WebBlahGarza

Thanks to Chris for the Space, this blog has moved

John Garza — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 09:08:00 GMT

Thanks to Chris for the space here and the oportunity to haver a blog, I realized when Chris moved us to the Wordpress site that I could create my own blogs using Wordpress, so I did. I hope those of you who have read my psots will continue to do so at my new blogs. There a several, all of them different and all of them by me.

My Primary/Personal Blog http://webblahgarza.johngarza.com/

My Political Blog http://freedpeople.coloradofreeradio.com/

My Internet Radio Staion Blogs

Colorado Free Radio http://cfrdblog.coloradofreeradio.com/

Colorado Free Radio Old Time Radio http://cfrotrblog.coloradofreeradio.com/

as we ll as my Old Time Radio Podcast Blog http://coloradofreeradiooldtimeradio.mypodcasts.net/

Thanks again to Chris for the educaion in blogging and the space to learn about. So I will bid farwell and hope to see you at one of my blogs.

John Garza

Winter Is Upon Us

John Garza — Mon, 22 Oct 2007 10:02:00 GMT

The first signs of winter are here, the snow is getting more obvious on the Mountains and the birds are starting to fly south in large flocks. Just got a new toy a 1969 John Deere 1520, I drove it home the other evening and man what a rush...! I've all but given up on the state of affairs, the system is grinding down on our Country. As the infrastructure is falling apart in the cities and health care has become a pawn in the political game at the expense of the people, and truth has taken a back seat to the propaganda of fear, we are still pumping billions of dollars in to a part of the world that is so remote from the real problems here at home. The shepherds are failing in their duty, the flocks are lost and the wolves are on the perimeter edging closer.

Snow on the La Platas Last week

The New Toy

Fall colors

Snow on the 14ers

John Garza — Mon, 24 Sep 2007 15:56:00 GMT

We had a pretty good rain the last two days, it finally cleared enough to see the snow on the 14er's. These are the peaks to the north of us between here and Silverton, the highest ones are Windham, Eolus, and Sunlight with Engineeer to the left of the ridge.

Here's a closer view

Temperatures are dropping fast and time is running out to get things winterized. Still have to dig up the yard hydrant to reset it in gravel. When the contractors put it in they didn't do that so now the water is weeping up the rod, a sure way for it to freeze in the winter. Just need to dig it up and clean the weep hole repack it in gravel and bury it again. I definetly paid those guys too much money for the crap work they did. Oh well I should count my blessings. The house is comming along, I put in some trim and baseboards this weekend, we are using cedar coated with a clear urathane. Looks nice and matches the hickory cabinets, pictures of those soon.

First True Sign of Autumn

John Garza — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 19:28:00 GMT

The Red Tail has returned with her young, she always shows up at the beginning of fall to teach her young to hunt the field before they move on, it's always a sign that fall is on her heels. A faint bit of color on the mountains, soon the change. I have been floundering on the music side of things but the house has taken much of my energy. I'm starting to feel the strain of the work and the stress of the burden. Tomorrow many tasks.

Soon the Migration

John Garza — Wed, 12 Sep 2007 23:49:00 GMT

As of late the birds have been very active and gathering in larger groups, I counted 25 Band Tailed Pigeons on the chicken pen the other afternoon and there has been a mother Kestrel and her 2 youngsters hunting the pastures around my house the past few days. Quite often I have seen raptors training their young to hunt from our rather large corttonwoods. The kestrels being a smaller bird are content to use my TV antenna on my studio deck and the nearby trees. I was fortunate to capture some shots of them.

Here is one of the three perched almost at eye level near my deck.

When I came out on the deck to take the photographs I startled them so they dispersed. I was fortunate to be fast enough to catch this shot of one of them flying right at eye level in front of me. It's a bit of a blur as this is a detail of the shot and she was at full speed flying by.

And the third went directly overhead:

I hope to catch some shots of the Pigeons as they are becoming quite comfortable here. I hope they return, I know that the Band Tailed Pigeon mates for life and since there are so many of them here this year I hope to give them a sanctuary. It's worth the bit of chicken feed they eat to have them around. I also have have had quite a lot of Hummingbirds about, and I haven't even put any feeders out this year. Perhaps that's why the Kestrels have been hanging around a lot. They are a small bird eater and Hummers are a delicacy for them. Soon they will all be gone for the winter and the fall/winter birds will arrive. I vicariously relive my days of wandering through them, the birds. Thank God for those moments of rememberance. Today is my Fathers Birthday, he turned 79, how odd to be aging, I feel so much the same as I always have, maybe just a little bit more cynical and more contemplative ( and stiff and sore). Life isn't short it's our bodies that don't last, the vessel wears out but the soul is eternal. Just as the seasons and the cycles of life come and go our souls are like the birds migrating for the winter but returning in the spring to bear it's offspring.

Progress and Fall on the way

John Garza — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 11:03:00 GMT

A couple of the trees in the yard are already turnning yellow and the nights are cooling off considerably. The kitchen cabinets are being installed today as I write this. Got the washer and dryer hooked up in the laundry room, no more laundramats.

http://jumano.com/blogs/johngarza/gallery/249.aspx

As promised here is the picture of Jamaica kissing a Chimp through the glass cage, not a great picture but a sweet one.

The bachelor herd is growing and the does are starting to come around in greater numbers, I'm noticing some of the Bucks moving closer to the does and some of the does gathering nearer the Bucks, soon the winter herds will form and move on to the winter lands. Here is one of the bucks just in front of the house.

The afternoon storms have been pretty regular for the last month and occasionally they happen late enough to get some nice rainbows, here is one from last week.

The state of affairs in our country and the world have been quite frustrating for me and most of the time I already know the consequences of our actions as a whole. It seems most people don't get it, so I just focus on the building of the house, my kids and the beauty of nature all around us. It's all I can do to not let the rest of it cause me pain.

You Know You're A Coloradoan If....

John Garza — Sat, 01 Sep 2007 14:32:00 GMT

It was only a matter of time before Jeff Foxworthy took a couple of shots at Colorado.

You are a Coloradoan if ...........

1. You switch from "Heat" to "A/C" in one day.

2. You know what the "Peoples Republic of Boulder" means.

3. Your sense of direction is: towards the mountains and away from the mountains.

4. You're a meat-eating vegetarian.

5. The bike on your car is worth more than your car and you have your own special bike lane.

6. You're able to drive 65 miles per hour through 13 feet of snow during a raging blizzard without even flinching.

7. You take your out-of-town guests to Casa Bonita even though you would never go there otherwise.

8. You think your major food groups are granola bars, tofu and Fat Tire Beer.

9. You design your kid's Halloween costumes to fit over a snow suit.

10. You think that sexy lingerie is wool socks and flannel PJs.

11. You know all 4 seasons "almost winter, winter, still winter and spring blizzards

12. You've been tear gassed in a riot to celebrate a CU/CSU victory.

13. You can never figure out why your out-of-town guests faint from altitude sickness on a picnic to the mountains

14. You can drive over a 12,000-foot pass in 4 feet of snow, but can't get to work if there are 4 inches of snow.

15. You know the 'correct' pronunciation of Buena Vista.

16. When you visit friends at sea level, you can drink a case of beer and not get a buzz.

17. Your car insurance costs more than your car.

18. You have surge protectors on every outlet.

19. April showers bring May blizzards.

20. 'Timberline' is someplace you have actually been.

21. You know what a 'Chinook' is

22. You know what a 'Rocky Mountain Oyster' is.

23. You know what a "fourteener" is.

24. ...But you don't know what a "turn signal" is.

25. A bear on your front porch doesn't bother you nearly as much as a Democrat in Congress does.

26. Your golf bag has a 9-iron, a 3-wood and a lightning rod.

27. People from out of state breathe 5 times as often as you do.

28. Having a Senator named Nighthorse doesn't seem strange.

29. Thunder has set off your car alarm.

30. You have an $800 stereo in your $300 truck.

31. You think a red light means 3 more cars can go.

32. Where we're going, we don't need roads!!

33. You know where the real "South Park" is.

34. You can recognize the license plates of all 50 states on sight.

35. Driving directions usually include 'Go over _________ Pass.'

36. You've 'checked for ticks'

37. You've dressed in shorts, sandals, and a parka with a hood.

38. You've gone snow skiing in July and.........

39. You've played golf in January and.......

40. They were in the same year!

41. You've urinated on the Continental Divide just so it could run into both oceans

42. You know what a down slope and an up slope weather pattern is

43. And the most important: You get a certain feeling of satisfaction from knowing that California and Texas are both
downstream.

44. You actually understand these jokes and send them to your Colorado friends,

Hooray we have a Bathroom and the Weather is changing

John Garza — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 22:27:00 GMT

Well we finally have a bathroom and we start moving in the appliances this weekend. Cabinets should arrive next week and then we have a kitchen. The deer are coming in close to eat the fallen apples from our trees and we've been seeing a large Bachelor Herd hanging around. Most of them are pretty young but there's one Buck that looks like Bambi's Father, very large and Chesty. He's quite impressive, he stands apart from the young ones most of the time, keeping the watch no doubt. Here is a photo of a Doe and her baby, it's a as close as I could get.

Here are some shots of the tile work. The bath is pre fixture install and the slate hadn't been cleaned yet. It took me two solid days of scrubing to get the slate clean of grout residual.

The bathroom floor:

The doorway between the bathroom and utility room:

The Utility room looking in to the Kitchen/Dining Room

I still have the Living room to finish, and then the Downstairs will be somewhat complete. Just some trim work and details to do. There's a slight tinge of Fall in the air so I'm hard pressed to get some other stuff done. Soon we'll have to winterize!

The Beat Goes On and Bear Sign

John Garza — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 00:15:00 GMT

I've pretty much completed the tile work downstairs and sart grouting tommorrow (starts in 6 min's). I finally blew down the partition between the old and the new structures WOW, what a difference that makes. It's nice to walk right in to the addon without having to go outside to another door, and the feeling of the cabin is entirely different with the doorway open. I tiled the 4 inch stepup today, looks pretty cool, pictures of the tile will follow soon. I'm pretty much working at all hours since Rox and the kids are in Santa Monica visiting Great Grandma, Athan and She went boogie boarding today and went to the zoo yesterday Mookie (Jamaica) kissed a chimp and it kissed her back through the glass, people were quite amazed at the interaction between the chimp and a 2 year old child. I'll post the pictures when they get back.

I'll be wiring receps and lights and hooking up shut off valves for the sinks and water heater this week end, whew lots to do. I just finished sealing the slate tonight while watching South Park , I worked during commercials. Yesterday I walked out to the yard hydrant as I have done every day since I've been tiling and looked down to see, bear tracks. The tracks are only 8 feet from the house and right in the yard. It must have walked through during the rain night before last. I think it was foraging apples that have fallen to the ground from the orchard. There was a huge 7 point buck in velvet in the yard today eating apples. Guess I should pick them up and feed them to the goats and sheep. Here's some pics of the tracks.

Stucco at Last!!

John Garza — Sun, 01 Jul 2007 10:04:00 GMT

Here are more shots of the house with the stucco on and painted! Interior colors are coming along almost ready to start tile this week, 400+ sq ft of tile downstairs. Yikes.

Stucco on the east side showing southeast doors.

East wall showing north east Main entrance.

Colors Kitchen/Dinning Room to Living Room

Living room to dinning room showing 110 year old log wall.

Full gallery link http://jumano.com/blogs/johngarza/gallery/249.aspx

And the Beat Goes On

John Garza — Fri, 22 Jun 2007 15:36:00 GMT

Well slow as it may seem progree is being mad on the houser. The stucco is up and painting is progressing on the inside. I have 2 rooms finished and primer on the 2 larger rooms downstais. Posted some new pictures for those who want to see the inside.

more shots here

http://jumano.com/blogs/johngarza/gallery/249.aspx

More shots of the new stucco soon! And so it goes!!

A Belated RIP

John Garza — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 20:24:00 GMT

I want to take a moment to recognize the loss of a great American Icon!!

To Kurt Vonnegut,

Gone but Never to be Forgotten!

“See the cat?? See the cradle?“

Where We Go!!!!

John Garza — Fri, 23 Feb 2007 13:23:00 GMT

Editorial

Making Martial Law Easier

Published: February 19, 2007

A disturbing recent phenomenon in Washington is that laws that strike to the heart of American democracy have been passed in the dead of night. So it was with a provision quietly tucked into the enormous defense budget bill at the Bush administration’s behest that makes it easier for a president to override local control of law enforcement and declare martial law.

The provision, signed into law in October, weakens two obscure but important bulwarks of liberty. One is the doctrine that bars military forces, including a federalized National Guard, from engaging in law enforcement. Called posse comitatus, it was enshrined in law after the Civil War to preserve the line between civil government and the military. The other is the Insurrection Act of 1807, which provides the major exemptions to posse comitatus. It essentially limits a president’s use of the military in law enforcement to putting down lawlessness, insurrection and rebellion, where a state is violating federal law or depriving people of constitutional rights.

The newly enacted provisions upset this careful balance. They shift the focus from making sure that federal laws are enforced to restoring public order. Beyond cases of actual insurrection, the president may now use military troops as a domestic police force in response to a natural disaster, a disease outbreak, terrorist attack or to any “other condition.”

Changes of this magnitude should be made only after a thorough public airing. But these new presidential powers were slipped into the law without hearings or public debate. The president made no mention of the changes when he signed the measure, and neither the White House nor Congress consulted in advance with the nation’s governors.

There is a bipartisan bill, introduced by Senators Patrick Leahy, Democrat of Vermont, and Christopher Bond, Republican of Missouri, and backed unanimously by the nation’s governors, that would repeal the stealthy revisions. Congress should pass it. If changes of this kind are proposed in the future, they must get a full and open debate.

Further Info: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jane-smiley/what-would-you-do-if-bush_b_41674.html

Today

John Garza — Sun, 11 Feb 2007 15:51:00 GMT

Today there is the largest gaggle of Lesser Canadian Geese I have ever seen. There are literally a hundred plus gathering in the back 80, my guess is they're gathering to head back to the breeding grounds in a month or so. Yesterday two flew by very close to my studio balcony, I started to go in to get my gun when I remembered Canadian Geese mate for life. I suddenly lost my appetite for fresh goose and remembered my connection to the land. Besides If I want goose I can always go down to the market and buy one. Today it started raining, a sure sign that winter is almost over. Winter has been very forgiving here, not like back east or in Oswego (Jerry Jeff Walkers hometown, he told me that once) we've had snow and very cold temps but nothing we can't deal with. The rain and coolish temp today reminded me of Winter in Texas, man am I glad I live in Colorado LOL. Oh Yeah,

New Pod-cast

New Podcast Site

John Garza — Thu, 18 Jan 2007 08:31:00 GMT

Colorado Free Radio Talk
Freedom is the right to disagree!

Merry Christmas

John Garza — Sat, 23 Dec 2006 17:33:00 GMT

Merry Christmas

I hope all of you have a very safe and festive Holidays. No matter what religion or holiday you celebrate. Remember to cherish the time you have with your loved ones. Athan and I built a snowboy today, being originaly from the south and even though I've lived in the snow country for over 20 years, Snowpeople are still a mystery to me. I think he and I did a pretty good job thanks to his excitement.

Athans Exuberance

God Bless Us One and All

New Element Discovered

John Garza — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 11:36:00 GMT

New Element on Periodic Table

A major research institution has just announced the discovery of the densest element yet known to science. The new element has been named "Bushcronium." Bushcronium has one neutron, 12 assistant neutrons, 75 deputy neutrons, and 224 assistant deputy neutrons, giving it an atomic mass of 311. These particles are held together by dark forces called morons, which are surrounded by vast quantities of lepton-like particles called peons. The symbol for Bushcronium is "W". Bushcronium's mass actually increases over time, as morons randomly interact with various elements in the atmosphere and become assistant deputy neutrons in a Bushcronium molecule, forming isodopes. This characteristic of moron-promotion leads some scientists to believe that Bushcronium is formed whenever morons reach a certain quantity in concentration. This hypothetical quantity is referred to as "Critical Morass". When catalyzed with money, Bushcronium activates Foxnewsium, an element that radiates orders of magnitude more energy, albeit as incoherent noise, since it has 1/2 as many peons but twice as many morons.

Progress on the New Addition

John Garza — Thu, 23 Nov 2006 11:35:00 GMT

Well, slow but steady seems to be the pace at this point. This is the place as of yesterday. I spent the better part of the day pulling 80ft of 4/04/04/0 wirre through 2 inch conduit for the new main (I'm told it's at least a 2 man job if not 3). Stiill trying to make sense out of the electrical code and still wiring. Once I'm done with that and get my first roughin/new main inspect (provided I pass) then starts the insulation and sheet rock. HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

The New Addition

John Garza — Tue, 31 Oct 2006 10:08:00 GMT

Been a while since I've posted. We're in the middle of a remodel and living in the main cabin. Three rooms 4 people (one tot and a five year old) no bathroom and no kitchen (cooking on a camp stove and toaster oven). We are scrambling to get it buttoned up before first snow. The pro panel is up and the framing is done the outer shell is on and now comes the tyvek.

BEFORE

Interim: note the back of the cabin is exposed, first time since the 20's and 70's the back of the cabin is now the interior walls of the kitchen and family room. It seemed a shame to cover the logs up again.

Soon to be AFTER. Same view as BEFORE

This will probably be my favorite room the upstairs sun room.

We're further along than these shots show but not a lot (LOL)

There are more pics and soon to more at::

http://jumano.com/blogs/johngarza/admin/EditGalleries.aspx?catid=249

Needless to say I'm pulling my hair out since I am the main contractor as well as the Electrical contractor (doing all the wiring myself) as well as being Mr mom, staying home with my tot. Well this is my madness as of late. I hope everyone is having a great Fall.

The Word Service

John Garza — Wed, 16 Aug 2006 15:57:00 GMT

Hi Ya'll.....

   At one time in my life, I thought I had a handle on the meaning of the word "service."

"It's the act of doing things for other people."

   Then I heard these terms which reference the word SERVICE:

   Internal Revenue Service
   Postal Service
   Telephone Service
   Civil Service
   City & County Public Service
   Customer Service
   Service Stations

   Then I became confused about the word "service." This is not what I thought "service" meant.

   So today, I overheard two farmers talking, and one of them said he had hired a bull to "service" a few of his cows BAM! It all came into perspective. Now I understand what all those "service" agencies are doing to us.

   I hope you now are as enlightened as I am.

Before There Were Computers

John Garza — Sun, 09 Apr 2006 09:30:00 GMT

        Memory was something you lost with age
        An application was for employment
        A program was a TV show
        A cursor used profanity

        A keyboard was a piano
        A web was a spider's home
        A virus was the flu
        A CD was a bank account

        A hard drive was a long trip on the road
        A mouse pad was where a mouse lived

        And if you had a 3 inch floppy . .

        . . . you just hoped nobody ever found out!

New Online Radio Station

John Garza — Wed, 29 Mar 2006 17:44:00 GMT

All independent music

Lawyers

John Garza — Sun, 19 Mar 2006 09:23:00 GMT

A very successful lawyer parked his brand new Lexus in front of the
office, ready to show it off to his colleagues. As he got out, a truck came
along too close and completely tore off the driver's door of the Lexus.
The counselor immediately grabbed his cell phone, dialed 911, and it
wasn't more than 5 minutes before a policeman pulled up.

Before the cop had a chance to ask any questions, the lawyer started
screaming hysterically. His Lexus, which he had just picked up the
day before, was now completely ruined and would never be the same
no matter how the body shop tried to make it new again.

After the lawyer finally wound down from his rant, the cop shook his
head in disgust and disbelief. "I can't believe how materialistic you
lawyers are," he said. "You are so focused on your possessions that you
neglect the most important things in life."

"How can you say such a thing?" asked the lawyer.
The cop replied, "My God man, don't you even realize that your left arm
is missing? It got ripped off when the truck hit you!!!"

"OH MY GOD!" screamed the lawyer.

"My Rolex!"

Ouch!

John Garza — Fri, 03 Mar 2006 15:39:00 GMT

A man is driving up a steep, narrow mountain road.

A woman is driving down the same road.

As they pass each other, the woman leans out of the window and yells, "PIG!!"

The man immediately leans out of his window and replies, "BITCH!!"

They each continue on their way, and as the man rounds the next corner, he crashes into a pig in the middle of the road.

If only men would listen!

Happy Belated Birthday Galileo

John Garza — Thu, 16 Feb 2006 16:35:00 GMT

Galileo Galilei was born on February 15, 1564. Neither his parents nor their neighbors in Pisa expected at the time that 436 years later a spacecraft named after him would be on its way to Jupiter, or that a crater on the moon would bear his name, or that more than two hundred thousand Galileo Internet sites could be accessed by a few computer keystrokes. But Galileo's road to fame was not without its pitfalls, and he ended up nearly blind (from looking directly at the sun through his telescope) and a prisoner in his own house, courtesy of the Inquisition.

SOLAR PROMINENCE: A massive prominence is dancing along the sun's southwestern limb today (2/15/06) the earth is inserted for perspective.

Sunspots drawn by Galileo in June 1612: more drawings and info

In Galileo's day, many people believed sunspots were satellites of the sun. Galileo proved otherwise. By drawing sunspots every day, he discovered that the sun spins and that sunspots are located on (or very near) the sun's surface. Galileo thought sunspots might be clouds.

James Madison

John Garza — Wed, 01 Feb 2006 16:47:00 GMT

"If tyranny and oppression come to this land, it will be in the guise of fighting a foreign enemy."
James Madison

ALERT from the CDC: Gonorrhea Lectum

John Garza — Mon, 23 Jan 2006 14:44:00 GMT

The Center for Disease Control has issued a special bulletin warning about a new
virulent strain of Sexually Transmitted Disease.

The disease, contracted through dangerous and high-risk behavior, is called
Gonorrhea Lectum and pronounced "gonna re-elect him." Many victims contracted
it in 2004, after having been screwed for the past four years.

Cognitive characteristics of individuals infected include:

anti-social personality disorders,
delusions of grandeur with messianic overtones,
extreme cognitive dissonance,
inability to incorporate new information,
pronounced xenophobia and paranoia,
inability to accept responsibility for own actions,
cowardice masked by misplaced bravado,
uncontrolled facial smirking,
ignorance of geography and history,
tendencies towards evangelical theocracy,
categorical all-or-nothing behavior.

Naturalists and epidemiologists are amazed at how this destructive disease
originated only a few years ago from a bush found in Texas.

Where is the Constitution

John Garza — Sun, 22 Jan 2006 17:50:00 GMT

Lately I've been giving the state of our Nation a lot of thought and more specifically the abuse of power that our President is in the midst of. I keep hearing that our state of War is the reason for so many constitutional abuses and the passing of laws that could very well destroy any true freedoms we still have. So, I began to think of the fact that I do not recall the Congress declaring war, only giving the President permission to take action in the Middle East. Now with that said, is it not true that there actually is no true state of war in existance to back up these so called reasons for the attack on our freedoms and rights. Let me present this bit of information:

***********************************************************************

Controversy regarding U.S. declarations of war

Those who oppose waging war without declaration point to Article I of the Constitution, which reads The Congress shall have the power to declare war.

In the case of smaller conflicts not requiring large commitments of manpower and money, many Americans believe that precedents have already been set for acting without the need for declarations of war. In the case of major conflicts, however, debate is centered around the aforesaid words of the United States Constitution.

Those who believe that formal declarations of war are not necessary say that an absence of a formal declaration does not necessarily mean that a military conflict will be chaotic and unlawful; in many cases the rules of war are now well enough accepted to make formal declarations unnecessary. There are also diplomatic reasons for a dislike of "declaring war" on a country, as it can often be perceived as holding an entire nation responsible for the actions of a few of its citizens. In the case of the most recent public opposition, those who support such actions have noted that, in the case of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, there was no 'target' for a legal declaration of war, rather political groups or individuals.

However, the historical record disagrees somewhat on this point. The Barbary Coast War was clearly waged against a political entity not regarded as the legitimate government of its nation of operation; the Border War, quietly declared as it was, was waged against a single person, Pancho Villa.

************************************************************

for further information on Congress the President, declarations of war, the Constitution and PL 93-148 (the Wars Powers Resolution 1973) please go here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Declaration_of_war_by_the_United_States

Let Us Not Forget

John Garza — Mon, 16 Jan 2006 15:56:00 GMT

This is Martin Luterh King Jr's last speech the night before he was assasinated. As I listened to this speech the other night, a chill ran down my spine and I knew it was his own Eulogy. A man of his caliber must have known his time had come. Perhaps someone had warned him it was so. We were blessed to have him in this world and we sorely need his spirit now.

I've Been to the Mountaintop

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered this speech in support of the striking sanitation workers at Mason Temple in Memphis, TN on April 3, 1968

Thank you very kindly, my friends. As I listened to Ralph Abernathy in his eloquent and generous introduction and then thought about myself, I wondered who he was talking about. It's always good to have your closest friend and associate say something good about you. And Ralph is the best friend that I have in the world.

I'm delighted to see each of you here tonight in spite of a storm warning. You reveal that you are determined to go on anyhow. Something is happening in Memphis, something is happening in our world.

As you know, if I were standing at the beginning of time, with the possibility of general and panoramic view of the whole human history up to now, and the Almighty said to me, "Martin Luther King, which age would you like to live in?" - I would take my mental flight by Egypt through, or rather across the Red Sea, through the wilderness on toward the promised land. And in spite of its magnificence, I wouldn't stop there. I would move on by Greece, and take my mind to Mount Olympus. And I would see Plato, Aristotle, Socrates, Euripides and Aristophanes assembled around the Parthenon as they discussed the great and eternal issues of reality.

But I wouldn't stop there. I would go on, even to the great heyday of the Roman Empire. And I would see developments around there, through various emperors and leaders. But I wouldn't stop there. I would even come up to the day of the Renaissance, and get a quick picture of all that the Renaissance did for the cultural and esthetic life of man. But I wouldn't stop there. I would even go by the way that the man for whom I'm named had his habitat. And I would watch Martin Luther as he tacked his ninety-five theses on the door at the church in Wittenberg.

But I wouldn't stop there. I would come on up even to 1863, and watch a vacillating president by the name of Abraham Lincoln finally come to the conclusion that he had to sign the Emancipation Proclamation. But I wouldn't stop there. I would even come up to the early thirties, and see a man grappling with the problems of the bankruptcy of his nation. And come with an eloquent cry that we have nothing to fear but fear itself.

But I wouldn't stop there. Strangely enough, I would turn to the Almighty, and say, "If you allow me to live just a few years in the second half of the twentieth century, I will be happy." Now that's a strange statement to make, because the world is all messed up. The nation is sick. Trouble is in the land. Confusion all around. That's a strange statement. But I know, somehow, that only when it is dark enough, can you see the stars. And I see God working in this period of the twentieth century in a away that men, in some strange way, are responding - something is happening in our world. The masses of people are rising up. And wherever they are assembled today, whether they are in Johannesburg, South Africa; Nairobi, Kenya; Accra, Ghana; New York City; Atlanta, Georgia; Jackson, Mississippi; or Memphis, Tennessee - the cry is always the same - "We want to be free."

And another reason that I'm happy to live in this period is that we have been forced to a point where we're going to have to grapple with the problems that men have been trying to grapple with through history, but the demand didn't force them to do it. Survival demands that we grapple with them. Men, for years now, have been talking about war and peace. But now, no longer can they just talk about it. It is no longer a choice between violence and nonviolence in this world; it's nonviolence or nonexistence.

That is where we are today. And also in the human rights revolution, if something isn't done, and in a hurry, to bring the colored peoples of the world out of their long years of poverty, their long years of hurt and neglect, the whole world is doomed. Now, I'm just happy that God has allowed me to live in this period, to see what is unfolding. And I'm happy that He's allowed me to be in Memphis.

I can remember, I can remember when Negroes were just going around as Ralph has said, so often, scratching where they didn't itch, and laughing when they were not tickled. But that day is all over. We mean business now, and we are determined to gain our rightful place in God's world.

And that's all this whole thing is about. We aren't engaged in any negative protest and in any negative arguments with anybody. We are saying that we are determined to be men. We are determined to be people. We are saying that we are God's children. And that we don't have to live like we are forced to live.

Now, what does all of this mean in this great period of history? It means that we've got to stay together. We've got to stay together and maintain unity. You know, whenever Pharaoh wanted to prolong the period of slavery in Egypt, he had a favorite, favorite formula for doing it. What was that? He kept the salves fighting among themselves. But whenever the slaves get together, something happens in Pharaoh's court, and he cannot hold the slaves in slavery. When the slaves get together, that's the beginning of getting out of slavery. Now let us maintain unity.

Secondly, let us keep the issues where they are. The issue is injustice. The issue is the refusal of Memphis to be fair and honest in its dealings with its public servants, who happen to be sanitation workers. Now, we've got to keep attention on that. That's always the problem with a little violence. You know what happened the other day, and the press dealt only with the window-breaking. I read the articles. They very seldom got around to mentioning the fact that one thousand, three hundred sanitation workers were on strike, and that Memphis is not being fair to them, and that Mayor Loeb is in dire need of a doctor. They didn't get around to that.

Now we're going to march again, and we've got to march again, in order to put the issue where it is supposed to be. And force everybody to see that there are thirteen hundred of God's children here suffering, sometimes going hungry, going through dark and dreary nights wondering how this thing is going to come out. That's the issue. And we've got to say to the nation: we know it's coming out. For when people get caught up with that which is right and they are willing to sacrifice for it, there is no stopping point short of victory.

We aren't going to let any mace stop us. We are masters in our nonviolent movement in disarming police forces; they don't know what to do, I've seen them so often. I remember in Birmingham, Alabama, when we were in that majestic struggle there we would move out of the 16th Street Baptist Church day after day; by the hundreds we would move out. And Bull Connor would tell them to send the dogs forth and they did come; but we just went before the dogs singing, "Ain't gonna let nobody turn me round." Bull Connor next would say, "Turn the fire hoses on." And as I said to you the other night, Bull Connor didn't know history. He knew a kind of physics that somehow didn't relate to the transphysics that we knew about. And that was the fact that there was a certain kind of fire that no water could put out. And we went before the fire hoses; we had known water. If we were Baptist or some other denomination, we had been immersed. If we were Methodist, and some others, we had been sprinkled, but we knew water.

That couldn't stop us. And we just went on before the dogs and we would look at them; and we'd go on before the water hoses and we would look at it, and we'd just go on singing "Over my head I see freedom in the air." And then we would be thrown in the paddy wagons, and sometimes we were stacked in there like sardines in a can. And they would throw us in, and old Bull would say, "Take them off," and they did; and we would just go in the paddy wagon singing, "We Shall Overcome." And every now and then we'd get in the jail, and we'd see the jailers looking through the windows being moved by our prayers, and being moved by our words and our songs. And there was a power there which Bull Connor couldn't adjust to; and so we ended up transforming Bull into a steer, and we won our struggle in Birmingham.

Now we've got to go on to Memphis just like that. I call upon you to be with us Monday. Now about injunctions: We have an injunction and we're going into court tomorrow morning to fight this illegal, unconstitutional injunction. All we say to America is, "Be true to what you said on paper." If I lived in China or even Russia, or any totalitarian country, maybe I could understand the denial of certain basic First Amendment privileges, because they hadn't committed themselves to that over there. But somewhere I read of the freedom of assembly. Somewhere I read of the freedom of speech. Somewhere I read of the freedom of the press. Somewhere I read that the greatness of America is the right to protest for right. And so just as I say, we aren't going to let any injunction turn us around. We are going on.

We need all of you. And you know what's beautiful tome, is to see all of these ministers of the Gospel. It's a marvelous picture. Who is it that is supposed to articulate the longings and aspirations of the people more than the preacher? Somehow the preacher must be an Amos, and say, "Let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream." Somehow, the preacher must say with Jesus, "The spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to deal with the problems of the poor."

And I want to commend the preachers, under the leadership of these noble men: James Lawson, one who has been in this struggle for many years; he's been to jail for struggling; but he's still going on, fighting for the rights of his people. Rev. Ralph Jackson, Billy Kiles; I could just go right on down the list, but time will not permit. But I want to thank them all. And I want you to thank them, because so often, preachers aren't concerned about anything but themselves. And I'm always happy to see a relevant ministry.

It's all right to talk about "long white robes over yonder," in all of its symbolism. But ultimately people want some suits and dresses and shoes to wear down here. It's all right to talk about "streets flowing with milk and honey," but God has commanded us to be concerned about the slums down here, and his children who can't eat three square meals a day. It's all right to talk about the new Jerusalem, but one day, God's preachers must talk about the New York, the new Atlanta, the new Philadelphia, the new Los Angeles, the new Memphis, Tennessee. This is what we have to do.

Now the other thing we'll have to do is this: Always anchor our external direct action with the power of economic withdrawal. Now, we are poor people, individually, we are poor when you compare us with white society in America. We are poor. Never stop and forget that collectively, that means all of us together, collectively we are richer than all the nations in the world, with the exception of nine. Did you ever think about that? After you leave the United States, Soviet Russia, Great Britain, West Germany, France, and I could name the others, the Negro collectively is richer than most nations of the world. We have an annual income of more than thirty billion dollars a year, which is more than all of the exports of the United States, and more than the national budget of Canada. Did you know that? That's power right there, if we know how to pool it.

We don't have to argue with anybody. We don't have to curse and go around acting bad with our words. We don't need any bricks and bottles, we don't need any Molotov cocktails, we just need to go around to these stores, and to these massive industries in our country, and say, "God sent us by here, to say to you that you're not treating his children right. And we've come by here to ask you to make the first item on your agenda fair treatment, where God's children are concerned. Now, if you are not prepared to do that, we do have an agenda that we must follow. And our agenda calls for withdrawing economic support from you."

And so, as a result of this, we are asking you tonight, to go out and tell your neighbors not to buy Coca-Cola in Memphis. Go by and tell them not to buy Sealtest milk. Tell them not to buy-what is the other bread?-Wonder Bread. And what is the other bread company, Jesse? Tell them not to buy Hart's bread. As Jesse Jackson has said, up to now, only the garbage men have been feeling pain; now we must kind of redistribute the pain. We are choosing these companies because they haven't been fair in their hiring policies; and we are choosing them because they can begin the process of saying, they are going to support the needs and the rights of these men who are on strike. And then they can move on downtown and tell Mayor Loeb to do what is right.

But not only that, we've got to strengthen black institutions. I call upon you to take your money out of the banks downtown and deposit your money in Tri-State Bank-we want a "bank-in" movement in Memphis. So go by the savings and loan association. I'm not asking you something we don't do ourselves at SCLC. Judge Hooks and others will tell you that we have an account here in the savings and loan association from the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. We're just telling you to follow what we're doing. Put your money there. You have six or seven black insurance companies in Memphis. Take out your insurance there. We want to have an "insurance-in."

Now these are some practical things we can do. We begin the process of building a greater economic base. And at the same time, we are putting pressure where it really hurts. I ask you to follow through here.

Now, let me say as I move to my conclusion that we've got to give ourselves to this struggle until the end. Nothing would be more tragic than to stop at this point, in Memphis. We've got to see it through. And when we have our march, you need to be there. Be concerned about your brother. You may not be on strike. But either we go up together, or we go down together.

Let us develop a kind of dangerous unselfishness. One day a man came to Jesus; and he wanted to raise some questions about some vital matters in life. At points, he wanted to trick Jesus, and show him that he knew a little more than Jesus knew, and through this, throw him off base. Now that question could have easily ended up in a philosophical and theological debate. But Jesus immediately pulled that question from mid-air, and placed it on a dangerous curve between Jerusalem and Jericho. And he talked about a certain man, who fell among thieves. You remember that a Levite and a priest passed by on the other side. They didn't stop to help him. And finally a man of another race came by. He got down from his beast, decided not to be compassionate by proxy. But with him, administering first aid, and helped the man in need. Jesus ended up saying, this was the good man, this was the great man, because he had the capacity to project the "I" into the "thou," and to be concerned about his brother. Now you know, we use our imagination a great deal to try to determine why the priest and the Levite didn't stop. At times we say they were busy going to church meetings-an ecclesiastical gathering-and they had to get on down to Jerusalem so they wouldn't be late for their meeting. At other times we would speculate that there was a religious law that "One who was engaged in religious ceremonials was not to touch a human body twenty-four hours before the ceremony." And every now and then we begin to wonder whether maybe they were not going down to Jerusalem, or down to Jericho, rather to organize a "Jericho Road Improvement Association." That's a possibility. Maybe they felt that it was better to deal with the problem from the causal root, rather than to get bogged down with an individual effort.

But I'm going to tell you what my imagination tells me. It's possible that these men were afraid. You see, the Jericho road is a dangerous road. I remember when Mrs. King and I were first in Jerusalem. We rented a car and drove from Jerusalem down to Jericho. And as soon as we got on that road, I said to my wife, "I can see why Jesus used this as a setting for his parable." It's a winding, meandering road. It's really conducive for ambushing. You start out in Jerusalem, which is about 1200 miles, or rather 1200 feet above sea level. And by the time you get down to Jericho, fifteen or twenty minutes later, you're about 2200 feet below sea level. That's a dangerous road. In the days of Jesus it came to be known as the "Bloody Pass." And you know, it's possible that the priest and the Levite looked over that man on the ground and wondered if the robbers were still around. Or it's possible that they felt that the man on the ground was merely faking. And he was acting like he had been robbed and hurt, in order to seize them over there, lure them there for quick and easy seizure. And so the first question that the Levite asked was, "If I stop to help this man, what will happen to me?" But then the Good Samaritan came by. And he reversed the question: "If I do not stop to help this man, what will happen to him?"

That's the question before you tonight. Not, "If I stop to help the sanitation workers, what will happen to all of the hours that I usually spend in my office every day and every week as a pastor?" The question is not, "If I stop to help this man in need, what will happen to me?" "If I do not stop to help the sanitation workers, what will happen to them?" That's the question.

Let us rise up tonight with a greater readiness. Let us stand with a greater determination. And let us move on in these powerful days, these days of challenge to make America what it ought to be. We have an opportunity to make America a better nation. And I want to thank God, once more, for allowing me to be here with you.

You know, several years ago, I was in New York City autographing the first book that I had written. And while sitting there autographing books, a demented black woman came up. The only question I heard from her was, "Are you Martin Luther King?"

And I was looking down writing, and I said yes. And the next minute I felt something beating on my chest. Before I knew it I had been stabbed by this demented woman. I was rushed to Harlem Hospital. It was a dark Saturday afternoon. And that blade had gone through, and the X-rays revealed that the tip of the blade was on the edge of my aorta, the main artery. And once that's punctured, you drown in your own blood-that's the end of you.

It came out in the New York Times the next morning, that if I had sneezed, I would have died. Well, about four days later, they allowed me, after the operation, after my chest had been opened, and the blade had been taken out, to move around in the wheel chair in the hospital. They allowed me to read some of the mail that came in, and from all over the states, and the world, kind letters came in. I read a few, but one of them I will never forget. I had received one from the President and the Vice-President. I've forgotten what those telegrams said. I'd received a visit and a letter from the Governor of New York, but I've forgotten what the letter said. But there was another letter that came from a little girl, a young girl who was a student at the White Plains High School. And I looked at that letter, and I'll never forget it. It said simply, "Dear Dr. King: I am a ninth-grade student at the White Plains High School." She said, "While it should not matter, I would like to mention that I am a white girl. I read in the paper of your misfortune, and of your suffering. And I read that if you had sneezed, you would have died. And I'm simply writing you to say that I'm so happy that you didn't sneeze."

And I want to say tonight, I want to say that I am happy that I didn't sneeze. Because if I had sneezed, I wouldn't have been around here in 1960, when students all over the South started sitting-in at lunch counters. And I knew that as they were sitting in, they were really standing up for the best in the American dream. And taking the whole nation back to those great wells of democracy which were dug deep by the Founding Fathers in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. If I had sneezed, I wouldn't have been around in 1962, when Negroes in Albany, Georgia, decided to straighten their backs up. And whenever men and women straighten their backs up, they are going somewhere, because a man can't ride your back unless it is bent. If I had sneezed, I wouldn't have been here in 1963, when the black people of Birmingham, Alabama, aroused the conscience of this nation, and brought into being the Civil Rights Bill. If I had sneezed, I wouldn't have had a chance later that year, in August, to try to tell America about a dream that I had had. If I had sneezed, I wouldn't have been down in Selma, Alabama, been in Memphis to see the community rally around those brothers and sisters who are suffering. I'm so happy that I didn't sneeze.

And they were telling me, now it doesn't matter now. It really doesn't matter what happens now. I left Atlanta this morning, and as we got started on the plane, there were six of us, the pilot said over the public address system, "We are sorry for the delay, but we have Dr. Martin Luther King on the plane. And to be sure that all of the bags were checked, and to be sure that nothing would be wrong with the plane, we had to check out everything carefully. And we've had the plane protected and guarded all night."

And then I got to Memphis. And some began to say the threats, or talk about the threats that were out. What would happen to me from some of our sick white brothers?

Well, I don't know what will happen now. We've got some difficult days ahead. But it doesn't matter with me now. Because I've been to the mountaintop. And I don't mind. Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will. And He's allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I've looked over. And I've seen the promised land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land. And I'm happy, tonight. I'm not worried about anything. I'm not fearing any man. Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord.

Kwai Gon Jinn

John Garza — Mon, 16 Jan 2006 15:42:00 GMT

Here is my Yak Bull, Athan named him Kwai Gon Jinn. He and Black Wisdom, I call her Silly Heifer, are beginning to make overtures of romance and Yak Love, much to Kwai Gon's dismay she is prolonging the courtship.

Happy New Year

John Garza — Sat, 31 Dec 2005 09:41:00 GMT

Happy New Year

A Serious Message From George Carlin

John Garza — Fri, 11 Nov 2005 21:36:00 GMT

This was written by George Carlin shortly after his wife died in 2004:

GEORGE CARLIN
(post 9-11)

The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings but
shorter tempers, wider
freeways, but narrower viewpoints. We spend more, but have less, we buy
more, but enjoy less. We have bigger houses and smaller families, more
conveniences, but less time. We have more degrees but less sense, more
knowledge, but less judgment, more experts, yet more problems, more
medicine, but less wellness.

We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little,
drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too late, get up too tired, read too
little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom. We have multiplied our
possessions, but reduced our values. We talk too much, love too seldom, and
hate too often.

We've learned how to make a living, but not a life. We've added years to
life not life to years. We've been all the way to the moon and back, but
have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbour. We conquered
outer space but not inner space. We've done larger things, but not better
things.
We've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul. We've conquered the atom,
but not our prejudice. We write more, but learn less. We plan more, but
accomplish less. We've learned to rush, but not to wait. We build more
computers to hold more information, to produce more copies than ever, but
we communicate less and less.

These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion, big men and small
character, steep profits and shallow relationships. These are the days of
two incomes but more divorce, fancier houses, but broken homes. These are
days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throwaway morality, one night
stands, overweight bodies, and pills that do everything from cheer, to
quiet, to kill. It is a time when there is much in the showroom window and
nothing in the stockroom. A time when technology can bring this letter to
you, and a time when you can choose either to share this insight, or to
just hit delete.

Remember, spend some time with your loved ones, because they are not going
to be around forever. Remember, say a kind word to someone who looks up to
you in awe, because that little person soon will grow up and leave your
side.

Remember, to give a warm hug to the one next to you, because that is the
only treasure you can give with your heart and it doesn't cost a cent.
Remember, to say, "I love you" to your partner and your loved ones, but
most of all mean it. A kiss and an embrace will mend hurt when it comes
from deep inside of you.
Remember to hold hands and cherish the moment for someday that person will
not be there again.
Give time to love, give time to speak, and give time to share the precious
thoughts in your mind.

AND ALWAYS REMEMBER:

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments
that take our breath away.
If you don't send this to at least 8 people....who cares?
George Carlin

New Orleans, Just the Facts

John Garza — Thu, 01 Sep 2005 18:37:00 GMT

Did New Orleans Catastrophe Have to Happen? 'Times-Picayune' Had Repeatedly Raised Federal Spending Issues

By Will Bunch

Published: August 31, 2005 9:00 PM ET

PHILADELPHIA Even though Hurricane Katrina has moved well north of the city, the waters may still keep rising in New Orleans. That's because Lake Pontchartrain continues to pour through a two-block-long break in the main levee, near the city's 17th Street Canal. With much of the Crescent City some 10 feet below sea level, the rising tide may not stop until it's level with the massive lake.

New Orleans had long known it was highly vulnerable to flooding and a direct hit from a hurricane. In fact, the federal government has been working with state and local officials in the region since the late 1960s on major hurricane and flood relief efforts. When flooding from a massive rainstorm in May 1995 killed six people, Congress authorized the Southeast Louisiana Urban Flood Control Project, or SELA.

Over the next 10 years, the Army Corps of Engineers, tasked with carrying out SELA, spent $430 million on shoring up levees and building pumping stations, with $50 million in local aid. But at least $250 million in crucial projects remained, even as hurricane activity in the Atlantic Basin increased dramatically and the levees surrounding New Orleans continued to subside.

Yet after 2003, the flow of federal dollars toward SELA dropped to a trickle. The Corps never tried to hide the fact that the spending pressures of the war in Iraq, as well as homeland security -- coming at the same time as federal tax cuts -- was the reason for the strain. At least nine articles in the Times-Picayune from 2004 and 2005 specifically cite the cost of Iraq as a reason for the lack of hurricane- and flood-control dollars.

Newhouse News Service, in an article posted late Tuesday night at The Times-Picayune Web site, reported: "No one can say they didn't see it coming. ... Now in the wake of one of the worst storms ever, serious questions are being asked about the lack of preparation."

In early 2004, as the cost of the conflict in Iraq soared, President Bush proposed spending less than 20 percent of what the Corps said was needed for Lake Pontchartrain, according to a Feb. 16, 2004, article, in New Orleans CityBusiness.

On June 8, 2004, Walter Maestri, emergency management chief for Jefferson Parish, Louisiana; told the Times-Picayune: "It appears that the money has been moved in the president's budget to handle homeland security and the war in Iraq, and I suppose that's the price we pay. Nobody locally is happy that the levees can't be finished, and we are doing everything we can to make the case that this is a security issue for us."

Also that June, with the 2004 hurricane season starting, the Corps' project manager Al Naomi went before a local agency, the East Jefferson Levee Authority, and essentially begged for $2 million for urgent work that Washington was now unable to pay for. From the June 18, 2004 Times-Picayune:

"The system is in great shape, but the levees are sinking. Everything is sinking, and if we don't get the money fast enough to raise them, then we can't stay ahead of the settlement," he said. "The problem that we have isn't that the levee is low, but that the federal funds have dried up so that we can't raise them."

The panel authorized that money, and on July 1, 2004, it had to pony up another $250,000 when it learned that stretches of the levee in Metairie had sunk by four feet. The agency had to pay for the work with higher property taxes. The levee board noted in October 2004 that the feds were also now not paying for a hoped-for $15 million project to better shore up the banks of Lake Pontchartrain.

The 2004 hurricane season was the worst in decades. In spite of that, the federal government came back this spring with the steepest reduction in hurricane and flood-control funding for New Orleans in history. Because of the proposed cuts, the Corps office there imposed a hiring freeze. Officials said that money targeted for the SELA project -- $10.4 million, down from $36.5 million -- was not enough to start any new jobs.

There was, at the same time, a growing recognition that more research was needed to see what New Orleans must do to protect itself from a Category 4 or 5 hurricane. But once again, the money was not there. As the Times-Picayune reported last Sept. 22:

"That second study would take about four years to complete and would cost about $4 million, said Army Corps of Engineers project manager Al Naomi. About $300,000 in federal money was proposed for the 2005 fiscal-year budget, and the state had agreed to match that amount. But the cost of the Iraq war forced the Bush administration to order the New Orleans district office not to begin any new studies, and the 2005 budget no longer includes the needed money, he said."

The Senate was seeking to restore some of the SELA funding cuts for 2006. But now it's too late.

One project that a contractor had been racing to finish this summer: a bridge and levee job right at the 17th Street Canal, site of the main breach on Monday.

The Newhouse News Service article published Tuesday night observed, "The Louisiana congressional delegation urged Congress earlier this year to dedicate a stream of federal money to Louisiana's coast, only to be opposed by the White House. ... In its budget, the Bush administration proposed a significant reduction in funding for southeast Louisiana's chief hurricane protection project. Bush proposed $10.4 million, a sixth of what local officials say they need."

Local officials are now saying, the article reported, that had Washington heeded their warnings about the dire need for hurricane protection, including building up levees and repairing barrier islands, "the damage might not have been nearly as bad as it turned out to be."

Will Bunch (letters@editorandpublisher.com) is senior writer at the Philadelphia Daily News. He won a Pulitzer Prize in 1992 when he reported for Newsday. Much of this article also appears on his blog, Attytood, at the Daily News.

The Sun Is More Active Now Than Over The Last 8000 Years

John Garza — Mon, 01 Aug 2005 15:55:00 GMT

I found this while browsing for solar information. Intersting how I never heard this in the news. Hmmmm

**************************************************************

From Science Daily: http://www.sciencedaily.com

2004-11-01

The activity of the Sun over the last 11,400 years, i.e., back to the end of the last ice age on Earth, has now for the first time been reconstructed quantitatively by an international group of researchers led by Sami K. Solanki from the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research (Katlenburg-Lindau, Germany). The scientists have analyzed the radioactive isotopes in trees that lived thousands of years ago. As the scientists from Germany, Finland, and Switzerland report in the current issue of the science journal "Nature" from October 28, one needs to go back over 8,000 years in order to find a time when the Sun was, on average, as active as in the last 60 years. Based on a statistical study of earlier periods of increased solar activity, the researchers predict that the current level of high solar activity will probably continue only for a few more decades

The research team had already in 2003 found evidence that the Sun is more active now than in the previous 1000 years. A new data set has allowed them to extend the length of the studied period of time to 11,400 years, so that the whole length of time since the last ice age could be covered. This study showed that the current episode of high solar activity since about the year 1940 is unique within the last 8000 years. This means that the Sun has produced more sunspots, but also more flares and eruptions, which eject huge gas clouds into space, than in the past. The origin and energy source of all these phenomena is the Sun's magnetic field.

Since the invention of the telescope in the early 17th century, astronomers have observed sunspots on a regular basis. These are regions on the solar surface where the energy supply from the solar interior is reduced owing to the strong magnetic fields that they harbour. As a consequence, sunspots are cooler by about 1,500 degrees and appear dark in comparison to their non-magnetic surroundings at an average temperature of 5,800 degrees. The number of sunspots visible on the solar surface varies with the 11-year activity cycle of the Sun, which is modulated by long-term variations. For example, there were almost no sunspots seen during the second half of the 17th century.

For many studies concerning the origin of solar activity and its potential effect on long-term variations of Earth's climate, the interval of time since the year 1610, for which systematic records of sunspots exist, is much too short. For earlier times the level of solar activity must be derived from other data. Such information is stored on Earth in the form of "cosmogenic" isotopes. These are radioactive nuclei resulting from collisions of energetic cosmic ray particles with air molecules in the upper atmosphere. One of these isotopes is C-14, radioactive carbon with a half life of 5730 years, which is well known from the C-14 method to determine the age of wooden objects. The amount of C-14 produced depends strongly on the number of cosmic ray particles that reach the atmosphere. This number, in turn, varies with the level of solar activity: during times of high activity, the solar magnetic field provides an effective shield against these energetic particles, while the intensity of the cosmic rays increases when the activity is low. Therefore, higher solar activity leads to a lower production rate of C-14, and vice versa.

By mixing processes in the atmosphere, the C-14 produced by cosmic rays reaches the biosphere and part of it is incorporated in the biomass of trees. Some tree trunks can be recovered from below the ground thousands of years after their death and the content of C-14 stored in their tree rings can be measured. The year in which the C-14 had been incorporated is determined by comparing different trees with overlapping life spans. In this way, one can measure the production rate of C-14 backward in time over 11,400 years, right to the end of the last ice age. The research group have used these data to calculate the variation of the number of sunspots over these 11,400 years. The number of sunspots is a good measure also for the strength of the various other phenomena of solar activity.

The method of reconstructing solar activity in the past, which describes each link in the complex chain connecting the isotope abundances with the sunspot number with consistent quantitative physical models, has been tested and gauged by comparing the historical record of directly measured sunspot numbers with earlier shorter reconstructions on the basis of the cosmogenic isotope Be-10 in the polar ice shields. The models concern the production of the isotopes by cosmic rays, the modulation of the cosmic ray flux by the interplanetary magnetic field (the open solar magnetic flux), as well as the relation between the large-scale solar magnetic field and the sunspot number. In this way, for the first time a quantitatively reliable reconstruction of the sunspot number for the whole time since the end of the last ice age could be obtained.

Because the brightness of the Sun varies slightly with solar activity, the new reconstruction indicates also that the Sun shines somewhat brighter today than in the 8,000 years before. Whether this effect could have provided a significant contribution to the global warming of the Earth during the last century is an open question. The researchers around Sami K. Solanki stress the fact that solar activity has remained on a roughly constant (high) level since about 1980 - apart from the variations due to the 11-year cycle - while the global temperature has experienced a strong further increase during that time. On the other hand, the rather similar trends of solar activity and terrestrial temperature during the last centuries (with the notable exception of the last 20 years) indicates that the relation between the Sun and climate remains a challenge for further research.

Source: http://www.mpg.de/english/portal/index.html

It's A Girl

John Garza — Fri, 22 Jul 2005 17:49:00 GMT

Today July 22nd at 1:56 pm, Roxanne gave birth to a Baby Girl (name pending) she weighs 7lbs 8ozs and is 20 inches long and has very good lungs judging from the volume of her cry. Roxanne's labor was short but very powerful and she was like all women at the moment of giving birth very amazed and relieved at the same time to have brought our daughter in to the world. God bless you all and I hope that the birth of one more woman in the world brings us one step closer to peace and love.

For more pictures of this amazing experience please go here.

http://jumano.com/blogs/johngarza/gallery/231.aspx