How Does One Make Sense of the News?

I am often asked - (unlike George Foreman, I'm not paid to say that) - "How do you make sense of the news?

The unspoken question nowadays is, "how does one tell the fake news from the real news?"

Part of the answer is, it takes effort.

It's like a jigsaw puzzle.

When one first opens the box and pours out all the pieces, they're just in a big pile.  None of it fits, none of it makes sense.

So, the first thing one does is turn them all right-side-up and spread them out.  Then, at least one can see them all.

But, they still don't make any sense.  The shapes mean nothing.  The colors are all mixed up.  So, one separates out the pieces that seem to have straight edges:  the edge pieces.  Not because there's anything magic about the edges, but because they're easy.  Then, gradually, one can start connecting them, either because the shape fits into another piece or because the colors match or by sheer trial and error.

Once the edge pieces are all connected, that forms the outline of the puzzle.  All the other pieces have to fit in that outline somewhere.

So, one begins to sort them by color.  Some are all blue.  One knows that's the sky, though one may not yet know how the sky pieces fit together.  Nonetheless, one knows they're generally at the top.  One can't fit many of them together, yet, but one knows they're going to fit, eventually, and one puts them together.

Maybe there is some other distinctive feature - a fence line or a wall or a window.  One can tell by looking at the pieces that they are part of that feature, so one puts them together.  A few of them, to one's surprise, actually fit with each other.

Little by little, the picture starts to take shape.  Some parts actually go fast.  Other parts just don't seem to fit and one has to go back to them over and over before one begins to discover the connections.

Finally, it all starts to make sense.  One can pick up a piece and just tell where it goes.  Sometimes, one is surprised by one piece or another.  It fits where one did not expect it to.  But, finally, all the pieces fit and are in place.

The news is exactly like that.  The first time one looks at it, it's like those puzzle pieces that are just dumped out of the box - all mixed up and seemingly nonsensical.

But, with patience, trial and error, and diligence, it can all come together.  Just don't expect it all at once or even quickly.

Telling the fake from the real news is a little harder.  It's like opening a puzzle box and some of the pieces one pours out don't have anything to do with the puzzle.  They are fake.

Start by finding a news source in which one has confidence.  I suggest a reputable news paper or the nightly news.  Read or listen to it faithfully.  Then, if one hears an item of news that contradicts that source, one may be suspicious of that item.

Don't be afraid to discard a piece of the puzzle.  If it's real, one will probably read or hear it again from the news source one trusts.

Finally, learn to tell the difference between fact and opinion.  Often, one finds opinion masquerading as fact, even in reputable news sources.  Sometimes, the reporter doesn't even recognize the difference him or herself.

For example, when a reporter reports that someone said something, that's a fact.  The reporter may get it wrong, but the person actually said something.  However, when a reporter reports that someone believes something, that's an opinion, based on the person's behavior.  The reporter cannot actually know what anyone besides the reporter believes.  Insist on finding out what the behavior was or is, then form one's own opinions about what the person believes.

The Unmade Bed: The Messy Truth about Men and Women in the 21st Century

I have finished reading "The Unmade Bed:  The Messy Truth about Men and Women in the the 21st Century," by Stephen Marche.

I read it because NPR made it sound good.  It wasn't.

Part of the inaneness of the book is that Stephen Marche, the author, gave up a career as a professor in New York to accommodate his wife's career move to Canada.  The book is, in part, an effort by Mr. Marche to explain and excuse that decision.  Not that he needed to.  It was a perfectly fine decision, but part of the book is explained by his need to do this.

But, it is more than that.

Part of it is that it is simply incorrect.

In the book, Mr. Marche actually says, "Anything boys can do, girls can do.  Anything girls can do, boys can do."  That, on it's face, is false.  Boys can impregnate girls.  Girls can never impregnate boys.  Girls can give birth to babies.  Boys will never be able to give birth to babies.

But, it is an incorrect statement at a deeper level.  While it is true that there are males who can do some of the things females can do, most males will never be able to do most of the things that most females can do as well as most females.  While it is true that there are females who can do some of the things males can do, most females will never be able to do most of the things that most males can do as well as most males.  This is a fundamental truth about men and women.  While there is overlap, there is never equivalence.  Men and women are not equal.  To deny this truth is to deny truth.  Mr. Marche attempts to deny truth.

But, it is more than that.

In his efforts to deny the truth, Mr. Marche makes assumptions that are not true.

Mr. Marche says, "Conjure up the image of a young man, and you automatically picture a loser."  Really?  I don't.  Mr. March makes assumptions that he expresses as universal truths which are not universal.

But, it is more than that.

Mr. Marche says things that are absolutely unintelligible, except, perhaps, to an academic.  I assume he does it to sound important.  He certainly isn't doing it to communicate.  I consider myself a fairly well-educated man, and there were times when, reading the book, I stopped, re-read a sentence, pondered over it, and still couldn't figure out what it meant.

The book is, in a word, pretentious.

All that said, Mr. Marche does come around to reality.  He admits that boys and girls (using the example of his own son and daughter) are just different.  He quotes some author as saying "A woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle."  He says this is true, but then points out that the fish and the bicycle keep falling in love, keep forming families together, keep having children, and keep making choices about furniture for the house.

Nonetheless, Mr. Marche's belated efforts to accept reality are marred by his initial attempts to deny it.

On a scale of 1 through 5, with 1 being the worst, I'd give it a 1.

A Follow-Up Letter

As of April 25, 2017, I still haven't heard from U.S. Customs and Border Protection, so today I sent the following letter:

April 25, 2017

                                                                      James W. Collins

                                                                      13112 Appaloosa Chase Dr.

                                                                      Austin, TX  78732

U.S. Customs and Border Protection

1300 Pennsylvania Avenue NW

Washington, D.C.  20229

Re:  Need for a wall through Big Bend National Park; previously sent letter

Dear Sir or Madame:

          On March 1. 2017, I sent a letter to Secretary Kelly asking him

“First:  What will you tell Congressman Williams regarding the need to build a wall through Big Bend National Park?

“Second:  If you tell Congressman Williams that it is necessary to build a wall through Big Bend National Park, will you tell him that such a wall could just as effectively be built north of the park?”

          Later I received a letter from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection dated March 17, 2017, acknowledging receipt of my letter to Secretary Kelly and stating that “DHS has asked that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) respond on its behalf.”

          The letter further states that “[w]e have forwarded your letter to the appropriate CBP office,” but it does not state to which it was forwarded.

          On March 29, 2017, I sent a letter to this address asking for the name of the office or person to which or whom my letter was forwarded.  To date, neither that letter nor my original letter to Secretary Kelly have received any response.

          May I please know the name of the office or person to which or whom my letter was forwarded?

          Thank you for your time and attention.

                                                                                Sincerely,

                                                                                James W. Collins

Cc:  Secretary John Kelly

       Congressman Roger Williams

A Response to my Letter to Secretary Kelly

So, I finally got a response to my letter to Secretary of Homeland Security John Kelly.  A few days ago I received a letter on what purports to be U.S. Customs and Border Protection letterhead (I have no reason to think that it is not) which reads, in its entirety:

"March 17, 2017

"Thank you for contacting the Departments of Homeland Security (DHS) about border security.  DHS has asked that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) respond on its behalf.  CBP appreciates your taking time to share your thoughts and concerns with us.  We have forwarded your letter to the appropriate CBP office.

"U.S. Customs and Border Protection"

It is unsigned.

I responses, today I sent U.S. Customs and Border Protection the following letter.  We'll see what they say.

March 29, 2017

                                                                      James W. Collins

                                                                      13112 Appaloosa Chase Dr.

                                                                      Austin, TX  78732

U.S. Customs and Border Protection

1300 Pennsylvania Avenue NW

Washington, D.C.  20229

Re:  Need for a wall through Big Bend National Park

Dear Sir or Madame:

          On March 1. 2017, I sent a letter to Secretary Kelly asking him

“First:  What will you tell Congressman Williams regarding the need to build a wall through Big Bend National Park?

“Second:  If you tell Congressman Williams that it is necessary to build a wall through Big Bend National Park, will you tell him that such a wall could just as effectively be built north of the park?”

          A few days ago I received a letter from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection dated March 17, 2017, acknowledging receipt of my letter to Secretary Kelly and stating that “DHS has asked that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) respond on its behalf.”

          The letter further states that “[w]e have forwarded your letter to the appropriate CBP office,” but it does not state which office it to which it was forwarded.

          May I please know the name of the office or person to which or whom my letter was forwarded?

          Thank you for your time and attention.

                                                                                Sincerely,

                                                                                James W. Collins

Cc:  Secretary John Kelly

       Congressman Roger Williams

 

Did Anyone Else Notice This?

After his inauguration, President Trump said that he had a plan to replace "Obamacare" that was within a "few strokes" of being finished, but he wasn't going to make it public until after Tom Price, his appointment for Health and Human Services Secretary, was confirmed.

Secretary Price has been confirmed for some time now.

Yesterday, House Republicans unveiled their plan to replace "Obamacare."

Where is President Trump's plan to replace "Obamacare"?

We haven't seen it.

Did President Trump decide he wouldn't make his plan public?  If so, he never said so.

What happened to his plan, finished to within a "few strokes"?

Did it ever exist?

Did President Trump lie when he said he had a plan that was within a "few strokes" of being finished?

America, you have been conned.

A Letter to Secretary Kelly

Today I sent the following letter to Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly:

March 1, 2017

                                                                      James W. Collins

                                                                      13112 Appaloosa Chase Dr.

                                                                      Austin, TX  78732

The Honorable John F. Kelly

Secretary of Homeland Security

Washington, D.C.  20528

Re:  Need for a wall through Big Bend National Park

Dear Secretary Kelly:

          My name is James W. Collins.  I live in the 25^th U.S. Congressional District of Texas.  My congressional Representative is Roger Williams.

          I went to Congressman Williams’ Austin office to ask him to do all that he could to oppose building a wall through Big Bend National Park.  I did not get to talk to Congressman Williams, but I did talk to a young staffer in his office named Aaron.  Aaron said he would pass on my request to Congressman Williams.

          I returned to Congressman Williams’ office to find out what his response was.  Aaron told me that Congressman Williams intended to rely on the opinion of the “security people” in deciding whether he would oppose a wall built through Big Bend National Park.

I thereupon asked him to pass on to Congressman Williams my request that, if it was necessary for him to support the building of a wall through Big Bend National Park, would he at least support building it to the north of the park, not through the park?  Aaron said he would pass on my request to Congressman Williams.

When I returned to Congressman Williams’ office to find out what the Congressman had to say about my request, Aaron told me that the Congressman had not changed his position:  that he would support building a wall through Big Bend National Park if, in the opinion of the “security people,” it was necessary.

On another day, I returned to Congressman Williams’ office and again was greeted by Aaron.  I asked Aaron if he could provide me with the names or the position titles of any of the “security people” on whose opinions the Congressman intended to rely.  Aaron said he did not know the names or titles of any of those “security people,” but he would ask and let me know.

When I returned to Congressman Williams’ office, Aaron told me that he had asked the Congressman but did not get any names or position titles.

Upon another visit to Congressman Williams’ office, I met John.  John told me that the phrase “security people” meant anyone who worked for the federal government and had anything to do with the border.  He said it could be anyone from a border patrol agent to you, the Secretary of Homeland Security.  John told me that I could “google it” and find out the names.

Since yours was the only name I was able to get from Congressman Williams, I am writing to you.  If there is someone else to whom I ought to direct my questions, please so inform me.

First:  What will you tell Congressman Williams regarding the need to build a wall through Big Bend National Park?

Second:  If you tell Congressman Williams that it is necessary to build a wall through Big Bend National Park, will you tell him that such a wall could just as effectively be built north of the park?

Thank you for your time and consideration.

                                                            Sincerely,

                                                            James W. Collins

 
Cc:  Congressman Roger Williams

Then They Came for Me

"First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Socialist.
Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me."

Martin Niemoller

First, they came for the refugees ...