Month: August 2005 (Page 1 of 2)

It is estimated that total contributions to the victims of last years Indian Ocean tsunami exceed $10 Billion Dollars (US). US government and individual contributions are estimated at nearly $2B. With stories and images like this one being transmitted around the world, I predict the Katrina fundraising effort won’t come close to $10B. I have to admit, if my family were victims of this disaster, I’d do whatever I had to ro to ensure they had the basics of food and water. But jeans, electronics, guns and kids piggybanks?

I wrote a check to Americares for tsunami relief within a week of that disaster. Right now I’m not feeling moved like I did then. I wonder how many others who helped tsunami victims see these images of looting and are hesitating?

It is sad that the actions of a tiny portion of the Gulf Coast population may negatively impact thousands of sufferers.

Spike Lee has made some excellent films. Well, at least the ones I’ve seen have been. I was impressed with his first, “She’s Gotta Have It” in 1986, but really blown away three years later by “Do The Right Thing,” his gritty look at race relations in a Brooklyn neighborhood on a very hot summer day. It stars Lee, Danny Aiello and Ossie Davis as “Da Mayor,” an old-timer on the block who passes out free advice from the sidewalk. In the title scene, Mookie (Lee) and “Da Mayor” have a little chat:

Seems pretty simple.

Media coverage of Katrina has included stories of levees protecting areas from the hurricanes potential storm surge. Merriam-Webster defines levee as “an embankment for preventing flooding.” In many cases it’s a protective barrier intended to hold back a negative force (water) from human life. Levees are built to withstand considerable onslaught, but once a levee is breached, and the security it provided gone, there’s no protection left from the outside forces.

One memorable image was of floodwaters flowing just inches below the top of a street sign. It was a pale blue sign that read “Humanity St.” It was as if the sign was struggling to stay above the waterline, but it was drowning. The smart ones heeded evacuation warnings and fled from a situation when the levee could not protect them. The warnings were numerous. They came from police, the media, friends and family. Others ignored the warnings. “Oh, it’s not even like that.” Many of them are dead today. Destruction rushed in without care or remorse and drown them. Then it simply flowed away.

For those lucky enough to survive the destructive power, countless are left without homes. Their homes are just gone. Taken from them. The comforts of home… gone. Beds, bathrooms, comforters, a place to cook a meal, a place to watch TV or communicate on the Internet, a place to feel protected. Gone. Sadly, for many, “When The Levee Breaks… have no place to stay.”*

*”When the Levee Breaks” by Memphis Minnie, covered by Led Zeppelin on their fourth record, also known as the “ZoSo” record.

US Secretary of Transportation Norm Mineta announced yesterday new proposed Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards for light trucks, including SUV’s. The Secretary noted the administration proposal is expected to save 10 billion gallons of gasoline in the next four years. We currently consume 11B gal/mo, so this is a savings of, uh…1.89%. So, while this is a teeny weeny step in the right direction of greater fuel efficiency, some Democrats and Environmentalists reacted predictably. “At a time when Americans are paying record prices for gas, the Bush administration has sided with its cronies in the auto industry and rejected real solutions,” said Dan Becker, a Sierra Club’s director.

I think that’s somewhat of a cheap shot since more aggressive standards would cost some US autoworkers jobs in the short-term. It’s a difficult issue, but I do wish the proposal was stronger over a longer period of time to give our domestic manufacturers more time to re-tool and meet tougher standards. Sounding a little more reasonable, Mr. Becker crystalized the issue, “Making our cars and trucks go farther on a gallon of gas is the biggest single step we can take to save money at the gas pump, cut oil dependence, and curb global warming.”

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will take comments on the proposal for 90 days, and plans to issue the final rule by April 2006. Their site has the complete proposal and directions of how to submit your comments.

In answering critics, the administration often cites safety as a reason to proceed slowly on increased fuel efficiency. They contend that lighter, fuel-efficient cars are dangerous. Well, yeah, if they get broadsided by an 8600 pound Hummer… Not taking any chances, Secretary Mineta showed up to yesterdays Los Angeles press conference in a silver Lincoln Navigator. It weighs over 5800 pounds and gets about 15mpg. Nice touch, Norm.

I tend to research major purchases to death, and the latest one is for a HDTV. I’ve written here about my quest and comparisons between the Sharp Aquos LCD and the LG LCD. The New York Times recently had an article about the increasing manufacturing capacity and subsequent plummeting prices of flat panels. Based on what I’ve learned about Screen Size, Aspect Ratio, Vertical Scanning Lines, Pixels, Pixel response time, Contrast Ratio, Brightness, Lamp Life, Picture-In-Picture, A/V Outputs, HDMI and DVI, plasma is currently still the best buy in the thin, flat-screen market segment. About the best value I’d found to date was a 42” Dell Plasma for about $2999.

Of course there are some lesser known models, some of which I’ve pictured here. Yeah, they have cool, retro designs, but I’m not digging de analog, mon. I also recently received an offer I can’t refuse. It’s time, isn’t it? Within a few short weeks, the Red Sox and Patriots will begin their World Championship defense, and that will be really cool on HDTV.

I imagine cheating has been around since couples began comitting to each other in marriage or otherwise. It’s been the theme of books like Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “The Scarlet Letter,” and in music, most notably, “Your Cheatin’ Heart” by Hank Williams. A more contemporary musical view on the subject is Sloan’s “The Other Man.”

Yes, society has not taken kindly to those engaged in such activity. I won’t get into the whole “sin” thing, but that’s a dimension many have to wrestle with. Basicly it’s just dishonest, but it doesn’t necessesarily mean the participants are awful people. Writing about the 2002 film, “Unfaithful” with Diane Lane and Richard Gere, film critic Roger Ebert describes the protagonists as “two reasonably sane adults who get themselves into an almost insoluble dilemma.” Still, for those with a conscience, infidelity can create years of tormenting guilt and human cost, magnified further when there are children involved.

In spite of the risk, pain, guilt and cost of infidelity, recent surveys show that nearly 25% of men and 12% of women have cheated. That translates into millions and is considered a viable market for a new line of greeting cards called the “Secret Lover Collection.” Playing off the U2 classic “With or Without You,” one card reads,

So what do you think of the Secret Lover Collection? Shameless exploitation or smart entrepreneurship?

These statistics only scratch the surface of this guys value. Many of these big numbers occur in clutch time… Game on the line… 3 and 2… the big Papi is due! His teammates love him AND he doesn’t make $25M… No, not even $20M… In this age of “Moneyball,” this guy puts the “value” in MVP.

* Projected by me

This morning I received a dual message at my front door. Here it is.

The message was, “not only is your summer vacation over, but the damn summer is over too, pal!” A heating oil delivery is a good segue to some impressions of “The End of Oil” by Paul Roberts. I’m not quite finished, but the book is a well researched and thorough look at not only the story of oil, but at energy in general, and the um, power associated with having access to it and control of it.

As the price of this critical commodity continues to rise due to growing demand and increasingly uncertain supply, alternatives are becoming more economically feasible. This weekend there was a story about people modifying the gas/electric hybrid Toyota Prius to increase its mileage from 45mpg to 250! The “end of oil” theme seems to be nearing the tipping point when a real trend toward a post-oil future begins to pick up… steam. If you’re so inclined, pick up a copy of the Aug-05 National Geographic. Or read “After Oil. Powering the Future” online.

I also came home to an email invitation to see the Rolling Stones in the insurance capital of… well, of Hartford, CT. I’m not sure yet whether I can attend, and I did rant a bit on Sir Mick and the boys in this space, but it is the Stones afterall, and this may be “the last time.”* I don’t know. I really don’t know… I mean Mick at 62 is the same age as my buddy Norm, and I couldn’t imagine… I mean I NEVER want to see Norm gyrating. EVER.

Anyway, it got me thinking about “the last time” in terms of that saying about living each day as if it were your last. I saw my friends Ron and Francine in Falmouth. It was the highlight of my vacation. Will I get to see them again? I hope so. I didn’t say “I love you” today when I should have. What if I don’t get that chance again? I love you, Megan. You just never know when this time is “the last time,” so please don’t hesitate to say “I love you.” Oh, one more thing so we don’t get too romantic or sentimental. I’m pretty sure today won’t be “the last time” I get an oil delivery this heating season…

* Released on Out Of Our Heads in 1965…

It’s no wonder alcoholics and drug addicts have such difficulty achieving sobriety, given how damn hard it is to alter our basic life routines. I’m sitting here in Falmouth, MA at 8:33 am on Sunday, August 7, 2005 and I’m offline. What’s new in the world? This time of the morning, I’ve usually scanned “MyYahoo,” “MyMSN,” “The Wall Street Journal,” “The Boston Globe” and the NY tabloids if I know the Yankees had a bad loss. This morning I have none of that. I do have yesterdays “Falmouth Enterprise,” dutifully published on Tuesdays and Fridays since 1895. Did I mention it is Friday’s paper?

We also have no TV, AC or fans. My bedroom window lacks a screen, so it’s either shut it or risk a visit from a local bat or coyote. So, we’re lacking some of the things that make us so soft and spoiled. In situations like these, you just make the best of it. You live in the moment… “Be the humidity.” It’s very peaceful here. We’re less than a mile from historic Woods Hole, and about a mile from Falmouth Center. Beaches are close. The coffee is good. It’s different. Yesterday we had a lobster dinner and ice creams.

We caught a couple innings of the Falmouth Commodores in the Cape Cod Baseball League. Based on the teams we saw, pitching dominates the league. Falmouth and Bourne have team batting averages and team ERA’s of .226/.221 and 3.71/2.28 respectively. Not surprisingly, Bourne is 24-17 while Falmouth floats at .500. We left the hot, sun-drenched field after 2, with Bourne up 4-0 on a walk, an E-5 and back to back homers in the first. Frankly I was surprised at the sloppiness of play. The pitchers throw hard, but their control is spotty. Many of these kids have more style than substance, and the play was lacidasical. One standout was Falmouth’s 20 year old catcher, Jon Still, who was impressive defensively and with the stick. He’s the only player on either team hitting over .300 (.316). He plays for NC State.

The girls have been laughing a lot. Kyle cried for his mom last night. He said, “I just can’t be away from her this long.” It was a cleansing cry to overcome a long day of the non-routine. I could tell late in the day he was becoming overwhelmed with over-activity. Before bed we read some more in “Harry Potter – The Goblet of Fire.” He fell off to sleep a happy boy. So did I. Now it’s time for some reading of my own.

PS – Wednesday 10:10 am… It’s my first venture online here at the Coffee Obsession in Falmouth. Sox on the radio has been great and they’re 4 1/2 up on the EE. “The DaVinci Code” was good, but “Angels and Demons” was better. Still, I look forward to seeing how the movie is. Now, on to “The End of Oil.”

This may be my last post for a week. I managed to score a nice little bungalow down in Falmouth on Cape Cod, and I’m pretty sure it doesn’t have a TV or any way to “connect.” That means the beach, lots of reading and the Red Sox on the radio. The place is about a half-mile to a couple beaches and the ferry to Martha’s Vineyard. My reading list includes “The DaVinci Code,” “The End of Oil,” and “Harry Potter – The Goblet of Fire” with Kyle. We’re on Chapter 7… Joining us will be Ms. Megan Daley and Ms. Mallory Rousseau. Any takers on an “over/under” for “Dad, I’m bored?”

In the “see the beauty of everyday life” department, I spied this yesterday while mowing the lawn. My camera really does capture in clarity. Here’s a larger version.