125. Change requires a commitment

The end of each year, though somewhat arbitrary in nature, often offers reflection of the previous twelve months. We consider our successes and challenges, and through this analysis, we postulate and compose New Year resolutions. For most of us, this is an annual routine in which we focus on both the things we want to accomplish and those bad habits we wish to break.

New Year resolutions are commonly made up of personal commitments to stop smoking, spend more time with family, and, my annual resolution, to lose weight. I am sure I am not unusual in that the same resolutions end up on the list year after year.

Losing weight is a battle for many of us, one that is often overwhelming and among the most difficult personal transition to make. I like watching the Biggest Loser, and was excited to see an Oprah show that talked to some of the previous contestants and whether they were successful at keeping the weight off.

It was nearly heartbreaking to hear that many of the former contestants had trouble keeping their weight off. Some, like the first year winner, had put almost all of it back on; while others, even those that were relatively successful at keeping the weight off, gained 30-40 pounds after the show.

One wonders, how does someone who is given a second chance, who leaves the show healthy, happy about themselves, and with an education about weight loss, put the weight back on? Obviously, in this specific example, there are some extenuating circumstances-life is put on hold while they are losing weight. They are away from the temptations of their "everyday" life, they are surrounded by people embodied in the same journey, they have 24 hours a day to focus on losing weight, and finally, there is that competitive spirit.

However, given their successes, and their second chance, the question is why do so many ultimately fail at keeping the weight off. The question is not just for them, in fact, it is unfair to single them out, because this affects many of us. Many of our New Year resolutions will ultimately fail, prompting the real question, why is it so difficult to make the changes in our lives that allow us to reach our goals?

Like the biggest losers, we are often successful for a brief time, maybe even a couple of years, but we often return to our problems. Research has shown that those most successful at keeping the weight off were those people who were organized and created plans that outlined their commitment to losing weight.

Losing weight involves not only a physical change, for example, exercising more, but also includes a mental change. We are often educated about what needs to be done to change a habit, we are "reasoned with," (which is often just an exercise in the obvious), but fail to address the mental state of mind that leads to the bad habit. For some, eating too much is a serious addiction, for others it is just frequent indulgences.

To make changes in our life requires a mental commitment, one that is equipped to handle "life" when it presents challenges to our resolution. I speak from experience when I say we are good at making justifications...where we make an excuse for our moments of indiscretion. We also look for short cuts, ways to have a great tasting cheesecake that only has 100 calories, rather than embrace the sacrifice required to really change our lives.

I remember when my father lost a lot of weight before he passed away; he was obsessed, as every conversation was about either what he ate or what he was going to eat. He was retired and, like those at the Biggest Loser camp, he had the entire day to focus his efforts. However, for many of us this is not possible, we require balance-we cannot afford to focus all of our energy to one specific endeavor or else our other responsibilities will suffer.

At the same time, we must change: Do what you have always done and you will get what you have always gotten. It must be a change that becomes part of our lives, but does not overwhelm it. In alcohol addiction, one is often referred to as being in "recovery" the rest of their lives after treatment for the addiction. In other words, it is life style change and commitment that must be dealt with every day.

Obviously, if I had the answer to this quandary, I would be making millions selling self-help books (and could remove this resolution from my list). However, what I will suggest is that losing weight, like trying to break other habits, requires attention to all areas of our lives. It requires that we change our lives-physically, mentally, socially, by educating ourselves, with familial support, and through the formulation of a "game plan." We need to use all of the resources available to help us reach our goals.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, once we accomplish our goals, we have to realize that the battle is not over-as maintaining our change is just as difficult as making it. Complacency will surely result in short-lived success, and a spot on next year's list of resolutions.

124. Black Friday brings out the worst in people

My wife and I have taken to the "Black Friday" idea. Three years running, we saved nearly all of our holiday shopping for the day after Thanksgiving. We have had mostly good experiences, as we enjoy getting up at 4:00 a.m. to the trails of advertisements we reviewed the day before. I actually appreciate the excitement and the energy of the day.

The customer service of the stores this year was appreciatively friendly and helpful. Perhaps a focus of the difficult economic times, stores seemed fully staffed with associates that were more than willing to be of assistance.

I also enjoy the interaction with people, who for the most part were also kind and courteous. Besides making room in aisles and holding doors, we had, on more than one occasion, people who had overheard our conversation point us in the right direction- whether it was where something was located in the store or if another store had a better deal.

We had our "Christmas" lists, store advertisements, and a list of when each store opened and the things they had that we might be interested in. This year, we went to Kohl's, Lowe's (twice), Sears, JC Penney (twice), Home Depot, Circuit City, Target, Office Max, Wal-Mart, Michaels and Best Buy. We really only purchased the "sale items," while also using the occasion to pick ourselves up those "good deals" for around the house.

Although our experience has been good overall, it does not mean that everything goes perfectly. There are indeed, "those people" who act like "Black Friday" is the only day they are permitted to leave their cages. As a "liberal," I make a lot of excuses for people, often focusing on circumstance rather than the responsibility of their actions. It is somewhat fair; I do factor in environmental and socio-economic factors in considering the opportunity for people to succeed.

However, I never concede laziness or rudeness. Even under the direst of circumstances would I have a difficult time justifying the behavior of those that act as though the rules, or even common human decency, do not apply to them. It seems that under the excitement and anxiety of "Black Friday" or, really, anything to do with money, this behavior can reach unacceptable levels.

We have indeed met the occasional shopper who runs ahead of the line to grab a shopping cart or pushes through to get a sale item. This year, my wife kindly noted to someone who had parked in reserved parking, that in fact, it was not reserved for them. Which, of course they knew, and responded that, "she (my wife) was jealous that she did not think of that and to mine her own business." That was the wrong thing to say to my wife, who then offered an ethics and etiquette lesson to the lazy and rude shoppers.

But, our typically good experience is not always the case, as most of us have heard the ridiculousness that has accompanied some "day after Thanksgiving" sales. Another absurd event happened this year, when a 34 year old Wal-Mart worker was trampled to death by nearly 2000 shoppers when he was trying to open the doors to the store. Several others were injured while trying to help the victim, including a woman who was eight months pregnant. Not to be deterred, reports indicated that the "savages" rushed past the individual and began shopping- seemingly without concern.

There is something wrong in society when people lose their minds over the prospect of saving a few dollars, or getting that perfect toy for their kids. We see the same behavior in times of crisis. While some people are willing to make the sacrifices to help others, there are others still that will abandon all civility for a cheap tank of gas.

Perspective is a powerful idea, one that undoubtedly changes over time- as we grow older and we incorporate the experiences of our lives. One of those perspectives is that my integrity and class shall never be compromised to save a few dollars. I am not proposing that I am above ever acting improperly, we all have our moments, but I can assure you I will never trample someone to get a discounted big screen television. It hardly seems to represent the spirit of the holiday season.

123. Bailout argues against capitalism

In Planned Parenthood of Southern Pennsylvania v. Casey (1992), the court wrote of imposed substantial limitations on legislation limiting economic autonomy in favor of health and welfare regulation in Lochner v. New York. It notes that these limitations were overruled in West Coast Hotel Co. v. Parrisk, but that, "In the meantime, the Depression had come and with it, the lesson that seemed unmistakable to most people by 1937, that the interpretation of contractual freedom protected rested on fundamentally false factual assumptions about the capacity of a relatively unregulated market to satisfy minimum levels of human welfare.

The bailout, which reared its ugly head right smack in the middle of the presidential election, left a lot of blame on the table. Just who was responsible, and why should taxpayers foot the bill? Was this the result of deregulation, greed, and reckless risk-taking? Or, does the blame flow further down the food chain- such as unemployment and irresponsible home buying? Furthermore, with huge budget deficits and a war costing 10 billion per month, where is this money coming from?

Is this a case of socialism, that oh so dirty word, bailing out capitalism? If the lending institutions do not get the bailout, what impact would that have had on the credit markets- and the ability of Americans to get loans to buy houses and cars? And, if Americans cannot get loans, what impact does this have on the already hurting housing market and the struggling auto industry?

It is easy to see the spiral...for if industry struggles, then more people lose their jobs and more loans go unpaid, and more homes are foreclosed on. Where does it end, if not in another depression?

Consumer advocate, Ralph Nader firmly believes that this is the case of socialism rescuing capitalism. "The bailout was so frantic, so ultimatum-laced, so open-ended, so absent of criteria or standards . . . that it was clearly socialism bailing out capitalism," said Nader. I have written for a few years now that capitalism, as much as we wish it were not true, needs to be regulated. Free markets, in their purity, make absolute economic sense. However, in reality, in a world of lobbyists, corrupt CEOs, unethical corporations and the demise of labor unions, there needs to be some sort of government regulation. It is deeply unfortunate, but greed pressures the economic markets to the point of, as we have seen here, near collapse.

It is not just the financial markets, it is, as I have also argued for the last few years, the corporate incentive to placate shareholders at any cost- which is often American jobs. It is impossible to continue to send good jobs overseas, to save labor costs and avoid environmental regulations, and not believe that it will not have an effect of Americans' ability to pay back loans and make their mortgage payments. Capitalistic economic systems fail when corporations, through political relationships, are afforded legislative loopholes to exploit a global market- yet are subsequently rescued when they fail. Nader also views the bailout as the "collapse of corporate capitalist ideology" and that he emphasizes, "'corporate' because the only capitalism left now is small business. They are the only ones free to go bankrupt."

Adamant capitalist and famous American economist Milton Freedman aptly suggests, "What kind of society isn't structured on greed? The problem of social organization is how to set up an arrangement under which greed will do the least harm; capitalism is that kind of a system." Although capitalists will always find an argument, as the Supreme Court justices recall it, the Depression hurt lots of people, lots of innocent people- because of the lack of legislative regulation. And today, Americans are hurting. We are reaching unemployment highs, millions of people have lost their homes, those that are employed are often underemployed or taking pay cuts, and prices just keep going up. The American people need a bailout, and, and they need their politicians to understand the issues- and history.

122. Campaign was a study in contrasts

It is too remarkable, and I was too invested emotionally, to just move on as though the election is all of the sudden behind me. While so much has been said, perhaps everything has been said, regarding this historic election, I still feel the need for reflection, and to, of course, offer some thoughts.

This election is a culmination of our being as a country for over 200 years. This country, today, should be proud that a majority of voters were willing to look past prejudices, through the scope of history, and elect an African-American president. It was a long and trying election campaign.

It is my feeling that McCain knew early on that he was in over his head. He knew Obama was the better spoken, better educated and more popular candidate. His entire campaign was about shifting the focus- first by selecting Sarah Palin, then by engaging in a negative campaign- which basically admitted that he was the default candidate. His aim was to give people a reason not to vote for Obama- whether it was the pledge of allegiance or the insinuation that he was a socialist. Had he picked a more credible female vice-presidential candidate, he might have pulled it off. Palin was a disaster, for reasons which I have previously written about at length.

The election reached absurdity when "Joe the plumber" became a focus of the republican campaign. What was at first a charismatic attempt to relate to the middle class, a word McCain rarely uttered in his campaign, later turned into a circus show. After "Joe" was exposed as a liar, fraud and individual with some pretty weird perspectives, the McCain campaign should have laid the issue to rest. Instead, they invited him to campaign stops, and Palin entered into long, annoying verses about every "joe" profession imaginable.

Obama, on the other hand, played it smart. His campaign was organized and remained on task- the need for change and the condition of the economy. He did not engage in retaliating with counter insinuations, nor did he overreact to the attacks made on him. When given the chance to strike back at Palin in his third debate about whether she was qualified, he merely suggested that was for the country to decide. He would not give in and give the reason not to vote for him. He remained classy- he had to.

Race was obviously a focus of the election. Since African-Americans often vote democratic, Obama had to increase the number that voted, and, more importantly, he had to gain a significant portion of the white vote. While he never converted some voting demographics, while males for example, he was able to increase the percentage enough to win the election. And although there were pockets of the country and some of McCain's crowds, that were ugly and more representative of 1850 America, it was feared that it might have been much worse.

Today, there is much work to be done. Free of the campaign dissection, I think Obama will be an even stronger and more divisive leader. However, we are all accountable for our country. The country does not change simply because we voted for change. It is time to take responsibility for our actions- to be educated and informed on the issues. We need to make the effort to contact our elected representatives to express our opinions- and then hold them accountable for their votes. We need to donate our time and money to others suffering under the current economic conditions. And, finally, we need to be responsible parents and citizens, and expend that extra effort that can really change a country.

Other election results:

Thumbs up: Proposition 2 in California passed, a major initiative in the requirement that animals that exist simply for food, or lay eggs, have a moment of decency in their lives- such as room to turn around in their cages. It is not nearly enough, but it is a start. And granted, it is progressive California, but it does send a clear message that people will not accept animal abuse in exchange for profit.

Thumbs down: A few more states worked to pass gay-marriage amendments. It remains, in my opinion, a pathetic endeavor to control the lives of others. In 100 years, people will look back at this discrimination as we look back to a time when African-Americans and women were not permitted to vote. In fact, maybe, just maybe, in 100 years, they will be celebrating the first openly gay American as president.