You know…it’s sad because I’ve never been able to relinquish control. I hate ambiguity. It frustrates me. I’d rather receive bad news than no news because then I can use the information to proceed. Life was just one big impatient moment hurrying on to the next.

But recently, I’ve realized that I can’t control my existence. I can’t control those around me. I can’t even control whether or not I’m going to choke on my scrambled eggs tomorrow. Well…at least not completely.  The energy that exists in the world is fluid…it’s conserved, but more importantly, it’s balanced. So, within this finite system of non-linear, chaotic equations, we can only hypothesize one instance of the very many possibilities that could undoubtedly happen. And instead of trying to coerce a situation or expedite the moment, we should interpret and infer from the patterns and decisions of now.

But how do we do this? How do we accomplish this? Easy. Perception. You are who you are, and you or anyone else should never change that. But the power of perception is built off of guidance. It’s why parents want their children to marry doctors, and why men want to drive nice cars. But the power of perception is not about control. It’s about advisement. Parents over-disciplining the prodigal child will only either suppress the child’s spirit or result in mutiny. The same goes with a relationship. The controlling spouse will only increase the resentment that exists between the two. The reason being is that we ourselves cannot control our fate. Excitement is a chemical release of endorphins through external stimulation of which there is no rhyme or reason EXCEPT that which exists based upon the decisions and associations that have been made from past data. Furthermore, the fact that one would encounter something that would get one excited, in itself, is a highly random occurrence. So, how, thus, can we even begin to deterministically fit our pre-conceived circle into this amorphous square.

Instead, advisement, guidance and associative mapping are the only way that we can even begin to control any facet of our lives. But this control is not absolute. It’s not even relative. This control is unbiased. It’s non-linear. It’s…for lack of a better term…unpredictable.

This is where the power of perception comes into play. You see, I never truly understood how powerful sales, marketing & branding truly is. And that’s probably a short-sightedness that has definitely hindered my growth as a person. Becoming a well-rounded person isn’t just about being the most talented, skilled or proficient person, but also about enveloping yourself within your own memorable character. Whether your character is the drunk couch potato or the flamboyantly, straight fashion designer, the power of perception can guide you to your true potential. By embracing your own brand…that which makes you unique…you now allow people to embrace that side of you too.  Thus, even though life is unpredictable, understanding who you are and how you interpret information helps to navigate you through life’s trials and tribulations.

Anyway, right now, I’m just rambling…but the point is that we can’t control our lives or anyone else’s. Instead, we can only rely upon how we refine and guide ourselves (as well as others) based off the information we process  such that that we can build a better perception. Only, then, will we find a little control…

In the grand scheme of things, we all die…so what does it matter? But what if it does? We are all individual entities inspired by the very many facets of life in different ways..in different orders. Sequences and series formulate a timeline that intertwine the dots of our lives with those of others. The existential crisis that feeds in our very soul yearns to find the reason for “I”, when instead, it delivers us to the greater “we”. Jobs realized that the curiosity of a child spurns from a naivety of the narcissism and egotism that exists in the social constructs of the world. An individual cog exists for reason that it fits into the network of every other cog connected by a web of neural pointers and social randomization within a macro cosmic system. We play no different role than that of a eukaryote in the greater macrocosm of our body except that reason allows for us to question the very existence of our being.

So where does that leave us? Well, nowhere that we haven’t been before. Except that it extends an olive branch of belonging. Jobs understood that emotion and reason are what separates us from the eukaryotic and prokaryotic cogs of our bodies. We perceive differently. We love. We hate. We fear. We accept the inevitable fate that we are pre-destined to die. But what if we are asking the wrong questions? Pascal’s wager brings us the paradoxical punnet square of believing or not believing in God, but what if the choices aren’t so simple. Jobs realized that there’s more to us than life and death. We all know this. We can live life to its fullest, and by doing so, we live up to the highest potential possessed by our own physical and spiritual being.  We are the ones who confine ourselves in fear…sloth…greed…instead of what makes us live our lives each day as if we were trying to be the best version of ourselves.

Jobs realization was that for people to be the best version of themselves, they need to love what they do. Love who they are. Love who’s around them. Inspire themselves by inspiring others. And only then would they truly fit into the greater macrocosmic web of “we”.  Whether deterministic or stochastic, we still leave each day of our lives up to chance, which means that we can still do whatever it is that wakes us up in the morning.

Steve Jobs woke up every morning and knew he was happy. That he was who he was. He was going to think differently. And he was going to keep on doing the things that he loved to do until the day that he died. That was his place in the world. That was how he fit. And all of us should thank him for it…

The global intranet has created a well-established means for leveling the playing field in many aspects of society. It has worked to accomplish three main goals: 1. Minimize the cost of information & transactions; 2. Shrink the disparity of media biases; 3. Eliminate the diversity of product and service through risk aversion and conformity. Thus, I’d like to make the comparison of the convergence of our modern day society to that of historical imperialism. More specifically, I’d like to argue the monopolistic traits of modern, technology-driven capitalism through increased specialization only spurs to increase the disparity in wealth & resources between the few and the many, and thus, furthers the flame of imperialism.

In any way, shape or form, the essence of imperialism has been driven by the principles of a higher nation or empire advancing upon other lesser nations for the committed use of its resources (whether by force, diplomacy or deceit). Thus, imperialism can even describe the current capitalist system that occurs today in the US, where the wealth and health gap has drastically expanded within the last 30 years, making the few rich and the many poor.

In the late 1990s, the boom of the global intranet created a stir in the modern day society. The new frontier created opportunities for a diversity of opinions and varying services which equated to millions of online start-up ventures. It was unexplored territory with a plethora of untapped resources. Suddenly the many had a voice, the few had an even bigger voice, and the unheard of could absorb it all. Now, a couple decades later, we have finally hit a turning point. After all of the hustle and bustle to this new frontier, we have finally started to take advantage of its resources properly. Small businesses are optimizing their online presence and big businesses are restructuring their global dominance.  Suddenly, the learning curve has been minimized for 3^rd world countries and the cost of transaction for new start-ups isn’t approaching infinity anymore. Thus, outsourcing is becoming more and more of a thing of the current again. Conglomerates are disbanding due to inefficiencies, and synergy is now referring to the specialization of multiple, independent, global entities (hence the use of the phrase global intranet instead of internet).  Media biases are slowly being eliminated by sites (such as Wikileaks, Politifact, etc) that are willing to expose the truth and many outside media sites (like Youtube) and even blogs are gaining popularity due to interesting quips and insightful antics.

But what does this all mean? In a word. Nothing. It really doesn’t mean anything different, at least. The internet will help further the disparities between the few and the many, except that the few will get fewer (and richer) and the many will be even more (but still just as poor). The only difference is that instead of the constructs of an economical caste system, we’ll have a two tiered system of oligopolists at the top and cog-makers at the bottom. The wayward toward specialization will cause many inefficient conglomerates to disband almost to the point of disintegration because smaller, more efficient entrepreneurial businesses will be able to make Cog #14234 better and cheaper than a 3M producer because of low cost of informational transaction, lower transportation costs and the ease of gaining visibility. Furthermore, the opinions of the many will further cast out the substandard products of localized producers and manufacturers because of the ease of product and service evaluation through review sites and such. Therefore, the best manufacturers of, say, a camera (like Canon), will now be promoted much better in a country in South America rather than the local cheap knock-off.   Thus, a good company such as Canon will only get bigger due to the conformity of everyone’s risk aversion to believe in the majority and purchase the “best” product. Essentially, diverse opinions will scintillate toward a statistical convergence upon the best product or service (i.e. white noise!).

The biggest obstacles that will remain will be cost reduction, namely, transportation, import/export, and efficiency costs. For the first two factors, specialization will prove to be even more important as each villager will resort itself to the feudalistic serf or the Renaissance shoemaker in becoming the lowest cost, specialized cog in the local market for this monopolistic empire. Efficiency costs will be a little more difficult to attain as statistical process control, marketing data & operational efficiency will be the main integration factors for maintaining high profit margins. R&D will become less important in horizontal integration, as entrepreneurial start-ups will have fewer barriers to entry and easier adaptability in new markets, and the most non-essential products will disappear into oblivion as the many become aligned into conformity and the increases to the cost of living due to inflated goods and oligopolistic pricing (not to mention this crap weasel of a market).

The creation of the global intranet has helped to define and transform the future of our capitalist society. Unfortunately, the future seems to uphold the imperialist wealth gap that has preceded it and the diversity of information and opinions out there will only further the conformity to the few. Therefore, within vertical integration markets, even with new products, services and ideas being highly visible, it’ll be more difficult to succeed because of the strong reach that the few will hold upon the opinions of the many. And within new markets, consumer spending constraints and convergence theory will prevent unnecessary goods from creating niche markets (think Japan 1990s – now).  Thus, the status quo will remain intact, except that in our furtherance of technology and the excavation of this new frontier, we will further approach the age of imperialism.

Infographic: Debt Ceiling

1. The biggest concern that I see in this series is that they haven’t played Kurt Thomas. He’s a good defender, solid 10-ft jumper, and can get the boards. But the biggest thing this team is lacking is swag (enter P. Diddy aka Puff Daddy aka Sean Puffy Combs). Kurt Thomas gives this team the extra mental edge that a veteran of 15+ years in the league does. On top of that, he fills a physicality that this team has been lacking against the likes of Joel Anthony and Udonis Haslem. Joaquin Noah can’t be the enforcer out there because if he gets into foul trouble, the Bulls are stumped, but Thomas can. Thibs needs him in there for 5-10 mins a game, 4 hard, on-ball fouls, 6 pts off of 5-10 ft jumpers and putbacks, and stopping easy buckets. It’s not dirty play, it’s mental games.
2. I hate on-ball screens, but they work in two scenarios:  (a) Karl Malone and John Stockton and (b) if the big men that are helping are too slow to jump out on the screen. So, either the Bulls need to stop setting on-ball picks for Derrick Rose and let him make Mike Bibby look silly 1-on-1, or you bring someone up that you know won’t be able to trap like Joel Anthony or Mike Miller. Bosh has been guarding Joaquin Noah this whole series because (a) Noah has no post game and Bosh has no post defense (b) Bosh is good at pick and roll defense and Noah has no jump shot on a slip screen. Why don’t we insert Boozer (with Haslem on him) into the pick and roll, and suddenly, on the roll or the slip cut…Boozer is either going for a dunk or shooting his bread and butter 15-ft from the free throw line? Furthermore, if Joel Anthony is guarding him, then Rose has the ability to break the double team and/or find Boozer on the roll. Boozer has only been playing the pick and roll game for like 10 years…sheesh…
3. In my opinion, Luol Deng is one of the best slashers in the game.  He’s definitely gotten a 3-pt shot, but Thibs is relying too much on it. Before Deng had a 3-pt shot (like say…last season), Deng was a great slasher to the rim because he has that incredible length. If Rose drives to the hole or dumps it off to Boozer on the slip cut, Deng should look to slash to about 10-ft from the bucket for an easy jumper on the wing or layup across the other side of the rim. The same goes for Ronnier Brewer. Thibs needs to utilize his players strengths within his offense. Furthermore, a driving Rose, slashing Deng/Brewer & 10 to 15-ft jumpers from Boozer, Gibson and/or Thomas with a crashing Noah/Asik, suddenly opens up the 3 pt line for Korver, Deng and Bogans (yes I said it…Bogans).
4. Thibs has relied on Noah’s length, energy and pure will to lead the defense on its rotations, while Deng, Brewer and Bogans play shut down defense on the opposing team’s scorers. So why is Noah suddenly playing Bosh 1-on-1 18-ft out on the rim. Noah is an around the rim guy, and he, Boozer and Gibson are your front-line core. However, Gibson is your best on-ball defender and Boozer has proven to be successful at guarding Bosh 1-on-1. So, next game, I’d rather see Boozer on Bosh because if Bosh drives passed Boozer, a 7′ Noah will be there to help, whereas vice versa, Boozer or Gibson at 6′ 8″ don’t pose as much of a threat for layups. Furthermore, keeping Noah and Asik inside on Joel Anthony will make it easier to prevent easy dunks by Lebron and Wade too.
5. One of the first things I said when I saw this match-up was Coach Calipari vs Coach Krzyzewski because the former believed in super star power and athleticism, while the latter relied on ball movement, rotations and heart. Thus far, this season, the Heat have shown that they have a lot of star power but at times, they haven’t played well as a team. Vice versa, the Bulls (up until the playoffs) have shown decent ball movement and teamwork. In game 1, I saw the Bulls at their best, showing teamwork and passion. But it has, since, disappeared. The biggest statistic on offense is assists. Bench points and field goal percentage for the Bulls have been abysmal as of late because of the lack of movement in their offense. It’s been noticed a lot in these playoffs because the Bulls come out thinking that they can just stand around and let Rose go 1-on-5, but that’s not the case. The Heat have out-assisted the Bulls in 2 of the 3 games (and the Bulls have lost those games), and have not only been the team with the superstars, but the team melding together into one big, immovable force. This needs to be remedied fast.
6. Heart. Heart. Heart. At times, the Bulls look downright lost. And that’s to be expected for an inexperienced team in the playoffs. But instead of gritting down, and standing tall as they’ve done all season, they’re folding. They’re giving up the easy shots. They’re losing out to loose balls. They’re being out-hustled and out-manned. Second chance points mean nothing if you’re shooting 35% and your opponent is shooting 50%. They’ve been a half step slow on rotations, a half step slow on fast break defense, and frankly, it’s been difficult to watch as a team that was once touted to have so much “heart” go down in this manner. Only time will tell if the Bulls and Coach Thibodeau can make these adjustments because, otherwise, the Bulls are going home in 5. And I’d really hate to see such an incredible season fall short with such a lack of passion, effort and adjustments.

A few factors affect the U.S. debt problems:

1. Government POMO — The U.S. is allowed up to 200 Treasury bond auctions per fiscal year. Currently, the Permanent Open Market Operations (POMO) securities being purchased back from primary dealers, international banks, etc is the main way in which the U.S. “issues” new debt. Yup, you heard me… As the government buys back new debt from primary dealers, etc the government is essentially shrinking its balance sheet, however, because the U.S. government doesn’t have the “cash” to do so, it asks the Federal Reserve to print more money (yes, you heard me), and essentially extends an I.O.U. to the Federal Reserve. Think of it this way…if I buy back a loan for, say, $1000 at 1% interest, for another loan at $1000, you effectively did nothing. But imagine that $1000 loan was from your wife… Well, now, the liquidity of your family is down $1000 now, instead of $1000 later.
2. Public Programs — Medicare, Social Security, Fixing roads, paying government social programs, etc. Self-explanatory because as the unemployment increases, both states and federal need to pay out more medicaid as well as unemployment. Furthermore, programs such as TARP have also increased government spending. Finally, retirement programs have increased government spending with baby boomers retiring, as well as mis-management of the existing programs.
3. State Debts — As more and more states go bankrupt or have distressed assets, state lending lines from the federal government are tugged harder. California, alone, has borrowed over $10 billion from the US government since the start of the 2007 financial crisis.

Stay tuned for the next part to see how the continual rising of the debt ceiling affects the global, domestic and your personal portfolios…