There’s a driving phenomena that I’ve only noticed in Seattle, and it’s prevalent: the Seattle Blockade. I’ve never driven anywhere where so many drivers consistently drive exactly the same speed next to each other. It doesn’t matter whether it’s on the highway or on city streets. For however long the road is, it is not at all uncommon to find two, or sometimes three, drivers who drive exactly the same speed, right next to each other. And, as you would expect, always at or under the speed limit. As I’ve wondered before about whether or not the State of…
Everyone is like me
I’ve been involved in market research for over 30 years. If there’s one thing I’ve learned in that time, it’s that people like to think that everyone is like them. When I hear people talk about how we’re all racist, we don’t care about others, we’re too materialistic and we have to think of future generations, I wonder if they’re telling everyone else these things because they see them as their own personal obstacles. When I hear people espouse the belief that rich people all stole or cheated to get there, I can’t help but think the people saying…
Move the capital to Omaha, NE
Do you think that if we moved the capital of this country from Washington, D.C. to Omaha, Nebraska, that we’d see a change in the kind of people who wanted to be there? Do you think we’d still attract people who wanted to stay in power… stay in Omaha, for 40 years? Do you think everyone would be drawn to Gillette to be a lobbyist? Do you think so many in the lawyer community would be drawn to Gillette? There may be a solution here somewhere…
The lifeblood of political correctness
Denying the truth is the lifeblood of political correctness. In order to be politically correct, you cannot speak observations most of us have made in our adult life. (Some used to refer to those observations as “common sense.”) I was recently reading an article that shared this thought, and it’s a thought that bears repeating. From the article: “To describe with accuracy what is before your eyes is now a de facto signature sanctioning your death.” Ain’t it the truth. Consider, seriously, the effect of preventing people from speaking the truth. How does that effect our ability to teach kids? To…
White racist Democrats
The problem with Democrats, that they’ve never cared to reconcile, is that they set up these unattainable and illogical rules that they can’t possibly follow. But somehow, they always get a pass – certainly by the media, but often by the public. We were told that to criticize Obama was racist. That establishes a rule: White people can’t take issue with black politicians on matters of policy. Think of that. Politics is all about issues and taking a stance (or avoiding taking a stance). There are points of view and sides on every issue. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to…
Always complain without a solution
There’s an old adage out there that you shouldn’t complain without a solution. I used to believe it. But then I got to thinking… The more I observe, the more I believe it’s the exact opposite. What is the purpose of a complaint? It’s to call attention to a wrong that must be righted. A complaint is designed to make people aware of a situation that requires some attention. The person complaining is usually seeking a solution to address the complaint. But solutions are not always obvious, and not having one shouldn’t prevent one from complaining. In fact, I…
Glorifying obesity to feel good
Jillian Michaels is getting largely roasted in culture news for suggesting that Lizzo’s weight “…isn’t going to be awesome if she gets diabetes.” You can tell how much of an affront this has been to those who want everyone to feel good about whatever choices they make. This article in Vox goes to great lengths to say that while weight is an indicator of future obesity-related health risks, there are plenty of overweight people who are fine. There are probably at least a handful of terrorists who are actually pretty funny, once you get to know them. Much of…
Sorting the (e)mail
If you use gmail, you know that awhile ago, they separated their email box to automatically send all promotional email to one folder and all of your personal email to a personal folder (with your spam continuing to go to a spam box). In today’s email from Seth Godin, he discusses a fix for all of the personal email that gmail incorrectly sorts to your promo folder. He and his team tried to write some code that would fix the problem. Unsurprisingly, Google rejected the code and told him, “Gmail’s tabbed inbox experience puts emails where our users want…
The impeachment of Trump is a hate crime
The impeachment of Donald Trump is a hate crime and should be tried as such. Efforts to impeach him began before he was even elected. For the record, that’s before the Ukraine phone call. (I would say after his Russian collusion, but then, we have since learned that didn’t happen.) It’s clear that the Democrat hatred for Donald Trump is, at times, irrational. That’s not even worth searching for, and posting a link, to prove. And since we know they have hatred for Trump, and we know there are no impeachable offenses (this will be verified soon, for those…
Critical thinking: the first step toward conservatism
I was recently looking at a picture on a photography site. The picture was nowhere near as intriguing to me as the statement that accompanied it: “Ever since my first encounters with many of the great photographers who inspired me, I became aware of the value of turning my attention away from the main event. So often, the temptation is to look where everyone else is looking. But, time after time, I have chosen to observe what’s going on by looking in the other direction – before, or after, or at the edges of the main attraction. There, I…