Oil or "0": Which is slicker?

Today's Tids Issue 2,147
Opening Stuff:

The other day I nudged my sundial with the lawnmower and I’ve been late for dates ever since.

A larger than life, true American cultural hero died Saturday night. John Wooden, a basketball coach set a record that will probably never be broken and established principles for leadership and living that should govern for the course of history. A strong Christian, he once said: “If I were ever prosecuted for my religion, I truly hope there would be enough evidence to convict me.” His “Pyramid of Success” book is considered not only manual for coaching success but a basic handbook for every leadership level. Oddly, his life espouses the virtues that many religious conservatives value, but he declared himself to be a liberal democrat. 3 of his favorite leadership maxims are “Failing to prepare is preparing to fail”, “Flexibility is the key to stability” and “Be quick, but don’t hurry.”

And then…there are politicians Department:
GOP Senator Corker proposed a mandatory 5% down payment as requirement for Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac backed mortgages. The Dems voted it down which was lunacy itself, but it is the words of the Chairman Dodd that really are truly disturbing: ”Passage of such a requirement would restrict home ownership to only those who can afford it.” Read that again. Is he aware of the current recession and the reasons behind it? Did he get paid off by mortgage bundler thieves? Will the final resting place of the Conn senator be memorialized with a headstone in the shape of a dunce cap? And, you think there is hope for this country? Oh yeah, there is if we vote out the scoundrels in November.

Unfortunately, maybe because of his long association with government only style jobs, 0-Man does not seem to realize that businesses have to be managed with an eye towards cost control for the benefit of those who provided the capital though investment.. And while the oil leak is a disaster, and a disaster against which BP will end up spending billions, the company still must stop the leak and repair the damage within a framework of keeping the entity alive. It is appalling that the Prez denounces paying dividends (Which retirement funds of many of his citizens must rely) and advertising that puts the company’s efforts in perspective. A cost they must endure only to battle against governmental demagoguery.

The Question:
Wooden, who never asked for a raise and often turned down luxury awards, lived by a 7 Point life’s Creed given to him by his father. How many of the seven can you name?

The Headlines:
--Two New Jersey Men Planning Fort Hood Style Massacre Arrested On Way To Somalia For Training.
--Hungary Latest Economically Precarious Euro-Nation; Markets Drop.
--Oil Continues To Ooze; Coats Nearing $1.5 Billion.
--Tornados Ravage, Kill In Ohio.
--Gunman Mows Down Five In Miami Restaurant.
--India Courts After 25 years Convict 7 Union Carbide Employees Of “Death By Negligence” In Bhopal Tragedy.
--The Sun Comes Up Once Again On Monday Morning.
--Celts Even Series.

Back to More Stuff:

For a couple of months now, the RI Department of Motor Vehicles has been closed on Wednesdays so its employees can attend classes to learn the new computer system. Sounds moderately intelligent, doesn’t it? That is, until you learn that AAA, which also provides similar DMV services for members, received their instructions about using the new system in a single email! And it seems to be working perfectly.

Scenes while sitting on a bench at a high traffic Factory Outlet Mall, Department:
--I decided to do a footwear survey. After a healthy sample of over 500, I found that 99% of women wore flip-flops or sandal style shoes. Almost all of the rest wore sneakers. I was hoping that my boat shoe style would show up well, but I found overwhelmingly that sneakers of one kind or another were the heaviest for men at about 95%. Sandals were definitely next. Boat shoes were about 0.6%. –Of the occasional people who spoke English, intelligent conversation by walker’s-by weren’t apparent. One well, dressed decent looking twenty something said to her boy friend, “Yeah…but she has a big butt.” Other’s were like, “Call Ruby, there’s a sale at Coach”, or “Where did I park my car?” –Most interesting, however, were the fairly large number of Indian women in traditional garb walking around. I’m thinking…”Why are they here?” I didn’t see a Saree’s Are Us!

Did you see where the kids national Spelling Bee was interrupted by a protest urging simpler spelling of US words. Me, the typo king should certainly be in favor of that. But, once again it is yet another step in the march towards the softening of brain cells. Enabling the lazy to get away with not demanding the best of themselves. I wonder what John Wooden would think of that? Or is this all about making it easier to text with out criticism?

And, how unfortunate that the rabble-rousers chose a special day for talented teens to vent their anger. It is just one more example of “Me First”.

Yesterday our beloved “Prime Time” urged against optimism for a solution to stopping the big leak. This was just after a disastrous negative jobs report when he said, “This report is a sign that our economy is getting stronger by the day.” That’s the Chicago Two Step in action!

It could have been done 30 years ago, but at least they may be getting the message up at the RI State House. A new law reduces the highest tax level from 9.9% to 5.8% and could put the company back in the race for move-ins instead of move-outs. Maybe they have figured out, or more likely forced to recognize that government jobs based economy is not an economy at all. Maybe they are listening to the anger of the people. Or at least until the election is over in November. We’ll see.

Providence RI is pulling out all stops to become the “Second City” of fashion! You heard that right. The city of wiseguys, wonks and wieners is drawing on its considerable design talents, old world city charm and amazing collection of eateries to build a major “Fashion Week” Center between NYC and Boston. The key: Young designers who like the opportunity and the deep talent at RISD. And maybe…the new lower taxes for top wage earners.

Reader Outrage of the Week Department:
Having barely gotten over the lack of a traditional Red Sox game on Memorial Day, he was astonished to hear that “New York, New York” was no longer the main song for the Belmont stakes. Some 16 year old rock star sang the memorable “Empire State of Mind.” But then, I remember when they used to sing “East side, West side, all around the town…”, a long standing musical tradition like The Derby and Preakness. But alas, when you go commercial you give up your soul.

Frankly, I have not liked the post Beetles McCartney’s music. And have really never gravitated to the arrogance associated with his stardom. But, he is a legitimate cultural innovator and probably deserves all of the awards he gets…like the one at the White House last week. However, in stead of being gracious, and thanking Americans for all of the millions he has made on this soil, he took the moment to berate a former President: “After the last eight years, it’s great to have a President who knows where the library is.” Disgraceful. And they called him “Sir Paul” all night long. You can take the boy out of Liverpool, but you can’t take the Liverpool out of the boy.

Hey Paul! You don’t end sentences with “is”.

BTW…did you know that many music and cultural historians consider John Lenin’s tune “Imagine” the Communist Manifesto?

Joran Van der Sloot is starting to look like one of those truly evil people of history.

How come the world pays so much for beauty?

The Answer: Simple yet luxurious in their value and often hard for many to achieve especially in a more conflicting world…when maybe they are needed more than ever: --Be true to yourself. –Make each day your masterpiece. –Help others, --Drink deeply from good books, especially the bible. –Make friendship a fine art. –Build a shelter against a rainy day. –Pray for guidance and give thanks for your blessings every day. Hey, how can you argue with that?

The End, John:
With all of that Wooden wisdom buoying up my character, I should have a great day today. Hope you all do too.

But to all of those who battle through the weekend while anticipating the next segment of TTSE, sorry. It just didn’t flow this morning. But the good news is that it didn’t flow with character!