Monday, January 26, 2015

The Sucking Sound of the Leadership Vacuum in Alberta

A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way. - John C. Maxwell

The quality of a leader is reflected in the standards they set for themselves. - Ray Kroc

I was amused and disappointed the other day when it was announced that 1700 private jets were being used by attendees of the upcoming Davos conference on global warming and income inequality.  The disconnect between the verbally stated intentions of the attendees and their demonstrated actions sharply demonstrates the old adage:

Let my actions speak so loudly that you can’t hear what I am saying.

When one wonders why such an obvious disconnect can take place for a conference so important, it is important to realize that such leadership (or demonstrated lack thereof) starts on a much smaller, local scale.

The roots of leadership capability start at home and with that I turned to examples of local leadership in the Province of Alberta to observe leadership in its incubation stages.

After all, the leaders on the local scene eventually become our global leaders.

After taking a quick scan of the leaders on a local scale, it is easy to see why leadership by example is missing in Davos.

It’s because it doesn’t exist at the local levels either.

Last week, Mayor Nenshi of Calgary allowed Councillor Druh Farrell to make unsubstantiated, unverified claims of alleged wild, alcohol-fuelled parties by councillors at City events.

A real leader recognizes that unsubstantiated claims should never be made in public.  A real leader also doesn’t allow his or her colleagues to be skewered publicly with such unsubstantiated claims.  There is a time and a place for such claims and action is taken using facts that allow corrective action to be taken if necessary.  If unsubstantiated, such allegations never see the light of day.

The Mayor not only allowed Councillor Farrell to make such vague, unsubstantiated claims, he exacerbated the situation with his own references to councillors getting “blotto” at community events, to inappropriate drinking by councillors in their offices and to the use of illegal drugs by councillors.

By his own admission, he has no evidence or proof.  He claims he was merely reporting what he had heard and in doing so, he as the leader of City Council invited and encouraged an unfair, unprofessional, public smearing of many hard working councillors who sacrifice everything in order to serve their community.

In other words, he threw his colleagues under the bus without facts of any kind and he doesn’t seem to care.

It appears that he enjoys the merits of being the Mayor when it is convenient and he often plays the card of “I’m just one vote of many on council” but for some reason, he is unable or unwilling to assume the position of the leader of the City Council when the presence of such a leader is critical.

It is a sad reality that politicians are rarely real leaders and this smear probably serves a political need of his.  Well ….. that is giving him the benefit of the doubt and is assuming that he is an astute strategist.  It is a known strategy for those who don’t know what they are doing to encourage disagreement amongst their colleagues to keep them distracted from recognizing the lack of leadership at the top.

Then again, maybe he or his advisors just don’t know any better. 

In the real world, such allegations without merit or proof get a “leader” fired or potentially sued for slander.

But the world of politics is not the real world and therefore, such unprofessional, unethical behavior is rarely punished.

A real leader also knows how to apologize and regain control of matters when things get out of control under their watch.  At the time this was written, no such apology is forthcoming from the Mayor.  He has informed some councillors that as far as he is concerned, this is a dead issue but if they wish, they can call a point of privilege to pursue.

So instead of apologizing to the people who have been unfairly smeared and instead of killing the issue once and for all in the absence of facts, he is letting allegations stand while more fuel is poured on the fire.

If he put as much effort into leading as he does with meaningless, fluffy tweets, maybe Council could spend more time addressing important concerns such as the economic downturn that is coming due to collapsing oil prices. 

Tens of thousands of layoffs are expected. 

I wonder what his strategy is for this.

Maybe it will fall out during one of the alleged wild, alcohol-fueled parties.

And speaking of apologies …

Danielle Smith, the former Wildrose Party leader and now opportunistic PC Party ladder-climber, apologized on her Facebook page about the decision she made in leaving the Wildrose Party of Alberta. Intriguingly enough, she apologized for angering people with her decision but then went on to criticize the people who allegedly forced her hand.

It sounded like “I’m really sorry but it was someone else’s fault anyway so …..”.  Sounds like an authentic apology to me.  It is generally accepted that the “take action and beg for forgiveness later” apology is never authentic since the original intention was still achieved while the underhandedness and dishonor behind it falls into the shadows and is soon forgotten.

She went on to say how she would be honored to serve her community if elected as an MLA again.

Translation: Having demonstrated that she can dishonor the many who supported her in the past, she would like the opportunity to pull the wool over a whole new group of supporters.

It’s pretty easy to see whose interests she is serving.

Can you guess?

I’ll make it easy for you.  The list is very short.

The fact that she didn’t see betrayal as something that would upset many speaks volumes of either her intelligence to understand the will of the people or her belief that the people are not very intelligent.

Neither reflect well on her as an alleged leader in her community and province.

Goals: It's best to avoid standing directly between a competitive jerk and his goals.

Goals: It's best to avoid standing directly between a competitive jerk and his goals.

Accepting people like this as a senior player in the PC Party speaks volumes of Premier Prentice’s character as well but that’s a subject for another day.  Alberta will get a taste of his character in the next year or so as difficult times engulf the Province with the recession that has been predicted.

But it’s not just in Alberta ….

Last week in the Newfoundland and Labrador Legislature, a member of the Official Opposition made a comment during Question Period that Minister Judy Manning’s best position when it came to cost cutting was “under the table”. 

I’m surprised that women’s groups didn’t storm the legislature as a result but then again, they choose fights that suit their own needs, motives and timing.

It’s hard to believe that in the 21st century that we could have such derogatory comments made by a government official who alleges to serve as a servant to the public and as a role model to many.

What does that tell you about the state of government these days?

The Bottom Line

The world has reached a juncture where real leadership is needed to solve challenges in the areas of government spending, the economy, climate control, arms control, terrorism and other areas.

Is it any wonder that the leaders at the global level can’t seem get it done when one sees what we have at home in the form of leadership (or lack thereof)?

Do we care that such leaders form role models for our children?

Do we care that as the world burns in certain areas, that our leaders are the best we can come up with when it comes to guiding us out of difficulty and towards our unlimited potential or do we merely accept the message they are constantly espousing?

Excuses: If you keep asking others to give you the benefit of the doubt, they'll eventually start to doubt your benefit.

Excuses: If you keep asking others to give you the benefit of the doubt, they'll eventually start to doubt your benefit.

I think we should expect and demand better before things really hit the fan locally and globally (if it’s not too late already).

I also think we need leaders who serve the people and are not merely mouthpieces who serve their own interests or the interests of those who use them in return.

What do you think?

In service and servanthood.

Harry

Wednesday, January 14, 2015

Honesty–The Wrong Policy

I was really too honest a man to be a politician and live. – Socrates

Since a politician never believes what he says, he is quite surprised to be taken at his word. - Charles de Gaulle

The #1206 “fiction” series continues ….


The President stared at the monitors in front of him as he sat safely ensconced deep within the bowels of a secure location known only to the President, a few advisors and the men assigned to protect them.

“How bad is it?”, he asked no one in particular as images of rampant violence played before him from locations across the country.

“Worse than we anticipated”, said one of his junior advisors.  “We had hoped that we could come clean on the state of the nation and then pin it on the other party prior to the election but things got out of control once we released the information.”

“I can’t believe that we didn’t anticipate this”, the President said, the frustration evident in his voice.

He stared at the statement he held in his hand.  It contained a list of concerns for which there were no solutions that he and his advisors could think of.  Someone he didn’t know deep inside one of the government think tanks had recommended that by pinning this list on Congress, they would clear the way for election wins for the foreseeable future.

He looked up wearily at the monitors again and suddenly felt the weight of the world on his shoulders in ways he had never felt before.

The National Guard and local law enforcement, despite their best efforts, had long since lost control and by their own analysis, indicated that the best strategy was to let everyone “do their thing” until the need for violence subsided out of exhaustion.

His attention returned to the statement.  The content seemed politically loaded but safe at first blush but he could now see that the content was problematic with a significant potential for volatility.

My fellow Americans.  In the past six years, our nation has been bombarded with challenges and we have risen to the challenge as we have always done in our storied history.

The times before us, while difficult, can be overcome as we create a brighter future for our nation.  However, the other party still prevents us from carrying out policy that will ensure the safety and security of our nation.  Specifically, I continue to have concerns in the following areas:

  1. Despite hundreds of billions of dollars spent in surveillance technology, terrorists are still able to communicate in ways that cannot be deciphered and whose source and destination location cannot be traced.  They can do so with hundreds of dollars of low-tech equipment that still defies our massive surveillance industry’s ability to prevent it.
  2. Our personal debt levels are still way to high to be sustainable, with banks being responsible for making credit still too easy to obtain.
  3. Some of our banks are failing viability tests that ensure that they are financially healthy enough to carry currently identified liability loads.
  4. The Government’s ability to not have to consider social security and Medicare payments as liabilities are distorting the books and underreporting our nations true debt position.
  5. Our intention to continue raising the debt ceiling is destroying the future for our children and cannot continue.
  6. Falling oil prices threaten to take the nation out of the oil production business unless the government wants to accept the financial burden of subsidizing companies that are going out of business.  Other that that, we may be forced to accept that our economy will always be at the beck and call of OPEC.
  7. Our infrastructure is old and decrepit and requires hundreds of billions of dollars injected into it in order to prevent escalation of its physical collapse.
  8. Our energy, water, transportation, communication, financial and military systems are wide open to cyber attack from lone wolves, fundamentalist states and nations that we consider unfriendly to our nation.  A successful cyber attack against one or more of these leaves our nation extremely vulnerable from inside or outside the nation and no one can explain to me what the impact level would be.
  9. Our housing market, while promoted as desirable for investment by the real estate industry, in fact contains the same vulnerabilities contained in 2008 when, a month before the financial collapse, realtors were promoting that “now is the best time to buy”.
  10. Our calculation of unemployment figures is not accurate, having been changed repeatedly over the years until it now reflects about 1/4 of what it should be showing.
  11. Our national emergency plan is of such a confidential nature that it can only be communicated to the people once an emergency actually occurs.  While the plan is much weaker than I would prefer, how we communicate this plan to the people during a real emergency is something that no one can explain to me.

The list went on and on, referencing weak foreign policy in regards to Russia, North Korea, Iran and others, the nation’s diminished space exploration policy and the risks this presented, the escalating arms race, the true impact of the EU’s current debt loads, the impact of an aging population on a strained healthcare system and a collection of other concerns.

In the closing paragraphs, it made it clear that Congress and the Senate were to blame for all of these issues.

Unfortunately for the people who were now rioting, the realization that significant challenges existed with no visible solutions was the critical matter and not who was to blame for it.

And so the riots displayed on the monitors in front of him were the result of a poorly calculated political move.

“So much for honesty being the best policy”, he mumbled to himself.

“What was that, Mr. President?”, asked one of the advisors.

The President said nothing, his brain failing to comprehend what he was watching.  He had a strong feeling that he had been set up.

The advisor paused as he observed the President’s obvious level of angst.

“I think it is time to consider Executive Directive 51, Mr. President”, the advisor said quietly.


In a posh Washington DC office, a desk lamp provides the sole source of light.  The desk is clean except for a briefcase with the name of the owner and his title – “Senior Presidential Advisor – Special Projects”.

A prayer mat sits on the floor in front of the desk.

The room’s lone occupant kneels in gratitude.

To be continued.


© 2015 – Harry Tucker – All Rights Reserved

Background:

The items listed in the President’s statement are all true.  I considered outlining all of them here but I felt it would make this post far too long and academic.

The ending is pure “fiction” but is interesting to play with given current world events.  I have many good friends who are adherents of the Islamic faith.  This is not directed to them so those who believe I have just make a blanket statement condemning an entire faith can sit down now.

Most of the items on the list can be Googled although I caution the reader to stay away from conspiracy-laden websites as their information is often distorted or incorrect altogether.  Some of the ones less obvious are described in some of my other posts.  For example, there is actually a means of how terrorists can communicate in a manner that cannot be decoded or traced and is available for a few hundred dollars in equipment.  I describe that technique here in National Security – Arming Both Sides.

As a data person, supporting facts are critical to me when making any suggestion or argument.  If you can’t find information on any of the items mentioned here, email me and I will send them to you and / or make the sharing public.

Being afraid of reality serves no value. 

Embracing reality produces the opportunity to find solutions to the challenges that we face in business, relationships, government and the like, allowing us to reach our ultimate, unlimited potential.

Ignoring reality is a different thing altogether.

One produces comfort now.

One produces pain later.

Do you know which is which?

Do you care?

Does it matter?

Can we do better than this poster suggests?

Preservation: Action will be taken to prevent the next disaster as soon as possible after it has occurred.

 Preservation: Action will be taken to prevent the next disaster as soon as possible after it has occurred.

How do you know?

Series Origin:

This series, a departure from my usual musings, is inspired as a result of conversations with former senior advisors to multiple Presidents of the United States, senior officers in the US Military and other interesting folks as well as my own professional background as a Wall St. / Fortune 25 strategy and large-scale technology architect.

While this musing is just “fiction” and a departure from my musings on technology, strategy, politics and society, as a strategy guy, I do everything for a reason and with a measurable outcome in mind. :-)

This “fictional” musing is a continuation of the #1206 series noted here.

Thursday, January 8, 2015

Social Media: When TMI Stands For "Steal My Identity"

If we don't act now to safeguard our privacy, we could all become victims of identity theft. - Bill Nelson

When it comes to privacy and accountability, people always demand the former for themselves and the latter for everyone else. - David Brin

While in Calgary airport the other night, I happened to overhear someone from the drilling industry in Calgary speaking to an airline representative on the phone.  While in the process of making a reservation change to postpone his flight until the next day, he gave his email address to the person on the other end of the conversation.

I started twiddling on my phone and my travel companion asked me what I was doing.

“Professional curiosity”, I replied as I continued to poke on my phone.

Within 60 seconds, I had obtained this person’s name, birthday, home and work addresses, his home, work and mobile numbers, his boss’s name and contact information and how long he would be out of town.  At the same time, I obtained the same personal information for his girlfriend, thus confirming that they lived apart.  I also had his flight reservation code. One call on my part could have obtained his credit card information as well since I had sufficient information to pose as either of them.

I looked at my travel companion, sighed and then made the following observation.

“So after 60 seconds, I can do the following.  I can alter his flight information, changing or cancelling his flight.  I know he is out of town so I can arrange to break into his home.  If his girlfriend is staying at his house while he is away, I can break into her home instead since I know where she lives also.  I could stop by to see his girlfriend or stalk her if I was depraved enough to do so.  Their social media profiles are open to posting by non-friends so I could post things on either of their social media profiles just for the point of making trouble (something like “It was great seeing you last night, __name__.  I was relieved when you said that __name__ wouldn’t be back into town until __date__ and can’t wait to see you again.” or “the company that I work for, __name__, really sucks and doesn’t know how to do anything right”).

I also had enough information to begin the process of stealing both of their identifies.

All because of a couple of pieces of information that we carelessly toss around at will, not caring who hears it, and being a little too liberal with what is shared on the Internet.

People are always screaming about the importance of governments and social media platforms like Facebook working harder to protect our privacy.

However, I think that we need to do a better job of protecting our own privacy.

What do you think?

In service and servanthood,

Harry

Addendum

In this situation, neither of the people had children.  If they had, it is likely that I would have been able to obtain more information about the children than the parents would have appreciated.  However, I was able to obtain information about their relatives’ children.  I’m not sure their relatives would have been amused.

What if it were your kids?

Wednesday, January 7, 2015

Charlie Hebdo, the Realities of Terror and the News Media

Life is not a problem to be solved, but a reality to be experienced. - Soren Kierkegaard

Since we cannot change reality, let us change the eyes which see reality. - Nikos Kazantzakis

As the world mourns the senseless slaying of the journalists at Charlie Hebdo in Paris today and the policemen who were assigned to protect them, there are two grim realities that we must come to accept in the 21st century:

    1. We can choose to have security and safety in our society or we can choose to have unlimited freedom.  We cannot have both.
    2. Whatever side we lean towards produces greater opportunity for compromise in the other.

Given that the average person in the western world demands freedom as an inalienable right of humanity, we trade away the opportunity for perfect safety and thus make terrorist attacks in the west not only possible but inevitable.

If we accept that such attacks are inevitable, then the notion that they are shocking and surprising is simply not logical and yet the news media runs banners such as this one on CNN.

CNN

As they run such banners, the rest of the world reels in shock, anger and dismay, falling to the negative emotions that modern news media seeks to evoke – negative emotions that will not produce any measurable, effective solutions moving forward but serve to keep us off balance.

Some would argue that the news media is reporting the news but I would counter that argument with the notion that if such events are inevitable, then they are in fact not news at all but rather just another routine event.

Meanwhile, other news that is much more shocking but cannot be leveraged by the news media goes unnoticed.

For example, 24,000 children under the age of 5 will die today from tainted water but that is not news since it doesn’t evoke enough emotion that can be used to attract viewers and ratings.

We have infrastructure including energy and water production and distribution that is open to an attack that could kill tens of millions but this is too frightening to comprehend so we don’t talk about that either.

But sadly, a terrorist attack offers just the perfect blend of outrage that touches our heart and spirit, drawing an outpouring of anger and grief that is just right for the news media.

Even more sadly, a group of innocent people died today in the Charlie Hebdo attack at the hands of misguided cowards.

And most sadly of all, innocent people will die from terrorist attacks in the future.because we collectively choose freedom over security.

When we make such choices, attacks like the one in Paris today shouldn’t surprise us because such attacks are inevitable.

And since we have made the choice that enables such an inevitable event, it is not newsworthy at all.

That’s not to say that such attacks cannot be prevented.

I’m also not suggesting that we not take a moment to honor those who died at the hands of cowards today.

But a preventable attack is something we are unwilling to invest in and in doing so, we acknowledge that today’s loss, while shocking, is somehow still acceptable.

While many would protest such a supposition, I would counter their protest with the idea that it is results and not merely desires and intentions that define how we see society.

If we truly wanted a totally safe society, we would draw a line in the sand and say that no more innocent people like the ones lost today will ever be lost to terrorism and we would then do whatever it takes to accomplish this.

However, I think we lack the desire to do what it takes, thereby defining a level of “acceptable losses” in society despite our cries to the contrary while making those lost today to have been lost in vain and without surprise. 

I also think in making the choices that we make, we give “the news media” more opportunity to share negative information that serves no value at all outside of shocking the people who made the collective decisions in the first place.

What do you think?

In service and servanthood,

Harry

Addendum

One of my readers asked me what we define as “acceptable levels of loss” in society. 

It’s a great question that I don’t have an answer for.

Do you?

Addendum 2 – January 9, 2015

It is more than three days since these events began and as I write this, the terror suspects are holding hostages as news media blasts this story live around the world.

This is unfortunately providing terrorists with the very thing they desire – free press for their cause.

I wonder what would happen if we didn’t report terror events at all (or just minimally), thus not providing the mouthpiece that the terrorists desire.

I doubt that the news media could be so self-disciplined as to give this a try.

What do you think?

Tuesday, January 6, 2015

Destroying Our World One Bias at a Time

All of us show bias when it comes to what information we take in. We typically focus on anything that agrees with the outcome we want. - Noreena Hertz

Fortunately for serious minds, a bias recognized is a bias sterilized. - Benjamin Haydon

I have always been fascinated with lateral puzzles, simple puzzles that challenge our preconceptions and biases by presenting a simple puzzle with a simple, obvious solution that we often overlook because of biases created by our Life experiences

Here’s an example of a lateral puzzle:

Acting on an anonymous phone call, the police raid a house to arrest a suspected murderer. They don't know what he looks like but they know his name is John and that he is inside the house. The police bust in on a carpenter, a truck driver, a mechanic and a fireman all playing poker. Without hesitation or communication of any kind, they immediately arrest the fireman. How do they know they've got their man?

The person solving the puzzle must ask a series of questions to which only yes or no answers can be provided until the puzzle is solved.

The difficulty in solving such puzzles is that our biases drive our perception of things and so the person solving the puzzle will often amuse us as they dance so close to the answer without seeing the obvious solution.

While the lateral puzzles may be a lot of fun and are a great exercise for our brain, they reveal surprising details about how our Life experiences cause us to jump to conclusions or ignore important but obvious details.

In the case of a game such as a lateral puzzle, the impact of asking the wrong questions or jumping to poor conclusions is insignificant.

However, in areas such as business, politics (domestic and international), society, relationships and other areas, our biases play a significant role in the individual and collective choices we make and thus the results we produce.

The Two Extremes

There are people who believe that love and love alone conquers all.  Such people blindly go about thinking positive thoughts as ignorant, indifferent and evil people go about accomplishing what they wish to accomplish.  Tell the “love conquers all” people that the world is at risk from things like cyber attacks on our infrastructure, nuclear war, collapsing economies and the like and they will ignore you, leaving society vulnerable to such challenges which in the coming years are becoming more and more likely.  No matter what is happening in the world, you will find them sharing things like this on social media:

Love: Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Love: Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Conversely, there are people who believe that the world is inevitably doomed and they are blind to acts of love, kindness, generosity and service that occur all around them.  Tell these people that miracles are in play all around us and they will tell you that it doesn’t matter as the world is coming to an end anyway as they allow their sense of defeatism to prevent them (or us) from seeking solutions.  You will probably find posters like this one hung up in their office:

Positivity: If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands. And put your face between 'em when you do. You'll save me a lot of trouble. Thanks.

Positivity: If you're happy and you know it, clap your hands. And put your face between 'em when you do. You'll save me a lot of trouble. Thanks.

The reality is that the potential for either to be true exists as the forces of good and evil struggle for supremacy in a world filled with challenge and unlimited potential.  What exacerbates this battle is that in many situations, the interpretation of good and evil is both perspective and Life context-based and so battle lines and objectives are often blurry.

Meanwhile ….. Oil and the Economy - When Biases Go Wrong

As the price of oil continues to fall ($48.00 per barrel USD as I write this), people are celebrating that cheaper gasoline is available on the market.  Many of these people are celebrating the idea (proven or not) that the “large and greedy oil companies” are finally being punished for years of alleged obscene profits.  Others believe that lower energy costs will drive the economy in a positive direction, forgetting that counter forces are in play that may negate the positive effect derived from cheaper energy and transportation costs.

One writer in Calgary, Alberta went as far as to cheer on the collapse of the energy sector, conjecturing that if the Alberta economy collapses, it will be easier for people like him to buy a house.  His article is here – It’s Hard Not to Cheer For Economic Downtown.  He forgets that if the economy collapses, credit rules will tighten and he will still unlikely be able to buy a house.  He also forgets that if the economy collapses, many government services will be reduced because of tightened budgets, thus hurting many people who rely on such services while sparing those who are already financially secure.  His belief that an economic collapse narrows the gap between the haves and the have-nots is unfounded since such a collapse would likely increase the gap.

All of these people fail to notice the larger, more significant play – that declining prices in commodities, specifically the energy sector, could play a significant role in a larger global destabilization that may impact ALL of us. 

The Bottom Line

A commodities market in free fall, especially in the energy sector, creates opportunities to destabilize economies already built upon the house of cards that is our debt-based political and societal systems.  It may also reveal how well prepared our political leaders are for the market collapse which many of us have been predicting for some time since they won’t be able to candy coat the scenarios that the collapse creates.  Likely they will act surprised and say that no one could see it coming.  *Yawn*

The collapse may also create a problematic situation for countries like Russia, whose economy is already in economic free fall.  If Russia gets desperate for cash, Putin gets desperate to retain his hold on power or he is desperate to find an opportunity to restore national pride, we may have more trouble than we realize.  Never underestimate what desperation can produce in a person or a nation.

In either situation, the cheaper gasoline we are enjoying today may seem desirable but we may pay a much higher price down the road and because of this, we need to be careful what we cheer for.

Unrestrained love alone will not solve the potential problems this creates nor will unrestrained pessimism do much better as either creates the opportunity to hurt everyone significantly if we guess wrong.

An effective solution must be found quickly but in seeking such a solution, some questions come to mind:

    1. Can we find a long term solution in time or are we content to harvest what we believe serves our needs for the short term?
    2. Do we even care?
    3. Do we understand what may happen if we don’t care?

Would your answers be different if you knew that political and military leaders were planning for potential disasters on a national and international level should things go wrong with what is developing in the energy sector?

Some of these leaders believe that such disasters are inevitable and are planning political, law-enforcement and military-based responses for such events.

Do you believe that such disasters are possible?

Are you prepared for what could be produced as a result of the current commodities free fall?

I guess it depends on what kind of biases you have, doesn’t it?

Which way are you biased?

Are your biases destroying or saving the world?

How do you know?

In service and servanthood,

Harry

Lateral Puzzle Answer:

The answer to the puzzle is fairly obvious.  The mechanic, the truck driver and the carpenter are all women.