Sunday, July 31, 2005
THE GREEN THAT GROWS ALL AROUND I'm having my entire yard covered with flat, heavy flagstone. I'm having each slab cemented firmly to fit over ever inch. I'll tell you why. My neighbors don't like the way I cut my grass. When I cut it during early morning hours, they say: "He's inconsiderate! Sane people are sleeping! Clackity-clank! He has to mow his lawn!" Cut it at night: "Money hog! Works all day! Afraid he'll miss out on a dollar! He has to work nights too!" Early evening: "Anti-social guy! Too good to mix with us common folks at the softball game or the P-TA! Cut on Sunday - at any time: No peace and quiet! He' ir-religious! Regular scoundrel! Makes me nervous! C'mon, let's go to the stock car races! On a holiday: "Show off! A national disgrace! Can't let us rest on a legal holiday! Got to show hard he can work! Mid-afternoon: "lacker! Takin' time off from his job just to cut his grass! Wait until I tell ole Smedley at the office. On company time! Imagine that!" If I pay someone to cut it: "Uppity! We have to tend to our own! Old money bags hires all his work done!" If I get the wife and kids out there to help: "Slave driver! Just look at him ordering those kids around! Oh, and that poor wife I just would not put up with it all!" As I said. I'm installing flagstone over every grassy inch! I any of you have a nice, reasonable estimate you can sneak in to me? Free lawn mower with deal. (Note) Not responsible for any neighborly insults likely to be incurred. A.L.M. July 31, 2005 (redone from summer '51) [c301wds]
Saturday, July 30, 2005
COUNT TO TEN! Let me be the first to ask if you know how many planets we now have in our solar system? Have you been keeping track of such matters, have you been more concerned with keeping the one we do have in our care intact? There are ten planets at the moment. That's one more than we have been claiming. This situation came about because of the work of Dr. Mike Brown, at Cal Tech and his associates looking through the Palomar Observatory telescope located near San Diego, CA. along with Chad Trujillo at the Gemini Observatory at Mauna Kea, Hawaii and David Rabinowitz, at Yale University, New Haven, CT. Mike Brown took three fine photographs of the object on October 21, 2003, using the famous Samuel Oschin scope at Palomar. He did the three exposures of the object at ninety minute intervals and typical planetary movements and other traits to be properly recorded and identified - then checked and re-checked by other members of the discovering group. That sort of work cannot be hurried and it must be meticulously precise in every phase. Brown says "we are one hundred per confident that this is the first object bigger than Pluto ever found in outer solar system." The telescopic studies have not, as yet, revealed the precise dimensions of the plane but it has been shown that all planets, shining by reflected light as they do, can be measured by the amount of light they reflect light. The larger the object the more light would be reflected and with such known facts in mind the present group has decided the new planet is a big larger than Pluto. If Pluto, our Number Nine planet, measures 1400 miles across , then the new planet will prove to be about one and half times larger...possible two thousand miles across. None of this can, as yet, be called "official". It must be presented before the International Astronomical Union, received and approved. There a individuals who claim the work of this group has been flawed from the start. If the "Plant Number Ten" tag doesn't suit your fancy call it by its unofficial, temporary name which is: 2003UB313. A.L.M. July 30, 2004 [c402wds]
Friday, July 29, 2005
FOOD FIGHT It appears that we often select a special evil to be featured for a time as bring the root of all evil which comes comes our way. Right now, it came be any one of a host of things: the Internet, TV, same-sex marriages, global warming riparian rights on the far side of the moon, sex offenders on parole, plus others who can be our scapegoat - just to mention a few of them and cause you to think of a dozen favorites of your very own. Some are silly, of course of course, -other people's in particular. I recall one particularly wild one which overwhelmed our part of the nation in he early 1930's...a terrible horror which faced our civilization - the dreaded coming of the "Chain Store"! We were, as I recall, quite happy with our "local: grocery stores. Many of them had family backgrounds we all knew about, too, One got started because a family could not make a go of farming or livestock raising because illness in the family. They started a small business of buying and selling excess produce from the area and then added a box-like addition to their house which became their grocery store. The had "drummers" selling canned goods and boxed foods call on them regular local truck owners owners started hauling in fine apples from the upper Valley, peaches from across the mountain range to the east. We hear talk about how the stores in the cities were changing at about the same time and we started to hear terrible stories about some which were connected together like a chain in city after city. They could buy in large quantities at lower prices and sell for whatever they could get in local areas. The movement again chain stores started in local settings but it quickly became a nation-wide thing. I forget the call letters of a fifty-thousand watt radio station, I think, located in Shreveport, La. which devoted most of its air time to vilifying the evil chain stories telling how the people were being robbed by the greedy chain store owners; how they were killing local firms and destroying our way of life. They were the direct cause of most of our maturing troubles - both real and imaginary. Our town we had a burst of crime associated with the establishment of a Kroger's store on our main street. They trucked everything from distribution centers, the nearest one about fifty miles away down a mountain road - unpaved in those days and with many twists and turns which slowed traffic going up the mountain to a snail's pace. It took one hour, at least, for delivery trucks to get up ole Burg Mountain. Such trucks in those days were , of course, much smaller than our trucks today and seldom closed across the rear end. A slack chain or rope, sometimes a net barrier. It doesn't seem possible but it took months before they realized how and why so much of their shipments bound for our Main Street store never got there. Eventually, putting doors - locked doors -on the rear end or hiring a man to ride shotgun to fend off stuff-dumpers during the long upgrade climb...helped. The chain store did well on Main Street in our town and we got over the "I hate chain stores" thing right fast.I don't remember what took up the slack. You can bet we had something ready to blame for whatever we felt we didn't like at that time. A.L.M. July 29, 2005 [c597wds]
Thursday, July 28, 2005
F.B.I. = YARD In recent, events-pressured weeks we have witnessed some marked changes in our attitudes concerning both the "Federal Bureau of Investigation", in Washington, and of "Scotland Yard," in London. The subtle change in both areas will, I feel, prove to be most welcome in the days ahead. Listen carefully as you say the very names of the two organizations. They sound staid, formal, old-fashioned, and each tediously reminiscent of bygone days. The long name for the American force conjures up post-prohibition, gang-ruled days when a "federal" force of "bureau" size was deemed necessary to combat forces undermining peaceful living in our land. In a similar manner, many Americans think too frequently of the likes of an oft clumsy Yard person being out done by skilled amateurs During the initial hours of the 7-7 bombings the London police moved in force against terrorist threats and actual attacks in four or five different locations...most of the being in the Underground system beneath the busy city plus a blast in one double-decked bus on the surface moments later. Police were on the scenes promptly and the took precise and definite actions to rescue those in need, to ferret out evidence which would enable them - within hours of the fatal blasts - to name names, show hard evidence in identifying those who did the bombings. Even the unfortunate death of an innocent suspect during the July 2lst attacks won approval from millions watching on TV. Those watching TV saw evidence of prompt British action against a man who was oddly attired - suggesting he might be bomb-laden - who ran. He made it into a subway car; so did the police. He was knocked to the floor struggling and was dispatched with five shots to the head. "Now, that's the way to do it!" I heard TV watchers shout. Even after the details were set forth showing he was in no way implicated in bombings he average person seem to think the British police had reacted properly. A subtle change is taking place in the F.B.I., as well. Notice the regard Americans seem to feel for our F.B.I. now that it is being compared, contrasted and discussed with the local constabulary on the island of Aruba - unfairly, I feel. Since the Holloway-Twitty disappearance case started a month ago there has been far too much speculation on what American seems to think our own FBI could have done to resolve the case weeks ago. The F.B I has no jurisdiction in Arubian affairs, only an interest because the victim is an American high school from Alabama. A.L.M. July 28, 2005 [c456wds]
Sunday, July 24, 2005
DO IT MY WAY Today, when some people are expressing concern with the situations in which our Court tend to do legislative work rather than to look after our discipline problems, I am reminded of a situation which took place two-hundred and twenty-six years ago in Rockingham County,Virginia. When that court met on the 25th day of May 1779 they named three men of their group to of their body to see about building a new Court House. The record reads: "On a majority of the justices being present and comfortable to the resolution of the court in March last for fixing a place for the court house, the several members having proposed three different places, a majority were for fixing it on the plantation of Thomas Harrison near the head of the spring." That would be the site where, today, an ornamental Springhouse stands to mark the spot on Court Square in downtown Harrisonburg, Va. to mark the site. The actual spring was, some years ago, diverted. The Court named three members who were to "lay off the bounds and make a report." In November of that year of 1779, and again on the 26th of June 1780 the Court "ordered that Benja. Harrison, William Herring and John Davis, Gent. or any two let out the building of the Courthouse of square logs with diamond corners thirty feet long by 20 feet from out to out with a partition twelve feet in the clear across the room divided into two rooms, one 12 feet wide and the other 8 feet wide, the room 12 feet wide to have a heat stone chimney inside at the gavel end of it, the whole two to be floored with earth as far as the lawyer's bar and then to be raised with a plank floor to the justices bench which is to be raised three feet above the floor and the breast of the bench is to be studded with a rail at top, the pitch of the house is 10 feet clear ceiling and lofted with inch plank with two windows on each side of the house facing the Clerk's table and one in each of the jury rooms, the windows 18 lights each, glass 8 by 10 inches with a door on (____?) just clear of the jury rooms." As might happen today, changes and modifications were sent down by the Court - dated 26 June 1780: "It is ordered that Benja. and Wm. Herring, Gent. be empowered to agree with the undertaker of the courthouse to omit the portion of the east end of the house for the jury rooms and to sink the joist over the upper room from the gavel of the said east end to the joist over the front doors so as to make a jury room above with a pair of stairs in the corner, or two jury rooms if space will admit to it." Got all that? Now...where were we....? Uh.... It is amazing how our forefathers ever got anything built, isn't it? A.L.M. July 24, 2005 [c522wds]
Saturday, July 23, 2005
BLAIR-BUSH The true measure of man may well be found in his reaction to emergencies. If we accept that standard as a guide, we have had more than a glimpse in recent times to see both Tony Blair and George W. Bush react to terrorist attacks of far greater magnitude than some people seem to comprehend. Neither one has shown any sign of wavering and both have remained firm. Their peoples have been emboldened and made ready to face potential trials of the most serious nature. Some individuals, who have been in opposition to the current leaders in a political sense, have spoken up promptly in public agreement with the president's statements and with those of the Prime Minister in London. With a true sense of "reality" far more demanding than those on some TV shows, we must also be aware of the obvious fact that some did not speak at all; took no stand whatsoever, while awaiting any possibility of vacillation in the stand taken by our acknowledged and responsible leaders. Only recently have they felt they could blame George W. Bush for mis-conduct of the war in Iraq. They have, it seems, not yet come to realize that the threat against us today is far greater than a one-nation affair. Such vindictive political tactics can be costly and deadly for all of us. The Iraqi project was started long ago years. It is not new, and methods of combating it have been at hand as well. Haste can, in this case, create waste. In the past such procedures as the great Islamic jehad against America have, most often, failed because they tend to fall as victims of their own avarice and greed. As they near maturity they start to feed upon themselves. Watch carefully. You can see it happening - even now. A.L.M. July 22, 2005 [c321wds]
Friday, July 22, 2005
THE STEADY BEAT I am one of the thousands of people who depend on a particular brand of a small battery-powered unit known as a "Pacemaker". Actually, I am on my second such an assistant to living. There has been a rather negative mannered news series in the media in recent weeks and it is time, perhaps, for some words to be set forth in defense of the helpful health-care item. Some of the observations and opinions have been stated by vocative critics who are, it appears, somewhat confused by medical innovations of recent years. It has been all too evident that the writer of the offending items was, obviously, not at all familiar with his subject. He was writing about a product made by the same firm which manufactures the well known pacemaker unit. The defibrillator is a much newer product and more complex. It offers a procedure which is is a available to patients from larger mechanical units but it has just recently become available in a small unit which can be implanted in the human chest as is the same firm's small ICD pacemaker. They have kindred functions concerned with the circulation system of the human body and mark the many improvements which have been made recent years in that area of medical care and treatment. To carelessly malign either on of the products is quite wrong and dangerous. I have been wearing a life-saving pacemaker unit for well over a decade of my life without mishap. The life saving devise was placed in my chest - in the upper right shoulder - after it was determined that, since I was not a hunter, I would not be firing to many rifles, shotguns, or of missles from that shoulder. I happened to be in a hospital at the time it was decided I should have a pacemaker installed. It was ordered by phone from the manufacturer in Minnesota and it was hand-carried by company personnel who flew with it to Virginia to be installed, as scheduled, in my shoulder the very next morning. I had picked the only week when our, then rather new package delivery service - "UPS" and their Teamster's Union drivers were on nation-wide strike. I am now on my second such unit replacing the previous one which was showing some slow-down tendencies. Wiring into the heart was kept intact; only the battery section was replaced in the same area. Once again: no trouble. I did monthly telephone checkups with provided equipment at first, then every other month with and once, annually, I do an office visit. I have a feeling that statistical studies made on any newly developed product with show some negative readings from time-to-time. If the ICD's are experiencing such a phase, which they have on two occasions, there is no justification for anyone to spread rumors of the maker's other product. Shame on you - whom every you may be - for starting such a cycle of distrust. A. L.M. July 22, 2005 [c511wds]
Wednesday, July 20, 2005
LEADERSHIP KNOW-HOW How well informed are our Presidents when in office? Recently I have heard people taking him to task for not "invading Iraq when we had the chance and finishing off Saddam Hussein for good." Most of us realize that George Bush, as Commander and Chief of the Armed Forces, would justly bear the ultimate responsibility - or blame, if need be - for such a decision. The actual decision to do so may have been made by other people who advise him. George Bush had some of the same things to think about which must have caused Harry Truman anguish long ago when he had to decide about dropping the atomic bomb on Japan. Not to do so would have meant the war would be prolonged and thousands of American lives and of Japanese would be killed or wounded - even millions - in an island-by-island invasion which was the alternative. Bush, in a similar manner, faced a like problem. Truman, I feel, was, perhaps, better informed than Bush. I think that George Bush - as were many of us at that time - was caught up, in a rather flagrant military use of public relations techniques. he PR flak being produced at the time by the military was deceptive. You may recall that we were assured the land war had been won, that our "Puritan "missle - called an anti-missile missile - had overcome the Iraq "Scud". We were shown photographs of how our "smart" bombs could go it the front door of an targeted Iraqi building and explode inside when told to do so. We saw utter destruction of bridges, highways and rail facilities throughout the land. They were done. Finished. Kaput. Much of that was press Flak, pure hogwash set forth by the "Tech" side of our military at that moment in our history, aided and abetted by an eager Media which bought the whole line of Sci-Fi handouts - complete with visual effects. It is now obvious that, while Saddam's troops and actual mechanisms of war, were in turmoil much of his power was still there. The "Tech" threats were not enough to stop him, but that was not Bush's fault. If fault or blame must be meted out, reference must be made to our own gullible acceptance of the military version as handed to the media. It is another case wherein the military actually came to trust it's own hype. We are, just now, becoming aware of a greater danger which might have been working against us. Belatedly, we are being informed about certain groups charged with keeping our leaders informed. A weak man, who felt he had been unfairly overlooked promotion to head his department, turned traitor to his vows and for fifteen years has lived the despicable role of "Deep Throat". Such pettiness can destroy nations as well as presidents. A.L.M. July 19, 2005 [c485wds]
Tuesday, July 19, 2005
READY It is only rare occasions that I have sat me down to write and have not been ready to do so. I freely admit that this desire to write which comes so easily and quickly for me, has little worth in his do-it-now quality. That which is set down at such times will vary a great deal. Some bits and fragments will contain a germ of further thought, and some will be sheer garbage of the days activities. I agree that any preoccupation with details of the moment just passed are of little use to filling the looming future to any advantage but it does show we have a path, a system or a marked tendency to ward progress and uplifting of gaols and aspirations. We sound and seem progressive. One has to be frankly aware of any good qualities we possess, however minuscule and consider ourselves to be wiser and stronger than ever before as we anticipate the unfolding of possibilities. Most of that which has happened is best left in the past; we have the future as our main concern and any scraps or helps we can take to it from the past should help rather than hinder. Be very selective of what you wish to retain I was reading just this morning of Thomas Jefferson's mixed concerns about the presence of slavery among us. We have, he seems to have said, a wolf by the ear and while we cannot control. We, at the same moment, are fearful of turning it loose as well for our own safety. He foresaw ,I would think, a great awakening in a moral sense or a bloody conflict to solve the problem. I doubt if old Tom worried a great deal about such things. Rather, he would have applied himself to personal kindness directed to blacks he knew or to whites who care for them. I wrote all that last night at about 3:15 A.M simply because I wanted to be writing on the handy half-clip pad I keep - loaded and penned-up at my bedside. It is not going to shake the world - or any part of it - but anytime you can find yourself thinking things you think Tom Jefferson might have thought it is worth writing down. a.l.m. July 16, 2005 [c392wds]
Monday, July 18, 2005
BIG BOX LIVING Some sections of our nation have not yet experienced the departure from normal-sized stores and shopping centers to what has come to be called "big box" building for merchandising. Most of those we now have have been built on development property on the edge of cities and towns. Sites are cleared and some really strange constructions has been adopted which have provided new facilities...quickly and with as little expense as possible. The term "box" is used both ways - as a complement for the quick, economical and serviceable construction and it is also used as a word of ridicule for much the same reasons, it seems. "Nothing made that fast can be any good" seems to have become an established maxim with many people who openly express personal opposition to this particular phase of construction. Many are fashioned from materials laid flat on the surface at the site and, when formed, are "stood up" as soon as the joints can be moved - then, critics insist, a roof of a sort is "slapped on" top to secure the sides They liken the p procedure to a child building a "house" using playing cards. Tremendous barn-like structures can be quickly provided for a wider and more varied merchandising efforts. Wal Mart" is completing totally new distribution facility at Mt. Crawford - Harrisonburg; "Best Buy"" has had one in operation at Verona for several years; "Marshall's" in Bridgewater is well-established and there is a monster box in operation by "Target" at Stuarts Draft, Virginia. In our region many towns seem to be engaged in a "boxing match". Eventually, someone has quipped, cities will be concentrations of people located on each end of strings of boxes which will connect one town to others in replacing rural scenery. A.L.M. July 17, 2005 [c375wds]
Sunday, July 17, 2005
CAFFEINE There seems to be a great deal of mis-information around concerning caffeine, and as important as it can be to all of us it might be good to clarify some of the mistaken ideas we have developed about it. Older works say caffeine - and hence, coffee in the mind of most people - causes stress. Recent studies decry this accusation and say that caffiene has been falsely accused on that point. Most of us consume caffeine in our daily diet - more ,perhaps, than we might think we do, so it is important that we learn - and apply - certain common-sense rules concering use of this acknowledged stimulant. Contrary to what many of us have been led to believe over the years, caffeine does not cause "stress". It, in effect "turns up","accents",or "triggers" stress reactions. Furthermore, it keeps them going, one might say, sustains the reaction even thouigh it did not originate the stress factors where were already present. With caffeine users - especially those who use it in any form to excess - this time of continuing stress can be quick to rise and slow to subside. This is true because caffeine inhibits the body's normal biochemical mechanisms. Those are intend to "turn off" stress responses and caffeine prevents them from doing so. In other words, the on-off switch for stress in our bodies can be "shorted" not just by coffee - the most commonly accused type - but by others we will list in just a moment. If the off switch cannot be thrown, the stress factor tends to build up; to accumulate and symptoms are intensifed. In the worst cases, it can become the equal of pshychotic episodes with ,possibly, serious consequences. Caffeine is a diuretic, remember, and a possible danger to individuals usingit is a threat of dehydration. This is especially true of those for of us who use coffee, soft drinks or teas as the main beverage with meals and before and after snacks. Caffeine increases fluid loss through urine outflow. Mild dehydration can cause intense fatigue, and this, in turn, makes the individual feel a need for more caffeine beverages and the cycle can continue without end. This can affect our hearts, of course, and for our own good we must learn to control caffeine intake. It has not been proved that it is a cause of osteroporosis, but indications are that bone condition can be affected by caffeine use and it may well contribute to bone loss. It is important,.too, that pregnant women avoid caffeine at all costs. Excessive use of caffeine had best be avoided or we face possiblly serious consequences. Five hundred milligrams per day might be used as a rule of thumb for most of us. Now - where does it all come from? This is per cup: Brewed coffee - 85 to 200; instant - 60 and decaffinated coffee - 3. Tea bags - 45, Loose - 40, instant - 30. Hot chocolate - 6-42. Then, per can: Carbonated soft drinks. Colas - 30-65, Dr.Pepper - 61, MountainDew - 55 ...as examples. Add yours up. If it totals more than 500 milligrams per day...cut back and do so gradually - half as much every three days, is recommended - not cold turkey. a.l.m. July 17,2005 {435wds] \
Saturday, July 16, 2005
EXCESS = SUCCESS! The current producers of TV programs seem to be convinced that success stems from excess. That's the feeling one gets as we are beset with "new" shows built roughly on the ultimate levels achieved by the dying season. How rough can we be and hope to get by with doing so? The American people, they insist, also equate excess with success. The idea of incorporating some "reality" in the sometimes fanciful TV programs of our times, was hardly a new idea, but it was one which served to arouse exciting potential in many areas. Most of them, merely in order to stay alive long enough to be counted, turned, from their start- up efforts, to excessive presentations of the worst aspects of every seamy facet of life they came to dwell upon. Initially, some of the better ones stayed "physical." They went to extremes in showing just how much the human body could withstand - hard work, unusual feats accomplished under the most soul-searing circumstances one might imagine . Those early shows set forth the idea that man surviving the worst Nature could throw their way by letting the cast of persons taken to what was supposed isolation on an always adequate and readily available topically-terrained and mountainous island haven which was biologically blessed with effusive animal, vegetable and mineral life in natural and mutated forms. Each episode proffered exotic and common worms, bugs, beetles, and other such wonders.. It proved to be amazing what a human will eat when money is set forth in sufficient quantities. It did not long remain "daring".It quickly proved to become disgusting. Other types of shows got with the changes quickly. Some well-established quiz and panel shows quickly upped their antes so contestants could get more take-home money and gifts. Home shows which had been redoing rooms, now took to remodeling entire homes for free in a frenzy of makeovers. Commercial mentions have increased, as well. Where you used to make-do with six or eight spots you now get ten or twelve spots padded expertly with public service and station romo spots telling of an excess of excesses forthcoming. Get ready. Over stock on your coffee(s), your pop-corns(s) and your sugar(s). A.L.M. July 16, 2005 [c390wds]
Friday, July 15, 2005
SAYING , "THANK YOU" When you have a pleasant experience in life, should say: "Thank You" to someone. I am happy to report that I find the old-fashioned bit of etiquette still being taught to children. Instructions in doing so start early and well before the child can talk. It is usually undertaken as a parental duty for two purposes: one is the seriously undertaken task of teaching the youngster to show appreciation for special treats afforded them by relatives - close and distant who have a marked tendency to hold it against a child unto adulthood if they did not say "Thank you" for a bar of smelly soap given to them in babyhood. The usual method for teaching an infant politeness in such cases is to grasp the gift in the child's hands and extend out toward the giver while, all the while urging the child to say "" Ta, Ta, Aunt or Uncle So-and-So!". "Ta,.Ta " was a favorite of mind. I always considered it to be strictly childish prattle until I found shipped to England during World War Two and hear "Ta" as a commonly used bit of English short-talk meaning -"Thank you very much." and other vaguely related and needly elongated expressions. The simply abbreviated word "ta" took care of a multiple number of linguistic needs. The child will respond in many cases by gurgling, cooing or by knocking the gift from your hand and send it clattering across the floor. You can expect some reaction most of the time and you can feel you are making progress. All of this tends to remind us of the many times we should have said "thank you" and failed to do so for one reason or another. Then, set about changing all that. Make yourself a simple list of all the good things which happened to you recently. The first thing that will be your discovery of how long such a list becomes - and quickly, too. We all have more good things happening than bad ones but the recognition factors are, perhaps, not as clear. It may be that you read a good book recently. That book was written by an author- a man or a woman - and they'd like to know how you felt about what they had set down for you to read. If you liked the book, why not write a simple saying so? If you did not like the book, don't write. That would be adding a harsh note to another person's day. Give a little more daily time to thinking about all the musicians, artists, actors, and supporting people for all of them, who work hard all their days to please you. Tell them what you like about what they do and oddly enough, they will try to do even better to supply you with such treasures. There are hundreds of people out there - the butchers, the bakers as well as he candlestick makers - who never hear a word of appreciation from those who thrive in their creative work. I, personally, have learned from doing that which I am now suggesting you might wish to try to do. I have learned from doing much of hat which I'm telling you now. Try to give a little more time and effort. It is a rewarding experience in many ways, especially as one grows old then, older and begins to marvel how it has come to be that so many people have been so good to you over the years. Start now. Say "Ta, Ta" to someone today! A.L.M. July 16, 2005 [c605wds]
Thursday, July 14, 2005
IS THERE AN END? The continued troubles we all continue to face daily throughout the Middle Eastern nations and, potentially, and several others in various areas around the world, make it seem that it is time for some basic changes in the manner in which we do things. If the factions concerned have not decided to call a halt to their disruptive tactics is up to this time, then, it seems highly unlikely they will ever achieve any lasting peace. Drastic changes are needed. It is true, of course, that these are not new problems and that the underlying causes are mixed into a complicated series of historical occurances far removed from the realities of our own day. It is difficult to re-do history. Some try it, but few are successful in any marked degree in such a dream project. When it is obvious that an incident is based on something which took place centuries ago, is it not possible to rewrite the basic ground rules so it can be dealt with as something of a freakish nature? Just because your Uncle Smedley wore a bow tie around his fat neck does not mean that his nephews must do the same thing today. Could be, I wonder, if "we" have miss-misinterpreted history and that some of the events said to have taken place, and conditions which are thought to have existed years ago were not as devastating as they may seem to have been? To assume, for instance, that the "Holy Land", belongs to one group or to another, depends a great extent on who is telling the tale and from what perspective. The truth is often left untold, as we trust in factional accounts. Certain such questions as this may be brought before a world court of some type for a "ruling" on the subject which might help the cause of peaceful co-existence. Is such world bodies as the United Nations organizations can not be used in such cases of what value are they to us? I agree that this sounds too much like our own "Special Prosecutors" setups to be practical if might prove valuable in bringing such problems before a world wide audience who are concerned in some way. Just because things are accepted, or tolerated, does not mean they are good. Just because people have had dreams of homeland dreams and aspirations does not give them a right to usurp lands claimed by others. We have far too many groups with us today who claim to merit national status just because they exist, but who are, in very few ways, ready or qualified for self-rule. The number of "nations" - so called - which now glut the UN roles is a disgrace. We may well take some steps toward defining what a "nation" must be to be called one and expect to act in accordance with such justification. It is time to put our international "think tanks" to work on problems of mutual concern to all of us instead of hedging them about narrow parochial concerns. A re-evaluation of international precepts is needed. We can no longer afford to make decisions based which are based on 18th or 19th century beliefs, theories and aspirations. A.L.M. July 14, 2005 [c553wds]
Wednesday, July 13, 2005
OTHER WORLDS Sooner or later someone is going to ask you if you believe there are other "civilizations" - somewhere out there in the expanse of the Universe? When they do, what will your answer be? I have already been asked the question many times and my answer is "Yes, I do." But, if I have the opportunity to add a thought, I say that so much depends on exactly how we define a "civilization". What we call by that name is much more than just the existence of human life - or, something close akin to it -.which some people mean, I suppose, when they ask the question. A civilization is a complex thing developed over centuries and never really perfected, I think, if we go by the examples we have set here on Earth. I also think that many of those asking about it really want to be told is that the civilization way out there in space is not as "good" as ours. A few would like to think of it as being "better", but that cuts off the brag instinct which comes so naturally to most of us. We tend to think that our version of being civilized is,naturally, a good thing,but since we have only our selves to compare it with - and no inter-galactic counterpart which which to compare or contrast it, we are never quite sure about our possible standing on a scale of, let's say, one-to-ten. We would like to think of our best as being better than anything the other side of nowhere has yet devised. We are a superior lot, we feel, by nature. Otherwise, we would not have been able to achieve what we have thus far. Wed often have a very narrow view of "civilization", too - and as we think or the American brand; the Englishman thinks somewhat differently, perhaps, as does the ancient Greek, Roman, Sumerian, Egyptian not to mention the Aztec, Mayans and an endless assorted of Oriental and African cultures. Since we have survived, (thus far) we feel we must be better than those which have gone before. We are plural, too, remember. As mankind's adventures down through the ages show, leaders were often at the head of things but the civilization was a group effort involving masses of people. Cultural divisions formed in a maze of , sometimes, conflicting ideas, and out of it came both advancements for civilization as well as set-backs. If you were called upon to describe our civilization, what you end up with could be far from flattering. Regardless of how well-formed much of it appears to be , there are flaws. Our "place" among civilizations, if others do exist, may not be as secure as we like to think it would be, and that worries some people who think along these line lines, perhaps, too much. Those who think of little else, end up writing books which scare the civilized pants off of the rest of us at times. Don't take it all too seriously. Our Creator never did or does anything without sufficient reason for doing so. A.L.M. July 13, 2005 [c531wds]
Tuesday, July 12, 2005
OSTEEN'S FUTURE Now that longtime favorite Billy Graham is hanging up the title, there is quite a semi-rough and tumble controversy going on as to who will be come our next national "chaplain" or "favorite evangelist", or whatever unofficial title you feel is comfortable. We are on the edge of prime national snit if the "None At All" factions get their bladders all a -bubble and refuse to allow even a quasi-official association of religious guidance being associated in any way with our government. It cannot be denied that the Reverend Billy Graham has for many years, through various administrations, been a profound influence on our leadership. I have always been assured of its positive, enduring and worthwhile values and rather pleased and puzzled, as well, to see that other faiths and protestant denominations could concede, one might put it, that Graham's Presbyterian and Calvinistic background - a provocative mix in itself - was generally acceptable. They did not take overt exceptions to any denominational views or historical accounts mar the relationship of church and state. How is it that when we keep those two words - "church" and "state" - in lower case lettering no one gets excited. But if the first letter are printed as "caps" - wow! - the feathers hit the fan and a real storm blows up! The determination of who will be our new, national religion rouser You have seen the polls. Vote for your favorite. Mine is Joel Osteen. I have just finished reading his latest book: "Your Best Life Now". It is a fresh, vibrant and very readable book centered, as one might expect, on the more cheerful aspects of the Christian life style. He enlarges on seven basic steps by which we can gain full control of our lives and realize our full potential. The book has been on the New York "Times" Best Sellers list for weeks. That is a recommendation in itself but not so monumental when you stop think about it. At best "best seller" means one-per cent of American have purchased a copy of the book. That's fine. It's a good start and generally taken to be a good sign of enduring quality of publication. Get a copy. Read it. Watch the wavering list. Your choice may be more difficult than you think it might be. There's a raft of impressive talent out there this time around, too. It is International this year, as well. In the latest poll I have seen the Rev. Franklin Graham, Billy Graham's son, has been running as the leading favorite and notice who is gaining on him in tally-after-tally? Right! My favorite - Joel Osteen. Make your choice and let your it be known. Stress why you think one might be better for the nation over all others. A.L.M. July 12, 2005 [c472wds]
Monday, July 11, 2005
NOT AS BAD AS... The comparative manner in which people are describing the season's initial hurricane is not the best way to start off the season along the Gulf Coast. To simply put it all aside by saying it was "not as bad a previous one" is not the best way to go. It depends on a large extent on who got hit! I have heard a beginning figure quoted which puts damage from "Dennis" at "around one billion." Excess water was still standing in the streets at that time and few people had ?not returned to their coastal property, so we had yet another case of estimates from afar according to what someone saw in TV. It is impossible to estimate the costs of such natural disasters. much of the "damage" inflicted upon residents this time were tissue temporarily covering wounds from last year's major hurricanes. For various reasons many sites have not yet been restored. Some beach front structures were simply too far gone to merit salvage; others were what might be called "Junior" portions of "Senior" losses and owners had not, as yet,had either time or money to get their property cleaned up as yet. Some suc unfinished clean-up job from last year were ready and waiting for "Dennis" to strip them apart again because of governmental red tape which had delayed relief funds. You may have noticed how frequently FEMA personnel or pushers worked themselves into conversatoions concerning how to get ready to face "Dennis" -the worst one yet!" That which has long been our prime example on survival under intense, repeated danger was echoed this week when we saw English men and women at Underground stations and in the the streets facing Terrorist's bombs. Perhaps you noticed their intense observance of authority; the common needs of all, and the necessity for teamwork - thinking and acting in unified groups. ? We learn as we are living out such moments. The very doing of it enables us, with experience, to get better at it, too. ? Teamwork - with someone, knowingly or not, also demands hate. We must know what we dislike. We must know how to hate and distrust those elements in the social mix which might lead us away from our goals. Teams, working together in many ways, do far better at that maneuver than individuals. With whom are you currently working? A.L.M. July 11, 2005 [c406wds]
Sunday, July 10, 2005
LOOK, MA! NO BUTTONS! Now, just when I have about become used to getting along very well in a "push-button" world the "Bose" boys bring out a fine new, home super audio system which features a total lack of buttons across the front. Not a button, lever, arm, toggle or touch area! All such operating aids are to be found on a "remote control" said to be about the size of a credit card assuming, of course, that you can find it. Merely calling a gadget a "control" seems to be enough to assure it being missing at the exact moment it is most needed? When was it you last lost a remote control unit for TV, music box or automotive door that was not immediately needed? I realize all this, of course, is deemed to be "progress and I'm in favor of that, but, as usual, I have some difficulty fitting progressive thing things into my rather static way of accepting things progressive. It takes a while, before I become accustomed to such changes. I think a great may people feel the same way; not opposed to change but comfortable for a time when established rules and regulations are being modified or expelled. I rather like having a bunch of buttons and dials to tend to went I'm showing how I do something. The more it looks like the control board of a B-747 the better I like it even though I may not understand all it can do. We, at one time, could enjoy toggles, switches, latches, and other means of bring about sudden exchanges or modifications. I remember quite well how our old Atwater-Kent table model radio with an imposing Bedouin round horn on or of its black, crackled-finished metal case case, would - at my bidding - keep right on playing a sprightly "Coon Saunder's Night Hawks" number,beer from Kansas City even after I had pulled the electricity plug form the wall outlet. It was a what was said to be self -regenerative, or something like that, but having knobs to turn, switches to throw and wheels to spin helped, put on a better show and making it all happen. That was much more impressive than the old, discarded oatmeal box old oatmeal carton of rounded cardboard which held the first crystal radio ever heard. We heard some fine static out of Schenectady and Philadelphia made possible as I recall gently sliding a short piece of wire along an extended wire strand. When push button mechanisms came in, we went wild for awhile. Yessirre, Bob! Them was the times! Dials, buttons, switches and now - we're back to nuthin'! But, it has happened pretty much the same in other fields of mankind's endeavors, as well. Take, for instance, the case of olden times when two primitive men happened to meet at the one log which had formed a bridge by falling across the creek, had to decide, by combat, who was going to cross first. Each selected[a sturdy stick from the forest and they violently would seek to flail each other other into the flood swept creek beneath them! We have made real progress in that one ever since "Star Wars". Now, we see our two men in deadly combat hitting at each other - not with heavy sticks but,rather light sticks. We have come a full cycle of some sort, it would seem. You just watch: control buttons will be back some day. A.L.M July 10, 2005 [c586wds]
Saturday, July 09, 2005
PARTS AND PIECES
How much of our future is but a re-run of our own past? Have you every given that concept just a little bit of thought? It is very much like asking yourself if the new car you buy is actually assembled, put-together or "made" in the the United States using mainly cheaper foreign parts and pieces and with profits from the project going to the firm in Japan, can be spoken of and marketed as a car "made in the United States of America." We are, when you think about it at all, are - so often - pretty much what we have been both here and elsewhere.. We don't change as radically as we might think we do. There are additions from time to time, but the basic quality remains as it as before. Isn't that a true statement? Think about it in your life. If so, credit for some good we have must go to our forebears - some demerits, as well - because we share much of our past when we build our future. Why, then, do so many people decry the teaching of history? For what reasons does our nation become more and more determined, to avoid teaching the realities of human history - perhaps, much less than we might think - by events of the past. To ignore our national heritage -. True, our past has not always been perfectness have known both good and bad - and not to seek some understanding of why we do what we do, is a tragic mistake, it seems to me. If you have an dreams about what you want your nation to be, look at what it has been thus far. Many of the essentials for the future to be found in the past. And, if that worries you as a sort of fatalism, think of it in this manner: there is marked possibility that no one thought of doing what you wish to be done in the past. You can innovate paths into the future as well as make subtle changes in methodology used in the living of the past patterns. I have been shocked and amazed when I come across such a lack of knowledge concerning our history among both the young and old. The old I expect to know it; the young not knowing it is understandable in view of our educational circumstances today. We strayed from our former educational path in the era of so-called "permissive education", I believe, when History and Geography were two of the subjects which were truncated to fit and later lumped together with others under the fragmented headings of "Civics", "Social Studies", or "Cultural Sources". It may well be that I am too severe when I say (as I have) that these ideas concerning educational reform were "thrust upon us." It might be a bit closer to the actual truth if I say we readily accepted the proffered ideas because we respected leaders of the time in this important field as being true educators. We did not realize to what extent many of them had become administrators, businessmen, CEO's and Big-Time Operators, in essence. We suddenly realize that previously "single" subjects were now being "covered" in one or two-week" units". The story is told concerning Einstein visiting such a school where a little girl asked him what he did for a living. "I'm an astronomer." he replied . She looked at him with assurance , and said: "Oh, we learned all about that two weeks ago." There are no magic short-cuts. Each of us is an American and everyone of us has a heritage we must respect and use to our mutual advantage. A.L.M July 9, 2005 [c622wds]
Thursday, July 07, 2005
ARUBA RUBARB I can readily understand how it is that the citizens of the usually serene and beautiful isle called Aruba are disturbed. The media has spread the false set of ideas that give the impression that the small island is a haven for crime and everything that could possibly be wrong for a tourist site. The perplexing Twitty-Holloway case has been given a background making it some sort of wild specimen which is being studied from various experimental angles. The media has been unfair with the established citizenry of the island as being far too aggressive and of setting forth that which can be shown to be untrue. It seems to disturb outsiders, for instance, that Aruba is not exactly the tropical paradise they expected it to be. It is actually more desert-like than they had thought; arid in some areas, with tumbled, rocky coastlines, a great variety of low-lying, snarled vegetation and several varieties of cacti growing prominently everywhere. The rugged interior is sparingly occupied and you realize that much of it resembles its neighbor Trinidad to the south a few miles. Aruba seems more South American than Carri bean. Too much attention has been brought to focus on the small island in the past month as he result of the disappearance of a young American student. The colonial heritage of Aruba is Dutch and the prevailing law of the land is in accord with ownership. From the very start of the Natalee Holloway case the legal system of the island has caused great misunderstanding abroad. The American mind,in particular,has been thwarted in attempts to just comprehend what has been taking place. The case has been complicated by the fixed presence of the victim's mother, constantly demanding more investigations. Her odd comments have confused the matter even more so and many Americans can't see why we just don't just go in there and solve the case. The jurisdiction is not ours to claim. We have no rights to be there doing anything except to provide equipment and supplies and assist only when requested to do so. The strange case may well hinge on one an action which, as far as I know, has not been undertaken. Only quick, cursory and happenstance chit-chat has been exchanged thus far with the other girls who were with Natalee Holloway on the special trip. All of the other schoolgirls on the trip have been ought to be intensely interviewed. One woman investigator might talk with the girls and find out what they think they knew Natalee Holloway was doing the night she disappeared. You can't tell me a gaggle of young girls would not known pretty much what was thinking about boys and men and much of what she did with them. Whom had she been seeing? It's called "girl gossip". It is not infallible but it suggests paths to be taken. The longer this case is allowed to drag along,especially with other girls omitted, Natalee's abrasive Mama on stage every moment heaping ridicule on police judicial officials or anyone who gets in her way - is going to get worse day-by-day. There are people wondering if she is the devoted Mother she claims to be. What are - or were - the actual mother-daughter relationships? Girl gossips would know about that sort of thing. A.L.M. July 7, 2005 [c567wds]
Wednesday, July 06, 2005
CONTENTS OF PRAYER Many people - among them professing Christians as ell as devout members of other groups - learn to pray through experiences such as the events of September 11th 2001. Such increased tensions either brought about or enlarged by tragic events lead us to the realization that we do not keep at hand a stock of "vivid" and "honest" words urged upon us by psalm writers of old or proper prayers. They suggest words be used which express one's inmost fears and doubts; sincere and natural enough to convey such sentiments as desperation. The words are your,personal affirmation that you,too, believe God can ward off trouble or equip us to bear it. The natural use of common words - from whatever language - suggests how God belongs to all. Many people pray only in times of trouble, but they deceive themselves because if you but look about you in the world in which we live, you will quickly become aware of the fact that we are a part of that in which we thrive and that we are, probably, in as much or more difficulties than many of those who claim they have been, are, or will ever be. Issac Singer, one of our writers who has delved into that which makes people tick once said: "I only prayer when I am in trouble. But I am in trouble all the time, and so I pray all the time." We often, today, express our chagrin when we read news accounts of misfortune, crime, hatred, avarice and cruelty and prayer wells up naturally as we seek to allay calamities, but very often the causes thereof are overlooked in the conquest of the immediate evil. A.L.M. July 6, 2005 [c291wds]
Tuesday, July 05, 2005
PANDORA'S CONTAINER Thousands of shipping containers enter our major seaports every day and no one seems to know how many of them have been in inspected for reasons of homeland security. It has been, and continues to be, one of our major unsolved concerns as we have worked our way, slowly at times, but steadily toward the day when we can stop worrying about potential attacks and begin to place our trust in those preparations we have made. The gradual attainment to a more secure life for all is sometimes difficult for some individual to realize how much living has changed since "Nine-Eleven". Our major sea port cities are still inadequately prepared to forestall an in-filtering attack using clandestine weaponry. A relatively simple "bomb" well within the manufacturing skills o scores of our enemies and any one of them could deliver vast devastation to almost any of our coastal metro areas. The logical path of such attacks is through the mis-use of the omni-present shipping container which is the symbol of our commercially centered century. Thousand of such containers are checked for improper use use but thousands are also completing the entire route across the face of the world's seas without any security check whatsoever being made at any point.i The very nature of the business make more or less impossible to do more than a modest job. This is not a time for seeking to place blame for shortcomings , but rather a time when we must, as individuals, whatever we do best better. This is not the biggest threat we face. The largest potential for loss of life are the open initiations we send the world's terrorists is to be seen almost daily in our national mania for gathering together in large and large crowds or sporting events, religious gathering, entertainment "concerts" even shopping. We have yet to meet the terrorist first-hand in our midst.Do we face such a phase in our present war? A.L.M. July 5, 2005 [c348wds]
Monday, July 04, 2005
DISHONEST CALLS We are getting mixed and muddled figures from those persons now held responsible for gathering together and compiling information concerning the acting of high school students in the United States who, annually, become drop-outs before graduation. The 2002 “No Child Left Behind Act” had a clause or two in it, as did other legislation before it, which required each state to report in detail on then number of student drop-outs occurring each school year. Such reports have been meager, to say the last, and ,in some cases, dishonest. A Senior Fellow of the Manhattan Institute for Public Policy, reported on the study a few months ago, as February ended that some states felt drop-outs were not a serious problem at all and records were rather sketchy. It 2003 the National Center on Education Statistics reported that eighty-five per cent of all Americans of twenty -five years of age had completed high school. Down the line, to where we now stand, few people, actually believed such glowing figures. It tuned out that such a survey came from a questionnaire filled out by people re reporting their own educational background. Total honesty ..absolute truthfulness would have been required from each and every respondent and would not include t People have used statistics from such surveys to prove there is no drop-out problem ,while others doubt such studies and find good reason to contend that the problem of drop-out at the high school level in our system today. No one seems to know what the actual drop-out rate is in any one school district. No one actually keeps such “negative” records and information comes mainly from police and public welfare reports. Some states report impressive percentages of graduates but the Manhattan Institute research compared the size of ninth grade classes to the number of high school graduates and came up with a figure of about thirty-per cent dropouts. New Jersey currently stands at the top of the number of high school graduates ...89 per cent, and South Carolina is at the bottom,with a 53 per cent graduates; Hispanics and blacks at around 50%. Our National Governor's conclave this past winter agreed that the decline of our high school educational program was a major problem of concern for all of us. Think about that! What is your part going to be? A.L.M. July 4, 2005 (c496wds)
Sunday, July 03, 2005
PACIFIC The word itself means "peaceful", does it not? Tranquil? Untroubled? Yet in the Pacific area we have about three hundred thousand soldiers, sailors, airmen, marines and other armed forces personnel who are, it seems ,of necessity, to maintain tranquility. The Pacific Ocean rim is not exactly peaceful and is is a potential area for trouble in the future. That fact is obvious in the reality which keeps telling us that - in time - each of the two nations, Red China and North Korea - must expand even just to assert being the strong powers we are watching them become. We are, in some ways, even helping them grow into powerful nations which will, sooner or later, be our competition and,, hence to be viewed as enemies. North Korea and Red China have each made marked progress in recent times when it comes to military readiness and a growth of a new acceptance of their lot by a generation of young people in both lands. We have done very little to dissuade any of them from believing what they are being told to them by leaders of questionable intent. Our military maneuvers and training program are fashioned with the idea that China might well be our advisory but we strive to call such preparations by other names with connote concepts of friendliness and cooperation. That idea has been there in the back of our planning ever since the Chinese came charging across to aid North Korea during the Korean War. It is considered, by many, to be inevitable. We have around 40,000 marines soldiers and in Asia, in general, 120,000 seaman afloat and they are at about ninety locations, in addition to about 37,000 in Korea. The general public is, perhaps, aware of the "occupational troops" being in Korea but few know about joint exercises we are carrying on in cooperation with the Aussies and the Japanese at Narathinatt, Thailand or at Shoalwater Bay, in Australia. The Thai operation, called "Cobra Gold" and the "Foal Eagle" exercises in Korea both practiced wisely against a possible Oriental aggressor. In spite of repeated attempts to establish better relations between China and the China and the United States, much suspicion and distrust still exists - and with good reason - on both sides. Sword rattling by Red China concerning Taiwan and the "One China" concept are disconcerting to say the least. They may be major issues at any moment, for their would be no better time than while the Middle East could do the larger portion of any fighting required for them. Since getting Hong Kong back from the British, China has been more confident in the field of international relations,although she might, at the moment continue to take the offshore islands back by less combative methods. It is not a pleasant prospect -this facing up, once more, against what used to be called "the yellow peril" when I was a kid. We refrain from using that terms now. It seems to sound too direct and cataclysmic but the harsh reality of, potentially, greatly modified tranquility such as we now know, must be questioned if we are to survive. It is my hope that our leadership stability might continue to be the critical core of our policy which maintains our China relationships. Much depends on their readiness to use the North Korean differences as a means of bringing about their own desires. Chinese aggression in the Pacific need not be direct. I have strong memories of the way many people felt in the first quarter of the 20th Century when we spoke with fear and dread of a future "Yellow Peril" danger. Pearl Harbor and all that followed, seemed to have been that to many people, but it may proved to have been only a dress-rehearsal of some kind. The real "Yellow Peril" crisis might be still be in our future. Could be. A.L.M. July 3, 2005 [c657wds]
Friday, July 01, 2005
MORE TOKEN TALK I have a strong feeling that tells me the much publicized "acceptance" of gun safety locks by Smith & Wesson a few years ago was political token talk only. We have not, I fear, been entirely enlightened on how one manufacturer came to be willing to start putting such safety lock gun trigger mechanisms on their guns, while others have remained quiet and non-noncommittal. Some said, at the time, they were being "blackmailed" into doing so. Politicians, from time to time, become aware of what they call a "public outcry" which demands that "something be done to get guns off our streets and to keep them from falling into the hands of children." The politicians responded to such a cry with - of all things - an idea of putting locks on triggers of weapons which is something like the old sayings of carts before horses. Certainly, there must have been more positive ways of eliminating, at least a portion of the guns which are "on the streets", in the schools and homes and so readily available to even the youngest of children. This seems now to have been a temporary ploy both by the pols and the gun makers, designed to stave this every adverse off a bit longer until the public cooled off a bit from the, at that time, a recent rash of random killings by kids with firearms. This past week I was in a city where a local gun show as being held. It occupied the largest exhibition hall in the area and every day the parking areas where packed solid with vans, trucks and cars and the vast majority of them bore license plates and ID and advertising signs from afar. It reminds me, in one sense, of the plight of a small child kept on a pacifier from infancy. It keeps the child quiet for the parents can watch TV, talk endlessly on their ever-present cell phones or go about their normal work - or lack of it - in peace and quietness but efficiency fades fast with fads and fakes and it often the parents who wonder why. To show their devotion,they off to the local "specialist". Overt physical action and therapy seem to come naturally. Normal growth denied by constant use of the pacifier or "Binky" nurtures violent conduct predictably and forestalls a child's natural need to communicate with others without tantrum tactics.. Disdained, he wishes to how toward others through physical acts. He pushes, shoves, tugs, elbows, kicks and takes other such action to express his displeasure with someone or something about him. Again, the parents are quick to note this "misbehavior:" and Retalin tablets, or some other preparation, are quickly brought into play. It sounds trivial, I know, but this sort of "easy way out" does give rise to frightening possibilities, when we try to answer the next question we must face: where did our drug culture" problems come from ...when did they start? A.L.M. July 1, 2005 [c506wds]
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