Aptitude test for President?

I have been once again thinking about our presidential choices to lead this fine country for the next 4 years.  As I was thumbing through the piles of political rhetoric looking for something tangible to evaluate the candidates on, it occurred to me that we have no good "standard of measure" for presidential candidates.  For folks like me, a president's ability to accomplish and lead is much more important that a bunch of political opinions on a variety of topics.

So, I would like to see the presidential candidates submit to a presidential aptitude test.   It would serve as the "data" equivalent of a debate.  The test would focus on their problem solving, intelligence, decision making (under pressure), economics, military strategy, and political science.  We could enlist former presidents and leaders of these fields to develop the test and have some portion of the government maintain it.  

It would also be interesting to see what some of the other attributes are of the candidates.  What is each candidate's IQ?  What is the most prevalent behavioral trait (DiSC profile)?  I'm sure there are a few more that would be interesting.

Wow.... I like this idea.  Imagine that, some hard data to help make a presidential decision on.

A plea to the Electorial College?

As many Americans during this election season, I'm faced with trying to decide between two presidential candidates that I neither like nor think will do a good job.  I imagine I will muse about writing in a different candidate, or voting for one of the other candidates, which, of course, yields a "wasted" vote.   Dilemmas dilemmas...

However, I different possibility came to mind yesterday.  Instead of focusing my energies on deciding between the two mediocre offerings from the major parties, should a new grass-roots be started to lobby the Electoral College directly.  The EC is capable of selecting anyone which meets the constitutional requirements to serve as President, regardless of political party or popular vote.  Maybe what all the voters like myself should do is appeal to the EC to look across this great country and find the person who they believe is best suited for the job.   Possibly someone that lacks the political machine of the big parties, someone from the private sector, or a highly acclaimed professor.  Yes, maybe that is a last-ditch, desperate call for the EC to do the right thing for this country.  So, how about it, Electoral College?

37Signals and working differently

I ran across an interesting article today talking about the company "37signals" and their work environment. Quite different than Intel with no meetings and a focus on NOT interrupting people. The concepts of passive discussions are definitely interesting. None the less... probably worth the read.

http://broadcast.oreilly.com/2008/10/jason-fried-of-37signals-on-bu.html
http://www.37signals.com/

Word for the day: Costochondritis

So, on Sunday I started noticing my sternum & ribs were hurting right where they attach. I didn't think much of it.. figuring I strained something playing with the kids (happens alot). Well, on Monday it got worse making it difficult to pick up anything and resulting in a dull but notable pain when I breath deeply. I was also having trouble sleeping if I moved certain way. By this point my concern was growing, as you can imagine. On Tuesday morning, things had gotten worse and now the left side of my chest is a little swollen and very tender to the touch. While it was pretty clear I wasn't having a heart attack, I began to wonder if I had broken a rib or something. Time to hit the web...

After a half an hour of searching, I had my answer... Costochondritis. A visit to the doctor today confirmed my "arm-chair" diagnosis. It is a interesting affliction.. with medical science not sure what causes it. It goes away on its own with no lasting issues... but is quite painful and can last for months :-(. Here is a link for more info if you are curious.

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/costochondritis/DS00626

I guess this gets me out of moving furniture for a while :).

Infinite Playlist

I went to see Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist last night and really enjoyed it.  It is kinda a mix of Singles and Breakfast Club but set in current day New York.  Enjoyable without being over-the-top.  Recommended.