We often think that we need to drive less, or buy a more fuel-efficient automobile to lessen our dependence on fossil fuels. At least that’s the general rhetoric we hear from pundits.

Of course, I’m all for conserving our resources, so I have nothing against driving less, and using less gas. (I even encourage efficient driving.)

However, I’m wondering how many people know that another all too convenient consumer product comes from oil.

Plastic.

Plastic Comes from Oil

It’s true that recently, there are plastics made from organic materials (such as the Biobags that are made from corn, mentioned in my composting post) but the vast majority of plastic still comes from petroleum.

Therefore, if we really want to conserve our oil supply, we should each do our part to dump as little plastic into our landfills as possible, since dumping plastic is like dumping oil.

Here’s how:

• Ask for paper instead of plastic - when possible, of course. Here in San Francisco, the city Council passed an ordinance requiring paper bags be used by stores over a certain size.
  
• Better yet, bring your own (reusable canvas bag)
• Recycle as much as possible (instead of dumping it in the trash) – trash goes to landfills, recycling goes to recycling centers.
• Take packaging into consideration when making a purchase – meaning, decide if there’s an alternative product that uses less packaging, or use material that can be recycled easily (like paper).
• Buy less stuff – probably worth an entire post to discuss this.
• Consider buying recycled products – such as those by Recycline, found at stores like Whole Foods Market and Trader Joe’s, these include items like toothbrushes and razors, to cups and plates, to name a few, all made from recycled plastic. Plus, they can be recycled as well.

Plastic Consumption in Perspective

If you’re still not convinced that buying less and recycling plastic is a good idea, here’s a link to artist Chris Jordan’s photographic work. He has a series of photographs depicting the amount of stuff we (in the United States) use, and a lot of the stuff is made from plastic.

It really puts things in perspective.

With weekly fervor over the United States Presidential primaries right now and Election in November, I am reminded of one of my favorite science fiction novels, Ender’s Game.

A Prophetic Subplot?

In Ender’s Game, one of the main subplot involves manipulating Earth’s various governments and societal sentiments through the use of diametrically opposing political commentaries, written by Ender’s older (genius as well) siblings, and distributed via their version of the internet.

The pseudonyms they used were Locke and Demosthenes, and their writings polarized different groups of people, and thrust their online personas into the limelight. (There’s more to the plot, but that’s enough for my purposes here).

Blogs and their Effects

Of course, in real life, we have blogs.

One would think that blogs can truly be used to broadcast a candidate’s message directly to people out in the blogosphere, and perhaps even engage in constructive commentaries among other politicians (I know, wishful thinking).

And perhaps they are. A little.

A Flaw in Today’s Politicians’ Blogs

When I take a look at the blogs of the major candidates — John McCain, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama — I notice one thing they all have in common:

None of the candidates write on their own blog (as far as I can tell).

Why is that?

The blogs I’ve seen have posts written ostensibly by campaign managers and other like-minded supporters in their respective camps.

Should Politicians Blog (Subscriptions = Votes)

Could you picture a politician’s blog with 100’s of thousands, or perhaps millions of subscribers, dwarfing the “superblogs” I’ve seen so far? Would it be possible? I’m not sure.

Could you imagine looking at a politician’s feedburner count to see how popular he or she is? Wouldn’t it be kind of like voting?

But, maybe the time isn’t ripe yet.

Perhaps there’s a lack of a critical online mass (e.g. not enough voters are online), or perhaps the recent failures of electronic voting systems make people (and candidates) hesitant about security and authenticity, or perhaps these politicians just don’t have time, being out in the public eye all the time. Whatever.

But as the blogosphere continues to grow, I think blogs will play a more and more important role in shaping societal opinions, public policies and a whole lot of other stuff falling under the realm of governments.

Certainly Local Politicians Should Blog

At the least, on a local level, a mayor or a council member can easily start and maintain a blog to inform and gain feedback from their respective constituents. The numbers would be more manageable, and the communication between politician and people would stay more narrow, focused on local issues at hand.

In any case, I hope to see better, more informative, more constructive ways of using the web to broadcast a candidate’s message, and to engage with people in positive ways.

I realize I’ve only touched the proverbial tip of the iceberg in this matter. It will be interesting to see what happens in the years to come.

What do you think?

A few clues as to what I believe is one of our most precious possessions:

• It bonds us with our family and friends.
• It is a conduit to our past.
• It enables our habits.
• People can perform great feats because of it.
• It can also debilitate us, if we let it.
• We laugh because of it.
• We cry because of it.
• We rely on it every day.
• Some people willingly deny it as a way to elude responsibility.
• Some people unwillingly lose it.
• It can become sweeter with age.
• Our other possessions are more precious because of it.
• It is more precious than any amount of money, for money would be useless without it.
• It is more precious than even the One Ring.
• It is what we are, it is who we are.

What is it?

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Our Memories.

Barbara’s comment on my Frame of Mind post reminded me of one of my philosophies of life:

• No Matter How Rich You Become, Someone Will Always Be Richer (unless your name is Bill Gates) – So, live your life without hurting others (and without whining), and maybe help those that are truly in need.

And here’s the corollary:

• No Matter How Poor You Become, Someone Out There Has It Worse - Everyone is entitled to some bad luck now and then, but it’s not the end of the world. Pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and start all over again (great tune, btw).

What do you think?

One of the plot devices in fiction that engages me the most has always been the “alternate time-line”.

Cause and Effect

The idea of changing causes and seeing the resulting effects is a staple of science fiction.

Films like Back to the Future, The Terminator, TV shows like Quantum Leap and (certain episodes of) Star Trek all have stories that focus on how key events determine a certain future, and if those key events were altered, the future would be altered as well.

And the idea is not limited to science fiction. You may have seen or read Charles Dicken’s A Christmas Carol, or how about the similarly-inspired holiday “favorite”, It’s a Wonderful Life. In both stories, we get to see alternate time-lines, cleverly suggested as dreams.

There’s a whole list of alternate “history” stories listed in this Wikipedia entry.

What If? is a part of Critical Thinking

These tales all bring to the fore the question of What if? Indeed, the question of “What if?” can be used to generate entire stories. But it is also a way of exercising critical thinking. Only here, it is utilized in fiction, instead of real-life situations.

Baseball

Speaking of real life, the what if? scenario is perfectly illustrated in the American game of baseball. Like setting off a row of dominoes, a key play in baseball can result in a series of events (a player steals a base, causing the pitcher to throw to second, but the shortstop muffs the catch, and the runner from third scores so…) that gets one team closer to victory.

The interesting thing about baseball, unlike other sports, is that there is no time limit. Rather, the game is played until a key event occurs that results in one team having a 1 or more runs scored than the other team after the top of the ninth inning. Otherwise, the game can theoretically play for inning after inning, as long as the game remains tied.

This allows the game to have any number of key events. And in the end, the game announcers usually like to point out the “play of the game”, again, usually one of those key events (a crucial hit or a spectacular defensive play).

(I’m not a true fan of baseball, but I really appreciate that singular aspect of the game — that one play can affect the outcome of the game.)

Real Life Decisions

So because of my understanding, and appreciation of the fact we live in a “linear” existence, I often reflect on decisions that I have just made, or am about to make, and wonder about the resulting time-line that I’m “creating”.

I also like to look back on history, and ponder about key events that set the course of our current time-line.

It really helps to put things in perspective sometimes.

There are so many great blogs out there — many have great tips, others serve up ideas for posts. I found a comment over at Write to Done by Mazzycat, and I really wanted to respond. But since the topic of the original post is about using reading to become a better writer (a great idea, by the way), I thought I’d espouse in my own little corner of the blogosphere on:

Frame of Mind

In the post, author Leo talks about ways to use great books to improve one’s writing. In one comment, reader Mazzycat lamented over the fact that after reading a great book, he (or she) would feel discouraged, often thinking, “I could never write anything as good as that…so what’s the point [of even trying]?” He (or she) often saw a great book as discouragement, as a obstacle that could not be overcome. However, another way of looking at it, as the original post suggests, is as a source of inspiration. Both ideas are true, from a certain point of view.

Frame of Mind determines Motivation

Recently, I explained that motivation is the underlying reason to do what we do. However, now I also realize that how a person determines that motivation is almost just as important, probably more so, since a motivation not determined means inaction.

Two Sides of the Same Coin

So, as a creator, when we see great works or art, see a great movie or play, or read a great book, we can either choose to aspire to produce our own great work and use those great examples as inspiration to determine our positive motivation for desirable outcomes. Or, we can see those same great examples and look at our own faults, our own perceived disadvantages, and put ourselves down, saying, “We’d never be able to do that.”

The same applies to other non “creative” vocations: the great athletes, singers, orators, “leaders” — all can serve as inspiration. If we choose to see them that way.

Optimist versus Pessimist

So yes, it’s really another case of optimism versus pessimism. I strongly believe either one affect one’s productivity and well-being, one for the better, and one for the worse.

How’s your frame of mind?

There are thousands (or millions) of sites devoted to finances, financial responsibility, getting/staying out of debt. Visit any self-help section at your local bookstore and you’ll also find hundreds of books devoted to the same topic.

I thought I’d sum up what I’ve seen, read, and (for the most part) practice – the number one rule to financial responsibility. However, to write only one sentence seemed almost like…cheating. So, in the interest of verbosity, I did some more thinking on the subject. Here’s what I came up with:

1. Earn More Than You Spend – the optimist version
2. Spend Less Than What You Earn – the pessimist version
3. Savings = Revenue – Expenses, where Expenses < Revenue – the mathematician’s version
4. Net Income = Gross Income minus Total Expenses and Deductions (you did save those receipts, right?) - the accountant’s version
5. Buy 1 less Cup of Coffee a week to save $20 a month – the conscientious Starbuck goer’s version
6. Every month, pay into your retirement, then your bills, then whatever’s left is extra – the Financial Guru’s version
7. Every month, pay into your retirement, then your bills, then half of what’s left can go into the “games” – the Reformed Gambler’s version
8. Every month, pay into your retirement, bills, and then buy ONLY one pair of shoes (that costs less than what you have remaining) – the compulsive shoe buyer’s version
9. Every day, save a dollar, spend the rest – the homeless person’s version
10. When you see a 10 dollar bill on the ground, DON’T pick it up – the Bill Gate’s version

In recent days, I have both received in the mail and seen on television advertisements for California Propositions 94 – 97: Indian Gaming Compacts.

While this is not a political blog, seeing the ads on Indian Gaming reminds me of my thoughts on gambling in general.

The Truth about Gambling

To stay in business, a casino must earn more in revenues (e.g. the “house” must win, the players must lose) than it spends on expenses (e.g. restaurant buffets, staff, decor, power, etc.). The fact that gambling is a multibillion dollar industry means that the business model must be working pretty well. And doing any sort of research will tell you that all games are stacked in the house’s favor, some more so than others, but in the house’s favor nonetheless. So, the question is whom does the casino “earn” their money from?

Gambling is Marketed to People Who Should Not Gamble

I see the ads on cable, the billboards along the freeways — these are meant to be seen by everyday people. With gas prices soaring, and housing in the Bay Area among the most expensive in the nation, should people be gambling, hoping to get easy riches?

The Illogic of Encouraging Gambling As a Means to Raise Funds

I have been known to visit a casino or two, usually during “downtime” on a ski trip — we usually just eat at one of the buffets in the evenings and a few of my friends would try their luck at the craps or blackjack tables. What I’ve noticed is that the majority of the gamblers are very “average”, normal clothes and attire, nothing like the glamor of a James Bond movie or anything like that (maybe I’m in the wrong casino). So, the very people that are supposed to be helped by social programs, are the ones that are footing the bill. But guess what? It’s not a dollar-to-dollar transfer. The money that the Indian casino wins are divvied up along the way to middle-men (administrators, campaign contributions to politicians, to name a couple), and who knows how much actually comes back to those social programs — certainly a lot less than what left the gamblers’ wallets.

What about the Rich?

I have to think that 99% of the Rich did not get wealthy through gambling, but rather through hard work, investing, stock options and the power of compound interest. Once they HAD the money, that’s when they can go gamble as “high rollers”.

The End Does Not Justify the Means

As for the propositions, we’ll see what happens in next Tuesday’s elections, but I certainly don’t think encouraging gambling ever helps anyone except whoever owns the casinos.

Far-Sightedness versus Short-Sightedness

I learned the difference between far-sightedness and short-sightedness in high school, and I’m not talking about needing to wear glasses. I’m talking about seeing long-term and short-term effects of a specific action.

It Happened in History class

The inciter was one of my history teachers, whom I shall call Mr. F.

He was certainly not a great teacher by any means — in fact, he normally taught P.E. — but for whatever reasons, we had him for one semester of U.S. History.

What normally happened was we would be cruising along through the textbook during lecture when one thing or another from the text would prompt him to go off on tangents. Here are two that I recall:

• Railroads – Mr. F would wax nostalgic about the railroad system of the late 1800’s, during the Industrial Revolution. Tracks spanned all across the country, and you can go most anywhere via a romantic train ride. Cities and industries grew due to the “iron horse”. Then, along came the trucking companies, who, in the interest of increasing truck sales, started buying up the railroads, and then simply shut them down, all in the name of profits. For Mr. F this was one of the great injustices wreaked by corporations, one apparently he had never forgiven.
• S.F. Municipal Transportation – On another occasion, Mr. F would talk about something closer to home — San Francisco used to have a lot more streetcar lines (verified by looking at any old historic S.F. photo book). However, the same automobile companies came along and convinced (read: bought off) local politicians to have many streetcar lines removed, so that buses could be sold to the city.

Mr. F would go on exclaiming, “Do you know how many trucks are needed to haul all the freight that can be loaded onto a string of freight cars pulled by a single locomotive, and how much fuel is wasted!?” And he would the class in a huff!

Similar diatribes would occur throughout the semester, and we, being young teenagers, would always snicker afterwards and shake our heads, thinking how bitter Mr. F was.

Looking Back at that Class

Now, looking back, that’s where I got my first taste of the kind of harm corporations can do when they emphasize short-term gains over the greater benefit that often comes from actions geared toward a long-term vision. The idea to always think about long-term effects has stuck with me ever since.

All because of one bitter old man.

A Little History

My first computer was a Commodore 64.

Ahh, memories. It was great. On the C64 was where I learned BASIC, and got to play Infocom text-based games, and even translations of cool arcade games. A few years later, I bought an Atari Mega ST.

Empire, anyone?

By the time I started working, I finally did jump into the vast PC pool, and until last year, I never got out, not even to the shallow end. So over a period of about 15 years, I had all manners of PCs: a Dell, a few home-built machines, a couple of local store-built ones, and two laptops.

But last year was when I finally jumped ship. I bought a Mac. Here’s why:

Reasons I Switched to a Mac

• Price – Over the years, I made a lot of friends who used the Mac, so it was not like I knew nothing about them. In fact, the first Macintosh I was exposed to was the Mac 128 (and I was very impressed), and over the years various friends had IIci’s, Quadra’s, G3’s and iBooks. And throughout those years, I was always aware that Apple hardware came at a premium price. But in recent years, getting the best “bang for the buck” no longer meant only looking at PCs. In fact, because of the next reason, pricing is very competitive for similarly spec’ed machines.
• Switching to Intel Chips – When Apple in 2006 announced the reasons (price and performance) they were switching to Intel chips, that really piqued my interest. Aware of the EAS (Early Adopters Syndrome), I patiently bided my time while paying close attention to each and every announcement of new models. Knowing I wasn’t going to buy one right away allowed me to simply take in all the hoopla surrounding each model, and read the subsequent (positive) reviews on Mac performances. I paid attention to PC emulating software (Parallels and later Fusion), and knew then that my time was coming. The couple of crucial PC software that I use can now be run on the Mac.
• Ease of Maintenance – Thanks to a lot of tutorial videos, both on the Apple site and sites like YouTube and MacSales.com, I was definitely looking forward to having an easy-to-maintain desktop (as I’ll explain below). I was not to be disappointed.

I made the switch, and bought a Quad-Core MacPro tower late last summer.

6 Months Later…

I’m as happy as can be.

For me, it wasn’t like, “What took me so long?” but rather, “I’m so glad I waited and now I got one!”

So, in my limited experience so far, the things that jump out are:

• Simplicity – For years I’ve admired the design of Apple products. Sleek, elegant, clean, simple are all words that come to mind, and now that I own one, those same words still arrive! From the way the machine comes packed, to the way the designers managed the wire-handling, there’s a rhyme and reason to how everything works. My Mac is the most beautiful thing to look at — I only wish those designers would come and clean up my office!
• Ease of Upgrading – The MacPro can hold 4 hard drives. How long did it take me to install one hard drive? 5 minutes. I undo one latch, open the case, slide out a metal frame, screw on the new drive to the frame, slide it back in (no connector, wires, or power supply to fool with), close the case, push the latch to the closed position, and I’m done. Boot up the Mac, and it tells me there’s a new drive, and asks what should I do with it (format it).

Contrast this with my last experience adding a drive to my PC. I open up the case and locate a free spot to install the drive. I need to knock out one of the small panels in the front of the case so that I can put the drive through. I secure the drive with the screws. Now I connect the data cable from the motherboard to the drive. For the power cable, I need to free one of the extra cables that the manufacturer has secured together with a cable tie, attach the power cable to the drive, and then tie up the remaining cables with a new tie. Now I massage all the wires back into place so that the case can be closed. I boot up the PC. The monitor is blank. What the?! After a couple of retries with the same result, I boot into Setup, and find out that there’s no boot drive. Hmmm. I open up the case again, and find that during my installation of the new drive, I had loosened the data cable to my boot drive. Okay, reattach that. Reboot. Okay, it finally works. Format the new drive, proceed with life (after I’ve wasted an hour and a half). Which brings me to the next discovery about my Mac:

• It Really Just Works – I’ve been hearing in ads and from users about how Macs just works. And it’s all true. The operating system is very stable. Some programs still crash, yes, but those are far and few in between, and certainly at a much, much smaller rate than Windows programs. I can probably count on one hand the number of times I’ve had to shut down the computer due to a rogue program. Compare this with my PC, when a cold reboot was necessary at least once a week. Many of the bundle applications on the Mac are quite robust: iTunes, iPhotos, iDVD are all programs I use on a regular basis. (I use Gmail instead of Mail.) Updates are easy and painless. Do I need to mention the PC equivalents? I thought not.
• I am Much More Productive – And because I spend less time needing to reboot the computer, or tinkering with upgrades, etc., I have more time to spend writing blog pos–I mean, being productive, like complete work for my clients, spend time with family, etc.

I’m happy with my computer. Are you?