a Buddhist Bernie-backing Investor?

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For those checking me out as a result of a Twitter post or publishing site, I know it’s confusing. I post a LOT about #BernieSanders but also $AMZN, and not enough about #writing, #dharma or my publishing biz.  I’ll touch on all of that here.  I don’t feel it’s ridiculous to support Bernie, and still be an active investor.  I am fortunate that my socially-aware investment choices have paid off.  I don’t invest in companies I don’t believe in.  I would love to chat with Bernie and see if he truly believes that ALL billionaires are bad.  I don’t.  The ones I invest in donate MILLIONS to charitable causes that I also support.  Let me say a bit more about how and why I began investing in the first place.

I was an online pioneer back in the 1980s running a hobbyist computer “bulletin board” system (called a BBS.)  Not only was I an early adopter of computers and online services, I was a Geek Girl — more common now, rare growing up in Iowa and learning data processing in the 1970s. Yep, punch cards, big mainframes, and giant floppy disks.  Even though I owned one of the first personal computers (before IBM made them), it didn’t occur to me to invest in MSFT back then.  I did buy AAPL the day Steve Jobs returned in 1997.  Good choice.  And, I bought a little known online service called Amazon.com in 1998 (before the 3 – 1 stock split.) 🙂  A VERY good move!  I was investing in the “guys” and their ideas, but had hoped people would have been investing in MY company.  I was involved in the earliest days of commercial internet with my own company ZiaLink as an alternative to America Online.  We would have gone public as ZLNK if it had all worked out. Sadly, NSCP (Netscape) was the original hot IPO, not ZLNK, and as they say, the rest is history.  (I call it HER story.) There’s a bit more on the About tab, and some day I’ll post more details from those days. Quite a story.  Anyway, that’s how and why I picked some real winners early on.  ORCL, QCOM, the QQQs, in addition to AMZN and AAPL.  I had some failures too, CUBE and HAYS (remember Hayes modems?) But got in on FB (Facebook) the first week at $33. TWTR, not so much (but I remain optimistic.)

I think it’s GREAT to invest in America’s future. I used PayPal (early days) and believe in Elon Musk. I was lucky to own eBay and got 100 shares of PYPL when eBay spun it off  (as a result of their 2002 joint venture.) I bought a little BitCoin and always keep my eye on new technology.  Does Bernie approve of my philosophy? Who knows, but I like him.  I trust Bernie over the screwball salesman (Drumpf) who really would be terrible for Wall Street and America.  Bernie is pro-diversity and humanity, something I admire. Hillary will probably win — a compromise me and many other investors can live with.

How do I reconcile all that with my Zen moniker? As I explain in my little philosophy book Seeing Clearly  Buddhists are not perfect, no human is. Grappling with the Dharma (and reality) is our practice.  Zen is a way of seeing things, more clearly. 😉

On Bernie and politics…

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First I want to thank anyone who has come here as a result of my prolific tweeting about beloved candidate Bernie Sanders. #FeeltheBern !! 🗽  It’s  rare for someone to be as honest and have as much integrity as Bernie does — that’s why we love him so much. 80% of people asked believe Senator Sanders is the most honest of all the 2016 candidates! Yet, many support HRC because “she can win.” We know that if everyone who believed in Bernie would vote for him, HE would win, hands down! But VOTING is the real issue.

Update: 4.21.2016  This was originally posted in mid-April BEFORE the #NYPrimary.  Everything changed that day– for me and for Senator Sanders. I did not realize that nearly all the remaining Democratic primaries, and most remaining voter registration, are CLOSED.  Let me explain.  Of the 16 remaining opportunities to vote for Bernie, only THREE states are “open”, and voter registration is already closed in one of those. Example: you cannot vote in the May 3rd Indiana Primary unless you registered by April 5th!  So even if you think you can vote Independent in Indiana, not unless you registered that way already.  Each state defines voting rules and deadlines.  This is very confusing and hard to explain on cable news, so  they don’t.

Further UPDATE:  May Day, 5.1.2016  Senator Sanders just held a national press conference (that CNN aired a few moments of, but was covered in its entirety on C-SPAN) and streamed live on various online services.  Sanders says that HRC cannot reach the required number of 2383 pledged delegates by June 14, that she will need super delegates, therefore Sanders claims the Democratic convention will be contested.  I can’t confirm that, but it’s a valid reason for Sanders supporters to keep going!  I remain concerned about who has actually registered to vote in the remaining elections.

For instance, some of you may not realize you were required to declare your voting status over a MONTH AGO for upcoming elections! Take the next five Northeastern US elections, four are CLOSED to Independents, and it’s too late to register anyway.  Those deadlines have passed.  Now are you pissed? I was.  I know the election laws of my own state, New Mexico, and how complicated they seem to first time voters and anyone affiliated with alternative parties, like Libertarian, Green Party, Socialist, or Independents.  So, a day or so before the New York Primary I started tweeting with some young Bernie supporters.  When I asked if they were registered, some of them called me a troll and accused me of “dirty tricks” claiming I was posting false info about voting!  I tweeted the official Bernie website with the #NYPrimary info.  It was sad to hear how many people felt cheated to learn they could not vote for Bernie.  This was all confirmed on election day.  Millions of young or first time voters were turned away because they had not registered in time or failed to declare as a Democrat.

Voting laws are not common knowledge. People are mobile and elections are governed by individual states, not federal law. Only a couple of elections, like upcoming North Dakota, allow people to show up and vote without much restriction.  As I reviewed the current election laws,  of the 16 states yet to hold their primary or caucuses, I discovered it’s too late to declare or register in over half of them! So, what is the point of Senator Sanders campaigning so hard in those closed NE states where many young Bernie supports will not be allowed to vote?  It will only fuel future voter apathy.  I remember many of my friends feeling so discouraged over McGovern’s loss (to Nixon) OR not being allowed to vote (for one reason or another), they never tried to change laws… they just gave up and rarely vote.

While I was updating this post I just learned of Prince dying (totally off topic, I know) so I’ve lost some of my zeal for this voter education effort. HOWEVER, here is the perfect resource, an interactive map, for Bernie supporters to learn about election laws in YOUR state:  Can I vote?

Now comes the tough part…  (I wrote the rest of this as part of the original Pre-NYPrimary post.)  It still stands:

What if  #Bernie doesn’t win the nomination? Hillary has over two million more “raw” votes so far and like it or not, she will probably get the vast majority of the Super Delegates. I don’t like that part of the process any more than you, and just wait until we hit the Electoral College. That is what took down my other favorite Al Gore back in the day. Vice President Gore had won the popular vote in 2000 yet due to shenanigans from Bush brother Jeb (remember him, then-Florida Governor) George Bush became President.  I can’t tell you how disturbing and disheartening that was. I bring it up to say that even in the face of something that outrageous, we did not have full-on street riots. I worry we will this year. With a bigot like Trump leading the Republican pack and a lot of skin-head followers (who BTW have called me a Tin Foil Hat Looney) there will definitely be violence in Cleveland this summer.  Let’s not have that in Philadelphia for the Democratic convention… PLEASE!

Give it your all to get Bernie nominated, but if the effort fails Independents have lots of options. You could vote for Gary Johnson, our former New Mexico Governor, a Libertarian who never gets enough attention. There’s Green Party candidate Jill Stein, and a Socialist Worker’s party candidate (there’s a long list of choices.)  I’m sure you can even write-in Bernie.  But, if it truly comes down to Hillary vs. the fascist Trump, then I would urge you to vote for her. After all, we certainly know Hillary, have seen her in action as Secretary of State, and through 11 grueling hours of congressional testimony on Benghazi.  You can get involved in changing the system by becoming active in the Democratic Party (or one of the other parties) and changing the rules of the “game.” As a good friend of mine always says, “Democracy is not a spectator sport.”  Of course, you know that having been in the trenches this year for Bernie.  Don’t give up, get even — stay involved!  Protest all you want, but please let’s not resort to violence this summer.  Thank you again for reading, liking and re-tweeting my posts. I’m grateful you’ve all been so passionate about Bernie.  Please comment below if you’d like.  I would love to hear from you!!

Good Friday?

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Is it a “good Friday” with so much hate, anger, and fear in the world? For those spending this weekend in contemplation of what Jesus taught and/or  reflecting on how he died for “our” sins, he died for EVERYONE’s sins — a point worth pondering.  Jesus may have tossed the money changers out of the temple, but he still forgave them. While dying in agony on the cross, we’re told that he cried out, “Father forgive them. They know not what they do.”  He was referring to the Romans (and others) who crucified him.  He even wanted salvation for his killers–  for all of us.

Yes, I think Bible scholars and theologians would agree, Jesus didn’t die just for “evangelicals”,  or for “Christians” only.  He was crying out for ALL humans and our limited ability to comprehend the consequences of our actions.  We are human and we all make mistakes.  Jesus was asking to take on the burden (the Karma) of ALL of us.

Out of respect, I used to avoid posting Buddhist philosophy on Christian holidays. But, with ignorance the cause of so much fear and suffering, I must speak out, especially on these days.  Bible prophecy seems right on about our destiny; that we are on the brink of blowing ourselves “to Kingdom come” with so much fear, violence, and bigotry.  Millions of Christians will go to “church” this weekend, in other words congregate in a beautiful building, and pat themselves on the back for doing so.  It’s wonderful to pray and take time to reflect on Jesus, but will it change hearts or minds? If going to church is just another way to hunker down in a deeper fundamentalist stance of  “us against them”  then it’s not a good Friday.  It’s a very sad Friday.  I say this as someone raised in a Pentecostal church that was extremely intolerant, even of other Christians — especially Catholics.

For years I thought maybe that particular Midwest church was an anomaly, an exception, and that other Christians did “walk the talk.” Sadly, over the years intolerance has been on the rise– or maybe it’s always been there lurking in the shadows.  Now, with mega mouths like Trump refuting civility, people are openly expressing their hatred and distrust of “other” (anyone who looks different, disagrees with their views, or doesn’t go to their church.) Christians are setting fires to mosques and even Buddhist temples.  What’s the line about hypocrites and getting rid of the log in your own eye?  (Matthew 7:5)  I know, it pertains to me as well.

Easter should be an awakening, a true resurrection of Spirit; a time of fellowship and good will toward our “fellow-man.”  That language doesn’t translate as being nice only to those in your congregation or only males.  It means being compassionate to everyone.  I believe that includes not only women, children and people of all faiths, but how we treat the “least amongst us” — the helpless, and also animals, fish, birds and bugs, who are often senselessly tortured.

Jesus died for our sins, took on that tremendous burden because we are human, fallible and often unaware.  Most of you have probably deleted this link, and couldn’t care less what a Buddhist has to say.  In case you’re still reading,  I’ll end with something I found on a Christian ministry website:

“The struggle to forgive can ultimately make us stronger because it humbles us, causes us to realize our need of the Lord, destroys our pride, helps us to see our own sin more clearly, and causes us to rely on our brothers and sisters in the Lord for help.

Give God time to work in your heart. If the opportunity arises to talk to that person, go ahead. If not, lay it at the foot of the cross. And keep letting go of bitterness.”

Above quote from Dr. Ray Pritchard, of “Keeping Believing” prison ministries. This and other posts by ZenWoman, aka author of Seeing Clearly ej Morgan.

#Consequences

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I started this post two weeks ago before violence erupted at the Trump political “stage shows.” The events of  March 11/12 prove my point.  Actions have consequences.

In Buddhism we call it Karma. Jesus taught that you will reap what you sow. Either way the message is the same: actions have consequences. It’s not just a moralistic matter, it’s a principle of nature:  cause and effect.  We’re seeing this play out with the 2016 U.S. presidential election. I was writing about bullying, name-calling and juvenile antics, but we are already seeing those actions and consequences escalate.  When the leading Republican candidate tells his angry crowd, “go ahead and knock the crap out of them…  (referring to protesters) I’ll pay your legal fees”, not too surprising when someone sucker punched a protester.  AND, it doesn’t take much imagination to envision how the protesters might react; just as they did by organizing and showing up at the Chicago event with even more opposition. Of course, the tension escalates and BOOM, violence breaks out.  One action leads to another…   aka Consequences.

I was originally writing about the embarrassing spectacle and likely consequences, but now we have concrete examples of cause and effect. Punching isn’t the end, it’s the beginning of resentment and a high probability for more violence.  When Trump tells his followers that he can’t understand why “Muslims hate us”, that tells me he isn’t aware of cause and effect. For years, going back to the 1950s, we meddled in Middle Eastern affairs, tossing out a dictator or two, to assure access to oil. We became the enemy because the USA was a big bully.  But, if he can’t see it in the mirror, or the microcosm (his own events), doubtful he can anticipate the larger macro world consequences.  Shouldn’t our Presidential candidates have the vision to SEE cause and effect on a personal, national and world basis? Seems obvious to me.

If we foul our drinking water, we get poisoned.  When we pollute the oceans with a world of waste and hazardous chemicals, sea life dies and eventually so will the oceans. When the oceans die, so will we. Sadly that process is well underway according to many oceanic experts.  Cause and effect is in play with fracking. Doesn’t take a genius to see that if we destabilize the ground with high pressure chemicals and water, the earth will rumble and collapse.  Cause and effect is pretty obvious “to anyone with eyes to see”, as Jesus said.  He also taught “do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”  (from Sermon on the Mount, as reported by Matthew and Luke.)

So, if Jesus were here with the “evangelicals” I can’t imagine He would endorse the Trump philosophy of building walls, closing borders and declaring enemies. He would compassionately welcome immigrants the way we once did:

“Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed, to me: I lift my lamp beside the golden door.”

(The inscription on the Statue of Liberty, part of a poem by Emma Lazarus, written in 1890.)

What has happened to THAT America? A nation of immigrants, the gracious, charitable America heralded  in our songs and anthems? That’s the America I want to see again!  A place with good Karma, liberty and justice for ALL.

 

 

the Ultimate Amazon.com Review

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Years ago I should have reviewed Amazon.com the company the way we review products on their site. If enough of us had, maybe this 2016 SuperBowl ad would truly usher in an Alexa /AI Echo revolution, the way the old 1984 Apple ad introduced the world to the Mac (Macintosh computer.) Better late than never:

I give Amazon.com ($AMZN) 5 stars ***** for its unparalleled customer service and innovative CEO Jeff Bezos who knew from the beginning Amazon represented everything from A to Z (look at their logo.) Amazon.com incorporated in May of 1996 as an e-commerce company. It was always going to be more than a book store and never limited to just a retail or re-sale company like the so-called competitors. Amazon.com has no competitors. It’s always been and still is unique! First the company description and then I’ll explain why its stock price skyrocketed from $17 per share to nearly $700 (Dec 2015) since I invested back in 1998. From the investor page:

Amazon offers its own products as well as third-party products across various categories, through its retail Websites and through its mobile Websites and applications. It manufactures and sells electronic devices, including Kindle e-readers, Fire tablets, Fire TVs, Echo and Fire phones.

And that summary doesn’t even mention the famous multi-billion dollar AWS (Amazon Web Services) that not only lets anyone run sites and services in “the Cloud”, it offers a variety of computing, networking, and database services for every size business.  See for yourself: Amazon.com AWS site.

That same level of sophistication with simple interfaces is available for people who read, or want to publish eBooks, or both;  for people who want to buy music and videos and keep them in the cloud, OR store their own content online in a safe, secure way– whether it’s music, videos, photos or files. Yep, Amazon customers can keep eBooks and audio books in our account, along with music, movies, and more. With a Prime membership its basically all you can “eat” (or absorb) of whatever digital services you want! That’s a lot more than what Wally World wants to offer you with “free shipping.” Of course, Amazon has that too, with packages delivered in two days or less to your home.  (Last I checked you might pick up a Wally order in a week at a local store.)

For years, Amazon was considered the world’s largest bookstore, even though it had no retail “brick and mortar” stores. Buying books online expanded to buying eBooks in 2007 when the first Kindle eReader sold out in a few hours. Amazon reported in July 2010 that sales of eBooks was exceeding that of printed books. (I published my novel as both trade paperback and then as an eBook in September of 2010, using Amazon services of course 😉  )

Since then Amazon.com has created more elegant devices and an ecosystem that would blow Steve Job’s mind: Fire tablets, Fire TV, Fire phone and now the incredible AI Echo system, which is unlike anything you’ve seen! They all work together seamlessly, intuitively and are fun! The truth is while Apple actually is turning into the plodding corporation it railed against in the 1984 Super Bowl ad, Amazon.com is still innovating and bringing us the “must have” products and services for the future. So, if you haven’t been on Amazon.com recently, or haven’t seen the Echo, check it out. First, here’s one of the possible #SB50 Amazon Echo TV ads with Alex and Alexa 😉   Here’s a customer review of Echo /Alexa features on Youtube and here’s the official Amazon.com echo product page … once you’re there, look around at all the other amazing stuff, too.

All that and I didn’t even mention that I’ve stashed away an extra Fire phone (which was designed with VR in mind) and has features other smartphones can only dream of. Right, Siri?  😉

#EnoughIsEnough

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All this talk of more bombing in the Middle East is ridiculous. We simply can not continue in endless wars, for many reasons. First of all, we can’t afford it, but more importantly wars don’t work. It’s a leftover (maybe hangover) of macho caveman behavior. Beating our chest and then beating up the other person solves nothing. We only create enemies and perpetuate more violence.

Who started the trouble in the Middle East?  Warring factions over there blame each other. We blame Muslims for the 9/11 terrorism, but we (the USA) were meddling in their (Middle East) affairs for fifty years before that tragedy. We needed their oil back in the 1950s to satisfy our endless appetite for fast cars and “the good life”– at ANY cost. We didn’t care if we had to topple a regime or two to get it. Just like a school yard bully, we were on top, riding high for awhile until the oppressed got pissed and took revenge. That’s the way I see 9/11. It was already an act of revenge, but we turned it into a major war that has cost nearly TWO TRILLION dollars and ruined countless lives– American, Christian, Muslim and more.

What has this solved so far? “Absolutely nothing” as the old song song “War” proclaimed back in the 1960s. Now we have hawkish political candidates who want to double down. Totally ridiculous! The only hope is when one side is brave enough to de-escalate tensions.

Honestly, think about any conflict you’ve ever been engaged in, when has violence ever had a successful outcome? If you kill someone there will always be consequences. It could be anything from your conscience driving you crazy, to death, if a family member believes in “an eye for an eye”; or depending on your religious views, eternal damnation. Just imagine the revenge that will come from recent police brutality. We’ve seen that hatred escalating on both sides.

So, what is the solution when we hate someone (or a group of people) so much we want to kill them, or wage war? The only answer is forgiveness. WAIT, don’t blow me off yet. Hear my logic.

When we hate (or hold a grudge, or crave revenge) we are only hurting ourselves. The other person or group is not affected by our feelings of hatred, WE ARE! It makes our heart or head pound and increases our blood pressure. (I’m sure a medical professional could explain this is detail, but you get the point.) We are mad, angry and our face is flushed. If we follow through and physically harm “the other” we might feel some satisfaction for a brief time, and then what? Psychopaths might get off on it, but the rest of us usually feel miserable, especially if we do this repeatedly. The other possibility is the harmed come after us and we are injured, maimed or killed. Not great results, eh?

By forgiving the “bad guy” we discover several things. First, we feel better after letting go of the rage and anger. Our blood pressure and “fight or flight” response settles down. We feel lighter, free-er, and in time even joyful. And, after all success is happiness, not misery. Hard to be happy when we’re full of hatred and anger. And one thing I’ve learned: Our freedom is founded more in love than in hate.

Just some food for thought during this time of Thanksgiving.