The Day is Blown

Not a lot to say today, and I’m pretty sure it’s because I had another one of those nights…fitful sleep (when sleep came at all) interspersed with a couple of hour-long periods of sitting at my desk, staring at The Weather Channel and wondering in a semi-conscious manner why sleep refuses to come. It was light outside when I finally drifted off this morning. These things don’t happen often, but when they do…the whole next day is utterly blown.

I hate it when that happens.

A quick question for those of you with day jobs: is this the holiday weekend, or is it next weekend? Do you have this coming Monday off? Do you have the actual Fourth of July off? Wednesday, Thursday and Friday off? All week off? What? How’s it being done at your place of business?

Today’s Pic: Here we go again…dipping back into the Arches photos from earlier this month. This is another example of the stupendously large, awe-inspiring rock formations that rise from the valley floor.

Arches National Park. June 2, 2007.

This is Sorta Interesting…

…EIP in Arabic. I was chasing a Site Meter link from Morocco and decided to look at the translated page. This is what you see:

If you follow the link to the translated page and mouse over any particular block of text you’ll see the original English text in a pop-up mini-window. Which is just Pretty Danged Cool, it is!

I told you Gentle Reader…I’m easily amused. What further proof do you need?

Distracted

I’ve been pretty much glued to the TeeVee this morning watching all the brouhaha from London…and it’s significant. Significant in that major loss of life was prevented, either serendipitously and courageously by the police or through ineptness on the part of the bombers; significant in that traffic in central London has probably been a mess all day; significant in that other bombs may have been planted (a suspicious vehicle was found in Park Lane); and significant in the speculation about just who the perps are.

Developing, as it’s said.

Lots of on-line detail here (with photos), here, and here.

Thursday

Here’s a fascinating story in the NYT about globalization: “An iPod Has Global Value. Ask the (Many) Countries That Make It.”

Who makes the Apple iPod? Here’s a hint: It is not Apple. The company outsources the entire manufacture of the device to a number of Asian enterprises, among them Asustek, Inventec Appliances and Foxconn.

But this list of companies isn’t a satisfactory answer either: They only do final assembly. What about the 451 parts that go into the iPod? Where are they made and by whom?

Three researchers at the University of California, Irvine — Greg Linden, Kenneth L. Kraemer and Jason Dedrick — applied some investigative cost accounting to this question, using a report from Portelligent Inc. that examined all the parts that went into the iPod.

Their study, sponsored by the Sloan Foundation, offers a fascinating illustration of the complexity of the global economy, and how difficult it is to understand that complexity by using only conventional trade statistics.

The retail value of the 30-gigabyte video iPod that the authors examined was $299. The most expensive component in it was the hard drive, which was manufactured by Toshiba and costs about $73. The next most costly components were the display module (about $20), the video/multimedia processor chip ($8) and the controller chip ($5). They estimated that the final assembly, done in China, cost only about $4 a unit.

One approach to tracing supply chain geography might be to attribute the cost of each component to the country of origin of its maker. So $73 of the cost of the iPod would be attributed to Japan since Toshiba is a Japanese company, and the $13 cost of the two chips would be attributed to the United States, since the suppliers, Broadcom and PortalPlayer, are American companies, and so on.

The UC Irvine researchers' analysis, and the methodology they used (which is quite detailed, thoughtful, and extensive) comes to a startling conclusion…at least for those folks who bemoan the exporting of American jobs and advocate “fair trade” policies (I’m looking at you, Mr. Dobbs.). It’s all about the value-add. And we’re very good at that particular piece of business. Best in the world, as a matter of fact.

HA HA HA! Omigawd…excuse me, but…HA HA! Hoo-BOY, this is GOOD!

WASHINGTON - Despite low approval ratings and hard feelings from last year's elections, Democrats and Republicans in the House are reaching out for an approximately $4,400 pay raise that would increase their salaries to almost $170,000.

[…]

The annual vote on the pay hike comes on an obscure procedural move — instead of a direct up-or-down vote — and Democratic and GOP leaders each delivered a majority of their members to shut off the move to block the pay hike.

So, we get consensus when it comes to a pay raise, but our esteemed legislators can’t seem to get it together when there’s…uh…legislative work…to be done? Oh, the irony.

A pox on them, their houses, and their offspring.

Marc Lynch of Abu Aardvark poses an interesting question, about which I have absolutely no opinion: “Who'll be the first t'blow?”

I've been posing the same question to academic Middle East experts and government officials in a variety of forums lately (seminars, workshops, bars), and thought it might be interesting to throw it open here as well. Given the ever-growing strains and pressures on most Arab regimes, which - if any - will be the first to go? By "go", I mean a real change of regime - King Abdullah (Jordan division) replacing his Prime Minister doesn't count, the Hashemites being toppled does. Also, I mean actually functioning and currently seemingly stable states: so the Lebanese, Palestinian, and Iraqi situations don't count. Finally, I'm talking about Arab countries, so Iran is off the table (unless you really want to talk about Iran). So far, the most popular answer has probably been "none" - Arab regimes are really only good at one thing, staying in power at all costs, and there's a lot of well-merited skepticism that now is any different. But if you had to put money down on one, despite your innate skepticism, who would it be?

I have no opinion because I’m just not that well-versed in the arcane world of Middle Eastern politics. About all I know is neatly summed up by Mr. Lynch’s comment, to wit, “Arab regimes are really only good at one thing, staying in power at all costs.” Still the question IS interesting, if only for the accompanying analysis.

Coulter-Edwards follow-up… The LA Times:

WASHINGTON — Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards said Wednesday that conservative author Ann Coulter's attacks on him were hurtful, even as his campaign used her remarks in an appeal for donations.

Edwards, a former senator from North Carolina, was responding to Coulter's suggestion that she wished he would be "killed in a terrorist assassination plot." His campaign cited her remarks in two e-mails to supporters for donations.

It was not the first time Coulter had given the Edwards campaign a financial boost. In March, she used the word "faggot" in reference to Edwards, and his campaign used video of the comment to help raise $300,000 before the end of the first quarter.

In the latest e-mails, the campaign asked supporters to send donations to defy her remarks and help Edwards meet his goal of raising $9 million in the second quarter. The first e-mail from campaign advisor Joe Trippi showed a clip of Coulter on ABC's "Good Morning America," where she made the assassination comments Monday.

Yesterday I made the point that Coulter should just shut up, as she’s John Edwards’ best, albeit de facto, fundraiser. Maybe I was missing the longer view. Maybe I should urge Ms. Coulter on. Because, really now, could the GOP ask for a better Democrat nominee than Pretty Boy? Any one of the leading Republican candidates (well, except for McCain, perhaps, but he’s not leading) would wipe the floor with Edwards while simultaneously erasing McGovern’s name from its place of (dis)honor in the Big Book of American Electoral Fiascoes.

Just sayin’.

Today’s Pic: The Well-Equipped Garage. I snapped this pic while at SN1’s place last month. Left to right: the ‘Zuki, Buck’s Kowalski, and my (now Buck’s) Ol’ Yammer-Hammer. This pic gives some perspective on the ‘Zuki’s size. Both the ‘Zuki and the Kowalski are 650s, but the ‘Zuki shares its frame and running gear with its bigger brother: the Suzuki DL-1000. Did I ever tell ya that it’s a BIG bike, Gentle Reader? Oh, I did? Never mind.

Layton, UT. May, 2007.

Burnin' Down the House

RP is back burnin’ down the house with great music, Lizzie Edwards does a slow-burn about Ann Coulter and actually calls her on it, and Tehran literally burns, in places.

RP is back today after yesterday’s Day of Silence. So the soundtrack to my life resumes…

Further…there’s this on RP’s home page this morning:

Due to the huge numbers of Internet radio listeners who responded to this appeal, many of you were unable to get through to your Senators and Representative. If so, it's definitely not too late. Please contact your members of Congress now via SaveNetRadio.org and ask them to support the legislation currently pending that would set an Internet radio royalty rate that is fair to all involved: stations, listeners, artists, and record companies.

What's this all about? The US Copyright Office has set a royalty fee structure for Internet radio that is — in almost all cases — at least 10 times greater than the royalties paid by any other type of radio, anywhere in the world. No existing Internet radio services would be able to operate profitably under this fee structure. It would mean the end of stations like Radio Paradise, and the end of the royalty payments to artists that we're currently making.

No indication as to what “huge numbers” actually means. But it’s a great good thing that the phone lines were so busy some folks were unable to get through. I didn’t even try to call, opting for e-mail instead. I hate phones; it’s just the way I am. But you, Gentle Reader, probably aren’t phone-phobic. You could ring up your congresscritter’s office and tell ‘em internet radio is worth saving, if you have a free minute or three today. I’d sure appreciate it if you did.

Today’s Teapot Tempest…Elizabeth Edwards vs. Ann Coulter.

Elizabeth Edwards, ever her husband's most aggressive defender, called in to MSNBC's "Hardball" yesterday to admonish conservative commentator Ann Coulter for using the "language of hate" to attack John Edwards. Elizabeth Edwards asked Coulter -- who has compared the former senator to a gay man and has mused about his death in a terrorist attack -- to stop using personal attacks as part of her public routine, a request Coulter quickly rebuffed.

I don’t like Coulter. I’ve said this before and my opinion hasn’t changed. God Help Me for saying/thinking this, but Mrs. Edwards is right. Coulter’s rhetoric is SO far over the top she’s become a caricature of the right and an actual asset to the likes of Pretty Boy. Coulter’s “fag” comment about Edwards raised millions for the man. Hell, Elizabeth should be glad Coulter attacks her man as she does. And Jonah Goldberg thinks she is:

More to the point, John Edwards is imploding. And his last really good moment in the press was when Coulter called him a "faggot." It was dumb and distasteful, but it was also money in the bank for Edwards, who used it to further endear himself to the netroots base and to raise money on it. Elizabeth Edwards is — smartly — trying to change the subject back to Edwards as a victim of those mean rightwingers. It strikes me as a little desperate.

Desperate, perhaps. Smart? Most certainly.

Shut up, Ann. Or at the very least, tone it down. For the children your party.

Meanwhile, Tehran Burns…

Motorists today set fire to petrol stations in Tehran in an angry backlash against the Iranian government's decision to impose petrol rationing.

A station in Pounak, a poor neighbourhood of the capital, was set alight, while two pumps were completely destroyed at another in the east of the city.

[…]

Iranian state radio reported that several petrol stations had been attacked by "vandals".

The unrest put further political pressure on the Iranian president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who is already under fire for failing to deliver on promises to improve the economy after his election in 2005.

In May, the government reduced subsidies for petrol, causing a 25% jump in prices.

Pajamas Media has more, including shaky cell-phone video of burning gas stations (worthless, IMHO, coz it could be any gas station…just sayin’), and links to a Canadian-Iranian blogger (much more worthwhile) and other sources.

The Left thinks Dubya and Co. is inept at managing our gub’mint, but real ineptness is named “Ahmadinejad.” This could get out of hand real fast, Insh’Allah.

We Got a LOT of Wind Last Night…

…and it took down an old dead tree just behind El Casa Móvil De Pennington. You can see the tree hit my car-hauler and missed the RV. I think I’ll light a candle now.

As the ol’ saying goes: “It could have been worse.” I could be calling an insurance adjuster this morning from the Holiday Inn Express, give or take a couple of feet to the left or so. Instead I’ll just wait for the park guys to come around with chain saws and cut the wayward tree up and haul it off.

The funny thing is I never heard the thing come down. The RV was certainly rocking and there were a lot of bumping and thumping noises and such, but I don’t recall any loud crashing noises.

Oh. How bad was the wind? Well, the National WX Service's severe weather bulletin (the crawl on the WX Channel's broadcast) last evening said "70 mph winds had been observed" at the Melrose Bombing Range around 1930 hours, or so. (The range is about 25 miles north-northwest of me.) The tree was still up at that time.

Back in a few…

Rage Boy

Christopher Hitchens, writing yesterday in Slate:

If you follow the link, you will be treated to some scenes from the strenuous life of a professional Muslim protester in the Kashmiri city of Srinagar. Over the last few years, there have been innumerable opportunities for him to demonstrate his piety and his pissed-offness. And the cameras have been there for him every time. Is it a fatwah? Is it a copy of the Quran allegedly down the gurgler at Guantanamo? Is it some cartoon in Denmark? Time for Rage Boy to step in and for his visage to impress the rest of the world with the depth and strength of Islamist emotion.

Last week, there was another go-round of this now-formulaic story, when Salman Rushdie accepted a knighthood from her majesty the queen, and the whole cycle of hysteria started up again. Effigies and flags burned (is there some special factory in Karachi that churns out the flags of democratic countries for occasions like this?), wounded screams from religious nut bags, bounties raised to suborn murder, and solemn resolutions passed by notional bodies such as the Pakistani "parliament." A few months ago, it was the pope who was being threatened, and Christians in the Middle East and Muslim Asia who were actually being killed. Indeed, Rage Boy had a few yells and gibberings to offer on that occasion, too.

Hitch is always good, and it goes without saying you “should read the whole thing.” But it was the Rage Boy link that really got me, Gentle Reader. Rage Boy looks to be nearly as famous as Green Helmet Guy. I don’t think Warhol had an Islamic vision of his 15 minutes of fame shtick, but it has come to pass…

Guess I Gotta Clean Up My Act...

Mingle² - Online Dating

I quote:

This rating was determined based on the presence of the following words:
ass (4x)
dead (3x)
death (2x)
screwing (1x)

Seems rather arbitrary to me, but what the Hell. Who'd thunk I'd be so on about death and dying, eh? Screw the other stuff...

Hat tip: The Thunder Run

Save Internet Radio!!

So. I turned on the computer this morning and after I got the coffee started I went to the “listen” section of Radio Paradise to turn on the radio stream and what do I see? This:

All day today, Radio Paradise is joining hundreds of other US-based webcasters in discontinuing our normal programming, and asking our listeners for help in our fight to stay online and continue broadcasting.

Please contact your members of Congress now via SaveNetRadio.org and ask them to support the legislation currently pending that would set an Internet radio royalty rate that is fair to all involved: stations, listeners, artists, and record companies.

The US Copyright Office has set a royalty fee structure for Internet radio that is — in almost all cases — at least 10 times greater than the royalties paid by any other type of radio, anywhere in the world. No existing Internet radio services would be able to operate profitably under this fee structure. It would mean the end of stations like Radio Paradise, and the end of the royalty payments to artists that we're currently making.

Don't believe the record industry propaganda that says that Internet radio is trying to deprive artists and labels of fair royalty payments. Under the legislation we're supporting, we would still be paying a higher royalty rate than any other class of broadcaster in the US.

Please contact your members of Congress now via SaveNetRadio.org and urge them to take action before the new rates take effect on July 15th. With your help and support, we are confident that sanity will prevail in DC (at least on this issue...). We'll resume normal programming tonight at midnight (PST).

I contacted my representative and both my senators. I’m not sure if expressing my opinion is actually gonna help, but it sure as Hell won’t hurt. If you have a spare minute today, please call or write your congresscritters and help save internet radio…details at the link above. If you don’t want to call, please write. The senate has a form-based application for contacting senators via e-mail; the house has a list of members e-mail addresses. This is what I sent my reps; feel free to cut and paste if you so desire:

Dear Representative Brady:

Below is a cut and paste from SaveNetRadio.org:

1)	I am a constituent and I'm calling to ask you to save Internet radio by co-sponsoring the Internet Radio Equality Act.
2)	The Copyright Royalty Board's decision to increase royalty rates for webcasters is going to turn off my Internet radio and I do NOT want that to happen. Please co-sponsor the Internet Radio Equality Act.
3)	I believe that artists should be fairly compensated for the music they make, but putting my webcasters out of business will only hurt artists more. They depend on Internet radio to get their music out to fans and build new audiences. When the webcasters go off the air, so do artists. Please co-sponsor the Internet Radio Equality Act.
4)	Internet radio is one of the only bright spots for independent music and diversity. We NEED Internet radio. Don't turn it off. Co-sponsor the Internet Radio Equality Act.

I am a BIG fan of internet radio and listen to Radio Paradise every single day....except today, because they're participating in the "Internet Radio Day of Silence." It's a taste of what would happen if the Copyright Royalty Board's ill-advised decision to raise royalty rates for internet radio is put into effect. And I don't like going without my favorite radio station, even for one single day.

I would hate to lose my favorite radio station because of an arbitrary ruling by a regulatory agency, not a legislative body. You have it in your power to ensure such a thing doesn't happen...simply by voting for the Internet Radio Equality Act. I know there are lots of pressing issues on your plate, but this is an issue that impacts small business as well as hundreds of thousands of consumers who enjoy internet radio.

Please support and vote for the Internet Radio Equality Act.
--
Sincerely,
Buck Pennington
Exile in Portales

I’d hate to lose RP…the station has become a part of my life. A very good part of my life.

Assumptions

I tend to assume certain things about you, Gentle Reader, when I select items to write about, link to, or otherwise comment upon here at EIP. One of my key assumptions is you read a lot of the same stuff I do, so pointing you to, say Michael Yon’s place, would be redundant. Chances are you’ve either already been to those places before you came here, or you’re going there in short order.

That said, it never hurts to remember the ol’ saw about assumptions…the one about how they tend to make an “ass” out of “u” and “i.” So, in that spirit, I’ll simply point out the obvious, something I’m quite sure you know already: there’s no finer reporting coming out of Iraq, specifically on Operations Phantom Thunder and Arrowhead Ripper, than that provided by Yon and Bill Roggio. They’re daily reads for YrHmblScrb. And I assume they are for you, too.

I’ve been noticing a lot of back-and-forth of late between leftie and right-of-center blogs concerning Iran. The dominant line of thinking on the Left is “don’t let Chimpy McHalliburton talk us into another war like he did last time,” coupled with (to a lesser extent) “Iran poses no threat to us,” followed up by “what’s wrong with Iran having nukes? WE have ‘em…” and so on. Classic denial, in other words. The Left needs to pay more attention, or at least begin thinking along the lines of “what if Ahmadinejad really means what he’s saying?” The latter IS possible, ya know.

A good place for the Left to begin reading would be this article in today’s WSJ. I quote, in part:

The apparent meaning of all of this pointless provocation and bullying is that the axis of radicals--Iran, Syria, Hamas and Hezbollah--is feeling its oats. In part its aim is to intimidate the rest of us, in part it is merely enjoying flexing its muscles. It believes that its side has defeated America in Iraq, and Israel in Gaza and Lebanon. Mr. Ahmadinejad recently claimed that the West has already begun to "surrender," and he gloated that " final victory . . . is near." It is this bravado that bodes war.

A large portion of modern wars erupted because aggressive tyrannies believed that their democratic opponents were soft and weak. Often democracies have fed such beliefs by their own flaccid behavior. Hitler's contempt for America, stoked by the policy of appeasement, is a familiar story. But there are many others. North Korea invaded South Korea after Secretary of State Dean Acheson declared that Korea lay beyond our "defense perimeter." Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait after our ambassador assured him that America does not intervene in quarrels among Arabs. Imperial Germany launched World War I, encouraged by Great Britain's open reluctance to get involved. Nasser brought on the 1967 Six Day War, thinking that he could extort some concessions from Israel by rattling his sword.

Democracies, it is now well established, do not go to war with each other. But they often get into wars with non-democracies. Overwhelmingly the non-democracy starts the war; nonetheless, in the vast majority of cases, it is the democratic side that wins. In other words, dictators consistently underestimate the strength of democracies, and democracies provoke war through their love of peace, which the dictators mistake for weakness.

It’s the signal failure of the Left: they’re too damned good for their…our… own good. The inability to see evil, and evil intent, simply because you believe in your heart of hearts that all men want the same things…peace, love, and understanding…is a tragic and potentially lethal flaw. It continues to amaze me that otherwise rational people cannot recognize a mortal threat even as it screams out its hatred for you and all you stand for.

I really don’t get it.

Today’s Pic: A brightly lit shop in Albuquerque’s Old Town, at sunset.

January, 2004.

And now, Gentle Reader, I intend to take the remainder of this morning’s coffee and a portion of a Spanish Rosada out on the verandah. Before it gets too danged hot to do anything outside…

YouTube, Portales Edition

No comment.

British Newspaper Readership, Explained

This clip is from “Yes, Prime Minister,” an old British sitcom from the 80’s. Rumor has it the show was “Mrs. Thatcher’s favorite political TV comment.” Rumor also has it this demographic evaluation of the various Brit newspapers is spot on, especially that of connoisseurs of The Sun’s third page.

Stolen from The Times (UK) weekly “best of” video page.

It Couldn't Happen Here, Now, Could It?

Today’s Cautionary Tale…in The Times (UK), “Alas, poor Britain. The best name for it is Absurdistan:”

I defer to the greater knowledge of modern Britain evidently garnered by standing in empty fields with camera crews, but I wonder if this is really the right conclusion. I love Britain as much as anyone, and I certainly believe it is our openness that makes it such an attractive place. But I can’t share the optimism about our multiculture, and much more importantly, my own impression is not of the triumph of the British spirit but of its steady subversion by an ever-growing dependency culture.

[…]

This is the self-perpetuating logic behind the unstoppable momentum of the expanding State. The bigger it grows, the more it intrudes into our lives, and the more it intrudes into our lives, the more dependent we become on it. Education is the same. Our great universities are struggling to compete in a global market because they are hamstrung by the State. They are dependent on central government for their funding; but that funding is insufficient to meet the needs of global competition. But because they need government money for what they do, they cannot break free.

Leviathan is now so large that, outside London, half the population is dependent – either through public sector jobs or benefits – on taxes. Its power is so large that it has bent us all into submission. It has produced a culture in which no one needs to take responsibility for anything because someone else is always there to back us up.

I’ve said this often, but it bears repeating: Britain seems to have arrived at a place we, as Americans, certainly don’t want to go. But the public pontifications of some of our erstwhile leaders and the triumph of multi-culturalism in academe lead me to believe otherwise. The chorus of dissenting (OK, he’s Australian, but he’s part of the Anglosphere) voices to the British status-quo is encouraging (for the Brits). The dissenters are more of a vocal rear-guard than anything else; their protestations seem to have little, if any effect on Britain’s political life and culture.

The best we can do is observe and vow not to let it happen here. Despite Her Hillaryness, Pretty Boy, and the like.

More, albeit briefly, at The Corner.

C'mon Now, Let's Just Be Fair...

This is not good…not good at all:

Among radio formats, the combined news/talk format (which includes news/talk/information and talk/personality) leads all others in terms of the total number of stations per format and trails only country music in terms of national audience share. Through more than 1,700 stations across the nation, the combined news/talk format is estimated to reach more than 50 million listeners each week.

As this report will document in detail, conservative talk radio undeniably dominates the format:

· Our analysis in the spring of 2007 of the 257 news/talk stations owned by the top five commercial station owners reveals that 91 percent of the total weekday talk radio programming is conservative, and 9 percent is progressive.

· Each weekday, 2,570 hours and 15 minutes of conservative talk are broadcast on these stations compared to 254 hours of progressive talk—10 times as much conservative talk as progressive talk.

· A separate analysis of all of the news/talk stations in the top 10 radio markets reveals that 76 percent of the programming in these markets is conservative and 24 percent is progressive, although programming is more balanced in markets such as New York and Chicago.

This dynamic is repeated over and over again no matter how the data is analyzed, whether one looks at the number of stations, number of hours, power of stations, or the number of programs. While progressive talk is making inroads on commercial stations, conservative talk continues to be pushed out over the airwaves in greater multiples of hours than progressive talk is broadcast.

[…]

Our conclusion is that the gap between conservative and progressive talk radio is the result of multiple structural problems in the U.S. regulatory system, particularly the complete breakdown of the public trustee concept of broadcast, the elimination of clear public interest requirements for broadcasting, and the relaxation of ownership rules including the requirement of local participation in management.

Hoo-Boy. The bit that is particularly scary is the “multiple structural problems in the U.S. regulatory system,” which one could take as code for the repeal of the Fairness Doctrine (the resurrection of which is one of my serious hot-buttons). But you know what’s really scary? This: “Barbara Boxer and Hillary Clinton Will Target Talk Radio: Inhofe.” And you know Her Hillaryness would do just that, should she be elected Leader of the Free World. In a frickin’ heartbeat. It doesn’t matter what the market (read: the people) wants…it’s all about outcome. And the Lib-Left is sick and tired…beyond sick and tired…of losing their ass in the radio world. The next logical step in the process is to eliminate conservative talk radio…in the interests of “fairness,” ya know. We just gotta be fair about the whole thing.

And just for grins and giggles, Confederate Yankee notes the following:

Back before he was governor of Minnesota and was still prowling the squared-circle as the villainous heel "The Body," Jesse Ventura used to growl, "Win if you can, lose if you must, but always cheat!"

That maxim seems to have been taken to heart (and wallet) by the progressive Center For American Progress (CAP), which released a document called "The Structural Imbalance of Political Talk Radio," which advocates the return of the failed "Fairness Doctrine" in talk radio, in an attempt to censor and stifle the dominance of conservative talkers.

What the Center For American Progress won't tell you is that one of the authors of the liberally-biased "report," Paul Woodhull, is a founding partner of not one, but two liberal talk radio show companies, Big Eddie Radio Productions, LLC (BERP), which produces The Ed Shultz Show, and Bill Press Partners, LLC, producers of The Bill Press Show.

As I said…it’s all about outcome. Oh yeah, and advancing your own financial interests, as well.

Update 1224 hrs: Here’s Peggy Noonan on Her Hillaryness, which has nothing to do with talk radio or the Fairness Doctrine, but is interesting, none the less:

As for her attempts to appeal to centrists, two items deserve note. One is that Mrs. Clinton has taken, on the stump, to referring to herself as "born . . . in the middle of America in the middle of the century." This is interesting because it's word for word what George H.W. Bush said in 1988 when he introduced his choice of Dan Quayle. She has also taken to referring to herself as famous but unknown, which is exactly what was said of Vice President Bush the same year. Mrs. Clinton seems to have been studying 1988, which was the last time anyone won the presidency in a landslide.

But there is another side of the Clinton campaign, and I found some of it this week. It is a new Web site called HillaryIs44.com. It is rather mysterious. It does not divulge who is running the site, or who staffs it. It is not interactive; it has one informative voice, and its target audience seems to be journalists and free-lance oppo artists.

And it reads like The Warrior's Id. Hillary "took on" a journalist this week and "beat him into submission." Bloomberg has "stripped himself of allies" in "New York's cutthroat politics." "Expect stormy days ahead for Bloomberg," who will wind up "lonely." Republicans "will attempt to rip him to shreds." "A May surprise announcement will be met with mounds of research accumulated over the next 11 months."

The woman is the veritable Queen of Darkness. Read the whole thing.

Update Number Two, 6/23/07: The whole Boxer-Her Hillaryness conversation may or may not have happened. Or it may have happened three years ago. To say this isn’t entirely clear is understating the case, but the Lefties are sure having fun with it. Here’s an update from Jake Tapper’s ABC News blog:

UPDATE: Boxer's and Clinton's offices got back to me.

"Senator Boxer told me that either her friend Senator Inhofe needs new glasses or he needs to have his hearing checked, because that conversation never happened," says Natalie Ravitz, the communications director for Boxer.

"Jim Inhofe is wrong," says Philippe Reines, Clinton's press secretary. "This supposed conversation never happened - not in his presence or anywhere else."

AFTERNOON UPDATE: Even though Inhofe prefaced this story by saying "I was going over to vote the other day," the Oklahoman this afternoon told Fox News' Neil Cavuto that this alleged conversation took place "about three years ago."

That's kind of weak.

Yeah, that IS kinda weak. The fact remains, however: The Left knows (a) right-wing radio is eating its lunch, (b) the Left has been unable to mount an economically viable, serious challenge to right-wing radio, so (c) “something must be done.” Evidence? All this talk of reviving the Fairness Doctrine. QED.

Carlin has Still Got It. In Spades.

You'll probably have to watch this at least three times to get everything. I know I did...

hat tip: Chaotic Synaptic Activity, via Chap.

An Inside Story

So. I didn’t blog about it, there being some…no, a lot…of things in the news I won’t touch with the proverbial ten-foot pole. Dan Rather shooting off his mouth about CBS “tarting up” the news by hiring Katie Couric was one such item. There was a grain of truth in the story, however, aside from all the hyperventilating and illogical associations of the phrase “tarting up” and Katie’s own perky self. And that would be this:

From a high of 13 million viewers in her first weeks on the air, Couric is now drawing less than 6 million and the "CBS Evening News” is in last place in the nightly news race, according to the New York Post.

CBS reportedly plans an aggressive promotional campaign this summer in an attempt to boost ratings.

CBS really intends to get to the bottom of this, to an extent that was unknown until this past Tuesday, when IowaHawk blew the whistle. Here’s just part of the “inside story,” according to Ace Detective Dan Rather:

“It just doesn’t add up,” said Moonves, pacing the floor of his office and daubing the sweat from his glistening forehead. “The research boys Q-tested Katie with all the upscale demographic groups. We balanced all the war disaster stories with soft focus celebrity news. And still our numbers are leaking worse than a viewer in our core bladder control product advertising target.”

“Those viewers have to be somewhere, Moonves,” I said. “Maybe it was an inside job. Maybe it was the other nets.”

“No dice Rather,” he said, pouring another shaky four fingers of Ensure into his highball glass. “the audience embezzlers been hitting every precinct in town – ABC, NBC, CNN, MSNBC. They hit Time and Newsweek so hard that even the dentist offices won’t touch ‘em. If we don’t do something soon we’re gonna lose the Poligrip account!”

“Dan, do you think…do you think this has something to do with the internet mob?” said Couric, a pall of perky horror washing over her mug.

“I’m way ahead of you, baby. We’ve got some bloggers to talk to.”

She kicked me in the nuts again.

“Ow!” I screamed. “What was that for?”

“I thought you were going to slap me again,” she said.

I had to hand it to her. She was learning.

****************
“Where are we going Rather?” asked Couric, slinking into the passenger door of my black Hudson.

“Townhall. We’ve got a surprise date with Cleveland Huey and his crew.” I packed my Sony FV-100 noise canceller mic into its holster in case of trouble.

A few minutes later we arrived at the nondescript hall deep in the Blogosphere Bowery. We pushed through the filthy padded door and made our way to a smoky backroom. Huey was seated at a card table, around which sat a rogue’s gallery of sleazy online opinion slingers: Beantown Barney, the head of the Boston family; Mongo Steyn, the hulking French Canadian punditry thug; Duffer Hitchens, the East End goon with a taste for brutal polemics; and Jimmie Fargo, capo of the Twin Cities blog syndicate.

Jackpot, I thought. I knew they were up to their fedoras in some kind of audience heist. Trouble was, it would be next to impossible extracting information out of them. Hewitt and his gang were notoriously tight-lipped, and were blood-sworn to the Blogosphere code of silence. Getting two words out of this bunch of mutes would be harder than getting a proportional font out of a ’68 IBM Selectric.

“Nice little hideout you got here Huey,” I said sauntering up to the table. Couric’s fingers clutched my arm tightly. “There’s probably enough room here to stash a million or two missing TV news viewers.”

“You’ve got it all wrong, pally,” said Huey, tossing cards around the green felt. “This joint here is a, whattayacallit…”

“Social club,” offered Mongo, discarding a pair.

“Yeah yeah, social club. That’s it. Place for me and the boys to get away from the wives. Play some cards, talk about the weather. How’s the weather in Minneapolis these days, Jimmy?”

“The usual,” said Fargo, shooting me a straight razor glare.

“See what I mean, Rather? Strictly small talk.”

“Yeah yeah, boss, small talk,” said Beantown.

“Shaddup, stupid!” he glared. “Just play your hand, real easy-like.”

“That’s not the word on the street, Huey,” said Couric, angrily. “Word is you and your pals are packing microphones and rolling up a lot of hit counts.”

“Oh sure, doll, we do a little radio, and blog once in a while,” said Huey. “Just a little fun. But I ain’t touched a TV studio ever since I left PBS. Ain’t dat right, Hitchens?”

“I don’t know nuthin’ about nuthin’,” said the menacing Limey, slamming back a shot of Yoo Hoo chocolate beverage. “Gimme three.”

“If I were you, Rather, I’d go snoopin’ out in L.A.,” said Hewitt. “That’s where all the action is. Any of you mugs got an 8?”

“Go fish!” snapped Gnat, Jimmy Fargo’s pint sized gun moll.

There’s a happy ending, of course. You can read the rest of “The Ratings Always Drop Twice” here. To quote Mr. Reynolds: Heh.

Today’s Pic: Crank up The Way-Back Machine and set the controls for the summer of 1998 (this being the first day of summer and all). This is SN3 getting ready to go out and stomp in a few puddles. Actually, he’s taking a short break as he had already been out doing just that, with active participation from both TSMP and me. Life’s small pleasures, and all that.

Fairport, NY. July 4, 1998.

Ramble On...

Follow-up…Monday I gave all y’all a link to a National Geographic article on Rory Stewart, the young Scotsman who’s on a quest to save Old Kabul. I didn’t notice it at the time, but there’s a link on the NatGeo site to a photo essay on Mr. Stewart and places in Kabul the author, Mr. Stewart, and the NatGeo photographer visited. There are 23 photos, all quite good (Hey, it IS NatGeo we’re taking about here!). Recommended.

Hat tip: Shaun Mullen at The Moderate Voice. I should point out Chap had this story on June 16^th, I stole it from Chap on the 18^th, and The Moderate Voice posted it today. Good stuff makes the rounds on these here inter-tubes, now, don’t it?

Via Gerard…Here’s “Roger That!”

The man has a point.

You could do worse than stopping by van der Leun’s place today. No new essays or other tours de force, but he does have a collection of good links to check out. His “Airbus saving the planet” link is good, but I particularly like what he has to say about Mikey:

Sicko's gonna make you sick: Forget the film. You can avoid that. What you can't avoid will be the next 500 cable news segments about Michael Moore, the 18,620 blog posts about Michael Moore, and the endless images of Michael Moore. Brace yourself.

Gerard’s right…it’s already begun. I think I caught two or three flashes of Moore’s fat ass last night alone. The ol’ remote is gonna get quite the workout during the next week or so. (No link. If you’re all that interested in The Fat Guy, google him.)

The Nutroots on The Nutroots:

The woman at the podium is the pseudonymous blogger Digby (of Hullabaloo), in her first public appearance (as far as I know). She was accepting, on behalf of progressive bloggers— all those people you see behind her —the Paul Wellstone Citizen Leadership Award. In so doing, she invoked every single moonbat cliché there is, save one (there wasn’t any mention of the 9/11 Truthers; Thank God for small favors). But anyway…if you want to know what drives the Nutroots, Digby explains it all. You can’t make this stuff up.

From yesterday’s Guardian (UK) “China overtakes US as world's biggest CO2 emitter:”

China has overtaken the United States as the world's biggest producer of carbon dioxide, the chief greenhouse gas, figures released today show.

The surprising announcement will increase anxiety about China's growing role in driving man-made global warming and will pile pressure onto world politicians to agree a new global agreement on climate change that includes the booming Chinese economy. China's emissions had not been expected to overtake those from the US, formerly the world's biggest polluter, for several years, although some reports predicted it could happen as early as next year.

It’s gonna be real interesting to see how the Global Warming climate change Chicken-Littles are gonna spin this lil bit of information…and whether or not there will be calls to include China in global targets for greenhouse gas emissions. You’ll remember, of course, that China was exempted from the Kyoto Protocol. Because they’re… you know…“developing.” Well, it looks like they’ve developed to the point where they’re outstripping the perpetually-guilty party among the community of nations, eh? As far as emissions go, anyway.

So. Becky tagged me with a meme while I was off on my mid-life crisis motorcycle mega-ride last month, and Kris tagged me day before yesterday with what I think is the same one…to wit: tell us eight things we don’t know about you. Pretty hard, that. It’s not easy to come up with eight things you don’t know, as I tend to share everything… “everything” being code for “too much information,” as it were. And then there’s that gray area concerning the statute of limitations for various and sundry things. I dunno if one can effectively blog from jail. But anyway. Let us attempt to fill this square.

1. I didn’t get serious about life until I was well into my 30’s… Up until that time my life could have been characterized by a single phrase: “I’m here for the party.” And party I did. It’s amazing I managed to survive, and I credit The Second Mrs. Pennington for turning me around saving my life. But, you knew that last bit, Gentle Reader.
2. I voted for George McGovern in ’72. Worse yet, I voted for Carter in ’76. Dept. of Everlasting Shame.
3. Things I did to make (extra) money as a young airman: Bagged groceries. Weeded bean fields. Busted tires in the tire shop at Sears Roebuck. Cleaned a beauty shop every Sunday night for a year.
4. I got fired from the tire shop job at Sears. The only time I’ve ever been fired in my life. I destroyed a radial tire while trying to mount it. The foreman had absolutely no sense of humor about that.
5. I hate carrots.
6. The Second Mrs. Pennington and I hitch-hiked from Tokyo to Kyoto over the Christmas holiday in 1975. It was only after we returned (by train) from Kyoto that we learned one simply doesn’t hitch-hike in Japan. Ever.
7. The most amazing place I’ve ever been is Cappadocia. Ever.
8. London is my favorite city in all the world.

And there you have it, Gentle Reader. Can we have a moratorium on memes, now?

The Fruits of This Morning’s Labors…

So. Remember last week I said I was gonna get outside and wash and wax The Green Hornet? Well, I made it outside, only to decide that 60 degrees was just a bit too chilly to play around in the water. I blew it off, in other words.

Not so this morning. I was done with the coffee and as much surfing as I felt I could take by 0830 today, chiefly because I got up at oh-dark-thirty this morning. And that included putting up today’s main post. And it was warm outside…75 degrees already.

Ergo: wash and wax the car. Done by 1100. And this is the result, Gentle Reader. She doesn’t look too bad for a six and a half year old, eh? (Click for larger...and to see her in ALL her glistening glory. Heh.)

Today. P-Town.

The Warrior Class

In my miscellaneous ramblings around the ‘net this morning I came upon two essays that are (a) a bit longish and (b) required some substantial thought…at least on my part. I suggest reading them in order, beginning with Robert Kaplan’s “On Forgetting the Obvious” before moving to “"The Emergence of a Separate American Warrior Caste," by Dymphna at The Gates of Vienna. The reason for the order of reading is simple: Dymphna draws heavily upon Kaplan’s essay and extrapolates meaning from the points Kaplan makes. The theme should be obvious from the title of the second essay. The title of Kaplan’s essay is less intuitive but has everything to do with the disappearance of, shall we say, the martial spirit in America and the rest of the West’s liberal democracies, Europe in particular. Here’s an excerpt or two from Kaplan:

Alas, in the unpredictable fog and Clausewitzian “friction” of war, to believe in something is more important than to be blessed by mere logic, or to have the ability for talented argument—even more important than the marvelous gear one carries. “Faith is the great strategic factor that unbelieving faculties and bureaucracies ignore”, retired Army Lt. Colonel Ralph Peters wrote in the Weekly Standard in February 2006. This is not a new idea, of course, just an obvious but too often forgotten one. It suggests particularly that we have forgotten Dostoyevsky, who wrote in The Brothers Karamazov that the signal flaw of the upper classes is that they “want to base justice on reason alone”, not on any deeper belief system absent which everything can be rationalized, so that the will of a society to fight and survive withers away.

Peters fears that Islamic revolutionaries believe in themselves more than we believe in ourselves. Terrorists do not fear the Pentagon’s much touted “network-centric warfare”, he writes, because they have mastered it for a fraction of a cent on the dollar, “achieving greater relative effects with the Internet, cell phones, and cheap airline tickets” than have all of our military technologies. Our trillion-dollar arsenal, he notes, cannot produce an instrument of war as effective as the suicide bomber—“the breakthrough weapon of our time.” If not Dostoyevsky, Kipling would have understood this. In the poem “Arithmetic on the Frontier” Kipling writes that as the hillsides of eastern Afghanistan teem with “home-bred” troops brought from England at “vast expense of time and steam”, the odds remain “on the cheaper man”, the native fighter. The suicide bomber is Kipling’s “cheaper man” incarnate.

[…]

Faith is about struggle, about having confidence precisely when the odds are the worst. Faith is the capacity to believe in what is simultaneously necessary but improbable. That kind of faith is receding in America among a social and economic class increasingly motivated by universal values: caring, for example, about the suffering of famine victims abroad as much as for hurricane victims at home. Universal values are a good in and of themselves, and they are not the opposite of faith. But they should never be confused with it. You may care to the point of tears about suffering humankind without having the will to actually fight (let alone inconvenience yourself) for those concerns. Thus, universal values may pose an existential challenge to national security when accompanied by a loss of faith in one’s own political values and projects.

The loss of a warrior mentality and the rise of universal values seem to be features of all stable, Western-style middle-class democracies. Witness our situation. The Army Reserve is desperate for officers, yet there is little urge among American elites to volunteer. Thus our military takes on more of a regional caste. The British Army may have been drawn from the dregs of society, but its officers were the country’s political elite. Not so ours, which has little to do with the business of soldiering and is socially disconnected from what guards us in our sleep. According to Marine Maj. General Michael Lehnert, nine Princeton graduates in the class of 2006 entered the military, compared to 400 in 1956, when there was a draft. Some Ivy League schools had no one enter the military last year. Only one member of the Stanford graduating class had a parent in the military.

Dymphna picks up where Kaplan leaves off…or rather expounds upon some of the ideas Kaplan introduces, amplifying them with personal experience.

I would venture that the warrior class in this country is diverted somewhat into the police force and fire brigades. These are jobs requiring valor and extremes of courage. But their numbers are not enough to sustain us against our aggressors. Where are the officers to come from? Many elite schools don’t even permit ROTC components on their campuses, though they are more than glad to take federal monies. In a real world, schools which banned the military should not be eligible for federal aid. But then again, except for a few outstanding examples, our Imperial Congress is made up of people who definitely do not belong to Mr. Kaplan’s warrior class. Far from it: even those charged with military affairs are rude and demanding when they call officers from the Pentagon to appear before their courts to be admonished, blamed, and sarcastically ridiculed.

I grew up in a warrior town during the period of national service. It was simply expected: at some point in your late teens or early twenties, you gave two years to your country and then you went home. The warrior class then was distributive and many men remembered their service if not with fondness, at least with a wry understanding of how much they’d learned and grown in those years. It is seldom I have run across men of that generation who complained about the burden. For the most part, they were glad to have done it — to have it behind them.

That world is gone. Now our warrior class must be drawn from a shrinking population of those who believe in this country and share a common faith that it is worth defending. Those who do not share that faith also often don’t respect the motives or character of those who remain proud of their service to their country.

None of this is really new. It’s been going on for quite sometime, and the effect is cumulative. When I say the effect is cumulative, I’m speaking specifically of the issue Dymphna only grazes…that our power elites, while giving lip-service to the service and sacrifice of the warrior class, truly do not understand the ethos of that class, nor the guiding principles that motivate the warrior class, those being Duty, Honor, Country. I base this observation on what these people…our leaders…actually DO, as opposed to what they say. One can begin with their resumés and you’ll note that precious few of our leaders have actually served. There are exceptions, Thank God, but the exceptions only serve to prove the rule. Look a little deeper and you’ll find that far fewer of our leaders actually have sons or daughters that are serving today, for whatever reason. It goes back to that chasm both Kaplan and Dymphna discuss— the chasm between that separates our elites from the people that defend the nation: our warrior class.

I encountered widespread ignorance of, and contempt for, the military shortly after I retired in 1985 and went into the business world. Not in the organization I joined, I should emphasize. When I retired I went to work for Electronic Data Systems (EDS) when Ross Perot (a Boat and Barge School alumnus) still owned the company and pretty much called all the shots. Perot had an affinity for hiring retired and former (one-hitch) military types. As a matter of fact, during my interview process with EDS in Detroit (before I took the job) I met so many former Air Force Communications Command (AFCC) guys I knew from my past life that I thought AFCC had moved its headquarters to Detroit. We later took to calling the building I worked in “AFCC North.” But I digress…

So EDS was jokingly referred to as “a paramilitary organization,” most often by people who had no frickin’ clue as to why Perot liked military guys. Perot liked us because of those values I mentioned earlier… the values, the discipline, the attitude, the belief in something greater than yourself, which are all part of the territory. All of it. Stuff the Warrior Class takes for granted. Perot understood that, because he himself was a member of that Warrior Class, and he wanted people around him that shared, no, lived those values, as he did. And Perot built a damned successful business on the values of the Warrior Class. So, where am I going with this?

Ultimately, I don’t know. I want to believe the gap between the general population and the military isn’t as great as all that. But wanting to believe this, in the face of all evidence to the contrary, is foolish. Things really aren’t going to change in this country until college professors, doctors, and CEOs tell their sons to enlist, or to sign up for ROTC and accept that commission upon graduation. Until we get back to the point the Greatest Generation was at in 1941. Until people like my father are no longer the exceptions by encouraging their sons to serve, but the rule. Until we give the Warrior Class more than lip service in the form of those goddamned yellow bumper stickers and magnets. Until we believe in ourselves enough to fight.

I hope it’s not too late.

I'm Baaaack....

Suspicions confirmed:

OK, I don’t code, can barely spell “SysAdmin,” and, like 87% of the Western World, I use a PC…not a Mac. But being nerdy goes beyond computers. And I think that’s what upped my “nerd quotient.” That, and 17 years in the IT Biz.

(h/t: Kris, in New England)

This week’s tempest in a teapot… Doubtless you’ve heard Queen Elizabeth knighted that bête noir of the radical Islamists, Salman Rushdie. And the usual suspects have their knickers in a twist. My language is way too dismissive, however. It’s so far over the top as to be unbelievable when a cabinet-level minister of a government, any government, endorses suicide attacks for any goddamned reason. In the West, that is. Not so in countries dominated by 7^th Century political ideologies, I suppose. Here’s Captain Ed on the subject:

This points up a well-known problem among Muslims, even those considered somewhat moderate and cosmopolitan. They refuse to allow for any criticism of their faith, even from fellow Muslims. While Christians and Jews and Buddhists react to criticism with debate and protest, Muslims react with violence, usually encouraged by governments throughout Asia. Twenty years ago, it was Iran that encouraged assassins to target Rushdie, and now Pakistan has renewed the contract.

Sometimes I buy into the “clash of cultures” meme, sometimes I don’t. Today? I’m buying the whole nine yards. You simply cannot reason with idiots like these, much the same as you cannot reason with a rabid dog. You just gotta kill it.

More from the Middle East…an interesting take on the situation in Gaza. “An Israeli in Ramallah:”

Wearing Ralph Lauren polo shirts and speaking fluent Hebrew, they told hair-raising stories of teenage boys presumed loyal to Fatah being flung from the fourteenth floor of office buildings, their hands shackled and their mouths taped shut. One man said that the Hamas fighters had behaved worse than the Nazis. All this should be taken with a grain of salt, of course: Nazi comparisons are flung around with abandon in the Middle East, and we have not heard from the Hamas fighters what the Fatah guys may or may not have done to them. The unspoken message, though, is interesting: suddenly Fatah represents the reasonable, civilized Palestinians. They speak Hebrew, they look like us and they sound like us, and Islamist militants threaten them just as they threaten Israel.

As a commenter to this piece noted… “This is better writing -- and MUCH better reporting -- than we get from The Times.” Agreed.

And finally…a condom ad that’s painfully funny.

And here’s something you’ll probably never, ever see on this blog again: the hat tip goes to LitBrit at Shakesville. Credit where credit is due, and all that. She has more condom ads posted, by the way. Just in case you might be, ya know… interested. In a strictly academic sort of way, of course. (Work safe. And pretty funny, too.)

Today’s Pic: Two scoots, taking a break beside the road in Colorado. I like this pic…a lot. The ‘Zuki looks like it’s same size as Buck’s bike, but it’s not. The fact that she’s parked about six or eight feet behind Buck’s ride conceals the fact that she’s bigger…a lot bigger. Maybe even too big.

May, 2007.

Just for Starters...

Via Chap, a story about a highly unusual, dynamic, and driven Scotsman named Rory Stewart:

In 2002 Rory Stewart walked across war-torn Afghanistan, alone and in winter. In 2004 he served as deputy governor to a province in southern Iraq. Now Stewart has returned with a heroic charge: Save the Old City of Kabul from destruction and remind a nation of its former glory.

[…]

Stewart's interest in hero figures stems back to a childhood that's absurdly precocious and doesn't seem quite real. His entire life has the feel of an Edwardian adventure novel. His father, Brian Stewart, one of a long line of self-sufficient Scottish Highlanders, fought on the beaches of Normandy before becoming deeply involved in counterinsurgency operations against guerrillas fighting the British colonial government of what is now Malaysia. He worked as a diplomat and learned seven Asian languages and dialects. Rory's mother, Sally, an economist and academic, once crossed the Hindu Kush herself, driving a jeep from London to Malaysia for a teaching position at the University of Malay. Rory grew up partly in Malaysia after being born in Hong Kong in 1973. When he and his father weren't ambling into the rain forest to build makeshift rafts and float down jungle streams, they were traveling with Sally to Dayak villages in Borneo to visit friends and stay in longhouses.

And that’s just the roots of the man’s childhood. One would expect an individual raised by educated, adventurous parents to turn out the same, and so he has. Stewart, a man who has accomplished much in his short life (“In 2002, when Stewart walked from Herat, in western Afghanistan, to Kabul, in the east, he did so mostly by himself and in the dead of winter…” and wrote a best-seller about the adventure, too), is heading up a somewhat quixotic mission to save Kabul’s Old Town.

A most intriguing read, this is. I decided to post this as a stand-alone opener to the day as I've been chasing links and reading about the amazing Mr. Stewart for the past two hours. I don't expect you to be quite as obsessive, Gentle Reader, but you could do a lot worse today than stopping to read the NatGeo piece...at the very least.

The Way We Were…

…as opposed to the way we are aren’t.

Harbor Beach, Michigan. June 17, 1978.

In the beginning…during our courtship… The Second Mrs. Pennington and I spent a lot of time at this little coffee shop not far from her apartment in Musashi-Koganei (a Tokyo suburb). Like most Tokyo coffee shops at the time, this one had a really excellent, state-of-the art stereo system and a huge collection of albums. Patrons were encouraged, and I mean encouraged…it was almost demanded…to let the owners know their preferences in music. It was customary for the shop to play an entire album side of whichever artist you requested. Early on…within hours, if not minutes…TSMP and I discovered we both had a mutual love and admiration for Neil Young. And the help at “our” coffee shop learned this pretty quickly, as well. From about our third or fourth visit it became standard procedure for the help to put Neil’s “Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere” (side one) on as soon as we walked in, no questions asked. With big smiles all around, especially from us.

So…in celebration of what was, what could have been, and to a much lesser extent, what IS…here’s “Cinnamon Girl” (side one, cut one) from that album.

Lyrics:

I wanna live
with a cinnamon girl
I could be happy
the rest of my life
With a cinnamon girl.

A dreamer of pictures
I run in the night
You see us together,
chasing the moonlight,
My cinnamon girl.

Ten silver saxes,
a bass with a bow
The drummer relaxes
and waits between shows
For his cinnamon girl.

A dreamer of pictures
I run in the night
You see us together,
chasing the moonlight,
My cinnamon girl.

Pa sent me money now
I'm gonna make it somehow
I need another chance
You see your baby loves to dance
Yeah...yeah...yeah.

Happy Anniversary.

(PS: The white tux was her idea, Lou…not mine. Being the wise old man I was (hah!), I protested weakly but gave in. I knew which side my bread was buttered on — then, as now. I have an immediate grasp of the obvious.)

A Very Slow Saturday

So. Here it is, a bit way past noon, and past my self-imposed posting deadline, which also happens to be noon. Arbitrarily so, I might add. But noon seems reasonable for a guy who has no particular place to be at any given time, and absolutely no reason at all to be anywhere other than where I choose. Still and even, one needs structure in one’s life if your principal objective is to retain your sanity. Simply because it all just falls apart without structure. I’ve seen it happen, and it ain’t pretty.

That was a rather long digression from the original thought, which was: I’m late. What’s worse is I have little or nothing to say this morning. But that’s OK, I suppose. Saturdays are low-traffic days— the lowest, actually — as most folks are off doing things that involve real-life on Saturdays rather than reading blogs. I can’t come up with a better rationalization for not having material, Gentle Reader.

But I can, and will, point you to a rather amazing essay in two parts by the inimitable Bill Whittle: “You Are Not Alone.” This is the best thing I’ve read this month—inspirational, powerful, and above all…full of TRUTH. You will not be disappointed.

(h/t: Philmon)

Oh…wait! One more thing. Yesterday I joined a Yahoo group called USAF Radar Sites Veterans; out of former professional interest, ya know. So this morning I received my first e-mail digest of yesterday’s message traffic from/to the group. I found the following message (a part of the digest) quite interesting:

Hello Tom and the rest of the "gang,"

Yes, I remember it well. Before being stationed at Yuma/Vincent('58-'59), I remember deploying there once a year for gunnery. We would fly our F-86D/L's in, bringing our T-Birds for parts pick-up flights and runs to home base. We also brought our motor scooters (most of us had them) because there was not enough transportation at the base to run us back and forth from the motel near down-town where we stayed for the first two weeks. The AF would transport the scooters in for us in a C-124 or C-119.

The deployment was for a month, the first half we lived off-base, the second half on. We really looked forward to shooting on the range (mostly at Delmar targets {chaff filled fiberglass "bombs"}), but the headquarters weenies would come out of the woodwork and try to get on the schedule darned near every day...

The clubs were always jumping! It was a month long party... on weekends we would fly all the aircraft back to home station to visit the wife and kids (except for the few lucky ones that didn't get an aircraft that weekend... There were more pilots than aircraft), who would stay behind and continue the party.

There were lots of runs to Mexico to bring back cheap booze and five gallon cans of pure alcohol. We would get a couple of stock-pots from the mess hall and put fruit in them, pour in the alcohol, put on the lid and wait for a few days. A peach or a slice of watermelon would knock you on your ear. Good stuff!

These days the clubs, especially the O'clubs, are dead as door-nails. NO ONE but the retirees uses them. Everyone is afraid of having one too many and ending their career. No more "stag bars" or "happy hours." Sadly, it is a different Air Force than the one we knew. They don't even speak the same language any longer.

I'm glad I served where and when I did, and Yuma/Vincent, later Tyndall, were among the best. Lots of fond memories...

(Nickname redacted)
(Full name redacted again)
Brig. General, USAF(Ret.)

I’ve removed the general’s name even though this message was sent to over 2,600 members of the USAF Radar Veterans group. The Yahoo group is a members-only organization and has some semblance of privacy and/or exclusivity. Not so with EIP: this is a public forum. I simply cannot imagine a general officer on active duty in the current force waxing nostalgic about great good times that involved mass-quantities of alcohol, non-stop partying, and the like. And more’s the pity. “We work hard and we party hard” used to be a very common expression in all the military services, but those days are long gone. As I told SN1 and SN2 in an e-mail this morning: this is not your father’s Air Force. I agree with the general: I’m glad I served when and where I did, with emphasis on the when. I just don’t think I’d be a good fit in Today’s Air Force.

Once again: more’s the pity.

Today’s Pic: Further evidence of my lack of motivation today…yet another pic from Arches. I thought the rock formation in the background was particularly stunning, rising as it does on the top of a hill. Sort of a geological crowning moment, as it were.

Arches National Park. June 2, 2007.

What I Like About Texas...

Good friend Lori in La-La Land e-mailed the link to this oh-so-excellent video. I HAD to share it with all y'all. The only change I'd have made would have been to substitute Shiner for Lone Star...but that's a nit, ain't it? (BTW: wanna guess which Lone Star reference in the vid is my favorite?)

Thanks, Lori!!

Hockey Awards and Cigars

Yesterday I wrote “…if there’s ANY justice at all in this world, Nick Lidstrom will win his fifth Norris Trophy as the NHL’s best defenseman.” Justice:

TORONTO -- There is little doubt that Detroit’s Nicklas Lidstrom is the best defenseman of his generation and, perhaps, on his way to becoming the best ever.

The 37-year-old won his fifth Norris Trophy, awarded by the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association to the League’s best defenseman, at the 2007 NHL Award Show here at the Elgin Theater on Thursday night.

This time, Lidstrom beat out a pair of Stanley Cup champions in the Anaheim duo of Scott Niedermayer and Chris Pronger. Niedermayer, who finished second to Lidstrom this year, won the 2004 Norris Trophy to break Lidstrom’s three-year stranglehold on the award. Pronger, meanwhile, has the 2000 Norris Trophy on his resume. That year, Pronger edged out Lidstrom, who was the runner-up.

But, beating quality opposition is nothing new to Lidstrom, who ranked third among all players in ice time this year (27:29), led all defenseman with a plus-40 rating and was fifth among defenseman in scoring with 62 points, including a whopping 49 assists.

Those gaudy numbers leave even his stiffest competitors doffing their helmets to Lidstrom.

I missed the awards show, but I was NOT alone. Millions— well, hundreds of thousands; this is hockey we’re talking about —of US fans also missed the show, and it wasn’t OUR fault. Frickin’ Versus. It’s hard to imagine ESPN screwing things up like that. But in their defense…it was “technical problems” that canceled last night’s live broadcast. That said, Versus could have run a banner across the bottom of the screen telling the legions of NHL fans tuning in that there would be a tape-delay rebroadcast (Film at 11:00!!) of the Awards show. But there wasn’t, ergo: Screw-Up.

Oh, btw: Sid the Kid wins the Hart Trophy (league MVP, as determined by hockey writers), the Pearson Trophy (league MVP, as determined by the players), and the Art Ross Trophy (points leader for the year); Brodeur wins the Vezina (best goalie), Alain Vigneault of the Vancouver Canucks won the Jack Adams (best coach). A list of all the winners is available at nhl.com, natch. Crosby cleaned up, didn’t he? The guy really IS that good. Pittsburgh fans are in for a long run of great hockey, much like Edmonton back in their salad days of the early 80’s. Think “Gretzky.”

Other hockey news…Can a 42-year-old goalie find success and happiness as the league’s oldest goalie in the modern era? Stay tuned this coming year to find out, because The Dominator is BACK. I think that’s pretty danged good news. Oh, Chelios recently signed a one-year deal, too. Get ready for more…much more…BS about Detroit being “old.” Until they win a lot, then it becomes “experience.”

So…Lou and I have had an exchange in the comments to my cigar post— all on the up-and-up and civil, of course — about cigars. The thrust of her comment was her father-in-law smoked cigars, constantly, and he and those around him reeked of cigar smoke. Which set me to thinking. My female acquaintance, whom I recently introduced to the pleasures of a fine cigar, had similar thoughts, i.e., “cigars stink.”

Au contraire, mes amis: cheap cigars stink. Good cigars, of which there are many, are aromatic and shouldn’t drive anyone from the room where they’re being smoked, with the possible exception of allergy sufferers. Cheap cigars— like say White Owls, Phillies Blunts, Swishers, Hav-A-Tampas, and the like—will drive me out of the room, and I love cigars. That said, I take my cigars outdoors. Smoke still fouls the environment, no matter how good it originally smells, by getting into and on every-flippin’-thing. I’m still cleaning residual cigarette smoke off the walls and such in El Casa Móvil De Pennington, and it’s been six months since I gave those nasty little buggers up.

One more thing about cigars…shopping for fine cigars is a wonderful experience. I had my first such experience while living in London in 1980 and stumbled into it quite by accident. The Second Mrs. Pennington and I were strolling down Jermyn Street, indulging our fantasies about bespoke shoes, clothing, expensive jewelry (on her part), and such when we happened by Davidoff’s, which is just off Jermyn Street. A wild hair overcame me and we went in…to a revelation. I’d never, ever, seen a humidor room before. And by room, I mean a glass-enclosed space the size of a small living room or a large master bedroom, filled floor-to-ceiling with cigars…wonderful cigars…most of which were Cuban. You cannot imagine the wonderful, woodsy, spicy aromas that filled that room, unless you’ve experienced it. As I said: revelation.

TSMP and I left the store with a number of cigars (Cuban, of course, there being no embargo in Ol' Blighty), of which she said “You’re not smoking those around me!” She changed her tune after I lit the first one, because, as I said: they smell wonderful. Every time I was in that part of The City after that I stopped in and bought a few cigars, in addition to exploring other, similar shops…of which there are many. I wonder if that’s still true, in this politically correct day and age.

And finally…I found a neat tobacconist in San Antonio when I went there last fall, and I do believe I blogged about it. The shop is a wonderful little store with a modest but adequate humidor room (about the size of a large walk-in closet) and a good selection of my favorite brands. I wish that place were closer to me, but, alas, it isn’t. These days I order my cigars off the internet, but that’s because (a) there aren’t any (real) tobacconists within 150 miles of P-Town and (b) I know what I like/want…so buying isn’t a problem. But I miss being able to “shop” a good humidor room in the company of folks who know and love the product. Who knows what I’m missing?

Today’s Pic: YrHmblScrb, All Dressed Up with Somewhere to Go. Would you believe that everything I needed for 17 days was crammed, stuffed, and otherwise jammed into the two containers you see on the back of the bike? Well, it’s almost true, Gentle Reader. I did ship a box to SN1’s place containing good slacks, dress shoes, a decent shirt and a sport coat…all for the graduation. It just wouldn’t have done to appear at a function like that dressed like this…now would it?

Cache La Poudre river canyon, May 21, 2007.

Update: An interesting essay on the humidification of cigars in Britain...if you're interested. With illustrations!

Flag Day

Old Glory on the stern of the USS Mason (DDG 87), Port Canaveral, Florida.
April, 2003.

I don’t have a “flyable” flag any longer… and no place to really fly one, even if I did… which is a break from long-standing tradition. I still have two flags in my possession, but neither is suitable for display. Or rather, I choose NOT to display them. The first is the flag that draped my father’s casket; the second is a small flag in a shadow box with mementoes from my USAF career. My father’s flag is folded and put away for safe-keeping, the shadow box flag is…well, in the shadow box.

But I AM celebrating Flag Day. I hope you are, too.

I received an e-mail from the Air Force Association this morning announcing the selection of USAF’s Twelve Outstanding Airmen for 2007. Congratulations to:

• SrA Linn Aubrey, Medical Laboratory Journeyman, Lackland AFB, TX, AETC
• SMSgt Tammy L. Brangard-Hern, Personnel Superintendent, Randolph AFB, TX, AFDW
• SMSgt Ronald A. Colaninno, Security Forces Craftsman, McGuire AFB, New Jersey, AFRC
• TSgt Jeremy L. Griffin, Fire Protection Station Chief, Patrick AFB, Florida, AFSPC
• SSgt Matthew J. Hefti, Explosive Ordnance Disposal Craftsman, Hill AFB, Utah, AFMC
• SrA Matthew C. Hulsman, Explosive Ordnance Disposal Apprentice, Elmendorf AFB, Alaska, PACAF
• TSgt Sachiko D. Jones, Lodging Manager, Royal Air Force Alconbury AB, United Kingdom, USAFE
• SSgt Jonathan C. McCoy, Pararescueman, Pope AFB, North Carolina, AFSOC
• SSgt David Orvosh,, Combat Control Journeyman, Pope AFB, North Carolina, AFSOC
• SSgt Richard W. Rose, Jr., Aerial Combat Photographer, Charleston AFB, South Carolina, AMC
• MSgt Lawrence B. Taylor, Air Traffic Controller, Kingsley Field, Oregon, ANG
• SSgt Geoffrey M. Welsh, Military Working Dog Handler, Seymour Johnson AFB, North Carolina, ACC

Each and every year since 1956 AFA selects 12 outstanding enlisted members to represent the “best of the best.” I quote:

“AFA initiated the Outstanding Airman award in 1956 to recognize outstanding enlisted personnel for superior leadership, job performance, community involvement, and personal achievements. AFA honors the Twelve Outstanding Airmen at a special banquet held during our Air & Space Conference in Washington, DC. The Twelve are chosen by an Air Force selection board made up of the Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force, a general officer and selected MajCom Command Chiefs. The Air Force Chief of Staff approves the final selections.”

You can read a short history of the program here. Biographies of this year’s honorees haven’t been released as of yet…I’ll follow up when they are.

Speaking of awards… Don’t miss the 2007 NHL Awards show tonight at 1930 hrs (Eastern) on Versus. It should be a great show, and if there’s ANY justice at all in this world, Nick Lidstrom will win his fifth Norris Trophy as the NHL’s best defenseman.

Short post today. The weather looks like it’s gonna be cooperative, so it’s off to wash, polish, and wax the Green Hornet. I may be back later.

Apropos of Nothing, Part Deux

Happiness is the UPS Guy appearing at your door with a brand-new box of cigars and a free sampler pack containing six of Cigar.com’s house-brand cigars.

I think I just might go outside, sit my ol’ ass down in the gentle (?) breeze, and sample one of the house brands. And the sun is over the yardarm, albeit just barely, so I won’t feel guilty about pouring a suitable libation to go along…

It’s that kinda day. As is every day, come to think on it.

Apropos of Nothing…

Robin over at Chickenhawk Express nails my heretofore unexpressed and unwritten thoughts concerning (About) BDS, BBS (Bush Betrayal Syndrome) and IDS (Immigration Derangement Syndrome).

What she said. We right-of-center folks are eating our own, young and old, and nothing…I repeat: nothing… good is coming out of this. And don’t think the idiots opposition on the Left doesn’t realize it; they’re laughing out loud at our angst. I wish it would STOP. Fat chance.

Hat tip: The Anchoress.

Is It Wednesday? Already?

The “Two-State Solution,” Palestinian style… From the Jerusalem Post:

A sign of Fatah's predicament in the Gaza Strip was illustrated late Monday night when its leaders announced a unilateral cease-fire, only to be snubbed by Hamas. Fatah leaders also made urgent appeals to a number of Arab governments to interfere to stop the fighting, but their calls have fallen on deaf ears. The Egyptians, Saudis and Jordanians - who have, until now, been making huge efforts to end the anarchy in the Palestinian areas - are all fed up with the Palestinians.

Unless the fighting stops in the next day or two, the entire Gaza Strip is likely to fall into the hands of Hamas. All Fatah can do now is vent its anger at the remaining handful of Hamas representatives in the West Bank. The majority of the Hamas leaders in the West Bank are in Israeli jails and the Islamic movement does not have a strong military presence there.

[…]

One of the options facing Abbas is to break up the coalition partnership with Hamas and to officially declare war on the Islamic movement.

Whatever decision Abbas and his Fatah lieutenants take, it will be hard to change the new reality that has been created on the ground, especially in the Gaza Strip. As of today, the Palestinians can boast that they have two entities - one in the Gaza Strip run by Muslim fundamentalists and another one in the West Bank under the control of secular Fatah leaders.

"The two-state solution has finally worked," a Palestinian journalist in the Gaza Strip commented sarcastically. "Today, all our enemies have good reason to celebrate."

There are lots of interesting points in the referenced article, not the least of which is the claim the rest of the Arabs are “fed up” with the Palestinians and appear to be content with letting Gaza slide into full-blown civil war. The second interesting point, to me, is Abbas’ failure to grasp that the issue has already been forced by Hamas. It appears Hamas has absolutely NO intention of trying to compromise with Fatah, and one wonders what alternate reality Abbas is living in if he really thinks he can come to an accommodation with Hamas. And the third interesting point (from my POV, once again) is that the West was fully justified in withholding aid and support from the Hamas-dominated government. One can only imagine what sort of Hell would have eventually erupted if Hamas had had access to funds to more completely arm its militias. It’s obviously bad enough in Gaza, but it’s not too far beyond the pale to imagine the same sort of scenario breaking out in the West Bank, as well. Not that Israel would have let that happen…but the “what-if” scenarios involving a fully-funded Hamas government are numerous and universally bad.

Looks pretty damned bad.

The NYT has more, as does Captain Ed and The Belmont Club.

In today’s “More Preaching to the Choir” department, there’s this from the WSJ’s Opinion Journal: “Terrorists Don’t Like Art.” The lede grafs:

BAGHDAD, Iraq--Among the agonies imposed on Baghdad by tormentors in the guise of self-appointed religious enforcers is the proscription of fun. Novelty, convenience, any kind of post-Quranic ease from hardship infuriates them. Ice cream is an abomination, as is mechanized garbage collection, because such delights didn't exist in the time of the prophet. A story is told that last year, on a road overtaken by jihadis, a DVD purveyor was ordered to close because DVDs didn't exist in the time of the prophet. "Neither did the BMW you drove up in," he responded. "When you come back and tell me again on a camel, then I'll listen." They shot him some days later, for his insolence.

Imagine, therefore, the onus of courage on anyone who dares open an art gallery, let alone keeps it running since January 2006 with 26 shows and as many receptions. Such a place exists: Madarat, the last active gallery in Baghdad, just up a side road next to the Turkish Embassy in the Waziriya district near the city center. Imagine the risks involved for patrons attending an opening--how to get there safely, and then how long to stay en bloc as a provocative target, even how much precious gas to use up for art's sake. We decided to go on a quiet day at the gallery, inconspicuously and with minimal protection, hoping to sneak through town unnoticed. I was accompanied by Karima, a sculptor of ceramics who knew the place. Just to be visible in the back seat of a car with a woman offers provocation enough in many neighborhoods--Karima made the throat-cutting gesture as illustration--so we took a circuitous route to improve our chances.

Good stuff. I think you’ll like it, Gentle Reader.

So. I’ve had this project on the back-burner for nearly a week now, and the weather isn’t cooperating one whit. The project? Restore the Green Hornet to her former glistening, gleaming, pristine state of glossy goodness. Last week I bought a tube of Meguiar’s “Scratch-X” (to take out those annoying swirl marks in the clear-coat), a brand-new tin of Meguiar’s Gold-Class paste wax, and enough fresh new terry toweling and polishing bonnets to completely envelop a two-story building. All for naught, so far. First there was all that rain I alluded to last week and even commented on at length in places. There’s no rain in the forecast today, but the wind is up and airborne dust is anathema to waxing a vehicle…for obvious reasons. After I do the Hornet I plan to do the ‘Zuki, too. Assuming my motivation holds in the face of uncooperative weather. And that’s beginning to look rather dicey, at the moment.

I hate it when this happens.

Today’s Pic: Another shot of SN3, me, and My Favorite Blue Motorized Conveyance. Just prior to taking off for the back roads in Colorado’s beautiful Front Range.

May 20, 2007. Fort Collins, CO.

Anniversaries

A couple of anniversaries today…one universal in nature and one not. The universal:

It was 20 years ago today that President Reagan literally rattled the world, in every sense of the word, when, standing at Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate, he implored Mikhail Gorbachev to “tear down this wall!” Berliners (and most Germans, East and West) went crazy; the rest of the world, including our own State department…not so much. As a matter of fact, the State Department had tried to remove the “tear down this wall” line and references from the President’s speech, calling them “needlessly provocative,” among other things. Here’s Peter Robinson, the man who wrote the speech, quoted at Power Line:

With three weeks to go before it was delivered, the speech was circulated to the State Department and the National Security Council. Both attempted to suppress it. The draft was naïve. It would raise false hopes. It was clumsy. It was needlessly provocative. State and the NSC submitted their own alternate drafts—my journal records that there were no fewer than seven. In each, the call to tear down the wall was missing.

When in early June the President and his party reached Italy (I remained in Washington), Ken Duberstein, the deputy chief of staff, sat the President down in the garden of the palazzo in which he was staying, then briefed him on the objections to my draft. Reagan asked Duberstein’s advice. Duberstein replied that he thought the line about tearing down the wall sounded good. “But I told him, ‘You’re President, so you get to decide.’ And then,” Duberstein recalls, “he got that wonderful, knowing smile on his face, and he said, ‘Let’s leave it in.’”

The day the President arrived in Berlin, State and NSC submitted yet another alternate draft. Yet in the limousine on the way to the Berlin Wall, the President told Duberstein he was determined to deliver the controversial line. Reagan smiled. “The boys at State are going to kill me,” he said, “but it’s the right thing to do.”

“It’s the right thing to do.” Indeed. And it’s one of the many reasons Ronald Reagan is one of the most beloved presidents of our times…not just here in these United States, but world-wide.

Related, in yesterday’s WSJ Opinion Journal: “Hitting the Wall; Reagan’s Prophetic Berlin Speech, 20 Years Later.”

And that not-so-universal anniversary? The Second Mrs. Pennington is 51 today, which makes today an important day for three or four of us, at the very least. I strongly suspect know there are more.

Happy Birthday, Paula!

So…while I was laying in bed at oh-dark-thirty this morning, trying to decide whether to get up or attempt to go back to sleep, I hear this interesting factoid from one of the talking heads on the WX Channel: only 14% of Americans will take a two-week or longer vacation this year. The other 86% simply add a day or two to their weekends and “make do.” Thinking that the talking head was quoting from some recent article, survey, or some such, I went googling. The best I could come up with was a year-old article in the NYT, which blamed high gas prices and a fear of leaving the workplace for an extended amount of time for Americans’ stay-at-home habits. Excerpt:

SEATTLE, Aug. 19 — In August, when much of the world is hard at work trying to do nothing, Jeff Hopkins and his wife, Denise, usually take a week to chase fish in Olympic National Park — a ferry ride and two tanks of gas from here with a boat in tow. But this year, their summer vacation is dead, a victim of $3-a-gallon gas and job uncertainty.

[…]

“The idea of somebody going away for two weeks is really becoming a thing of the past,” said Mike Pina, a spokesman for AAA, which has nearly 50 million members in North America. “It’s kind of sad, really, that people can’t seem to leave their jobs anymore.”

Shrinking-vacation syndrome has gotten so bad that at least one major American company, the accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers, has taken to shutting down its entire national operation twice a year to ensure that people stop working — for about 10 days over Christmas, and 5 days or so around the Fourth of July.

And then there was this year-old piece at ABC News, which says essentially the same sort of things: (a) Americans are too insecure to leave the workplace and (b) they don’t want to deal with the “catching up” (e.g., 300+ e-mails in your in-box) required after being away for two weeks or longer.

I can relate, sorta. The two-week vacation was a rarity for me in my working days. I took a few extended vacations, but not many. It wasn’t a matter of money, it was the fact that I was always working on some very important project— corporate life or death stuff —none of which I remember now. That’s how important those projects were in the general scheme of things: they are not remembered by me…or (I strongly suspect) anyone else, for that matter.

Take your vacation: no one ever laid on his death bed wishing he had spent more time at work.

OK…all that said… My “Summer of Profligate Spending” is OVER. I did my usual monthly financial review yesterday, which occurs sometime during the week I download the current month’s credit card statement. It’s not like I didn’t know this was coming, but the realization that I’ve run up back-to-back $2,000.00+ credit card bills sorta smacked me in the face. Like I said: I knew it was coming. Getting outfitted for the new bike (last month) and a two and a half week road trip (this month) ain’t cheap. But it’s time to pull back just a wee bit and return to my normal $500.00 ~ $750.00 per month credit card expenditures for a couple of months. Then we’ll go nuts again in August.

Today’s Pic: The Birthday Girl, taken last month in a bike shop in Fort Collins, CO while we were shopping for bike paraphernalia for SN3. Not bad for 51, eh? Hell, not bad at all, regardless of age. No left-handed compliments here…

She's Whole Again...

Just back from the Big(ger) City^TM… Well, assuming a half-hour ago counts as “just back.” I had to take the ‘Zuki over to the Suzuki store at 0800 this morning for her 3,000 mile check-up and to get that oh-so-expensive piece of plastic replaced. She looks like a sweet young thing once again, now that she’s had cosmetic surgery and a transfusion of fresh oil. I hope to keep her that way…

Lost my ‘net connection sometime last evening (after I went to bed) and it was still out when I left this morning. Thus, there was no surfing and no posting this morning. I’ve yet to make the rounds, but figured I'd put up today’s pic and a short blurb before I do. I may be back later. And I may not.

Today’s Pic: And an explanation. First the pic…a long telephoto “grip and grin” shot of granddaughter Monique receiving her diploma. This may be the only such pic in existence, although I did notice a professional photographer strategically placed during the ceremony.

You’ve been quite kind, Gentle Reader, in not pressing the point about graduation pics. The reason I haven’t posted any is simple: there aren’t any others besides this one. When I said things were hectic at SN1’s house on graduation day I was probably understating the case. There wasn’t time…or time wasn’t made…for cap ‘n’ gown pics. People got right to work.

And now you know the rest of the story…

June 1, 2007. Ogden, Utah.

Après Le Deluge…

(The title being a reference to the stupendous amount of rain we received last night; "buckets" would be an understatement of gigantic proportions. Which is neither here nor there. Well, it IS here... But let's get started.)

Courtesy of the NYT… “The Jihadi’s Guidebook.”

With Islamist violence brewing in various parts of the world, the set of rules that seek to guide and justify the killing that militants do is growing more complex.

This jihad etiquette is not written down, and for good reason. It varies as much in interpretation and practice as extremist groups vary in their goals. But the rules have some general themes that underlie actions ranging from the recent rash of suicide bombings in Algeria and Somalia, to the surge in beheadings and bombings by separatist Muslims in Thailand.

There are rules, according to the authors of this piece, and I find them somewhat interesting, if only for the rationalizations and excuses employed by jihadis when they violate the Koran’s teachings. Other than that? Not so much… Perhaps I should lend a little more credence to the content of this article than I do, but the whole jihad thing still strikes me as a 17^th Century movement based upon barbaric and bankrupt principles.

George Will, writing in the NYT Sunday Book Review (Land of Plenty):

Ever since mass affluence, a phenomenon without precedent in the human story, exploded upon postwar America, social and political theorists have wondered, and worried, about the moral and even the spiritual consequences of material conditions. Putting scarcity behind us has been pleasant, but has it been good for us — meaning good for our souls?

Well, yes. Yes, it has. Whereas Will goes to great length to justify his conclusion, extensively quoting from obscure (to me, at least, but probably not unfamiliar to habitual NYT readers) philosophers and economists, any fool with a passing knowledge of our history and our present circumstances realizes we are clearly much better off than we were, say, 100 years ago. I think 12 million illegal immigrants also make the point quite effectively, as well. Why else would they come here?

Robert McFarlane (Marine officer and former Security Advisor to President Reagan), writing in today’s Opinion Journal:

Thirty-nine years ago, halfway through my second tour in Vietnam, the Tet Offensive was launched by North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces, who were soundly defeated on the battlefield. Two measures of that battle--both relevant to the situation in Iraq today--stand out for me. The first relates to an important lesson U.S. forces had learned after three years of conflict: the vital role of "winning hearts and minds" of the local population. The second concerns the power of the press to affect our ability to sustain violent warfare.

[…]

Today, four years into the war in Iraq, we've come full circle to the point reached 40 years ago--unfortunately in both respects. On the one hand we've found military leaders--men such as Army Gen. David Petraeus and Marine Lt. Gen. Jim Mattis--with a solid grasp of what is needed to turn the military tide, and who are managing that task with early evidence of success. More money is going into winning hearts and minds. More resources are being devoted to quality of life fixes that are visible to Iraqis. Shuttered factories are being opened in a major new program launched by Deputy Secretary of Defense Gordon England and headed by his subordinate Paul Brinkley. A major agricultural program is about to be launched in Anbar province, again under Pentagon leadership.

The truly good news is that the results are being felt. Sheiks and tribal leaders watching the changes being made in Anbar are coming our way, and offering various kinds of support to help root out al Qaeda and deal with the insurgents. Yet news of these successes is very hard to find in our mainstream media. It's February '68 redux--with far greater consequences I fear.

This is not news…rather it’s a familiar meme that’s appearing more and more often today in places like the WSJ, the Weekly Standard, and other right-of-center publications and blogs. Yet mainstream America, or more accurately, LEFT-wing America, pooh-poohs the notion that the tide is turning and we are beginning to succeed in Iraq. As Mr. McFarlane suggests, the mainstream media is largely responsible for this phenomenon. The media and their ultimate clients, the Democratic Party.

I remember 1968. Mr. McFarlane is spot on: the parallels are both eerie and scary. And the stakes are MUCH higher, this time around.

Today’s Pic: The plane Dubya flew during his stint with the Texas ANG…the venerable F-102, America’s first front-line delta-winged fighter. Its successor, the F-106, is in the back ground.

Hill AFB, last month.

A Desultory Saturday…

If you’re a real hockey fan you’ll want to follow the Adventures of Stanley this summer…

Join hockey's most prized trophy as it parties throughout the summer of 2007. Each member of the Anaheim Ducks assumes possession of the Stanley Cup for 24 hours, and you'll get an insider's view through exclusive stories and photographs as the Stanley Cup visits locations around the globe.

The STANLEY CUP JOURNAL is updated every Tuesday and Friday from the last game of the Stanley Cup Final through to the end of summer. This is followed by additional accounts thereafter up until the official engraving and ring presentation. (Ed: Emphases in original)

The Stanley Cup has made some amazing journeys during its storied history. International travel is not uncommon in this day of star Russian, Finnish, Swedish, etc., etc., NHL players. As an example, the last time the Wings won the Cup it traveled to the Czech Republic, Sweden, and Russia…just to name three countries. There’s a great photo essay of the Cup’s 2002 travels with Red Wings team members here.

One would expect 2007 to be much the same.

Ever the contrarian, Jules Crittenden feels bad for Paris Hilton. Really. Me? Not so much. I haven’t been paying that much attention. I mean, you can’t ignore her…that’s not possible if you have a TeeVee or surf the ‘net. But Mr. Crittenden’s article is about the only one I’ve actually read. And I suppose I’d have to agree that watching a full-grown woman having a total breakdown in public would be a lil bit heart-rending.

General Peter Pace will step down as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs in September. SecDef Robert Gates has nominated Admiral Mike Mullen, the current Chief of Naval Operations, to replace him. The ostensible reason for not re-nominating Gen. Pace for a second term is to avoid a brutal re-confirmation hearing* in the Senate, if you believe the official rationale delivered by Gates yesterday. There’s an awful lot of “what does this mean” talk in the media concerning Gen. Pace’s non-continuation as Chairman…much of it centering around speculation that Pace was “too close” to Rumsfeld, Pace didn’t push back against Rumsfeld enough, Pace was a leading architect of the “failed” Iraq war plans, and that Gates wants “his own man” as Chairman. I even heard one pundit characterize the action as Pace being “fired.” Gen. Pace is the first Chairman of the Joint Chiefs to only serve a single two-year term since 1964; so, yeah, relieving him is highly unusual.

I tend to agree with one pundit, whose name I cannot recall (but it might have been David Brooks on The News Hour), that it’s ironic to have troops in the field dodging bullets, mortar shells and IEDs, yet the JCS Chairman is perceived to be incapable of dodging hard questions from a few senators. I think General Pace would have done just fine at his re-confirmation hearing, based upon the performances I’ve seen him deliver in committee hearings in the past. It’s a shame that such a fine officer with 40 years of dedicated service will retire under a cloud. But that’s Washington, I suppose.

* There’s some truth to this…John F’n Kerry says:

“It is a sad state of affairs when this Administration withdraws a general they believe is qualified simply to avoid having to publicly defend their failed Iraq policy,” Senator Kerry said. “Congress has an obligation to ask tough questions about Iraq, and the architects of this war have an obligation to answer them openly and honestly. We will continue to hold this Administration accountable on Iraq. The next Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff must tell Congress and the American people the truth about this war.”

What was that the Jack Nicholson character said about the truth in “A Few Good Men?” Seems to me it applies here…

The cover story in tomorrow’s NYT Magazine is all about pretty-boy presidential candidate John Edwards. And the story is good…very good. Less for its extensive coverage on Edwards than for the author’s rational and pragmatic explanations of the underpinnings of Edwards’ much-publicized “Two Americas” campaign…including brief profiles of past attempts by politicians to address/eliminate poverty in America, beginning with Johnson’s “Great Society” and the accompanying “War on Poverty” (which was a gigantic failure, IMHO). The story is a rather lengthy read, and is written in a remarkably neutral tone, oftentimes descending into what I would call “less than favorable” opinions on Edwards and his views. At any rate I came away with a refreshed and somewhat better appreciation for my own economic views, which are decidedly Reaganesque. I’m also more thoroughly convinced than ever that Edwards’ economic views are wrong. Surprised?

Today’s Pic: More plane pr0n from the Hill Aerospace Museum…this time it’s the nose of a B-17 named “Short Bier.”

Last month…at Hill AFB.

Friday

In The Economist: Lessons From Apple. While the article doesn’t break any new (management theory) ground, it does highlight the basics of Apple’s success. One thing that’s always impressed me about Apple is this:

… Apple illustrates the importance of designing new products around the needs of the user, not the demands of the technology. Too many technology firms think that clever innards are enough to sell their products, resulting in gizmos designed by engineers for engineers. Apple has consistently combined clever technology with simplicity and ease of use. The iPod was not the first digital-music player, but it was the first to make transferring and organising music, and buying it online, easy enough for almost anyone to have a go. Similarly, the iPhone is not the first mobile phone to incorporate a music-player, web browser or e-mail software. But most existing “smartphones” require you to be pretty smart to use them.

Mr. Gates & Co. should pay attention. The PC, in addition to those “smart phones” that require an MS-EE to operate, is way too damned difficult for the “average” user to master. Macs, on the other hand, don’t seem to be all that hard for the average user to operate easily and effectively…and to “do stuff,” creative, useful stuff. Of course, that’s the thrust of Apple’s clever PC vs. Mac ad campaign. There’s serious truth at the heart of all those Mac ads. You know this if you’ve used both platforms; the ad campaign effectively makes the point even if you’ve never used a Mac. And the ads are entertaining, too.

My next PC just might be a Mac. Just sayin’.

Sorta related: Skype-founder and leading European technologist Niklas Zennstroem, on technology and how it will shape our future. Excerpt:

A technology platform that is based on a solid, intellectual, R&D driven culture has the opportunity to thrive among a hungry community that wants life made easier.

I've spent most of my professional life working in the communications industry. I've seen many technologies come and go.

The ones that fail tend to be too hard to use and impenetrable to the average consumer.

And they fail because the benefit is often overshadowed by the hype. Many potentially great technologies disappear because, quite simply, they do not give people what they want.

That's the key to it really. I am passionate about technology but it is not the never-ending quest to make things smaller, faster, lighter or cheaper that gets me motivated. The sort of new technology that I think about isn't usually born in a boardroom, a technology campus, the back of a garage or as a result of thousands of marketing focus groups.

It tends to originate from a simple idea that can be easily explained to anyone who isn't interested in how you make the technology work but more importantly, interested in what it does.

I’m such a sucker for articles like this…

Steeljaw Scribe has moved off Blogger and now has a spiffy WordPress site. Drop on over and give him a shout-out!

I’m liking the look and feel of the WordPress blogs I read…a lot. The thought has occurred to me— more than once —about moving to WordPress, as well. And why not, you may ask? Inertia, Gentle Reader. The bane of my existence.

Another anniversary, of sorts. I noted yesterday that the 40^th anniversary of the Six-Day War had just passed. Today the BBC has an article about the Israeli attack on the USS Liberty that happened during the Six-Day War, and the multiplicity of conspiracy theories surrounding that tragic attack…in which 34 sailors died and another 170 were injured. Do go read the article if you’re not familiar with the Liberty’s story…Hell, go read even if you know all about it. I learned a few new things.

Today’s Pic: Remember I told you I snapped some pictures of the violent t-storms that moved through P-Town this past Tuesday? Well, actually, the storm didn’t hit us… it passed just to the north and east of P-Town. But it sure made for some memorable pictures! Here’s one such, above.

Tuesday, June 5, 2007.

Oversight...Afterthought...Whatever

The Brothers Niedermayer Hoist The Cup

It would be churlish of me to NOT congratulate the Ducks on winning The Stanley Cup. Sooo…

Congratulations, Anaheim. You outplayed the Senators and dominated the series, to put it mildly.

Even though I haven’t blogged about hockey since the Ducks eliminated the Beloved Wings, I HAVE been watching the games. I only missed Game Four of the Finals, and that was because I was on the road this past Saturday. I watched all the rest, including last night’s final game of the 2007 season. There's NOTHING in all of sports to compare with the spectacle of the winning team skating around the rink with The Cup held high. Absolutely NOTHING.

So. What is it? Four and a half months until hockey season? That’s a loooong time…

Photo credit: LA Times.

A Happy Camper...

Another candidate enters the crowded field… David Burge, aka IowaHawk, has announced:

My Fellow Americans:

Today, our nation stands at a crossroads. The direction we take from this point forward is critical for us, and for future generations. Some of the roads we can take may now look like scenic shortcuts, but may lead to long term peril. Other roads may seem covered in potholes, but may in fact lead us to the bright promise of a roadside Stuckey's with clean, well-lit restrooms. The stakes are high, and it is important that we have the right leadership behind the wheel to avoid the geopolitical speed traps and navigate our way to a delicious future of pecan logs for all.

That is why I have taken the first step towards announcing my candidacy for the 2008 presidential campaign. I have officially formed an exploratory committee to advise me on this important decision. This blue ribbon panel includes a number of distinguished public service veterans, including Chuck Helbertson, Supervisor of the Cedar County Pool Maintenance Department, and my brother-in-law Steve Lehr, a part-time Driver's Education professional in the Dubuque public school system and defending Late Model Modifieds champion at Eddyville Speedway.

I have not taken this decision lightly. When considering a run for public office, the first thing a candidate must ask himself is: what can I, as newly elected public servant, expect to get out of this deal? I have researched this question thoroughly, and believe me: being President is a pretty sweet gig. Not only does it pay 400 large, it has plenty of perks including "three hots and a cot," and the world's most fearsome military force at my disposal.

The second thing a candidate must ask is: am I qualified for the position? Let's look at the facts. First, I am a native-born citizen of the United States. Second, I am over 35 years old. Third, I have never had a felony conviction stick beyond the appeals court. And Mister, if that's good enough for the Constitution of the United States, then that's good enough for me. Google it.

Burge lays out his platform at the link. But he had me when I read a piece of his environmental policy, to wit:

To further help reduce the nation's carbon footprint, I will order the Environmental Protection Agency to bulldoze the mansions of Al Gore, John Edwards, John Kerry, and Laurie David, and convert them to more eco-friendly use as free public drag strips. And for all serious environmentalists willing to make the ultimate Green sacrifice, I will offer discounted funerals with hybrid hearses, and framed federal carbon credits for their surviving families and animal companions.

Fred Who?

I missed it. In addition to being the 63^rd anniversary of D-Day, yesterday was also the 40^th anniversary of the Six-Day War. Gerard van der Leun noted the occasion by re-publishing his Letter to the Palestinian People (from the Israeli People). Which, by the way, was picked up and re-published today by the Israel National News. As it is with most everything Gerard writes, the Letter is worth your attention, Gentle Reader. And don’t miss the comments.

I’m a Happy Camper today, ‘net-wise. Last I checked I was getting download speeds of 347 kbps, which is the best speed I’ve ever had with this connection, period. My bitch-piss-and-moan foray down to Yucca Telecom, armed with screen shots of bandwidth tests showing me getting all of 57.7 and 39.5 kbps, was successful. A BIG shout-out, tip o’ the hat and a hearty Thank You VERY Much to Bob Turnbaugh of Yucca’s internet support function. Bob took my complaint seriously and spent quite a bit of time diving into the esoteric details of Yucca’s wireless internet service, eventually pin-pointing the issue as a failure in the dynamic bandwidth allocation mechanism on the tower my modem “shoots” to. It seems the tower continued to accept/maintain connections even when the user load saturated the available bandwidth. The end result was an on-going degradation of connection speeds for all involved.

I can even watch YouTube videos in real-time now, rather than load, hit pause and wait for the entire video to download before playing. It’s good to have a fast(er) connection, true. But I still want my fiber connection!! Which may appear sometime this summer. Sometime.

Today’s Pic: The last of the Moab/Arches pics (one should never over-do a good thing, nu?). This is a view of the Fiery Furnace, with snow-capped mountains in the distance. Just to give you an idea of the scale of this formation: those are large TREES—not bushes—in the foreground and among the rocks.

D-Day

Today is the 63^rd anniversary of D-Day. The folks at Real Clear Politics have published Ronald Reagan’s speech “The Boys of Pointe Du Hoc,” delivered on June 6, 1984 in Normandy, in its entirety. If you’ve never seen, heard, or read the address I recommend you do so now. And remember those heroes from so long ago. Too few of them are left, and those that are left are leaving us at a rapid rate. We owe them so much…

Via blog-buddy Morgan…How NOT to Use Powerpoint. Lord, how I wish this video had been around back in my day! Anyone and everyone who’s in management, be it civilian or military (and I hear the military is QUITE bad, in this respect) has been there and done that…sitting through an interminable PowerPoint presentation where some dolt literally READS all his slides to you, cheerfully ignoring the fact that his audience can read quite well on their own, thankyouverymuch. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. I’m sure you’ll relate, Gentle Reader…

More Politically Correct BS…this time it’s the British Ministry of Defense and the RAF, banning nose art.

In killer heels and little else, they have a definite deadly charm.

But the risque images of women that have decorated warplanes since the First World War have been scrubbed out.

The Ministry of Defence has decreed they could offend the RAF's female personnel.

Officials admitted they had no record of any complaints from the 5,400 women in the RAF.

[…]

Nose art enjoyed another surge in popularity during the 1991 and 2003 Gulf Wars, when risque images appeared on many British warplanes.

The decision to ban the images followed a visit by glamour models to southern Afghanistan before Christmas. During the trip they signed paintings of themselves on RAF aircraft.

Commanders decided the images were sexist and insisted there was no place for them in the modern armed forces.

There was also concern that they could cause offence in a muslim country where until 2001 all women were forced to wear the head-to-toe burkha in public.

Glamour model Lucy Pinder, 23, who visited the RAF detachment at Kandahar last November and signed a painting of herself on a Harrier jet, said such images were only "harmless fun".

No complaints from RAF women, you’ll note… but a fear of offending muslims.

Good grief.

Network issues… You may recall, Gentle Reader, that stopping by Yucca Telecom to get the story on the long-anticipated but yet to be delivered fiber connection was one of the tasks I was going to address yesterday. I got part of the story, which is the fiber still hasn’t been turned up in my part of P-Town. Less clear was why my on-premise equipment hasn’t been installed. I was promised a call-back with an explanation but have yet to receive it.

Coincidentally, my network speed dropped off to dial-up rates last evening and then disappeared altogether this morning after a period of steady degradation. I was dead in the water from about 0700 until 0845 hrs, but the service is still painfully slow. I am NOT a Happy Camper today!

Today’s Pic(s): Are you tired of Arches yet? No? Well…here’s two more…

The first pic was taken at the first viewpoint on the park road, overlooking the Visitors Center (which isn’t visible in this pic). I shot the picture for a couple of reasons; firstly to illustrate the nature of the road, which is wonderfully curvy as it climbs about a thousand feet in a mile or three; and secondly because of the colors in the rocks juxtaposed against the brilliant blue of the sky. Oh yeah, and to get the ‘Zuki in the picture, too.

The second pic is taken from the same vantage point but one can see the Visitors Center far below, as well as the highway leading into Moab. The highway, by the way, runs right on top of the Moab Fault.

As always, click the pics for the larger versions...which are actually 50% of the originals.

Dazed and Confused...

(titled with apologies to Led Zep)

So. While I may be back home, I’m certainly not “back in the groove,” whatever that means. Do I sound confused? Well, yes, I suppose I do. I’m working through this confusion, albeit slowly, and am trying to figure out just what’s up…

Take yesterday. Normally I “make the rounds” (defined as reading my favorite blogs and several news sources) first thing in the morning while working a pot of coffee. I didn’t read a single blog yesterday, and I didn’t look at the NYT, or the WaPo, or The Times (UK), or any of my other usual (news) reads. And I only had three cups out of that pot, throwing the rest away. Simply put: no desire, or rather what desire may have existed was overcome by other priorities, like paying the bills and catching up on mundane chores. I caught up on the blogs this morning but have yet to wade into the news. No desire.

Vacations are supposed to rejuvenate, restore the spirit, rest the body, yadda, yadda, yadda. And this is certainly the result of my latest excursion, in part. Well, except for the “rest the body” bit…ten hours in the saddle on the last day of the trip might better be described as low-level torture to…ahem… “a man of my age.” I still hurt, but only just a lil bit. But I digress…

There seems to be an unintended, unanticipated consequence(s) to my 17-day sojourn and I can’t quite put my finger on it, as yet. Maybe it’s time for a change? But what sort of change? A change in locale? Button up the RV and move on down the road? To where? Change in lifestyle, as in (for example) seek employment, again? Start looking for a new relationship? Is it a case of my senses and sensibilities being over-stimulated these past two and a half weeks? Am I resentful about returning to what I now perceive to be a rather mundane existence? I don’t know…

Sorry for the oh-so-personal bout of introspection. But I want to get it “on the record,” and that’s one of the reasons I blog, ya know.

I’ll whip through the last of the chores today, the first of which involves a jaunt out to the base for a major re-supply run. I’m looking forward to that, as I haven’t driven the Green Hornet in so long I may have forgotten how. I’m sure it will come right back to me…

And the second? That involves stopping into Yucca Telecom and asking just where the Hell my fiber internet connection is, now that it’s JUNE. I was told back in March or April I’d get connected “in May, June at the latest.” I wanna know what the flippin' story is....

Gonna be warm today…hot, even. The forecast says a high of 91 degrees. We had a few anxious moments last evening around sunset as some spectacular t-storms moved through the area, just to the north and east of us. I took some pictures of the cloud formations I’ll post later in the week. Today’s pic will be more from Arches…

Speaking of which: here are two views of Balanced Rock…which may be one of the most photographed formations in all of Arches. It IS breathtaking, on numerous levels.

Saturday, June 2, 2007.

Be It Ever So Humble...

…there’s no place like home. I’m there, and it’s an understatement to say I’m pleased. My own bed. My own PC. My own stuff. Getting away is nice, visiting with friends and family is nicer still, but getting back home? Priceless.

I ended as I began, which is to say I covered a whole lotta ground in one sitting. The first day of the trip saw me riding 577.6 miles in 11 hours flat; yesterday I did 591 miles in ten hours and 21 minutes. The difference? Better weather…much better weather. I dodged a bullet, though…a half hour after I got home the frickin’ bottom dropped out and we were inundated with rain. I held my breath, figuratively speaking, for the last 100 miles of the ride. There were HUGE thunderstorms to the east and the south of me as I closed in on P-Town, and it looked like I was gonna be in for it. The gods smiled on me, though, and although I got a smattering or two of rain, it was nothing serious. Fortune, for once, was on MY side.

Oh. Total mileage for the trip: 2267.7 miles. And not even one close call. That last statement just may be the most amazing thing of all.

I only did three things last evening after I got home: returned SN2’s phone call (he rang while I was on the road), took a long hot shower, and fell into bed. And I slept the sleep of the truly exhausted. This morning I feel fine, well-rested, and refreshed. Now I have to get on with life…unpack, pay the bills, and do other assorted things that have gone undone for the past 17 days. Normal blogging, such as it is, will resume tomorrow. In the meantime…

Today’s Pic: The first of perhaps six or eight pics from Arches National Park. I like this particular photo because it shows the scale of the monoliths, which are absolutely HUGE. Note the road winding into the distance and the small dots that are the cars on said road. Riding among, through and between these formations is an awe-inspiring experience.

Saturday, June 2, 2007.

From the La Quinta Inn in Beautiful Downtown Moab, Utah

An alternate title would be: "On the Road Again." All y'all can just hum along with Willie as you read this.

So. Yesterday worked out pretty much as expected: graduation came off without a hitch, speeches were delivered by faculty, valedictorians, and other dignitaries (ho-hum-- they're all the same, right? or am I jaded?), the proud graduates moved elegantly across the stage (some more so than others), parents cheered, friends blew off those obnoxious air horns, and -- finally -- mortarboard tassels were moved from left to right. Out into the world...

That was the graduation ceremony. The rest of the day was about as atypical a graduation day as one could imagine. SN1 and extended family worked late into the night on the move, still disassembling, still packing, still loading. The process isn't complete as I write. I spoke with SN1 a few minutes ago and the load-out continues. Hopefully all will be complete by the target departure date: tomorrow. Knowing Buck as I do, it will.

As for me... I left SN1's place at oh-dark-thirty (0605 hrs, to be precise) this morning and made much better time to Moab-- five hours flat--than I anticipated. The 'Zuki simply hummed along at speeds varying between 75 and 85 mph. It was something of a chore to hold the speed down to a reasonable-- and semi-legal --rate, given I was motoring in the Great Wide Open. It seemed like every other time I looked down I was doing 90 mph...or better. The authorities tend to frown on that sort of behavior, even out in the Great Wide Open. I held the 'Zuki in check and got 52 mpg...even at the speeds indicated, by the way.

Once I arrived in Moab I spent the better part of the day motoring through and around Arches National Park, which is just about as spectacular a park as there is in our National Park system. The vistas, the rock formations, the geologic wonder of it all, are simply amazing. Add in the fact that the roads winding through the park are simply made for motorcycles and you have a close approximation of YrHmblScrb's vision of Heaven on Earth. I have some great pictures to share with you once I return home.

One minor downside: it was about 95 degrees in Moab today. I didn't mind the temps when I was rolling; I made "adjustments" by turning the sleeves on my leathers up and leaving the zipper on the top part of my leathers half-open...evaporative cooling really works. But when I stopped and stepped out on one of the numerous trails I followed to various vistas: Sweat-City! Suffice it to say I really, really needed that long shower when I checked in to the motel. Now I have to figure out how to deodorize my leathers. I think Febreze will be my friend.

Ah, but the end of the day just might be the best part of the day. As luck would have it, I stumbled on to The Moab Brewery, which was just a five minute walk from the La Quinta Inn. Like Rooster's (which I blogged about previously), the Moab Brewery had great food, great service, and GREAT beer. I dined on smoked Texas tri-tip BBQ, accompanied by wonderful home-made rolls (big enough to choke the proverbial horse) and a salad dressed with a lime vinaigrette that was superlative. AND I enjoyed two pints of their fine hefeweizen, followed up with a pint of Derailleur Ale ("six types of malt and four hearty hop additions") for dessert. All this enjoyed on their patio, graced with balmy breezes, and capped off with a view of the Moab skyline...which was created by God, not man. It doesn't...can't...get any better than this, Gentle Reader.

And so to bed. I feel so good this evening I may motor on back to P-Town in one sitting, rather than two as I originally planned. I really am hot to get home, but who knows what the road holds? I certainly don't...and that's part of the beauty of not having to be anywhere at any particular time.

Life is good.

Graduation Day

Via Lex, here’s an extraordinary tale from Michael Yon about the Coalition arrest of a powerful Iraqi Police general. Everything about this story is extraordinary, and it’s something you’d never see in the NYT.

LTC Crissman, acting solely on his own and with no direct orders from above, saw that a bloodbath was about to be unleashed, and pulled a plan out of the sky. Yes, there had been a plan already afoot, but Crissman “fragged” it early, managing to arrest an entire police station without a shot being fired, and using me as a photo-op to distract a proud, some might say vain, general just long enough to disarm him.

This is the best read I’ve had in a month or so. I’m sure you’ll agree.

So. It’s Graduation Day. The actual ceremony begins at noon in an amphitheatre in Ogden…but preparations will continue apace this morning. Thus: another post of extreme brevity. I hope to be able to post pictures of The Graduate sometime later this afternoon, but I’m not sure how long the computer will remain available before it’s boxed and loaded into the U-Haul. Which, by the way, is filling up at an amazing pace. Coincidentally, the house is looking decidedly empty. Funny, that.

Today’s Pic: More plane pr0n…clear and not dark, this time. Under the wing of a C-124 Globemaster II, the first of the USAF’s large cargo haulers and a truly impressive airframe, for its time. Hell, the aircraft is pretty impressive even now…actually.