My friend, Annette, writes a summary of her year. She's had a great year... I love it when the story turns out so well as hers has.
Borrowing from a few of her questions, here's my summary:
What date from 2007 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? My wedding is a close second, but I would have to say Christmas morning. All eight of our kids were with us that morning and we all had the best of times. "Magical" is the only word for it. And while my wedding was absolutely that, Christmas morning was the culmination of everything of Tamara and I have built in the last year together. I am in love with our children.
What was your biggest achievement of the year? Being the husband and father my family deserves.
What was your biggest failure? Can I rename that to disappointment? My biggest disappointments were the times I wasn't who I know I am and who I want to be. That's why each day is so important. A new day, a fresh start...
Whose behavior merited celebration? My in-laws. They are really, really wonderful and good people.
Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? A relative of mine. Utterly embarrassing.
What did you get really, really, really excited about? My budding new business project.
What do you wish you'd done more? I don't think I'd change anything.
How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2007? Color.
What kept you sane? Seeing things as they are.
Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? I never do. We're all just people - they just have the misfortune of celebrity, so I feel sorry for them.
What political issue stirred you the most? Mike Huckabee's religious bigotry in presidential politics, and that of his disciples.
Who did you miss? My Aunt Onie.
Who is the best new person you met this year? I got to know Rich Novak.
Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2007. I'll name three:
Be the best human being you can.
It's okay to state your own point of view.
Don't do others' thinking for them.
What was the nicest thing someone told you about yourself. My wife told me I'm a "beautiful man."
The most touching experience you've had this year? Watching all of our children play in the snow in our backyard the day after Christmas from our upstairs bedroom window while holding Tamara and knowing that I have the most fabulous life a man could ever dream of.
What did you like most about yourself this year? Persistence.
What did you dislike most about yourself this year? Occasional panic.
Was 2007 a good year for you? Very much so, yes.
What do you want out of 2008? I most want my new business to take off and do well. I've been around start-ups long enough to know that my development work only scratches the surface of the effort needed... marketing comes next. We'll see how I do, but I certainly hope to see good reward for my work in this. I'll reveal more about this in the coming weeks.
And here's a song to accompany my feelings for the year past and the year ahead:
I read that WordPress and other tools have suffered the type of attack that my site suffered yesterday. It's called SQL Injection. Without knowing my username or password, they manipulate my database just through the web address that they type in or by information they type into a form I have here on the site. So I spent a couple of hours tonight addressing any pages that might suffer this vulnerability and things should be secure now.
What pain, though. I lost a lot of great comments from you, and frankly, I miss them.
In the meantime, here's my current progress on a painting for a patron of my art - about halfway done.
Just a note... my web site was scribbled on last night through an exploit in SQL Server, which replaced much of my database content. The backup has been restored, but I lost some recent comments and a few posts. I have some work to do to prevent juveniles from doing that kind of thing in the future, but it's at least repaired for now.
I recently said that I was looking very strongly at Fred Thompson. There's a lot to like about Fred. His positions are outstanding. But as much as I admire a person's words, it comes down to the ability to execute, and I have to say that Mitt trounces Fred big time in ability to execute. Runs rings around the guy without even breaking a sweat.
So after much consideration, I'm firmly with Mitt. I think regardless of what happens, he'll go the distance and execute well. Now that he has Tancredo's stamp of approval, Mitt has gained more oomph against Huckabee's love of illegal immigrants. I expect Tancredo to campaign hard in support of Romney. Tancredo hates Huckabee's stance on immigration and will fight to make sure he loses.
(By the way, I appreciate Huckabee in the sense that the competition will make Mitt stronger. That said, I also expect that Huckabee believes he has been destinied for the presidency by God, so I expect his deep consideration for a third-party run if he doesn't get the Republican nod. More on that in bit...)
I might be wrong, but here's how my prediction for the Iowa caucus on January 3rd shakes out:
Obama and Romney finish first in very tight races. Clinton and Huckabee finish second. Edwards and Thompson finish third.
I almost put Paul finishing third, but while his support is stratospheric in terms of passion, he just doesn't generate broad appeal. So serve him up as a wildcard for the night, but no higher than third.
In New Hampshire's primaries, I expect Romney to hold the lead and eke out a win. His organization will prove better and churn out the turnout. McCain will finish second. Huckabee will finish third.
Democrats in New Hampshire? It's a toss-up for Clinton and Obama, with John Edwards a distant third.
South Carolina gets interesting, and harder to predict. But if I'm right in these first two early states, I expect a lot of fallout happening for the third tier candidates, and this is where we see Duncan Hunter fall out and support Romney. Giuliani will be rumored to be considering throwing his support to someone, but will say it isn't so quite yet. He'll end up supporting Romney or McCain after not winning one state primary. Huckabee's support will fade a bit, but he'll still win South Carolina. Romney in a strong second. McCain in third. McCain will then fall out and support Romney.
Democrats in South Carolina: Chris Dodd falls out and endorses Clinton. Joe Biden falls out and endorses Clinton. Bill Richardson falls out and endorses Clinton, and Hillary wins South Carolina easily. Obama second. Edwards third. Hillary gets her mantle of "inevitability" back.
Ultimately, it's going to come down to the best organization on the ground. This is where Romney has an edge. If Thompson had the organization, he'd have a chance, but it just isn't there - he never executed to achieve one. McCain doesn't have a strong organization anywhere. Giuliani either...
And while Clinton has an edge here with organization, Obama will give her a run for her money, but lose when it's all said and done.
The Christian Right will court the hell out of Huckabee to run third party because they hate Romney's faith. Here's where we measure Huck's ego. And this is where Huckabee negotiates hard with Romney behind the scenes. I have no idea how that will turn out, but I think at least 50% of the Christian Right vote to follow Huckabee, wherever that leads, be it third party or backing Romney.
I expect Romney to choose Sarah Palin for VP, a very successful evangelical Christian who is also the very conservative governor of Alaska. That will cement his conservative credentials, bring a strong woman to his team, and help heal any rift with evangelical Christians.
And I expect that Bill Clinton will overpower Hillary as he increases his desire to win her the election. He's starting it now. That machismo, on his part, will lose her the election. Doesn't really matter who her VP is. Bill is the co-president and can't help but drive from the back seat of the bus, no matter how far back you put him.
And that will be that. President Romney and Vice-President Palin, our first woman vice-president.
Of course, I could be completely full of it. But this is my last post about politics until the general election starts, so I thought I would put all of my thoughts out there.
America is a unique country, with wide open passions and concerns among its electorate. We have everyone from the "corporations are evil and greedy" crowd to the "business creates jobs and prosperity" crowd. We have the "separation of church and state" crowd to the "morals and God/Allah-fearing leader" crowd. We have folks who believe that "government can solve problems" to those who "revile and distrust anything that stems from government." "Consitutionalists" vs. "living document." Guns will protect me and mine vs. guns kill innocents. Tax the rich vs. no taxes. And so on...
Everybody has a pet issue or three.
In the course of it all, it's inconceivable to some that "the other side" can arrive at the conclusions and the decisions that they do.
Ah democracy, this great soup of every pathos known to man. In that soup, there is power in numbers.
Unions kicked that into high gear back in the 19th century. Unions found safety in numbers. Collectively, they made the business owner bow to the will of the workers. Chutzpah!
Today, we have self-aggregating groups: AARP, blacks, Christians, feminists, and so on. Every one has a pet issue or three. People connect with like-minded people and stir up others. Money pours into the cause, marketing springs from it, activity swirls around it. Busy busy busy. The cacophony becomes the white noise of life, and occasionally something catches someone absentmindedly listening and they are found murmuring, "Yeah! Me too!"
The danger in this is that we then look to leaders to guide our actions. To be effective in numbers, we want to be routed in the manner that helps achieve the goal of the group.
Mankind has always looked for safety in numbers. It's not that unions did something new; they just did it to someone who seemed impenetrable: the boss. And they succeeded. Together. Formula!
Seeking out others to help strengthen your voice to create a chorus and volume is not a bad idea. But I think it's human nature to take it further than is responsible to go. We abandon our individual identity in the wash of those with whom we stand. We are then tarnished by the company we keep. We become individually weaker at the expense of becoming collectively stronger.
At the suggestion of Annette, I read Atlas Shrugged a while back. In it, Howard Roark says:
It's so easy to run to others. It's so hard to stand on one's own record. You can fake virtue for an audience. You can't fake it in your own eyes. Your ego is the strictest judge. They run from it. They spend their lives running. It's easier to donate a few thousand to charity and think oneself noble than to base self-respect on personal standards of personal achievement. It's simple to seek substitutes for competence - such easy substitutes: love, charm, kindness, charity. But there is no substitute for competence.
That, precisely, is the deadliness of second-handers. They have no concern for facts, ideas, work. They're concerned only with people. They don't ask: 'Is this true?' They ask: 'Is this what others think is true?' Not to judge, but to repeat. Not to do, but to give the impression of doing. Not creation, but show. Not ability, but friendship. Not merit, but pull. What would happen to the world without those who do, think, work, produce? Those are the egotists. You don't think through another's brain and you don't work through another's hands. When you suspend your faculty of independent judgment, you suspend consciousness. That's the emptiness I couldn't understand in people. That's what stopped me whenever I faced a committee. They've been taught to seek themselves in others. To seek joy in meeting halls. I think the only cardinal evil on earth is that of placing your prime concern with other men.
Unfortunately, to an increasing number of people, if you care - if you really care - you sacrifice yourself to the cause. Self-sacrifice is lauded and necessary. (Cue applause...)
Howard says further:
Men have been taught that the highest virtue is not to achieve, but to give. Yet one cannot give what has not been created. Creation comes before distribution - or there will be nothing to distribute. The need of the creator comes before the need of any possible beneficiary. Yet we are taught to admire the second-hander who dispenses gifts he has not produced above the man who made the gifts possible. We praise an act of charity. We shrug at an act of achievement.
Men have been taught that their first concern is to relieve the suffering of others. But suffering is a diease. Should one come upon it, one tries to give relief and assistance. To make that the highest test of virtue is to make suffering the most important part of life. Then man must wish to see others suffer - in order that he may be virtuous. Such is the nature of altruism. The creator is not concerned with disease, but with life. Yet the work of the creator has eliminated one form of disease after another, in man's body and spirit, and brought more relief from suffering than any altruist could ever conceieve.
Men have been taught that it is a virtue to agree with others. But the creator is the man who disagrees. Men have been taught that it is a virtue to swim with the current. But the creator who goes against the current. Men have been taught that it is a virtue to stand together. But the creator is the man who stands alone.
Men have been taught the the ego is the synonym of evil, and selflessness the ideal of virtue. But the creator is the egotist in the absolute sense, and the selfless man is the one who does not think, feel, judge, or act. These are functions of the self.
Here the basic reversal is most deadly. The issue has been perverted and man has been left no alternative - and no freedom. As poles of good and evil, he was offered two conceptions: egotism and altruism. Egotism was held to mean the sacrifice of others to self. Altruism - the sacrifice of self to others. This tied men irrevocably to other men and left him nothing but a choice of pain: his own pain borne for the sake of others or pain inflicted upon others for the sake of self. When it was added that one must find joy in self-immolation, the trap was closed. Man was forced to accept masochism as his ideal - under the threat that sadism was his only alternative. This was the greatest fraud ever perpetuated on mankind.
This was the device by which dependence and suffering were perpetuated as fundamentals of life.
The choice is not self-sacrifice or domination. The choice is independence or dependence. This is the basic issue.
You don't hear those words much any more... "independence" or "personal responsibility" or "achievement." And the thing is that those who place a lot of weight in those words won't be looking for a cause to join or a leader to guide them. Personally, they don't need that. The tragedy is that such folks are then seen as greedy and uncaring and selfish. That's so high school - jeering the successful. Ayn Rand calls it the "greatest fraud ever perpetuated on mankind," this knee-jerk desire to hold high the victimized and punish the self-sufficient.
My writing of this comes from listening to campaign ads recently. Hillary wanting give out gifts of government. Edwards lambasting greedy corporations and hailing himself as the would-be hero who was "born to this fight." Huckabee rallying Christians to him by hoisting his evangelical banner high overhead, ready to embrace and baptize the world. Obama holds out "Hope" to the people of America in the form of giveaway after giveaway. All of them pandering to be a leader to save us.
Of course, none of these folks have ever created anything that spawned jobs. Instead, each of them leached off the forced and unforced donations of others. That's their recipe for success: champion the victimized.
That's horrifying.
We need a party of the Achievers, those who believe that personal responsibility and independence are the highest public virtues. It would be the "Don't Mess with Me" party, which has the simplistic platform: leave me alone in my personal life and don't let other nations mess with our nation.
I have to say, as I watch the campaigns, I shudder big time.
You know, John F. Kennedy had it wrong in his famous quote.
Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.
Better rendered, it is:
Ask not what your country can do for you, or what you can do for your country, but what you can do for yourself.
"Rugged Individualism" doesn't represent our nation so much any more as does "Anticipated Dependentism."
That's crap. I'll quote it again because it's said so well:
Creation comes before distribution - or there will be nothing to distribute. The need of the creator comes before the need of any possible beneficiary. Yet we are taught to admire the second-hander who dispenses gifts he has not produced above the man who made the gifts possible. We praise an act of charity. We shrug at an act of achievement.
That's something that the second-handers - Edwards, Clinton, Obama, and Huckabee and all of their devotees - don't fathom at all.
We need the party of the Achiever. Do you know of one? I don't. Because it's neither Republican or Democrat, and unfortunately those who esteem personal responsibility don't have the numbers. I hear hints of promise in the words from Fred Thompson's campaign. I see Mitt Romney's individual executive successes. Other than that... not a drop.
When we got home from the hospital yesterday, we were greeted by a box of things from my in-laws, and inside were two hand-made cards from my nieces.
This was done by Sophia, an astonishing child of many gifts who tickles me every time I talk to her.
And this was done by Savannah, who has a heart of gold and is a gem of a young lady.
Both girls have shared their art with me in the past and they're both extraordinarily talented. To have received their cards means the world to me.
Which goes to show that it's not the size or expense of the gift that matters at all, but the amount of soul you put into it.
I encourage you to take from Sophia's and Savannah's examples, and do something personal for someone this Christmas. You might touch someone in a very memorable way.
A little tired, I'm writing a quick Christmas post for the day. I brought my wife home from the hospital today. She had a procedure done. Everything's cool, and so my post tonight centers on one thing:
Christmas is about grabbing those you love and wrapping yourself up in the warmth and joy of them and loving them as much as you can right back.
Here's a time-wasting Christmas game for you. It's about decorating a tree and sorting out ornaments. I highly recommend it to PR, who was stalwart in getting the fam a new tree this year. This will help you practice.
So after much consideration, I'm firmly with Mitt. I think regardless of what happens, he'll go the distance and execute well. Now that he has 
