Going Crazy

I feel like I am going crazy. My body feels .... weak, and I am getting frustrated and annoyed by silly things at work and other places.

Essentially, I am reacting poorly to the feeling that "jobs" I have can and are being done by others.

It is rather an immature attitude, and I need to find a way to deal with it ASAP. It is rather unhealthy.

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr................

Sans souci. :-)

posted by Pacer 5/27/2004

Wednesday, May 12, 2004

Rain

I have come to the conclusion that, sometimes, rain can be the most beautiful thing.

posted by Pacer 5/12/2004

Thursday, May 06, 2004

The Economy - Part I

Capitalist and Socialist

Anyone who tries to offer a simple explanation of why or why not the economy is working or not working well is either lying to you or fooling themselves.

The economy is a complex machine, and it only grows more complex with each day. Two of the central issues surrounding the economy the ideas of Capitalism and Socialism.

Usually you hear people on either end of this spectrum but, like all things, the truth can and should be found more often in the center.

In short: neither pure capitalism nor pure socialism is good for the citizens of a nation nor are they viable economic models.

Many people believe in the invisible hand theory. Supply and demand, they argue, keep companies honest. If the consumers do not like the product they are provided, then they will cease to consume it. This, many people argue, is sufficient for the governance of economies. However, what happens when only one company provides the consumer with the product he/she needs?

What many people do not understand is that the Invisible Hand model, something we all should have learned about in High School, is a very simplified economic model and is outdated. Certainly the principles of this model apply in today's world and are still valid, but they are applied alongside other factors, forces, pulls and frictions which Adam Smith was never able to consider.

For the invisible hand model to truly work, one needs competition. Some of the greatest proponents of a Capitalist Economy argue that a government should take a laissez faire, or hands off, approach towards the economy -- thus ensuring the natural functioning of the invisible hand model.

This is a short-sighted and often selfish outlook, however. A completely unregulated economy causes more harm than good to the average consumer as well as the average company. Fluxuations in the economy might not always be drastic, but the very real possibility of them becoming extreme would exist. Economic regulations help temper these fluxuations and protect the consumer and companies from drastic change.

Truly, fortunes might be won more easily in a laissez faire economy. However, fortunes can be lost more easily as well. Regulations seeks to slow the exchange of property and fortune in order keep it at a manageable level. Thus fortunes might not be made as easily, but they would also be easier to hold onto.

Still, many restrictions and regulations forced upon an economy would have a different negative effect. The number of transactions, while not being too high as it would be in an entirely unregulated economy, would be too low. Because of this, innovation would be slow and economic mobility would be troublesome.

Certainly fortunes would be very easy to maintain in a Socialist economy where regulations are many and varied, but it would also be far too difficult to gain fortune. Thus innovation and mobility suffer, bringing discontent and a general malaise to the economy.

What a Strong Economy Requires

Transactions, as mentioned above, are important for an economy. One might initially believe that a high number of transactions means an economy is robust and lively. In truth, a strong economy has a high volume of transactions, which is an important distinction from a high number of transactions. A high volume of transactions means that there are a high number of transactions relative to a high number of goods and services.

A good analogy might be one of professional sports. Say there is a pro-Baseball league with 10 teams and a pro-baseball league with 100 teams. Now let's imagine both had 100 trades in the previous year. The league with 10 teams would a higher and more drastic rate change, and thus a lower stability, than the 100 team league even though the number of trades were the same. One league would have an average of 10 players change hands per team while the other would have an average of 1 player change hands per team.

While not a very sophisticated example, it illustrates the difference between simply a high number of transactions and a high volume of transactions.

To use a stock market example, it is better for the stock market to have 100 shares exchange hand in an hour across 100 companies than it is for it to have 100 shares exchange hand across 1 company. Obviously the first set of transactions represent a stable market with varied investment, while the second set of transactions shows a market fixated on one investment in a troubled entity and thus more susceptible for fluxuations.

Part of the key to a strong economy, then, is a varied and lively trade and investment across many areas of a market.

Just as important as this investment is the idea of competition. The invisible hand model, which is predicated upon the idea of supply and demand, will only work if there are viable alternatives to products. The economy should be regulated in a way that fosters and secures competition in the individual facets of an economy. Certainly this is no simple feat, but it is important for competition to remain in order for advancements to be made in those areas. If a consumer product has no competition, then the company making it will never need to seek out better ways of implementing or improving the item.

The trick is to walk a line that allows a vibrant and lively economy while also retaining competition.

This is not an easy task, and I do not pretend to know the answer.

posted by Pacer 5/06/2004

Wednesday, May 05, 2004

The Questions of Politics - Nelsonia's View

There comes a time in every man's life that he must decide about the ideas and ideals for which he stands.

In American Politics there are many questions voters must consider and weigh when deciding a political stance or party, I will attempt to outline the ones I hold to be the most important.

So, without further ado, the questions of politics:

1. The economy. I see this question coming down to Capitalist versus Socialist. Corporate greed is well-documented, but the answer is much more elusively outlined by its opponents. Certainly there are problems with strict capitalism, which is advocated by the Wal-Marts and Microsofts and other large corporations of the world, but there are also problems with a socialistic economic venture advocated by the opponents of the corporate culture.

2. Life, liberty and the pursuit of property (not happiness, property folks). What liberties and freedoms should we Americans enjoy? What liberties should be curtailed for the sake of freedom? Essentially, liberty versus safety -- or freedom versus safety, that is the question at hand.

3. Minimalist government versus activist government. This question centers on the idea that government should not interfere with people's lives and be minimalist and as un-intrusive as possible or the counter-point that government should take an active role in the lives of its citizens, right wrongs and provide equality for all.

4. Central government versus local government. This question centers upon whether or not citizens are better served by a central government providing uniform codes and laws or whether a local system better serves the common citizen by providing localized laws and codes.

These four questions I will attempt to answer for my own benefit over the course of the next month. We shall see how it goes...

posted by Pacer 5/05/2004

Tuesday, May 04, 2004

I Believe

I believe, I believe, I believe that angels fly

I beleive, I believe, I believe in the deep blue sky

I believe, I believe, I believe in you and I

And I believe, I believe I love you.

posted by Pacer 5/04/2004

THE HORROR!

I have a web gallery. You can find it here. I think. Let me know if I'm wrong.

posted by Pacer 5/04/2004

Sweet, Sweet Semi-Sweet Morsels!

I like to eat bags of Nestle Toll House Semi-Sweet Morsels. Apparently they are REAL Semi-sweet chocolate, not that fake kind. Awesome.

posted by Pacer 5/04/2004

And the Winner is....

Radio Paradise!

The best internet radio station ever.

Check it out.

posted by Pacer 5/04/2004

Freedom

Freedom is an elusive mistress.

To fly out there with freedom, letting the air touch your cheeks like the sweet caress of angels is to be lonely. To be alone.

To run free amongst the world is to be alone.

Freedom is an elusive mistress. A compelling mistress. A treacherous mistress. A smiling mistress.

Freedom is ..... a mirage.

The great fantasy of the world is that we can all be free.

That we can all dream. That we can all let go.

I want to let go. I want to let go from the edge of the material world holding me up.

I want to drop freely down through the clouds below, I want to learn to fly.

I want to feel the sweet caress of freedom's hand.

I want to dream and live and breathe and smile.

But freedom is lonely.

Freedom is fragmented.

Freedom is love, and freedom is the forsaking of that love.

Freedom is ..... Subtle.

It's all another day.

And freedom is frightening.

posted by Pacer 5/04/2004