A bizarre sequence of events lead to his impeachment. Mr. Blockhead was arrested on federal corruption charges in December for allegedly trying to sell or trade a US Senate seat that became available after Barack Obama was elected as president. He fought back publicly and refused to resign from his governorship, claiming that a political “lynch mob” was after him. That’s about when I wrote a tongue-in-cheek post about Rod Blagojevich (Poor, Poor Blagojevich… is a Blockhead).
Then, the week leading to his impeachment hearing, Mr. Blockhead went on a talk show circuit trying, I think, to drum up public sympathy. He fell flat on his face. Instead of attending the senate hearing and presenting evidence for his defense, Mr. Blockhead “talked more about the evidence with Barbara Walters on ‘The View’ than he did in this (Senate) chamber today, where he’s facing impeachment and removal from office,” said David Ellis, the House prosecutor.
This guy is an amazing ego. There was a great comment on my last blog post about Mr. Blockhead from Donna, “…I don’t think it matters what you say to this guy, he just ain’t gonna believe it. He’s like Casey Anthony – could care less what people think of him or what he’s done – just as long as people are looking at him. That’s right, Rod – go comb your hair again – someone is about to take your picture – quick, straighten your jacket out!”
Spot on!
Poor, poor Blagojevich. Look on the bright side, Rod, people now know how to spell your name.
TechFlash Launch Party: Rebecca Lovell (newly appointed executive director for NWEN), Craig Husa (entrepreneur), Kendall Kunz (former CEO Explorer Consulting)
Meet TechFlash. Last Thursday, TechFlash had its launch party at the Palace Ballroom in Seattle. TechFlash is a blog by Seattle tech startup writer John Cook and Microsoft beat writer Todd Bishop. They recently both left Seattle PI to join Puget Sound Business Journal to start TechFlash.
TechFlash is instrumental to the local technology community. John has covered the local technology industry for about a decade, focusing on entrepreneurs, startups and venture capitalists. Showing his age, he told me that he recognized me from our ARIS days. ARIS was an IT services company that we took public on NASDAQ in 1997 and subsequently has been sold to Ciber. Todd Bishop has covered the local tech industry and Microsoft for the past five years. His coverage of Bill Gates’ departure from daily life at the company was picked up by papers worldwide.
Together, they cover and uncover the most important technology and venture news in the Puget Sound area. They are prolific and TechFlash has been my main source of information on the recent Microsoft layoffs, the Entellium saga and venture news. They are historians, recording the happening of the vibrant local technology industry and entrepreneurship. They are also watchdogs, reporting the tough news within the community. Their blogs give a platform for the local technology and venture community to discuss unfolding news. TechFlash is a huge asset to our community.
TechFlash’s plans are to host more events for industry people to network and socialize. The next event will be April 29th. They also announced plans to hold an annual event called, the “Flashies”. More information on that to come later on their website.
Meet Steve Jobs, 25 years ago on his first big on-stage demo for Macintosh computer. What a great man, impacting the world even today. He always made you believe that he has something magical. Just great instincts on connecting with consumers.
Meet Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Not much I can really say that has not already been said.
He steadfastly advocated peace while championing an explosive social issue of the time in civil rights. He stood against an unjust politicans’ war in Vietnam at the risk of losing many of of his civil rights supporters. He spoke up for all the poor and disenfranchised regardless of race. He made people believe in a nation’s future when despair abounded.
He was prophetic in predicting that he would not be of this world when much of his dream would come true. Many see President-elect Barack Obama’s inauguration tomorrow as the symbol of completion to Dr. King’s dream. It’s not. I’m sure he would be championing many modern issues should he still have been alive today. So much more to do.
Nonetheless, Barack Obama’s road to becoming the first African-American president in America was paved by Dr. Martin Luther King. A little known fact is that Dr. King had predicted in 1965 an African-American President within 25 years. He had confidence that such an occurrence would happen. He was again prophetic, although it took America a little longer than he had thought.
It’s an exciting time from today’s celebration of Martin Luther King Day to tomorrow’s inauguration of Barack Obama. It’s a good time to be an American.
And I will be continuously praying that the security forces be extremely diligent around our new President. Sadly, our country has had a history of losing great national heroes to internal American assassins: From Lincoln to the Kennedy’s to Martin Luther King. We cannot afford another. The enemies of our celebrated progress are more marginalized and desperate than ever. They actually scare me more than the terrorists from abroad. Long live our new President.
Here is a wonderful tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King that ties in tomorrow’s inauguration (by “hotsidechick“ on vimeo). You will have to click through to vimeo since I don’t know how to post the video directly on WordPress. Sorry . Watch in full screen.
In a sport where raw machismo is much more valued than mental dexterity, Rolle is a shining example of a consummate student athlete. He excels both in football and academic learning. And recently, he’s made his difficult decision on whether to play in the NFL or study at Oxford University next year: He will be studying medical anthropology.
This decision will most likely be costing him millions of dollars in potential earnings. Nonetheless, he explained in an interview with ESPN.com, “It’s a great opportunity. I’m going to get the chance to study at Oxford and read some incredible books and be among scholars. The whole culture in England is just very appealing. It will make me a better person and a stronger advocate.”
Myron’s dream is to someday help bring specialized medicine to underdeveloped countries. He still plans to eventually play in the NFL and will enter the 2010 draft after his studies in Oxford.
To me, what’s truly inspirational about Mryon Rolle’s story is that he combines superb athletic ability WITH amazing intellect WITH tremendous personal character. Many times these traits tend to be mutually exclusive. A superb athlete often times are coddled and allowed to live above societal rules. In football, we have some examples of athletes displaying extremely poor judgement: Pacman Jones, OJ Simpson, Michael Vick to name just a few. What personal character?
In other cases, we have the Terrill Owens’ types who are so narcissistic that he becomes a cancer with every team he ever plays for — despite having extraordinary football skills. He is a bad example of personal character. Yet, he is constantly featured on ESPN highlights — and not just for playing football. In the work place, I’ll take capable and team-oriented individuals over a team of ”TO -type” of superstars every single time. That’s because from years of experience, I know how to achieve success within the business environment. It takes a team of Myron Rolle’s.
So, in this era of the internet when “the” people can help determine the content of our news, let’s hold up Myron Rolle and others like him as our heroes. If you blog, blog about them. If you tweat, tweat about them. If so inclined, comment on Jamele Hill’s (ESPN.com) column about Mryon Rolle. Let’s make it clear to the sports media that we still value personal character, sportsmanship.
The Rhodes Scholarship is considered the world’s most prestigious postgraduate academic scholarship. Mryon Rolle becomes the most prominent student-athlete to win the award since Bill Brady at Princeton in 1965.
Some of the Kaba Modern Dancers. The stiff one in the middle would be me.
Let me introduce to you to Korean-American Day… well it was yesterday. Yeah, apparently the US congress, in honor of the centennial anniversary of Korean immigration, appointed January 13 as Korean-American Day back in 2003.
So, it’s not quite St. Patty’s day the Irish got, but having a day to remember my heritage in America is pretty cool. Actually, I could have never imagined such a day while growing up in California and Washington during my youth. Back then, I was always a “Jap” or a “Chink” — malicious labels that my children probably haven’t heard much growing up on Mercer Island. Progress.
I remember when childhood friends were appalled that I ate “rotted cabbage” (kimchi), dried seaweed (kim), or sushi (kimbap). Ironically, most of my children’s friends now clamor for such foods when visiting.
Overall, though, I loved my experience growing up in America. Sure, I always felt a little insecure about being different, but that just made me very competitive. I pushed myself in ways that perhaps I would not have if our family had stayed in Korea.
Actress Moon Bloodgood
My parents taught me to appreciate America. In fact, my father originally came to the states to thank the Americans for their support of the Korean War and for sending their missionaries to help the displaced people of then war-torn Korea. The few experiences of being bullied pale in comparison to the overall awesome times with my friends, teachers and community. I was definitely treated well and fairly by most people in my life.
And where else would my brother and I have had the chance to start a company that would eventually go public on the NASDAQ in 1997 (ARIS Corporation)? In the US, 47% of all venture-backed companies have the founder or a co-founder born outside the country. How many successful companies in Korea do you think were founded by persons not born in that country? Not many.
I’m proud to be a Korean-American: I love that hyphen. I adore my heritage. My Korean family gives me so much emotional security. And quite frankly, I prefer Korean and other Asian foods over a burger (just personal taste). At the same time, I appreciate my American upbringing that has made me most comfortable with English speakers. I’m happy that I was encouraged to “think out-of-the-box” and not to be inhibited by traditional Korean conformity. I’m thankful that I was taught to value meritocracy, and encouraged to be a leader by the American society.
To me, being Korean-American is different than being Korean. Yes, yes, I’ve been called a banana (an Asian who acts very Western). But isn’t Korean-American Day for bananas?
So, I’d like to make sure that Korean-American Day is not just to expose non-Koreans to kimchi, or to just show off our traditional farmers’ dance. Those things are cool. But this day should also be about the Korean-American history, starting with the sad stories of the ”indentured servants” who came to work on the Hawaiian plantations more than a century ago. The Korean-American Day should be about the LA riots and the lesson those disturbing moments taught us about participating within the larger community, especially where we own businesses. The Korean-American Day should be about the debt we, and all minority groups, owe to the civil rights leaders of the ’60s, who were predominantly African Americans. That is uniquely KOREAN-AMERICAN.
The Korean-American Day should be to celebrate that Anthony Kim can hit a golf ball a mile and walk with “western” swagger with the best golfers in the world. The Korean-American Day should be to celebrate the fact that John Cho can play a goofy stoner on Harold and Kumarand we all still laugh about it.
Our insecurities are dissipating slowly. We don’t have to all be doctors and lawyers. In a year when Barack Obama will become the first African-American president of our America, let’s celebrate the hope that his victory gives to following generations on this Korean-American Day. And yes, by all means share kimchi and kalbi, and bang the farmer drums too. That stuff is cool also.
Meet my favorite Korean-Americans:
Most Admired: Ben Song (author, missionary, minister & my dad… so who said I can’t be biased)
Most Admired Businessman:Jeong Kim (President, Bell Labs)
Meet Tara and Bella, the most unlikely of best friends. One’s an elephant and the other a dog. I just couldn’t resist but to post this video from Sonyradio.com. In the end, connecting with another living being is as rewarding as it gets during our time on earth. Why is it that we often times chase so many other things at the expense of our relationships? Bravo to an elephant and a dog for reminding us what is important.
Sonyradio.com: ”This video is produced by our favorite and human interest reporter, Steve Hartman, is nothing short of heartwarming.
The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennesse is where retired elephants are cared for and are free to roam. Each has a “best friend”, usually another elephant. Tara and Bella are different.
Meet Hsu Ken Ooi, the guy on the right. When working at CSG Openline, we had hired him straight out of college (University of Washington). Even then, everyone knew he would end up starting his own company. It was a given.
He’s extremely motivated, focused and ambitious. About a year ago, he and the other founders of Eggsprout asked to meet to get some advice about becoming entrepreneurs. Not sure whether any of the advice was useful or not, but glad to see their launch. Even in this down economy, the ambitious, the passionate, and the brave are out there building their dreams. Good luck to Eggsprout.
Meet Terry Drayton, the Chief Executive at the embattled Count Me In. This company recently made headlines when 200 youth sports programs that used the company’s online services to collect registration fees and donations were not appropriately paid. Apparently, Count Me In has a $5 million shortfall in client moneys.
Recently, John Cook interviewed him, and Terry had a lot to say, maybe too much. Obviously affected by the slew of negative press over his company’s troubles, Terry wanted his side of the story to be heard. He even said that the interview with John was “cathartic”.
Well, the interview may have been therapeutic for him, but it also may cost him plenty if criminal charges were to follow. Washington State Attorney General’s office has received more than 30 complaints. A New Jersey soccer club has filed a lawsuit alleging that Count Me In has failed to pay more than $100,000 in registration fees.
Terry’s claim that he just didn’t know about the shortfall because the company didn’t keep detailed financial records is interesting. Obviously, Terry wanted to show that there was no malice intent to take money from the youth programs. He certainly wanted to make a clear distinction between his situation and that of Entellium, where the CEO and CFO knowingly cooked the company’s books to raise funds.
The question of whether a seasoned executive would really run a company for eight years, handling more than $175 million in funds, without proper financials is being widely speculated. Regardless, one thing is clear, even in Terry’s own words: He and the company had been negligent. And negligence will not be an adequate defense in the court of law. Although in a much larger scheme of things, Enron executives tried to use “not knowing” as a defense as well, but to no avail. The point is that Terry should be careful at what cost he is publicly telling his side of the story. Interestingly, he had his PR executive with him during the interview, not his lawyers.
Personally, I do think that Terry was sloppy (negligent), but not malice in intent. I know he has a good reputation in the local business community. And he really wants to be liked. In fact, he started Count Me In after trying to help the local youth programs that his children were involved in. But at this point, he should be cautious about what he says. In looking at the comments in John Cook’s story, he’s not even winning any PR points by having told his side of the story.
Meet 2009, the year of the ox. It’s my year. I was born in the year of the ox. For me, though, this year’s focus will be living with less. In 2009, less is better.
The year 2008 showed us that our capitalistic system, if left to its own, would implode with greed. In the same way, our American habits, if replicated throughout the world, will cannibalize our planet. Yes, less is better. It’s not “less is more”, which often refers to having too many choices. No, less is just better because we have and want too much. And as the inventors of Americum (American Consumerism), we need to lead the way to living with less. I think people, even Americans, will find joy in living with less.
So, in the year of the ox, let’s try to do with less. All of us just focusing on ourselves, one little step at a time. For me, it will be less showers, less driving, less food, less usage of home energy, less appliances, less toys, less waste, less material wants… wow, I feel better — freer, lighter just thinking about it.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m no crusader. Nor am I a trendsetter. If I’m thinking about this, then I’m sure many have already set course for living with less long ago. But last year was a wake up call for an entrepreneur and businessman like myself, who thought the markets would always be right. American consumerism, if unabated, is not sustainable. So, if you haven’t considered that less is better, maybe you will now.
Meet Again Mr. Blockhead himself, now former gov. Rod Blagojevich. Finally, he’s out of office as the Illinios Senate voted unanimously Thursday to impeach the delusional governor.
. Watch in full screen.
Meet 2009, the year of the ox. It’s my year. I was born in the year of the ox. For me, though, this year’s focus will be living with less. In 2009, less is better. 
