Archive for November, 2008
Shopping for Security
“When it comes to trading Freedom for Security, we’re like the poor fools who only go to the grocery store when we’re starving; then wonder why we’re poor, fat, and have a pantry loaded with fluff.”
- Ike PigottFreedom, Security, and Dollars
Another day, another dollar. A day late, a dollar short. Dollars to doughnuts.
A dollar is a unit in flux, but it’s a unit that represents our time, effort, and attention.
How much would you pay for a new car? WAIT! Before you answer, how would you rather pay for a new car?Clean 150,000 garbage cans
Mow 1,000 [...]Self-Transparent Accounting
Too often we use needless complexity to obscure the truth from ourselves. Sometimes, it’s because we need to be numb to the truth.
An example of this at the personal level is those who don’t balance their checkbooks because they know they won’t like the result. Ignorance is bliss. But at least we can point the [...]Bear Bryant’s Nuts
This is as good a time as any to share this story.
The year was 1996. A fresh face in Birmingham television, I was part of a startup newsroom that was trying to make a name and a reputation in a competitive but conservative market. Viewers just didn’t wander, they had habits. They also had established [...]The All-tax
(Another Modest Proposal for your consideration)
Tax cut. Tax hike. Tax break. Tax loophole.
The sad piece of it is that those of us who do pay income taxes have become numb to the baseline. The money is ours to begin with, and then the government confiscates it (under threat of imprisonment) for some nobler public purpose. [...]
