Joined: Dec 2004 Gender: Male Posts: 826 Location: London Ontario Canada
Re: From the Lounge Chair « Result #2 Yesterday at 11:24am »
HI there. Not posting much these days. Alas, very busy with work, the other work, and the comingwork. Its XMas too, so I've been spending alot of time a la mode Clark Griswold up in a tree with lights.
Still going. Leaving at the beginning of January, for ten months.
I think I'm with Tenarke Robert. I'd rather be going to Denmark.
Joined: Dec 2004 Gender: Male Posts: 541 Location: Forbestown, CA,USA
Re: From the Lounge Chair « Result #4 on Dec 11, 2009, 7:44pm »
Sounds like good news indeed, Robert. Much better than that of Wyndham who, when last I heard had Afghanistan in his future.
I looked for Viborg on my only map of Denmark; however it is apparently too small to make the cut. Is it on the peninsula or on one of the two islands?
In my youth (1951) I was able to spend most of one summer in Copenhagen which I enjoyed thoroughly. The food was good, the beer was good and the national sense of humor with its emphasis on whimsy was delightful. This whimsy can even be seen in much of its architecture and some of its monuments. Another example of whimsy, I suppose is the fact that it is one of the world’s only Socialist Monarchies.
I gather that you are not too fond of automobiles. In Denmark the bicycle rules. When I was there they far outnumbered cars and generally had the right of way. If you can manage you would do well to have a bike over there.
Unfortunately you may not be able to learn much Danish. A large percentage of Danes speak good English making it hard to find an excuse to learn their language.
At the end of my one summer I felt quite refreshed to have been living for a while in a truly civilized country.
Joined: Dec 2004 Gender: Male Posts: 948 Location: South Coast, Australia
Re: From the Lounge Chair « Result #5 on Dec 11, 2009, 5:39pm »
My family had some exciting news recently. Looks like we will have three monyths on exchange to Denmark in the summer of 2011. We will be in Viborg and I will work at school that was established in 1060.
Joined: Dec 2004 Gender: Male Posts: 541 Location: Forbestown, CA,USA
Re: Current Events « Result #6 on Dec 6, 2009, 8:29pm »
Looking at this, it has been nearly a month since my last post. Then I was expressing some anxiety regarding President Obama and his promised health care reform. Now I am feeling if anything, increased angst in light of the proposed Afghanistan “surge”.
It was so easy to deride “W”, an obvious chucklehead and very likely corrupt to boot, but to doubt the current President brings into question my own judgment of the man. Clearly the man is no fool and, I had thought from his past life and current speeches, to be a person of considerable integrity. What gives then?
This article in the NY Times seems well researched a may well reflect what is on the President’s mind.
What Colin Powell said of Iraq is true; “If you break it you’ve bought it.” This perhaps applies to Afghanistan as well. We did go into Afghanistan far enough to remove the Taliban from its capitol city, but we failed to control the corrupt government that moved in to fill the resulting vacuum or to enable it to actually govern beyond that city’s limits. But can we succeed where both Great Britain and the late Soviet Union failed?
Obama as our principal politician must address the art of the possible. Is a stable and Taliban free Afghanistan possible within the present state of our economy and the mess left behind in the stables by Bush and associates?
And what about the military industrial complex?
Looking out the window now it is beginning to snow.
Joined: Dec 2004 Gender: Male Posts: 826 Location: London Ontario Canada
Re: Current Events « Result #8 on Nov 10, 2009, 6:07pm »
Alas, Tenarke, I think you're right in your assessment, both counts. People have long been aware of the 'military industrial complex' so when GD says 'you need more planes' we're on to them. Big pharm, and big med, and insurance companies are much, much more powerful (3X the expenditure) and nobody quite gets 'we need to spend LESS on health care'. If its any comfort, you're not alone. The most powerful union in Canada is the college of physicians and surgeons. Funny thing is that whenever there's a health care debate it always resolves itself as 'more money to doctors'. I could write their advise before they tender it. Wait lines are too long (give us more money). Insufficient access to specialists (there wouldn't be . . . if you gave us more money) etc.
Odd about the Dems too. The slide right is frightening. I don't know how much of that is just people being 'mind f***'ed' (we get that too here, although mainly about oil and the environment -- where there's money to be made, there's confusion), and how much is reaction to so much big spending (unavoidable, but there you are). I wouldn't be Obama to save my life . . . Ok, to save my life, but not otherwise.
What you really need is a TR. Teddy would sort it out. I still remember a story I read once about the West Virginia coal strike back in the day. Synopsis. Miners are striking. Owners are fighting back, and how, and dirty. Miners want to organise. Owners won't hire union men. Stalemate. TR summoned the union leaders and the mine owners to Washington. All the way up, the mine owners were terrifying the union leaders with the prospect of the spanking surely awaiting. TR brings them into the oval office (in my vision its has to be the Oval Office, although I don't know that for sure). Short direction ensues: mines will be unionised forthwith; owners will be held liable for any violence; if owners don't like it, the mines will be nationalised and run on that basis. Case closed: America needs coal. Owner protests: but the business of America is business . . . . TR answers: 'there's not one goddamn (in my vision, he uses that word: this is TR) word about business in the Constitution about business. I remember a passage about the 'common good'. Settle, or I expropriate". All the way back the union leaders celebrate the United States, while the owners are silent.
Too cool. That's what Obama needs to learn to be.
Don't despair though Tenarke. Maybe he's got the parts. Remember: even Father Abraham grew into the office (I'm remembering now Stanton's eulogy . . .).
Joined: Dec 2004 Gender: Male Posts: 541 Location: Forbestown, CA,USA
Re: Current Events « Result #9 on Nov 10, 2009, 5:05pm »
I’ve been looking at this for about a week, wanting to add my two cent’s worth, but still wanting to avoid getting off on another rant.
On the one hand, a health care reform bill, with a public option, has finally made it out of the House. But, it has just squeaked by in spite of a nominally strong Democratic majority. It is now up to the Senate where a filibuster proof plurality is most unlikely. All this is in spite of public polls indicating that a significant majority of our citizens want national health care with government participation. Even the American Medical Association is in support – finally!
The probable cause is that the Pharmaceuticals and HMO’s have now succeeded in buying off enough Democrats to replace their missing Republican lawmakers. The political reality facing US politicians regardless of party is that their re-elections cost money and lots of it; and there ain’t no quid without no quo. My elected representatives represent my interests only when it’s OK with their financial backers.
Reading and listening I find that I am not alone. The center of today’s Democratic Party has now shifted to the right of Eisenhower’s Republicans. Who represents me? I am politically liberal , but I don’t think radically so. I do believe in evolution, not simply as a zoological theory but as a more universal truth. The entire universe is in an evolutionary process. The so called “fixed” stars – aren’t. Our whole world is in a continuing process of decay and rebirth and our bodies politic are caught up in the dance as well. Yesterday’s answers don’t solve today’s problems, nor will today’s answer tomorrow’s. To be a progressive is simply to accept this reality.
It was once said the politics is the art of the possible. I believe this to be true as far as it goes. Much as I admire president Obama, he is after all a politician, so I suppose he’s stuck with it; but changes are due – fundamental changes.
It would be fun to live long enough to see someof these.
Joined: Dec 2004 Gender: Male Posts: 826 Location: London Ontario Canada
Re: Current Events « Result #10 on Nov 6, 2009, 11:14pm »
The hell of it is that there are no big wins. Spending is better than cutting, declaring war is more fun than losing one, flipping the bird is better than eating crow.
I think these are pretty much political constants.
Alas, the locust Bush pretty much did a job on whoever followed him before (s)he started.
Imagine. Being destined to be the Pres who surrenders US financial primacy (and Obama will: he has no choice), withdraws from Iraq and Afghanistan without clear victory (and Obama will: he has no choice), sucks up to the Europeans, Japanese, Chinese, Russians etc. (and Obama will: he has no choice). Domestically, the bank bail out, the auto bail out and all the write downs -- trillions in dollars -- can only hurt. Oh yes. Coming fast up the chute is all the unscheduled liability, as the baby boomers hit retirement age.
Nothing to be done. Obama will manage decline. There are no victories. He's like Ney managing the withdrawal from Moscow. Sometimes you do well just to get away.
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