Want To Know What Makes Me Cry?

If you don't want to read all this... skip to the third video. That's the important part :

I'm often asked, "do you allow yourself to be emotional?" The answer is, of course, yes. I do feel. I'm not a robot. The things that affect me most are not those that make me sad or depressed... I can - fairly easily - pick up the pieces and move on.

Rather the things that affect me most emotionally are the things that inspire. I remember watching the preview of the release of Mac OSX (Panther) in 2004 and crying and asking myself, "why in the world?!"



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vfg1lC7Y5J4

Rather ridiculous, right? But I cried nonetheless. It's because I saw a corporation looking at the way things currently exist and saying, we can make this better. Then investing themselves in hard work, creativity and determination to achieve their dreams.

Then there was this. The finale of Cirque du Soleil's La Nouba in Orlando. They call it the Power Track. I call it amazing. All of the performers in this show are incredible, but there's the one creepy guy at the beginning of the video who pretty much just walks around the whole show. Then... in this scene... he unleashes! There was something hidden in him, and now it's realizing its potential. Then the rest of the cast joins him for an amazing display of team work and skill.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whiiF2svQNs

Now... This is the important part of the post - the video you actually should watch. My friend, Nathen, posted this on facebook. So far, I've only watched the first 9 minutes and 40 seconds, and I had to stop and share this video. It was created by John Stossel, and it shifts the political conversation from, "who's policies are going to fix the country," to "can the government really solve our problems?" It's the same paradigm shift that Ron Paul was trying to accomplish in the debates, and most people didn't understand. But Stossel has done an amazing job at using illustration and example to clearly convey his message.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Phs6CwnutoY

Unfortunately, most people are reactionary, so it's hard to keep the kid from touching the stove until he's done it once and sees how bad it hurts. That's why we have Obama and McCain as presidential candidates. Regardless of who wins - Obama or McCain - we're going to feel the pain (Obama more than McCain - but they are both for HUGE government). My only hope is that the reaction (a subsequent shift to small government and - therefore - liberty) happens sooner than later.

Why did this one make me cry? Maybe a little sadness. Sad that people are sheep. Sad that they blindly follow charisma. Sad that they are looking to the government for hope and change. But mostly out of inspiration. Inspired by the few, lonely voices crying in the wilderness. Inspired by those who haven't given up. Inspired by the hope that there is a possibility of a future where freedom lives.

Even NPR is saying it...

If I'm listening to the radio, it's most likely NPR. They are great at producing quality, creative journalism and feature stories. Being an avid listener, I'm no stranger to their left leaning tendencies. That's why I was surprised to hear economist, Susan Lee present a story on Market Place yesterday, Oct 7, promoting laizzes faire government.

It's fascinating that most economists (and in relationship to the 700B dollar bailout - most Americans) are for smaller government, yet our Senators and Congressmen vote their own way in these issues. What's even more fascinating is that politicians like Obama even have a viable voice on the national stage.

The problem is, most people are libertarians until socialism entices them toward greed... evidenced in the lure of "free" healthcare. Most Americans aren't willing to give of their money voluntarily (Joe Biden, for example, who has given around $300 on average to charity in the last 10 years despite making more than $300,000), but are fine voting for policies that take money from someone else and redistributes to their pocket. Americans aren't upset that corporations are "greedy." Americans are upset they aren't CEOs of large corporations.

Now, back to that NPR piece... Both the transcript and the audio segment can be found here:
http://marketplace.publicradio.org/display/web/2008/10/07/libertarian/

Ha! I just pasted the link and noticed that the last word is "libertarian." I knew there was a reason I wanted to seek this segment out after hearing it on the radio.

I can only hope that Lee's statement that laizzes faire government has come to an end is false, but this would take an awakening in our country that might not be possible. A country of fat, tv watching, video-game playing, quick-fix sleepers might never awaken from their lethargy. I don't know how loudly I can shout or how seductively I can whisper.

How can you expect change from a man without his own ideas?

It's okay to quote others, but it's one's moral obligation to give credit where credit is due.

A few days ago I was involved with a discussion on 407fixedgear.com about a pro-obama get-out-the-vote bike ride. There were several on the site that were saying, "I'd go if it was a ride to promote political choice and getting out the vote, but I'm not sure I want to endorse a particular candidate." One of the responses was this: "I'm pretty sure the "make up your own damn mind" ride is the same exact thing as prObama ride."

I wonder how these news clips about Joe Biden's plagiarism fit into the "make up your own damn mind" category.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QIaALKHVrAA



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Rkoqglq9dU