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All about the standing-upright chimps that really love to talk about themselves.

A New Generation’s Time

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“A person who is not a liberal in their youth has no heart, but a person who is not a conservative by middle age has no brain.”
Attributions and variations attributed to many people, including Disraeli, Churchill, and Burke

Sen Bernie Sanders (I-VT) isn’t given much of a chance to become president by anyone, including his supporters. He isn’t photogenic and he isn’t a charismatic orator. But he has an appeal among many voters, particularly those with less than a third his 73 years of life. How did this come about, and why are so many people dissatisfied with the nominee apparent, Sec. Clinton?

The answer appears to come in the definition of what we call “generations” – a concept that actually has more to do with the economic and social climate someone is born into and nothing to do with their parents. This may tell us something about the rate of social change we can expect in the next few years, too, as this depression finally ends and opportunities open up for young people.

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Rockstar

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For those of you who know me well, this is a piece from seven years ago which I have to re-use on a very bizzy day.

The study of word origins, or etymology, is often fascinating. Words come to our language from many different places and many different needs. The most interesting words, however, often have very obvious origins but mysteriously deep cultural meanings. One such “super-cliché” is the word “Rockstar”.

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Women Wielding Power

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A time of great change means that we have to cast off the old and give birth to the new – we need reform. How do we achieve that? History has shown us a remarkable way – bringing women to power. Is it because women are the consummate outsiders in a male world? Is it because they have a different perspective that is lacking in traditional power schemes?

Whatever the reasons, history has show that women have been more than great leaders.  Perhaps Sec. Clinton will be able to continue this tradition, and Sen Warren (D-MA) certainly has her own following. Angela Merkel has become a de facto leader in an EU that is adrift and in dire need of strong leadership.  Nicola Sturgeon and Rachel Notley recently led their parties to huge gains in Scotland and Alberta.  There will be more.

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A Connected Approach

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One of the recurring themes of Barataria is that nearly everything in our life can be evaluated based on how it is connected.  This works for analyzing political and economic power, but it also charts the course of ideas and products.  If our political system isn’t working properly, Barataria would argue that it isn’t connected properly to the society it purports to govern or to new ideas that will help it to change.

I’ve expounded on the subject in many different ways, sometimes without using the same words, as a way of thinking this out in public.  Many of you have responded with insightful comments and a few questions on the side – what is that guy going on about?  I’d like to nail this down into a simple, direct statement.  This is an old work, about five years old, but it is something I want to revist to help make sense of our changing world.

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Ireland Stands for Equality

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A storm had been brewing in the North Atlantic, but as of this weekend the clouds had passed over the Irish Sea. As is common with the nasty storms that come from the roiling sea, the landscape was left forever changed – softened, gentler, and deeply appreciative of the all too rare sun.

The storm that passed over Ireland was the debate on whether to enshrine Marriage Equity in the Constitution, a document that has weathered similar storms in the scant 78 years since it was adopted. This time, however, Ireland was changing not just to catch up with the times but to lead them. It’s worth discussing on both sides of the stormy Atlantic and around the world.

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