Dogs and Cats*

Dogs believe we love them, feed them, provide them shelter and pet them because we are gods. Cats think we do it because we believe they are gods.

Wanting Anger*

I started tracking visits to my blog about a month ago. I noticed that almost all the keyword searches that bring visitors to my site are for “angry quotes.” I’m still scratching my head trying to figure out exactly why people are doing that search. Angry Quotes Post

Appliance Rebate*

My mom offered to buy us a new refrigerator for Christmas. Since we’re just getting around to looking for one she wanted us to look at the appliance rebate being offered as part of the federal economic stimulus package. In Minnesota you have to call to apply for one of the twenty five thousand rebates available beginning March 1. Since there are about 2.2 million households in Minnesota I’m not holding my breath.

The Death of a Child*

Nodar Kumaritashvili, a 21 year old Georgian athlete, died in a practice run on the luge track before the opening ceremonies of the winter Olympic games. News reports that show the grief of his parents remind us that there is no greater suffering than a parent who has lost a child.

Lincoln's Character*

"The great predominating elements of Mr. Lincoln’s peculiar character were: first, his great capacity and power of reason; second, his conscience and his excellent understanding; third, an exalted idea of the sense of right and equity; fourth, his intense veneration of the true and the good.”
An excerpt from Herndon’s Lincoln, 1889

Distances and Differences*

I have had a number of conversations with people lately that illustrate the reality that communications technology has reduced the distance between people in different parts of the world but not the cultural differences. That’s going to take longer than it took to develop the technology.

Peter Said*

"In a hierarchy every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence."
From “The Peter Principle” published 1969

“In a technology driven culture every new device tends to gain capability to its level of unreliability.”
From everyone who owns a cell phone or computer