Royal wealth 1

How many of us normal people can relate to the wealth of an Elon Musk or Jeff Bezos? They are at the top of the list of wealthy Americans. Probably, unlike the rest of us, they could buy any car or home or toy or luxury vacation either of them could want.

But the wealth of the royal family of Qatar surpasses both of them . . combined. It's pretty much unimaginable wealth. The small nation of Qatar is on the east side of the Saudi Arabian peninsula, circled on the map below.

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Oil/gas is the source of their wealth, as you might guess from their Middle East location. Relatively tiny in size compared to some nations, Qatar holds about 10% of the world's reserves.

Their holdings have gone way beyond their own country. By some accounts, the royals of Qatar hold more property in London than the British monarchy.

(cont'd tomorrow)

Binge Jesus 2

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

"The Chosen" fans love it; as one of them put it, "We're not lukewarm!" (A reference to Revelation 3.) About 9,000 supporters came to Texas last summer to take part in the filming of the scene where Jesus multiplies fish and bread to "feed the five thousand."

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Production values draw fans because it's just better than most faith-based shows. As a Catholic writer says, "It was far less cheesy than what I'm used to seeing." 

There's no quoting of the King James Bible here. Instead, there's modern idiom, beautiful lighting and music, good acting. Many actors look like they could be at home in the Middle East, including Jonathan Roumie who plays Jesus. His father is Egyptian.

It's free to watch on The Chosen App.

from NYT

Binge Jesus 1

Would a big Hollywood studio put millions of dollars behind a multi-year show about the life of Jesus Christ and his students? Not likely! If a relatively unknown director wanted to create such a thing, how would he get the money to produce it? 

Director Dallas Jenkins accomplished that very thing with crowdfunding. His show, "The Chosen," was initially funded by 19,000 contributors. It was enough to get started in 2019, and it's come a long way. 

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A passionate fan base of Christians gradually discovered it. Roughly 5% of viewers got behind it with additional financial support through "pay it forward" voluntary contributions so that the show can be free to view for anyone, anywhere in the world. 

Enough fans showed up the weekend of Nov. 18-20 to place the show's first theater offering (Season 3, Episodes 1 & 2) box office at second behind only "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever" in about 2000 theaters. Netflix, Amazon and Peacock started to stream it.

from NYT

(cont'd tomorrow)

Day after

 Hopefully, this isn't you today!😉

Wishing you a happy holiday weekend!

At the table

As an immigrant to America, Olga says "Without exception, every year that I have lived here, someone has always invited me over for a Thanksgiving meal. Someone has always welcomed me at their table." 

She loved seeing "how American families celebrate this holiday. They slowed their pace of life. Families spent long, unhurried hours together eating, talking, playing games, and enjoying warm Texas weather (instead of the below-freezing November temperatures I was used to in Eastern Europe)."

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Today is an American holiday based on our history - originally for the purpose of thanking God for harvest, for independence, for blessings. "The welcoming of strangers, the gratitude for the daily blessings, the joy of breaking bread (or a turkey wishbone) together have made me fall in love with the people of this country."

As you have the opportunity, invite someone to your table for a holiday. It made a big difference to Olga. It was through the "openness, generosity and hospitality shown me by so many Christians that I encountered Jesus, who also invites us to God’s lavish table."

from The Stream

Dinner cost 2022

Every year the Farm Bureau calculates the cost of a traditional Thanksgiving dinner for ten people. 

                         

Back in 2020, the calculated average cost was $46.90 for this dinner. So this year's cost has  increased 36% in just two years. A comparison to last year is on the image.

Inflation, the sinking value of our money, has hit this holiday hard in 2022. No one will be surprised.

from Farm Bureau

Activist Bono 2

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

Why is activist Bono in the news again? Because he did a recent interview with the New York Times about how to help the global poor, and anti-capitalists really didn't like it. Capitalism is the economic system that brings people out of poverty.

Bono himself doesn't like the idea: "The off-ramp out of extreme poverty is, ugh, commerce, it’s entrepreneurial capitalism." (He has plenty of company in his distaste.) But apparently he has enough integrity to tell the truth in spite of his prejudice against the answer.

"I didn’t grow up to like the idea that we’ve made heroes out of businesspeople, but if you’re bringing jobs to a community and treating people well, then you are a hero." Indeed.

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from American Enterprise Institute

Activist Bono 1

Bono's career in music and charity activism has spanned decades. 

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The poverty and suffering of Africa's people touched his heart, especially compared to the standard of living in the West. Millions of dollars were raised with his concerts (which included the famous Live Aid in 1985).

What happened to the millions? Some of it went to suffering people. But "the vast majority of the food [resulting from Live Aid] rotted on docks beside the Red Sea or [was] used as payment for loyalist army units." 

Economist Dambisa Moyo published a book back in 2010 (Dead Aid) explaining how this kind of thing happens. As an African herself, her perspective is authentic and her message compelling: decades of "aid" to African countries is not doing the good that was intended. 

A review of it on Amazon reads, "Moyo demolishes all the most cherished myths about aid being a good thing.”

(cont'd tomorrow)

Launch at last

At long last, the Space Launch System (SLS) successfully launched the very first Artemis mission on Wednesday morning from NASA Space Center in Florida.

Artemis 1 is an un-crewed mission to fly to the moon without landing, all of course in preparation to return astronauts to the moon by 2024 if that target date holds.

According to the mission manager, "Today, we got to witness the world's most powerful rocket take the Earth by its edges and shake the wicked out of it. And it was quite a sight." 

Welcoming

Our world's population went over the eight billion mark yesterday. 

To some, it's ominous - which makes sense if you believe people are nothing but troublesome eaters whom we must figure out how to feed.

But the Ruth Institute sees it differently. In fact, they published a "welcome" card to all the baby newcomers this month:

"Dear Baby Number 8 Billion,

"We’re glad you’re here. In fact, we’re so happy, we want to thank your mother and father . . . We’ll always consider you a gift to the world.

"God made you in his image and likeness. No one will ever reflect the image of God in exactly the same way as you. Isn’t that amazing? God wants you to be here. That’s good enough for us!"

photo Emerald Interior Design

Wakanda 3

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

We were introduced to the fantasy nation of Wakanda in the movie "Black Panther" as part of the Marvel Universe of superheroes. We discovered that it was a wonderful place of awesome technology and beauty under the leadership of their wise king.

As the sequel opens, the country is in mourning. If it looks authentic, it's because the cast is genuinely mourning the 2020 death of actor Chadwick Boseman, who played the part of their king. The producers chose not to cast a substitute in the role, an excellent choice.

Picture this vision of a good, prosperous African nation. It's similar to what Fred Swaniker and others both imagine and work for: independent nations unifying smaller tribes, distinct and unique in the world.

As the queen mother says, "Show them who we are!" 

Wakanda 2

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

Watch Fred Swaniker's video (yesterday's post) and be inspired by his vision. He founded his organization, African Leadership Academy, to build the next generation of African leaders.

Another African leader of influence is Dambisa Moyo. She would agree that new and better leaders are desperately needed. She's written about the corruption of past African leaders who used government aid given by Western countries and non-profits for their own power and Swiss bank accounts.

Any sane, decent person today would love to see African countries really prosper at last. But billions of dollars of government aid pumped into them is not the path to strong nations. 

What they really need is wise and virtuous leaders of their own, leaders of the sort that Swaniker hopes to produce.

Leaders like, say, the Black Panther of Wakanda.

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(cont'd tomorrow)

Wakanda 1

Much pity is directed by people of the West toward the huge continent of Africa. 

After ten centuries of a slave trade perpetrated by Middle Eastern and European powers, as well as tribal warfare followed by colonialism -- poverty and a general failure to thrive are not entirely surprising. 

"Leaders" of poor quality have also been very much responsible.

But Africa is changing. From different nations, new leaders want a new standard and are working to grow a different story. Fred Swaniker is one of them. His TED Talk from 2014 is below. The organization he started is still running in 2022.

Work 14-hr day

Would there be any appeal in working a super long 14-hour day? When the owner/operator of a Florida Chick-fil-A offered just such a consistent work schedule, over 400 people applied for the job. Oh, and they work only three of those long days per week. That's the appeal.

When Justin Lindsey opened his shop near Miami, Florida, last year, he chose this way of expressing how he wanted to manage it: "One of the things I really set out to do . . was what I called "leading with generosity." This new way of scheduling his workers was well-received.

One of his managers told him that she could never have graduated from University of Central Florida if she had had to work the normal choppy schedule. Another told him that she had visited New York City with the time she had available, not having to take any vacation time.

Overall, there's been improved worker retention, work-life balance, and career growth. 

"I'm so incredibly happy and grateful that Chick-fil-A has given me the opportunity to do this. Because the impact that I'm able to have on my team, honestly, I mean, it's incredible."

from Business Insider

Tech layoffs

Massive layoffs at Twitter were predicted and actually happened (3700 jobs, 50%) after Elon Musk, under pressure from the company, completed purchasing it. 

No word on whether the other big tech layoffs were expected.

November 4 was the worst day for job cuts in 2022:

• Lyft - 700 jobs, 13% 
• Chime - 160 jobs,12%
• Stripe - 1000 jobs, 14%
• Opendoor - 550 jobs, 15%
• others

Meta is part of the wave too, announcing yesterday that they're cutting a whopping 11,000 jobs (13%) - probably related to its huge value crash.

from MindMatters

NBA story

Growing up in Bronx NY, Jonathan Isaac fell in love with basketball. To him, its flow and movement is an art form. He also had the talent to play it like that, and he's in the NBA today.

His dad and mom modeled integrity and tenacity and hard work for him. He needed all of those virtues to help him overcome anxiety issues on his way to becoming a professional athlete and an author.

Jonathan's story deserves respect . . and receives it, as you can read in the Youtube comments.

Parents say No

American Library Association (ALA) has been recommending pornographic, sexually explicit books to schools. Parents don't want their children or their neighbors' children exposed to this material.

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Parents in America historically assumed that the influence of their public schools and libraries would be in line with their own values. That used to be a safe assumption, but unfortunately a huge gap between the two now exists and parents are scrambling to take back their kids.

Battles are being fought in various localities across the country. But the one in Gillette, Wyoming, seems to have ended with a win for community and parents.

After months of hearing parents bring their concerns to public meetings, the Campbell County Commission took the extreme step of banning all public comments. Eventually the ban ended, and the commission was re-populated with members friendly to the parents.

Last month the county library board cut all ties with the ALA.

from Mass Resistance

Vote tomorrow

(continued from last Friday's post)

About half American Christians don't bother to vote. Do they not care about all the issues that affect their families and towns? Or is it that they are completely confused about what candidates would be best? 

Chenyuan thinks they take our responsibility for granted, that everything will turn out fine whether they figure out who to vote for or not. But it bothers her big time that so many of us don't recognize the significance of our right to have a voice.

"[U]nlike Chinese Christians who can only passively watch when the government sets immoral policies, we can take an active part in political decisions. We have the privilege not only to promote the good but also to prevent evil."

One current hot issue among parents today is what schools have been teaching. Many parents found out that their neglect to pay attention to local schools resulted in bad outcomes. "When we surrender territory this way, our children bear the dreadful consequence."

Maybe there's still time for you to clear up a few of your own questions before voting day. There's no point in voting if you really don't know about the issues or the candidates.

from The Stream

Vote in 4 days

As an immigrant from China, Chenyuan Snider sees America in a different way from those who were born here, differently from the negative view now being taught in our school systems.

"She is, she says, "overwhelmed" when she thinks of the privileges she has as an American citizen. As one who had years of personal life experience in the two cultures, she offers her perspective to Americans who can only theorize about what it's like to live in China. She's on a mission to open their eyes and tell her story.

"As a fellow Christian, she's horrified that about half of us don't exercise our minimum civic responsibility to vote in elections. We have a right to engage with government policies, to organize on behalf of what we believe to be right. The Chinese don't. They are helpless to influence the direction of their government when it moves against their values.

Because "we have both power and opportunity to influence a political outcome, to remain silent would welcome the flourishing of evil in our society . . ."

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from January post

Vote in 5 days

Foundation Against Intolerance and Racism (FAIR) hasn't been around for long, but they seem well-organized and on top of their issues.

One of their stated principles would probably be approved by most Americans (but sadly not all):

“We support respectful disagreement. We believe bad ideas are best confronted with good ideas—and never with dehumanization, deplatforming, or blacklisting.”

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Mid-term elections are coming next Tuesday, and the results will be significant. We need political leaders of wisdom and virtue. If you believe in voting by the issues, if you want to know politicians' positions rather than just listen to them smearing their opponents, they suggest a few questions you could ask: 

Do you think healthcare (for example, the Department of Health’s COVID therapies) should be distributed based on race?

Do you think government rules should be applied and enforced based on race?

What measures do you support for curriculum transparency in schools?

Who endorses you - the teachers union? the police department? your local newspaper?

Work from home

"[P]roductivity didn’t suffer as a result of remote work [in the pandemic] . . In many cases, employees became even more productive while working from home, either because they were happier or because they were making an extra effort to impress far-away bosses."

This is the sort of story I watch for because I want "work from home" (WFH) to be feasible. If people can work at home, saving so much time and money and even energy costs to the environment -- that's just wonderful.

But if WFH is going to work, employees simply must be productive. Or even more productive than before. To convince the executives.

That's why this story is good news.

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from KLTA in Los Angeles

Elon & Twitter 8

(cont'd from yesterday's post)

Kevin O'Leary says Twitter is a terrible, poorly managed company. So the price Elon is paying is much more than it's worth, maybe 40%, which is billions. It's likely he has more than one reason for going ahead with it. But there is one reason he's always claimed for this purchase, and it's consistent with concerns he has expressed for years relating to the preservation of civilization.

SpaceX will go to Mars, he said, to give humanity a backup planet in case Earth becomes uninhabitable. Tesla, he claims, will take fossil fuels out of the vehicle business to mitigate climate change. 

And he acquired Twitter "because it is important to the future of civilization to have a common digital town square, where a wide range of beliefs can be debated in a healthy manner, without resorting to violence." Yes, I share this view of healthy speech.

To set minds at rest among Twitter's advertisers, he also let them know that the freer speech he aims for is not a "free-for-all hellscape."

from Fortune