Catching up

I am just completing a 4-day trip to San Diego.  I come down here every August to meet up with my old navy buddies.  We golf, eat and then golf some more.  We have been doing this for around 8-10 years.  The first 6-7 years we would run in the San Diego Half Marathon.

Now we are older.

Now we golf.

I love hanging out with old friends.  I see them for the first time in a year and it's as if we just saw each other the other day.  This is true with my high school friends as well.  I spent a lot of years moving forward.  It's only been in recent years where I learned to pause and reach back bring the people in my life along with me.

We had a lot of interesting conversations; many about un-reprintable events from our times in the navy.  Many about more current events.  It's interesting that, just like members of my own family, we disagree on many things.  Being friends, the disagreements are just words; sometimes nothing more than to just stay in touch instead of walking silently to take the next golf shot.

I did have my opinion changed about one issue.  Chas and I were discussing the Mosque in Manhattan.  While I could find no one that thought they didn't have the right to build there, most thought it was in bad taste.

I disagreed with them at first.

I took a very "high road" about freedom of religion and the difference between terrorists and Muslims.  Then Chas made a good point.  He said, the leaders of this religion had a responsibility to stand up and say, "Do not kill in the name of the Prophet."  Instead, they remain either quiet or actually support the attacks.

I think he is right on.  I have yet to hear any global leader in the Muslim faith stand up and say, "No virgins for you."  This may have happened but I haven't seen it.  I think that if they did do this, the mess that is the Middle East would be vastly improved.

Other conversations...

I had one friend that said he believes Obama is anti-jobs.  When pressed for a rationale, he said the more unemployed we have, the more control the government has.  I find this very hard to believe.  I think it's much more likely that if you give a guy a job, you get his vote.  If you want to stay in power, fix the economy.

Another opinion on another issue from another friend:  Get rid of all unions.  The unions are the reason that the government is so bloated.  Companies that have a plant go union, shut down and reopen in China. 

Another opinion but this time on religion:  "If I went to a friends house and then he made me compliment him on his home and food; if he told me what to eat and feel; if he whacked me any time I didn't agree with them; I would consider them petty (at best).  And yet, this is what organized religion is.  Men, not God, have made up rules about what God wants, all the while, giving him the pettiness of the worst neighbor on the block."

In the news:  I see there is a documentary coming out about Pat Tillman.  Supposedly, this is going to expose a lot of Rumsfeld-esque behavior.

More news:  Is it just me, or are a lot of people going on rampages?

More news: The Wiki-leaks guy was investigated for rape.  It turns out there was nothing to it.  Was this a warning directed at him?  Who would have done this?  I like to think our government is above such behavior, however, they did lie to the world about WMD's so Bush (AKA Cheney's sock puppet) could look presidential.

An observation:  Of all the people I met this week, only one person can recall an advertisement by Meg Whitman where she talked about "What she stood for" rather than putting down her opponent.  I am a big believer in hiring a business leader to office.  However, I am strongly opposed to a For Sale sign in the governor's office.  She needs to tell me why she is qualified instead of nit-picking at a 40 year political career of her opponent.  Maybe she does this to hide her lack of qualifications.

Back to saving the world.

Up, up and away...

j