Friday, February 6, 2009

Oh You Pretty Things

Dear Children,

I am sitting here this morning listening to the news tell me that unemployment has now hit a 34 year high (last week it was reported to be a 28 year high; we are heading in the wrong direction apparently).

So, as I sip ethiopian coffee on a danish table clacking this out on a chinese-made computer I am listening to a british singer belt out this tune. It seems to suit the mood of the morning.

Wake up you sleepy head
Put on some clothes, shake up your bed
Put another log on the fire for me
Ive made some breakfast and coffee
Look out my window what do I see
A crack in the sky and a hand reaching down to me
All the nightmares came today
And it looks as though theyre here to stay

What are we coming to
No room for me, no fun for you
I think about a world to come
Where the books were found by the golden ones
Written in pain, written in awe
By a puzzled man who questioned
What we were here for
All the strangers came today
And it looks as though theyre here to stay

Oh you pretty things (oh you pretty things)
Dont you know youre driving your
Mamas and papas insane
Oh you pretty things (oh you pretty things)
Dont you know youre driving your
Mamas and papas insane
Let me make it plain
You gotta make way for the homo superior

Look at your children
See their faces in golden rays
Dont kid yourself they belong to you
Theyre the start of a coming race
The earth is a bitch
Weve finished our news
Homo sapiens have outgrown their use
All the strangers came today
And it looks as though theyre here to stay

Oh you pretty things (oh you pretty things)
Dont you know youre driving your
Mamas and papas insane
Oh you pretty things (oh you pretty things)
Dont you know youre driving your
Mamas and papas insane
Let me make it plain
You gotta make way for the homo superior

So, children, as the day begins I flip to Eric Clapton's "Let it Grow." A happier note to leave you on and begin my work...

Im standin at the crossroads
Tryin to read the signs
To tell me which way I should
Go to find the answer
And all the time I know
Let your love and let it grow.

Let it grow, let it grow,
Let it blossom, let it flow.
In the sun and in the snow
Love is lovely, let it grow.

Lookin for a reason
To check out on my mind.
Its so hard to find a
Friend that I can count on.
Theres nothin left to show,
Plant your love and let it grow.

Let it grow...

Time is gettin shorter
And theres much for you to do,
Only askn you will get what you are needin,
The rest is up to you.
Plant your love and let it grow.

Thursday, February 5, 2009

D is for Dodd, Daschle, Dumb and Dumber

Dear Senator Dodd,

You were treated as a VIP by Countrywide when you were also charged with overseeing them. You should acknowledge that your behavior in securing a loan through them does not pass the smell test at the very least.

You claim your wife provided the loan documents? Please. When -- for God's sake -- are any of you so-called leaders going to simply say "I am sorry. I recognize that this could have been handled differently. I will seek to do better. Please forgive me."

Is that too much to ask?

The American public has proven over and over that it can be forgiving and patient. Why bury us in legal briefs and third-party verifications after the fact? Why not just pledge to act transparently from the beginning?

Perhaps you've been in the Senate too long.

As for you, Senator Daschle...

I applaud you for stepping aside and for recognizing, ultimately, that you made some poor decisions. Good for you.

Why you needed to go through the process of trying to move your appointment to HHS along as far as you did is troubling. You did not pay your taxes. There is no way that you could not have known, from my view, that using a car and driver as often as you did was not taxable. If that is your excuse, then you are naive at best.

Drive your own car from now on. Simple.

To all Members of Congress:

We the people want you to lead us and we want you to succeed. We want to celebrate your talents and your hard work to reach such a position of responsibility. We want you to protect us and serve the greater good. We want you to believe that by working with other smart people you can solve the problems of the world. We elected you to a place we hold dear under a flag that many before you have died for -- many under horrendous conditions. Each time you make decision that is designed at its base to enrich yourself or your friends over the needs and necessities of the greater good, you spit in the face of the dead who helped build our democracy.

So, ask yourself:

Am I in Congress to serve the people, or myself? Be honest. It's a simple question. If you can't answer this question correcly, then what are you doing there? It is unethical and immoral for you to run for public office if your driving motivation is to serve your own ego. Illinois' disgraced former governor, Mr. Blagojevich may not have done anything illegal, but he made clear in plain language that he held the democratic process in contempt.

Am I in Congress to be a participant in a great democracy or a player in a small autocracy?

If you achieve a leadership position among leaders in the Congress, will you use your power to help people or to punish those who do not believe in your ideology?

Am I in Congress to practice the art of compromise or are you there to defend the dogma of the day served up by talk radio critics far from the "sausage factory" every day?

Finally, your legacy will depend on the small actions and kindnesses you take each day, not by large leaps of legislative action. You are the sum of your decisions, not your individual decisions no matter what cynical media pundits might suggest.