john fink

Swimming Upstream – MidWeek April 24, 2024

admin MidWeek Column , , , ,

Perseverance, resiliency, persistency, adaptability. Emotions, traits, or learned skills? These concepts can represent powerful tools in one’s personal arsenal. ‘Twas Charles Darwin who said: “It is not the strongest species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the ones most responsive to change.” In our lives we often come to crossroads, and while change can be quite difficult, change we must… sometimes. 

Change is good… as long as it’s good change. Simply suggesting change doesn’t make it good or correct in and of itself. Leaders or hopeful change masters need buy-in when advocating for change. They need impassioned rationale that can be embraced and/or believed in. Ah, but sometimes you gotta adapt and change on your own.

Like on March 29 in Northeast Oregon… A 40-ton trailer overturned while transporting 102,000 live salmon (who counted?!) to be released in the Imnaha River to invariably migrate to the ocean, thereby circumventing the many northern river dams in place. This man-made process has moved fish downstream for 40 years.

So here comes the amazing part of this semi-disaster. The crashed tanker slid down an embankment of Lookingglass Creek. More than 76,000 smolts (young salmon) slid or flopped down the creek embankment in desperation, making their way into the creek, and most are expected to make it down through the Grande Ronde River to the Pacific Ocean- the original goal. Incredible! Without a GPS. Members of the Nez Perce tribe, hatchery workers, and the local sheriff’s office worked together to guide those who couldn’t make it into the water on their own, and cleaned up those who perished.

A fine example of perseverance, true grit, adaptability, and instinctual survival tactics. A life-saving example that when things go haywire or don’t work out- live to fight another day. Longtime Washington Post advice columnist, Carolyn Hax, recently wrote back to a querying parent about whether or not to coddle troubled teenagers by suggesting that they need to experience adversity along the way. “They need this because every life has some element of frustration, loneliness, rejection, mistreatment, misunderstanding, raw deals, disappointment, disaster and dream-crushing. And after that comes Tuesday.” 

Philosopher Friedrich Nietsche said: “What doesn’t kill me makes me stronger”. 77,000 salmon found strength amid disaster. Life’s road is not an easy, smooth ride; it sometimes feels like an overturned truck. Yet overcoming adversity is an integral part of growing up, right through adulthood.

Think about it…

Irksomes – MidWeek January 24, 2024

admin MidWeek Column , , , , , ,

Some things to keep in mind, both from a local and more global perspective, providing clarity in the chilling universe…

  1. When the toilet roll at home appears quite small, don’t hesitate… take out a new roll immediately. It’s socially responsible, and as we all know, the end is always closer than it appears. You need to get to the bottom of this one.
  2. Local restaurants never fail because they stink; they simply go away because people quietly don’t come back. We don’t often read horrible reviews of food places that don’t pass muster (or mustard), but some invariably die an unattended death. We’re too nice locally to rag on places that didn’t meet our culinary standards. We just never go back.
  3. Whilst driving locally in suburbia and the slowing driver in front of you indicates an upcoming left turn, quash that urge to pass by on the right. Far too many here believe they must lurch a little right before turning left. Not true. And thus, the three seconds you save making your bold move in passing might prove damaging.
  4. Everybody understands the leash law (or should) locally; except when it comes to “my dog”, because he/she would “never harm a soul”. Some people simply don’t trust four-legged, free-roaming animals; perhaps traumatic pasts account for those feelings. And dogs do sometimes snap; no matter what you’re your post-incident rationale might be (“she’s never done that”). Fifi may be a wonderful, loving pet and companion- but it’s not your right to allow her to roam freely in public just because you feel like it.
  5. AI (artificial intelligence) advancements are already upon and among us. AI is not COVID, but it may prove as insidious and harmful in some areas. Do your homework, question authority, probe internet “truths”, and understand that we’ve entered a new(er) world that will provide great advancements (medicine) and also chaotic, false moments. Forewarned is forearmed. When in doubt, flesh it out. Hmmm, gotta be tough(er) being a teacher as AI infiltrates…
  6. With the incredible amount of quality plate lunch locations, pot lucks, and casual office lunch extravaganzas, one local law that needs to be proposed/passed is a paper plate strength minimum. No more sagging, weak plates that enhance dripping kim chee liquid detritus to stain pants or carpets! Let’s get serious about this long-ignored state need! Weak plates are no picnic.

Think about it…

Voting Time – MidWeek July 22, 2020

admin MidWeek Column , , , ,

Ballots are already being mailed this week to registered voters throughout Hawaii, as most everyone will vote locally by mail from now on. Abraham Lincoln once said, “The ballot is stronger than the bullet.” Author/critic George Jean Nathan said, “Bad officials are elected by good citizens who don’t vote.” Witty rationales and quotes go on and on, but not having the time, a ride, a clue, or a great deal of interest are all excuses which should disappear when 2020 primary ballots show up in mailboxes this week.

Look up the candidates, stream archived debates, check the issues; educate yourself on where candidates are coming from or planning to take us. If you can vote but opt not to vote, please don’t complain. If you’re worried about voter fraud, the facts (yes, real facts) show that it’s not been a factor historically. Oregon, which has used mail-only voting since 2000, found that in November, 2016, just .002% of votes cast were fraudulent- mostly by people who voted in two states. That’s two-thousandths of one percent.

The Oregon secretary of state (a former Republican state representative) said that suspicious cases amounted to one out of every 38,000 ballots! The Heritage Foundation has studied voter fraud for years. Their findings? In Hawaii, two voter fraud cases in 34 years- none via mail-in. Colorado? 14 cases in 13 years with 16-million votes cast- eight via mail-in ballot. Oregon had 15 cases in 19 years (14 via mail-in). Utah? One dubious vote out of 971,185 votes, according to a 2008 study. The facts simply do not warrant a groundswell of paranoia or concern about voter fraud via mail-in voting.

Chicago political pundits used to joke about “vote early and vote often”, but that was there, that was then, this is now. And that wasn’t mail-in, either. That tongue-in-cheek phrase has been around for 160 years, and yes, voting shenanigans have occurred. But don’t blame the mail-in process. There were more than 137-million American total votes cast in 2016, and not one single state reported a widespread voter fraud investigation. Not one.

Hawaii has a weak track record of voting in the 21st century. Apathy, stasis, a one party system- whatever. Make a difference; be heard. Has there been a time of greater stress and more confusion in recent history than July, 2020? Help decide your future as you take action on local leadership.

Think about it…