More on being rich

27 September 2010 – I am reading Mad as Hell (MaH) , a book written by an independent (Rasmussen) and a moderate democratic (Schoen) pollster about the emergence of the Tea Party. Today I am going through the first few chapters, wherein they describe and recount the “causes” of the rise of the TP – one of which seems at odds with what I wrote last week about being rich. MaH imparts the impression of a great loss of living standard in the country. If my liberal friends happen on this book they would through all the statistics in my face and demand an explanation as to my claim that we are mostly “rich” in this society. My response is straightforward. To reach a natural end of life an individual needs food and shelter, and perhaps some medical attention (emergency rooms are, by law, open to all) from time to time. I argue: Decent provision of these items is possible on modest incomes. Modest additional expenditure brings a wide variety of cultural and educational opportunities. For me, this is being rich, because an individual has the opportunity to make of herself whatever she wishes. Only when we accept argument (advertisements) that define the good life as acquiring – at substantial cost – some additional material good do we become entangled in endless arguments about what it takes to be rich. If I can obtain and read any book, attend community college, interact with persons the world over, and express my views to the entire world – all at virtually no cost – then I not only have the power to shape my own destiny but also to encourage others to do the same. Having accepted the former premise has led me to reject the notion that I need big government to watch over me, helping me all the time, prescribing what medical coverage I should have, etc, etc. Having rejected these notions, I view the government as most useful in developing consensual standards but not expensive mandates, defending legal rights of individuals, and defense of the nation. I surely don’t need the tax burden imposed in order to support things I don’t need.
Sure, we have gotten ourselves into some expensive traps (Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security), but having done so only creates the interesting problem of how to transform these traps into important opportunities for change and improving our nation. Solving these problems will involve some costs and sacrifices, but the sooner we start the sooner things will start improving. As a person on the leading edge of the boomer generation, I respectfully submit that we boomers make the most sacrifices.

Thought for the day: A book is like a clutch -- it helps put the mind in gear.

Why the tea party isn't going anywhere anytime soon

26 September 2010 -- George Carlin did an effective routine mocking the “stuff” we accrue, the basic point of which was: We have too much – not just external stuff, but internal stuff too (e.g., fat is just energy stored for future use, yet some of us carry enough for a couple of life times). If we are materially rich by historical standards, and well-off by almost any other standard then why is there malaise, anger, and divisiveness amongst us. I see two sources. First, I sense a loss of spirituality among many of us. Without getting into a rant about professional sports, watching rich men play games has become very important to many of us. Why? Is watching MLB, NFL and NBA more important than contemplating and acting on our first and most important principles? The last great civilization to raise entertainment to mass spectacle did not fare well, and I believe historians generally view the rise of the “games” to be a symptom of the decay of the Roman Empire. In my opinion, consternation about decay in our own society is not a productive activity because it misses the point I believe most important anyway: Change is a consequence of individual actions aggregated across the population as a whole. And on this point, I am optimistic for positive change. Although I do not belong to any tea party group, I previously published newspaper opinion pieces that made many of the same points. Thereafter, I was not aware of any change. However, the failure of this Democratic administration and Congress to listen to people’s concerns, and the subsequent actions that they did take created the environment in which the tea party took root. Now, the tea party movement (which is not a Republican party movement) exists as a decentralized, yet connected and vigilant, force in American politics (It is interesting to note that there are other examples of these relatively spontaneous movements emergence, for example during Tiananmen Square actions and more recently the Green movement in Iran; and there examples of excellent use of the internet to organize party politics in this country in Howard Dean’s and Obama’s runs for the presidential nomination). The tea party is coalesced around some constitutional and governmental principles which have such force with a large proportion of the U.S. citizenry that I predict the tea party movement will be with us for a long time. Whether in morphs into a political party is debatable, but I hope not because political parties are at their base open conspiracies to reward some constituencies and not others. We need some focused on the greater good, which in the end means the good of all, not just those on the winning side of an election. Contemplation, yet not blind acceptance, of first principles (e.g., the golden rule, Buddhist, Christian or Islamic principles, etc) is a basis for choosing actions that are more likely to serve the good of all. The second source is a lack of tolerance for those who differ from us, followed by the implementation of laws, taxes, and authorities to discourage the behaviors and views not tolerated. For example, the criminalization of drug use created vast new populations of “criminals”. Our war on drugs has not stopped the consumption, but it has created hundreds of thousands, if not millions of criminals – all of whom become more alienated from the rest of us because their ability to participate fully in society is curtailed. Another example, the “health” lobby keeps raising taxes on smokers – well beyond the point where they are paying for their medical bills caused by smoking – on rich people (via luxury taxes), the rich (via luxury taxes), and drinkers (using taxes rather than prohibition to attempt to eradicate this wayward behavior). Enough I say. Let’s devise a world view of government for the good of all – one that fosters a tax system in which all citizens contribute revenues to the state, and in which the burden of taxes on each citizen is not onerous. Whoa Bill. Get back to the point here. The point is: Contemplation, not blind acceptance, of first principles will engender tolerance. Tolerance will engender more careful consideration of what is fair, and doing the fair thing will increase the good for all. Clearly, putting burdens on our children and theirs is a long way from doing the fair thing, no matter what high-minded rhetoric you wrap it in. It’s stll a bunch of “stuff” (I’d use another word, but I’m sure you already know that other word).

Thought for the day: I’ll pay my bills, you pay yours. If one of us suffers a catastrophe, we’ll sit down and figure it out.

Aren't most of us rich?

24 September 2010 -- In our home everyone has a room of their own and there are common rooms as well. Our bathrooms are convenient, comfortable environments for sanitation and getting clean. This home was financed via a mortgage wherein we adhered to an older principle (25% of income for home ownership) that enabled us to pay it off a few years early. We have the capability of eating nutritious tasty food every day if we wish. Clothes, books, movies, and music – of any type – are available at a reasonable price without leaving home. Access to the world of news and entertainment is just a few movements away, via methods both convenient and inexpensive. So I have asked myself and others, “In what other age in the history of man, or in what other parts of the world would we not be considered rich?” My own response is, “Very few” and these few are basically those of other modern societies much like our own. I believe an economic analysis of costs would show that the lifestyle described above is attainable for a typical family with a median household income.
So one has to ask, “What factors are creating so much financial stress for typical families”? From personal experience, I offer these candidates: Litigation (having to employ a lawyer always costs more than the value received in return); automobiles (which are one item where technology raises the cost rather than the reverse); insurance of all types (where the insurance companies always take the good side of the bet – that is, they bet you will be healthy, not have an accident, or not die); higher education (where technology also drives up costs); government (where takings have almost [but not quite] always inexorably risen since the introduction of the 16th amendment and the rise of the modern social democratic state); and our own desire for a better life (in which category I place such things as second homes, boats, designer clothes, expensive travel, and an endless variety of other items of luxury ). Here I am not making a value judgment about the items in this paragraph, but rather pointing out that the notion of being rich is relative, and further that by all historical standards almost all people in this country are “rich”. I find my thoughts are centered by considering this perspective from time to time.
To be sure, as those of you who know me know, I have beliefs about lawyers, insurance, government, and the wisdom of pursuing material luxury -- I am sure I will write about these things in good time -- yet to remain “rich” and continue to prosper we must live together and accommodate our differences. In my opinion, accommodation is not well-served by the “pure and righteous” imposing by force and taxation (another form of force) their view on the “wayward and ignorant”. In particular, as a former scientist and applied mathematician, I have a healthy respect for the limits of rational models (like those used in economics, transportation, and the life and social sciences), wherein the error components are substantial, and are all lumped into the term “chance”. Simply stated, a lot of stuff happens by chance, and I prefer it that way.

Thought for the day: It is pretty risky to not take chances.

A series of singular events

23 September 2010 – The last question I have been contemplating is “what’s next?” To be honest this issue is on my mind a lot. I could make this entry short by stating, “No decision yet” and leaving it there. Despite no clear image of what to do next, there are a variety of related issues to cover. The choice has to feel right – the Tour of Water Balloons always felt so – it’s the country’s loss that no water balloon tossing ever spontaneously arose. At lunch the other day, Geoff offered the idea of an annual ride with more emphasis on getting the word out, and giving the country another chance. I have thought about this, but can’t say that it’s going to happen with me as the prime mover. With just one long distance backpacking trip (across Oregon with my brother Rick), one wandering trip around the country in a converted school bus (with another couple from Connecticut south, then through the Midwest, and eventually ending up in Florida), and one Tour of Water Balloons, my history does not suggest of encourage a repeat performance. I am left with two thoughts. First, these previous events each had a spontaneous component to them (either the initial thought or commitment), followed much later by the serious planning. No such spontaneity is self evident at this point. Second, while thinking about thinking about what to do next, I was struck by how segmented my life can be, and how some segments are more conducive to thinking (about anything) than others. I can’t think about anything if the TV is on. Either I am watching “news” which is highly segmented and attention demanding programming, or I am watching a movie – the good ones engaging both my thoughts and my emotions and the bad ones putting me promptly to sleep. If I am on my 10-mile ride in the morning, I can think for about 35 of the 55 minutes (the first ten minutes, and a minute here and there are too hazardous). For me the best time for thinking is the half or whole hour I put aside to smoke a cigar outside in the evening. This is what I did tonight, but nothing came of it. So right now here I sit. I do know I am going to keep this blog going, but I will probably turn my attention away from cycling and water balloons to those other topics that interest me, all of which might be put in the single bag labeled “Things to consider to improve our country” although I smell and hear a bit of pretention in those words. Read on or don’t read on, or as I like to say, “Do what you want, you will anyway.”

Thought for the day: Foolish hobgoblins are the constancy of little minds.

Acts of persistence and commitment -- minor miracles in the modern world

22 September 2010 -- Like yesterday and all the days before that I am still here in my own skin asking if I have changed. My mystical connections are as remote from their original roots as they were before the Tour. I slipped right back into my life here in Tempe. For me it’s a good life in a well-run city. The damn 5-month summers here didn’t change either (one consolation is the dry underarms). Yet I think I have changed in two ways. The first change started way back when I mentioned the Tour to some friends and associates at the Lab. Their questions basically pushed me (in a put up or shut up kind of way) to start down the path to the Tour. I picked up that dilapidated Schwinn stationary bike, bought the real Trek 1.2 bike, set a date, and then actually started exercising. This process involved keeping at it, listening to what my body was telling my mind WRT what it wanted to do exercise-wise. Over the ensuing 13 months I lost 25 or so pounds, began feeling marginal better and more fit (the Tour was never about the bike or exercise for me), and now find I have a place in my life for making the 10.1 mile circuit around Tempe – mostly every day. That’s a change. The second change is in my mind’s eye. As readers know, I had a certain vision of the Tour before I had ever seen (from a bicycling perspective) the roads of the Midwest. In my mind’s eye there was a certain sense of how things would go with Dad as companion, and how each day – after the riding – would go. I imagined so much more interaction with folks than actually occurred. The reality of the Tour impressed on me a permanent change in how much I trust my mind’s eye as a veridical model of the world to come. Reality rubs down all the sharp edges on a crisp mind’s eye view of it. I can accept that without too much sadness, regret, or sense of loss because I also changed my view of my own resilience and persistence – these now being stronger than before, but not to say that I claim great levels of either. I am just a guy getting along in the world, I seem to be like a lot of other guys, and I don’t need help I haven’t requested (on this point I note that Dad got a little testy with me because I was engaging in behaviors intended to help him walk less – and he didn’t want any help, saying “I have to walk as much as I can as long as I can.” It occurs to me, at this particular stage in our national story, a lot more of us could do with more of this viewpoint).
“Is that the sum total of the changes that occurred?” I hear you ask. Well, no. My forearms, calves, and thighs are fitter than they have been in a long time. My internet activities in social networking and video documentation now exist and are more extensive (I’m writing this blog, aren’t I). My appreciation for the vast agricultural regions of the Midwest is much improved. My sense of appreciation for quirky aspects of life (like the little Dorena-Hickman ferry) is enhanced. The longer I sit here the more such changes I could enumerate, but the longer I sit here the less I am out there. One has to strike a balance and I am satisfied that this entry captures the essence of what I have to say. Tomorrow I will speculate on what’s next.

Thought for the day: Accept change as the clay added to a model created by a sculptor – each change accepted in pursuit of the essence of the end goal.

To JKSFAM: You go dude(tte).

Findings 1 -- We are who we are

21 September 2010 -- I have been and am still sitting here (in the place I always am – my own skin) and ask myself these questions: Did I learn anything as a result of the Tour? Have I changed? What’s next? The answer to these questions are (as Air Force personnel with whom I work like to say, and in varying ways) “That depends.”
How so you ask? What did you learn? To which I start by saying “No new first principles, no mystical moment of revelation, no clear and unifying prescription for what ails our country (I still believe we are ill)”, but continue by adding, “I learned that my father is satisfied with his life and for all the traditional reasons: He says he was fortunate to have two different women to love and be loved by, to have four sons raised into productive adults of whom he is proud, to have had a career doing work he loves. I also learned details of his life of which before I was only dimly aware: His lifelong friends were all high school friends; he managed a bookstore; he has no desire to document his life for others.” It was illuminating to see how, at 92, he copes with the limitations that age has visited upon him; to observe that together we created a process that led us from the Minnesota-Canada border to the Louisiana gulf (as he said we would without detailed preplanning); to appreciate that we could spend 25 or 26 days and nights together in close quarters; to celebrate the fact that he is still a vital human being who affects in a very positive way the people in his life. These alone made the Tour worthwhile. “Is that it? you ask. No there’s more. For about ten years now I have made my political views known (in articles written for the East Valley Tribune, and conversations with anyone who would sit and talk with me). Ideas like this: The R and D political parties are corrupt – don’t vote for them; Taxes are too high (There must be a legal limit on the total takings (of all levels of) government can extract from an individual, and all individuals must pay taxes (so they have an interest in the use of taxes); Government should set standards, enforce laws justly, defend its citizens, and get out of their way; and, we would all be better served by more tolerance. I am happy to see a lot of the country is coming around to these point of view – as I am not much for devoting energy to movements myself. I learned (before and after Geoff told me he undertook some efforts to raise national and local [in New Orleans] awareness of the Tour, and despite these efforts – no water balloons) that most folks are focused on their own lives and it takes a fair amount of conversation to get in there. Most seem to manage their lives pretty well -- this I take to be a positive finding (in the vein of a great flywheel of society sort of way). On a personal level, I learned I could pedal a bicycle 40 miles a day, day in and day out. At 65, this is a reassuring finding, as it provides hope for a future like the present that my Dad lives in. I learned that I am still Bill because as I sit here I still like to smoke good hand-rolled cigars, go to small casinos and gamble, eat well, and most of all can’t wait to say to those former lunch time companions and friends, “Na Na Na Na NANA, who is crazy now?”
More tomorrow.

Thought for the day: Tea party folks are crazy like me! What’s wrong with that?

All the Titles of Videos on You Tube

The Tour NOLA + NFL
The Tour The Gulf, Lakes + Bayous
The Tour Message for Herb
The Tour To New Orleans from Mississippi 1
The Tour Corn to Kelloggs
The Tour More Water
The Tour The Dells
The Tour Balloon Moments
The Tour Moments - 1
The Tour Kent St Prologue

The original video for Herb was revised.

Tidying up the Tour

20 September 2010 – The Tour is over. No water balloons were thrown during the Tour – except those that I solicited during the Kent Street Prologue. Dad is home as we left New Orleans within 30 minutes of meeting after the last stage (for some reason he did not like that city), and two hectic days of driving returned us to Wisconsin. I visited Herb for two days, but was not encouraged by his condition. While there I had Todd from Performance Auto Repair (Lake Villa IL) do maintenance on my Corolla for the trip back to Tempe – Thanks Todd, the work was good and you deserved those beers for doing the work unscheduled. Stopped to visit Phil and Rose in Ames – Phil and I did a deal for the extra wheel set that bedeviled me the whole Tour, as I did not need it and I had to keep packing and unpacking those two spare wheels. While I am doing thanks I’d like to thank Ed and Debbie B. from Jacksonville Mississippi for our conversations and for adding to the Herb video on YouTube – sorry it took so long to post. Thanks also to Gloria at Days Inn in Superior WI who saw my point about the cold water and adjusted our room rate. A special thanks to all those truckers – every single one of whom gave me a wide berth on all the roads from Minnesota to Louisiana. I have been mulling over what, if anything, changed in me or my life as a consequence of the Tour. More about that matter in the next post.

Thought for the day: There is no rational basis for faith, and the enlightened experience is always a self-evident one.

P.S. Thanks for the congratulations everyone.

Stage 21. Done [WAS-22, USA-nil]

Mission Accomplished. Dad couldn't get out of NOLA fast enough so we sped north immediately after the ride. I will be posting more details in coming days. Getting home is job 1.

Thought for the day -- Mmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

Stage 20 Bayou Sauvage Wildlife Refuge et al [WAS-20, USA-nil]

5 September 2010 --Sitting in Hattiesburg route 11 from Lumberton to Nicholson looked like the perfect 41 mile ride to set up my entry to New Orleans. Wrong. It turns out what little shoulder there is is ribbed to warn people when they are running off the road. Spent the rest of the day finding and setting up tomorrow's ride. We're going to take old route 90 out of Mississippi and across Louisiana to Bayou Sauvage National Wildlife Reserve. It's all water along the way and will leave a 12-mile journey into NOLA the following day.

Thought for the day: If I have learned (and relearned [etc]} anything it's the old military adage that no plan survives the first day of war.

Accidental Rest Day

5 September 2010 --Sitting in Hattiesburg route 11 from Lumberton to Nicholson looked like the perfect 41 mile ride to set up my entry to New Orleans. Wrong. It turns out what little shoulder there is is ribbed to warn people when they are running off the road. Spent the rest of the day finding and setting up tomorrow's ride. We're going to take old route 90 out of Mississippi and across Louisiana to Bayou Sauvage National Wildlife Reserve. It's all water along the way and will leave a 12-mile journey into NOLA the following day.

Thought for the day: If I have learned (and relearned [etc]} anything it's the old military adage that no plan survives the first day of war.

Stage 19 -- Long Leaf Trace, MS [WAS-20, USA-nil]

4 September 2010 -- A day that started in a disappointing way ended quite nicely. We left Vicksburg looking for a route toward Prentiss where I hoped to take the Long Leaf Trace tomorrow. We could not find any road that had a discernible shoulder. Part way down we stopped and decided to go on a couple of “county-type” roads, which have no shoulders but also very little traffic. We were specifically looking for 478. We never did find it and ended up driving to Prentiss, arriving by 1030, so I decided to do the Long Leaf Trace today. With a little trepidation I sent my Dad off to Hattiesburg 43 miles to the south via two roads clearly marked (by me) on the map. Off he went and I later learned he did get lost and had a side trip to Columbia – about 30 miles to the west of Hattiesburg. Fortunately, he was set straight on an Interstate and only had minor problems finding the trail end in Hattiesburg proper. With all this he only had to wait an hour for me at the trailhead and he was right where I expected him to be. The trail turned out to be another Mississippi gem. It was 43 paved miles with light bicycle traffic. The best part of all was that the Trail is essentially down hill all the way from Prentiss to Hattiesburg. Whoppee. I have mapped two routes for the next two days – one from Lumberton to Nicholson, and the other from just west of Pearlington into New Orleans. By my calculations, I will hit 800 miles the second time around Jackson Square. New Orleans I am expecting a big welcome. Water balloons (remember please toss those cheap easy to break Chinese balloons underhand) welcome.

Thought for the day: When your Dad gets tired you have to get him to bed, when he’s ready to go home you have to start the trip home.

Response to Geoff – You go man. How are the classes and university work working out.

Stages 17 and 18 -- Greenville gems [WAS-19, USA-0]

2 and 3 September 2010 -- On rest day we found a DaysInn in Greenville for two nights. Greenville is now a town mostly situated along route 82/278 and Mississippi 1, with an old downtown that is struggling to survive. It’s sad to see so many fine old brick buildings empty and deteriorating but we live by our cars and the highways bypass downtown. We stayed two nights in Greenville so I could bike down to town from Rosedale in the north on the 2nd, stay a night and then bike south to Vicksburg on the 3rd. All but 20 miles (Highway 61) of these 90 miles were done on Mississippi 1, part of the MRT. Tonight I am posting a video on YouTube about Mississippi 1 – it will be called “The Tour to New Orleans from Mississippi 1”. The first night in Greenville we were driving around looking for a place to eat. A lot of fast food on the two highways, but not much in the way of restaurants. So we turned on Magellan and looked for restaurants. There was a list of types, among them Italian – and I asked Dad if he would like Italian. “I love Italian” he says, so I tap that choice and up pops Fermos Italian Restaurant – the only choice for Greenville. What the heck, I am not opposed to technology so I tap it as our destination. Off we go (the whole 1.6 miles from our current location to this old building on 82 with the sign Keppler’s Italian on it. It’s not Fermos, but it is Italian and Magellan said to come here so we go in. It’s a big place. It was a gem for us because on our long trip down from the border, the number of distinguished meals have been small. Yeah there was that French place in Grand Marais, but otherwise it’s family style or maybe a chain. Here in Greenville, Keppler, a friendly and helpful young guy (he ran after Dad with his cap, the cap having found its way off Dad’s lap to some other location), trying to make it in the toughest business in America. The food was solidly good – we ate there both nights, and Keppler agreed to let me talk about his place by name. [By the way Keppler, you can quote me on all of this.]. Anyway if you’re in Greenville, give Keppler’s a try.

The next morning we drove up to Rosedale and I biked back to Greenville. Near Lake Bolivar I met Steve as he was pulling out of a field of cotton much like that grown in Arizona. So I wheeled around and asked him about the short stuff we had seen along highway 61. “Different varieties” he says and so we talk for a while. Steve was nice enough to offer water, but that’s not usually a problem with Dad in the car only a few miles away, and the cooler in the car always stuffed with cold drinks. I asked him about Lake Bolivar – he told me the name as I was still thinking it was the Mississippi – and said it used to be the main channel of the Mississippi but was now completely cut off. A lot of that goes on along this river. I hope you read this Steve – it was a very good moment for me.

Today we traveled our longest distance. It was great. It’s all on the video. One thing that’s not on the video is the fact that right after I finished taking all the clips and Dad had driven off into the future, I crossed into Issaquena County and Mississippi 1 turned quite unsuitable for road biking. So it goes.

Thought for the day: I never imagined that one day crossing into Issaquena County would mark the- end of an extended great moment for me.

Addenda

A couple of days ago I forgot to mention that Beaver Road from the church down into Munford gets my vote for the shortest stretch of road with the most dogs running free (and willing to chase Bill, who when he puts it into high gear is way too fast for them). Jack Williams terriers are the most persistent buggers.

Response to JKSFAM -- I am pleased that you like the blog and hope you continue to follow along. My apologies -- I had a note to you ready last night but failed to include it. The person who recommended you take a look (whom I will call G) is one person whose friendship I really appreciate -- a straight shooter in all my interactions with him.

Rest Day

We (I) decided not to ride today, although this does not mean we weren't busy. Before we left Memphis we went to the bank, had breakfast (where I left my Lumir hat), went and bought cigars, then went to buy cokes, a new cribbage board (which was with the dirty laundry we left someplace), ice, gasoline, and washed the car. It gets so dusty and I hate closing a dirty lift back on the van. Then we drove to Greenville Mississippi where I will do one leg from about 40 miles north down to just outside Greenville tomorrow, and the followng day I will do a leg south. Being tired makes two nights in the same motel seem highly desirable. With all the running around Memphis, we didn't actually get a place to stay until 1800, very late by our standards.

Thought for the day: Pray for Bill who is biking on the flatest road, in the hottest and humidest sunny weather yet. Oh yeah, and please vote the corrupt rascals out.