Our Forefathers Voting Priorities and Vision

Have you ever wondered why we vote on the first Tuesday in November?  Our current Presidential Election Day was established by Congress in 1845 to support those who owned and worked land and acknowledges Judeo-Christian needs.  Back in the mid 1800s, farmers were a much larger percentage of voters, and November meant harvest season was over.  Tuesday was picked because in the 19thcentury people didn’t have cars. They traveled much further to vote. With church on Sunday, many could not get to voting places by Monday. 

Congress’ choice and the reasoning behind their choice hints toward what the majority felt were important back in those days.  First, the fact that early November was chosen seems to indicate that votes cast by land owners and land workers were important.  I would argue that today that might equate to small business owners and those who help lead and manage the businesses that drive our economy.  Second, a Sunday Sabbath was acknowledged and respected.  I’m not sure that either of these priorities are held by our current Congress. 

Why have we failed to update our Presidential election day?  How many hard working Americans have a problem voting on a Tuesday during business hours, during dinner or our children’s bed time?  Why not move it to Saturday?  I am not claiming a conspiracy theory here but just making the point.  At one time Congress used their heads to help those who pay the taxes and trust in a God vote.  Why have they failed to change?  I would argue that it is either because they have forgotten, lack vision, or would rather not for some reason.  You be the judge.

This Single Asian Male – Things you may not know about me

One of the coolest aspects of parenting is watching your kids develop preferences.  I have no idea why Binh has developed his specific set of likes and dislikes but they are his.  I’m pretty sure we did not directly influence most of them.  Below is a list of interesting things you may not know about Binh as we suspect he would write:

Favorite Foods:  Grapes, Chips & Salsa (spicy like me please), and really everything else but black eyed peas

Favorite Restaurant:  Golden Corral (Management worries when I come in, they are about to loose money…  mostly because they didn’t charge in the first place)

Favorite outdoor activities:  long walks on the beach, swinging, collecting acorns (For the record, I’m not involved in any voter fraud efforts)

Favorite indoor activities:  Reading, surfing the Internet, playing in the toilet, trying on all the shoes by the door

Favorite clothing item:  Shoes (Girls and Guys)

Favorite TV show:  Not a TV watcher really, Sesame Street has never been the same since the writer’s strike

Favorite drink: Vanilla Soy Milk and straight fruit punch (Please don’t cut it)

Favorite Toy:  Anything with buttons, Fisher Price Doctor kit, or whatever my sister has

Given the choice of Email, Phone, Text, or in person:  Phone with txt close behind

First word: Up

First Sign: more, more, more, more, more, more…

Tattoos or Body Piercings – none

Current haircut:  Mohawk

Describes myself as:  sensitive and expressive but independent.  I do get on the computer from time to time so feel free to post direct questions in the comments.

Wisconsin

Sorry it has been a while since my last post and I don’t have any fun kid videos because I was away last week.  My boss has oversight of the shipyard in Marionette, Wisconsin responsible for the first LittoralCombat Ship or LCS-1, USS FREEDOM.  I was very impressed by LCS-1.  The crew had moved aboard and were taking care of the ship.  I was sent to WI to help with one final detail before the ship sailed away toward the port where she will be commissioned.  It was an honor to be, although small, a part of her initial outfitting.  Her strengths are her steel hull, speed, maneuverability, man power efficiency (two crews of just over 40 that rotate), and flexibility.  One thing that must be said for Marionette Marine is that they have excellent craftsmanship.  In an effort to learn as much “tribal” knowledge about the ship as I could, I chose to stay in the hotel that some of the crew were staying.  Aside:  This ship is manned with two small crews (blue crew and gold crew) like a ballistic missile submarine.  The off crew was staying at the Best Western.  I sat down near a crew member at the hotel restaurant and struck up a conversation.  The Littoral Combat Ship is really a big leap forward for the US Navy.  It incorporates an incredible amount of  technology in order to reduce the manning by about 75%.  It combines engineering and bridge watch stations, automates fire fighting and casualty response, and essentially requires each Sailor to be a jack of all trades including their own cooks and cleaners.  I was curious to hear how a Chief Petty Officer aboard LCS-1 was handling such a change from the norm.  When questioned about his experience he acknowledged that it was a shift but said that it was a needed one.  Everyone pitches in and pulls their weight and that crews were tight.  I also talked with an officer that night and asked some direct operational questions that seemed to pose a problem like refueling at sea and manning flight quarters.  They were still working some of those types of things out.  One problem is that Navy inspectors have to accept the fact that they are not going to be 5 people on the bridge any more or 3 down in engineering…  I am not a huge fan of minimum manning on conventional ships but these really seem to have the potential to shift the Navy paradigm.

One other thing I learned while in Marionette was that I liked Wisconsin.  I flew into Appleton and drove to Marionette.  What a beautiful place WI is.  While driving I noticed a mile stretch of fence that had perfect little quart sized pumpkins on each post.  One more state to check off my list!          

How to choose a president

In talking with many about the upcoming presidential election, I have found that most don’t really have a system to make such decisions.  I like to ask folks what issues are the important to them and what their candidate has done in the past that makes them feel they are the best candidate (the best indication of future performance is past performance).  I don’t think many look at the “how to select a candidate” piece but simply let emotion, charisma, single issues or the ”What are they gonna do for me” principle govern their decisions.  For example, construction workers vote for the president they think best understands construction workers (e.g. pro union), Venture capitalists vote for the president they think best serves venture capital (e.g. low taxes), and those that receive from government programs vote for those vowing to maintain or increase such programs regardless of overall social contribution.  This is how we have been voting since G. H. W. Bush.  But how can it make sense for everyone to vote solely on what suits themselves best?  It’s not a United States of Me.  Sure self interest is a major consideration in a vote, but it has to be weighed against others.   

We are easily distracted away from better presidential measures: namely performance, or our estimation of potential for performance.  Some new tools (my favorite was this one by american public media) are availible that can quickly help one size up the candidate by the issues in stead of trying to wade through the rhetoric or media slant.  What does the media do to help us?  Not much.  When listening to anything political in nature (campaign adds, news coverage / commentary, people talking, etc.) one should ask: What does this have to do with their ability to do the job?  Pundits have failed to help viewers evaluate the merits of the candidates. They are supposed to help us dissect the hidden meaning, a vague promise, or a mistake of fact.

I have seen a number of studies that indicate what some feel are the most important qualities of a president.  They usually center around being articulate, organizational capacity, political skill, and style.  However, I feel that the most important characteristic is vision and how that vision is shaped.  That vision should be shaped by the founding documents (constitution, bill of rights and amendments).  After a closer look at what our founding fathers wrote, it appears that we have strayed from the path over the last 15 – 20 years.  The most significant shifts have been away from individual accountability and toward redistribution of wealth.  We are seeing the latest effects of this in the world markets.  Bailing these white collar crooks out is the worst thing we could do, teaching the irresponsible borrowers, lenders, and those legislators that originally pushed the misguided ideas of risky loans that they do not have to be accountable for their decisions.  Both of the candidates support massive government intervention because it appeals to the “what are they going to do for me” majority.  As the number of folks contributing to the treasury dwindle and those taking from it increase, that small percentage paying the majority of the taxes that congress is to eager to spend will give up on our current system.  I believe the vision of the founding fathers was that the individual impact of the federal government should be minimal and the local governments would be used to tailor local law that met the needs of those living locally.  Yet today we live in a system where two federal candidates spend over a Billion dollars running campaigns over a two year period to get elected.  There has got to be a better way.  It’s time to reflect and respond.

Ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country.  John F. Kennedy

Peace through strength.  Ronald Reagan

YoutubeTuesday-Our first pony rides

I spent last week underway on the Navy’s newest destroyer TRUXTUN for her acceptance trials.  The ship performed very well and was blessed by the top navy Inspection command (INSURV).  It was great to get back to sea and put a ship through her paces, which included four hours at full power, crash back, highspeed turns, astern steering, missile firings, and gun shoots.  During all the fun I met a lady who lives in the area and helps with ship architecture during the week.  We got to talking and I found out that she also has a weekend business providing pony rides and a petting zoo for birthdays and special occasions.  She asked if I had children and if I thought they would enjoy getting close to the animals.  I was quite certain that both Binh and Ava would enjoy something like this.  Given that our German Shepard is about the size of a small pony, I did not think either child would be frightened by the ponies or horses.  That assumption turned out to be correct.  The kids had the time of their lives.  Pardon my strange squat in the picture above.  The ponies were actually quite short and I couldn’t hold onto the kids any other way.  The two videos this week are of Ava and Binh’s first pony rides (respectively).  Ava’s video has a bit of comedy in it toward the end.  Go Red Sox! 

Swing Captains

Remember way back when you were a kid, as early as you can remember.  There were those special summer nights that you never forget.  I remember a night when I went with my aunts and cousins to spend the night at lake DeQueen.  I couldn’t swim yet, just dog paddle a little but I was treading out over my head and getting brave.  I remember that special feeling, like the night would never end.  I think I played my first game of Marco Polo that night as well.  You never really plan the details and that helps make it special.  As I got older those special nights came more seldom.  However, I learned tonight that you can have those special summer nights as a father, sharing them with your children.  Char had to pick up groceries so it was just the kids and I outside in the back yard.  I had opened some mail earlier later decided to place the opened envelops on the kids heads.  The goal was that they would get pushed higher and higher until the “swing captain” hat flew off and then they got tickled until they decided they wanted to be the swing captain again.  I did not really think of taking a picture until the end of the night so the kids are on the tired side at this point but we all had such great fun.  Tonight was one of those special nights for all of us.  What a joy to share it together.