Washington Post: Early Warning: Liberally Ignorant Blog

After reading the blog "The Pressure Cooker at Homeland Security" (Early Warning) by William Arkin posted on 19 September 2005 at 0730 ET (The Washington Post: Online Edition), I am convinced their (web) editors are either:

a.) Out to lunch
b.) Are not doing their jobs
c.) Want to compete with "The Enquirer" for sensationalism
d.) Don’t care
e.) Don’t know; don't bother to check the "facts"
f.) All of the above

Based on Mr. Arkin's purported background (i.e., a former Army intelligence analyst and consultant"), I cannot fathom his general ignorance, either intentional or unintentional, of rudimentary chemistry and/or physics. Here are a couple links about pressure cookers, one written by a high school kid doing a science project:

How to use a pressure cooker!
Boiling Oil Bomb
Fertilizer Pressure Cooker Bombs

If you do a search on pressure cooker bombs, you will find many well documented incidents of people making and using pressure cooker bombs. These bombs are a step, a large step, up from the dry ice "bombs" we used to make in the lab as a joke to wake sleeping coworkers up.

NOTE: Do not try this as it is a health hazard, particularly in large volumes!

The Washington Post is quickly becoming more and more like those flashy tabloids at the checkout stands. I'll bet Catherine Graham is turning in her grave! I wish I could say something redeeming about Mr. Arkin; but, alas, I must say somewhere down the line the taxpayers wasted their money educating and employing him.

Everyone complains about how disorganized the FEMA response was to Hurricane Katrina and they complain about how much money taxpayers pay to explore such situations (e.g., terrorists, natural disasters, etc...). As the old saying goes, "You can't have your cake and eat it too!"

If people took time to assess and understand what is going on, they would realize that there was a breakdown in communication, a breakdown in the process, having the information but not knowing what to do with it, and, admittedly, poor choices made in appointments, organizations and planning, or lack thereof. There is a commercial that goes something like this, "I don't even know enough to know I don't know." If we knew everything, we wouldn't need these reports Mr. Arkin mentions, much less people to do them. No one has all the answers, not even Mr. Arkin.

Lastly, Mr. Arkin may think he's raising awareness, but he's just spreading his ignorance, his narrow-mindedness, backing his writing up with subjectivity instead of cold hard facts, instead of supporting his contentions with empirical data. He's playing the blame game, with little or no intention of proposing, much less finding, any resolutions/solutions to current security issues America faces. It is pure idiocy and ignorance to suggest the following:

"There are just so many warnings about so many areas covering so much of the day-to-day life of America. The cumulative effect is to provide no useful warning at all."

That's exactly what the terrorists are counting on. Way to go Mr. Arkin!

Homeless: Charity's Coin or Wooden Nickel

The Other Side of Charity's Coin

Crisis Prompts Aid for Evacuees, but Area's Homeless Feel Left Behind

There's the picture that goes with the headline in today's Washington Post (a friend sent me the link). Can you say "posed"? Then there is the the metro column that goes on about the area homeless and the Hurricane Katrina victims (see link below).

Every Day, We Ignore the Everyday Poor

Being poor, being homeless, wondering where the next meal will come from, how will the mortgage/rent get paid this month, next month, how will the utilities get paid are all concerns many share or harbour in the back of their minds.... All concerns far too many Americans have yet reading the above articles I cannot help but feeling revulsed that they would capitalize on and exploit the victims of a devestating natural act in the name of raising local and national awareness of the poor, the homeless.

I can understand there are mental health issues for someone being homeless; however, I cannot understand subsidizing, enabling, a subculture that allows rampant procreation and abandonment of children. I struggle to clothe my ever growing children; yet there are children on welfare that dress in designer clothes. I pinch pennies to make sure my children have nutritious meals everyday; yet I see people wearing designer clothes and lots of "bling" in line at the grocery store using food stamps.

They put a homeless outreach center a couple miles from my house, just outside of the historic part of town. Ever since the place opened, the visibility of the homeless has increased. Were the homeless always around? Probably. However, what do those homeless people do? You can drive by at any given time of the day or week and see the same people waiting around to be fed.

I'm not bitter nor do I have anything against homelessness; but I do have something against people exploiting the system, a system that encourages people to be lazy, to NOT be held accountable, to NOT be responsible! Why do we keep feeding the homeless but don't bother to really teach them how to feed themselves? Why do the homeless feel (and sometimes act) like WE owe them? Why are people trying to stir my sympathies? And, taking that one step further, why do they only do it when there is some other "sensational event or cause" to tie it to? Why is it that many immigrants can share a single dwelling but we're trying to house families individually in public housing? There are so many families where each adult works 2-3 jobs to make ends meet; and, at the same time, there are so many families that sit idly by waiting to collect a check every month, many times with the adult claimants having some obscure disability, when it suits them, benefits them. Where is the work ethic? The sense of entrepreneurship? Why are we still subsidizing a failed system? Why are we rewarding poor people to have yet more babies, babies who have the very real potential to depend on us in their adult lives and/or be homeless?

As I stated earlier, I understand there are very real reasons for homelessness, many beyond the control of the homeless. I understand catastrophic events come along and make people homeless. Throwing more money at a problem does not solve it nor does it go away. Stopping the vicious circle does. Analyzing what is truly broken about the system and fixing it instead of applying the band-aid approach. Going to the root of the problem instead of just addressing obvious problems (i.e., hunger). Thinking of solutions that aren't always "politically correct" but are a more common sense and realistic approach. Understanding that yes there is an investment in getting people off the street, off the welfare rolls but, also, understanding that this investment is not without cost, sacrifice, to the poor person, the homeless person. We are too often trying to run our country by popular consensus instead of doing what is best for us today, tomorrow, and in the future. We often look to point fingers when the problem is so enormous it's not readily solved, remedied. We are a cash and carry, convenience society, impatient and intolerant, not wanting to be part of the process but always complaining about the results, the products

Effecting a change in mindset, raising awareness but also accountability at the same time, giving the poor and homeless tools (e.g., education, vocational training, low rate loans) instead of finished products (e.g., food, money, housing), giving them opportunities instead of options.

I watch our tax dollars go into an educational system that is failing our children, putting them at a competitive disadvantage in the ever flattening business world, widening the gap between the poor and the rich. Our schools are a system, trying to get our kids through the system, teaching them how to "work" the system counter to honest work ethic. Where do we break the vicious cycle? I would venture to say education. It goes back to the old saying, "knowledge is power". We have been struggling with the issues of poverty and homelessness for years and years, yet we keep striving to find quick fixes. Why not invest heavily in our educational system? We've already squandered the last 20 or more years, what's another 20 or so (another generation) if we know that in in the long run it will have a positive impact on generations to come? So having said all this... My parting questions....

Why are our teachers paid so little when they are educating our future, our future business leaders, our future political leaders? What incentive is there to be a "good" teacher? What motivation is there to be a good student? They go hand in hand... Think about it....

Two Good Reasons For Homeland Security

Katrina --->

<---9/11

Here are two pictures: one of a man-made disaster, one of a natural disaster. Yet, both pictures tell the same story.

"Two Good Reasons for Homeland Security"

I was going to tell you the story (as any good muse would) but I think I'd like to hear your story-first. What are our options (i.e., immediate, short term, long term, who is in control of these options, etc....)? What are the opportunities (i.e., social, economic, educational, technological, government, etc.....)? Only caveat is whatever story you tell has to tie into the title provided above. Don't worry about grammar or spelling. I'll see what I get and maybe I'll write a compilation of sorts... What do you think? Happy writing!

Options and Opportunities

Perhaps you were wondering why this blog is called "options and opportunities"... So, now having time to sit down and not worry about anything, I can tell you.

Options: Something you are given and have the choice to exercise.
Opportunities: Something you see, seize with the prospect of benefiting from.

Perhaps, this seems like a play on words, the nuances lost in semantics. Yet, the key difference is who is in control of what and when! Although options are nice, sometimes very nice, I would much prefer having opportunities because they are not as limiting as options. I have included the definitions of both words at the end of this post (pulled from www.dictionary.com); however, the definitions are not the focus of this post but rather the impact of these words. So here goes!

Although in a business setting options are often equated with incentives, inducements, they are still limited in their scope either in amount, time frame, terms and are often contingent on a separate, but not always wholly independent event (such as recruitment). A very common option in business is stock options. At the outset this seems great but as you delve further into the option, it becomes apparent that it is contingent on several factors such as: employment (both initial and continuing), vesting periods, and actually having enough monies to exercise these options! Keep in mind, options are something given to you by someone else, a someone else who gives these to you, to control the situation, to control you, your choices, to limit your choices! Although it might feel pretty good to have outrageously great options, they are nevertheless are what the person gives based on what the market will bear, on what the entity/person thinks you are worth and don't involve much risk taking by the person taking them (in the whole scheme of things)! Although options are a fact of business life, why run life in a series of options? Why be at the mercy of someone else's plans, whims and moods?

Opportunities on the other hand, are only as limited as the person siezing them! Capitalizing on opportunities often leads to other opportunities previously not seen, not available. Siezing opportunities often entails meeting new people, forming new networks, and reaching beyond your comfort level (i.e., growing as a person!). Siezing opportunities often means weighing risks and taking chances. Siezing opportunities often separates true collegues from fair weather ones, from ones who are or have become complacent in their current job. Siezing opportunities often separates fair weather friends from true friends (shows you who believes in you and who doesn't!). Although siezing opportunities may lead to failure (and even dismal failure at that), the upside is that success is so sweet in so many arenas. The key success is personal growth! (Stop shaking your heads! You were waiting for me to say financial success! But think about this, if you don't believe in yourself, grow as a person, how will you get others to believe in you, enough to go along with you, support you in your venture?) There is the obvious financial and professional successes, gains. Aside from the aforementioned, the most striking success is how many more opportunities this will make available. Some people call this fortuitous, propitious; however, I would like to believe that this is what they call being the master of your destiny (sorry for this old worn out cliche!). Interesting enough, siezing opportunities often allows you to give options to others!

So, now armed with these thoughts, which side would you rather have? Options? Opportunities? Have you noticed that each word has been coloured throughout this post? I made options red because you really need to be careful not to get lulled into complacency, not to become a sheep, a blind follower, to stop and weigh the long term consequences of taking the options. I made opportunities green because their is so much potential in so many arenas available to those who are bold enough to sieze them! So are you are you a follower (options) or leader (opportunities)?

op·tion
n.

1. The act of choosing; choice. See Synonyms at choice.
2. The power or freedom to choose.
3. 
   
1. The exclusive right, usually obtained for a fee, to buy or sell something within a specified time at a set price.
2. The privilege of demanding fulfillment of a contract at a specified time.
3. A stock option.
4. The right of the holder of an insurance policy to specify the manner in which payments are to be made or credited to the policyholder.
5. Baseball. The right of a major-league team to transfer a player to a minor-league team while being able to recall the player within a specified period.
4. Something chosen or available as a choice.
5. An item or feature that may be chosen to replace or enhance standard equipment, as in a car.
6. Football. An offensive play in which a back, usually the quarterback, has the choice of running with the ball or throwing a forward pass.

op·por·tu·ni·ty
n. pl. op·por·tu·ni·ties

1. 
   
1. A favorable or advantageous circumstance or combination of circumstances.
2. A favorable or suitable occasion or time.
2. A chance for progress or advancement.

Academic Incest

I am sitting here reading several packets for the first project for a upper level university business course. I am dismayed at the quality, or rather the lack of quality, of the projects from a bunch of juniors and seniors from a very distinguished university. I wrote up a collective review of all the projects which was very unflattering. Someone is wasting a lot of money educating these people because based on a cursory review of the projects little time and effort was put into it, thought was an afterthought, if at all.

The assignment was deceptively simple and very realistic. Analyze a business and propose means in which the business could be more profitable. Amazingly, or not, many of the "opportunities" were in conjunction with drinking (beer). Yes, data suggests that bars are very profitable marketing venues. Geez! Oh and let's not forget the video games! (collective groan) How sophomoric!

I suppose what is so dismaying is the fact that many of these students will secure well paying and, possibly, influential jobs based largely on the school they attended. It is scary that many of these students cannot find the mean of three numbers much less weighted numbers, are too lazy to get the information necessary to conduct a proper analysis (even if it is on the internet), do not pay attention to detail, cannot think beyond their own egocentric worlds, and are incapable of forming coherent messages much less arguments in the proper venue and format. It is scary that even this far into their education, they are so green, so oblivious to the real world of business.

I am also dismayed at the state of our educational system which has become mediocre at best and substandard at worst. We have a tenure system that stifles creativity and production, rewards those who play the system instead of those who inspire and hold accountable their students. Not to mention, what amounts to an incestuous relationship which is often referred to as accreditation.

We used to be the land of opportunity but thanks to our entropic educational system we will become a land of limited options. We are quickly and quietly being overtaken on the educational front by other nations, particularly the rising stars, India, China and Philipines yet we sit high on our false seat of superiority.

We have spoonfed our children for so long they no longer remember what it is like to be hungry. The silver spoon is now tarnished and what are we doing? NOTHING!

Hurricane Katrina - What have we learned?

Hurricane Katrina has came and went, yet the impact will be felt for years to come. Most can look at the picture and see utter devestation and destruction of the city, the coastline. Most can cite this natural disaster for the outrageous gas prices (many thanks to those who took this opportunity to gouge the consumers!). Most are revolted by the resulting looting, violence and anarchy. What a shock! Not!

Did it ever occur to those who made "plans" to evacuate that a significant portion of the population is homeless and approximately 20% of the population has no transportation or means to gain transportation, much less in 20 hours. Given this premise, with an approximate population in excess of 500,000 people (extrapolated from the 2000 census), did they really expect 100,000 people to just walk out of New Orleans (a re-enactment of Exodus?)? What options did these people have? What options do these people have? Current news states approximately 10-15,000 people remain in New Orleans. Where on earth have the other 85-90,000 people gone?

We look on in horror at the crime yet what were we expecting with the infrastructure, as tenuous as it already was, dissolving, people devolving into a more primitive social structure, "survival of the fittest". Mix this with escaped, roaming criminals and those with criminal disposition.... This was inevitable given the right circumstances and situations.

("The Lord of the Flies" by William Golding was a book many of us read in school. Perhaps, we felt utter disgust or read with morbid fascination. Regardless, it is real, it is their here and now down in New Orleans. Go read it with a new and more somber, sobering perspective!)

Ask yourself... What is the incentive for these people to leave the only place they have ever known as home? What other opportunities do the people have? With the infrastructure and society in ruins, what other options do these people have? Do these people really understand the options presented to them? It is like asking a goldfish if it wants to leave its bowl, the only home it has ever known, the only safe place it has ever known and telling it to go live in the ocean. They cannot even begin to fathom the options and opportunities in the manner others might given a less hostile and stressful environment (not to mention the inherent distrust of officials by many of those they are trying to evacuate).

Before you pass judgment, just remember that these people stranded, staying put are NOT operating with the same frame of mind, same perspective. Remember all the times you've done and said things and said to yourself in hindsight, "I could have done this... I could have said this....". We demand explanations, heads to roll, accountability, whatnot yet...

Be careful what you wish for, and even more careful what you ask for!!!

Many times it was not for lack of caring that we did not plan careful enough but instead was from lack of organization, communication, information etc... Given this tremendous oversight and the consequent fallout from it, if there is any lesson to be learned, I would hope that the government would move towards the first responders, local, state and federal governments working together, hand in hand under the auspices of one authority, homeland security. Here is one parting thought:

Yes, the levee's broken, but it's far bigger than the 17th street levee....and the terrorists know this. What are WE going to do about it?