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• S.F. Baseball Hero

... the end of public finance and the last "financier" ...

Theodore Dreiser, in a long – ago written novel, took the themes of finance as they were known in the day and turned them into a portrayal of the soft underbelly of some in the finance world, what with its supposed mutual back – slapping, treachery, drinking and drugging and other trafficking and vice.  Dreiser’s portrayal of the Financier was one of immoral and unduly influenced corruption, and again, vice and other wrongs of the finance world in the day.  By this portrayal his readers were shown everywhere that money is evil and should be treated as such.  The fact is, there were corruptible influences everywhere in Dreiser’s time, not just in some persons’ intrigues and ill – gotten gains.  Fast forward to the modern public financial processes in Washington, D.C., where somewhat the same attitude about the accumulation of cash to spend prevails – it is in fact an accurate assessment of public Congressional and Senatorial appropriations in the U.S. that are made without the proper revenue base do reflect these types of beliefs, and apparently that when one has money that has not been spent, the accumulation or saving of same is immoral and corrupt, reflecting the overall idea that “money is really to spend.”

The plan of the Republican Paul Ryan to erase over six trillion dollars from the federal deficit over a decade includes privatising some social welfare programs, and cutting others, including Medicare and Medicaid.  It also includes reducing federal corporate tax rates.  These are the two principal traits of this plan which is quite simple, especially since the Ryan plan does not really touch Social Security.  Medicare and Medicaid, under Mr. Ryan’s plan, would apparently be privatised, which would save approximately three trillion 2011 U.S. dollars.  When one thinks about the corporate tax relief (savings of about another three trillion,) this policy would have the effect of creating, or freeing up almost seven trillion 2011 dollars (U.S.) of income and value based upon fiscal relief.  This is a very enticing policy, as is the privatisation of Medicare and related programs through private insurance – based concerns.  Cutting government spending is hard to do, and the insurance programs would present a sea change for private carriers as the health insurance business in the U.S. would be responsible for virtually everyone seeking medical care - the young, and especially the aged.  That many older and elderly people are to be included in insurance pools along Mr. Ryan’s ideas, would affect the costs of maintaining the health insurance / health care systems we have and would also affect premiums, based upon private insurance criteria instead of federal entitlement criteria.  

There can not really be any more accounting nor financial tweaking of the Social Security system, as Mr. Ryan’s plan undoubtedly indicates, and an actually quite efficient “pay – as – you – go” private health insurance system (one much more dear monetarily than the federal system at this point,) is not in the offing as an alternative to federal health programs.  As well, the corporate tax reduction does not promise any economic identities beyond the simple possibility under improved economic climes of creating new value and income (some.)  Then, even as Mr. Ryan’s plan, or a similar plan, fulfills its promise, there would also be a propensity on the federal level, again, to spend the benefits of the tax relief, privatisations, and other efficiencies created by his plan, thus engendering an even greater deficit, and more confusion and chaos in the politics around the common sense of public policy and these matters.  Ryan’s plan to bring more discipline to public finance, due to opposition to it, and the pronouncements of its detractors, comprises a constructive and challenging solution for the interim, and for the reduction over ten years in the federal deficit, and this due to a presumed vacuousness of legislators in attempts to get behind it, promote it and have the discipline, again, to legislate and stand behind it administratively over the long – term. 

Anna Politkovskaya (anniversary.)

Anna Politkovskaya - Link to NPR program (Saturday morning, April 16, 2011.)

Link to NYT articles (Saturday morning.)

Photoportrait.

Lybia

Fukushima, Japan (and environs)



Fukushima, Japan

Stories of Fukushima...

abbas milani and the commonwealth club.

Sir:

Just within the past few days, I have heard a talk with the Commonwealth Club as given by Professor Abbas Milani of Stanford in view of his new book about the Middle East and more specifically the case of Iran at present.  Dr. Milani has asked the question by his new writings and in his talk on how or what did someone in our system do so that in fact we now have extreme worries about nuclear proliferation and terror as related to Iran at present.  In the time of communism, Milani proposes, the place of the Shah, and in fact what directed his fall from grace and eventual demise, were the forces of fundamentalist religion, namely Islam as embodied in Islamic political clerics who primarily had ties to the soviets.  

Today, much of the political / administrative activity in the Middle East is ascribed to oil – pricing policies, and efforts at “democratisation” in Iran eventually have become known more popularly as “islamo – fascism” despite the long – time efforts of the soviets and their contribution to the expansion of socialist and communist influences.  In retrospect, the political upheaval around the Shah was caused not by rightist tendencies, but by the reaction to the Shah’s efforts to try to live with the religious left and centrist political figures of the day.  The case of Bin Laden in Afghanistan, formerly in places like Saudi Arabia, Yemen and Sudan, as a former U.S. ally against communism and presently a saboteur against the U.S. in its approach to the clerics in Iran, presents the impossibility of using a secular approach for the most part to Middle Eastern culture, even governance, and this as shown by the political missteps of the Iranian regime before the 1979 revolution.  

There has been literature published to the effect that, in Pahlavi’s words (to paraphrase here,) most Iranians and Arabs were ignorant of the Shah’s motives and policies, even internally, and most people in the region never comprehended these and never made the effort to do so, or even to plainly understand what he attempted to do for his people.  Hopes for actual democracy have been dashed for years by the use of Pahlavi as a scape – goat in his secular promises, and the false promises of the current clerical, even teleological regime.  It is possible there is another “perfect storm” brewing politically in Iran again after that in 1979 comprised by the dormant Middle East policies of Jimmy Carter, British policies as well, the fitful political attitudes of Iranian people along with the promises of the clerics around Khomeini and Khomeini himself.  All this seems additionally to be tied to petrol politics and the price of oil:  An unusual way to try to determine or work for democratisation and civic and political freedoms anywhere.

THS

About Tiger Woods... (no argument.)

Without mentioning all the penance this celebrity / personality has had to pay for his personal life being dragged through the proverbial mud, not to mention the trials and tribulations, and atmosphere of scandal this has all created around his family and friends, maybe note the following:  When guys like Rodney Dangerfield (dec.,) Chevy Chase, Leslie Nielsen (dec.,) and Keith Richards, and Alice Cooper even, are allowed to play golf and joke about its antics and embarrassments, seriously done or not, and having to do not with anything related to golf, this remarkable athlete should be allowed to continue his career as much unscathed as possible.  If anything, the difficulties Woods has had with respect to his personal life do show that the “playing at golf” that people do is really a hobby for most people (even professionals,) and is therefore subject to the insinuations and intrusions into the game of powerful jackasses.  

People like me do try to play golf, and are enamoured of some of the things professional golfers do on the courses, including competitors like Tom Watson, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, Greg Norman, Ernie Els, and so on.  The number of actual championship golfers is innumerable and the game’s professionals are everywhere, and to stop the attention on everyone to focus on tabloid antics as carried out on Mr. Woods, and as he apparently carried them out as well is a shame.   Mr. Woods is notable for all aspects of the game of golf, but especially is known for his aggressive work in the tee box and to a great extent his putting as well.  The audiences at tournaments and the public should dedicate more of their attention to the care and concern of professional golf(ers) in playing competitively, and improving / refining the game, and entirely instead of zeroing in on personal dilemmas, faults and personal failings; be they those of the players or those in the gallery.  Let them play.

In Defense of Barry Bonds.

While every time there is a National League home run champion there are disputes on the subject of his worthwhileness and worthiness, the fractious debate as to Mr. Barry Bonds and his claim to home – run king status is completely unreasonable in the sense of Thomas Paine and his fellows; and that there is an actual trial in process examining Mr. Bonds’ methods indicates the indecisiveness of professional baseball oversight about what and how it administers the modern game.  This and despite that Mr. Bonds has vicious detractors who have worked for years to upset his goals of becoming not only a home – run hitter, but a great fielder and slugger, and other things, including a good family person, at the same time.  Probably in the late 1990’s, and privately, one of his career opponents projected that Bonds had a chance to hit more home runs than Babe Ruth or Henry Aaron, and more simply that he would probably surpass the achievements and records of Maris, Musial, Mays, McGuire, Sosa, Griffey, and other, less visible and less capable players.  That he did this, substantively and for the most part without completely disabling himself has some, if not all his opponents and detractors extremely upset and has drawn his entire livelihood into public gossip arenas and into a very tabloid court battle or battles that will drain his fortunes, in many ways meritoriously earned and gained on the baseball sports fields.  In addition, and at this time in the story of American sports, there are reasons why the home – run king needs be from a place like San Francisco instead of from New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, or Oakland, or any other city one can spell.  I leave it to you, the reader of this editorial, to determine these reasons for yourself.

That Mr. Bonds did things to improve his performance is evident, as all home – run hitters do and have done, though that he did things completely in awareness and with intent, and outside the bounds of his professional baseball player status is exactly what should be in dispute; not that he took pills or vitamins, what have you.  Most power – hitter players do things to increase their chances of contacting the ball, no matter what, as it travels from the pitcher’s hand (left or right) over the plate.  Indeed, it is not a secret that Mr. Bonds is a talented person who could, among other successful things, “read” the pitcher in any particular count or at bat, and this added to his chances, along with his physical conditioning methods, of contacting the ball as it was thrown for him (to try) to hit under various conditions and circumstances.  The decisive charges that his physical training and related staff were conniving and corrupt should be re – examined and thrown out:  The real issue is how Mr. Bonds lorded it over other power hitters for years, and what he did for the game of baseball – a.  To increase interest and attendance at baseball events, especially in “away” situations, b.  How he increased the profile of other hitters, and offense in the National League game in general, by creating controversy on the subject of baseball offense and outfield hitting and other things, stealing, base – running, the pitcher’s role in the late innings, and other things that capture the attention of fans at decisive times during a contest; c.  How, by the competitive reputation of Mr. Bonds, other players in contact with him and with whom he was and became acquainted, and same with respect to the media and the press, others benefitted during the time Mr. Bonds pursued his path to baseball greatness.  For these and other reasons, there is clearly no cogent, nor is there any even magical principle that indicates Mr. Bonds should suffer penalties for the good works he did and the message he proposed about the game of (and profession of) baseball – that it takes a measure of luck and extremely hard work, even for people as talented and gifted as he is or was during his career, even in the Pittsburgh days and other doldrums.  People like me knew baseball people like Mr. Bonds in college, and even knew of him in high school, and there is without a doubt in our minds the common - senseness, reasonableness, and charitableness of this person – and there are any number of instances one can cite from his life to date that bring this out.  To systematically and officially insinuate that he is or was a corrupt person indeed reflects upon the ambiguous, nebulous, and backbiting approach to the game of his accusers and others prosecuting, charging, and yelling, gesticulating and shouting and staring him down. 

In professional baseball today, and in all professional sports, there are guidelines that provide a best guess as to what one needs to do to take advantage of one’s strong points (doing what one does well,) and building and maintaining talents, whether they be in defense or offense, or both.  This is part of the holiness, what have you, of the sport of professional baseball in America, and without the professionalism we have today in the sport, American athletes would most completely be likely to play baseball no better than the French, or the Yugoslavians, for that matter; and there are such players – they just do not play that well as they are not as talented as the American boys are.  This is just a fact.  The, again, detractors of Mr. Bonds, in fact, do take the attitude and performance of a “French” baseball player, or the like, and ascribe to Mr. Bonds not the reputation he deserves, but the status of a malicious and scheming, ambitious overachiever who cheated his way through his career.  If you desire these “equalized” ideas and standards and their proponents and professional staff, there are baseball leagues and organisations, and games for you everywhere outside the U.S., probably even in Europe where the game is played professionally, but to the eyes of the practised spectator, very badly.  This is what the judicial proceedings about Mr. Bonds home runs appear to be concerned with – stopping people from actually exercising their rights as professionals and becoming the talents they deserve to be; and this by stripping them of their toolset of refined and successful methods, processes and the like that promise the fulfillment of their talents, possibilities and potentialities. 

Some time ago, I did see a San Francisco Giants baseball game against the New York Mets.  I do not attend public events every day as these are costly and there is a handy adage they are available and “viewable through local television,” for the most part.  I did see Mr. Bonds and his team make complete baseball fools out of the New York team in a single show in which he hit two home runs.  It is a life’s experience to watch him hit, especially at home where he plays for every fan, from people in the baseline boxes to those fans in the third deck and at home even.  I have also seen Mr. Bonds hit on television, and if one knows even a little about baseball, it is thrilling to watch him at the plate, and playing defense as well.  In addition to his hitting skills, he has an arm like Willie Mays and I have seen him throw people out at base like Mr. Mays did.  It is obvious, from anyone’s knowledge of him personally or professionally, that he loves baseball and to believe his approach, again, to this profession was or is corrupt is a sin of commission, and again, indicates the overall salaciousness of “fans” and others who pretend and pretended to follow his career with interest in order to disparage him with the detailed and defamatory gossip that has led to these trials.  I do also think of his parents and this parent / child, and other family relationships  and associations that detractors have worked to render valueless by these public trials as well.  Good day.

THS

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"Rapprochement" - U.S. and P.R.C.

The admission of the Chinese President a few days ago that human rights in P.R.C. need to be more closely looked at is a sign of hope that “capitalism with Chinese characteristics” has an official aim, at least in part in its attempts at attaining primacy in world society, of giving lip service to such issues and their importance within the P.R.C. and its international position as well.  The intent of the statement on human rights by Chinese officials to pay more attention to human rights might just be to assuage the egos of western officials who see many faults in the Chinese regime, as well as its competitive successes as facilitated by opprobrium of anyone within its territory espousing western ideas and political doctrines, or other “counter – revolutionary” principles.  It is entirely possible an additional legacy of Mao has been to keep the country on a commercial footing with military discipline and military sanctions that the great helmsman believed would realize the dreams of many Chinese cadres to demand and command more respect in the world and at home.  The Asiatic approach to capitalism that calls for many constraints on the lives of workers and industrial managers, and this without necessarily rewarding everyone for their work as they would be rewarded in the West, is a matter that remains to be resolved, in its justification and implementation within China itself.  Coolie and other types of labor have always been relatively cheap in P.R.C. and previously in imperial China, and this has long been perceived as perilous to western business, and even more so now that Chinese goods are produced at a discount to production in alternative areas and apparently with the same quality as they might be, for example, in U.K., or even other Asian countries. 

The human rights issue has in all appearances found linkage with commercial and business issues, as Chinese officials mentioned human rights in a dialogue with U.S. officials, including the U.S. President, connected to trade and technology issues, that without a doubt included renewed discussion of intellectual property.  Unrelated to the human rights discussion as viewed by the press, was probably some discussion around abating software piracy in China where most of the software from western countries, including that of large and important software developers, is illegally copied.  The tone of the human rights announcement also makes obvious the compromises P.R.C. has made in furthering its economic interests and the necessarily public “sturm und drang” of Chinese international relations with the West and the compromises it has for both East and West.  It becomes clear that P.R.C., as it produces many discounted goods sold in other countries throughout the world, in fact as the largest Asian economic “Tiger,” does have the perception still that its exports have not made as many consumers as dependent upon Chinese goods as it would wish.  The Great Helmsman would view this as unfortunate as discounted Chinese products truly have saturated international markets, and P.R.C. is a large emitter of carbon and hydrocarbon gases along with its industrial might for consumer goods production.  The statement about human rights as linked to commercial talks with the U.S. might be an indirect admission the aim of the P.R.C. to get a grip on the western consumer has not worked so well, and that some giving – in has to take place in order to prime up additional demand for Chinese goods – one of the apparent promises of the P.R.C. – form of capitalism.  

THS