2017

It's time for my annual review of the list of things I wanted to happen the prior 12 months, and give my list of things I want to occur in the next 12 months.  Here's the 2016 list, with comments in ALL CAPS:

-At least some progress, not regress, on medicinal marijuana legalization in Iowa.
NOPE TO DOPE AGAIN, BUT AT LEAST THERE WAS A BILL ON WHICH TO VOTE.

-Chris Christie versus Hillary Clinton for president, with ? winning.
HILLARY LOST THE PRESIDENCY, WHILE CHRISTIE LOST HIS POLITICAL CAREER.

-A higher stock market.
AFFIRMATIVE, BUT IT DIDN'T LOOK GOOD ON FEBRUARY 1ST.

-Just one actual, even very minor piece of legislation to make it slightly more difficult to buy a gun.
DESPITE MORE VIOLENCE, WE'VE NEVER BEEN FARTHER FROM THIS HAPPENING.

-The personal, financial, and political implosion of Donald Trump.
THE OPPOSITE HAPPENED THIS YEAR, BUT IT WILL EVENTUALLY HAPPEN.

-A way to charge devices without a wire.
NO, BUT WIRELESS HEADPHONE HAVE GONE MAINSTREAM.

-An à la carte option for cable and satellite TV channels.
THANKS TO PRESSURE FROM STREAMING SERVICES, SEEING SMALL PROGRESS.

-More time for eating right, less time for exercise.
ENDED UP DOING MORE OF BOTH, WHICH WAS A GOOD THING.

For 2017 I'd like to see:

Again:  At least some progress on medical marijuana in Iowa,

Some type of institutional or legal control over fake news / social media.

Related to the above, more critical thinkers, fewer idiots who believe everything they hear.

GPS technology used in major sporting events, e.g. to mark the ball in football games, and for the strike zone in baseball games.

More working from home by me.

The return of popular mainstream rock bands and rock music.

Implementation of the fiduciary rule, and the demise of commission-based financial advice.

The resignation or impeachment of an unqualified president -- no names, any one will do.

Cave-Dwelling Millennials

Five years ago, I posted a blog entry about how the main problem with kids, is parents.  My point was that there could be no bad kids unless they'd been exposed to bad parenting.  That came to mind again this week, but in a much, much different way.

This week the Wall Street Journal reported that almost 40% of young Americans were living with their parents, siblings or other relatives in 2015.  This is the largest percentage since 1940, and happened despite good job growth since the Great Recession of 2008.  The share of those ages 18-34 living with parents or other family members has actually been rising since 2005, when roughly 33% were living with family.

It should be noted that this is all according to an analysis of census data by real estate tracker Trulia, which did it to determine why there is less demand for housing than would be expected for the millennial generation.  They decided that rising rents in many cities and tough mortgage-lending standards were the culprit, making it difficult for those 'young Americans' to strike out on their own.

Pardon my French, but that reasoning in bullshit.  It makes no sense on its face, since the percentage should decline as the economy has so improved over the past five years.  Also, there's plenty of multi-generational family living even in lower cost-of-living areas.  And for the past few years, mortgage rates have never been lower, making it easier than ever to buy a house.

Want to know why so many millennials are living in their parents' basements?  Because they can.  Because parents have allowed it -- not just by unconditionally opening their doors to their underachieving kids for undetermined periods of time, but by not holding their children accountable for making better decisions when it mattered, during and after high school and college.

That's simply another form of bad parenting, in a much different context than what I wrote five years ago.  It's also a sign of how some millennials are lazy, er, I mean lack motivation, to the extent they'd rather give up independent living than have to be fully employed.

Parents should be more motivated about this, too.  As a financial planner, I can also tell you the parents pay a terrible cost in the form of not being able to retire.  Thousands of dollars are being spent on children for whom there should no longer be a cost.  I've seen some situations where parents are paying more now for their adult children than they were when those kids were under 18.  Ugh.

Calling Mr. Murrow

Edward R. Murrow was a broadcaster for CBS radio and (later) television.  He first gained fame for his radio broadcasts during World War II, which were followed by millions of listeners in the United States.   However, Murrow is perhaps more well-known for later producing a series of TV reports that helped expose and discredit then-Senator Joseph McCarthy for his reckless, anti-communist rhetoric.

Murrow is still considered one of the greatest journalists ever, noted for his honesty and integrity in delivering the news.  Although he died in 1965 at age 57, he left us a lot of great phrases from which to quote.

One of Murrow's most famous quotes is, "A nation of sheep will beget a government of wolves."  This takes on new meaning with the current 'fake news' epidemic on the internet -- but more on that another time.

Now take a look at the following quotes, all attributable to him, and ask yourself how much they fit now -- over 50 years later -- with our country's current state of affairs:

No one man can terrorize a whole nation unless we are all his accomplices.

Our major obligation is not to mistake slogans for solutions.

The obscure we see eventually. The completely obvious, it seems, takes longer.

We cannot defend freedom abroad by deserting it at home.

We must not confuse dissent with disloyalty. When the loyal opposition dies, I think the soul of America dies with it.

We will not walk in fear, one of another.

Good night, and good luck.

No Thanks Again

Here's my 8th annual Thanksgiving list of things for which I am not thankful.  You can get to the trail of prior lists here or by using the label 'Thanksgiving' on the blog.

As always, this list is in no particular order:

Donald Trump.

People with low IQs.

Fake news, and those on social media who swallow it.

Electronic dance music, and the mostly no-talent celebrity DJs who play it.

Injuries to star players on your team.

The Zika virus.

Christmas lights that are illuminated before Thanksgiving.

Christmas lights that aren't taken down until the Spring, or never.

Kanye West

Fuel pumps that ask multiple questions before allowing you to pump fuel.

'Interviews' on the Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon.

People with the overwhelming urge to discuss their personal life without prompting.

The Bandwagon Is Full

As I write this, it’s presidential Election Day in America.  And to help me get celebrate the end of the seemingly never-ending campaigns, I’m going to write about how it’s like…..bandwagon fans.

Last week, the Chicago Cubs won the World Series for the first time since 1908.  I’m not a Cubs fan, and frankly baseball is at best my 4th favorite team sport behind football, basketball, and even hockey.  (I’ve made blog entries in the past about how the baseball establishment has ruined baseball.)  But the Cubs’ triple-A team, the Iowa Cubs, play in Des Moines, and I’ve seen many of the players in past trips to those games, so even I was sort of rooting for those lovable losers.  (Also, it makes me feel better because I’d like to think that once in my lifetime, another perennial losing team called the Minnesota Vikings will win the Super Bowl.)

During and after the Series, there were somewhere between thousands and millions of people claiming to be long-suffering Cubs fans.  And while many of them were, some of them were not.  A lot of those so-called long-time fans couldn’t name even a couple of the players, nor had any clue as to how well the Cubs did in the regular season.  They were bandwagon fans, trying to attach their sorry souls to a contender they really don’t care about, giving them an excuse act silly and feel good about themselves.

Those fans drive me nuts.  They act like they care, but they don’t actually know enough to care.

In a way, it’s a metaphor for this year’s presidential election.  Millions of people are going to vote today, and lots of them know virtually nothing about the candidates, nor the issues they’ve been campaigning about for the past year.  They just know that a big contest is afoot, and they’re going to attach their sorry souls to a contender they really don’t care about, giving them an excuse to act silly and feel good about themselves.

Those voters drive me nuts, too.

Too Old To Party

How old is too old to brag about how hard you partied?

Over the course of the year, I've been to a number of gatherings that included adults in their 50s or 60s.  These include things like game tailgates, wedding receptions, recreational outings, and your run-of-the-mill gatherings at a bar or house party.

It occurred to me recently that when reminiscing with others about these events, someone invariably talks about how they or someone else had too much alcohol to drink, and maybe did something silly or embarrassing.  While there's nothing wrong with that (as long as no one did anything illegal), this seems like a conversation that shouldn't happen that often for people over age 50.

Sure, in your 20s or 30s or even 40s, it's practically a right of youth to celebrate life to -- or even a bit beyond -- the edge.  But c'mon, bragging about partying when you're nearing retirement is something your kids should be doing, not you.  It makes the bragger seem like they've been stuck in a rut their whole life, still trying to relive the good old days when their crazy behavior was celebrated.

If a person has so little in life to be happy about they still need to try to prove their ability to drink and party too hard in their AARP years, it's time for them to let it go.  No one else really cares, and it isn't good optics those around them, both during and well after the occurrence.

The Pacific Northwest

I recently returned from a week-long trip by car from Napa Valley, California to Seattle, Washington.  So many observations:

* There are A LOT of wineries in the Napa / Sonoma, California area.  I assumed they numbered in the dozens, but it's actually in the hundreds.  You can't tour / taste at all of them, but you can at most.  There's a stretch on the main road through Napa where they're lined up like suburban strip malls, one after another.  Also, did you know you can make white wine from pinot grapes?  Me neither.

* As expected, there are incredible, cliff-by-the-ocean vistas along the Pacific Coast Highway in northern California.  There are also some crazy, hilly, twisting routes that can get annoying after a while.

* Apparently it's a thing for cyclists to make epic, multi-day trips from north-to-south along that highway.  I saw dozens of riders hauling heavy gear who were navigating those crazy roads,  There were also plenty of signs to make drivers aware of them.

* It's also apparently a thing for campers and RVs to make the same north-to-south camping trek, and there were many camping and RV parks along the road for them to stay at overnight, or longer

* Farther north in California, especially just south of the Eureka area, the road becomes a long, winding stretch over and through small mountains, thick with tall trees.  There isn't much civilization along this stretch, and what small 'towns' you see aren't ones you're likely to spend a lot of time in.  Let's just say if I had to summarize the area in a word, it would be "Uni-bomber-like."

* Once the highway crosses into Oregon, the cliffs along the ocean turn into sand dunes, and beaches become more accessible.  (For golfers like me, don't forget to stop at the famous Bandon Dunes Golf Resort, the most Scottish looking course in America.)  Again, lots of campers and RV parks, but now you start to see some boats and marinas   When you can't see the ocean, all you see is trees.  Tall trees.  Everywhere.

* It was this area that I finally realized something about all of the towns in northern California and southern Oregon, at least the towns large enough to have schools.  The school buildings were sad.  Never saw a single one that looked newer, and most of them looked like re-purposed buildings that were decades old.  It's basically the opposite of the big new schools you see in Iowa, ever since we passed what became a statewide sales tax levy for school infrastructure.

* Oregon definitely rivals Colorado as the most cycling-friendly state.  There were bike lanes everywhere, not only in big cities like Eugene and Portland.  Many signs warned about cyclists being present.  There was even a bridge where a cyclist could push a button, setting off a warning light to let vehicles know there was a cyclist on the bridge.

* The entire state had a laid-back feel, but somewhere between the rural Oregon coast roads and the interstate-connected cities of Eugene and Portland, the culture changes from laid-back country to laid-back hippie.  Both seem slow-paced, but I preferred the relaxed, knit-stocking-cap wearing hippie vibe.

* The drive from Portland to Seattle would be unspectacular, if it weren't for seeing Mt. St. Helen's and then Mt. Rainier towering to the east.  The weather was so good, it was no problem seeing Mt. Rainier the last few days of the trip.

* At the famous Pike's Place Market in downtown Seattle, there is more fresh fruit, seafood, and flowers than some people might see in their entire lives, all reasonably priced.  And yes, I saw them throwing fish.

* Seattle isn't technically on the Pacific Ocean, but the Puget Sound makes for lots of shoreline, with beachfront real estate and great views.  Like Portland, I found it to have friendly people, and it seemed easy to get around.  Also:  lots of coffee shops with people wearing layers of dark clothes.