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A Wrangler’s Story

By Chris Carosa on October 21, 2010

[This Commentary originally appeared in the October 19, 1989 issue of The Mendon-Honeoye Falls-Lima Sentinel.]

Born on February 15^th in what was then a small seaport, his father belonged to a noble, but impoverished, family. Dad dabbled in the clothing business, but had an aptitude for mathematics and music. He also had common sense, for he realized that, in those days, none but the chosen few could afford a living in the mathematics or music industry.

The father sent the son to study medicine – always a fine and rewarding industry – at the local University. The proud parent knew the temptation music and mathematics might have on the boy, so he purposely dissuaded him from those fields. The young man, however, already possessed a proficiency in music.

At the University, he incurred the wrath of his professors. He simply refused to accept Continue Reading “A Wrangler’s Story”

New York Governor’s Race: A Corleone Election

By Chris Carosa on October 18, 2010

OK, I just watched the debate. Rather, I just listened to the debate. Here’s what I’m convinced of: With all due respect to the minor party candidates, it’s pretty clear the matter of who will serve as New York State’s next governor comes down to a choice of these two characters:

Sonny Corleone
– or –
Michael Corleone

I guess that would make the sum total of all the candidates Fredo “You’re dead to me” Corleone.

But about the two main characters, the metaphor is so juicy we’ve got to wonder if Coppola isn’t in the wings writing the script. On one hand there’s the crude hot-headed thug whose wild passion constantly gets him in trouble but, in the end, probably will Continue Reading “New York Governor’s Race: A Corleone Election”

Posted in Western New York State of Mind Tagged Corleone, Godfather, New York, politics

The Faces of the Week

By Chris Carosa on October 14, 2010

[This Commentary originally appeared in the October 12, 1989 issue of The Mendon-Honeoye Falls-Lima Sentinel.]

Take a close look at the people you pass by every morning on the way to work. You’ll find most faces exhibit the same traits. I began my character study on the mindless Monday morning of last week (you know, the one where the cloudy gray dawn urged you to stay in bed until the last possible minute).

For years I have walked from the South Avenue Garage, through the Chase-Lincoln building, across the skyway (or is it the “shyway”), into and out of Midtown Mall before finally crossing Euclid Street and the reprieve of a solitary office. Facing people too early in the morning might lead to an embarrassing mistake (like forgetting their Continue Reading “The Faces of the Week”

Posted in The Compleat Carosa Commentaries Tagged humor

How Have You Rediscovered Christopher Columbus?

By Chris Carosa on October 11, 2010

Last week, a good friend of mine wrote a piece called “Don’t Be a Social Media Debbie Downer” (see MarkFrisk.com). In it, he says “overdoing it on the negative is maybe not the way you want to go.” While ostensibly written for the social media space, he quickly adds the lesson applies to any space.

Today is Columbus Day. No one has suffered the slings and arrows of outrageous Debbie Downer Syndrome more than the man who discovered America. Almost every event, person, place or thing in the human record stands as a glass either half empty or half full. Throughout history, we’ve taken the “half full” approach when defining our heroes. Why?

The best answer I’ve seen lies within a 60+ year old movie directed by John Ford and starring John Wayne and Henry Fonda called Fort Apache. In this classic western, Ford both unmasks and makes the Continue Reading “How Have You Rediscovered Christopher Columbus?”

Posted in Gray Matter Musings Tagged Christopher Columbus, ideal, John Ford, John Wayne, philosophy

Legalize Drugs?!

By Chris Carosa on October 7, 2010

[This Commentary originally appeared in the October 5, 1989 issue of The Mendon-Honeoye Falls-Lima Sentinel.]

In a recent CBS-New York Times survey, 64% of the respondents named drugs as the nation’s top problem. The high degree of attention currently being paid to our country’s drug epidemic may be due to President Bush’s initiatives of just about a month ago. (A similar poll taken last July revealed only 22% of the people claimed drugs to be the nation’s number one plight.)

With all the political news coming from Washington D.C. and the war stories emanating from Columbia, the issue of uncontrolled use of controlled substances has supplanted Continue Reading “Legalize Drugs?!”

Posted in The Compleat Carosa Commentaries Tagged cocaine, Honeoye Falls, internet, Mendon, Prodigy, Rotary, Yale

Outfitting Today’s Athlete

By Chris Carosa on September 30, 2010

[This Commentary originally appeared in the September 28, 1989 issue of The Mendon-Honeoye Falls-Lima Sentinel.]

The last time I bought sneakers Jimmy Carter occupied the White House, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dragged along at 800, and the city of New Haven provided its first taste to a freshman from Rochester. The old fashioned red, white and blue Nikes I purchased saw much action. They cushioned my soles against the city pavement when I walked the half mile each way to Science Hill (and Ingalls Rink). They accompanied me on the intramural battlefields, (but witnessed precious little action in the many squash courts which dotted the campus).

After graduation, the sneaks helped cut grass – their white skin becoming progressively Continue Reading “Outfitting Today’s Athlete”

Posted in The Compleat Carosa Commentaries Tagged Growing Up, Mendon, sneakers, Volleyball, Yale

Towpath Merit Badge Midway Proposal

By Chris Carosa on September 27, 2010

Our council, our district and the units within our district have all done an excellent job promoting and providing camping opportunities for our boys. As we know, the outdoor experience – camping, hiking, etc… – represents a critical path for boys to learn leadership and other skills for life.

But we also know Boy Scouts is more than just camping. Indeed, the capstone of any Boy Scout’s career is the Eagle Scout project – an activity that emphasizes leadership and community service and may or may not include an outdoor element.

BSA offers boys a path of discovery beyond outdoor activities that may influence the direction of one’s Eagle Continue Reading “Towpath Merit Badge Midway Proposal”

Posted in Boy Scouts Tagged merit badge, roundtable, towpath

Can America Compete? (Part II)

By Chris Carosa on September 23, 2010

[This Commentary originally appeared in the September 21, 1989 issue of The Mendon-Honeoye Falls-Lima Sentinel.]

Part Two – A Living Example of the Risk-Return Tradeoff

This is the second of two commentaries aimed at exploring a novel approach to determining our nations’ true standing in the world economy. Last week we looked at the risk-return tradeoff, the idea that risky investments are more likely to have higher returns (and larger losses) than safer investments.

Earlier this year, a Siberian valley explodes suddenly. The cause – a leaky gas pipeline. Low safety standards lead to a faulty job. People die. Property is destroyed.

You read about it all the time. Not-so-old bridges collapse, sending trainloads of passengers plummeting to an early demise. Third World ferries, overloaded with holiday travelers, capsize again and again. Athens and Frankfurt sport airports which appear to openly invite terrorists.

Across the globe, we see examples of why we are happy to be Americans. Not only do Continue Reading “Can America Compete? (Part II)”

Posted in The Compleat Carosa Commentaries Tagged banking crisis, economy, finance, Glass-Steagall, Modern Portfolio Theory, regulation, return, risk

Misleading Headline? Baseless Buffalo Bills Bashing? Or Both?

By Chris Carosa on September 20, 2010

With friends like these, who needs enemies? It’s bad enough we find our region at the butt end of many late night comics’ monologues, but why does the local media have to gratuitously chime in, too?

Did you see the article “Buffalo Bills struggle to make dent on national TV map” in the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle in Sunday, September 19^th? Placed on the cover of the sports section, it featured a map of the continental United States. The country, bathed in red, was speckled with smaller splotches of various other colors. A beautiful graphic, you would think the D&C would have been proud to have included it in the on-line version of the article. Alas, they didn’t and the article suffers.

But this isn’t about vivid art in a hometown newspaper. This is about the reckless Continue Reading “Misleading Headline? Baseless Buffalo Bills Bashing? Or Both?”

Posted in Western New York State of Mind Tagged Buffalo Bills, Democrat and Chronicle, NFL, Rochester, Western New York

Can America Compete? (Part I)

By Chris Carosa on September 16, 2010

[This Commentary originally appeared in the September 14, 1989 issue of The Mendon-Honeoye Falls-Lima Sentinel.]

Part One – The Risk-Return Tradeoff

The following is the first in series of two commentaries aimed at presenting a unique approach to determining our nation’s position within the world’s economy. This week is expository, meaning some readers will already be familiar with the concept of the risk-return tradeoff. In the spirit of all mini-series, we save the real interesting part for next week.

Finance professors, like all other professors, find they can enhance their employment options (i.e., get tenured) by coming up with all these fancy dancy theories to describe the real world. They write scholarly articles and intricate textbooks (most of which end up on the “Required Reading” list of the courses they teach). Many of these theories remain in the academic realm (where they can take on a life of their own). Every once in a while, though, a really neat idea escapes the verbosity of pedantic journals and appears in the vernacular of the newsweeklies. (When this happens, the professor generally writes a book for the casual reader, appears on several talk shows and becomes a highly paid consultant.)

One of the more significant investment models developed by the academic industry goes by the name, in generic terms, Modern Portfolio Theory. It attempts to provide a Continue Reading “Can America Compete? (Part I)”

Posted in The Compleat Carosa Commentaries Tagged economy, finance, Modern Portolio Theory, return, risk, Simon School

Chris Carosa