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Thank you for visiting. Please feel free to comment on any of my blogs. Much of my discussion is political in nature - civil discussion only please! Enjoy!

Thursday, February 23, 2012

Still Undecided

Normally I'm "all in" for one candidate at this point in the primary season. Not so this year, and last night's debate did nothing to help.

Mitt Romney is not on my radar screen. I see him as a liberal square peg trying his best to force himself into a conservative round hole. The Establishment likes him because he won't challenge the status quo. I see through it. If he gets the nomination I will be hard pressed to hold my nose and vote for him as the Establishment assumes most of us will. Third party, anyone?

Newt Gingrich is, in my opinion, the strongest debater in the group. He'd eat BHO's lunch any day on any topic. He carries a lot of personal baggage, however, that BHO's team would certainly exploit. Newt's record is strong; he led the "Contract with America" and his service as Speaker of the House during the Clinton balanced budget years scores points. He is wise and I would feel comfortable with him in the White House. I'm just not sure he can get there.

Rick Santorum showed poorly in last night's debate in my opinion. He appeared nervous and unprepared for the attacks that were sure to come (and did) given his recent rise in the polls. He allowed Romney to twist his words and distort his record several times, and seemed confused as to how to respond to those attacks. As a social conservative, my values are very much aligned with Santorum's. However, would he be much different as president than George W Bush was? I'm not sure, and therein rests my discomfort.

Ron Paul is a pure Constitutionalist. I like that. In taking the time to read some of his past speeches and interviews, I have no question that Paul would adhere strictly to the Constitution in carrying out his office. As a fiscal conservative I align most closely with Paul's fiscal and monetary policies. I remain somewhat uncomfortable with his foreign policy. Would he wait too long to take action when our country is threatened? I'm not sure I want to find out.

So there you have it. I'm thankful that the Texas primary is still weeks away. I'll be watching and I'll be reading as I continue to research the candidates. And I hope every voter out there does the same.

Sunday, February 19, 2012

The Political Discourse in Social Media: My Pet Peeves

As the election cycle continues to heat up I see more Americans entering the discourse in social media. I participate fairly actively in the discussion myself on facebook and twitter. Recently I’ve seen some trends that annoy the daylights out of me. Before I share them, I offer these disclaimers: First, I’m not perfect and I know it. I have caught myself on more than one occasion doing the very things that annoy me the most. I am working hard not to, however. Second, I am not an expert on social media etiquette; these are simply my personal opinions. Now, allow me the opportunity to vent just a bit.
1)      Why must we be so quick to label one another? I’ve been called everything from a GOP loyalist to irrational and everything in between. Quit trying to slot me; I don’t fit either of these criteria. Let’s refrain from labeling and name-calling and instead engage in a meaningful discussion. You don’t get to assign my loyalties; nor do I get to assign yours.
2)      Social media is a great avenue for sharing informative news articles and interesting blogs. Those with whom I interact run the gamut of the political spectrum. Most of them share good and insightful information (after all, I do tend to pick high quality friends), and I read as much of it as I can in the time I have available. When I post an article or blog I usually post a quote from the article that I feel sums up the main point; I try to refrain from posting my opinion on the contents. Let the piece speak for itself and trust the reader’s intelligence to “get it”. A facebook friend recently posted a blog describing a study wherein it concluded that to be conservative one must also be stupid. To preface the article he posted (paraphrased) “and we needed a study to tell us this?” I no longer follow his posts. Be respectful, people!
3)      As a Christian I treasure God’s Word, which He gave to reveal His nature as well as to nourish and inspire. It was not given for us to carve verses out of context and sling them at those who oppose our views in sorry attempts to support our political positions. Conservatives and liberals are equally guilty here. Abuse or disrespect Scripture and I will call you on it every time.
4)      I generally ignore posts that disparage people personally. Ron Paul is not “crazy”; Rick Santorum is not “insane”; Barack Obama is not “anti-American”; Conservatives/Liberals are not "stupid"… You get the point. I try to post items that support my personal positions; those posts may be consistent with the views of one or more of the candidates. I will also post items that highlight current issues in which I disagree with any of the candidates, the President and/or Congress. That’s called “free speech” and the Constitution protects my right to do so. See point 5 below.
5)      Whether you agree or disagree with my positions, feel free to engage me in a civil, respectful, objective discussion. Such dialogue makes us stronger as individuals and as a nation. Post an emotionally charged, biased, unsupported, or disrespectful response and I will probably ignore it. If I disagree with you and post an emotionally charged, biased, unsupported, or disrespectful response call me on it.

I am excited about the role social media can play in our national dialogue. I have learned much from my social media friends over the past couple of years and I am grateful for that. If this piece inspires you to “up your game” as it holds me accountable for my own behavior then I’ve achieved my purpose. Happy tweeting!

Thursday, February 9, 2012

Random Thoughts on Personal Connections & Social Media

As I type this I am in flight, returning home from a conference with risk managment and human resource professionals from all over the country. I always leave these meetings with renewed energy for what I do for a living.

I am particularly jazzed today after hearing a great presentation on social media and how it is impacting business. Succinctly stated, if your company isn't embracing this technology be prepared to eat your competition's dust. That said, I'm struck by the dichotomy that we all face today. I can engage the world via the PC in my lap. Heck, right now I'm 32,000 feet above the earth, and this blog will post before I land in Dallas! Through social media I can engage the world; I can interact with interesting people from all walks of life. And that is really cool.

But you know what I did this week? I spent three days face-to-face with people who do what I do. We shared ideas, we renewed friendships, we traded laughs, we enjoyed a few glasses of wine... Social media interaction is here to stay and I think that's great. I embrace it and I enjoy it. But nothing replaces the impact of personal human interaction. And for that I am eternally grateful.