Huang Family Newsletter, November 2008

Kids – Colder weather and busier parents meant less fun outings,
although we did hit a bunch of fun sights on a downtown excursion
during Thanksgiving weekend. On the health front, both kids got
additional evaluations for speech and other development issues, and
Aaron got tubes so hopefully he'll have fewer and less painful ear
infections.

Adults – Lee did his first-ever overnighter without the family,
enjoying five days in Los Angeles as a delegate for the British
American Project, a stimulating gathering of young thought leaders
from both sides of the pond. Amy held down the fort solo, diligently
studying before, during, and after for an exam she will take next
month.

Retail Detail

I took the kids downtown Saturday morning of Thanksgiving weekend to
window shop, see the holiday shows, and take the pulse of retail in
2008. Prognosis: not good.

It was scarily deserted at the Shops at Liberty Place and in general
on the streets of Center City. The Macy's light show was hopping, and
a lot of people checked out the holiday video show at Comcast Center;
but that was it when it came to lots of people milling about.

I'm trying to figure out if this means Philly is not quite there yet,
if urban shopping is well past its hey day, or if the recession is
really that bad. Given the stories about long lines at suburban malls
during the wee hours of Black Friday, I'm thinking that it's reason
number two. But I'm afraid of how much it might be reason numbers one
or three as well.

HARD TIMES, GOOD MOVES

Crises, when survived, can become indelible moments in one's leadership development. I remember gutting through hard times at my old job five years ago: asking everyone to take on more responsibilities even though I was instituting an across-the-board pay cut, having to lay off 25 percent of our staff, and still having trouble believing we'd make it through. But even in the midst, my boss and I held out the hope that if in fact we did make it, we'd be the better for it as an organization, that changes we were forced to make because of cash flow difficulties would be proven in the end to be important decisions for the long-term health of our organization.

And indeed, such was the case, and the place is better now for, not just in spite of, those hard times. It is why CK Prahalad's "Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid" is such an important read: it identifies that success will come to those who can make products and services for the very poorest in the world, because it will be those very firms that figure out how to squeeze profitability out of such low-end offerings.

And so this is the lens through which I read the City of Philadelphia's current challenges. It is why Rob Dubow's recent letter to the Daily News resonates with me so much. Although the City is about 4000 times bigger than my old place, and considerably harder in terms of public scrutiny. Let's hope that our fortunes turn quickly, and also that some of what is being done now because our hand is forced will be proven to be important changes for the long-term viability and efficiency of our great municipality.

Swing Country

Like many of you, I have been gripped by the recent events in Mumbai.
India to me is a swing country: very much representative of many of
the best Western ideals (free markets, innovation, democracy) but very
much entangled in tenuous conflicts with the worst sorts. Hence it
being persistently targeted this decade, for the very reason that it
can go either way. Here's hoping good overcomes evil, that violence
is stemmed as swiftly as possible, and that not insignificant tensions
(the West's dealings with Pakistan, India's nuclear ambitions, trade
agreements) can give way to a shared commitment to standing up against
hate-filled terrorists.

The Bush Legacy

With the Bush term winding down, many are celebrating and some will
opine. Here's my take on the Bush legacy:

* National security. Of course, 9/11 is the defining moment of the
past eight years. The fact that we haven't had a similar attack since
then is a good thing, as is the reduction in the very real feeling of
terror we all felt after that eventful day. Is the US safer because
of Bush? Time will tell, but given the fearsomeness of our opponents,
I think history will judge his swing for the fences to be largely the
right call.

* Two wars. Unfortunately, war is expensive; and Bush seriously
misjudged how difficult securing the peace would be and how conflicted
American occupation would play in the Middle East. Again, right idea
but lousy execution.

* Oil. Also unfortunately, Bush didn't parlay unprecedented levels of
patriotism into anything of substance. As Tom Friedman notes in one
of his books, Bush could've told Americans to turn their thermostats
down to 65 degrees, carpool, and otherwise kick our dependence on oil,
foreign or otherwise. Instead, the main message seemed to be "keep
spending, or else the terrorists win." We missed a moment to be in a
better place geo-politically and environmentally.

* Environment. On a related note, whatever your position is on global
warming, the Bush years represent a missed opportunity to
significantly move the domestic economy towards sustainability;
however painful that transition needs to be, we had a chance to take a
big step in that direction, and we didn't. Whether eight years of
inaction will cost our grandchildren clean air and water remains to be
seen, but low marks have to be given here regardless.

* Global image. This would seem to be Bush's worst legacy, that of an
America that much of the world seems to despise. We certainly have
some reconciling to do, although hopefully capitalism and
entrepreneurship doesn't get thrown under the bus with everything
else, since it's in those very areas that we can lead and help the
most powerfully, especially when it comes to lifting the poorest of
places into a freer and better way of living.

* Economy. Whoever you want to point fingers at for this year's
financial meltdown and economic slowdown - a Democratic Congress, the
ratings agencies, greedy Wall Street CEOs - all of this happened under
Bush's watch. So the MBA president has to bear some responsibility
here.

* Fiscal policy. Tax cuts earlier this decade likely staved off a
deeper recession, and save for the last 12 months, Bush might've left
office with a budget surplus. Of course, a lot of things would be
different if the last 12 months hadn't happened. So I'll say here:
right moves, unfortunate timing.

* Culture wars. Karl Rove is a genius, but he is a divisive one; and
the last three elections have polarized people rather than bringing
them together. So much for "I'm a uniter, not a divider." We'll see
if the 2008 version of a Washington outsider can do better.

* Education. No Child Left Behind is vilified by many, but has
changed the conversation in terms of standards and consequences.
It'll be interesting to see what the trajectory of federal education
policy is from here on out.

I'm sure I'm missing a few major categories, and I'm sure many will
think that I'm being far too generous or not generous enough. But
that's my take on the Bush years. Your thoughts?

BAH HUMBUG

When I happen to be in the Bay Area over the holidays, my parents like to take us to Winter Wonderland, which is a blast for our kids. Philly now has its own version: Christmas Village. Although, with the City having to close libraries and slash salaries as a result of a $1 billion budget deficit over the next five years, it remains to be seen whether 'tis the season to be jolly.

WHY PEOPLE MATTER

In a sermon on Psalm 8, John Piper makes a chilling connection between abortion and racism, noting that the founder of Planned Parenthood was a member of the eugenics movement and saw abortion as a way to "weed out" "inferior races." From there, Piper launches into an inspiring call to treat people with value because they are the handiwork of a great God: "we cannot worship and glorify the majesty of God while treating his supreme creation with contempt."

Amen. The Biblical understanding of God is that we are "made in His image" (Genesis 1), that we are "fearfully and wonderfully made" by Him (Psalm 139), that even when we have flouted Him He runs back to us and embraces us with a fierce and fatherly love (Luke 15). These truths should have significant impact on our self-esteem, on the way we treat our children and our co-workers, on our concern for the poor and wounded, and on our involvement in issues like abortion and racism.

Shame on us as a society when we accept the killing of the unborn, when we let our homophobia or racism rob groups of their dignity, when we allow wives to be battered and children abused, when we tease others who are physically or socially or intellectually less than us. When we are neutral or even complicit in such things, we deeply offend the Maker. We all matter because a great God made us; let's act so.

2009 PREDICTIONS GUARANTEED OR YOUR MONEY BACK

Here's a recap of my predictions for 2008, posted in December 2007:

1. Russia will destabilize to the point that it will soar past Iran
and Iraq as the US's number one foreign policy conundrum.

I'm still waiting for this to happen, so we'll call this prediction
"incomplete."

2. China will experience a spectacularly catastrophic environmental
event embarrassingly close to the Beijing Olympics.

Unfortunately, instead of "spectacularly catastrophic environmental
event," we got Sichuan.

3. Facebook will find the path to profitability - and an even higher
valuation - by cleaning up its interface and facilitating
click-through purchases of products and services; example: books on
your virtual bookshelf and favorite electronic gizmos can be dragged
and dropped into a shopping cart.

There's still time, Mark Zuckerberg!

4. College football will have a scandal that makes Mike Vick, Tim
Donaghy, and steroids look forgettable by comparison, and it will
involve sex, money, and race.

I haven't followed, but it looks like the year went by relatively
scandal-free, unless you count the lack of a playoff system that is so
glaring that even Barack Obama had to chime in more than once.

5. Bottled water will further plummet in popularity as a result of a
fatality associated with tainted water.

Thankfully, I was wrong; and thankfully, tap is chic, as cities try to
outdo one another in their green bona fides.

6. The presidential and vice presidential teams in the November
general election will include a woman (Clinton), a Hispanic
(Richardson), a Mormon (Romney), and a Jew (Bloomberg).

Well, at least Clinton and Richardson will have White House addresses,
but otherwise I went oh-fer-four here.

7. Two words: Apple TV.

Steve Jobs, isn't our living room ripe enough for your design and
function genius?

In summary, another mediocre year for this closet Nostradamus. And so
onto 2009. In no particular order:

1. At least three major media companies are going to go belly-up.

2. Barack Obama will experience an unforeseen, 9/11-like event, and
will have his "deer in the headlights" moment just like W did
(remember "My Pet Goat"?), but like W he will find his voice soon
after, and unlike W, he will inspire us to some action that decades
from now we will be glad we were forced to take.

3. The Dow Jones will be at 13,000 by the end of the year.

4. South Asians will dominate the small and big screens.

5. Despite Obama's best efforts, Afghanistan will destabilize - and
it will not be pretty.

6. Kim Jong Il will die, North Korea will open, and South Korea will
impress the world by being ready to bear the massive burden of helping
its beleaguered neighbor.

7. Obesity in America will reach epidemic proportions, as a huge
spike in deaths dominates and ultimately shipwrecks discussions about
national health care reform.

8. We will not be talking about Sarah Palin by the end of the year.

9. One or more of the big Chinese car makers - BYD, Chery, Donfeng,
and/or SAIC - will be household names in the US.

JOB CREATION

Apparently when the government is shopping, jobs are expensive. Greg Mankiw's Blog puts it at $280,000 per job, if we take Obama's estimates of $700 billion and 2.5 million jobs seriously. Meanwhile, the US Conference of Mayors [warning: large pdf file] has compiled a "ready to go" list of 4600+ infrastructure projects totaling $25 billion and creating 261,000+ jobs, which works out to about $95,000 in government expenditure per job created.

Of course, what the government is paying for when it tries to stimulate the economy is more than just the salaries of workers: the end product of such expenditures is such things as institutional or physical infrastructure, whether new or rebuilt. Still, I can't help but think of old grant proposals I used to write for my old employer, The Enterprise Center, where I am currently on the board.

There, our goal was to support entrepreneurs whose emerging ventures were part of the true engine of job creation in our country. At some point, we estimated (and I forget how, so you'll have to excuse me) that we were helping create jobs at something like $10,000 per. And while our efforts didn't lead to other outcomes like a stabilized banking structure or a reconstructed bridge, it did have its own, no less important effects, like the pride of the entrepreneur in building something from scratch, or enhanced conversations around dining room tables in inner city homes, or the ability to pass onto the next generation the valuable asset of a business and a brand.

There's nothing inherently magical about small businesses; big businesses create jobs and wealth, too, and have both advantages and disadvantages over small businesses. But here's hoping that the Obama administration, in its efforts to stimulate the US economy, doesn't dull the efforts of entrepreneurs to do their part to create jobs, compete in a global economy, and accumulate wealth.

OBAMA AND CONGRESS TACKLE THE ECONOMY

Here’s a nice article from last week’s Business Week that lasers in on two of my nervousnesses about an Obama administration and a Democratic Congress: ”Time to Forge a Compromise.” US companies can make money in two places: inside the US or outside the US. Inside the US, the corporate tax rate is 35 percent, second only to sluggard Japan. A generation or even a decade ago, this sort of uncompetitiveness didn’t matter as much, since non-US firms hadn’t evolved into the world-beaters they are now. It’s clear the US no longer has a monopoly on best-in-class processes, products, or brands. Tax policy needs to reflect the need to take off the shackle of this burdensome domestic tax rate.

Outside the US, Dems are calling for an end to the deferral of taxing profits until the foreign subsidiary actually transfers the money back home. They say this practice encourages companies to “offshore” jobs. But forcing companies to pay US tax on income while it’s still parked abroad would cripple US companies in non-US markets where their rivals pay far lower (or, in some cases, no) taxes. And with most US companies’ growth coming from markets outside the US, this is a recipe for disaster.

So what will Obama and Congress actually do? Who knows, although it’s incumbent on us to remember that we can punish our elected representatives at the ballot box in two years. What the CEOs and I think Obama and Congress should do is twofold: 1) lower corporate taxes but close loopholes, and 2) invest in domestic infrastructure, but hold projects to a rigorous cost-benefit assessment to weed out “Bridge to Nowhere” pork.

And, stepping outside of public policy and into popular politics for a minute, “business” and “profit” need to stop being dirty words. And Dems need to wake up to the new global realities of business. Prattling on about the evil of “offshoring” jobs is jingoistic, primitive, and counter-productive; the more we penalize US companies for being more plugged in to the global supply chain of brains, bits, and bytes, the more our economy will drag, the more jobs we’ll lose at home, and the more poorer countries around the world will suffer.

HYDROPONICS GOES MAINSTREAM

I first heard about hydroponics in the late 90's, when teachers I worked with at a couple of local schools told me it was an interesting way to get kids interested in science and make a few bucks as well. As the world urbanizes, farmland shrinks, water resources become precious, and people try to reduce the distances food needs to travel from soil to stomach, the motivation is there to do this at a much more sophisticated level, or so reports CNN: "Agriculture Goes Urban and High-Tech." If this really takes off, the whole urban-rural thing could get really interesting.

ANOTHER VIRTUE OF COMPETITION

The Economist recently profiled a fascinating study on racial discrimination and competition. Competition doesn't eliminate discrimination, but it does penalize it; and the study found that by deregulating banks in the US, 22 percent of the racial gap (i.e. the difference between wages, controlling for education and experience) had been "competed away."

In our haste to blame financial deregulation for our current financial crisis, let's not add to the problem by restricting competition in a way that reverses reductions in the wage gap between blacks and whites that can be explained by discrimination. And in our noble attempts to fight discrimination with such direct tools as education and affirmative action, let's not forget the important role that a free market can play in creating a level playing field.

PHILLY PRIDE

For you local Eagles fans bummed about another mediocre season, here's a jolt that's sure to cause your Philly pride to swell again: a time-lapse video from South Broad the night the Phillies won the World Series. Was that just 3 1/2 weeks ago?

Giving Thanks in Spite of and As a Result of Many Trials

The longer I live, the more aware I am of the great depravity of
mankind, the deep wounds sin inflicts on its victims, and the ways in
which I participate in all this as both sinner and sinned against. In
the spirit of Thanksgiving, I'd like to offer two analogies by which I
understand the role of suffering in the believer's journey.

First, consider your world to be a bubble, within which you understand
how things work. Every so often, tragedy pierces that bubble, and you
are forced towards one of three outcomes. You can let all the air
seep out, and think the whole world a chaotic mess either governed by
a God who isn't all-powerful or all-loving, or else not governed by
any sort of god at all. You can feverishly rebuild that bubble,
reinforcing it against future piercings but simultaneously closing
yourself off to new experiences. Or you can let God build you a
bigger bubble, big enough to include that painful piercing and still
have room to accept His goodness and love. If you let God get you to
door number three, the direct effect of the piercing is a bigger
bubble, and a bigger view of God.

Second, consider your life journey as a series of promotions from the
minor leagues to the major leagues. Along the way, you face stiffer
and stiffer competition, and it is easy to wonder if you are up for
the challenge. So I believe God sends us trials that remind us of how
stiff the competition truly is. We can get numbed by our comfortable
religious lives into thinking that life is all about walking a
relatively straight path, staying out of trouble, and doing a few good
deeds along the way. The Bible describes a far more significant
journey, one fraught with enemies far fiercer than we can stand on our
own, and one far narrower and windy than we'd like to imagine. But as
we pass each level, we are strengthened in our spirit, not because of
our might and wit, but because our God has proven Himself up for each
trial.

A deeper experience of the unspeakable evil things people can do to
others, of the terrible hurts endured by far too many, and of the ways
in which we too are guilty of and damaged by sinning (others' and our
own) can make for a contentious fork in our roads. We can go
backwards, to simpler times; or off the path altogether, cynical that
God is powerful or good in all this. Or we can go boldly forward, our
dependence on and thanksgiving for God all the more bolstered by many
piercings and stiffer competition, our awe of God deepened by the
rock-solid fact that for every new fearsome thing that comes our way,
He is yet bigger. This season, through whatever you are struggling
with, whether sinning or sinned against, whether hurting yourself or
hurting for the hurts of others, I pray you'll go boldly forward, with
thanksgiving in your heart in spite of, and as a result of, many
trials.

Winter is a Season, Too

We have had enough 20ish-degree days around here to convince most
people that we are now well into winter. Metaphorically, though, it
can be hard for many of us to accept winter seasons in our spiritual
lives. We who are among the faithful can yet deny an aspect of the
Christian walk by assuming we are to be fruitful at all times and thus
getting frustrating when we experience seasons of dryness and tumult.

But even the most productive of trees goes entire months with hardly a
leaf, let alone abundant fruit. Winter is a season, too, and an
important one, for renewal and preparation for the coming spring. And
spring does finally come, and thanks to the nourishments received
during winter, much fruit emerges.

And so it is with the faithful believer. We may undergo times of
figurative cold, wind, rain, and snow. Our fruitfulness may shrivel
up. It can look bleak. But if we are anchored, not only will we
survive, stark as we may look, but the winter season will have played
a direct and meaningful purpose in the ability to produce future
fruit.

Consider the very first psalm in the Bible's book of psalms. Note the
comparison of the believer to a tree, that like a tree, the believer
does well to be planted by water. Note also that like a tree, the
believer yields fruit in season. We focus on the importance of
yielding fruit in season, and rightly so; but out of season, God is
doing work too, and we should be diligent about receiving that work
from him. To mix metaphors, consider the important contributions
off-season training make to a championship-caliber player, or the land
management practices of the diligent farmer.

So Christian, if you are experiencing what feels like a frigid and
unending winter in your spiritual journey, be encouraged. This too is
part of the process by which God prepares you to bear abundant fruit.
Plant yourself by streams of water, which is to say (according to
Psalm 1) root yourself in God's Word. Out of season, there may not be
much fruit to encourage you, but this time is no less important in
preparing the way for much fruit in season. In the black church,
there is a rallying cry: "Friday's here, by Sunday's a coming!" May I
add: "Winter's here, but Springtime's a coming!"

"How blessed is the man who does not walk in the (B)counsel of the
wicked, nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of
scoffers! But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and in His law
he meditates day and night. He will be like a tree firmly planted by
streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season and its leaf
does not wither; and in whatever he does, he prospers." - Psalm 1:1-3

PLANNING FOR THE NEXT BOOM

It is human nature to want to buy high and sell low: when times are good in the market is when we feel good about investing, and when times are bad is when we want to wash our hands of the whole thing. There's a similar phenomenon in real estate: boom times bring forth big plans for big buildings, but by the time they actually get built, demand may have cooled considerably; and bust times deter many people from adding new supply, except that that may be the best time to prepare for the next boom in demand.

And so it is with a little trepidation that I am following the plans for the Oakland A's new stadium and adjoining ballpark village. This is, after all, where I'm going to spend my retirement years, puttering around as a groundskeeper and enjoying the mixed-use environment of retail and entertainment all at my doorstep.

Except that the current financial meltdown and real estate slowdown are putting development plans in jeopardy. Say it ain't so, Lew; anticipate that people like me will want to buy in by the time these things actually get built. Besides, you're a multimillionaire, so having your own cash is a huge advantage in these cash-strapped times. So reasonable debt-equity ratios be damned; swing for the fences, says this irrational lifelong A's fan and future resident.

OBAMA'S TEMPERAMENT

I've blogged a fair amount about disagreements I've had with Obama on the issues. But I did want to praise the man for having an extraordinary temperament to be the world's most powerful man. One of the comments at a Myers-Briggs blog puts it well: "Obama is difficult to pinpoint because he seems to have all functions pretty well developed, which is good for a person and good for a president."

Think about it. He's careful with his words (I: introvert) but great with people (E: extrovert). He's idealistic (N: intuition) but pragmatic (S: sensing). He's rational (T: thinking) and yet emotionally intelligent (F: feeling). And he's run his campaign and transition in a disciplined manner (J: judging) but without being so rigid that he can't adjust (P: perceiving).

Of course, haters will say that's the problem with Obama: he tries to be all things to all people. I disagree. I think he has his defaults, but is thoughtful enough to appreciate the need for both extremes and disciplined enough to carry that out in the most pressure-packed of situations. And I think this bodes well for him being a good leader. Now if he'll just change his tune on his actual policy preferences . . .

WHO AM I

My co-worker sending me this article on conservatives' identity crisis has tipped me to posting something I've been meaning to post for a little bit now. While I gladly self-identify as Republican and Christian, these have become loaded terms that make for quick sorting. The only problem is that I don't belong to any of the big categories that people tend to sort Republicans and Christians into:

* I'm not of the Religious Right, although I believe in the inerrancy of the Bible and in salvation through faith in Jesus.

* I'm not of the Progressive Left, whose anti-war slant I find naive and whose social justice heart is commendable save for the fact that they methods they propose will lead only to more injustice.

* Just when you think you've pegged me as a fiscal conservative, I start frothing at the mouth about the importance of implementing a very high gas tax at the national level.

* Just when you think you've pegged me as a social conservative, I casually remark that I think gay marriages should be legitimized.

* And just when you think I've eased myself into that sensible moderate middle, I tell you we need to be more muscular on the world stage, not less.

I guess I'm used to swimming against the tide, so it's OK if I defy easy categorization and don't have a natural grouping to identify with. I even relish this uniqueness sometimes, as it allows me to play the counter-cultural, as well as to have plentiful opportunities to learn from others whose perspectives are different than mine. But it's telling that I am so relieved and feel such a kinship when I meet another person who is young, urban, minority, Republican, and Christian. Everybody needs a group; mine's just smaller than most.

Snow Falling through My Kids' Eyes

In my haste this morning, I barely caught a glimpse of the snow
falling lightly down from the sky. Whatever space was left in the
part of my brain not devoted to the morning's tasks (get clothes on
the kids and breakfast in them) and that day's work to-do's (meetings,
deadlines) tended to practical matters: was it snowing hard enough to
need our stroller cover or umbrella for our walk to day care, would I
need to salt the sidewalk, if it's too slippery I may not be able to
run outside tomorrow morning.

My kids had an entirely different response. "Oooh, it's snowing,"
shrieked my daughter, as she tore down the hallway, ripped open the
inside door, and shoved her face into the window in our front door to
look outside. Her little brother dutifully followed behind and did
the same. "Dad, it's snowing!" She darted over to me and then back
to the door, prancing all the way. When we were finally ready to head
out the door, rather than stalling, both Aaron and Jada burst outside,
taking in all the sights and tastes.

Oh, to see more of my day through my kids' eyes: innocence and wonder,
untainted by practicality and cynicism. Jesus says that only those
who receive His kingdom like a little child will enter it; today, my
kids modeled for me what it was like to receive one beautiful
morning's worth of that kingdom.

LANE CHANGE

I may have mentioned previously that John McCain's ambivalence towards public transit (and his outright opposition of Amtrak) represented the one issue where I was in agreement with Barack Obama's position. Courtesy of Transportation for America [with special thanks to Discovering Urbanism for the link], here is a nice delineation of what that position is: "President-elect Obama Responds to Transportation For America." Hey, America; at some point we need to make some bold moves towards a new way of moving people around. Out of all the rhetoric we heard from Obama on the campaign trail, his words on this subject were the ones most hope-inspiring for me.

SEEKING LESS CONNECTIVITY, NOT MORE

Let me channel my inner fogie for a second straight post, and say that I will rue the day I have to move towards a technology gadget that increases my ability to receive information more frequently. I'm speaking, of course, of Blackberries, iPhones, and the like. I feel like I already check both my work and personal email too often, rather than not often enough; so why would I want something vibrating in my pocket the second after I receive an email? Unless I absolutely have to, I haven't even bothered to pack my work laptop on work or personal trips, figuring I can mooch off somebody if I absolutely must or forgo the Internet altogether while I'm out of town. And while this may make for frenetic pre-trip wrap-ups and post-trip catch-ups, the vacation from technology is more than worth it. Others may swear by these devices; if I ever get one, I'll likely just be swearing at it.

UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES

Here's a nice WSJ article that anticipates the unintended consequences of government action: "An Auto Bailout Would Be Terrible for Free Trade." And the money quote: "Ironically, proponents of a bailout say saving Detroit is necessary to protect the U.S. manufacturing base. But too many such bailouts could erode the number of manufacturers willing to invest here." And you wonder why an Obama presidency and a Pelosi Congress scare me: I can't tell you how many times I agree with the D's on what they want to accomplish, but cringe because what they are proposing will actually lead to the opposite effect. Speaking of free trade, here's a blast from the past on the same subject: "Why Protest the WTO."

LEARNING FROM EARLY EXPERIENCES

This morning, I attended an interesting seminar at Drexel University's Laurence A. Baiada Center for Entrepreneurship in Technology entitled "Youth Experiences: Influence on Entrepreneurial Success." The moderator and panelists spoke about how early experiences in sports and music laid the foundation for future success in business and entrepreneurship. As a founder of a youth entrepreneurship program, I listened with rapt attention as each speaker rattled off lessons learned through sports and music: discipline, teamwork, strategy, leadership.

I hope that my kids excel in the classroom. But I also hope that my wife and I can encourage them to explore extra-curricular pursuits. Sports and music offer particular potential for providing kids with the structured environments, new experiences/perspectives/relationships, and transferable lessons they need to have healthy childhoods and successful adulthoods.

The only thing I wished slightly different about this morning's presentation was that every speaker enjoyed success in their early careers, winning tournaments and achieving national rankings. Self-esteem can be built when you realize you are good at something, so there's nothing unhealthy about excelling and taking pride in that. But hyper-competitiveness can be deleterious to your soul, so we need to remind our kids that they are valuable for more than the fact that they have more wins than losses. And not everyone is going to achieve greatness, so we need to remind our kids that they can be comfortable with themselves even if they have less wins than losses.

Easier said than done for this hyper-competitive, Type A dad, especially since I am increasingly bewildered by the challenges of parenting my two. But today's event reinforced for me the importance of early experiences. Here's hoping our kids will find the things, like sports and musics, that they can enjoy and that can provide them with the settings and lessons they need to grow up healthy and happy.

No Tweets Out of Me

I love the concept of "tweeting" - short blurbs that together provide
a rich mosaic of real-time information on what a person's up to and
how they're doing, and that individually can showcase their hopes,
their fears, their insightfulness, and their wittiness. Whether
Facebook updates or Twitter posts, there's been a proliferation of
such "tweeting," and it's not "TMI" for me, whether on account of
"don't go there" or "too much volume."

But you won't see me tweeting any time soon. For one, I already
contribute regularly to my two blogs, and do a monthly update that
gets posted in both places, so my stuff is already out there on a
regular basis. For another, as an introvert, I'd rather not doing my
musings out loud in such a raw, real-time format; blogging in a moment
of frenzied enthusiasm or disgust is already a scary step out for me.
Finally, I just don't like to announce where I am or where I'll be,
lest some weirdo seize the opportunity to loot my house or hurt my
family.

So while I try to convey a relatively modern persona online, here's
one place I feel largely far from the cutting edge. Of course, it
could very well be that barely a year from now, I look back on this
post and wonder aloud at how crotchety I was back then. Just calling
it like I see it today.

CEOS AGREE ON A TAX HIKE THEY LIKE

When you get a room full of CEOs to agree on anything, let alone a tax hike, you know you've got something. And yet there was near unanimity on the merits of a gas tax hike, according to the Wall Street Journal's blog. All of the points I've made before are there: make it revenue neutral for low-income people, reinvest it in infrastructure, encourage energy efficient solutions, and so on and so on.

I love how many of these articles are popping up, and how each of them talks about how this proposal is politically dead on arrival. The fact that this is political suicide isn't just speculation, I grant you; if it can shipwreck the left-leaning candidate in Canada, you know it's politically toxic.

But you know what else is a death wish? Pushing our natural resources and our climate to the brink. Building an economy and a quality of life around a substance that is mostly controlled by unstable and unfriendly governments. Waiting for more highways and bridges to collapse. The CEOs, as ruthlessly focused on the short-term bottom line as any group possibly could be, get this. Will our politicians, and will us citizenry who can vote them in and out?

PHILLY'S HAPPENING

Too much to say about today's planning hearing on the proposed American Commerce Center, plus I'm on the developer's team, so I have to keep a bit mum on the subject. But, while they may have been overshadowed by the main business of the day, take a look at the first two informational items on the meeting's agenda. The anticipated Boyd Theater restoration and the proposed efforts between 30th Street Station and the former 30th Street Post Office are two poignant reminders of the uniqueness of the City of Brotherly Love. Impeccable historic cred meets futuristic urban vibrancy? If you live here, let's hope together for more of this around these parts. And if you don't live here, you might want to consider getting in now while you can.

CHINA IN THE NEWS

Interesting juxtaposition of two articles on China on page A4 of today's Inky: "In Today's China, Money Talks: Economy Trumps Ideology as Nation Redefines Itself" and "Global Adoption by US Off 12%." China's remarkable economic rise has all sorts of implications, and not just in the economic realm (although, to be sure, there's more than enough to talk about just there, as a global recession has leaders from all over the world holding their breath to see if China's ravenous appetite can continue to sustain their economies).

As a hundred million people are lifted out of poverty and another hundred or so million people are lifted into the middle class, human rights violations abound and newfound spirituality is diluted by an even newer affliction of materialism. And what will become of baby girls abandoned by parents seeking a son to carry on the family name? Will there be less abandoned in the first place? Will more Chinese families decide to adopt babies from their own provinces? Will the world's increasing attention on China cause legions of "unadoptable" babies to languish in even more secrecy, or will the cover be blown on such forgotten orphanages? Keep your eye on this mighty nation, and not just for economic reasons.

BIG CITIES ARE GOOD

Here's a story that should be closely followed by globally-minded urban Christians: "Lump Together and Like It: The Problems and Benefits of Urbanization on a Vast Scale." The Economist reports on the World Bank's latest World Development Report concerning the trend towards mega-cities in developing nations.

The typical image we conjure up when it comes to such places is teeming masses, filthy squalor, and social unrest. Indeed, Mexico City, Mumbai, and Sao Paulo all have populations around 19 million (!), slums abound, and the possibility of class warfare is ever present. So are really large concentrations of mostly poor people a bad thing to be combated through policy?

Not so fast, argues the World Bank and the Economist. Density is good for trade, and (it may be obvious to me but it escapes a lot of otherwise rational people) economic gain is an important component to improving the lives of these currently impoverished people. Income gaps tend to narrow over time - and, although not reported in this article, fertility rates tend to slow as people no longer have to have six kids to account for high infant mortality rates and high agricultural labor needs.

So what developing countries need to do about bulging metropolitan areas is not necessarily to fight against the growth but to manage and harness it. "Manage" as in investing in schools, land markets, and transportation infrastructure. "Harness" as in figure out a way to translate exponential economic growth into relief and opportunities for even larger rural poor populations.

The fact of the matter is, whether in the US or abroad, there is a very real anti-urban bias that colors peoples' perceptions. Unfortunately, it is often us Christians that hold and perpetuate such a slant. Let's hope that it becomes more so us Christians who are on the forefront of helping cities around the world manage and harness the unique dynamics of urban settings, for the benefit of hundreds of millions who currently enjoy very little in the realm of quality of life.

Shepherding the Little Ones to the Promised Land

I spend most of my non-work hours (and, truth be told, although don't
tell my boss) some of my work hours shepherding my kids hither and
thither. I mean this in both the literal sense (jackets, hats, and
gloves on, and off we go) and the figurative sense (helping them grow
up into adulthood). It is a tiring, perplexing responsibility. I've
never had to herd cats before, but the analogy seems apt, particularly
since I have two, who are different, respond to different things, and
sometimes work against each other. Thankfully, I have a wonderful
co-herder in Amy, although sometimes all this means is that there are
two tired and perplexed herders instead of one.

I wonder often, sometimes in the midst of the craziness itself, how
similar this is to God shepherding His people on that long and narrow
road to the promised land. It sometimes make me laugh aloud to think
of the Israelites in Biblical times, or myself in the present,
stumbling around like Jada and Aaron. The fact that my kids multiply
their waywardness by actively impeding each other makes it all the
more memorable, for don't God's people do this to themselves all the
time? And the fact that I have a co-laborer in my wife also seems
appropriate, since God invites us into His work of shepherding all the
time.

Where the analogy breaks down is particularly poignant to me. I am
not promised that I will be successful in navigating my kids through
childhood. Disease, violence, or accidents could cut their precious
lives short in a moment's notice. They may struggle intellectually or
emotionally or socially. They may fail in a very real sense. They
may even choose to abandon the faith of their father and mother. And
there is very little I can do, try as I do, to guarantee otherwise.
When I remember this sober truth is when I do my most fervent praying
for their safety and their souls.

God is different. Those He has called to be His own, He will bring to
completion, no matter how fiery the trials and windy the path. There
is no evil, whether human or spiritual, that can snatch one of His
little ones from His sure grasp. My own inability to play this role
for my very own kids, who I love fiercely, enhances my sense of awe
that my Maker does in fact possess this ability and is unshakably
committed to exercise that authority on our behalf.

Every day I give my all to shepherding my little ones to a better
life, I am reminded of how much more love and power God expresses
towards the same end for us and my children. And every time I lose my
patience, feel the weariness in my bones, or mess up, I am reminded
that He is perfectly patient, unspeakably strong, and without blemish.
"Behold, what manner of love the Father has given to us, that we
should be called children of God - and that we are!" (1 John 3:1).

THE AUTO BAILOUT IN PICTURES

I'm not sure what you do for fun on the weekend, but I play with spreadsheets. Here's some interesting info on the US auto industry, courtesy of Carpe Diem (the first visual is his, the second two are mine).













Some other tidbits about UAW employees at Daimler Chrysler:

* As you can see from the third visual, total compensation was flat during the Bush I and Clinton years (i.e. going down in real terms) but up sharply during Bush II's years (i.e. far outpacing inflation)

* From 1991-2006 - inflation was up 48% (2.65% per year), wages were up 69% (3.55% per year), and health care was up 207% (7.75%/year)

* The typical employee is 45, has worked at Daimler Chrysler for 15 years, and has 34.5 days of paid time off (17.5 days of vacation and 17 days of holidays)

GETTING OUR HOUSE IN ORDER

Putting in a new deck or tricking out your living room may be the sexier home improvement project, but the biggest bangs for your buck are usually the more mundane things, like insulating your attic or putting in energy-efficient windows. And so it is at a national level, that infrastructure-enhancing initiatives like retrofitting buildings and constructing "smart" electrical grids are where some federal dollars might be prudently spent in terms of return on investment. Or do we need another bridge collapse, or Russia cutting off energy supplies to half of Europe, to remind us of just how dangerous and unsustainable our current way of life is, from a geopolitical and environmental standpoint?

I applaud CFO Magazine for banging on this drum for so long; and, for a rag that is for execs that are supposedly all about the bottom line, for banging on this drum at all. This month's issue contains an article called "The Great Green Hope" which references a recent study (click here - large pdf file) that proposes $100 billion in government spending over two years in six key areas.

To the extent that these projects are like the kinds of things we homeowners do to increase efficiency and save money over the long haul, I'm in support of this kind of green agenda. To be sure, many questions remain unanswered. This sort of thing creates lots of jobs upfront, but what do employment prospects look like in the long run? And where's the money going to come from when we're maxed out on bailouts and stimulus packages and two wars? But any good homeowner will tell you that if acting when money's tight is bad timing, waiting until it's too late is even worse timing. For the sake of our long-run prosperity and our childrens' quality of life, here's hoping we can get our house in order in time.

GOD LOVES WHOSOEVER

Twelve years ago, Amy and I led 20+ students on a 5-day work project at the Whosoever Gospel Mission. We worked alongside the residents there, attended chapel with them, and slept on site. It was a powerful trip for many, to immerse themselves in a truly urban experience, to see substance addiction close up, and to see men battle with real sin in their quest to walk with Jesus.

I tried to stay in touch with the leaders there, good guys as they are, but it had been several years since I had kept up. So it was nice to see this article in the paper earlier this week, about how the Mission was reopening after a devastating fire in 2006. I wasn't even aware of the fire, but the story made complete sense to me, because I've always thought of the Mission as a place of second chances and of rebirth.

So here's to the good people at Whosoever Gospel Mission, and to anyone that helped in getting it back up and running again. God is still in the business of calling people out of destructive behavior and into relationship with Him. And the Mission is one of those places where that call is going forth and being responded to on a daily basis.

A LIGHTS-OUT BRIGHT IDEA

A nice piece on how environmental concerns are leading to the end of Manhattan's gleaming nighttime skylines: "Efficiency’s Mark: City Glitters a Little Less." [Via Governing Magazine's blog.] Here's the money quote for me: "But more and more, building owners are writing leases that require tenants to pay for their own electricity, leading many tenants to install more efficient lights."

And this is why it's good to unbundle goods: because end-users now have an incentive to use only what they are willing to pay for. This is the sort of thinking that can minimize the amount of water, gas, and electricity we would otherwise piss away because we have no incentive to treat these things as the scarce resources that they are. Instead, we want to artificially depress the price of these things, leading to ruinous over-consumption, even as we punish good things like making money or leaving some of that hard-earned wealth for the next generation. Here's hoping we can get this turned around in enough time that our kids and grandkids will inherit more from us than a scorched earth and unusable air and water.

SEPTA AND THE CITY SAY "LET'S DO THIS"

And now for some shameless self-promotion: here's a link to a press release about a panel discussion I participated in last night - "New Transit Revitalization Investment District Plans Released Today for 46th and Market Street Station, Temple Regional Rail Station; First for City." What was great was sharing the panel with higher-ups from both SEPTA and the City. They're the two key institutions if you want to see good transit-oriented development in Philadelphia, and both were overwhelmingly positive, enthusiastic, and committed to making this happen. It's a tough time, between real estate sluggishness and municipal budget deficits, but sometimes all you need is for the right people to say, "let's do this." I heard that last night, and that makes me hopeful.

Brits Know More

I knew this already, but spending five days with lots of Brits
cemented it for me: we Americans are globally stupid. The Brits who
spent five days with me in LA at a British-American leadership
exchange overwhelmingly knew more about American politics and history
than I did. And what little I knew about British and European current
events from reading the Economist hardly allowed me to make all but
the smallest contributions to any conversations on such topics. And I
would consider myself relatively more well-informed than the typical
American. I still think the US is the greatest nation on earth, as do
the Brits; but we really have to do something about our global
ignorance.

Keep the Baby, Not the Bathwater

I want to repeat here a question I first asked at a conference I
recently attended. I didn't get a satisfactory response there, and I
still haven't, so I'm hoping that someone can help me out. Here's my
question:

"As a Christian and a capitalist, I'm concerned that we are
threatening to throw out the baby with the bathwater in two cases.
First, free trade has lifted hundreds of millions out of crushing
poverty, and additional hundreds of millions solidly into the middle
class. Protectionism hurts poor people and poor nations the most and
leads to volatile food prices. Second, lost in our subprime meltdown,
as we've focused on all the people who defaulted on their loans, is
that many did not default on their loans. And easy access to capital
has led to people building buildings and buying homes and starting
businesses that were heretofore excluded from doing such things.
Clamping down on capital markets could lead to a return of redlining
and other practices that keep the most marginalized among us from
participating in the mainstream economy. So can you convince me that
an Obama presidency and an overwhelmingly Democratic Congress won't
throw these two babies out with the bathwater?"

I'm trying to convince myself that Obama has enough Clintonistas on
his team that saw what happened in 1994 when, after 12 years out of
power, the far left reached too far from 1992 to 1994, leading to a
resounding defeat in the congressional elections. I'm also trying to
convince myself that Obama has good economic advisors and is moderate
and pragmatic enough to not let ideology trump reason. I may need a
little help convincing myself of these two possibilities, and having
additional reasons these two babies won't get thrown out with the
bathwater. Anyone?

Leisure Reading

I admit I'm a workaholic. Indicator #719 was the way I spent my 5+
hours on the plane to and from LA. Since I was busy all the way up to
this trip and upon my return, and since the trip itself was packed
with activities, my plane times were really my two only big chunks of
uninterrupted time to myself.

So how did I spend them? Reading a big stack of articles that had
piled up over the past six months. All told, I plowed through 80+
such articles, on such topics as transportation, planning, and the
environment. I read special reports from the Economist, studies my
firm had done that I personally hadn't participated in, and Harvard
Business Review pieces. The articles ranged from 2 pages to 152
pages, and took me all around Philadelphia, across the country, and
around the world.

And when each plane landed, the stewardesses gave me funny looks when,
as they manned the aisles with trash bags, I handed them 300-page
stacks of paper. This is what passes for leisure reading for me. I
know, it's sick.

Triply Villainous

Within one sentence, it was clear that this year's attendees at the
annual British American Project were overwhelmingly for Obama. With
the election less than 72 hours in the rearview mirror, the fervor was
particularly intense. In the spirit of open discourse, I introduced
myself as "the only person in West Philadelphia who voted for McCain,"
just to put out there that there was at least one person who didn't
vote for Obama. My remark got some hisses and some incredulous looks,
but also some pats on the back, both from fellow Republicans as well
as from Obamaniacs who appreciated my desire to ensure a balanced
discussion.

As the conference progressed, I also detected some anti-Christian and
anti-capitalist biases, which similarly threatened to shut down
healthy conversation. Again I outed myself - as much as I'm unashamed
of saying I'm a Republican, I'm even more openly Christian and
capitalist - and again I got jeers, albeit in good humor. But mission
accomplished: I may have represented the minority perspective on all
three fronts, but the dialogue was respectful and gracious.

I suppose I don't mind and may even relish being triply villainous. I
would hope that where I am in the majority on an issue, I would be
accepting of the perspective of the opposing side, not in the least
because I might actually learn from it. This past week, when I was
the one in the minority, I certainly learned from others' vocal
stances, and my hope is that others also learned from me. Isn't that
what these cross-cultural exchanges are all about?

DEAR ZACHARY

While I was in LA for a conference, I got a chance to steal away to
Hollywood to catch the LA premiere of my friend Kurt's documentary,
"Dear Zachary." As a bonus, I attended a showing that he was actually
at, so we were able to chat before the film and I stayed for a portion
of his Q&A afterwards. I'm so proud of what he's produced, and the
thoughtfulness and follow-through he demonstrated in putting this
together. You really should consider watching this powerful film.
See additional information below on when and where you can catch it.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Wed, Nov 12, 2008 at 3:01 PM
Subject: "Dear Zachary" opens Saturday in Portland, OR - continues in
NYC and Los Angeles

Hi Everyone,
I did warn you there'd be weekly updates this month, did I not? :)
Well, here's the latest -- "Dear Zachary" will be playing for 2
weekends in Portland, Oregon starting this Saturday. Here are the
details:
The Hollywood Theatre
4122 E. Sandy Blvd.
Portland, OR
www.hollywoodtheatre.org
Plays Saturday 11/15 - Monday 11/17 & Saturday 11/22 - Sunday 11/23
Check website for ticket details & showtimes
It's still playing in Chicago at the Gene Siskel Film Center today &
tomorrow for two shows daily at 6 PM & 8 PM:
www.siskelfilmcenter.com
And it's still playing 4 shows daily in both Los Angeles (at Laemmle's
Sunset 5) and New York City (at Cinema Village). As of Friday, it's
being held over for a 3rd week at Cinema Village and a 2nd week at the
Sunset 5, though they are cutting it down to one show daily as of
Friday. Check the websites for exact showtimes:
www.laemmle.com
www.cinemavillage.com
It's also showing this Saturday 11/15 at the St. Louis International
Film Festival, which I will be attending with Kate & David Bagby and
many of Andrew's St. Louis relatives, who I haven't seen since
interviewing them for this movie, and am very excited to see again.
:) It's also playing the Denver Film Festival on Saturday 11/15 and
Sunday 11/16:
http://www.cinemastlouis.org/fest.html
http://www.denverfilm.org/festival/film/detail.aspx?id=22162&FID=43%20
Just to recap what's ahead in the coming weeks:
November 21st -- opens in Nashville, TN at the Belcourt Theater
November 28th -- opens in Santa Fe, NM at the Center for Contemporary Art
December 5th -- opens in San Jose, CA at Camera 3
I will be at Camera 3 in San Jose to do Q&A at both evening shows on
Friday, December 5th, and all 4 shows on Saturday, December 6th. At
the Saturday evening shows, I will likely be joined by Kate & David
Bagby for Q&A.
Lastly, the date for its North American Television Premiere has been fixed:
SUNDAY, DECEMBER 7, 2008 - 9 PM - MSNBC
MSNBC has begun running teaser promos for it, so if you happen to be
watching you may see one. A friend of mine caught one last night
during prime time.
Thanks again for everything, and I'll keep you posted!
All the best,
Kurt
www.dearzachary.com

ON TOP OF THE WORLD

One of my favorite things to do when I travel is go for runs. I had time during my conference in LA to do two. One was a fairly prosaic jaunt through downtown LA. Because there are so many empty spaces, this run lacked the vitality you might find if you jogged through New York, Philadelphia, or Chicago. And if you're not careful, you might find yourself on a highway on-ramp with no place to go. So that run was a tad disappointing.

My other run, though, was simply sublime. I took the subway from near my hotel to the closest stop to Griffith Observatory. I emerged from below grade into a commercial district, which quickly gave way to a relatively run-down Hispanic neighborhood. I then reached the foot of the hill, and as I climbed higher, the houses got nicer and nicer, until I got to right before the park area, where the houses were really nice.

Once inside the park area, I climbed steeply until I reached Griffith Observatory. Having run myself out of breath, I was now out of breath on account of the view: a 180-degree panorama of the entirety of Los Angeles. I could even make out Long Beach in the distance. I stood motionless on one side of the observatory, taking it all in as the sun rose over the valley. I decided to walk around the perimeter of the observatory, and was treated to an up-close look at the iconic Hollywood sign not more than 1500 feet away. The run back to the transit stop was all downhill, and I was buoyed also by this wonderful discovery I had made. Painfully steep as it was, that was a run I wouldn't mind doing again.

METRO MUSINGS

I've been to LA countless times, but this past trip represented my first times riding Metro there. Some musings on my experiences:

* My first trip, from downtown LA to Long Beach, was the most confusing. I knew I'd be making at least four trips on Metro (two round-trips), so I purchased four one-way tickets. Only when I was done paying for them did I realize these tickets were only good for trips originating from that station. Then, I boarded the train without having to give my ticket to anyone; I found out quickly that the Metro operates on the honor system, and the only thing deterring free riders is the possibility of a $250 fine (plus 48 hours of community service) if you're caught. Then I made what I thought was a free transfer, from one line to another, only I was told later in the day that there is no such thing as a free transfer, but rather you're supposed to buy a second, one-way ticket when you get to the station where you're transferring. Then, once I arrived at my destination, I decided to buy my return ticket right away, so I wouldn't have to worry about getting it in case I was running late. Only once I got the ticket I realized it was time-stamped, and that by the time I would actually need to use it, it would have expired. Needless to say, in total I spent a lot more than I needed to, even though I illegally rode one leg without paying. This is a strange system.

* My second trip was much smoother. I took one line from near my hotel to the closest stop to Griffith Observatory, so I could run up the hill to it. I had to stuff my credit card and then the ticket into my sock, but at least I remembered to not buy my second ticket until I actually needed it. Of course, I'm not used to spending $2.50 on my runs, and I got some funny looks stretching in the stations and on the trains; but I can live with that.

* My third trip was the most harrowing. I cut out of a dinner party slightly earlier and walked down the street to a bus stop to take a direct bus to Hollywood for my friend's movie premiere. I ended up waiting at the bus stop for almost 45 minutes, during which time the place got increasingly sketchy. Let's just say I felt a little out of place in my suit in the midst of a growing amount of cussing, smoking, drinking, and even urinating. Of course, no sooner did the bus finally arrive than the driver announced that he would be detouring onto the highway on account of a Prop 8 protest. The detour didn't affect my travel plans, but it did add a surreal element to the trip. What was also surreal was the juxtaposition of riding through posh sections of Hollywood, people dressed to the nines on the streets, while I sat with pretty run-down-looking fellow passengers. On my return trip, I was sandwiched between a scantily clad woman on my left and a potential suitor on my right; they coyly flirted through me as I desperately tried to read my Economist magazine. Good times!

* By the time my conference required all of us attendees to ride the subway to one of the venues, I felt like I had seen it all. That ride was, unsurprisingly, very prosaic. Although it was humorous to me to share a train car with scads of well-dressed yuppies like me, interspersed with the usual Metro clientele, obviously wondering who the heck all of us were and what the heck all of us were doing on the subway. Only in LA.

LA is literally caught between a rock (the mountains) and a hard place (the ocean). And more and more people want to live there. So more people will have to ride the Metro, and more Metro capacity will have to be built. From a convenience standpoint, the system isn't half bad; you can get to a fair amount of places for $1.25, or $2.50 at the most. But because very few upper-middle-class folks currently ride, the experience can feel a little disorienting to newbies. Here's hoping more and more people cotton to Metro; there's clearly enough capacity to bear more riders, and when it comes to riding public transportation, there's safety in numbers.

BRITS AND AMERICANS

I just got back from five days in LA at the annual British American Project conference. More musings'll trickle out in the following days, but for now I want to say thank you to the conference organizers for all the great colleagues I met, lessons I learned, and experiences we shared. I don't know how many others of these I'll be able to make, but I know now it's in my interest to try as hard as possible to make them. Thanks!

AFTER OIL

This Rockefeller/Penn conference asks the right questions: "Urban Design After the Age of Oil." I was unable to attend any events but stopped by the exhibit hall. The designs may seem outlandish, but the urgency no longer seems out of place. Here's hoping we don't act like the proverbial frog that never jumps out of the slowly boiling pot.

PHILLY BEATS TAMPA AGAIN

I'm a little late to this party, but here's a nice piece on Tampa vs. Philadelphia as places to live. Sorry to spoil the suspense, but Philly comes out on top in this article, 8-7, even though the author stakes Tampa to a 3-0 1st inning lead on the basis of its milder climate. With environmental sustainability concerns and an increasingly knowledge-based economy making urban settings all the more attractive, look for Philly to increase its lead if such a comparison were being made a generation from now.

Race Matters

Living in a mostly black neighborhood, I've seen firsthand the pride
that Obama's victory has engendered. It's really quite moving to
behold. The president-elect may have touched the nerve of a wide
swath of Americans, but it is the African-Americans who seem to have
been the most spirited in claiming him as theirs. (Remember when
there was talk that this wouldn't happen because Obama wasn't "black
enough"?) And in his breakthrough victory, black people have rejoiced
in their own breakthrough.

The fact of the matter is that race still matters. Most people who
voted for Obama did not vote for him because of his race, and most
people who voted against him did so not because of his race. But race
still matters. We can celebrate this election as a milestone in race
in America. And we can agree that we still have a long way to go,
personally and corporately. We can talk about race, celebrate how far
we've come, lament where we're still in the wrong, give the topic its
proper place in practically any discussion we could possibly have.
And that's a good thing. It's what makes our nation unique, what
makes us special in the world. Let's not be ashamed to say so.

TO MY ELECTED OFFICIALS

Every six months or so, I try to write something to my two senators and one congressman. (You can go here to see what topics I've covered since I started this habit eight years ago.) With most results in from yesterday, here's what I had to say to Congressman Fattah and to Senators Casey and Specter:

"Now that the presidency and both houses of Congress belong to the Democrats, I urge you to do your part to rein in any protectionist sentiment in upcoming legislation and trade policies. I agree with Henry Paulson that free trade is good for poorer countries, who would suffer the most under restrictions. There's been a lot of populist talk about reining in free trade, and now that the elections are over, I hope you'll consider making sound decisions that best ensure prosperity for us all, and at the least do not do harm to the poorest among us."

THE BIG SORT

Remarkable: this site shows results by ward, and it says Obama won 96.6 percent of the votes in our ward. I haven't read "The Big Sort" yet, but intuitively, I know that we Americans are clustering with others of our political persuasion as never before. And I think that's a shame, because there's a lot to be gained from a situation like ours, where one's own convictions are challenged (sometimes hardened, sometimes changed) by constantly hearing the positions and passions of other perspectives. Here's hoping that Americans who aren't in our situation will not become lazy in their thinking, but will ever challenge their own positions as well as their counterparts'.

THE BEST OF AMERICA

Classy speeches by both Obama and McCain. As noted previously, the competition may be over but the work has just begun. Here's hoping both sides can continue to call all Americans to the best of what we all have to offer. The best of America can be yet to come, if we will stay informed, stay involved, stay inspired.

Election Day

I've dutifully taken my kids to every Election Day since we've gotten
them, but this was their first presidential election. Not
surprisingly, since we are a swing state, turnout was high. In fact,
we arrived at the polling places right as they opened at 7, and didn't
actually vote until an hour later, as there were a good 50 to 60
people ahead of us. By then, Jada and Aaron had burned through their
school snack and were really antsy. But we pulled our levers and
headed off to school before any major meltdowns occurred.

We Made It to the Beginning

This has been a particularly exhausting presidential campaign.
Hundreds of millions of dollars have been spent, streets have been
pounded and doorbells rung, and tempers flared. Not a few people are
vocalizing their relief that it all ends on November 4.

Only it doesn't. Unless you think that this whole thing is about who
wins. Or you are a campaign pundit, and so the campaign itself is
your reality.

But for the rest of us, this is about the political process, hopefully
fairly yielding a candidate who will then in two months be inaugurated
as the nation's 44th president. And that very political process,
however much you do or don't like it, having yielded a winner, now
requires us to stay involved, stay informed, stay vocal.

If your side wins, good luck to you; you've made some lofty promises
and you have the harder task, having rallied half the nation, to rally
the whole nation behind getting some of it done. If you side loses,
stay in the game; you are a "check" in the ever-important checks and
balances that makes our nation so great.

It will annoy me to no great end if the major tenor of post-election
expression is to gloat over victory or complain about defeat. And yet
I fear this will be the overriding temptation, especially after a
campaign as long and hard-fought as this one. If you win, remember
what you've won: the right to lead, a sober responsibility if there
ever was one. And if you lose, remember the bigger picture: our
democracy is the world's best in part because we lose graciously and
non-violently.

It's been a long haul. On November 4, we will have made it. To the
starting line. Where the real work truly begins. Let's act like it.

Every Hitter is a Home Run Threat

People often tease today's big-league pitchers for being sissies
compared to their counterparts from past generations. Barely a
generation ago, throwing a complete game was a common occurrence,
young hands weren't kept on a tight pitch count, and there was no
market for a LOOGY ("lefty one out guy"). Be a man, the critics
cackle.

They don't realize that today's pitchers compete in a setting in which
every hitter is a home run threat, and any pitch can turn into an
instant run. You could go nine innings back then because you could
coast in the early innings and against certain hitters; no more.
Hence, every pitch is fraught with stress, both in terms of the game
situation as well as in terms of what it takes out of a pitcher.

Why do I bring this up? I'm convinced parenting has evolved in a
similar fashion. For better or for worse (and there are good things
and bad things about this development), life is more complicated and
people more independent than even just a generation ago. Not to
denigrate the challenges our parents faced, but they would probably be
the first to agree if you asserted that raising a kid today is fraught
with all sorts of pressures that didn't exist to the same degree when
they were the ones doing the parenting. Moms juggling work and home
responsibilities, keeping an eye out for child predators, having less
family nearby, the proliferation of information available on the
Internet . . . the list could go on and on, but it all points to
today's parent having to be always on, always vigilant.

Now, there are two sides to every story. And just like today's
pitchers have unprecedented access to resources to take care of their
bodies, plus the modern comforts of chartered flights and generous
contracts, we modern parents have vastly superior products and
services with which to do battle as parents. Believe me when I say I
would never for one day trade my situation for my parents' - I like
not having to worry about rubella, and being able to order a stroller
online and have it delivered within a week is a wonderful convenience,
thank you very much. Parenting is, for the most part, vastly easier
today than it has ever been in the history of mankind. But the flip
side is that, metaphorically speaking, every hitter is now a home run
threat.

EVERYBODY LOVES A WINNER

In this morning's Inquirer, Chris Satullo ("A Civics Lesson from the Phils") wonders if "Maybe the Fightin's can teach us all how to expect, recognize, and cheer success as ardently as we have feared and booed defeat." There is something to be said about Jimmy Rollins' steady diet of optimism: the recognition that there is more to sports than the on-field athletic part, that winning isn't just for the players but for the fans, and that even if a city doesn't believe yet a team can still will itself to a different legacy than its past versions.

The battle for Philadelphia's future will be as fierce as anything the Phillies, Eagles, 76ers, and Flyers have to face night in and night out. Why, on the very same page as Satullo's column were two other stories - one good ("Another World Championship in Phila. Sudoku 2010") and one bad ("Transit Overflows with Parade-Goers"). Of course, the bad news made the masthead - how original to bash on SEPTA. And the good news was on the bottom of the page - because, you know, even though it's not every day a major cultural phenomenon decides to have its biggest gathering in our town, bashing on SEPTA and running a photo of people waiting is more what we're used to.

I was once flipping through a corporate relocation magazine and I noticed that one of San Antonio's selling points was the many championships the Spurs had won. Look at any major college brochure, and if they have good sports, you'll know it right away. Look, I get that everybody loves a winner. The Phils have proven that a team rolling at the right time can lift the spirits of an entire city - and generate lots of merchandising. No knock on sports, which is just as much a part of any city as any other part, but let's hope we can build off the success of the Phillies and learn to celebrate other successes that don't involve athletic conquest but that do involve building businesses and celebrating culture and saving schools. Now that's a winning streak I'd like to be part of.

I AGREE WITH THE CANADIANS AND WITH MILTON FRIEDMAN

It appears that a number of Canadian economics professors agree with Stephane Dion, who proposed an unpopular carbon tax during his run for prime minister: "An Open Letter to the Leaders of Canada’s Federal Political Parties." [Linked to from Greg Mankiw's blog.] These sensible arguments are almost identical to ones put forth by none other than Milton Friedman in his seminal book, "Free to Choose." It's a shame that neither US presidential candidate is willing to go this route, pandering to our addiction to cheap oil rather than proclaiming we need to radically change our ways or die.

THE CURSE OF AARON HUANG




When I heard there might be as many as 2 million (!) people at the Phillies' championship parade, and that even the Market Frankford Line would be hitting its upper bound of passenger capacity and then some, I decided that this was going to have to be a "Dada and Jada" excursion. No way this was going to work with a stroller; and Amy confirmed things when she said she was still wiped out from her illness, and that Aaron probably was going to want to stay home with her.

So I grabbed Jada from school and we popped underground at the subway stop right at her day care. If the cars were packed like sardines, there was literally one sardines' worth of space left in one of the cars. A crowd of people milling outside the subway didn't feel like squeezing into it, so I took it.

The three-minute ride was painful, since I had to hold Jada with one arm and a pole with another, trying not to thrash the people all around me too hard with every jolt of the train. At the next stop, the people between me and the door got pushed into me, as a new rush of passengers tried to board. One yelled back, "Hey, careful - there's little kids in here!" I appreciated that people were looking at for us.

We emerged at 13th Street, as police ordered no stopping at 15th due to way too much volume. Good for us, because the parade hadn't officially started, and I had a hankering for lunch at Reading Terminal Market. It was surprisingly not crowded there, anymore than the usual lunch rush, so thankfully we were able to find a table to scarf down a $4.75 plate of dumplings, egg rolls, and fried rice.

Then we headed back into the fray, and quickly hit a wall of people. We tried pinching closer to Broad Street via Chestnut, but we didn't get anywhere near the parade line. So we doubled back to Market near Juniper, where we had a pretty good sight line to where the parade was bending from eastbound on Market to southbound on Broad.

It was quite a scene. With every car, there were waves of roars, confetti everywhere, and red as far as the eye could see: red shirts, red caps, red face painting. I tried to squeeze in some footage, even as Jada was dangling on my neck. The Phanatic was the only member of the Phillies that I could pick out; it helps when you're larger than life and bright green. I'm pretty sure we saw players; we just couldn't make out which ones they were.

After the floats passed us, the problem presented us was that we were on the wrong side of the line, and would have to cross the line to get back to West Philadelphia. We made a circuitous route around the north side of City Hall, and I grabbed some more footage there, as the post-parade scene included all sorts of revelry and costumes. It was like it was Halloween; oh wait, it was.

West of City Hall, on Market Street, were tell-tale signs of a ticker tape parade: colored confetti and trash and people everywhere. We finally decided to walk all the way to 19th and try the trolleys there. There was no room on the first three but we scored a space on the fourth, made the transfer at 30th Street, and were safely back to West Philadelphia within minutes.

I bumped into a few familiar faces while we were down there – don't worry, guys, I'm not going to rat you out to your bosses, teachers, or parents – but otherwise it was Jada and me in a sea of strangers. And yet, we all shared in the love for one gloriously red afternoon.

Of course, the littlest resident of my house did not get baptized into this dizzying celebration. I'm trying not to think the thought, "Well, it's OK, there'll be another opportunity soon." The Curse of Aaron Huang? Nah.

Huang Family Newsletter, October 2008

Kids – A bonanza of kid-friendly outings, from two birthday parties to
two Halloween-themed trips to the aquarium; we celebrated Jada's
Gotcha Day, too. Of course, the most memorable outing was to South
Broad, where Dada and Jada were among hundreds of thousands cheering
on the 2008 World Series champion Phillies. Aaron stayed home for
that but then joined in on the Halloween parade and party that
followed. All throughout the month, both kids battled illness: Aaron
had strep throat and two ear infections (so tube surgery here we
come), and even indestructible Jada spend much of the month coughing
and sniffling.

Adults – Lee slogged through his work and other projects, coughing all
the way and even having to take a sick day in the middle of all that
when the 24-hour flu bug hit him. Amy diligently hit the books for
her boards whenever she had a spare moment, which, with all the
medical ailments this month, she didn't have many of.

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