three hundred twenty eight

 

ELON MUSK 

PEES FAST

I just read the new book Elon Musk by Ashlee Vance. The book was originally a book Elon did not want written but he eventually cooperated with the author to tell the whole story. The book covers the ups and downs of his businesses and personal life warts and all.

A brilliant talented driven dreamer like Elon comes along once in a generation. He is a present day Henry Ford, Howard Hughs or Arnold Beckman. As this post is written he is ranked as the wealthiest man in the world. He owns Tesla, Space X, Neural-ink, Star Link, The Boring Company and now Twitter.

What impresses me was his all in approach to everything especially business. By all in I mean he has risked his entire fortune more than once. He bet on his ability to do what seemed impossible, delivers it under budget and before schedule. Even though he has fallen short of these goals a few times, he has delivered against all odds many more times to defy his skeptics. 

Another admirable trait is that he really doesn't let critics alter his goals. He is not afraid to make mistakes in public, failure is part of the process. He considers using time and energy to polish his public image is a waste. 

Time is his friend and his enemy. He works and plays hard with a sense of his mortality so there is no time to waste, ever. He works harder and longer then his employees and he has no problem sleeping on the floor by his desk. 

Over the decades NASA has been paralyzed by bad press so its natural that they fear making mistakes. Because of this they have lost their exploration focus and become just another bloated bureaucracy. As an agency with an annual budget they have been taken over by predator politicians. They have redirected money from the basic NASA mission to buy votes and gain more power. 

Eventually this will happen to any government program or business using government money. This may explain Elon's urgency to get things accomplished before this happens to SpaceX. I hear criticisms of SpaceX using tax dollars but I feel we are getting our moneys worth, at least for now. 

Elon recruits the best and brightest, the opportunity to work with Elon on the cutting edge of technology is the ultimate. Very few survive more then a year or two because of the job demands. They work as long as their mind and body can hold up. In spite of this former employees generally speak well of Elon.

I love how he cuts cost by reengineering existing products. He thinks out of the box and defies the established norms. Doing things for $5000 vs $150000 by using off the shelf electronic products instead of designing and building "special" space products amazes me. Imagine government spending our money with this frugal approach.

The media tries to drag him into the political world where they have an advantage but he does not play their game. He just keeps launching rockets and stays uncommitted because it would be a waste of his time and energy.

Don't get me wrong Elon is not super human, a political genius or a moral giant. He is a driven visionary who understands he needs money to accomplish his goals. He enjoys his wealth but lavishing himself in luxury is not his focus. Wealth is a tool to stretch the limits of human accomplishment.

Like many with extreme personalities I imagine he can be a bit of a jerk, impatient and ruthless. Top level competitive athletes can  perform at a super human level but not always have warm fuzzy personalities. I can admire their abilities but I don't want to hang out with them. 

He is now the CEO of Twitter with a week or so of cleaning house under his belt. Many on both sides are imposing values and politics on his every move. I think this is foolish and unfair. 

I hope he has core American values like free speech and open debate but I don't expect him to be a shill for either political party. He will figure a way to make Twitter profitable and a place for the non crazy to exchange opinions, openly debate and engage in commerce. 

I think Elon will do better to stay in his lane and avoid politics, but I do like that he pokes the bear from time to time.

To me the best line in the book was that he "pees fast". I think this captures how urgently and focused he lives his life.

three hundred twenty seven

A lesson in community...

This is my favorite television series, I have watched all four seasons several times. Each time I understand more about what the writer was trying to convey. 

The language is extremely vulgar and seems over the top but there was a historical purpose. The story line plays with history and events, adds  characters, but in general it portrays accurately the struggle to build community in a lawless frontier. 

 

The lust for gold was the dream that settled much of the west. This lust drew skilled frontier miners but most were unskilled unprepared men seeking a fast fortune from all over the world. This was followed by other opportunistic men with supplies, the means to sell the gold and entertainment for the all male population. 

They had money with no where to spend it so the entertainment was whisky, gambling and "pussy" as described by the main character Al Swearinger a knife wielding bar owner. Episode by episode introduces a character and a new problem. There was lawless chaos and violence but under the surface there was a sense of order being formed.

Open murder, claim jumping, theft and brutality were the norm but eventually a swift system of justice began to form. At first it was violent bullies enforcing order to keep the gold mines going to support the bars, gambling and cat houses. 

Civilization was slowly encroaching on this wild untamed city. Some welcomed this, some feared it and some openly resisted.

I watched a writers interview, he said Deadwood was about community. That was when I started watching with this in mind. In fact I started to look for community in other groups and organizations.

 

Humans interacting with other humans form alliances, enter into agreements and combine their resources for a common cause. This has happened throughout man's history. From the cave dwellers to the United Nations, without a common cause forcing us to work together usually ends in disaster.

There were a few openly religious characters but even the most violent characters acknowledged God. The only event that shut down the entire town was the death of a young boy. The entire community stopped to greave the loss of someone so innocent.

Deadwood with all of the chaos was guided by a basic sense of justice and honor. There were individuals who stood up for right and wrong and at times a group conscience aligned for a just cause.

This was not always for a noble cause but for the self interest of their collective community. They banded together to confront common enemies like small pocks, encroaching government and Randolph Hearst.

Watching animals interact, children during unsupervised play and the dynamics of small business all give me an understanding that is hard to discover in books.

Deadwood is worth a watch but keep community in mind.

three hundred twenty six

WHATEVER HAPPENED 

TO THE GOAL OF

    The ability or willingness to tolerate something, in particular the existence of opinions or behavior that one does not necessarily agree with.

 I grew up in rural Ohio with an understanding that we should be  tolerant toward those who are not like us. It was a community standard even though there were a few narrow minded exceptions. I worked beside people that agreed on very little, had nothing in common other than work and at times did not like each other but we learned to tolerate our differences and achieve our common goals. I thought that was the point, live and let live.

Years later I moved to the city known for it's tolerance, San Francisco. Unfortunately I soon learned the summer of love has been dead and gone for a very long time.

Don't get me wrong I met many wonderful people in my seven years in the city. I did also meet many who brag about being the most tolerant people in America but made a sport out of not tolerating anyone who disagreed with them. 

I heard more hatred for people in different parts of the country for how they looked, acted and thought. Ironically most of them had never lived or even visited these places. If they had they were usually slighted by a rude waitress or got a hand signal from a jerk driver. Whatever it was it was enough to label entire regions of the country as bigots and haters to justify their victimhood. Many times it was based only on a television sitcom or a Netflix movie.

As one of those rubes I think most of us caught on to this tolerance thing long ago. Live and let live is pretty straight forward. If you dress, talk and act weird for attention you will get attention. If you are a few pages ahead on the latest woke fad or list of politically correct words don't judge others for not sharing your priorities.

Yes if you look and talk differently we will do a double take. If you are rude and condescending we will react to you like anyone who is rude and condescending. If your whole identity is based around your sexual practices don't be confused if we react with a puzzled look because your sexual practices are none of our business.

The goal post has now been moved from tolerance to total acceptance. This is where we run into trouble because this seems to only go one way. 

If a person has different values, beliefs or opinions he can be judged as a  hater, bigot, racist, denier or fill in the blank "......phobe". I do not expect the San Francisco crowd to totally accept mid-western opinions and beliefs, but I do expect them to tolerate them. None of their opinions and beliefs need to change and they should not keep them to  themselves. I will tolerate their speech and vigorously defend their right to voice it.

I welcome debate about anything, but I won't be forced to agree. I am by no means a victim. There are people who hate me for how I look, talk and think, that is as the Dude says "Like that is your opinion man".

Those things we learned in kindergarten my stuff and your stuff, keep your hands to yourself and say please and thank you. This community thing is made up of many different kinds of people, division is easy but tolerance is how it works. 

Waiting for everyone to totally accept each other's differences is unrealistic utopian bull shit, it isn't going to happen. People have different opinions, beliefs and lifestyles, that is how this America thing works. 

The utopian dream has been attempted through history but it is always at the point of a gun, sword or spear. Humans are unique individuals we are not bees living in a collective directed by a queen. Peace is as close as it can get without somebody losing their rights. 

Hundreds of millions have lost their lives in attempts to achieve the myth of utopia. It is always the beginning sales pitch for achieving power over the masses. Perhaps we are again treading on dangerous territory. I think we should just stick with the goal of learning to tolerate each other and live together in peace.

three hundred twenty five

 Not me, he has too much hair.....

I found this picture years ago on the internet. I have no idea who he is or the context but this picture has captured my imagination. Is it a Vespa scooter speed record attempt using nudity as an aerodynamic advantage, a new tanning method combining wind burn and sun bathing or just a weird Burning Man art project? I think it is just a good old fashioned "hold my beer and watch this" moment. 

I have had many of those moments in my life. Some were successful but a lot of them ended badly. I have scars and broken bones to prove my impulsive behavior. As a young man most of these were fueled by Rolling Rock beer, Boon's Farm apple wine, Dickel sour mash whiskey or that stinky ditch weed from the 70's.

I have had impulse problems my whole life. If they said don't touch the hot stove I touched all four burners and the neighbors stove too. I jumped off  bridges, climbed buildings and hung one handed from the rafters during a high school basket ball game. Many were on a dare, some were to show off but a lot of them I did alone without witnesses.

My driving was like a deadly video game and adrenaline was a daily drug. Somehow I survived my youth with only a few near death injuries. I slowed down on the daredevil stuff and moved to obnoxious behavior. 

Fighting was different back then, there was a code of sorts. You got a buzz, did or said something stupid, another drunk was more then happy to go out back. It was always one on one and you fought until someone got a couple good hits. 

It usually ended quickly but sometimes there was only trash talk. I was not a talker I usually started right in. Don't think I was a good fighter I was usually the one with a fat lip and a bloody nose. My only fighting accomplishment was I learned to take a punch. It wasn't unusual to end the night as sentimental drunk friends. 

There may have been hard feelings but nobody was pulling a weapon or driving by your house to shoot holes in your front door. The point was just a bunch of guys trying to stay awake in a small town.

Usually fueled by alcohol we raced and wrecked cars, climbed and jumped off land marks, shot holes in things, blew stuff up and pulled some pretty legendary pranks. Any dare was answered and injures were mocked. I see the skate boarders today I relate and admire them.

Over the years I have adopted the Dirty Harry code, "A man must know his limitations". In the face of a dare, "Do you feel lucky punk" also goes through my mind. The odds are stacked against me after 71 years of cheating death so I don't do the real crazy stuff anymore. I do ride a motor cycle and plan to take another cross country bicycle ride. That sounds foolhardy to most but I refuse to stop living life to the fullest. 

I think eliminating alcohol has been the thing that has saved me from an early demise. If I hadn't crashed and burned I would have eventually pissed off the wrong person. 

The point of this post is not to recommend my past or even my present lifestyle. The point is to live life and say yes to opportunities when the door opens. Life is worth living at full volume. See things, hear things, love with all of your body, mind and soul. Love and live without a net but wear a helmet.

three hundred twenty four

 One of the remaining truth seeking journalists.

SHARYL ATTKISSON

Sharyl was an award winning CBS investigative reporter and news anchor for years until she asked the wrong people the wrong questions. She was known for her straight forward investigative reporting.  She was no stranger to asking probing questions of the powerful regardless of position or political party. 

She uncovered government scandals, revealed unfair big business practices and dug deep into issues the main stream press had only lightly covered, they splashed a few headlines then moved on. She kept digging into these stories to wherever the facts led. She wanted to find "the story" not just "a story". As a young reporter she was schooled by the older generation of reporters who viewed journalism as a sacred trust.  

A few decades ago this was the expected standard of the majority of the media. Unfortunately over the years these standards have deteriorated. Young journalists took on the roll of news makers not reporters. Many got into the news business to "make a difference". Their  goal is to push a narrative, be part of the story and not hide their feelings and bias.

The media is now owned by corporations and powerful individuals, they use the media to gain profit, ratings and power. It was a natural process for journalists to seek success by pleasing their bosses by abandoning the old standards. Ratings and commercial profits were added to "If it bleeds it leads". Actual in-depth accurate double sourced journalism was all but abandoned. 

Shayrl did not change so eventually she was demonized. She investigated stories equally and only used sourced material. This was fine if her reporting hurt or helped the correct people or party, but when the story fell the wrong way she faced resistance from her editors.

She resigned after years of being continually blocked by her editors for reporting on stories like "Fast and Furious" a gun running scandal, Benghazi and green energy scandals like Sol-Indra. She has consistently covered Republican scandals with the same dog with a bone intensity. In fact she was given awards for these stories.

Sharyl is the real deal as far as I am concerned. She represents what journalism should be. She now covers stories the other media ignores. Her stories are well researched and unbiased with a let the chips fall where they may style. 

Working as a network news anchor is a prestigious and lucrative gig many have sold their souls to remain in these positions of power. Sharyl walked away from millions to keep her credibility and integrity. 

As a result of this she is called a political hack, irrelevant and a liar but for the most part she is ignored. Her books raise many questions about the powerful abusing the investigative tools of government to spy on journalists and private citizens. Her books are rarely promoted or reviewed. In spite of this they are still best sellers.

She has two podcasts and publishes her stories on Just the News and a few other publications. She does not chase the latest headline, instead she digs deep into stories and stays on them. She presents all sides of a story so you sometimes like her reporting and at times you do not. This is the sign of good reporting.

Link.... https//ShayrlAttkisson.com

I get bored with hacks no matter which party. I agree with a few but I don't agree with anyone all of the time.  Only listening to what my itching ears want to hear is fun but foolish if I say I want to know the truth. That is the first and most important question, Do I want to know the truth? Be prepared the truth isn't always what you want to hear.

three hundred twenty three

 

"THE BUCK STOPS HERE".....what a load of crap.

I'm really an expert at creating elaborate believable excuses. I have for many years perfected my skills to create complex, dramatic and convincing excuses. I'm so good at this I have at times convinced myself. 

Fortunately I have been saved from a career in politics. I have an intact conscience that I occasionally listen to. The ability to look people in the eye and cast blame on everyone else while simultaneously claiming to be the only person of character who takes responsibility, this should be the definition of a sociopath. 

They say things like, The buck stops with me, but the opposing party did it. It's like a school boy saying, I know I had an assignment but the dog ate my homework. They look and sound respectful but they are rarely challenged by a lazy and fawning press. Instead we give them our money and votes then call them Congressman, Senator or President. Their only real talent is the art of blame and excuses. Elected officials are in a league all their own.

I'm just a garden variety sober drunk. In my active disease I used excuses to protect and hide my secrets. I sometimes think about the elaborate tails I told the people around me. This went on for decades until I had no idea what was true.

I have found it much easier just to do whatever it is I said I would do. Do what you say and say what you will do, what a simple concept. I know now people saw through me because my memory has never been good enough to keep my lies or excuses straight. 

One thing I have not done is claim the same relative has died two or three times, but I know I would have done it eventually.

 Sometimes there are reasons that we can't complete a task or make an appointment but I have been amazed how if I really give my full effort I can complete the vast majority of my tasks.

The principles of AA have had an influence on this behavior. My friends in the rooms are excuse experts too who will call me out for passing the buck or relying on excuses.

There was one special person in my life that early on set the standard for our friendship. It started by making a commitment then changing my mind. I didn't even waste an excuse on it I tried to sell it with my boyish charm. Needless to say it did not work.

I was shocked because what had always worked did not work on this person. I was told point blank if you say you will do something I expect you to do it. I cared enough about this person from that day forward I was committed to following through on what I said. Sounds simple and I'm sure someone had said it before, but the clarity and directness broke through and changed my life.

I hate others giving me excuses almost as much as I hate hearing myself give them. I would rather hear I accept responsibility and this is my plan so this will not happen again. That is what I like hearing but I only want to hear it once.