Whittle Your Middle

With England today beginning to address its uncertain economic future, it may be worth exploring the takeaway lessons we can apply in revamping our own US economy.

As the European Union faces ghastly unemployment and bankruptcy in some of its member countries, it will likely look to Britain to help make good on its promises of widespread prosperity by asking it to chip in for the burden of bailouts. In seeking to maintain its sovereignty, however, Britain seems poised to strengthen its alliance with the only other world power who could give it leverage against the EU - its rebellious offspring, the United States.

I found this article by George Friedman very insightful in informing a discussion we will need to have if we are to avoid a crisis such as that in Europe. Friedman points out that the US economy of the past 50 years has resulted in a split personality that, if left to its own devices, will end in political and social upheaval. We may in fact not recognize what is left as America (perhaps leaving us in an uncomfortably symbiotic relationship with our ancestor across the Atlantic). 

 In an enlightening view on how restructuring corporate America and the transformation of the "traditional" family led to the decline of our Middle Class - and a crumbling foundation under the American identity:

"The greatest danger is one that will not be faced for decades but that is lurking out there. The United States was built on the assumption that a rising tide lifts all ships. That has not been the case for the past generation, and there is no indication that this socioeconomic reality will change any time soon. That means that a core assumption is at risk. The problem is that social stability has been built around this assumption -- not on the assumption that everyone is owed a living, but the assumption that on the whole, all benefit from growing productivity and efficiency.

...The left cannot be indifferent to the historical consequences of extreme redistribution of wealth. The right cannot be indifferent to the political consequences of a middle-class life undermined, nor can it be indifferent to half the population's inability to buy the products and services that businesses sell."

For a guy who consistently assures his readers that the United States faces no real political threat, Friedman seems to have changed his tune. If he's become convinced it's time to address that possibility, I'm inclined to give credence to the necessity for creative problem-solving to happen NOW.

So... who's with me?  (Coffee's on. I can do this all night)

"The United Kingdom Moves Away from the European Project is republished with permission of Stratfor."

"The Crisis of the Middle Class and American Power is republished with permission of Stratfor."

Season of the Which

Lately, with the ground too hard to work outside and an injury landing me indoors with neighbors for a bit, I've been engaged in discussions and interactions with people I would normally shy away from. Most of the folks in my immediate world are a good twenty-to-thirty years older than I am, and they're financially stable. They've had varying degrees of success, but they've all had a wealth of experiences, and now they've got options. Work's drying up a bit. It's got me thinking about my own options... and even a bit excited about creating a little stability for myself.

The Road Show

So that thing about "yielding to life" I mentioned in my last post... well, let's just call it a well-timed lesson learned.

The sandstorm that came through in my last post was stronger than I thought. As soon as I'd picked up my shovel to set down roots, the winds changed and picked me up instead. I closed my eyes to this...

 

...and opened them up to this:

 Oz, minus the shorties.

Going with It.

Finally. The fat-encrusted sky finally turns from dirt to drizzle at 11pm.

Sunrise promised gentle conditions for the encyclopedic list of work I hoped to set in motion around the yard.

(Oh yeah - I now have a yard. You can't hold me, son.)

Queue bird-chirping and flute music.

After puppies were fed, mama had her coffee, and seed starts had their drinks of water, the sun somehow still hadn't made an appearance. After a trip to the hardware store, and yet more coffee... still no sun. About the time I was gathering string and shovel to head to the wheel barrow and start excavating 400 square feet of garden, in it came. The Wind. A miles-wide cloud of dirt not yet root-bound to the ground was raptured toward the heavens, where it caught a 60mph straight-line gust straight to my face.

(Aforementioned fat-encrusted sky obliterating view of previously sunrise-lit mountains. Boooo.)

Happy Trails, Houdini.

I hope you find the peace you're seeking, dear girl.

How far can you go on a tank of Swagger?

There's got to be something under this thick, crusty skin... besides chicken. We Texans are a people stewed in contradiction, both reckless and traditional.

My friend calls it "swagger"... and not of the Jay-Z brand. We pull ourselves up by our bootstraps and raise our young'uns right. A true Texan is rowdy, rough, and knows how to rock a porch swing. And pride? You'd never beat it out of us.

Neither friend nor foe will take our state's rights - not without a fight. No, if the two years' minimum state history courses in primary, junior, and senior high schools have taught us anything, it's to say to those who directly challenge our freedom: "Come and take it."

Have we forgotten what we’re made of? In the past, we have learned how to make the land (and, sadly, our fellow man) work for us. Oil has been a doting mistress. She's brought us company and comfort, and even in hard times, she stuck with us.

It was good - real good - while it lasted. But the writing is on the wall, and she's packing her bags. How will we react to life without her? Does the unsinkable Texan turn to the Man solve his problems for him? Or does he grab some self-respect and try to confront a new frontier?