Finding Common Ground

Patty here...

My elected representatives in both Sacramento and Washington, D.C. are embroiled in partisan politics and do not seem to notice that Rome is burning. Unemployment in the U.S. is at a 16-year high. In January alone, 598,000 people lost their jobs. Every day brings new bank closures. California's governor has recently furlowed thousands of state workers due to lack of money to pay them.

As a citizen, I expect a lawmaker to vote his conscience and do what is best for the people he represents, regardless of his party affiliation. That is why I was shocked and appalled that not one Republican member of the House of Representatives voted for the initial stimulus package. Not one. Don't get me wrong. Eight hundred billion dollars is a lot of moolah, so I'm all for a healthy debate about where and how to spend it. But in these times of economic crisis, I'd like to see less grandstanding and mean-spirited sniping and more effort toward finding common ground.

I have a conservative Republican friend with whom I do not agree on all issues, but he is a reasonable guy who is always--well, generally--willing to listen to my point of view because we share a mutual respect. Frankly, I think we could have hammered out the stimulus plan in an afternoon over a couple of martinis. He recently sent me an e-mail, introducing me to Charley Reese, a former syndicated columnist for the Orlando Sentinel Star who is known for his outspoken manner and conservative views. Reese wrote in the September 8, 1993 issue of the Conservative Chronicle:

"But regardless of whose fault it is, most politicians today are not human beings. You want to pry open their mouths and shout into the darkness, 'Hello! Is there a human being in there?' Buried under all that lust for office, all that fear of offending a contributor? I know there must be."

Here is the article from the Orlando Sentinel Star newspaper my friend sent. I don't know when it was published but from the historical references, it appears to have been a decade or more ago. Reese makes an interesting point. Do you agree or disagree with him?

THE 545 PEOPLE RESPONSIBLE FOR ALL OF AMERICA'S WOES

BY CHARLEY REESE

Politicians are the only people in the world who create problems and then campaign against them.

Have you ever wondered why, if both the Democrats and the Republicans are against deficits, we have deficits? Have you ever wondered why, if all the politicians are against inflation and high taxes, we have inflation and high taxes?

You and I don't propose a federal budget. The president does. You and I don't have the Constitutional authority to vote on appropriations. The House of Representatives does. You and I don't write the tax code. Congress does. You and I don't set fiscal policy. Congress does. You and I don't control monetary policy. The Federal Reserve Bank does.

One hundred senators, 435 congressmen, one president and nine Supreme Court justices - 545 human beings out of the 235 million - are directly, legally, morally and individually responsible for the domestic problems that plague this country.

I excluded the members of the Federal Reserve Board because that problem was created by the Congress. In 1913, Congress delegated its Constitutional duty to provide a sound currency to a federally chartered but private central bank.

I excluded all but the special interests and lobbyists for a sound reason. They have no legal authority. They have no ability to coerce a senator, a congressman or a president to do one cotton-picking thing. I don't care if they offer a politician $1 million dollars in cash. The politician has the power to accept or reject it.

No matter what the lobbyist promises, it is the legislation's responsibility to determine how he votes.

He goes on to say:

When you fully grasp the plain truth that 545 people exercise power of the federal government, then it must follow that what exists is what they want to exist.

If the tax code is unfair, it's because they want it unfair. If the budget is in the red, it's because they want it in the red. If the Marines are in Lebanon (read IRAQ), it's because they want them in Lebanon.

There are no insoluble government problems. Do not let these 545 people shift the blame to bureaucrats, whom they hire and whose jobs they can abolish; to lobbyists, whose gifts and advice they can reject; to regulators, to whom they give the power to regulate and from whom they can take it.

Above all, do not let them con you into the belief that there exist disembodied mystical forces like "the economy," "inflation" or "politics" that prevent them from doing what they take an oath to do.

Those 545 people and they alone are responsible. They and they alone have the power. They and they alone should be held accountable by the people who are their bosses - provided they have the gumption to manage their own employees.

Happy Monday...

The Dawn's Early Light

from Jacqueline

On the heels of Jim’s post, I’ve been giving a lot of thought to the “hope” message of late – guess we all have, not least because President Obama has come to office on the tide of our collective hope that he can bring us all together and make America stand for something in the world again. Which with a wide turn brings me to one of my big projects this year. Yes, me, the immigrant.

I think my brother and I both ended up here in America due to early conditioning at home. It wasn’t just the fact that my dad loved cowboy movies, or my mother’s stories of those lovely US airmen who bought her chocolates on her seventeenth birthday at a time when there were no chocolates to be had in London – it was pretty much one big bomb site at the time (I’ve told that story here before). There was a certain respect for America, a sense that without America, where would we be? America was the place where everyone wanted to know your name, where the cars were that big – and you should see the size of their refrigerators! They might be a bit parochial, and they don’t get our jokes (or we theirs), but those Yanks had pulled us all back from the brink more than once. Go west, kids – it’s a place where hard workers are appreciated. You can be anybody you want to be, in America.

But the truth isn’t always so cut and dried, is it? As soon as you see a bit more of the world, you realize that there’s good and bad everywhere and in everyone, that there’s as much to like in one place as there is in another, and as much to get under your skin too. Yet there was always something magical about America – the myth of America, if you like. Those wide open spaces were as big as the heart of the people, as wide as the eyes of boys who died on the beaches of Normandy, thousands of miles from home, and all for us. There was a certain innocence, a naiveté in America – this adolescent of a country, raring to go. During its darkest hours, it wasn’t as diminished as tired old Europe.

Yet even in the almost twenty years since I came to live in America, it seems to have grown up an awful lot, not always for the better, and I don’t mean since 9-11. Cynicism, selfishness and blind nationalism became bedfellows, and somewhere an insidious greed led to a hunger that could never be adequately fed as we gorged ourselves silly on whatever was our fancy, the cost and out-of-control debt be damned. And the rest of the world – no angels there, mind – saw America tumble from its pedestal.

About three years ago, my brother took the leap and became an American citizen. Actually, he really wanted to vote (gee – I wonder why?). Inspired, I downloaded the forms (lots and lots of paper) and the “Guide to Naturalization” (even more paper), and sat down to apply – I think I even wrote about it here on nakedauthors.com. Some questions seemed downright silly, but there you go – I am sure those same silly questions appear on similar forms in other countries. However, it was when asked if I would bear arms for the USA that I faltered. Quite apart from the fact that no one in their right mind would put a gun in my hand, I just couldn’t do it. I believe the “right to bear arms” has been stretched far beyond the range of possibilities envisioned by the Founding Fathers, and I am fiercely for gun control, and more of it. And, I realized, there was more to my faltering than that. I just couldn’t see myself swearing allegiance in the shadow of a man who I thought was bringing the America I had loved – the America my parents had put on that pedestal – to its knees.

I met Our Jim at the Virginia Festival Of The Book last year, and talked it over with him – I figured a man who carries a gun as part of his job, and who is highly trained to use that weapon, would have an opinion and could offer advice. He agreed – if you can’t swear to bear arms, you shouldn’t do it (even though I could have been like so many others – you know, just check the box and get on with it). It was clear I had to stick to my guns and be content with my “Permanent Resident” status.

But time marches on. On election night, I felt that old America stirring. Not a perfect America, not a spotless America, but that America with a big heart, an America with hope and optimism, where you feel you could be anybody you wanted to be (even if circumstances suggest that you can’t). A gifted US Airways pilot executed a perfect landing on water while the year was still young – oh yes, the old American magic was back, and we all wanted to keep it that way. And I knew that if, by a dictate of this new President - and all that he stands for - someone was silly enough to want short-sighted old me to bear arms for America, I probably would say, “OK, just show me how to use the thing.” And I would trust that they were asking for good reason. On Inauguration Day, watching Barack Obama being sworn into office and the colors and creeds of America gathering in great numbers to witness the event, it was with a heart full to bursting that I knew I could stand up, place my hand on my heart and say: “I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America ...”

Those endless pages full of questions that have been languishing on my desk? Bring ‘em on!




(... and I guess I’ll have to finally get to grips with the finer points of American sports. Could prove to be a bit of a sticky wicket for me).

Hope!!!!

Hope is Alive

Well, it’s been a while. A lot has happened since we last chatted. It’s a new year. We have a new President. I have a new wife. Oh, wait a minute, I’m a year ahead of myself.

For now the word of the day is hope. Hope is a commodity that can be sold wholesale. It can be exported and it can be easily manufactured. It costs nothing and hurts no one. The pessimists among you might think, “Oh, that’s just Jim spouting off about positive thinking.” It is a fact that Americans prefer to be in the presence of positive people. I’ve seen the stats but I’m too lazy to actually find a poll to embed into this post. It’s not like this is a Pulitzer Prize piece on public corruption. It’s just my opinion.

I, like most people, prefer to be hopeful. If the President pushes that as part of his agenda I’m with him. As I said, it costs me nothing and keeps me looking ahead instead of looking around today at all the uncertainty. Having worked for the Government for most of my life it’s hard for me to fathom losing a job. It took something as monumental as this economic meltdown for me to actually have good friends that were laid off their well-paying jobs. It’s hard to be hopeful when you might lose your house. But on the other hand, it doesn’t hurt either.

I’m hopeful on a number of issues. The economy can’t get much worse. I hope. Israel will know peace and security and violence will subside in the Middle East. This is a tricky one. It will happen, but the two factors that scare the crap out of me are: What will happen to bring about peace? And will any of my children be alive to see it? I’m hoping that the U.S. will retain its security. At least I have a little insight into this issue and think it will. People have already let the 2001 attacks fade from their minds. Life is essentially normal for most people. I just hope it stays that way.

There are smaller issues, mostly involving sports, for which I hold out hope: Florida State football will rise like Lazarus; The Dolphins will reclaim past glory; the University of Florida will be embroiled in a pedophile scandal. That’s wrong and I’m not saying I pray for it, I’d just get a chuckle out of it. Please don’t hate me. These are just a few simple things that would not affect most U.S. residents but would make me feel a little better.

Hope; We can use it and it don’t cost a thing. Be hopeful and smack anyone who tries to tell you otherwise.

Hope to see you next week.

Jim Born

Life in 3-D

I have been to mountaintop and I have seen the future: it's called 3-D. Not the 3-D those of with graying hair will remember--the blurred images, the funny colors, the occasional "wow" moment. Not even the 3-D of a year or two ago. Digital 3-D motion picture.

I'm here in Hong Kong for Chinese New Year with my family (we're living in Shanghai, China this year; I'm teaching at Fudan University) and even though we'd seen the Disney animated film, Bolt, on a regular screen, it was showing here in digital 3-D and we decided to go, just to see what enhancements might come from the 3-D version. The only other digital 3-D I'd seen (and my being a father of young girls is showing here) was Hannah Montana's Tour film. The 3-D was good in that--Hannah walked out the runway and it came right out into the theater. But I think because we'd seen the performance live, maybe because it was a performance film, I wasn't wowed by the 3-D. It was interesting, but not a wow.

And then came Bolt. Wow! For most of the film a "shelf" stuck out into audience (3-D) giving the picture a "stage" feeling. EVERYTHING had depth--the animated characters, the action, even the background--and here was where I noticed the difference. When the background of these 3-D films is kept in 3-D the whole experience changes. The depth of the image makes it feel as if you are looking through a GIANT window and watching stuff happen. It is revolutionary. It is like nothing I'd expected. (and I'm a regular movie goer--I love film!) What I saw won me over in a heartbeat. I understand the push to digital in all the theaters. Here's the thing: you'll never get this at home. Not on this scale (assuming you could see 3-D at home, which I don't know?) I imagine feature films will all adopt 3-D soon because you will have to go to the theater to get the full experience of the film. The DVD won't do it. Nothing will do it. It's as if a whole new industry has opened up. The experience is that fresh, that full, and that REAL.

To the producer's credit Bolt did not exploit the 3-D tricks. Hannah Montana avoided this as well. The temptation has to be great to throw things into the faces of the audience, and it is a shocker when it happens (Hannah Montana's guitar pick comes to mind), but both films kept this to one or two instances--they didn't over use it. Bravo.

The movie experience is, however, completely different and radical. Within minutes you are addicted. In Bolt there is an instance where the characters watch a flat screen image, and so the audience does too. For those few seconds the 3-D is rightfully gone--and you moan it's loss. It's an instant reminder of how powerful a technology this is. Powerful enough to get the masses off their couches and out to the theaters. My guess is film is about to make that leap that it did with Gone With The Wind (color) and from silent to talky. A sea change is ahead. And it's coming to theaters near you soon.

Postscript: since writing this over the weekend, the Super Bowl came along, and with some promotion about decent 3-D coming to television. It's a new technology that uses a special amber light to create the depth, so the regular transmission doesn't look different (typically, 3-D has a double image that without the glasses looks awful). While I'm interested to see the technology, it concerned me how quickly TV has jumped onto the bandwagon (bandwidth). If TV gets decent 3-D, then Blu-Ray will have it not long after, and there goes most of the leg-up I thought might keep theaters (and film) in business. Maybe size does matter. We shall see--and in 3-D, no less.

-Ridley

Paul's Potpourri for a New Year

From Paul...

We have a young, dynamic President, and hope is in the air. So, I'm no longer the spittle-spewing, mud-slinging, junkyard dog of last year. No more vicious attacks on Karl Rove, Ann Coulter, and what's-his-name, the ex-President. From now on, you're more likely to catch Michael Phelps smoking weed than Lefty Levine talking trash.

So, let's look at some things literary, and some things musical.

TRIVIA QUIZ: Who was the first American to be awarded the Raymond Chandler Fulbright at Oxford University? Our very own Ridley Pearson, who spent a year in England researching, writing, and drinking warm beer. (Not necessarily in that order).

KILLER COLD: Ridley is one helluva thriller writer. "Killer View" is downright chilling, and not just because it's set in Idaho in the winter.

AND YOU CALL YOURSELF A WRITER? In addition to all his novels, essays, poetry, short
stories, articles and critiques published elsewhere...the late John Updike published 862 pieces in The New Yorker. Yes, you read that right: 862! But, I wonder, how many Twitters?

"GODS DO NOT ANSWER LETTERS." If you recognize that line, you've read the greatest example of "sports writing" in history. [Disagree with that assessment, let me know.] If you don't recognize the line, get thee to Updike's "Hub Fans Bid Kid Adieu", his classic 1960 New Yorker piece on Ted Williams' last game. Clue: Updike does not sit in the press box; he does not hang out around the batting cage; he does not interview any players. He sits in the stands and writes prose so majestic, I weep with equal measures joy and envy.

A FLUTE BEFORE TYPING: We also lost John Mortimer last month.
Best known for his "Rumpole at the Bailey" series, Mortimer began each morning with a glass of champagne, then sat down to knock out 1000 words and a few belches.

MUSIC FOR A RECESSION: With the economy in the toilet, you might prefer to listen to upbeat tunes. Not me. I like music to reflect the times. Here's one my favorites for cooking a can of beans over an open fire: James McMurtry's
"We Can't Make It Here." McMurtry is the son of Pulitzer Prize winning author Larry McMurtry ("Lonesome Dove"), but you knew that.

I'm also partial to Merle Haggard's "Workin' Man Blues:"


But wait, there's the all-time bittersweet song that will linger in your mind long after the plant closes and the sheriff nails the foreclosure notice to your front door. It's "Our Town," from songwriter-singer Iris Dement, whose Arkansas twang can break your heart.



In the coming weeks, I'll tell you about a couple songs that helped inspire my new novel, "Illegal."

Meanwhile, it's breakfast time, which means: "Where's the Cristal?"

Paul

Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the blogosphere…

The Nakeds are baaaaack!!!!!!

Patty here…

In honor of Groundhog Day, we Naked Authors emerged from our writerly burrow and decided to blog again.

Since we were last together:

• The economy took a nose dive.

• We elected a new president.

• I read/reread some great books, including Water for Elephants, The Mermaid’s Chair, Rebecca, Wuthering Heights, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, California Fire and Life, The Dawn Patrol, and The Winter of Frankie Machine (Lately I've been on a serious Don Winslow jag.)

• I thought a lot about literature and life and once again realize the best thing about my writing career is the people I’ve met and the friends I've made.

• I hung out at out at the library with a few of those friends.
  
  
  Naomi Hirahara, Paul Levine, me, Bobby McCue, manager of The Mystery Bookstore, and Harley Jane Kozak
  
  
  

• James O. Born did a hero-y rescue thingie that I hope he’ll tell you about. He made us Nakeds proud. He also has a new book due out May 26, 2009 from Tor titled The Human Disguise. Let me be the first to tell you that James-O has a secret life as a science fiction writer who goes by the nom de plume James O'Neal. He claims he is both a dedicated crime writer of German decent and a drunken Irish science fiction writer. Can’t decide which personality I like better. I've ordered a copy of the book, hoping it will provide insight into Dissociative Identity Disorders.
  
  
  
  

• Paul Levine has a new pastime—chef—and in his pursuit of Emerildom, he told me he has learned to do amazing things with olive oil but—eh-hem—we won’t go there. Paul’s new book is Illegal, set for release in hardcover on March 24, 2009. This book marks the beginning of a new series and it’s going to blow your socks off (in a good way).

• Cornelia Read is working on her next masterpiece, so while she dwells in deadline hell, she will post on Saturdays. We've all resided in that dark cave, so let's cheer her on. GO CORNELIA!!!!
  

• In October, Jacqueline Winspear and I were on the faculty of the Surrey International Writers’ Conference in British Columbia, which made the experience serious fun. Her next book is Among the Mad, set for release on February 17, 2009. Already I know, it is going to be another NYT bestseller.

• The latest news on the Naked Authors front is New York Times bestselling author Ridley Pearson has joined our merry band of Nakeds, causing us all to do a spontaneous Snoopy dance. Ridley is a friend of Paulie’s but he made us promise not to hold that against him. He will post on Wednesdays.

Ridley hardly needs an introduction but here are just a few reasons why we love him.

He writes great books.



He looks good in a 'stache.



The guy can rock and roll.

At 19, on tour with his band.

Ridley and “The Rock Bottom Remainders”

with fellow band members Stephen King, Amy Tan, Dave Barry, Mitch Albom, Scott Turow, Greg Isles, and Roy Blount, Jr.

Ridley performing on the Late Late Show

His next book is Killer Summer, due out 6/30/09.

Welcome Ridley!!!

Welcome everybody!!! It’s great to be back.

Favorite summer film?

What's your favorite film of the summer so far?

What movie are you most looking forward to?

Shameless plug:
My newest suspense novel (about a heist to steal very old wine) published on Tuesday of this week. I'm on book tour in St. Louis, Scottsdale, and Houston... and am giving away valuable gifts from China (and I'm serious: as in NICE jewelry!)
Ooops... there's the front cover!