We face difficult, harsh times in America today.Over the course of the past thirty or forty years, Congress and occupants of the White House have promoted or been lobbied to implement a series of business, regulatory and trade policies that have had an adverse impact upon our nation.Unfortunately, we now reap the unfortunate consequence of what those policies have sown.
With the convergence of a collapse in housing values, stagnation and possibly wide-ranging deflation, freezing of credit markets and the loss of over three million jobs during President Bush's reign (with many more on the precipice of extinction), for the first time in most American's lives, we face the prospect of reliving the Great Depression. During 2008, I've lost count of the number of people I have encountered this year who have lost their business, their job, their financial security and worry openly about where our country is headed and whether they can stave off foreclosure.Increasingly, Congressional members, media spokespersons, and concerned citizens are using the term depression to describe their angst.In a recent program aired on Public Television, intriguing parallels between the Great Depression of the Twentieth Century, the concentration of wealth at the top and double digit unemployment were made between then and now.
I personally know those who have lost their home to foreclosure, have lost their business, lost their jobs and their families are under immense stress.Despite living a privileged life myself, I cannot close my eyes to the need and suffering of others.Others of privilege are somehow uncomfortable with daily exposure to the reality of those facing such obstacles, their hope diminished, faith faltering.I recognize that the image of a single mother losing her job and her home is unattractive; and that a family splitting up because of a loss of job, home and self-respect caused retreat into depression, alcohol or drug abuse.Desperation and a loss of human dignity is disquieting, particularly during the holiday season.
Which brings me to a question that I pose to all of you:When reality is ugly, should the call to social activism be sanitized, so as to make the affluent comfortable?Would elimination of negative images and references to the stark reality of those living in desperation, make those living a privileged life more likely to contribute?Conversely, would a sterilized message merely dilute the urgency to act, resulting in inaction?What do you think?
In case you've noticed, many people in our country are hurting, losing their.. jobs, cars and homes. Just this evening, I learned of a married couple, burdened by the stress of plummeting incomes, serious family medical needs.. and financial disaster. This family is losing their house, cars and their marriage is under.. assault. Stories like this,.. or some iteration thereof, abound, as American jobs continue to be exported overseas. Therefore, I would like to bring an idea of mine to fruition with the help of you and your friends.
What's the idea you ask? I would like to use the Internet, my network of friends and exponential logistics to help me endow an organization to help combat a growing need within our society. If you would commit to forwarding $5.00, $10.00, $..25.00 or whatever you can afford, you will receive a report from me sent directly to your Internet address. This report will advise you on how you might enjoy increased joy, fulfillment and meaning in your life, while.. helping to improve your family life, community, state and nation.
I also ask you to please commit to contact your friends and ask that they add me as a friend; and please request that they commit financially, just as you have... Finally, request that your friends secure at least five friends and request that they make the same commitments to send the equivalent cost of a breakfast, lunch or dinner. With your assistance , together we can make a difference... I call this plan the Power of Five, based upon each letter in the word, Faith.
So, many lack faith today and are disillusioned. They lack faith in God, faith in business and political leaders and faith that their lives or those of their children will be better further down the road. Thus, I resolve to help restore faith and hope with an energetic mix of decent, committed souls, and our collective creativity to help mothers and their children, fathers struggling to keep their family together, and those productive members of society now facing desperate times.
My goal is to create a national network of caring, compassionate people to help spread the word and to create an organization dedicated to bringing hope. providing referrals, resources and creative problem-solving to help those facing the loss of their home and/or job. I would also like to use our network to lobby legislative bodies to extend foreclosure laws and redemption periods, to provide financial assistance and foreclosure moritoriums for those facing a crumbling of the American Dream...
If you would be kind enough to help me lay a foundation of hope, please let me know what you are willing to sacrifice to help me fund this social vision. Your investment in a message of hope and compassion will purchase a revolutionary report that will help you to transform lives, including your own. This report will provide good old fashioned horse sense on how you might defeat those negative messages that hold you back. If you embrace the message and you commit to the genuine, transformational Power of Five, you just might enjoy a new life and secure more happiness and fulfillment, while also instituting change in your community, state and nation via one random act of kindness at a time.
I hope you will partner with me and become a partner in the Power of Five... Your faith, commitment, trust and vision will help me to invest in a new paradigm in the development of the organization and entitle you to advance notification of new initiatives, projects and opportunities for your participation, personal growth and activism.
I had a conversation recently with a health care professional, one under stress, emotions all too evident. Basically, while communicating their opinion, framed by crude references, this person began railing that socialized medicine is not the answer to what ails America's health care conundrum. While I knew that I was walking a delicate line between sanity, irrationality and seething anger, I am not one to be easily dissuaded by obstacles, nor swayed by intellectual arguments punctuated by crudity. Therefore, I moved forward, attempting to bring levity, a lightness to their day and humor to diffuse the smoldering disagreement this individual obviously had with my publicized political and social positions. Character began to fray...
Why is it that some, who claim to be helping professionals, fail to observe civility, unable to disagree without being disagreeable? My reasoning is: A) They are overwhelmed from stress in the workplace, working far too many hours, while being chronically short-staffed; and B) They bring personal problems into their careers, which are exacerbated by work stress; and C) They feel marginalized by the hierarchical structure of the medical model of care observed in America. What I found fascinating was that this person chose to inculcate and adopt the AMA message that voting for Obama would result in socialized medicine.
Funny, if the current system was functional and things were great these past eight years, why all the stress, negativity and ignorance? Hillary Clinton learned the hard way that when rational discourse, social policy, politics and entrenched interests collide, the patients are the losers. Apparently, the person in question was on the losing end of an administrative turf war this day; and was too overwrought to allow for a more calm discourse. Funny, but fifty million people without health care coverage in America may not agree with the AMA and were looking for solutions when they voted.
So, my friends, when an irrational, shrill person tries to shout over your opinions and tries to suppress rational thought, be wary. As for me, I used to live in Oz; and now I know that one can have a heart, a brain and the courage to disagree with the shrill and alarmists, who claim that health care change means rationed, socialized care. Fifty million consumers without health care cannot be wrong. Our health care system is broken and does not work efficiently. Thank God for change!
I write today, looking out over the fresh layer of snow, frosted tree limbs, critters busily scurrying about and my river. As I viewed God's handiwork, I had an epiphany. One of the advantages of my region of the country is that we contribute to the national economy, not just by automotive design and production, but because we buy four seasons worth of clothing.
My relatives down South only have to purchase one, maybe two seasons worth, of shorts and tube tops. Jimmy Bill Bob, likes his tube tops, yet I don't have the heart to tell him that they do not look particularly flattering on him. The vision of a hairy, 290 pound, beer swillin', sausage-grillin' man in a tube top, double-beer holstered hard hat makes me nauseous, especially since I recently ate breakfast. So, my southern kin do not contribute equally to the nation's economy. Therefore, the hypocrisy emanating from their Congressional delegation, more concerned with foreign interests than our domestic manufacturers, makes me ponder the economic disparity between different regions of our country and the need for innovation.
I have an idea for Rick Waggoner, CEO of General Motors, making his case before Congress this week...A triple mode, hybrid Chevy that is battery-operated, beer powered and encased in foam. Now safety restrictions would be necessary, such as the driver cannot tap the fuel supply while in transit; and a breathAlizer to ascertain if he or she has halitosis. The third means of propulsion, you ask? I propose energy conversion of equine gastric inversion. No foreign manufacturer has thought of that! For horse sense that smells, ask Mr. Ed.
I like art, photography and the artistic expression of life. I always find a painting or photograph that makes me appreciate an artist's depiction of reality. I marvel at the many differences inherent in our species, emanating from the biological similarity we all share. A subject's personality, which comes through in a photograph, painting or sculpture fascinates me; and I begin to wonder about the similarity between art, substance and reality. I frequently ask myself if the representations a person makes matches the reality of my observations, interactions and experience. Far too often, one represents their person as ethical, honest and forthright, yet substance does not match reality.
I am reminded today of the art of the automobile, more particularly the classic designs coming out of the studios of the Big Three automakers. So much of our popular culture surrounds the automobile. All of you, no doubt, have memories of cruising in summer time, stolen kisses at stop lights, the local burger joint, fun shared with friends and the sense of empowerment and mobility that ensued from earning your driver's license. Remember dating, parking, intimate times, travel and the growth of family, all associated with the automobile? Thus, the automobile inculcates our life experiences. So, it is with interest that I observe the hypocrisy coming from Congress, as certain members, with a vested interest in and support of foreign automakers, pile on the Big Three auto executives. "You came here in three, separate private jets? What about U.S. Anti-Trust legislation, Senator, would you then accuse those executives traveling in the same jets of collusion and price fixing? "Why didn't you travel via commercial jet?" Congressman, would you prefer that these executives, who could be targeted for kidnapping, extortion and worse, subject their organizations to even more uncertainty?
Hypocrisy abounds in Congress; and it is one reason why opinion polls register approval ratings by the electorate in the low twenty percent range. We have two automobile industries in America, one in the Midwest and the other in the South. One domestic, which built the middle class in America and has a vested interest in the welfare and well-being of America; and the other one is comprised of foreign manufacturers, whose interest in our citizens is purely monetary. With domestic manufacturers, the profits stay in and are reinvested in America. The foreign automakers take their profits back to their homeland. The loudest Congressional critics of assistance to the domestic manufacturers have a vested stake in seeing our domestic auto manufacturer's fail. Daimler-Benz, Toyota, Hyundai and other foreign brands established plants in the South, thus helping to reduce the market share of domestic automakers. Southern states attempting to lure foreign manufacturers sold the farm, so to speak, to lure foreign business interests to their state. The critics of Detroit Automakers are engaged in the worst case of hypocrisy...Self-dealing and self-promotion, while distorting the record and reality of why domestic manufacturers are on the ropes.
Lest we all forget, we acquired a strong national defense because of expansion of the country's tax base and growth of the middle class, courtesy of Henry Ford and his automation of the assembly line. We have a great transportation network of highways, roads and streets precisely because of American manufacturers. We have a host of new communities across the country, which leveraged the auto employee's wealth and employed a multitude of construction workers across our land. I could go on, but suffice it to say, that without a strong, domestic manufacturing sector, our country is and will become a much weaker nation. Who can we thank for our weakened status? In my opinion, the hypocrites in Congress willing to sell out our country, so that their constituents might have better jobs. In the process, they might reason that they look like heroes to voters in their district and perpetuate their own seniority and security. Tax breaks? Financial subsidies? The foreign automakers got them by the bushel load.
Since Congress opened this Pandora's Box of foreign competition, they have also placed American citizens in the position of having to fund the health care and pension plans of each automaker, and that of the numerous suppliers and suppliers to the suppliers. Taken in perspective, the auto industry is conservatively responsible for three percent of our nation's Gross Domestic Product. Should Congress not do the right thing and support the industry that made our country great and grew the middle class, what will that mean? In my opinion, a prolonged Great Depression, a shattered industry and a fractured national economy.
Responsibility for the social promises of the Big Three, likely will be broken in bankruptcy, a consequence of unfair, foreign competition. Accordingly, responsibility for the social welfare of their workers will fall into the laps and wallets of the American consumer. In bankruptcy, the auto employees' pension funds will become the responsibility of the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, which is funded by Congress and the taxpayers. Currently, the PBGC has a deficit of over eleven billion dollars and bankruptcy of any one of the domestic manufacturers will create an even greater crisis, as tax payers pay for the company's pension obligations. Medicaid will become over-run by autoworkers turning to publicly social programs for their health care. Real estate values in America will rapidly diminish, not just in the Midwest, but throughout the South, where many auto employees have second homes. The social costs and the outcomes for every citizen in our country will bury us!
So, to those hypocrites in Congress, you will be held accountable and the consequences will be loudly shared with your constituents, who will face dramatically higher federal and state taxes. I suggest, therefore, that you take a close look at the benefits you provided to the financial institutions that you bailed out. Review your assumption of AIG, your boondoggles, lavish benefits you receive and answer the following question: What will you do when your Congressional benefits are terminated?
You may rest assured that a revolt is underway in America; and lame performance, indecisive leadership, shrill rhetoric and the inaction of Congress will come home to roost. Both parties will pay a steep price, crime will increase and the broken dreams of over three million auto workers, suppliers, dealers and others affiliated with the industry will make their voices heard.
Lest you think your foreign manufacturers will remain immune, you best take off your rose colored glasses. For the foreign interests share the same suppliers as GM. Ford and Chrysler. If one or more of the domestic manufacturers go under, additional bankruptcies will ensue and foreign brands will suffer from dramatically higher supplier costs, interrupted supplies and a diminished market, as America plunges into a Depression worse than we experienced last century. So, put aside your art of self-promotion, delusion and rhetoric that promotes local interests above the national interest. If you do not, your constituents will suffer and you will too, come the next election.
Apparently, good old fashioned horse sense, a sound foundation in history and economics and a patriotic sense of promoting country over parochial interests is in short supply in Washington. But, hey, horse stock might just come into vogue again!
So I walked to the door and knocked. 'Just a minute', answered a frail, elderly voice. I could hear something being dragged across the floor.
After a long pause, the door opened. A small woman in her 90's stood before me. She was wearing a print dress and a pillbox hat with a veil pinned on it, like somebody out of a 1940s movie.
By her side was a small nylon suitcase. The apartment looked as if no one had lived in it for years. All the furniture was covered with sheets.
There were no clocks on the walls, no knickknacks or utensils on the counters. In the corner was a cardboard box filled with photos and glassware.
'Would you carry my bag out to the car?' she said. I took the suitcase to the cab, then returned to assist the woman.
She took my arm and we walked slowly toward the curb.
She kept thanking me for my kindness. 'It's nothing', I told her. 'I just try to treat my passengers the way I would want my mother treated'.
'Oh, you're such a good boy', she said. When we got in the cab, she gave me an address, and then asked, 'Could you drive through downtown?'
'It's not the shortest way,' I answered quickly.
'Oh, I don't mind,' she said. 'I'm in no hurry. I'm on my way to a hospice'.
I looked in the rear-view mirror. Her eyes were glistening. 'I don't have any family left,' she continued. 'The doctor says I don't have very long.' I quietly reached over and shut off the meter.
'What route would you like me to take?' I asked.
For the next two hours, we drove through the city. She showed me the building where she had once worked as an elevator operator.
We drove through the neighborhood where she and her husband had lived when they were newlyweds. She had me pull up in front of a furniture warehouse that had once been a ballroom where she had gone dancing as a girl.
Sometimes she'd ask me to slow in front of a particular building or corner and would sit staring into the darkness, saying nothing.
As the first hint of sun was creasing the horizon, she suddenly said, 'I'm tired. Let's go now'
We drove in silence to the address she had given me. It was a low building, like a small convalescent home, with a driveway that passed under a portico.
Two orderlies came out to the cab as soon as we pulled up. They were solicitous and intent, watching her every move. They must have been expecting her.
I opened the trunk and took the small suitcase to the door. The woman was already seated in a wheelchair.
'How much do I owe you?' she asked, reaching into her purse.
'Nothing,' I said
'You have to make a living,' she answered.
'There are other passengers,' I responded.
Almost without thinking, I bent and gave her a hug. She held onto me tightly.
'You gave an old woman a little moment of joy,' she said.
'Thank you'
I squeezed her hand, and then walked into the dim morning light. Behind me, a door shut. It was the sound of the closing of a life.
I didn't pick up any more passengers that shift. I drove aimlessly lost in thought. For the rest of that day, I could hardly talk. What if that woman had gotten an angry driver, or one who was impatient to end his shift?
What if I had refused to take the run, or had honked once, then driven away?
On a quick review, I don't think that I have done anything more important in my life.
We're conditioned to think that our lives revolve around great moments.
But great moments often catch us unaware-beautifully wrapped in what others may consider a small one.
PEOPLE MAY NOT REMEMBER EXACTLY WHAT YOU DID, OR WHAT YOU SAID, ~BUT~THEY WILL ALWAYS REMEMBER HOW YOU MADE THEM FEEL.
You won't get any big surprise in 10 days if you send this to ten people. But, you might help make the world a little kinder and more compassionate by sending it on.
Life may not be the party we hoped for, but while we are here we might as well dance.
