The BEZ

What will become of South Africa?

Al Gini | Jan. 8, 2013

Jan. 8, 2013

Since early summer, Nelson Mandela has been in and out of the hospital. At 94, he is suffering from a host of maladies that are common to the aging process. Like all of us, he is dying, but at a somewhat accelerated pace.

As the poets suggest— in every person's passing we are all diminished. And in Mandela’s case, his death not only diminishes us as a species, but it could also radically effect the political landscape of a country he loves and literally helped create.

Many political observers feel that Mandela’s passing will remind the people of South Africa of two unassailable facts: that real progress has been made, and how much there is yet to be done. Today, thanks in great part to Mandela’s political and economic initiatives as well as his moral leadership, South Africa is on the mend. Unemployment has been cut in half, discrimination in housing, education, and health care have been addressed head on. Tourism has radically increased. And, South Africa is now a serious player in the global marketplace.

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Happiness pays

By: Al Gini | Dec. 20, 2012

Dec. 20, 2012

According to a recent study by the National Academy of Sciences, financial success is not necessarily determined by education, IQ, family background or a strong sense of self. After studying the profiles of over 10,000 Americans ages 16, 18, 22 and 29 they determined that a personal sense of happiness and optimism were the key determinants to financial success in life.

The report maintains that people who express more positive emotions and a greater sense of life satisfaction earn ten percent more in salaries than their respective peers in their age group. Deeply unhappy individuals on the other hand, earn 30 percent less. The study went on to report that happier teens were “more likely to get a college degree, to get hired and promoted, and to be optimistic, extraverted, and less neurotic.”

As a veteran of more than 40 years in a college classroom, I’m not at all surprised by the National Academy’s findings. It’s been my experience that my best students were the ones who were happy in their private lives, and happy for the opportunity to be in school.

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A very merry Buddhist Christmas

By: Al Gini | Dec. 18, 2012

Dec. 18, 2012

Lately I’ve been doing a little reading and research in Buddhist literature and philosophy. At the core of Buddhist thought is the achievement of personal wisdom and the practice of ethical conduct.

Buddhism argues that the world is imperfect, that life is full of suffering and that human nature is flawed. Nevertheless, our goal as rational and spiritual creatures is to accept the imperfections of reality, overcome our limitations and try to create a self that is free from the false illusions of success and the deadening effects of fear, frustration, disappointment and depression.

My reading of this venerable tradition is that life is a journey of suffering and self-improvement. We must find a middle way between self-indulgence (hedonism) and excessive self-mortification (asceticism) to achieve contentment. The goal laid out by Siddhartha Gautama (the Buddha) is the achievement of the “Noble Eightfold Path.”

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Conversations with a school shooter

By: Tim Akimoff | Dec. 15, 2012

Dec. 15, 2012

His Wikipedia entry identifies him as a spree killer.

I knew him as Kip Kinkle.

And I didn’t really know him. Not in person anyway.

He was a digital impression on my computer screen. A flashing cursor and a burning list of unanswered questions.

I was a 27-year-old student at Chemeketa Community College in Salem, Oregon.

And so was Kip Kinkle.

The only difference is he was serving a 111-year-sentence at MacLaren Correctional Facility for murdering his parents and for killing two students at Thurston High School in Eugene and wounding 24 others.

I first noticed his name in the roster of an online writing class. I no longer remember which class. But I still remember thinking that there could not possibly be two people named Kip Kinkle in Oregon.

Turns out there wasn’t.

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Some worthy books to buy for Christmas or for yourself

By: Al Gini | Dec. 14, 2012

Dec. 14, 2012

Years ago I gave up the elusive quest for the perfect Christmas gift and started buying everyone a book that I hoped they would love — or at leaset one they'd find interesting. Of course, this too is tricky to figure out. But my formula is a simple one: If I read it and liked it maybe they’ll like it too! So here’s my list of pre-certified books that may fit your gift needs — or could simply wind up being a gift you buy for yourself!

1.    Gillian Flynn, Gone Girl

Flynn’s book surprised me and the publishing world as well. It’s been on the New York Times Best Seller list for over 26 weeks. The reason is simple: It's plot driven, character rich and suspense laden, a murder mystery without a murder. It’s about a missing wife, a troubled marriage and a totally self-centered woman who feels she has the right to play fast with the lives of everyone she knows.

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Getting into the Christmas (consumer) spirit

By: Al Gini | Dec. 13, 2012

Dec. 13, 2012

At least since the time I was in college (which was right after Guttenberg came up with the idea of a printing press), economists have been using the Christmas gift-buying season an indices by which to measure the health of the national economy. Depending on whose statistics you want to accept, 40 to 60 percent of all consumer sales happen during the holiday season (Thanksgiving to approximately January 15). In the last few years of course, Christmas sales volume has taken on an extra special significance. As the Recession drags on, businesses look more and more to the spike in sales usually associated with Christmas in order to perk up their overall sales numbers for the year. Consequently, more and more gimmicks have been created to draw people into the holiday shopping frenzy. The traditional “Black Friday” sales have now been expanded to “Black Wednesday Pre-sales,” and some chain stores and local stores have “Black Thursday” sales.

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Let it snow

Rick Kogan | Dec. 12, 2012

Dec. 12, 2012

It is the twelfth of December in the year 2020, and the little girl climbs onto her father's lap and asks, "Daddy, did you ever see snow?"

The father laughs.

"Oh, yes, honey, there used to be lots of snow in Chicago," he says.

"What happened?" asks the little girl. "When did it stop?"

"Well, that's a tough question to answer," says the father. "But I'll try. Seems to me that in the 1990s the winters had started to get a little easier; they weren't as cold, there wasn't as much snow, the wind didn't howl as loudly, and the Santas who stood on street corners could sometimes be seen perspiring and drinking iced tea. More and more people started talking about these mild winters—but no one really did anything about them.

“And so people in winter started playing golf and jogging and doing stuff in the lake, which used to freeze sometimes because it would get so cold. And people started going to places like Canada and the Swiss Alps, where they still had snow and where it was cold.”

He pauses for a moment in reflection.

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Rick Kogan Essay: The beat generation

Rick Kogan | Dec. 10, 2012

Dec. 10, 2012

In a couple of minutes, you’ll hear about some bad cops—but first, the story of two beat cops.

There was, of course, the day that Jack was knocked to the pavement while chasing a man who had just robbed Walgreens. And one day, some years ago, Dom had to pull his gun while trying to catch a bank robber. But on most days the hardest thing Jack Haran and Dominic La Calamita had to do was explain the difference between the Water Tower and Water Tower Place.

They were cops.

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