Systems Savvy

I’ve waited nearly 24 years for the conversation I had with my oldest daughter last night. She was close to 14 months old when we adopted her in the PRC, but I was 55 years old. My father had died two months shy of his 60th birthday and I’d been told all my life, “You’re exactly like your father”. I had good reason to believe I was rapidly approaching my “Use By” date, yet it deter me from…

I haven’t written much about my growing old and the illnesses I’ve encountered in the past couple of years. Suffice it to say it’s been challenging, as well as revealing. Facing one’s mortality head on is both fascinating and, at times, frightening. Not that I’m afraid of death, just a little apprehensive about the process of dying. Truth to tell, I have lots of reasons to stay alive, not the…

In 1973, while preparing to travel to Cuba with the Venceremos Brigade, I underwent extensive political education on race, class, imperialism, and American society. Among the most memorable lessons came from members of the Black Panther Party. They distinguished personal prejudice and bigotry from something broader and more deeply rooted: racism as a system—something embedded in institutions,…

I haven’t written much about my growing old and the illnesses I’ve encountered in the past couple of years. Suffice it to say it’s been challenging, as well as revealing. Facing one’s mortality head on is both fascinating and, at times, frightening. Not that I’m afraid of death, just a little apprehensive about the process of dying. Truth to tell, I have lots of reasons to stay alive, not the…

I was raised with baseball. When I was a little boy, actually a toddler, my grandfather would take me to see the Los Angeles Angels at Wrigley Field and the Hollywood Stars at Gilmore Field. This was in the early 50s. We would always get there early for batting practice. One of my earliest memories is of shagging a foul ball off of first base and being asked by Chuck Connors to give it back,…

The United States does not merely suffer from bad policy. It suffers from a failed political-economic design. For decades, Americans have been told that the economy rewards merit, innovation, risk, and hard work. That story has become increasingly difficult to defend. Workers produce the goods, deliver the services, build the platforms, staff the hospitals, move the freight, teach the children,…

A guy I follow on Twitter, Dave Weasel, tweeted asking why we aren’t calling the investigation of Matt Gaetz, Pizza Gaetz. It was in response to a tweet by Mehdi Hasan, who noted that QAnon believes this investigation is all part of “the plan”. It got me thinking and, here’s my contribution to the effort. I have nothing more to add at the moment other than to point out how I expect this years…

I have, in the past, asked when it would be time to consider acting out against polluters, climate change deniers and, especially, so-called governmental leaders as acts of self-defense. After all, increasingly severe weather events are killing large groups of people who currently have no say in how we deal with the climate crisis, which I believe is very real and abundantly documented. So I’ve…

We learned exactly nothing from Vietnam. Back then, we incinerated jungles, dropped more tonnage than we did in World War II, and still got run out of Southeast Asia by peasants in sandals with AK 47s and a clearer sense of purpose than any official in Washington. We had helicopters, jets, artillery, sensors, computers; they had bikes on jungle trails and the patience to bleed us until our own…

At what point do we have the right to self-defense? This man’s bigotry, misogyny, and hate for “the other”, as well as his ignorance of science, has already caused (either directly or indirectly) the deaths of millions. We can’t afford another day, let alone 3 years, of this idiot’s “leadership”.

Forty years ago I was working for a litigation support firm in a high-rise in Century City. I heard about the Challenger exploding and rushed down to the bar & grill downstairs, where I knew they had a television. Little did I know that a year later, almost to the day, I would begin working as a temp on the Space Shuttle Main Engine program, where I mostly did data input on the FMEA/CIL document…

The world according to Donald Trump is a kind of bargain-bin epic, but the real masterpiece is the fan club that keeps insisting it is hard-hitting non-fiction. At this stage, his separation from reality is less a “difference of opinion” and more a hard launch into an alternate dimension, yet his supporters gaze upon this rift in the fabric of truth and declare, “Yes, finally, someone who tells…

I have NOT forgotten about the Epstein files. I will NEVER forget about the Epstein files. I will also NEVER forget that Trump is a pedophile and a rapist of children.

Do you really think we can deal with this insane, delusional administration non-violently? I’m not convinced.

I posted recently about how I’m using AI to help me manage my understanding of the medical information I receive from my doctor visits and from my Apple watch. I have been sharing the sleep graphic my watch and the Health app provide me each morning. This morning, there seemed to be a bit of a disconnect between the awake time the graph showed and the analysis that ChatGPT provided me. So I…

I have long known my father served in the U.S. Navy during WWII. He told me of his time as a Radioman 3rd class aboard the USS William H. Webb when it made the Murmansk Run to bring supplies to the Soviets. In fact, I have previously shared a photo of the certificate he was awarded when they crossed the Arctic Circle on that run. I only recently discovered he was part of a specialized detachment…

OK, not really, but yours is an important generation. Gen Z, also known as iGen or post-Millennials, refers to the demographic cohort born between 1996 and 2010. As this generation reaches voting age, it is important for its members to understand the importance of participating in every election. Voting is a fundamental right and responsibility of citizenship. It is a way for individuals to have…