Well, my Dear, Dear Friends, while the following is certainly not Seasonal, it is current, and on all of our collective minds - it concerns the ECONOMY!

Or, rather, the Lack thereof!

MAY GOD PLEASE WAKE UP THE AMERICAN PEOPLE!

ILLOGICAL !

© - Tom Hyland - 12-06-08

As Leonard Nemoy was apt to say - “ILLOGICAL” - when he played the character Spock, the only alien, half-Vulcan on the Starship Enterprise - when Kirk, Bones, Scotty or any other Crewmember said or did something - STUPID!

This phenomenon is best witnessed in just about every level of every form of Government - illogical is just a nice way of saying - STUPID!

Mismanagement, waste, malfeasance of office, and yes - even downright fraud - these are the Hallmarks of Government - at the risk of repeating myself, yet again - STUPIDITY - PAR EXCELLENCE’!

But, Pilgrims, what is more stupid, or illogical, is that - WE THE PEOPLE continuously and perennially LET THEM GET AWAY WITH IT!

Let us consider just a few examples - how about the Sound Barrier Walls built along Highways, Expressways, and Beltways? How many Millions or Billions of Taxpayer Dollars have been spent throughout the past twenty years or more?

One of my prior employers was a Consulting Engineering firm that Designed them. This alone cost Millions! The contracts they bid on, and won, were at every level of Government - Federal, State, County, and City. Who Knows Who? Biblical Sense?

Each of these entities employ: Engineers, Computer Assisted Drafters and Designers - CADD Operators, and other Personnel, who are on the Payrolls of Highway Planning and Transportation Commissions. These are all basically Duplicates on Government Staff - who supposedly - Check, Verify, Confirm, and Approve what the Outside Consulting Engineering Companies have already spent Millions to come up with! The literal miles and miles, and miles of Full Color Drawings that are produced, re-produced, printed, and copied on huge sheets and rolls of PAPER have probably destroyed half of the forests of America! But who cares?

Next, we have the Salaries of all of these Thousands upon Thousands of People, plus Benefits - Health Insurance, Matching Payroll Deductions for: Social Security, Medicare, FICA Taxes, 401K Contributions, Retirement Pension Plans, Umbrella Packages, Bonuses, and other PERKS for Executive Compensation, and any other Fringe Benefits they can Dream Up - Millions, and Millions, and Millions of DOLLARS! More than likely, this is Understated - Billions upon Billions, upon Billions $$$,$$$,$$$,$$$.

Now, think about this for a minute - that is just for DESIGNING these Walls - the Real Costs then Begin - Construction Materials, Steel I-Beams, Pre-Stressed Concrete Panels, Cranes, Bull-Dozers,
Back-Hoes, Dump Trucks, Cement-Mixing Trucks, Tractor-Trailers, Flat-Beds, and More, More, More! How about those cute ORANGE Barrels, Cones, and other Fluorescent Warning Markers? More Millions? More Billions?

Then, ADD to these figures the LABOR COSTS of all the GREEN-CARD Carriers, and other Construction Crew Workers, Diggers, Supervisors, and other WHITE-HATS who stand around with their Thumbs up their Rectums!

Throw in a few more Millions for the miniscule number of Problems encountered when - Buried Electric Cables, Telephone Lines, Water-Mains, Gas-Lines and other Utilities are Accidentally CUT!
Then, for good measure, stir in the DISRUPTION OF TRAFFIC, that occurs Nationwide - Anywhere and Everywhere, Ad Infinitum!

Are you starting to “get the picture?”

When I leave my humble trailer, drive about a half of a mile, enter the Baltimore Beltway I-695, travel the long, long entrance ramp, cross the bridge over Back River, and merge onto the main roadway, then cross the overpass over Chesaco Avenue - BINGO! On the right side of the shoulder, THEY have been Constructing a Sound Barrier Wall now - for about NINE MONTHS, or MORE! WHY? WHY THERE? Is there a Rich Community on the other side of that Wall? HELL NO! Is there a REAL NEED at that location? HELL NO! Could it possibly be just BUSY WORK to SPEND the MONEY in the BUDGET? Gim’me a BIG - HELL YEAH!

And yet, Less than Twenty Yards from my Trailer Park, both an Entrance Ramp, and an Exit Ramp has a perennial RUMBLE of traffic noisily passing To and Fro, Night and Day - with nothing but a high Chain-Link Fence ABSORBING THE SOUNDS! BRILLIANT? Or ILLOGICAL?

Could it be that I’m just JEALOUS? Possibly! But no, not really - let me tell you now the Real RUB. Now, as I drive each and every day or night, when I see these Beautiful, High, Wonderful Sound Barrier Walls - I quietly think to myself - in hopefully, a few short years, as America and Detroit gradually manufacture and sell all those Millions upon Millions, upon Millions of QUIET ALL-ELECTRIC CARS - will these walls be even NECESSARY?

Not to Worry! When that inevitably occurs, then WE THE PEOPLE will ACQUIESCE yet again, and simply let THEM spend more of our hard-earned Tax Dollars - Millions upon Millions, upon Millions - to perpetuate the Rat-Race, and TEAR DOWN ALL THOSE UNNECESSARY WALLS! Like I said - ILLOGICAL!

Next Phenomenon -

I have believed, said, and written, for many years, that American Businesses make Money IN SPITE OF themselves! Let me repeat that - IN SPITE OF THEMSELVES! Sorry LIZ - emphasis is oft needed, in my humble opinion!

Common Sense and Efficiency are NOT the Hallmarks of American businesses. It would seem that Expediency, rushing off Half-Cocked, RE-DOING stuff, and Illogical Stupidity ARE!

A case in point - go to Netflix, or wherever else you can obtain it, and Rent and Watch the Documentary entitled - “Who KILLED The Electric Car?”

My mere words, written previously, and elsewhere, simply can not do justice to explain the - GREED - LACK OF LOGIC - AND UTTER STUPIDITY - of - no less than, the epitome of Automobile manufacturers in America - that REVERED, HALLOW, MASSIVE CORPORATION - GMC - GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION!

Yeah - the BIG ONE of THE BIG THREE - the one that is now CRYING THE BLUES - “SAVE US, PLEASE SAVE US! WE’RE GON’NA GO BANKRUPT! WE DIDN’T KNOW!”

“If we are allowed to fail, America will go down the tubes - all the related and peripheral suppliers and parts, and by-products will fall like Dominoes!’

“In good conscience, NOW - we executives will only take ONE BUCK for our Feverish, Selfless Hard Work - Blood, Sweat, and Tears! NOW - AFTER we have RUN the business down into terrible, horrible, stupid, ILLOGICAL - RED NUMBERS!”

“PLEASE DON’T MAKE US GIVE BACK ANY OF OUR EXORBITANT MILLIONS AND MILLIONS, AND MILLIONS OF DOLLARS OF GREEDY MISMANAGEMENT BONUSES, UMBRELLA PACKAGES, AND OTHER PERKS TOO NUMERABLE TO MENTION!”

“PLEASE DON’T PROSECUTE US FOR MALFEASENCE OF OFFICE! PLEASE, DON’T PUT US IN JAIL!”

“WE SEE THE LIGHT! WE REPENT! WE ARE BUT MERE SINNERS - LIKE Y-O-U!”

“IT’S ALL REALLY Y-O-U-R FAULT!
Y-O-U LET US DO IT!”

DUH!

Well, Pilgrims - NUFF SAID?

As the Sun Slowly Sets on the Western Horizon, ALONG WITH:

The Stock Market - The Banking Industry - The Mortgage Industry - The Real Estate Industry - The Automobile Industry - The Credit Industry - The Steel Industry - The Endangered Species - The Veterans of America, Especially those DISABLED - The National Parks and Forests - The ALTERNATE ENERGY Industry - The Global Warming of The FRIGGING WORLD - The Global Market

- AND -
--- WE ALLOW THEM TO KILL GOD ---


Merry Christmas!


Pray Tell:

What would SCROOGE say?

“BAH! HUMBUG!”


What would MCCAIN say?

“DRILL BABY -DRILL!”


What would OBAMA say?

“CHANGE BABY - CHANGE!”


What would THE CORPORATE EXECUTIVES say?

“Bend over and touch your toes,
and
We’ll show you where the Wild Goose goes!”


What would BUSH say?

“I PARDON ME!”


What would SPOCK say?

“ILLOGICAL!”


What DO I say?

“DUH!”


© - TKH