Stuff on my mind

The Handshake Hear 'round the World
Seriously, I doubt any handshake in history has gone through as much scrutiny and criticism as the handshake between President Obama and Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez the other day at the Summit of the Americas.

Personally, after watching a few days of Obama handling things in Mexico and at the Summit, I can say I love the humility and attitude he takes to the table with our neighbors in this hemisphere. Shaking hands with Chavez and showing polite courtesy only follows his already defined personality in dealing with other world leaders.

Now, don't get me wrong... Chavez is a dipshit and proves it every chance he gets. I don't buy gasoline or anything from Citgo stations (even though they are routinely $.04 or so cheaper than anyone else!!!) just because of the Chavez link.

But... that is ME... and I am not the President of the United States. Obama is showing that he is above the petty squabbles of the past (perceived or real) and is willing to open the doors of diplomacy to even our most fervent critics. Does the fact that someone disagrees with us vehemently make us right or them wrong? Worst case scenario in my mind is that we don't reach any sort of accord and the relationship stays chilly.

But at least extending the hand of cooperation and showing the willingness to sit down and talk about our issues is a HUGE step that our past administrations would never have done and to me is a huge step forward.

UN Conference on Racism
Is it any surprise that the Iranian President (or whatever he is called) Kharzai started mouthing off about Israel on the first day of this conference? I for one was not surprised. Why is everyone else all up in arms about it? Kharzai speaking at a global conference? What the hell else is he going to talk about?

The bottom line is two wrongs don't make a right. You can't say that Palestinians are racist and kill indiscriminately and then think the Israeli's are just defending themselves. They are just terrorizing in a different way... One uses a lone bomber on a bus, the other uses a $25 million dollar rocket that "misses" it's target. Or maybe the target was surrounded by 30 women and children each time...

Explain to me the difference... I promise I will listen.

But since the US does not have a delegation there, I am not sure what we can hope is accomplished by the rest of the world at this conference. The UK has a group there monitoring the activities, but they were one of the groups that walked out when Kharzai went on his babble-fest. Why not just listen, then respond... if you don't like the way a two-way conversation is going you can always shut up and THEN walk out.

Job Search Woes
Well, the job search process really sucks... with double digit unemployment in the Tampa area, there are way too many candidates for each job that is posted... and the job postings have slowed down considerably. I am lucky if I find one job per day to send a resume to. You see the same positions listed, day after day, and no one is calling. You can only assume you are resume #4,372 in the stack and they will only look at the first 100.

Answer me this... you have a job to fill... you have two candidates... one has more experience than the other...

All things being equal (they will both work for the same salary, benefits, etc...) who would you hire?

If you said you would take the guy with less experience... kick yourself and explain why.

I feel that once you hit that decade of experience mark, regardless of how much you "dumb down" the resume, people assume that you want too much money, or will keep looking, or whatever...

How about this for an idea... pick up the phone, and call them both. THEN make your decision... what is the harm of a 5 minute phone conversation?

Too often though, American companies can't see past the next 12 months and will take the "immediate fix" with no thought towards where this person can help them go beyond 12 months. Can they handle it if your company suddenly grew by 100%? Can they handle it if your Sr. Level guy decided to pursue a different position and left?

Point is, take the experience and never look back.

All I'm gonna say 'bout that...

NFL Draft
YAY! NFL Draft this weekend! The Bears don't pick until the second round so I will only kinda be watching on Day One. I will probably have it rolling on the screen on Sunday though, that's for sure.

The sad thing is, due to the job situation and a lack of a first round pick for my Bears, this year will end a string of I think 7 Years watching the draft with my buddy Dave at Hooter's in Tampa. well, that and the fact that the draft starts later this year.

Used to be, we'd get to Hooters at 11am, start throwing them back, and by the time Day 1 was over we'd be at least four and a half sheets to the wind and have to find a way to get home.

Now, not so much... I'll probably hit the pool until around the time I think the Bears will pick, run in and check it out and then back for some more sun & fun. ;)

Here's to the memories!

Peace out...
Heitz