Random observations on the War in Gaza

Heard a few things from various people that I wanted to document, if only for my own posterity.

Why Now?

One speculation is that Iran egged on Hamas to intensify things.

Why? To pull attention away from them and the fact that they blew by another deadline on the nuclear thing.

More Balanced Reporting?

While I would certainly not say that the media is full on pro-Israel, there have been some more reports that are critical of Hamas. One hypothesis goes to the mentality of the reporters who are stationed in Israel.

For years, they could be in Jerusalem or Tel Aviv, claim they were “war reporters” by going to West Bank or Gaza for the day and then return to their 5 star hotels and 1st world lives without trouble. Not like being in Syria or Iraq or wherever. Now, however, they, too have to go into bunkers and hear sirens, so maybe they are thinking “hmmm..the Israelis may have a point here.”

Europe and the Jews

It’s just really, really bad.

I had a thought today about the fact that we’re seeing the rise of another type of totalitarianism. Then, I read Shmuel Herzfeld’s article. He said it, so I don’t have to.

And people are targeting Jews for violence in France, chanting “death to the Jews” in the city of the International Court of Justice, the Hague, and opening up charter schools in Norway that advocate beheading for people who don’t fast during Ramadan.

The Story of Stuff

I’ve shared this before, but it’s worth sharing again…More powerful is the one on bottled water

Having A Great Partner-Lessons from the Race of My Life

On Sunday, I ran in the Army Ten Miler.

It was the best run of my life.

Back in April, I ran the Cherry Blossom 10 miler and I averaged 8:24 per mile. I was ecstatic then.

Since then, I had improved not only my training, but my diet as well. Was feeling stronger.

Except for the fact that I slept horribly on the night before, the stars were aligned. Beautiful morning. Got to the race in time to prep the body, as it were (runners know what I mean).

After I crossed the starting line, about 1/4 mile of the way in, I saw a guy next to me glance at his watch. I asked him our pace. “7:55,” he replied.

“What’s your target?”

“Right around there.”

So, I replied. “Well, I’ll stay with you as long as I can,” figuring he could pace me and even if I couldn’t keep up, at least I would have a strong start.

He said, “Sure, it’s always easier running with a partner.”

And, it was.

Not only did I get a chance to learn a bit about Nick Poulos’ life and perspective, but I had someone who looked after me-and vice versa-providing the little encouragement needed when-at various moments-your energy wanes.

Uphills, certain mileage points, and then the drive to the finish.

With Nick’s help, I was able to run the race of my life.

And it made me realize the importance of partnership in life across the board. Whether in marriage, business, or friends.

Babysitter cancellation policy?

If you make a reservation for a babysitter…and then you need to cancel, what would you say is the timeframe in which you should pay him/her for the time that was set aside?

Listening to Youth: Letter to your Future Self

When you’re in your 20s, you tend to think you know everything. The challenge is that you don’t know when you don’t know something. As a result, you don’t shut up when you should and let people with more experience do it.

When you’re in your 40s, you’ve realized that you knew something in your 20s, but may have been naïve about other things. At the same time, you realize there are people in their 60s and 70s who know a hell of a lot more. The challenge is figuring out which is which.

And, I’m guessing, the challenge when you get into your 50s and 60s is that sometimes you overweight experience.

I have been wanting to write a letter to my future self to remind me that, once upon a time, I was in my 20s. I had a pretty good understanding of technology, the Internet, and what would be its impact on the world (although, I didn’t see all of it, of course). Where I was really naïve was in how to commercialize it, how long it would take, among other things, but I was on the right track.

So, I want my future self to know that, one day, I am going to meet a 20 year old who will be full of energy, talking about how the world will change and that, while he or she may be off on a few key things, s/he will be spot on about others.

I just hope I am wise enough to pay attention.

Don’t take advice….

Thanks to a wonderful gift from my pal, Jacob, I’ve been reading/enjoying Jessica Hagy’s book How to Be Interesting: (In 10 Simple Steps)

I particularly liked this chart.

A Question About Zimmerman Case from a Guy Who Didn’t Really Follow It

I will be the first to say that I didn’t follow the Martin/Zimmerman trial at all.

I heard about it when the shooting occurred and then, believe it or not, didn’t hear anything until Sat. night when Facebook exploded with comments.

So, I really don’t know that much about the particulars of the case. So, in reality, everything after this could be ignorance in a bottle.

That being said, I saw my friend Tjada’s comment and there was something that troubled me about it. (Truth be told, there were others along this line, but this one stood out…Also, Tjada and I go way back on discussing tough issues, so I know she can handle it

For the sake of argument, let’s just all agree for now that the Zimmerman verdict was a total miscarriage of justice.

Here’s where I am running into issues.

If the Zimmerman verdict was a miscarriage of justice and let’s say that race did play a factor, does that necessarily mean that all courts, police officers, and prosecutors are racially biased?

And, isn’t reaching that conclusion the very essence of the Zimmerman case, in some way? (or at least how I understand it).

From what I can gather Zimmerman saw a young black man and immediately drew a generalized conclusion “young black man in wrong neighborhood can only be up to no good” because of a stereotype he had formed.

So, is it equally dangerous to have an incident where one court case in one city in one state that involves the murder of a black man has a miscarriage of justice and then automatically assume that all court cases where a black man is the victim are, by definition, going to be equally unfair/corrupt, etc.?

I suppose I am thinking that the reaction to the court case is precisely because of the danger of stereotypes, yet a statement like ‘scared for all black boys’ implies a stereotype that there’s no real justice in the court system anywhere in America.

Or, maybe I am just missing something here on a deeper level? Definitely possible and won’t be the first time, so help me understand.

You tell me the word…

Need a word to describe this situation: 

I'm sitting on a train (i.e. public place) and there's a dude talking way too loudly on his cell phone. I look at the woman across from me and we don't say anything, but it's pretty clear that we're both thinking, "why the heck does this guy have to talk so loud on his phone?"

So, the word I'm looking for describes the moment when you and a total stranger have a moment of non-verbal connection and you both know that you both are thinking the exact same thing.

Gender Discrimination in Loan Docs?

We just refinanced our mortgage.

I was surprised by the language in the first sentence. A relic of a different era?

A flight from Dallas and a BIG lesson about pre-judging

On my way back to DC from Austin (via Dallas), I found myself in my preferred aisle seat, but with 2 passengers to my right.

Once the doors were closed, I noticed that the seat one row in front of me, across aisle (and still on the aisle) was open, with no one in the middle seat.

Needless to say, I immediately grabbed it.

I was doing my work and when the flight attendant came by to ask for drinks, I started chatting with the gentleman in my row, seated next to the window.

It’s probably not a big surprise to you, but I tend to be one of those “plane talkers” and have many a good friend made on various flights.

As we chatted, I learned that this guy was also in technology, his company develops some cool mapping/data software for school buses, but-and I’m a bit scared to admit this-when he told me that he had programmers/development teams in Karachi and Abu Dhabi, I did start doing the calculation of “ok, what is my Jewish/Israel strategy for this conversation?”

I’d be lying if my first thought wasn’t, “this guy probably is anti-Israel at the least and at the worst, pro-Hamas or something like that,” and well, after a really long day, I wasn’t up for a fight. (And yes, that HAS happened to me before.)

Now, I am quite embarrassed and ashamed to admit that I fell into this trap because I could not have been more wrong.

Not only was Amir ridiculously nice, engaging, smart, etc., but it turns out that he had spent a few years working for an Israeli company (which, let’s be honest, would be enough to make even some Jews anti-Israeli), and came out with not only some admiration for their approach (well, not all of it), but recognition that some of what he had learned as a child in Pakistan (he emigrated to the US when he was 18), wasn’t so accurate.

Our conversation was enhanced at one point because I demonstrated a bit of that age old Jewish gift of chutzpah by asking the flight attendant, “hey, don’t you guys have any peanuts or pretzels back there?”

Her response was “what planet are you living on honey?” (but in a humorous way.)

Amir was skeptical, but I said, “hey, if you don’t ask, you never get.”

And, wouldn’t you know it, but a few minutes later, the flight attendant, Jan, shows up with a basket of nuts which were from the First Class cabin.

Amir was pretty surprised to say the least. I was riding the high that comes from being rewarded from chutzpah (something that doesn’t always happen, that’s for sure) and feeling validated.

At that point, Jan and I struck up a deeper conversation and I got a nice chunk of her life story, as well as promised to send a note to the American Airlines customer service team (which I have).  What can I say? I was feeling chatty.

A bit later, Jan returns, bringing 2 meals from the First Class cabin and asking “what kind of wine does your wife drink?”

Amir being Muslim and I being married to the NFO who is, well, the NFO, both said “my wife doesn’t drink wine,” which made Jan happy because she could then take it to her hotel room (she’d had a long day, so good for her!)

The only downside of our lengthy chat was that I neglected some of my planned work on the plane, but hey, I made it up in the cab and it was mega-worth it. In addition to our common technology-world lives, we both have 3 kids which are (sort of) the same age and we’re only 1 year apart in age.

Just a solid guy.

The conversation was fruitful, enlightening, and memorable. I learned a lot about Pakistan, Geo-location technology, and, most of all, the importance of not rushing to judgment.

For that, I feel very, very bad and mildly ashamed and I intend to carry this lesson with me for a long time.
We can call it the “Amir Principle.”

The corollary to that is the “Jan Principle.” Be nice to flight attendants and don’t be afraid of a bit of chutzpah (Amir’s newest Yiddish/Hebrew word, btw.)….You never know what might show up on your tray table.

Are You Honest or Dishonest?

Most likely, you are dishonest.

Here’s why…in a great 11 minute video by Dan Ariely (his previous book reviewed here).

Good news..you can do something about it for yourself…and to protect yourself from others.

HT to David Berkowitz

The Liberty Bell and the Chinese

A short family vacation found us in the City of Brotherly Love and in 1 super strong day, we were able to see Independence Hall and the room where the Declaration was signed, the Liberty Bell (which has a great exhibit telling the story of how the world views and appreciates its symbolism), and the US Mint, where they make over 30 million coins per day (if they want to).

The NFO and I have certainly put our kids on the path to being full fledged history buffs and I think they really do get the sense of history from the places we visit, so in that respect, a total victory.

I hadn’t been to this part of Philadelphia in maybe 30 years or so and I thought it was really well done. The tour guide in the Hall probably could have benefitted from a microphone, but it was time appropriate and very informative.

One thing I’ve noticed about family vacations these days is just how difficult it is to truly “check out.” Emails come in (and even though I have my auto-responder on), I still feel the urge to check/respond. I mean, either I do it in a multi-task way or I pay for it when I “get back,” right?

One moment of irony that I know my friend, Dave Sloan, a Philly native no less, will appreciate.

There was a HUGE group of Chinese teenagers on a tour (I impressed them because when they told me where they were from, they said “North east part of China,” and I said, “Oh, near Harbin?” but I digress )

I guess I was just aware of the fact that here were all of these Chinese students, visiting the cradle of American (heck, world) Democracy and many of the values that are core to the experience are either forbidden or foreign (for now), in their homeland.

Wonder how rising wealth in China and international travel will play out in the years to come.

All in all, a great day. One in which we truly “left it all on the field,” and (we hope) were able to continue to instill our kids a sense of curiosity.

Little Judgment Indicators…

My mom likes to say that you can know 100 things about a person simply by looking at what the bumper sticker (s) on their car say.
Sure, it’s a generalization, but generalizations work because they are generally true.
This came up on a recent flight when I had a window seat and a father/daughter (she was about 6) pair took the seats next to me. Predictably, the 6 year old was in the middle.
The first thing she pulled out was a math/numbers workbook.
This made a strong impression on me as it is the first thing that I ask my kids to do on planes too…by the time we get to hour 3, it’s iPad city all the way (but that’s just survival).
I immediately made a bunch of assumptions about him based on that alone.

Remington’s Moral Lapse…

Perhaps I harbor a naïve belief that companies can be a force for good. I hope that you can be socially responsible and profitable and avoid selling your soul.
Obviously, there are PLENTY of examples to the contrary, so that’s not news, but when you see something as egregious as potential compromises of morality when it relates to manufacturing and selling of guns…man, that just puts you to the test.
I watched this CNBC documentary called “Remington Under Fire” which alleges that the rifle manufacturer knew about a defect in its most popular model as early as 1948.
5 million guns sold later and there are numerous claims of accidental firings resulting in injury and death.
Just sad.

Related articles

• Rambo Sues Remington Arms Company Alleging Rifle Fired Without His Father Pulling Trigger (prweb.com)
• Mystery company buying up U.S. gun manufacturers (sfgate.com)
• A CNBC Mention, Positive Or Negative, Causes Stock Prices To Rise (huffingtonpost.com)

Get Some Perspective…

Another good one (video) to keep us all balanced.

 

HT to Rajesh Setty.

Loving the Game…

I once heard a marketing speaker describe herself as a “student of the game,” and I thought “I love that. It drives a growth-mindset.”

This came to mind recently as I was going over my calendar and re-arranging tasks on my calendar (this is a critical skill I learned once and it has served me well—always put a specific time down to do a specific task).

The goal of this exercise (as with every calendar rearranging exercise) was to figure out how to organize the “pieces” so that I could “win.”

In this case “winning” meant a combination of doing everything that needed to be done for my clients, having time for my family and myself, and getting at least 5 hours of sleep every night

It was tough, it was challenging, but it was like a very good puzzle and I found myself just thinking, “you know, I just LOVE playing the game…of LIFE.” (not the board game, but I think you know that).

Panhandlers on the subway...

It’s not a big secret that I’ve got a ways to go in the compassion department. Let’s get that out of the way.

When I see a mother and her baby walking around with a sign that says “hungry, please help” (or something to that effect) on the Metro, as a dad, it’s hard not to be moved. What’s more, I’m sure it’s not what she would want to be doing.

Still, I don’t want a society where people feel comfortable getting on trains and asking others for money. That’s not the ride I want, so I don’t give money because, like with my kids, I don’t want to reward the “wrong” (shall we say, less desirable) behavior.

Thoughts?

163 million dead girls

Over the past week, I've seen a book referenced twice claiming that 163 million female fetuses have been aborted by (mostly) parents in Asia who want a son.

Here's one of the articles.

I'm generally pro-choice in my outlook, but can't help but recognize the strange twist that is the fact that a keystone issue of the feminist movement is being used to eliminate women.

The whole thing is just so sad...and this doesn't even take into account what the world will look like with all of these excess men.

One I will NEVER understand…

I was visiting a friend of mine a few nights ago here in the DC area. He has a son who, shall we say, is far from a good student.

In fact, he got one F and one D in the previous trimester.

When I was at his house, the son was playing Nintendo Wii.

That one defied my understanding.

“They think it’s a book…”

Cover via Amazon

Another interesting airplane story, following up on the line jumping incident.

I was flying back from Toronto and noticed on the ascent (you know, when you are not supposed to be using any electronic devices) that the guy across the aisle from me was using his Kindle.

Now, I already had a negative view of this fellow because, ironically enough, he had completely cut me off when boarding the plane.

Then, on the descent, the announcement was made “anything with an on/off switch needs to be put away,” and he kept reading his Kindle.

So, I tapped him and asked, innocently enough, “hey, is there some sort of exception for the Kindle?”

He said, “the wi-fi isn’t on.”

"Uh, well, I thought it was ‘any electronic device.”

Then he says, “well, my cover for the Kindle makes it look like a book, so usually flight attendants don’t notice it and don’t say anything?”

WHAT?!!!

Are we in 2nd grade trying to not get caught by the teacher?

I thought the point was to avoid electronic interference and follow the rules?