Fat Tony and the Nobel Peace Prize

There is a movement afoot in our state to put limits on the interest rates charged by payday lenders. I think the entire industry is unsavory. I also think that regulations are not needed.

People fall into the trap of being stuck with these loans every payday and cannot get out. These people are fools and need protection. But will it help? I've often heard the quote, "you can't fool an honest man". You can draw your own conclusions about what type of people I think are getting trapped in these schemes.

Back in the day, Fat Tony would make you a loan for a week and you'd him back an extra 10% in two weeks. Of course, Check City won't send their goons out to break you legs when you don't pay. They have to go to court. Nobody dared rob Fat Tony, because they'd end up dead. Check City needs the glass, the safes, the security etc. and all that stuff costs money. The cost of providing this microcredit is large, hence the large interest rates.

I'd like to see these payday lenders, as they exist now, all go out of business. HOWEVER, the need for rapid microcredit is very real, very large, and ignored. Let's assume that my furnace went out today. Say that I'd need $500 bucks to fix it. I could cover it with checking. If not, I could use my credit card. Not everyone can do that though. I think credit cards are foolish. I keep one with a 500 dollar line for making online hotel reservations, car rentals, etc. that I won't use my debit card on for security purposes. I could go the bank tomorrow and fill out the paperwork. And in a few days I'd have my answer. It's only because I have a job, a home, and a decent credit score. What about everyone else.

We need to find ways for the Regular Joes to get access to small loans. One suggestion is to pretty much make these types of loans to women. Women don't squander money like men do. When they say I want to borrow 500 dollars for a used sewing machine and start-up supplies they will use it for that purpose. Another example could be $1200 for a greenhouse and some drip irrigation equipment to grow organic vegetables. This is the type of stuff that is being done routinely in some countries in an effort to ease poverty. I think it can be done here. Microindsutries are viable, expecially in agricultural products.

Down's syndrome, parents that need their children's forgiveness, and memory loss

I'm going to start with the memory loss portion first.....before I forget. This morning I had wanted to rant about three different things. I went to church and came up with a fourth. But now I'm back down to two, because I forgot the other two. Either that or they weren't of any significance and should be relegated to the ravings of an overweigkt lunatic. Me.

Wait! I just remembered! In an earlier blog I mentioned that extreme political positions are to ignored. I'm still waiting for Obama to stick it to the far left. I wanted to sing the praises of our own Governor Huntsman who has come out in favor of civil unions. The far right took out a full page advertisement in the paper today. I started reading it. I got about a third the way through and went looking for some promethazine. Which helped me remember the other thing that I wanted to mention before I get to the actual topics mentioned in the title.

I am opposed to abortion, except in the case of rape, incest, or the life of the mother is in jeopardy. This is the mantra of the far right. They pretty much got it right on this issue. I am also in favor of abortion when the child will not enjoy a quality of life befitting a human. I'll get back to this later.

Naturally I support measures that reduce the numbers of abortions performed in this country. Whether it be better and more readily available prenatal care, age appropriate sex eduation in the schools, Planned Parenthood, and all the other things that the right wishes to do away with. Anybody care to venture a guess about whether there were more or less abortion during the Clinton years? Anybody want to guess what happened under W? The one thing that is most often ignored in the abortion debate is POVERTY. When people don't have jobs they are more likely to have abortions. Especially all the 'healthy white ones' that some adoptive parents clamor over. Poverty and jobs are a moral issue just like abortion. Anybody care to guess about the correlation between level of education and abortion rates? Education is a moral issue. So instead of passing more laws, placing more restrictions, let's deal with the reasons women have abortions to begin with.

I mentioned earlier that certain defects should be considered in deciding when to have an abortion. There was an op-ed piece in the Deseret News railing against the evils of a more reliable (and safer than amniocentesis) test for determining whether a fetus has Down's. Again the far right has things partially right when they say that Down's patients should not be aborted. Most should not be. Most in this country are. The test is not evil. What we as a nation are doing can be argued. Hopefully this test will lead to more reliable tests that can determine the severity of the what the child will have. Then better choices can be made, more Down's children will live and not be aborted.

Earlier I alluded to a quality of life befitting a human. Perhaps I should quickly clarify. One should be aware of one's environment. One should be able to continue to learn. One should be able to experience joy and sadness, pain and pleasure, loss and gain, and have some measure of perspective about what is right and wrong. One should have eventually have some measure of independence.

One of the tenets of my religious beliefs is not only a hereafter but familes persisting. My father died a few years back. I hope to be reunited with him someday. Yet I fear that my father will likely be angry at me for letting his life extend past the point where the previous paragraph would not define his existence. I should have liked to have done what he often told to do when I was younger, "John, if I ever get so bad that I'm not living any more you have to promise that you'll just shoot me". Sorry Dad. I am genuinely sorry I had to prolong things, but I would have gone to jail had I done what you wanted. Were it not Alzheimers, but some type of genetic conversion whereby people became progressively Down's, or spina bifida, or anencephalic there would be an outpouring of understanding for those who might want to prevent it from progressing past a certain point.

Finally, I wish to rail against a common attitude of supposedly adult children when a parent dies and the other remarries. It happened today in church. One of the speakers went on and on about her divine nature in 'forgiving' her father for remarrying after her mother passed. I take special exception to this being someone who has lost a spouse and remarried.

We don't need anyone's fortgiveness because we have done nothing wrong. I don't know the specifics of this particular couple, but I can't imagine a scenario whereby he shouldn't remarry. People have notions I suppose that one should 'grieve' for a certain period of time. And should stay single, alone, and unhappy after that. I encountered some of this when I started to piece together the lives of me and my boys. After Teresa's funeral, the boys and I drove her best friend to the burial. Her friend was living in the Bay area, for about a year previous, and had barely flown in. Imagine the sight of me getting out of the van with a blond with a spiky-haired blond, who had a loooooooong hug for me and a kiss for both boys. Some must have thought I brought a date!

Why did I remarry so soon? Not that it's anybody's business, but because my first wife had told me to. She must have had some premonition I suppose. Starting a few months before she died, she would tell me that if she died that she wanted me to remarry right away. Less than five months after it happened, I had remarried. Many were aghast. The one group that it could have been the most expected from was Teresa's family. In fact, they were the most supportive and understanding. They were all happy that the boys had a new mom (and two new brothers!). They went out of their way to make my new family their family. This act of true divine nature is one that I shall not forgive nor be able to repay.

symptoms

I can no longer hold my peace. I am going to complain about certain of the patients I try to help.

Patients ask what is the "best" thing for a cold. I ask the symptoms and invariably the first thing they say is I have 'sinus'.

Let me make this very simple. 'Sinus' is a body part NOT a symptom. Are your sinuses congested, running, dry, painful, dripping blood etc.?

What would happen if I went to the Instacare for a urinary tract infection and when I am asked the problem I answer, I have "penis". Instead of leaving with seven days of Cipro and/or Pyridium I'd be laughed at (or leave with an Rx for Levitra).

Politics, scholarship, suburban angst

I was asked recently if I had any political views. My answer was 'yes'.

Today my oldest son received a letter from the department of Education inviting him to apply for some Presidential this, that, or the other thing. He would get to go to Washington D.C. with about 140 other kids nationwide. They will get a medal, attend some 'functions', and get to meet the President. NO MONEY for school mind you, just the trip and the fun.

Well it turns out that he has to fill out an application. He's been filling out lots of applications lately. And assembling portfolios. He has promised that his latest portfolio will be like nothing anyone else has written. So here's my concerns: The kid has strong and mature political views. I have myself to blame I suppose. I am an economist. I analyze the world with this in mind. And warfare of course. I have studied both since I was sixteen. As I answered earlier, I have definite political views.

I told my son that he need not shrink from, nor modify his beliefs. He needs to be careful about what he says. Not for fear that it may offend, or alienate, but to make sure that what he states is clear, concise, and most importantly what he believes. I have always taught him to challenge others beliefs. I have taught him to recognize authority where it exists and to respect that which earns respect. I have failed in one key regard though. He has yet to challenge me. Not once has he said, "how can you believe that" or better yet "you're full of it old man!".

Our relationship has obviously been that of father/son. But it has at times taken on that of teacher/student. The student is always reluctant to challenge the master. He has already surpassed me on a few academic fronts. That is to be expected. His analyses and the styles he employs leave me anxious about the path he will be eventually drawn to. He wishes to study physics and mathematics. One day he wants to work at CERN. I don't see that happening for him unless he challenges me in a timely fashion. I see him clutching the Nobel Prize for economics. And maybe providing sage advice for some knucklehead President of the United States that he met back in the summer of 2009 at a conference for presidential scholars.

I fail to grasp why economics and human decency and compassion have to be politicized. Perhaps my son can make it possible. I certainly haven't. One of my views is summed up nicely from the closing lines of Brecht's 'Caucasian Chalk Circle'.

Take note of what men of old concluded:
That which there is shall to go those who are good for it.
Children to the motherly, that they prosper.
Carts to good drivers, that they might be driven well.
The valley to the waterers, that it yield fruit

Gaelic pride and our new president

Before I start anything, I would ask the gentle reader to finish the whole thing before drawing conclusions or getting your ire up.

Oooooh. Ire up. Irish. That reminds me about a chick I saw at a St. Paddy's day event. She was wearing a 'wife-beater' that said "Werin no bragh" .......and she wasn't. Very nice!!

We have a new president now. One who has promised to bring people together. Like many of the other problems facing our president this one is difficult and has no quick fixes. We are very much a polarized nation (but not as much). Some people would point to this and say we haven't made progress. We have though.

Those who occupy the poles are going to be quickly disappointed with our new president. We have those who are obsessing on the 'historical' significance of a black man becoming president. It's a celebration of everything African-American. Black culture has been validated at last, validated at last, Great God almighty validated at last. My evidence? Look no further than the train-wreck of a performance that was Aretha Franklin. Back in the day that woman could SING. Today, she sounded like a tired, old, woman. So why her? I suppose for what she represented.....whatever that was. Well, I shouldn't complain. It could have been Fantasia Berino.

These folks that are so keen on his blackness are going to be very disappointed when he shows up for work tomorrow and starts working on America's problems and not 'black America's' problems. The problems of black America cannot be solved from above. They are a function of dysfunction. The same dysfunction that affects poor white, brown, and every other color of fpoor folks. Poverty, and it's trans-generational perpetuation have a cause. Obama realizes this. There remains enormous disparity in between blacks and whites. That is only part of the picture however. We have an entire spectrum of people that live in this country. Most do not complain about being victims.

The other pole is the crackers that are predicting doom. Just say it folks (preferrably in a soft Southern drawl), "I'm pissed off that a Nigger is the president". That way you could at least be honest. As for your predictive 'analysis', I'd recommend you go shovel it somewhere else. I despise the word 'nigger'. Always have. It's what they are thinking though. I would enjoy watching these people suffer. When Obama and Congress get their acts together, problems will be fixed. Then even the lot of the cracker will improve.

Those on the one pole would have voted for a lobotomized felon......as long as he were black. With the other pole, you could have the most imminently qualified man on earth be selected against solely because he was black. I don't know why anybody should listen to either side. Extremism is bullshit, EVERY SINGLE TIME!!

And now for the progress part that I promised. Obama wasn't elected because of a culmination of efforts by the black community. There political power is waning in fact, as is white America's. (How far off is a Latino president? Or an Asian? They're the ones picking up influence due to demographic changes). Obama was elected because he stood for change in how this country does business both at home and abroad. This appealed to enough of 'white' middle America that he won. Gore did it barely, but lost anyway(I voted for Nader). Kerry couldn't do it (I forgot who I voted for......but Marilyn Chambers was the vice-presidential candidate). Obama did it convincingly. The fact that Obama is black is merely incidental to some of us. That, ladies and gentlemen is the progress that we have made as a nation. Fifty years ago, everyone would have cared. We were a lot more polarized back then if you think about it. The playwright Henrik Ibsen said that the minority is always right. I am a white, middle-class American who voted for Obama. Most people like me voted McCain. I am in the minority. Therefore, I ELECTED OBAMA. People like me were the critical mass that made his ascendency possible. People like me teach our children not to hate merely because of where a person is from or what color his skin is. People like me teach our children to confront evil. People like me realize that there decent people come in all hues. So does the "trash".

I am relieved that we have a President that will speak with all parties involved. Even the 'evil' ones. I'm glad that we have someone that will restore our alliances and international credibility. I'm pleased that we have a man that will not defer resolutions or distribute blame. I pray he will tackle our problems head on. Fix the obvious ones first. Mostly, I am thrilled that we have a president that is my intellectual equal. The last Republican that could claim that was Reagan. Of course, I was only 16 at the time. Come to think of it, my 17 year old has it all over 'W'.

Fusion cuisine and exclusive subdivision nomenclature

Tonight, my wife and I went out with friends of ours. We went to Takashi. It was great. But it got me thinking about the nature of 'fusion' food. Sometimes, you can combine various elements of different styles of cuisine and come up with something truly unique. Most often, you get something that is unique but nonetheless forgettable.

In one of my previous entries I spoke of the Spice Market Buffet in the Holy City. I guess why I like it and other casino buffets so much is that they do fusion how it should be. The Spice market doesn't combine Japanese and Eastern Med cuisine to make something new. The sushi is over there, the lamb and hummus is over here. They have traditional recipes from a wide variety of styles. That is what I want from a restaurant. The only place I can get it is buffets. I close my eyes and dream about a place where the menu is varied every day (something like the French Laundry but with man-sized portions.....none of that 'tasting' menu BS)

Todays menu is:

- Lobster bisque (traditional French) for the soup
- Sunomono (traditional Japanese) for the salad
- Spaghetti Bolognese (traditional Italian)
- Flan (traditional Mexican) for dessert

See what I mean? Traditional old school recipes from different styles making a meal. Not a bastardized mish-mash of the four styles combined into something uninspired.

Did I mention that I despise hip youngsters wearing black as part of the ambience? Life is a bitch when you are young, white, and affluent!

Next-


What is so wrong with long straight streets, laid out geometrically? Even better is when the streets are named according to their relative coordinate (N/S/E/W) and a street light is nearby to illuminate it. And while we're at it, let's connect all the roads.

Tonight was the latest adventure I had with the 'exclusive' subdivisions of the town I live in. On uneven terrain and canyons and the like the roads and homes would have to conform to the topography. This is to be expected. But when the terrain is flat, the roads need not twist and bend and terminate in an endless array of cul-de-sacs, From the air, it probably looks like someone's lungs. The problem is this. When I wish to move from alveoli to an adjacent alveoli I should not have to pick my way clear up to the bronchus. At one point I could SEE the back of the house and had to drive and weave another 6 blocks to get there.

The street names are long and hence difficult to read at night especially when NOT lit. One in particular I remember was Logan Canyon Road/Avenue/Way/Drive/Street/Parkway/Place or maybe it was Boulevard. Hell that's got a lot of letters. It had to be boulevard! You cannot read the damn thing until you are ten feet away. You cannot see more than a half a block down the road so you have no clue if it is a through street or not. And most are not. By the way, Logan Canyon is a 100 miles away

I've got a better idea. Rename the streets to something more accurate. Wandering Cows Street. Or Sorry, your pizza is going to be late Avenue. NO wait! I've got it. The police/fire department/ambulance all got lost on the way to your place BOULEVARD. Put it all on a street sign and turn off the F***ing lights!

An oasis of great Mexican food and musings on Mormon culture

There is a place called 'El Parral' in Tremonton Utah. It is one of the very few Mexican restaurants where I truly clean my plate. The gentle reader is no doubt familiar with the obligatory shredded lettuce and chunks of tomato that litters the side of every plate of Mexican food. Nobody eats it. So why bother putting it there?

El Parral uses shredded cabbage and a bit of carrot and marinates it in salt (YUM). The chile verde is top notch. The chicken mole ain't too bad either. They're fast, friendly and affordable. I caught my oldest checking out the ass of the waitress. I suppose if I were 17 ..........well next topic.

The reason my entire family was in Tremonton today was for mother-in-law's funeral. Let me say up front that she was a kind, devoted, and decent woman. She loved all of my kids as grandchildren, not just the ones that were hers biologically. So on the outside chance that somebody from that part of the family stumbles across this blog, I must say that none of what I am about to say is specific to her on the family. It did get me thinking about some things is all.

Funeral food: As it turns out funeral potatoes and ham loaf aren't a Utah phenomena. Ask anyone that has lived in the midwest, especially Minnesota and the Dakotas. But, the startling uniformity of funeral food coupled with the metal folding chairs, and eating with a fair amount of people I don't know, prompted my visit to El Parral instead of the Tremonton 6th ward basketball court.

They call it compassionate service. I suppose it is. The people that show up and prepare the food, set up the tables/chairs etc. are doing it out of respect and perhaps love for the families involved. I'm not sure how my eating this slop fits into the grieving process though.

If they really wanted to have a meal that honored my mother-in-law they could have served the same food she served for family parties. There would be the roast beef that is something akin to the ham. Salty au-jus, thin-sliced, just pile it on a bun and eat it. But we also could have had her candied yams (YUM), her shrimp and macaroni salad (just take it easy on the green onion), and some greens besides iceberg lettuce with the Ranch dressing they sell at the local market. I despise Ranch......truly........but the stuff they sell ain't bad.

The second topic of Mormon culture I wish to mention is the blessing of children. For those who aren't familiar with this practice I'll briefly explain. According to the faith (LDS) that I belong to, there are several ordinances that are necessary. Things such as baptism would make sense to any Christian denomination. There is also 'confirmation', marriage, and a series of ordinances that occur in our temples. These are sometimes referred to as saving ordinances.

The point I wish to make is that blessing of children is NOT a saving ordinance, but it nonetheless a strong enough part of the culture that people outside the church would make the assumption that it is. There is some pragmatic parts of the whole process. The child, almost always a newborn, is given a name that they will be known by in Church records. The name is practically always the child's legal name. The child is thereby introduced to the congregation.

Stay with me know, I'm getting to my point. The second part of the blessing is the actual blessing which is supposed to be given as the 'spirit dictates'. In my life I have done three. All were over within 60 seconds. I gave all three children what I believed were meaningful, but succinct blessings. Which brings me finally to my point. The uniformity of what everyone else does.

They don't give the child a blessing. Instead they have a 'wish-list' as follows:
- strong mind and body
- example to your family
- baptized at eight
- receive the Priesthood starting at 12 (for males)
- serve a mission
- get married in the temple (hey weren't they supposed to go to college somewhere in there?)
- have your own kids

It is especially confused when you have grandfathers, uncles, brother, etc. doing the blessing. That means the father is either AWOL, a non-member, or a member that might as well not be.
I say they should mix things up a bit as follows:

- bless you not to end up a screw-up like one or both of your parents
- bless you with not getting knocked up (or doing the knocking up) early which the parents invariably did
- bless you with the infinite wisdom to listen to people that know what they are doing, unlike your parents or apparently your grandparents.
- bless you and your family with the wherewithal to get the f**k out of our basement apartment.
- bless you with a classic education with a hard science grounding and aheavy emphasis on writing.

That should about do it for me!

Remember go to the El Parral in Tremonton.