monetary value?  There are consequences.  A kid puts all their efforts into trying to become a highly paid professional athlete because that’s what they want to do and they choose not to get an education or have a plan B.  But things don't work out.  There are consequences.  A young girl wants to be loved and gets pregnant? Consequences.

 

You want people to do better? Make sure they understand the consequences of their actions.  The “Universe” doesn’t care what you feel like doing.  Go on “you be you”, “live your truth”.  But know that life is not fair.  Don’t make it worse for yourself.  There are always consequences.

Alaska, Home of the Tall One

 

Denali:  Kuyokan Athabascan word meaning The High One or the Tall One.

My wife and I just spent 11 days in Alaska, not on a cruise either.  The original plan was to travel entirely by train and shuttle vans.  But I prefer to be in control, do not like crowds or being forced to spend untold hours with random strangers.  So, it’s best for me and other travelers that I rent a car.

We flew into Anchorage.  Took one guided tour from there to an abandoned mine site an hour or so northeast of Anchorage.  It was pretty much a “meh” day and my wife and I were regretting that we had not just gone back to Montana one more time.  

The next day we headed north toward Talkeetna on our own.   The first 50-60 miles was more “meh” and left us hoping it would get better.  And it did.  Finally, the mountains started to impress.  Fall colors were more vibrant as we drove farther north.  We arrived at the little tourist town of Talkeetna had lunch and then headed out for some dryland dog-sledding.  We were transported to Dallas Seavey’s Kennels. Seavey, six-time Iditarod champion, was not there but his team and his dogs were.  Seavey has a lot of dogs.  We got to meet most of them, which was great.  The handlers hitched four dogs up to a wheeled sled, showed us how to steer it and brake as needed and off we went.  It was a hoot and I highly recommend it if you’re ever in Alaska.

The next morning we took an airplane ride over Denali National Park and the clouds cleared enough that we flew over the summit of Mount Denali.  Definitely worth the time and a considerable amount of money.  That afternoon we drove north to the Denali Borough and the scenery did not disappoint.  The mountains are impressive, and it truly is a wilderness.   Few people and very little traffic.  My kind of place.  When we arrived at the park, there were more people but nothing like you would encounter at a big-name national park in the lower 48.

The following day we were on a bus tour of the park.  You can only drive personal vehicles a certain distance into the park and from there it’s hike or take one of the park’s hop-on/hop-off shuttle buses.  Had we known about that option, we would not have taken the bus tour.  After announcing that she would not talk too much, the tour bus driver/guide proceeded to talk non-stop for the next 5 hours.  She was particularly fascinated by Arctic Ground Squirrels, so at least half of her ramblings were about those little critters.  The scenery was great, we saw Dall Sheep and Moose.  But, on a scale of 1-10, I’d only give it a 5.  Could have been an 8 or 9 with a less talking from the driver.

The next day, Saturday, we headed back south toward Girdwood which is about 35 miles the other side of Anchorage.  We stayed at the Alyeska Resort and I would definitely recommend it. 

Sunday morning we took a helicopter ride into the mountains and made two landings on glaciers.  It was my first time in a helicopter and it was great.  We got to see things you could only see from a helicopter and the glacier landings were an unforgettable experience.  Again, it cost some money but was well worth it.

We finished up our trip in Seward with a cruise around the Kenai Fjords National Park. It ranked up there with the dog-sledding and airplane ride, but the helicopter ride was the best.  Then it was back to Anchorage the next day and an early flight out the following morning.

Alaska was on our bucket list and I am glad we went.  We had a great time.  But Alaska is one and done for us.  It’s definitely worth seeing if you can afford the airplane and helicopter rides and if you’re up to handling as dog sled.  If not, then I would suggest taking an Alaska cruise.  I’m not a cruiser, but I would think it’s the best way for most folks to see Alaska.

Alaska would be a tough place to live.  The long winters and limited sunshine would get to me.  Unless you’re a big-time hunter or fisherman, I couldn’t see much reason for living up there.  It’s definitely not a place for everyone.  We lived in Montana and loved it.  But Alaska is a whole other world.  Even in my prime, I don’t think I would have enjoyed it much.  But I could say the same thing about most major cities in the lower 48, so maybe I’m just too picky.

My Two Cents Worth While Sweating Out Another August in Texas

 

_It’s definitely hot here in North Texas.  It’s not record breaking, but it is news making.  It’s interesting how many of the record hot days here in Grayson County Texas are from the last century.  We have not yet become an urban heat island here.  So, what you see and feel is what you get; and it’s pretty close to what folks got 100 years ago or 50 years ago.  I’m not denying climate change, I’m just making an observation.

_The British are coming. It appears that our cousins in the UK have finally had enough.  Mass immigration combined with a lack of cultural assimilation have finally reached the boiling point.  Many British citizens, generational British citizens are fed up.  They have learned a lesson that inclusion is a hard pull when people come from entirely different cultures and religions.  And if they don’t look like each other it makes it even more difficult.  Not impossible, but not something that just happens because certain progressive elites think it’s a good idea.  Everyone must work together and want to get along.  And frankly, the newcomers end up having to want it the most and work harder to get it.  So far, that’s what we’ve seen here in the United States.  Perhaps because we are a nation of immigrants.  But it’s not easy.

_Donald Trump may have dodged the assassin’s bullet, but he is now shooting himself in the foot on a regular basis.  Ignoring the counsel of cooler heads and seasoned advisors, he’s making it personal. Trump is also showing signs that his age is catching up with him.  It’s not a good look.  The GOP, with Trump leading the charge, is on the way to losing the November election, not only for the White House, but “down-ticket” which means the Democrats will control the Executive Branch, The Senate and The House.

_Excluding the bizarre opening ceremony, I enjoyed watching some of the Olympics, especially track and field.  The USA did well.  Those from Texas or developed in Texas showed up and showed out.  But the Olympics has too many events and too many participants with no chance of winning a medal or even being competitive.  Fewer events, fewer athletes and a shorter, classier opening ceremony would make the Olympics much better in my opinion.  (Old guy now pulls up his pants, slaps a newspaper against his leg and rattles the change in his pocket.)

"It is greencards that become blue passports. It is unlearning the language of our grandparents. It is knowing how to pronounce Arkansas and Illinois.  It is enjoying barbeques on somber national holidays."-Anamika Nair

 

More Than Money

Recruiting management and executive talent in the transportation/logistics world has been as much of a roller coaster ride as the industry itself.  We went from the Covid Freight Bonanza to the Great Freight Recession.  Like most roller coaster rides it’s been a combination of fun, fear and nausea.  That would certainly describe the transportation/logistics job market.  We quickly went from “Help Wanted” to layoffs and hiring freezes.

Overlooked in this mad scramble to hire talent and then reverse course to “right-sizing” are some fundamental changes in the Candidate Market.  These changes have been coming on for the last 10 or 15 years and have now come to define the candidate market.  And when this freight recession ends, and it will end, good luck finding help.

Much has changed and there are a lot of reasons why.  These reasons tend to fall under the heading of “changing expectations”.  I think this is particularly true for candidates who have come of age since 2000.  For management level and above this would be in the 25-45 age range.  They have grown up in a different world; the world of 911, the 2008-2010 recession, mergers and acquisitions, an increasingly polarized nation and, most recently, the Covid Pandemic.  To a large degree these events have shaped their outlook toward work and career advancement.

These candidates are reluctant to trust employers (or recruiters).  They have personally experienced or witnessed the impact of a recession on employment.  The escalation of merger and acquisition activity during the extended era of cheap money following the recession may have created some jobs, but even more job losses.  If this is how the marketplace works, why risk changing jobs or relocating for a career opportunity that is just as likely to evaporate as it is to materialize?  We have a prime age workforce that just doesn’t buy into pursuing career opportunities unless the overall payoff is large, highly probable and immediate.  They have good reason to be cynical about the long-term benefits of sacrificing too much for what may well turn out to be too little.

The offshoots of this are a desire for work-life balance and a resistance to relocation.  Furthermore, to make a job change; it must be the right position, with the right company, in the right place, at the right time…and for the right money.  Most candidates are no longer willing to take a “stepping-stone” job for a modest increase in pay, especially if it involves relocation and does not come with a significant improvement in work-life balance.  And those candidates who are genuinely career driven are looking for a bigger job, more responsibility and a lot more money.  Gone are the days of someone taking a job for a 10-15% increase in compensation.   Perhaps if there is no relocation, that might work.  Otherwise, it needs to be a 25-30% increase which likely puts them above current employees in similar positions.  So that’s not going to work.

For now there are enough unemployed or under-employed candidates who will accept any job if it pays close to what they were previously earning.  But that candidate pool will dry up quickly as the economy improves.  We are also seeing companies hire below “spec” in order to stay within their pay range for the position.  More often than not it does not turn out well for the company or the candidate.

Looking ahead, companies that have the talent will be the winners.  This means developing and retaining that talent.  Companies cannot rely on the marketplace to fill their needs.  This is coming from a headhunter who makes his living recruiting people away from one company to another. There will still be times when going to the market for talent is necessary.  Recruiting, whether internal or third-party, will still be around.  But companies best invest in new people and fill their needs internally.  Finding and hiring talent in the open market is not going to get any easier or more affordable.

You Might Need A Hearing Aid If...

                                                    

                                      

Hearing aids are just one more grudging concession to growing older.  It was a battle I could no longer fight, much less win.  My wife Kayla has needlessly put up with my poor hearing for years.  So, I now wear hearing aids.  Thus, for the sake of all you older men who might not hear as well as you used to and for the sake of your tortured wives even more so, I feel it is my duty to suggest “you might need a hearing aid if” certain things are happening.

You might need a hearing aid if you think your wife just mumbles all the time.  You may ask what happened to her? Why doesn’t she speak clearly anymore?  Did she have a stroke while I wasn’t watching?  Is she just mumbling to irritate me?  News flash:  She is not the problem.

You might need a hearing aid if you think kids these days don’t know how to talk.  Whatever happened to proper enunciation?  Too much texting and social media is ruining verbal communication.  No one can understand these kids, not even their parents.  Uh, sorry Boomer, the kids are not the problem.

You might need a hearing aid if restaurants and other public places have just gotten too noisy.  It’s impossible to carry on a decent conversation with the music and background noise.  They must not want customers to stay around too long unless they are spending money.  No wonder all these places are going out business.   The fact is these places are doing just fine.  That’s why so many people are there talking, eating and drinking.  

You might need a hearing aid if your neighbor starts commenting about the television show they heard you watching last night.  Or they ask if your wife is OK because they heard you loudly asking her why she mumbles all the time.

You might need a hearing aid if your pets start running from you because you’re talking so loud they think you’re mad at them.

You might need a hearing aid if you are driving and discover that your turn signal has been on for the last five miles. 

You might need a hearing aid if a nurse ask you when is the last time you had anything to eat or drink and you answer by telling them your date of birth.

And you might need a hearing aid if you call a customer service help line and simply cannot understand what the person is saying.  Ok, bad example. Maybe you don’t need a hearing aid if that’s the only problem you’re having.

                  “Whoever has ears, let them hear” Matthew 11:15

Assassination Attempt, My Two Cents Worth

 

“Look back over the past, with its changing empires that rose and fell, and you can see the future.”- Marcus Aurelius.

_The attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump will be THE STORY for the next few weeks and may turn out to be THE STORY of the 2024 Election.

 

_This event will push Trump even farther ahead of Biden in the polls, especially in the swing states.  Trump is now a lock to win the election.

 

_To not secure a building less than 200 yards away and then not have eyes on all rooftops in the area is an epic lapse in security.  That it happened in broad daylight only adds to the scope of this security failure.

 

_How long before The Left makes this about gun control? I’ll give it two weeks. And, oh by the way, expect a jump in the sale of guns and ammo.

 

_Democrats may rightly conclude they can’t win in November and just ride Biden/Harris to the finish line.  Why fight the Biden family and supporters only to end up with Harris/Whoever on a losing ticket?

 

_One can only hope there is no evidence that the assassin had ties to any radical groups.  The internet is already boiling over with conspiracy theories.  Even if there is “no evidence”, it’s not going to stop the MAGA hardcore from believing this was a Deep-State sponsored hit job.

 

_The political divide in this nation has been growing for the past 40 years, most of all in the last 8 years.  We cannot go on at this rate.  Our politicians, our journalists, our religious leaders, our educators and our entertainers need to tone down the rhetoric.  Just stop feeding the fire.

Two Cents Worth While Contemplating the meaning of Independence

 

Time for another installment of unrelated subject matter and commentary.

­_I doubt that the Founding Fathers of this nation ever envisioned piling up a federal debt that would be 25% greater than annual gross domestic product.  Or that the interest on debt would exceed National Defense spending.  Not a great formula for being “independent”.

_I look forward to seeing Kevin Costner’s “Horizon”.  But I don’t do movie theaters anymore and certainly not for a 3-hour Part I episode.  I’m spoiled by the big screen at home, my comfortable chair and most of all, a pause button.

_Health tip: Make sure you’re getting enough protein.  “Enough” depends on size, sex, age and activity level.  Most of us consume too many empty carbs and not enough protein.  Worldwide it’s estimated that over 1 billion people suffer from severe protein deficiency.  

_The Freight Recession continues.  While we are seeing some signs of improvement, the consensus of opinion is we will not see overall capacity/demand balance until mid-2025.

_Anyone who is just now realizing that President Biden is not up to the task has either not being paying attention or they have been in denial.  And Donald Trump isn’t far behind.  There really needs to be an age limit on the President and Vice-President positions.  Once a person gets past 70, even if they are very healthy, they begin to lose their edge.  Clearly there are big jobs a healthy, super senior can do.  Warren Buffet and the late Charlie Munger come to mind.  Clint Eastwood has done some very good work well past 70.  There are artists and entertainers who remain outstanding in their 70's and even into their 80's.  But being President of the United States is a whole other ballgame, if it’s done right.  And the risks are too great if it’s not done right.  We should not be rolling the dice against old age for the most important job in the world.

Bada Bing

 

Here we are in 2024 and it seems like it was only yesterday when “The Sopranos” landed on our not so big screens.  It was January 10, 1999.  And until the final episode in June 2007, it was must-see television.  For me, “Yellowstone” is the only series that has since come close.  And, as much as I like Yellowstone, it simply does not rate up there with “The Sopranos”.  

It was the acting and the dialogue that made "The Sopranos" so great.  The violence was graphic but never gratuitous and always seemed necessary.  And of course there were plenty of F-bombs dropping all over the place.  But the way those Jersey guys said F—K, F—king, F—ker and of course the “mother” of all F-bombs, it just seemed natural. 

The larger-than-life actor James Gandolfini left us way too soon.  But had he lived he would have forever been Tony Soprano no matter what other roles he played.  Even great actors find it difficult to break away from an iconic character.  Most of the Soprano regulars are forever linked to that series, but none more so than Gandolfini.

The Sopranos struck a chord with Americans.  We were stepping into a new millennium.  There was money to be made and life was not bad for most of us.  But we were haunted by the emptiness of our pursuits.  The Sopranos reflected what we had become.  Living in a wealthy suburban neighborhood, the kids doing normal kid stuff, Mom taking care of everyone and everything; and Dad heading off to work in his big, shiny SUV.  He just happened to be a Crime Boss. 

Tony Soprano was like one of us, only different.  Like us in that he was a blend of good and bad.  He hoped to be more good than bad.  But he had a job to do and people were counting on him.  If he had to do bad things to those who got in his way, they had it coming.  Like us, it was just business. The only difference being that he didn’t just kill careers, he killed the people.  And we rooted for him every week.

Headlines

 

It seems that most everything one reads, watches or listens to these days is wrapped around a narrative. Because I lean right, I get more unsolicited emails and social media stuff that matches my apparent “right-wing” bias.  But I try to balance it out by intentionally seeking out left leaning newspapers, magazines and television.  

 

So, with the admission that I have a “right-wing” bias, let’s call it “center-right”, I have noticed that in recent years even the Dallas Morning News (DMN) has started to lean to the left.  It’s not in-your-face progressivism and they still publish some “conservative” news and editorials in a positive way. But increasingly the headlines, captions and photos tend to promote progressive causes.  It’s not slightly above average summer heat. It’s approaching record heat.  The mess on the border rarely makes the front page unless it is some local on the border taking the law into their own hands.  If the police shoot a black person it’s front page, anyone else and it is somewhere in section B.  Trump supporters are right-wing or MAGA people.  Biden supporters are just Democrats.

 

When a school superintendent up here in Grayson County makes a controversial decision to insist that in school plays the kids must play characters that match their gender at birth, it makes the front page.  Not saying I agree with the superintendent’s decision, it was a bad call.  And it made national news, not just in North Texas.  So, the DMN had to run it and probably had to run it on the front page at some point or have their “honest” journalism membership revoked. 

 

A lot of the stories and headlines in the DMN are directly from the Associated Press or other wire services.  Some are articles from other newspapers.  The vast majority of those tend to support left-wing narratives, even if it’s just with the headline or the wording used to describe conservatives.  I’ll give the DMN some credit in that most of the few “pro-conservative” or at least unbiased articles originate with DMN journalists and editors.

 

The DMN probably sees itself as being fair and balanced.  Maybe they don’t notice the left-lean of the other “news” they publish.  But I tend to think it’s just another indicator that the left is winning the culture war.  Those on the left would nod and say they are winning because they are on the right side of history, or just following the science, or protecting democracy, or promoting the virtues of diversity, equity and inclusion. 

 

And so it goes. I’ll continue to read the Dallas Morning News, the e-paper version of course.  (Doing my part to reduce global warming.)  But, I will read it knowing that most of those who write the articles and report the news see the world much differently that I do…and they are intent on changing it.  

 

“With the possible exception of things like box scores, race results and stock market tabulations, there is no such thing as Objective Journalism.  The phrase itself is a pompous contradiction in terms.” Hunter S. Thompson

Another Two Cents Worth

 

Time for more random observations and comments.

 

_Recent elections in Europe point toward a shift to the right.  Some might say this is dangerous while others say it’s about time.  Europe is facing some real challenges: declining population vs. keeping the gates open for more immigrants, energy cost and reliability vs climate change activism; and the growing threat from Russian expansionism at a time when the U.S. is struggling to remain the free world’s bodyguard. 

 

_The whole Caitlin Clark/WNBA/Olympic team snub mess has become one more battleground in the Culture War.  Wholesome white, Midwestern woman who hit the jackpot faces resentment from WNBA veterans who are mostly black.  But even some of the white WNBA veterans are critical of the attention and money going Clark’s way.  Leaving Clark off the Olympic team only adds fuel to the fire. But, make no mistake, if she had been selected for the Olympic team there would have been just as much, if not more, fuel added to the fire.  That’s how culture wars work.

 

_School choice. I am conflicted on this issue. Certainly, there are places where the public schools are so bad that parents would do well to send their kids to private schools or just home school them.  But there are still many places where the public schools do a good job.  And all things being (almost) equal, public school education is a plus in my opinion.  However, this is a tough one.  Long-term we need to upgrade our public schools.  But in the here and now, there are parents who have rightly concluded that their kids would be better off NOT attending public schools.  Should they get a break financially to offset the cost of NOT using the public school system?  We all pay taxes for things we don’t use or things that are unusable… thanks to the government.  Where’s my voucher?

 

_You know you are getting old when every few days some celebrity or sports legend you remember from “back in the day” passes away.  Jerry West, Bill Walton, Larry Allen, Toby Keith, Duane Eddy, Carl Weathers are just a few of those we’ve lost this year.  Some of them are a bit “before my time” but I certainly remember them.  Others are from my generation.   And many are younger, so much so that I don’t even know who they are or why they are famous.  And some of those you remember, you’d just as soon forget (O.J. Simpson).

It's Not Really About the Candidates

 

So, Trump received guilty verdicts on 34 charges in a New York court.  It’s a big story for now but these verdicts will be over-turned on appeal which will become the next big story.  Trump may still win in November.  Or maybe Biden wins.  Or maybe Republican and Democratic party leadership wakes up and finds replacement candidates.  

 

Whatever the outcome, we now live in a nation even more divided.  Conservatives vs. Progressives with little common ground between them.  This division is forcing “independents” to pick a side.  Of course, there will be some number of middle-grounders who will vote for a personality or whichever side supports their hot-button self-interest issue. But increasingly voters will have to weigh one side versus the other in terms of the voter’s overall self-interest, not just one big issue.  

 

There are hardcore supporters on the left and right who toe the line and buy into everything their party stands for.  But the big middle is made up of people who have their own opinions.  Nevertheless, that doesn’t make them independent.  These “middle” voters will make hard choices and it won’t be based on what they think of Trump or Biden.  It will come down to what’s most important to these voters and which party is most likely to do what these voters consider to be “the right thing” at this time. 

 

Trump and Biden may be symbolic but are essentially irrelevant to these voters.  It’s about the issues that matter.  My sense is that the most important ones revolve around the economy, border security and cultural values.  Clearly there are many divisive issues imbedded within these categories and some voters will base their vote on one or two issues.  Abortion access for example or student loan forgiveness.  But most of those in the middle will be considering a wide range of issues and it will come down to which party is most likely to fix the most problems or perhaps just stop the bleeding and do no further harm.

 

The “middle voters” in the swing states will decide the November election. Whichever party can convince these voters they are most likely to address their concerns will win.  The party that caters too much to their devoted followers will lose.  

 

I don’t live in a swing state.  Texas remains red, although not as red as it used to be.  I am one of those middle voters who is not “all in” on either side.  But I do know how I will vote.  Something about stop digging when you’re in a deep hole.

More Two Cents Worth

 

The first “Two Cents Worth” entry was last month, April 24 to be exact.  I think it’s time for another installment.

 

The Trump trial in New York is just another “you can’t make this stuff up” story that makes one wonder how much longer we can hold this republic together?  Massive deficit spending, cat fights in Congress, strangers crossing our borders, an education system that no longer educates, unaffordable housing and a nation irreconcilably divided on most every issue that matters.  And we can’t even find reasonably competent, age-appropriate Presidential candidates.  

 

NIL money and student-athlete transfers will quickly force realignment of major college sports into “big money”, “little money” and “no money” divisions.  Old guys like me will have less interest in watching college football and basketball, but there will still be a huge audience for these sports.  Turn the page.

 

2024 is on pace to be one of the worst tornado seasons in history.  Of course, this fits right into the climate change doom and gloom narrative.  And, no question, the climate is changing, always has and always will.  I just don’t think pushing everyone to drive EV’s is the answer.

 

The uproar over Harrison Butker’s commencement address at Benedictine University is just another sign of the times.  A devout Catholic speaking at a Catholic university to an audience that mostly appreciated where he was coming from, even if they didn’t totally agree with everything he said.  We should be more concerned about our government extending condolences to Iran on the death of Iranian President Ebrahim “The Butcher” Raisi.  

 

Watched Lonesome Dove again.  I’m well into double digit re-watches of that epic mini-series which could not be made these days.  It’s loaded with Racism, Toxic Masculinity, Cultural Appropriation, Animal Abuse and numerous images, words and deeds which would just upset too many people.  In other words, it’s a pretty accurate reflection of 1870’s American Frontier life (except the real thing was much worse.)

 

And then there is Memorial Day and this from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow:

Rest comrades, rest and sleep! The thoughts of men shall be

As sentinels to keep your rest from danger free.

Your silent tents of green we deck with fragrant flowers

Yours has the suffering been, the memory shall be ours.

Getting It Right

 

Watching the Pro-Palestinian/Anti-Israel protests on college campuses, I found it both interesting and highly disturbing how little these protesters actually know about the Middle East in general and the long-standing conflict between Jews and Palestinians in particular.  But I know better than to go down that rabbit hole, so this blog post is not about the Middle East mess.  Rather it is about how we should think about our beliefs.

 

I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my life.  Thankfully and by the grace of God, I’ve learned from them.  Most importantly, I’ve learned to ask the hard questions and seek the hard answers.  This is not an easy thing to do.  Human nature is more interested in fruit that looks good and tastes even better.  Consequences be damned.  But eventually, some of us learn that consequences will not be damned and certainly cannot be ignored.

 

Those life lessons have led me to ask these hard questions: 

 

_Is what I believe actually true and am I on the right path?

_Why do I believe it?

_If I am on the right path, what does it mean for how I live my life?

 

When I look at what’s going on in the world today, I see people asking similar questions but getting the wrong answers.  And I think that pretty much sums up the craziness we’re witnessing.  People believe something because it just “feels” right, or someone has told them it’s right or they just need to believe it for selfish reasons.  The American Civil War is a classic example.  Southerners believed things about slavery, black people and states’ rights that were just wrong.  But they certainly believed they were right and went to war to prove it.

 

History is essentially about groups of people thinking they are right and their opponents are wrong.  In most cases there is right and wrong on both sides of the argument.  Unfortunately, those who are mostly right don’t always win the argument.  Sometimes those who are mostly wrong win…at least for a while.  And even when those who are mostly right end up winning, it’s not likely to be a “win-win” for everybody.  Life is hard and it’s also short.  No one gets everything right all of the time.  The best we can hope for is that we get most of it right for as many of us as possible for as long as possible.  

 

“Knowing what’s right doesn’t mean much unless you do what’s right.” – Theodore Roosevelt

Putting Down Your Dog

 

South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem’s confession that she shot and killed her chicken- eating 14 month old “puppy” was not well-received.  In fact, she’s no longer a likely candidate for Trump’s VP running mate.  I suppose it would have been better if she had sent her dog to a sanctuary city where there were no chickens or the chickens were protected from dogs who liked to chase and eat them.  As a last resort I reckon she could have subbed out the canine capital punishment to a vet who would have done the deed with drugs and new age meditation music playing in the background. I don’t have a problem with what Governor Noem did.  But I grew up in a time and a place when people were actively and directly involved in the life and death of animals, including pets.  And it wasn’t easy, especially for kids. 

 

When I was 12 years old I had to shoot my dog.  I had taken in a stray.  He was probably less than 2 years old.  A mixed breed that appeared to have some Brittany Spaniel in him.  I named him Rebel and I loved that dog.  In those days dogs stayed outside.  We did not have “inside dogs”.  We might let a cat in now and then, but no dogs.  Rebel eventually got sick.  I’m not sure what all was wrong with him, but he had the mange along with constant diarrhea and he had quit eating.  My dad made it clear: my dog, my problem..

 

I was a big kid and already had a 16 gauge shotgun.  I remember it well.  At close range I shot Rebel in the head.  It was a mess.  He never knew what hit him.  I buried him out in the woods and never went back to his grave.  I cried and it haunted me for a long time.  But I accepted that it had to be done and I was the one to do it.  I chose not to tell people about it.  Even back then some folks would have thought it was a bit much for a 12 year old to handle.

 

These days we take our old dogs to the vet.  We stay in the room and hold them while they drift away.  The vet takes the body and in a week or two we get the ashes.  It’s a whole lot easier on us than shooting and burying the dog.  And I’d like to think it’s easier on the dog.  No final memories of us looking at each over a gun barrel.  But the dog is still dead.  I go home and cry.   The loss of a dog still haunts me.  But this way I don’t have blood on my hands and people won’t hate me. 

  

Two Cents Worth

 

Blackie Sherrod was an outstanding Texas-based journalist and sportswriter.  He was voted Texas Sportswriter of the year 16 times.  Yes, he was that good…even better.  He passed on in 2016 at the age of 96.  One of the columns he used to write was called “Scatter-Shooting” and he would address a variety of subjects, mostly sports, but not entirely.  It was great stuff and always left you wanting more.

 

I’m not about to use “Scatter-Shooting” to describe this ramble.  Instead I will opt for this well-worn country nugget: “Two Cents Worth”.  Back in the day, when someone wanted to say something, but with the qualification that it was just their opinion, they might open with “Just my two cents worth, but this is what I think…”

 

So, here’s my Two Cents Worth on some of the issues of the day.

 

College kids protest.  They’ve been doing it for generations.  Now the Cause du Jour is Palestine.  And, as usual, some of the kids are taking it too far.  Time for the adults in the room to set some boundaries…if it’s not already too late.

 

The U.S.-Mexico border situation baffles me.  The only reason I can see for the Dems allowing this to happen is they want to boost the number of Democrat supporters.  There may also be some pressure from business to come up with more cheap labor, but this really feels like more of a demographic play to shift the balance of power more toward the Dems.

 

Abortion is liable to end up being the difference maker in the November election.  Religious convictions aside, the majority of Americans favor some allowance for legal abortion.  12-15 weeks seems to be the acceptable range with exceptions for later term if there are serious medical issues.  The hardlines on abortion being drawn by many Red states are going to bring out the votes for the Dems.  If the Dems hang on to the White House, this will be the reason.

 

The Right is also overplaying their hand on shutting down DEI programs.  There are certainly all sorts of negatives in the way many DEI programs have been run.  But for a lot of people, DEI remains the “equalizer”.  Without established DEI programs and policies they believe we’ll just go back to straight, white guys having all of the advantages and everyone else scrambling for leftovers.  

 

Last but certainly not least, Federal government spending has now gone so far over the line that it will take years to recover.  Inflation is baked into our economy.   We’re not going to work out of it with increased production or economic growth.  And there is no commitment to cut spending.  Tax increases are just a way of shifting some of the debt burden off of lower income folks who are essentially bearing the cost through inflated prices.  There is no free lunch.  Someone has to pay.  Who, how much and for how long are questions no politician is willing to answer.   But I can tell you it will take a lot of time and way more than two cents.

Time Out

 

Two months ago I wrote about the struggles I’d been having trying to sleep while dealing with a stubborn upper respiratory virus.  I thought I was just about over the sickness and noted how God had used this challenge to draw me closer to Him. 

 

As it turns out God wasn’t finished with the lesson.  I did not get over it and eventually ended up in the ER diagnosed with atypical pneumonia (aka walking pneumonia.)  The past few weeks have been challenging.  Lots of coughing and spitting… and even less sleep.  I’ve been unable to work or do much of anything other than lay around.  But with medication and time, we finally seem to be getting over it.  I hesitate to say that too loudly for it has  been 1 step forward and 2 steps back since the beginning of the year.  But my vitals are all looking good and I am actually getting some sleep. The cough has settled down and my lungs are clear.  I am weak and wrung out but feeling better and regaining strength. 

 

So what have I learned?  How about be careful what you pray for?  I’ve never had much patience and it’s always been something I prayed for.  But I didn’t really make much of an effort to become more patient.  I think God finally said, let’s answer these prayers for patience with a long, painful time out.  And I must admit, it’s got my attention.  I’ve always been a hard-charger, even in my old age.  I’ve enjoyed good health to the point of taking it for granted. I believed that as long as I ate right, got some exercise and a bit of sleep, I could handle just about anything.  I thanked God for my good health, but I probably took too much credit for it.  And as long as I could keep pushing myself, results would always be more important to me than patience…or people. 

 

These last three and half months have humbled me.  I have come to realize how my lack of patience is just another form of selfishness.  When a person thinks first of their self and what they want to accomplish, it doesn’t leave much room for patience.  Your priorities become work and results…right now.

 

I suppose it remains to be seen what I do with this lesson.  Old habits are hard to break.  Do I return to the old pattern of “me first”?   Or, do I stop and put others first for a change?   God is watching.

Who Is My Neighbor?

 

I recently had the opportunity to attend a church service where the sermon was based on the parable of the Good Samaritan.  I’ve heard many sermons based on this famous parable, but this one definitely came out of leftfield…and I do me THE LEFT field.

 

This pastor, who happened to be a woman, repeated and repeated and repeated the question from the parable: “Who is my neighbor?”.  Her answer was emphatically “Everyone”.   She suggested that Israel should treat the Palestinians as neighbors.  Russians should treat Ukrainians as neighbors.  Americans, Christians in particular, should treat those crossing our southern border as neighbors.  Every conflict could be settled if we were just good neighbors.

 

She made the point that in this parable, the Samaritan who showed mercy was the “good neighbor”.  The priest and the Levite who had passed by the badly injured stranger and offered no help were definitely not being good neighbors.  The parable concludes with Jesus commanding that we should behave like the Good Samaritan.  Jesus tells us that we must “Go and do likewise”.

 

So, it begs the question, What Would Jesus Do (WWJD)?  What should the Christian position be when it comes to immigration for example?  Some would argue that certain Christian organizations are making things worse by enabling people to make the long trek to our southern border and advising them how best to crossover; and then telling them “what to say in order to stay.”  Unfortunately, “activist” Christians must ultimately face socio-economic and political reality mixed in with a large measure of unintended consequences.  Simple solutions to complex problems seldom work.  Even more elaborate, sophisticated solutions often don’t work and almost never work as planned.  History is littered with problems which were only made worse by the solutions inflicted upon them.  The current situation in Israel being a classic example.  

 

People have been twisting scripture and stretching Jesus’ parables for two thousand years to fit their agendas.  It’s a big reason why so many people have walked away from the Christian faith and religion in general.  But ultimately people will end up believing something.  Everyone has a belief system, even if it’s just doing what “feels” right or following the crowd.

 

The world is complicated and broken.  8 billion people, 56 million square miles of dry land and 140 million square miles underwater;  millions of people sick and starving along with millions sick and overweight.  Vastly different cultures, religions, languages and living standards.  Only God can fix it and he will…when he’s finally had enough of whatever this is.  And Christians would be well-advised to consider that some problems are above their paygrade.  Do the right thing when and where you can, but don’t make things worse.  Now that’s being a good neighbor.