Comments on: Nota Bene #28

By: Lex

Lex — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 10:45:08 +0000

Stress does kill, but do we put ourselves in the position? We have a tendency to want to live beyond our means, which means catching our means up with our lifestyle. Time is money; therefore, money is time. At a certain point, my time is at least as valuable to me as the money it could generate on a paycheck. And the value of sanity needs to be considered.

I may be financially underemployed, but i don’t dread going to work. I get paid for plenty of fresh air and exercise, and my work duties are basically the same as my hobbies. If you sell your soul to a corporation for a pound of silver, who’s fault it is that you’re soulless?

By: Michael L. Gooch

Michael L. Gooch — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 02:58:56 +0000

Nascar is ignorant. Well maybe, but through the years, I have rarely encountered a valid wrongful termination charge. Most are just out for money or revenge or both. Work stress takes a much larger toll on our health than we care to admit. For a handful of money, we give the corporations our health and years off of our lives. The current crisis with gasoline prices simply compounds the problems of the working American. And with oil predicted to reach $200 a barrel, it will only get worse, which is why the major corporations should begin to address the impact this is having on its workforce. Creative solutions or less profit taking could be in order. In my management book, Wingtips with Spurs, I devote an entire section to the effects of stress on our mental and physical health. Not from a medical point of view but rather from the view of a human resources professional of 30 years. Stress kills and will keep killing as long as we refuse to learn the coping tools. Michael L. Gooch, SPHR Author of Wingtips with Spurs: Cowboy Wisdom for Todayâ€™s Business Leaders http://www.michaellgooch.com

By: pookapooka

pookapooka — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 17:37:59 +0000

the multiply redundant levels … Shouldnâ€™t â€œmultiplyâ€ read â€œmultipleâ€?

Uh, Downes employs “multiply” as an adverb, and you could make a case for the adverb modifying the adjective instead of two adjectives modifying the noun.

But then again, you could make a case for eschewing either form of the word, since the three choices — “redundant levels,” “multiple redundant levels,” and “multiply redundant levels” — are equivalent in meaning, engendering a bit slightly multiply/multiple redundant awkwardness by its redundant multiplicity. Feedback, anyone?

By: Lex

Lex — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 15:02:58 +0000

Point taken, i think “hogs” was the wrong word. Jeter is actually a pretty normal, humble guy. ESPN, etc tough have – in the past – tried to make him a Jordan like figure. There’s nothing inherently wrong with that either, because he is a very good face for baseball and a good role model. I may hate the Yankees, but i’d be real happy to see Jeter wearing an olde English D. (even an aging Jeter)

As an aside, some good reads are to be had in The Exile archives from back when Taibbi and Ames were getting things rolling…before Taibbi was chased out of the country and Ames started suffering from pharmaceutically induced impotence.

By: Russ Wellen

Russ Wellen — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 17:51:01 +0000

Thanks for the background on Russia, Lex. As for Jeter, he doesn’t really seek out the spotlight. Besides, it shines more brightly on Rodriguez and phenom Joba Chamberlain.

By: Lex

Lex — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 14:06:25 +0000

As one who lived in Russia concurrently with Matt Taibbi, i’d have to agree. We who saw it can’t really explain it, but it was one of the most crushing things you can imagine seeing. The Russians were filled with the audacity of hope and change too, and then physicists ended up delivering free newspapers in hopes of a tip. The lesson is that when American politicians and economists give you a blueprint for making your life better, the best thing you can do is the opposite of whatever they say.

I’m not surprised that Jeter got voted “most overrated” by his fellow players. I don’t think that they’re saying he isn’t a great ball player, because he is. I think they’re saying that there are a fair number of great ball players who don’t get the recognition because Jeter hogs the spotlight…and it might have something to do with his innate Yankeeness.