A Humbling Learning Process

As a scientist, the thing you must always do is to be humble enough to know that when you get additional information, even information that might conflict what was felt earlier on, you then change your viewpoint and you change your recommendations based on the data.  That’s what science is all about.  Science is a learning process.
—    Dr. Anthony Fauci
Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
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On This Day In:
2019	Another Thought On #45’s Poor Education
2018	As Long As You Survive Each Experience
	WordPress to Facebook Test…
	Day 7: Oh, Yeah!
2017	A Good Habit
2016	The Minds Of Trumpism
2015	Expressing Nonsense
2014	A Real Fight
2013	Unravelling
2012	I Resolve
2011	Practice, Practice, Practice
2009	Phoenix Trip (July ’09)

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Michigan Countdown

day 1, 99 to go.
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“there may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest. “
—   elie wiesel
[The text / quote above is a portion of a post which as been copied from one of the sites I follow:  I didn’t have my glasses on….
This specific post was titled:  “Peaceful.” and the specific link to the post is:  https://ididnthavemyglasseson.com/2020/07/27/peace-for-all/
The site is mostly about family and life in and around Ann Arbor, Michigan.  (And occasionally about politics.)  I encourage any of my readers with a spare moment to visit the site.  I think you’ll find it time well spent.  —  KMAB]
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On This Day In:
2019	Speak Up / Call Out
2018	Does Smiling Count?
2017	Giving Much
2016	Sounds Like Class
2015	Inert Ideas
2014	Worth Anything?
2013	Bruises Before Bed (Or Why You Didn’t Answer)
	Revealed Riches
2012	Extra Gears
2011	Say What?
2010	Hello Frogs…

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The Spirit Of A Fighter, The Heart Of A Saint

Rest In Peace:  John R. Lewis
U.S. Representative for Georgia’s 5th congressional district
21 February 1940 – July 17, 2020
You are a light.  You are the light.  Never let anyone — any person or any force — dampen, dim or diminish your light.  Study the path of others to make your way easier and more abundant.  Lean toward the whispers of your own heart, discover the universal truth, and follow its dictates.  […]  Release the need to hate, to harbor division, and the enticement of revenge.  Release all bitterness.  Hold only love, only peace in your heart, knowing that the battle of good to overcome evil is already won.  Choose confrontation wisely, but when it is your time don’t be afraid to stand up, speak up, and speak out against injustice.  And if you follow your truth down the road to peace and the affirmation of love, if you shine like a beacon for all to see, then the poetry of all the great dreamers and philosophers is yours to manifest in a nation, a world community, and a Beloved Community that is finally at peace with itself.
―    John Lewis
Take a long, hard look down the road you will have to travel once you have made a commitment to work for change.  Know that this transformation will not happen right away.  Change often takes time. It rarely happens all at once.  In the movement, we didn’t know how history would play itself out.  When we were getting arrested and waiting in jail or standing in unmovable lines on the courthouse steps, we didn’t know what would happen, but we knew it had to happen.
Use the words of the movement to pace yourself. We used to say that ours is not the struggle of one day, one week, or one year.  Ours is not the struggle of one judicial appointment or presidential term.  Ours is the struggle of a lifetime, or maybe even many lifetimes, and each one of us in every generation must do our part.  And if we believe in the change we seek, then it is easy to commit to doing all we can, because the responsibility is ours alone to build a better society and a more peaceful world.
―    John Lewis
Both quotes are from his book:  “Across That Bridge: A Vision for Change and the Future of America“
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On This Day In:
2019	Most Hire
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2018	Sounds Like #45’s White House
2017	Have We Started Winning Yet?
2016	Still Springy
2015	Well Concealed
2014	The History Of Warriors
2013	A Cult Of Ignorance
2012	Counting Valor
	Understanding Faith
2011	I Can Hear You Now
2010	Inception

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Stay Gentle

In a gentle way, you can shake the world.
—   Mahatma Gandhi
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On This Day In:
2019	Immoral #45
2018	From My Soapbox
2017	The Single Most Effective Thing For Health
2016	A Trumpet Solo
2015	Potential Is A Heavy Burden
2014	Fear Not, Weep Not
2013	Half Way There
2012	Sacrificed Any Lately?
2011	The Value Of One’s Character
2010	Intervals
	On Being Human
	Non-predictive Emergence
	Events
	Bodily Functions
	Standing Thoughts
	Sent Home Is Better Than Fixed

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Time To Defend The Constitution (Part II)

I Cannot Remain Silent
June 2, 2020
It sickened me yesterday to see security personnel — including members of the National Guard — forcibly and violently clear a path through Lafayette Square to accommodate the president’s visit outside St. John’s Church.  I have to date been reticent to speak out on issues surrounding President Trump’s leadership, but we are at an inflection point, and the events of the past few weeks have made it impossible to remain silent.
Whatever Trump’s goal in conducting his visit, he laid bare his disdain for the rights of peaceful protest in this country, gave succor to the leaders of other countries who take comfort in our domestic strife, and risked further politicizing the men and women of our armed forces.
There was little good in the stunt.
While no one should ever condone the violence, vandalism, and looting that has exploded across our city streets, neither should anyone lose sight of the larger and deeper concerns about institutional racism that have ignited this rage.
As a white man, I cannot claim perfect understanding of the fear and anger that African Americans feel today.  But as someone who has been around for a while, I know enough — and I’ve seen enough — to understand that those feelings are real and that they are all too painfully founded.
We must, as citizens, address head-on the issue of police brutality and sustained injustices against the African American community.  We must, as citizens, support and defend the right — indeed, the solemn obligation — to peacefully assemble and to be heard.  These are not mutually exclusive pursuits.
And neither of these pursuits will be made easier or safer by an overly aggressive use of our military, active duty or National Guard.  The United States has a long and, to be fair, sometimes troubled history of using the armed forces to enforce domestic laws.  The issue for us today is not whether this authority exists, but whether it will be wisely administered.
I remain confident in the professionalism of our men and women in uniform.  They will serve with skill and with compassion.  They will obey lawful orders.  But I am less confident in the soundness of the orders they will be given by this commander in chief, and I am not convinced that the conditions on our streets, as bad as they are, have risen to the level that justifies a heavy reliance on military troops.  Certainly, we have not crossed the threshold that would make it appropriate to invoke the provisions of the Insurrection Act.
Furthermore, I am deeply worried that as they execute their orders, the members of our military will be co-opted for political purposes.
Even in the midst of the carnage we are witnessing, we must endeavor to see American cities and towns as our homes and our neighborhoods.  They are not “battle spaces” to be dominated, and must never become so.
We must ensure that African Americans — indeed, all Americans — are given the same rights under the Constitution, the same justice under the law, and the same consideration we give to members of our own family.  Our fellow citizens are not the enemy, and must never become so.
Too many foreign and domestic policy choices have become militarized; too many military missions have become politicized.
This is not the time for stunts.  This is the time for leadership.
The above is an opinion piece appearing in:  “The Atlantic“
The original can be found on-line at:  https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/06/american-cities-are-not-battlespaces/612553/
The editorial was written by:  Mike Mullen
Mr. Mullen is a retired admiral from the U.S. Navy and was the 17th chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
[The above editorial is the opinion of Adm. Mullen (Ret.) and the property of “The Atlantic“.  No claim of ownership is implied or intended by me.  Please subscribe to and support a REAL news site if you are financially able to do so.  —  KMAB]
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On This Day In:
2019	Right Or Wrong
2018	Open Doors
2017	When It Deserves It
2016	Expiation For Rest
2015	You’ll Get Through It
2014	A Special Kind Of Fall
2013	Very Rewarding
2012	MIB3 – The Team Is Closer Than Ever
	Yet
2011	Little By Little

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Time To Defend The Constitution (Part I)

In Union There Is Strength
I have watched this week’s unfolding events, angry and appalled.  The words “Equal Justice Under Law” are carved in the pediment of the United States Supreme Court.  This is precisely what protesters are rightly demanding.  It is a wholesome and unifying demand — one that all of us should be able to get behind.  We must not be distracted by a small number of lawbreakers.  The protests are defined by tens of thousands of people of conscience who are insisting that we live up to our values — our values as people and our values as a nation.
When I joined the military, some 50 years ago, I swore an oath to support and defend the Constitution.  Never did I dream that troops taking that same oath would be ordered under any circumstance to violate the Constitutional rights of their fellow citizens — much less to provide a bizarre photo op for the elected commander-in-chief, with military leadership standing alongside.
We must reject any thinking of our cities as a “battlespace” that our uniformed military is called upon to “dominate.”  At home, we should use our military only when requested to do so, on very rare occasions, by state governors.  Militarizing our response, as we witnessed in Washington, D.C., sets up a conflict — a false conflict— between the military and civilian society.  It erodes the moral ground that ensures a trusted bond between men and women in uniform and the society they are sworn to protect, and of which they themselves are a part.
Keeping public order rests with civilian state and local leaders who best understand their communities and are answerable to them.
James Madison wrote in Federalist 14 that “America united with a handful of troops, or without a single soldier, exhibits a more forbidding posture to foreign ambition than America disunited, with a hundred thousand veterans ready for combat.”  We do not need to militarize our response to protests.  We need to unite around a common purpose.  And it starts by guaranteeing that all of us are equal before the law.
Instructions given by the military departments to our troops before the Normandy invasion reminded soldiers that “The Nazi slogan for destroying us…was ‘Divide and Conquer.’  Our American answer is ‘In Union there is Strength.'”  We must summon that unity to surmount this crisis — confident that we are better than our politics.
Donald Trump is the first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American people — does not even pretend to try.  Instead he tries to divide us.  We are witnessing the consequences of three years of this deliberate effort.  We are witnessing the consequences of three years without mature leadership.  We can unite without him, drawing on the strengths inherent in our civil society.  This will not be easy, as the past few days have shown, but we owe it to our fellow citizens; to past generations that bled to defend our promise; and to our children.
We can come through this trying time stronger, and with a renewed sense of purpose and respect for one another.  The pandemic has shown us that it is not only our troops who are willing to offer the ultimate sacrifice for the safety of the community.  Americans in hospitals, grocery stores, post offices, and elsewhere have put their lives on the line in order to serve their fellow citizens and their country.  We know that we are better than the abuse of executive authority that we witnessed in Lafayette Square.  We must reject and hold accountable those in office who would make a mockery of our Constitution.  At the same time, we must remember Lincoln’s “better angels,” and listen to them, as we work to unite.
Only by adopting a new path — which means, in truth, returning to the original path of our founding ideals — will we again be a country admired and respected at home and abroad.
James Mattis
[James Mattis is a retired general who served in the United States Marine Corps.  He also served under President Trump as Secretary of Defense.  Gen. Mattis resigned his position after a disagreement with President Trump about the treatment / support of our Kurdish allies in Syria.
This statement will be appearing in an upcoming issue of “The Atlantic” and appears (in full) in multiple locations on the internet including here:  https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2020/06/james-mattis-denounces-trump-protests-militarization/612640/ .  Note: the link is to an article about the General’s statement.  The article also includes the entire statement.
No claim of ownership is implied or intended by my posting on this site.  Please support legitimate news site if you are financially able to do so.  —  KMAB]
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On This Day In:
2019	Right Or Wrong
2018	Open Doors
2017	When It Deserves It
2016	Expiation For Rest
2015	You’ll Get Through It
2014	A Special Kind Of Fall
2013	Very Rewarding
2012	MIB3 – The Team Is Closer Than Ever
	Yet
2011	Little By Little

 

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Weaker, Sicker And Poorer

Mourning In America
You can fool all the people some of the time and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time.
—  President Abraham Lincoln
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On This Day In:
2019	Don’t Be Small
2018	Persistence
2017	Are You A Loser?
2016	Constitution And Conscience
2015	Separate, Fearful And Imprisoned
2014	Something Worth Making
2013	Absolutely
2012	Can Do
2011	Wise Criticism

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Let’s Make It So

Unless you believe that the future can be better, you are unlikely to step up and take responsibility for making it so.
—  Noam Chomsky
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On This Day In:
2019	Today’s Question
2018	A Moment Of Union
2016	Symptoms
2016	Tossers
2015	Hunger
2014	Outside Dependence
2013	Doing Right
2012	A Short Course In Human Relations
	If Death Be My Future
	Strive
	Such A Fool
2011	I’m Working For A Living

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#IncompetentDonald Manages Like A Virus

So much of what we call management consists in making it difficult for people to work.
—  Peter Drucker
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On This Day In:
2019	Of Course, You Still Have To Listen
2018	Coming Home
2017	It’s Just Around The Bend
2016	In What Direction?
2015	Embarrassing Myself Again
2014	I’ve Never Have Had
2013	Glory Days (part 1)
2012	Feeling Old?
2011	Even When I Wish Really, Really Hard
	Skeptical Fathers
	Cha-cha-cha-changes

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Where #45 Is Leading The Republican Party

After all, the wrong road always leads somewhere.
―  George Bernard Shaw
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On This Day In:
2019	Your Own Blog Posts
	The Man With A Code
2018	Choose Goodness
2017	Developing Translations
2016	Think Like A Hero
2015	Reductionism
2014	Gravitation, n.
2013	Ups And Downs
2012	Nerd Heard – And Good-Bye
	Your Continuum
2011	Career Tips (Part 2)

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Can We At Least Set The Bar Higher Than An Incompetent Liar In The Oval Office?

No institution can possibly survive if it needs geniuses or supermen to manage it.  It must be organized in such a way as to be able to get along under a leadership composed of average human beings.
—  Peter Drucker
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On This Day In:
2019	Uncertain Times
	And Government Shutdowns, Too
2018	Satisfied
2017	In The Mind
2016	Dreaming
2015	The Best Medicine Is Also Contagious
2014	Eyes Off
2013	The More Things Change…
2012	The Delicate Moment Of Giving
2011	Ready, Shoot, Aim!!

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Fearless Security

Our development assistance to other countries is not a bargaining chip, it is an investment in our long-term security.  Showing leadership and working with other countries is a measure of strength, not a sign of weakness.
…
We all want our borders to be secure and our laws to be upheld, but it is not true that we face a choice between security and our humanity: between sealing our country off and turning our back to the world on the one hand, or having open borders on the other.  The best way of protecting our security is by upholding our values and addressing the roots of this crisis.  We can be fearless, generous and open-minded in seeking solutions.
—  Angelina Jolie
From her Editorial / Essay:  “The border crisis needs humanity, not fear“
Appearing in: Time Magazine, dtd: 26 August 2019
The essay can also be found at Time’s site:  https://time.com/5640012/angelina-jolie-border-crisis/
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On This Day In:
2019	I Prefer A Neat Single Malt
2018	Seeking Finer Fruits
2017	Something That Is Absolute
2016	Animate And Encourage
	Out Of Time
2015	In Time
2014	Robust Interconnectivity
2013	What Have We Here?
2012	Tributaries And Eddies
	An Honest Politician
2011	Penultimate

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More Proof #45 Is Incompetent?

Nothing so conclusively proves a man’s ability to lead others as what he does from day to day to lead himself.
—  Thomas J. Watson
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On This Day In:
2018	Every Time I Think I’m Falling
2017	Still Testing The Hypothesis
2016	Excessive Weakness In January
2015	That Burns
2014	Hey, I Resemble That Remark… (4!)
2013	Sit, Put, Until…
2012	Lessons For My Son
2011	Reaching The Right Audience
2010	Christmas Trees and Profession of Faith

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Many Forms

Leaders come in many forms, with many styles and diverse qualities.  There are quiet leaders and leaders one can hear in the next county.  Some find strength in eloquence, some in judgment, some in courage.
–  John W. Gardner
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On This Day In:
2018	Serenity Prayer
2017	But The Clock Says It’s Already Two Minutes 30 Seconds to Midnight
2016	Towards No Regret
2015	109 And Beyond
2014	Are You Waiting?
2013	Traditional Human Sacrifice
2012	A Division Of Men
2011	Miles, Legends and Superwoman
	Got Tragedy?
2010	My Company For A Prince!!
	On The Shoulders Of Titans

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I Think Impeachment Is Another Test #45 Has Already Failed

One of the tests of leadership is the ability to recognize a problem before it becomes an emergency.
—  Arnold H. Glasow
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On This Day In:
2018	Second Chances – Rice, Now Trees
	And Then You Have To Start Training Again
2017	Small Hands, Small Grasp
2016	Two Murrow’s
	Election + 1 Week
2015	Not Mine, Anyway
2015	South By South East
2013	Don’tcha
2012	I Hear A Distant Thunder
2011	A Poison Tree

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