Meet the Miami Herald's newest op/ed columnist.

[Mika]

Where on earth do they find these people? Why on earth do they get the job?

We shouldn't leave luck up to chance
BY JACKIE BUENO SOUSA
[e-mail]
http://www.miamiherald.com/columnists/jackie-bueno-sousa/story/916867.html

In the late 1970s, my family lived in a simple, but comfortable, three-bedroom house only blocks from the Hialeah Park Race Track. The neighborhood was full of kids, and on race days we'd sometimes sit for hours watching traffic pile up.

One day, as I played outdoors with some friends, we came across two middle-aged men as they walked toward the park, passionately discussing the merits of several horses.

One of them, a portly, bearded man, was holding a stack of papers with each hand, the fingers of the right hand curled around a pencil. He'd clearly been doing a lot of research on the horses. The other, cleanshaven with brown hair slickly combed to the side, was trying to convince him to leave the paperwork behind.

''This is about luck,'' he was saying. ``Just go with your gut.''

My friends and I hung around outdoors most of the day and, after some time, I saw the two men again walking past us. Mr. Paperwork displayed a satisfied smile, while his companion looked grim.

''Were you lucky?'' I asked.

''Lucky?'' Mr. Paperwork repeated. ``Yes, I'm often lucky when I use my brain.''

That belief in man's power to foresee outcomes eventually would serve as a guide in much of what I would do later in life, as a writer for The Wall Street Journal, as editor of The Daily Business Review and The Miami Herald's Business Monday section, and even as a business owner.

It also played a role in my decision to begin writing this column. It's not that I think luck, a byproduct of forces beyond our control, plays no role in our lives (or in horse racing, for that matter). It's just that, as a community, sometimes we fail to thoroughly study events and engage in the difficult thinking that improves our odds for success.

More important, we too often fail to challenge conventional wisdom -- the kind of wisdom, for example, that insisted the housing market would never go bust.

It all goes back to our beliefs. Mr. Paperwork had to believe his research would make a difference before he'd even attempt it. Our beliefs influence our choices, and choices shape our lives. So, in this introductory column, I'll skip the small talk about my life and background and simply tell you what else I believe.

I believe that Main Street is as responsible for the current economic crisis as Wall Street. I believe Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone; that NFL play rules are beginning to coddle quarterbacks; and that all elected officials should be subject to term limits. I believe that man really did land on the moon; that history will redeem George W. Bush; that life begins after conception but before birth; and that nature will destroy us before we destroy it.

I believe we're entering a dangerous era of populism; that neither fear nor hate should ever drive a decision; and that in life you can have anything, but you can't have everything -- you've got to make choices.

Most of all, I believe that the issues we'll discuss in this space in the months to come will make a difference in how we develop as a community and that, no matter where we each stand on a debate, we're all the better when we do the hard work of thinking things through and engaging in honest communication.

We'll still have winners; we'll still have losers. But when we do it right, we all can consider ourselves lucky.

Jackie Bueno Sousa, a journalist for more than 20 years, was a writer at The Wall Street Journal, editor-in-chief of The Daily Business Review and editor of Business Monday at The Miami Herald.

Jackie was born in Varadero, Cuba, and grew up in Carol City and Hialeah. She studied journalism at the University of Florida. In 2002, Jackie co-founded Coral Living, a regional magazine focused on the South Florida lifestyle.

Outside of work, she has served on the boards of the YWCA of Greater Miami and the Lighthouse for the Blind. She has no children, but babies her 13-year-old black lab. Jackie lives in Coral Gables, enjoys gardening and is an avid Miami Dolphins fan

[Judi Lynn]

1. Oh, jesus. It appears someone is on to her, too. Here's a comment on her comments:

We Know Jackie Bueno Sousa Believes in Bush, but Does She Believe in ..............
By Kyle Munzenrieder in Media Watch
Tuesday, Feb. 24 2009 @ 10:02AM

Yesterday, in the news roundup, we mentioned the Miami Herald's new columnist Jackie Bueno Sousa's first weekly piece and singled out the line: "I believe... history will redeem George W. Bush." Then we filed a mental note to keep an eye on this Jackie Bueno Sousa, for surely if she believes that, there must be tons of other wacky things she believes (maybe you could pick out a few actions for redemption, but the net effect of his entire presidency... eh).

The column consisted mainly of a weird diatribe about luck before stating her beliefs about all manner of things.

Right-leaning blog 26th Parallel liked the column and wrote, "I can see our liberal friends' heads beginning to explode, especially with the Bush-redemption comment." For the record, my head is in one piece. And it's good to see some new views and fresh faces in the column section.

But Generation Miami is calling PLAGIARISM! Seems Sousa's "I believe" shtick closely resembles a monologue from the movie Bull Durham, including the line "I believe that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone." Far from the most egregious of journalistic offenses, but funny nonetheless, Sousa's cavalcade of earnest beliefs seemed to be inspired from a monologue that begins with "I believe in the soul, the cock, the pussy..."

http://blogs.miaminewtimes.com/riptide/2009/02/we_know_jackie_bueno_sousa_bel.php

[EFerrari]

2. The Church of Baseball should sue her.

lol

It must be terrible to live you whole life afraid of the people. :)