Post Office Decline

I know I hate new technology too much but much of it is mindless, anti intellectual and destructive. Well, the latest assault, indirect though it may be, on the good old, by the awful new, is the threat to the time honored national Post Office. Electronic communication is killing the Post Office as more people shift to the informal method of electronic communication or the faster business communication e mail, offers. The U.S Post Office continues to lose billions of dollars because of bloated labor contracts that it must pay for it's huge work staff for and the continual decrease in people paying for traditional post office services.

I still use the post office for most communication, but finding one to go to now is getting harder as more and more are closed by the Post Office in an attempt to operate more efficiently. And now the Post Office has announced that it is going to move quickly to close 252 of the 461 current mail processing centers, and that it will slow first-class delivery next spring. The Post Office cites steadily declining mail volume (volume of first class mail in 2020 is expected to be only one half of what it was in 2000). This means there will be less timely delivery of mail and, hence, more people likely to stop using what has become a "slow" service when compared to the electronic counterparts. Average delivery time for delivery of a letter within the country will increase by one or two days after the processing centers are closed.

The cuts are part of $3 billion in reductions aimed at helping the Post Office avert bankruptcy next year. It would virtually eliminate the chance for stamped letters to arrive the next day, a change in first-class delivery standards that people won't like. Everyday users of first-class mail will see delays of one or two days, including those who pay bills by check, send birthday cards, write letters, or receive prescription drugs or Netflix DVDs by mail. Speed of delivery is very important in this impatient age of humanity. No doubt it will make many turn to electronic mail instead.

A nation can't survive without a postal system, so if this one fails private companies like Fed Ex would pick up some of the services (those from which it can make money). Yet, I wonder if the long lost art of letter writing and sending by post would disappear forever. It makes me shudder to think that intelligent, thoughtful letters would disappear in favor of the LOL mentality of texting or the grammar and usage from Hell that we experience in many E mails we receive. I think the world will be a much less pleasant place without the option of a postal delivery system.

Too, there is a unique social value of post offices in the sheer diversity and range of services provided that distinguishes them from other (private) retailers. The Post Office is also highly valued and trusted compared to other retailers in disadvantaged communities (rural areas cut off from modernity). I wrote "trusted" here, as in would you trust the post office more or less than FED Ex? I see the post office like the old barber shop, the corner bakery, the Town center and other time worn institutions that make life a little simpler and more pleasant. Budgets and operating efficiency are important today, but the Post Office is like our baby. It needs our attention and love at all costs.

Christmas Trees

There is no shortage of Christmas trees here in Oregon. I see them everywhere, live ones growing all year round, including right outside my window in the room where my desktop computer sits. And since it's December, Christmas trees are popping up all over... in malls, big-box stores, nurseries and previously empty lots. They are inexpensive too, since they are so common here. Oregon is the nation's leader in Christmas tree production (the popular fir variety), harvesting and sales. We bought our Christmas tree this year that was cut a couple of days before we purchased it at an Christmas tree farm near my house.

I like Christmas trees, and evidently so do many others because the Christmas tree has been displayed in homes or town squares since sometime in the 15th century. There is something about a Christmas tree that is endearing and that jogs the memory to pleasant times. Every adult has Christmas tree memories from childhood that bring comfort at thought of them. I have quite a few of those, from my own childhood and from when Jane was small and I relieved Christmas a a child though her.

One benefit of having a Christmas tree is that kids look forward to picking out the tree. There's an excitement about going out to get a suitable tree for the house each year and it's not always a predictable a task. I remember one year when I was small that my mom decided to get one of those old style aluminum artificial trees that came in awful looking bright colors of red, blue, purple etc... This was a "second tree" because w always had to have a fresh cut tree in the living room, decorated in traditional style. The aluminum tree we got became a laughing stock for us and anyone who ventured into the den to see it. It was much like the ugly painting o vase a favored aunt gave to the homeowner, required to be on display but ridiculous in presence.

Thankfully, the aluminum colored assembled tree fad didn't last more than a few years as the current style of artificial trees replaced those and we never had another one of those. Though that tree did give us many chuckles and fond memories for me.

Another good thing about having a Christmas trees is getting it in the stand and decorating it in the house. Decorating with family and friends is a great way to get in the Christmas spirit, and once displayed a pretty Christmas tree can be a relaxing presence for a home. What I have always liked looking at on a Christmas tree are special ornaments. I still have some of my mom's childhood wood made and hand painted ornaments. They create a holiday link to my mother with every glance of them, exploding with stories or her, my dad and brother and I in those long ago lost Christmas moments. I tried to recreate a similar Christmas ornament link for my daughter Jane.

For many years when she was small I bought and had engraved a yearly Christmas ornament that would tell a story of each Christmas of her youth. I think she has no appreciation of this now, but when a parent herself will one day re discover the ornaments and put them on her own tree for her own family.

The Christmas tree is the unifying symbol of Christmas. Those who hate Christmas never have a tree and those who think they are "too old for Christmas" often don't put up one either. But it seems that the most enthusiastic of Christmas celebrators not only have trees up and decorated, but also put in place the earliest. They show their love for Christmas by their care for and enjoyment of their tree. And when Christmas is over and the tree must be disassembled, there is a tint of sadness that it must be removed from the house and carted to disposal. For to remove the tree is to also remove the joy and happiness which it provided at Christmas time

Wife Selling Husband

Things are getting bad out there for husbands. I think women are finally fed up with our inferior male habits because they are taking action toward relieving stresses we men cause. At times like this I am glad I am not a husband. For example, just last week a Pakistani woman was arrested after admitting to cutting up her husband into small pieces, cooking him and serving his body parts in a stew. She claimed that she did it because she feared her husband was interested in molesting their daughter. Now that is acting on anticipation!

Another example of the wife's revolt against a useless husband occurred in Florida. So upset with her husband's addictive video game playing (something called "Modern Warfare 3" was the game of choice for the husband) that after one stretch of 48 consecutive hours of gaming, Alyse Baddley's placed this ad on Craigslist to sell her husband Kyle:

"I am selling my 22 year old husband. He enjoys eating and playing video games all all day. Easy to maintain, just feed and water every 3-5 hours. You must have Internet and space for gaming. Got tired of waiting so free to good home. If acceptable replacement is offered will trade.

Ok, the ad was more of a joke than an actually offer for sale. Husband Kyle's own mom suggested and helped write the ad for Alysee. But behind every joke is some reality, and the reality is that the husband ignored his wife and did nothing but play video games each day (Hmmm maybe we could also sell all the cell phone addicts to each other and restore sanity to the world as a result).

Maybe the husband thought Alysee less appealing than a good video game. But quite a few of the hundreds of responses took the ad seriously. One woman offered to retrain him (is it possible to train men?). Another guy said he was willing to trade spots with Kyle, noting that he was both house trained and preferred books to games. Some advised Alyse to get out and have fun while he played his video games. The most intriguing, if non serious response to the ad was the offer of trade, a blue bag of Skittles in exchange for Kyle.

Kyle days he knows he plays video games too much, needs to curtail it, and that his wife was only joking about selling him. Hmmmmm I wonder, if those two do actually divorce... would she be his "ex-box"?

To Feed Or Not To Feed

We all seem to be getting fatter, but the problem for children who are obese is an even greater. They depend on responsible parents to feed them properly and to monitor their physical condition.. Well, to best explain that idea, take the case of the eight year old boy who lives in Cleveland, Ohio and apparently can't stop moving his knife and fork to his mouth. At age eight he now already weighs about 95 kilos and, as a result, has been taken from his family and placed into foster care after county social workers said his mother wasn't doing enough to control his weight. This is the first case in the U.S. in which state officials put a child in foster care strictly for a weight-related issues.

Doctors have stated to local authorities that the big boy is so obese that he is already at risk for such diseases as diabetes and hypertension. Of course the irresponsible mom has engaged a lawyer to have her son placed back into her negligent care. The lawyer for the mother says that the county overreached when they removed her son from her custody. The lawyer also claims that the medical problems he is at risk for do not yet pose an imminent danger.

So is this a case of the government over-reaching it's authority and denying a parent the right to have custody of her own child. Or is this a case where intervention may be necessary in saving the life of the child. Surely, if the parent wasn't feeding him at all and putting his health at risk that way, she would be charged with neglect. So the same should hold true if she is overfeeding him?

One thing is sure, that single mom is a parent putting her child at risk because she apparently is clue less about the basic method for parenting her child. And it is good to see that the social service department in Ohio is acting when it sees cases in which children are not being parented properly. More times than not, a government agency that is set up to protect the lives and safety of kids is guilty of not over action, but rather, not acting often enough to protect kids from neglectful parents.

So what is the answer to this case? Did the government do the right thing in an attempt to protect that child, or did it interfere in the right of a parent to have custody of her child. Too, might an alternative to removing the child from her care be that the parent retain custody with the stipulation that she attend regular parenting classes and visitations from child welfare personnel to ensure the child is not becoming even fatter?

Memory Lane

I found an interesting web site called 'Memory Lane' and wanted to pass it on to you. It's a nostalgia site from the 1940's through the decade of the 90's, but one does not have to have lived any of the years it chronicles to appreciate the fascinating contents that is either a reminder of the past or an education of it. Here is a link to it. http://www.classmates.com/feature/lifestyle?miscj=MLHeader&tpcCategory=Lifestyle&startYear=1960&endYear=1969

You'll notice it is more of a lifestyle record of the times (which is why the link I gave to you is set on the 'lifestyle tab" of it). Click on any year of interest and check the music, news, videos, TV etc. and I bet it makes you wonder if life has been degraded over the years, even despite the technological and scientific advancements.

One think that is easily recognizable is that there were norms of behavior and ethics them, that right from wrong was more easily ascertained, and that though life was simpler it seemed to be far less chaotic and much less of a struggle. For example, click on any video clip of sporting event in the 40's, 50's or early 60's and you'll be hard pressed to see any fan not dressed well. The men are dressed in suits and tied and women in almost formal dresses, and this is even when the weather outside was blistering hot. There is no evidence of the fat guy in the T shirt, shorts and thongs. It was considered rude, unthinkable in fact, to not dress well when at any event.

On the other hand, the link of the 'Psychedelic Stones on the Lifestyle tab from the mid 60's shows how fashion was starting to become much less informal and illustrates how rock changed even fashion in the 60's. It has been said and I believe with some truth, that life changed forever when President Kennedy was assassinated in 1963. http://www.classmates.com/feature/movie?actionableType=tpc&actionableId=286673&startYear=1960&endYear=1969&tpcCategory=News&startingId=10

That anyone would shoot a resident was considered highly unlikely before that event happened. But afterward, society seemed to break into sub cultures, each with it's own "thing" (as the slang of the time said to "do your own thing").

If any magazine better showed in pictures what life was like in those earlier decades it was the Saturday Evening Post. I randomly selected top look at one old issue because it has a typically beautifully painted cover showing what was still a cultural norm then- the family dressed for and eating dinner together. Click on the magazine link below and look at the ads, the letters, articles etc. I find it far more interesting than glitzy magazines today. I remember my parents subscribed to The Post and many other magazines just so my brother and I would read them. I have many memories of many issues from my early childhood days.
http://www.classmates.com/feature/detail?actionableType=tpc&tpcCategory=Magazine&actionableId=288672&context=tpc/288672&startYear=1950&endYear=1959

Ok, enough of my commentary. I hope you look at the site to see what is old to you or new. It's quite an education in the transformation of society from the slow-paced, low-tech era of civility to today's mess...whatever it is we endure in this age.

Humans Fall Short

I have been thinking too much today.... so....just an observation or two as a result. Humans are fascinating creatures. Our ability to think abstractly makes us both better and worse than other animals that roam the earth. We are better because the intellect we have allows us to create new things, to interpret our environment better and to pick and choose our behaviors. the rest of the animal may be largely driven by instinct but humans are not. And that is the worst part of us well. Other animals can't do that. In fact they struggle each day to stay alive, to achieve everything possible in their lives in order to do that.

Human beings are the only creatures who knowingly choose to be less than they can be, to underachieve in life, to even select to die earlier than they could. Other animals don't do that. instead, the struggle every moment of every day to survive, to live as long as possible. That's why dog and other creatures don't smoke cigarettes or soak their brains in alcohol or bad foods and engage in unhealthy or dangerous lifestyles like humans do.

We don't see fat deer or trees that just stop growing because they decide not to grow any more. We do see more humans than not who are underachieving even wallowing contentedly through life as unfulfilled beings. Only humans commit suicide. Animals never quit trying to maximize their lives. I wonder if our "wasting our lives" is a way of coping with life itself. Maybe the pressures and stresses of trying to constantly compete with each other makes us less willing to try to be the best we can be, a natural defense mechanism for us, Perhaps we dumb down in life because it is our way of surrendering to the competitive games that stress us so.

So we eventually chose to be less than we can be. We stop learning and instead engage in idiotic behaviors like watching stupid reality TV shows or chattering about "nothing" on cell phones all day. We stop working, stop developing, stop contributing to society because we want to do so. Animals can do that. Our more highly developed brains give us the option to destroy our own potentials even our own lives.

The few humans that don't do so are seen as freaks, as people who push themselves too much, and the norm for us is instead is underachieving. It's the torture we inflict on ourselves that seems inescapable and our great curse in life. Yep, humans have the greatest of all struggle in life, the struggle with themselves.

Sexy Eyes Must Be Covered

Those crazy Muslim fundamentalists are at it again, this time in Saudi Arabia. It seems there is too much sex with the eyes in that dreary Islamic paradise, because the Saudi government says it is seriously considering ordering all those sexy eyed Saudi women to cover their eyes. The Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice (Isn't it always true that the longer and more official sounding a organization's name is, the more ridiculous is its function?) says that a lady's eyes are too seductive for the Saudi male to see.

This delusional policy emanates from the Ha'eal district in Saudi Arabia. Sheikh Motlab al-Nabet (those Sheikhs need a physical job to keep their minds occupied and off thoughts of sexy eyes), said in a newspaper account that his religion has the right to order women whose eyes seem "tempting" to shield them immediately. The mad sheikh is guy in charge of seeing that those Medieval Islamic laws are not broken in public...you know, like stoning the person who commits sex outside of marriage, or flogging anyone who disagrees with his local sheik.

According to current Saudi law, the one that slaves everyone there but more women than men, can force women to wear a loose black dress and to cover their hair and, occasionally, their face. Punishment for violators can range from fines to public lashings. So if Mad Motlab says the ladies have to cover their seductive eyes, they must. Apparently, only female eyes are sexy in Saudi Arabia because the same policy does not apply to the men there.

They are serious about their idiocy too. In 2002, fro instance, the committee refused to allow female students out of a burning school in Mecca because they were not wearing correct head cover. Fifteen of the women died as a result. Religious fervor of that sort is to rational people...well... inhuman, if not Saudi religious. But keeping women in Islamic countries as pets,. toys, slaves. objects. anything but as equals, is the real intent of the sheikh mentality that consumes life there.

This type of extremism has absolutely nothing to do with God. Rather, it is proof that religion and believing in God are two different things. But that Saudi culture is the same one that values goats over women. Maybe the problem is not women having sexy ideas with their eyes, but that the men like the sheikh and his followers just have dirty minds. Uh, I better not ask if they make the sexy goats cover their eyes too.