Leadership

Often I've tried to figure out what makes a leader. I know one when I see one. I know when somebody in a leadership role isn't really a leader. That not only goes for politics, but also sports, work (whatever it is), church, and almost any other endeavor humans engage in. How to define what leadership is in a precise way always alluded me. 

Well, then I got sick and had a major operation. As I was trying to recover from this trauma I started looking for literature that would inspire me. I came across a Book called The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch. The author talks about a whole host of subjects concerning life in general and the little book is very inspiring. Right there on page 44 was the complete answer to my question about what makes up a good leader. He was writing about Captain Kirk.

.

........was the distilled essence of the dynamic manager, a guy who knew how to 

delegate, had the passion to inspire, and looked good in what he wore to work. 

He never professed to have skills greater than his subordinates. He acknowledged

that they knew what they were doing in their domains. But he established the vision

the tone. He was in charge of morale.............

 

Now thinking about these requirements for our next president it makes the choice very clear. I don't know how anybody could be inspired by McCain. He's dull, blubbering and rather old. The life he led has been one of privilege. And in my opinion, his service record isn't all he says it is (that might be the subject of another blog later). Obama on the other hand can turn you to tears with his speeches. He makes you want to open you wallet to get him elected. He will surround himself with competent people and allow them to do their job. He is somebody we can be proud the be represented by.

Abortion

During last Saturdays Presidential candidates discussion the subject of abortion rights came. It was clear after both candidates answered the question who had the best answer. Mcbush gave a quick answer that only acknowledged one side of the question. Obama on the other hand gave a thoughtful intelligent answer that acknowledged the fact fact that the question is a very complicate one with many correct answers. He basically said he doesn't like abortion but that he would not end legal abortion because harm it would do to mothers. This has been a view he's held since his second year at Harvard law school according to an article published in Politico. 

Obama takes a very reasonable approach. Nobody, unless you're really cold, wants to have an abortion. but ending legal abortion wouldn't end abortion. Instead of being open it would go back into the back alley's were not only would we loose the baby's anyway but probably the mothers as well. Obama suggest the way to cut down on abortion is through education and giving the potential mothers options that they don't have today. Who can really argue with that. 

The Elitist

I Started to wonder who is the real elitist as the candidate for president. Obama grew up with a single mother and was raised by his grandparents. He lived a very normal life in Hawaii. When he went to collage it was on his personal strength and he had to pay for his own education. He took a job starting at the lowest level. He spent a lot of time working his way to the top. 

Mcbush was born of a rich family and was  sent to school on the government. he grew up in a privileged society. Today he  is worth over $100 million. he believes that middle class is up to 3 million dollars. We've already had eight years of a spoiled child as president and look what he has done to us. 

The question is Can we afford 4 more? 

So the choice is clear

After the televised discussion yesterday the choice seems even more clear than it was before. Mcbush spent the time talking much about war and how he would listen to the generals when it came to policy. I always thought that it was the generals job to listen to the president. When asked to name the worse supreme court justices he named the best of the supreme court and touted the worse. He was asked to tell his interpretation for what it was to be rich. He gave 5 million dollars as a rich level. He answered most of the questions with simple answers no matter how complex the issue was. He spent his  time pandering to the audience and spent his time telling jokes rather than really discussing important issues. He used an old and tired method of inserting stories to illustrate points and most of the time the stories had nothing to do with the point he was making. 

It becomes clear after watching both these candidates that the better choice for president is Obama. He was thoughtful and intelligent in his answers. He demonstrated that he knew both sides of each issue and gave proper respect to those he disagreed. He spoke in a manner that would make me proud as an American to be represented by this man. yes the choice is clear. 

Level Taxes

Recently the idea of a level tax rate has become popular. Many people feel that its the only way to fairly tax the population. I have to admit for a long time I felt the same way. I was able to argue the logic and necessity of such a taxing system. I decided to find another country that uses this system and find out how it works in that country to be able to use as an example of the superiority of  a single rate system. 

Interestingly though, no matter how much I looked I couldn't find such a country. So I began to try and figure out why of all the other countries none had adopted this system that seemed so logical. As I looked into it the logic of our progressive tax became much more understandable. It can be understood by asking and answering two simple questions.  1) Should those that use the most government services pay the most in taxes. 2) Is it fair to treat everybody exactly alike? 

Should Those that use the most services pay the most in taxes?

If you think the answer to this question is no! There is no need to go on the flat tax is for you. The plain fact is that the rich use the majority of our government services. They drive the most cars: They use the airports the most: They demand the attention of the police (an example is the 25000 dollars spent in B. Spears to take her to the court): I'm sure not many public marinas are fashioned for the poor: Public Schools in rich areas are always much better than public school in poor areas: Roads are maintained to higher degree in the upper level areas than the lower levels: I could go on forever but I won't bore you with a gigantic list of things that the government provides for the rich that they don't provide for the poor. The truth is that the rich receive many more government services than do the poor so logic only dictates that the rich should pay much more for the services they receive.

Is it fair to treat everybody exactly alike?

The answer to this is emphatically no! especially in this country where we have such a diverse population: The young have different needs than the old. Farmers have different needs than city folk and Urban areas have different needs than the Suburbs. Business has a whole set of needs that the private citizen doesn't even think of.  All these different needs need different funding.

So in conclusion, people of higher means receive more service and can afford to support our society so they should pay a higher percentage of their income toward it. I know from personal observation that ten dollars means a lot more to many of my friends than it does to me. So if you are in the part of society that pays higher taxes be thankful that you are, because you get more of the blessings this country offers.

Race in the Race

The other day I heard John McCain accuse Obama of inserting race in the race for president. I had to laugh when I heard that. Race has been in political race from the beginning. When he was running against Hilary. It was Bill that was publicly saying those little subtle things. This was going on while the republicans were sending out one racist email after another. You all probably received the "Our First Family" email. Who was the first public figure to start emphasizing Obama's middle name. How many emails have any of you received that states for a fact that Obama is a secret Muslim. No its not the Obama camp inserted race into this Presidential race. Its the same people that called Carrie a coward to the benefit of the two most cowardly people that ever held office.