The Definition of Independence

     "One day, I'm gonna move away!"

     She wasn't rude, and I wasn't upset.  In fact, I was more interested in figuring out how to injest the piping hot contents of my tea cup full of coffee without spewing it onto my newspaper (my kids eat up my Kindle and iPad money!).  My college senior daughter continued her slow burn over some tiff - real or imagined - that involved her mother, my wife.  I've learned how to navigate these increasingly rare conflicts:  Shut up, listen and open my wallet.

     "Yep,  one day I'm going to move away!" she said whimsically.  "And I'll do whatever I want!"  A short time later, my daughter  drove away on the latest tank of gas that had "magically appeared" in her "magically appearing" car.

     "The Declaration of Independence" I muttered under my breath, remembering the same conversations I had with my parents, years ago.   

     In the newspaper I saw so many voices:  Republicans, Democrats, Protesters, Notesters, Tea Partiers, Pee Tardiers, you name it, all claiming to be the true voice of Independence.  Yet Independence from what?  Some criticized "The Establishment".  Some criticized "Corporate Greed".  Some criticized The President.  Some Criticized Congress.  And as always, everyone seemed to claim the right to speak on behalf of "The Working Class" and "The Poor".

     In the spirit of full disclosure, I have taken part in nearly every form of protest, usually as a (sometimes paid) rabblerouser.  I have a big mouth and people seem to gravitate toward my singing voice and my ability to understand their point of view.  Yet it is usually this same open-mindedness that gets me in trouble.  After the dust settles, I sit and think and begin to deconstruct whatever argument is presented.  What's worse, I don't have any problem asking people questions that begin with "But what about...?" or "Have you seen research that states...?" When I am accused of being a muckraker, I remind people that dirt is everywhere, but to find it you have to stop being lazy, stop parroting your group's pre-packaged talking points and think for yourself.

      I am not always independent.  During weekdays I proudly claim my Dilbert cubicle.  All other times I wear close to a dozen different moonlighting hats.  Yet I reserve the right to sever these connections at will; in fact, my rollercoaster career history bears witness to my inability to endure inconsistency.

     I believe that the true test of Independence is the willingness to try to help people to get to "Heaven" - while at the same time being capable of telling organizations to go to Hell.  People are precious; parties are not.

     Regardless of the  point of view, if one is truly committed to Truth, one must be willing to sometimes swim against the current; if not, then all we are doing is driving philosophical automobiles purchased and powered by someone else.

     Always Be Positive!

The Wizard and the Craftsman

     The Wizard had returned.  He strode in to retrieve the last of his acquisitions, most notably the sea dragon pups that had been kept in ether and his divination stones culled from the hellish depths of the earth...

     Actually, the pups were formaldehyde-preserved baby sharks, which would soon be subjected to high-intensity MRIs.  The divination stones were large geos, curious collections of semi-precious stones taken from volcanic pits in Africa (take a 3 foot tall stalactite, break it in half vertically; inside are huge, jagged crystals of purple, red, green and blue.  There were seven of them, each weighing 250 to 300 lbs.  To me, the stones and the creatures were as precious as any man made art, classics included; in my world, a natural rainbow always trumps the printed one).

     As for The Wizard, he was the Professor who hired me last month to help him move his first batch of lab equipment and samples.  But this time, he wasn't alone.  In his almost empty home was a Contractor with whom he had apparently done business before.

     I thought they were ready to kill each other.  The Contractor  was a hard working, multi-talented, Conservative entrepreneur, whose businesses ranged from licensed work to renting his own properties.  The Professor was more Liberal,  a bleeding heart rationalist who visibly recoiled at the Contractor's endless "Dittohead/Fox News/ShaunHannity/Limbaugh"-soaked diatribes.   

     As I continued to carry boxes of sensitive equipment back and forth down the stairs, I noticed something else.  The Professor was moving, so he trusted the Contractor to paint and make small repairs for either a prospective buyer or renter.  Likewise, when the Professor offered to pay in advance, the Contractor refused and said  "Just pay me later". 

     Tonight there is a debate of Presidential hopefuls in Iowa; eventually, the President hopes to face one of them in the usual debates.   I am losing interest before the race has even started.  I work a regular white collar job and moonlight frequently, so I know this much is true:  Ordinary people - who respect and trust each other - don't need politicians to help them get things done!

     Always B Positive!