Okay, here goes....
Mitt Romney - he seems really fake and I just can't stand him. I don't have any reason to dislike him, not really knowing anything about him, but something about his affect really irritates me. Additionally, he really has flip-flopped on a lot of issues. While I believe it is okay to change your position on matters as you mature and grow, this all seems to be a changed predicated on a run for office. I could be wrong, but nonetheless, I will not be voting for him.
John McCain - I loved his book. I admire him for his perseverance. I agree with him on many issues. I watch too much C-Span. He is mean when you see him just doing his job and I have a hard time with a jerk-in-chief. I will not be voting for him.
Mike Huckabee - This guy seems like a good speaker and a guy who does not take himself too seriously, which I love. However, he is a yokel. Or, at least, he comes across that way. I wish him the best, but I will not be voting for him.
Rudy Giuliani - Seriously, I would consider his candidacy if he ran as an independent. I actually did not like the way he handled 9/11 at all and his increasing use of the date in all speeches is comical. However, is he even a Republican? I don't mean on hot-button issues, I mean on anything. I don't get the appeal, I am not voting for him.
Fred Thompson - He dropped out, I would not have voted for him anyway.
Ron Paul - I really like insane people. I like the little rabbit who flips the bird to the pack of giant wolves who surround him. It is good TV. But seriously, I am not voting for him.
Folks, Presidents have much less to do with the day to day actions in our country than we like to acknowledge. We need them to inspire us to better things, to inspire other politicians to be better people, to show a face of America which we want the world to see. The President is not Pat Sajak, who controls the wheel, he is Vanna White who shows us the letters and looks good on camera. But, that is just my opinion, and if you don't vote the way I want you to, I will move to Canada (which is where my wife said she would move if Hillary Clinton became President). But if Hillary becomes President, in theory, wouldn't we pretty much BE Canada?
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Hey, we are beginning to think like Christians!
I was just reading an article on beliefnet. It was based around a poll they did of 980 self-described evangelicals and was about the importance of governmental issues, politics, etc. The results left me surprised and really quite glad. It seems those polled which, I would assume, reflect a cross-section of the evangelical community, have decided to think less like Republicans and more like Christians. Now, I do not think that these two are mutually exclusive, I just think we have spent a long time being defined by what we are against, rather than what we are for and I am happy to see this change. In the 1960's, the Democratic party was the party of evangelicals to some degree, because the issues of social justice were paramount and the correct path to be on. Many Republicans would like to remind me that it was a Republican congress which passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964...I know, I know. Also, most friends would like to remind me that I am usually a pretty conservative guy, but I would like to say that I almost never register or describe myself as Republican, but rather as Conservative on most issues. You see, I like to vote on issues, not on party platforms. I vote for people, not party choices. In the presidential elections in which I have been able to vote, I voted Bush, Clinton, Clinton, Bush, Bush. I am not certain if that makes me a trend-setter or a lemming, but I digress.
Anyway, I wanted to post the top six on this poll and where some former hot-button issues fell in the poll. If you want to see the whole poll...google it. What am I, a library? Its on beliefnet, thats as good as I can remember, but I wrote down the issues in order so I could blog. They were, in order of importance, as follows:
1) The Economy
2) Cleaning up Government
3) Reducing Poverty
4) Improving Public Education & Access to Healthcare
5) Protecting the Environment
6) Ending Torture
That's right, none of the "winning issues" from the last two cycles were even in the top 7. Abortion ranked #8 and Sexuality issues came in at #11. This was a good moment for me, but it reminds me what my friend Shawn says to me in our Men's Bible Study, "what makes you think your ideas are so radical?" (I paraphrase, because I don't remember exactly how he has put it...sorry Shawn)
What is your core issue, or top three? Let me know, even anonymously, I am fascinated! To reply click on the place below which says how many comments there have been, the rest is not brain surgery.
Anyway, I wanted to post the top six on this poll and where some former hot-button issues fell in the poll. If you want to see the whole poll...google it. What am I, a library? Its on beliefnet, thats as good as I can remember, but I wrote down the issues in order so I could blog. They were, in order of importance, as follows:
1) The Economy
2) Cleaning up Government
3) Reducing Poverty
4) Improving Public Education & Access to Healthcare
5) Protecting the Environment
6) Ending Torture
That's right, none of the "winning issues" from the last two cycles were even in the top 7. Abortion ranked #8 and Sexuality issues came in at #11. This was a good moment for me, but it reminds me what my friend Shawn says to me in our Men's Bible Study, "what makes you think your ideas are so radical?" (I paraphrase, because I don't remember exactly how he has put it...sorry Shawn)
What is your core issue, or top three? Let me know, even anonymously, I am fascinated! To reply click on the place below which says how many comments there have been, the rest is not brain surgery.
Monday, January 28, 2008
my dear wife
So, I woke in a foul mood this morning. The wind and a few other noises had kept me up all night, and I don't think I got any deep sleep. I want to apologize publicly for taking it out on my wonderful wife. While I think I had a genuine issue, my response was not the loving, caring response which you deserve. I was harsh, insensitive, sarcastic and dare I say it, quite loud. You are wonderful, beautiful and the best thing in this world that I have ever experienced. I am happy to be near you every day. I love you and am sorry about this morning.
Friday, January 25, 2008
fear of dentistry
Unnatural fears are always a strange thing, after all they are not natural. My greatest fears in life are Tidal Waves, being struck by lightning and dentistry. While the first two have a very slim possibility of actually happening, the third I experienced this morning. I have a fantastic dentist and the staff is caring and kind and very understanding about my fears. But, that chair makes my butt crawl. Try as I might to restrain it, my butt kept trying to crawl out of the chair without my conscious thought. This was interesting because there was pretty much no chance of the dentistry in any way effecting my butt, so why it was so concerned about the procedure, I do not know.
I tried to reason with my butt, but it would not calm down. I tried through force of will to control its migration, but it would not listen. In the end (no pun intended), it got its wish and we departed the dentist's office for another 6 months, when I am confident it will convince some other part of my body to have a malady so we do not have to go back to the dentist.
Silly rear!
I tried to reason with my butt, but it would not calm down. I tried through force of will to control its migration, but it would not listen. In the end (no pun intended), it got its wish and we departed the dentist's office for another 6 months, when I am confident it will convince some other part of my body to have a malady so we do not have to go back to the dentist.
Silly rear!
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Rehab
Has anyone watched celebrity rehab with Dr. Drew Pensky on VH1? It is awesome. I am, and have been for a longtime, a fan of Dr. Drew. He is someone who sincerely seems to be more interested in helping folks than he is in fame. Watching his interaction with these stars gives me some insight into how to deal with addict friends and family. It is worth a watch, and hey, it's on tonight!
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
consumer confidence
By all accounts, consumer confidence is very low. My question is: was it low before they started reporting on the news that it was low. I work in an industry which is heavily reliant on the finance industry (commercial real estate), so we have already been hit hard by the repercussions from the home mortgage debacle. Everyone is crying that the sky is falling and I am ready to go live in my bunker and eat tuna and baked beans for the rest of my miserable existence.
But the truth is that my business has not changed much. I actually am seeing a lot of activity (if not a lot of money) and I am still growing my business. I think it is all a matter of perspective. So, all you naysayers, shut up!! You are upsetting my paradigm.
See, now the sun is warm, the grass is green (what little is left in winter), and the world is beautiful. And, I have confidence....but no, honey, I still won't buy you the Jeep you want. ;P
But the truth is that my business has not changed much. I actually am seeing a lot of activity (if not a lot of money) and I am still growing my business. I think it is all a matter of perspective. So, all you naysayers, shut up!! You are upsetting my paradigm.
See, now the sun is warm, the grass is green (what little is left in winter), and the world is beautiful. And, I have confidence....but no, honey, I still won't buy you the Jeep you want. ;P
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
friendship
An old friend of mine, Paul, has talked about how we first became friends. It was the end of summer 1986 and, by his description, I pretty much willed it to happen. He says I simply would not take no for an answer and pestered him until he became my friend. I have heard him talk about this before, but I have never mentioned to him how it makes me feel.
I went to 33 schools before I graduated High School, and that does not cover how often we moved (I went to the HS I graduated from for 1.5 years, but lived in 4 different places in that time - 6 if you count the summer after graduation). I tell you this to explain that I understand certain elements of my actions as a young man. We moved around a lot, so I did not have time for building relationships. Paul is not incorrect in his assessment. My M.O. was to assess people for things we might have in common, or things I thought I could learn from, and situate myself in such a way as to befriend them and then my intensity of personality would take over to inundate them with Chris. This may sound like a lot, but only because it is a lot.
As Cathy and I were talking this morning, one of the things that occurred to me is that I have changed. Cathy likes to describe me as a very loyal guy, I don't know if that is true, but I have worked harder than many people know to retain relationships. This does not come easy to me, and I do not know if it comes easy to others. However, within the last year or so, all ofthat seems to have changed. I don't know if it is because I am 40 and no longer yearn for the bond I did as a youth. Or, maybe, it is because I have grown beyond a need to make friends so quickly and have adapted to longer term friendships. It definitely also has something to do with meeting some great friends in the last year or two who I have not had to work so hard to be friends with.
I know some of my old friends will read this and think...he worked hard? Yeah, I did. The difficulty in willing people to be your friends is that you overlook and never deal with the friction of relationships. After I had been friends for a while, I would finally begin to see the cracks and often realize that these folks didn't really like me that much. We were friends now, and they cared for me, but they did not like me. In years past this made me try harder to make them like me, without really changing who I am. Most people would recognize that I am not all that concerned with people liking or accepting me, but for those who call themselves my friend (even if I planted and nurtured the idea), it would be something I would expect. So, I had a number of long-term friendships which were based on nothing more than that I wanted to be friends. I don't think this works.
This year, maybe two years, I have made friends. I did not make it happen, nor did I bug them to become my friends. The weird after-effect is that I am seeing my old friends in a new light. I tend to see myself as an obligation for them, and not someone who they want to be friends with. I guess I want to say...it's okay. You don't need to call once every six to nine months. You don't need to worry about my feelings, I am alright. Call if you want to, I will do the same.
It is easy to be an acquaintance, but it is hard to be a friend. The mutual admiration club has few members. It takes work, and you have to value the other person for more than what you can get from them. I think the impact of a few friends has made the growth easier and I would like to thank them. So, thanks Dave & Dawn. Thanks Shawn. Thanks Steve. Thanks Darin. And, thanks to Cathy, who helps me become the man I want to be every day.
I went to 33 schools before I graduated High School, and that does not cover how often we moved (I went to the HS I graduated from for 1.5 years, but lived in 4 different places in that time - 6 if you count the summer after graduation). I tell you this to explain that I understand certain elements of my actions as a young man. We moved around a lot, so I did not have time for building relationships. Paul is not incorrect in his assessment. My M.O. was to assess people for things we might have in common, or things I thought I could learn from, and situate myself in such a way as to befriend them and then my intensity of personality would take over to inundate them with Chris. This may sound like a lot, but only because it is a lot.
As Cathy and I were talking this morning, one of the things that occurred to me is that I have changed. Cathy likes to describe me as a very loyal guy, I don't know if that is true, but I have worked harder than many people know to retain relationships. This does not come easy to me, and I do not know if it comes easy to others. However, within the last year or so, all ofthat seems to have changed. I don't know if it is because I am 40 and no longer yearn for the bond I did as a youth. Or, maybe, it is because I have grown beyond a need to make friends so quickly and have adapted to longer term friendships. It definitely also has something to do with meeting some great friends in the last year or two who I have not had to work so hard to be friends with.
I know some of my old friends will read this and think...he worked hard? Yeah, I did. The difficulty in willing people to be your friends is that you overlook and never deal with the friction of relationships. After I had been friends for a while, I would finally begin to see the cracks and often realize that these folks didn't really like me that much. We were friends now, and they cared for me, but they did not like me. In years past this made me try harder to make them like me, without really changing who I am. Most people would recognize that I am not all that concerned with people liking or accepting me, but for those who call themselves my friend (even if I planted and nurtured the idea), it would be something I would expect. So, I had a number of long-term friendships which were based on nothing more than that I wanted to be friends. I don't think this works.
This year, maybe two years, I have made friends. I did not make it happen, nor did I bug them to become my friends. The weird after-effect is that I am seeing my old friends in a new light. I tend to see myself as an obligation for them, and not someone who they want to be friends with. I guess I want to say...it's okay. You don't need to call once every six to nine months. You don't need to worry about my feelings, I am alright. Call if you want to, I will do the same.
It is easy to be an acquaintance, but it is hard to be a friend. The mutual admiration club has few members. It takes work, and you have to value the other person for more than what you can get from them. I think the impact of a few friends has made the growth easier and I would like to thank them. So, thanks Dave & Dawn. Thanks Shawn. Thanks Steve. Thanks Darin. And, thanks to Cathy, who helps me become the man I want to be every day.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)