Maybe I am naive. I have been called horrible names because of my political views such as Fascist and Nazi. People have often told me that because of my Conservative political views "I must hate poor people." This bothers me in a way but at the same time it doesn't. The reason it doesn't bother me is because when people make those comments, they are so asinine that I just shrug them off and don't even bother having a conversation with that person, because if they are going to stoop to a fourth grade intellect level and resort to name calling, I have no time for them. On the other hand, it bothers me because even though those people are vastly uninformed and could not be further from the truth, if they spread the false belief that Conservatives are Fascist, poor-people hating lunatics, than it smears Conservatives values and may lead to other, less informed people believing that garbage.
With that said, I have no problem with CEO's making more money than the average worker. They have probably put in many years and hours of blood, sweat and tears to get where they are today. If everyone were to make the same amount of money, or close to it anyway, then there would be no incentive for advancement with the company, so hopefully a person can work their way up the corporate structure and one day and make as much money as that CEO.
As long as the corporation is fulfilling its main duty, which is to make money for the shareholders, then whatever pay structure they have, within reason, is fine by me. However, they do have to pay their workers and employees fairly and treat them with dignity and respect.
Thursday, November 21, 2013
Monday, November 11, 2013
Detroit
I have always loved to travel. I lived in Hungary for four months, I was in Croatia for three weeks doing an intensive physical therapy camp a few summers ago, and I go up to the great state of Maine several times a year. I have always felt that traveling is necessary because it enables people to have new experiences that generally enrich ones life. However, as of now, if I die without going to the city of Detroit Michigan, I will be a happy man. No offense to the people of Detroit, but that city is in a deplorable place right now. It is currently a deep, dark, hole!
Detroit just had a mayoral election in which Mike Duggan was elected. Mike Duggan is an ex-county prosecutor and former director of Detroit's Medical Center. Even though Mike Duggan will be the Mayor of Detroit beginning in January, he will not have much power because Detroit has hired a turnaround specialist named Kevyn Orr, who will be in charge of Detroit's finances and how its spends its money.
So how does Detroit fix its horrible financial crisis? I have always been of the belief that the best way to make money is to cut superfluous expenses as opposed to raising taxes, which is the favored method of President Obama. So, one suggestion that I have for Detroit is to sell off some of the art collection in its museum of fine arts. I know most of the collection is owned by private donors, but if they could convince them to let Detroit sell their donations that would go a long way towards helping Detroit's economic situation. According to some experts, the art collection could be worth 2 billion dollars.
Another solution that Detroit could do in order to help their economic situation is to sell their sports franchises to the highest bidder. The Detroit Tigers baseball team is estimated to be worth 643 million. The Detroit Red Wings hockey team is worth an estimated 315 Million. The Detroit Pistons basketball team is worth an estimated 360 million. The Detroit Lions football team is worth an estimated 817 million dollars.
I know that Detroit is in a very bad economic situation right now and I also know that my proposed solutions would not fix the problem entirely, but it might help get Detroit headed in the right direction.
I have always loved to travel. I lived in Hungary for four months, I was in Croatia for three weeks doing an intensive physical therapy camp a few summers ago, and I go up to the great state of Maine several times a year. I have always felt that traveling is necessary because it enables people to have new experiences that generally enrich ones life. However, as of now, if I die without going to the city of Detroit Michigan, I will be a happy man. No offense to the people of Detroit, but that city is in a deplorable place right now. It is currently a deep, dark, hole!
Detroit just had a mayoral election in which Mike Duggan was elected. Mike Duggan is an ex-county prosecutor and former director of Detroit's Medical Center. Even though Mike Duggan will be the Mayor of Detroit beginning in January, he will not have much power because Detroit has hired a turnaround specialist named Kevyn Orr, who will be in charge of Detroit's finances and how its spends its money.
So how does Detroit fix its horrible financial crisis? I have always been of the belief that the best way to make money is to cut superfluous expenses as opposed to raising taxes, which is the favored method of President Obama. So, one suggestion that I have for Detroit is to sell off some of the art collection in its museum of fine arts. I know most of the collection is owned by private donors, but if they could convince them to let Detroit sell their donations that would go a long way towards helping Detroit's economic situation. According to some experts, the art collection could be worth 2 billion dollars.
Another solution that Detroit could do in order to help their economic situation is to sell their sports franchises to the highest bidder. The Detroit Tigers baseball team is estimated to be worth 643 million. The Detroit Red Wings hockey team is worth an estimated 315 Million. The Detroit Pistons basketball team is worth an estimated 360 million. The Detroit Lions football team is worth an estimated 817 million dollars.
I know that Detroit is in a very bad economic situation right now and I also know that my proposed solutions would not fix the problem entirely, but it might help get Detroit headed in the right direction.
Twitter
Twitter has taken the world by storm, with many people having varying opinions of it. Some people, it seams like mostly the older generation, don't like what it has seemingly done to society. They feel like twitter has had a degrading effect on the culture on society. They feel that twitter, and really social media as a whole, has lead to a dramatic deterioration in the ability for humans to interact and have conversations. However, for the younger generation, including myself, I have always felt that social media is great for society. I feel like social media, twitter included, enables people to not only connect with friends and even celebrities but it also gives people another way to express themselves and their thoughts. Although, I will confess that it does annoy me when some people feel the need to tweet that they just finished a load of laundry and are now enjoying a turkey sandwich. I DON'T CARE! Please, only tweet useful, funny, or insightful information.
This article about Twitter's IPO and its successful launch has only reaffirmed my belief that social media is a good thing. The fact that a few people could not only come up with an idea such as Twitter, but then get the funding, and ultimately execute their vision and make it a global success, should serve as a lesson to many people, especially my generation. If you come up with an idea that you believe in and are willing to work hard to make it succeed, then do not worry about people being skeptical about it. If you work hard enough, your vision can become reality. Twitter is an example of the American dream.
Maybe President Obama should call the Twitter people to come to the White House, so they can show him how to build a functioning website!
Twitter has taken the world by storm, with many people having varying opinions of it. Some people, it seams like mostly the older generation, don't like what it has seemingly done to society. They feel like twitter has had a degrading effect on the culture on society. They feel that twitter, and really social media as a whole, has lead to a dramatic deterioration in the ability for humans to interact and have conversations. However, for the younger generation, including myself, I have always felt that social media is great for society. I feel like social media, twitter included, enables people to not only connect with friends and even celebrities but it also gives people another way to express themselves and their thoughts. Although, I will confess that it does annoy me when some people feel the need to tweet that they just finished a load of laundry and are now enjoying a turkey sandwich. I DON'T CARE! Please, only tweet useful, funny, or insightful information.
This article about Twitter's IPO and its successful launch has only reaffirmed my belief that social media is a good thing. The fact that a few people could not only come up with an idea such as Twitter, but then get the funding, and ultimately execute their vision and make it a global success, should serve as a lesson to many people, especially my generation. If you come up with an idea that you believe in and are willing to work hard to make it succeed, then do not worry about people being skeptical about it. If you work hard enough, your vision can become reality. Twitter is an example of the American dream.
Maybe President Obama should call the Twitter people to come to the White House, so they can show him how to build a functioning website!
Wednesday, November 6, 2013
Sasquatch
People these days will do anything to make money, and I feel like that is how the "Bigfoot" scheme started. Once people figured that other people would be willing to spend money to chase the and find the ever elusive monster known as Bigfoot, they exploited that interest in order to make more money. Even though I really do not believe that Bigfoot exists, I have no problem with people trying to make money off this Bigfoot phenomenon. One of the great aspects of capitalism and American business owners is that if they find a niche in the market, they are free to try and make money any way they want.
As I said, I think this whole Bigfoot phenomenon started because people found a way to make money by exploiting peoples desire to find this monster. Not only do I think this phenomenon was a marketing schemed aimed at making money but I also think this Bigfoot phenomenon has persisted because people want to believe in Bigfoot. People want to believe in the Bigfoot phenomenon because it gives them an escape. What I mean by that is, given the fact that the world is so stressful given the mountain of bills that people have to pay, violent wars, and chaos in the Middle east, people need to find an outlet to temporarily escape from this slightly depressing reality. If that escape for some people, means that they want to go believe in, go hunting and track down a Sasquatch, then that's fine by me.
People these days will do anything to make money, and I feel like that is how the "Bigfoot" scheme started. Once people figured that other people would be willing to spend money to chase the and find the ever elusive monster known as Bigfoot, they exploited that interest in order to make more money. Even though I really do not believe that Bigfoot exists, I have no problem with people trying to make money off this Bigfoot phenomenon. One of the great aspects of capitalism and American business owners is that if they find a niche in the market, they are free to try and make money any way they want.
As I said, I think this whole Bigfoot phenomenon started because people found a way to make money by exploiting peoples desire to find this monster. Not only do I think this phenomenon was a marketing schemed aimed at making money but I also think this Bigfoot phenomenon has persisted because people want to believe in Bigfoot. People want to believe in the Bigfoot phenomenon because it gives them an escape. What I mean by that is, given the fact that the world is so stressful given the mountain of bills that people have to pay, violent wars, and chaos in the Middle east, people need to find an outlet to temporarily escape from this slightly depressing reality. If that escape for some people, means that they want to go believe in, go hunting and track down a Sasquatch, then that's fine by me.
Wednesday, October 30, 2013
NSA Spying
The article that we were tasked with reading this week was about the revelations that the NSA had tapped many phone calls, including those of 35 World Leaders. These startling allegations came to light when whistle blower Edward Snowden leaked classified documents.
There are many mixed emotions regarding Edward Snowden. Some people believe that he is another Benedict Arnold, and he should suffer the consequences for his traitorous actions. In my opinion, I do not believe that what Snowden did was all bad. Yes, he should not have leaked classified documents. However, he did expose a program that was not legal and needed to be exposed before it expanded even further. So, in the end I am thankful that Snowden exposed this outrageous governmental spying program but he should have gone about it a different way, maybe through Congressional hearings?
I also find it ironic that President Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize because of his ability to get along with foreign leaders, and now he has angered many of those same leaders because of this horrible violation of privacy that was orchestrated by his administration.
The article that we were tasked with reading this week was about the revelations that the NSA had tapped many phone calls, including those of 35 World Leaders. These startling allegations came to light when whistle blower Edward Snowden leaked classified documents.
There are many mixed emotions regarding Edward Snowden. Some people believe that he is another Benedict Arnold, and he should suffer the consequences for his traitorous actions. In my opinion, I do not believe that what Snowden did was all bad. Yes, he should not have leaked classified documents. However, he did expose a program that was not legal and needed to be exposed before it expanded even further. So, in the end I am thankful that Snowden exposed this outrageous governmental spying program but he should have gone about it a different way, maybe through Congressional hearings?
I also find it ironic that President Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize because of his ability to get along with foreign leaders, and now he has angered many of those same leaders because of this horrible violation of privacy that was orchestrated by his administration.
Monday, October 21, 2013
These latest violent riots in Russia have just reaffirmed to me how divided and chaotic this crazy world is. From the uprising and Libya and the toppling of the ruthless and oppressive dictator Moammar Gadhafi, to the recent terrorist attacks at at mall in Kenya, all the the way to this latest act of senseless violence, this trend is becoming increasingly concerning to me.
In my opinion, which is an opinion shared by most I believe, legal immigration is good. They key word is LEGAL. I have no problem with someone who wants to come into this country legally in an attempt to pursue a better life for themselves and their family. I am of the belief that people interacting from different cultures, religious beliefs, economic backgrounds and other differences, is typically good for society.
However, with the latest incident in Russia just adding to the long list of acts of violence based on religious and or ethnic differences, it gets me thinking about the policy of isolationism. If the U.S. implements a policy of isolationism, in which we are cut off from the rest of the would, and thus preventing other ethnic and religious groups from coming in, it would potentially prevent the U.S. from having similar riots themselves.
Now, let me be clear, I think a policy of complete isolationism for the U.S. would be a bad idea. I believe that we need to remain engaged with other countries not only to build alliances but also to potentially work out trade deals, that could be enriching to all countries involved. Its just, when I read about another uprising/riot in a foreign country, it gets me thinking about ideas to prevent the U.S. from suffering the same fate. However, this idea of complete isolationism is perhaps extreme and should never happen for real.
In my opinion, which is an opinion shared by most I believe, legal immigration is good. They key word is LEGAL. I have no problem with someone who wants to come into this country legally in an attempt to pursue a better life for themselves and their family. I am of the belief that people interacting from different cultures, religious beliefs, economic backgrounds and other differences, is typically good for society.
However, with the latest incident in Russia just adding to the long list of acts of violence based on religious and or ethnic differences, it gets me thinking about the policy of isolationism. If the U.S. implements a policy of isolationism, in which we are cut off from the rest of the would, and thus preventing other ethnic and religious groups from coming in, it would potentially prevent the U.S. from having similar riots themselves.
Now, let me be clear, I think a policy of complete isolationism for the U.S. would be a bad idea. I believe that we need to remain engaged with other countries not only to build alliances but also to potentially work out trade deals, that could be enriching to all countries involved. Its just, when I read about another uprising/riot in a foreign country, it gets me thinking about ideas to prevent the U.S. from suffering the same fate. However, this idea of complete isolationism is perhaps extreme and should never happen for real.
Thursday, October 17, 2013
ATTACK
First off, when reading this article, I have an overwhelming sense of sadness. Even though I thought this article was very interesting because it came from the perspective of the people who were there during this heinous attack, I am still filled with profound sadness. I am sad because, obviously. when thinking about the fact that many innocent people were senselessly murdered, it is hard for me to come to grips with such an atrocity. I have always been proud to be an American but an event like this always makes me thankful that I live in America. As an American I do not have to worry about getting killed just because I may not share the same views as other people.
Also, well reading this, I am also filled with concern. I am filled with concern because as far as I can tell there seems that there will always be some violent, extremists in the world who will persecute and kill people just for holding different views. Sadly, I am not smart enough to figure out how to stop these extremists
First off, when reading this article, I have an overwhelming sense of sadness. Even though I thought this article was very interesting because it came from the perspective of the people who were there during this heinous attack, I am still filled with profound sadness. I am sad because, obviously. when thinking about the fact that many innocent people were senselessly murdered, it is hard for me to come to grips with such an atrocity. I have always been proud to be an American but an event like this always makes me thankful that I live in America. As an American I do not have to worry about getting killed just because I may not share the same views as other people.
Also, well reading this, I am also filled with concern. I am filled with concern because as far as I can tell there seems that there will always be some violent, extremists in the world who will persecute and kill people just for holding different views. Sadly, I am not smart enough to figure out how to stop these extremists
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)