Citizens United vs. the Federal Election Commission

It is our position that the recent Supreme Court decision regarding campaign finance law reaffirms a fundamental liberty guaranteed by our Constitution – freedom of speech. The high Court determined that “Congress shall make no law abridging free speech” stating that, “Speech is an essential mechanism of democracy-it is the means to hold officials accountable to the people.” The decision also determined that “the right of free speech did not discern between individual or corporate identity”, or the “financial ability to engage in public discussion”.

The Age Paradox

I guess they call it over-the-hill because once we pass the summit; life accelerates at a startling rate. We have more to do and less time to do it. Kids. Careers. Parents. Houses. Assets. Building Assets. At mid-life, it is all in play. No doubt, the heaviest lifting happens when we are young – trying to figure out what we like – and perhaps equally important, what we can do that might actually add value to the world around us. But by the top of the mountain, we have learned skills and generally figured out how to survive. Then, the ride really begins.

Yet the journey from that point on is rife with paradox. Many of us have accumulated more friends, family and stuff than we could ever

Summer Break Down

Recently much has been said about tuition and schedule alternatives to the traditional four-year college degree. Many institutions, including Ball State and Purdue, have recently announced initiatives to make it easier (and in some cases cheaper) for kids to pursue a diploma without spending as many years on campus. Advocates for the plans point to savings, sometimes significant, to young people and their families if the matriculation comes earlier and full-time employment starts quicker. While the math holds up, many claim that intangibles like the maturity and perspective gained during the fourth (or more) year on campus can’t be offset by a year of saved expenses and earning capacity. Still others defend the existing system citing the expectations of teachers, students and parents to have summer, fall, winter and spring breaks.

You Can’t Fit This…

Timing, as William Shakespeare is to have penned, is everything. It seems to enjoy more universal truth than many of the aphorisms on which we hang our daily lives. And like most simple veracities, it asserts itself in both the most humble and grand ways. Over the years, my closet has burgeoned with vestment that, with my limited sartorial saliency, seem to, if you will forgive the pun, suit me. Therefore, the acquisition of new attire has slowed a great deal from my younger days. If, to paraphrase an infamous American, if the suit fits, you must acquit. If we can get it buttoned, shouldn’t we wear it? Even as the answer to this question is roiling in one’s mind, know that I am routinely acknowledged for keeping some things a “little” too long. In fact, missing and lost artifacts of my dressing past often become laundry fatalities –

Book by Its Cover

Whenever possible and practical, it makes sense to support local shops and restaurants. While there are certainly any number of out-of-state or internationally owned businesses that do good things here in our town, the biggest and most vociferous advocates for our communities are ordinarily those that are home-grown. Pfizer may sell a ton of its pharmaceuticals in central Indiana, but it was Eli Lilly & Company that threw its support behind our Super Bowl effort. Pfizer is likely helping get the big game to be slated in New York where its HQ is based. But, I also like the fact that local businesses are often smaller and closer to the intent of the original founders. They are more able to adapt to local influence and standards. And, they are much more likely to deliver a unique and distinctly regional attitude.

WorldWide Misspeak

In a world of instant messaging and the land of ubiquitous social media, an off-handed remark can be broadcast to thousands – perhaps millions of people.  Urged by the goal of expanding those who know and understand the importance of routine philanthropy in their lives, our community foundation, The LegacyFund, has started a program to make full use of the array of these modern communication tools including Facebook, Twitter, blogs, and LinkedIn.  Mostly Legacy Fund posts photos of local events and heroes along with the occasional notice of some piece designed to inspire giving. Yet when reposting a story from the Wall Street Journal which innocuously enough supported corporate philanthropy, a far-away reader jumped into the fray with a stinging assessment of the purported generosity of the business leaders who give.  Now, it seems that one can, at the push of an all-too-easy button on the handy cell phone, post each fragment of thought.

Network Solutions

Sometimes it seems like Greta Garbo may have had it right when she said, “I want to be alone.” But that feeling seldom lasts long and we miss the company of friends and family. Even Garbo adjusted her most famous utterance to “I never said, I want to be alone. I only said, I want to be left alone. There is all the difference.” She had a point. As much as we need each other, don’t we also crave a little space? If the paradox of social interaction is the ultimate fixture of the human condition then “networking” is its calling card.

Encarta defines it in two ways:

Acuity of Vision

The blame lies with dependence on the tiny screen of our smartphones. How could we humans be expected to spend hours per day peering desperately into the 3 by 4 inch monitor without some negative impact on our vision? With tiny, tiny print and all-too-much information jam-packed into its alluring interactive screen, some of us have become dependent on the reminders, messages and news that arrive throughout the day. Yet whatever the reason for our collective and growing addiction, I hold it to account for my ever diminishing acuity of vision. When complaining about it, my less tactful friends will point out that for decades I’ve awakened in the morning instantly able to see both near and far without assistance. And even as peers have succumbed to glasses, contacts or surgery, I’ve lived blissfully unaware of these challenges.