5.4

It felt strong. I mean it seemed to last a long time. Not only did you feel the swaying but you could hear the rumbling. For a few seconds, those of us who have lived through the Whittier and Northridge California quakes, one had to wonder if indeed this was THE BIG ONE. But thankfully, things began to subside and us earthquake vets knew that most likely we had dodged the bullet for now.

An earthquake is nothing to sneeze at. Especially in such a large area as Southern California. If the quake had continued to gain momentum and reached 6.0 or higher who knows what untold damage might have taken place. The fact that this was the first pretty big shaker since the 1994 6.7 Northridge quake made it a newsworthy event. Local TV and radio should be applauded for breaking into their regular programming to survey the situation and calm the public.

But this foretaste of a future darker reality also showcased the lengths that network/cable news, marketing executives, and an attention deficient populace could go to make a buck or two on a serious situation. With the Los Angeles media market inundated with reporters and ready to go pictures, the story was a cheap way to keep viewers glued to their TV screens for a large part of the day.

The question goes that if a tree falls in the forest but no one is there to record the event, did it actually take place. With a built in infrastructure, there was never any doubt that millions of eyeballs would witness what in the long line of things will be a non event. Literally no one was injured, a few walls collapsed, and a Macy's store had flooding problems. But based on the amount of coverage, one would have thought that LA was indeed sinking into the ocean. Why bring this up? Because recent intense natural disasters in places like China and Taiwan were afforded short shrift by the same news outlets. Not that the news organizations did not want you to know about the "real" suffering in Asia but cost analysis made it prohibitive for news shows to send out teams of reporters and camera people to such far off places. Top news executives know that the cost of such news gathering versus the negligible boost in TV ratings would make such an effort not worthwhile. Thus it is much cheaper and profitable to play up closer to home hurricanes, tornadoes, and smallish earthquakes.

Marketing types were also salivating over the quake. Not much time had passed before tape of Judge Judy and CBS' Big Brother house were passed on to the TV viewers. Folks could be seen steaming out of the judge's "court" and participants in CBS' show were being interviewed about their first earthquake experience. One can not recall seeing much footage of TV and/or movie sets being swept around in the much harsher Northridge quake. But obviously some marketers must have been more awake to this new opportunity to shamelessly get publicity for their shows.

Finally, the public found the quake an easy way to get on television. Cell phones and camcorders were quickly hustled out and common folk took videos of themselves and their surroundings to upload on to YouTube and to pass on to news programs. An at home TV newscaster calmly held his daughter and filmed all around while the quake was taking placed. Teens filmed their overhyped reactions with the hope that maybe their video would become an internet success.

Once again, if the July 29, 2008 earthquake had become a real catastrophe, then we should applaud the fact that so many could stand witness to the potential horror. But the quake was not a problem and untold valuable time was given to what really was a one to two hour story in a cheap way to fill up the ratings. But in a society weaned upon mindless police-runaway vehicle pursuits and not one exposed to true worldwide in-depth reporting what else would anyone expect.

ALL STARS & LAYOFFS

Please click to read this recent excellent submission to the New York Times. I do not know if any of us could have expressed these ideas in a better form.

ISOLATING OBAMA

They did it to Dukakis. They did it to Kerry. They kind of did it to Gore. And now the GOP attack machine is attempting to do the same to Barack Obama. And what is is that they are trying to do? Isolate Obama. Make him seem aloof. Too intellectual. Suave. Sophisticated. French? Well maybe not that far but at least European.

According to MSNBC's Chris Matthews, the election usually boils down to which candidate would you like to go out and have a beer with. What that really means, is which candidate is pretty much blue collar, real American, and not so smart that the average Joe could not relate to him.

What a ridiculous way to screen the candidates for the most important position in the world. We are not voting for American Idol here. We are not looking for a Brett Farve or a John Wayne. We have real problems and need someone serious and quick witted enough to lead us out of our doldrums.

Obama and his wife Michelle do not come from any country club type existence. If you have noticed, they are both African-American. Obama was brought up by a struggling single mom while Michelle's dad was a hard working father who led his family in a no nonsense way towards a lifetime of achievement.

Yet, the GOP attack machine is desperately trying to make the two of them seem like they come from New York's upper east side as children of privilege. The Republicans painted Dukakis as some Greek immigrant running the communist state of Massachusetts. Kerry, a decorated war veteran, had his story so twisted around that one would have thought he was running gunboats for the Viet Cong. Gore's natural interest in the internet and the environment made him some kind of out of control sci-fi freak.

One can only hope that Obama will stand his ground and not give in to all this insanity. Our current president is the one who had all the right cards given to him when he was born. Mr. McCain was an Admiral's son who squandered much of his time at the Naval Academy. Yes, he was heroic asa war prisoner, but when he returned to the states he met another well financed person, his future wife, Cindy, who helped bankroll his electoral aspirations.

We all need to keep our eye on the prize. Things are so bad right now that this election is indeed vitally important. We should rejoice that so many Germans see inspiration in Obama instead of twisting this fact around and making him seem "unAmerican." If Obama could go from the relatively unknown Occidental College and then on to Columbia and then become the head of the Harvard Law Review, this should be something that we all can rejoice about instead of burning with jealousy and putting down these achievements.

I always thought that the American story called for a man or woman to put on their own boots, get over tough obstacles, and become a person who helps with answers instead of being one who feels defeated and is part of the problem. Look, McCain and Obama have varied but incredible resumes and have had successful lives. Whether one is more of a beer man or a wine connoisseur should have no bearing on our votes. I hope we can all drink to that.

The Sky Is Falling?

Out west, word is brewing that clothing retailer Mervyns might be heading for the exits. Popular in California and other western states, Mervyns is an alternative to Kohls, which recently launched a campaign to gain a foothold in the same areas serviced by Mervyns.

Of course all of this comes on the heels of recent reductions and bankruptcy considerations by chains such as Ann Taylor, Steve and Barry's, Shoe Pavillion, Starbucks, Linens 'n Things, and other popular commercial names. As reported on in this blog, things in the U.S. have been standing at neutral or perhaps a bit in reverse in recent months. Credit is tight and stores, banks, and other enterprises are having difficulty in paying their bills.

For those pushing for a Democratic victory in the fall, bad news at this time is probably good news in the long run. If it is the "economy stupid", than Obama and his friends will romp to victory. However, if this is as bad as it gets and perhaps things straighten out just a bit in September and October, the economy might not be the number one issue. This would be a blessing for Senator McCain and the GOP.

However one looks at the current state of things, we should caution that store closings and the loss of familiar brands are nothing new. When is the last time any of us shopped at a Woolworths? How about Montgomery Ward? Has anyone purchased a new car from American Motors? And where is Pan Am?

So yes, it is belt tightening time. Americans have taken heed of the situation and that is one of the reasons that Starbucks has decided to shutter some 600 of its stores that claim customer purchases at a quick $4 a pop. One does not want the unemployment lines to grow any larger and one does not want to see too many shuttered retail spaces at the local mall. This is an anxious moment in our nation's economic history. A slowdown in the rise of oil prices and an end to a crippling mortgage crisis could keep things running a bit smoother and we will look back at this time as a weak recession that caught some of our favorite retailers unprepared. But if oil and housing do not cooperate soon, this trickle of bankruptcy announcements will become a steady downpour leading to a flood of gloom that we might not know how to navigate so well in.

RETRENCHING

So here we are in the middle of year 2008. We should be celebrating our nation's position as the number one power militarily and economically. More people today own a home than ever before. A presidential election will take place and there will be a peaceful transition from the current office holder to the new one. New York just put on an All-Star show for the ages without any hitches; displaying what can happen when people in charge bring a "can do" spirit to the task ahead.

And it is that can do spirit that all of a sudden seems to be lacking in our proud and successful country. Yes we are still the place that millions around the globe look to as the shining example of what life could and should look like. But our position is getting more tenuous each day as problems multiply and we seem not to have the answers.

To a people who conquered the frontier, overcame a depression, took victory in a titanic world war, and put a man on the moon, you would think that today's crises could be overcome. But as we inch closer to this century's second decade, a creeping feeling of despair has sunk in.

We seem to be at the mercy of the oil sellers who hold us hostage as we sip their black gold in our large vehicles. We can't seem to find a way to help our fellow citizens from losing those homes to foreclosure. A potential bank run, based on a federal loosening of loan procedures and a fear of monetary collapse, has caused bankruptcy and collapse. A man named, bin Laden, hides in some far off mountain compound, laughing at what he wrought some seven years ago.

In this summer season, before we all go back to full time work and school, we ought to take some of our vacation and reflect on the past and use its lessons to guide us in the future. Perhaps we can find a way to reduce our troop and financial commitment to Iraq so that we can employ those resources to problems here at home. Perhaps we can get a "to the Moon" type scientific project to find real long term solutions to our energy situation. Perhaps we can finally find a way to make our schools work so that more young Americans can move up the economic ladder and create more stable communities.

We are Americans. There has never been a problem that we could not solve. Why should we stop now?

Summer Sabbatical

May all our loyal readers enjoy the Fourth of July Holiday. We
will resume Inland Echoes in mid-July.