JHW: Stuck in our Part-Time Workers Economy

To continue my ongoing Job Hunt Woes series... Please listen to this radio show if you can. It really is a great discussion. http://onpoint.wbur.org/2012/11/15/part-time It calls this a crisis. I agree completely. They also mention that this appears to be a "Chicken or the Egg?" sort of problem. Some people blame the employment scheme in the U.S. for the economy, while some blame the economy for this whole situation. I, myself, blame the ethics in modern America, whether they be business ethics, the ethics of the shoppers, and personal ethics. (I myself sail smoothly above these things ;-) I love their term: "the involuntary part-time workers". This show says less than 25% of Americans have a "normal" job, full-time, M thru Fri, 9-5 More specifically, I blame the prominance of corporations. I have had a theory for a while that corporations are the most unethical of businesses because they do not have accountability for moral decisions. No conscience. A traditional business has an owner who accepts responsibility for ethical decisions, whether the business choices are ethical or not. Imagine the CEO: he or she is responsible to the sharehlders, not their own conscience. On the other side, the shareholders do not consider themselves accountable, because they aren't involved directly in decisions. Irnoically, this broadcast came along soon after a (very good!) Climate Change discussion on NPR about that worldwide looming crisis, and saying how our day-to-day focus prevents us seeing the big picture of how dire the situation is. http://hereandnow.wbur.org/2012/11/15/wen-stephenson-climate I am very lucky. I have a respite from this madness for myself, while I draw unemployment (which is another blog in itself: most people seem to be misinformed about it; they are giving you YOUR money back that they extracted from your employer)

JHW: How much land does a man need?

Job Hunt Woes are never far away, but sometimes appear in a different guise. Sometimes they are not even woes, but moments of success. Right now, my woes resemble more confusion and uncertainty, although to be honest I've had a lot more success lately than I am accustomed to. Back in high school, I was forced to read many things, but a few were actually good experiences, and that includes a certain thoughtful Russian short story by Leo Tolstoy. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/How_Much_Land_Does_a_Man_Need%3F http://www.online-literature.com/tolstoy/2738/ -spoiler alert- As I seem to remember it, the story is about an ambitious man who wants to be a rich landholder, and talks some indigenous people into selling him land based on how far he can run a circle in a day. He wins a huge tract of land for the purchase price, but the actual price is that he dies from a heart attack (or somesuch). How much land does a man need? About six feet. I've been thinking about that moral a lot lately. I'm at a bit of a crossroads, here. Life is too short, and better to know when to quit while you are ahead.

Have you read 'Atlas Shrugged'?

I haven't, but I have heard A LOT about it. The American news landscape is full of Ayn Rind (spelling to come). I don't know all that much about this ideology directly, but indirectly I have some impressions, and apparantly it preaches about "The Virtue of Selfishness" and the evils of a "Culture of Dependancy" among the needy. I just want to say I recognize many similarities with Confucianism. Wikipedia calls it a "ethical-sociopolitical teaching" in it's original form, although it is often considered a religion these days. The Confusian inverse Golden Rule ("Do NOT do unto others what you would NOT have done uno you) seems a close analog to Ayn Rind's socio-economic ideology. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confucianism I've gotta say, the title is amazing, a full of subtle meaning, but I also must say it's extremely confusing to me. I seems to me the idea of the mythical figure of Atlas shrugging (abadoning his responsibilty of holding the earth on his shoulders) says chaos comes from "shrugging" which is quite at odds with what I am given to undertand this is all about.

movies seen recently

Let's see...Cowboys Versus Aliens Kung Fu Panda 2 (?) Expendables 2 Watch (Ben Stiller) The Good Girl http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confucianism

First blog post from my first wifi laptop! /Opar

Okay, the wifi thing is cool and occupies many of my thoughts (although nowhere near as many as my girlfriend) but that's not quite what I intend to blog about today. But the fact I can blog today is very much made possible because of wifi ;-) I have found it very hard to manage much reading time while working so many hours, not to mention all the other things. Time wth my girlfriend takes priority, and then social activities and board games and such. And I try and fit the Daily Show (and Colbert Report) in there, too. Actually, I get to see Jon Stewart pretty regularly at this moment in my life, because I live part-time in a motel, with cable, and it is about the only favor granted me by my cellmate...er, roommate. Anyway, I have finished part of the omnibus I've been reading, Gods of Opar. I have been very happy, despite moments of displeasure. But that's the worst critism I have: not the way I would have preferred things. Anyway, I finished Flight to Opar, which impressed me. The biggest thing that I carry with me is the suprise that the story wasn't finished when i settled down for a conclusion. In true pulp fashion, every time you thought the jig was up, it was only one more step in the story. Specifically, and I am going to warn you of a minor spoiler here, the last few chapters introduced new villians, heroes, powerplay/politics, and reasons for jeapardy. Sadly, and again in true pulp fashion, many of the human realities of personal dynamics are overlooked. Most notably I refer to the (spoilers!) romance between the protagonist and Lalila. Well, more the marriage than the romance. How does Hadon feel about her already having a child, and being an instant father? How does he feel about his adopted daughter? How does he adjust to his wife's undoubted cultural habits? Lalila is from an "uncivilized" culture, after all. Are there no stresses in the marriage? Maybe Hadon is too proud, too manly to speak of such private matters. But I can't imagine they aren't thought about. I have decided it is proper I finish Flight before The Song of Kwasain, the thrid and final novel in the omnibus. I have thuroughly enjoyed Kwasain. My main criticism is a big one, and I think it falls to the main writer, Carey (long story about the collaboration). The protagonist, Kwasain, should be an anti-hero. He is perfectly suited to it. In the original two books, he is treated as a egotistical brute. A boarish braggart. Perhaps even laughing at his own cruelty. I recall him laughing at the barbarian women he had raped who hadn't been able to walk immediately afterwards. In Song, he is a different man. Still a disrespectful braggart and thinks with his naughty parts, but too much of a hero for the sake of faithfulness. Maybe I am too critical. In other news, my "temporary job" won't last too much longer, at whcih point I will be (hopefully) again on unemployment and searching for renewed employment. I have not made much progress in my readings since my last blog post. Also, and this is not quite a new sentiment, but I need to make a Job Hunt Woes post on the sentiment "Life is too short for..." referring to my current well-paid, poorly-lived job.

multiple readings at the moment...

I read online recently (amazing that I have the time) where someone in the Commentariat mentioned their Mount To-Be-Read (well, they said Mount Toberead, but I think that is confusing). I'm not sure I'll adopt that phrase for my own use, but it is worth consideration, especially considering the mountain-seeming pile I have been accumulating. And accumulate is about all that has happened for a few months. I took a very time consuming construction job, about as inappropriate a job for a scholarly type that I can think of. But I am surviving, and even holding my own. I worked 71 hours last week, getting paid 31 hours of overtime. No life; large paychecks. For a temporary thing, it is marvelous in many respects and I'm very blessed and grateful to have it. But anyway... I have had Jack London's The Sea Wolf on my calander for about two years. I am still in the middle of Gods of Opar, and actually I am reading books 2 and 3 of the trilogy (Flight to Opar and Song of Kwasin) simultaneously, alternating between their natural turning points (if I am lucky enough to notice them). I am in the middle of a breif scholarly history of Africa, called an Atlas of African History, and it is just the kind of overview I was interested in. I hope to finish that soon. It's about 1300 and Zimbabwe just emerged as a power, enriched by their gold trade with seagoing Arabs. The Islamic empire(s) are in decline from their apex of a few centuries ago, and independant Ghana has thrown out the Mohamadeans in favor of their indigenous animism and native king. My favorite chapter in history, the Renaissance explorers, is just over the horizon. Literally. Next up Prince Henry the Navigator, Magellan, Cadamosto, I hope. I picked up a few books from the library on "mysteries" recently. One on cryptozoolgy, one on lost civiliations, and another on mysteries of the past, generally. My Opar interests compelled the African and mysterious books. I ordered the Other Log of Phileus Fogg on eBay. The new Titan books edition, gently used. That purchase is not quite a result of Opar, but rather part of the same trend (the author, Jose Farmer) After ordering Phileus Fogg, I learned from a review online that I was earnestly recommended to first read the original Around the World in 80 Days by Jules Verne. So I have added that to my list also, retroactively. Strangely enough, my girlfriend seems to have had a presentiment on that account and had gotten me a copy months before. I am in the middle of The Annotated Hobbit, an 80s pre-Peter-Jackson celebration of the ledgendary books, including the novel itself. Four months ago I think the dwarves, hobbit, and wizard just escaped the Goblin caverns (along with Golum). I also began a Sherlock Holmes story, but only a few pages in, and I forget which one. I just remember my shock at his cocaine use. I also got two hardbacks from the Dollar Tree recently (I cannot recommend books from Dollar Tree enough, when worth reading): one on modern travel tales from China, the other on corruption in US politics. Those are near the bottom of my pile, however. I have Exiles of Kho on preorder, and am hoping for it later this month. It is a novella set in the world of the Opar books, and is exiting. It is going to be high on my list of To-Be-Reads, in part because I paid real money for the privilege ;-) And privilege is promises to be. Months ago I started an Ernest Hemingway novel, The Green Hills of Africa, but only got a few chapters into it by the time I got sidetracked. I plan to get back to it. It seemed worth the read. Besides, I own it, because I bought it very cheap at a library used book sale. Not long ago (in bibliographical terms) I read an excerpt from Edgar Allen Poe's Eureka and was dumbstruck. I mean, this was the 1800s, and the guy has anticipated the Big Bang Theory. No, I'm not kidding. If you are interested in astronomical science, you should read it. Can you tell I have a bad habit of starting stories I don't finish, even if they are good? To combat this bad habit, I have sometimes forced myself to read stories that did not hold my attention. Forgive my blasphemy, but some of the Edgar Allen Poe stories were that way. Am I forgetting something? Well, I suspect I am, but if I remembered what I was forgetting, we wouldn't be having this problem, would we?

Classic country? Big Wind and Johnny Cash

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CxMe6x3Kh8 I didn't even realize there was such a thing as classic country, and I also didn't realize Johnny Cash and John Denver are generally considered country. I heard the above song "Big Wind" on the radio a few weeks ago and was first made aware of the concept. It turns out I like that style of music, regardlass of the fact I detest country music in the modern sense. Now, I don't mean any disrespect. I am quite certain some of my interests offend others' sensabilities. Your comments?