politics 3

politics 3
Finally the politicing and the election is over and we are now on to the nitty gritty. As I have said, the people in the new administration are the key to how we will all come out of these trying times. So far, I am impressed with the team Obama has been getting for his advisors. The one question so far is that of Hillary—if she does take the Secretary of State. Politically it may be a good move but I am not sure that she would be the best person. I thought that Richardson, the govenor of New Mexico would be a good chhoice. But then, what do I know. The economic team just announced is very impressive. It is apparent that they all will be ready to hit the ground running Jan. 20 when Obama is sworn in as the new president. I hope that the bleeding in the investment markets has been slowed or stopped; everyone has had a fairly hard hit in the last couple of months. I switched everything over to bonds which should be of some help. Everyone however is skittish, but we will do ok in the long run. I was just thinking that in the “great depression” we went to the river and cut down and cut up trees to help with the heating of the house and the cooking. It is true that cutting wood warms you twice, once when you cut it and once when you burn it.
I have just finished reading thomas friedman’s book, “Hot, Flat and Crowded”. I read it on my Kindle which was fun and also helped me get familiar with the Kindle, it is going to be ok. It can do more than I know how to do as yet. He certainly makes some good points and emphasizes that we have to do some corrections now as far as energy usage, development and the saving of the planet. GREEN is good! I have the book “Dewey” the library cat, on the kindle and hope to read it with Mary.
The final paragraph of friedman’s book
we need to redefine green and rediscover America and in so doing rediscover ourselves and what it means to be Americans. We are all pilgrims again. We are sailing on the Mayflower anew. We hve not been to this shore before. If we fail to recognize that, we will indeed, become just one more endangered species. But if we rise to this challenge, and truly become the Re-generation—redefining green and rediscovering reviving and regenerating America—we, and the world, will not only survive but thrive in an age that is, hot, flat, and crowded.

At this time of Thanksgiving we are reminded to be grateful for what we have and to share.
Mary and I are rocking along here at Drury Place.

Hope that this finds all going well with all of you!
HAF AKA HAPPY DOC

POLITICS 2

Greetings All:
Politics is still the big thing and will continue until the election. The US is not the only place where there are changes being made. Pakistan has a new leader and Isreal also has a new Premier. The choice of Sarah Palin as the VP on the Republican ticket has created so much publicity that one would think that she is heading the ticket instead of McCain! The debates are coming upand the bail out of the debt will keep the pundits busy until the actual election in Nov. It is hard to conceive of the size of the debt we are talking about.

The following information rearding AIG is interesting.

The company's complex structure and aggressive approach reflects the determination of the man who built A.I.G., Maurice R. Greenberg, to create an global empire operating in complementary businesses. Not even the company’s annual reports to shareholders or its regulatory filings offer a chart of its complex corporate structure.

Though its name is American, the company is rooted in Asia. According to company lore, its founder, Cornelius Vander Starr, a World War I veteran, traveled to Asia with only 300 Japanese yen (less than $3 by today’s exchange rates) in his pocket and started the firm in Shanghai in 1919

Now they have increased the take to 700 Billion!! It will be some time before we have worked our way out of this. but at least I think that there will be some changes made and some improvement in the regulation and oversight of the financial sector so that the people running the banks etc get away without doing their job and then getting huge pay-outs when the company fails.
The first presidential debate is this Friday it should be interesting. I am surprised with Biden who I thought was a good choice for VP (and he probably is) but apparntly his mouth gets ahead of his feet at times and he has been making several gaffs,
I was pleased to see Bill Clinton on Larry King Live tonight and to learn about his "Clinton global initiative". apparantly a non gov. program to assist peoples and their problems--health etc--. His legagcy after out of office may be greater than what was when in office.
I made the jump and ordered a KINDLE e-book reader from Amazon. it may arrive tomorrow. So I will have a new toy!!
Mary and I are "hanging in there" here at Drury Place. I have had my 88 birthday this week so I guess that in itself is an accomplishment. We are pleased that our son Bill and wife Peggy will be here for a few days. Glad to get a visit once a year. They are living now in Fort Davis Tx. and have been busy getting their place set up.
(Sat. PM) I did not get this blog posted so will finish it and do so.
Bill, Peggy and the dogs arrived and they are camped at the KOA. They will leave Mon and go visit their kids in TX and LA. before returning to Fort Davis, TX. We are enjoying their visit here. We watched the Presidential debates last night. It seemed about a tie but neither really addressing the present finacial problems. We have been able to move a couple things along in the interest of thinning out stuff; In the process, I found the shoe-shine box which had been lost since we moved (2 years).
Bill and I have been playing with the Kindle. I got the Denver Post for 50 cents to try it out and have learned some other things about it. currently there are 170,000 books in the kindle format available.
I will get this posted. Thur. the VP candidates go at it--should be interesting.
Sending the best to all
HAF AKA SENIORGEEK

POLITICS

HI ALL
The democratic party will have their BIG party tonight in Denver. I think that Biden was a good choice for a running mate. Tomorrow we will know who McCain's VP choice will be. We have two weeks now of conventions and then 2 months of campaigning and will then have a new president selected! This is a very important time in the history of our country. Solving the energy problem is the crucial element for improvement of the whole situation. We need an APOLLO approach. There are so many areas of unrest around the world that I do not envy the next president. It would be good to know the major members of the cabinet before the election in Nov.
I have started to read another book by James Alexander Thom titled "Children of First Man". He writes in western/indian genre. His wife Dark Moon is of the Shawnee Indian tribe. I have been reading the Wagon West Series by Dana Fuller Ross. The library apparently does not have the last volume #24. I can get it used from Amazon for about 2 dollars, with about 3.50 for shipping. Costs more to ship than to buy--signs of the time.
Amazon has come out with an e-book reader which is enticing. It is called KINDLE and will hold about 600 books. The hang-up is the price at 350.00. It uses SPRINT wireless technology and a book can be downloaded in just a couple of minutes.
Last Sunday's Q andA with Brian Lamb was very interesting. Gregg Mortenson was the guest and he has established "Central Asian Institute" whose mission is to establish schools in rural Pakistan and Afghanistan. The interview is available through podcast and the web page for CSI is---www.ikat.org--He has written a book titled "Three Cups of Tea" which has been on the best seller list. The library has a copy but there is a 3 month waiting time. There is an emphasis to educate the girls which is so important for the future of the countries. An example of this is Mary's "sister" thru "Women for Women" is 20 years old and does not know how to read or write--We have no concept of the problems facing parts of the world.
Hope that all is well in your part of the world!

HAF AKA HAPPYDOC

LAST HALF

JULY
We have passed the Summer solstice so the last half of the year 2008 is on it's way! We are heading for the "dog days". There is nothing to complain about here in Kanas--mostly--compared with much of the country. The town of Chapman was hit with a tornado with coniderable damage but the wheat crop is now in the bin and the crop was not lost like the corn farmers of Iowa with the extensive flooding. We need to use other cellulose material to produce Ethanol rather than corn, now. Also develop other sources of energy than oil or gas. I am interested to find out what. T. Boone Picken's plan will be? It will be posted on TV and from the teaser ad showing wind farms and solar collector I assume that these are the areas which he wants to emphasize. We do really need an APPOLO effort. Solving the energy problem is more important than putting a man on the moon. We are in an interesting time. Honda is planning to market a hydrogen powered car the last of this year or in 2009. It is quite a car, with a range of 350 mile on one fill up. They are also developing home hydrogen generators which will help take care of the lack of adequate infrastructure. Perhaps we are entering the post-hydrocarbon era. Research should be made on how to manage the atomic power plants residual material. There must be a good safe use for it instead of just burying it in a mountain.
I have just finished reading "Sign Talker" by James Alexander Thom--it is a historical novel of the Lewis and Clark expedition. It is particularly about the contribution to the effort by Chas. Droulliard. He was a half breed Shawnee Indian hunter and interpreter who joined the expedition. The group would never have made it to the Pacific and back without his contribution. I had never heard of him--much is made of Sacajawea--but Drooulliard's contribution was more crucial.
We are still hanging in here at Drury Place. There is some turnover in the residents with new people coming in and some leaving because of change in health status, need of more care etc. It was a good time for us to make the move with less to take care of etc. We do no cooking and few dishes, still do personal laundry. We spend more time reading. Mary's stent is still working.
The Political races are coming around to the last turn and the conventions are on the horizon but are really of not much use except to spend money and to try to whip up enthusiasm. The most important thing is who else is going to be on the team. The president is only as good as the information and the advise that is filtered into him. I hope we have knowledge in this area before the election. Regardless, we have lived through depressions, wars, scarcities before.
Hope that all is well with all of you and sending wishes for happiness.

HAF***AKA***HAPPY DOC

ELECTION

We finally know who the cadidates for presidet will be. The democrats have at least created a lot of excitement and this will be an important course changing election in November—whichever way it turns out. I think that there will be a much larger turnout than usual to vote and that is a good thing. We will probably be tired of all of the “noise” before it is all settled. The early elections of the nation—the late 1700’s and early 1800’s—with Jefferson, Adams, Burr, Hamilton, Marshall, etc—between the republican and federalist parties of the day became rather rough and we survived. The important thing is to vote—you can not bitch if you do not vote!
SIGNS OF THE TIMES! One of the residents’ grandsons was visiting here and was driving one of the new SMART cars. It was interesting to see one of them. It is a very small 2 passenger car with good gas mileage. Richard said that he has seen a number of them on the road in Europe. We will probably be seeing more of them –or other developments –spurred by the high cost of gas. The Smart car has developed almost a cult following with discussions etc on the internet. Richard was here visiting for a few days and he took us for a drive toward Ellsworth to see the wind farm which has been developed in Ellsworth and Lincoln Counties. It really is interesting to see the wind electric generators. In a way we are going back to the 1930’s before the days of the REA and some farmers then had windmill generators with storage batteries for their own electical system. At least it was some better than a kerosene lamp. An article in the local paper today reports that a rural homeowner has a permit to set up his own wind generator and will reduce the amount of power he takes from the grid and if he has excess will be able to sell it back to the power company.
General Motors is betting all of their nickels on the new VOLT electric car.
As a plus, on our trip to see the wind-farm we drove through Ellsworth. Rich’s car has “On Star” navigation, so we told it to direct us to our old home—216 Colo. Ave—and it did! It is hard to envision the database to be able to bring up the address in ELLSWORTH, KANSAS. It was a pleasusre to see the old home place and it has been modernized and has a 2 car garage etc. The front porch has been improved to be a concrete slab but the swing (more modern) is still hanging in its old place ---memories!
We have had a very active spring storm season, with tornadoes, thunderstorms and hail. In Salina we have been very lucky; we did go to the basement one evening for a little while because of a tornado sighted just west of town. One wonders what the hurricane season has in store! Mother Nature seems to be restlesss!
I will close this posting and send the very best wishes to all of you.

HAF AKA HAPPY DOC

SPRING

Title: SPRING IS BUSTING OUT ALL OVER

I think that is the lyrics in “Oklahoma”, anyway the jonquils, tulips, forcythia and the bradford pear trees are all blooming. So, Mother Earth is awakening from the Winter “blahs”! I know that some people like the stark black and white but I prefer the color.

A Spring Haiku:

Spring blooms bursting forth,

Mother Earth decorates her hair—

The hearts of all soar!

How about the Election Run Up!! At least it has made some jokes and has been some different entertainment. We do not go into a deadly rampage as the islamists do with the publishing of a cartoon! Visiting with a friend in McAllen, TX this week; he stated that in Mexico they are designing a portable ladder that will enable people to climb over the border fence—probably the contract will go to China—isn’t free enterprise great!

The Spring break of the schools was an opportunity for us to have some visits from family. Lynn and grands Kirsten and Karl from Colorado and John and Gail from MN. paid us a short visit. It is great to have a visit in person rather than just the telephone’

A web address that you might enjoy abd get some laughs (the music of the soul).—

www.wackywits.com

One of the jokes

Passing by the primate area one day, a zoo attendant happens to notice a chimpanzee sitting on a rock with an open book in either hand, looking first at one and then at the other. Upon closer examination, he identifies the books: the Bible, and Darwin's "Origin of Species".

Curious, he asks the chimp, "What's with the books?"

The chimp replies, "I'm trying to decide whether I'm my brother's keeper, or my keeper's brother."

Mary’s bile duct stent stopped up—we knew that it was only good for about 3 months. It has been replaced with a bigger, better model and she is doing fairly well now—not jaundiced.

There have been no more postings from “baghdad burning” blog since Oct when the family escaped to
Syria. However Sainab Salbi who is the founder and ceo of Women for Women program has posted notes on her recent visit to Iraq which is very distressing as far as the day to day lives of the civilian population is concerned. You can read these notes at the following address.

http://wfwnotesfromthefield.wordpress.com/

My reading has been mostly fluff and “escapism”, which I guess balances the news reports and the political noise. I have been reading—slowly—“god is not great” byChristopheer hitchins and just checked out (because of the authors name)“Blue Grit” by LAURA FLANDERS. The sub-title is True democrats take back politics from politicians.

Hope that this finds all going well with all of you!

HAF AKA HAPPY DOC

and the winner is

AND THE WINNER IS……..

The reppublicans have essentiially decided on their candidate for president and the democrats are in the battle to the finish. They may go to the convention and the super delegates. We may get tired of all the “blather” but aren’t we glad that we can do it!!. The new primary format does give the populace a chance to put in some input but the process should be changed so that it does not take so long and also some mechanism to be less expensive. Some of the money could be better spent. It appears that Obama has made great strides but the Clinton’s are very strong opponents. (I do not know where hilary gets her 35 years experience, unless she was co-president with Bill!) At least, we do not bomb and shoot our opponents as they did in Pakistan.

On c-span 2 today there was an interview with the writer who helped Benazir Bhutto write her book “reconciliation”, which has recently been published—in fact—just before she was killed. This was in the “afterwords” segment this week end on book tv. It is very interesting and is available on the internet as a podcast. The interviewer was Akbar Ahmed who is of pakistani desent and author of many articles and books on islam.

I have been negligent in posting to this blog and in fact had thought some of not continuing. We have been busy with health problems etc. mary was finally checked at the cyberknife facility in Wichita but she is not a candidate for that type of radiation.

I want to take this chance to wish all of you the very best wishes for 2008—and we will get through the elections!

HAF AKA HAPPY DOC