The Curmudgeon Speaks

The Grabe travel blog is active again. Our winter break this year is in Kauai. In my first entry, I offer photographs of ads for shingles shots and rip tide awareness. It should get more interesting.

I was hoping to contact the Senators from North Dakota (Hoeven & Cramer) to encourage them to allow access to impeachment witnesses and documents to give Trump an opportunity to counter the strong case developed in the House. The present approach that amounts to blocking a public consideration of the available evidence will do nothing to heal the present political divide in this country and will likely only add to the resentment.

The North Dakota Senators have a web site inviting input. See below. The designation for state offers only one option. Why bother to even add this element to the form? I could have used my old address, but I have this thing about ethical behavior.

After 37 years in North Dakota, I retired to Minnesota. I already know where my new Senators stand on the impeachment process and I assume they would like the opportunity to view the evidence and debate the appropriateness of Trump’s behavior. Evidently, once you cross the border the North Dakotans no longer care what you think. Too bad. The citizens of North Dakota should be given the opportunity to consider the facts of the case.

I have been retired now for close to five years. I worked as a professor at the University of North Dakota so my income was above average, but we were far from affluent. One of the things you try to figure out when retired and in good health is just how much you can afford to spend. If you are healthy, how much fun can you have and how much can you invest in other people and causes you believe are important. We have relaxed a lot possibly because the DOW is up 340% since 2008 and much of our retirement money was in the stock market while we were working. I remember the shock of how much we lost with the financial crisis of 2007-2008 and now must acknowledge that times have been very good since.

Politicians have the luxury of picking their facts when arguing for their performance. Trump has focused a great amount of attention on the stock market as his simple numerical way to represent the economy. Obama did a great job of ending the threat of a total collapse of the economy and the stock market turned around during his 8 years. This growth has continued during the first three years of Trump as President.

I am a Democrat and a strong believer in most Democratic goals. The issue of income equality has always been a concern. One might think that the good times we have been experiencing would contribute to improving the disparity between the wealthy and the poor, but this is not the case. My thinking on this issue has been influenced by Piketty’s work on the concentration of wealth. The disparity in wealth is partly driven by vast differences in salaries, but also by the increasing concentration of capital. I would think stock holdings would be a meaningful proxy for capital. The reality is that those making the least have experienced little increase in salaries and likely have little invested in capital such as stocks that increase in value beyond what is earned through work.

The graphics in this article from Business Insider tell the story very well. Less than 2% of those in the bottom 25% by income own an actual stock and about 30% of this group have any holdings in funds such as a 401K. The average value of the retirement account of individuals within this group is under $5000. Think a little about these numbers. When we take off an a retirement trip, I do.

So, when politicians point to the stock market as an indicator of what they have done for the economy consider just whom has benefited. Yes, it is even people like me. Consider those folks making $12 an hour without benefits when politicians try to convince you that the income inequality is not an issue the government should address.

One thing parents learn is that no matter how busy they are their children if not involved will find a way to acquire attention. Misbehavior works well.

In the aftermath of the 2016 election, I spent a lot of time trying to understand how those who voted for Trump made this decision. The data on who Trump supporters were made little sense to me. A rich, big talking, self-absorbed, anti-government, anti-science, racist, womanizer seemed a weird choice for Bible Belt folks of limited means. When it comes to policy, what seemed obvious to me at the time has been born out. A decrease in access to health care, increased income inequality, an increase in intolerance for people who are different, policies of isolationism when it comes to global issues, and lack of responsiveness to the climate crisis were perfectly predictable. Selfishness has been promoted at every level. How is it poorer individuals, those with strong religious beliefs, and those needing government support could not see this coming?

I have read several books I have found to offer excellent explanations of the logic for what to me seemed illogical – J.D. Vance – Hillbilly elegy & R. Kaplan – Earning the Rockies. Both offer a portrayal of a population that feels powerless and were available to be taken in by anyone who’s message was basically one of anger and attacking the establishment. Whether or not such aggression would be helpful to those with these needs was not carefully considered. A way to lash out seemed the limit of this thinking.

If you are not into reading books, I have found a quick way to get across this same perspective. Cindy spotted the following story in our local paper (Minneapolis Star Tribune). Minnesota’s Beltrami County has voted to not allow immigrants to settle within the county. This racist and self-centered position turns out to be completely unnecessary. No immigrant has settled in the county in the past five years. Why would folks, no matter their views, bother taking the time to take such a pointless position (the vote of county commissioners was 3-2)? I would describe it very much like the small, ignored child being purposefully naughty to gain attention. I would describe it as an act of frustration based in feeling ignored and angry.

The photos in the article tell the story. I have no idea if the photographer purposefully found a way to direct the camera to capture this interpretation, but the photos show nearly all old, white men. There must be some women and younger folks in the country, but they were either disinterested or embarrassed.

I, by age and race, am a member of this group. I spend a lot of time these days in a coffee shop in a rural area of Wisconsin and can easily imagine some of these folks meeting and sharing their take on the news of the day and recounting when America was great. This was likely a time when they felt they mattered. I, like them, personally  feel time running out. Unlike them, I don’t see this as a time for self-focus, but rather as a time devoted to encouraging those who are younger to work toward a more positive and inclusive future. The problems ahead are real, but these problems face us all and taking an approach based in assumptions that anyone is special or more deserving will not be attitudes that lead to solutions.

My only connection to the University of Minnesota is through our daughters. Both went to school there and one is back pursuing her Ph.D.. When we retired, left North Dakota, and moved to a Minneapolis suburb, we fell in with some Gopher fans who tailgated and followed football. I still follow the University of North Dakota sports and watch games when available on television, but we decided unless it was hockey it would be acceptable to watch a little football in our new home.

At least for the first few years, Gopher football might be best described as mediocre. A progression of coaches for various reasons and less enthusiastic crowds than had been our experience made an upturn seem uncertain. A new coach has changed things. Last year there was a win against perennial power Wisconsin. The wins came a lot easier this year. A win against highly-ranked Penn State raised hopes, but conference pay ended with losses to both Iowa and Wisconsin. No Rose Bowl this year.

The Gophers did have a record that qualified them for a New Year’s Day game against Auburn in the Outback Bowl. This was expected to be the most challenging game of the season. Auburn has already defeated Alabama and lost to LSU by 3. LSU will soon play the final game for the national championship.

The Auburn game was probably the best college football game I have attended. I suppose Auburn did not anticipate the level of play they encountered. Neither did I. I expected the Auburn lines to dominate giving them an effective run game and make it difficult for Minnesota to pass. This turned out not to be the case. The line play was excellent allowing multiple spectacular catches by receivers and a very effective run game. Auburn only dominated in special teams play with a kickoff runback for a score. It was a great and unexpected win. Great fun.

Retirement makes travel practical for us and a trip to a warm climate for whatever reason is nice. We did spend a little extra time exploring Tampa and I am including a couple of photos I took at the aquarium. A note on my photography. These were both taken with my iPhone and are not post-processed in any way. Double click either for a larger image.

Happy New Year!

I purchased Cindy most of the equipment to make lefse several years ago and she has been practicing ever since. This is the first year the product can be differentiated from potato pancakes. You would think making lefse would be simple. Smash up some potatoes really thin and fry them on a very hot griddle. No way. There are many mysteries to discover. Chill the dough. Roll it out with a rolling pin wrapped in a clean sock. Use just the right amount of flour and then pick up the raw dough with a stick. YouTube provides clues, but it takes years of practice and certain innate abilities. BTW – evidently it is spelled flour and now flower, but I am lucky to have multiple spell checkers in the family who also read my blog and are eager to help.

I ate the piece on the left with butter and sugar. It looks very much like a map of Africa. We are still celebrating our summer trip. Maybe some lefse with a cup of coffee and amarula. In the field of fancy baking, this is called fusion.

Merry Christmas to all.

We have gathered at the lake place to spend time together. There were 15 of us for a while and now some have left to spend time with other parents and grandparents. There were presents, plenty of food, and good times.

The new toy for the family this year was an Oculus Quest. I have had only one turn so far, but it appears to be very impressive technology. It is enough to convince me that the VR thing might be for real. One of the activities we downloaded was for me – a travel application. I am not much of a gamer, but I admit the games are intuitive with this hardware.

We have some of the “old” games going as well. We have a “Wii” that still works and a couple of the grandkids will play it for hours. Sid is a mastery of the bowling game. He sometimes scores over 200.

Then there is the other old/new game that I even remember from my youth. They still make those football games that vibrate to propel the players. It takes as long to set up as it does to run a play and some of the plays go in circles. I even read the directions this year. You are supposed to trim the “runners” under the players for different purposes. Untrimmed is for strength (linemen) and cutting the middle out of the the lateral strips underneath the players adds speed. Make a mistake and the player becomes a pure blocker (or you have to send in for a new base).

Depending on how you understand the curmudgeon personality, it has either been a difficult year or a year in which curmudgeons have plenty to complain about. The leadership of the country has led us all into a very dark time. Fear and hate are never a way to move the country forward or to gain respect from others. When fear and hate compound self-centeredness, we abandon too many people who need help. Label the concern for the less fortunate as socialism if you must, but citizens should not be put off by a label they don’t understand from going the right thing.

Our local paper, the Star Tribune recently offered a recent essay showing the good heart at the core of we curmudgeons.

I like wood fires at our lake home. We added a small wood stove to our three-season porch which also serves as my office. It is a great place to write. The stove adds ambiance and warmth.

We have access to plenty of wood although we have yet to master the challenge of drying it appropriately. I have always wondered about the issue of whether the release of CO2 from wood fires adds to the problem of global warming. I need to heat our cabin, but is wood worse than using propane. I found this analysis from the BBC Science Focus. Burning wood is carbon neutral. I guess this makes sense – whether the wood is burned or rots in the woods, the carbon dioxide is no longer captured in the wood. The article does indicate that burning wood releases particles that can be damaging to lung health. I would think a stove in comparison to a fireplace would eliminate this problem.

I understand that many folks consider Bernie Sanders “out there” and idealistic. However, do folks really think that Bernie is wrong about issues such as climate change, health care, and income inequality? I always find myself agreeing with his descriptions of our most serious problems and his frustrations that politicians seem unable to confront these problems term after term. You have to give Obama credit for finally doing something about health insurance and look how much backlash there has been. What do voters think happens to people unable to pay for insurance or who had conditions insurance companies decided to ignore because of preexisting conditions? Al Gore had it right when he described climate change as an inconvenient truth. So many issues fall into this category and it is easier to ignore and focus on self-interest than face reality. 

Some of the Democratic candidates take a watered-down version of this same position again suggesting that Bernie’s extremism means that a Republican will win the election. They offer approaches that are less idealistic and less likely to do much about the more severe problems. Republicans are different. They offer no pretense of addressing these problems. I have no idea how this lack of acknowledgment appeals to anyone worried about others and I guess that is the key. Republicans worry about themselves in the present and little else – no solutions to inequality, health care, or climate change. 

There are reasons there is such an income and race divide in our politics. 

The President does not make these decisions alone or at least that used to be the case. The President should identify a vision and then work with the legislature to make the case for this vision. We have forgotten this. What is wrong with someone making the effort to identify serious issues and proposing we could address these issues if we wanted to.

So, at least listen to Bernie’s message and be willing to explain how your candidate will address the problems we have that are getting worse and going nowhere.