Communication

Here's a nice link to some good material on enhancing your communications skills! Enjoy!

Monk

Linda R. Monk, J. D., is a constitutional scholar, journalist, and nationally award-winning author. A graduate of Harvard Law School, she twice received the American Bar Association's Silver Gavel Award, its highest honor for law-related media. Her books include The Words We Live By: Your Annotated Guide to the Constitution, Ordinary Americans: U. S. History Through the Eyes of Everyday People, and The Bill of Rights: A User's Guide. For more than 20 years, Ms. Monk has written commentary for newspapers nationwide, including the New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, and Chicago Tribune.

THE PARTY'S OVER
By Linda Monk

The Crash of 2008, which is now wiping out trillions of dollars of our people's wealth, is, like the Crash of 1929, likely to mark the end of one era and the onset of another.
The new era will see a more sober and much diminished America.
The "Omnipower" and "Indispensable Nation" we heard about in all the hubris and braggadocio following our Cold War victory is history.
Seizing on the crisis, the left says we are witnessing the failure of market economics, a failure of conservatism.
This is nonsense. What we are witnessing is the collapse of Gordon Gecko ("Greed Is Good!") capitalism.
What we are witnessing is what happens to a prodigal nation that ignores history, and forgets and abandons the philosophy and principles that made it great.
A true conservative (Rep or Dem) cherishes prudence and believes in fiscal responsibility, balanced budgets and a self-reliant republic.
He believes in saving for retirement and a rainy day, in deferred gratification, in not buying on credit what you cannot afford, in living within your means.
Is that really what got Wall Street and us into this mess -- that we followed too religiously the gospel of Robert Taft and Russell Kirk? "Government must save us!" cries the left, as ever.
Yet, who got us into this mess if not the government -- the Fed with its easy money, Bush with his profligate spending, and Congress and the SEC by liberating Wall Street and failing to step in and stop the drunken orgy?
For years, we Americans have spent more than we earned. We save nothing. Credit card debt, consumer debt, auto debt, mortgage debt, corporate debt -- all are at record levels.
And with pensions and savings being wiped out, much of that debt will never be repaid.
Our standard of living is inevitably going to fall. For foreigners will not forever buy our bonds or lend us more money if they rightly fear that they will be paid back, if at all, in cheaper dollars.
We are going to have to learn to live again within our means.

THE PARTY'S OVER!
Up through World War II, we followed the Hamiltonian idea that America must remain economically independent of the world in order to remain politically independent.
But this generation decided that was yesterday's bromide and we must march bravely forward into a Global Economy, where we all depend on one another.
American companies morphed into "Global Companies" and moved plants and factories to Mexico, Asia, China, and India, and we began buying more cheaply from abroad what we used to make at home: shoes, clothes, bikes, cars, radios, TVs, planes, computers.
As the trade deficits began inexorably to rise to 6 percent of GDP, we began vast borrowing from abroad to continue buying from abroad.
At home, propelled by tax cuts, war in Iraq and an explosion in social spending, surpluses vanished and deficits reappeared and began to rise. The dollar began to sink, and gold began to soar.
Yet, still, the promises of the politicians come.
Barack Obama will give us national health insurance and tax cuts for all but that 2 percent of the nation that already carries 50 percent of the federal income tax load.
John McCain is going to cut taxes, expand the military, move NATO into Georgia and Ukraine, confront Russia and force Iran to stop enriching uranium or "bomb, bomb, bomb," with Joe Lieberman as wartime consigliore.

Who are we kidding?

What we are witnessing today is how empires end. The Last Superpower is unable to defend its borders, protect its currency, win its wars, or balance its budget.
Medicare and Social Security are headed for the cliff with unfunded liabilities in the tens of trillions of dollars.
What we are witnessing today is nothing less than a Katrina-like failure of government, of our political class, and of democracy itself, casting a cloud over the viability and longevity of the system.
Notice who is managing the crisis. Not our elected leaders. Nancy Pelosi says she had nothing to do with it.
Congress is paralyzed and heading home. President Bush is nowhere to be seen.
Hank Paulson of Goldman Sachs and Ben Bernanke of the Fed chose to bail out Bear Sterns but let Lehman go under. They decided to nationalize Fannie and Freddie at a cost to taxpayers of hundreds of billions, putting the U. S. government behind $5 trillion in mortgages.
They decided to buy AIG with $85 billion rather than see the insurance giant sink beneath the waves.
Unelected financial elite is now entrusted with the assignment of getting us out of a disaster into which an unelected financial elite plunged the nation.
We are just spectators.
What the Greatest Generation handed down to us -- the richest, most powerful, most self-sufficient republic in history, with the highest standard of living any nation had ever achieved -- the baby boomers, oblivious and self-indulgent to the end, have frittered away.
_____
Added Comments:
How do WE THE PEOPLE put the villains who are responsible under oath and sit them down at public hearings to determine whose necks should meet the guillotine?
Hypocritically, those who had oversight responsibility such as Senator Chris Dodd [Chairman of the Senate Banking Committee] and Barney Frank [Chairmen, House Financial Services Committee] who helped get us into this mess are on every TV channel voicing their righteous indignation and pompously sitting on their elevated platform glaring down at those they are chastising and grilling, trying to pass the blame to others.
WE THE PEOPLE should be on the elevated platform in judgment and execution of the likes of Chris Dodd, Barney Frank and the rest of the band of thieves and conspirators who are responsible for the financial collapse of the USA.
To name just a few of the culprits: Henry Paulson Jr, Secretary of the Treasury, Alan Greenspan & Ben Bernanke -- Chairman Federal Reserve, Christopher Cox, SEC Chairman.
But not to worry -- YOUR PUBLIC SERVANTS who fear being voted out of office will take their self-awarded Golden Parachute Congressional Retirement, give WE THE PEOPLE the finger one last time and head for their safe havens as the World Citizens they are.
However, before they waddle off into the sunset, they will go on record one last time denouncing corporate greed, lavish salaries, and bonuses for their key felons at Fannie May, Freddie Mac, Lehman Brothers & AIG
Meanwhile, WE THE PEOPLE fiddle while Rome burns and are too lazy and indifferent to vote the scum out of office.

"An imperfect plan implemented immediately and violently will always succeed better than a perfect plan."
General George S. Patton

Memories

These thoughts paraphrased and adapted from "Duma Key" by Stephen King, page 595.

I think most of us know the various voices of our own imaginations and memories. Ask anyone who has lost someone or something dear to them: a child, a limb, a long cherished dream, a job, a career. Ask someone who blames themselves for a bad decision, usually made in a raw instant. Our memories have voices - often sad ones that clamor in the dark.

But keep walking, keep moving, keep leaving tracks. Wipe the blackboard clean. Leave the sadness behind, because the best part is we don't have to go alone! There is peace in the Son!

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ThePurpose of Life

I hope you enjoy the new insights that Rick Warren has, with his wife now having cancer and him having "wealth" from the book sales. This is an absolutely incredible short interview with Rick Warren.

"Purpose Driven Life " author and pastor of Saddleback Church in California .

In the interview by Paul Bradshaw with Rick Warren, Rick said:
People ask me, What is the purpose of life? And I respond: In a nutshell, life is preparation for eternity. We were made to last forever, and God wants us to be with Him in Heaven.
One day my heart is going to stop, and that will be the end of my body-- but not the end of me.
I may live 60 to 100 years on earth, but I am going to spend trillions of years in eternity. This is the warm-up act - the dress rehearsal. God wants us to practice on earth what we will do forever in eternity.
We were made by God and for God, and until you figure that out, life isn't going to make sense.
Life is a series of problems: Either you are in one now, you're just coming out of one, or you're getting ready to go into another one.
The reason for this is that God is more interested in your character than your comfort.
God is more interested in making your life holy than He is in making your life happy.
We can be reasonably happy here on earth, but that's not the goal of life. The goal is to grow in character, in Christ likeness.
This past year has been the greatest year of my life but also the toughest, with my wife, Kay, getting cancer.
I used to think that life was hills and valleys - you go through a dark time, then you go to the mountaintop, back and forth. I don't believe that anymore.
Rather than life being hills and valleys, I believe that it's kind of like two rails on a railroad track, and at all times you have something good and something bad in your life.

Encouraging Words from a True Friend

In Joshua 1:9 the LORD says, “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go."

I remember reading that and wondering how patient our God is, how loving He is and how He always has the best things in life planned for us…even when we don’t know of the plan or even if there is a plan because of the uncertainty we face. But then He reminds us in Jeremiah 29:11 that “For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

So, we go about forgetting the road we are on so many times…and that’s why God sends people into our lives so we can be there for one another and encourage each other to remember that He is always with us. He says so in Hebrews 13:5-6…”Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you. So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?”

And in the end, even when we feel like all the odds are against us, that we went from top notch to zero notch, we can remember that the Lord is our Shepherd and we shall not be in want. He makes us lie down in green pastures; He leads us besides quiet waters. He restores our souls, and guides us in the path of righteousness for His names sake. Even though we walk through the valley of shadow of death, we will fear no evil, for He is with us. His rod and His staff comfort us. He prepares a table before us in the presence of our enemies, and anoints our head with oil; and our cup overflows. Surely goodness and love will follow us all the days of our lives. And we will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

Track and Field in Arizona 2008

Track and Field in Arizona – April 21, 2008

Track and Field is alive and well in Arizona. A lot a good kids in the high schools. I haven’t seen a dirt track yet, only all-weather surfaces. I guess it’s kind of tough to run in sand!

USA T&F: There’s only one college in the Phoenix area that uses officials – ASU. Their event director assigns us and uses everyone. No pay. They have used the same 2 starters for all their home meets for the last 12 years and they will do the PAC-10 championships in May. One of the starters was trained in California back in the 80’s and is very good! I’ll probably work the PAC-10 as a clerk. We have the Paralympics Trials for Beijing here at ASU in June, and I have signed up for that. We also have the Region X Junior Olympics here this year in July. They only run events in the morning and the evening – we take a siesta in the afternoon or jump in the pool! I have started 3 or 4 Youth Meets and Masters Meets. The youth meets are really well run. The 2 day Phoenix Invitational 2 weeks ago was huge – 1550 races, 3 starters! Three times I stood in one place and started one event until I went through a box of shells, then we switched places… whew!
High School: All officials for all the sports are assigned through the AIA (Arizona Interscholastic Association), except Track and Field. We are the “orphan child” at the moment, but getting closer to being trained and organized. Each track starter seeks out their own meets to do. They are all held on Wednesdays. There are about 130 certified track officials and only 16 starters, 10 of which are certified to start championships meets. Because of my experience in California, I was put right in to that last group (Level 3, I think it is called). There are 5 divisions in track and they are combined into 3 state tracks meets on the second weekend in May. So, I have already been assigned to start one of the state meets. That was a pleasant surprise! The dual meets during the course of the year are usually started by coaches or teachers they can find. They are used to running their own meets, and so they do a very good job. They really don’t need starters or officials, except when it comes to enforcing the rules – jewelry, uniforms, ipods, sector lines, etc. The kids don’t get that enforcement until the end of the season, or at combined invitational meets. When schools do “big” meets - invitationals, etc. - they usually call in about 10 of us to be head officials at the events. Track and Field is a great sport, and we are always looking for more volunteers and officials to help out. If interested, let me know, and I will get you in touch with a local organization!