Tea Party, Anyone?

Rising gas prices. The Stock Market tanks. How much more can we take? Who is looking out for our interests?

No one.

Where else, in history, have we seen economies go from bad to worse, and then have a people rise up against the government? The people living in the years right before the American Revolution experienced some of the worst times in American history. There were taxes on everything, prices were high, the people were restless and they felt powerless; since no one seemed to represent their interests. We are going through a similar situation now. Gas is now roughly $3.40 per gallon, people have lost their retirement money leaving many to postpone comfortable retirements, and to make matters worse the Cubs are out of the World Series. Forget similar, we are are in a financially worse situation now. Granted, we don't have a king oppressing us, but many would consider George Bush to be ruling as such.
If one more thing happens, like Yellowstone erupting, or there is a pandemic disease outbreak, people will start to think that their government is not fit to represent them. I know a lot of people will shudder at this idea, but what do you think was going on in the minds of the English in 1776? I'm not saying it will happen, but if the economy takes another hit, or if we lose the war in the middle east, I'm sure some will say: " Well, this isn't working anymore...". I'm not saying there will be a coup, far from it, but what I am proposing is that if one more devastating thing happens to this country, there will be serious doubts about our form of government. After all, Adolf Hitler took power of Germany when they were crying out for new leadership. Lets just hope Barrack Obama or John McCain can bring us back to our former glory.

Junior Blues

As Juniors, we all have to deal with similar problems. I'm sure those of you reading this just had your parents hassle you to do your homework, take out the trash, or mow the lawn, just like mine do. But the hardest part of Junior year isn't the growth of responsibilities (but its up there). No, the hardest part is keeping your grades up for, and preparing to apply to, college.
College is the kind of thing that can measure your social status, academic prowess, and maybe even your athletic ability. But how do we approach this future-making experience? Some juniors chose to take the pragmatic stance on this issue. They apply to two or three "safety schools" and then one or two "dream schools". As we have learned from "Logler", this is not a bad way to come at this situation. However, colleges like to think that you want them, so early decision is the way to go for the idealists.
These are the risk-takers. Idealists walk the high-wire when it comes to applying for colleges. One of my idealisitc friends said to me freshman year: "I'm going to Stanford". At that time in my neophytic high school career, I considered this statement both arrogant and stupid. Now that I see his incredible drive and determination (he's a straight "A" student, and on various sports teams) I can't envision him going anywhere else. You can bet he will be applying early decision.
So there you have it. Quanitity is the pragmatic's "ace in the hole" and quality (early decision) is the idealist's. Which one will get you to your dream school? You decide.

Two Types of Player

New Trier Golf Team (notice FRESHMAN Matt Haller on bottom left)
It was a big day for New Trier Golf this Columbus Day. Although golf often gets shuffled in with the "odd sports" of New Trier, this feat deserves some merit. Our golf team is competing in the State Tournament! I, along with 6 other NT golfers watched our top 6 (NT golfers who were competing) score a cumulative 290 strokes to earn second place in the Sectional tournament and a spot downstate.
The reason I bring this somewhat little piece of information up is because 1) it would've been unnoticed otherwise, and 2) I noticed a bit uneasiness out on the course today (understandably). How did our team deal with these Perilous Times? Each player had a different way of dealing with it. Some fought it by paying attention to everything on the course. Some simply ignored it, and played relaxed. I found, however, that the people that excelled while dealing with Perilous Times were the ones that accepted the pressure to do well, kept their confidence in the face of adversity and rose above the competition. Think about the relation to the stock market. We just have to keep our heads and know that we will rise above adversity. As the great golfer Harry Vardon once said: "There are only two types of player: those that keep their head and win championships, and those who do not". I guess Jim Cramer is just as good.

The Great Green Bay Depression of '08

It all started out OK. That's how I remember it... It used to be OK...







It was a bright time following one of the Packer's darkest hours. Brett Favre was gone, and the bench warmer Arron Rodgers (for two years) had some big shoes to fill. Then we won a game. Then another. Rodgers was quickly embraced as one of the few players to fill the void of legends. He was Green Bay's version of Steve Young. He became hailed as "the GOOD A-Rod". CONFIDENCE was up in Green Bay.
Maybe we as Packer fans INVESTED a little too much in this start. We lost a game. Granted, it was a pretty tough game for the Packers last year (with Favre) but this blowout wouldn't be tolerated by this new breed of Packer fans. The CONFIDENCE was immediately gone. People began PULLING their hopes OUT of Green Bay. Rodgers was on the brink of oblivion, he and his fans knew it.
Of the few that still kept FAITH in the franchise, they were punished by watching Green Bay suffer another defeat. It was painful to watch. The COACH of the Packers kept on saying "It'll be ALRIGHT, we just need Arron to play like he used to". This response was unacceptable to the fans. This was a team that ONCE had GLORY and made it to the NFC championship game. One more loss and the Packers fan base would be just that of Green Bay. They might MOVE ON to the *gasp* New York Jets (Favre's NEW TEAM)
After another loss today, the Pack is down to a dismal 2-3 record. The previous two straight wins are a long forgotten footnote. The team seems to be endlessly spiraling DOWNWARD whereas last year, there was only thoughts of going UP. But I'm keeping my faith. I'm learning from what happened in the 20's and 30's, and just looking forward to 1967.






(CAPS=relation to stock market crash)