It's an emergency! We're going into financial meltdown! Unless Congress immediately authorizes a 700 billion dollar expenditure by the Treasury Secretary, we're doomed! Or, so they would have us believe.
Fortunately, our elected representatives from both political parties are resisting being railroaded. Many remember what a disaster the Patriot Act turned out to be because it was acted upon in haste. Then, too, they know that the administration that is sounding this alarm is the same Bush administration that told us and told the world that Saddam Hussein was harboring weapons of mass destruction. There is an understandable credibility gap.
There are problems with the economy. But to blindly follow this administration's leadership to an attempted solution is not the answer. Thankfully, our congressional leadership has learned some lessons from the recent past and is being more methodical in developing a solution.
Tonight, President George W. Bush will address the nation in an attempt to scare the public into putting more pressure on our congressional leadership to pass a hasty spending bill. Will the public demonstrate the same capacity to learn from past mistakes as the Congress? We shall see.
I am definitely in favor of taking appropriate action. But it is my wish that we take whatever time is necessary to get the action right.
That's Wade's two cents.
Wade Houston
September 24, 2008
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Friday, September 12, 2008
Annie Oakley for Vice President?
Alaska governor, Sarah Palin, recently said in an interview that she had no hesitation in accepting John McCain's offer of the number two spot on the presidential ticket. On the surface that would seem to suggest supreme confidence in herself and her abilities. It certainly reflects some degree of ambition.
Ambition is not altogether a bad thing. In fact, we want people to have high aspirations for our country which probably means they will have high aspirations for themselves as well. It would be sexist to say it is not appropriate for a woman.
However, in saying she accepted the VP offer with NO hesitation, Sarah Palin has indicated she does not appreciate the gravity of the position. If her ticket is elected, she would be the Vice President. If for any reason John McCain could not serve out his term (and at his advanced age that carries a higher than normal degree of probability), Sarah Palin would be the President. Surely, accepting the role deserves some thoughtful reflection. I expect that from my leaders.
Though Sarah Palin has been governor of the state with the largest land area in the U.S., it is also the state with the sparsest population. She may have experience in managing a state budget, but it is the budget of a state with such a surplus it actually pays its citizens rather than exacting an income tax. Even though Alaska has both Canada and Russia as neighbors, her foreign policy experience pales in comparison to a number of other choices McCain could have made.
Sarah Palin may seem like the perfect poster girl for the National Rifle Association, but even Annie Oakley was not qualified to be one heartbeat away from the presidency. It's time to take a hard look at John McCain's selection. Could this be the first sign of dementia?
That's Wade's two cents.
Wade Houston
September 12, 2008
Ambition is not altogether a bad thing. In fact, we want people to have high aspirations for our country which probably means they will have high aspirations for themselves as well. It would be sexist to say it is not appropriate for a woman.
However, in saying she accepted the VP offer with NO hesitation, Sarah Palin has indicated she does not appreciate the gravity of the position. If her ticket is elected, she would be the Vice President. If for any reason John McCain could not serve out his term (and at his advanced age that carries a higher than normal degree of probability), Sarah Palin would be the President. Surely, accepting the role deserves some thoughtful reflection. I expect that from my leaders.
Though Sarah Palin has been governor of the state with the largest land area in the U.S., it is also the state with the sparsest population. She may have experience in managing a state budget, but it is the budget of a state with such a surplus it actually pays its citizens rather than exacting an income tax. Even though Alaska has both Canada and Russia as neighbors, her foreign policy experience pales in comparison to a number of other choices McCain could have made.
Sarah Palin may seem like the perfect poster girl for the National Rifle Association, but even Annie Oakley was not qualified to be one heartbeat away from the presidency. It's time to take a hard look at John McCain's selection. Could this be the first sign of dementia?
That's Wade's two cents.
Wade Houston
September 12, 2008
Telecommuting Has Pros and Cons
In this age of high transportation costs and increasing ease of telecommuting, more and more of us have taken to working from home. Working from home certainly has its perks. You don't have to fight the traffic. There is no time wasted on commuting, so more of your off time is really yours. You don't have to spend extra time preening for people at the office (unless you are doing a lot of work with a web cam). You can essentially go straight from your bedroom to your desk and never change from your pajamas.
Some people see telecommuting as the ideal solution for their child care issues. However, many employers are not so sure. Children, especially young children, frequently cannot appreciate the need to leave mommy or daddy alone to work. The constant interruptions prevent the type of sustained concentration many jobs require. On the other hand, this type of arrangement may be preferred by employers of nursing mothers.
During an interview, one friend of mine was asked by her future employer if she might be tempted to do housework while she should be focused on her job. Her reply was classic. "I've never been tempted by housework before. Why should doing my job from home make any difference?" They had a good laugh, and she was hired. But it does make an important point. There is a potential for distractions unique to a home environment.
If lots of face to face interaction with co-workers is vital for the performance of your job, then working from home is probably not for you. If you derive your energy and sense of satisfaction from the routine give and take between yourself and others on your work team, then working exclusively from home will leave you unfulfilled. Then again, if you hate your co-workers, working in isolation could improve your performance.
Some people need to get out of the house to experience a sense of separation between their professional lives and their personal lives. For them, working from home would be too much of an intrusion of one into the other. Many people complain that since they started working from home, they never seem to be able to get away from their jobs. They don't feel like their work day is done when they don't physically leave the workplace behind. One friend of mine addressed this problem by putting his office in his basement. When he went to the basement, he was "at work". His family came to understand and respect this arrangement. He stayed out of his basement office when he was done for the day.
That's Wade's two cents.
Wade Houston
Some people see telecommuting as the ideal solution for their child care issues. However, many employers are not so sure. Children, especially young children, frequently cannot appreciate the need to leave mommy or daddy alone to work. The constant interruptions prevent the type of sustained concentration many jobs require. On the other hand, this type of arrangement may be preferred by employers of nursing mothers.
During an interview, one friend of mine was asked by her future employer if she might be tempted to do housework while she should be focused on her job. Her reply was classic. "I've never been tempted by housework before. Why should doing my job from home make any difference?" They had a good laugh, and she was hired. But it does make an important point. There is a potential for distractions unique to a home environment.
If lots of face to face interaction with co-workers is vital for the performance of your job, then working from home is probably not for you. If you derive your energy and sense of satisfaction from the routine give and take between yourself and others on your work team, then working exclusively from home will leave you unfulfilled. Then again, if you hate your co-workers, working in isolation could improve your performance.
Some people need to get out of the house to experience a sense of separation between their professional lives and their personal lives. For them, working from home would be too much of an intrusion of one into the other. Many people complain that since they started working from home, they never seem to be able to get away from their jobs. They don't feel like their work day is done when they don't physically leave the workplace behind. One friend of mine addressed this problem by putting his office in his basement. When he went to the basement, he was "at work". His family came to understand and respect this arrangement. He stayed out of his basement office when he was done for the day.
That's Wade's two cents.
Wade Houston
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