SPONSORS

Everything has to be “sponsored” by something or someone, it seems. Now-a-days nothing can exist, apparently, and stand solely responsible for whatever may happen to, because of, or from it being in existence.

We are all very familiar with the all-too-common expression of our day which tells us that whatever we choose to hear, see, glance at, or participate in -
is ”brought to you by ...”

Everything is brought to you - by someone. It puts you on notice if you see anything wrong with whatever it is you are going, to watch, do, hear or take part in, it is if anything about it disturbs you in any way, however slight, in is to be seen as not being their fault but, rather, that of the sponsor. That entity can, you see, be named legally as the one who is actually bringing whatever it might be into your stream of consciousness or portion thereof. One reason for such sponsorship of concepts is ultimately to establish responsibility in case you find something wrong with whatever you are led to see, hear or do. Sponsors have lawyers or other in/out experts on staff ready to prove whatever is needed - right or wrong.

We have all witnessed the growth of sponsorship in automobile racing. When I was a youngster, we talked about cars by the make of the car or by the driver's name if we knew it. We spoke of the red “Maxwell” racer thundering at a mile-a-minute or more at the Fair Grounds. Today, before crowds of over one hundred thousand people you see scores of racing cars decorated with the names, logos or slogans of hundreds of sponsoring firms. It is one of the most successful pages of advertising. Every visible inch of every car is emblazoned with colorful names and art-work favoring specific products, both the exteriors and interiors. Drivers uniforms are plated with the same material. Some have wonder which weighs the most the driver or his logo-lumped suit.

Recurrent talk is steady these days about doing the same thing to big league baseball ...selling advertising to all comers at any point on anyone's uniform. Can't you imagine a bat plastered with chip-equipped logos. Then, if a home run is hit on a certain logo - somebody wins a trip somewhere, if they guessed the right logo. Home runs, them selves could, then, become meaningless. New, designer uniforms will be essential, of course, because there's not enough salable surface available.

Television commercials long and delivered in larger doses in recent time are still widely accepted. Try a simple test to see how you family of TV watchers acts. Watch the next time all of you are watching a TV show together. Observe how many family members members stop talking when a commercial starts remain silent until the program content is resumed when folksy chatter renews its pattern. We have come to respect the presence of advertising in our midst

I have, I know, to a great extent. To be honest, some of the ad content is better written, acted and produced than much of the program content used and re-used on far too many “me, too” stations. Some people still deceive themselves with references to the “commercial-free TV” they say they enjoy so much. They need to re-examine the terms :'brought to you as a public service by...”, “listeners like you”, and other such obfuscations.

.A.L.M. October 30, 2004 [c579wds]

 
SOMNAMBULISTIC NOTATIONS

Some nights I have trouble getting to sleep. It doesn't happen often enough to merit one of those sleep clinic innings.

Well, now, you wouldn't expect me to call it an”outing” would you? Such a test session has always struck me as being a little silly anyway - sleeping away from home in a strange bed, wired for sound and motions, noisome fragrances wafting wildly and exotic, soul-searing sounds emanating as strange territorially constituted noises and sans my favorite pillows or coverlets. How can all that demonstrate how I normally sleep. Since I enjoy sleeping, it seems a bit odd I have not been tempted to try such a supervised sleep session, but the idea has never rated a place on my “Things To Do” (TTD) list.

My occasional tendencies to sleeplessness are few and far between and I have felt them to be associated, quite often, with things which - during the preceding wakeful hours - have been “on my mind.” I suppose one would have to label them as being “worry”items. Yesterday, for example Bin Laden choose to come out of the wormy woodwork. That, alone, would have been cause for concern, but to do so on the eve of our election week-end when “poor judgment” is standard operating procedure with so many of us adds to its upsetting nature.

Why now? We can only assume that them move was planned, because we have certain been shown that just about everything the Terrorist Mind does is based on their idea of a perverted purpose. The concept of suicide bombers is the oriental idea of “kamakazi” attacks which took us by such illogical surprise during the early days of World War II. In one sense, the technique can be seen as a sign of weakness when even the perpetrators cannot devise a means of escape unharmed. If being an especially revered and honored corpse to the cause is such an honor, it just may be that we can encourage Bin Laden to show himself other than on cowardly spools of magnetic tape and be a volunteer not unlike the dedicated idiots he has been dispatching worldwide to do his dirty work for him.

Bin Laden's sudden willingness to appear on or near center stage might be a good thing I reflected on words of worldly wisdom uttered in my note-taking presence by a Mexican-American army buddy of mine who said: “You will fin' it easier to crush the cockroach when you can see heem!.”

Don't lose any more sleep about it. B. L. will decide B .L's fate in due time. Do be concerned about choosing our national leader. As of this morning, each is out-hawking the other. Bin is back.

A.L.M. October 30, 2004 [c462wds]

 
HOLD YOUR BREATH!

Tantrum time?

This is the week-end when some American voters think they can act like idiots in exhibitions of their understanding of false patriotism.

It is curious mix. There are clowns on both sides of the sides of the political fence - all sides, for those less-than- minor groups who do not stand a chance of elect their candidate whatever happens.

Far too many party persons seem to think the campaign rhetoric must continue right up until the the final chad had been done or undone properly or improperly. It's all over when the candidates go to bed for some much-needed shut-eye time. There is little need for you to drag your pet political prejudices into the voting site itself on Election Day. The shallow-headed individual who stations himself or herself just outside the actual physical dimensions of the voting area wrapped in a national flag, as it were, haranguing, or loading them up with more literature designed to make them change their mind at the last moment. A vote that fragile is not worth the trouble it takes to change it.

A voting area is not a combat arena. It is, rather, a place of quite, resolute action in which we set down our choices from among the candidates discussed over the previous weeks, months and even years. It is not to be a place of continued bitterness and criticism. It is not a proper place for the flexing of political muscles. The disagreements should be left behind. We are, often, among the first and loudest to be critical of elections in foreign nations where violence is often a deciding factor at the ballot box. We demean and dishonor them even more so by naming monitors to stand by to see that their election may be said to be honest and above board. It may be time to watch our own conduct.

There is a strange undercurrent abroad this year which has people being fearful of violence at the balloting places.

The campaign is ended. The time of testing is a hand, when we find out how well we have responded in this tradition which is ours enabling us to - peacefully - choose our own leaders and what our future is to be.



A.L.M October 29, 2004 [c402wds]

 
HOW FAR?

How long do we allow a personal affront from a friend to continue?

Our nation's acknowledged finest newspaper has purposely and with malicious intent, published so-called "news" which it knew to be other than that which they suggested it might be. They have, once again, found "news" which was not "fit to print" and published it anyway.

Exactly one week before Election Day 2004 the New York "Times" published a fine example of old-fashioned boiler-plate journalism - both text and photographic scraps depicting an ammunition dump which a have been hurriedly vacated and stripped of whatever weaponry it might have, at one time, contained. Whatever had been there was, beyond all doubt,gone.

The hanky-panky took over the story at that point. The entire spread was presented as if it had just happened. The event suggested and the photographs date from as long as eighteen months ago when American forces first entered the area. Readers were left with the illusion it had all happened within the last few days. TV news picked the story quickly and eager and printed news releases fanned out in a flood around the world and placing all blame for the ??sudden?? ammunitions loss on George Bush. Poorly led troops just sat there while terrorist stole about 380-tons of arsenal items in about thirty-eight semi-truck loads. Care was taken not to mention that the story and the photographs date from as much as eighteen months earlier when the American forces first arrived in the area. George W. Bush was to blame and Kerryisms were deftly done describing in fearful detail how, even now, terrorist gangs were fabricating a giant Election Eve attack on the United States made with the stolen ammunition. It was alleged that our uninspired, mis-led troops just sat there in the desert sands while Bin Laden's boys were stealing everything in sight ??through air vents in the roof of the storage buildings.?? Some think the contents of the ammunition dump may have been left over odds and ends from the Gulf War.

Think about this ridiculous, warm-over "story" presented as current news. Remember this deception when you read, see or listen to the "news" during the rest of this week.

What else might be set forward when there is not enough time remaining for refutation?

A.L.M. October 28, 2004 [c401wds]

 
CHRISDAY CONFLICT

I have decided it had something to do with the fact that we are in an election year. This was the first time I remember hearing some edge-of-nasty arguments about who discovered America and when.

Most of us, I think, are willing to give Christopher Columbus the credit or the blame for having brought the existence of the American continents to the attention of a curious and gold-seeking throng of Europeans. Chris, himself, was intent on finding a passageway to China, India other such places. Never before do I recall so much comment as in the week of our recent “Columbus Day”celebrations. Those who favored all that we had been taught about Columbus had to put up with a veritable flood of guff from those who contended that America was discovered, at least a good five centuries ahead of Christopher Columbus' numerous trips across the Briney. They claimed Leif Erickson, or, maybe, Eric the Red, or just another shield-studded gang of generously blond-bearded Vikings with bull horns glued to their headgear, had came upon both hunks of western real estate in their wanderings. Some even went so far as to suggest, that which is probably true; that Old Chris died not knowing, for sure, exactly what he had found.

Even callers on the radio talk shows were hot to hate that week and it had to stem from the critical stance we all seem to have adopted toward the finals weeks of our election process.

The Columbus-was-late-crowd argument seemed to be enhanced by ignorance of the facts, intensified by confusion and worse this year because of the voting booth jitters so many of us are apparently susceptible to at this time of the quad-year civic cycle. He slightest bit of disagreement - conflict!

Columbus went back to Spain and talked to interested, concerned people about the new land. He even wrote a book about it , some insist, but the Norse left their sparsely sustained settlements on the slightest setback - such as bad weather - to return to their former camp sites in Greenland and Iceland. It is true they were centuries ahead of others - Spanish, Portuguese, English - but the Norse settlements have been vastly over-extended, romanticized and over-rated. It is likley they did build at least two rock houses - a second one when they had a spat over who was going to live in the one old Leif had left for them to use. The first to make a settlement effort was Leif Erickson and his red-headed son Eric tried it a few years later.

We have confined Columbus to the southern seas, even though he made at least one trip to Iceland and through that out-of-Ireland over-supply of imaginary islands which never existed which give Ireland a “Me, too!” position in the “who-found-America com petition. The fabled feats of various Vikings have
been dragged all over the map of the eastern half of the United States. Alleged Norse droppings has been found at a vast number of sites by overly-eager “histerians” who seem to think that any pile of rock means that “Vikings” had a colony there.

To complicate it all a bit more, a couple with Eric the Red's bunch had a boy-child child they named “Snorrie” who was born five centuries ahead of “Virginia Dare” down Roanoke Island way. Then, worse yet: November is almost upon us which brings back the well-worn - “when and where was the first Thanksgiving Day dinner consumed?” Usually the contending Commonwealths of Massachusetts and Virginia are the only ones who get excited about it.

By that time, our election ought to be over - perhaps.

A.L.M. October 27, 2004 [c619wds]

 
A NEW ERA

The repetitive nature of so much of our election time routines drives me to seek distraction in the form of projections concerning our future. Uppermost among them for this morning I seem to have become aware of the fact Mankind faces yet another era of great discoveries.

Politicians make some astounding prophecies concerning the future and I think, perhaps, may be that which has trigger my interest of wondering about what tomorrow might bring.

Mankind is, I think, is facing yet another era of great discoveries.

We have been, at times, too much like our Congress which, in 1912 serious discussed a bill which was designed to abolish the U. S. Patent Office because “everything worthwhile had all ready been invented”. I suppose we should be appreciative of the fact the bill did not become law, and I can't refrain from but wondering how such a proposal might fare today. It would, I dare say, a least make it into committee hearings.

We all remember when Alaska was spoken of as being ”our last frontier”. It still holds a fascination in the mind of many curious people and is a prime potential for a bright future once we escape the binding thrall of a maze of eco-nut hindrances.

Alaska was replaced in the public mind by more space - “outer” space. Then, closer to our needs, perhaps, we are speedily beginning to become more and more aware of the immensity of values yet to be obtained through further knowledge of our inner selves. We have worlds of minutiae as yet undiscovered. Such subjects as DNA and Stem Cell research have propped the scientific doors ajar so that more men and women can enter such fields as those to learn more about our very being.

Just as in the case of a growing child being impressed with their discovery of smaller forms of life, we are becoming more aware of the largess of our heritage of many small blessings. We have, in recent years made some tremendous progress in our ability to diagnose malfunction of specific portions of the human body; we are constantly discovering new or better ways to treat such conditions until they cease to be costly, even deadly problems.

Discoveries come about, so often, because the is found to be a need for change. Most ”inventions” as developed to meet a need. Now and then, something may be made and a use for it follows more or less by accident, but often because no one every took the time to consider such a special use for it.

That which strikes you as being imperfect stands as a challenge to make you to make it better. You and I can be a part of the new age of discovery which is, of a surety, a growing part of continuing life on Earth.

What part will you play? What is your role?

Dare to do that of which you dream!

A.L.M. [c500wds] October 26, 2004

 
RULE OF ONE

In the era in which we felt it essential to be in opposition to Dictatorship rule by Hitler, Mussolini, Stalin and others there were actually eighteen nations ruled by one person. Dictatorships were in power on every continent and we managed to ignore the dangers involved for us and our form of government among so many of such a questionable nature.

The oldest of them, and the one which endured the longest, was that of Antonio Oliveira Salazar in Portugal. His one-man rule began in 1929.
He wa succeeded in 1968 by Marsella Caetano and his government continued with a slightly more liberal view which resulted in it's being overthrown in 1974. Salazar succeeded decade after decade in keeping his people unaware of developments in the nations of the world - “protected” he argued but his replacement allowed such access to economic and social advancements. By 1974 the Portuguese were again a free people.

1988 marked the 500th year since Bartholomeu Dias sailed found a way out of a severe, obscuring storm and put into a harbor called Mossel Bay. That meant that he was the first explorer to round the southern tip of the continent of Africa at the Cape of Good Hope. That act opened up a whole new world of commerce for the western world and we see now as a high point in the government-sponsored Portuguese discoveries which followed. This continued through the 15th and 16thc centuries and it had a profound influence on all phases of national and international life of those times. Starting in 1988, the government of Portugal began a twelve- year celebration as a plan enabling them to achieve unity and a sense of purpose which had been lost during the long dictatorships of Salazar and Caetano. The year 2000 saw great improvement in the nature of Portugal's place among the nations of the world. The far-flung colonial empire had been lost, of course, many years ago, but the new Century became a landmark for those who foresaw newness and a bright future for their nation.

In the past it could be said the Portuguese had been “first” Patagonia – now called “Argentina”; “first” in Brazil where their language endures to this day, as well, “first” in Japan, India and even the Arabic emirates. Wherever the Portuguese went they set up far more stable forms of government for local peoples than did other nationalities. The did their explorations with purposeful intent and did not depend so much on happenstance, chance or fortuity as did Columbus and others. They established trade with their foreign connections which was mutually advantageous and worthwhile for all concerned.

The Portugal which was a united, highly responsible, during the 15th and 16th centuries established a good example of what a nation might become. Such a time can never be again. But it does appear that the people appreciate the good work their forebears accomplished in discovery exploration, establishment and principles of management.

It applies to nations as well as individuals: appreciation of others depend on what you think of yourself. The Portugal of the future will prosper because they, at last, understand and what they have been at their best.

A. L.M. October 26, 2004 [c545wds]

 
MINUS TV

What else is going to die without world-wide television coverage?

The “Miss America Competition” seems to have gone that way and that makes you wonder what will follow the same path.

Big league base baseball may be a candidate for such electronic execution in the mind of many largely due to the recent announcement saying that, beginning with next season's big league games, all such play-by-play will be carried on cable channels alone. Whether this is a good thing or a bad way to go, has not yet been determined, it appears.

One view might be that it will, at least, prevent a few 1950 sitcoms from being re-run so steadily. It should add to sports fan tune-in because it will be easier to find the exact game desired. It might, however, make it to tempting for viewers to watch more than one game at a time. Split- screen and quad-screen equipment will, no doubt, be in short supply for a time, if it goes that way.

Although I am not a solid schedule sports fan, I rather like the idea myself. I have enjoyed watching Atlanta “Braves” game because I always had a[pretty good idea of where to find them without consulting printed or run-on , too-fast or slow screen listings.

This is somewhat of a crisis in both sports and in TV programming lines, but it is becoming evident that some changes are in order.

The “Miss America” pageant pretty much what it has always been, I suppose we would have to agree, except for controlling star personality of long-timer emcee Bert Parks. To many TV viewers it seems that the “Miss America Competition” was a Bert Parks “special” of some sort. They were always modifying the format slightly, too - tinkering with it just a bit to suggest that the anticipated show might be just a bit more risque than we were accustomed to, a smidgen more outspoken, more revealing than in the past. The print media, too, played a critical role in this phase of planning especially in regard to the swim wear sequences which most of still called ”bathing suits” - more or less. As other elements of the entertainment world fleshed out the papers and magazines found the “Miss America” exhibit to be rather staid. I have a feeling this continued lack of interest from the earliest local and state contests caused the program to loose a lot of it's radio and TV audience.

It sounds odd to speak of “radio” now, doesn't it? But it did have a big part in keeping the annual contests both exciting and inviting. There was also a time when your local movie theaters ran extended “Newsreel” coverage of the annual events choosing our standard of national beauty as well.

Now, let's all sit back and enjoy this years awards “presentation” such as it may be, and we can wonder if the same thing is going to happen to high-budget baseball.

A.L.M. October 24, 2004 [c503wds]

 
DE-CURSER

Now that the sports world's Curse of “the Sultan of Swat” - Babe Ruth - against the Boston Red is being worked over, it might be as good a time as any for us to take another look at some of the other pet theories we have had for many years.

No only is it time for us to re-evaluate some of the standards by which we live, but it may be time to eliminate some such ideas which have been impeding our progress for years.

It is perfectly natural that you might, like most of us, insist at this point, that you have no such flaws. Other people seem to be so burdened, but not us as individuals. That may well be the first idea to cast aside. We all have such questionable traits largely, perhaps, of who we are and where we came from. That source alone can provide us with handicaps untold.

We are often cursed by regional difference – innate feelings, sentiments, folklore leftovers, sectional splinters, some religious quirks, as host of politically-founded hatreds and other such handicaps which do none of us any lasting good. For out ultimate good, it would seem that it might be wise for us to start acting more as a cohesive unit than as a divided amalgam of sometimes rattling parts which other nations do not always understand.

Every effect has a primary cause. Assuming that most of us agree with that concept, it is essential that we examine those effects from time-to- time to see what caused them to be. If you continue to think, as you probably were told as a child, that touching a toad will give you a bad set of unsightly warts you have not bothered to learn basics about toad critters. You may have been led to believe that “lightening does not strike twice in the same place.”
A lot of dead people have tested that one to their lasting regret. In truth, much of what we believe is up for questioning, re-examination, revision or even replacement. We will be better off in may ways without the encumbrance of such excess baggage, just as many Red Sox fans can look forward with greater confidence to a World Series this year.

it is time for us tor ealize how we are constructed and to live accordingly if we wish to continue our erratic and blessed path. For instance, let's accept the idea that we, as a nation, a blend of many peoples. Let's be proud of the fact that we have accepted millions of Latinos in our midst rather than continuing to combat the idea of such a welcome and to realize that our place in the future depends on our ability to blend for our common good. We have used several trying centuries attempting to do the same thing with blacks, reds, and yellows so we have plenty of example explaining the wisdom for making such a transition willingly and peacefully.

The Bambino Curse of the Red Sox strikes some of us as a piece of sports-world humor; of people fooling themselves to keep their nerve up while living in doubt and concern over their own level of their training, experience and dedication to ideals such as integrity, physical preparedness and common sense. So many of the superstitions we carry with us today and brandish all too readily are based on a similar foundation of shifting sands and soggy soil.

You know what your “superstitions” are. You don't have to be told what you believe which is not true. It is not my place to judge your conduct. I have enough to do try to manage my own, but I do think it is a good time right now - while “hero worship”is taking a few knocks as we see Babe Ruth for the first time as a resentful, vindictive, even a selfish , stubborn and vengeful individual placing a “curse” on the future achievements of his previous associates. His being traded to the New York ”Yankees” - often called “the worst trade ever made in American baseball” enabled him to become the idol of millions of fans. Had he stayed where he had been, would he have become what he has been to so many of us?

Considering the fragile nature of our beliefs could my personal belief in the unquestioned excellence of the “Sultan of Swat”, be anything other than a form of superstition I happened to believe as being important in the 1920's decade and through the intervening years to today when I feel a flaw has been shown to have existed about which I have not been aware.

Whatever it takes for you to do so: work at exorcising crippling superstition from your life.

A.L.M. October 23, 2004 [c799wds]

 
IN THE MIDDLE?

I have shirts and sweaters , shoes and socks, under and outer wear, pajamas, pants, neckties, belts, buckles and other items which are all made everywhere. I haven't tried to keep a list detailing the many nationalities to whom I am beholden for my sartorial splendor.

A partial list of those places, taken off-head, without any research includes: Nepal, Kenya, China, Taiwan, Bangladesh, India, Dominican Republic, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Honduras and Mexico. There must others, too. Take time to look at the labels which give an approximate idea of where the product may have originated.

I understand , at least, in a partial sense, why this is way it is today ...the way has been ever since we started shipping our manufacturing skills and methods overseas. I think I understand part of the reasons why this condition has come to be logical since we are part of a world-wide economy far, far removed from our farm-to-dining-room- table, or plant-to-user type of business and commerce. It isn't that way any longer and I'm willing to go along with the concept that claims off shoring is the way to go, but there is one step in all of this which continues to worry me.

I can accept the idea that by providing work for foreigners to do in their own area we are supplanting their economy. That makes better sense than handouts and less of a temptation to graft and corruption than politically oriented assistance on a government to government basis. I never see any
pie charts showing how much we are helping those people by providing employment. Some of the products we receive are actually superior to what we used to be happy with locally, and the usual way of explaining away the price difference is that - in ultra-plain words “they use slave labor”. Pushed a bit, we admit we do not mean that yin a literal sense, but it comes pretty close when worker are grossly underpaid for what they do. The argument can be made that they are being paid at a far better rate than what they normally can expect to get locally. They profit and we pay less on our end, too. The point that worries me is, who sits there in the middle brokering all of these deals? What percentage of the of overall profits goes to this segment of these offshore systems?

What does the middle man, woman, group, association, con consortium, amalgam, corporation,, foundation, society, or soother such classification get?

It is all very much like buying a one-cent item on “e-bay” on our computer, or other such auction site. One cent! What a bargain? But watch for an inflated shipping and handling charge! S&H mans a lot more than just postage and stuffing your bargain into a used cardboard box.

I would like very much to see a clear accounting of who gets what, when and why in our overseas businesses. Profits are limited for the native workers. Savings on the buyer's side are nothing to get excited about, and the main reason we buy the products that are made overseas is that we have no real choice.

It's past time to take an honest look at what actually goes on behind the scenes. Is free trade fair?

A.L.M. October 22, 2004 [c557wds]

 
WHAT IS “UNFAIR?”

Are we a bit more sensitive than usual in this year's presidential election concerning what is thought to be “fair” and what is to be seen as a “foul?”

Specific acts have been condemned by one party or the other concerning attitudes, prejudices, innuendo, or plainly spoken words uttered in haste, confusion or purposely planned. Some such derogatory references might easily inspire the he wild series of charges set forth to make the other party look seem less than tan good, and one has to wonder how many are said under the guise of “error” when deliberate forethought was he generative force behind hem.

Many people, I find, away back in the Democratic Primary phase, seemed to think that a leading candidate at the time - Governor Dean, of Vermont - was suddenly presented as being incapable after the “lost his cool” and succumbed to seemingly out-of-control screaming in a moment of stress. It seemed to suggest to some people that the man was mentally unprepared for Presidential tasks and associated pressures. Six months later in a fine, parody by Atom Films called “My Land” - one of the better pieces to come out of the campaign, I feel, lampooning both sides after the manner of a musical “roast” had buried within its complex body a single, unexplained scream which took me back to Dean-land. Early references to John Kerry's ability to acquire “Lavender Heart” decorations also fell flat, and logically so, because it was seen to be a reflection on the legitimacy of honestly merited Purple Heart decorations.

It was deemed unfair when John Kerry mentioned , as example,in the final presidential “debate” that Vice President Dick Cheney's daughter was a Lesbian. There was also some objection when it was said that he could, just as well, have mentioned his fellow legislative worker Barney Frank as a better known gay person.

John Kerry's wife just this past week of Laura Bush as an inexperienced home body who “had never held a job in her life”. A formal, staff-written “apology” was issued after the initial statement had been well distributed. Statistical studies have shown how few original readers or hearers ever see or hear retractions in an associative manner and the “error” goes uncorrected in many cases.

Many viewers were disturbed by the widow of Christopher Reeves doing a pitch supporting John Kerry so soon after her husband's death. The stem cell research she favored in her announcement was of special interest to Reeves and to her, I realize, but her purpose may have been better served had she urged both major candidates to support stem cell research on a grander basis rather than be critical of one for less excessive promises during an election campaign. Was her appeal in "poor taste"?

Obviously in these last weeks of the campaign we face some strong possibility of questionable ads when it is too late to refute charges made. A new series of TV ads of the “Swift Boat” style by Viet Nam veterans through Sinclair TV stations, and I am amazed that the G.O.P. has not yet mounted a campaign saying that our greatest danger in these final election days is – to make word-play on the term "Terrorism."

“Our greatest current danger: Kerryism!” It would center on theme of nothing new only “We can do it better.” Vague promises. Me-too-isms. Something for everyone or every group.

I wonder if a national “sense of fairness” has prevented such an attack, or will it happen in these last days?

A.L.M. October 21, 2004 [c598wds]

 
THE “AMAZING GRACE”

Until November 14, 1984 a 146-ton commercial fishing vessel by the name of “Amazing Grace” worked out of Hampton, Virginia. As a rule she worked the coastal area off of New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland and Virginia. On, or about, that date in l984 that ship with her a Captain six crew members became “assumed dead” statistics.

We have some idea what happened to them because the Captain spoke briefly on radio saying them had “taken a huge wave over the bow and that the ship was flooding below....” That's all.
Nothing more was ever heard concerning those last moments of the “Amazing Grace.”

The Coast Guard searched the area for sixteen days and they did find one life raft from the lost vessel, but the ship has never been found.

I have noticed that the official report of this loss
is dates “around November 14, 1984”. which suggests that the interrupted radio message sent by the Captain on the 14th may have been a prelude to a continued struggle to stay afloat. It was the time they lost radio contact but that does tell their exact fate. Crew members of the unoccupied raft could have been swept overboard by the killer wave. The exact of the sinking is unknown so the date is left flexible.

We had no Federal regulations in effect in 1984-85 which required vessels of less than 200-tons to have either life boats of emergency radio beacon equipment on board. The Coast Guard noted at the time that the fishing fleet was made up primarily of ships of less than 200-ton. The estimated we had about 33,000 fishing boats in business at the time, and that 85% of them were under 200 tons. They cited this as one of the factor leading to high death tolls among fishermen and urged new legislation be put in force. The Commercial fisherman objected to such governmental intervention in their business affairs, as many industries still do, but the disappearance of the “Amazing Grace” did cause some interest in changing existing regulations to enhance the chance of survival at sea.

A.L.M. October 20,2004 [c363wds]

 
October 19, 2004

APOTHECARY SHOPPE

That which we now commonly call a “drug store” here in the United States has undergone some radical changes over the years since our Colonial Days as a portion of the British Empire.

You can see for yourself what a quaint atmosphere seems to have been typical of such establishments if you visit The Hugh Mercer Apothecary Shop, 1020 Caroline Street, in downtown Fredericksburg, Virginia. It is considered to be a shrine honoring medicine, pharmacy and American patriotism all in one sturdy, historically authentic structure. In every way possible, it is just as it was when our nation was young.

Dr. Hugh Mercer was born in Scotland around 1725. He studied medicine and graduated in 1744 from Marischal College, University of Aberdeen. The following year he joined Charles Stuart's forces as assistant surgeon and served in the Battle of Colloden. Then, as a friend of the Pretender he was no longer welcome and came to America in 1746.Initally, he stayed in Philadelphia but soon moved his practice to the western frontier town which is today called Mercersburg. There he was among the first to enlist is the military service of his adopted country, He swerved as a Line officer and as surgeon through the French and Indian War. He was serving as a Captainwhen,during Braddock's defeat days, he met George Washington for the first time. That began a long, close friendship. During at war he was was wounded, captured by Indians , escaped, and wandered utterly lost for a month in the mountains. He was rescued, promoted to Colonel and made Commandant of Fort Pitt the army post which became present-day Pittsburg.

When the war came to an end, Mercer returned with Virginia troops and settled at Fredericksburg. He married Isabelle Gordon and set up the apothecary shop your can visit today. He was in partnership with a Dr. Ewen Clements and they took an advertisement in the “Virginia Gazette”in 1771 offering their services “...in Physick and Surgery... offering a large assortment of Drugs and Medicines just imported from London.” Dr. Clement left Fredericksburg in 1771 and Dr. John Julian became Mercer's partner in an association which lasted until 1776.

When the American Revolution started and Mercer, as a Colonel, and took command of the Third Va. Regiment, having been defeated by a close margin by Patrick Henry to become Commander-in-Chief of the Virginia forces. At Mercer's headquarters on January 2, 1777. George Washington and several other generals made plans to sneak around Cornwallis's army to appear at Princeton the following morning. On that day, Mercer was severely wounded when he refused to retreat before a British bayonet attack. Washington sent several physician to his side, but he died after several weeks.

The Apothecary Shop in Fredericksburg serves as a museum remembering the man Dr. Hugh Mercer as an adopted son who served his state and his nation well in their times of need He represents others who shared the same goal citizens all in this new nation.

A.L.M. October 19,2004 [c509wds]

 
U.N. RUGS

Have you noticed how much deeper the rugs seem to have become in the United Nations Building in New York City? You get the feeling they have been raised up a bit.

It might well be that those in charge of the policies of administrative housekeeping at the U.N . have been sweeping undesirable
problems under the rug rather than bringing them out in the open for possible sunlight solutions.

That may be what has become of the long- ago named multi-billion dollar Iraqi-Oil-For-Food fraud. The media informed us that in April they had become aware of the fact that the U.N. Had,in some strange way, failed to properly oversee the transfer of one hundred billion dollars worth of Iraqi crude oil for a like amount of humanitarian aid in the form of food for the Iraqi people. They found the transfer to be a honeycomb of kickbacks, smuggling and political back-scratching under the guise of doing relief work. That part designated as aide to the Kurds, in northern Iraq was known to have been stopped and diverted by Saddam and so reported by Benon Sevan, who, as secretary general Kofi Annan' s reported directly to him. A French banking firm seems to have been involved int his switch-a- roo of such re-distributed funds to various nations around the world at Saddam's bidding.

There is a possibility that the French firm we have red about may be confused with a Swiss-Based financial firm hired by the U.N. at the unusually high rate of six million dollars for the first year. Payment for the following years to that firm - Coteca - have been kept confidential. Many seem to find it of special man from Ghana was hired by Coteca less than a year before the U.N. Account came to them. His name was Kojo Annan and he was hired as a “consultant” by the rather tight-lipped firm. It seems to have come as a “surprise” several years later to both the Coteca company and to the U.N . headquarters that Kojo Annan happens to be the U.N. Secretary-General's son. He, of course, worked on the Oil-for-Food” account.

Coteca was quite prompt in pointing out that “the decisions were made by the contracts committee, not by Annan.”

Most certainly the names Kofi and Kojo will be featured on our TV screens once we get the presidential election out of our electronic way, regardless of who wins. Old-fashioned Father-Son shows are hard to come by these days on TV and this should be a good one. It is especially promising because, here more or less the start of it all. neither one of them has been accused of doing anything wrong.

“Innocent until proved to be guilty”. That' s the way we like it.

A.L.M. October 18, 2004 [c472wds]

 
READ THE LABEL

I find it to be amazing how many people take medications without having read the label to become aware of what is in the medicine.

“Amazing” may not be the proper word. “Shocking” would, perhaps, be more fitting. People who would not think of doing other things which might harm them, make a regular routine of putting their lives in danger by failing to read directions.

It happens more often that we realize,too. Prescribed drugs do not, as a rule, have much label text other than who is to take what how often -an some restrictions, if needed. Over-the-counter drugs, however, do have detailed information as to the nature of the contents an d what is to be done with them. Some are printed in ways which seem designed to prevent reading, but all can be important to the well-being of the patient.

The human body,innately aware of improper conditions through being equipped with a marvelous immune system, gives fair warning by means of symptoms for all sorts of adverse conditions. Some people never learn to “read” such alerts and they are, very often,the same people who can't, or don't, read on instructions concerning the proper use of the drug. One of the greatest advances of our computerized era has been the tendency of medical doctors to “write” their prescriptions by keyboard now instead and scrawls by which they used to communicate, in some mysterious way, instructions for the preparation and packaging thereof by the all-seeing,all-knowing pharmacists. That, alone, must have saved quite a few lives along the way.

Another factor which enters into he habit of people not reading the rules in the health “game” is the amount and nature of the folklore to which they are re committed. To what degree a person puts faith in folk medicine lore, old-wives tales, traditions, family habits, witchcraft and faith healing ... they will modify the original instructions to suit their “other” knowledge. One very common example of such mismanagement of medicine is to be found in the number of people who think that if one pill is effective two might be more so. Overdosing is more common than under-estimating the amount of drugs to be taken. Many people who have been to the doctor's office decide on their way home how they are going to modify the schedule for taking the pills they have just acquired.

Another hazard we all face today is that far too many people pay more attention to TV commercials about drugs than anything their doctor may have said.
He tells them only once but TV tells them several times and hour both day and night. Which one do you think the most people will choose to believe? In one way it works out better for the doctor, because the patient comes back again and again with the same or other maladies.

A.L.M. October 16, 2004 [c487wds]

 
SANDY TRAVEL

I realize it may well qualified me for being listed in the “Booby-Book of the Year”, but , until recently, it never occurred to me that navigation was a requirement in desert travel.

Without it one cannot be sure of getting wherever it was you thought you were going. Our Nabatean navigators have been guiding rich caravans across desolate desert terrain for centuries and they use a handy little instrument called a kamal. That's right - with a “K”.

“C-type” camels and deserts seem to go together naturally. A brand of cigarettes used to show a picture of a single-humped Bactrian camel and sugar-cured fruit such as dates, had a picture of a two-humped camel called a dromedary. Or, was it the other way around?

All you need to make a kamal is a flat piece of wood, smooth and about half the size of an old-fashioned HERSHEY Chocolate bar and about as thick as one used to be. You will need about a yard and half of string, too. You'd best go with two yards because you will be required to tie a series of knots in that string- how many depends on how many places you want to navigate toward.

Drill a small hole through the center of the board. Pull the string through the hole and knot it so it does no slip through.

This is the point at which he men are separated from the boys ; navigators from the would-be navigators or eternally lost souls. The technical lore which old timers pass on to the new generation are amazing clutter. Here's a sample explaining how you go about trying those critical knots.

“The science of qiyas is the simple method. There are 224 isba in a 360 degree circle. The width of four finger is considered to be 4 isba.” And there is more such hi-tech jargon you'll need to learn ,too if you want to make a career in this ancient scientific field.

What you need to do is to stop yakking about the waves rocking the boat if you are “at sea” or the wind and sand blowing your bernoose loose if you are “at sand”. You also have to hold the string between your teeth and let it slip through as you move the string out from the pole star placement until the proper knot is on the chosen star which allows you to think you now know what the exact latitude of your destination might be.

The Polynesian travelers, it is said had a version of the kamel made with a strip of bamboo and length of notched vine.

It amazes me that anyone got anywhere by such methods of computation. Perhaps those heading toward the Americas from the Pacific islands had a long coastline at which they might aim, and those going the other direction had a scattered host of many islands so they were sure to hit one of them.

A.L.M. October 15, 2004 [c501wds]

 
AND NOTHING BUT

How, you may wonder as I do, can otherwise decent men and women allow themselves to skirt the very fringes of dishonesty at times?

It happens more often than we might care to admit and most frequently by equivocation, elision, grafting and parenthetical references.

When a topic is being discussed, such as in the recent presidential campaign debates, the speaker is expected to stay on the subject for the duration of the set time period.

A noticeable trait of so many political speeches is to be found in the fact that so much that is actually voiced represents only a portion of the truth. The speaker, so often, purposely avoids, evades, hedges, skirts, parries, gets around or sidesteps any elements of truth which may make his or her statement seem less authentic. Is such a presentation honest? If one lists only the positive aspects of a plan and makes no reference to potential negative aspects, is it a true picture of the plan being presented? Any speaker who sets forth his idea in this this manner is, in effect, telling “half-truths”, we say, which suggests that the other portion may well be patently false or even a downright lie. In any portion of a speech in which numbers, numerals, percentages, figures, and pie chart graph proportions are mentioned one can expect elements of alteration, color, contortion, deception, dressed-up, embroidered, exaggerated, salted, trumped-up or misquoted - and they, in most cases, will be accepted and heard as intended- dramatically. Is this honest? Or, is it a planned deception, fully intentional and thought to be permissible?

The four men concerned in the 2004 Election Debates were all seasoned veterans of such speaking situations and one did not find elements which do, however, appear in the speeches of less adept speakers. It is certainly dishonest for someone called upon to influence the choice to be made by citizens to falsify, hedged, magnify, misrepresented or diluted. Some will even try to fabricate,cook up, fake, forge or simulate truth, and an amazing number of political speakers at all levels tend to be off balance, confused, irresolute, uncertain, wishy-washy, floundering around and, straddling issues and wearing funny hats and singing silly songs..
On the whole,I would say that this year's debates were successful. I still, however, doubt if they are necessary, except in that they do serve as a sort of wrap-up of all all that has been said, re-said and said again throughout the months of our woefully long election period. Such and summation is needed for large numbers of turned-off voters who have missed much that has been said during the stretched-out “election year”. The debates sum it all up for them - actually some of them learn for then first time who is running for what office. Then - “informed” - they rush to the polls eagerly.
The debates this year of 2004 were competent and capable. The audience conduct was exceptionally good being obscured by dim lighting and few or no microphones. And the planning was commendable and the moderators all proved to be competent. One incident occurred which was said, by some, to have been ”in poor taste.” It will be a hot issue for the next ten days, but it will prove to have been a minor flaw best forgotten by those most concerned.

A.L.M. October 14, 2004 [c563wds]

 
NOTEWORTHY CHANGE

Each of us has some rather firm ideas about what we call a “change.” Most of us, I would say, like to see any new angle or modification appear to be an improvement on the previous condition . Each of us, too, might be ready to question change if it comes too suddenly upon us, without some hint that things might be son be different. Sudden change can come as and unpleasant shock. What about a change which is kept secret, or , at least not noised about so that many of us might come to know that a thing had been modified?

One change - a musical one which affects just about all of us at one time or another - has been put in place, it seems, and not made known publically.

It occurs at a rather solomn moment in the lives of most of us, too. It is applied in other, less serious circumstances, I'm sure, with the idea that if it works better, involve less expense can be used again-and-again accomplishes the desired result more effectively with less chance of error and with marked improvement in dependability. With all that in its favor it, automatically, seems better and should not excite any opposition.

Example: If you watched the Memorial Service honoring President Ronald Regan you were no doubt impressed by the scenic background of the vast Pacific Ocean segment in the background and by the general arrangement of the partricants during the ceremony. You also will recall that a young man in military dress then placed a trumpet to his lips, and in the traditon of the ceremony played the notes known as “Taps”. It is a touching passage and adds a traditonal coda to such ceremonies. You may not have listened too intently but you “felt” the tonal splendor of the simple notation deep within you and may may have wondered how that young musician could do it so perfectly, with such meaning and without any hint of error. The truth of the matter is that the so-called “bugle” is never used at such ceremonies. Instead, an electonic device is fitted in the instrument puts to the musician's lips and he carefully syncs his apparent breathing to the sound emitted from the bell of the horn. The perfect union of tone with movment results. He lowers the saluting instrument and you never realize it was recorded.

It is, somehow, disturbing to me.

Have we become so enamoured of perfection? Do we deem it necessary that emotional qualities be exorcized? Must we have the nth in everything? Must we do so in a mechanical way? Somehow it detracts from the entire cemmony it is intended to enhance.

We do this more often than we think we do. The vast majority of the shows you watch so avidly on television have been long ago been taped ,edited, cut, patched, enhanced and colorized to provide you with a program timed to the very second, edited to remove all obvious errors (even to the point of adding a few unintentionaly, such as a sudden flicker or flash where a portion of the film has been cut to shorten the length so that it will fit in the exact space between commercials.) We demand such detailed preparation in the TV shows we watch, and movies had been that way for decades. More and more we are realizing that some producers of News Progamming on radio and TV, are applying such methods to bring about ”perfection” - in their light - for events we share.

You have, no doubt, heard taps blown poorly. We all have. It is a difficult thing for a musician to be called upon to do, and some are not more ready to do so than some vocalists who try to sing our national anthem at sports events. On such occasions we may feel sorry for the inept player or singer, but they are part of an emotional moment and even the best artists may vary a bit from perfection ...just as did the life of the deceased, perhaps, or the status of the sports teams in the arena when someone butchers our banner song.

It's here. We go with the change, like it or not. It time we will come to accept such modifications and wonder why were disturbed by such a petty thing.

A. L. M. October 13, 2004 [c740wds]

 
ONE USED FORT

It has had at least three names.

The original drawings for a much-needed fort to be built out near the middle of the main channel of Hampton Roads, Virginia, were all labeled ”Castle Calhoun.”

Andrew Jackson was President at that time and while the place was under construction he used it as a summer White House and get-away spot for several years. For a brief time, a young engineer by the name of Robert E. Lee was on the staff as one of those charged with creating an island for in the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay and with placing thereon a sizable fortification. Both the army and navy did not like to recall that the national capital had been attacked – not once, but twice - by British warships which sailed past this very spot on their way into the Chesapeake Bay area.

Work started on the fort in 1818 when not too many islands that size had been constructed so it took a while.. In more recent island building islands Japan used compacted urban waste in hundred pound “bricks”, but the builders of the island in the Chesapeake Bay used rock ...mostly granite - and they kept dumping more and more rock until, finally, an “island” began to show. The average depths at the site measured from ten to eighteen feet in depth - almost three fathoms - and the rock and concrete they poured in - an estimated l.2 million cubic feet of the hard stuff - tended to go to the bottom and keep sinking. Five years after they started the island measured about seven feet above the surface. It took three years more for it to settle. Work was started, but had to be stopped indefinitely when newly build walls split as their foundations sank at a rate of about seven inches per year. It was in this phase, it is said, that Robert E. Lee no doubt, shared some worry with other young engineers on duty Certainly, it was in no condition to support extensive fortifications.

The original design was by a Frenchman Simon Bernard. The fort was attached to Fort Monroe on the mainland north of the site about a mile in an administrative sense. Fort Monroe was the largest masonry fortification ever built in the United States and that influenced the name given to the new, extended fortification supplementing Fort Monroe. The old designation honored John Calhoun, President Monroe's Secretary of War, who was deemed to be a southern sympathizer. Several names were. It could have been Fort Scott for General Winfield Scott,of Mexican War fame but , instead General John Ellis Wool, also a Mexican War hero and commandeer of Fort Monroe at time.

When I was just a young kid in Norfolk, Va. we spoke of the place as ”The Rip-Raps”. I have no memories of our ever having called it “Fort Wool.” That name came to be during the Civil War when it came under Union control and occupancy. Those in command were perturbed when the Confederate “Virginia” went safely past it to attack the Federal fleet off shore. Furthermore, it passed the fort on returning to its base in Norfolk, an suffered no damage whatsoever even from the firing of Fort Wool's celebrated new gun called “The Sawyer”. It is said that radar personnel stationed on the rocky little island during World War II called it “The Rock” - suggesting an Alcatraz-like state of isolation.

Today, the “Rip-Raps” is a public park area. It was given to the Commonwealth of Virginia in 1967 and then, in turn, to the City of Hampton in 1970. Much of the original structure remains, but not all of the island is used because portions of it are declared to be unsafe. The reason: the island is still “settling” and , it is assumed, will - in time - sink beneath the waters and be no more.

A.L.M. October 12, 2004 [c665wds]

 
THEY STARTED IT!

Oregon was the first state to adopt a tax on gasoline. That was done in 1919 and by 1929, all of the ,then, forty-eight states had decided that was a good way to bring in additional revenue. One has to wonder about just how many cars infested the highway system of Oregon in 1919. I doubt that traffic was extensive enough to support an argument that it would “bring in millions” and I can't imagine what they used to argue their cause for imposing a tax on fuel for 1919 cars It may have been just another way to fight the growth of the horseless carriage

A Federal gasoline tax was started in 1932 set at a cautious one-cent per gallon. By 1929 it was 4-cents per gallon . Since that time it, along with state and, some local taxes have increased noticeably. The main intended use for such funds as were gathered from gas taxes has always been for the maintenance of existing highway and for the construction of new or better ones as needed.

The other area of taxation which has shown growth is that set upon tobacco and products thereof. They have varied a great deal depending on the section of the nation and their ability to grow, process or ship tobacco products to the world markets. The State of Iowa was the first to put a tax to put a tax on tobacco in 1921 and all the states got on the wagon promptly. Some states prefaced tax action by prohibiting smoking in various locations. Louisiana , for example, in 1890, decreed: “No smoking on street cars.” Tobacco raising states Virginia and North Carolina lagged far behind, however, even when the thing became endemic. They , too, in recent actions have now increased their tax take, as well, but it is still small compared to that imposed by other states. Between 1970 and 1975, forty-two different laws went into effect concerning tobacco use and taxation schedules. Fines have been imposed on the tobacco industry to an unprecedented degree and the business does not face a bright future unless it would in in the possible expansion of their overseas potential.

More than we might realize, taxation tells the tale when we study human social and governmental systems. The Boston Tea Party was one such gathering we all remember.

A.L.M. October 11, 2004 [c408wds]

 
FRANK – PLUS

During most of my fifty-eight years of living here in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, I have always thought that the fine little town of Franklin, in Pendleton County, just across our western border in West Virginia , was named after Benjamin Franklin. After all he was a national hero, inventor, writer, printer, diplomat, a much revered conversationalist and our first Postmaster General, and much of the area which is now West Virginia, at one time, they considered naming the state after him.

I was a bit disappointed when the editor of the Pendleton 'TIMES”,
the newsworthy weekly published in Franklin, pointed out that the name of the town was, in no way, connected to that of Old Ben.

Early residents called the community “Frankfort”, which is logical because the 160 acre for their farm surveyed by Francis and George Evick. George built a log house on the east side of the river at the South Branch river at the mouth of what is known as Evick Gap, and Francis built one near a spring which is now just in back of the Volunteer Fire Company building in downtown Franklin. That was around 1769 following a decade or so of such new towns along the western edge of the nation built to withstand the depredations of the Indians. They were often known as “forts”, I say it was a “logical” choice, because it is only natural that the house built by Francis was often thought of as Frank's Fort. Hence the town he established there was known as Frankfort.

All that changed abruptly on December 19, 1794, when an act if the Legislature of the Commonwealth of Virginia designated the name of the town to be “Franklin”. They had , shortly before that, (in 1788) named a town in Hampshire County “Frankfort”and they didn't want two of them Also in that year of 1788 the fire c meeting in Ruddle, decided to locate the county seat on the Evick farm. Francis E Evick then laid off the site of the proposed town .It was 46-1/2 acres along the foot of a ridge above his meadows. In contrast of usual treatment, he laid the new town off in a methodical manner and that factor can be seen in the town's growth to this day.

The Virginia legislative act named gen trustees run he town,and hey took their job seriously. By Christmas 1800 they had established ordinances locally which protected property from fire, kept hogs from running at large, new ones to prevent the galloping and racing of horses through streets and alleys and many more to preserve proper order among the populace. It is recorded that George Evick sold his interest in the farm forr about 250 pound or around $800.00.and on the same day the new Sheriff bought the first building lot offered for sale - a ½ acre plot for 5 pounds or about $16.00. By 1800 the town had one hundred inhabitants.

Had yellow page directories existed at that time, the town of Franklin would have listed two general stores,, two carpenters, two shoemakers, one cabinet shop, one chair maker, three saddlers, one tailor, one hatter, one gunsmith, two tanning yards, plus two lawyers, one physician, a Temperance League Chapter and a Bible Society

There is a good book on the history of Pendleton County - written in 1910 by Oren F. Morton - in which he says: “Franklin in its present guise is one of the handsomest of the small towns of West Virginia.” It remains so today.

A.L.M. October 11, 2004 [c598wds] .

 
STEWART

Now that Martha Stewart has been safely confined behind the no-bars Alderson minimum-security Federal Prison for Women, in West Virginia, we can all sleep better at night knowing justice has prevailed.

It is time, however, for a question which I have been wanting to set forth for some time.

Agreed, Martha Stewart is in jail for lying about her activities in regard to the sale of ImClone stock.

The point I would like to see clarified is one which would be little or no trouble at all for the team which hunted Martha Stewart down valiantly and threw a big chunk of the book at her.

Is it possible for authorities to go back to existing records - those of the brokerage houses concerned, the phone companies, e-mail and delivery services - all the means used to bring Martha Stewart to justice, to determine who else might have sold ImClone stock in the week before the demise of the stock's price. Is it logical that Martha Stewart, a relatively small investor, could possibly have been the only person so “favored” with a warning to sell. Certainly, she was not the only holder of such stock which “moved” during that critical week or so. If there were others who sold, they should be asked to explain why they did so. If they deny having done so because of any suggestions by insiders are they, then to be considered as fabricating, decorating the facts - lying?

Certainly, Martha Stewart's sale was not the only piece of business brokerage firms did during that time period. Isn't it only fair that further investigations be done to find out who did sell and why at that particular moment in time? How many will say they don't remember? How many will be hoping the records have been properly adjusted or conveniently misplaced or accidentally destroyed or lost to minimize any possibilities of retracing business activities of those dated, contact made and actions taken?

We owe it to Martha Stewart to investigate the “also rans” in this
seeming series of mis-deeds.

And another thing that irks me no end: this media thing of calling the[prison “Camp Cupcake”. No prison is, in any way, like any “piece of cake” in whatever form or shape. An individual never knows what the attitude of fellow prisoners might be or become, and, that alone, makes residence therein potentially a property leased from Hell itself.

A. L .M. October 10, 2004 [c414wds]

 
GARI MELCHERS

If you are from the Commonwealth of Virginia and at all acquainted with the artistic heritage of our state, that name - Gari Melchers – ought to have special meaning for you. Does it?

If not, welcome to a large group of us who now realize we have been remiss in properly remembering a fine artist who chose to built his home and studios at Falmouth, Virginia , “Belmont”, at Falmouth, Va. in Prince William County, on the north edge of Fredricksburg. He who worked there until his death in 1932 and his works are shown in some of the world's leading galleries where they have been admired and appreciated by many viewers - both art critics and average art lovers.

“Gari” Melchers was born in Detroit, Michigan in 1860. That was a friendly nickname ,too - Gari - short for his true name Julius Garibaldi. His father was Prussian-born sculptor, the boy's first art teacher and an admirer of Giuseppe Garibaldi, the Italian patriot. The father's name was Julius so the boy was called “Gari” and the diminutive tag stuck. The early art lessons were effective. Gari, even as child, decided he did not want to be a sculptor, but, rather, chose even then to become a painter of renown.

His training, in keeping with the sentiment of his day, had to be European. He was seventeen when he entered the Royal Prussian Academy of Art, Dusseldorf, Germany. There he learned the show principles which were to show in his mature style years later - well-modeled forms, rather hard-edged realism to which he added the “old master's” - so soft, engaging, and subtle.

Then, in Paris, he studied under both Lefebvre and Boulanger . These experiences gave him the background to become the natural leader of the school of American painters in Paris. And it was in Holland at Egmond-aan-Zee that he joined with another American, George Hitchcock (1850-1913). There , they founded an Art Colony and founded a reputation as leading chroncllers of Dutch peasant life. This was where Melchers' so called “landmark:”painting titled “The Sermon,” 1886) was painted. It shows a young peasant girl asleep during a church service. The honest characterization of the working-class life became one of the the day's most beloved examples of rustic naturalism and it speaks to us today as well.

Many paintings came from that period -”The Communion”, “The Pilots”, and “The Choirmaster”being among them. They gathered a large German and American audience while sentiment ran high in both those area concerning the piety and the work ethic of the peasant class of people. In 1889 Melchers reached the height of his career when he, at twenty-nine years of age, and John Singer Sargent became he first American painters to be set apart with the Grand Prize at the Paris Universal Exposition. Geri Melchers was named to be the leading American proponent of naturalism in painting.

He did murals or the 1893 World's Colombian Exposition, in Chicago and for the new Library of Congress in Washington D.C. In 1895 In those 1890's he was also discovered as a portrait painter by such family names as Vanderbilt, Mellon and Roosevelt which assured both his reputation and his ability to earn financial rewards. He also did a series of paintings in which he coupled paintings of people with symbols of their avocation - “The Sailor and his Dog”,”The Fencer”, “The Shipbuilder.” in which the character of the person is shown through the love and attention the subject person gives to his hobby or pet. A man's true character is thus read in detail never before shown through pictures.

Melchers' career blossomed as he achieved success and he became interested in many forms of art. He served as Professor of Art at the Grand Ducal School of Art, Weimer, Germany, but World War I sent him and his wife Corinne back to the United States.. In 1915 he opened studios in the Beaux Arts building at Bryant Square, News York City, where he served well in organizational and leadership roles. When the Melchers wished to escape the confinement of the city they found an the place in Virginia which reminded them of the Egmond-aan-Zee area, and there they built a home named “Belmont” near Falmouth, Va. He became a master along with such leading American impressionists as Childe Hassan, Edward Redfield and John Twatchman – and painted accordingly. During his more advanced years Gari Melchers was named to the Virginia Art Commission and we owe much to his efforts to establish the Virginia Museum Of Fine Arts which we now enjoy. He was also chairman of the Smithsonian Commission to Establish a National Gallery of art - today's Smithsonian American Art Museum. He also served as a Trustee of the Corcoran Gallery of Art.

It strikes me as bit ironic that a man who did so much to forward the cause of art for the people and of the people, should be forgotten. It is true that the fickle regard of the public turned from objective art to other forms. Melchers works went into storage in warehouses. Now that we are, once again, appreciative of what is being called “Academic Art”....and when realism is being taken to extremes in every portion portion of our media, it seems time for a has for a new awakening to the worth of the treasure we have in the works of Gari Melchers - Virginia artist.

A.L.M. October 9, 2004 [c915wds]

 
PLANNED VISIT

The street address is 4305 Sulgrave Road, Richmond, and the house there looks very English and Elizabethian. It overlooks the James River and the sturdy stucco, whole- tree beams and brick construction appears to have always been there. A dignified, small sign tells me I have arrived at “Agecroft Hall.”

In truth the house was build five hundred years ago. In 1925, the state of families of Langley and Dauntesey having fallen on bad times, the place was sold at auction. The estate had fallen into some disrepair and the buyer, T. C. Williams Jr. of Richmond,Virginia, had it carefully dismantled, crated in many sections to be reassembled here within sight of the James River just as it had been in relation to Lancashire's Irwell River in England. An authentic 15the Century English manor home, transplanted to a new location in the Old Dominion.

This is one of the many places I still want to visit.. One can choose to be selective because different programs are conducted throughout the year. Right now during October Chris Novzelli, architectural historian and tour guide, will be doing a lecture tour of “Agecroft” and the surrounding area of “Windsor Farms” . Walking shoes are recommended.

Starting around Thanksgiving Day and continuing through Christmas Agecroft features the “Bellycheer Tour” detailing the entertainment customs and etiquette of the 16th and 17th centuries. Is it proper for you to sit above or below the salt at dinner? Do you usually drink beer or cider with breakfast? Do you usually eat your goblet after drinking your wine? That's the sort of problem which can be solved annually at “Agecroft” during the fall holiday season. Then, there's the special Christmas Revel itself.

“Agecroft”: is a place you can visit often because of them special events going on throughout the year. They are constantly reminding visitors of the sterling features of the reign of Queen Elizabeth I from 1533 to 1603 when such notables as Sir Francis Drake and William Shakepeare strutted their hours on life's stage


I must make a special effort to get to Richmond and “Agecroft Hall”. It has been on my “do-it-someday”list. It has been on my tentative schedule time-after-time. Maybe we can shake loose and get over there some afternoon when the Richmond Concert Band is doing a concert, perhaps. Pictures of it reminds me so much of houses and public buildings I have seen in England and, oddly enough, at the same time, of the old Hotel Roanoke here in Virginia years ago when it was in its prime- less prim and properly painted.

“Agecroft Hall” reminds us how much we are a blend of much of the culture of Elizabethian times.

A. L. M. October 7, 2004 [c460wds]

 
TOO FAST

I have often heard it said that we are living “too fast” today. In fact, I have been guilty of saying it myself and believing it as I grow older. The more years on accumulates, it seems, the faster all of life seems to move toward its logical conclusion. It's true, I am convinced, but not, necessarily because one grows older, but for a variety of reasons.

Among them, the technological revolutions in which we have been involved in recent decades, have, literally, shortened the time previously spent in doing things. In my personal experience before I, like millions of other citizens of the world at large, became “google-ized, used to spend twice as much my my time doing research seeking facts which interest d or concerned me. I maintained several shelves of twenty-four EB volumes through which I delved for hours. Now, all that information, and more, is literally at my fingertips. With “google.com” as the keystone I have the world's best information at hand in minutes.

What would you say the leading subject would be when people turn google for guidance?

Those who keep track of such things, say it is the topic: ”health.” and that can be another reason why life seems to move along faster as we advance in years. We, in this in this generation of ours, probably, spend more time dealing with personal concerns of renewal and well-being than any before us. Eighty-five percent of the requests seeking information from google.com are said to be about “health.” Being far more concerned about our individual abilities to care for our bodies, we are paying more serious attention to the package in which our lives are contained. Instead measuring time by clock and calender, many people now measure life by remembering good times as those between cures and new illnesses.
We tend to “age” as those interludes shorten.

Still another reason why life seems to move along faster as we grow older is found in a paradox concerning the status of “youth” in today's scheme. We hear it said both ways: “Kids grow up sooner and faster today.” and “When are those kids going to grow up?” I prefer the first view. It is , obviously, true that our culture requires small children to assume adult standards far sooner than they were ever permitted to do a decade or so ago. Other than the use of brighter colors, perhaps, and louder music, it is difficult to tell the difference between films and disked games intended for children and for produced average adults. But it still seems that our television network heads think all children watch network TV on Saturday mornings. Chances are a hundred and something to four that they are elsewhere on the varied dial. We dress kids as miniature adults; we speak of , to and in-front-of (in their presence) in adult terms including profanity and other evidences of vocabulary poverty.

It is true that our children are growing faster today but the good feature about is that is that it is a normal growth caused by advances in technology in our time. The very same advances are speeding the life style we oldster,as well. Don't fight it Go with it.

Go with it. Yes. But, not lightly. We have been given the key to mankind's fund of knowledge and new responsibilities to use it properly and to the best advantage of all. That's no small order.

Your part? You are already at work doing it, which is why your time is passing so swiftly!

A.L.M. October 6, 2004 [c601wds]

 
BIG BONES

In June of 1988 I jotted down some notes about a sensational new find of fossils in a rock quarry in Iowa. The cache was estimated as having been 335-million years, Since that was sixteen years ago, those bones may already have turned up on “Road Show” or perhaps marketed several time on “e-Bay” as antiques. I have decided that if people will actually offer for sale and others will buy used chewing gum once belonging to Brittany Spears, they will buy old amphibian fossils.

One of the prize catches was an unnamed amphibian which looked like a six foot salamander. It can be touted as having one of the very first critters to forgo the warm aqua areas for the crusty terra firma side of the tropical setting which was common at that time in Iowa. It is said to have been the first swamp walker.

More than five hundred fossils of fish and amphibians were dug out of that quarry near a farming village named Delta, Iowa. And it was, in l988, the largest collection of land animals ever found from the Mississippian period which managed to sustain itself from 330 to 360 million years. Whole skeletons were found and the bones were in remarkable good condition. The bones were packed in limestone deposits

At the beginning of the M-era there were no birds, mammals, or reptiles on land. They which did make it to land living had to return to the water to spawn. The reptiles are said to be the first ones to go land-solo. The did so by laying eggs and there followed, after their example, a wide variety of reptiles, birds and strange mammals, some with overlapping ribs which were common to many versions of the era's water creatures.

The site was studied by experts from the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago; William Penn College, Iowa; the University of Chicago, and National Geographic Society set its photographic expertize to work just after the discovery. Until that time, very few well preserved specimens of land vertebra had been found from those early times. In the 1970's a group from Cambridge University in England and Copenhagen, Denmark found a deposit of such bones in Greenland including several types of fish-like creatures not found in Iowa. They took 1500 pounds of 400-million year old bones home .

This is an especially interesting because mysterious changes occurred among the reptiles. The amphibians had been their ancestors and they took to the land. Then, came the birds came to soar through the skies, and a host of animals of many shapes, sizes and types evolved ...including human beings, in time.

A.L.M. October 5, 2004 [c452wds]

 
REDISCOVERY

We keep finding old things. Some of them, we don't remember having had in our possession, but here there are - all of a sudden – and, very often, they are welcomed with new interest and concern.

Such a place is a recently re-discovered location of ancient ruins in the State of Utah which were the base for an ancient Paleo-Indian civilization which has been, heretofore, somewhat of a mystery.

The place is known as Range Creek Canyon and it has ruins dating from about the time of Christ. It is one of those sites on a private ranch and although it has been successfully kept as a family secret by the owners for over half a century, it is now under qualified archeology administration and it is unusual in that it presents an almost pristine look at the civilization which existed there. The sites are special treasures, seemingly untouched by invaders, scavengers, inept “diggers” or souvenir collectors.

The main canyon in which these ancient people lived was owned by a Utah rancher who, for fifty years has wisely kept it a secret. Excavations which are now underway are finding a wealth of artifacts undisturbed by previous workings. There are village sites and a fortress home extending as much as nine hundred feet above the wall of one of the more impressive mountains. Study shows that these people were those who settled the Utah area about two-thousand years ago. They are thought to have originated in Asia and, after crossing the Bering Strait land bridge, settled down. They have been known for some time as the “Fremont people”. The name is alleged to be that of a Spanish explorer who never saw any of them but found settlements he thought to be theirs throughout the general Utah area. Since that time they have continued to be called by that second-hand name. Perhaps the current dig will reveal a tribal distinction through their art work and restore a more meaningful name to their family. They were judged to have been hunters and planters of a limited number of crops known at their early period. .At some time around 1250 A.D They disappeared, it seems, as soddenly as did other tribes in the area.. The fate is still a mystery the key to which might be in the Range Creek Canyon ruins..

In their Utah settlements they prospered and thus invited the enmity of at least three less-settled tribes - the Utes, Soshone and the Pauites, who, it seems, spoke a numic-language. The less militant Fremont people, lost the struggle to keep their homeland and were pushed into the rugged canyon areas where they barely survived. Thus far over three hundred sites have been designated for additional, detailed study. The public awareness of the site cam to light in June of 2004 when the newspapers detailed the land transfers involved. ^The Research people and the Utah State Legislature were alert to the need for legislation specifically designed to protect the Range Creek Canyon area. V Visitors,today, must acquire permits to visit the area, and hunting and camping have been restricted The State of Utah also funded by foot and aircraft patrols of the area. The entire nation will forever be in debt to the state of Utah for the special attention they gave to the re-discovery of such early roots North American cultures.
.
This is a treasured area from which all of us may well learn many of the secrets held in the artifacts which are found there about the early human inhabitants. Two hundred and fifty households to be studied. Stone-and-mortar granaries, storage rooms and enclosures as well scores of trapizodal figures painted on the canyon walls are believed to have been done at about the time of Christ. The Fremont people; had different way of weaving,they wore animal clawed moccasins, ands they mo developed remarkable hunting and farming skills. Their everyday tool and pottery different in form and content from that of other farming- oriented tribes south of the Colorado River. Much it to be learned of their individual qualities. Highly respected by existing Indian tribes in the Utah area today many claim to be kin and speak of them as their “ancestors.”

It may well come to be that be that one of the greatest values to come out of all this project will be to rediscover in the ancient ruins, the key to the true name of these people we still call ”The Fremont People”

A. L. M. October 4, 2004. [c758wds]

 
THEN NOW

How do you answer when small children ask you how things were in the “olden days”?

Do you lay the un-laminated truth on them without delay, or do you feel it is necessary to edit things a bit; to patch up the fading fabric of memories before passing it along?

I'm making use of an editorial ”you” as I ask. Of course, you aren’t old enough for any kids to ask such a personal question of you. Or, are you?

Yes, you are?

Developing youngsters seek models and teen agers look to those who have made into the twenties as veterans in solving so many of the very problems which face them at their age level. The very young would often be more attracted to the manner in which a teen-ager handles a social problem, of instance, than they would seek advice from older persons who seem to be out of touch with life. They have to become grown-up themselves before they realize how much of living remains,essentially, the same over they the years.

Many children need “sounding boards” against which they can bounce ideas and concepts as they think of them - and they can do so with confidence that convinces them they are the very first to have conceived such an idea It was not the grown up man Christopher Columbus who discovered the New World. It was was in the mind of the small b[y talking with or listening to, sailors returning to harbor from afar. It was then the boy sensed a New World being somewhere. He was aware of such a place. As a teen ager that same boy came to know that such a place had to exist. The grown-up Christopher Columbus merely went out found what his young self had so confidently decided existed.

We, the “sailors” who frequent the ”harbors”of today where children gather to listen and emulate us, are currently presenting a rather severe and somewhat warped “real world”. We are in a glitzy entertainment phase right now presenting “reality” shows. The ultimate act seems to be young boys and girls eating plates of live worms. Deceit, trickery, camera legerdemain and mockery of our ethics are misused and the mess force fed to young people by peer pressure tactics defying standard norms of decency and decorum.

Far better fare is available,but it not being presented favorably. Young people will seek in you and use it to advantage,but we can't say we have made it easier for them to do so. There is even some merit in the haphazard manner in which we offer opportunity to our young. It is an uphill quest. We make it had to get,too and that builds stamina, strength and dedication.

Once again, I feel, we will be blessed with young people of ability to carry our nation forward. It seems to work out that way in spite of all we do to prevent it from doing so.


A.L.M. October 3, 2004 [c496wds]

 
THE SPEEDS OF JUSTICE

Does our justice system move too slowly at times? Are we arriving at the point where real harm might result from such delays?

An item in this week's news accounts disturbed me. It noted in a small, insignificant item that one John Mohamed had been absolved of a charge of murder in which he was said to have killed a woman. The small photo was that of a well-dressed young man, and I glanced at it; turned aside to something another item – then back quickly because I realized – belatedly so - that I had looked upon the likeness - albeit a pleasant one - of the feared “beltway killers” of a year or so ago! Absolved? Cleared of a charge of killing a woman! How can that be?

Or, consider the “Laci Peterson Case”continuing as it is continuing week-after week in California. Every time a shred of possible evidence is thought to have been discovered, divined, unearthed or fabricated there is a tendency to want to start the whole thing all over again. As it drags, on more and viewers are wondering if they have added professional mystery writers to the staff to augment, enlarge, embellish, complicate and confuse the soap opera qualities of the case to make it a full-fledged magni-monster production. Certainly every aspect of the case has beer drained of all possible value. When one hears the term “beyond a shadow of a doubt” we sometimes think Justice has been stretched about as far as it can go.

Locally, I find the media has suddenly hit me in the face with a story about a crime that happened a year or two ago which has not yet been brought to trail or some sort of an end action. A great many people think of the report as that of a new crime and announce woe upon the world because of the rising crime rate.
We have the same sort of thing going right now as I write , but not in a criminal sense exactly. Mount St. Helen is on the tense brink of an eruption and I watched a show this morning which re-did redid the 1980 explosion without any in show reminders that it was “then” - not “now!” TV producers think nothing of running streamers across the face of other shows we watch , but not this one of the killer of a killer blast from Mount St. Helen years ago. We need something akin to such disclaimer streamers or banners in print version of development concerning crimes long done but no yet brought to trial

I, of course, realize that every care must be taken to assure the accused of a fair trial. Investigations must be completed to provide evidence needed to prove guilt or innocence, but a sensible amount of time spent should also be considered to be important to all concerned. The “vigilante”approach to crime is,obviously, quite wrong, but to allow cases to drag on and on with interminable investigations and extended trials, mis-trials and re-trials can also be a gross error and a marked miscarriage of true justice. Our judicial system suffers from being overcrowded with cases – many of them of a frivolus nature - and we need to clean house and tighten up on the time it take to do justice in a sensible, housekeeping fashion.

A.L.M. October 2, 2004 [c566wds]

 
FOR THE BIRDS

Considering the troubles we seem to be having in some areas concerning the use of firearms, a once prominent style of hunting – that done with birds – may be revived..

Falconry is far from dead. It has merely been lost in the background for a century or so. It was, at one time,was a major form of hunting. In fact falconry was at a such a peak of in the 1200's's that social standing was judged by the type of birds a person kept to do is hunting for him

It is thought to have started around 680 BC in China, although some disagreement challenges that starting site in favor of a site a thousand miles to the west. Man discovered the natural hunter in the skies could be trained to do his thing for him, and, in time, he became dependent on the hawk types of birds to keep him provided with small game- birds such as ducks , geese and others. The birds to be trained were netted as adults or hatched from eggs and trained to hunt down prey, hold it or bring it to the human hunter than go to his or her perch o be fed as a reward for a job well done. The job of training such a hunting bird took many hours of special, patient care, as you may imagine, and continues to this day in keeping the sport active.

Frederick II was the King of more countries than he could shake a scepter at. A gifted linguist he spoke in the language of his choice and he always spoke well of hawks and kept the breed which was judged to be socially proper for his rank and constant use. He wrote a book or two on Falconry which survived for several centuries as authority on the subject. You still find his words quoted in modern falconry literature.

The Peregrine falcon is the one most frequently met with in the United States and we have all heard how the improper use of DDT harmed the bird until there was fear of its being driven from the area. It is back again and any hunter who wishes may train a peregrine or some other hawk variety to do his no-gun hunting if one has neighbors or busybodies who object to the bang-bang types of hunting. Frederick II was knowledgeable about many existing types of falconry and spent time and studied at serious depths in Sicily (where he was also King) and throughout the Arabic nations as well He spoke seven languages, it is said, and and used to enjoy talking with foreign sailors along the wharfs abut the use of falcon in their homelands.

Usually the training of the birds is left to people who do so professionally and then, they, in turn,hand the trained hawk over to someone who can learn to handle and manage the bird with a few hawk-driving lessons and field experience.. The bird is trained not to rend the prey or mark it in any way. Usually it is content simply to kill the bird or small animal as it pounces upon them and sets ts long claws in the flesh of the victim. It flutter to the ground and holds the prey until the hunter can assume possession of his kill.

Falconry devotees are lavish in their praise of the satisfaction a hunter gets on seeing his bird capture prey, be it another bird in flight , or a dive from above to hit prey on the ground. No one has yet told me how the bird knows what the prey is to be - a bird, a lamb , rabbit or what.. Maybe its a matter of the hunter accepting, gratefully, whatever food the falcon supplies for his table.

Even if you are not interested in becoming a falconry hunter, the idea of training birds to be your hand afar suggests a fascinating hobby or avocation.

I don't know anyone who has a hobby of that nature, but it beats stamp collecting or gathering cookie jars, cracked crocks, or knitted antimacassars. Instead, why not make your New Year one for the birds? That allows you plenty of time. It takes about thirty-three days for falcon eggs to hatch, after you find them.

A..L.M. October 1, 2004 [c728wds]

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11/26/2006 - 12/03/2006
12/03/2006 - 12/10/2006
12/10/2006 - 12/17/2006
12/17/2006 - 12/24/2006
12/24/2006 - 12/31/2006
12/31/2006 - 01/07/2007
01/07/2007 - 01/14/2007
01/14/2007 - 01/21/2007
01/21/2007 - 01/28/2007
01/28/2007 - 02/04/2007
02/04/2007 - 02/11/2007
02/11/2007 - 02/18/2007
02/18/2007 - 02/25/2007
03/25/2007 - 04/01/2007
04/01/2007 - 04/08/2007
08/05/2007 - 08/12/2007
08/26/2007 - 09/02/2007
11/18/2007 - 11/25/2007
12/09/2007 - 12/16/2007
12/21/2008 - 12/28/2008
01/04/2009 - 01/11/2009
07/26/2009 - 08/02/2009