GuidoWorld

Probably the most prolific predator in the history of our planet is also the most ignored. This predator is even more amazing in the diversity of what it kills than in its quantity of kill.

This predator kills insects, birds, and many varieties of animal. The list of its prey is almost endless. It kills both crawling and flying insects including worms, caterpillars, crickets, mosquitoes, butterflies, lightning bugs and beetles. Its diet includes snakes, frogs, turtles and lizards. Songbirds and crows can be counted amongst its prey. Rabbits, possum, raccoons, squirrel and even cats and dogs are common. Not to mention fox, deer, moose, groundhogs and even bear which are part of their quarry.

Even other major predators become prey for this able killing machine. Bobcat, cougar, panthers and wolves are not uncommon victims. In the US an astounding 40,000 humans a year are killed by this great predator. The list of victims to this predator could fill volumes.

I guess by now many of you have guessed this incredibly gifted predator, yes it is the motorized vehicle best represented in the car, van and truck. Each day thousands of animals and untold numbers of insects and birds are felled by its endless murderous excursions.

What is most deplorable of this predator is that it doesn’t even eat its prey. While sometimes it kills in order to help its occupants go to work to survive, it often kills in totally unnecessary journeys in its territory or to foreign parts. Many of these excursions are just joy rides, or a desire just to get out and about. The majority of these kills are executed without the slightest bit of remorse by the drivers, or at least little effort is made to reduce the number and distance of these murderous journeys.

Ironically many of the drivers of these vicious vehicles are horrified when they find out that some their friends hunt or fish. Many are incensed when they see someone wearing a fur coat or snake skin boots. Somehow they either totally ignore the majority of the murders they execute while behind the wheel, or they view all there motorized excursions as being necessary.

The destruction to wildlife caused by cars isn’t restricted to its actual time on the roads, but the disturbance caused by preparing roads to be paved is extremely invasive and destructive. The pavement itself alters the ecosystem causing permanent dislocation and death to numerous insects and earth worms. The non-porous pavement causes suffocation and drowning to various life ill-adapted to a concrete covered terrain. The toxic properties of asphalt present their own death warrants for plant and animal life.

Though this predator has only been on the scene for a century its numbers are now in the hundreds of millions if not billions. It is amazing the number of environments and ecosystems that have adapted to the motorized vehicle. The number of natural predators has decreased as the the populace of their prey has been decimated and managed by the burgeoning car population.

At this point in time the total removal of cars and trucks from the globe would have potentially dire consequences. The uncountable number of animals, insects, reptiles and birds spared their execution by a lack of cars would create an unstable environment. The number of remaining natural predators would be insufficient to meet the proliferation of prey. This could result in disease, pestilence, plague etc. as the predator population takes time to raise its numbers sufficient enough to control the population of a number of species throughout the animal kingdom.

So, though it would be nice for us to curtail our murderous ways by reducing our dependency on the automobile, we should do so in a thoughtful manner.

Yet, in the meantime I think it is terribly misguided to view ourselves and our role on the planet as being moral or humane. There is no way to avoid the obvious fact that we are the most reckless and selfish murderers on the planet. The only way to salvage our dignity and humanity is to admit our savageness and quickly find and implement ways for us to be more respectful of life. Hiding behind the “fight for survival” is a callous joke, we neither need to point fingers at nature nor make excuses for our heinous ways.

The choice isn’t between reality and utopia, the reality is we have many options and choices to live life in a more humane and respectful manner.

Jim Guido

When considering penalties which could be imposed on those found to be guilty in the Gulf oil spill I have a few recommendations. I want to preface the following by saying that I have spent over 30 years working with delinquent youth and their families. During these years I have witnessed and implemented many consequences for illegal and asocial behaviors which have been effective and even more that have been ineffective. It is with the knowledge gained from experience in these matters that I offer the following suggestions.

Corporations and commercial entities have rights under the law and in many ways are treated and protected as individuals. Yet, with rights usually comes responsibilities. One of the reasons that the people at the top of businesses make the money that they do is because they are ultimately responsible for the actions and decisions made by the organization they head. At the facilities I have worked at the supervisors, clinicians and administration are held responsible for what happens to the clients in their care. Those with credentials and position often are mandated to have liability insurance to help them weather any law suits due to negligence or bad judgment in the course of the execution of services provided by them or by those under their supervision.

With this in mind I’d like to apply these principles to the BP oil spill.

Monetary fines levied against BP does seem reasonable at this point, but would such fines, even if extensive, be effective consequences? First, I’ve read the monetary limits on law suits on corporations currently stands at 75 million. Now, even if this number is wrong, and fines and penalties were to rise into the billions of dollars I doubt if they would truly be effective as a punishment or a future deterrent.

First the fines would not even be equal to one years profit for a giant such as BP. This has one wonder if multinational corporations are too big to punish. Second, the fines would be absorbed by the corporation in general not directly affecting the wealth and comfort of the heads and decision makers of the corporation. Even if a corporation were somehow injured by the fines, those at the top would most likely be able to find similar employment at other major corporations.

My suggestion would be for the fines and punishments to be levied on individuals rather than the general corporation. The fines should have a direct effect on the wealth of the individuals in charge, such punishments would definitely send a message to business heads of all corporations that they need to act responsibly and act as an effective deterrent.

The fines and punishments should be levied to anyone who with decision making power in the realms of importance regarding the oil rigs. Anyone who is involved with the safety policies of the rigs and pipe lines should be evaluated on their level of culpability. Likewise, those who developed the insufficient back up plans and over all solutions to such a leak need to be held accountable. This would include the governmental agencies that license, supervise and monitor these endeavors.

In addition to fines I believe those found to be at fault should be ordered to give restitution for the damages their negligence and incompetence produced. I have a feeling that if they such individuals were mandated to work off the damage they inflicted on the entire gulf region they would change their ways and their cohorts would begin to act responsibly throughout all related industries.

Imagine how effective it would be if corporate heads were made to spend the next several years of their lives cleaning oil off shores and rocks. Imagine them doing the menial labor that will be needed to remove the oil, restore the local ecologies and ocean life. If these individuals are allowed to have the corporations they work for pay their fines and allowed to hire people to do the years of hard labor of cleaning up after their incompetence than nothing will change.

Will such measures solve the problem? Probably not, but my years of experience working with problem youth has taught me that effective consequences can make a substantial difference in people’s lives.

Many of my posts have dealt with my conviction that our society is in need of substantial structural changes. Our society has a tendency to promote and reward too many base aspects of human nature. Our society can only become as good as the system it functions under. This is not to imply that our society and its structure are evil or even bad, it is only to state that in order for us to move forward in any meaningful way, we need to build a better social structure.

If your goal is increased standard of living and quality of life for an increasing percentage of people across the globe our current economic and governmental structures are the wrong tool for the job. Therefore, though I have learned that incentives and success are always better tools than consequences and punishment, in our current structure I see the above punishments as the proper response to the current situation in the gulf.

When I’ve worked with kids and families I have been successful at helping them build healthy structures and habits in their lives where punishments are rare if ever needed. Yet, when healthy and effective structures are not in place, harsh consequences are often needed. Sad to say, that seems to be the current need of our society at this point in time.

The problem with harsh consequences is they are often delivered in anger and anger begets more anger. Only when a parent is able to deliver a consequence as a learning experience and not in anger to punish then a child’s education can begin, and qualities such as empathy and responsibility can be fostered and adopted.

Maybe many of you out there think I’m a dreamer, or too idealistic. Yet, all I can say is that I have witnessed many kids and families make amazing changes and improvements and though not perfect, have developed ways of being in the world that produce happy and productive people.

Jim Guido

A couple of weeks ago I was listening to a stock market radio program being hosted by two people who live on the gulf coast in Alabama. The discussion on the market turned into a general update on the national and local economy. This led them to highlight the potential impact of the oil spill in the gulf. I listened intently as I had not followed the story at all and wanted to be educated on the topic.
After outlining the backdrop of a poor real estate market and a slumping tourist industry they talked of how fragile and weak the local economic environment was. The spill was talked about as a potential fatal blow to the struggling economy as the devastation to the fishing industry might prove to be quite lengthy.
One of the men said that he was getting emails from people in Alaska who said the initial reports out of the gulf sounded eerily familiar to what happened up there during the Valdez spill. He said they expected the reports to become more and more devastating as time went on, for their early reports on the Valdez spill were rather tame and vague.
Well as time passes on these words have turned quite prophetic as each day new information surfaces which paints quite a bleak and dire picture of the spill. Estimates of damage cited by BP seem to be significantly undervalued and scientific calculations of oil flow are several times that given by oil industry spokesmen.
During times like this articles are released which at other times are ignored or buried. One article I read stated that the term “accident” is very misleading in that it gives the impression that spillage is a rare event. The article went on to quote sources which discussed the common everyday occurrence of minor spills which occur regularly in the drilling and loading of oil barges. According to the article day-to-day spillage of just business as usual operations does add up. In which every five years the amount of oil lost in our oceans is equal to the Valdez spill.
Even if that figure is inflated it does beg the question of exactly how much oil is dispensed into international waters each and every year. What is the damage to our sea life and our dwindling fresh water supply? Where can we find accurate information regarding water pollution, long term effects of pollution on the safety and quality of our seafood, and the long term prospects on the overall health of our oceans?
Shortly after 9/11 we were deceived and lied to regarding the air quality near the twin tower cites. Will the same thing happen regarding the safety of seafood in the gulf?
The current situation seems surreal to me.
Maybe I’m wrong, but when you see the videos of the broken pipe, and you read between the lines on the well orchestrated press releases regarding the spill it all seems so dire. Oil plumes the size of states and potential water flow patterns are scary for anyone brave enough to try and imagine their short term and long term impact.
The damage and harm done by this spill could rival almost any disaster we have faced for centuries. The Valdez spill, three mile island, Chernobyl, maybe even the ecological damage caused by our use of atomic bombs may be eclipsed by the death of a major waterway.
Given the length and intensity of this ongoing crisis, is the thought of the death of at least a portion of the gulf really that extreme or over reactionary?
I guess it is, for I don’t feel or hear anyone’s panic or even deep concern regarding this possibility. What am I missing?
Could someone explain to me how the gulf can shake this off and heal itself when the area of the Valdez spill is still hampered some two decades after the event?

Jim Guido


Money makes the world go round. The amount of truth of that statement is debatable, but the importance of money and currency in our functional practical existence is difficult to overstate. Each day and increasing percentage of the world population is being dominated by monetary concerns and realities.

Yet, money in all forms in this global economy is becoming increasingly arbitrary, and the more you investigate money the more fictional it appears. The fact that our lives are being increasingly influenced and dominated by fiscal concerns should be very alarming when you consider to what degree money is becoming a complete an arbitrary fiction.

Not many years ago most nation’s currencies were at least based on something tangible. First, coins in and of themselves, are/were minted in a metal which had inherent worth, even if it did fluctuate. The inherent value of the metal was an incentive for people to accept it in exchange for other tangible goods such as food, or for payment for work done or services provided.

Money has always been more of a fiction in that it’s stated worth was always much higher than the value of the paper it was written on. Yet, most currency’s paper money was backed by a tangible asset of value such as gold or silver, where if you went to a bank they could exchange your paper currency for a specified amount of gold or silver.

Most nations no longer have their currencies and money supplies backed by gold or silver, or any other tangible good. The worth of a dollar is truly arbitrary and just means that one can exchange that piece of paper for a dollars worth or food, services, etc. In practical terms all current US money is just an IOU (I owe you), a promise that your paper is worth something.

An IOU is a debt, therefore, all dollars are debt instruments rather than having inherent value. This fact is clearly stated on every dollar in the phrase “This note is legal tender for all debts public and private”. All modern currencies are debt instruments and IOU’s with no inherent value or only on an arbitrary stated value.

All current money printed and placed into our economy is borrowed from the Federal Reserve and other Central Banks which the US and other host countries have to pay back to these entities with interest. These entities such as the Federal Reserve are not governmental agencies but rather private banking institutions who our government contracts out with.

Modern money is now introduced into an economy though an act of borrowing. Money has become solely a debt instrument without any inherent worth, therefore, money would cease to exist or have value if all debts were paid off. Though that statement seems a bit exaggerated, it is functionally accurate because a dollar has no significant value (it’s paper), and is no longer backed by anything of value (such as silver or gold). It’s role and function is solely as an IOU or a promise of a stated value to be exchanged. People now only accept your money because they have faith in the promise made by the government and are willing participants in the great game of make believe called modern capitalism.

Yet, the above discussion only scratches the surface of the degree of the monetary fiction that we base our functional existence on. Even the total number of dollars in existence is a fiction. The percentage of the trillions of dollars theoretically in existence that are actually on printed paper is but a fraction of the total amount.

The actual number of printed dollars in the US economy is about 860 billion. Supposedly this number gets doubled when you add all the currency kept in bank vaults and other lending institutions. Yet, since we live in a world of “fractional banking” in which banks only have to keep a very small percentage of people’s saving accounts, etc. on hand (less than 1%) than 860 billion figure remains fairly reliable.

This means the bulk of the trillions of dollars supposedly in our economy is not even printed on paper. In essence the great sea of dollars that supports our economy is a fiction of a fiction, or a fiction squared if you will.

When considered this way it is easy to understand how when the stock market tumbled last year trillions of dollars just vanished into thin air. All those dollars weren’t even physically there in the first place and their existence and non-existence is just a statement or a result of theoretical electronic transactions.

The recent stock market tumble erasing an estimated trillion dollars in less than 15 minutes becomes understandable when you consider how arbitrary money is. Just think about that a moment in fifteen minutes the stock market lost more than all the printed dollars currently existing in our society outside of banks.

If that doesn’t bother you, then I guess nothing will.

I have spent the last few years educating myself on the history of stock markets. I have also spent time trying to understand the markets through pattern recognition and technical analysis. From both of these perspectives the events of the last two weeks and the last two years have not been surprising. Though I am incapable of predicting the day-to-day movement of the markets, from a historical perspective I feel quite confident in saying that the stock market has a long way to go before it hits its bottom. Even if it rose to new all time highs some devastating lows still loom in the foreseeable future.

Global economies are inherently complex organisms. With complexity comes danger. Yet, the danger becomes impossible to manage when you’re dealing with fictions of fictions.

Jim Guido

In my last post, Life Conscious of Itself, I highlighted some of the most positive aspects of having a sense of self, while in Components of Personal Growth and Development I noted the benefits of repetition and habit.

A rich life includes both personal growth and a healthy sense of self. A rich life thrives on a sense of history as well as a sense of growth and development.

Our forever shrinking planet with its improvements in communication and technology gives us ample opportunities to experience life in varied and intense ways. The amount of information for us to process and learn from is growing exponentially. The ability to correct, improve and enhance our sensorial and perceptual experience is likewise growing in leaps and bounds. Powerful and meaningful experience in microscopic and telescopic frames are readily available, as is our ability to have increased community and intimacy with people both immediate and distant to us geographically.

It seems that almost daily new horizons are opening up to us allowing us to experience life with more clarity and depth. Advances in communication networks are allowing us to make intimate contact with an increasing number of people from all over the globe. Our available menu of experiences is growing daily as is the number of options and opportunities for our personal growth and development.

The pace and variety of change is exciting. Entire worlds are at our fingertips, and our eyes can see sights in one day that it used to take a lifetime to view.

A rich life is not just one chock full of experiences but also one steeped in meaning, significance and poignancy. Life without a sense of history will have a hard time being satisfying. Experiences without heartfelt memories can become shallow and lead to a sense of emptiness.

Novel experiences can be powerful and meaningful. A rare vision or experience can be quite satisfying and endure in our memory for ages. Yet, most memories are born out of the familiar and are etched in our minds due to their constancy. Just as we learn through repetition, so do we create a sense of self and history through constancy and duration.

When I reflect on the richness of my life it is indeed littered with powerful and solitary events. I can remember a place I visited in a foreign city, a particular meal I enjoyed, or a concert I attended. Yet, by and large the memories of my life are filled with things that seldom changed and remained constant in my life.

The very possibility of seeing myself as being the same person through the course of my life is somewhat dependent on my remaining a constant. A life filled with consistency and repetition is more likely to be remembered than one with change and unique experiences.

The memories of my childhood are enriched and dominated by the things in my childhood that had duration and were repeated often. I have clear and emotionally powerful memories of my bedroom, friends, teachers and toys and belongings which were part of my life for years. They make up the very structure of my existence the very view and perspective of my childhood.

Individual events can make extraordinary memories, but repetitive memories make up the meat and essence of my existence. Individual and unique experiences add spice and flavor to my view of myself and the world, where the daily repetitive experiences make up the meat and main course of my existence. A diet that consisted of only spice would not be fulfilling and in fact would probably in the long run be very unappetizing. Just as the main course or entree make up the body of a meal which gives the meal both its identity and satisfies our hunger, so too does repetitive activities, experiences and surroundings provide our life with meaning and significance.

In today’s world of constant change, growth and consumerism meaning and identity can become endangered species. One can spend one’s time going from flower to flower, from fleeting experience to new encounter without sensing the garden or feel oneself the author of one’s own experience.

It is hard to imagine a life bereft of memories or a constant sense of self having as much meaning or emotional poignancy as a life steeped in a strong sense of personal history and sense of self. Therefore, it is important for us to cultivate constancy and duration along with change and expansion. It is important for us to find time to reflect and savor as well as expand our perceptual and sensorial worlds of experience.

Meaning is seldom found in the moment of experience, but rather on a reflection of its beauty and subtlety. The importance of memory is so powerfully demonstrated in the pain and anguish that often accompanies the early stages of dementia or Alzheimer’s. Many people report a loss of sense of self along with any decrease in their ability to remember.

Those of us who want to live a full and rich life need to stay mindful of the importance of memory and constancy in our emotional and intellectual constitution and identity. While desiring to change, grow and experience we need to take time to savor, reflect and revel in our daily rituals and habits. In our modern consumer world of change we often lose sight of the need and benefits of keeping much in our life constant.

Our fast paced technological and consumer world is becoming increasingly dominated by change, updates and new generations of almost every product we own or use. This makes it hard for us to keep constancy in the objects, activities, possessions, environments, and relationships which make up our lives. Anytime we endanger constancy in our lives we also have to be aware of the possibility that we are endangering the richness of our experience especially in the areas of meaning and identity which are forged through memory and emotional connection (love and friendship).

I will end this post with a question that’s been running through mind of late. Would a person whose life was full of constant change and short term relationships be more susceptible to developing dementia than one whose life was dominated by habit, ritual and long term relationships?

Jim Guido

What appears to distinguish humans from the other life which we come into contact with is the degree to which we are self-conscious. Recently we have found evidence that other “higher” animals have impressive levels of self-awareness such as apes and dolphins. Yet, the degree to which humans are aware of their thoughts and feelings seems to be light years beyond all other earthly life.

No matter how intelligent a person is their existence is dominated by self-awareness. Thoughts and feelings make up our life world, are the basis of our human experience. Our current and future decisions are always influenced by our history of thoughts, feelings and perceptions.

The quality of our life is determined to a high degree by what we feel and think, when we feel and think, where we feel and think, how we feel and think, and even who we feel and think.

Though some of us are more reflective than others we are all interested in becoming a better person, in right action or in some form of personal development and growth. We all want to be better, smarter, wiser, happier or kinder today then we were yesterday and even more tomorrow than we are today. This overarching desire to grow, improve and develop seems part and parcel of the human experience.

Scientific research seems to support the idea that a new born does not immediately begin experiencing the world and itself as being separate. There is light, sound and sensation, but there is no I and the world. Yet, rather quickly an infant starts to distinguish between itself and mom, the breast or objects in general.

In this emerging world of human experience an infant starts to develop a sense of self. Many post modern thinkers are fond of saying that we construct our sense of self. Many of these thinkers go on to say that our sense of self is an illusion or a fiction.

While I agree that to a high degree we do develop, and acquire our sense of self (ego), I think it is inaccurate to say that the ego is a fiction. When one claims the ego is a fiction, I usually wonder who that person feels is sharing this insight with me if not their own ego (sense of self).

While it may be true that we do not begin life with a self-awareness or sense of self, it is also true that we do not create the ability to be self-aware. A person or infant doesn’t one day think to himself, “hmm I really think I would get on better in life if I viewed myself as a distinct subject amidst a world”. The ability to have an ego or a sense of self and to divide the world into subject and object is hard wired into us.

Likewise, we do not decide to have language and speech, that ability is inherent in us before our sense of self, and makes that sense of self (self-awareness, consciousness) possible. It would make sense that I and mom or (the breast) come into existence at the same moment. The object of mom is not possible unless I have some inkling of separateness, and the subject of one desiring a breast is not possible until one is aware that the breast exists outside and separate of oneself.

Those who view the ego as a fiction often emphasize that the perception that one is a self-contained, self-enclosed psychological unit is an illusion. I would say that such a viewpoint is an exaggeration for we are never totally complete nor separate from the world. Where we end and the world begins is not a fixed point, and our sense of self is always influenced by our environment.

Similarly, where our consciousness ends and the thoughts of others begin is not set. No man is an island and our thoughts, feelings and opinions are often created and altered by the conflicts and validations of others. Yet, just because there is no true consistent boundary does not mean a person and their sense of self does not exist.

On a biological level my body does not have a harsh and consistent boundary. At each moment heat and moisture leave my body or form a fluctuating energy halo beyond my flesh. Therefore, in many ways my body does not end at my skin. Yet, this fact does not make my body a fiction, but rather just points out that nothing about being human is absolute or final.

On an atomic level the boundaries of every object are in flux and do not conform to their visual forms. Every object and body are forever exchanging electrons and the like. Yet, all these biochemical reactions do not negate the existence of objects, but only speak to the way they exist.

Those critics of the ego often point out how often we misperceive things or the important role the “unconscious” plays in our lives. Yet, the most common way I know that a misconception has occurred, or that I have had a misperception is through an additional thought (concept) or perception. I only know something was an illusion by a new experience (perception, thought) which exposes the previous fallacy or misperception. I only know something was previously unconscious by a conscious recognition of this fact.

A new found insight or perception will stand as true as long as it works or until a better more universal one is found. The human world is one of development and change. Our conscious perceptual existence is neither random nor perfect, but always in a state of increased knowledge and familiarity. These ideas regarding human limitation and consciousness are addressed in length in my book Exploring Intimacy which you can read on this site by going into the Words section.

We are a growth driven, intimate self-correcting mechanism that experiences things from a self-conscious perspective. We have a sense of personal history which makes our concept of life possible, as well as provide us with a sense of meaning and satisfaction. Without our sense of time and space, experience would be impossible. Without limits and boundaries we could not feel growth, anticipation, satisfaction nor meaning. Yet, despite this fact our religious and scientific worlds always seek absolute and eternal truth. No only do they seek Truth, but they try to found all meaning of life on these unattainable ideals.

Like everything about conscious human experience it is temporal. We are finite and so therefore our truth is temporal. It appears to be a factual truth that human beings need oxygen to survive. Now maybe someday human beings and our environment may evolve in such a way that we will not need oxygen to live. Yet, this possibility does not destroy our current temporal necessity for oxygen.

The temporal nature of human truth does not make everything arbitrary. A possibility of humans living one day without oxygen does not make life arbitrary or even oxygen arbitrary. It just means that temporal truths are more human than absolute eternal ones.

Our entire existence and consciousness is made possible by the very fact that we are not complete, perfect or eternal. Our consciousness and self-awareness is more of a process than a thing. In this way the ego, and the unconscious are fictions because they are not objects but processes.There is no ego or unconscious to point to and they are not separate entities housed in different areas of the body.

I am amazed at how often we still refuse to accept and embrace our humanity. We often demonize our humanity or try to find a way to overcome it. Instead of finding happiness, meaning and satisfaction in our temporal self-conscious life world, we seek eternal truth in our science, religion and spirituality which are contrary to the very way we live and experience life.

Four thousand years ago the majority of humans thought many of their most powerful thoughts and feelings came to them from the outside or were a gift from the gods. Though most people experienced their mundane perceptions as their own, they did not see themselves as the true author of their experience. To me it seems a shame that we spend so much of our time and energy attacking and denying the sense of self (ego) we have slowly and valiantly constructed over the eons.

Jim Guido

The following paragraph is written for those with a philosophical background.
Anyone who uses a logically consistent application of phenomenological, existential, or gestalt oriented principles is acutely aware of the practical shortcomings of a positivist world view. Therefore, there is no need to deny or view our sense of self as a fiction. The fiction is an absolute and static sense of self. Yet, any absolute is contrary to anything that lives, feels or thinks.
Eternal consciousness is an oxymoron, for anything that thinks exists and anything that exists is temporal and finite.

Here are the lyrics for my last three songs. I hope you enjoy them and it inspires you to check out my music tab where you can choose from some 150 or songs to read and listen to.

The Pleasure of Your Embrace 4/7/10

Mighty is the power of an emotion
It can fill you up or tear you down
It can be as deep and as blue as the ocean
Or drift aimlessly like a billowed cloud

Some let feelings be their master
Jerked about like a puppet on a string
I treat feelings as an artist
Their vast colors paint my being

As I wake I breath in deep
Feel refreshed from my deep sleep
I linger awhile holding you
It sets the mood
provides the glue
for what we do

I feel life dancing at my fingertips
A warm glow pulsing from deep within
I walk about in a state of bliss
The endless joy of making sense of all this

What I feel and what I think
In rich earth tones and relaxing tints
Talk to me of what others seek
I find few answers but plenty of hints

Wallowing
In ecstasy
Is how we live
when we stay
inside the day
find time to play
let love hold sway

Baby, time is a fire that
Kindles our thoughts and desires, yet
Someday we’ll run out of fuel
So precious this makes our every move

Eyes are such fickle companions
The new and the supple attract its gaze
Yet, I can’t imagine another body
My hands would rather touch
or my arms would rather hold

I want to feel the pleasure of your embrace
Be your comfort everyday

I Remember 3/6/10

Somewhere south of Eden a man laughs at his pride
Standing in front of a mirror a woman loathes her smile

The master of his desire is his never aging bride
The goal of her devotion is the light in her child’s eyes

Parched and languid evenings plague the restless mind
Watching her sweet baby to her lover’s gaze she is blind

He so wants to please her the treasure of his life
He yearns to be the hero of his family and his wife

No matter what he does he feels so outside
His presence seems a bother his affections denied

Weak and suffocated by the weight of hubby’s needs
She turns to her children to give life meaning

I remember times feeling free
Running fast and skinning knees
I remember endless motion

I remember days of play
Fewer now than yesterday
I remember becoming me

I remember days of passion
Trapped in the trance of satisfaction
I remember your rosy cheeks

I remember making you glow
Having you laugh giving you hope
I remember being your center

I remember feeling infatuation
Aching so bad for your complete attention
I remember but that’s not all
I don’t have to remember
No I don’t have to remember
Do you?

More Hope Less Expectation 2/15/10

Sometimes I wander out loud
Ask questions to fathom the crowd
Pick out the shiny or gray
Add them to life’s wondrous display

Between the sighs and insipid goodbyes
There are moments that transform the real
It could be smiles or the look in one’s eyes
That supply my heart with wings so dear

What did the heroine say?
Did she say it in a masculine way?
Is that why they’re cheering so loud?
It was never that upside down

I multiply instead of divide
Find joy in the depth of things
Tendencies rise as certainties fall
As change and familiar embrace so dear

Each moment I feel the same
Let’s me see it a different way
More hope less expectation
Give hearts some validation

It’s not really good or bad
Just healthy choices that make me glad
More hope less expectation
Kind words give inspiration

Some say they know
Well I say it flows

Amidst all change
Somehow we remain

We feel life
It’s beauty and its strife

It’s alright
Don’t need no paradise

Every time I love
I give myself a hug

Come sing with me
Create more harmony

The rhythm we awake
Create bonds we celebrate

________________________________
I am currently working on a post which should be up in a few days.
Anyone care to comment on the lyrics? I’d love to hear your impressions.

Jim Guido

At the end of the last blog I mentioned that in this post I would finish my thoughts on the components of change in respect to my experiences as an educator and as a coach.
Remember that I said it was beneficial to keep in mind the three dimensions of change and that is:
1) Beginning a new ritual or habit
2) Honoring the emotional or psychological motive behind old habit
3) Replacing the biochemical role of the old habit

In both athletics and academics it is important to develop successful repetition with frequent review.

When teaching a math skill I teach a model which will allow them to solve problems involving that skill such as long division or adding fractions. I will have them practice the model several times on extremely simple problems so that they experience success and can better learn the steps to the model. (I’ll often have them do the exact same problem a few times so that they stay focused on the steps of the model and not on retrieval of math facts).

I will only move on to harder or more complex problems after they have demonstrated mastery over the model being employed. To assist in their committing the model to memory I will often have them verbalize each step as they are writing it. Likewise to reinforce the importance of knowing the model and each of its steps I will often give them more points for doing the steps than getting the answer correct.

Each repetition of the skill and model is making the wiring of the brain and, therefore, memory of the skill stronger. That is why it is important to break down the skill in a way in which they are performing it correctly. If a person is getting the wrong answer over and over again they are committing these mistakes to memory and making these wrong connections strong in the synapses of their brain.

When teaching multiplication tables I will break it down into as small amount as possible so that they can repeat the right answers fluidly, and then slowly add on a few more times tables so that they have a high rate of success allowing the correct math facts to be committed to memory.

Similarly in athletics I use the same technique. I break down a skill such as free throw shooting, or fielding a ground ball into a number of steps to create a successful and efficient ritual for the athlete. When I was growing up we were often made to practice for hours even if our success rate was poor, in fact we were forced to practice a skill longer with more reps when we were in fact failing. This often unintentionally had us become more entrenched in the bad habits which were limiting our success.

Repetition should increase when someone is being successful, for that will allow the good habit to become part of the athletes muscle memory, or a students memorization. When success isn’t occurring one should either take a break for awhile, of the instructor should find a way to break down the skill in such a fashion which will promote success.

In then classroom I’ve never been fond of moving on to the next lesson or skill until the previous one has been mastered. I likewise, will have frequent reviews of previous skills to make sure they are being successfully transferred to long term memory to be available whenever a person may need this skill in their future (kind of like riding a bike).

Though my examples focused on math I employ the same techniques and learning principles for all other subject matter. In all studies success is obtained when one is able to commit information and skills to long term memory, this is best accomplished through repetition, success and review.

In athletics and academics the psychological and emotional motive is usually taken care of by providing the student with success. In most cases as a teacher or a coach you are usually teaching new skills and are seldom replacing old ones, so therefore, you aren’t meeting resistances from old habits and loyalties.

Yet, whether a skill is new or old you sometimes will come into conflict with an emotional/psychological motive. Oftentimes these will appear as resistances to learning or executing a skill or model you are teaching. Maybe a child has a poor batting stance or shooting form due to either learning the skill before their bodies were strong enough to perform the skill correctly or that their old habit remains due to fear or comfort levels.

The solution to this is to be patient with the student and to break down the skill to a level below their resistance and start there building up their trust and comfort through success. Old habits fall away when they are replaced by non-threatening ones which produce success while tending to a fear. Fears in sports are often present in performing skills that could involve a possible painful experience. One should show the person how the methods your teaching insure their safety and are designed to help the body perform at its best. Yet, one should never force such situations. In the end an athlete unwilling to endure a challenge or push their body to another level of achievement has the option to decline. Likewise, a student always has the option to decline instruction. It is our job to create a positive and successful learning environment which will maximize their interest and abilities.

This post will make more sense if you read the previous one.

Jim Guido


I have worked with kids and adults in helping, guiding and instructional capacities for the bulk of my adult life. Relatively early on in the process I identified three components of human change which I still adhere to today. It is nice to see a lot of my theories being validated by scientific research especially recent finding in neuropsychology.

My instructional roles can be broken down into three areas, therapeutic, athletic and academic. Most of my professional life has been working in the human service realm.

I have worked at many different residential setting employing various models, I have also worked with numerous families and foster parents. A great deal of my time has been spent helping kids who have been removed from school and/or home successfully return back to mainstream life.

Academically I have worked in public schools, in alternative schools and classrooms in residential settings. I have functioned as a trainer, evaluator and supervisor of residential staff at various therapeutic settings. I have also tutored kids and young adults in math, science and language arts. The last decade I have developed my own techniques to teach basic math skills to very low functioning math students such as children with Down Syndrome or high functioning Autism.

Athletically I have coached children from the age of 6 thru 18 in baseball and basketball, and have included athletic instruction with many of the kids I have worked with in therapeutic settings.

For the sake of brevity I will only talk about the following components when the goal is to replace an old skill or habit rather than learn a completely novel one.

When the goal is personal change and development I have found awareness of these three components to be crucial. In order to effect change in the most quick and efficient fashion while making sure the change sticks one should:

1) Replace old habit, behavior or ritual with a new one
2) Honor and incorporate psychological/emotional motive sustaining old habit into new habit
3) Find replacement for the biochemical payoffs of old habit

I’ll give you examples in all three areas.

Therapeutically it seems obvious that the goal should be to cultivate a new behavior rather than continue the asocial one which has necessitated a child being removed from home or school. Likewise, most people go to therapy or engage in some form of self-help program in order to change something in their life. Whether that be issues they have with anger, weight, addictions and compulsions or overall health. Most issues about change and improvement seem to demand a new behavior.

Yet, in practice this is not necessarily what is done. Instead of replacing an old behavior with a new one, the goal is to just remove or extinguish the old one. This is when we focus on the problem rather than the solution.

This is when we just demand a person to stop lying, stealing or threatening others or just tell them to stop eating so much, or think about the repercussions of their actions. This is also when we expect through counseling or talk therapy that a person’s new found understanding of the reasons why they do what they do will inherently result in their cure.

Its hard to give up an old habit without a new one being offered. Many ex-smokers can testify to the fact that until they replaced smoking with another activity such as chewing gum their efforts to quit were fruitless.

The just not doing something is difficult to accomplish for the mind and will need something else to deflect their attention from reflex habit. If I’m trying to not get angry all my thoughts are focused on anger, while if instead I’m taught a new skill to do when I start to feel frustrated or overwhelmed my focus can go to the execution of that skill or calming technique rather than on my anger.

When teaching parents to help very young children learn to accept no I recommend an intermediary step. For when a parent says “no candy”, the child just hears and continues to think about candy and often has trouble letting go of the issue. Yet, if the parent gives them another enjoyable option than the candy, then the child is usually able to let the candy demand fall by the wayside.

When I’ve worked with kids who had the habit of swearing or making everything into a battle or debate, I have had almost no success by simply criticizing or prohibiting this behavior. Yet, when I have them practice a new behavior they can do to replace arguing and swearing and reward when they engage in the new behavior the rate of success becomes very high.

The advantageousness of developing new habits over focusing on intellectual understanding is depicted in the following example. My wife and I lived in a group home of nine adolescent boys. One of younger boys who came to live with us had already failed at a number of placements and hospitalizations. Within a couple of days it became apparent why he was labeled a nyctophobic (fear of darkness), for once the sun went down his behavior deteriorated as his anxiety climbed.

His first evenings with us were filled with his tantrums and outbursts which resulted in things being broken and his needing to be restrained. A quick perusal of his file explained much of this as his home had a long history of domestic and physical abuse often requiring police intervention.

Since we was far too f to be able to process this through therapy and far too fragile to even looking at his family from an critical point of view we needed to find a relatively quick and safe intervention.

We decided to try and develop evening rituals that would be positive and comforting for the young man. We soon found that an early evening game of basketball followed by an evening shower and the possibility of board games and the reading of a night time story worked well. Through good behavior he was also available to have the radio on to fall asleep to, and he could lend a hand at morning breakfast (he loved to cook).

Though his progress was anything but linear he returned home successfully and despite another hospital visit was free of any more placements or interventions. His nyctophobia was held in check, if not resolved, through his positive growth and new rituals. Even when he returned home he found his new found rituals an oasis even when his family returned to their old habits. I do believe he did find a therapist some 10 to 15 years later who I assume talked to him about his past.

People have psychological and emotional reasons for why they do what they do. A new habit, skill or behavior will have a better chance at being implemented and maintained if the psychological and emotional aspects are incorporated into the new behavior or given an alternative outlet.

The psychological and emotional payoffs for engaging in an asocial behavior can be numerous, but often exist because they work. Some children do find that arguing, having tantrums, and making threats wears down parents and they end up getting what they want. The solution in these situations is to start to have the child get more when they comply then when they resist or act out.

People often engage in asocial acts or have habits they wish they didn’t because they get emotional and psychological payoffs for these habits which they have a hard time doing without. Some people lie, steal, cheat or overeat because it temporarily comforts them, gives them a sense of power or control, or is a source of pride or identity.

The solution would, of course, include finding alternative behaviors which comfort, foster power or control, and produce pride without the downside or asocial attitude. In the above example of the young boy who was afraid of the dark, he acted out to get power and control and to increase his feelings of safety. We, therefore, gave him increased power and input into his environment by complying with our wishes and by doing the new rituals we offered. His new sense of safety was able to replace his old warped sense of safety and control. This allowed him to make the change in a seamless manner rather than us asking him to change behaviors while leaving him in an emotional limbo.

It’s hard to make personal changes and improvements. Yet, it becomes much more doable when your emotional needs and preferences are not harmed or suspended during the transition/learning period.

I remember working with a child with a severe stealing problem. I recall sitting in the office at the group home and having a pleasant conversation with him when he was with us a couple of weeks. I could see him eying a candy bar lying on my desk, so I asked if he wanted it. He denied wanting it. At the end of the conversation I told him that if he did want the candy, he could earn it if he did a couple of small tasks. He declined my offer.

That night, the candy bar was stolen. Since he had a long history of denying ever taking anything, I did not confront him on the theft. Instead, I asked for his assistance and expertise. I told him the candy bar was taken and asked if he had any ideas how someone could have pulled off such a caper. After some time he finally decided to help me make the home more theft proof. In exchange for his assistance he earned many things he wanted, and was able to find a socially acceptable means of exploiting his talent as a thief
In this young man’s case he was a very talented thief. While he failed in school and was generally viewed as mentally limited, when it came to robbery he was nothing short of brilliant.

Through time we found many other problem solving applications for his talent, all of them legal and many potentially lucrative. He wrote a few good great heist stories while he was with us, and learned many ways to use his prowess to engage and entertain those around him. He was not only a thief, but an excellent liar, which he was able to adapt to being a salesman and a promoter.

It is now time to address the third component I had mentioned that being biochemical. The biochemical element is often easy to see in areas of addiction, compulsive or risky behavior, or in asocial behaviors such as lying and stealing, or arguing and having tantrums.

Every thought and experience we have, and every emotion we feel has its own biochemistry. In what ways biochemistry reacts to our experiences and in what ways does biochemistry cause our experiences will be a source of great debate and research for the next few decades.

Yet, when it comes to changing our behavior or developing a new habit an awareness of biochemistry is very crucial to our success. It will the hard to adapt to a new behavior, or stay away from an undesired one if we do not honor our biochemistry.
A person whose metabolism is dependent on the biochemical effects of a substance, experience or emotional state will have a hard time doing without that experience, substance or emotional state. Yet, if the new habit provides the same chemistry or is accompanied by other activities which tend to the desired biochemistry than the chances of success are greatly increased.

A smoker who either gets nicotine or a corollary mimicking that internal experience will not be as resistive to giving up the habit. A drug dealer, thief, gambler, or daredevil who gets a danger high from these activities will be more able to change their ways if they find a more acceptable alternative that still provides them with a similar
biochemical rush.

Emotions and emotional states such as anger, revenge, fear, safety, love, excitement, depression, anxiety, detachment and safety all have their own biochemical states. Likewise so do experiences such as conflict, risk, power, control, subservience, dependence, starvation or overeating. So do most foods and substances cause changes in our biochemistry and not just the obvious ones such as sugar, nicotine, caffeine and alcohol.

This post is going longer than I intended so, therefore, I will discuss the roles of these three components regarding education and athleticism in the next post.

I hope this entry was not too unwieldy or confusing. I just wanted to relate to you the importance and benefit of trying to view personal change from the perspective of these three components.

In my 30 years of helping clients, friends and myself I have found these components to be of crucial value.

1) Find a new habit to replace the undesired one
2) Make sure that your emotional/psychological payoffs of the old habit have new outlets
3) Help your body accept the change by not drastically changing your basic biochemistry

Jim Guido

I must admit I don’t get all the excitement surrounding the supposed “overhaul” of the US health care system. Other alternative titles for this post were Much Ado About Nothing and Barack’s Big Adventure.

The following excerpts are taken from an article posted on physorg.com and apparently originally written by www.HealthyMagination.com . My points and questions will be written in italics following each excerpt.

-The United States is the only major industrialized nation which does not offer some form of universal health care. The government does provide coverage to the elderly and disabled under Medicare, some of the very poor under Medicaid, government workers and military veterans.

Even after the passage of this controversial bill, the US will remain the only industrialized nation without some form of universal health care.

President Barack Obama’s health care bill, which passed Sunday in the House of Representatives, aims to bring the United States closer to universal coverage than ever before.

Listen to the carefully crafted wording. The bill aims to bring the US closer to universal coverage. This is essentially a non binding promise to one day have a humane health care system.

-Some 15.4 percent of the US population – or 46.3 million people – did not have health insurance in 2008, according to the Census Bureau. Since about 10 million of those are not US citizens, the most commonly cited number is 36 million people.
The plan is intended to usher in the most sweeping overhaul of its kind in four decades and extend coverage to some 32 million Americans out of the 36 million who lack it now, according to the independent Congressional Budget Office (CBO).

Again the plan is intended to extend coverage, but appears to contain many corporate friendly loopholes to avoid any financial hardship for the health care industry. These non statements are a defense attorneys dream, and allow the health care providers and insurance companies to avoid responsibility while increasing the responsibility of people using their services.

The United States drastically outspends other countries on health care, yet has worse overall outcomes and leaves millions at risk of losing their homes or even lives for lack of insurance.
-Per capita spending in the United States also ranks far ahead of other industrialized nations at 7,290 dollars in 2007. That’s more than 2,500 dollars more per person than Norway, which ranks second, and about 2.5 times the OECD average of 2,984 dollars per person.
-Total health care spending accounted for 2.2 trillion dollars in 2007, or 16.2 percent of US GDP. That’s five percentage points more than second-ranking France and nearly twice the proportion spent by the United Kingdom and Japan.

Pay more get less. Nothing in this bill seems to force this condition to change.

-Nearly 45,000 people die every year in the United States because they don’t have health insurance, a recent study by Harvard University researchers found.
-Premiums for health insurance provided by employers have doubled since 2000 and most workers are spending more out of pocket even as the services covered shrink.
-Medical bills contribute to more than half of personal bankruptcies and homes lost to foreclosure.

The problem obviously is that health insurance is too expensive for many people, So the solution should be to cut down insurance costs so that more people can afford insurance. Yet, there is much in this bill which implies that costs will come down for insurers and health care providers, but actually go up for those needing health care services and insurance.

For the first time in US history, most Americans would be required to buy insurance or face fines, and larger firms could face penalties for not offering coverage.

Care to read that a few times. Not only are we not going to provide health care for all citizens, but were going to penalize them for not having enough money to afford insurance.
This is kind of like credit card companies raising interest rates for those incapable of paying off their debt.

-Until now, insurance companies have been able to deny or even revoke coverage for pre-existing conditions like heart disease, cancer or – in nine states – injuries sustained from domestic violence.
The bill would ban insurance company practices like denying coverage for preexisting illnesses, dropping people from coverage when they get sick, or capping lifetime coverage, and restrict new plans’ use of annual limits.

Sounds good at first, but it doesn’t say anything about capping the amount of money an insurer could charge you for their policy. Hence, instead of dropping your coverage for preexisting conditions or sickness they can just raise their rates beyond your capacity to pay, and then you get slapped with additional fines by the government for not having health insurance.

- No “public option”
After a year-long fight, Obama’s Democratic allies opted not to include a government-backed program to compete with private insurers, which supporters and many analysts described as the best way to rein in costs.

Plainly stated there will be no national health care product which could have been used to keep the profit based companies from gouging the public.

The legislation carries an initial 10-year price tag of 940 billion dollars, but would reduce the ballooning US deficit by 138 billion dollars through 2019 and 1.2 trillion over the following decade, the CBO said.
Democrats have highlighted the independent Congressional Budget Office’s estimate that the bill would cost 940 billion dollars over the next 10 years, while cutting 143 billion dollars from the bloated US deficit through 2019 and 1.2 trillion over the following decade.
-Health care spending is expected to eat up 25 percent of the US economy by 2025, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

Any doubt that this long term cost savings estimate will be revised down between now and then, and replaced with more ballooning deficits.

The plan creates new state-based marketplaces called exchanges where Americans without employer-provided coverage could buy insurance.
But the bill would also offer subsidies to help individuals who earn too much to get coverage under an expansion of the government’s Medicaid program but under 400 percent of the US federal poverty level, which in 2009 stood at earnings of 22,000 dollars per year for a family of four.

Some nice double talk and a few crumbs for the poor before they get those nasty penalties and fines for being poor.

-While the United States excels in areas such as cancer care, it lags behind other industrialized nations in avoidable hospital admissions for treatable conditions like asthma and diabetes, the OECD found. Disparities also lead to high infant mortality rates and a shortened life expectancy.

Not much in this bill which offers a promise of better health care, but rather lower costs and higher profits for health care related industries.

Republicans also vowed to keep up the fight in the Senate — the next battleground — and repeal the broadly unpopular bill if they win back majorities in November.

There you go, now comes the real reason for the health care bill passage. Obama put his political future on the line by promising a new health care system, and Republican’s now can spin the hell out of this non-issue to win back the House and Senate. Obama can say he lived up to his word and complain bitterly when his bill is compromised or revoked by the House and Senate, and the Republican’s are able to politically exploit a bill which will not improve US health care.

After a year of often bitter debate, Obama cleared the way to his victory with an 11th-hour deal to sign an executive order reaffirming a longstanding US ban on government funding for abortions, winning support for the bill from a group of conservative Democratic holdouts.

It just gets better and better doesn’t it.

Just a final note on the who truly benefits by the passage of this bill you only have to look at the stock market. Since the passage of the bill stock’s related to the health care industries have done well, with many skyrocketing.

The financial press attributes this to the fact that “uncertainty” has been removed from the market. If they certainly were going to lose money, I doubt the stocks would have exploded upward.

Jim Guido