We all find ourselves hurrying around getting from place to place - but take a little time to consider your actions ..... or inactions and the implications of your decisions. This week the atlantic coast was hit with a small ice/snow belt that closed schools and disrupted the normal routines to many of us. I am fortunate to have my car parked in the garage overnight so I understand that I have it a little easier than some. I went to the office every day - even earlier than usual because I had work that needed to be done (physically in the office) and people staying home with their children yielded me the perfect opportunity to get to it.
When I left the office the other day I cleared the windshield, side windows and rear window of my little Volkswagen Jetta. I also cleared the hood, roof and trunk. I have seen the sheets of ice/snow that fly from cars and thought it was the right thing to do. Sure enough, coming home from work yesterday along a very clear an unobstructed Route 32 (right near the State Highway Administration building) I encountered someone who did not take the same steps. You guessed it, a snow/ice sheet from a truck (coming the other way) flew off and soared 15 feet into the air. I was in a flow of cars traveling at about 50 miles per hour and there was no place to go. I held on tight as the ice sheet nailed the roof of my car with a thud. I pulled over as soon as it was safe and found the nice dent in the roof of my car - a mere 2 inches from my windshield.
I said a quick prayer of thanks, that it did not come through the windshield, and then sulked at the thought of my new VW with the dent. Take a read and follow - http://weblogs.marylandweather.com/2009/01/driving_tip_push_the_ice_from.html .
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Appreciation for those that use their talents
I have long been an admirer of those that embrace the talents they are blessed with and use them in productive ways. This is not a long post, but I felt like I needed to write it down.
Whether it be an artist working on a piece of sculpture, a pianist tickling the ivories or an automotive mechanic making my car run better - I truly enjoy watching. I will also say that the inverse is also true - watching someone perform a function that they truly have to work at is a challenge for me. Baking a cake by someone who does not seem to do it naturally is a very difficult experience for me endure.
So, why post now? It is simple - my brother is one of those people that I truly admire. I admire the gifts that God has given him and I admire what he has done with those gifts. Mick has a true gift for carpentry and building things in general. I am constantly amazed at what he is able to do. This was magnified last night when I was looking at my handiwork in building out the basement in my home. On one hand I am proud of what I did - on the other hand I realize that I do not share the same gifts that he has (mine are truly different). The finished product is only one piece of the observation - I really do enjoy watching.
I do this routinely - whether it is a teacher at my children's school that is blessed with the gifts and desire to teach. Several of my co-workers who have a rare gift of observation. My mechanic, my priest ... you name it.
Challenge yourself - find what your true gift is and do it. Challenge yourself again and find someone using theirs .... and just watch.
Whether it be an artist working on a piece of sculpture, a pianist tickling the ivories or an automotive mechanic making my car run better - I truly enjoy watching. I will also say that the inverse is also true - watching someone perform a function that they truly have to work at is a challenge for me. Baking a cake by someone who does not seem to do it naturally is a very difficult experience for me endure.
So, why post now? It is simple - my brother is one of those people that I truly admire. I admire the gifts that God has given him and I admire what he has done with those gifts. Mick has a true gift for carpentry and building things in general. I am constantly amazed at what he is able to do. This was magnified last night when I was looking at my handiwork in building out the basement in my home. On one hand I am proud of what I did - on the other hand I realize that I do not share the same gifts that he has (mine are truly different). The finished product is only one piece of the observation - I really do enjoy watching.
I do this routinely - whether it is a teacher at my children's school that is blessed with the gifts and desire to teach. Several of my co-workers who have a rare gift of observation. My mechanic, my priest ... you name it.
Challenge yourself - find what your true gift is and do it. Challenge yourself again and find someone using theirs .... and just watch.
Monday, January 19, 2009
Proud to be an American. The price is worth it.
Tomorrow, January 20, is a day that makes me truly proud to be an American. No, this is not another gushing review of President-elect Barack Obama. No, this is not another notification to the world that we will swear in the first African-American President. No, the day marks one of the things that makes this country truly great. The peaceful transition of power from one elected official to the next - I could not be more proud of this legacy that our country leaves to the world.
If you have read any of my posts on the election you can see that I am no fan of our future President. I disagree with virtually everything he campaigned for on the basis of ideology alone - I make no judgement on the man himself as I do not know him. That being said - beginning tomorrow he will be my President and I will stand behind him, if called to do so. Elections have consequences but as a citizen of this country, I have a responsibility to support and defend her and that starts with support for our president. I have not been a big fan of the political leaders in our country over the past several years but as a citizen - I do support them. I also support the citizens of this country by voicing my opinion (even though I do not do it as often as I should).
President Bush will not go down as my favorite President but he will be remembered, by me, as a man of character and as a selfless man that did for the world what he believed he was called to do. Any person that stands on principle, regardless the cost, is a man worth remembering and modeling (atleast a small amount) in your own life.
I used to speak to high school kids about succeeding in life and one portion of the talk was about 'who is the most successful person you can think of'. The idea of the talk is to define success in your terms and not be trapped in to the traditional view of success. As the kids would throw out all the big names that you expect (Gates, James, Jordan, Manning, Woods) they would eventually start calling out parents, brothers, clergy .... The point of having them call out names was to prove that there is no one definition of success. President George W. Bush is one of those people that I would bring to their attention today. He is a man that, on principle, took on the world. Ridiculed at home. Despised around the world. He stood on principle that those with the ability to affect change, have the responsibility to do so. THANK YOU Mr. President for your service.
To our soon-to-be President. I wish you well and I offer you my support. I will stand and defend you and our country. I will support you both by defending and disagreeing with you. I only hope that others will do the same.
If you have read any of my posts on the election you can see that I am no fan of our future President. I disagree with virtually everything he campaigned for on the basis of ideology alone - I make no judgement on the man himself as I do not know him. That being said - beginning tomorrow he will be my President and I will stand behind him, if called to do so. Elections have consequences but as a citizen of this country, I have a responsibility to support and defend her and that starts with support for our president. I have not been a big fan of the political leaders in our country over the past several years but as a citizen - I do support them. I also support the citizens of this country by voicing my opinion (even though I do not do it as often as I should).
President Bush will not go down as my favorite President but he will be remembered, by me, as a man of character and as a selfless man that did for the world what he believed he was called to do. Any person that stands on principle, regardless the cost, is a man worth remembering and modeling (atleast a small amount) in your own life.
I used to speak to high school kids about succeeding in life and one portion of the talk was about 'who is the most successful person you can think of'. The idea of the talk is to define success in your terms and not be trapped in to the traditional view of success. As the kids would throw out all the big names that you expect (Gates, James, Jordan, Manning, Woods) they would eventually start calling out parents, brothers, clergy .... The point of having them call out names was to prove that there is no one definition of success. President George W. Bush is one of those people that I would bring to their attention today. He is a man that, on principle, took on the world. Ridiculed at home. Despised around the world. He stood on principle that those with the ability to affect change, have the responsibility to do so. THANK YOU Mr. President for your service.
To our soon-to-be President. I wish you well and I offer you my support. I will stand and defend you and our country. I will support you both by defending and disagreeing with you. I only hope that others will do the same.
Monday, January 5, 2009
Let's go back in time
While amendments to the Constitution are worthy attempts to keep the 'living' document alive, I think there was a change made that needs to be looked at again. The section of the Constitution that I want to talk about is one of the most sensitive portions - it is important to understand that I am concerned with the less known portion of what the 14th amendment modified.
The Constitution (Article I, Section 2), as originally written spells out :
I believe our forefathers knew what would happen if large groups of citizens had a power without responsibility for the power they created. If you take the founding fathers at their word - the taxation of the states should currently follow that of the Electoral College. Take a look at the map to follow along.
Instead of a tax system where every citizen is taxed at a given rate (don't get me started about the unfair nature of regressive taxes) - each state would be responsible for paying 'their share' to the federal government. The fair share would be the same as their ability to elect the President and Vice President. Areas of higher population have more votes and should also pay more in taxes ( on a regional basis ). This has nothing to do with income levels - it is a direct mapping to their constitutional rights presented in the Constitution. To simplify - you pay the taxes proportional to your access to the government providing the services for you.
So, in the case of the U.S. population - my state would be responsible for providing 1.86% of the federal budget (10 electoral votes for the state of Maryland against 538 total electoral votes). On the other hand a state like New York (which can decide an election) should provide 5.76% of the federal budget and California should provide 10.22%.
This model could and should be used at the state level as well. If you have a larger voice - you should pay a higher price. This is not an attack on individuals - it is the fundamental fairness that our founding fathers had designed and over time, we have forgotten. Perhaps if the citizens had to pay for the services they are demanding - they could/would be a little more careful in exercising their right to the vote in the first place.
The Constitution (Article I, Section 2), as originally written spells out :
Representatives and direct Taxes shall be apportioned among the several States which may be included within this Union, according to their respective Numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole Number of free Persons, including those bound to Service for a Term of Years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three fifths of all other Persons.I am most interested in the 2nd through 4th words of this sentence. The reference to taxes was completely removed from the 14th amendment and, in my opinion, one of the biggest reasons we have the imbalance in taxation we find today. This portion of the Constitution (Article 1, Section 2) is all about how the representative government would be set up ... representative of the population.
I believe our forefathers knew what would happen if large groups of citizens had a power without responsibility for the power they created. If you take the founding fathers at their word - the taxation of the states should currently follow that of the Electoral College. Take a look at the map to follow along.
Instead of a tax system where every citizen is taxed at a given rate (don't get me started about the unfair nature of regressive taxes) - each state would be responsible for paying 'their share' to the federal government. The fair share would be the same as their ability to elect the President and Vice President. Areas of higher population have more votes and should also pay more in taxes ( on a regional basis ). This has nothing to do with income levels - it is a direct mapping to their constitutional rights presented in the Constitution. To simplify - you pay the taxes proportional to your access to the government providing the services for you.
So, in the case of the U.S. population - my state would be responsible for providing 1.86% of the federal budget (10 electoral votes for the state of Maryland against 538 total electoral votes). On the other hand a state like New York (which can decide an election) should provide 5.76% of the federal budget and California should provide 10.22%.
This model could and should be used at the state level as well. If you have a larger voice - you should pay a higher price. This is not an attack on individuals - it is the fundamental fairness that our founding fathers had designed and over time, we have forgotten. Perhaps if the citizens had to pay for the services they are demanding - they could/would be a little more careful in exercising their right to the vote in the first place.
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