Another Email to Uncle Roger

Hi Roger, I hope all are well and that you had a wonderful Christmas.

As for your last email – Some point to ponder.

-          Gun Control. I think it is a problem that can’t be fixed. For one, it would take an amendment to the constitution and you could never get 2/3’s of the states to agree. The current laws don’t stop a person from owning a gun, they just make it burocratically difficult. Instead there will be minor changes, but nothing serious and none of them will make a difference. Let’s not forget that the latest horror happened in a state with some of the tightest gun controls. The guns were stolen from the legal owner (mother). None of the rules they are thinking about enacting would have stopped it from happening. Let’s also not forget that the two biggest mass murders were done with Box knifes (9/11) and Fertilizer (Oklahoma City). I am not saying that there should or should not be total gun control. I am saying that it won’t happen, and if it did, it wouldn’t stop bad things from happening. Correct me if I am wrong, but doesn’t Norway have strict gun controls but they still had that awful killing a couple of years ago. In fact I think the UK will have greater problems in the future with guns as a result of the bleed over from the EU. If a person can own a gun in Poland, can they easily take it to England?  That’s the real issue here, a city, or state can severely restrict guns, but a person can drive an hour and get what they need. It is illegal to take it home, but if you’re planning on mass murder, that fact is not going to stop you. It ends up only penalizing the law abiding people who wanted it for home protection.

-          EU Membership. I find the subject fascinating and have been following it closely. A lot more closely than most Americans. I followed the Irish vote. It seemed they kept having votes until they got the answer they wanted. I was surprised when the UK conservatives didn’t hold a referendum on the matter. I thought they had promised to do so? I bet you guys are glad you still have the Pound and are not part of the Euro. Especially with what is coming for Greece/Portugal/Italy/Spain and others. My opinion. And again, I am on the outside looking in, but I have never fully understood why Great Britain was willing to sacrifice Sovereignty for the right to be part of Europe. It seems to me that England has been fighting for a thousand years to avoid becoming some European despot’s treasure. Instead they got you guys to surrender without a fight. (I know I am over simplifying.) Some nameless Brussels burocrat was able to accomplish what Napolian, Hitler, Louis XIII and the Kaiser were unable too. In my opinion, Great Britain has had more positive impact on the world than any other nation in history, even more than Rome. The U.S. Can never overtake it because the U.S. is just a continuation of the British way of looking at things. Freedom, Property rights, fair play, etc. I fear that you are sacrificing your Britishness to become European, and from my point of view that is a step down. Again I’m not there and don’t know all the ins and outs.

-          The Euro – Will it last? And if it doesn’t can the EU survive? It appears that a lot of European countries have a model of borrowing money to pay for services. We have a saying. Things that can’t last, won’t. At some time the bill comes do. Who’s going to pay for it? There are only three ways to eliminate debut, (Inflation, Growth, Default,). Does Europe cut Greece, Portugal, Spain, loose? Are German Taxpayers going to pay for Greece and if so, what are they going to demand in return. It seems that the only long term solution is break up or more central planning, and central budgeting. But if that is the case then people will no longer be Greek but will be European. I realize this is what a lot of people want, but I don’t think they know what they’re getting. It is going to be Interesting to watch over the next decade. All I know is that they can’t keep doing things half way. Either become one country, Europe. Or don’t. Half measures never work in the long run.

What do you think will happen?

I sent the following to my Uncle Roger in answer to his questions. He is English but very interested in our politics.

Very good observations, but mine don't exactly match up.

1.       You mention that we are divided between extremes. I don't necessarily agree. Don't listen to just the rhetoric. Our system is set up that way, the checks and balances and divided government stops the tyranny of the majority. If you look at the numbers and facts the two sides are not that far apart. Obama has continued almost all of George Bush’s foreign policies. We still have GITMO, still conducting Drone attacks. The only difference is tone and nuance. As for domestic policies, we still collect the same intelligence, same immigration policy, etc. On the fiscal side we are arguing about the top tax rate being 39.5% vice 36%. We’re arguing over taxes being 24% of GDP vice 22%. Those are not extremes. Not really.

2.       As for Obama getting re-elected. Everyone forgets the power of Incumbency. A little remembered fact. Only once in our entire history has a party and new president lost the popular vote after only four years. (Jimmy Carter, which tells you a lot about Regan). The other times, Polk didn’t run, and Cleveland won the popular vote but lost the electoral college (6 new states). Presidents and or parties are almost always given the full eight years. It takes that long for them to piss everyone off enough that they get thrown out. This was why I was so hesitant about Romney winning, despite the atrocious economic situation.

3.       As for the parties always fielding an Ethic candidate. Every election is different. It always comes down to the candidates themselves and the times they are in. Who can energize his/her own base while removing a few from the other parties base. Or at least convincing them not to vote.

4.       Romney was a middle of the road business man who governed a very liberal state. While there, he established a record that was way less than conservative. He didn’t energize his base. And Obama locked his base in. The democrats waged a very hard and very negative campaign and it worked. Romney got about the same as McCain from 4 years earlier, Obama got 6 million less, but hung on.

5.       A 400K swing distributed through six key states would have swung it for the republicans. In all honesty, if Romney had been African-American I don’t think it would have made a difference. He might have picked up some minority vote, but might have lost some white vote.

6.       (Very General Statement) The democrats are made up mostly, Unions, Young Unmarried Women, Minorities. The republicans are made up of Fiscal Conservatives, Strong Defense, Evangelical (social Conservative).

7.       The voting pattern of minorities is not only because of the candidate’s ethnicity, but his policies. Bill Clinton got huge amounts of African-American voters. It was because he connected with them. George Bush got more than normal Mexican-American voters because of his efforts and policies. Not a majority, but more than either McCain or Romney. What I’m trying to say is that Policies and communication are way more important that Ethnicity, even among minorities. I will grant that it helped, but I don’t believe it was deciding factor.

8.       Your final statement about Democracy needing to work better made me smile. Who says! I think it’s working the way it is supposed to. And I’m saying this from the point of view of someone who has lost the last two elections. Not all problems need to be solved. Also, What I think is a problem may not be considered as such by others. It has a habit of evening out in the long run. I really, really think that the process is as important if not more so than the result. We just had a major argument in this country. Yelling and screaming at each other for a year. We cleared the air, some people were disappointed, some overjoyed at the results. But the main thing was it was out in the open and everyone got a chance to participate. It wasn’t thrust upon us from outside. If we don’t like the results then we’ll have to buckle down and try harder next time. I believe that the main benefit of democracy is that it doesn’t let us go too far down the wrong path. We’ll either throw the bums out, or it was the right path after all.  I think that if we had one party rule for 20 or 30 years then we would really start having problems. Some people would feel left out, not part of the system and the only way to get what they wanted would be through revolution.  

9.       Because of the divided government (House being Republican) I am pretty sure that nothing to sever will happen. We will muddle through these next four years and do it all over again. My predictions are Hillary Clinton vs. Marc Rubio. (maybe Paul Ryan)

10.   On a side note, there is a feeling starting to spread among some conservative thinking to “let it all  burn”. To give them (liberals) everything they want and let them completely ruin the economy. To raise taxes to the rate at which we are spending money, so people will feel the true pain. Only this way will the public change their minds. Others are talking about going ‘John Galt” (Anne Rand) and checking out of the system. Not working as hard, not starting or expanding business, not risking capital. If the government is only going to take it and redistribute it then why try. If this becomes a movement then the economy is really screwed. I don’t think this will really happen that much, but it’s starting and will depend on how bad it gets. Scary but interesting idea??

Heaven is; having the Italian designing your cloths and the Germans building your cars.  It's having the French as your chef and the Swiss as your lawyer. It's having the British in charge of your police force and the Americans in charge of your army.


Hell is; the Swiss designing your cloths and the Americans building your cars. It's having the British preparing your food and the Italians for a lawyer. It's having the French in charge of your army and the Germans in charge of your police force.

Different types of "Time Travel" stories

Different types of “Time Travel” books
There are six basics types of time travel books. Obviously each is different, but that is story, that is plot. They fall into one of the following categories

- Old to Modern (Encino Man, Kate and Leopold)
- Modern to Old (Bill and Ted’s excellent adventure, Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s court)
- Modern to Future (Time Machine, Back to the Future)
- Future to Modern (Time travelers Wife, Millennium)
- Future to Old (Ancient Visitor’s delivering knowledge to set humans on the path of civilization)
- Old to Future (Think Caveman on a space ship)

There are many sub-categories. Each Sub Category can be used in any type.

- Juxtaposition – Unsophisticated man in a sophisticated setting or vice versa (fish out of water)
- Change – Changing an environment by outside actions.
- Observation – Seeing a world through new eyes
- Paradox – Self fulfilling prophesy

When you add Genre such as Mystery, Romance, Thriller, Young Adult, etc., You can see the endless possibilities.

Basically, each story is setting different values, different rule sets, into conflict with each other. It is this conflict that allows us to explore the meaning of our world. To compare and contrast and ultimately to judge.

Ideas for a Story


- THEIR’s NOW - Indestructible Aliens land and take over a small NW timber town along with the rest of the world. A bunch of kids escape to the woods and must learn to work together to survive. The Outcast must learn to lead the popular kids in taking care of the weaker while taking on the menace from the stars. (Red Dawn meets Predator)


- DEMON’s NIGHTMARE - Michael and Lucifer must battle once again for the earth’s very soul. Unfortunately, Michael is more interested in partying than in preparing for battle. To top it off, he has chosen bad boy Landon Marshall to help him. Landon refuses to follow orders and is determined to fight god every step of the way. Thankfully Ms. Ann Tudor is there to keep him on the straight and narrow and lead him in a quest for the weapons Michael will need.


- THE RELUCTANT DUKE - Set in Regency England. A wounded soldier returning from Waterloo is unexpectedly promoted to Duke, his derelict household is being taken care of by a mysterious twenty three year old house keeper with more secrets than Napoleon. He doesn’t want the title, she can’t live without the job and the hiding place it offers. How do these two people face the realities of their new environment? Can they flaunt society’s rules and establish their own.


- WARRIOR SCHOOL – In a dystopian future the Warrior School is Jason’s only way out of the fields and to a higher status. Everything is against his being accepted into the school, let alone graduating. He risks all to help two other young people escape the enclave and travel across the wilderness of the ancients.


- ANGEL’s PREY – What happens when a man meets an Angel that turns out to be a real Angel. She’s on the run from a false charge of heresy and god refuses to get involved in her case. She’s free game to the devil and his demons. Anything goes. What does it do to a man’s ego when his girl friend is faster, stronger, more deadly than he is?


- WORTH SAVING - Kris Robertson must learn how to be with other people. Five years after the plague he has come to the abandoned city to find others like him, human and alone. He is forced to create a family of the disposed who help him build a paradise on the roof tops. Of course, Others want what he has and are willing to kill to take it. (Swiss Family Robinson meets Lord of the Flies)


- WORTH FIGHTING FOR – Hector’s Story – Twelve years after Worth Saving, Hector travels in search of answers, Why did the plague happen, why did some survive and not others, what will they do if it comes back. Hector wanders the land alone in permanent search for answers but becomes dejected and a hard bitter man. His world is saved and given meaning when he is forced to rescue Meagan and her brother. Hector must decide whether to stop searching and learn to accept the answers in front of him.

Relaying information is not the same thing as relaying emotion. One of the first lessons I learned about communicating was from the movie “STRATEGIC COMMAND” with James Stewart. Jimmy is in an airplane crash in Greenland while his wife June Allison is having a babe. He is rescued and receives a telegram telling him that the baby has arrived and June wanted to know what to name it. Jimmy replies, “I can’t think of anything. But hope everything is fine.” June receives it as “I can’t think of anything but Hope. Everything is fine.” So of course she names the baby Hope, luckily it was a girl. Putting that period in a different spot changes the meaning and therefore the results. I have been trained for 30+ years to relay (communicate) information. To eliminate ambiguity and to be precise in what I say. I have been taught to remove emotion and judgmental words from my correspondence. As a result it is hard for me to not over describe. To assume the reader will get what I mean. Because of this, It gets boring. I am aware of it and working on it.

Finished writing "WORTH SAVING" 68K word young adult dystopian novel. Five years after a plague has swept away most of mankind. 18 year old Kris Robertson leaves his mountain top farm and travels to the deserted city to find others. He ends up establishing a safe haven for a few remaining survivors. They build a world on the roof tops away from the wild animals and the raiders wanting to enslave them. Or as my wife Shelley likes to say. Your typical two worlds colliding and all hell breaking lose. I have given it to a couple of people as beta readers and will edit it again when I get their comments back.