I see no reason to change any of the rules in my dating manual. If you disagree, please let me know.

But, more seriously ...

Many self-described traditionalists support the death penalty. We"ve all heard their arguments; they go back to the beginnings of the Republic.

This traditionalist disagrees.

I am against the death penalty because I feel it is too lenient a punishment. For example, Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh asked to be put to death and got his wish. McVeigh did not want to spend decades looking at the inside of stone walls and enjoyed going out as a martyr to his screwed-up confederates. According to some who corresponded with him, McVeigh almost relished the thought of the three different tubes of sedatives and poisons being dumped into his veins. And we accommodated him.

I"ve got a better idea. A punishment more appropriate-and much more terrifying-for McVeigh and others who commit crimes against humanity (this includes murder, rape, and large-quant.i.ty hard-drug dealing) would be to sentence them to life in prison in a federal penitentiary in Alaska. There they would be forced to endure hard labor, and if they refused to work, they would be quarantined in solitary confinement for twenty-three hours a day. This would effectively banish killers and rapists and condemn them to a life of harsh servitude. This is much more painful than death by injection or electricity.

There"s another advantage, and we have to be honest about it. Mistakes can be made in criminal prosecutions for a variety of very human reasons. You"ve seen the reports about DNA or other evidence that has exonerated convicts, even some convicted of murder. It is going to happen because no system is perfect. By not executing prisoners a mistake like that can be rectified, as the convicts remain alive. (One interesting footnote: 53 percent of Americans in a national poll believe there should be an execution moratorium. That poll was taken in 2001 after some law students at Northwestern University produced evidence that some Illinois death row inmates had been improperly tried.)

But let"s get back to you (and me).

A personal No Spin Zone will save you time, money, and frustration. It will allow you to make value judgments based upon hard facts and evidence. And-provided that you keep an open mind and examine all available credible data-you"ll be comfortable with your conclusions on most matters.

Here"s the key that unlocks the Zone: the ability to be rigorous with yourself in always challenging your initial thoughts and conclusions. The Zone is no place for zealots, lemmings, or weak-minded followers. It is a state of mind that demands the discipline of clear thinking and the flexibility to change that thinking should the evidence dictate. Summing up, the No Spin Zone is not an easy place to be.

Why? Because it"s far easier to let others form your opinions. You then don"t have to exercise your brain cells and the crowd will readily accept you. Politicians, commentators, and others vying to fill your head s.p.a.ce are eager to supply you with particular points of view. And increasingly, many Americans are buying into viewpoints that crush independent thinking. Why think when media talking heads and newspaper columnists will do that for you? After all, aren"t these people "experts"?

Well, no, they are not. At least most of them aren"t. There are no experts when it comes to making personal decisions. That"s your own private domain. Sure, n.o.body is right all the time and you won"t be either. We are all occasionally defeated on the field of logic. But take your shot at forming your own personal philosophy. It"s actually fun and satisfying to develop a code of behavior and a clear thinking pattern. Don"t let pinheads, even smart pinheads, do your thinking for you.

Here are the outlines of my own personal No Spin Zone.

Yours will be, and of course should be, different. Last I heard, no two people are exactly alike.

I believe that the federal government wastes a huge amount of the people"s money and that most politicians buy votes with ent.i.tlement promises.

I believe that global warming is real.

I believe that the green movement has hurt America because it has shut down responsible energy exploration.

I don"t believe in the death penalty [see this page].

I would not outlaw abortion, but I would restrict it and encourage Americans to see this ghastly procedure as a human rights issue.

I believe in stringent control of hard drugs, but I would decriminalize marijuana use.

I would "suggest" that the automakers develop cars and trucks that would be far more fuel-efficient than they are today. (If they don"t, the government ought to slap a huge tax on them.)

I would order the Department of Energy to strictly monitor any kind of energy price collusion or gouging-and impose ma.s.sive fines on any company found guilty of these crimes.

I would have the federal government negotiate discounted drug prices with pharmaceutical companies so that there could be an affordable Medicare drug benefit. These manufacturers should be pressured to be "generous" in their pricing and rewarded with tax incentives for complying.

I believe America should maintain the most powerful armed forces in the world and develop a missile shield if the technology is feasible.

I would eliminate the payroll tax and inst.i.tute a national sales tax to cover Social Security and Medicare. The sales tax would slide depending on need. Those Americans who saved would be rewarded. The poorest would have more cash in their pockets.

I support setting up federal prison work camps on federal land in Alaska for violent offenders. Murder, rape, hard-drug dealing, and gun crimes would be punished at the federal level-taking the ma.s.sive expense and chaos away from the states. These federal prisons would be run military-style, and the violent convicts would in effect be banished from society.

I believe our government should place the U.S. military on the border with Mexico to stabilize the illegal immigrant and drug smuggling problems. The military would back up the Border Patrol but would have arrest powers, requiring that the posse comitatus law be changed.

In conjunction with strict border enforcement, the USA should set up a "guest worker" program if the Mexican government would cooperate. U.S. companies and individuals that need labor would be able to partic.i.p.ate in the program. But it would be administered in an orderly manner and taxes would be paid.

Your turn now.

Get cracking.

Rules for dealing with me.

I don"t tolerate victimizers or charlatans or liars or manipulators.

If solicitors call my home, for example, I tell them within ten seconds that I do not do business on the phone-they can send me something if they like. Then I hang up. Rude? No. The call is intrusive and rude.

Another example is that I have inst.i.tuted the two-call rule in my personal Zone. If I call a person twice and don"t receive a call back, that relationship is over. I leave a short message saying that I will not be calling again. If it"s a business matter, I turn the thing over to my attorney (an old friend I trust). If I absolutely have to reach someone for business, I call his or her secretary and set up a phone appointment. I ask for an exact time when I can talk to the person. If the secretary is unwilling to do that, I know that the business arrangement, whatever it is, will not work.

Other Zone Commandments.

If I"ve made a restaurant reservation, I expect it to be honored within fifteen minutes. Same with a doctor"s appointment. The physician"s time is valuable, but so is mine and so is yours. Being on time and honoring your word are signs of respect. I want to deal only with people who are respectful of others, even in a casual setting such as a restaurant. Be aware of how others are treating you and question that treatment if you feel it isn"t square. That"s all part of a no spin life.

What I"ve learned over the years is that friendship is a two-way deal, and it"s not easy. People get married, have kids, get sick, lose jobs, live life. And to keep a friend through all that, you have to be accessible. Some of my friends check in regularly, some just once in a while. But I have to know that they are there if I need them. Because they know the converse is true.

Like everyone else, I"ve lost friends along the way. That is inevitable, and I don"t dwell on it. If somebody vanishes, I"ll try to find out why. But I won"t try too hard.

That"s because true friendship is a choice you make. Both parties have to buy in on an equal basis. If you have to convince someone to be your friend, the concept of friendship falls apart. Like love, you can"t force it.

That"s why my father said you"re lucky to have five friends in your entire life. He had a few friends, but not many. My mother had far more, because she was outgoing and accessible, while my father was intense and often exhausted.

Sadly, I see the concept of friendship, as I have outlined it, declining in America. With people moving around so much, the small-town neighborhood culture we once had in this country is being replaced by high-tech anonymous "friendship" that"s offered on the Internet. This trend will likely weaken the social fabric of the United States, as long-term friendships, like long-term marriages, are a societal stabilizer.