Lincoln: Too Great to be on the Penny

I know he's on Mt. Rushmore and that he has his own monument on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., but somehow, I think I never realized the true greatness of Abraham Lincoln.

A few years back, when Barack Obama was debating Hillary Clinton in the Democratic primaries, I recall news that "Team of Rivals", an historic account of the Lincoln Presidency, had been a driving influence for Obama.  Since he was so unknown at the time, I took an interest in that book as a source of insight as to what the young candidate might be about.

However, given my habit of buying books at a faster rate than I read books, I didn't get around to cracking the weighty, and densely written tome until recently.  After seeing the Spielberg film, that is reportedly based "in part" on the book, I decided it was time.

This is not a book review, though if it were, it would be glowing.  This is just a short collection of thoughts I felt like sharing:

Lincoln exploded from relative obscurity and gained the Republican nomination for President through a shrew political strategy.  The newly formed Republican party was an amalgamation of three former parties, each headed by a well-established, political heavy-weight.  Each of those heavy-weights had their own,  strong pocket of support, and each was considered to have a good shot at the nomination; Lincoln was considered an also-ran.

Knowing that each powerful faction would attack the other two rival factions, Lincoln set out to be everyone's second choice. In this way, he stayed out of the direct line of attack and, as each rival candidate was rendered "unelectable" by the press from the other two, Lincoln secured the nomination.  When all three came together to support him in the election, the Republicans carried the day and had their first President.

The title of the book comes from Lincoln's sharp break with tradition of the time.  He eschewed the custom of awarding plum cabinet jobs to his closest supporters and like-minded allies, and instead, appointed political enemies to several key cabinet positions.  This would be like Obama nominating Newt Gingrich for Secretary of State and John Boehner as Treasury Secretary.  From what I gather, it was as unthinkable then as it would be today, but he did it.

It is clear that even Lincoln's contemporaries recognized the historic magnitude of his character.  Leo Tolstoy, renowned thinker and writer of the time, said "the greatness of Napoleon, Caesar or Washington is only moonlight by the sun of Lincoln".  Perhaps the metaphor got away from Tolstoy but, if not, that's an enormous difference to draw between any man and the greatest known leaders of the day.

Maybe (probably) I wasn't paying attention in school but I never knew that Lincoln was assassinated as part of a plot to kill him and two other key figures.  On the same evening, Lincoln was shot, Secretary of State Seward was stabbed in the throat (but survived), and Vice President Johnson escaped harm when his would-be assailant had a change of heart.

Finally, the book made clear that political divisiveness was as sharp in Lincoln's day as it is today.  A speech by the President would have been hailed as a visionary milestone by one media outlet, while characterized as short-sighted hypocrisy by another.  The key difference I think is that, in those times, the masses understood clearly that all press was agenda-driven. I can't say for sure that is the case today.

Overall, great guy.  Too great to be on the penny.

A Stern warning

Contributed by Auggie
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You’ve gotta love the NBA! No, really you do - or David Stern might have you killed. His latest act is enough to bring Auggie out of hibernation and go on a rant. (And then immediately enter the witness protection program).

Stern, the commissioner of the NBA, recently announced he would retire on February 1, 2014, 30 years after taking charge of the league. That’s not soon enough. While Stern did a great job of taking a league on the brink of irrelevance and turning it into a globally popular entity, he has since tarnished that legacy and deservedly so. In recent years he is more known as a power-hungry, arrogant, tyrannical leader than a commissioner, and apparently he is intent on cementing that new-found legacy between now and retirement.

In case you didn’t hear, Stern just fined the San Antonio Spurs $250,000 for resting four of its starters during a (nationally televised) game at Miami. Great, so now the commissioner is qualified, and has the power to tell a coach what is best for his team. That seems like a slippery slope to me. Stern says the Spurs did the fans a disservice by resting its “star” players, namely Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker. But stars according to whom . . . . Stern? I’m a fan and here is what I say. I can’t stand Manu Ginobili. He is one of the biggest whining, floppers in the NBA and it wouldn’t disturb me if I never saw him play again. He is one of the reasons the NBA just instituted an anti-flopping penalty. Tim Duncan was great once but he is well past his prime, now he’s just another guy. As for Tony Parker; the guy cheated on Eva Longoria. Need I say more?

What’s worse, the NBA scheduled the Spurs for 6 road games in an 8-day span. That’s unheard of. The NBA season is grueling for older players like Duncan and it make strategic sense to rest those players, for example in the second of back-to-back games, or the final game of a 6-game road stand. But to do so and then they get fined for it? Wow. The robber barons of the late 19^th century would be proud of Stern for his shameless abuse of power. Frankly, I don’t even know how it’s legal.

Finally, the game in question was an exciting and interesting game. The Spurs actually had the lead with 22 seconds left before Ray Allen hit a 3-pointer and lead the world-champion Heat to a victory. What is the problem?

I think Stern and Goodell have a little side competition going, and Stern just took the lead.

Dragon Fly Covered with Dew

It's not just the grass and the spiderwebs that, during the daily cycle of temperature change, get coated in condensation.  All of nature must deal with this phenomenon.  Based on the expression on the face of this dragonfly, I guess some bugs have to face the morning dampness before their first cup of coffee. 

PHOTO CREDIT: thisiscolossal.com

This may be reminiscent of an earlier post, "Bumble Bee Covered with Pollen".  I love these glimpses into the lives of other creatures, and the conditions they face in the course of an ordinary day.

Cool Things With No Purpose - Part XIII

Using sound waves to levitate water droplets...

Cool Things With No Purpose - Part XII

Beg Your Pardon?

I've heard the arguments against giving money to beggars.

I've also spent a fair amount of time, in cities all around the world, encountering beggars and contemplating the moral dilemma posed by the massively unequal distribution of the world's wealth.  Frankly, I've never been able to buy into the reasoning against helping beggars.

I must admit though, my rural upbringing may have rendered me somewhat naive on this topic, and I recently had a disconcerting encounter that I may have handled wrong.  Here's what happened:

I was in Washington DC for a meeting and, during a ten-minute pause in a coffee shop, I watched a woman begging outside on a very busy sidewalk.  She was sitting down, had a sign, and looked like she truly needed some help.  As far as I could tell, during the time that I observed, not a single person offered her any change nor acknowledged her existence.  

I knew I was not going to change her life with my spare change, but I thought she might appreciate knowing that at least one other person saw her as a fellow human, in need of a fortunate break.  As I left the coffee shop, I crouched to her level, looked her compassionately in the eye, and warmly wished her "better times ahead" as I dropped my change into her cup.

No sooner had I stood up to cross the street when she began berating me with a loud and angry stream of expletives.  I turned to see her dump the coins to the ground and I realized that she had been insulted by my meager financial offering.  Momentary confusion gave way to embarrassment as a crowd of bystanders turned to view the raucous spectacle.

I have pondered this many times since it happened last spring, and I still can't make sense of it.  I had approached her with the sincerest intentions of respecting her dignity, and I walked away feeling as though she had trampled on mine.

It always comes to mind for me now, each time I encounter a beggar.  I have continued with my past approach of giving generously to some, modestly to others, and walking past most in the course of a typical day. I still think it is usually right to offer help from time to time, but I also wonder if I did something wrong in DC.

It's the Economy Stupid

The old truism that "the economy" is the most important topic in every US Presidential election is absurd to me.

I'm sure it's true enough. I fully believe that people vote based on their perception of which candidate can drive economic growth. I just think it is absurd how voters over-estimate how much the President can impact the economy (which in truth may be not at all, but at best it is very, very little).

I also find it beguiling that campaign strategists perpetrate the false notion, in every election, that their candidate can actually drive an economic turn-around.

Sorry to report this folks but neither Obama nor Romney can "fix the economy". The only people who can fix the economy are us voters.

Here are a few ways to start:

1) Get in shape. Don't cut down a little on fast food, stop eating it. That includes soda.  Lose some weight, exercise, and eat fruits and vegetables. This will greatly ease the burden on our health system, which wouldn't look nearly as broken if we weren't a bunch of over-weight, diabetics who need statins and hypertensive medications for the final five decades of our lives. This will also cut down on expensive triple-bypass surgeries and knee replacements. Let's free up a little spending for wellness.

2) Use less energy. Like a lot less. In your car and in your home. Next time you need to buy a car, buy a small one and, in the meantime, drive less and drive more slowly. This could vastly reduce our reliance on foreign oil, which will weaken demand and bring prices down. It may also put less money in the hands of certain groups that we spend a lot of military dollars to protect ourselves from.

3) Be an active parent. If your kids are being raised by TV and video games, you need to engage. It's hard and it takes a lot of time, but kids who spend their time with caring adults, as opposed to consumer electronics, develop better social skills and are more likely to cultivate an interest in learning. They are also less likely to exhibit disruptive, anti-social behavior in the classroom, which will allow our teachers to focus on educating instead of baby-sitting. Just a guess, but our education system might not look as broken if our kids were taught how to be attentive students by their parents.

4) Do the work that needs to be done. If some jobs are beneath you, then don't complain about the unemployment level or the number of immigrants who enter our country to fill the demand for low-status work. Until we are willing to do all kinds of work for pay that may be unattractive, then jobs will continue moving overseas, immigrants will continue to cross our border illegally, and unemployment will persist. The government can't fix our willingness to work.

5) Save some money. The government can't always be there for everyone. Maybe keep your car a little longer, get by with a smallish TV, and live below your means. Put some cash toward retirement, disability insurance, long-term care insurance, and bouts of unemployment. There is no way the government, under any administration, can accumulate enough tax revenue to help all 300 million of us avoid some disruptions in the high quality of life we enjoyed during our peak earning years. Things go wrong, family financial health swings up and down, and we all need to prepare ourselves for the downturns.

I know these are hard habits to adopt.  I acknowledge that I could be doing better on a few of these suggestions myself. But the point is, the change is up to us. We can't expect a miracle from the government or from any particular Presidential candidate.

The President who can impact the economy is the one who can get the voters to fix the economy themselves.

Stones Turn 50!

This has already been way overdone in the media, but I am sure my imaginary readers are expecting me to at least acknowledge it.

Today is the day, July 12, marking the 50th anniversary of the Stones first gig in 1962.  No need to belabor the point, but it's pretty incredible for a rock band to be so relevant for so long.

Guitar Hero

Here's a great video of a guy playing 100 classic guitar riffs in one take. I'm not sure all these riffs are classics, but the video is worth seeing.

What do you find more impressive: this guy's effortless command of the instrument, or his awesome cognitive agility in making 99 mental transitions, from one key and rhythm to the next, without missing a beat?

http://www.chicagomusicexchange.com/100riffs/

National Anthem has 2 Verses?

Apparently so.

Here's a video of a former marine, poignantly reminding a small gathering about it.

I am not promoting any particular religious views, nor am I supporting any particular political stance, I just thought  this was a good thing to share on the 4th of July!