Our Dog Butters

RelationshipsLeave a comment

Butters chews his boneThis summer, the girlfriend decided she was finally getting a dog. She has been wanting one for years now and our two boys are old enough now that they can help out. I tried to convince her that we really did not need a dog, and that instead we should have another baby. Somehow, the 39 weeks of pregnancy with all the throwing up and other personal discomforts did not appeal to her. Sometime in June, she brought home a yellow lab puppy who I ended up naming Butters, after the South Park character. The name fits, cause Butters is not very smart, gets into trouble all the time, and is sometimes a pain.

Butters is now about five months old and is a medium size dog. He has gone through multiple leashes and harnesses (all of which he has destroyed)! However the thing he loves best are my socks! He is absolutely enamored with them. After spending most of the summer with the dog, I have learned the following:

  • A dog can add stress to your life.
  • A lot of people love dogs, I meet someone new every week just by walking Butters.
  • Dogs love socks more than chasing rabbits.
  • You have to teach puppies to lift their leg when they pee, this is something they have to be taught!
  • Their sense of smell is their most important sense of all. They smell constantly.

I’d have to say, that I’m surprised that Butters has not destroyed the house. My stereo equipment has been left untouched. Katryn has enforced a lot of rules on him and he has followed through on most of them. The hard part of course has been the constant training. I look forward to the day when I can let Butters in the living room and not have to worry about him getting in trouble.

Summer of 91

ProseLeave a comment

Roar of a GM engine, and gust of speeding metal on interstate road, some times I wonder, limitless is the sky, heavy the chains that try and hold me down, but I am young, strong, and heroic. The hero never falls, he only picks himself up and rams his fist into the wind, only God can calm his fury, but his hunger knows no bounds. I am he. Don’t think too much, just drive on through, miles the summer heat, but by my side my woman lays. The scent of feminine perfume and sweet thighs I have climbed. This is the summer of 91. My car, my girl, the road. My last ride before the storm. The final words to be said before the dawn of manhood and all that lays upon that journey.

Protectionism vs Globalism

Editorials5 Comments

Do you agree that in the short term, protectionism can be benefecial as it holds jobs and wages steady but in the long run can be ineffecient and wasteful if others are willing to do the same job for less but in another country? A government has to be very wealthy to afford protectionism for very long. Otherwise prices and wages remain high as a country stagnates.

With globalism, people are forced to be competitive in pricing and may lose their job or high wages but will eventually find something where they can compete with the rest of world on an equal basis. If governments and unions push for high wages and excellent benefits, those industries will not be competitive on a global basis and will only be able to compete within that country if tariffs are also placed on imported products. GM and Ford are only surviving because of American consumer loyalty which continues to erode as their products just don’t match up to foreign competitors. GM and Ford will need to build cars outside of the US if they truly want to compete and regain market share.

The computer industry may go the way of India as prices are much cheaper there as well. China has the edge on low tech products.

Where will the US compete globally in the 21st century? Likely in real estate and banking and in medical research and even agriculture but we may struggle in other areas.