Fed Chairman Jerome Powell speaks at the NABE Annual Meeting-Couple of Points

Federal Chairman Jerome Powell discusses COVID and its impact on the economy. He reviewed the Federal actions used to minimize impact of the pandemic. There were a couple of things that I pulled out of what he was saying so that I can create my own understanding of how the economy works and whether it will be stronger after the Pandemic. It is believed that we can excel after the Pandemic resides because of increased technological adaptation that leads to real Digital GDP growth.

We might also consider that new technology changes our economic fundamentals rooted in our experience with physical goods. Reality changes when the assumptions change! Thus, what we believed 7 years ago might not be what we believe today and what we believed when many economic theories started are not necessarily what we are going to believe in the future. Thus, economic policy and theory often develop together off of previous knowledge. New radical technologies like widespread use of the Internet and virtual work change the fundamental structures of how we interrelate since the beginning of our species. Our economic systems will change to reflect that new way of life and perceptual reality. 

A few things he said......The highlighted ones are the ones I took extra notice.

-Increased savings

-Goods consumption pre-pandemic levels

-Service consumption is low

-Business investment is on the rise

-Business formation is rebounding. 

-Unemployment is around 7% which is an improvement.

-The pandemic has increased the differences between the haves and have nots.

-If we lag too long we can run into a problem where normal recessionary issues take over. 

-There is a downgrade to long term expectations of society. 

As some readers might know I'm in the process of developing and creating a Theory of Transactional Clusters that hopes to better explain behavior in new economic systems as the information infrastructure builds on top of our previous physical infrastructure to create new possibilities for economic growth. Maybe some day it will adequately explain methods of connecting industries together (virtual and physical), applying pack investing, enhancing local clusters and pushing some industries to the center of the global supply chain.

Plot to Kidnap Governor-Purposeful or Destructive?

I'm watching this press release on the plan to kidnap Governor Whitmer. One must wonder what the intent of such an action is and whether or not its going to help anyone's agenda. We have to be careful as a society when we interact and debate with each other. We are in a state of transition and people are questioning their values. These times can be chaotic and it is up to our leaders to provide a path through the differences to find something that is workable. 

Let me say that violence isn't the answer to making American better. Our system is one of the best systems out there known to man. That doesn't mean there won't be a better system in the future but that at present this is the best system we know. It provides the best opportunity for drawing in multiple stakeholders to a single form of government. Division is not something we can afford right now. 

There will be an end to COVID. We have a need to think of what it means to be American in the modern world. There are certain core values and beliefs that apply to everyone regardless or our backgrounds. It would be helpful if we use language that is more inclusive and seeks to minimize tensions. We have a process we follow and being enthusiastic about the democratic process to have civil debate is important. 

Mike Pence and Kamala Harris Debate-Room for Shared Perspective?

The debates are heated to say the least. Kamala Harris and V.P. Mike Pence squared off to show their knowledge and skill to an American audience. Each talked about their particular vantage points and sought to support their arguments with key points. Some pushing against each other and personal attacks were present but it was not as heated as the presidential debates. Just because they don't agree there are opportunities for shared perspective.

Sometimes these debates can get heated and personal. This happens because people have a particular vantage point and often filter out the validity of an opposing party's perspective. We can say from the lessons of business we are more innovative if we focus on exploring aspects of both philosophies  to find those that should be singled out for greater exploration.

Innovative organizations, countries, or any other group are based in their ability to share perspectives, ponder what works from a practical level, and implement the best of those ideas. Even when there are two different philosophies at play the essential goal of strengthening our country. I believe both desire that but desire it in their own way.

Different perspectives on how to manage government doesn't mean we can't find some room for middle ground. For example, more or less government regulation of industry would be contentious to both parties. Yet what if we found a third way which included industry self-regulation and government oversight. 

I'm not really here to discuss at the moment why it would likely work. Briefly, it costs a lot to monitor regulations. Sometimes creating regulations while allowing industry to form a plan on how to achieve those objectives makes more sense on the financial and effectiveness front. Industries are often willing to self-regulate in partnership with government. 

We just need a better framework for making that happen to ensure innovative industries that are socially responsible to their consumers, nation and people. 

No matter what you read and hear on the news remember it is incumbent on you as an informed American citizen to understand the essential points and make up your own mind. 

Yin Yoga to Stretch the Difficult Spots

 Yoga is an activity that I engaged in for years. In the U.S. 20 years ago there were primarily a single type but over the years there have been many different types that have propped up. Some of them are fads and some of them are beneficial. Yin Yoga seems to be a pretty good new comer that allows for deeper stretching without all of the physical exertion. 

It is important for people to maintain their flexibility into old age. It is also important for sports enthusiasts to stretch those hard to reach places for higher performance. That is more likely to happen with longer hold stretches. In Yin Yoga you hold your positions for over 3-5 minutes with props that don't put pressure on your body. 

The advantages are significant. If you have a sore back from playing polo it can be hard to reach some of those places. Yin Yoga offers opportunities to slowly apply pressure on those spots until they have had time to stretch. Simple body pressure helps reach the stretch deeper. 

There is also the additional benefit of meditation and reflection. Because it is often conducted in dim light, music, groups, etc... you can't but help let your mind start to wonder. It takes on a meditative role. I'm not that familiar with the style but you may want to check out https://yinyoga.com/. For most of us it may be beneficial to use on a regular basis. 

Hiking the Ridge for Fitness-A Naturalist Approach

Chewy, my super mellow Shitzu, headed onto the trails this morning. We both need to get out of our house sometimes just for fitness and enjoy the outdoors. For a few weeks I have been in a city so I have been craving more nature. While it is hard to deny the stress management aspects of being outdoors we also have  to consider the physical aspects of using morning time to connect again with our roots. The naturalist approach seeks to improve fitness health through nature and natural activity.

First, I'm no stranger to the gym and have spent a lot of time there in the past. Since COVID and the open and close policies of most gyms I  had to find alternatives. I've taken on a naturalist flavor to my fitness routine that ranges from hiking to body weight muscle building. Throw in some yoga and other fitness activities and you should have a flavorful routine.

In the naturalist approach you look for functional muscle and overall health. You aren't necessarily spending lots of time focused on just your biceps but more on complex working muscles that improve your overall health. Want biceps start doing activities that push you to build arm muscles like lifting, climbing, and dragging. 

Michigan Supreme Court Decision Gives Legislature and Executive Branch the Opportunity to Work Together

Michigan has been in a serious debate over whether Governor Whitmer can continue to offer Executive Orders (EO) without Legislative approval has been resolved with a ruling by the Michigan Supreme Court. However, that doesn't mean we shouldn't give her the power to provide EO within a prescribed time limit (30, 60, 90, whatever days). We still have a pandemic going on and that hasn't changed. Thus, keeping the authority in the Legislative Branch still may mean giving Whitmer authority to limit the spread of the disease. 

Constitutionally it makes sense that the Legislative Branch should be able to limit ultimate authority. From a historical perspective we have tried to maintain a counter balance. Due to the debate and coordination of a larger body of law makers might not do well with quick paced decisions and that is why we utilize Executives (Governors) that can better manage day-to-day affairs. We must then empower the Executive Branch to act in the best interest of people. 

The Legislative Branch should maintain its authority over the Executive Branch from a "birds eye" point of view. Handing over authority to the Executive Branch to deal with a crisis is a necessity for responsiveness but must come with limited power strings. The Legislative Branch has the authority to create pressure to influence the application of EO by allowing or not allowing powers for a particular timeframe. 

(side note....there should always be a hard stop end date for clarity reasons)

There is then a relationship between the Executive, Legislative, and Judiciary (i.e. rulings on EO) branches that help set in place interrelation of power in our society. With this power structure we must actually overcome a challenge to our species. So it takes "all hands on deck" to focus on the best interest of the people.

EO's is not a wrong approach to problems. The dial up and dial down has some root in science and good management. Yet the calibration of that dial is open to debate. Maybe there were some changes that could have helped business and still helped protect against spread. Having a balance of those powers allows for increased information and better overall decision making (No matter who is in charge).

That doesn't mean we don't have a need for EO's. We do! Nimbleness is still important. I think the approach the Governor and medical community used was pretty good (not perfect but good) and the Legislative Branch should extend those EO with any tweaks they feel better represent the needs of the people. Thus far, when I look back over the state and lawmakers I do think they rose to the challenge overcome this situation (There is lots of room for improvement but this is a novel situation where people make decisions based on the information available to them at the time such decisions are needed.) While they argued and sparred they were responding to novelty and thus further defined the EO system and the data approach to risk zones. That has real value for the future and national security. Personally, I think it is a system that can be adapted to other places (perhaps nationally). We can only overcome these challenges when we work together as a system to beat an invading system. 

Queen City Research Shipwreck Log-October 4th, 2020-Winter Activities and Video

Our team is on the search for the Queen City shipwreck in Delta County Michigan. You can view our Day 1 practice on Youtube HERE. Through the process of shipwreck hunting there are lot of things we need to discuss and understand as a team. It is important to document those discussions through a log and in turn use these as research (for teaching and learning) notes for the future. We also think it would be an interesting share for people who are interested in the topic. 

We conducted a meeting October 4th, 2020 (virtual) to discuss some things about Queen City and the projects over the winter. Some of the bullet points are below:

-Need for 3D Mapping. $5K cost for the equipment and software. We discussed looking for used, borrowing, or alternative strategies (i.e. improving our sonar, deep water camera, etc...). On our "to do" list is to compare and evaluate various alternatives. Our current sonar operates as intended but has some limitations in resolution and range. 

-Funding: We discussed thinking about funding from personal sources, grants, contributions, marketing, etc... Thought of a few sources and might explore those options. There are differences between operational and equipment funding. 

-New Diver and Shipmate: New diver that can help out or come when a member isn't available. We will have to meet him. Skill and personality are important in taking on anyone to a ship. When things go bad we want someone easy to work with. 

-Exposure and Stakeholders: We discussed the video, putting on a public PPT, a contact of his that might be able to find some resources, tourism stakeholders, emails, etc...

-Misc. Tasks: We are going to use our nautical maps focus on putting in precise coordinates and locations where previous researchers left off and where we want to pick up. Think about a plan for day, cost, how far, fuel, equipment, etc...

Other Ships: There are 5 ships we can keep an eye out for. We may end up finding a different ship and we should incorporate this into our strategic plan. If we find another ship we would consider stopping to document the ship and its location for further exploration. 

Laws and Confidentiality: We discussed the risks of letting people know where the site is at until we have video taped the ship (once its found), description of artifacts, measurements, and other details to share with State of Michigan (for an extraction permit) and special collections for historical societies/museums that may be a final resting place.

You can always check out our video we made. Feel free to share. Here is the link. https://youtu.be/HsytL0r9AXk

How to Overcome Racism and Bigotry? Exposure and Self-Experience as Medicine

Racism is learned behavior and most of us have the ability to overcome our backgrounds Raised primarily in a Caucasian family and surrounded by Caucasian people I didn't see a Black person until I was about 14 years old; we are a rural homogeneous location. As an older adult who has two mixed race children I realize how difficult it can be to overcome racism within your social networks. Decades later I've seen how racism destroys families, encourages criminal behavior, and in the end is destructive toward our communities and our children. 

I guess I'm not that smart because I don't know why race differences are so important to us 😕 People are pretty much the same even though they have different colors, interests, and cultures. I've met a lot of people from different backgrounds throughout the years and I can say that each of us are guided by the same root principles and values; despite having ideological differences. We are essentially the same species with the same core values no matter where we currently exist on the planet.

The issue of racism and bigotry moves beyond current Black-White dynamics (It can be any race, religion, or difference to another). It is my belief that racism, based in our need to categorize others, is rooted deeply in our tribal past and the need to determine different clans from each other. The more different someone looks from ourselves the more likely we are going to categorize them as foe more than friend. Power dynamics might be more important than race.

Observation: Categorization is primal but the interpretations of those meanings is culturally construed.

There are some values that appear to be universal and are integrated into each cultural background. For example, protecting children is a primal and global value but those who engage in bigotry often circumvent essential values adhered by most people.  I've seen this behavior manifested in theft, physical threats, intimidating children, leaving the kids out, rumor spreading, lying, and general destructive behavior. None of this has much to do with the targets and is a bigger statement about the beliefs of the perpetrators.

Observation: Hate is about projecting personal angst that has nothing to do with the targets!

In my observation such people that engage in these behaviors have problems and lots of them that they are hiding from the world. You can see it on their intense need to look perfect on the outside and the forced silence on problems inside their family. Everything is about power dynamics and who has power over whom. Image is everything and integrity means little.

Racism is often embedded in the language. What I have seen is that while the people who engaged in racism and bigotry use certain words to demean different races/religions they also regular engage in demeaning a lot of other people. If you listed closely to their essential message it is designed to put others down and raise themselves up.

Observation: Racism and bigotry are embedded in language to create perceptions of social order.

I guess I'm a little different. I'm very open minded and even as a child I enjoyed learning about people and places. When I was a young child I used to read the National Geographic at our local library and thought other people were kind of cool. Always had a little dream to travel and see the various cultures and what they believe. For the most part, I accomplished that goal and have come to see how life transcends culture.

Observation: "Openness" to other backgrounds reduces heuristic racism. 

I'm not a perfect person and I come with lots and lots of faults. I think I'm a pretty good person and often give up something to help someone. For the most part I see the good in others and seek not to harm those around me. The world is a tough place and if we don't help each other and work towards common goals then we are not going to progress as a society.  Empathy helps me think about how my actions impact others. I don't often see this empathy in bigots and racists.

Observation: Empathy of others reduces racism and bigotry. 

We don't live in a perfect world and there are many more wants in the world then there are resources to fulfill them. When we struggle with our own identity and our own needs it can be hard to connect with people who look or believe differently then ourselves. Our egos are not yet ready to handle the internal problems we are facing and thus we look for others to feel our pain. It takes reflection to understand our own behavior.

Observation: If we are not reflective or strong enough to handle our own problems we will find convenient targets based in a simple mindset. 

Of course the bigots and racists that I knew in my life seemed to compare themselves to other people a lot. Worse... sometimes they discount the value of life. While I understand that these problems are theirs and theirs alone that is not how it plays out in the real world. It often becomes someone else's problem. When someone discounted the value of my son's life I realized the need for distance and putting up a "stop sign". So I want to leave you with three observation pieces and three pieces of advice.

Observation and Advice: Racists and bigots are unlikely to self-reflect and change their behavior and often you have to enforce boundaries. Don't be afraid to do it legally if they can't do so with civility. It would be great if people could reverse course, apologize, return the things they took, undo the damage, etc.... Such people are not accustomed to viewing themselves as wrong and so you can't change that. They will be destructive every time they find a target.

Observation and Advice: What they say about you, your religion, your color, your choices, etc... is all about projection and an inability to overcome their own challenges. Take nothing a racist and bigot says about you to heart. It is part of a delusion of how one is worth more and one is worth less. Of course, their race and their needs are almost always more important than others.

Observation and Advice: Racism and bigotry is rooted in fear and the need to categorize so the more we can get people to engage with each other the more likely we will create new group norms and values.  That requires integration of people to get them to understand each other and develop shared identity. Race and religion are only a dressing but people facing problems don't have the capacity to look beyond the surface differences. 

I am a conservative and believe very much that the time for racism and bigotry should end. We have a responsibility to build a stronger nation with shared principles. I have been studying this issue for a long time and have been working toward climbing Mount Everest (maybe all the way maybe not) to raise the value of universal justice. I don't know if I will actually go but I have been working toward that before BLM movement and I think beyond that movement to a nation that can take the best of different people to create the most advanced nation at the center of the global commerce and intellectual thought.

Michigan Supreme Court Decision on Executive Orders

 I'm reading through the Michigan Supreme Court ruling on Executive Orders and what I find is that for the most part I can agree with its finding. There has been an argument between the GOP and the Governor Whitmers office over executive order approval and how long they stay in effect based on two related laws. One side says the executive orders are necessary to protect life and the other side believes the executive orders are overreach. I'm not here to debate the details or promote one side over another. 

I can say that I believe many of the EO have saved lives and in general I like the system that the Governor and the state used. Dial up and dial down seems to be a reasonable approach. There were times I felt that the EO were overreach and there were times when I felt they were not enough or misplaced. Then I realize that this is a novel situation and that it is much easier to judge these things in hindsight than foresight. 

The people challenging such EOs are part of a conversation that pushes decisions to adjust and change to meet wider stakeholders.

What I'm pretty sure of is that I support business and I support life. There were some EOs I felt hampered business prospects unnecessarily and that had an impacted tourism. Yet maybe some of those are necessary for a disease that spreads through interaction. Let's be honest. While most might follow the rules and do what is best we do know that there are a lot of people who put the rest of us at risk. There might have been things I might have changed such helping remote work and making certain home office products either temporarily tax deductible or required by employers (not sure yet 😐). 

I can agree with the Michigan Supreme Court that there must be a check and balance to power. That doesn't mean I think someone took advantage, or not advantage of the EO, but it does mean that there must be a "hard stop" to ensure legislature is part of the process. They are another representative body of the people and thus must have a say in long term decisions that are not deemed absolutely necessary to overcome immediate danger.  They may decide to extend EO power for a certain time frame but that there is a balance by having governor flexibility but power check-ins through renewing emergency powers (at least that is how I see it). 

Since the pandemic started I followed the movement of these issues through the court system so I can better understand the legal process. For the most part I can see the necessities of these orders and recognize there is a point where authority should naturally move back toward legislature. When that happens is part of what Republicans and Democrats are debating over. These actions define the issues. We may have to deal with this again in the near future until we have developed the technological and big data capacity to understand human behavior on a species/organism global level.

A few articles I wrote.....

May Copy of Michigan Legislature vs Executive Branch(Governor Whitmer) Complaint

May Michigan Court of Claims Ruling Over Executive Orders and Order Extension

September Who is Going to Win Executive Orders in the Supreme Court of Michigan?-Conflict Leads to Definition

Read for yourself below......

October 2020 MI Supreme Court Ruling on Executive Orders 

Escanaba City Council Meting October 1st 2020

 Live Escanaba meeting. This is the town I'm from that I think would be a great place for professionals who work online to move, invest and develop (distribution, micro-manufacturing, adventure tourism). To invest in a place means you must learn about management and government. The governance of any locality is a big part of the overall decision to build and develop industry.