A Contrast!

Last evening I joined some of the classmates of my seminary days. There were about 20 of us, with five of us who were married.  Some of the focus of the evening centered on physical maladies, but these meetings only reinforce my strong feelings that my decision could not have been better. It is impossible for me to speculate how my life would have progressed if I had try to remain a priest. All that I know is that it would have most likely ended in some sort of disaster. 

And now, as I come to the time when we celebrate 40 years of marriage and look back on such a wonderful life together, surrounded by tremendous adult children with their wonderful spouses, and their wonderful children, I can only be grateful to the good fortune bestowed on me.

What a Treat!

I admit that I am enamored by the emergence of Susan Boyle into the world scene.  It such a fantastic story that Susan would come from such a small village in Scotland, without the support of an immediate family, and show such confidence in her voice that the world is mesmerized. 

Last night she easily survived the semi-final round. I have watched her performance a couple of times and continue to hear her voice, strong and confident, reach the higher tones of "Memories".

Hate to Fear!

If it were not for the accumulated national debt (mostly to China) and the ongoing inability to control the need to borrow, I would feel so much better when viewing the future. While I fear future inflation, I worry more about the reasons why inflation became a problem. In short, we continue to spend so much more than our revenues dictate that the result is more indebtedness. Our dependency on other nations to finance our debt puts us into a precarious position. If our dollar further weakens and/or if China or other nations refuse to continue to finance our debt, we will be in a most serious predicament.

Reading a column from the perspective of 2089 only reinforced those feelings of fear. Let's hope that this fear is unnecessary and let us more quickly see the banks recover which will promote general health to the economy.

Health Care: One Payor

It has been clear to me for years that we need a universal healthcare system.  It would be clearly be the only way to reduce the profit motives involved in our current system using private insurers. The system promotes waste.  The Senate and House are struggling with a provision to include a public option that Senator Schumer wanted to make palatable by requiring the public option to meet the same standards as the private, i.e., reduce the ability to lower costs.

Nowhere has this perspective been made more eloquently than the article by Dr. Marcia Angell.

A Gift!

A GIFT!

Limited that we are,

There are so many problems,

We are so feeble,

And yet there are moments.

Moments are never planned,

They come in unexpected ways,

Are we up to it,

Surprisingly, we make it.

We loved them by family,

We loved them as friends,

We knew what was possible,

But they gave us such a gift.

Love knows no bounds,

We knew they were great,

But never was it shown

So gracefully as their gift.

They gave from their heart,

Making the wedding of their son,

Such a memorable time,

Not only for their son and new daughter,

But for all who shared the joy!

Mother's Day, 2009

My mother dead so long,

Asked for little, but missed so much,

It never seemed fair.

New to children, I loved a mother,

Through the woman of my life,

Giving me gifts of new life.

Years fly by, children grow,

Nourished by mother's love,

And then, they too give life.

Now, I see Mother,

Through eyes of age,

Mother of three, Life to more.

Awed by new mothers,

Grandchildren so loved,

My mother lives in them.

Quagmire Revisited!

My empathy for Obama is strong, but I do think that he will look back on his decisions regarding Iraq and Afghanistan as terrible mistakes. Surely, I can empathize with the dilemma. We created a mess in Iraq and we have some responsibility to restore the nation with some sense of security. Afghanistan has never be conquered in memory. It is a losing proposition due to the nature of the tribal loyalty and the terrible geography.

But, first, Iraq. We are supposed to be clearing out of the cities soon. There does not seem to be much sense that security is being stabilized. When you cannot trust Iraqi military (police are another problem), you are facing a real problem. To think that Iraqi military directly kill a US soldier is terrible! There are problems with corruption in the various ministries. The Sunnis have not been reconciled with the majority Shiites. Governance of Kirkuk remains unresolved. Clearly, the Kurds remain outside the national order, i.e., the control their own territory exclusively. It does not sound like Iraq is ready for self-government. What a mess!

The situation in Afghanistan has got worse because of the turmoil in Pakistan. i know of no solid positive outcome secondary to our involvement. The influence of the warlords and Taliban, coupled with the drug trade and rampant corruption, results in disaster. I feel for Obama. There is no intervention that makes sense and, yet, I can understand the problem with walking away. What a mess!

I think that Iraq and Afghanistan represent a quagmire!

Obama's Myopia!

I remain a major supporter of Obama in spite of my concurring with Krugman, Johnson, and Roubini that his approach to the banking industry will most likely not achieve the stated objectives. I now only hope that his approach will avoid the need to do the necessary restructuring urged by his critics because it would mean that tons of money would have been essentially wasted.

I have been supporting his declaring that the Bush policies regarding torture were wrong and are being withdrawn. I can understand why some want at least the people who authored the opinions to be prosecuted, but I can also understand why Obama does not want to proceed down this road.

What I missed is the fact that Obama continues to support the general position that the military has to be present virtually everywhere. I was taken back by Andrew Bacevich's column that expressed strong disagreement with this approach. Bacevich, a person with a distinguished military history, strongly critiqued Obama for continuing the past policies supporting a vision that military power will make our nation more secure.

As he states:

What the president is doing and saying matters less than what he has not done. The sins of omission are telling: There is no indication that Obama will pose basic questions about the purpose of the US military; on the contrary, he has implicitly endorsed the proposition that keeping America safe is best accomplished by maintaining in instant readiness forces geared up to punish distant adversaries or invade distant countries. Nor is there any indication that Obama intends to shrink the military's global footprint or curb the appetite for intervention that has become a signature of US policy. Despite lip service to the wonders of soft power, Pentagon spending, which exploded during the Bush era, continues to increase.

Dissent: Never an Easy Call!

I have personally experienced moments when I dissented from those in positions of authority. Yet, at the same time, I often questioned whether I would have the courage to have dissented from President Nixon if I were in the Administration. Being a part of something as significant as a Presidential Administration would be special. Could I dissent being so close to such power? I have similar questions when I expressed by anger and disapproval of Bush. It is so easy to criticize and "dissent" from a distance. What if I were in a position close to such power?

Richard Haas articulated the problems associated with dissenting when close to the source of power. Before the Iraq invasion, he disagreed with such a plan. When he was told to "save bis breath" since a decision had been made, he continued to express his views. Since he was not totally convinced that Iraq was not in a position to do damage on other nations (he stated that he was 60/40 against the invasion), he particularly wanted to ensure that the invasion achieved strategic goals. He negotiated with himself over the appropriate course of action. It was clearly a lesson in agony!

Emi, A gift on 3 May!

A daughter is special
For a Father or Mother,
But no more than when she becomes a mother.

A birth is always unique,
Never the same, even if perfect.
A gift to the parents, grandparents, the world.

Never old, always new always a miracle,
A child born into a family with love,
What more could anyone want.

Love between parents,
A child breathing new life,
For them, for all.

It never gets old,
Never the same,
Always a gift.

Never demanding,
Always open to the new,
We welcome Emi, so special.

Grandparents can never expect,
Remained overwhelmed with joy,
Grateful for parents who hold her.

Today, Emi came to us,
Wanted and loved,
For a life yet to unfold.

Expect only life being loved,
Never taking it for granted,
A gift beyond words.