John Cooper: Why can’t everyone read shakesphere?

Mustapha Mond:    Anyone can, but why would they want to?  It wouldn’t mean anything too them. Our world isn’t shakesphere’s you know.  Great tragedy, all great art really grows out of passion, conflict, social instability, we don’t have any of that anymore. People are happy.

John Cooper: Happy at what cost?

Mustapha Mond:    The cost of art, religion, philosophy, love, science…

Bernard Marx:    Science?  But we’ve been condition to believe that science is everything.

Mustapha Mond:    Not true science, just technology that serves the public order.  Increase consumption… Prevent dissatisfaction.   You know, I was a pretty fair chemist when I was young.  And I developed an interest in pure research.  Well, I was very nearly re-engineered for it.  I was a lot like you bernard. I loved science, but I had a choice to make. I choose to sacrifice that.  To serve the public happiness and not my own.

John Cooper: So truth is another price you pay.

Mustapha Mond:    Truth…  There was plenty of truth and beauty before the wars, while men were devising insane new ways to destroy each other, it was horrible.  But then most historical facts are unplesant aren’t they.

Bernard Marx:    Then what about John, sir?

Mustapha Mond:    Nothing.  John is the exeception that proves the rule.  He proves that our system is so stable, that we can even tolerate a savage in our mist.  If he were banished, or re-engineered, some people might ask “are we missing something?”  No… in this Brave New World we can all have what ever we like, and personally I like him.

On a day where we all get to exercise one of the most distinguished rights we have as citizen of the US, it’s fitting to note another of our rights as citizens and more importantly how it can succeed. Bureaucrats and Politicians do listen to their constituents, especially if they are well timed, knowledgeable, and reasonable.

I thought you might like to see my response from Salazar, which although no doubt a form letter, it was well tailored to the message we were writing.

Dear Richard:

Thank you for contacting me regarding the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) proposal of Intercarrier Compensation and Universal Service Program Reform. I appreciate hearing from you.

The FCC has long been working to address the issue of nondiscriminatory intercarrier compensation between telephone service providers. Because most calls travel over multiple telephone networks, and because callers pay only for the service to which they subscribe, intercarrier compensation has been used to reimburse other network providers involved. For many years, such payments have varied widely, depending on whether the carriers were a local, long distance, or wireless carrier, or an information service provider. The payments also depend on the type of service provided.

Many feel that the current compensation system fails to recognize the convergence of markets using digital technologies and misrepresents the real costs involved. They argue that the current system is haphazard and inhibits competition, innovation, and universal service.

Nevertheless, I certainly understand how the proposed changes have the potential to adversely affect smaller rural mobile phone carriers that generate a larger portion of their revenues from intercarrier access charges. These smaller businesses could not only be forced to raise rates to subscribers in rural areas, but risk being unable to compete in the new market. It is my hope that an effective intercarrier compensation reform package will include another revenue source for smaller carriers to make up any possible losses.

As you may know, the five-member FCC voting panel will address this issue at a public meeting on November 4, 2008. Although the FCC’s final proposal is still subject to much debate and negotiation, rest assured I will be following these events closely to ensure the viability of Colorado small businesses and to protect rural subscribers from unfair price increases.

Again, thank you for contacting me.

Sincerely,

Ken Salazar
United States Senator

Also worth reading is the FCC’s deletion of the Intercarrier Compensation adgenda item from the Nov 4th adgenda.

What you ask is the intercarrier compensation level?  This is the rate that your local telecom pays another telecom when you call from say San Diego to Schenectady.  They have to connect your phone line to your friend via several lines in sequence to get it there, and no suprise, they charge for those connections. The big players have networks that are large enough that they don’t depend on other providers to get all their out of state calls through.  (If you call from Denver to Minneapolis, it’s all one network to them)  But a rural or small wireless telecom depends on the large carriers to make sure your call get’s through, and the intercarrier compensation is the rate they pay to make it happen.

According to the NARUC there have been lots of arguments about this intercarrier rate for years, but they haven’t come up with a consensus plan.  This rate change has just shown up out of the blue.  If you have a min, it’s worth urging your senator (or your soon to be senator), that FCC Docket 01-92 needs Public comment.  This is the link to a listing of senators:

http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm

What I can’t figure out is where this proposal came from.  Why then did the FCC all of a sudden decide this was a good idea?  Did a lobbyist push for it?  Do they think they can slide it in with the presidential election making most of the press?  Questions that puzzle me.

Of course I tend to take a more long term view on things, with the markets oscillating wildly, I’m ignoring them as the Dow isn’t a good indicator of economic vitality (or credit liquidity), and rather I’m just trying to stay on course in my own life and maintain assurance that things are incrementally getting better. I do realize we are going to get some more regulation with a new president, and that we are likely to see a development of better oversight, but this is a systemic problem that needs compressive understanding before comprehensive change can be applied.  Not to mention that neither candidate will bring the systemic change that we need to our federal government.  (i.e. Whomever side you support, don’t get complacent!)

As I look back at it, I am beginning to think the whole bailout was a mistake and that the House was right the first time they got the bailout.

In the end though, to make things better we still need to continue on education on the personal level, of ourselves, of our peers, and especially of our children.  The world we live in is not sustainable the way it is, and those who believe otherwise are in for shocks like this financial crisis when the dirt under the rug begins to burst.  I’ll keep doing my job of making technology work against the military industrial complex, you keep asking questions, writing your congressmen, and especially Voting, and we’ll likely make the world more sustainable before crisis management becomes the norm.

This RSS Feed is an audio podcast of my blog, converted via text-to-speech software.  If you have an iPod or similar device that you want and would rather listen to my post rather then read them, well now you have the option.

It’s still a bit clunky, but I’ve been using the text-to-speech engines for years and for someone who often needs to listen rather then read, it’s entirely doable.

If you need it for day to day options, I highly recommend Next Up TextAloud.  It will do the same as Talkr, with more options on speed, voices, etc.

I have however had to make some changes.  Today, I’m at the office, where I study most effectively, but realizing that going to a party to visit friends not seen for a long time effectively killed my ability to focus and think today.  I’m taking the opportunity to chime in on my blog before I head home to rest and try and attempt to pre-read something useful.

Leaf by leaf, my social life seems to be preparing to hibernate.  I’m cleansing my room of distractions as I can.  Rolling up or shifting my computer based hobbies as best I can.  Staying away from beer and alcohol so I can remain focused and stable.  Re-regulating my sleep cycle to be as restful as possible, and hopefully changing my circadian rhythm.  All of this doesn’t allow much for a social life outside of work.  I may go crazy, but I’m hoping I can put mini brain vacations in there.

We’ll have to see how effective I am.  I already know that my method of learning is not the most efficient thing in the world, but given a more mature outlook, using SuperMemo, and being careful about my times of Flow I think I have a better chance of success then I’ve ever had before.  Assuming of course I can put up with dumb teachers who believe in Pseudo-Scientific BS like the MBTI.  (It’s a valid concept, just poorly implemented.)

Gotta remember, “Say what the teacher wants to hear” and focus my rage at ignorance and stupidity  (including my own) on making incremental changes that will add up…and probably venting in journal entries or to family/friends.  (Many apologies!)

I don’t want to chime in and say much about this, beyond reminding people of two things.

A. Over the history of the Stock Market, the value it trades has only gone up.  The take away on this is to leave your money in the market even if it’s at an all time low or worse then it was when you bought it.  It’s counter intuitive, but if you do you research in the first place and diversify your holdings, then you are going to make money so long as you do it over the long term. (I admit that a historical truth is not proof that it will last, but at least indicative of a pattern worth noting.)

B. What’s happening here is a design issue.  As much as I believe Obama is likely to be better for humanity (specifically Americans) given he will bring more change then McCain, neither has shown much in the way of real willingness to put forth the radical change that is necessary.  To quote a line from the NY times, “what’s going on is something we are all familiar with: denial.”  The catch is that this is not just denial of the marketplace, but a denial of the state of the world, aka reality.

You can’t fix this problem just by regulation alone, nor will deregulating more of the market fix it.  It’s a design issue that starts with a basic ability of people to be well informed by asking question and knowing how to get real answers.

Don’t get me wrong, this is a situation that we need to deal with in the short term as well as the long term, but you don’t get rid of the mice by closing the door and setting a few traps, you get rid of the mice by learning how mice work and adapting to them (as well as accepting them).

(Ben is getting union’ed in UK and left us saturday, he’s the one in the back middle of the picture.)

Originally uploaded by lmoore1118

Finding Forester is of course a tale of an inner city black kid making it in the world through the merit of his genius interwoven in a coming of age story. I love the telling of a tale in what feel like an untouched and unforced way, unlike many of the blockbusters to day, Finding Forester enchanted you from the first moment the music came on. And yet…

I now realize that as much as I love this movie, and the tones of an underdog that wins–which as an American I can’t help but feel an pride about–as well as the beautiful synthesis of cinematography, music, dialog, the character that new york city plays, and of course the brilliant acting, I cannot help but believe it’s part of a lie that we perpetrate against ourselves.

We don’t live in a meritocracy. As much as we as Americans love the underdog and would love to wholeheartedly believe that we live in a place where the cream rises to the top, it’s not true. I have been unsettled by ideas surrounding this for quite a time, as I knew that the poor were staying poor, more were sliding into being poorer and being less content (real wages have been continuing to drop), of course the rich still get richer. I knew also that we have in place a system of structural violence that perpetuates the poverty that exists in the country (and elsewhere), as well as politicians come from specific niches, that healthcare is more statistically likely for someone in a middle class family because of education levels and jobs, that we live in a country that hasn’t resolved it’s racist history, that violence is the last act of a desperate person and generally not random, that feelings of fear of violence and crime in the US is ethnically, sexually, and racially charged in an inaccurate way as compared to real statistics, etc. In essence I knew much of the background to the argument, but it took Loewen to point out the conclusion.

Now that I know that we don’t live in a meritocracy, I feel stunned that it isn’t more obvious. I won’t go so far as to say that merit won’t get you somewhere, but I will admit to fully believing that a majority of my life from a statistical point of view could be predicted by my social class and demographics then by the merit of my brains and work alone. What’s more, I feel more betrayed then ever and am more determined then ever to improve this situation. This is ludicrous and outrageous that we could be so blind as to be continue the myth, under the pretense of patriotic pride and belief that our political and military hegemony would not be so callous.

Here, though is where my time in Washington changed me. I know it’s not the government nor a conspiracy and as much as I like to blame business for it, it’s not them either, rather it’s the one thing that we disbelieve the most. It’s a conflagration of history, ideas, technology, and human development what brought us to where we are at in an incremental and evolutionary way. It would be easier to blame someone, but although I still am angry, I’m tired of anger and more interesting in action and resolution. Humanity has a huge number of issues that we face, and this lack of a meritocracy is certainly one that Americans must face and resolve soon, and it’s possible. As much as it seems as if we are sisyphus rolling a rock up a hill only to have it fall down again, we are making progress. History, in it’s beautiful way, shows us this. American has shucked off slavery, we are becoming aware of our environment and cities have seen a dramatic fall in pollution levels, rivers have return to being usable, the standard of living for the world–including africa–has dramatically increased, infant mortality has improved, etc., etc. Lots is left to be done, but each rock moved is progress and makes us stronger.

The one thing that this idea didn’t change was my belief in the idea that hope lies in our next generation. More then anything else, we need to instill in them two basic thought processes. The will to ask questions and the will to find the answers. What this idea did change, is who this is most important for. Rather then just the tired, poor, and weak, this idea is most important for those in a class who can have some impact on the structure that we live in. I recently asked a question on metafilter.com, “What tools for social and political change exist?” and came back with a wonderful list of result from the world, both showing the true power of the technological revolution we live in as well as inspiring us to realize how many ways we can really push that rock.

Yet I’m lucky, to have grown up in America with a middle class family that is white and affluent enough to be well educated and get good health care.  By dint of my birth I was born into a a family that was able to provide a loving house hold.  from womb to tomb, to borrow a phrase from James Lowen, the social class I was born into, predicted the likelhood I was going to make money and live a long and healthy life.

Over the last 6 weeks I’ve read 3 novels, 2 travel tales, 2 US history books, an semi-fictional autobiography (describing childhood as a superhero), a biography, a book on management, plus two others that I started and either hated or have since put down.  Additionally I’m in the misted of another history book as well as what might be called a social history.  I of course don’t imagine I’ll remember it all, given 9 of the 13 just mentioned were audiobooks and many were just for fun, meaning I wasn’t taking to many notes.  I’ll likely replay some in between thing as I tend to repeat audiobooks regularly.  It’s amazing how reading more makes you realizes you know less, and yet feel empowered.    But why do you ask did I just brag about how many books I just managed to read?

Because I just managed to take a month off in Cyprus and sit on the beach for many days with my girlfriend and other new friends…which costs money.  There’s a research doing study that seems to indicates that if your mindset is that you are born with talent then you are likely to fulfill your goal, where as if you think talent is developed you’ll push and grow outside of any boxes you might be fit into.  I have been unboxed for a good portion of my life, school didn’t work for me so I had to make my own way, and I’ve always been a curious fellow that digs into things (but I still have some areas of a boxed mindset).  Yes because of my social class, because of what that class provided in terms of health, education, context of social cues, I have been able to make my own way in life and I can save the money and afford to make mistakes in credit, in education, in work, and in a personal life that I can recover from and use the unboxed mindset I have to “pull myself up by my bootstraps.”

Someone recently has been talking about how a huge percentage of Americans are one accident away from disaster, aka poverty.  A single Car crash, to sickness, to layoff, to whatever.  I know that I’m likely to be able to avoid or absorbed this sort of an accident and I’m thankful, but I feel a responsibility to help change this structure and improve the human condition.  It is of course telling to me that Jay Leno and others love to point out how ignorant most of America is, and how unlikely those who are being questioned are to realize how social class, history, geography, and politics has shaped our lives.  As much as we in American believe that we are ‘the freeist nation in the world where anyone can make good,’ I know that I am a product of background as much as anyone, and because of this, I’m more free then someone with a different social class background to be a callous, materialistic, shallow, human bent on shaping my packet of chaos into my own sense of order, or be entirely the opposite.  Needless to say I’m continue to try and be the opposite.

I used to be indignant, bitter, and frustrated by how ignorant Americans are.  I used to blame the government for our problems.  But I now believe that some of this has happened by our human designs.  I’m worried by this, but hopeful.  Being in DC has taught me that one man can make a difference, but you have to unbox your mindset, be willing to challenge your norms, find a goal, be persistent for years (or a lifetime), then remain sane by stepping out (and letting go of that responsibility for a while) when you can.  Perhaps that’s just my strategy.  There’s an added piece to this as I feel my responsibility is compounded by the freedom I have to be economically unboxed as well as the situation we find the world in (water crisis, economic inequalities, countless environmental issues, Malthusian questions, culture wars, etc.).

The only way I see this having a long term impact on society is to prepare the next generation and encourage them to use the knowledge of our past to change their future, not by hiding the past from them, but by having them ask the questions and search for the answers.  As we teach them to question, we need to listen to them more then we talk, for it is the child’s mind, not yet hardwired, that is most likely to provide the world the fresh insight that we need to change our path.

Perhaps this is just a bit unintelligible, but I wanted to give people some hint of what’s been going on inside my head lately.

Oh and just in case anyone was wondering what I’ve been reading:
Audio:
Ender’s Shadow
Shadow of a Giant
Shadow of the Hedgemon
Lost Continent
Notes from a small island
Made in America
A People’s History of the US
The Thunderbolt Kid

Hardback/paperback:
Peopleware
Mountains Beyond Mountains

Started reading:
Journey to Cyprus
The Relationship Cure
Seeing Like a State