THANKSGIVING 2008

I just want to say, thanks. I am the luckiest guy on earth. I have had a wonderful life and my future looks even better.

I was lucky to have Bill and Mary Helen for my parents. I never appreciated them enough when they were alive. As I have gotten older I understand the sacrifices they made and how much they cared about me. I knows it's late, but thanks Mom and Dad. You were great and you made me what I am today.

I have also been lucky to have Greg Manning for my friend. Greg and I sat next to each other in Physics at Austin High School. We became friends and room mates in College. Greg was best man at three of my weddings. After 40 years, Greg is the person I have known the longest and he has always been there when I needed him. Thanks Greg, I am really sorry I missed the plane back in 1970.

I have been lucky to have great children. None of them went "wrong" and got into serious trouble. They were all smart, if a little hard headed. They have made me proud to be their father. Jennifer, Kate, Meredith, Colleen, and Jack are all wonderful in their own way and I am thankful for knowing them.

I am lucky to have met Pam Olroyd. We met by accident at the Onion in Urbana, Illinois. She had a broken toe and I was sitting in on her job interview. Bob "Splanet" never understood us. We knew within the first five minutes that we hit it off. From Gin Blossoms to the TPS report, Pam understands me and appreciates me like no other person I have known. I'm proud she is my wife and I love her more each day. Thanks Pam for being....perfect.

My life has been wonderful and I do not take it for granted. I am really thankful. Thankful for the tree house my Dad helped me build in Omaha. Thankful that my Mom made me punch Pat Bowler when he chased me home after school. Thankful that Dad taught me to drive on the Autobahn and Mom taught me to drink Irish Whiskey. Thankful that Pam hasn't complained about the price of Gold. It's all been great and I am really thankful.

LA AUTO SHOW UPDATE

So we went to the Auto Show. we got there just after the doors opened on Saturday. It was CASH ONLY....brother.

We walked it and it was cool. The lay out was much bigger with less cars and more walking around area. I took some photos:

HEAD LIGHTS

STEERING WHEELS

HOODS

SEATS

TIRES and WHEELS

And the Lady who could not read the sign in English....Keep off of Display. We saw Ahrnold, Der Govenator in the Porsche Display. Er sprach mit dem Porsche represenatives, auf Deutsch.

The LOS ANGELES Auto Show

It's that time again. Time to go downtown and walk around to look at new cars. Dad used to take me to the Auto Dealers back when I was a kid. They would have grand openings to show the new cars. This happened in October each year and they served coffee and cookies. Dad and I would go look at the new cars and stand around with the guys.

Later, as Dad and I got older, we would go to the Bel-Clair fairgrounds back in Belleville to see the new cars. It wasn't much of an auto show...kind of small. Regardless, Dad liked to walk around and look at the cars and it always reminded me of those early years when we went to the dealers.

Dad is gone. He never got to see the LA Auto Show. I'm taking Jack and Pam this year. I want to start a new tradition with Jack going to see the new cars and standing around with the guys. The LA Auto Show runs 11/21 thru 11/30 at the LA Convention Center. Kids under 12 are free, but they will have years of memories.

PRIDE

There are moments in a father's life that really make it all worth while. Nobody understands this but the parents, who have worked so hard to help make their children's lives a success. I never understood my Mom when she talked about these moments in my life with her. Sorry, Mom...now I get it.

As I write this, tears roll down my face thinking of the day Colleen passed her drivers test. She tried and failed but came back and did it. I was so proud of her. I was proud of Meredith the night she ran on the stage to help Colleen sing her song in the Christmas Play. I was proud of Jennifer when she graduated college, in spite of a family history of problems. Last night I nearly burst into tears when Jack went "potty" on his own. He has worked really hard to be a "big boy" and to stop wearing diapers. He was soooo proud of himself and I am so proud of him. If my Mom was alive, she would agree. It is these little things that make being a parent wonderful.

In the name of GOoD

Caution...I am writing about atheism. If you believe Bill Maher you can continue to read. If you believe in the invisible man in the sky.....do your self a favor and skip this post.

Billboards have been popping up all over the country. They say, "don't believe in god....you are not alone." Talk radio and the Internet are buzzing about the New Atheist attack on Amerikan values. Many secular humanist, free thinkers, and hard line atheist are smiling. Finally, EQUAL TIME. Yes....

For all of my life I have had to sit through prayers and other forms of worship at public gatherings. I have seen enough nativity scenes and crosses to make me puke. Now a new billboard campaign is creating a panic. The Christian Right want these billboards taken down. Apparently, they worry that their followers might read these signs and jump ship. The truth is, the signs are there to just say, "it's OK to not believe".

Non-Religious persons are not trying to convert anyone. All we are saying is it is OK to believe and it is also OK to NOT believe. A recent USA Today/Gallup Poll found that 53% of Amerikans say an atheist is "disqualified" from being elected President. The same poll said 43% believed a gay person would be disqualified. It is currently acceptable to discriminate against a person because they are NOT believers. Further polling data shows that roughly 15% of Amerikans consider themselves to be atheist or freethinkers.

It is time to talk openly about non-belief. Like gays coming out of the closet, those who consider themselves to be atheist, freethinkers, humanist, or at whatever need to speak out in the name of GOoD.....with the extra O. Proposition 8 passed becuase the religious voted together.

Don't yell FIRE......

I was reminded of Jim Morrison...."Try to set the night on fire". The sky glowed red at night as all around Los Angeles, the mountains burned. It was nearly as bad as the Portolla fire of October 22, 2008. Then the fire burned down off the mountains and within blocks of our home. The air was too thick with smoke to breathe. All of greater Los Angeles area was covered with a dense brown cloud of smoke.

Most of America and the world do not understand these fires. They begin with the Santa Anna winds. This is when the wind switches from blowing west to east. Normal wind flow in Southern California is off the ocean and on to the land. This makes the area cool most of time. But, sometimes when High Pressure is over the Arizona and Nevada desert, the winds reverse and blow off the desert back west to Los Angeles. These winds are forced through narrow canyons where they increase due to the "venturi effect". This is like holding you thumb over the end of a garden hose. The same pressure forces the water, or air, out through a smaller opening at a faster rate. Winds increase to 70 mph and the humidity drops.

The humidity this past weekend was 6%. The temperature was in the 90s and the wind was blowing at gust of 50 mph. Fires erupted from any spark and fanned by winds spread out over thousands of acres. Embers from the fires blow in the wind and land on homes. New fires begin and embers from those blow further and start new fires. Like a burning swarm it spreads over miles within minutes jumping over fire trucks and across freeways into subdivisions.

I called my friend Logan Saturday. He owns a home in Carbon Canyon in Brea. All I got was a fast busy signal. I watched TV coverage as they said the entire area was on fire. Today I spoke with Logan. He said the phone went out when the heat got so hot that the telephone poles burned. He spent Saturday night on the roof of his home running sprinklers to soak himself and his house.

The evidence suggests that these fires have been happening for a thousand years. Warm dry wind and lightening created fires long before man moved to the Region. Now that California is nearly 38 million people, the potential for fire and fire damage is much greater. We need to face the fact that the Fire Season is here to stay. There is a huge opportunity for companies to develop new and better fire fighting equipment.

BOND AS BOURNE

Yes. It was great.

I know there have been bad reviews for the new Bond movie. Regardless, it was just plain great. Yes it is NOT the same old cheese we used to see in a James Bond Movie. Thank god these new Bond Movies are darker and much more interesting. I think we all owe it to Robert Ludlum and the Bourne Books. Those were dark, and the movie versions were very much as dark as the books. Now Bond has returned to his original "thug" past. Bond is not a fancy pants gadget guy. He is a tough, no frills, assault oriented blunt force that gets results.

Anyone crying about these new films can watch "24" to get their feeling back.

THE US AUTO INDUSTRY

It is a sad day for the US Auto industry. You did not have to be too smart to see it coming. Do you drive a Chevy or a Ford? Do you know anyone who does? Well, there you go. The US Auto industry has been dieing a slow death for 40 years. Is it a surprise that they are in "trouble" now?

As a kid my folks owned Fords. When we lived in Germany, my mom wanted a Mercedes to bring back to America. My Dad, bought a new 1963 Chevy. He ordered it and had it shipped to Germany from Detroit. It was cool to have a brand new American car driving on the Autobahn. The German cars were small and slow. We brought that Chevy back to Minnesota and it became my first car. It had a 283 cubic inch V-8 and a Three speed standard shirt. It was fast and fun to drive.

My first new car was a Volkswagen Bus. I bought it in 1971. It was a white pop top Camper Van. It was slow but very cool. VW Micro Buses were the cool cars for hippies and college kids. We camped in it and drove it all over the Midwest. My next car was a VW Convertible. It too was cool. During this period, in the early 70s, Ford, Chrysler and GM did not offer anything nearly as cool as the VWs. They had big station wagons, Impalas, Ford 500s, Dodge Chargers....but no Micro Buses or Bug convertibles.

The US Auto industry laughed at the German and Japanese cars being sold as small and slow. Then on October 15, 1973....just 35 years ago, OPEC decided to stop shipping oil to the United States because of our support for Israel. An oil and gasoline shortage began. There were long lines to get gas and stations with no gas to sell. Prices doubled. Suddenly, Volkswagens and Toyotas didn't look so stupid. Experts began to predict that the world would run out of gas by the year 2000, just 27 years away. Millions of Americans traded in their Fords and Chevy's for Datsun, Volkswagens, and Toyotas. The US auto industry was put on notice. Make better small fuel efficient cars, OR, lose the market.

What began as an "ipod event," the buying of "cool" import cars. Soon became a shift in consumer preference and the beginning of the end of the US Auto industry. Import car makers saw this trend and jumped on it with new and better cars. They not only got better mileage they had better warranties and more equipment. Import cars had FM radios and tape decks at no extra charge. They had four speed floor shifts and bucket seats were standard. The Hondas, Volkswagens, Datsuns and Toyotas were better cars at cheaper cost. Everybody knew this by 1980. Still the US Auto industry turned out crap for cars. The Vega, the Pinto, the Maverick, the Omni. None of these copy cat domestic cars even came close to the quality or performance of the imports.

People who bought these first imports moved up with these brands to the cars we have today. The Bug became the Rabbit and then the Jetta. The Civic, became the Accord and then the Acura. The Corolla became the Camry and then the Lexus. American Motors, the home of the Pacer, folded. Chrysler got a federal loan and made the K-Car. It was a flop. Little by little the US Auto makers gave away their market to the imports by not building quality smaller cars.

Today, I drive BMWs. They aren't cheap but they are small well made high performance cars. They come with a great warranty and good dealer network. My last American car was a Ford Mustang in 1985. It was fast but rattled and was load at speeds over 40. Our BMW 325 Convertible is faster, better made and quieter.

The US Auto industry needs to be allowed to fail. They had 30 years to fix the situation and they didn't do enough. They were out designed, out produced, and out marketed by the imports. To give the US Auto industry a "bail out" is like giving them a reward for fucking up. It's a mistake. Let them fail, reorganize and hope that one good car company survives to produce the better American cars of the future. Think about this: Germany a country the size of Texas, makes Mercedes, BMW, Volkswagen, Audi and Porsche. Japan, a country the size of California, makes Honda, Toyota, and Nissan. All of these bards are built in the US today.

Weekend Update

Loverboy said it best....Everybody's workin for the Weekend. Last weekend was just great. Jack, "CC", [The Camp Counselor] and I went to the movies. Jack has been watching the commercials for Madagascar 2 and kept saying, "daddy is going to take me to see the movie."

This was Jack's first real movie at a Theatre. I was concerned it would be too crowded or too load. We went to Irvine Spectrum. It was showing in IMAX but I thought it might just be too much for him. We got there early and bought popcorn. Jack went Potty and we were ready. When it started there were way too many previews and Jack looked like he was losing interest. Finally, it started and Jack laid down on Pam's lap to watch.

The movie was OK. Jack seemed to like it. I was happy the event went well with no problems.

The rest of the weekend was just about perfect. It was cool and fall like. Temp in the low 60s and sunny...of course. We went to the car wash and then to MacDonald's. Jack finally got up the nerve to climb into the "Hamster Cage" play area. He went up and disappeared into a red tube. I was sure this would end badly, but it didn't. He came out all smiles after playing with the big kids.

We all went home and took a good nap. Wow, what a great weekend.

Queers have rights too....

Pam makes a really good point today when she points out the failure of the "NO on 8" campaign. Go to: http://pamelamayberight.blogspot.com/

It was always an uphill battle. But, to underestimate the Power of the Catholic and Mormon churches was just plain stupid. These people have faced hard times and won, over and over and over. They plan well and communicate well among themselves.

The "NO on 8" campaign came to a gun fight with a knife. They were out organized, out spent, and out smarted.

Now they are fighting a legal battle. They may win. Protest is good but do you really think Drag Queens will sway voters? Re-think this. Look at the Black movement and take emotion and "flaming" out of the decision. At it's heart, this is an equality issue. Look at Flavor Flav above and Barrack Obama....who was elected President? I'm jus sayn...

The Obama Effect

Obamamania....everyone is just a little nicer, prices are a little lower, people are spending just a little more. It's a new day, in a new way....everything's coming up roses.

People seem happy. Glad to be alive. Proud of themselves and our country. How long will this last? Maybe forever? Lets all work together to try to keep this going. This is one little thing you can do for your country and your self. We will call it the Obama Effect.

Try to be just a little nicer, say hello and good morning to people you don't know. Hold the door for someone. Don't complain all day. Tell people you meet that you like they way they look. Spread the smiles for miles.

Back in 1968 we used to flash the "Peace Sign." Two fingers in a V that says..."Be Cool, take it easy, dig it"

If people say, "what's up with you....tell them, Hey it's the Obama Effect." Everythings coming up roses for me and my gal.

Time to try a Third Way

Now that the election is over, I want to be clear about the distinction between CONSERVATIVES and REPUBLICANS. They are not the same, and never has the difference been more clear.

A Conservative, according to William F. Buckley, is not to be confused with a conservative like George Bush. Buckley liked to use the capitol C to denote "real" or true ideological Conservatives. In his view, and my own, the current Republican Party has abandoned the core principals of the Conservative movement. In there place, the NeoConservatives substituted christian dogma and a social conservative agenda. This shift to the social right and away from basic Conservative policy led to over spending, financial collapse, and mismanagement of government.

Real Conservatives do not legislate morality. They are not interested in Gay marriage or Drug law. For a real Conservative, Federal Government has a very limited role: national defense, a court and legal system, monetary controls, and foreign policy. Nearly all other matters can and should be controlled by cities and states. It is not a Federal issue to control who marries whom or the sale and use of drugs or alcohol. It is estimated that we spend 45 million dollars a year on the "War on Drugs." Even so, anyone who wants to get high, can and does get high. This money would be better spent on education at the state and local level.

Now is the time for true Conservatives to speak out and change the Republican Party or merge with the Libertarian Party leaving the religious right behind. Keep in mind, John McCain received 56 million votes. There are more then a few Conservatives out there ready to support a political party based on cost affective limited Federal Government with a balanced budget.

For all of the emotion in the election of Barrack Obama, one truth remains. The Democratic Party has a long record of supporting Federal Government as the "solution" to all of America's challenges. Big government is expensive and it does not work well. Federal programs, regardless of the best intentions, are rarely successful and always over priced. The Democrats, like the Republicans they replace, do not have the long term solution to our challenges.

It is time to consider a "third way." The Libertarian Party is America's third largest political party, founded in 1971 as an alternative to the two main political parties. Their vision is for a world in which all individuals can freely exercise their natural rights over their own lives, liberty and property by building a political party that elects Libertarians to public office, and moving public policy in a libertarian direction. Go to: http://www.lp.org/