Hi everyone, thanks for the kind words! The writer called me after coming across a post I made to www.fool.com one of my favorite financial websites. I had some questions about the company handling our 401k, as we switched over in July. While I ended up finding the information I needed, she called back after a while to confirm the details, and to see if I'd found answers to my questions. Although I did find the missing information, it lead me to more questions about the relatively recent shifting of the retirement savings risk, from the corporation to the consumer. Essentially, people who manage our money aren't doing their jobs. Since our futures are now tied together, it's in our interest to become more educated consumers, and demand more transparency from Wall Street. Overall, it's weird to read about yourself in the paper! It's a good article, as it articulates some of the challenges we face. I wish there was more context around my quote, but I think I my the point across.

Basically, the shifting of retirement burden from corporations to the consumer has created a market ripe for abuse. While there are many good financial advisors and products, many are the creation of marketing droids, and exist only to fleece shareholders. Why should anyone pay someone 2% of their salary to underperform the overall market? We're... Read More in the first generation of folks who will enjoy a self funded retirement.

We're the first generation of folks who will enjoy a self funded retirement. In light of recent self inflicted economic turmoil, it only makes sense for consumers to demand greater transparency for investment vehicles that are sold as a solution for what amounts to nothing less than our collective retirement needs. At the end of the day, we're in this together folks. Ask questions, and demand real answers! Don't pay for something you can do better yourself, get a haircut, shave, and don't stay up all night playing rockband if you're going to be in the paper.

The urge to write again creeps through my being.

Too much tv, too many message boards, too few books, too little time left before the election. All of these things consipre to rob me of an outlet I very much enjoy. A fact evidenced by my lack of entries for over a year.

I've started another project, www.adamgamradt.com but I'm not sure where it's headed. Obviously it's a vanity site, but branding myself publically seems like daunting than it has in the past. I often worry about ardently holding the demands and benefits of my public persona as more valuable than espousing the political risk that is a part of my private life. That is to say, I am concerned that I'll lose respect in some social circles for standing up for what I believe in publically.

I just got an email from my sister, who's concerned among other things that "hard to get people excited and motivated when talking about heavy stuff" although with respect to Obama's seemingly good chance to win this election "i am going to personally smile and enjoy every moment of this"

Don't worry sister, even if we lose this election, the world won't stop changing.

It is the so called conservatives who should be worried. They’ve been in power for 30 plus years, and have seen great change. Sexual orientation is no longer something they can discriminate against, sure they can rail and rail, but it’s wasted effort. You cannot push the change back up the river.

Women and minorities have gained power, people are more likely to be judged now by the content of our character, and not by any secondary characteristics.

Government has become increasingly transparent as we move information on the web.

Even the VP candidate on the Republican side agrees that “gays” should have equal rights under the law.

It is a result of empathy that we constantly feel overwhelmed by the change around us, especially by those who seek to stop it’s flow. We feel. Indeed empathy may be the most important evolutionary benefit we have in a civilized world.

After thirty plus years of holding back the dam of change, the conservative movement has been changed. A wise man said to me "You either are change, or you are changed."

I’ve said it before, the reason we should relax and be happy like my sister, is the same reason the Bill O'Reilly's of the world scream like they’re about to drown. They are.

Given the level of ignorance directed toward community organizations, I'd like to pose a question.

What constitutes a community organization?

The American Cancer Society?

http://www.cancer.org/docroot/home/index.asp

Cease Fire Chicago certainly qualifies.

http://www.ceasefirechicago.org/cpvp.shtml

I ran in to a player of mine at the Mall last night. He was volunteering with Big Brothers Big Sisters. Although I'm aware that several of our players give back to their community in many different ways, I was moved by this. Winning a game pales in comparison to how proud I am of his effort to help his community.

http://www.bbbs.org/site/c.diJKKYPLJvH/b.1539751/k.BDB6/Home.htm

How about youth lacrosse? Is time spent developing kids ability to work together considered community organization? How about the public health angle, considering we've taken nearly all physical activity out of the school day?

Is our time spent working for organizations such Bloomington Youth Lacrosse wasted? http://www.bloomyouthlax.org/

There is a multitude of public health programs at the University of Minnesota that advocate for a number of community related causes. The level of alcohol abuse on college campuses is a concern of every college coach I know. The best way I know to combat this fact is to build and organize our community. At Minnesota, I argue strongly that this type of organization is one of our primary benefits of having a lacrosse team. Developing men like the one I ran in to last night is exactly why community organizations are vital to our sense of self, especially as it relates to the community as a whole.

The sooner we get involved in people lives, as we do at the youth lacrosse level, the sooner we can make sure people feel a sense that they belong to something bigger than themselves.

To continue to mock and ridicule community organizers belittles a goal that most of us in our lacrosse community share. We try to help good people become great, and with a little luck, occasionally take a person on the edge, and help bring them back.

http://picasaweb.google.com/adamgamradt

H. Candace Gordon is a civil rights lawyer defending Guantanamo Bay Detainees, pro-bono. This guy sounds more like a prisoner to me.

Here is the story from Minnesota Public Radio.

http://thestory.org/archive/the_story_179_Gitmo_Lifting_The_Veil_of_Secrecy.mp3

Here is her blog for more information.

http://gtmoblog.blogspot.com/

Here is the new face of justice.

So I'm watching Fox News the other night, and a commercial for Ambien comes on.

Talk about nailing your target market.

If I voted for President Bush, I would have trouble sleeping too.

Work has been kicking my ass of late.

Hence, no time for writing.

I see today that Al Franken will be running for Senator in our great state of Minnesota.

This will be fun.

Norm Coleman was a Democrat. Then he was a Republican. In his heart, he just wants to be a Kennedy so bad. I ah, er ah.

Senator Franken, Senator Wellstones seat awaits.

In other news, The Mooninites from Aqua Teen Hunger Force, have caused a bomb scare in Boston. I don't know about you, but this guy sure looks like a terrorist to me.



Fear is a powerful thing, it quickly overwhelms reason, and inhibits our ability to live free.

Madam Speaker, nicely done.

lots of clapping, norm colemans teeth in hd are scary white.

nancy pelosi has a tell, when she's nervous, she blinks.

a bipartisan tone.

i think dick cheney just died

oh wait, his eye moved

he has a full economic report due next week.

call for a balanced budget.

do so without raising taxes.

Hillary doesn't seem to agree.

Ted Kennedy looks like he's about to pop.

dont fix schools, just move kids.

dick cheney just ate a mentos, or possibly a gummi bear

tax breaks will help pay for better health insurance?

at least he mentioned better technology.

actually covered my doctor vs business guy rant from earlier.

temporary worker plan got a tepid response.

cooperation to pass imigration reform got a double standing ovation.

energy topic, dead silence, first clapper guy is ahead of the game.

claps cut him off again and again with ethanol.

reduce gasoline consumption by 20% in the next ten years.

dick winks, and grins wickedly.

double capcity of strategic reserve.

meh.

technology will allow use to confront the problem of global climate change.

does he mean global warming?

a flurry of whispers spreads across the room.

must take the fight to the enemy to win the war on terror.

shots of the generals, clapping.

maybe pelosi blinks for dick?

i swear to god, the man doesn't blink.

there he goes.

pelosi sure is quicker out of the chair though good speed for a speaker.

pretty sure she just celebrated, for a split second, by doing the heisman.

terrorist are against civilization.

an extention of the fear.

very deliberate restatement of his position on the terrorist killers.

every terrorist fears most, human freedom.

iraqis voted.

escalation happened in 2006 due to sunnis bombing of golden mosque.

iraqis will lead us, and we'll chase down the bad guys.

people want to live in peace, up to government to keep them safe now.

merica.

merican.

al qaeda aiding sunni.

iran aiding shite.

smirk when dems don't standing o.

you did not vote for failure.

pursuing new strategy, asks to support it, then support our troops.

double standing o.

bipartisan plea, council on the war on terror.

92000 new marines.

no nukes for iran.

call for a palestinian state.

speak out for the cause of freedom in cuba, belarus, toga?, and must do something about darfur.

foreign policy is more than war and diplomacy.

we're taking on hunger and disease?

aids.

double standing o.

1.2 billion in five years for malaria.

double standing o.

millenium challenge account.

dikembe mutumbo hangs with laura.

joel comes over, enough of the same old same old.

This should be a fun State of the Union address.

"President Bush, in Tuesday's State of the Union address, will propose a plan to cut U.S. gasoline consumption by 20 percent while bolstering inventory in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, Republican sources say."

He's also going to propose a new tax on health insurance.

Speaking on CNN's "American Morning" on Tuesday, Snow said Bush's plan "offers an opportunity to open up the health care system in a way that it's never had before."

Snow said the effect will be similar to what happened when market forces were let loose on prescription drug prices.

"You get major retailers fighting ... to provide medicine as cheaply as possible and at the same time effectively," he explained. "Prices are one-third lower than people expected."

There are some things better served by government regulation. I can't hire a Marine Corp, and I can't build a hospital. Do we really want to have more opportunity for corporations, who's sole motive is profit, to have even more influence on health care? Well I work at one of those corporations, and I say we don't. If anything, we need better legal standards, and better enforcement of existing laws restricting business people from making decisions for doctors. If anything we need better applied technology, which is something that corporations can actually help us with! So where is the tax insentive for someone who creates a better application to manage Policy Documentation? Where is the grant for developing an electronic record system that works, and protects people's privacy? Can someone please explain to me how the hell HIPAA makes me any safer? Why I have to sign every piece of paper three times, and enter my address in twice on the same forms? Yea, business people can fix the health care system, the same people who brought you idea's like these, really care if your grandma gets her heart medicine.

http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2007/biz2/0701/gallery.101dumbest_2007/index.html?cnn=yes

Can you imagine the ads for a doctor's office if we turn an intimate personal service like health care, in to a commodity? "You've tried the best, now try the rest!"

There is nothing more exciting than a free market for discount surgery.

Hi everybody!