An attorney, a building inspector and a comedian were asked how they would depict this situation: "What do you think about 100 people locked in an abandoned theater?" The attorney said, "A potential lawsuit." The inspector said, " An emergency for the fire department or police." The comedian said, "A great opportunity!"
Opportunity is from the Latin nautical term indicating "favorable winds"- Opportununus compound adjective from the prefix ob (to) and portus (harbor). Originally it described winds, "blowing toward the harbor." These winds create an advantage for a ship to reach their destination harbor. The phrase became figuratively "coming at a convenient time." Or as we say, "Being in the right place at the right time with the right qualifications."
The nation in which we live seems to be facing some tremendous opportunities. Like a ship at see, we can either recognize these favorable winds or miss them all together. These favorable trends swirling around us are exciting and strong. They can propel our nation to our next destiny safe and secure, if we allow our sails to be positioned at the correct moment. That moment seems to be right now!
What trends? Why are today's trends, winds of opportunity? For me today, an old saying expresses it best,"Today's opportunities is yesterday's dreams and tomorrow's memories." The underlying strength of the USA is the results of well visioned dreams of many leaders and statesmen. If handled properly by the current generation of dreamers those dreams will be pleasant realized memories for each and every citizen. Handled wrong and our memories of wonderful nation will have become nothing more than a distant dream of long ago.
Opportunity made our great nation. We must once again seize this opportunity. How? First we must begin a unified approach to the future. Congress, social and business planners, even state officials and every politician needs to produce concrete plans for our future expansion. What buildings, roads and social services are being planned by various identities that could be more effective if consolidated into one unified effort. Also to churches and service groups, what services do you render that could be strengthen through a cooperative effort? With our continued population growth these questions gain in importance. Plus the governments crackdown on length of time a person can receive welfare will be producing more and more people in need of services no longer available in sufficient quantities.
It does seem to be a thrilling notion to see our nation as one long political traffic jam from one end of the nation to the other with a mish mosh of solutions scattered randomly around, with a sprinkling of beggars and criminals lurking at every corner.
Today is the day to catch the favorable winds. We are headed toward the right port, but the sea is scattered with rocky shoals. I would feel more comfortable if I knew there were some wise and cool heads at the helm insuring our trip to safe harbor isn't stopped short. You know who you are and history is asking you to step up to the plate as a citizen leader, putting aside all self interest for the best interest of the nation. Your dreams of yesterday are depending on you today, so our future maybe what you envisioned so long ago. Opportunity is a group effort. It is time for all good men (and women) to rise to the challenge above self interest.
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Are we going back to the dark ages
It is Wednesday and I have read my two newspapers from front to back and I am confused. So help me out here!
In Section A, on page one are columns about the cost of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the number dead and number of additional soldiers still needed. Another column reveals the Taliban’s connections to monies from their Saudi Arabia roots and supporters.
On page two is a column about a couple of huge contracts signed in the good ole’ USA to supply weapons to Saudi Arabia and another "friendly" Arab nation. Below it, at the bottom corner of the page is an insert showing the number of total casualties over the last ten years.
On the last page is a page wide column about the cost of oil and amount of monies we have supplied to the once poor desert tribes since we started buying their crude.
Before turning to a new section I asked myself, "Are we supplying our antagonists with our own resources to kill us?"
In Section B I find several columns decrying the lack of monies for education, special ed children, police and firemen, roads, and medical care for the poor and middle class. It also carries a column on two people being convicted for stealing from public and non-profit funds. And finally there is a column showing the plight of the ghettos in even the smallest cities.
In the Sports and Entertainment Sections I discovered that the NFL first round draft picks will all be instant millionaires. In fact a recent top man received $68,000,000 with a guarantee of $32,000,000. And the tickets to a kids concert are being scalp at $1200+? And in ad insert I saw where one could buy an autograph from a famous person.
I asked myself, "Are we stealing from ourselves to support the sports and entertainment industries?"
In the Business section I learn about a CEO who is fired because his leadership was instrumental in the company stock plunge. The story also revealed that he was given a $15,000,000 severance package upon being "canned" from his job. Below that story was a note of 4000 people losing their jobs because that very same company needed to cut costs.
I asked myself, "Have we returned to the Middle Ages where the Lords and Earls once again are crushing down the workmen?"
Then I wondered out loud, "Are we heading to another revolutionary war to over throw the greedy Lords and Earls of the economic world? Maybe a few simple rules could prevent such a war."
What rules do I have in mind?
1. Prohibit any American made or financed weapons from being sold to any country or group who will not endorse "The Spirit" of our nation’s Declaration of Independence.
2. Charge the Sports and Entertainment Industries and Personnel a 15% surcharge for public works and education. And require any of them to do community service in their ghettos back home whenever they are arrested and convicted of drug related crimes. No make that any crime.
3. Restrict the practice of paying a CEO, or any executive, more than 250 times the lowest worker in his or her company. And forbid any tax deduction for severance packages of fired executives.
This nation was built on the backs of men and women who fought and believed in freedom and opportunity for the individual. I think we have lost that perspective and allowed the tail to wag the dog. What say you?
In Section A, on page one are columns about the cost of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the number dead and number of additional soldiers still needed. Another column reveals the Taliban’s connections to monies from their Saudi Arabia roots and supporters.
On page two is a column about a couple of huge contracts signed in the good ole’ USA to supply weapons to Saudi Arabia and another "friendly" Arab nation. Below it, at the bottom corner of the page is an insert showing the number of total casualties over the last ten years.
On the last page is a page wide column about the cost of oil and amount of monies we have supplied to the once poor desert tribes since we started buying their crude.
Before turning to a new section I asked myself, "Are we supplying our antagonists with our own resources to kill us?"
In Section B I find several columns decrying the lack of monies for education, special ed children, police and firemen, roads, and medical care for the poor and middle class. It also carries a column on two people being convicted for stealing from public and non-profit funds. And finally there is a column showing the plight of the ghettos in even the smallest cities.
In the Sports and Entertainment Sections I discovered that the NFL first round draft picks will all be instant millionaires. In fact a recent top man received $68,000,000 with a guarantee of $32,000,000. And the tickets to a kids concert are being scalp at $1200+? And in ad insert I saw where one could buy an autograph from a famous person.
I asked myself, "Are we stealing from ourselves to support the sports and entertainment industries?"
In the Business section I learn about a CEO who is fired because his leadership was instrumental in the company stock plunge. The story also revealed that he was given a $15,000,000 severance package upon being "canned" from his job. Below that story was a note of 4000 people losing their jobs because that very same company needed to cut costs.
I asked myself, "Have we returned to the Middle Ages where the Lords and Earls once again are crushing down the workmen?"
Then I wondered out loud, "Are we heading to another revolutionary war to over throw the greedy Lords and Earls of the economic world? Maybe a few simple rules could prevent such a war."
What rules do I have in mind?
1. Prohibit any American made or financed weapons from being sold to any country or group who will not endorse "The Spirit" of our nation’s Declaration of Independence.
2. Charge the Sports and Entertainment Industries and Personnel a 15% surcharge for public works and education. And require any of them to do community service in their ghettos back home whenever they are arrested and convicted of drug related crimes. No make that any crime.
3. Restrict the practice of paying a CEO, or any executive, more than 250 times the lowest worker in his or her company. And forbid any tax deduction for severance packages of fired executives.
This nation was built on the backs of men and women who fought and believed in freedom and opportunity for the individual. I think we have lost that perspective and allowed the tail to wag the dog. What say you?
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Puffer Fish and Puffer People
The Indian River in Florida is famous for more than just their oranges. If you fish there or stroll along its palm tree lined sandy banks, you might become acquainted with a peculiar variety of fish. It is called the puffer fish by those on the Space Coast in Brevard County. Other regions call it such names as the globefish, swellfish or bellows fish. It is found abundantly in the blue green tropical waters found around the east coast of Florida and out into the Caribbean Islands.
Puffer fish are a strange looking creature very unpopular with the fishermen. They constantly are getting on to their hooks. Their mouths are strange looking beak-like openings and when a fisherman attempts to remove a hook the puffer fish will suck in air and puff itself up like a helium filled toy balloon. Drop it on the ground and you will witness it bounce like a rubber ball.
In their native habitat the puffer can inflate themselves by drawing in water. This makes them look bigger than they really are, and more difficult to capture by bigger fish. They can swell in a hurry, which surprises the bigger fish, who than scurry away.
In life there are puffer people. They can rapidly swell up and scare other people off. They eventually become pest to those moving around them. Getting rid of them is a very difficult thing to do. They just cannot take a hint. Puffer people have strange appearances. They always seem to look victimized, yet some how very important and full of authority.
What to do with puffer fish? You cannot poke a hole in them and let out the air or water. They would burst and die. Keeping them around will clutter the air with ugliness. Trying to relate to them is foolishness. They are to busy puffing themselves up.
Over the years the people in the Indian River area have learned to cope with the situation quite nicely. What they do with their puffers, just might work with the puffers in other areas. First and foremost they avoid them at all cost. If they see one coming they hide. They never fish where they know for sure they will show up. If one gets on their hook they loan that rod to an enemy.
Some natives have even reeled them in and skinned them alive. Oh, what a mess! Others, hold them out of the water and watch them explode. Still others will let the little children use them to play soccer. They even make nice floats for the tank on your toilet. There have been a few reports where they have been sold as clown balloons at a small circus.
It does not matter which method you use to protect yourself from the puffers, it will not be a pleasant task. Puffers can fill themselves up with air. That is their only attribute. They add nothing to society about them. Yes, puffers are ugly strange creatures we can encounter in our lives. Who was your last puffer encounter with? Oh, my goodness, are you a puffer?
Puffer fish are a strange looking creature very unpopular with the fishermen. They constantly are getting on to their hooks. Their mouths are strange looking beak-like openings and when a fisherman attempts to remove a hook the puffer fish will suck in air and puff itself up like a helium filled toy balloon. Drop it on the ground and you will witness it bounce like a rubber ball.
In their native habitat the puffer can inflate themselves by drawing in water. This makes them look bigger than they really are, and more difficult to capture by bigger fish. They can swell in a hurry, which surprises the bigger fish, who than scurry away.
In life there are puffer people. They can rapidly swell up and scare other people off. They eventually become pest to those moving around them. Getting rid of them is a very difficult thing to do. They just cannot take a hint. Puffer people have strange appearances. They always seem to look victimized, yet some how very important and full of authority.
What to do with puffer fish? You cannot poke a hole in them and let out the air or water. They would burst and die. Keeping them around will clutter the air with ugliness. Trying to relate to them is foolishness. They are to busy puffing themselves up.
Over the years the people in the Indian River area have learned to cope with the situation quite nicely. What they do with their puffers, just might work with the puffers in other areas. First and foremost they avoid them at all cost. If they see one coming they hide. They never fish where they know for sure they will show up. If one gets on their hook they loan that rod to an enemy.
Some natives have even reeled them in and skinned them alive. Oh, what a mess! Others, hold them out of the water and watch them explode. Still others will let the little children use them to play soccer. They even make nice floats for the tank on your toilet. There have been a few reports where they have been sold as clown balloons at a small circus.
It does not matter which method you use to protect yourself from the puffers, it will not be a pleasant task. Puffers can fill themselves up with air. That is their only attribute. They add nothing to society about them. Yes, puffers are ugly strange creatures we can encounter in our lives. Who was your last puffer encounter with? Oh, my goodness, are you a puffer?
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