Football Bombs and Nuclear Bombs

Without question, the most incendiary, explosive story of the last few days was the appearance of Ahmadinejad at the UN.   His timing was very interesting.   First, it occurred less than 2 months before our national election.   Thus, supplying fertile ground for both the incumbent President and the Republican challenger to create a sea of relevant sound bites.

The September choice of the Ahmadinejad visit was also ideally timed as his repudiation of Israel became the topic of many discussions in synagogues across the country during the Yom Kippur holiday.  And as expected, much of the conversation turned political as many debated the current state of U.S. - Israeli relations.

Needless to say, for all these reasons and more, I expected the media to own this.   By media, I refer to all of it.  Bloggers, newspapers, websites, TV and radio.   It's individual relevance is meaningless compared with its collective tsunami of influence.   Did I see a few stories here and there?  Absolutely.  Did it seem to move us in any actionable way?   Not really.   And the reason?

The media had a bigger story on its hands.  One much larger than the potential for Iranian nuclear bombs.   This bomb had to do with football.

That's right.   On Monday Night, a pass was thrown into the end zone at the end of a game.  Instead of calling an obvious pass interference penalty, the offensive team was awarded a touchdown.  Big deal, right?  But wait.   There's more.   There's a current referee dispute in the NFL, so the officiating is being done by replacements....or temps.

OMG.

The NFL is ruining Monday Night Football!   We won't stand for it.    So the media jumped on this story instead.   TV and radio stations that don't specialize in sports made it a lead news story.   Newspapers drew caricatures of refs wearing sunglasses and a walking stick to represent blind men.   Why?   Because no one messes with our football.

Seriously, what's wrong with us?   Even when you put politics aside and just consider that a country in the Middle East is building a nuclear weapon, do you think that should trump a football game?   Even you don't buy that argument, just do the math.   They play football twice a week.   Iran is building a nuclear weapon every day.  Including weekends.

But we casually pass by it on CNN, then race to another station so we can watch the same replay from Monday's night's game.   This time from a different angle, with an analysis from a different commentator.

The fact that our minds move to football before national diplomacy says a lot about how we think.  You see, most of the news isn't good.   And there's only so much unemployment disappointment, oil price gauging, and stock market swoons we can take.   So, we move to something else as a defense mechanism.   In this case, football.   Fantasy leagues, Sunday parties, and tailgaters swallow up what little time we have left to think about anything else.  Pretty soon, the most important thing in our lives, after our families, is football.

I don't know what the future holds in Iran or in the NFL, but I do hope for one thing:

Let's get the real refs back on the field.

Expense Report

Do you ever stop and look at your household expenses?  I mean really sit down in front of your online banking statement and stare at what you pay for each month?  I'm sure you don't.   Because if you did, you'd realize pretty quickly how you and your money became separated on things that you really didn't need.

And I'm not talking about vacations, or grocery shopping, or other basic necessities.  I'm talking about the extras.   You know the extras.

Some of you are married to TECHNO-HEADS that have to have the latest Apple i-anything, or a 3-D television, the new Wii, or the Audi with the backup camera that also drives for you like a player piano.  We all know this type.   They have to be the first in their neighborhoods or in their buildings to showcase the latest products.  And they must have the fastest internet, the most channels, and the highest bars on their phones.  It's harmless, really.  Unless of course, you have other bills to pay.

I don't want to stereotype this group, but they have a tendency to be male.   So, to be fair, the females gravitate towards another category of wasteful spending.   HOME IMPROVEMENT.  Are you one of these?   For some reason, despite the fact that the house looks good and seemingly has all the necessities, something's just.....missing.   They can't put their fingers on it, but it could mean a new couch, a brighter chandelier, new carpeting, expanding over the garage, a new vanity in the bathroom, a mattress, or the seemingly obvious need for a bay window.   Therefore, the house is never done.  And therefore, you, can never retire.

Now, why stop with the parents?  Let's get the kids in on the act.   When our kids are really young they don't know the difference between mediocre and great.  So, their cribs, clothes, furniture, and toys are really about you, the parents.   Somewhere around 6, that all changes.   They go to school, and begin to see the difference between Target and Neiman Marcus.   And this will typically last until they get their first jobs.    Sneakers, clothes, phones, computers need to be uniform with the cool kids, otherwise, they won't "fit in."  And what kind of parents would we be if we bought our kids a Nokia phone, New Balance, or a Dell?   Shame on us.   And more wasteful spending.

Then, I pause and think about what my parents went through.   What kind of expenses did they have?  First, we didn't even have cable right away.  I remember how jealous I was of the families that paid for something called Home Box Office and WHT (Wometco Home Theater).   Eventually we caved, but it was pennies compared with today.   When we wanted to make a phone call, we used a rotary phone or eventually a push button.  But nobody had cell phones.  

I needed to write papers for school, so I used a typewriter, and then something called a word processor. It took years before getting my first computer.   There weren't fancy laptops, or mobile devices.  If I wanted to read a book, I'd wait for the paperback, and spend a few bucks.  We didn't have Kindles and Nooks where the temptation to read 3 books at once is overwhelming.

If we were short on things to do, we took a drive.  Gas wasn't $4 a gallon, so we could go anywhere.  We didn't have a Garmin, so we'd just drive, occasionally taking out a paper map or something the AAA called a Trip-tik.   Most of these were free.

If I needed information, I'd go the library.  I'd sift through old newspaper articles on microfiche, and I was lucky enough to have an encyclopedia, I'd research at home.  By the way, that was a one time expense, and not a monthly subscription like high speed internet service.

Needless to say, we all had fewer expenses just one generation ago.   This doesn't even take education into account.   We all want the best for our kids as early as pre-school.   We pay for private schools, tutors, trainers, and anyone who can place our kids in the best position to attend the most prestigious college.  You know, the one that costs 50K a year.

So with so many more things to pay for, why do we through so much away?   Simple.   You're either one of two kinds of people:

1-  One that keeps up with the Joneses
2-  One that thinks "you only live once"

And that's OK.   But just think of where else your money could go, if you just cut back a little.   Look at your expense report.

Where's your waste?

Convention Depression

So, now that I've had my fill of both Republican and Democratic conventions, I'm feeling a bit depressed. Not because I'll miss the pundits analyzing the nuances and the cadence in every speech. And not because I considered it to be just good theater.

I'm depressed because I realize that this is the best we've got.

It really doesn't matter what your political affiliation is. You just look up at the 4 principals in the election and you say...."if this was my fantasy baseball team, I'd trade all of them."

For some reason, we don't feel the same way about some former Presidents. They have a certain aura about them. In fact, many were referenced in both conventions. Reagan, Lincoln, JFK, and FDR immediately come to mind. And Clinton's speech made sure you added his name to the list. Sure, they all had their critics when they governed, but somehow we look back favorably on their legacies. Sadly, I just don't feel the same about our two current candidates. I wish I did.

We're only two months away from the election. And everyone's attempting to make up my mind. If Bill Maher, Rachael Maddow, and Sean Hannity aren't enough, I'll get my earful of politics just by logging into Facebook where each of you apparently has your own show with your name atop the marquee. Some of you even have theme music.

But political ideology carries much less weight than you think. Because at the core, at the true epicenter of this election, the elephants and the donkeys don't really matter much. I don't care about trickle down, deficits, or reaching across the aisle. The real issue is this.

The President has a job like everyone else. There's just one difference. It's the toughest job. And the salary isn't even that impressive. In fact, the President of the U.S. may be the quintessential definition of "overworked and underpaid." But, let's keep looking at this as a job.

If the incumbent President was in HR, an accountant, a teacher, a cop, a lawyer, a salesperson, a contractor, or any other job with an annual review, his boss would decide if he makes it another year. The President, unlike many other jobs, actually has a 4 year contract. Not too shabby.

With that said, it's time for a review. And you're the boss. Based on performance, you're not completely satisfied. Although, you do recognize that there's been a lot of hard work. You also acknowledge that this employee took the job during a period that was economically challenging for your organization. Now you have to decide if you want to keep him.

He acknowledges that he isn't completely satisfied either, and that he knows he can do better. He just needs a little more time. In most organizations, if an employee didn't get the results you were looking for in 4 years time, you'd probably show him the door. Presidents are different, so let's keep going.

First, we'd have to see look at those "candidates" interviewing for the position. What if you went through a series of prospects (similar to the primary), until you narrowed it down to one. You looked at his experience, personality, values, and how you think he'd fit into the organization. In the end, you're not sure. You like some things, others you don't.

And that's our current election in a nutshell. One guy needs a little more time, and the other guy may work out, but he just doesn't knock your socks off. It probably happens every day at a variety of different companies, and in many different businesses.

It's just too bad this one involves the Presidency. You're the boss.

How will you choose?