Pay Attention. Look Around You.

The New U.S. Work Ethic

Dear Friends:

I have a question about which of the following two slogans best describes the new U.S. Work Ethic -- the ethic that drives the poorer and middle classes:

1). Horatio Alger's "Strive and Succeed."

or...

2). "Arbeit Macht Frei." *

Faithfully,

Douglas Castle

* Arbeit Macht Frei (German, exact origin obscure)


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Labels, Terms and Tags: arbeit macht frei, Articles by Douglas Castle, history repeating itself, horatio alger, Humanitarian Vigilance, irony, self-advocacy, strive and succeed, work ethics.






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A Brief Note About Nuclear Energy.

Rare Earth Elements and Thorium advocates. Champions of atomic and nuclear power. The only good news that I offer you today is that fact that US President Barack Obama is coming out strongly in favor of nuclear energy. Windmills, solar panels and other "green" alternatives are excellent, each in its own way. The first difficulty is the time required to convert our entire infrastructure and technological interface to utilize wind and solar power. The second is the amount of work which must be done, and the amount of time that work will take to complete, in order to produce and harness sufficient stored supplies of these types of power (think of the example of a battery) to be free of the yoke of fossil fuels and Big Oil. - Douglas Castle








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We Consistently Reward Incompetence and Misconduct - Reaping What We've Sown.

We Consistently Reward Incompetence and Misconduct - Reaping What We've Sown.

Note: This article was written by author Douglas Castle for simultaneous publication in his personal blog (Douglas Castle), as well as TAKING COMMAND!, HUMANITAS MAXIMUS, Douglas Castle's INTERNAL ENERGY PLUS and in THE NATIONAL NETWORKER RSS Feed and Daily Email Supplement. You can (and should) get the Supplement for free at http://twitlik.com/Daily, and you can join The National Networker GICBC (also, at no cost) by clicking on http://twitlik.com/IN.

Dear Friends:

I chanced upon this unsurprising but nonetheless saddening piece of news in an excerpt from the venerable New York Times today:

Breaking News Alert

The New York Times
Thu, January 28, 2010 -- 4:13 PM ET
-----
U.S. Senate Confirms Ben Bernanke for a 2nd Term as Fed Governor


The Senate confirmed Ben S. Bernanke to a second term at the
helm of the Federal Reserve. The confirmation was a victory
for President Obama, who had called Mr. Bernanke a critical
leader in the nation's recovery from recession, but the
rancor surrounding the vote also signaled the extent to which
the Fed, once little known to the public, has become the
object of populist anger over high unemployment and bank
bailouts.


Read More:


http://www.nytimes.com?emc=na
####


Let me warm to the topic by saying that I'm not interested in making a political statement here. I am interested in posing a brief commentary on behavioral psychology and sociological evolution.

Some of you may recall that it was during Mr. Bernanke's "watch" that the United States Federal Reserve, with either the consent, an incredible lack of vision, or a hideous dereliction of duty on the part of a huge number of other governmental agencies (including, but not limited to the Treasury, The Controller of the Currency, FINRA, The SEC, The Commissioners of Insurance, The Legislature, The Executive Office and a host of other regulatory and enforcement bodies charged with the responsibility of protecting the citizenry and its hard-earned assets from pilferage and fraud by dirty, rotten scoundrels, con-artists, and other classes of persons whose debits never quite equal their credits) allowed an uncontrolled economic avalanche to destroy the United States economy, the lives of countless individuals, and the credibility (or the already-decaying nostalgic memories of credibility) of the  notion of an "honest" government to serve and protect the interests of the citizens whose contributions (through taxes and other tribute) actually finance the government...that is, of course, when the government isn't simply printing out bargeloads of paper currency and issuing debt instruments which it has no genuine plans or means of paying.

Mr. Bernanke just got himself confirmed for a second term at the helm of the U.S. of A. The thinking (using this latter term loosely) is that although he made a few "small mistakes" that "might have" helped to precipitate a "major recession," he kept things from getting as bad as he could have let them become. He bailed out the largest, greediest and most irresponsible financial institutions and other corporate interests because "they were too big to fail," [I'm inventing here] "too large to fit in jail," or "too fat to impale." 

He now gets rewarded for, in effect, driving drunk, hitting an elderly woman (who was walking her poodle) and managing to put her in his car and leave her on the steps of a hospital. This chap is the same symbol of shoulder-shrugging status quo who rewarded the unconscionable wrongdoing of an elite few at an incalculably devastating cost to this generation and to numerous generations to follow.

Why does this type of seemingly irrational system of "inverted incentives" continue to proliferate? Here are my guesses:

1. We have lowered our standards and our expectations;
2. Our perception is that any known quantity is better than a walk into the unknown;
3. We believe that our thoughts and feelings no longer make a difference;
4. We have lost our faith in our own fundamental values, because we live in a society where evil all too frequently triumphs;
5. We have lost our will to be free, and have resigned ourselves to being institutionalized;
6. We have lost the stamina to be activists, advocates and fighters;
7. We are living in fear of the government that is supposed to serve us.

An old colleague had two funny posters in his office at Hofstra University. One said "NO GOOD DEED SHALL GO UNPUNISHED." The other stated "UNTIL MORALE IMPROVES, THE BEATINGS WILL CONTINUE."

Facing facts, if we continue to stand idly by while incompetence and misconduct are permitted free reign, we don't deserve anything better. If you weren't insulted by that last sentence, then you probably will also fail to see that this is not a blog posting. It is a call to action.

You can get in touch with me by pressing the blue button below.

It's time for this GICBC notion to become a movement. Cooperate. Collaborate. Synergize.

We cannot build a peaceful prosperous future upon a cracked and decaying foundation, just as we cannot expect to find gold nuggets while panning in a tar pit, or expecting to grow fruit trees when we are planting sawgrass.

Trying to work within the constructs and constraints of the current paradigm is very much like trying to polish a turd. Stop for a moment and visualize it. Hmmm...

I enjoy ranting. How about you?

Faithfully,

Douglas Castle


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Away Message From Douglas Castle

Away Message From Douglas Castle

Dear Friends:

I will be out of town from 18th January, and returning on 26th January. During this interval, I will not be accessing or responding to any emails, telephone messages or posting any material to blogs or social media. I look forward to being in touch with you soon after my return.

All the best, Respectfully,

Douglas Castle

Primary e-mail address:douglas.castle@yahoo.com,

douglascastle@gmail.com,

douglascastle.cybersphere@gmx.com  

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Tactics Versus Strategies - Integrating and Optimizing

TACTICS VERSUS STRATEGIES - Integrating and Optimizing.

This article was writtten by Douglas Castle for publication in TAKING COMMAND! Douglas Castle is a Featured Columnist in The National Networker Newsletter. You can join the National Networker GICBC for free, and receive their intel-rich Weekly Newsletter and other special reports by clicking on http://twitlik.com/in . This is a strong suggestion -- and not a command.

Dear Friends:

Understand the significant difference between tactics and strategies, and learn the way to think about each. Just as importantly, integrate them properly in order to achieve real results and to avoid walking a needlessly random path governed by the sway of outside forces.

Strategies are means (plans) for achieving large, longer-term objectives. These objectives are the defining conclusions of success in any operation, mission or business. A strategy is the main road (as in a straight line) between where you are today, and where you must be at the end-game point.

The deviations from this highway (because of a suddenly downed tree, a stalled vehicle, an exposed powerline or other unforseen impediments along the straight path which require special "instant fixes," "circumnavigation," "alternative methods") are addressed with tactics. Tactics are very like short-run situational strategies within a grander, macroscopic strategy.

The keys are these:

1). Have a clearly-defined goal;

2). Have a clearly-designed strategy to get there;

3). Utilize tactics along the way as necessitated by circumstances;

4). Even while involved in a tactical maneuver, keep the goal and strategy in mind;

5). The tactic cannot conflict with the strategy -- it merely serves as a means of overcoming an obstacle that separates you from the straight strategic path to your goal;

6). Do not ever let a tactic dominate your mission, or you will stray from your strategy and become lost further and further in the woods. You will become involved in a crisis management mindset with its accompanying shortcomings, and will wind up either far off course, or just dealing with problem after problem with your initial objective all but disappearing from your consciousness and efforts;

7). Use tactics which make it possible to comply with your planned strategy -- always keep your eyes on the prize.

NASCAR gives us some fine examples. A driver's objective is to complete his laps as quickly as possible in order to win. His strategy involves endurance, energy direction, focus, pacing, staying ahead of the pack and pushing forward. Evasive maneuvers to pass or avoid colliding with other cars are merely tactics to support the objective. If a driver becomes too obsessed with every petty speed battle or potentially vindictive squeeze or smashup with every other driver, he will lose his focus on finishing first. In sum: Evasive maneuvers are tactics, and making speeding along the track as quickly and fuel-efficiently as possible is the strategy. The objective is to finish first, out of all of the contenders.

Don't let tactics become diversions. Don't let them become missions unto themselves. Don't let tactics turn into your principal occupation in accomplishing goals. Tactics are used in order to support the mission and to see that impediments and obstacles are rapidly and effectively removed from the straight path to the prize.

Tactical thinking, taken to its extreme, causes an otherwise good team to stray from its course, waste time and resources, and to be thrown into the tempest of crisis management. and crisis management is one of the biggest encumbrances to successful completion of a mission.

If you permit your entire focus to be shifted from your principal objective every time you are confronted with some element of difficulty along the path, you will never gain territory -- you will merely lose time and momentum.

Harmonize your tactics within the grander framework of the strategy which you have plotted for your success. Don't let diversions turn into excursions.

Faithfully,

Douglas Castle
http://aboutDouglasCastle.blogspot.com
http://www.LinkedIn.com/in/douglascastle



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