I Didn’t Read It, But I Didn’t Like It
When you author books, you develop a thick skin for the occasional nasty commentary, especially in a day when everyone's a critic with access to social media platforms, reviews on Amazon that provide anonymity, and so forth. I often get
The Etiquette of Profanity
Do I have your attention? I grew up playing ball in inner-city schoolyards, and played varsity high school sports using antiquated locker rooms and facilities in run-down neighborhoods. Obscenities were a mindless aspect of our existence, and most of us didn't
A Man of WHICH people?
President Obama was in Rhode Island yesterday for all of four hours, but it was one of the most intensely dysfunctional four hours any politician could create. He spoke briefly at a 40-person factory (from notes!) which had rehired people after
Mark My Words
Apropos of yesterday's posting on the Chilean miners, here is a story from today's New York Times: "Rescued Miners' Secrecy Pact Erodes in Spotlight: The miners rescued in Chile have asked for as little as $40 and upward of $25,000 for an
Miners As Heroes—Will the Light Do More Harm Than the Dark?
Everyone is happy and invigorated by the Chilean miners’ rescue and the resolve of the Chilean government to gather whatever resources were required internationally to save the men. The belief that every means should be exhausted and no expense spared
The Scammers Are Coming!
I’m writing this on the Internet at 34,000 feet on a Delta flight from Atlanta. We’re returning from Hilton Head Island where I hosted 55 people in The Write Stuff™ Workshop, then 67 in my two-day Mentor Summit, then a
Calamity Jane
One of the issues we face as consultants is whether all those people trying to get our attention constitute the voice of Paul Revere or Chicken Little. Yesterday, I spent 45 minutes stowing our pool and balcony furniture because of an
Jet Blues
The Jet Blue flight attendant fighting for his 15 minutes of fame—and who could have easily killed anyone standing beneath that exit chute he triggered—will undoubtedly make the rounds as the cotemporary symbol of the movie Network's Howard Beale ("I'm
The Loch Ness Monster Monster
Everything I'm about to report is true. You'll realize that, because you can't make this stuff up. Some years ago I encountered a guy in Mensa (which I joined a long time ago to see if I could get in and
On Deductive Reasoning and God
Let's see if I have this straight: 1. The French soccer team beats Ireland for a World Cup berth on the basis of an egregious and widely seen handball, an illegal and pathetic act in this venerated game. The French refuse