Update from the
Heartland
No.687
9.2.15 – 15.2.15
Blog version: http://heartlandupdate.blogspot.com/
To all,
The follow-up news items:
-- As the tragedy of MS Costa
Concordia [527] continues its
march toward closure, an Italian court took the next step with the conviction
of former Concordia Captain Francesco
Schettino of manslaughter, abandoning the ship and passengers before evacuation
was complete, and other lesser charges.
The court sentenced Schettino to 16-years in prison. Thirty-two people died as a consequence
of Schettino’s bone-head, machismo stunt to impress passengers and islanders,
when he directed the cruise ship out of the defined channel for a ‘fly-by’ of
Isla de Giglio, Italia. In doing
so, the ship struck a charted submerged rock, tearing a 70-meter breech in the
hull and causing the ship to capsize.
An incredible engineering effort to parbuckle [614] and refloat [658]
the ship enabled the removal of the scar from the island and allowed the
wreckage to be towed to Genova, Italia, for salvage. We can only hope Schettino
serves every single day of that sentence, because if he does not, he will be
skating on his negligence. And, we
must trust he will never be allowed near the bridge of a ship . . . ever.
Two topics have been on my list for
several weeks now, but I have been saturated with a variety of ‘things’ for
more than several weeks. What are
the two topics you ask?
Vaccinations and marriage.
So, here we go.
Like so many issues or topics in our
society, the matter of vaccinating our children, and ourselves for that matter,
represents the essence of freedom.
I truly appreciate the serious concerns many citizens have for the
content and application of immunization substances. I am not a biological chemist, or physiologist, or any other
scientist of human processes or the precise content of pharmaceutical
substances intended for human consumption, directly or indirectly. I am a simple, retired engineer, who
happens to enjoy telling stories. I
am also a concerned citizen. I
respect the right of every citizen to make those decisions for themselves and
their children whether to vaccinate.
We have several friends who have purposefully refused vaccinations. I am good with that. However, the public good exceeds an
individual’s rights in certain circumstances, where that conflict intersects in
the public domain. An example of
such an intersection is public schools.
A child who is not vaccinated is susceptible to infection. While succumbing to any particular
disease may well be a personal choice, being a carrier of that infection is not
a respected choice. In the
interest of the public good, prohibiting any child who is not vaccinated to
current standards from attending classes is not only appropriate but I will
argue it is an obligation. We can
also say that once evidence of infection is established, an individual should
face mandatory quarantine until the contagious phase has passed. Vaccinations are not just a private
choice; they are also for the public good.
Kansas State Representative Steve Brunk of
Wichita recently pronounced, “. . . the decline of the institution of marriage
over the last number of decades . . .” has led to a “degeneration of the
culture.” As chairman of the
Kansas House, Federal and State Affairs Committee, Brunk initiated legislative
hearings focused on his contention that marriage is in decline. If this was not Kansas, I might say
this topic is long overdue; but, this is Kansas, and there are far too many
politicians and citizens who feel compelled, for one reason or another, to
impose their moral values, their beliefs, their constraints on everyone else
via the law. Marriage is a private
matter between those involved. The
State has a public interest to ensure the parties who seek recognition by the
State are older than the age of consent, are entering into the contract by
their free will without any form of coercion AND all parties understand the
terms of the contract. Beyond
those public aspects, the State does not have any right to inject itself into a
private relationship – marriage.
Frankly, I do not trust Steve Brunk or his fellow moral projectionists
in the legislature.
“High-Altitude Ice Crystal Icing – This type of icing does
not appear on radar due to its low reflectivity. Neither airplane ice detectors
nor visual indications reliably indicate the presence of ice crystal icing
conditions. It is often undetected by the flight crew and has caused many
high-altitude engine failures”
by Patrick R. Veillette | Business & Commercial Aviation
Aviation Week & Space Technology
Published: Feb 2, 2015
We have been discussing the unique,
little understood, high-altitude phenomenon of ice crystal impaction [428] for quite sometime. I flew aircraft for several
decades. I also studied
aerodynamics, aerothermopropulsion, and many other elements of atmospheric
flight. I will not be so bold to
claim expert status, but I will claim to be fairly knowledgeable of
flight. I did not become aware of
this issue until 7 years ago, when we were investigating a serious in-flight
incident involving a Premier I jet that lost all airspeed indications at
altitude – ice crystal impaction.
While the Premier I is a small, swept wing, jet airplane, much larger
aircraft have suffered various degrees of this phenomenon, e.g., AF447 [391] and now likely QZ8501 [680]. We are trying to learn more. Pay attention!
The drama unfolding in Greece may well be
more significant and impactful on Europe and perhaps the world than events in
Eastern Ukraine [657]. On 25.January.2015, Greek voters chose mostly
SYRIZA members (Synaspismós
Rizospastikís Aristerás {Συνασπισμός Ριζοσπαστικής Αριστεράς} [The
Coalition of the Radical Left]).
No sooner had the votes been counted, the leader of SYRIZA Alexis
Tsipras announced his intention to reject the EU imposed austerity measures. If the new Greek government follows through
with Tsipras’s professed intentions, they may well force Greece to depart the European
Union. Then, we hear our good
buddy Voldya has already made overtures to the new Greek government. We must imagine what comprises those
overtures. Once again, I am
reminded of events that played out 70 years ago in Greece. Soviet Dictator Josef Stalin stirred up
the communist incursion in Greece . . . expansion of Soviet domination beyond
the boundaries of occupation agreed at Potsdam [2.August.1945]. If Greece walks out on EU, they will
likely default; if that happens, it will put enormous financial stress on
Germany and the Eurozone, which continues to struggle with a tenuous recovery
from the financial collapse of 2008.
It is not a stretch to imagine Voldya Putin eagerly offering to support
Greece with appropriate quid pro quo,
and if that happens, Putin may well accomplish what Stalin did not . . . thus,
my opening sentence.
On Tuesday, 10.February.2015, Kansas
Governor Samuel Dale ‘Sam’ Brownback issued two executive orders – 15-01 and
15-02. The first one rescinded Kansas
Executive Order No. 07-24 issued by then Governor Kathleen Sebelius née
Gilligan on 31.August.2007, which prohibited state employment discrimination
based on sexual orientation.
Brownback’s second executive order made a rather lame attempt to affirm
the state’s commitment to eliminate employment discrimination. His implicit statement: sexual
orientation and gender identity are not protected classes, i.e., it is
acceptable to discriminate based on sexual orientation. For Brownback, the hate spat upon
non-heterosexuals is normal, understandable, tolerable and otherwise acceptable;
he has a long, consistent history of homophobia. I imagine in his mind, we should return to the long history
of brutal oppression of non-heterosexuals because that is just the way things
are and should be. I can
understand Brownback being a hateful man.
What is far more disturbing is the majority of voting Kansas residents
who elected him (again). If there
is any comfort for me, I have never voted for the man, and I most certainly
never will. I have to believe and
trust we will eventually overcome the archaic mentality and rationale of men
like Brownback, who cannot find any compassion for those who have suffered.
President Obama submitted a proposal to
Congress, requesting an authorization to use military force against ISIL. The bill has been introduced as H.J.Res.27
and gone to committee. The request
has received mixed reviews from both sides. The reality is, the President needs such authority. It will be interesting to see how this
plays out.
A friend and
frequent contributor sent along this article:
“Cancer Patient Fights against Assisted Death Ban in
California”
Written by Leah Gardiner
West Texas News
Published: 13 Feb 2015
I am in the process of updating my earlier proposal (2008) that
I need to resubmit to the new state legislature for consideration. I continue to hope we can get the law
changed before I need the option.
News from the economic front:
-- Sweden's central bank, Riksbank, cut its benchmark rate
to minus 0.1% from 0.0% and said it would buy government bonds worth 10 billion
Swedish kronor (US$1.2B), as the Swedish central bank joined a widening group
of central banks trying to battle low inflation.
-- The European Union's Eurostat agency reported the Eurozone’s
combined GDP was 0.3% higher in 4Q2014 than in 3Q2014. Once again, Germany led the Eurozone
economies in growth, although large parts of the Eurozone were either close to
stagnation or still contracting.
-- Japan's GDP increased at an annualized pace of 2.2% in 4Q2014,
significantly weaker than the 3.6% expansion forecast, perpetuating concerns
about Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's efforts to stimulate the nation’s economy out
of a long slump.
Continuation from Update no.682:
“I would say ‘radical’ or better yet, ‘violent radical’ for the
para-military organizations claiming Islamic (or Christian, or any other)
beliefs. The fact is that their policies are not fascist in the least. Fascism
does not use religion as a tool and does not serve religion but rather
business. Realistically, these groups are not Muslim either, as ISIS has
recently proven by executing a man by fire.
“It might also be wiser to face how many of our ‘demons’ are our
own creations, dating back at least to the early Cold War. The Taliban and
Saddam Hussein received direct support from the U.S. The people in Iraq knew
very well that Saddam Hussein was not involved with the militant Islamists who
may have committed 9-11; they opposed him. The list goes on and on. We might as
well face that fact that our government has been consistently dishonest with us
in important ways.
“Pretending that these groups just arise spontaneously in the
Middle East (or where ever) will not work. The notion that these militants
result from Islam somehow being different from Christianity, Judaism, or any
other religion that continually makes war makes no sense either.
“I have noticed that you do extensive and detailed research on
legal opinions. I am not sure why you see fit to put so much effort into that
subject but not into other topics.”
. . . my response:
Thank
you for your response. Let us
start with a dictionary definition.
Fascism = a governmental system led by a dictator having
complete power, forcibly suppressing opposition and criticism, regimenting all
industry, commerce, etc., and emphasizing an aggressive nationalism and often
racism.
Now, based on that definition, where does my application not
match the definition to ISIL, Taliban, or al-Qa’ida? They have a dictator.
They use violence to establish and enforce complete power, suppression
of ALL opposition, control all commercial activity, and advocate for an
absolute dictation of public and private conduct according to their
fundamentalist dicta. To my
understanding of the definition and application of the word, any ideology will
suffice to sustain fascist conduct.
In this instance, it happens to be a rabid mutation of Islam. I am certainly not even remotely
suggesting the use of Islam by al-Qa’ida or ISIL is Islamic. To my knowledge and opinion, their
beliefs are a very long way from Islam or any other religion, but that does not
alter the reality of their claims and rationale.
I
do not believe or recall ever suggesting these groups sprang up
spontaneously. Again, to my
knowledge, these groups have been evolving for decades. These groups do not grow from
Islam. They simply use distorted
interpretation of Islamic teachings to justify their megalomaniacal conduct and
objectives.
The
amount of my research to formulate my opinion(s) may or may not be sufficient
or even remotely correct. All I
can say is, I do the best I can.
The documentation of most legal or legislative issues is generally and substantially
greater than the ideological underpinnings of ISIL. We have the advantage in our assessment of Nazism in many
decades of history. We do not have
the same history on ISIL and only slightly more history on al-Qa’ida.
I
certainly respect your opinion, your perspective, and your criticism. I can only say . . . I try.
. . . follow-up comment:
“What trips you up is the end of that definition, ‘emphasizing an
aggressive nationalism and often racism.’ ISIL, al-Qaeda, and most of the
others could not be accused of nationalism. They seek to establish themselves
wherever they can. National identity, national history, or anything similar is
not part of their outlook. They recruit worldwide, making racism unlikely as
well. Also, if one would capitalize Fascism, that same source (dictionary.com)
refers you to definition 3, making it a reference to Mussolini's Fascist Party,
either specifically or in principles and methods. That fails in this instance.
“You frame your blog as a place to debate, not as a site for
venting one's fears and feelings. That is my larger issue with you about the
blog. Any writer must understand the effects of words on audiences, and you
seem unwilling to carry that responsibility.
“‘Fascist,’ with or without a capital F, is a loaded word. That is
not appropriate in a real debate.”
. . . my follow-up response:
I
must say, you have offered an interesting perspective and interpretation. Respectfully, I shall beg to
differ. ISIL, al-Qa’ida, Muslim
Brotherhood, et al, do, in fact, seek nation-state identity as a fundamentalist
Islamic caliphate, domination of all others to impose their unitary dicta. I believe they ultimately seek to
impose their views of governance on all of humanity. They have that view of their beliefs.
Re:
Fascism. If we confine the
definition to the domination of the fascist states of mid-20th Century, then I
can understand your perspective.
Unfortunately, I am not using the term in the same or even similar
context. I use the term as
descriptive of their espoused objectives and their actions. They are not seeking liberation of
their historic homeland. They seek
domination of everything and everyone . . . that surely sounds, looks, feels
like fascism to me, and they are using an abominational interpretation of the
noble religion of Islam as their justification for their action.
Re:
responsibility. You are entitled
to your opinion, as am I. I may
not share that opinion. I do my
best, limited or insufficient as it may be, to present an opinion, a perspective,
a view of contemporary events for public debate. The whole point is that we disagree and offer contrarian
perspectives in furtherance of public debate. To do so is in the interest of democracy and freedom. I am sorry that your perception of my writing
suggests I am unwilling to take responsibility for my word choice. I can only assure you such a perception
is the farthest from reality and the truth.
What
ISIL is doing is immensely more ‘loaded’ than any word chosen to describe their
actions. I respect your right to
reject my word choices and condemn my opinions, but I call ‘em as I see ‘em,
and I do the best I can to convey my opinions and perspective in furtherance of
public debate, and to stimulate the expression of your opinion.
Comments
and contributions from Update no.686:
“Just wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed reading about your
trip. Felt like I was there with your descriptions. Wish I had been
for the wine tasting!”
Another contribution:
“A super trip was had by all. You know I thought travelling down
to Southampton was far enough to catch a cruise ship. But Kansas to
Lauderdale that is some journey but then look where you live. The sea is not
exactly lapping at your feet. As you well know somewhat different for our
little island. We’re looking forward to spring and getting across to the
continent.”
My response:
My
apologies, I intended to include the following preface for the text message
distribution.
{NOTE: For those who receive the text version, I recommend
you visit the URL link in the title to view the inserted images. The messages just get too big to
include the images in the text file messages.}
From your last message, I surmise you found the imbedded
images. If not, let me know.
Departing
or arriving or both at Southampton would be amazing . . . that is where Brian
arrived in England in June 1939. I
had to imagine it for the writing.
First hand would have been better.
. . . Round two:
“Southampton, yes had a day’s tour of the Queen Mary, the new one I might add!
Indeed these vessels are like floating cities with every
conceivable form of entertainment on board and as you said the food, well nil
complaints.
“You know you had to imagine S/hampton for Brian’s arrival, I did
that to a French port I had included in my first book. We went to visit some
time later and I was shocked to see how accurate my imaginings had been. Even
the town ‘pound’ was where I had put it. Now that was scary!”
. . . my response to round two:
Re:
Queen Mary. I’d bet good money that was an impressive tour. They are indeed complete traveling
resorts, which is their major appeal to us. I gained six pounds on our week cruise . . . good food
indeed.
Which
French port in your first book? We
have many contemporary tools for research of locations – Google Earth, Google
Maps, historic photographs, et cetera.
But still, I worry that I’m not getting it correct. My haunting fear is, someone who was
there in that time frame pronounces that is not the way it was. I’m so glad your on-site recce proved
spot on; there is hope for me.
. . . Round three:
“We’ve never
cruised as such on such a large vessel, across the Med to Athens a couple of
times living on Greek food (Calamari) and wine is our cruising experience. That
was fun. The vessel we went on in our second trip finally demised on a
submerged obstacle off of Beirut and was lost. No we weren’t aboard on that
occasion.
“On the Queen though we thought it might take a
week to navigate round the vessel. Agreed, they are magnificent bits of kit.
“Yes Google earth
etc can help with location choosing, my experience was before those days.
You’ll be fine with your site choosing, who would dare to criticise! Anyway
it’s the writer’s decision, he sees it as it is in his mind, if it’s wrong then
it’s how he sees it, end of story..
“My French port is
on the Atlantic coast of Brittany St Grenole. We fell in with a bunch of
retired Bretagnes (very parochial those Bretagnes) supping cheap red at their
own beach café. Wicked and memorable. Before then I never really had a lot of
time for the French people but that relationship turned things around as I
think worldwide we grew closer to them after that dreadful and barbaric
incident in Paris. Je Suis Charlie.
“I expect you’re at
the lap top by now pumping the keys, have a good one my friend, the days are
getting longer as this tired old planet circulates the cosmos.”
. . . my response to round three:
Calamari
& wine . . . oh my . . . nearly heaven.
So
glad you were not on board for the sinking. You would like to think shipmasters were proficient with
navigation and reading nautical charts.
He was not the first and certainly will not be the last. We were taught those skills many times
over at Little Boys Boat & Barge School.
I
have always been fascinated with the ocean and everything nautical. I considered the Navy for a few months,
but the Marine Corps displayed far greater esprit
de corps even in the thick of Vietnam. I am always fascinated by ship design, as I imagine you can
perceive in last week’s Update.
I’d love to tour or travel on the Queen Mary . . . someday.
Quite
well said. Part of the reason I
have been re-writing manuscripts I finished more than a decade ago is precisely
because of the research power available on the Internet these days.
Re:
Brittany St Grenole. OK, mate, my apologies for my
incompetence. I cannot find the
village on the maps available to me.
A few clues would be appreciated.
Nice to have such friends, mate. Nous sommes Charlie, sûrement.
Just
a little side note FYI: I have long wanted to tell the story of Captain
Lieutenant Edward Pellew and his 44-gun frigate HMS Indefatigable, as they single handedly disrupted the French
invasion fleet’s departure from Brest [16.12.1796]. Someday!
The
writing day is done. Yes, at the
moment, I am on the laptop, listening to the evening news. I’m nearly done with the rewrite of
Book IV; just finished 15.Sept.1940, this morning. Once the rewrite is done, I’ll have to do a complete
read-through for final edits before submitting to the publisher. The journey continues.
. . . Round four:
“Indeed almost
heaven. I don’t know if you’ve come across Retsina, a Greek wine made from
grapes but ‘dosed’ with pine sap. Extraordinary flavour and one you may not
care for. From my travels I believe the pine sap was originally used to seal
the wine containers by the Romans to keep out air. It’s still popular but
unavailable in our local!
“Your production of
writing is to be admired, well done, mine is somewhat limited. At the moment,
just to see if I could, I’m writing a Murder Mystery with a hint of Agatha
Cristie about it, but mine involves a humanoid alien! Great fun.
“Pellow, I know of
him from somewhere.
“Cap, apologies, my
error here, the correct spelling of the small port in Brittany, Saint Guenole.
(Goggle Earth). Of course the modern port is vast(er) compared to my little
early 19th century fishing port. Basically it’s an inlet through the vast rocky
shores of that region. Nice folks, good food and wine, weather can be a trifle
Atlanticonian. (my word, sorry about that).”
. . . my response to round four:
Re:
Retsina. No, unfortunately, I have
not come across Retsina by knowledge or taste. I shall keep an eye out for it, and who knows, we may get to
Greece eventually.
Murder-mystery
. . . interesting. Keep going and
keep me posted. Are you looking to
get published?
Re:
Pellow. Eventually, Admiral Edward
Pellew, 1st Viscount Exmouth, GCB . . . a luminary in the history of
the Royal Navy, not quite to the level of Nelson, but up there. Quite a history, I might add.
Re:
Saint Guénolé, Penmarch, Brittany, France. Got it.
Thx. Not a classic harbor
of refuge as Brest or Saint-Nazaire.
It is always a pleasure to learn.
A different
contribution:
“What a wonderful narrative! Clearly you all had an awe-inspiring
adventure. Wish you had more bright, sunny days .. but alas, we cannot control
the weather. Sounds like the sunrises and sunsets were colorful, and the
wine tasting an exploration in grape preservation. The sailing sounded
exuberating, an a bit scary, but all mates performed their tasks. Glad you
all docked without incident.
“I’m sure the ladies enjoyed their gambling and I remember Jeanne
saying if she ever got back to the Crib .. that she would buy another
diamond. Wondering if she found her sparkler? Glad you had the company too. It
makes for a fonder memory for all.
“Thanks for taking us all with you. Always love the mental
pictures you paint, so vivid. Always love hearing about your travels. Glad you
had such fun!!”
My reply:
Glad
you enjoyed last week’s Update.
Always a pleasure to hear from you.
It
was a good trip, although Jeanne and others thought the ship moved too much in
the open ocean. To me, it is part
of being at sea.
You
remember well and . . . yes, as a matter of fact, she did get an ice rock
upgrade . . . after all, she is a professional shopper.
My very best wishes to all. Take care of yourselves and each other.
Cheers,
Cap :-)
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