Monthly Archives: March 2009

Jet-Lagged

We flew out on Friday afternoon, and returned this (Monday) afternoon. Three hours time difference. I thought I was doing OK, but by the gentle shake in my hands and lack of focus — oh, and did I mention the tendency to babble whateverthought is going through my brain at any given moment? — seem to indicate that I am not fully functioning.

Blog posts on hold till I recover — but as a tease, my first one will be:

“Guns, A Wedding, and Rock n Roll: My Weekend in Ohio”

Update on the AIG ‘special tax’: Obama is SMART

Earlier this month, I wrote a quick post about the letters I sent to my state senators asking them to NOT support the special tax on AIG executives. At the time, Congress passed the special bill by an overwhelming majority.

However, our President is smarter and wiser than all of them. An article on March 23 from the Associated Press reads:

President Barack Obama says he cannot “govern out of anger” just because of public outrage over bonuses paid at financial institutions kept afloat by taxpayer dollars.

Frankly, I am very pleased with the news that he’s keeping his eye on the big picture, which includes corporate and human resources law. I am especially please since in doing so he is going against the stated wishes of Congress at a time when he is trying to garner support for his budget proposal.

Bush Administration Politics: EPIC FAIL

I think this article says all that needs to be said about the so-called abstinence-only sex education :

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/living/2008879687_apbabyboomlet.html

Basically, after a decade of teaching kids to ‘just say no’ without any further information we not only have a population boom larger than the one we experienced when the boys came home from WWII, but 40% of those children were born to unwed mothers. Which means that the boys are getting off and then taking off.

I see two things here: sex education is a necessity and there needs to be more responsibility taken by both parents if they decide to have the baby.

Living Frugal: Greening Our Home — Future Plans

We are planning to make a major upgrade/remodel in the master bath. This is primarily because our current tub is barely four feet long and I want one we can really soak in.  (Yes, the impetus is purely aesthetic and absolutely not necessary.) When we do this, we’ll be working with a design/builder who is comfortable with using recycled and sustainable materials, as well as incorporating ‘green’ principles into the design.

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Letters to my Government: the proposed ‘Special Tax’

I sent this to Representative Smith and Senators Cantwell and Murray:

 

I am writing to urge you to not support any measure which imposes a special tax on those companies that have received government ‘bailout’ monies.

Like many others, I am very angry that these companies made poor financial decisions based on greed and have gotten themselves into such a mess that the taxpayers need to bail them out. I’m even angrier that the executives have chosen to accept their bloated bonuses and fat paychecks despite their demonstrated incompetence.

However, for government to step into the financial arena via this proposed ‘special tax’ is a very bad precedent. these companies need financial support and oversight, and perhaps those executives accepting these bonuses should have their salaries reduced to minimum wage for a year (or two), but a special tax is a poor legal decision when there are contracts to be upheld. (Reducing their salaries is a perfectly acceptable measure for the companies to take, and if the executives don’t want to accept that, then company gets cleaned out of the deadwood, naturally.)

I realize I am likely a lone voice in all of the anger, but I don’t think government involved in this matter.

Thank you for your attention to my opinion.

Maybe I’m crazy, but this is not the business I want my government in. As an HR person, I particularly feel that interfering in how a company manages its employees via salaries and bonuses is just a very bad idea. I’m angry enough, however, to strongly recommend that they be penalized with reduced salaries — if they choose to leave, then so be it. Hopefully they’ll never find a job again.

EDIT: The bill was passed by “an overwhelming majority.” Details here: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/aig_outrage

*sigh*

Weekly Silliness: Song Title Description, Deux

I liked the last one, but another artist spoke to me as well:

Using ONLY SONG TITLES from ONE artist, cleverly answer these questions:

Pick a band/artist: Annie Lennox/Eurythmics

1. Are you a male or female: Wide Eyed Girl
2. Describe yourself: A Whiter Shade Of Pale
3. How do you feel about yourself: A Thousand Beautiful Things
4. Describe your ex boyfriend: I Love You Like A Ball And Chain
5. Describe your current boy/girl situation: Miracle of Love
6. Describe your current location: Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)
7. Describe where you want to be: In This Town
8. Your best friend is: Precious
9. Your favorite color is: Cool Blue
10. You know that: Money Can’t Buy It
11. What’s the weather like: Here Comes The Rain Again
12. If your life was a television show what would it be called? Why
13. What is life to you: No Fear No Hate No Pain (No Broken Hearts)
14. What is the best advice you have to give: We Two Are One
15. If you could change your name what would you change it to: Sylvia