I repost something on Obama, learning, and stupidity.. worth reading though

I’ve been debating (and trying to not let it drop into an argument)  in person and over on facebook about Obama speech to students, I’ve been trying to sum it up and remove my deep emotions over the subject and then this well written article plopped on to my lap and ahh, I had the answer, but why should I paraphrase when this guy did so well.   I will add that it’s ridiculous to think that a lackey in the education government office whose boss thought it would be a good idea to make a study guide to go with the presidents speech, writes an essay question that alludes to one of the most famous speeches of all time by John F. Kennedy, but is poorly worded, gets leaked ahead of the president speech, and people latch on to it like it’s the end all be all of indoctrination into an unholy war.  Let me say that if you’re worried about your kids becoming socialist then don’t raise them to be stupid and fearful like their parents obviously must be to believe in such crap.

Anyway, read the well written article below, I take his words as mine in a ethereal way, because I’d just write more heated junk like my above statements. It’s been a long labor day…

By Rudy Ruiz
Special to CNN

Perhaps we got too used to living in a nation where the president inevitably becomes persona non grata.

Maybe after the Clinton and Bush years, we forgot how to give a president a chance to serve not just as a punching bag but also as a role model.

Healthcare and Wipeout, ahhh… the choices we make.

So i watch the presidents healthcare news conference tonight,(it came on before wipeout and I love to watch people fall on there asses).  I noticed one large bit missing. it seems that he has dropped the stronger “public option”  which unless I’m wrong about it, I think it a good plan.  It’s just too controversial and I think there are so many parts of healthcare that just need to be fixed, especially electronic records and reduced duplicate testing.  I would like to see some sort of public healthcare in the future and I’ve discuss that previously.  I think that the most controversial part of this puppy is that the administration would like to take tax breaks away from people that make millions and millions of dollars. While I’m pretty much okay with that becasue A: I don’t make that much B: if I did make that much I wouldn’t care.  However, I’m not a huge fan that he wants to take the tax breaks away from charitable giving.  I (currently, though that’s changing) work for a non-profit and I’ve worked with them for years.  Charitable giving is the life blood that make the Non-Profit world go round, and I know that that little tax-break designation means a lot.  It shouldn’t, but it does… in spades.   the old adage that if “your not good enough without it, then you’ll never be good enough with it” definitely applies to Millionaires and Billionaires. If your a cheap bastard wen you have 5 dollars then you’ll be a cheap bastard when you have millions.  I have issues with removing the tax break completely, but maybe it could be reduced.  And how long are republicans going to stand up for billionaires and not think that they appear to be dipsticks doing it.  The McCain camp (and Family) got it but the rest have something to learn.  I think the conservatives in the media and congress have got to stop being petty and start contributing to the process. I would like to see some solidarity in our government to start working on issues instead of trying to out maneuver each other.   It’s the optimist in me to think that might be possible, but if the crazy people around me who think that we are becoming a cold war russia and also believe it’s the end of the world are any indication of the base of the GOP, then maybe my optimism is sorely misplaced.  I’d rather be part of the conversation instead of a rhetorical part of he problem.  Now I think the Democrats really need to be throwing out olive branches, which would be a powerful notion considering their strong number of votes.  If you really want to change the world, then right now you need to be on the phone and putting pen to paper to your congress person.  Instead of bitching about it like right wing radio, might I suggest telling your representatives, from local up the to federal about how you feel about the healthcare plan and how you like them to put asides their stupidity and become part of the solution.

Now then, Wipeout is awesome and I’m a huge fan of the show.  My favorite part is the motivator on the big balls. Now excuse me, I need to go watch ordinary people get concussions in hopes of winnign $50,000 dollars… Which probably won’t cover themedical bills from the injuries on the show.

PS sorry loyal fans that I haven’t posted much recently, your probably etign tired of my apologies, but job hunting and vacation got in the blogging way, but I’m going to keep chugging away.

Portfolio

Creative Design Warrior

I wanted my blog public to know that I’m updating my portfolio by placing all the work in a new blog, you can visit it here: http://chportfolio.wordpress.com/ This will be heavily updated as I go along as I continue to add more and more work from the past 9 years.

A Fat Man’s Take On Healthcare.

So I’m sure you recently seen the news about healthcare, everybodies got a plan, Obama’s got a plan, McCain got a plan, your great uncle’s half-sister by marriage under common law got a plan. I’v e got a plan, and the first thing I want is a computerize healthcare records system, the way it is now is arcane and troublesome.  That needs to happen now, overnight, it should have happened 10 years ago.  So whats the hold up?

To Nationalize or Privatize that is the question, said Hamlet as he wished that the local paramedics had the antidote to poison that killed him, but becasue of cutbacks only has tylenol gel caps.   I think nationalizing healthcare to some degree is positive, welcomed, and worth it. If I’m going to pay taxes I’d really like to see something form my money, healthcare woudl be awesome, get rid of social security and give me healthcare.   If I was making this plan it wouldn’t  be like canada or europe.  I still think we should have some privatization. But BASE healthcare, “the 20 dollar co-pay, I’ve got the flu/cold/weird skin thing just give me some meds, doctor visits” should be covered for everyone.  In the constitution we are guaranteed only 3 rights:  life, liberty, pursuit of happiness.  The modern definition of life should include basic health needs.  People go to the emergency room for base health needs becasue our txes pay for them.. If we had a base health system beds in emergency rooms would open overnight.  People wouldn’t be afraid to see their local doctor, OFTEN, instead of waiting until it got really bad.  If everyone in your family got sick it’s 20 bucks a visit, if there’s 3 people in a family that 60 dollars. That can really add up quick.  Here’s anohter catch that gets my goat, some doctors do there own tests, other don’t I pay a but load more if my blood work is part of an “office” visit or if its a “lab” These base lab works should be part of the system too.  We pay a little taxes to get BASIC healthcare and wellness and dental cleanings , and then the insurance companies can free up the monies for bigger, better, broader, cheaper individual  health insurance plans that cover us for serious injuries and illness.   It seems like a fair deal, and it would free up a system shocked at the lower end to expand it reach in to strong wellness plans.

I disagree with Obama when he said no malpractice caps, I think we should have a system in place that protects doctors.  I think it should come in 3 forms. The payout of malpractice are issued in a manner that suits the mistake, if the mistake cause you to not work ever again, the pay should be dealt to you a month to month payout over the course of you life, and in increments suited to your current job position and immediate future position.  If the mistake causes your death then the payout should be set aside as a annual trust for your family, with an upfront cost to cover a year of cost and burial.  If the mistake causes you only temporary harm or a change in lifestyle, then the pay out is a one time capped payout not based on salary.

Now it’s story time,

My friend Andy is being killed by healthcare, he is actually coming up on his lifetime allotment, and he’s in his 30’s.  He has a rare blood disease, soo rare I’m sure it will be on an episode of HOUSE soon.  He has to go to a special hospital, and his co-pays are draining him, the fees are astronomical, though they are covered, however, they do have a limit, and he is rapidly approaching that limit, and when it’s gone, it’s gone.  His lack of insurance will kill him, becasue he will no longer receive the treatment he should have.

The last thing our national healthcare plan should take care of is Living Disability,  Their are people like Andy whom the only option for them to get the care they need is to quit work and life and go on disability and welfare. There needs to be a special case system that targets individuals whom can still work, but need wellness help that is so expensive or so rare they have no little to no choice but to not work in order to get the care they need, even though they can work. Honestly I don’t know how that system would be shaped but it seems to me that I’d rather have prodcutive members of society with a incurable but treatable problem, then a depressed lump of a human living off the governement waiting to die.

P.S. Enjoy the hot nurse photo.

Time for New Beginnings

I thought I would formally announcing here that I am looking for a new job.  I’m not being fired, actually it’s quite the contrary, it’s just the right time to start looking, and move onward and upward.  However, I need your help fellow followers, I’m posting my resume up and if you can take a look and pass it around it would be most appreciated.  I am looking for senior positions in Creative, event, design, outreach, strategy, new media, non-profit, think tanks, rapid idea generation (like IDEO ) , branding, or marketing -  management, of either people or budgets.   My goal, currently, is to find a job by the end of august to help transition someone new in to VA21 by October.  The long lead time is a real blessing for both me and my current employer. Thank You all.

New Posts on Their Way

Sorry faithful few followers, I’ve been out of town, but fear not I will have new stuff to post very soon. In the meantime, i found these videos of the worls most interesting man, and they are brilliant.

No Gay Heroes?

So I heard on the radio that Obama will not be redacting the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy in the military, and now a highly decorated, highly NEEDED translator is being forced out of the military becasue of his outing.

WTF?

Isn’t it about time this law is rescinded, becasue it’s practically the dumbest one on the books.  Can we not handle Gay Heroes?  Can the men and women of the arm forces really not handle it? They are the toughest hombres out there.  You’re telling me that the same armed forces that  can handle the constant enemy fire, roadside bombs, suicide bombers, snipers, the harshest conditions known to man, the biggest insect infestations, crappy food, intesne heat and cold, 8o lbs packs with 200 mile walks, jumping out of airplanes, sending men into harms way, holding a live grenade in your hand, killing other men, landmines, months at sea, rebuilding infrastructure, feeding the same people that hate you, bombing cities, watching your friends die around you, and yet we as a nation can’t fathom, or can’t handle Bob liking Larry’s ass.  I say like because to like someone is about as much as you can do IN the military anyway, since women have been in service their are hundreds of stipulations on straight relationships in the military, marrying out of rank for instance is frowned upon.  These stipulations would be the same for a homosexual soldier.  Machismo is different now, we live in a different time, and the war we fight now aren’t any kinder or gentle, but we need to face the facts that to fight out what we preach out means allowing ALL men and women of able bodies to fight, no matter the color,sex, or orientation.  I’ve mentioned before that I think Homosexuality is a choice, I don’t think your born with it, but that doesn’t make it any less of a fact of life.  I commend any person that risks their lives for our nation, if that person is gay then they should have the right to fight for the freedoms they do have.

I come from a immigrant soldiers family, My grandfather was born of a first generation polish immigrant, and he fought for America in World War II.  He was an in charge of the MP’s at the Nuremberg trials, he fought bravely and fought for our land and our ancestral home, and against the Nazi way of thinking of  master race, devoid of color, nationality, gays, Jews, mixed races, etc…

I can’t believe we can stand as a nation against those things and yet embrace some of them.

Now if that’s not a logic that works for you, then how about those of you that hate gays, to the point of wishing ill upon them. You soulless homophobic bastards should take heed in that putting gays in the military will increase their chances of being killed under fire. One less homo right?  So why not allow them to fight? If you think this last statement was messed up then you really weren’t the target audience for that argument.

To my fellow Christians, I’m pretty sure there’s nothing in the bible that says Gay’s shouldn’t be in the military. You may find them an abomination, but biblically there no reason to disallow them or any non-Christians for that matter from being in Caesar’s army.

If your worried about forced sodomy in our troops, then we have bigger problem with conduct then worrying if bob in your platoon is just gay, becasue if he is raping people he’s also a degenerate, and gay and degenerate are not the same thing.

Lets stop dorking around with this issue and grow up as a nation… again.  Let focus on mental health and well being of our troops, and giving the military more options for troops and equipment, finish the job and bring them home.

Because gay or straight the best soldier is the one that doesn’t have to fight.

Shamless rip off of a brilliant idea.

I’m not for a lack of idea, but I’m going to shamelessly rip-off a new blog I’m following by a guy I just met. He’s a creative fellow and has a blog at www.kretzu.com. I posted this to my facebook, but I loved it so much, and felt it was a good follow up to last weeks little video, though in a different vain. This one is about creativity and genius, now you may hate the author, but the message is sound. BTW TED is a fantastic series of speeches I implore you to watch as many of them as possible, it will make you brain grow up big and strong.

Open-Minded

I had every intention on writing on something completely different today, but then i saw this fantastic video  animation on open-mindedness and supernatural thoughts and I just had to post it and comment on it.  Watch the video it is a bit long, its safe for work, you’ll need sound, but it’s worth it.. plus you’ll have reference to what I’m about to say

I was blown away at the attention to detail in the video above, it probably the best lesson on open mindedness I’ve seen. However it is also a good lesson for persuaders to understand, because it lays out the arguments and flaws in your judgment and teaching.  If you’ve read any of this blog then you’ll know that I consider myself a Christian now (but believe me when I say I’m not fond of the word and all the junk that goes with it).  You may also know that I consider myself a lover of science and truth in the world around me, as well as being a former atheist.

Let me explain how I reconcile the differences and maybe that will help both non-Christians understand how someone who used to be an atheist can reconcile the logic and become a Christian and show Christians what it takes to win over the logical, scientific, and open mind.

First I’d like to say that I did, do, and will always think that there is a majority of Christians with extremely closed minds, but I also think, this is a product of nurture, not nature or biblical teaching.  There is a rhetoric of persuasion and prejudice in many religions that we see portrayed in the video above.  It’s getting better and I think more Church’s are understanding this now.

Secondly, You CAN be scientifically open minded and a christian at the same time.

How,

because fact ≠ faith.

Fact can enhance faith.

Facts are essential to Faith.

Historical fact and evidence is crucial to understanding the bible.

The bible can help us understand the past as a mostly historical tome, because we can corroborate much of whats in the bible with non biblical writing.

But if you use the bible as a scientific fact generating machine you will be sorely disappointed and worst of all you will lose faith.

You can bring logic to the table if your goal of reading the bible is understand God. However, if your goal is to logically prove God exists when your only source is the bible, then you will most likely fail, that is unless you have faith.

Scientific research, open-mindedness, and logic is what we use to understand our reality around us, and we have these tools to make sense of the order in the universe, Darwin and Galileo saw their work as a way to understand the richness and fullness and intricacy of Gods work. Science tells us how the world works but it doesn’t answer the question why it works.  Science can not tell us how to live, it can only show how we live affects everything around us.  It can make suggestions, inferences, and logical conclusions as to how we should live, but their is no substance to it, only cold facts. When you insert faith in to the equation you get a WHY.

Faith stands alone, it is not of science, nor should it preclude it.  Faith gives us reasons TO live, Faith gives us ways to live out the lives we have.  Faith gives us answers to concepts (like the soul) which we believe in, and belief is not predicated on fact.   The bible or whatever you prescribe to, gives you a framework for understanding God through a faithful experience not a scientific one.

The point to be made here is this, The scientific open-mind must entertain the notion of God, but does not have to accept it.  Do you hear me fellow Christians?  Most of my friends and I have always entertained the notion of God, any science minded person who does not is being close-minded. However, you are being close-minded  if you think you can prove God to a Scientist through only the words on the  pages of the bible.  There’s just not enough evidence there to do it, unless you accept the bible as absolute truth the way you probably do, and that is not being scientific. See the dilemma?

We all have to understand that Belief is a heart thing not a mind thing.

So how did I get from Here to Belief?

Let me put it this way…

When you have used your mind to no avail in life maybe it’s time to start looking at where the heart takes you.  You don’t have to start there but that’s where I was at.  When I had everything but still wanted more is that logical?  When I had nothing and yet felt comforted is that science?  I started going to Church with my girlfriend (now wife) because I considered myself to be open-minded and wanted to check it out, and boy did I run into a lot of shut minds. However, the pastor i first met was not one of them though.  I sitting in church and I was  thinking about the world and string theory and big bang theory, and on all “the how the world was created” ideas, and I inevitably got stuck on WHY.  Why is  a funny question.

If you keep asking and answering, “WHY?” to any series of questions, then you will hit upon the universal truth that we have NO idea why we exist, when did time BEGIN?, why does the universe exist?,  was there a before?, and is there an after to existence?  These fundamentals can not be explained well enough by science, and i don’t think they ever will be.  The only explanation that I have found suitable to explain something from nothingness is in the concept of god. and If you open a bible and go to the first page you will see the words.

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth

If you can believe that, then the rest comes easy.

If you believe that first sentence than belief and faith does not negate science or the big bang theory or anything else.  There’s a lot of stuff like parables, metaphors, simile, misinterpretation, stories, rules,  history, passion, etc.. that comes  after these words in the bible, and those are consistently being evaluated and reevaluated by intelligent people and have been since there was a Bible.  And the questions it seeks to answer have been asked since man start talking to each other.   However, these clear 10 words are an answer to WHY.  This is where my faith, my belief started.  I believe in the theory that “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.”  I think he created the big bang, parallel universes, other planets with life, atoms, quarks, energy, matter, dinosaurs. I also believe he sent Jesus here to die for our sins and other stuff.

I am open-minded to the idea that God gave us the tools in the form of science to understand creation to it’s tiniest pieces, and he gave us the Bible to understand how to live in that gift of creation.

btw

If you’ve made it this far then I give you high marks on being open-minded enough to listen to what I had to say.  If you have any questions, I’ll try to answer them, but I think the video really stands on it’s own two feet as a source to understand true open-mindedness.

Of Legos and Men

I’m working on a new post, but in the meantime I wanted to let you all know about something that is near and dear to my heart.

Legos

Specifically Lego Art and My Artist Freind Brian who will be having  a show opening Friday, May 15 from 6-9pm.
It will run until July 6th, but the food and fun will on friday.

For more information on this event, his work, and on how to commision your own lego masterpeice

go here http://www.brickworkz.com/lego-art-richmond.shtml