And What Have We Done? 49% of us was enough to elect a person with a cult following and little to recommend him, otherwise.
Kings, Dictators and Oligarchs
Money and Influence
Double Haters?
Looking at consensus presidential polling from FiveThirtyEight , Trump has a one percent lead over Biden, 41.5% vs 40.5%. In other words, the people responding to the polls are not excited about either 2024 presidential candidate. These polls seem to indicate that there is a significant bloc of voters, approaching 20%, who dislike both candidates. The 2024 election somewhat resembles the 2016 contest (when exit polls showed 18% disliked both candidates) more than the 2020 contest. Biden has lost favor . . .
Elected Again?
Grover Cleveland had been the mayor of Buffalo, NY in 1881 and the following year, governor of New York. He led the Bourbon Democrats, a classical liberal organization opposed to high tariffs, inflation, imperialism, and subsidies to business. He fought against political corruption, patronage, and bossism. Grover Cleveland was praised for honesty, self-reliance, integrity, and commitment to the principles of classical liberalism. 1884 – Cleveland ElectedHe was first elected president as a Democrat in 1884 with support from the republican Mugwumps. . . .
Can Politicians Be Leaders?
We are living in an era when many politicians are entertainers rather than leaders. Getting the important things done has become secondary to being bellicose with personal attacks on opponents – flinging talking points without substance. Peter Drucker: “Management is doing things right; Leadership is doing the right things.” Our elected representatives need to recognize what is important and focus on fixing the problems. We have concerns that need their attention: immigration, climate change, war lords, gun control and poverty . . .
A Place to Call Home
According to data from the Feds, home sales have surged in the last few years and the median sale price has steadily risen. At the same time rental vacancy rates have plunged to 5.6% as of the end of 2021. The most recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau indicates that 46% of renters in the U.S. spent more than 30% of their income on rent in 2020. The Department of Housing and Urban Development defines this level as being . . .
Big Bang
The Big Bang Theory argues that “space” suddenly and rapidly started to expand about 13.8 billion years ago. “The Big Bang” is referred to as the “birth” of the universe. It represents the point in history where the laws of physics, as we understand, them work. It was not an explosion of matter in space but rather an expansion of space itself. The expansion continues. Twenty minutes after the initial bang, the universe cooled enough to allow the formation of subatomic . . .
History Gaps?
George Santos (R- New York) has created a fabulous personal history out of thin air. His history, as an elite athlete and volleyball star, savvy business tycoon, friend of dogs, grandson of holocaust survivors got him elected. So it worked? When we read history, we tend to accept it as being truthful. It’s written down by maybe a professor from Harvard and contains many facts, most probably true. But, it can’t contain all the facts. What about those missing . . .
Accomplishing Something
Why can’t we get things done collectively? There are many reasons why our personal plans fall short. One common reason is that our plan is not well thought out. A cure for this is to collaborate with someone. “Two heads are better than one”, attributed to John Heywood in his Dialogue of proverbs (1546), is solid folk wisdom. For the bigger challenges of our time such as gun violence, ruining the planet, and chaotic and massive human migration, we need . . .