Why I Blog

A changing world pulls me toward new understandings of life. Of people. Of concepts. Of intersections that expand meaning and understanding. A cycle of thoughts, happenings and relationships. All bumping into one another. Exciting and creative, this. Also, chaotic and bewildering.


Not alone am I. Nor you.


We are in this together. The more I learn the more I realize our interdependence. Each of us is an island but more moments; the rest of the time we spend interacting with each other or the affects and effects of each person’s being. You cause things to happen. The other fellow as well. And I do my part of adding to the stew.


How all of this glumps together to produce discernable order is a beautiful puzzle to ponder and put in order.


That’s the blog. Attempts at ordering. Chaos to meaning. Discerning meaning. Short term or long term meaning is an enigma always in solution stages. So the blog cannot come to a conclusion; it alights on one stem, petal or leaf at a time in the garden of delights. Like a bee nosing through the blooms of a massive garden, I swoop in and out of short visits. The brain finds order in this. Like nature, the larger function is served and the results learned later.


What blossoms will appear next season? What cross-pollenization will take root? Will this hybrid work wonder or disaster for the rest of the garden? How do we make the most of the one while guarding against the other in our actions of today? How long must we wait to learn which worked?


Social organization and governance are like a garden. Not all organized. Not all known. Agents of change constantly buzzing about and causing something to happen, just not readily apparent.


That concept alone is worthy of a blog. Ponder it well.


March 10, 2020

Curious

The guy sat waiting for the barber to take him next. He did not read a magazine or paper at hand. He didn’t scan his phone. He just sat there. Staring ahead. Blank faced.


I wondered what he was thinking about. I was reading a book to fill any time while waiting. I got used to this while living in Wheaton and frequently sat at train crossings for slow freights! It was my practice to always have reading material on hand.


Even now in retirement I read journals, scan internet news feeds, and read books, both Kindle and those with real pages. This keeps my brain engaged. It fills my curiosity, too. I am reminded of the Facebook meme that shows t-shirt and book images with the declaration – “I read books. I know things.”


And I do know things. not an expert, mind you, but a person who appreciates life’s complexities and how things fit together; or don’t!


This weekend a neighbor and I attended Northwestern University’s Day University. It was an event with three lectures by renowned researchers, teachers and authors. The event was packed, sold out in record time. About 1200 attended at Northwestern’s Law School in Chicago. Topics included:


The Presidency: Changing Role of America’s Highest Office; Jeremy Suri, University of Texas

The Human Brain: What We Know (and what we don’t); Heather Berlin, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

Four Memorable Musicals That Changed Broadway; Sean Hartley, Kaufman Music Center


Liberal Arts, Science and Arts. All topics that intersect with one another in strange and wonderful ways.


The invention of the American Presidency is decidedly not monarchical, not defined in the Constitution, but created by George Washington. It later was expanded in law, policy and protocol by other presidents, most notably Abraham Lincoln (subscription of military forces, expansion of education for the masses via land grant colleges and universities, expansion of voting rights, emancipation of slaves, and much more. Then Franklin Roosevelt with the intervention of government to support quality of life for the suffering poor and depression families; social security; global responsibility and military action to preserve the free world; diplomacy to build a self-sustaining global village. And then several recent incumbents of the White House. All have gathered more power by overshadowing Congress while shaping the courts. Has this gone too far? Yes. It is time for the public to redesign the office to better fit with the checks and balances first envisioned by the framers of the Constitution. The public holds the power to do this and will sooner or later.


The brain is intricate and expansive in its function and capabilities. We know so much more about how it works, but with each advance in that understanding we learn even more of the capabilities of the shrouded brain. Will we connect individuals to computers and Artificial Intelligence? Could be, but should we? What are the ethical limitations versus freedom to explore and discover? So much more lies ahead in the head!


And then there is music and its many art forms. This day we focused only on Broadway Musicals and its future. We toured the history of the musical form and how it became rooted on Broadway. What might this become in a technological world? Will we continue to focus on the physical place of Broadway, or spread to many sites throughout the nation and globe? Will large entertainment conglomerates control the artistic karma of creation, or will individual genius still prevail in speaking the human condition in music and dramatic action? Time will tell, won’t it?


And thus the power of politics and the people, the capabilities of the brain and the expressive power of art come together.


Pretty neat day. Several hours well spent I think. Plenty to think about at the barber shop waiting room.


March 9, 2020

Pondering

Small gathering of people Tuesday night at Nexus. This is our local discussion group on current events practiced with civil voices. Yes, we do not agree with one another. No, that doesn’t harm our free exchange of ideas and feelings. The latter are important in that they often skew our logic. Pretty natural. Also can change tone and start arguments. Not with us!


The discussion was about how ‘fishbowl vision’ affects how we see the world around us. The fish in his bowl, sees the world from his unique perspective. How factual is that vision? Similarly, we humans see the world from our fishbowl lenses, too.


Perhaps you are an adopted person. How has that shaped your perception of the world around you? What does growing up in a house of alcoholics do to your perspective? What about struggling with sexual identity not conforming with the world around you?


Of course, our surroundings condition our feelings first, then our logic that interprets what we see and experience. The same is true if you are a liberal, conservative, middle of the roader, republican or democrat. Perceptions change with such nurturing backgrounds. Not all perceptions are happy ones.


Racism is a conditioning in which people of one race feel differently from another race. If I fear losing my identity because I am surrounded by people of a different race, then I will likely act differently. I may not even be aware of it.


The white privilege syndrome is subtle. I have caught myself being surprised by the articulation of a complicated point by a person of a different race. Then I realized I was the one with a problem! Assumed superiority is sneaky that way. And I had no clue I was so imbued.


Likewise religious views. What role does church play in your life, or another’s? What should its role be in society at large? What about political and governance issues? What fishbowl lens do we have concerning this issue?


This is our next topic for discussion at Nexus. Tuesday, April 7^th, at Towne Tap of Warrenville, Illinois. 6:30 pm. Order your own pizza and beverage. Then relax and let brains share their interaction!


March 6, 2020

Pandemics

I know the current coronavirus scare is all the rage. It deserves the attention because of its spread rate and continental leaps on the globe. Scary to think it could spread to our own neighborhood, region and home.


Scarier still is the lack of a vaccine to protect us. I know they are working on it and will eventually have something, but meantime early victims are in doubt as to their recovery and long-term effects. Of course, we project all of this on ourselves and families. Yes, scary.


A moment of pause, please. Just a reminder, that in the early 80’s hundreds of thousands of men were falling ill from a mysterious symptomology and the medical community was powerless to solve it let alone treat it. Time did uncover treatments, but patients still died all too often.


This epidemic turned into a global pandemic. It eventually claimed the lives of 32 million people (men, women and children). That is 43% of the infected patient count of 74.9 million. A death rate of 43%! These numbers are through 2018. The disease continues to take its toll.


Now, put that in perspective of coronavirus deaths of 2% or less of infected patients. 3000 lives have been lost globally so far. Of course that number will rise significantly before the epidemic is behind us. Still, 2% versus 43%. Shocking.


Yes, HIV/AIDS has the stigma of being a gay disease. Funny; the women and children who died weren’t gay. Stigma kills just the same whether rationale is sensible or not. Death is death. Disease is disease. It affects all of us in one way or another.


Best we pay attention and do what is necessary to reduce the toll of all disease among us.


Fact: 37.9 million AIDS patients were alive in 2018. 770,000 died that year from the disease.


March 5, 2020

Super Tuesday

Fourteen states held their primary balloting yesterday. Nationally, attention focused on Democrat presidential candidates. The winners appear to be Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders. Elizabeth Warren did not do well, but neither did Mike Bloomberg or Tulsi Gabbard.


More was on the ballot than presidential choice. Congressional candidates were winnowed down in many districts. These are important races that will determine the fabric of the House of Representatives. Some movement in the Senate is expected as well. Other elected positions appeared on the ballot too. Although national attention rarely casts a shadow there, the personality and temper of political times are forecast by who runs and wins at various levels of state and regional elections.

The primaries are a major mechanism to whittle down those who make it to the final ballot in November. For now our attention is on who will likely be the challenger to the incumbent White House occupant.

Democrats are continuing their dizzying competition for party spokesperson. Will it be a moderate? Or will it be a democratic socialist? Or something in between. Which of these will have the best chance to win support from the American voter? Will their support end the social experiment labeled Trumpism?


First, let us acknowledge that Tom Steyer, Pete Buttigieg and Amy Klubuchar have dropped out of the race. Who might be next? Tulsi Gabbard has never actually been a viable finisher.


The odds on winners to make it to the nominating convention are: Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders, and possibly Mike Bloomberg.


These candidates are shown in the polling strength order I believe will be the final lineup. There is doubt of course; Elizabeth Warren remains a candidate but as time marches on voters appear to be backing away from her and toward the other three candidates, all white men of significant age. She is also running out of money so her candidacy may run out by April 1.


OK. Let’s say one of the three remaining men make it to the nomination. Who among the also-rans might they choose for a running mate?  This is the next chapter of leadership selection. A female candidate would be likely. Maybe even the young Mayor Pete?


My preference at this point is Bloomberg over Biden. Both are moderates, but Bloomberg has the executive experience in government, solving huge problems in a contentious age and scarce resources. Biden remains a politically experienced candidate. Which would be better?


My attention does not embrace Bernie Sanders. I feel his liberalism is too much for the nation to digest at this time of our history. His talking points are powerful and should make us think of what our future could be if we truly lived our values. But that takes a faith that may be too far for the American public.


Of course, whoever wins the nomination gets my vote. In the final analysis, voting trump out of office is the number one priority.


March 4, 2020

Virus

Organism that grows quickly on host organism. Spreads quickly, leaping from one host to another.


This organic reproduction is a model now for rapid adaptation of anything – viral message, video, meme. Also, of new product success. Or fashion emergence over a broad population or region.


Sickness, of course, is our current focus. From bat droppings in China to a vast population; exposed to illness which leads to death of some patients. This is the coronavirus. It is now an epidemic spreading to other nations and continents. If it continues rampant spread in each of its landing zones, it may very well become a pandemic. Now that’s a viral adaptation to note!


The illnesses spread in this manner cause absence from school, work and social events. That includes travel and entertainment venues. Social activities will be markedly less. With that comes economic impact. In most cases, illness is a small margin of impact. In an epidemic, the impact is much more.


In a pandemic, the impact is enormous. That’s noticeable. In a short span of time human activity is so changed it is noticed on a large scale. Obviously economic impact is substantial.


Today’s epidemic of coronavirus may soon be termed a pandemic. Because of that possibility, human reaction is to take cover, enact defenses, and – even without the pandemic label yet – affects the economy. Infects more likely.


Travel drops off. Business meetings are cancelled. Internet, Skype and Zoom applications take their place. Phone traffic and email transmissions soar. Documents are shared digitally and paper docs are eliminated entirely.

In person shopping drops off, schools are closed for a time, so too, businesses. Seeing this, stock markets are seen as vulnerable. Stock indexes drop off. Asset evaluations shift noticeably. Soon the weight of the epi-pandemic is viewed fully.


The viral happening can transform a society's routine to a stark reality. Life and death are real. Always has been. Two plus two makes four. Simple logic. Simple math.


Funny how some things sharpen our understanding of what’s important.


March 3, 2020

Price of Gasoline

Do you shop for the lowest pump price for gas? I will if prices have spiked and I’m looking for a decent price for a fill up. We even have a phone app for that. It gives us the pump prices for at least a one suburb radius around our town. I won’t travel very far for a lower price. For pennies on a gallon, why bother to spend gas to get gas?


But here’s the thing. Pump prices are nuts over the last 18 months. Case in point: recently global oil prices have plummeted, from $54 a barrel to $45. Gas prices? They rocket between $2.40 and $2.80. Even with the coronavirus scare, oil continues to plummet in price while gasoline soars to $2.80 without a hiccup. And this is a universal price among ALL gas stations in our area.


There is no reason for the spike at the pump. There is no underlying foundation for the price change. Petroleum gurus have forecast an oil slump for months now, even predicting gas prices below $2 a gallon. Just as prices seem to soften, another spike comes along, but when barrel prices are tracked, pump prices move in the opposite direction!


Who can explain this to me? This has nothing to do with taxes at the pump. This has nothing to do with prevailing weather in the area. Or holidays.


I watch pump prices constantly. I am aware. Call it my OCD symptom. I lived through the gas lines of the 70’s and the continuing instability of pump prices in the 80’s. I watch. And I reward my patronage to the gas stations who seem fairest in their price tracking to the global market. The other stations I ignore.


I think it is interesting that our country supposedly believes in free markets. Oddly, gasoline and oil isn’t one of those markets anymore. It is a whipsawed, manipulated, price fixing oligopoly. It’s time we consumers rise up and do something about it.


This is not just an economic issue. It is a political and regulatory issue. Remember that the next time you vote.


March 2, 2020