The Great Rip-Off of 2008

Gordon Graham writes:

"The Great Rip-Off, December 24, 2008


I spent a large portion of my early life in and out of prisons. My crimes were mostly property crimes and parole violations, with an occasion escape thrown in. Doesn’t say much for my skills as a thief!

The past few months has focused our attention on a rip-off that should embarrass the most sophisticated of thieves in our prison system. It seems that $700 billion has just disappeared into thin air. The billions were meant to bailout a group of Wall Street swindlers who had ripped off the tax payers and brought the U.S. economy to its knees. That’s what I call taking crime to a whole new level.

My sympathy goes out to the thousands who fill our prisons. You could add up the total amount stolen by inmates in all state prisons and not reach the billions lost in the past few months by the largest corporations on Wall Street. Crime doesn’t pay unless you know how the real crooks play the game.

I’ve spent nearly forty years as an honest, tax paying citizen, working to assist men and women caught up in the criminal justice system. It offends every principle of decency to witness the greed and corruption of people who have so much, while trying to convince people who have so little that honesty pays.

The recent months and years have challenged my belief in people in power. We need change in a big way. Leadership sets the example. My hope is that Obama and his team can set that example which will resonate on Wall Street, Main Street and in cell blocks across this country."

written by
Gordon Graham

Gordon Graham: Perception is reality to the perceiver

From Gordon Graham:

"Perception is reality to the perceiver.  The years of seeing GM and the US auto manufacturers as inferior to foreign models is a thing of the past, but in many cases the perception still lingers.

The recent financial crisis reflects a view of the Big Three that is far from reality at the plant level.  It's amazing to me how quick we are to fix the blame, but ignore the problem.  General Motors and the U.A.W. build some of the best vehicles on the road despite operating on a playing field that puts them at a tremendous disadvantage, such as legacy costs that guarantee a decent life for retirees, health care, and livable wages.

Both the UAW and GM management have made some mistakes, but both have made great strides in improving how they do business as well.  The US economy can ill afford to lose more of it's industrial base.  I have been involved with the GM/UAW plants for the past 20 plus years, and during that time the improvements in product quality and production costs has been significant.

The men and women working in the GM plants can compete with any auto manufacturer in the world.  The mismanagement and greed of financial institutions has created this crisis.  

Let's keep the focus where it belongs, on Wall Street, not on hard working men and women who are the backbone of our society.  The union and management at GM are working together to keep jobs in our communities; we face some very challenging times, and if the boat goes down we are all in it together."  Gordon Graham

Gordy Graham : STAYING FOCUSED

From Gordon Graham:

The first step to change is awareness.  This awareness is often created by a significant emotional event, and is generally negative.  We are reactive rather than pro-active.  Many of our dreams and goals get stranded on that little island called "someday I'll..."  Today is the first day of the rest of your life.  Make this the start of something that brings joy to yourself and others.

After serving 17 years in maximum security prisons, I participated in a seminar on cognitive psychology, and it changed the direction of my life.  The knowledge and insight I gained in that three day seminar created a significant emotional event, and I've been sharing that information with inmates in prisons from California to New York, companies, communities, agencies, and individuals for the past 30 plus years.  Awareness is the first step to change - you don't know what to don't know.

Staying focused in a rapidly changing world has become more and more challenging.  Just when you think you have life on track, the game changes.  Working with individuals and organizations across the US and Canada, and helping them cope with change and manage change has been my mission for over 30 years.

More background on Gordy Graham

He doesn't just teach a seminar on change, he lives the process.  From convict leader to a recognized authority on change, Gordon Graham is a demonstration that change is possible.  Inmates from Folsom Prison in California to Sing Sing in New York have benefited from his programs on how to make significant lasting changes.  CEOs, union leaders, communities, and young people attest to his message that changes lives.

Author, lecturer, and program developer, his story is a transformation that offers hope to people from all walks of life.  From convict leader to nationally recognized authority on change is a "road less traveled."  For thirty-five years inmates, managers, union leaders, parents, teachers, and young people have been touched by his ability to demonstrate that change is possible.

Christmas Thoughts by Gordy Graham

From Gordon Graham:

"It's near the end of a challenging year.  2008 would be a do-over for me if that option existed.  However, when you consider that 2009 begins a new day for this country, it brightens the outlook considerably.  

Christmas is always a time that I really enjoy.  We fill my car with toys for the grandkids (who still like toys better than cash) and brave the mountain passes on our Santa run.  Grandkids, family and friends...it don't get no better than that!!

I want to express my gratitude for your friendship and wish you and yours a great holiday season.  We need to put things on hold for a bit and recognize how blessed we are for all that we have.

Peace."

Gordon Graham

Really who is this guy named Gordon Graham?

From cell blocks to boardrooms, it’s been a ride. Thirty-eight years in and out of prisons. Escapes, riots, hunger strikes, months on bread and water, “the life of a good convict.”

The past thirty-eight years as an author, lecturer, businessman, and respected change agent. Cognitive skills programs in prisons across the U.S. and Canada, a sought after speaker in the area of labor/management relations, with a mission to keep jobs in our communities and to create opportunities for men and women locked up in prisons across the country.

Who is Gordon Graham?

His life is the stuff of fiction. A story of change that challenges all stereotypes. An ex-convict, seventeen years in maximum security prisons, escapes, riots, a year on bread and water, destined to die in prison…

Today a respected change agent, working with corporations, unions, prison wardens, men and women in prison, at risk youth and communities across the United States and Canada. A life transformed thirty-eight years ago by a chance encounter with an educator in cognitive psychology.

Since that time he has challenged all pre-conceptions of what can happen when you take control of your own life. His is a story of change that has impacted thousands over the past thirty-eight years. In a world in dire need of faith in ourselves to change direction, this is a story of not only hope and belief but of accomplishment.