Optimist columns. 19 August. Jimmy Carter, the "un-celebrity" president, would that we had more Carters. 12 August. 5 August. 29 July. The love sick crane.
Land of the Midnight Sun. Just back from an enjoyable cruise up the Norwegian coast, west to Scotland, then south to Greenwich, England. Norway: Bergen, Molde, Geiranger, Tromsø, Honningsvåg, Lefoten (North Cape). Scotland: Lerwick (Shetlands), Kirkwall (Orkney), Edinburgh. London: sailed up the Themes and moored at Greenwich.
Norway's coastal fjords are simply spectacular. The so close-by mountains rise 3,000+ feet, just like sailing up our own Alaskan coast. Unlike my last visit in the 1980s, skies at North Cape were cobalt, Colorado-blue. The Shetlands are rustic, home to those famous little horses. Bred for work in mine tunnels, these "ponies" are, pound-for-pound, stronger than their huge Budweiser cousins. The Orkney-s are less rustic and among the "greenest" of places: home to approximately16,000 humans, 320,000+ sheep (mind your step), innumerable solar panels and wind turbines. Per capita, Orkney has the most electric vehicles of any place in Scotland. Look left and beware of that approaching, nearly-silent car.
In London, we were thrilled to see the nightly "Ceremony of the Keys." For more than 700 years (at 2200 hours, 10PM), the Yeoman Warders have locked the Tower of London, in a short, but impressive nightly ritual. Prior to the locking, a Yeoman Warder (aka Beefeater) gave us an oral walkabout of Tower Square. The Tower is closed at 5pm to tourists, so we were alone with our guide and since our visit was on 3 August so we had enough light for our tour of the Square before darkness set in.
Plan ahead, as there is generally a 6-9 month wait for this tour -- with some prior British financial payment arrangements needed, no credit cards accepted.
Upward mobility? Columnist Robert Salmon, "The rise of downward mobility," notes upward may be less prevalent than you would think. "If you are an upper-middle-class parent, as I am, you must have noticed that the real world isn’t playing according to [the now ill conceived] script."
Wealth, power, and inappropriate behavior. "[T]he research [which is not a new thing] has never seen such booming interest and momentum — with growing inequality in America and a multimillionaire born into wealth in the White House." A man born to and possessing great wealth is not entirely unknown in American politics, but there is much being said about the growing inequality in America.
Beavers. From your now nearly forgotten American history class lesson about the mountain men, Jeremiah Johnson, Kit Carson, et. al. This book review from the High Country News touches on what was lost in the America when those busy beavers were nearly "trapped out." There are several surviving colonies visible from various roads in CO. You can stop and see how these nimble little dam builders have indeed managed their streams.
18 August 1920. With TN's adoption (the 36th state to do so), the 19th Amendment went into effect. Those "yellow ribbons" finally found fruition -- then-President Woodrow Wilson's lukewarm support not withstanding.
Wild fires: Blame it on the ...... Kris Kristofferson famously picked "the Stones." Several recent stories have noted the various causes of some of the nation's summer wild fires. Many Californians have rallied around a couple whose trailer tire went flat, putting the trailer on tire rim, which set off sparks...... Others are probably less willing to forgive the person who allegedly threw a cigarette butt out his car window.
The evolving British monarchy. Rumor has it that even more change will soon in the offing for Queen Elizabeth II and the royal household with its first gay wedding. The House of Windsor has certainly seen much change since November 1963 when John Lennon famously admonished the audience in the Prince of Wales Theater (including the Queen Mother): " 'Those in the cheaper seats, clap,' cried the Beatles' leader. 'The rest of you rattle your jewelry.' " Prince Charles' marriage to the commoner, Diana, was only the beginning.
PA and the Catholic Church. The Attorney General of Pennsylvania released a 800+ page report of alleged child abuse by priests and the attendant cover-up in all but two of PA's dioceses. On Sunday morning, one observer cited the Church's continued resistance to change and called for similar investigations by the other 49 states' Attorneys General. The Pulitzer winning series by the Boston Globe has opened many previously locked doors.
6 November, 2018, a different election day. This year results could see an unprecedented number of "...third party and outsider presidential candidates..." being listed on ballots nationwide. Among democratic countries, the US continues to be the sole largely two-party nation. Indeed, our political national and state systems are configured to discourage multiple parties, even though "[m]ore than 40 percent of voters self-identify as independent."
Demagogue or looming dictator. E.J. Dionne ponders the question in his latest column. He is not the only conservative wondering. Then, in Nixon vs. Trump, a former counsel to the Watergate prosecutor says, "I miss Nixon."
Whither the internet? Columnist Catherine Crampell opines, how can Congress put right problems with a complex organism it does not understand. Was it fair of her to call the Congress an "expansive Luddite Caucus," one unmotivated to learn? She sites as one example Congressman Kevin McCarthy (R, CA) who had set his own Twitter account preference's to block information he then complained he was not receiving.
"Confronting face-palming mockery, McCarthy nonetheless doubled down, still claiming political persecution. This is hardly the only time that politicians have flaunted their digital illiteracy." One can only hope congressman McCarthy simply forgot to use the expertise of a staff member who might have understood and helped him save face.
It is a very safe bet that many (most?) of the 435 elected representatives and senators have children, probably grandchildren, possibly even great grand children, who understand the internet better than themselves. All they have to do is ask.
Soft power. Political scientist Joseph Nye's term may be regaining favor given the continuing move of China on today's world scene. Nye argued that “to get others to do what they otherwise would not,” the United States
could draw on its soft power—its noncoercive power—to cement its
leadership position in the world." With a vacillating president at the helm?
Thank you for waiting so patiently. May your "dog days" of August go smoothly.
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