MLK 50 Year Anniversary, And My Family's Character.

I was a little disappointed listening to the 50th anniversary of the MLK - I Have a Dream speech. Listening to the speech itself, it brought about all the wrongs of the times, and was an uplifting verbal assault on those who were oppressive. They happened to be Democrats, by the way. He spoke about character, and its importance. He spoke of a future where his children and grandchildren would prosper, based on their merit; that a world would look at them not by their looks, but how they acted.

Today was disappointing, because no one addressed the issues in the black community. No one stood up and said "50 years ago, 85% of us had mothers and fathers. Today, only 25% of us do." No one stood up and said "when our character includes hundreds of murders per year of black on black crime, it wasn't what Dr. King was speaking of." No one stood up and said "our community has less than 50% graduation rate from high school and only 25% of us graduate from college."

Instead, Bill Clinton said that it was easier to buy an assault rifle than it was to vote. John Lewis, the last living speaker from 50 years ago, took his time to address Trayvon Martin. Oprah was the only one who was uplifting and gave the community something to ponder. Good for her, especially after lying her ass off about being a victim of racism in Switzerland.

I can't imagine going through life as a victim. Constantly blaming others for what happens to me. I grew up poor too, in a single parent family, the youngest of 7. My parents divorced shortly after I was born. My mom, who raised us, sacrificed all she had to ensure that we were raised with good character. She encouraged me to get involved. I didn't always take the right path, but she stood firm when I strayed. She didn't make excuses for me. She didn't sit back and say "well, he ain't got no daddy, so what am I supposed to do?" She didn't go on assistance, take welfare, WIC, or anything else. She worked hard. She punished me when I did wrong, and she loved me when I did right.

I look at my brother and sisters, and we are as follows: A retired administrator for a successful nursing home. An office manager for a successful surgeon. A fantastic nurse who has seen many new lives brought into this earth. A stay at home mom/daycare provider/movie maker. The Emergency Medical Technician licensing person (sorry, don't know her actual title) for the entire state of Michigan. A small business owner who hauls steel across the midwest to make America work. A Business Analyst for a multi-billion dollar company.

My mom didn't tell us we had privilege because we were white. She made sure we had character. And that is what builds success.

Quit with the Minimum Wage Talk Already. Or, Why work when I can get Welfare?

Some dude on Twitter was dogging me over a NY Post article that stated it was better in some states in the country to stay on welfare than it was to work; realistically, to even take a wage that the left considers a "fair wage". In fact, the article states that in NY, NJ and HI, it would take at least $20/hr to get off their asses and get a job. In other words, why work, with no education, no plans on climbing the corporate ladder, or even trying to do something different, if the government will pay someone at least $20/hr to sit at home?

His last tweet to me was "forget the bickering. can you agree that raising the minimum wage would help to combat ppl exploiting pub welfare programs?"

My answer to that is a resounding no! I'll explain this simply. Those who work, pick the job, and they are told at the time they take the job what the wage will be. In America, we don't have to take a job, and we are not forced into a job that we do not want to have. If, at the time you are given the opportunity to have employment, you do not like the offer, you can either ask for more money, or you can refuse the opportunity.

Minimum wage jobs were never meant to be a staple of the American Dream. Minimum wage jobs are the lowest rung on the corporate ladder, often times part-time positions, and they are offered to those who are seeking a position with a company where an "evaluation period" is preferred hiring practice for a little while before hiring a person full-time at more money.

The drive for the American Dream should be to look at a position as an opportunity to learn. Perhaps grow in an area of interest, and look forward to growing with the company, or being afforded the opportunity to take on duties which help the company grow and become more efficient. Marco Rubio spoke of his father working years as a hotel bartender, working overtime so that his kids didn't have to. Steve Jobs started Apple in his garage. Michael Dell started making customized computers out of his dorm room. I'm sure all of those guys didn't make much starting out either, but boy did they turn their dreams into reality.

Now, the people today think that by raising the minimum wage, poverty will disappear. By raising the minimum wage, people will go get jobs and get off the public dole. It is such a fallacious premise! Economics 101 teaches everyone how to establish COGS or Cost of Goods Sold. To establish a price at which to sell a good, you must determine how many of the product will be sold, how many people will be required to make the product, what type of technology will be required, and how many hours it takes to make the product.

Taking all of those things into account, let's say that it takes 5 people @ $8/hr to make a product that is sold to the general public at $1/ea. The product starts to take off, and we have to hire on more workers. Those workers all make $8/hr, and we continue to sell the product for $1.

Then, one day, the government decides to up the minimum wage to $9.50. The company now has to make a choice.

1) The company can either keep making the product, keep all of the employees, and lose profit on the product.
2) The company can fire some workers in order to keep the product at $1 sale price, and keep profit margins the same.
3) The company can raise the cost of the product, keep the employees, and hope that people will still buy the product at the elevated cost.

Given those choices, 2 are uncertainties, but one is absolutely certain. The certainty is that the company will cut its losses, fire employees, pay the others overtime and continue to offer the product to the customer at the affordable price.

The reality of the situation with salary and wages in America is that if you don't like your job, find another one. If there is a company that will pay you more for your services, by all means, take that position. No one is telling you you HAVE to work at Walmart, but they pay 1.2 Million people for their services. People have to quit looking at work and wages as though the company owes them something. You are selling yourself when you work. If you feel you are underpaid, ask for a raise or find another company that will pay you what you feel you are worth. It really is that simple.

If you don't want to work 3 jobs, then go to school. Get a certificate that sets you apart from the countless others out there who are just like you. Differentiate yourself from your competition. And above all else, when you decide to take a job at a price offered to you and accepted by you, perform at peak performance all the time. Those are the ones who rise to the top. If you aren't rising fast enough, then look in the mirror, not in the boss's office.

A-Rod, Hated Gladiator

I can't stand the Yankees, and I'm no Alex Rodriguez fan. However, I'm not a sterioid hater either. I believe that science has progressed enough that we are now at a point where HGH (Human Growth Hormone) can be beneficial to not just athletes, but to the human race in its entirety. I also believe that some of these supplements out there which target specific areas of health and fitness are also beneficial. We are no longer shooting horse tranquilizers into our system, and we are no longer doing great bodily harm to ourselves if we decide to take a substance which can help us out physically. I can go on and on about the benefits of supplements and medical breakthroughs used today in cell regeneration, recovery and overall health improvement, but that isn't what this is about today.

With that disclaimer out of the way, why is A-Rod hated? I mean, this guy is the poster boy for villain. He is demonized in every article, every newscast, every time the Yankees are on, even by the Yankees announcers themselves. The GM won't even talk to him anymore, because A-Rod is going on offense and is suing the Yankees.

But why is he hated? My take: A-Rod has been kicked around long enough. He doesn't feel that he should be the "example", when he was coming in the league during a culture of steroid use and later PEDs. He wants to give MLB a taste of its own medicine, and I predict by the time it's over, Pandora's box will be opened and nothing will be sacred. A-Rod's going down swinging. And he's taking everyone with him.

Did he lie? Yep. But here's a little secret: So did every other athlete who was part of an investigation into Performance Enhancing Drugs (PEDs). Think Sammy Sosa wasn't juicing? How about Mark McGwire? Ryan Braun? Well, he lied to everyone around him, won in arbitration last year, and then did a 180 and is now admitting he used PEDs and is serving a 64 game suspension. Andy Pettite - remember him? He not only admitted it, but he also suggested that it sped up his recovery, and got him back to peak performance in very little time. Whether or not you believe that he quit once he was there is another story.

Fun Fact: A-Rod has never tested positive for PED's. Now, the story behind this little deal would more than reveal that he had taken them, and I get that. However, he has never tested positive. He's willing to take his suspension, but Braun lied too. Why should A-Rod have to take a 1.5 year ban, or even a lifetime ban, as has been suggested? Now, he admitted to using them back in 2003, but he has never tested positive one single time.

My point is this. A-Rod is no different than any other liar out there. He lied his butt off to protect his contract, continue to perform in his profession, and to live an all-star kind of life. He got caught. Now, he's fighting hard to not be made an example.

What is it with our society today that desires to see the successful torn down? What is it with our society today, when we revel in the plight of others? I'm just not that way, so I have a hard time with the group hatred of a person.

It disgusted me the other night when Dempster threw at A-Rod not once, not twice, but 4 times, and then finally hit him in the back. Was Dempster thrown out of the game? Nope, but he was warned. Joe Girardi, the manager of the Yankees, promptly went out to dispute the warning, and he was ejected. Meanwhile, the crowd CHEERED at A-Rod getting hit, and began taunting him as well.

Disgusting.

End result? I'm finding myself happy that A-Rod is the antagonist in this whole escapade. I find myself rooting for him; that he does open up the box that let's the truth out regarding sterioids and PED use. I hope he does blow the lid wide open, and then we can see just how two-faced the management, ownership and the league really is. Because, you know what? You just might find out that all of these people who are condemning A-Rod for standing up for himself are the same people encouraging the use of PED's when the door is closed.