Wanderlust ...

I have spent most of this evening reading through various travel blogs (www.travelblog.org, if you're interested. I highly recommend it, and then I recommend extensive travel of your own). Some are fantastic, some are so-so, and some horrify me. Much of my reaction depends on my perception of the author's motivation -- from serious travel, to tourism, and, regrettably, those who travel from country to country looking for the next party. Most recently, I've been reading "SEA08", two of my close friends experiencing two months in Southeast Asia, and "two4deRoad", which is a couple of people I do not know from somewhere in the Caribbean sea. They are traveling (literally) around the world on a shoestring budget. I admire them.

Last year, I myself went on a brief, 44-day long journey from Hong Kong to London, with limited stops in between. I have to say that it was easily one of the greatest experiences in my life, and now that I've been able to see the backroads of the world, I'd like to go on some more serious journeys myself (preferably with a special companion ... my Buddy ...). Reading all of these travel blogs has inflicted me with a serious case of wanderlust.

In between honest-to-goodness blogs, I read a few articles about the "call to travel." The articles spoke of boredom with Western life, a desire for new experiences, an instinct to see and do more than anyone else around you. And it got me wondering: Why don't Americans travel more? Most of us get two weeks of paid vacation time, and most of us don't take them. Americans are even loathe to call in sick when in the grips of a serious flu. Why don't we take more time off for travel?

I'm not even suggesting that all Americans experience floating villages in Cambodia, the 3 million motorcycles of Saigon, fashion excess in Tokyo, history in the UK, or wine in Austria. What I am suggesting is that we need more than two weeks, and we need to do more with that time than hang out in our backyards. There's something that I think is rather foolish in our American work ethic. We work more hours, for less pay, less vacation, less health care, and less retirement funding. In Australia, not only do the locals have four-weeks PTO (paid time-off), but they earn 117% of their regular wages on the notion that "you need more spending money when you're on vacation." Our economy is in the doldrums, and while Australia isn't in a state of unprecedented prosperity, it's doing no worse -- and maybe even a little bit better.

I also want to know why Americans scoff at the idea of vacating their lives for a few weeks and going somewhere completely different. On the road last year, I met tons of Aussies, Kiwis, Japanese, Koreans, Brits, Swedes, and Continentals. I came across far fewer Americans. (Note that this was a year ago -- before the US credit crunch, before oil prices skyrocketed, and before the dollar slumped. Point is, we had wealth.) Why not? Especially since we're known for being ignorant of the world around us? Even more so when our nation leads the international community in international aid, and international conflict? Forget what's outside our borders -- people in Chicago barely even know what's happening in Houston.

Maybe it's because I'm afflicted with wanderlust, and maybe because I'm pinned up against the post-college "real world", and maybe both factors are compounded by 100-hour work weeks ahead, but I'm starting to really wonder where are priorities are. Wealthy, stable, powerful -- these are the words Americans strive to be. There's nothing inherently wrong in that, but what if we just loosened our grip little bit?

When It Gets Hot ...

... the water in a Moka Express comes close to boiling. Steam begins to form and pressure in the lower chamber begins to build. Eventually, the pressure builds up to a point (about 2 atmospheres) where the near-boiling water is forced up through a funnel into the coffee grounds and into the collection chamber. And there you have Italian Moka.

Okay, I will admit that perhaps this is a corny analogy, but I think it applies to the Democratic primaries right now, and eventually to the final presidential race. Obviously, I have continued to watch C-Span, and have been seeing more and more candidates speak. I am beginning to think that C-Span must have a liberal bias, because I see far more democrats speak than republicans, but I won't worry too much about that. I know that by far I prefer Senator McCain to Governor Huckabee, and if I had to pick one of the two right now I'd know exactly what I would do.

The real question for me, and I guess for the rest of the nation, if C-Span is assumed to broadcast only what we care about, is which democrat to rally behind. As I've said before, I've seen Hillary, Bill, Michelle, and Barack several times. Despite researching the issues and seeing the speeches, as well as reading the "propoganda," I am having an extremely difficult time selecting "the one I'd pick right now if I had to" candidate.

At odds:

1) The economy, stupid. Let's be honest, the American economy is in terrible shape. I know what I would do: let big business and Wall Street hang out to dry. Any living entity has to evolve to survive, and our government has a gross history of bailing out big business when things get tough. This relieves them of the duty to get better or shut down. If we let the big banks and hedge funds and insurance companies and pension plans suffer for their stupid mistake with CDOs, they'd learn to take a closer look at the securities they seem to think are near "riskless." Divorced from this issue, there is the American consumer to think about too, and something has to be done that will restore consumer confidence and get us a little bit of breathing room to get back on our feet and start saving. Jobs have to be created so that we can buy some consumer goods and keep the economy motoring forward.

2) Energy Innovation. Fossil fuels are antiquated technology. I will go on the record and admit that I don't believe in "man-made global warming." At the same time, I do believe that we are foolishly reliant on foreign resources, we are grossly inefficient, and that innovation will help to drive the economy forward (see item #1). America is supposed to be the world's industrial leader, but how can we continue to claim this title if we fail to lead the world in innovation? Evolution is critical to survival, and if we can develop a competitive edge in clean energy, and sell our services to nations like China and India, perhaps we can close that trade gap?

3) The American Ideal. This is hard to put my finger on. I've noticed recently that there is something missing from the public discourse, and I think that something is an optimistic, energetic, and nationally cohesive vision of the future. I'm not saying that everyone has to adopt the same moral compass, but I think that there is a bevy of values which are distinctly American. Some of these values are hard work, independence, goodwill toward neighbors, innovation (see item #2), and charity. I think at that the next president should be a person who can inspire all of these United States to exemplify these values.

People all around me are pumped up about Barack Obama. To be honest, I think that most of it has to be the fact that he's our senator, because I cannot see anything exciting about that man. I've spoken about the enthusiasm I see coming from his wife, but as for the man himself, what's the big deal? So who do I have to turn to? Hillary Clinton? When I see her speak, I get a little excited for the future, but certainly not fired up. I guess the Obama campaign has inspire me to type up two entries thus far, so maybe that's where the passion is? I just can't swallow that.

What it should boil down to is public policy. But to be honest, I can't completely get behind left-wing policy. I cannot shake this idea that both Clinton and Obama would throw away a lot of taxpayer dollars on social programs that I'm not yet sold on. Their energy policies are similar, as are their proposed tax policies. They disagree on the war, and I learn toward Hillary's position but the reality of an Obama total pull-out is slim to nill. LBJ said the same thing about Vietnam and it took until the Ford administration to get us completely out. Let's not also forget that only Congress has the power to declare war, and so while Obama would be the Commander-in-Chief, if Congress disagrees, and it might likely do so, he won't be successful in that objective.

Things are getting hot and the pressure is building. (Do you like how that analogy just came full circle?) As I pass through the tight funnel of the democratic race, I think that the coffee that will work for me might be Obama. He's not exciting, but he brings a fresh face and fresh ideas to the White House. He probably won't be successful in accomplishing everything that he wants to, but if people are so excited about what he says (even if I'm not ) then maybe it will bring fresh air and fresh excitment to politics.

But, dammit, I think Hillary would do a better job.

Michelle Obama

I didn't want it to come to this, but it looks like I just can't get away from this primary business. As I have noted previously, I am pretty much obsessed with C-Span, and have been watching it whenever I get a chance (regular television, with perhaps a few exceptions, pretty much sucks and has nothing to offer me). I had mentioned in a previous post that I saw Michelle Obama give a speech in New Hampshire that made me actually consider Barack has a legitimate candidate. At the end of last week, I saw her give pretty much the same speech in Delaware, and I had an epiphany.

The Obama campaign is making Michelle into a HUGE asset. While Barack goes around the country talking about "Change We Can Stand For" and being hopeful, he's got Michelle following him, giving speeches about why the other candidates are no good. She starts her dog and pony show with a discussion of Barack's qualifications, and how none of the other Democrats running compare. She gets angry, she gets tough, and she's got some grit. She tells some lawyer jokes that make everyone laugh. Then she relays a story about hope for African-Americans, gets angry for a bit, and then gives an uplifting conclusion.

The whole thing is fantastic. I wish I was that smart. With Americans suddenly turning against negative campaigns, it's quite a strategy for the actual candidate (Barack) to be exactly what the public wants, while his wife (Michelle) can be as subversive to the other candidates as possible. Instead of being negative, she can come across as passionate and a loving wife.

I don't mean to endorse any candidates, because I don't endorse any of the candidates, but I have to admit that I'm fascinated with political strategy. And the Obama strategy is genius. Truth be told, I think that this Michelle character would be a great first lady. Now if only I could wrap my head around her husband as President ....

Barack Obama

I've been having a fantastic time watching C-Span late at at night, and on weekends. For anyone who also partakes in this activity, you fully understand my recent obsession with old speeches and legislative sessions.

I recently watched a speech by Michelle Obama, given in New Hampshire. I won't get into details, but the crux of her monologue is that Barack is basically a good guy, who believes that America can do anything. She emphasized that he has proven himself in the arenas of public policy and social justice, but went on to say that his most important advantage is that he believes in the core American values.

These values are hard work, being kind, and fighting for justice.

I will admit that I have seen Mr. Obama speak, and I'm not impressed. I've read his policy positions, and I'm not moved. But when Mrs. Obama got in front of that podium inside that NH gymnasium, I began to wonder if maybe that's all this country needs right now. My Dad describes Obama's campaign as puppy dogs, lollipops, and unicorn farts. I tend to agree. But, still, I took notice of this speech. And suddenly I'm saying to myself, maybe we don't need someone with a big, sweeping policy plan to change America. And I'm asking myself, is it possible that all this country needs is to return to its core values?

I don't need to get out of control going into detail about all of the challenges facing the USA today, nor do I have to share all of the unsettling facts about the problems we've gotten ourselves into. But I do have to ask, isn't most of it our own fault? Could Barack Obama be the catalyst that gets us off of our asses, forces us to roll up our sleeves, and fix all of this for ourselves?

Then I wonder if the phrase "American Values" means anything anymore.

thus it begins ...

I know that I've tried this before, and it hasn't worked. There was something called Lefty270 a long time ago that was not interesting, then there was 44 Days, which hardly got updated. Then I tried to resurrect Lefty270 as twothousandseven, but that project also failed miserably. I don't completely understand why it is that I'm trying to do this whole "blog" thing, other than an innate desire to bitch and moan to somebody.

Well, that's only half-true. I think the real reason that I've finally been inspired (by Jeewan Ghuman's "Transition to Reality"; www.transition2reality.blogspot.com) is because I think I have some pretty good ideas. Maybe I'm getting old, maybe I'm getting bored, or maybe I'm getting boring; but everyday the world seems to be getting dumber and dumber. In an effort to light up the world and stem the tide of this rising stupidity, I have decided to start my blogging career anew with "Moka Express."

The concept is fairly simple: I think about a lot of things, and I want to generate discussion. A favorite pass-time throughout history has been for interested parties to sit around and talk about the state of things. It doesn't matter what kind of things, just things. Sometimes, these things are discussed over a cup of coffee (or espresso ...).

I recently purchased a Bialetti Moka Express coffee machine. The Moka Express was unveiled in Italy in 1933 and instantly become a cultural icon. Displayed in several museums of modern art, the Moka Express enables the everyday person to brew delicious espresso quickly and easily on their stove top. See the image below, and reference www.bialetti.com.

My goal is that exciting ideas will bubble up in my head and spill onto this blog. Then I encourage all of you to drink in what I have said and post comments in response. Together we can generate an exciting conversation on each topic. The plan is for me to update bi-weekly, to give me enough time to think out posts and to provide enough time for you all to respond. Perhaps our dialog can be as epic as the invention for which this page is named.

Cheers,

Jack