I get up and go to work, and then come home, most of the time eating dinner with my spouse or in my home office where I plunk down in my recliner and watch TV. And usually I pickup my laptop and start blogging, either about the news or something that interests me.
Point 1- Americans are non-thinkers?
Today I read an article that said things I have come to realize on my own- the current stimulus bill in Congress is shit, will mortgage the country for a long time, and nobody cares. We are all in it for me and mine. My mother (in her 70’s) says our generation does not know what the word sacrifice is; I agree, and bounced back to her, her generation raised us that way, some more so than others.
The article says that’s because most of America are non-thinking boobs, Congress will pass all manner of goofy ill thought ideas and we will go along for the ride.
My belief is most Americans are not non-thinking, but there seems to be a real lack of critical thinking- and I am not referring to expressing your opinion, or rhetoric, but the actual act of analysis of information.
We believe the “whole thing could be the worst episode in American history”, which becomes self actualizing…especially when the dimwits with whom we granted our voice via the ballot think they can do as they will, with no consultation with you and I , a.k.a the public.
One definition of critical thinking is: Critical thinking studies a subject or problem with open-mindedness.
The process begins with a statement of what is to be studied, proceeds to unrestricted discovery and consideration of possibilities, and concludes with a pattern for understanding that is based on evidence. Motives, bias, and prejudice of both the learner as well as the experts are then compared and form the foundation of judgment.
I have been told I am fairly good at critical thinking…it was in my training to analyze ideas and develop solutions in the business world, which became my career in project management. Not that this isn’t without difficulties…most men see a woman that can think as a threat, as cliché as that sounds.
Point 2 - IQ, and who has any
This brings me to another subject- intelligence. I know people who are smart, and can’t figure out how to live their lives without chaos. I know less intelligent people who do just fine, even if performing some tasks are beyond their comprehension. That’s not the point I want to make. My point is that there is an assumption because a person speaks acts or conducts themselves in a certain way that reflects their intelligence. Which may not always be true. Many believe former President Clinton was a jerk, which based upon his behavior seems justifiable. That does nothing to detract from the fact that intellectually he was likely one of the smartest Presidents this country has had. President Bush had a MBA, yet at times could hardly form a coherent statement about things he should have been able to. Now I read many believe President Obama is brilliant, and his super brain will lead us out of our woes. Even if that were true, we as a nation have frequently ignored good advice and done stupid things. Eisenhower warned us about growing power in the Military Industrial Complex, yet it thrives today. But the question that comes to mind is how does a intellectual become a leader? I ask because the man at the helm of the American government has campaigned for that job for nearly 2 years, all the while promoting the appearance of possessing a superlative intellect, yet no one seems to really know his IQ.
I am not alone in this impression.
“The fact that Obama is so willing to leap in and publicly demonstrate his ignorance on a regular basis is evidence of his lack of superlative intelligence. He's not actually stupid, but he's a lot closer to the norm than he'd like everyone to believe.”
Point 3 Being led by a novice is scary
I worry that our leader in chief, who has never been the leader of anything before becoming president, is making bad decisions based on poor information provided by partisan sychophants, much like his predecessor, the much maligned Bush. The stimulus bill, written wholey by Pelosi and company alloocates(as best anyone can tell) a mere 5% of the total to any meanigful employment programs, the remainder establishing new programs, and doling out money to do God knows what...and the timeline is scary, stretching out to 2019. 2019?? We need jobs NOW!
We need mortgage stabilaztion NOW!!
46 states have imploding budgets because tax revenues have evaporated, leaving them no income. Rebuilding America's roads, tunnels, bridges puts people to work now. California has 88 ready to go construction projects idle for lack of funds...
Come on people, lets put on our tinfoil hats, and imagine if airliner that landed safely in the Hudson river was piloted by a pilot who just got hired, and had never flown such a complex machine before...thats where we are now. The plane is going to belly flop, and crew is making all sorts of changes to save it, and the pilot is saying if he dont do something, well, it will be bad. And we are just along for the ride, screaming our lungs out.
And we should be screaming...read these news items
Another late addition was a quadrupling to $8 billion, at the behest of Obama and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., of money to construct high-speed rail lines. Reid's office issued a statement noting that a proposed Los Angeles-to-Las Vegas rail could get a big chunk of the money.
(thats taxpayer money being used to build a train that will benefit LA and Vegas)
The bill also included Obama's signature tax cut, although on a slightly reduced scale. It will mean a $400 break for most individual workers and $800 for couples, including those who do not earn enough to pay income taxes.
(Ok, so if you pay no taxes, isnt a $400 tax break actually just a cash handout??)
Oh, and for once i agree with Rev Al Sharpton about removing education from the stimulus bill:
"I am a civil rights activist and advocate," he told a packed house of 675 people. "I do not seek, as many who seek political office, to be appreciated or liked. I do not seek approval as opposed to clarity, unlike some politicians. I was concerned to see that some of the Democratic members of the Senate took out the portions that gave real vision and strength to president Obama's stimulus plan and diluted educational funding. It seems they were more concerned about midterm elections than vision."
Stressing the need for advocacy, he used the analogy of a thermostat — which changes temperature — and a thermometer, which merely records it. One student asked him which applied to Obama.
"I think he's a politician that has been a thermostat and has a thermometer agenda," Sharpton said.
The obviously affluent guy, that (in my area) is typically bald, maybe in his 60's or older, dressed like he is 30 something, maybe with a beard or goatee, and a earring or two; driving some expensive sporty car, like say a Porsche or Nissan Z. Next to him is a girl maybe just out of college age, usually a fake blonde, maybe even her new bo has paid for breast augmentation. Yeah, i know, its his daughter, rightttttttt. Or a niece. Sure.
