Nobody 846

Sunday, December 19, 2010

Nobody # 846

Nobody Asked Me But:

AN ARIZONA MORNING AFTER A RAINSTORM

By jim turner

Blue-black clouds, frowning as if burdened with unfinished business,

A leftover bit of rainbow reborn in the first reflection

of the morning sun,

The air cool, dishonest,

Pretending that the summer heat won’t follow.

This is an Arizona morning after a rainstorm.

David Brooks had this in his Tuesday column – “But, the truth is, there’s just been a change in the shape of the world community. In a world of relative equals, the U.S. will have to learn to define itself not by its rank, but by its values.”

I don’t know about you, but if this change in direction turns out to be true, I welcome it. It is time that we go back to being admired not for what we have but what we stand for. The world can no longer be fooled by lip-service values. They will judge us by actions, not words. Starting this week, I will write about values that, in my opinion, would, once again, make the United States a shining beacon to the world.

I’ll start at the top. We should value people more than things. Not that things aren’t neat. Of course they are. If I didn’t like them, would I have too many hats and caps for one head to ever use? But in America we have come to value things too much. We put them ahead of schools, health care and the many other programs that make up the common good.

When we reverse our priority order, when we once again like things and love people we will regain much of the respect we have lost – not to mention our own self-respect, which is even more important.<<<

Senate votes to end 'don't ask, don't tell' – puts Senator John in a very bad mood.<<<

At Barbara’s urging, I started reading “Chicken Every Sunday “ about a year ago. It was my mother’s copy, given to her by her sister when we moved to Tucson in the early 50s. I enjoyed what I read, but put it aside for more serious reading. Recently I picked it back up and finished it. Good move.

Written by daughter Rosemary, it is about the Drachman family and their early years in Tucson at the beginning of the last century. Father Drachman was a man of many interests and investments. Some went south, but, in others, he was successful enough that he has a street named after him.

But the book, later made into a movie, is about mother Drachman, an enterprising women from the Old South and the boarding house she operated for many years.

I enjoyed the book for its stories, its humor and its history. In one of the latter chapters, the author notes the changes taking place in Tucson – new restaurants (up until this change, mother’s was the best Mexican dinner in town) and new fancier hotels like the El Con and the ARIZONA INN – capitalized here as a testimonial to my love for the place.

Reading “CES” made me remember that one of the downtown shops of 1920 Tucson was owned by a South Carolina boy turned florist named Hal Burns, Greg and Elizabeth's maternal grandfather. From this it was a short trip over the synapse circuit to other memories of my Tucson life. If I mentioned any of these in past Nobodies, I am sorry – but not very.

THESE THINGS I REMEMBER

Young love, first love – Thelma Jean, Diane (the diplomat’s daughter) and, especially, Judy O’.

Buds - Jim Bauersachs, Bob Strickland and Judy Smith.

Trinity Presbyterian and, then, Mountain View Pres with Dave Sholin’s sermons.

The Christmas lights in Winterhaven.

A What-a-Burger with friends.

Softball at Orey Park.

Working at the now long-gone Safeway on Stone.

Living on Mountain Ave. – one block from the U of A campus. (It is now part of the campus.)

Taking the controls of a plane while flying over this house. (It was a small plane and the flight was courtesy of our ROTC instructor, who gave us parachutes and said that in case of trouble he would be the first one to jump.)

Hanging at the Presbyterian Student Center – just across Speedway from our house. (now the site of the Law College)

Studying for exams at 5 am. (About the only studying I did.)

The 22^nd Street Drive-In – friends, and girls and girlfriends.

U of A football games and watching Art Lupino (the Cactus Comet) run wild.

The Broadway theater and its marquee for Howards Hughes’s “The Outlaw,” with Jane Russell – “The Big Ones Come To The Broadway.”

Elizabeth Taylor renting a house in the El Encanto neighborhood and then never showing up. (She heard about the crowds peering over the back wall.)

Not going to church summer camp, and feeling envious as I listened to the stories and songs of those who did. (Get your elbows off the table Molly Roller/Get your elbows off the table Molly Roller/We have seen you do it twice, and it isn’t very nice/Get your elbows off the table Molly Roller.)

Come to think of it – a kind of mean-spirited song.

My first car, a 1934 Chevy: I tried to drive it without oil. Not good.

Summer monsoons – thunder and lightning and flooded underpasses.<<<

Now that I know that Robert A. Heinlein was an Ayn Rand devotee, I am thankful that, as a teen, I read right past the propaganda and just loved “The Puppet Masters” and “Sixth Column,” aka “The Day After Tomorrow,” for the excellent science fiction stories that they were.<<<

Last week I condemned Muslim extremists for their barbarism. This week it is the Irish. Did you know that having an abortion in Ireland carries a penalty of life imprisonment?

As most of you know, I reside in the middle ground on abortion. I think right-to-lifers are nuts and fanatics, (perhaps that is redundant) but I also have some moral qualms about abortion on demand. However Ireland’s law is an obscene intrusion of church on state.

(And for fairness sake, if Ireland is going to retain the punishment, shouldn’t the aborted baby’s father be sentenced too? Or does he escape under the “boys will be boys” clause?)<<<

BEST OF 2010 LISTS – OTHER PEOPLE’S

It is great to see that film critics in LA, NYC and Boston agree with me that “The Social network” is the year’s best movie.<<<

I think Time Magazine’s choice of Mark Zuckerberg for their Person of the Year is a good choice. I had him second to the Unemployed Americans.<<<

My television focus is, to say the least narrow, so I was a little surprised to find that I watched two of Time’s Top 10 episodes of 2010 – The Suitcase episode of “Mad Men” and the pilot of “Justified.”<<<

I am not always a huge fan of LA Times sports columnist Bill Plaschke, but his column Friday about coaches who cheat was on point. Too many coaches teach their players by word and deed that right is measured by what you can get away with.<<<

I was surprised when Michael Vick received a standing ovation when he arrived for the game between the Lakers and the 76ers. I didn’t know there were so many dog haters in Philadelphia.<<<

DYK – that Tom Brady has not thrown an interception in his last 8 games including the near blizzard last week in Chicago?<<<

One speech does not make a great president, but Eisenhower’s farewell address in which he warns America about the danger of the “military-industrial complex” earns him forever applause.<<<

Excellent Bruin win at the Wooden Classic yesterday over 16^th ranked BYU.<<<

And finally, here is a beach to stay away from.<<<

Nobody 845

Sunday, December 12, 2010
Nobody # 845

Nobody Asked Me But:

Why is it that when somebody starts or ends a quote with “no disrespect to anybody,” he is always disrespecting somebody?<<<

I didn’t know that. Boy, I could write that sentence 10,000,000,000 times and not be wrong. But just once is enough here. No sense in damaging my ego any more than necessary. I didn’t know, or if I did, I forgot, that Cleopatra was Greek rather than Egyptian.<<<

Ptolemy incest – Cleopatra’s grandmother was married to her (her being grandmother’s) uncle, which meant that her father was also her brother-in-law.<<<

I am not surprised that Google top’s Careerbliss.com’s list of the 50 best employers in the U.S. But I am shocked, shocked I say, that LAUSD didn’t even make the list.<<<

Republicans, after blocking $250 payments to those on Social Security – “It is ridiculous to think our country can afford billions of dollars in tax cuts for the wealthy and $250 payments to replace cost-of-living adjustments for those on social security. The Social Security payments must go.”<<<

Republicans, after blocking legislation on Thursday that sought to provide medical care to rescue workers and residents of New York City who became ill as a result of breathing in toxic fumes, dust and smoke from ground zero – “It is ridiculous to think our country can afford billions of dollars in tax cuts for the wealthy and also pay medical bills for 9/11 victims. The 9/11 victims must fend for themselves.”<<<

PROFITS OVER PEOPLE

It’s a common tale and an ugly one. One of the reasons the United States was drawn into the wholly unnecessary WW I was our refusal to stop supplying arms to the British, because arm sales equaled more profits for American business. How many young Americans died for this? Capitalism may be the best of the necessary evils called economic systems, but it is an evil.<<<

Last week I finished reading “Mockingjay,” the final book in Suzanne Collins “Hunger Games Trilogy” and was quite disappointed. I am as peace-loving as almost anybody, but Collins’ pacifist belief is, for me, over the top. In her story, the rebels are being tyrannized, their children murdered for entertainment, and yet her two heroes, Katniss and Peeta, repeatedly question whether the means (war) justify the end (freedom).

It does when the alternative is slavery.

And while it is true that the leader of their rebellion may turn out to be no better than the deposed tyrant, that’s a leader problem, not a condemnation of a struggle for freedom<<<

I read this in a 1925 edition of what was then the Valley Green Sheet: “Gas prices took a 2 ½ cent jump to 18 ½ cents a gallon.” Yes that is cheap. But do you know what’s amazing? 45 years later I was still paying 29.9 cents a gallon at a Simi Valley station.<<<

Those, mostly of a neo-conservative persuasion, make a convincing case of the right of the United States to forcefully intervene in countries where human suffering is the norm and human rights are held in contempt by the powerful. I wonder, however, if they would have granted the same right for others to intervene in American affairs during the slavery years?<<<

Once a barbarian, always a barbarian - according to a recent survey, majorities in Pakistan, Egypt, Jordon and Nigeria favor changing current laws to:

Allow stoning as punishment for adultery.
Allow amputation as punishment for theft.
Allow death as punishment for those who convert to another religion.

And 85% in Pakistan want a law segregating men and women in the workplace.<<<

SPORTING NEWS

I said it and then read it – Mike Lupica had an excellent column this past week in the New York Daily News criticizing Yankee management for low-balling all-time great Derek Jeter.<<<

Is Jason Worth $126M? Nope.<<<

I’m sorry but I just can’t buy the story that Cam Newton didn’t know that his dad was trying to sell him to the highest bidder. To me, his Heisman Trophy is just as tainted as was the one given to Reggie Bush.<<<

“We’ve got a group of guys that knows what to do,” Odom said after their loss to the Bulls Friday. Then why don’t you guys do it, Lamar?<<<

I have changed in a direction that Coach Wooden would have approved. In the past the horrible Bruin performance against Montana, following their excellent one against fourth-ranked Kansas, in the week would have enraged me. Now it merely disappointments me. I no longer get too high with the wins nor too low with the losses. (Well, at least, not too low with the losses.)

And what happened to the young Bruin’s vow to win for Wooden this season?<<<

T. J. Simers (LA Times) asks this funny question: If the McCourts are forced to sell the Dodgers, does Boston seek a restraining order forbidding the fighting couple from returning to the home of the bean and the cod?<<<

Jacksonville Jaguars running back (and ex-Bruin) Maurice Jones-Drew proves that in the NFL a nice guy can be a big success.<<<

Good for ‘Nova – rather than leaving the decision up to the coach, Villanova suspended freshman basketball flash, Jay Vaughn, a McDonald’s all-American from school for a semester after his arrest for assault.

And not that you care, but here are my favorite NFL teams among those still in the Super Bowl hunt: (1) New England. (2) Green Bay. (3) Jacksonville.<<<

Now that the NBA has finished ¼ of their season, it has become fashionable to award quarter-best awards. I’m no fashioniesta, but I will take my shot:

MVPFTFQ (Most Valuable Player For The First Quarter) Manu Ginobli. Runner-up – Dirk Nowitzki

ROTFQ (Rookie) – Blake Griffin. Runner-up – John Wall<<<

Quote of the Week - “When you win, say little. When you lose, say less” Bill Belichick, New England Patriots.

Why I detest the CIA: Because the spy group has no moral center. They do not believe in wrong.<<<

And yes, I enjoy making a kerfuffle over Christmas.<<

Action: U.S. ends push to renew Israeli freeze on settlements.

Reaction: Another day, another disappointment.<<<

"The emigration of Jews from the Soviet Union is not an objective of American foreign policy. And if they put Jews into gas chambers in the Soviet Union, it is not an American concern.” Henry Kissinger (To Richard Nixon).

Tell me again why this man was ever entitled to the honors and respect given to him?<<<

I have to admire Glen Beck – wanting to be accurate he took an actual head count before he claimed that 10% of all Muslims are terrorists (not 9.8%, not 11%).<<<

God, I wish I had said this – The best line about Sarah Palin’s visit to Haiti is – “Haven’t Haitians already suffered enough?”<<<

According to Portfolio Magazine, the top five smartest cities are:

1. Bolder, Colorado
2. Ann Arbor, Michigan
3. Washington, D.C.
4. Durham, North Carolina
5. (Tie) Fort Collins, Colorado
5. (Tie) Granada Hills, California (Kidding)

And finally, I love this picture Barbara's brother, Tom, took on his recent trip to British Columbia.

Nobody 844

Sunday, December 5, 2010
Nobody # 844

Nobody Asked Me But:

Thanks to my wife’s generosity, I dive once more into the digital pool. She bought me an E-reader. The iPad was tempting, as was the Kindle, but I have a problem reading in most hotel room lighting, and the back-lit Velocity Cruz reader seems to suit me best. If it doesn’t, I have a 30-day return guarantee.

Trust me, e-reading will not replace my consumption of “real” books. I love bookstores and the feel of the printed page in my hands too much. But an e-reader, with its lighting and storage, will be great for our trips.<<<

And, while on the subject of real books, the best of 2010 bests lists are starting to come out. (I will have my 5 best later in December.) I was pleased to see that I have read 2 of the 5 best novels on the NY Times list – “Freedom” and “ROOM.”

I totally agree on “Freedon.” It is an excellent novel. About “ROOM,” I am not so sure. I liked this Booker Award nominee about a mother and son whose world is the room they have been imprisoned in for years, but I didn’t love it.<<<

I had a strange box office experience Thursday when I went to buy my IMAX ticket to see Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. The ticket seller stuck a gun in my face and demanded that I empty my wallet. Or perhaps it just seemed that way when he quoted the price of my ticket at $15. Add the $6 I paid for a small popcorn and I could have reduced the national debt had I chosen to do so.

As for the movie, my reaction is the same as for “ROOM.” I liked it but didn’t love it. It is hard to call any movie excellent that depends too much on periodic and sudden explosions of noise. HPATDH has too many flat spots filled with beautiful but desolate scenery and too little action except for the outbursts.<<<

More on movies and lists – The first of the Best Films lists is out. The National Board of Review just named “The Social Network” as the best movie of 2010. I have not seen a better film (so far) this year.<<<

Here’s a game of chance that Obama and the Democrats can win if they have the guts (and/or the brains). Despite the outrageous claims (lies) of Mitch McConnell, polls show that a plurality of Americans oppose extending the tax cuts for the wealthiest 2% of Americans. So let the Republicans go ahead with their threat to shut down the government over this issue. Then shine a public light on them as the party willing to sacrifice 98% in order to defend the very rich. It certainly worked for Clinton over Newt in 1995.<<<

He does some things that drive me crazy, but I would grade “The Terminator” no worse than a B- for his role as California’s governor.<<<

News flash: The Pentagon is considering cuts in medical benefits for military retirees.

Reaction: NO! NO! NO! These people gave their years and risked their lives for their country. If anyone deserves top-of-the-line lifetime medical benefits it is them.<<<

ON WIKILEAKS

Palin - Did you see where Sarah (I’d rather be rich than finish my term as governor) blames Obama for the Wikileaks, which she says he planned soon after his birth in the African nation in Indonesia?<<<

Bush - "It's going to be very hard to keep the trust of foreign leaders, which, incidentally, I never had nor cared about.”

My thoughts – There were no secret criminal acts by our government, such as the Bush torture policy, exposed this time around. These leaks were more embarrassing than serious. Am I surprised that American diplomats spy or that they say insulting things about other governments and leaders? No. The real issue this time is secrecy versus transparency. I believe that the fewer the secrets, the better the democracy.<<<

If by some chance, the Eagles and the Steelers make it to the Super Bowl, there would be an unusual quarterback dual – the killer of dogs versus the abuser of women.<<<

Is it true: That in the hearing on repealing “Don’t ask, don’t tell,” Senator McCain took off his shoe and pounded it on his desk screaming Neyt, Neyt?

Is McCain really that much of a homophobe? Perhaps he should read the quote below.<<<

As one special operations force warfighter told us, (American Prospect) “We have a gay guy [in the unit]. He’s big, he’s mean, and he kills lots of bad guys. No one cared that he was gay.”<<<

I do not mean to alarm you but they may soon be a new endangered species in California. “They” are a type of elephant, scientific name GOP. A recent political census shows that even with a population growth since 1988 of 10 million, there are fewer registered Republicans in the state.

Let’s see. Shall we declare them a protected species? I don’t think so.<<<

My favorite scene involving Leslie Nielsen, who died this past week, is the exchange with George Bush in “Naked Gun.” Bush says to him, “Frank, please consider the post I am creating. It may mean long hours and dangerous nights surrounded by some of the scummiest elements in our society.” Frank (Nielsen) replies – “You want me to be in your cabinet?”<<<

“Of all sad words of tongue or pen
The saddest are these,
It might have been.” John Greenleaf Whittier

In November, Kevin Love became the first NBA player in 29 years to record a 30-30 game (30 or more points and rebounds) he also became the first league player in 19 years to have 4 20-20s in a month. Kevin would have been a senior at UCLA this year.<<<

And finally, you might want to check out this very interesting link:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/12/03/AR2010120303209.html?wpisrc=nl_most