Lake Orion Art Show October 2012

RIGHT AND LEFT - AN EXHIBITION

This is the poster for the exhibition this weekend in Lake Orion, Michigan.

Just The Tip of The Iceberg: 2012

For me the presidency is just the tip of the iceberg.  I am more concerned with the level playing field and the political party and their people that work to make a more level playing field a reality for more people, not fewer people.

I have been around now for 70 years. I have read a fair amount of political history.  I have observed over many years, and at times, I have even been a part of it all. I have been a liberal for a long time. I am not a communist; however, I recognize that even in a capitalist economic system that there are some things that are better handled by something called socialism.

Money as we know it, is only one aspect of wealth. Wealth encompasses so much more. Yet, the ability to raise money for political purposes, drives a great deal of what gets translated into economic policy. This I saw up close.  It is not something I read about; it is something I observed first hand. And, I know my party, the Democrat party takes money from the same people that gives money to the Republican party.  Buying influence is what campaign contributions is all about.

But, the economic philosophy of trickle-down-economics is not a philosophy I believe in, and nor do many wealthy people that I have known in my years of working with investment securities and some very large investment portfolios.  I have had discussions with millionaires and billionaires that line up with my philosophy of government and a desire, while not perfect, to see that those peoples that are not millionaires and billionaires have an opportunity to advance their station in life.  The Republican party in my opinion does not make an effort to do this, and furthermore, only moves to the left at election time in an effort to win elections, but not to help and protect those most in need.

The people that are the most vulnerable are the people that need government policies that help them. The very wealthy do not need government policies to make them even wealthier. I vote for the ideal of a more equitable society, and an equitable society helps those most in need of help not those that least need help.

Paintings From 2009 Revisited

These 2 paintings were inspired by magazine covers and are in acrylics on plywood that is coated with a paper surface and then gessoed. They measure 27 1/2" x 19 1/2" framed.

Vanity Fair 42 Stamp by F. D. Zigler, 2009.

Obama 44 Stamp by F.D. Zigler, 2009.

HAPPY JEWISH NEW YEAR 5773

Praying by Simeon Zigler, 1911-69.

9-11 REMEMBERED

9-11: My Thoughts 11 Years Later

Tomorrow marks the eleventh year to the day of September 11, 2001.  I remember the day quite well as many of you.  I was in Washington, D.C. on business attending the annual meeting of a private equity fund headquartered there that our State Insurance Fund had invested.  As was my habit, I had gotten up at my usual time that Tuesday morning, and after getting dressed, had gone downstairs into the basement of the Hotel where I was staying and in which the annual meeting was taking place to have a cup of coffee and a breakfast roll.  I sat with a few men that were attending the meeting  and just talking casually with a retired Secretary of Defense, who was having his morning coffee too. This was the last day of the annual meeting.  A little while later that morning, I entered the large hall in the basement where the meeting was taking place and took a seat just behind the last row of tables and chairs that had a wider aisle so people could walk through.  I liked having a little more room to stretch my feet. There I took my seat and placed The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal over my lap to read. At 8am, the usual introductions were made and the meeting began.  After a couple of speakers, the meeting to a break so the late arrivals could get something to eat outside the meeting hall at a long table filled with an assortment of breakfast foods.  Since I had already had my coffee, I stayed in my seat and started to read The Wall Street Journal.  I hadn't got very fair when the two huge screens behind the podium lit up and I looked up.  On the screen was New York City with a view of lower Manhattan.  I remember how blue the sky was except for the black smoke that was coming from one of the World Trade Towers. The man on the TV said they thought a small plane had crashed into the tower, but no one knew how big a plane.  Then I watched as a large jet came into the picture and banked and slammed into the other tower. Someone had declared war on the United States. People started coming back into the large hall and took seats or stood and watched the screen. Then the location switched to the Pentagon where another plane had hit.  Now this was very close to where we were. Three planes and then talk of a fourth plane headed for D.C.  A few minutes later, it was announced that the annual meeting was over.  Later lunch was served next door at the athletic club and the room was filled with people talking.  After lunch, I walked outside to get some fresh air and found groups of soldiers parked in vehicles on every corner.  D.C. was on alert.  There was no way to leave D.C. as all air travel was grounded.  All except for those Saudi nationals that were permitted to leave the country. To this day, I wonder why the United States Government had to let those Saudi nationals leave so soon. Shouldn't they have been held for questioning? 15 of the 19 terrorists were from Saudi Arabia! How could 15 Saudis pull off such a terrorist attack without some help or aid from inside the United States? It is 11 years later and there are still no answers to why they had to be sent home so fast, and why they were never questioned by the FBI. What was so special about President George W. Bush and those Saudi nationals that the FBI was not given the opportunity to talk with them?  Some day perhaps we will find out.