Friday, October 13, 2006
RUM RUNNERS AND BOOT LEGGERS? I suppose we could say that our national language remains more intact, stays where it is as the history of our national culture moves about both up and down, right - left and even in unrewarding circles at the same levels. Our language - both spoken and written - slip into slang, Tech talk of any era at hand, occupational lingo, and linguistic attempts to maintain fading international bits-and-pieces of cultures long gone. We use some street talk at times - "commonalities" - all of which tends to cause growth within our language; expansion of meaning, enlargement of knowledge and greater acceptance of new ideas. I had no idea the terms "rum runner" and "bootlegger" would require explanation, but one young lady was confused by their use. One of the great features of our national life when I was a kid was the concept of prohibiting the use of alcoholic beverages nationwide by setting up legislation which said it was illegal to do so. After surviving such an era, I think I may safely say it did not work. I do not remember details of the actual campaign which resulted in the concept being built to such a peak that it became a law. Those were Post War years called "Roaring Twenties," as a tag for a time tagged, the law was ridiculed, disobeyed and questioned. It still amazes me amazes me that it took until 1934, wasn't it?... before that law was repealed. My two families, it seems to me as I look back at it all, were not too concerned about it one way o the other, but I can remember my Grandmother and other family members talking about the way saloons once did,indeed, thrive in every block of most cities and talk about the terrible miseries of family groups in which the evil monster of strong drink was a genuine horror. I think we kids agreed that there was a need for reform and not only in that with "Kaiser Bill" in exile chopping his own firewood. It was common in those days for residents in rural areas, in particular, to be engaged in other than farming as occupation. Entire areas were given over entirely to the illicit manufacture of any types of which came to be called "moonshine" - used widely as in comedy. The emphasis was, naturally, in isolated, rural areas.but there were functioning distilling systems in the towns and cities as well. They were constantly being raided and trashed out, but they were back in business within a week. They became more and more complex over the years. but many were quite obvious and even “open”. As a young music dance band musician I worked in so-called “bootleg joints”. One, which was raided from time to time, had a simple system. The investigators never noticed there was always a happy black lady was always washing pots and pans. She laughed heartily as she stood there shining a big copper kettle. At the first, which, a the first signs of a raid, its contents had gone down the drain and a sudsy aroma permeated the area. Our family doctor, who served many people living on the mountain ridge above town could, from his porch on Sunday morning, point out scores of rising plumes of smoke - each an operating still. Their owners and operators out numbered those forces working to see the end of such operations. Today we have serious problems which demand attention and it might a mark of wisdom if we would remember what happened when we decided we could ban booze. It is becoming more plain every day that it is difficult to pass any legislation to control morality and human social conduct. Let’s not be too hasty in total eradication. When a thing is made to be a "no-no", that only spurs many people to seek ways to get around it. Controls? Yes. Total bans? No. Andrew McCaskey amccsr@adelphia.net 10-13-06 [c-662wds]
Thursday, October 12, 2006
A MERIT MARK We did better this time. I'm speaking of events of October 11th - just a five years and a month date after the Sept. 11th, 2001. Many have been awaiting another such trial and all have, at the same time, been wondering how we would respond. I think we did very well and deserve a bit of cautious recognition. This, while was not of the large proportion as the original attack, it was a shock just the same. More individuals that we could get them to admit have such fears, actually has some thoughts of another attack. Yet, I saw no evidence panic in any of the scenes I happened to see. There was nervous excitement, of course, for Americans who, are more interest in follow-up by nature. A sudden noise and he wants to know right away what caused it. This time, the city dwellers seemed to move out of their buildings to see what had happened. There seem to be less personal concern in their movements and they showed little fear for themselves in their movements. It is remarkable that none of the debris falling from the burning area fifty-one stories above. As it appeared to some officials, it seems, that a plane had hit the building. That quickly changed to a helicopter, due largely to the fact that there is a busy heliport just blocks away at the end of the bridge which runs a pretty active schedule hauling business executives from one point to another. For a short-time it was suggested it could have been larger, multi-engined craft but officially said to be a light, four-place craft owned and piloted by a well-known sports figure. The in-flight incident is thought to have occurred the building, occurred at the point where air traffic is required to turn around to avoid traffic patterns from La Guardia Field and pilot, a well-known New York Yankee's baseball team pitcher Gary Lidle lost control of the plane, which appeared to have stalled in mid-air due to insufficient forward motion and crashed into the side of the huge multi-purpose building. The immediate fire burned apartments until water was applied from inside the building. On the whole, traffic was well controlled. NORAD was alert this time to scramble fight jets above major cities and other home defense rules and regulations were tried for the first time. I heard New Yorkers wondering how is that air space above Manhattan is not more restricted. Anyone who wishes to so, can fly up the East River with limited formalities. Among such requirements is one which asks if you can turn your aircraft around to head back down river. No doubt, many points have turned up in individual experiences in this latest scare in New York City. We should make every effort to learn such guidelines to safety. Andrew McCaskey amccsr@adelphia.net 10-11-06 [c494wds]
Monday, October 09, 2006
COLUMBUS GETS AROUND There are certainly a number of people who are observing today as holiday honoring Christopher Columbus. Some people claim him to to be the man who discovered America; others blame him for the same achievement. He has been, in our time, lowered a few pegs on the admiration scales. It is evident from the resources available to us today, that he was one among many young men, who, in his day, had the very same spirit which today tells thousand of young men and women of the same unquenchable spirit they are destined to become some form of the group we currently limit to the word form: "astronaut." We know far more about space today than Columbus knew about the strange area he was to explore and explain. His, too, was a big task, just as monstrous as space mysteries are to young people today. There is an unswerving challange in all it all both the "worst" and the "best" are to to be fathomed as theories much less as deeds yet to be done. Old Voyager I and II are still out there chugging along as primitive space craft even as far better examples of what we can do are to be seen in our space shuttles - all sent into the endless wilderness of space by at same desperate urge which compelled Christopher Columbus to continue to make his dangerous trips into the unknown seas of planet Earth. We move the observance of Columbus Day to suit the need of long weekends in the D.C. area. Traditionally it ought to be October 12th, but the ninth day will do as long as we all remember and appreciate that which one man did for all of us in year of 1492. Andrew McCaskey amccsr@adelphia.net 10-9-06 [c305wds]
Sunday, October 08, 2006
BAGGY PANTS STYLES I have always been grateful for the fact that men's clothing designs were not so readily receptive to novel changes as readily as are styles for women. If I am reading forecasts properly we are going to be able too buy men's pants this Fall which actually cover the area they were originally designed to conceal. We have weathered two style spasms in recent years when we went to extreme ends. I'm on the fat side, so I hated both extremes. The one was a hungry-looking, thin-as-a-rail, tight-fitted, zipper zapper, with all bone inside and a squeezed layer of flesh and skin inside ready to split the thin surface with the very next bending motion. I have always been for growing up an "in-between time" in pants when we don't seem have worry too much about them being too tight or too baggy or loose. I have been through one era of change in which we were led to wear "knickers" They were a fad, which came to these shores with Scottish game called "golf" - laughing referred to by non-players as "Cow-pasture pool" or "Barnyard Billiards". They were, at first, worn only when playing the game We should have gone authentic with kilts but I, for one, am glad that did not catch on. With sudden and unpleasant changes made in Wall Street in 1929 we boys called our pants of that sort "knickerbockers" but I don't know why. It sounds like we may have lifted it from Upstate New York, possibly by way of James Fennimore Cooper. We saved our golf wear for Sunday and other dress-up occasions and the rest of the time we wore overalls - pronounced "over hauls" - with pocketed bib, shoulder straps, large side and rear pockets and, they were roomy enough to slide them off and on over usually bare feet and sometimes shod feet. At this moment boys are walking through the malls of America wearing in style baggy pants which allow low back pockets - always loaded- to tap the heels of the walker-wearer and scrape the pavement. Let's get move on there, you style shifters! It's getting late! The rising of the full Moon is seen often at the local Mall at all hours of the day and night. Andrew McCaskey amccsr@adelphia.net 10-8-06 [c400wds]
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