UNIONS AND SHARED PROSPERTY

From a blog entry by Ross Eisenbrey and Colin Gordon ~

"The passage in 1935 of the National Labor Relations Act, which protected and encouraged labor unions, sparked a wave of unionization that led to three decades of shared prosperity and what some call the Great Compression ~ when the share of national income taken by the very rich was cut by one-third.  The 'countervailing power' of labor unions (not just at the bargaining table but in local, state, and national politics) gave them the ability to raise wages and working standards for members and non-members alike.  Both median compensation and labor productivity roughly doubled into the early 1970s.  Labor unions both sustained prosperity, and ensured that it was shared.  Union bargaining power has been shown to moderate the compensation of executives at unionized firms.


However, over the next 30 years ~ an era highlighted by the filibuster of labor law reform in 1978, the Reagan administration's crushing o the PATCO strike, and the passage of anti-worker trade deals with Mexico and China ~ labor's bargaining power collapsed.  The consequences are driven home by the figure below (click to enlarge), which juxtaposes the historical trajectory of union density and the income shared by the richest 10 percent of Americans.  Union membership has fallen and income inequality has worsened ~ reaching levels not seen since the 1920s.

Over the years I held a variety of jobs, and uniformly the ones in which workers were unionized featured better job security, health benefits, wages, and working conditions.  My experience includes unionized government jobs at the city, county, state, and federal levels, as well as jobs as a professional transit driver.  It is revealing that unionization not only benefits workers, it also levels the fiscal playing field between employees and corporate executives.  As Arsenio Hall used to say on his late night variety show, "Kinda makes you go 'hmmmm'."

If you are opposed to labor unions, you are opposed to all benefits unions have won over the years ~ paid vacations, sick leave, seniority rights, paid holidays, wage increases, pensions, health insurance plans, time-and-a-half for overtime, unemployment benefits, safe working conditions, the end of child labor, and job security.  I'm certain that the robber barons who run Wall Street, hence Washington DC, would delight in rescinding those hard-won gains by their employees.

NORMANDY

World War II was arguably the defining event of the twentieth century.  Today marks the 68th anniversary of the Allied invasion of Nazi-held Normandy, France ~ the largest amphibious invasion in history, and the definitive turning point of World War II.  The landings took place along a 50-mile stretch of coast divided into five sectors (see map below) ~

• Sword Beach (British forces)
• Juno Beach (Canadian forces)
• Gold Beach (British forces)
• Omaha Beach (American forces) ~ see image above
• Utah Beach (American Forces)

The invasion was officially named Operation Overlord, but is known universally as D-Day.  The invasion fleet was the largest ever assembled ~ over 5000 ships.  The landings were preceded by paratroop drops behind enemy lines the night before, and by a massive naval artillery barrage and air attack.  Over 157,000 Allied troops landed on the first day alone, meeting heavy German resistance.  

You can read in more detail about the complex, secret planning and execution of D-Day here.  Two movies stand out for their depiction of the harsh reality of the invasion and its aftermath ~ Saving Private Ryan and the HBO miniseries Band of Brothers.

The generation which fought to save the world from Hitler's domination (and that of his Axis partners Benito Mussolini of Italy and Emperor Hirohito) was my parents' generation.  Those brave men and women, now in their 80s and 90s, are passing from our midst by the thousands daily.  Please take a quiet moment to honor their sacrifice.

Far too many free people in this world have no familiarity or understanding for momentous events in our recent past.  It is disturbing that many cannot describe why World War II took place, or when, or who the combatants were, or what life would be like today if we had lost.  Think the holocaust.  I am against war in principle.  But our fighting in World War II was an honorable necessity against unprovoked aggression.  It is important to know history, lest we repeat it. 

REVIVING A LOST ART

My earliest years were spent on farms.  Some might liken that to growing up in a gulag, but I treasure the experience.  These were the years before television intruded its cyclopian eye into our lives.  Family entertainment included reading, playing cards, and listening to radio news and dramas (radio being a medium which inherently lends itself to the imagination).  My play time was solitary or with neighbor kids who lived a quarter mile away ~ or on the playground at school ~ and we made up our own games.  When alone, I found it natural to immerse myself in a sensory microcosm ~ examining the inner parts of a flower, listening to the earth breathe, watching how submerged weeds undulated in an irrigation canal, or how the motion of cottonwood leaves formed shimmering patterns in the breeze.  Between books, the radio, music, and solo play, I developed a fertile imagination.

My attention shifted outward when we moved to a rural town in northern Montana, when I was about age 11.  School was opening new vistas of thought, and my favorite windows onto the wider world were the public library and the movie theater.  Like most of my peers, I left my home town, went to college, and later moved to larger cities with their museums, orchestras, theaters and restaurants.  But I remain grateful for those early, quiet years in which I learned to observe.

Such mindful attention has become more and more rare in the intervening years, as life has sped up and distractions have multiplied.  Each new generation has a shorter attention span ~ ADHD wasn't even recognized when I was a child, but now the symptoms, the diagnosis, and treatment seem to increase in numbers by an order of magnitude each year.  Young people and even many adults are so plugged into their electronic devices that they are oblivious to the world around them.

The world of research has taken note.  Neuroscientist and science writer Andrea Kuszewski provided a link to a Wall Street Journal article titled How to End the Age of Inattention ~ Reviving the Art of Observation.  The premise is simple.  "Today's signature move is the head swivel.  It is the age of look-then-look-away.  Our average attention span halved in a decade, from 12 to 5 minutes (and that was in 2008).  We miss almost everything.  We text while we walk.  What makes a person stand out now is the ability to look and keep looking.

"But as global competition makes us manic about technology .... we rush past the humanities, the very fields that teach us how and what to notice.  Before lunging for another engineering degree, we should catch our breath, look around.  We need an intervention .... A 'museum intervention' is now mandatory at Yale's School of Medicine for all first-year medical students.  Called Enhanced Observational Skills, the programs asks students to look at and then describe paintings.  The aim?  To improve diagnostic knack .... Each student is assigned a painting, which they examine for 15 minutes, recording all they see.  The group discusses its observations .... The conclusion matters less than the collection of detail.  'We are trying to slow down the students.  They have an urge to come up with a diagnosis immediately and get the right answer.'

" .... a three-year study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association showed that, afterward, [medical students] are 10% more effective at diagnosis.   The program has expanded to include more than 20 medical schools, including Harvard, Columbia and Cornell."

My thought is, of course.  And why not have a class in observation as a requirement for every college degree, every high school graduation, every primary school curriculum?  People are naturally curious, given half a chance.  Channeling that curiosity in a guided setting which provides the time, the encouragement, and the tools for understanding, could only enhance growth and quality of life for people of all ages.  Attention, focus, being in the moment and open to all our senses, are a core part of being fully human.

SYNERGY AIRCRAFT

My post a few days ago dealt with two prototype designs for aircraft that can be converted to driving on roads.  Today I want to enthuse about an innovative aircraft design which I learned about in AOPA's e-newsletter ~ a design that is being developed just north of me, in scenic Kalispell, MT, a few minutes' drive from Glacier National Park.

Synergy Aircraft designer John McGinnis may join Burt Rutan among the ranks of visionaries who spark a revolution.  Synergy is a fixed-wing aircraft, but its double box tail configuration, pusher engine mount, and sleek futuristic appearance make it unlike any conventional fixed-wing GA plane I'm familiar with.  (See image above for a view of the plane in flight, and see image below for an overview of passenger seating configuration.  Orange shading indicates control surfaces ~ ailerons and rudders.  Click to enlarge.)  The AOPA article says that Synergy aims to "cut the fuel bill in half for a given horsepower, make it roomy, make it quiet, make it fast, easy to fly, and able to carry five people".

That's just the beginning.  Combining half a dozen principles of physics to reduce drag and enhance performance, along with cutting-edge construction and power plant technology, could mean that Synergy will be a quantum leap forward for small aircraft.  Click on the website link above for a fuller description of Synergy's advantages and goals ~ don't forget to browse the drop-down menu, especially the 'Images', 'Visual media', and 'FAQs' tabs.

As listed on the home page, Synergy's aim is to provide ~

• more interior cabin room
• a quiet, smooth ride with a panoramic view
• greater fuel economy
• ease of operation
• reduced travel time
• greatly reduced price
• a quiet presence when landing and taking off
• adaptability to hybrid, electric, and advanced engine technologies

Further, Synergy is capable of flying at 200 mph (and hints at faster speeds) ~ placing it in competition with high-performance, high-cost aircraft like the Cessna Corvalis or the Piper Malibu.  The provisional service ceiling is 25,000 feet, but test flights have gone much higher.

I'll be interested in learning more technical details as I uncover them ~ fuel consumption rate (Synergy runs on diesel fuel), takeoff and landing distances, rate of climb, max and cruise speeds, cargo capacity, etc.  But I gotta tell you, this aircraft makes my mouth water.  My current favorite small aircraft, the Diamond DA-40, may be in for some competition.

COLLISION COURSE

Imagine the Milky Way galaxy ~ 200-400 billion stars ~ our sun resides in a modest position along one of its spiral arms.  Now imagine the Andromeda galaxy ~ 1000 billion stars ~ the largest galaxy of the local group.  Now imagine that the two massive galaxies are on a collision course.  Guess what ~ they are.

Last week the science journal Nature reported astronomers' announcement that the Milky Way and Andromeda will undergo a direct and complete merger ~ "Four billion years from now, the two galaxies will pass through each other and 2 billion years after that, they will fall back into a permanent embrace to form a single galaxy."

The research team reached its conclusion after eight years of intense observation using the Hubble Space Telescope, coupled with intricate computer simulation software.  "The team's simulations had to account for the Sun's motion as well as the gravity of a satellite galaxy of Andromeda called M33, which the researchers say has a 9% chance of plowing into the Milky way before Andromeda does.

"The Milky Way - Andromeda collision will almost certainly move the Sun outwards from its current position of 8,000 parsecs (26,000 light years) away from the Galactic center.  The simulation shows a 10% chance that the Solar System will be exiled to a Galactic Siberia, more than 50,000 parsecs (160,000 light years) from the center of the merged bodies."

Let's contemplate this for a moment.  When I was young (back during the Punic Wars), I recall reading that the ratio of mass to space in the universe is similar to that of placing three grains of sand inside the world's largest cathedral. If objects in space are so far apart, one might think that two galaxies might simply pass through each other unchanged.  There are three reasons why this reasoning falls flat ~ (a) a galaxy is, by definition, a concentration of mass greater than that found in the rest of space ~ (b) in the intervening years we've discovered the presence of dark matter, which is not detectable by telescopes, but which nevertheless makes up an estimated 84% of the matter in the universe (including 84% of the matter in galaxies) ~ and (c) the most important factor of all, gravitation.

Even over vast distances, a single massive object (say our Sun) exerts an enormous gravitational pull on other objects too far to be seen with the unaided eye.  The Sun holds Earth in a captive orbit 93 million miles away, and Neptune in a captive orbit 2.7 billion miles away.  The Oort Cloud?  Forget about it.  Our Milky Way galaxy is a grand, slow-motion swirl of stars held in place (and in motion) by the dynamic balance of gravitation, centripetal force, and momentum.

So imagine the titanic gravitational forces at work when the paths of two galaxies merge.  It will be like stirring melted white chocolate into melted dark chocolate.  Initially the colors remain distinct, even as they whirlpool into each other.  Stir long enough, and the colors blend into a single composite hue.  Thus with the Milky Way and Andromeda.  There may be explosive collisions of individual stars, but for the most part the component stars will act like molecules of blending chocolate ~ remaining structurally intact, but rearranged in relation to each other.

I wish we humans had life spans long enough to witness such cosmic events.  Here is a brief animated simulation of what the Milky Way - Andromeda collision may look like.

A NEW FLYING TOY

In various posts from time to time I've written about non-traditional vehicles which can travel on land or in the air.  As an aviation enthusiast for the past fourteen years, I've come across a variety of designs ~ some of them sleek, others boxy.  As with any crossover concept, you end up sacrificing performance in one mode or the other, for the sake of versatility.

The most recent issue of AOPA Pilot, the flagship publication of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, included a brief article on the PAL-V ONE, which converts from something resembling a three-wheeled, enclosed motorcycle on the ground, to a gyrocopter in flight.  Images of both modes appear above (click to enlarge).  Performance is impressive ~

• powerplant ~ 230 horsepower engine
• on land ~ max speed 112 mph, 28 mpg, range 750 miles
• in the air ~ max speed 112 mph, cruise speed 68 mph, range 220-315 miles
• price $250,000

As a land vehicle, the aerodynamic PAL-V ONE is as agile as a motorcycle, thanks to a control system which automatically adjusts the tilt angle of the vehicle to its speed and acceleration.  As an aircraft, the vehicle needs very little room for takeoff and landing, and is quieter than a helicopter.  I've long been fascinated with gyrocopters, since controlling them is more intuitive and less complex than piloting a helicopter ~ though I'd love to learn choppers anyway.

The AOPA article compares the PAL-V ONE to the crossover vehicle furthest along in development and availability, the Terrafugia Transition, which more closely resembles an automobile on the ground (if you can ignore its pterosaur-like folded wings), since it has four wheels and a wider body.  In the air it looks like a somewhat blocky fixed-wing aircraft.  Images of both modes appear below (click to enlarge).  For comparison ~

• powerplant ~ 100 horsepower Rotax engine
• on land ~ max speed 115 mph, 35 mpg, range 490 miles
• in the air ~ max speed 115 mph, cruise speed 105 mph, range 490 miles.
• price $279,000

The PAL-V ONE looks sportier, the Terrafugia looks more suburban.  Yet both metamorphose from ground vehicle to aircraft smoothly at the push of a button. Both carry two people.  And both eliminate the need to tie down or hangar a conventional fixed-wing or rotor aircraft at the airport.  You simply land, exit the airport and drive home.  And bask in the stares of those you drive (or fly) past along the way.

DO RITUALS WORK?

Neuroscientist and science writer Andrea Kuszewski recently posted a link to an article in Psychology Today, concerning the hidden causal beliefs about rituals.  In part, the author states that "One of the biggest difficulties that we have to deal with is that most of the things that happen to us are utterly out of our control.  Cultures have developed many strategies for dealing with this fact.  One of the most fascinating of these strategies is the creation of rituals.

"[In one study], three aspects of [ritual formulas] seemed to have the biggest influence on people's beliefs about whether they worked.  First, formulas with more steps were thought to be more effective than those with fewer steps.  Formulas that required steps to be repeated were more effective than those that required no repetition.  Finally, formulas that had to be performed at a certain time (such as during the full moon) were thought to be more effective than those that could be performed at any time."

Certainly there is no shortage of examples of rituals we've woven into our lives ~ elaborate religious rites, audience behavior at a classical music concert, good luck gestures performed by a baseball batter stepping up to the plate, the chanting of gamblers about to throw dice, or wearing a 'lucky' article of clothing on a first date.  The question is, do rituals literally have the ability to influence an outcome, or do we simply lend credence when the outcome is positive, and find a rationalization when it is negative?  More likely the latter, in my view and according to the principle of parsimony, which states that the simplest explanation is most likely to be the correct one.

Andrea probably agrees.  In her comment preceding the article link, she said, "In my experience, ritualistic behaviors are most likely when the person is feeling out of control or anxious about something they can't immediately change.  The dissonance forces them to seek out ways to relieve the tension, and ritualistic behaviors emerge."

In short, while rituals may have comfort value, most simply demonstrate that we are placing our trust in an irrational belief which is not supported by evidence.  Just the opposite is true ~ if rituals worked, every Las Vegas gambler would be a winner, no marriages would end in divorce, prayers would always have the desired outcome, and that batter?  A home run every time.

CULTURE OF SILENCE

This morning I came across a sorrowful, disturbing item in the "on this day in history" summary at Wikipedia ~ "The Tulsa Race Riot was a large-scale racially motivated conflict on May 31 and June 1, 1921, between the white and black communities of Tulsa, Oklahoma, in which the wealthiest African-American community in the United States, the Greenwood Distict also known as the 'Negro Wall Street' was burned to the ground.  During the 16 hours of the assault, over 800 people were admitted to local hospitals with injuries, more than 6,000 Greenwood residents were arrested and detained at three local facilities.  An estimated 10,000 were left homeless, and 35 city blocks composed of 1,256 residences were destroyed by fire.  The official count of the dead by the Oklahoma Department of Vital Statistics was 39, but other estimates of black fatalities have been up to about 300.

"The events of the riot were omitted from state and local history.  The Tulsa race riot of 1921 was rarely mentioned in history books, classrooms, or even in private.  Blacks and whites alike grew into middle age unaware of what had taken place."  (my italics)

Anyone who lived through the 1960s and 1970s understands that race riots are not limited to the distant past.  Wikipedia ~ "The term had entered the English language in the United States by the 1890s.  Until 1968 the use of the term in the U.S. referred to race riots which were often violence by racial groups against people of other races.  In the late 1960s the term came to describe riots involving large numbers of members of racial minority groups.  Physical aggression was often aimed at their neighborhood businesses, government representatives, and law enforcement agencies perceived as unfairly targeting racial groups .... Mob rule, religious intolerance, vigilantism, Jim Crow, lynching, racial profiling, economics, police brutality, institutional racism, urban renewal, and racial identity politics are often cited as causes of these riots."

At the risk of over-simplification, the appearance is that before the 1960s, race riots were instigated by whites against blacks, often with the collusion of law enforcement, as an instrument of oppression..  But with the advent of the civil rights and Black Power movements, especially after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, riots were initiated by blacks in response to that oppression.

It is remarkable that the further back in history one searches, the more one encounters a willful determination on the part of the victims to resist talking about those terrible events.  Thus these gruesome and very public acts were expunged from our collective memory, even within the families of those involved.

As happened after the 1921 Tulsa race riots, the victims of other mass racial violence became members of the culture of silence.  "In 1923, the Rosewood Massacre was a violent, racially motivated conflict that took place during the first week of January in rural Levy County, Florida.  At least six blacks and two whites were killed, and the town of Rosewood was abandoned and destroyed .... Florida had an especially high number of lynchings in the years before the massacre.

"Rosewood was a quiet, primarily black, self-sufficient whistle stop on the Seaboard Air Line Railway .... white men from nearby towns lynched a Rosewood resident.  When black citizens defended themselves against further attack, several hundred whites combed the countryside looking for black people, and burned almost every structure in Rosewood.  Survivors hid for several days in nearby swamps, and were evacuated by train and car to larger towns.  Although state and local authorities were aware of the violence, they made no arrests for the activities in Rosewood.  The town was abandoned by black residents during the attacks.  None ever returned.

"Although the rioting was widely reported around the country, few official records documented the event.  Survivors, their descendants, and the perpetrators remained silent about Rosewood for decades."

On the part of the victims, the culture of silence seems to spring from two sources ~ the fear of reprisal, and the desire to shield family and loved ones from the knowledge of what happened. For the race riots of the early 20th century, it was often investigative reporting done many years later which uncovered those horrible times.  In the case of Rosewood, that reporting led to a lawsuit against the state of Florida by descendants of Rosewood residents, and also led to John Singleton's 1997 film Rosewood.

Sociologist James W. Loewen (Lies My Teacher Told Me) wrote a book which has a direct bearing on the culture of silence.  It's titled Sundown Towns, and chronicles the widespread practice ~ in the North as well as the South ~ of excluding blacks and other minorities from thousands of towns "after sundown", in effect creating all-white communities.  Sundown towns were not shy.  One encountered signs upon entry which might read "Whites only within city limits after dark".  And the implied threat was not idle ~ those caught lingering faced lynching.  Yet until Loewen's book, the existence of sundown towns was itself a part of the culture of silence, at least in my awareness.

The race riots of the 1960s were qualitatively different, in that they were precipitated by blacks rising up against oppression.  In this respect, they appear to be immune from the culture of silence.  Or are they?  According to an essay by George Scialabba, studies conducted over the past twenty years indicate that "70 percent of Americans believe in the existence of angels.  50 percent believe that the earth has been visited by UFOs.  70 percent believe that the U.S. government is covering up the presence of space aliens on Earth.  40 percent do not know whom the U.S. fought in World War II.  40 percent could not locate Japan on a world map.  15 percent could not locate the United States on a world map.  60 percent of Americans have not read a book since leaving school.  Only 6 percent now read even one book a year .... The average American's day includes six minutes playing sports, five minutes reading books, one minute making music, 30 seconds attending a play or concert 25 seconds making or viewing art, and 4 hours watching television.

"Among high school seniors surveyed in the late 1990s, 50 percent had not heard of the Cold War.  60 percent could not say how the United States came into existence.  50 percent did not know in which century the Civil War occurred.  60 percent could name each of the Three Stooges but not the three branches of the U.S. government.  60 percent could not comprehend an editorial in a national or local newspaper."


How can so many people be so culturally ignorant?  Have our schools fallen so low?  Surely the culture of silence cannot explain such abysmal awareness of the events which shaped our lives?  Have social media and instant gratification diluted the process of learning?  It is a disturbing prospect.

BALLISTICS

Great Gray Owl in flight ~ click to enlarge

WHEAT AND CHAFF

It's time to clear my computer's desktop of an accumulation of links that piqued my interest ~ visuals, philosophical puzzles, and gee-whiz cullings from the Internet.  Ready?

Liquid Flowers ~ drop an object into a vessel containing multi-colored liquids, then capture the splash at its zenith using a high speed exposure.  No photoshopping, just astonishing skill an imagination by photographer Jack Long.  Example ~ see image above, click to enlarge.

20 Weird Beaches from Around the World ~ speaks for itself.

Abandoned Ships Stranded in the Desert ~ a miniscule symptom of the much broader ripples of consequence when humans start diverting rivers, draining wetlands, and cutting down forests.

Only Philosophers Go to Hell ~ "A just and loving god would not intentionally create a world with excessive misery, and yet we see the excesses all around us .... How could a just and loving god create [Hell,] a place of endless misery? .... There are two standard lines in defense of Hell.  The first is the retributivist line, and the second is the libertarian line. We think that if either succeeds, only philosophers could go to Hell."  Not being a theist, I don't have a dog in this fight, but it's an interesting exploration.

You Might Be an Atheist If .... ~ Philosopher and cognitive scientist Daniel Dennett takes a cue from Jeff Foxworthy's comedy shtick in his reality check on religion and faith.

Where in the World?  A Google Earth Puzzle ~ Think you can tell where a satellite view of a location might be on the planet?  18 images give you a chance to strut your geographic prowess.

Human Migrations Map ~ This is very cool.  Either choose a nation from the drop-down list, or simply place your cursor on a country and click.  You can learn what other nations are the sources of the most immigrants (with a numerical count), and what other nations are the destinations for those emigrating from your choice.  Many surprises lurk here.

iSideWith ~ answer a brief questionnaire, and when the results are tallied, this website lets you know which political candidate(s) are truly closest to your set of values.  It's an eye-opener.

Cougars 2, Wolves 0 ~ morbidity and mortality when these two predators come in conflict.  The tally is from the Bitterroot Valley, just south of Missoula, where I'm writing this. I would not have predicted these results, though after careful thought they make sense.  Cats run from dogs, right?  Wrong.

Navigator's Gag Amuses Plane-Spotters as Fighter Jet Races Through Snowdonia.  In the Royal Air Force they're called 'navigators', in the U.S. Air Force they're called 'weapons systems officers'.  Either way, a bit of irreverent humor helps lighten the tension of high-speed, ground-hugging training flights through an area in Wales called the Mach Loop.  Check out the text for more information.  And here is a video showing the action.  Most of the aircraft are RAF Tornadoes.

MEMORIAL DAY 2012

I'm feeling a bit subdued this Memorial Day, remembering my time in the military, especially in Vietnam.  Some names of those I knew have started to fade, but their faces and voices and personalities remain clear.  I hope that as you attend family gatherings and share special meals, you'll take a moment to honor those who served, those who gave their lives or returned home with physical or emotional wounds ~ men and women from all wars, on all sides.  It's too easy to become sidetracked by the crass abomination of sales or sporting events, and forget the true purpose of the holiday.

I've been fortunate to visit the Vietnam Memorial (known familiarly as The Wall) several times ~ each was spent in reflection and tears.  This morning I happened upon a brief article of interesting facts about the 58,267 names incised there ~ sets of fathers and sons, brothers, age groups, dates, casualties from home towns.  One pair of figures struck me ~

• 997 soldiers were killed on their first day in Vietnam
• 1,448 soldiers were killed on their last day in Vietnam

Just about everyone in the war zone kept a 'short-timer's calendar', and knew how many days remained to be served in country.  As the number of days dwindled, the anxiety of the newcomer (having no idea what to expect) was replaced by a different anxiety ~ understanding all too well what could happen, and determined to survive.  Some resorted to superstitious rituals, hoping to increase their chances of getting out alive.  Others just took it one day at a time, their senses honed to a keen edge.

I like the way the cited article concludes ~ "For most Americans who read this, they will only see the numbers that the Vietnam War created.  To those of us who survived the war, and to the families of those who did not, we see the faces, we feel the pain that these numbers created.  We are, until we too pass away, haunted by these numbers, because they were our friends, fathers, husbands, wives, sons and daughters."

THE GOLDEN GATE

Today marks the 75th anniversary of the opening of San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge, one of the most internationally recognizable structures on the planet.  Clad in international orange, at the time of its completion the 4,200 ft (1,280 m) suspension bridge had the longest main span in the world.  At centerline the bridge is 692 ft (211 m) above the water.  [Dropped from this height, a human-sized object would attain a velocity of approximately 102 mph ~ so fast that at the bottom of the fall, the impact with water would feel like hitting concrete.]

The American Society of Civil Engineers declared the Golden Gate Bridge to be one of the modern Wonders of the World.  Elegant in its simplicity and graceful in its imposing strength, the bridge draws the eye of any observer as it spans the confluence of San Francisco Bay and the Pacific Ocean, while connecting the peninsular city of San Francisco to Marin County.

Thanks to the ever-resourceful Andrea Kuszewski, here is a guide to 1937 San Francisco, including an interactive map.  You can zoom in and out, pan in any direction, and explore the city's neighborhoods as they existed then.  Numerous icons, when clicked on, give you a flavor of life then.  Note that the sentence just above the map is a link to a full screen version.

Above is an image of the Golden Gate Bridge on a clear day.  Below, the bridge is enshrouded by San Francisco's trademark fog, with downtown in the background.  Click on either image to enlarge.

SITUATION-DEPENDENT MORALITY

I think of myself as a highly ethical person.  My moral compass is (in my awareness) steady.  To paraphrase the cadet honor code at West Point, I do not lie, cheat, steal, or tolerate those who do.  Further, I go out of my way to leave the world a better place than I found it ~ which includes fighting social injustice and environmental irresponsibility, making people laugh, sharing love, and acting with integrity.  

But is it really that simple?  Not necessarily, according to a new study which examines why people make ethical or unethical decisions.  The study found that even though an individual's understanding of right and wrong may remain constant, choices may vary depending on that person's power position (employee vs. management), or work role (soldier vs. medic).  The shift may be unconscious, since we are responding to often-subliminal codes in our environment ~ codes which spell out what is expected of us, even if it conflicts with our personal values.

That's where many people find themselves making decisions at odds with their moral code.  If they notice, they may find ways to rationalize the conflict, or they may just live with the guilt.  Or, if their vision is clear, they may have the character to do the right thing, regardless of the expectations of others.  As one of the researchers put it, "We find that people tend to make decisions that may conflict with their morals when they are overwhelmed, or when they are just doing routine tasks without thinking of the consequences.  We tend to play out a script as if our role has already been written.  So the bottom line is, slow down and think about the consequences when making an ethical decision."

Which means that we must be aware that the decision involves ethics, whether it is a mundane daily act or something more uncommon in our lives.  Awareness is key.  Clarity is key.  Being true to one's ethos is key.  All else falls into place.  Taking risks with other people's money as a stock broker or banker, or cutting safety corners to save on costs on a construction project, or taking forbidden performance-enhancing drugs as an athlete, or deciding to shoot or not to shoot as a soldier, or returning a wallet found on the sidewalk, or writing the card or letter that you know means a great deal to the recipient .... all are choices which carry ethical consequences.

TOWEL DAY 2012

From Wikipedia ~ "Towel Day is celebrated every year on 25 May as a tribute by fans of the author Douglas Adams.  On this day, fans carry a towel with them to demonstrate their appreciation for the books and the author, as referred to in Adams' The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.  The commemoration was first held in 2001, two weeks after Adams' death on 11 May 2001.

"The original quotation that explained the importance of towels is found in Chapter 3 of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy ~ 'A towel, it says, is about the most massively useful thing an interstellar hitchhiker can have.  Partly it has great practical value.  You can ~

• wrap it around you for warmth
• lie on it on the beach
• sleep under it beneath the stars
• use it to sail a miniraft
• wet it for use in hand-to-hand combat
• wrap it around your head to ward off noxious fumes
• wave it in emergencies as a distress signal
• dry yourself off with it if it seems clean enough

"More importantly, a towel has immense psychological value.  For some reason, if a strag (non-hitchhiker) discovers that a hitchhiker has his towel on him, he will automatically assume that .... any man who can hitch the length and breadth of the galaxy, rough it, slum it, struggle against terrible odds, win through, and still knows where his towel is, is clearly a man to be reckoned with."

The Hitchhiker's Guide is filled with droll humor, as well as camouflaged commentary on issues ranging from environmental activism to radical atheism.  Adams was a proponent of both, and influenced thinkers and writers as diverse as Richard Dawkins, Mark Carwadine, and Richard Leakey.  But it would be a mistake to place Adams into a conveniently-labeled cubbyhole.  His was an original voice and a questing intellect, concealed behind gentle, playful humor.

I can think of no finer celebration than the Diva's Song from the 1997 French science fiction film The Fifth Element.  When I first saw the movie, this performance literally left me breathless.  The Russian operatic soprano Evgenia Laguna is transcendent, her voice soaring effortlessly through its four octave range.

PRECIOUS KNOWLEDGE

A few weeks ago I published a post which included commentary on the dismantling of the Mexican American Studies (MAS) program at Tucson High School, and the banning of books which focused on Mexican American history and culture.  Both actions were undertaken by Arizona Governor Jan Brewer, with support from white conservative legislators, none of whom had ever sat in on one of the program's classes to actually see and hear what is taught.  The dismantling and banning were done blindly, on suspicion that ethnic studies subvert American values.  In fact, the opposite is true.  In dictatorial fashion, Brewer is considering extending the ban to include ethnic studies at the state's universities.

Serendipitously, last night I watched an episode of the PBS series Independent Lens, an indie film titled Precious Knowledge ~ On the Front Lines of the Ethnic Studies War.  The documentary puts a human face on the teachers, the students, and the racist book banners involved in the TUSD controversy.  It traces the development of classes in Mexican American Studies, the suppression of the program by Brewer and others, and the demonstrations organized by students to protest the loss of this valuable resource.  Fact ~ 93 percent of students who enroll in the program's classes graduate from high school, compared to 50 percent of Latino students overall. The Mexican American Studies program has been so successful that school districts in other cities around the country have adopted it as a model for helping Latino, black, Asian, Native American, and other minority students to stay in school and graduate.  At TUSD, the program was open to all students, not limited to Latino students.

As a former student and a former teacher, I was deeply impressed with the range and depth of learning taking place in the MAS classroom ~ not just learning about Latino history in the Americas, but learning about active involvement in improving one's community.  When minority students grasp that they are not second-class citizens, that racial stereotypes are false, and that they have the intelligence and the right to speak out for quality education, it is inspiring to watch their minds and spirits blossom.

I highly recommend watching the program here, at your earliest opportunity.  According to the website, it will only be available for viewing until June 9.  I do not know whether it may be available elsewhere after that date, but I'll provide updates as I find out.  Here is a brief summary of the making of the documentary.  And here is Wikipedia's summary of the film's story line.

THE SECRET LIFE OF PRONOUNS

During a recent episode of NPR's Morning Edition, Alix Spiegel spotlighted a common use of language which I'd never before considered.  The piece parses out how ~ if we pay attention to function words (articles, conjunctions, and pronouns, among others) ~ we can tease out a significant layer of meaning more subtle, yet just as important, as content words (nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs).

Function words "express grammatical relationships with other words within a sentence, or specify the attitude or mood of the speaker".  Content words are the anchor words which "carry the content or meaning of a sentence".  Function words are the filler words which tie content words together, forming a cohesive thought.  But they do much more.  Not only do they organize language, they convey status in relationships, hint at the speaker's gender and relative social status, predict who will recover from trauma, and even provide clues to whether the speaker is lying or telling the truth.

Psychologist James Pennebaker at the University of Texas has been studying function words for twenty years.  He and his students devised a computer program to "peer into massive data sets and discern patterns that no human could hope to match".  Based on the degree to which two people do (or do not) adjust their use of function words (especially pronouns) to each other, Pennebaker can tell which person is senior in a power relationship, and can predict whether people meeting each other for the first time in a speed dating event will hit it off.

By paying attention, one can not only discern the intent of a person in conversation, but influence that intent.  You can read the transcript, or listen to the story, here.

THE MILE HIGH CLUB

Normally the online reference site Wikipedia is my initial go-to source for information.  However, I've discovered at least one instance in which Wiki's information is off by well over a century.  In the entry on the Mile-High Club, the history paragraph cites the first recorded instance (perhaps apocryphal) of a couple having sex during flight in an aircraft happened in November 1916.  However, an article at the website io9 places the date much earlier ~ in 1784, when the first woman aeronaut boarded a hot air balloon.  One of her two male companions disembarked to lighten the load, the balloon ascended quickly, and onlookers from the ground reported seeing rather suggestive behavior in the balloon's passenger basket.  You can read the account here,and draw your own conclusions.  Thanks to Jennifer Ouellette for the link in one of her Google+ posts.

I don't want to disparage the Wiki entry ~ it includes sections on popularly known incidents of people attempting to have sex on planes, the legalities involved, and a list of references documenting the information.  Wikipedia remains a useful starting point in any research.

Note ~ modern sex in flight isn't confined to airliner rest rooms.  The commercial Airbus A380 has first class cabins which feature beds, though the cabins are not soundproof.  And some enterprising individuals and companies offer special Mile-High charter flights, in aircraft large and small (see images above and below, click to enlarge), presumably for a premium price.  

RING OF FIRE

The title refers not to the Pacific Ring of Fire, but to the visual effect produced by an annular solar eclipse ~ "when the Sun and Moon are exactly in line, but the apparent size of the Moon is smaller than that of the Sun.  Hence the Sun appears as a very bright ring, or annulus, surrounding the outline of the Moon."

Yesterday viewers in the eastern Pacific Ocean and western United States were treated to the spectacle of an annular eclipse.  Here is an animation showing the path of the moon's shadow across the Earth's surface, with insets showing how the eclipse looked from the ground.  Click on the "eclipse graphics" prompt.

Below are several striking views of the eclipse ~ click to enlarge each image.

JOHNNY CARSON

A few nights ago I was mesmerized by a PBS American Masters episode, Johnny Carson:  King of Late Night.  As most readers know, Johnny Carson hosted the late night talk and variety show The Tonight Show from 1962-1992, in the process becoming the most popular entertainer in U.S. television history.  His nightly audiences averaged 15 million viewers ~ double the current audience of David Letterman and Jay Leno .... combined.  Both men got their big break on Carson's show, and most people (including Johnny Carson himself) saw Letterman as Carson's heir as The Tonight Show host.  For reasons that remain obscure and a bit shady, NBC instead chose Leno to fill Carson's shoes .... an impossible task.

There is no shortage of remembrance material out there, including a range of commemorative DVDs featuring interviews, musical and comedy performances, and Carson's own sketches, all culled directly from The Tonight Show archives.  The American Masters homage is different.  It explores the "dichotomy and enigma, unearthing clues about Carson's childhood, early days in the business, and personal and professional life".  You can view the hour-long documentary on Johnny Carson here.

During his career, Carson received six Emmy Awards and a 1985 Peabody Award.  In 1987 he was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame.  In 1992 he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and in 1993 received a Kennedy Center Honor.  So many people across generations ended their day with him, that millions felt shock and grief when Carson passed away on January 23, 2005.  Tributes poured in, and luminaries throughout the entertainment industry paid homage.

Both David Letterman on The Late Show and Jay Leno on The Tonight Show devoted an entire show to remembering Johnny.  I found Letterman's reminiscence to be particularly sincere and moving.  Below you will find links to his entire tribute to Carson, presented in brief segments ~

• Part 1, the opening monologue, consisting entirely of jokes Carson sent to Letterman.
• Part 2, Letterman's impressions of Carson's greatness.
• Part 3, clips of Carson's appearances on Letterman's show.
• Part 4, reminiscences by Tonight Show producer Peter Lassally.
• Part 5, Lassally continued.
• Part 6, Lassally continued.
• Part 7, Doc Severinsen, Tommy Newsome and Ed Shaughnessy play one of Johnny Carson's favorite songs, 'Here's That Rainy Day'.  (Carson's other favorite was 'I'll Be Seeing You')
• Bonus, Johnny Carson's last TV appearance.
• Bonus, Bette Midler performing 'One For My Baby (and One More for the Road)' on the penultimate episode of The Tonight Show with Carson as host.

The impact of Johnny Carson on American popular culture cannot be overstated.  With his guests he was always attentive, and appeared to genuinely enjoy people both well-known and unknown.  His casual interview style did little to conceal a very sharp mind and sense of humor. His jokes at public figures showed no favoritism ~ everyone was fair game.  Like most people in public life, Carson had a significant ego, but also a deep desire for personal privacy born of humility and decency.

Johnny Carson's signature segue to a commercial break was "We'll be right back".  He let it be known later in his life that he wanted his epitaph to read "I'll be right back".  I'm waiting, wistfully.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MR. PRESIDENT

No, today is not Barack Obama's birthday.  Fifty years ago today, actress and sex symbol Marilyn Monroe sang "Happy Birthday Mr. President" to the charismatic John F. Kennedy, at a gathering in Madison Square Garden to celebrate his 45th birthday.  Monroe's rendition was memorable for its sultry, seductive delivery, and for her sheer, flesh-colored, rhinestone-studded dress which was so form-fitting that she literally had to be sewn into it.

The event was spiced by the belief that Monroe and Kennedy had had an affair ~ perhaps born out by Jackie Kennedy's not attending the birthday celebration.  It was also poignant, in view of Monroe's death less than three months later, at the age of 36.  Here is a grainy video of her performance (bear in mind it was 1962).  Afterward, Kennedy joked, "I can now retire from politics after having had Happy Birthday sung to me in such a sweet, wholesome way."

Sadly, Kennedy himself left us just over a year later ~ on 22 November 1963, he was assassinated while riding in a motorcade in Dallas, Texas.

When we lose someone, whether an admired public figure or a beloved friend or relative, it is believed that we go through five stages of grief ~ denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance.  But what about if the loss isn't to death, but to separation?  Someone close to us moves on to a new job, a new relationship, or a new city.  The loss may be temporary or permanent.  In The Meaning of Goodbye, Krystal D'Costa explores departures from individuals and from groups.  If temporary, a casual "see you later" may suffice.  If permanent, a more formal observance may be needed to confirm the connection, express intimacy, and bestow wishes for a safe and happy life.

D'Costa reminds us that "At the end of the day, it's not an easy experience for everyone.  Goodbyes, especially among an affectionate cohort, can weigh heavily on the group dynamic, which is why it bears repeating that they are only as final as you allow them to be ~ after all, there's always Facebook."  And email, and snail mail, and phone calls, and future visits, and Skype, and ....