In the few hours before it's officially Thanksgiving here in America, I'm trying to engage my personal attitude adjustment function. You know, that little mental switch you make to allow just a little decompression from work, family, politics, and every other stress factor I seem to carry in the tendons of my neck.
I'm usually only moderately successful at relaxing, so my mental switch is actually the size of that circuit breaker in Jurassic Park. I am making an effort, though, because no mater how trite it sounds, it's good to step back a little from your own life and count the blessings.
Don't get me wrong. Everyone has struggles, some more profound than others. I've got my share, but they'll still be there after the holiday, so I'm making the attempt to focus on the good stuff for the immediate days ahead. I'm as guilty as everyone else of taking some basic things for granted and perhaps I've got to be working harder on being thankful. I've got a family, a job, a place to live. The number of people I've helped in life is larger than the number of people I've harmed. I've got some really good friends.
While it's probably part of human nature to constantly strive for more of everything (probably a throwback to times when basic resources were scarce), it's worthwhile to take a look at just what we have. I have many things. I am blessed. I hope you can feel the same way.
Happy Thanksgiving.
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Post Season
Wait, wait, what? There's still post-season baseball going on? But the two best teams in baseball are done, so that doesn't make any sense. What do you mean there's port-season baseball?
What it means is that there were a couple of young, hungry teams, who played as if every single out were an elimination out, and they proved that a lot of heart can overcome staunch professionalism and experience. The Phillies (I'm not going to talk about the Yankees, because they are beneath contempt, and there's no shortage of New Yorkers to do their post-mortem) spent a season doggedly pursuing their only stated goal: the World Series. Despite injuries, a shallow bullpen, and odd managing choices, the Phillies did what they needed to do: win 2 out of 3 games, over the course of 162 games. They did it professionally, which is to say, like any good businessmen, they put on their suits, they clocked in, and did what they were supposed to. But... oh, but for that one big question...
Were their hearts in it?
It sure didn't seem that way for most of the season. When mid-season trade Hunter Pence is the only guy looking like he's having any fun, that should be a signal to the manager that something's wrong. The team has now morphed into a group of paycheck players who have been hired to win a world championship, and every move the "employees" make seems to have that unspoken job performance rating attached: if I don't win will I be playing for the Phillies next year? When you're worried more about what you stand to lose than what you stand to gain, you're never going to beat the teams that play like they have nothing to lose.
Worse yet, you're not going to have any fun.
It's tiring watching a group of overpaid guys play a game -- a sporting game, but a game nonetheless -- and have them wear their grim professionalism ALL THE TIME. Why? What's to be grumpy about? They are the few, the chosen ones for whom genetics and circumstances have allowed a perpetual childhood playing America's greatest game, and they're unhappy? If your heart's not in it, if every game isn't the World Series and a sandlot game combined in your head, then it's time to walk off the field.
As the Phillies endure the long, cold winter, and shuffle the chips around in search of the dynasty that almost was, they need to consider that fun is what it's really supposed to be about. The fans don't want to see emotionless robots on the field, we want to see a team. And when it costs over $100 for a family to go see a game, even in the cheap seats, you owe us not just a team that's playing the odds over the 162-game spread, but a team that plays as if every game is the last, with the joy and fierceness of champions.
It is, after all, baseball.
What it means is that there were a couple of young, hungry teams, who played as if every single out were an elimination out, and they proved that a lot of heart can overcome staunch professionalism and experience. The Phillies (I'm not going to talk about the Yankees, because they are beneath contempt, and there's no shortage of New Yorkers to do their post-mortem) spent a season doggedly pursuing their only stated goal: the World Series. Despite injuries, a shallow bullpen, and odd managing choices, the Phillies did what they needed to do: win 2 out of 3 games, over the course of 162 games. They did it professionally, which is to say, like any good businessmen, they put on their suits, they clocked in, and did what they were supposed to. But... oh, but for that one big question...
Were their hearts in it?
It sure didn't seem that way for most of the season. When mid-season trade Hunter Pence is the only guy looking like he's having any fun, that should be a signal to the manager that something's wrong. The team has now morphed into a group of paycheck players who have been hired to win a world championship, and every move the "employees" make seems to have that unspoken job performance rating attached: if I don't win will I be playing for the Phillies next year? When you're worried more about what you stand to lose than what you stand to gain, you're never going to beat the teams that play like they have nothing to lose.
Worse yet, you're not going to have any fun.
It's tiring watching a group of overpaid guys play a game -- a sporting game, but a game nonetheless -- and have them wear their grim professionalism ALL THE TIME. Why? What's to be grumpy about? They are the few, the chosen ones for whom genetics and circumstances have allowed a perpetual childhood playing America's greatest game, and they're unhappy? If your heart's not in it, if every game isn't the World Series and a sandlot game combined in your head, then it's time to walk off the field.
As the Phillies endure the long, cold winter, and shuffle the chips around in search of the dynasty that almost was, they need to consider that fun is what it's really supposed to be about. The fans don't want to see emotionless robots on the field, we want to see a team. And when it costs over $100 for a family to go see a game, even in the cheap seats, you owe us not just a team that's playing the odds over the 162-game spread, but a team that plays as if every game is the last, with the joy and fierceness of champions.
It is, after all, baseball.
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Friday, August 26, 2011
Hunkering Down
As hurricane Irene lumbers its way towards landfall on the US Eastern seaboard, it seems the news media has created its own perfect storm event. The media, in all their glory, likes nothing better than an impending disaster. At this point, they can indulge in all the "worst case scenario" hypothetical animations they want, with none of the actual damage having taken place. All the shrill fear-mongering, with none of the price of actual damage and bodies. These major storm events are a bonanza for the news/entertainment industry, because, if everything goes as they predict, they get to double-dip: they have material to report now, in the run-up, but they can also report on the disaster -- should it happen -- for a good long time.
All the screenwriters out there should also take note of the coverage, because one of the keys to making all thins non-stop storm coverage work is the ability to track the storm in real time and give you "landfall" estimates. That's what we call a ticking clock, and every media outlet makes use of them in this type of event, despite the notorious inaccuracy of meteorologic forecasting. That ticking clock gives you a built-in window, a race against time to get prepared for the storm. That creates tension and makes for good viewing.
I know this sounds cynical, but...
I caught a rumor on the net this morning that the township adjacent to mine is recommending residents re-locate during the storm. That seems more like panic to me than prudent storm preparedness. In our Philadelphia Western Suburbs, we're a good 40-50 miles from the coast, it's unlikely that the storm will be hurricane strength by the time it gets here, and it's 36 hours away (at least). This kind of hysteria is generated by a 24/7 media looking to fill the endless hours of broadcasting, and a public with unlimited access to information feeds that do little more than churn the same statistics for hours on end. As imminent as the threat is, there's been plenty of warning, and the storm is only moving at 14 MPH. We know it's coming and events aren't developing that quickly.
Now, pay attention here: I AM NOT advocating you don't evacuate when you're told to, nor am I saying you shouldn't take the storm threat seriously. You may, however, want to take the media a little less seriously.
All the screenwriters out there should also take note of the coverage, because one of the keys to making all thins non-stop storm coverage work is the ability to track the storm in real time and give you "landfall" estimates. That's what we call a ticking clock, and every media outlet makes use of them in this type of event, despite the notorious inaccuracy of meteorologic forecasting. That ticking clock gives you a built-in window, a race against time to get prepared for the storm. That creates tension and makes for good viewing.
I know this sounds cynical, but...
I caught a rumor on the net this morning that the township adjacent to mine is recommending residents re-locate during the storm. That seems more like panic to me than prudent storm preparedness. In our Philadelphia Western Suburbs, we're a good 40-50 miles from the coast, it's unlikely that the storm will be hurricane strength by the time it gets here, and it's 36 hours away (at least). This kind of hysteria is generated by a 24/7 media looking to fill the endless hours of broadcasting, and a public with unlimited access to information feeds that do little more than churn the same statistics for hours on end. As imminent as the threat is, there's been plenty of warning, and the storm is only moving at 14 MPH. We know it's coming and events aren't developing that quickly.
Now, pay attention here: I AM NOT advocating you don't evacuate when you're told to, nor am I saying you shouldn't take the storm threat seriously. You may, however, want to take the media a little less seriously.
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
The Business of China
One of the prevalent dichotomies of our current society seems to be our hypocritical relationship with China and in the past few weeks, in the aftermath of the debt-limit debacle and credit rating crisis, someone should highlight the true weirdness of our relationship with the largest remaining communist country.
In the wake of the market upheaval, there were at least two major public rebukes from China about America's debt, one of which was directed to the Vice President. Let's ignore for a second how America's largest note-holder, China, rebuking us while holding almost a quarter of our foreign debt, is a bit like shooting the golden goose. You notice they didn't offer to forego debt service in our time of troubles, as a way to help us get through the crisis. Let's ignore for a second China's repellant human rights record. And while we're at it, let's just totally ignore the whole communist/totalitarian ideology.
That sounds like a whole lot of willful ignorance to me. Why do we do it? Because we import more from China than from any other country in the world. They buy very little from us; the trade balance is tipped so far in their favor it's ridiculous if you stop and think about it. What's really funny though, is that they're essentially loaning us money to buy products from them, then collecting interest on the loan, then publicly rebuking us for borrowing money. And we, as a country say, thank you, sir, may we have another?
Why? Because the stuff's cheap, and we don't care where it came from. We'll look the other way on all the issues I mentioned above, just so we can pad our dens with stuff we don't need.
This hydra-headed approach to life is not particularly new to Americans, though. The very same people who lionize the greatest generation and their efforts during WWII, never see it as ironic that they hustle on down to the Wal-Mart to buy lots of cheaply-made products from a totalitarian regime that undercuts American industry via its industrial practices. While at the Wal-Mart, they also lament the fact of the disappearance of "main street America", ignoring the fact that their shopping habit is what actually killed the main street.
What is most remarkable about China rebuking us, though, is that they would be economically up shit creek if we took a pause from our delight with their exports. In 2010, we imported approximately 365 Billion dollars worth of "stuff" from China. Hmm, that looks a lot like a billion dollars a day we buy from them. Imagine if you went five days without buying anything from China (granted, it would be hard to do), that's 5 billion dollars. People would notice that. Policies could change.
Maybe we wouldn't have to look the other way quite so much.
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