Please don't forget about the Woogle initiative

We really need to keep the momentum flowing on this issue. Since the Request For Information (RFI) was submitted a week and a half ago, we have seen a dramatic loss of momentum (growth) on the Woogle Facebook page, which I believe is indicative of the loss in general of momentum in the community on this issue. The way that I remember it, we grew by 1,500 subscribers in the first 3 days after the Facebook site was established and now it has taken over 3 weeks to grow by 1,500 people. I think it is awesome that we have over 6,100 fans of the Woogle Facebook site, but we need to reinvigorate the momentum.

Google is still in the beginning stages of this process and it seems like we are in a lull waiting for Google to take action. I believe that it will be a mistake if we drop the ball and don't continue to push the understanding of this broadband issue forward. If Google looks our way and sees that there is general apathy at this point, then they may decide to look elsewhere.

I really believe that we need to move towards building a contingency Ultra Highspeed Broadband plan. First of all, because if Google were to not choose us, we are still lacking the technological capacity we need moving forward. Secondly, I think that Google would have more respect for this community and know that we are serious about this issue, if we express that we are moving forward in this process. Would they not be more likely to choose a community that has bought into Google's idea about what is need in the way of 21st Century Data communication? It would show that we are willing to work with them, instead of expecting some sort of Google entitlement program.

It goes back to what I spoke about in my last article about process versus objectives; the objective is to build a 21st century broadband network in this area. We have to have this or this community is not going to have a key ingredient that it needs to compete on the Economic Development front. I still don't think that we have gotten through to enough people to create a tipping point of understanding as to how important it is that we be able to offer this asset to the type of community (people) we want to be in the future.

I certainly hope that Google will deliver this infrastructure to this area and these comments should not be construed as a message that I feel that we are out of the running. I have heard people say, why should Google locate this network here? But I retort, why shouldn't Google locate this network here. I believe that we have a lot of great ingredients and Google would create more value for their company by locating the network here in our community which faces economic challenges. This network would lead to a fundamental shift in how our area operates.

I believe that eyes have been opened to the wondrous technological possibilities brought forward by the proposed Gigabit Internet Communications Utility. We can't afford to push this issue down the road to infinity. We certainly need to continue facilitating this Google initiative in any way that we can, but we also need to have a Plan B, because we certainly don't need to start over from scratch should Google decide to move forward without us.

I see a problem with the process, if we have put all of our eggs in the Google basket. This should not be treated like some sort of lottery. This is a business proposal and should be given that status. That is my rant for the day on this subject. We need to be salesmen for this area. Keep going back to your friends and connections, selling them on this plan. Study the issue and from there you will be a more effective representative of this plan. And never give up, because we always need to be ready should the opportunity arise.

Our message to Google needs to be that we are serious about this network. We will help you in any way that we can to implement it, should you decide to come here, but if you decide to go elsewhere, we are going to move forward on this objective anyway.


A message from Catawba County's Information Director Terry Bledsoe (The Chairman of the Catawba County Future Economy Council): It's Simply "Magic"

Below are links to the history of this movement according to the Hickory Hound:
BROAD BAND!!!
City of Hickory - Thinking Big with a Gig
I have a Dream - A 21st Century Hickory
Woogle - How You can Help Us Get Google Ultra High Speed Broadband
3,040 Facebook Fans of the Woogle Initiative - Team Woogle meets with FEC
3/9/2010 - Woogle Town Hall meeting tonight done. Onto Lenoir Thursday night
Google - Come make History in Hickory!!!
Hickory's Diaspora - Bring Home the Scattered Seeds
Team Woogle's Final Push - Before Hickory City Council - 3/23/2010
Google Request for Information website - Help spread the word

It's not about Process. It's about Objectives!

I had a conversation with one of my compatriots today, in which we discussed the issue of a certain manager we know and how that manager has stated that their major strength is "Process" and that he is a "Process" oriented guy. I'm not one to fault someone who is big into having a plan, because I do believe that the old adage is true that it is a key to success. I also like the quote of the Roman Philosophers Seneca who stated, "Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity."

Process is defined as - a systematic series of actions directed to some end

We can look at the philosophical issues involving the process of process. As Humans, we are conditioned to come together in various interests of commonality. We form groups structured around issues of common interest and from there hierarchical structures form from these groups. Leaders are chosen, Rationale is discussed, Objectives are formed, Agendas are formed around those objectives, Strategies are implemented, and in the end there will either be success or failure of the objective centered around the entire implementation of these processes.

There will always be internal and external effects at play in the causation of the success or failure of The Objective(s); but by in large, in my opinion, the success or failure of the Objective(s) will hinge more on the internal forces of the group versus any external forces that might impact the Objective(s). Also external forces tend to balance, because they can be as favorable, as they can be unfavorable.

Let me relate a story that has direct bearing on this issue. When I was a child, I liked playing Stat-o-matic baseball. Nobody around me cared that much for reality games based on sports and this was well before the days of Electronic Gaming designed with Artificial Intelligence, so I played the game sort of like solitaire. The funny thing is that my team always won. Why? Because, in the end, no matter how objective I tried to be, I was subconsciously rigging the game. How many people rig solitaire when they play it?

You see, if we go into a managerial process without detaching ourselves from the objectives, then in the end we will try to conform the goal to meet the process and folks, in real life it just doesn't work that way. That is the reason why gamblers generally become gambling addicts and eventually end up losing their livelihood. Because, they want things to turn out a certain way. They can't seperate the heart from the mind. They think they can manage the games, when in reality they have no control over the process. They can't control the players or the environment. In the end, these events where you have exponential variables and very little control of the environment at play, comes down to just dumb luck.

I am learning a lot of this from "Master capacity Training." I have a long way to go in this training, but I also think I have come a long way in that process and am better off for it. We are learning about Chaos Theory and Weak Signals. It is my feeling that this training is helping to me to assess situations better, by asking proper questions and interconnecting with others as resources to gather information, and then using this connected matrix of minds to move forward in a more methodical way, especially in the complex, chaotic world we now live in.

I will tell you that it has changed my mind on certain issues, such as marketing this area. We used to be known for furniture and textiles, so our identity hinged on products. As those products have become more and more detached from our community, we have lost much of our identity. The branding thought process has shifted away from material goods and moved towards non-material endeavors. We want this area to be known for creativity, innovation, and entrepreneurship. We want to be an area built upon a foundation of idea generation and we need processes that can help facilitate this mindset.

We cannot get there by being closed process oriented, where we narrow our scope and rationale, because we are afraid we might be wrong or someone might figure out that we aren't perfect. Folks, it ought to be clear by now, we aren't perfect. In the complex, technologically ever expanding world in which we live, you need to always run multiple processes towards objectives and have them intertwined. That way they can feed off of one another and when one of the processes loses energy, then more energy can be focused towards the other objectives. There always needs to be contingencies. You can't afford to get yourself locked into one path, one idea, one mindset...

We have to come at our objectives from every angle. I believe that balance is good for a community. I believe everyone deserves to be heard. No one person has all of the right answers, I certainly don't. and I feel that too many times in the past we have seen egos get in the way and these egos have kept us detoured from the path to progress. Objectives aren't about personalities. They are about ideas. We don't need leaders who hear you. We need leaders who are willing to listen and appreciate the context from which individuals speak.

In summing this up, I am not diminishing someone for saying that they are "Process Oriented." What I am saying is that I hope that a person who labels their self in such a way, understands that life isn't about process. It is about progressing towards objectives and having successes and learning from failures, because we are all going to fail, but those who can utilize failure as a tool towards future success will end up growing and maturing towards a truly healthier, more well-rounded, and richly rewarded life.

EcoSnoops - a Home for the Tattletales of Society

EcoSnoops Mission statement:

EcoSnoop's mission is to help our communities heighten awareness of opportunities to be more green, save energy, improve treatment of animals, and even fill pot holes. Leveraging the power of the community, EcoSnoops use the web or their phones to capture clear pictures of a problem and post these pictures on a community website so that building owners and others can take action.

There is also a statement:

EcoSnoop is not about picking sides in the environmental or climate change debate. EcoSnoop helps identify opportunities for making improvements that help companies and people reduce cost, waste and inefficiency. McKinsey Consulting has identified Energy Efficiency as the best and cheapest form of energy. Energy Efficiency often payback quickly, putting cash into our pockets to use for things we would rather do. Just as many people did not know what to use a personal computer for in the early 80's, so to do many people not realize how much energy can be saved in their daily life.

For those that feel strongly that climate change is man made, EcoSnoop offers the least costly method for reducing carbon emission - Energy Efficiency. For those that believe dependence on foreign sources of energy puts a nations security at risk, EcoSnoop offers the least costly method for reducing dependency on foreign sources - Energy Efficiency.

The Hound - OK, I have been fair and placed a link with a mission statement and an explanation of what EcoSnoops purports to be about. I have even been known to go around this city and film scenes of buildings where there are problems, but only as a manner to show where I see hypocrisy when it comes to code enforcement. What I see here is what can be construed as one of the major problems facing our country today. Government feeling that all property belongs to them and private property owners only have custodial rights granted at the behest of Big Brother Government.

What has happened to our country? It is this type of impersonal mentality that creates walls between human interaction and bonding. This reminds me of elementary school, when the teacher would set someone up at the chalkboard to take names when they would leave the room. Would that person not always go on a power trip? Was it closer akin to justice or a kangaroo court?

We have abdicated our rights to Big Brother Government and no longer value human interaction or consideration for the rights of our neighbors. It is all about ones personal relationship with the government and this is what has created the "Nanny State." This is exactly the vision espoused by George Orwell in the book 1984.

Is it not my right to burn lights in my house if I want to at the time of day of my choosing, as long as I pay my bills? These people want to tell you what to do with your property. It will start out docile, as a "suggestion," as a method of conditioning, but eventually you know the sanctions are coming. This is what I have been talking about. This is what I have been preaching.



This lady is telling you to snap a picture with your Iphone and the application will automatically send it to God knows who and it will use a GPS tracker to send individuals to your property to "suggest" ways that you can be more eco-friendly. She talks about filing complaints and reporting offenses. She talks about collecting data of past offenses, publicizing cases, and getting others involved. Joseph Goebbels would be so proud.

When are people going to stand up for individual rights? Is it necessary to continuously head down this path? We have been down this road throughout human history and it never turns out well. Let's stop this before it gets out of control. It is one thing, if someone is harming you, but it is another to overtly harass people over their private property.

I understand that code enforcement is a balancing act, because sometimes people don't take care of their property and it affects yours, and they won't do anything to resolve the problem. But, we all know the difference between real issues and busy-body, nagging, never happy neighbors. It is time to delineate between the two through a common sense approach. We don't need third parties tattling on others. If you have a problem, don't take out the Iphone to Snoop, take it out to call the person you have the problem with and have a moment of human bonding. If it isn't worth this initial approach, then it's a non-issue anyway. Liberty isn't easy. It's something we have to work at every day.

The Unfortunate Reality About Unresponsive Government

The health care bill that just passed in a process that only a parliamentarian could love is disturbing to many as much, or more for the process than the particulars of the bill. Many, myself included, are appalled that the will of the people wasn’t much of a concern and the phrase “ram it down our throats” was used daily. There is now an effort to go to court(s) to challenge the law’s constitutionality. While the mandate to make people purchase insurance, whether or not they want or can afford it, is suspect, most of the law, while odious, is probably not unconstitutional according to the view of the lawyers that actually interpret it.

I believe that we are now at an inflection point in our Nation’s life and this bill has brought some flaws in our Constitution to focus. Our country’s fundamental document was carefully and brilliantly crafted and is a remarkable piece of work. But as time went on, changes were made in response to the Nation’s problems and changing concerns. Slavery was abolished, taxation was changed, alcohol was banned then brought back and so on. Now we have arrived at a point where it has been altered in ways that is not in touch with either the founding fathers or the will of citizens today.

As I see it there are three fundamental problems with the law of the land today, mainly due to the packing of the Supreme Court by FDR and changes they allowed. First is the establishment of the Federal bureaucracy that actually writes the law or “implementing language” as it is sometimes referred to. Secondly, is the tortured use of the Commerce clause of the Constitution. Thirdly, the balance of powers between the branches is out of whack.

The original Constitution specified that Congress could not delegate its law making powers. This put a real limit on how many laws and how complicated a law the Feds could come up with. If every Congressman had to read and understand the laws they were voting on there would be a lot less Federal intrusion into daily life and they couldn’t pass the buck when bad law was made. Until the law was changed so that Congressional staffers and regulatory bodies actually wrote the law you couldn’t have someone like John Conyers saying “what good is reading the bill?”, or the memorable line by Nancy Pelosi saying they would have to pass the bill to see what’s in it. Nowadays the parties leadership sign off on a bill and most Congressmen just follow their leadership without a full knowledge of what is in it.

The Commerce Clause, in my opinion, has been twisted way beyond what I think was the original intent. Obviously, the Federal government needs to regulate commerce between the States. But if you are in one State, and the dentist is in the same State filling a cavity, it is ridiculous to suggest this should be governed by the Feds because the light being used to peer into your mouth was not made here as well. While some good things have come about due to the use of the Commerce Clause, such as Civil rights, it has been tortured beyond it’s bounds and is a wedge to push Federal power into just about anything they want.

Finally, the Founding Fathers intended for the people to have the final say. The Supreme Court has a powerful role to play in interpreting the law but the people have the right to amend it. The President is a powerful figure, but he too serves the people and is sworn to defend the Constitution, Congress is making itself irrelevant by ceding power to regulatory bodies and staffers. Unless these things are brought back into balance, it is the people’s right and duty to take back the power and restructure it.

This health care law has exposed the flaws not only of the people who have jammed, bribed, and threatened it through, but the system itself. Every now and then every person, company, and indeed, country has to examine itself, look at where you started and where you’ve arrived and decide how to move forward from here. We have long established problems to fix and the road will not be short or easy. But it is too dangerous to be governed by the whims of men rather than a Constitution that stipulates the rules ALL must live under.

Chamber "Annual Meeting & BBQ", Featuring Hal Rowe - 03-25-10

Video courtesy of
©2010 Pat Appleson Studios, Inc. All Rights Reserved, Used By Permission
Pat stated that Hal was the hit of the whole program.