The Rambling Taoists

Chapter 18B - Doctrine of the Mean

2012-05-30T20:30:00.001-07:00

"It was in his old age that king Wû received the appointment to the throne, and the duke of Châu completed the virtuous course of Wan and Wû. He carried up the title of king to T'âi and Chî, and sacrificed to all the former dukes above them with the royal ceremonies. And this rule he extended to the princes of the kingdom, the great officers, the scholars, and the common people. If the father were a great officer and the son a scholar, then the burial was that due to a great officer, and the sacrifice that due to a scholar. If the father were a scholar and the son a great officer, then the burial was that due to a scholar, and the sacrifice that due to a great officer. The one year's mourning was made to extend only to the great officers, but the three years' mourning extended to the Son of Heaven. In the mourning for a father or mother, he allowed no difference between the noble and the mean."
~ James Legge translation via nothingistic.org ~

Go here to read the introductory post to this serialized version of the Doctrine of the Mean.

Huainanzi - Entry 73

2012-05-30T18:30:00.002-07:00

Trey Smith

When sternness is overextended, it becomes ferocity; and if you are fierce, you lack gentility.
~ a passage from The Book of Leadership and Strategy by Thomas Cleary ~

In my time as a child abuse investigator, one of the issues I confronted with some parents is that there is a difference between "physical" discipline and abuse. The former is based on trying to get a specific lesson across and utilizing the least amount of force possible. The latter, on the other hand, tends to be an angry response to a perceived transgression and the level of force is somewhat or completely unrestrained.

In one case, a stepfather beat his developmentally-disabled stepson with a baseball bat because the boy missed the toilet when trying to pee (a common problem, it turns out, due to several of the boy's physical deformities). The man argued that he was trying to get a specific point across: aim better. However, the ferocity of his "discipline" method blotted out the message entirely. All it did was make the young man more nervous and anxious each time he needed to go to the bathroom and his "nervousness" made the outcome his stepfather didn't desire far more likely!

To read the introduction to this ongoing series, go here.

Afternoon Matinee: Close To You - The Story of The Carpenters 1/5

2012-05-30T16:30:00.001-07:00

Be Careful Who You Criticize

2012-05-30T13:00:00.003-07:00

Trey Smith

We all know that Bain Capital, Mitt Romney’s former firm, is the paragon of capitalist evil, destroying the middle class in order to enrich greedy vulture oligarchs. We also all know that the Democratic Party is the defender of the middle class and the bold adversary of corporate pillaging. That’s why these facts generate so much cognitive dissonance:
Democrats have accepted more political donations than Republicans from executives at Bain Capital, complicating the left’s plan to attack Mitt Romney for his record at the private-equity firm.

During the last three election cycles, Bain employees have given Democratic candidates and party committees more than $1.2 million. The vast majority of that sum came from senior executives.

Republican candidates and party committees raised over $480,000 from senior Bain executives during that time period.
While Romney himself has received more contributions from his former firm than Obama has, “President Obama received a sizable share as well.” More generally, “campaign finance records show that Democrats collect more money from Wall Street than does the GOP.”

Why would these cunning Master of the Universe villains want so robustly to fund a party that is so adverse to their interests? The only coherent answer is that the party which they’re funding is anything but adverse to their interests.
~ from Democrats and Bain by Glenn Greenwald ~

Information like this goes a long way toward proving that national politics is little more than smoke-and-mirrors. The President and his fellow Democrats skewer Mitt Romney for his connection to Bain Capital, while...ahem...accepting contributions from that same firm hand over fist!

But the last paragraph above is the real kicker. Democrats are painting themselves as the party of the 99 percent, yet they are receiving bigger handouts than the Republicans from the 1 percent. So, who do you think the so-called liberals will go to bat for when push comes to shove?

If you think it's you, then might I suggest a mental health counselor to help you work through your delusions?

Line by Line - Verse 69, Lines 10-11

2012-05-30T11:11:00.003-07:00

Thus it is that when opposing weapons are (actually) crossed, he who deplores (the situation) conquers.
~ James Legge translation, from The Sacred Books of the East, 1891 ~

Therefore when the battle is joined,
The underdog will win.
~ Gia-fu Feng and Jane English translation, published by Vintage Books, 1989 ~

So when evenly matched armies meet
The side that is compassionate shall win
~ Derek Lin translation, from Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths, 2006 ~

When two forces oppose each other,
the winner is the one most reluctant to fight.
~ Ron Hogan rendition, from Beatrice.com, 2004 ~

I think Ron Hogan really nails this one!

People or nations that constantly are ready for war are losers, regardless of whether or not they win or lose their battles. War represents a failure of the human imagination and, if that's all you seem to be "good" at, what does that say about you?

To view the Index page for this series to see what you may have missed or would like to read again, go here.

Bee Very Concerned!

2012-05-30T09:45:00.003-07:00

Trey Smith

Newly published scientific evidence is bolstering calls for greater regulation of some of the world’s most widely used pesticides and genetically modified crops.

Earlier this year, three independent studies linked agricultural insecticides to colony collapse disorder, a phenomenon that leads honeybees to abandon their hives.

Beekeepers have reported alarming losses in their hives over the last six years. The USDA reports the loss in the United States was about 30 percent in the winter of 2010-2011.

Bees are crucial pollinators in the ecosystem. Their loss also impacts the estimated $15 billion worth of fruit and vegetable crops that are pollinated by bees in the United States.

The studies, conducted in the United States, France, and the United Kingdom, all pointed to neonicotinoids, a class of chemicals used widely in U.S. corn production, as likely contributors to colony collapse disorder. The findings challenged the EPA’s position—based on studies by Bayer CropScience, a major producer of the neonicotinoid clothianidin — that bees are only exposed to small, benign amounts of these insecticides.
~ from A Last (Chemical) Gasp for Bees? by Shannan Stoll ~

Here's a thought to think about: No bees, no food! It's probably not quite THAT dramatic, but bees play a critical role in the viability of human life. If bees were to become extinct, we would all be in a world of hurt!

Since this is a simple truth understood by scientists, why would some of them turn a blind eye?

The answer is twofold. The first, of course, is about money. The corporations that manufacture and sell neonicotinoids don't want to lose their cash cow! The insecticides they peddle have made them very rich and they like being very rich. If their being rich means danger to our shared ecosystem, then that's the price we all must pay.

I suspect the second reason is that these same folks believe that technology will save us. If all the bees die off, then they magically will invent some new [vile] substance to take the place of bees in the pollination process.

Me thinks Mother Nature will not be amused and will show these greedy dunderheads that she is not the kind of person to mess with. I think her message will be crystal clear: You want to kill my bees? Fine. Then you won't eat!

Chapter 18A - Doctrine of the Mean

2012-05-30T07:30:00.001-07:00

The Master said, "It is only king Wan of whom it can be said that he had no cause for grief! His father was king Chî, and his son was king Wû. His father laid the foundations of his dignity, and his son transmitted it.

"King Wû continued the enterprise of king T'âi, king Chî, and king Wan. He once buckled on his armor, and got possession of the kingdom. He did not lose the distinguished personal reputation which he had throughout the kingdom. His dignity was the royal throne. His riches were the possession of all within the four seas. He offered his sacrifices in his ancestral temple, and his descendants maintained the sacrifices to himself.
~ James Legge translation via nothingistic.org ~

Go here to read the introductory post to this serialized version of the Doctrine of the Mean.

Daily Tao - Memory Master

2012-05-30T06:00:00.001-07:00

He was said to have the best memory of all.

It had nothing in it.

Daily Tao is a reprint from Ta-Wan's blog, Daily Cup of Tao, which offers one post per day for an entire year. You also can read these posts in an ebook.

Plaguing Others

2012-05-30T04:03:00.001-07:00

Scott Bradley

The fourth of the Inner Chapters of the Zhuangzi (those generally assumed to have actually been written by Zhuangzi (ca. 369-286 B.C.E.)) begins with an extensive, hypothetical conversation between Confucius and his favorite disciple, Yan Hui. Yan wishes to go set right a tyrannical ruler of a nearby kingdom by "applying" the principles Confucius has taught him. Confucius will have none of it; Yan is not yet ready.

"The Consummate Persons of old made sure they had it in themselves," says Confucius, "before they tried to put it into others." (4:3; Ziporyn) Principles are not something exterior to ourselves that we apply; they are something we are, and until we are what we wish to preach, we have no business preaching at all.

You were expecting me to shut up at this point? Well, my excuse is that I am teaching myself in public, not proclaiming "the" Way. Still, I am in some sense 'committing yang', putting forth ideas I have not fully realized and generally materializing an egoic presence which can (and has) impinge(d) upon other egoic presences. Such is life: messy.

"Confucius" calls applying to others principles which one has not personally realized, "plaguing others". And the consequence of plaguing others is being plagued by others in return. If others do not accept what we have to say, there is only one place to look for the cause, ourselves. I have previously quoted Mencius in this regard: "If others do not respond to your love with love, look into your own benevolence; if others fail to respond to your attempts to govern them, look into your own wisdom; . . . . In other words, look into yourself whenever you fail to achieve your purpose" (Mencius, IV A 3).

Zhuangzi's Confucius cuts right to the heart of this inclination to apply principles to, preach to, and govern others. "Virtuosity [te] is undermined by getting a name for it. Cleverness [zhi; wisdom, knowledge] comes forth from conflict. For a good name is essentially a way for people to one-up each other, and cleverness is most essentially a weapon for winning a fight. Both are inauspicious implements, not the kind of thing that can be used to perfect your own behavior." All this equates to the essential of egoic behavior — trying to be somebody. It can neither perfect the behavior of others nor accomplish the true work, perfecting one's own.

"Confucius" eventually leads Yan to the realization that his first responsibility is to learn freedom from self. And this he does when he discovers and surrenders into his own essential emptiness, the very conduit for the expression of Dao, and proclaims, "it turns out that 'myself' has never begun to exist" (4:10).

You can check out Scott's writings on Zhuangzi here.

Question - Why Do Christians Get Divorced?

2012-05-29T23:10:00.003-07:00

Trey Smith

Divorce -- legal dissolution of a marriage -- is very prevalent in American society. The most recent data indicates that about one-half of all marriages end in divorce. Couples from all faiths or no faith regularly divorce. My question is: Why do Christians sanction divorce just as non-believers do?

I ask this in light of Matthew 5:31-32.

It hath been said, Whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement: But I say unto you, That whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth her to commit adultery: and whosoever shall marry her that is divorced committeth adultery.

That seems very clear to me. Unless you catch your spouse screwing someone else, divorce is off the table! Since being an adulterer is a big no-no -- it's one of the 10 Commandments -- how can a Christian claim to follow Jesus IF they can't bother to abide by a very direct and straightforward prohibition?

Just as important, why do most Christian churches sanction -- or look the other way -- when it comes to the issue of divorce? There are many prominent ministers, church leaders and faith-based politicians and celebrities who have divorced (for reasons other than fornication) and even remarried. Why aren't they automatically shunned (or stoned, for that matter) as adulterers?

To see what other questions I've asked about the Christian Bible, go here.

Chapter 17 - Doctrine of the Mean

2012-05-29T20:30:00.001-07:00

The Master said, "How greatly filial was Shun! His virtue was that of a sage; his dignity was the throne; his riches were all within the four seas. He offered his sacrifices in his ancestral temple, and his descendants preserved the sacrifices to himself.

"Therefore having such great virtue, it could not but be that he should obtain the throne, that he should obtain those riches, that he should obtain his fame, that he should attain to his long life.

"Thus it is that Heaven, in the production of things, is sure to be bountiful to them, according to their qualities. Hence the tree that is flourishing, it nourishes, while that which is ready to fall, it overthrows.

"In the Book of Poetry, it is said, 'The admirable, amiable prince displayed conspicuously his excelling virtue, adjusting his people, and adjusting his officers. Therefore, he received from Heaven his emoluments of dignity. It protected him, assisted him, decreed him the throne; sending from Heaven these favors, as it were repeatedly.'

"We may say therefore that he who is greatly virtuous will be sure to receive the appointment of Heaven."
~ James Legge translation via nothingistic.org ~

Go here to read the introductory post to this serialized version of the Doctrine of the Mean.

Poor Poor Pitiful Me

2012-05-29T18:30:00.005-07:00

Trey Smith

In my last post, Weigh on Down, I briefly discussed the challenge the chronic pain sufferer must deal with to ward off depression. Of course, the other part of the issue is fighting the urge to feel sorry for yourself.

Let's face it. We all do it. At different points in our life, things don't go as well as we might like. Sometimes our problems are of our own making and sometimes it's just the luck of the draw. Regardless of which one it is -- it often is a combination of both -- we get to thinking that the stars are conspiring against us and experiencing great glee at our travails and misfortune.

Since we are each self-centered and self-focused, we tend to view all the aspects of life through the prism of me. If the grandiose me isn't getting what it desires, then it tends to be mad at the world writ large and to coddle itself for being so "unfairly" impinged upon!

This kind of attitude is easy for the chronic sufferer of pain to fall into. For most of us, this isn't the kind of existence we asked for. Most of us are powerless to stop or lessen the pain or infirmity to a significant degree. All we know is that, by the luck of the draw, we have become a prisoner that is chained to it and, in some cases, it amounts to a life sentence.

So, how do we ward off self-pity? There is no one magic formula. Each one of us must dig deep to find our own answer.

In my particular case, being an individual who does not believe in an afterlife, I reckon that this is my one chance at life. Regardless of the hand I've drawn, I need to live this one life to the fullest extent possible, even if the fullest extent is damn meager.

I didn't ask for this life -- the Grand Mystery decided that for me and nature will take me away when it deems the time is appropriate. Between these two points on the continuum is my time to make the best of things...the best that I can.

Afternoon Matinee: Human Nature As an Evolved Creature 2/2

2012-05-29T16:30:00.001-07:00

Weigh On Down

2012-05-29T13:00:00.003-07:00

Trey Smith

For those of you who live with chronic pain, this post will in no way provide any sort of revelation. You know as well as I do that one of the great challenges to life is staying upbeat. Constant pain has a way of wearing you down; it is a weight that is seldom relieved.

Our mind and bodies feed off of each other. When the former is bound up in tension and anxiety, we often suffer physically. It is just as true the other way around. When our body is wracked with pain, it can disturb the mind.

Part of the problem is that we feel like a shell of our former selves. Many of us can remember times -- some not that long ago -- when we were more active. We can recall times when gardening, cooking, helping a neighbor with a strenuous project or playing with the grandkids was easily within our reach. We can remember when getting out of bed, dressing ourselves or bathing was a run-of-the-mill activity.

Chronic pain, particularly the kind that grows progressively worse, robs us of our ability to be independent actors. We are forced to rely on others more, even to perform once routine tasks. After a while, it's hard not to feel that we've become a burden to our friends and family.

And so, it's a constant struggle to keep ourselves from falling into depression. It's a constant fight not to throw up our hands and wave the final white flag.

Line by Line - Verse 69, Line 9

2012-05-29T11:11:00.002-07:00

To do that is near losing (the gentleness) which is so precious.
~ James Legge translation, from The Sacred Books of the East, 1891 ~

By underestimating the enemy, I almost lost what I value.
~ Gia-fu Feng and Jane English translation, published by Vintage Books, 1989 ~

Underestimating the enemy almost made me lose my treasures
~ Derek Lin translation, from Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths, 2006 ~

[No corresponding line]
~ Ron Hogan rendition, from Beatrice.com, 2004 ~

Derek Lin takes this line and applies it to current society.

Many people believe that overwhelming aggression wins respect. This belief forms the basis of the "shock and awe" military strategy. History shows that it simply does not work. Aggression succeeds only in planting the seeds of subsequent retaliation. It is wisdom and restraint that win respect and admiration, not force.

Hence, the so-called "War on Terror" cannot be won. It only plants the seeds for more terror by all sides!

To view the Index page for this series to see what you may have missed or would like to read again, go here.

Killing the Messenger

2012-05-29T09:45:00.003-07:00

Trey Smith

It seems the old adage is true: Nobody likes a snitch! This sentiment especially is true of those in power. They don't like their shenanigans exposed to the public, particularly when such exposure places them in a bad light and suggests some degree of dishonesty, corruption or lawlessness.

But something in our world has changed over the past generation or two. It used to be that the information released by whistleblowers led to some recriminations plus efforts to ensure that the dubious or nefarious activities exposed would not be repeated again (think of the Pentagon Papers). Today, however, that's not what occurs at all. Instead of looking at the misdeeds exposed, the powers that be go out of their way to go after the messenger, the whistleblower!

As statistics show, the Obama administration has gone after more whistleblowers -- folks exposing government dishonesty, illegality and/or malfeasance -- than all previous presidential administrations combined! Bradley Manning and WikiLeaks are the poster children of these efforts. At the same time, they willfully have chosen NOT to investigate any of the "crimes" exposed nor punish anyone responsible for them.

This is not simply a US problem either. This same scenario is playing out in Vatican City. The butler for the Pope has been arrested for leaking documents to the Italian press that include "allegations of corruption, mismanagement and cronyism in the awarding of contracts for work in the Vatican and internal disagreement on the management of the Vatican bank."

Since this is a Christian organization -- one that follows in the footsteps of a certain Jewish carpenter -- they must be handling the situation far differently than Barack Obama, right? No way! The powers in the church vehemently have attacked the butler and one higher up stated that, like Jesus, the Pope has been betrayed by his own Judas!

All attention has been focused on the messenger and not on the activities he exposed. The Vatican has been working hard to sweep their dirty laundry back under the rug in the hope that nobody notices the huge lump in the carpet!!

Chapter 16 - Doctrine of the Mean

2012-05-29T07:30:00.001-07:00

The Master said, "How abundantly do spiritual beings display the powers that belong to them!

"We look for them, but do not see them; we listen to, but do not hear them; yet they enter into all things, and there is nothing without them.

"They cause all the people in the kingdom to fast and purify themselves, and array themselves in their richest dresses, in order to attend at their sacrifices. Then, like overflowing water, they seem to be over the heads, and on the right and left of their worshipers.

"It is said in the Book of Poetry, 'The approaches of the spirits, you cannot surmise; and can you treat them with indifference?'

"Such is the manifestness of what is minute! Such is the impossibility of repressing the outgoings of sincerity!"
~ James Legge translation via nothingistic.org ~

Go here to read the introductory post to this serialized version of the Doctrine of the Mean.

Daily Tao - Look Back

2012-05-29T06:00:00.001-07:00

You're looking for something,

That if you did not already have,

You'd be unable to begin in looking,

See ?

Daily Tao is a reprint from Ta-Wan's blog, Daily Cup of Tao, which offers one post per day for an entire year. You also can read these posts in an ebook.

How Things Are

2012-05-29T04:03:00.001-07:00

Scott Bradley

Zhuangzi relates a story about the wake of Lao Dan (Laozi) in which one of his admirers, Qin Shi, arrives to participate in the mourning, but after a few quick expressions of grief, precipitously departs. Qin's disciple enquires as to whether he did not love the deceased and how such an apparently superficial expression of grief could reflect that love. The master replies that he expected to find mourners there who exemplified the teaching of Lao Dan, but instead he found an excessive expression of grief, a clear indication that they had failed to realize his teaching. He departed for fear that he, too, should get caught up in such folly.

(Some translators put the blame on Lao Dan for having acquired adulating and dependent disciples, rather than ones free of such excessive attachments. Ziporyn's translation seems to me the more likely meaning.)

Qin Shi explains that succumbing to this overflowing of grief, "would be to flee from the Heavenly and turn away from how things are." (Zhuangzi, 3:8; Ziporyn) Lao Dan, for his part, embraced the unavoidable with equanimity: "When the time came to go, he followed along with the flow. Resting content in the time and finding his place in the flow, joy and sorrow had no way to seep in." These mourners took death as a great tragedy, but he for whom they mourned understood it to be just one more transformation within the flow of endless transformation. He had effectively "put life and death outside himself".

There is something special about the inevitability of death; nothing serves better to bring us face to face with "the Heavenly". The Heavenly is that which is given, beyond knowing the what and the why of it; it is "how things are". Some might fear and flee it; Daoism embraces it as a means to liberation in life.

Death, though the most powerful example of the unavoidable, is not the only expression of "how things are". Indeed, every moment of our existence is nothing more than an encounter with the inevitable. It might be that our present circumstances were avoidable, but that does not change their present unavoidability. These, too, are thus an invitation to release and liberation through acceptance, affirmation and thankfulness. They are, each one, an opportunity to transcendence, an opportunity to flow without resistance.

It is normal that we should mourn the loss of someone loved; grief and sorrow, like joy and gladness, are authentic human expressions. Only to be balanced and healthy, they must also be informed by that open-ended 'bigger picture' which renders them relative. We mourn the loss of a loved-one, but we understand, too, that nothing is truly ever lost in Vastness.

The most authentic human expressions are both intensely experienced and transcended. Writes Fang Yizhi (1611-1671): “When he is sad, it is a sadness in which neither happiness nor sadness can get at him. Happiness is the certainly happiness, but sadness is also a kind of happiness.”

You can check out Scott's writings on Zhuangzi here.

Tao Bible - Matthew 5:29

2012-05-28T23:11:00.002-07:00

And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.
~ King James version ~

Love of colors bewilders the eye and it fails to see right.
Love of harmonies bewitches the ear, and it loses its true hearing.
Love of perfumes fills the head with dizziness.
Love of flavors ruins the taste.
Desires unsettle the heart until the original nature runs amok.
~ from Chapter 12 of the Zhuangzi ~

When we allow our insatiable desires to rule the roost, we so cover up the divine within us/our inner nature that we create our own anguish and misery. Keep those unmitigated desires in check and our lives will flow much smoother.

If you're interested in reading more from this experimental series, go to the Tao Bible Index page.

Chapter 15 - Doctrine of the Mean

2012-05-28T20:30:00.001-07:00

The way of the superior man may be compared to what takes place in traveling, when to go to a distance we must first traverse the space that is near, and in ascending a height, when we must begin from the lower ground.

It is said in the Book of Poetry, "Happy union with wife and children is like the music of lutes and harps. When there is concord among brethren, the harmony is delightful and enduring. Thus may you regulate your family, and enjoy the pleasure of your wife and children."

The Master said, "In such a state of things, parents have entire complacence!"
~ James Legge translation via nothingistic.org ~

Go here to read the introductory post to this serialized version of the Doctrine of the Mean.

Such a Flirt!

2012-05-28T18:30:00.003-07:00

Trey Smith

A while back, I was up visiting my buddy Paul at his mini mart. Being the close friend of the owner means I get to sit behind the counter. When people come in, I sometimes take part in the banter between the staff and the customers.

After one particular customer left, Dan (the night stocker, not stalker) remarked that the woman had been flirting up a storm with me. He kiddingly chastised me for flirting back because "you're a married guy!"

But here's the thing: I wasn't aware that any flirting was going on! From my perspective, all we were doing was shooting the breeze.

In all honesty, I don't understand flirting at all. While I certainly understand the dictionary definition of the word, I can't spot it in real time in real life. What others consider to be flirting, I consider to be simply talking and I tend to relate to people the same way regardless of their gender, age or level of physical attractiveness.

From reviewing the literature, I realize this is related to my autism. It is because I don't read people well (or at all!) that I can't tell when a woman is expressing interest -- casual or serious -- in me. I tend to take things at face value and, unless someone straightforwardly expresses a direct interest in an intimate and/or sexual relationship, I'm certain to miss the obvious hints.

In our society -- though this is changing -- the guy is expected to make the first move. In ALL of my dating experiences years ago, I NEVER made the first move. The gal I was with either had to kiss me first or ask me why I wasn't trying to kiss her. If the latter, I would ask if she wanted me to kiss her and, on more than one occasion, the answer was Duh!

Of course, being a long-time married bloke, this isn't that important of an issue in my life right now. It's really immaterial if a woman flirts with me or not. I'm not in the market for an extramarital affair. But I often wonder that, if Della was to die in the next few years, I might be back on the market. I would be just as lost in the world of women and dating as I was in my youth.

That would create a lot of anxiety, so I've told my dear wife that she is not allowed to depart this world until I'm of an age that it doesn't matter anymore. ;-)

Afternoon Matinee: Human Nature As an Evolved Creature 1/2

2012-05-28T16:30:00.002-07:00

Government Does Not Like Small-Time Thieves

2012-05-28T13:00:00.003-07:00

Trey Smith

Food stamp recipients are ripping off the government for millions of dollars by illegally selling their benefit cards for cash — sometimes even in the open, on eBay or Craigslist — and then asking the government for replacement cards.

The Agriculture Department wants to curb the practice by giving states more power to investigate people who repeatedly claim to lose their benefit cards.

It is proposing new rules Thursday that would allow states to demand formal explanations from people who seek replacement cards more than three times a year. Those who don't comply can be denied further cards.
~ from Food Stamp Fraud Raising Concerns in Gov't Offices by Sam Hananel ~

On the surface, this doesn't sound like a bad solution for a growing and vexing problem. If a large number of people are trying to defraud the government, then the government should go after them. But dig a little deeper and it raises some salient questions.

First off, is this type of Food Stamp fraud prevalent? Further down in this report we're told that

Most fraud occurs when unscrupulous retailers allow customers to turn in their benefits cards for lesser amounts of cash.

Now the word most is a nebulous term, but it does indicate more than 50 percent. So, this type of fraud is the lesser of the two, yet this is the one government seems most concerned with.

Secondly, how much money are we talking about?

Food stamp fraud costs taxpayers about $750 million a year, or 1 percent of the $75 billion program...

Now fraud is fraud, regardless of the amount of money in play. However, in terms of other kinds of fraud routinely perpetrated against the government, $750 million is miniscule. Compare it to, for example, the suspected amount of Medicare fraud in the US in 2010. The latter is estimated to be to the tune of $528 billion. Food Stamp fraud represents approximately 0.14 percent of this amount (and remember that most of said fraud is committed by businesses, not individuals)!

Third and most importantly, does the government go after those suspected of committing fraud in an evenhanded manner? Hell no! Various reports over the past few years found that huge corporations like Bechtel, Halliburton and Blackwater (to name a scant few) defrauded the government out of hundreds of billions of dollars in terms of contracts for various projects in Iraq. What was their punishment? More contracts!

This is what troubles me about reports of this nature. Folks who average about $132 per month in Food Stamp benefits -- that comes out to a whopping $1,584 per year -- receive intense government scrutiny because a few of them may be defrauding the system, while corporate repeat offenders receive almost no scrutiny, even when it is well documented that they are defrauding taxpayers of billions of dollars per year!

Line by Line - Verse 69, Line 8

2012-05-28T11:11:00.002-07:00

There is no calamity greater than lightly engaging in war.
~ James Legge translation, from The Sacred Books of the East, 1891 ~

There is no greater catastrophe than underestimating the enemy.
~ Gia-fu Feng and Jane English translation, published by Vintage Books, 1989 ~

There is no greater disaster than to underestimate the enemy
~ Derek Lin translation, from Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths, 2006 ~

Attacking an enemy you've underestimated is a costly mistake.
~ Ron Hogan rendition, from Beatrice.com, 2004 ~

In war and everyday life, we land ourselves in trouble when we start believing our own press clippings! Overconfidence is one of the banes of the human psyche. And, for me, that's what underestimating others is all about.

When we come to think that we are the smartest, strongest, prettiest, most powerful of the lot, our planning becomes slipshod. We don't do our due diligence. We end up undermining our own hopes for success.

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