Assume you are a government regulator, and I am a businessman with a new fuel I want to sell. My new fuel will be no cheaper than oil, but it will at least give us another choice, and reduce our dependence on foreign oil. The problem with it is that, unlike oil, which is just flammable, my new fuel is so flammable, it’s explosive. It’s also invisible, odorless, and deadly poisonous. Oh and I want to pump it directly into American homes.
When my son was looking at business colleges, we had the pleasure of talking to the chairman of one of the programs after he gave a talk about business ethics classes. While the university requires that all business students attend ethics classes, he thought that the need for them was limited. He said that if you don’t act ethically in business, you will not last in business. The word about your character gets out and people will not deal with you.
I really didn’t have much interest in history until I had the opportunity to chaperone my son’s fifth grade field trip in 2000. This was their big field trip to the Gettysburg National Military Park. The kids (and parents) fund-raised all year for the trip in April.
We arrived at the park after a four-hour drive and it was basically fields with lots of monuments. A lot of monuments! We had a great time and learned a great deal that day. So what does this have to do with a book review?
A little Q & A to start – These are all True or False questions
I had the good fortune of stumbling upon A Death in Vienna by Daniel Silva
I recently wrote an insightful commentary on the global warming “crisis.” Michael Crichton
The story I heard is that while Mr. Crichton was conducting research for this book, he was surprised to find how much hype there was about the man-made global warming issue. Rather than a book about a global warming crisis, State of Fear
What do you call two-dozen lawyers at the bottom of the ocean?
A good start!
I went to college to become an engineer a long time ago. As I look back at my first job when I got out of college, I wasn’t really prepared to do engineering. Not long after I started, I was given an assignment to design a structure for a bridge for a proposal. I spent the next six hours doing as I was taught in school. By the end of the day I turned in my design. My boss took my pages and reviewed the design and began laughing. Not reaction that I was hoping for and not a great confidence builder.
UPDATE – December 16, 2008: The Associated Press released the following article yesterday (12-15-08); Obama Left With Little Time to Curb Global Warming. Some highlights of the phrases used in the article include; “ticking time bomb,” “time is close to running out,” “the time for delay is over, the time for denial is over,” “a matter of urgency and national security,” and my favorite; “We’re out of time. Things are going extinct.” I love how Mr. Gore, who is quoted as if he were a scientific expert (he did win a Nobel Prize – mentioned in the third paragraph and they did mention that it was for “peace”) and the others never want to debate and are urgently warning that we must change NOW. It takes until the 22nd and 23rd (and last) paragraphs for the AP to note that 2008 is actually cooler than previous years. To them cooler temperatures is “proof” that there is global warming.
…six geese a laying,
F i v e g o l d r i n g s,
Forget the calling bird this year’s rings will cost you $350. and the nine ladies dancing will cost you $4,759, but a partridge will only set you back $20.
It is that time of year. Actually I started seeing Christmas decorations several weeks before Thanksgiving. When I was young, stores didn’t put out Christmas decorations until December 15…what a great day. I also had to walk two miles each way to school into strong headwinds and uphill each way.
Dr. Meeker gives us “10 Secrets Every Father Should Know” in this exceptional book and every father with daughters should read Strong Fathers, Strong Daughters
