England Remains in Control

Salvete.

Well, Scotland has stayed British for now. My English friend (who currently resides in Scotland) is thrilled about this, while I am, surprisingly, apathetic. I would be equally satisfied with a new Scottish nation and a United Kingdom. It's sad because this election is how I might imagine the "Six Californias" proposal to go: a good run, but overall not enough. I also had a fun titles for blog posts, should the alternative happen. Here are a few, with subtitles as appropriate:

Happy Birthday, World! You Get a Brand New Country!

The Definitely-Not-United-Anymore Kingdom of England... and Wales?

Scotland the Brave but Financially Doomed

Celebrate with Haggis!: The Scotland Success Story

Scotland Falls to Militant Nationalist Radicals; Brits Resume Enjoying Tea

Anyway, those are a few. The 100th blog post is coming up, and I hope to make it big. Stay tuned.

My Utopia

Salvete.

Last Sunday I watched the latest FOX show Utopia. The characters on the reality show quickly sorted themselves out into the "if you're right of center, you'll hate my guts" type and the "if you're left of center, you'll hate my guts" type, and there were quite a few more of the former than the latter. The goal of the show is to determine if (and how) a perfect society can be made. The answer became clear on the first episode of the show: clearly you can't make a perfect society with these people. The society fell into a dystopia almost instantaneously, and I didn't need to watch the Tuesday episode. The End.

It got me thinking about my utopia, my theoretical perfect world. What would the government be like? What would my culture be like? How would the economy run? I thought that I would start with the economy, since economy and government are often more important to a society than the culture. Look at Switzerland, New Zealand, and Singapore- they rarely highlight their cultures, but their economies and governments make them among the most powerful minor nations in the world. Thus, let's start with the government.

For the purposes of this experiment, I will assume that I have control of a small nation, about the size of Kosovo or Luxembourg. The reason is obvious; the mechanics of a small government are far different than the mechanics of a large government. While Russia can focus on imperialism, Estonia would have to focus on nationalist isolationism. While America works better as a republic, Serbia can focus on a more democratic government. Thus, I would have different recommendations for the United States.

The government of my utopia would be republican, and there would be no single individual in charge of an entire branch of government. The military would have complete control over itself, but the legislators would have control of the military's budget, the military's objectives, and a small but elite national army, thus hindering the main army's capabilities. The staff of generals would similarly be heavily scrutinized, so as to prevent a military coup. The judges would be selected from the set of legislators by the set of legislators. Citizens would have all the rights entitled by the United States constitution.

The economy would be slightly isolationist. My utopia would have an independently-controlled currency that is linked to the value of precious metal (gold is cliche, so perhaps a lesser-known element like molybdenum?). There would be low tariffs, low income taxes, and low corporate taxes. This would encourage corporations and businesses to find shelter in my country. My nation would focus on a specific product or commodity and create high quality [insert said product or commodity]. That way, my nation can be put on the map as having moderate economic value. Once the economy kicks off and my nation has sizable control of the market, I would raise tariffs to continue to encourage businesses to manufacture on our soil. Because of low, flat income taxes, my country would have a low minimum wage, if any, and welfare would be little to none. Our nation would try to be as free from debt as possible, and completely self-sufficient.

Perhaps the defining aspect of a utopia is the culture. My culture would be one of religious freedom but a strong Christian overtone. Being a Christian, I am biased, but I believe that Christian doctrine is better soil for productivity, education, and general goodwill for mankind than any other religion, including atheism. This would be crucial for my society to grow and prosper. Independence and ownership would be key defining virtues of my culture, and political parties would be small and strongly anti-corruption. Racism, sexism, and other prejudices would be frowned upon but not banned or limited. Freedom would mix with honor and integrity in a strong, absolute blend of morals and values. Citizens would be encouraged to expand their knowledge by any means possible; contracted private schools and universities would be abundant and well-supplied.

That's a general layout of my utopia. It may change over the years, but I think it's a good start.

9/11

Salvete.

9/11 is always an awkward topic to talk about. It's treated like a minor holiday, but a day in which evil scored a brief victory. You can't say "Happy 9/11" like with Thanksgiving or the Fourth of July.

Clearly the past events don't help. Sure, we've lost our Twin Towers, but at least we've thrown the Middle East of chaos with the only hope of peace coming from the most anti-American organization to hit the region. We're less secure, taken more losses, and we seem to enjoy every moment of defeat. Of course they're not good Muslims. Hamas and Palestine just want their territory back. How dare you think otherwise; you're worse than the terrorists who have killed thousands of lives to date.

9/11 is rapidly becoming a forgettable event in our nation's history. Granted, it's generally good to be free of the restraints of the past, but to avidly try to erase the past- well, it's a disservice. It's a disservice to the American people, especially those whose lives were sacrificed so that we could open our eyes.

Six Californias

Salvete.

Well, I was going to be satisfied with just Jefferson seceding, but this works too.

I'm sure this is just a pipe dream, but it's one of the best plans for Californian Republicans. Californian participation in the Senate may be ten senators greater, but there would be a strong Republican presence. Republican votes in California would actually count, and Republicans could actually have their say.

That said, a six-state fracture seems a tad outlandish. I understand that the "Six Californias" people found vastly different cultures and outlooks on life, but they can be grouped into categories (Republican conservative cultures and Democrat liberal cultures) in order to give the two peoples greater political freedom while still maintaining political stability.

I can't complain, though; I will go behind any political front to liberate the Californian Republican conservative vote. I urge you to join me in giving people like me a say in the "Six Californias" initiative.

In Defense of Bush

Salvete.

George W. Bush was no superstar. He was not the savior of the world, and his policies weren't that good, either. Of course, everyone knows this by now, and he has been mercilessly mocked, ridiculed, and shamed for his policies and, more emphatically, his accent. While the Bush's reputation is all but destroyed in the eyes of the left, the right has managed to view Bush in a slightly-positive light until recent years. I think it is time to recognize that, while Bush was no hero, he certainly was no villain.

I think the source of the hatred of Bush derives from the Iraq War and the accompanying invasions of personal freedom. No one assaults Bush's economic policies because, quite frankly, no one cares. Ergo, for the purpose of keeping this post relatively short, I will address the Bush's behavior in Iraq.

Probably the largest catalyst of the Iraq War was the 9/11 bombing. America was dazed and confused, and she wanted heads to roll because of this. To my memory, the only tragedy to come close to having the devastation and horror that accompanied 9/11 was the Pearl Harbor bombing. What happened after Pearl Harbor? We went to war; heads simply needed to roll. We put aside the failed economic policies of Roosevelt and even the fact that America was still in recession to weaponize the American people and fight the Axis juggernaut. What happened after 9/11? We went to war; heads simply needed to roll. That said, whereas World War II was fully supported by the American people and gave America glory and victory, the Iraq War was mediocrely supported by the American people and gave America a victory that she couldn't sink her teeth into. Whereas people were fine sacrificing their belongings and luxuries to beat the Nazi threat, no one needed to sacrifice anything to beat the Iraqi threat, but compliance was a good start. Thus was born the Department of Homeland Security and the endless bureaucracy that ensued.

Was it Bush's fault? Perhaps, just as it was Wilson's fault for allowing America to march herself into World War I before fully embracing American propaganda. It's not indefensible, and we surely should cut the ex-president some slack. It's not everyday that someone is in the tight situation that he was in. And it's not like he emboldened our enemies, overthrew two stable governments, and had our ambassador shot. Yes, Obama, we are still angry about Ambassador Stevens.

Paper AND Plastic: My Impressions on California's Latest Mistake

Salvete. So much to talk about, so little time for blogging. Might as well resume now.

So I was thinking about all the topics that I could write about: a defense of Bush's policies, an apology letter to Estonia, a talk about unions. The one that I decided to write first, though, not only holds the most weight but pertains the most to the near future. Shortly, the state of California is going to ban the use of plastic bags in grocery stores.

The sad thing is that a lot of people around me (or at least the more outspoken ones) love the idea! Plastic bags supposedly harm the environment, and plastic bags are flimsy anyway. Having had experience in grocery retail, I decided to throw in my two cents and explain why California should not outlaw plastic bags.

First and perhaps most relevant is the simple fact that plastic bags are easier to use. Sure, they might be flimsy, but they are more easily stored, transported, and stuffed than plastic bags. For an inexperienced bagger, the difference between paper and plastic may take a good few seconds, precious time in the grocery industry. If customers value their time more than the environment (and trust me, most of them do), plastic is the way to go. Plastic is more flexible than paper, allowing clerks to bag items of all shapes and sizes, from wine bottles to vegetable trays. Sure, plastic bags may be flimsier, but it is far easier to double-bag in plastic than it is to double-bag or perhaps even single-bag in paper, and two bags of plastic are at least as strong as one bag of paper.

Second and perhaps more importantly is the set of economic implications that plastic is going to bring. I don't know who supplies or who makes the bagging equipment, so for now I can assume the most logical choice: they're made in China, shipped across the Pacific, and supplied by an American company, which for the sake of familiarity we will call BagCo. BagCo will have to abandon a large percentage of its plastic bag industry and replace it with paper in order to compensate for this new regulation, so that will cost the company. It would also mean either a greater consumption of lumber (hurting the environment) or a greater consumption of recycled paper and/or wood products (hurting the company further). BagCo might have to downsize slightly to keep its profits steady, thus killing jobs. This scenario is not necessarily going to happen word for word, but it is at least an easily-foreseeable future that California would deal BagCo (if not the entire grocery industry) a severe blow. And that is a dangerous thought.

Of course, I can't change anything. I am in the vast minority, and the law is very likely going to pass. I would merely like my words to be remembered, if only to say "I told you so" in the future.