Capitalism and Socialism

THIS IS REALLY SIMPLE. Both Capitalism and Socialism are essential for all mankind to live the best life possible. The most important thing is that government should have a direct role in neither Capitalism nor Socialism.  For Capitalism Government's role is to set the rules so every citizen has equal access to climb the Ladder of Capitalistic Value (LCV) from poverty to Millionaire. To fulfill Social Goals the Government should set incentives to encourage successful Capitalists to offer opportunities to those looking to climb the LCV as well as incentives for charitable help for those that are truly unable to create value for themselves.

If the Government does its job right the vast majority of tax money it takes in today would be instead left in the Free Market to be leveraged by successful Capitalists to create money making opportunities for those climbing the LCV. Capitalists would be incentivized by how many and how far the people a Capitalist employs climb the LCV. For example, any Capitalist that does poorly will lose control of a large percentage of his investments and charitable efforts. Other, more successful Capitalists shall be loaned this money at a very low interest rate to grow their success.

Today Government is taking tax money from the successful Capitalists and using a large expensive bureaucratic workforce to redistribute wealth to those climbing the Ladder of Economic Success without climbing the LCV at all. Besides the obvious inefficiencies of this bureaucratic process, the climbing velocity of the person receiving the wealth is Zero '0'; whereas, the climbing velocity of the person working for the Capitalist is much greater. The result is a healthy growing economy. Everybody wins; the employee gets a raise and a stock option; the Government gets more tax revenue; the Capitalist gets to grow his wealth. Capitalists that become insanely wealthy get to play a minor role in running our country based on the Capitalistic Rules and Socialistic Incentives and their ability to make good things happen.

The thing that those climbing the LCV must understand is the Free Market determines Value. It is always a great shock when you graduate with your expensive bachelor degree or even more expensive advanced degree and discover how much you still have to learn on the job to climb the LCV. Things are even more disappointing if you are facing the headwind of a student loan payment. Your expensive education uplifts and accelerates your on-the-job learning and resulting value growth. You have 3 years to establish your true Capitalistic Value, after that your expensive education will not be as important to your current or future employer as your job experience.

Is education required to climb the LCV? The absolute answer is yes, but your education does not have to be formal. Many very successful Capitalists dropped out of the formal education and using their passion, determination and drive climbed the self education ladder and then the LCV to success. Examples that come to mind are Bill Gates and the Beetles. For more details read "Outliers: The Story of Success" by Malcolm Gladwell. 

Most of us are not Outliers. I did not drop out of school before I acquired a bachelor's degree. However, I finished the last 2 years with 3 years of full time, 12 hours per semester, while at the same time working full time as a beginning software engineer from 1965 to 1967. So I started at $300 ( $2,274 in 2016 $s ) per month and made over $900 ( $6,471 in 2016 $s ) per month after 3 years. I jump started my LCV by 2 years, but it monopolized my life. It was worth it as I made $10,000 ( $52,200 in 2016 $s ) per month as an independent consultant to Boeing Aircraft to deliver the system software for their automation of the Panama Canal Project.

Having money that you have worked for is the only way to be free. Don't you want to be a free individual Capitalist? Find a capitalist that you can offer something he/she needs and/or wants. The best situation is a job that can provide the experience that prepares you to be more valuable to this or another capitalist. Now are you greedy or are you feeling pretty good about yourself? Do you feel like giving some of your earned money to someone starting where you did but who is unwilling to give you something for it. Maybe all you want is for this needy person to spend money on something that will improve his/her earning power, by the way this is velocity charity - something rich people do. If you are willing to spend a ridiculous effort on learning from your capitalist experiences you may be capable of starting your own company, the ultimate goal of a capitalist. Now you will offer money to people like you were years before allowing them to be independent and free. This is how the world works best.

In order to enjoy a healthy and happy Socialism there must be a strong supporting Capitalism. I fear for our future. Our young people are being taught by mostly progressive liberals and many of them follow "Rules for Radicals" by Saul Alinsky, the goal justifies ruthless tactics. Capitalism is presented as the problem. Too often there is zero or low tolerance in the classroom for traditional and conservative ideas. Christian conservative speakers are increasingly asked not to speak to our young people. Our constitution is positioned as an old out of date document and it's OK to work around it. Whenever non liberal ideas are expressed our young students are offered and they feel entitled to a "safe space" so they can avoid listening. It is not surprising that so many of the young have come out to support Bernie Sanders.

The young have a new found fondness for Socialism, well it's just so social. After all today's young person can not live without social media like Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat and WhatsApp. Today our life is limited, forget freedom, by a vast growing concept of what is politically correct. In fact our life is increasingly controlled by new laws that grow out of social media developed political correctness ideas instead of by Congress. Congress just rubber stamps a new law. Our young people certainly see us as a social democracy (Democratic Socialist). What is wrong with this, one asks, what is wrong with a majority coming together over the Internet to decide a new rule, regulation or law - we are a democracy after all?

It is wrong because we are a constitutional government (a Republic) with a defined process yielding slow careful consideration by elected congressmen. Furthermore, no new law that conflicts with the constitution may be passed with a simple democratic majority. Anything that contradicts the constitution can not be a rule, regulation or law or dreamed Politically Correct until -

“The United States Constitution is unusually difficult to amend.  As spelled out in Article V, the Constitution can be amended in one of two basic ways.  First, amendment can take place by a vote of two-thirds of both the House of Representatives and the Senate followed by a ratification of three-fourths of the various state legislatures or conventions in three-fourths of the states (ratification by thirty-eight states would be required to ratify an amendment today).  This first method of amendment is the only one used to date, and in all but the case of the 21st Amendment, state ratification took place in legislatures rather than state conventions.  Second, the Constitution might be amended by a Convention called for this purpose by two-thirds of the state legislatures, if the Convention's proposed amendments are later ratified by three-fourths of the state legislatures (or conventions in three-fourths of the states).

Capitalism is scary say the Socialists. If a Capitalist is Rich, says President Obama, he was LUCKY like a Vegas gambler, his rich success is not because of anything he did. Capitalists are seen as greedy rich individuals who expect something in return from you for any money they give to you. It is true that a successful capitalist does not need help to live a normal life. If you need help, where do you look? Family support should and does end. Government support takes money, taxes, by force from Capitalists or requires the Capitalist to pay a high minimum wage, a Living Wage that is enough to support a family.  What Government needs to understand is higher wages mean fewer minimum wage jobs. The fewer jobs that are available are harder to get and demand more of you, larger work load. So if you fail to get that job to help you, you must take money from the Government, and as long as you do you will never be a free individual and you will never be rich.

Please Read:
https://fee.org/resources/rendering-unto-caesar-was-jesus-a-socialist/

Democracy versus Constitutional Republic

“The United States Constitution is unusually difficult to amend.  As spelled out in Article V, the Constitution can be amended in one of two basic ways.  First, amendment can take place by a vote of two-thirds of both the House of Representatives and the Senate followed by a ratification of three-fourths of the various state legislatures or conventions in three-fourths of the states (ratification by thirty-eight states would be required to ratify an amendment today).  This first method of amendment is the only one used to date, and in all but the case of the 21st Amendment, state ratification took place in legislatures rather than state conventions.  Second, the Constitution might be amended by a Convention called for this purpose by two-thirds of the state legislatures, if the Convention's proposed amendments are later ratified by three-fourths of the state legislatures (or conventions in three-fourths of the states). “

As this is an election year and with the passing of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, I am moved to write about my political thoughts and why after most of a lifetime I believe what I believe.

It is said that in most schools today professors are teaching Liberal Democratic Ideology. Surveys show that 99% of professors making political donations are donating to Democratic candidates. On campuses today, if you present yourself as a Democratic Socialist to your date, you are 4 times more likely to get action before the night is over. Socialism is associated with people oriented Populism.  

In my experience this is nothing new. I too got the same teaching in the 1960’s. Even though I learned about the Constitution, its importance was downplayed in comparison to democracy; the simple majority of the people was given more power than the Constitution. In my young life I rationally believed in the Progressive Ideological messages. In 1971, I went door to door campaigning for George McGovern who was the Democratic Presidential candidate in 1972. The actions of Richard Nixon increased the time and energy I put into the Democratic Party. Most of my close friends were Democrats. I deeply believed in, worked for and voted for Jimmy Carter in 1977. I saw him as a successful business man who would lead our country. I was wrong; I became totally disgusted with Jimmy Carter’s lack of leadership and negotiating skills, very much like how I feel about President Obama today. As a businessman I have fired friends that I liked very much as a person and still call them friends today. It is just hard to fire an elected president.

Before Jimmy Carter’s term ended, 1979, I became a Libertarian, worked hard for and gave big donations to its candidates. As a Libertarian I voted for Ronald Reagan and George H. Bush in 1985, their second term, because I realized to continue voting for the Libertarian candidate, when the Republican ticket was an acceptable alternative, constituted a wasted vote. As a non-political 16 year old I had admired the ideas of a young George H. Bush as local politician in Houston, Texas. In 1979, I met Ronald Reagan on a trip to Austin, Texas and was present at a taping of the Johnny Carson show in LA/Burbank, when he was California Governor, in which Ronald and Nancy Reagan discussed their vales and political beliefs. I joined the Republican Party in 1987 to vote for George H. Bush. Today I am older, wiser and committed to be a Republican voting Libertarian for the rest of my life or until the Libertarian Party can win a Presidential Election. 

Justice Scalia was a Libertarian; he strongly believed in the Constitution.

Looking back I see where my education lead me to think democracy could override, change, The Constitution. If the majority of us feel that the government should rule in a certain way, a law can be passed so it's The President's duty to enforce the rule. Not true if the constitution conflicts in any way with the law. We are a Republic NOT a Democracy only; we have a Constitution and in my opinion that is what makes The US exceptional and is the source of our great freedoms and liberties.  The Constitution is a living document only if modified according to the first paragraph of this post and that insures it is very hard to do.

The Constitution gives The Supreme Court the duty to interpret The Law, not to modify or make law. The most powerful law is The Constitution. The Supreme Court must judge the Laws and The Constitution as written. Since The Constitution is a higher Law it can not be interpreted as a living, changing meaning to fit democratic majority beliefs that may change from generation to generation. The only way to change or add meaning to The Constitution is to follow the procedure stated in the first paragraph.

Procrastination, Efficiency and Success

In the early 1970s I was about 27 years old and still searching for how to make my life successful. As a younger person I read a large number of biographies instinctively looking at how older successful people were able to gain success. By 1972 I was reading books about extra sensory perception and states of mental consciousness. I found hints in the biographies that successful people used these things to achieve success. I read the novel The Center of the Cyclone, written by John C Lilly, M.D., where Lilly mapped his understanding of the ego and the non-ego states of consciousness that defines where where we function during our lives. The book is out of print, but I have a copy as we speak. If you can get a copy, go to chapter 13, starting here Lilly defines his states of consciousness. A blog entry is to short to discuss all the states he defines: +3, +6, +12, +24, +/-48, -24, -12, -6, -3. States +24, +-48 and -24 are enough to cover procrastination, efficiency and success. Just note that state -3 means 100% ego and the most negative. State +3 is 0% ego,100% essence and the most positive; think sit at the right hand of God. 

Lets look at the balanced conscious level +/-48, the creative state, which I call the educational state where either you are receiving information, giving information or creating new information or plans. In state +/-48 you plan for action in the your positive professional state, +24, which is your most positive and productive doing state, performing at your professional best. You may use more ego and negative energy in the professional state and end up at -24; +24 is more productive.

Let's look at the example Lilly gives in his book. A downhill skier has spent his career in +48 learning how to perform his sport and time in +24 state practicing his sport; now he is discussing the conditions and challenges the course presents with his coach as he waits for the green light at the top of the hill. He and his coach are in +/-48. When the light turns green the skier must quickly enter state +24 and execute his professional plan all the way down the hill, his body executes in fluid motion without thinking. If he returns to +48 state even for a fraction of a second, he will fall. If he drifts into +12 state, enjoyment and euphoria, he will fall. Think of it like a tight rope high wire walker, same thing.

What does this have to do with procrastination, efficiency and success you ask?  The goal is success which is defined by achieving a hard to reach professional goal. You, the professional, must spend time in the creative state, +48, resisting the pressure to enter the professional state full tilt too soon; you must procrastinate until you are sure of your success. Once you commit all your energy to +24 you are burning time and money toward a professional goal. If you have not procrastinated just right your cash and energy spent in the professional state many run out or at least be greatly reduced in value. Thus balance between +48 and +24 means procrastination, efficiency and success are maximized.

Days of Our Lives

Days of Our Lives, the daily tv show featuring a character named Hope, has been on since at least 1964. The introduction "Like the sands through an hour glass, so are the days of our lives"  burned into my memory that summer in 1964; I watched the daily episode with my mother, after lunch, before leaving to work as a Roughneck on an oil rig. The words meant so much to me that I had then engraved on my iPad 3 a few years ago. 

Every summer I found a job to earn spending money for the coming school year and challenge my body so I would be in shape for the fall football season. This 1964 summer I scored the highest paying and most physically challenging job, way beyond my expectations. The good news was the job paid over $800 per month and more because I often would work double shifts. In today's dollars that would be more than $8,000 per month. In the recent hot Texas oil market a Roughneck can make as much as $189,000 a year. The bad news was the job is 7 days/week in Alvin, Texas an hour's drive from my parents home in Spring Valley, Texas. 

In 1964 there was quite an active wildcat drilling business in Texas. One of my closest high school football buddies, Bob Vines, dated an attractive blond, Polly Parrot, which as I remember was a name her father went by as well. One Friday night eating patented peppers, very hot, with her dad I expressed my need for a summer job. He said he had one for me and I should show up on Monday afternoon about 3:30 PM in Alvin, Texas. Polly sold oil field equipment for Cameron Iron Works and knew a Tool Pusher who needed more Roughnecks.

The rig was a short distance west of Alvin. I was introduced to the big boss, the Tool Pusher, who a temporary office building near the rig. I never interacted much with him except when he discovered I was not 21 years of age. The Driller was my direct boss, he managed the Roughnecks, 5 of us including himself that did all the physical work. The Driller operated the rig controls and the rest of us did hard physical labor, the 3 Platform Roughnecks and 1 Derrick Roughneck. I was one of the 2 Platform Roughnecks that handled 2 huge counter balanced pipe wrenches that were used to screw and unscrew drilling pipe together. My wrench job was to just set the bite of its jaws before the Driller activated a powerful cable reel that pulled the pipe wrench handle to either loosen or tighten the pipe joint. When I started we were drilling at 15,000 feet. Every time the drill bit would wear out we would have to take all 15,000 feet of pipe out 90 feet stand at a time. A stand of pipe is composed of 3 sections of pipe, about 500 pounds per section. The drill bit would wear out after just a few hours of drilling, so most hours were spent either taking pipe out or putting it back in the hole. It would take an 8 hour shift to put in and another 8 hour shift to take out. There were 3 shifts and often one of us, usually me, would have to work 16 hours straight because a Roughneck failed to show up. So 24 hours a day and 7 days a week the rig was worked hard, time is money.

The 3rd Platform Roughneck is the cowboy. All 3 Platform Roughnecks are responsible for lifting a 200+ pound  slip that lies between the wedge shaped hole in the rotter in the rig's platform floor and the pipe in the hole to keep the pipe from falling into the hole. Imagine lifting 70 pounds 300 to 400 times every 8 hour shift as well as wrestling a counterbalanced wrench that weighs more than you do. The 3rd Platform Roughneck, the cowboy, is responsible for wrestling the loose end of a 90 foot stand of pipe lifted by the elevator block and tackle. He must precisely place the male screw end in the rack, if taking pipe out of the hole, or into the female end of the pipe in the hole, if putting pipe in the hole. The cowboy part of his job is tossing into the air and coiling a chain treating it like a rope around the pipe hooking it on a cable pull that power screws on the new added stand of pipe going into the whole.

All the other Roughnecks I worked with were career Roughnecks. They were all at least twice my age. The work is so hard that these middle aged men followed a strict high protein diet. One would bring a bag containing a dozen hard boiled eggs to snack on during our shift. Then there was a heavily used coffee pot, the huge handfuls of Louisiana Strong blend. The Cajon that operated the other counterbalanced wrench weighed over 300 pounds, all muscle. His fingers were the thickest I ever saw. I used to exaggerate that his thumb was as wide as my wrist. When we needed to add an additional section of pipe as we drilled deeper, this Cajon would down a demitasse cup of New Orleans thick strong black coffee. He then walked down to the racks that held the unused pipe, lifted a 500 pound section of pipe from the middle balanced on his shoulders and walk it to the rig where a chain could lift it to the Platform.

The work environment for the Roughneck is very dirty and buggy. First there is drilling mud everywhere, you can not get away from it. It drips on you and comes at you surprising you from the oddest directions. Sometimes it is welcomed as a mosquito repellent. There is also the airborne humid salty sand sticking on your cheeks and feeling like damaging grit in your eyes. Everyone chews tobacco and spits constantly. Two days on the job I started chewing and never swallowed at work again.

One night a week, Friday Night, we would all meet after work at a typical rural Texas family restaurant  and drink beer after work, about 1 AM, as our shift ended at midnight. I say family restaurant even though we never saw a family that late. Each table had red and white table cloth, you could easily imagine the farm family sitting there eating pizza or a burger just a few hours earlier. Drinking our beer, we all talked about our lives. All 4 of my work mates took an interest in a college boy earning spending money and getting in shape to play football. All 4 of my work mates said they wish they had tried harder in school, but to tell the truth they made good money doing a job that required them to be healthy, there is nothing wrong with that. For me, this was just a summer job; the fall semester was calling me.

Is the Roughnecking job dangerous? I considered the job challenging but I did not consider it dangerous at the time. During my first week we scored a new bit in the hole and got to sit around and rest while the hole got deeper. There was a light bulb near the top of the rig burned out. My 4 mates decided to play an initiation trick on the new guy. They said since I was the youngest I would have to climb the ladder on the rig to change the bulb. No one changes a light bulb while drilling. The first 60 feet were easy, if you do not look down. The last 40 feet the rig starts to twist or torque as a result of the drilling forces 16,000 feet down in the hole. The higher you climb the more violent the twist. It took all my strength when I reached the burned it bulb to let go with the one hand required to unscrew and then screw in the new bulb. I did drop the spent bulb as near to my mates as I could.

When you perform a repetitious task over and over for 8 hours, you kind of loose focus and sharpness creating a dangerous situation. On one such night we were taking the now 18,000 feet of drilling pipe out of the hole. After securing the current removed stand of pipe in the rack, the driller lowers the block and tackle from the top of the rig to just above the platform to lock onto the joint of drill pipe at the top of the hole. At first the block free falls to max speed shaking the whole huge rig. At an appropriate time the Driller brakes the fall with a long leveraged brake handle, a job that is the most skilled part of any Driller's job. As the block slows it just so happens its shadow falls at our feet. At this time on this night I noticed the rig shaking as I saw the shadow. All of us intuitively turned and ran as far as we could before an explosive force occurred as the free falling block hit and crumbled on the platform, just where we all had been standing. Now I call this dangerous. The Tool Pusher came out to assess the damage and to ask me just how old I was. I told him I was 19 years old. He liked my willingness to work so I was not let go on the spot.

There was another wildcat drilling rig just several hundred yards closer to Alvin. I saw it every day as I approached the left turn off the highway to our rig. On this one particular day what I saw confused me. The rig was still standing, but it looked all puffed out, like a balloon or bomb blew it out. There was a large spaghetti cloud of drilling pipe balled up as tall as the rig. As I approach our rig the guys are standing around drinking coffee. The rig next door had experience a blowout since I left yesterday. Four of the crew were in the hospital and the Derrick Roughneck was killed. Furthermore, our Derrick Roughneck quit saying the job was not worth the extra $2 an hour. An older retired Roughneck was rounded up to take my job and no they did not want me to quit but to perform the Derrick Roughneck job. The ToolPusher handed me a release form he said my parents had to sign. He tried to put a positive spin on the scene by saying we could all go home paid for today while some oil field experts came in to insure our blowout protectors were sufficient.

I came back the next night with the promotion. It took a little selling to my parents who I did not tell how dangerous it might be. The Tool Pusher came to the rig's Platform for the first time. He had the Driller Bring the Block down where we both could stand on it as we were raised level to the Derrick Platform 90 feet above. We stepped off and he showed me a big bucket of grease and a stack of red mechanic rags. He then showed me a cable running from the platform to a spot far out from the rig. He says in case of a blowout just grab a few rags put grease inside it and jump out on this line that like a zip line, although steeper, would deliver me to safety. He then showed how to put on a leather harness that would save my life if I fell off or was knocked off the platform while working. We were going back in the hole so he demonstrated how to untie the top of a stand of pipe from the fork like structure, walk it over to the edge of the platform and as the open jaws of the tackle appear under and after the block, throw the pipe into the jaws which locked onto its neck. This way the pipe stand can be picked up as the cowboy wrestles the other, lower end, over to screw it into pipe already in the hole. I did this job better than I thought until we reached the last stands of the pipe. The last stands are leaning severely right to left meaning I had to throw the pipe in a curve going right of the jaws but ending in its sweet spot triggering the locking closure. 

I missed a few at first, but the consequences are so bad I learned fast. If I miss the pipe falls up against the far side of the Derrick. Then the platform roughnecks use a chain pull to start the 1500 pound stand of pipe wiggling like a snake toward me on the platform. The plan is I will grab the undulating pipe and take another throw. I did not understand the power of pipe and the first few times the undulating pipe ripped me off the platform leaving me free falling the 90 feet to the rig floor. This is where the leather harness come in handy, my fall is quickly broken and as adrenalin flows I pull myself back to the platform to try to again. 

I finished my summer as a Derrick Roughneck. Sam Houston State won a National Championship in 1964, I was in great shape, but spent most games on the bench. This is just how good the other players were. I did do my best.