Brutally Honest

Myers Briggs - Portrait of an ESTJ

I work in an environment that can, at times, be rather hectic and stressful. This inevitably leads to conflict in the office.

The boss decided this past week, in an attempt to deal with rising tension in the workplace, to bring in some team-building consultants and they put all of us through a variety of different exercises, including having us each take a Myers-Briggs personality type test.

My test concluded that I was an Extraverted Sensing Thinking Judging kind of guy, also known as The Guardian:

As an ESTJ, your primary mode of living is focused externally, where you deal with things rationally and logically. Your secondary mode is internal, where you take things in via your five senses in a literal, concrete fashion.

ESTJs live in a world of facts and concrete needs. They live in the present, with their eye constantly scanning their personal environment to make sure that everything is running smoothly and systematically. They honor traditions and laws, and have a clear set of standards and beliefs. They expect the same of others, and have no patience or understanding of individuals who do not value these systems. They value competence and efficiency, and like to see quick results for their efforts.

ESTJs are take-charge people. They have such a clear vision of the way that things should be, that they naturally step into leadership roles. They are self-confident and aggressive. They are extremely talented at devising systems and plans for action, and at being able to see what steps need to be taken to complete a specific task. They can sometimes be very demanding and critical, because they have such strongly held beliefs, and are likely to express themselves without reserve if they feel someone isn't meeting their standards. But at least their expressions can be taken at face-value, because the ESTJ is extremely straight-forward and honest.

The ESTJ is usually a model citizen, and pillar of the community. He or she takes their commitments seriously, and follows their own standards of "good citizenship" to the letter. ESTJ enjoys interacting with people, and likes to have fun. ESTJs can be very boisterous and fun at social events, especially activities which are focused on the family, community, or work.

The ESTJ needs to watch out for the tendency to be too rigid, and to become overly detail-oriented. Since they put a lot of weight in their own beliefs, it's important that they remember to value other people's input and opinions. If they neglect their Feeling side, they may have a problem with fulfilling other's needs for intimacy, and may unknowingly hurt people's feelings by applying logic and reason to situations which demand more emotional sensitivity.

When bogged down by stress, an ESTJ often feels isolated from others. They feel as if they are misunderstood and undervalued, and that their efforts are taken for granted. Although normally the ESTJ is very verbal and doesn't have any problem expressing themself, when under stress they have a hard time putting their feelings into words and communicating them to others.

ESTJs value security and social order above all else, and feel obligated to do all that they can to enhance and promote these goals. They will mow the lawn, vote, join the PTA, attend home owners association meetings, and generally do anything that they can to promote personal and social security.

The ESTJ puts forth a lot of effort in almost everything that they do. They will do everything that they think should be done in their job, marriage, and community with a good amount of energy. He or she is conscientious, practical, realistic, and dependable. While the ESTJ will dutifully do everything that is important to work towards a particular cause or goal, they might not naturally see or value the importance of goals which are outside of their practical scope. However, if the ESTJ is able to see the relevance of such goals to practical concerns, you can bet that they'll put every effort into understanding them and incorporating them into their quest for clarity and security.

With one or two minor exceptions, this pretty much nails me.

Chris Muir nails Kerry

Heh.

"A horror sufficient to supply Bush with a genuine moral cause..."

So, if you're like me, you're looking for something decent to read (and think deeply about) while awaiting John Kerry's big speech tonight.

Here's the cure for what ails you.

La Shawn Barber's 'The Case For George Bush' takes a peek at one liberal's angst and revulsion over seeing the value in George W.'s moral clarity:

Focusing on the morality of war may be difficult for most liberals to do. One has to believe in Truth, that there are moral absolutes in this world in order to judge one thing as “bad” and the other as “good.” Without this ability to discern, one can make a case that we had no right to unseat and capture Saddam Hussein. While he’s writing poetry in prison, his victims are in their graves or walking around with missing limbs and are otherwise traumatized by his evil machinations. Junod has a grasp of this liberal mentality:

What haunts me is the possibility that we have become so accustomed to ambiguity and inaction in the face of evil that we find his [President Bush] call for decisive action an insult to our sense of nuance and proportion….

I, for one, believe it is and feel somewhat ashamed having to say so: having to aver that 9/11/01 was a horror sufficient to supply Bush with a genuine moral cause rather than, as some would have it, a mere excuse for his adventurism….

Junod has nailed it, perhaps accidently, perhaps after actually thinking about what is at stake.

The Islamofascists care little about our political leanings, our religious thinking, our positions on abortion, homosexuality, and the need for (or the dismissal of) affirmative action.

They care not an iota about government run health care, tax cuts for the rich, or whether social security will be bankrupt in 10 years.

What they do care about is whether we believe in Allah, whether we think women are to be treated like cattle, and whether or not we will submit to the whim of the local imam.

And they will kill us (in large quantities or one by one) if we don't. Or worse, kill themselves in ensuring that we succumb to their way of thinking, their way of living, their culture, their religion, their fanaticism.

W. has the track record, the resolve, the gravitas, the will, the courage and the independence to fight this war.

Some liberals are waking up to that fact. Let's hope more will do so before November 2nd.

Quick takes on the Democratic Convention

I missed yesterday's Clinton speech. I did not miss the nearly orgasm-ic reactions. I think the Cox and Forkum editorial says all that needs to be said.

I watched for a few minutes as Jimmy Carter, he of the 440+ days of Americans held hostage in Iran, he of the malaise speech, he of the double digit inflation, he of the long, long gas lines, I watched as that Jimmy Carter attempted to lecture us about the poor leadership of George W. Bush. Please. Jimmy Carter is, I'm sure, a nice guy. Jimmy Carter is also an idiot and not qualified, in the slightest, to tell anyone anything about leading the country.

I did see Senator Ted Kennedy speak. I was, frankly, embarrassed. If the man doesn't have a speech impediment, then clearly, he was inebriated. It was pathetic. Of course, I think the bigger Ted Kennedy news is that which deals with what John Kerry's wife had to say about him when she was married to a Republican. Heh.

I saw where Michael Moore had his hat handed to him by Bill O'Reilly. I don't care much for Bill. I find him to be aloof, arrogant, pompous. Yet, next to Mr. Moore, O'Reilly came across as Mother Teresa. Moore kept harping on whether O'Reilly would sacrifice his children for Fallujah. Last I checked, a volunteer force, made up of adult men and women, are serving the cause of freedom in Iraq. And although every death is grievous, every death a great loss, especially to the family, Michael Moore should not pretend to speak for any family who's lost a loved one in this war. At one point, he spoke to sacrificing his own life to remove a brutal dictator or a regime that he felt threatened the U.S. of A. I, quite frankly (and sinfully) would pay solid money to see Mr. Moore fulfill that wish. I despise what he thinks that much. And I think what he's selling as propaganda is causing great harm to our troops. And to sit him in the presidential box, a traditional seat of honor at the convention, goes well beyond the pale.

Finally, let me end today's commentary on the convention recalling what Sean Hannity has called this political gathering.

"I'm calling this the reinvention convention...[an] attempt to manipulate the minds of the American people."

This mind will not be manipulated...

Will yours?

Do as I say, not as I do

The tone is being set at the Democratic Convention:

Teresa Heinz Kerry urged her home-state delegates to the Democratic National Convention to restore a more civil tone to American politics, then minutes later told a newspaperman to “shove it.”

“We need to turn back some of the creeping, un-Pennsylvanian and sometimes un-American traits that are coming into some of our politics,” the wife of Sen. John Kerry told her fellow Pennsylvanians on Sunday night at a Massachusetts Statehouse reception.

Minutes later, Colin McNickle, the editorial page editor of the conservative Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, questioned her on what she meant by the term “un-American,” according to a tape of the encounter recorded by Pittsburgh television station WTAE.

Heinz Kerry said, “I didn’t say that” several times to McNickle. She then turned to confer with Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell and others. When she faced McNickle again a short time later, he continued to question her, and she replied, “You said something I didn’t say. Now shove it.”

Mrs. Kerry's behavior can be excused however since it's clear her words were aimed at a conservative reporter (or a reporter representing a conservative paper).

Liberals, as I think we all know, lament incivility aimed at themselves but are perfectly ok brandishing the same against anyone they find disagreeable.

Trust me on this... I know...

Bloggers with Boobs - The Anti-Feminists

Haven't posted in a couple of days... simply not having much to say...

But while reading my recent comments here at Brutally Honest, I happened to go visit Chelle's blog.

Apparently Chelle hasn't had much to say of late either (her last post actually links to one of my posts but is nearly a month old).

While visiting Chelle's blogroll, I came across Note-It Posts (the clever name caught my eye).

So I check out Dana's site and chuckled big-time as I came across this:

With a (very) little prodding from a couple of other female bloggers, I've decided to start "Bloggers With Boobies." Enormous thanks to Pam of Pamibe (who really ought to have a side business doing graphics) for the logo.

It's not a cult; you won't be asked to vote in a bloc or wage war on the Bloggers With Pee-Pees or anything; it's just a badge of pride for all strong, self-assured female bloggers (like me) who refuse to be ashamed about their femininity. We're the anti-feminists.

I've started a new blogroll just for these ladies; you'll see it at the very top of the main page. You're welcome to use the logo on your own site (save to your own hard drive, please), and either link to this post or not, as you please. I can't stop guys from using the logo to show solidarity (maybe like "I (heart) Bloggers With Boobies" or something) but only females will make the blogroll list. If you want to be added, just email me when you have the logo on your blog.

Thanks, Dana, proprietor of Note-It Posts, a Boobie-Positive Blog

Heh.

Now Mrs. Brutally Honest knows well that I'm about as boobie positive as they come. And so I'd like to do my part in supporting Dana's site (I've added her to my blogroll), and will be seeking to join Dana's Bloggers who support Bloggers with Boobies.

I can't help but wonder if there's a boobie prize in this somewhere.

Groan.

In any case, Chelle, thanks for the tip.

Groan again.

The Berger Wars

A couple of days ago, I wondered what the media take would be if Condi Rice was the National Security Advisor caught doing what Sandy Berger is being investigated for.

Today, Lileks does it so much more articulately:

Imagine Dick Cheney caught filling his socks with documents on pre-Sept. 11 security procedures. Imagine a hidden camera snapping shots of Condi Rice slipping secret memos into her foundation garments. We wouldn't be hearing about impeachment, we'd be debating the probity of rolling a guillotine toward the White House, and whether the heads should be arranged alphabetically on the fence spikes, or by seniority.

This thing is becoming more and more bizarre and the evidence can be seen in how it's being spun and how the media is doing the spinning.

I've talked to retired military folks who had hands on experience with classified materials, including dear old Dad who was an Air Force cryptologist years ago.

They relate that they'd be in deep kimchee if they'd been caught doing what Berger is alleged to have done.

This thing can not be allowed to be swept under the rug.

And oh by the way, how much did Kerry know and when did he know it?

Hmmm?

The Notebook - A 'Chick Flick' I definitely recommend...

... especially if you're in love with your spouse, your main squeeze, your pal, your friend, the mother of your children, the woman of your dreams, your high school sweetheart... like I am.

I was told about this movie a number of weeks ago. I admit to rolling my eyes and thinking, oh lord, not another syrupy sappy love story that I'm going to have to be dragged (drugged?!) to go see.

But I went anyway.

And I'm damned glad.

It's a story of...

... love sought...

... love found...

... love torn....

... love seemingy lost...

... love found again...

... love surviving...

... love fulfilled...

... love enduring...

And much more.

Trust me when I tell you that I would usually rather see something like The Bourne Identity or it's follow up, The Bourne Supremacy (opening this weekend). Those are the movies I get pretty jazzed about.

Yet, I left The Notebook feeling buoyed by the knowledge that this movie was able to express, I think, the kind of lasting love I hope and trust I have for Mrs. Brutally Honest (and I hope, pray and trust she has for me).

So, to all you non-girlie men, especially those in love with your girls, your spouses, your better halves, I have some strong and sage advice.

Take your gal to see this flick. Just trust me. Do it this weekend if not sooner.

You will not regret it. Neither will she.

I'd like this Berger... well... done...

It's hard for me to get my hands around this whole Sandy Berger thing.

Former national security adviser Sandy Berger, the subject of a criminal investigation over the disappearance of terrorism-related documents, stepped aside Tuesday as an informal adviser to the Democratic presidential campaign of Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts.

Berger, who served under former President Bill Clinton, is under investigation by the Justice Department after highly classified documents disappeared while he was reviewing what should be turned over to the independent commission investigating the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Berger’s home and office were searched earlier this year by FBI agents armed with warrants after he voluntarily returned some sensitive documents to the National Archives and admitted that he also removed handwritten notes he had made while reviewing the sensitive documents.

However, some drafts of a sensitive after-action report on the Clinton administration’s handling of al-Qaida terror threats during the December 1999 millennium celebration are still missing, officials and lawyers said.

“I made an honest mistake. It is one that I deeply regret,” Berger told reporters Tuesday night, insisting that he fully supported “the work of the 9/11 commission, and any suggestion to the contrary is simply absolutely wrong.”

Some of the media's spin on this has been interesting, focusing not so much on the illegality and the seriousness of the allegation being made but instead on the timing of the news.

Which makes me wonder.

Let's say Condoleeza Rice was the one who is alleged to have done what Berger did.

How do you think the media would be handling it? How do you think the Democrats, especially those poo-poo-ing Berger's actions today, would be reacting?

Hmmm?

Prayin' needed

Sgt Hook's son Conner and the Sarge himself are in need of the manifestation of His presence. Pray.

And while you're at it, lift up my dear mom, who undergoes an upper G.I. in the morning and is quite the basket case over it.

Thanks to each of you.

UPDATE: Sarge reports apparent good news as do I about my mom. She went through her tests swimmingly and though we await biopsy news, she was told that they don't expect anything untoward. Thanks to all who pray and are praying, especially Gordo over at CrankyNeoCon.Com.