Abundance

Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson describes themselves as liberals, but in examining the future realize that liberals have gotten mired in regulations trying to make everything fair and environmentally friendly.  They don't spare conservatives very much either. 

The future has its share of problems caused in part by how we have muddled this far.  The title "Abundance" is meant to contrast with Scarcity.  Problems might be solved by restricting or expanding.  This post deals with a few issues, but there are many others discussed and more in depth how to approach them.

Home ownership as an investment depends on scarcity.  Zoning laws have been designed to exclude.   Home owners are careful about who and what they allow in their neighborhood.   These factors have contributed to an increase in homelessness in developed countries.    see http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2024/02/excluded.html

Although manufacturing productivity has dramatically increased construction has not.  Many construction projects not only end up costing more, but many of them are not completed.  The reason is for the increase is regulations and procedures.  Important adjustments will have to be made, but many of them will be very difficult if we aren't able to cut through a lot of red tape.  "There will be billions of equipment and appliances that will have to be replaced with renewables."

Science research is mired in bureaucracy, yet it has been fundamental to the economy.  Immigrant scientists have been an important part of American progress.  The book was published after the 2024 election and since then Donald Trump has made a big point of cutting a wide range of programs including for science research and attacked universities including foreign students.  Scientists and science students are starting to look elsewhere.

Operation Warp Speed illustrates contrasting perspectives.  It was one of the most successful national projects that saved countless lives, but Republicans who could take much of the credit for implementing it do not want to credit government with managing anything that important and it also ran into a segment of their supporters who were against vaccines.  Democrats do not like to credit Trump with anything good. 

The over riding reason that it worked was that key decision makers realized the Covid Pandemic was a real emergency and were able to cut through a lot of procedures.  

Republicans have been criticizing government- as "the problem"  and not a desirable place to work.  This contrasts with a very progressive Singapore where there is heavy competition for government jobs

Some new pathways to solve our current issues are discussed and I hope that more people become aware of the choices to be made.  We will need more than a few intelligent decision makers.

Both authors have attracted my attention and brought up worthy ideas for blogging.

Another post on Ezra Klein:  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2023/05/why-were-polarized.html

Another post of Derek Thompson:   http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2018/02/hit-makers.html

Immigration Has Become a Politcal Football

Politicians have too often felt anti-immigration to have been an important lever to win elections.  Easy for us to blame vote seekers, but much blame should be laid at voters. 

Yet we in Canada and the United States are nations of immigrants.  Even the indigenous are immigrants from Asia.  The development of needles was essential for Asian migrants to sew together furs to survive the bitter bold of the Arctic.  Immigrants are always looking for something better and most of them deliver benefits for most of us.

Migration is a very complicated.  We have a good idea how many people legally cross a border and a crude idea how many sneak across.  Stats aren't kept for how many people return to their home base or pass onto another destination.  There has always been internal migration, usually from rural areas to the bigger cities or between cities.  Life can be pretty rough for many and a few are determined enough to migrate.

Migration started before the very beginning of history.  Our earliest ancestors soon found a need to move either to find a more reliable source for food or to escape danger. 

America is a classic example of migrations.  When the Europeans first encountered the indigenous they were at first co-operative and later different European leaders aligned with different indigenous tribes.  Over time they overwhelmed the indigenous partly by force of arms, but just as important by disease.   America had been a dumping ground for undesirable Brits (also done to Australia).  Others saw America as an opportunity to get rich or at least get a new start.

Migration is essential for western societies that all have declining birth rates and aging populations.  Immigrants tend to be hard working, innovative and entreprenurial.  Their crime rates are lower than established citizens.  They end up paying taxes at least when they purchase items, but get very few benefits.

As happens the establishment resents intruders, especially if they are "different".  Slavery wasn't invented by Americans, but some ambitious people saw it as a vehicle for riches.  It was morally justified by the notion black Africans were inferior beings.  A driver of migration is the desire for cheap labor by wealthy individuals.  Chinese workers were brought to North America to help build national railways, but forbidden to bring women.  Although Mexicans bravely sneak across the southern American border there is a demand for their willingness to do menial jobs cheaply.  Britain brought large numbers of people from India and the West Indies to provide medical services.    

Another motive for empire nations is to control outlying areas.  Watched a film "Everything will be Alright" (2023) about a third generation family living in Latvia.  This was from a Russian attempt to control other nations within the Russian empire.  This has also been the case in Ukraine and the Russians have found sympathetic reception from some parts of Ukraine.

Donald Trump who had hired illegal migrants identified immigration as a big issue and has succeeded in stirring up hatred which helped win two elections.  Fertility rates and migration had indicated that whites would be in a minority position within a few decades.  He has gone so far as shipping some "illegal" immigrants without due process, but recently allowed a group of white South Africans refugee status.

Unlike the recent Trump regime some Canadian politicians see immigration as a tool for development.   I recall reading about Clifford Sifton encouraging Ukrainians  (and others) to settle western Canada before Americans moved in.  From my youth I remember my country welcoming Hungarians and later Vietnamese and Syrians and more recently Ukrainians.  Personally I benefited from them all.  But too much rapid immigration has caused problems for providing housing and education. 

The future is unpredictable with climate change and tumultuous global politics.  Many people will try to move to safer places.  We all need to understand migrants also have things to offer us.  It is unfortunately a global need, but there is competition between countries and different strategies and ignorance.  

"The Shortest History of Migration" (2024) carries lots of details.  It is not a particularly "short" account, but explains an important part of world history.  The author's family had traveled from Lithuania to England to South Africa and back to England.  He has a very good understanding of migration which will be an ever increasing world phenomenon.

"You're Not Listening"; Me Either

"You're Not Listening" was brought up at a birthday party where one husband carried the book seemingly acknowledging that he needed to be reminded to pay more attention to his wife.  Actually he always seemed more attentive than most.  Sneakily copied the title and author and a few days later picked up from the library.

Listening is a neglected skill.  Your life will improve when you improve your listening. 

 One is never too old to learn new things.  Bad habits hinder one's enjoyment of life.  I have plenty of them and suspect that most of you do as well.  It is not all your fault as you have learned them from your family and friends, plus society makes it difficult to always pay attention.

Stephen R Covey's 5th rule is "Seek first to understand then to be understood".   Why?  Because understanding enriches our lives.  It is natural to judge people on superficial awareness, but better to listen to what they are willing to tell you.  If you are really listening to them they will be more inclined to listen to you.

Are you guilty of interrupting, responding vaguely or illogically, looking at your phone or away from the speaker or fidgeting?  Most of us have done these and other poor habits.   What holds back really listening?  Our mind provides distractions.  Planning your response, thinking of another problem or something you would rather do are some of the things we do instead of listening.  

Talking with someone close to you creates a communication bias.  Familiarity too easily causes complacency.

Were you clearly able to hear what was being said?  Society subjects us to loud noises that damage our ears and interfere with conversations.  It is natural to guess or assume what was said, but you are not always correct.  Don't be shy, ask for a repetition which could be like asking for a clarification.   

There is more to listening than hearing.  Facial expressions and body language can reinforce what you are hearing or contradict the words.  When you are talking keep your eyes on your audience to see how they are reacting.

We fool ourselves into thinking we can do different tasks at an acceptable level of competence at the same time.  A favorite example of why this is wrong is a very common practice that I indulge in myself; listening to music while eating.  It certainly is more pleasant than gobbling food between tasks. If you are really honest you will admit that you are not quite catching all the music which might be better enjoyed laying down in the dark with earphones.  On the other hand the music can distract you so that you eat more than you might otherwise or you don't chew as thoroughly as you might otherwise or you might not savor the flavors quite as much.  That doesn't mean you shouldn't do it, but don't kid yourself, you are not getting the most out of the two activities.  Listening and daydreaming don't mix well.  See  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2022/05/stolen-focus-you-need-to-focus-before.html

Distractions are everywhere.  At a party, at home and at work.  When you really want to understand someone it is ideal to get away from the crowd.  At an open office you may need to get out or find an empty office.  

An effective response could be to support what was just said.  For example after the other person makes a statement you could support them by asking how they feel about it or how they reached that stage.

Sometimes an effective response is silence.  You are trying to digest what has been said, but another benefit is the other person feels compelled to say something.  This has worked for salesmen.

Learning what you are up against will help to mitigate negative results.  Ideally know about your audience and before expressing strong opinions try to assess their opinions.

Instead of "Acknowledgements" the author used "Gratitude" and refers to people who have helped her understanding of listening.  She obviously listened well to thousands of people and admits she has made a few mistakes herself.

"You're not listening" contains many ideas with some research to back them up.  The ideas I have squeezed out for my post are really just a few examples.  To understand her philosophy and get the most of the book you need to read it.  You will find it worth while.  I have found it with much needed advice which I may struggle to execute.

Every Body

"Every Body" (2023) opens up a mostly hidden part of humanity.  Sex is perhaps the most critical part of our identity.  A big part is physical, but along with that our cultural identity.  In our open society we realize the cultural part doesn't always line up.  We (some of us) have come to realize homosexuality is a preference of a significant part of society.  More recently we have learned that a smaller number of people have decided they are so unhappy with their identified sex that with modern technologies could change their physical genitalia to the "other" sex and are called transsexual.  Along the way were some people who were not satisfied with their sex, but were somewhat satisfied dressed as the "other" sex are known as transvestites.  There is an overlap between trans sexual people and intersex people but really they are separate.

About 1 1/2% of population is some variation of inter sex meaning some combination of male and female organs and hormones.  Secrecy surrounds as parents are ashamed making it difficult to know how many are involved.  Secrecy to the extent that even a twin sibling is not informed and in fact too often not the child.  Parents and medical authorities were looking for a quick fix with little regard to the psychological aspects.  An early example of inter sex phobia was that  parents were told not to have more children

A dramatic example was of a boy, David Reimer, born as a twin in Winnipeg, Canada.  A circumcision was recommended that went wrong and a penis was severely damaged.  The decision made was to reconstruct his genitalia to be a female and to be socialized as a girl.  He was given no choice, but at a later age rebelled and sought through surgery to be a male.  He did marry, adopted children and even was filmed in interviews shown in this film.  He later killed himself.

The three advocates, River Gallo, Sean Saifa Wall and Alicia Roth Weigel told their stories of being diagnosed with early fixes made without their consent.  As adults they have adjusted and become advocates for understanding, acceptance and legal changes.  Alicia was shown in Austin, Texas speaking up some legal aspects (bathroom accessibility) and leading protest march to end intersex surgery.

Donald Trump is doing a disservice to Americans by being self righteous about Transgenders.  Greg Abbott and other politicians feel they can invoke disgust for sexual variances for their political benefit.  Fear of the unknown is often used as a weapon.  Joe Biden was shown signing legislation to acknowledge and protect intersex people.  

I was born in 1948 and have gone through periods of queasiness regarding sexual identity.  Until a teenager not conscious there was anything different than two sexes and nervously wondered how they should interact.  Homosexuality was known as weird and possibly frightful.  See http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2015/05/sex-in-classroom.html to know my education to that point.  Since then my awareness of transsexuals became noticeable mainly through political attacks.  Now with this film I realize sexual identity is more complicated and hopefully I can boost my understanding and acceptance.

Some talented people helped to boost attention for intersex people.  Below are some of them.  Most of those listed participated in a dancing skit with pronouns for the end credits.

Julie Cohen was the director.  She has 12 credits as a director 11 as a producer and 3 as writer including the Oscar nominated "RBG" (2018).

Molly O'Brien was a producer.  She has 23 producer credits plus 6 for director and 2 for the camera and electrical department including the Oscar winner, "The Only Girl in the Orchestra" (2023).

Noah Oppenheim was an executive producer.  He is the president of NBC News.  He has 17 credits as a producer and 4 as a writer including "Jackie" 2016) and "Zero Day" (2025).

Amanda Yamate composed the music.  She has 22 composing credits, 6 for the music department and 1 for Soundtrack.

Leah Anova was a cinematographer.  She has 42 cinematography credits, 25 for the camera and electrical department and 1 as producer.

Kelly Kendrick was the editor .  He has 16 editor credits, 10 for the editorial department and 3 for composing.

River Gallo was one of the intersex advocates.  She has been involved in California to ban some intersex surgeries.  She has 16 acting credits, 5 for writing and 4 for directing.  

Alicia Roth Weigel, another of the intersex advocates has been with the Human Rights Commission in Austin, Texas.

Sean Saifa Wall, another of the intersex advocates was also a black compounding his identify.  He has traveled to Europe to advocate on part of intersex and was pleased to discover his face was part of a museum art wall.  

If you read my blogs you are always looking to expand your universe and for some this is another opportunity.  Available on Netflix.

Living Danish

The Danes seem to have a good life style.  They have consistently been among the top for the United Nations World Survey of Happiness Report.  This book concentrates on the workplace, but much can be useful elsewhere.

For my fellow retirees Miek finishes with "you may be retiring from something--but it is important to have something to retire to".

While you are working it amounts to about 1/3 of your life and effects everything else.  The number one factor to be happy is to have a purpose.  Feeling one is making the world a better place is important.  Also finding a purpose could involve feeling you have a meaningful role in the company.

If work doesn't give you a purpose, but you feel you can't quit, many people seek a purpose by volunteering.  Mihaly Csiksentmihalyi is known for the concept of flow. The ideal is to find activities when one is engaged in an activity where they are so engaged they lose concept of time.  If work doesn't seem to lead to flow, again volunteer work may offer more.

A controlling boss has a dilemma.  She (or he) may force a lazy worker to put in more effort, but others employees may resent the control and put in less effort.  Developing trust encourages employees to work harder.  Good bosses credit their team and recognize good efforts.  To build trust it is necessary to be honest, to think long term and to be empathetic.   

One of the stresses of work is commuting.  Seek employment near where you live (or move).  In Denmark cycling or walking to work is fairly common.  Meik points out "Cars run on money and make you fat--bikes run on fat and save you money".  

Money is sometimes required to put yourself in a happier work environment.  Meik suggests you should set up a fund for future opportunities.  It has been thought to be happy requires a lot of money, but wealth comes from having a lot of time to live and enjoy your time on this earth. 

The government can be very helpful in giving its citizens opportunities for happiness.  One area is to make it easier to bring new life into existence.  Some jurisdictions have a maternity leave and more recently that concept has expanded to paternity leave and even letting couples divide the time to their optimal benefit.  Meik suggests this allows couples to maximize their parental leave by adopting gender equality in household chores.

I have long listed Denmark as an example of proportional representation and their high ranking with the Happiness survey as a benefit.  Now I wonder are they happy because they picked an electoral conducive to happiness or is their happiness making them open to a better electoral system.  Years before my wife and I had enjoyed watching "Borgen" which illustrated the Danish electoral system and its logic.  See...  http://www.therealjohndavidson.com/2022/07/borgen.html

This a book well worth reading.  This post is only a taste of the good advice available in its pages.  Should be available at your local library or your favorite book seller. 

To keep up with the Happiness Research Institute see https://www.happinessresearchinstitute.com/

Canadian Election 2025

 The 2025 Canadian election is over resulting in a Liberal minority Parliament under the leadership of Mark Carney.  The focus of many voters was how to best defend ourselves against Donald Trump, the American president.  So much so, that strategic voting reared its ugly head.  

Of course there are many issues that ordinarily decide which direction Canadians want to steer the nation.  The economy, particularly at the household consumer level is critical.  Other issues include the environment, immigration, Quebec sovereignty, energy and foreign affairs.  But this time the American president insulted Canada saying we should become the 51st state and that we (and virtually all other nations) had ripped off America.  On the eve of the election he made further comments inappropriate at the time perhaps amounting to election interference.  His statements and attitudes became a decisive factor for many voters.

For me I had respect for three prime minister candidates.  I had met Jagmeet Singh at a Fair Vote Canada booth here in Hamilton during Labour Day.  Although not given enough credit for getting a dental plan running I appreciated it with a recent root canal.  Elizabeth May represents my highest priority, fighting climate change.  Mark Carney with his international banking experience strikes me as truly our best prospect to deal with Trump.  The Bloc Quebecois candidate, Yves-Francois Blanchet did impress with his manner at the debate, but his focus is on protecting Quebec's francophone interest which I can respect, but not my priority.  Pierre Polievre was not respected with a least two marks against him:  "Axe the tax" was offensive as was his support for the Freedom Convoy. 

I also respected our incumbent Matthew Green and assumed he would win my riding.  I had met him as a poll clerk in a previous election.  My assumption turned out to be wrong.

Strategic voting was more prominent than ever.   Enough voters agreed with my assessment about Mark Carney and the importance of the Trump confrontation.  The Bloc, the NDP and Green all lost seats to the Liberals.  At the same time the issue encouraged the biggest turnout of voters since 2015.  Two leaders lost their seats with probably the Trump dilemma being a primary factor.

Those who follow me on Facebook or my blogs know I detest Donald Trump and love proportional representation.  My highest voting priority is actually climate change which apparently was not a critical factor for the outcome.  The Conservatives were most against any action and most boosting the oil industry.

To me it is obvious climate change requires immediate attention and in fact the parties with at least some concern received the majority votes.  Despite that, it was not a factor.  The Liberals were concerned their carbon tax was a negative factor and dropped it for consumers.  The Conservatives funded by fossil fuel interests felt climate change was not worth discussing.  The Green party was cut out of the national debates due to the rules.  It is past time when those who want environmental policies get more power.   

Minority government will force some co-operation among the parties.  I think the threat of Trump will bring the NDP, Green and even the Bloc and Conservatives together on some votes.  But proportional representation could have been as effective while respecting the true priorities of Canadians.

During the election the one issue brought us closest to the U. S. system of two parties competing for power that comes with insults and bickering that has gotten worse.  The U.S. has as many issues as any country, but voters have less real choice. 

Trump is a bully claiming the world has taken unfair advantage of Americans and he is going to reverse the injustice.  In reality the U.S. has done more than its share of exploiting other nations.  American jobs were taken away by wealthy manufacturers to shift expenses to cheap labor countries and automation.  On the other hand poor immigrants have been exploited despite contributing a lot to the American economy and culture.

The use of Fentanyl is a poor excuse to hold against Canada and Mexico.  Americans have developed a desire for all sorts of illegal drugs to be smuggled in.  Mexico and Canada both are concerned about the smuggling of American guns to our countries that have been scooped up by criminal elements.

Another concern that is increasingly of concern is Western alienation, principally Alberta.  The tar sands are a major economic driver that politicians ignore at their peril.  Proportional representation offers everyone a more realistic choice who and how they want to be governed.  There are westerners concerned about the environment and other national issues. 

Matching popular voting with actual seats won, it worked reasonably for the Liberal (with 49.27% of the seats on 43.7% of votes),  Conservatives (with 41.9% of seats and 41.3% of votes) the Bloc Quebecois (with 6.4%@ of seats and 6.3% of votes).  Not so great for the NDP (2.04% of the seats and 6.3% of votes) or the Green (with .0029% of the seats and 1.3% of votes).  Both the NDP and Green parties lack official status.  

For me, a new observation regards the two unsuccessful leaders, Jagmeet Singh and Pierre Polievre.  Under a proportional representation system they could easily have been given a seat to better represent their views.

The Trump confrontation certainly helped bring out more voters, but there are other pressing issues.  A lot of voters concluded their vote would be wasted, but in what is perceived as with an existential crisis they will adjust with strategic voting.  Canadians deserve real choices.  Ultimately proportional representation offers a much better choice than First Past the Post.  Other nations, somehow overcome the opposition of politicians who don't want to tinker with the system that got them into power.

Yes, I am preaching a bit.  Proportional representation not only offers real choices, but politicians have to learn to co-operate.  You may think it a coincidence but when the United Nations brings out its World Happiness Report it is nations with proportional representation that  hog the top spots. 

Don't be shy.  If you agree, or don't or have questions feel free to let me know.