Category: Yellow Flag

Begin to warm up to a warning sign

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INTJ Targeted by Big Brother

Big Brother aka Google fed me the following article in my news feed today:

INTJ Personality: 5 Traits, Strengths, Weaknesses & More

It is not surprising at one level as I tend to at least glance at articles related to science subjects, such as psychology.  I am chalking it up to coincidence that it was an exact hit on my particular Briggs-Meyers personality type.  I have to, otherwise the paranoia will be too much.

Years ago, when I was around 30, I took one of these tests in a more or less medical situation.  I came out INTJ then – only 2% Continue reading “INTJ Targeted by Big Brother”

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Diminishing Trust

Like most Homo sapiens I hold contradictory views, opinions, modus operandi, etc.  One such area is how I regard and behave to others of my species.

In my personal life I have for several decades taken the position that I do not trust anyone until they prove to me they are trustworthy.  Perhaps this is an outcome of working for huge corporations and other large organizations.  There are always folks in these environments that are willing to do about anything to advance their careers.  A few times I have felt their footsteps on my back.  Add to the corporate office politics, the sundry disappointments in my personal relationships, and my base position is that you need to prove to me that I can trust you. And yes I am aware Continue reading “Diminishing Trust”

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Rev. Joe’s Random Thought #5,119

yeah I know you did not ask!

In the middle of a global health crisis, in the middle of a pandemic, we are also having a crisis of leadership…no matter what Fox News and the MAGAs say.

For the most part the leadership in this country at all levels of government are politicians.  A few cities and counties will employ professional managers, but they always report up to a politician.

So  what are the qualifications to become a politician and by default a leader.  Very little.  You have to have an ability to run your mouth, act like you know what the solution is, and perhaps have a little charisma.  I can think of very few other fields of endeavor in our society that require so little of their practitioners.

Then on the other hand I think of the Winston Churchill quote:

‘Many forms of Government have been tried, and will be tried in this world of sin and woe. No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed it has been said that democracy is the worst form of Government except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.…’

But I do think we should be electing folks to lead us that can do more than talk, obfuscate, and line their own pockets.  I am not sure how you would implement some sort of basic screening but there must be a way.  High on my list would a sanity test and a test of empathy.

We deserve better.

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Rev. Joe’s Random Thought #9,087

yeah I know you did not ask!

Everyone has seen this Churchill quote: “Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others.”

But here lately I’ve been wondering if there is not something better. Without an educated, informed populace I don’t know how it is supposed to work or at least work well. It strikes me that people now revel in their ignorance…said the old curmudgeon.

I pray this is the death throes of an old order that is not functional in today’s world.

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Repeal the Second Amendment Bumper Sticker

jesus-gunThe 2nd Amendment is a disaster and should be repealed.  The NRA and gun lobby are doing a huge disservice to our country. IMHO, their actions and positions are immoral.  For the various reasons that I think this way please read:
Hey Ted Nugent…Guns are not toys

I briefly considered making a bumper sticker that read, “Repeal the 2nd Amendment”.

I do not have any doubt that it would be the end of my vehicle, or at least the end of my vehicle looking nice.  The gun “rights” nuts would not respect my right to free speech.

And yes I am an agnostic, but the Jesus that I read about in the New Testament was a socialist and anti-establishmentarian.  The likelihood of Jesus being a Republican matches the likelihood of Ayn Rand voting Democrat.  I personally believe that Jesus would throw the NRA out of Congress along with the money changers aka lobbyist.

So it goes.

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Minimum Wage Over Time

Comparing the value of labor over time is apparently not that straight forward. I was wondering about minimum wage. When I graduated high school in 1970 kennedy-half-dollar(gasp… yes) the minimum wage was $1.60. I dropped out of college after a year, and I went to work in a factory for somewhat more than the minimum wage. After a few months I had raises that put me up to $2.60 an hour which was nearly 60% higher than minimum wage. Even at that astronomical wage, even without a car to support, even with living in basically a slum apartment, I was having a hard time making ends meet. I had to be careful with every penny. I had a crisis back then that wiped out very quickly what little savings I had. I had absolutely no benefits. A medical emergency would have been a financial disaster.

Using data as calculated on the website, Measuring Worth , I came up with the following data:

Current data is only available till 2012. In 2012, the relative worth of $1.60 from 1970 is: Continue reading “Minimum Wage Over Time”

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Amtrak Could and Should Do Better

I think I understand why Amtrak is having business problems.USA-superliner-train-seats

I would love to be able to take a train a lot of places I visit.  First and foremost, there are not passenger trains to many places.  If there is the travel time is much more than it would be by car and the real kicker is that the tickets are more expensive than driving.   At least that has been my experience every time I have checked for an upcoming trip.

We recently returned from a wedding that was held in downtown Chicago.  We took Amtrak from St. Louis to Union Station in Chicago there and back.  The tickets for the two of us ran around $245.  Gas for the trip would have ran from $100 to $150 depending on which vehicle we took and how much additional driving we did.   However overnight parking in downtown Chicago would have cost us at least $60 per day.   To the above figure add $120.  Because we were splitting cabs with other attendees to the wedding, cabs probably ran another $20 or $25 while we were there.   Double that if we had not split.

Our train was due to leave St. Louis Friday morning at 7:55 a.m.   The Texas Eagle was behind schedule.  Continue reading “Amtrak Could and Should Do Better”

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Let Them Eat Cake…said (more or less) Virginia Foxx

Virginia Foxx: Congress Doesn’t Need To Make College Affordable virginia-foxx

Talk about an elitist attitude…if it were not for Pell Grants (from the federal government) and a supportive wife I would never have made it through college. I would have spent my life working in warehouses and factories for not very much money.

And do not get me started on these for profit colleges like Phoenix. There have been multiple studies showing that they fail to prepare students for jobs and are exceeding expensive. If we are to spend tax dollars at these for profit schools, there should be some accountability.

And why I am at it, why have they privatized the student loan program?

Are For-Profit Colleges a Rip-off?

For-Profit Colleges Hemorrhaging Students

For-profit College Graduates Barely Earn More Than High School Graduates

In a different vein
Education Pays

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Insurance Companies: Not Price Fixing, But Just As Bad

Name a product you must have if you own a home. If you said homeowner’s insurance give yourself a pat on the back. Even as a renter it is a wise idea to have renter’s insurance to protect losses from burglary, fire, etc.

greedNow name the one thing you should not do with these policies. If you said make a claim give yourself another pat on the back.

I live with my girlfriend who owns her house outright. She has been with the same insurance company for many, many years. I will not name names as I have come to learn these companies are vindictive. Just as an aside my girlfriend is financially stable, has been employed steadily for the last 25 years as a teacher, and has a good credit rating.

Several years ago due reasons beyond her control there a sewage backup that ruined practically everything on the first floor and the basement of her house. The company graciously took care of everything. Continue reading “Insurance Companies: Not Price Fixing, But Just As Bad”

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American Savings?!?!

From Freakanomics…

50% of Americans say they cannot lay their hands on $2000 in 30 days.   Why $2000, because that is a good guess at what an average, sudden crisis would cost.  20% of households making $150,000 per year say they cannot come up with the $2000.

On the flip side an American household spends on average $520 per year on lotteries.  20% of households say their only chance of accumulating wealth is the lottery.  40% of households making less than $25,000 a year make that claim.

Just something to chew on. Sorry link was taken down…