Scene down a side road

Rustic roads

Yesterday
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The State of Wisconsin has a program to recognize and preserve what are labeled as "Rustic Roads."

They are generally quiet, often wooded, often hilly country lanes, with low speed limits. I drive on them whenever I get a chance and have the time, as I did yesterday on a trip to Madison.

It is, they say, a "positive step backward." I agree!

The Prayer for Obama

Yesterday
3 comments

Here is the full text of the "prayer for Obama" that has excited some controversy. From Psalm 109:

May his days be few;
  may another seize his goods!
May his children be fatherless,
  and his wife a widow!
May his children wander about and beg;
  may they be driven out of the ruins they inhabit!
May the creditor seize all that he has;
  may strangers plunder the fruits of his toil!
let there be none to extend kindness to him,
  nor any to pity his fatherless children!
May his posterity be cut off;
  may his name be blotted out in the second generation!
May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the Lord,
  and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out!
Let them be before the lord continually;
  and may his memory be cut off from the earth! {Psa 109:6-15 RSV}

Another new car choice

2 days ago
4 comments

Crosstour

This is the Honda Accord Crosstour. Has racy lines and a huge hatchback. Goes on sale tomorrow, but today they had some to demo drive at a nearby shopping center.

It is too big of a car for me, but I do like the idea. Versatility, modernized, they say.

It is SO funny that the Republican National Committee provides a health insurance plan for its own staffers that includes (a) abortion services and (b) end-of-life counseling, both of which they are strenuously opposed to having be made available to other, regular Americans through whatever kind of health insurance reform legislation is ultimately adopted. It is good enough for them, but after all--we don't want those regular people, those unlucky enough to not have health insurance provided by their well-heeled employers, to have the same benefits.

I've also been surprised to discover that the current, existing Medicare program, what is in law now, offers end-of-life counseling in connection with the "welcome to Medicare" physical exam, which is made available free to all 65 year olds. No one screams "death panels" about that.

It all reeks of hypocrisy. Actually, I find it impossible to believe that any of the health reform critics, any of the tea party organizers or financiers, and really any Republicans actually believe any of the things they say about any significant political or policy issue. And that goes for the Fox News commentators and right-wing bloggers and radio hosts of course. It is impossible to believe that they actually believe the demonstrably false claims and charges that they make their living by repeating, over and over, in ever-increasing elaboration and with truly astounding dishonesty.

That doesn't mean that "ordinary" objectors don't believe, though. People are gullible, and they are quite naturally anxious and afraid. When they say they are worry that the "government might gets its hands on their Medicare," they are sincere. Ill-informed, but sincere.

---

And oh--yes, there is no "scientific evidence" that smoking causes cancer, either. That is just a plot of socialist/elitists to take away our basic rights. Smoking is protected under the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, specifically in Article XI, since it was a part of the basic way of life of our Founding Fathers and Native Americans. Indeed, the whole purpose of the Boston Tea Party was to object to a tax on tobacco being levied by the British Royalists.

No more North Dakota for me

6 days ago
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North Dakota map

I had hoped and expected that we might be leaving for North Dakota on Wednesday, to be gone for a week. My son's athletic team had a good chance of being in the conference championship, and did indeed finish the season with their best record ever. But they ended up tied for fourth place, and then lost the opportunity to play in the final tournament because of the way the tie-breaking rule works.

My interest isn't only because of sports; that also is the region where my mother grew up, and I wanted to revisit some of her old family haunts. There is even a dorm at the University named after my grandfather. At the same time, I was very aware of the possibility that weather conditions could make travel difficult. Even though we are not going, I am still watching to see what the Weather Channel has to say about the northern Great Plains area.

Anyhow, now the trip is off. Maybe we will have another opportunity next year--after the winter has passed.

I'm still interested in restaurant suggestions, though, for Fargo and Grand Forks, and communities going northward from Chicago.

2012 and all that

6 days ago
2 comments

I saw the movie today--this is its opening weekend--and really enjoyed it quite a bit. Many reviews, though, have been quite critical (although the audience reception worldwide has been huge).

The criticism is difficult for me to understand. I wonder if the problem isn't a concern that people might take the story seriously as some kind of prediction. But really, really--what could the Mayans have possibly figured out about the distant future of planet earth? Are people so gullible that they don't believe in evolution, but they do believe in an ancient forecast of the apocalypse? They think global warming isn't really a problem, but that the alignment of the stars in 2012 is?

One concern for me is that there were an awful lot of collapsing buildings. If I lived in New York, and especially if I had lost a loved one on 9/11, I would be deeply offended. There is a moral issue, too, in that 6 billion or so people die from the events the movie portrays, but we only care about a dozen or so principal characters.

Still, as movies go, it is pretty good. I have enjoyed a lot of science fiction movies, without being too concerned about whether or not the stories were very plausible. Plausibility isn't the point. Viewed purely as entertainment, and as a demonstration of the art of cinematography and special effects, 2012 s rather impressive. And there are some excellent cast members.

I didn't buy any popcorn, though: first time I haven't in decades. It has just gotten to cost too much.

One forecast I would offer, based on what I saw. If you want to visit Yellowstone National Park, 2012 might be a good year to go. The crowds are likely to be smaller then.

Power Tower

Nov 12, 2009
4 comments

Power Tower

This cooling tower to me looks like a nuclear plant, but apparently it is actually coal-fired. Overlooks US 12 in Michigan City, Indiana, very near the state line.

Not my photo, but I have seen the same view. When you are driving east from the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, the power plant is all you see as you pull into town, framed perfectly by the trees next to the highway.

I wonder how much those houses would rent for?

Two degrees of separation?

Nov 12, 2009
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Just got word that my son-in-law briefed President Obama last week!

Democracy, I think, is a wonderful thing. We "ordinary people," not only the sons and daughters of the privileged and wealthy, are able to attain official positions of some influence if we work hard enough, are smart enough--and, of course, are willing to accept a lower salary than is offered on, say, Wall Street or much of Corporate America.

I am trying to think who is the "most important" person I ever met personally. Probably it is Bob Dole, once the Senate Majority Leader and both a Republican Presidential and Vice Presidential nominee. I interviewed him in connection with a governmental report; he was gracious and helpful.

Dole was an "ordinary person," too: during the Great Depression, his parents moved the family into the basement of their home and rented out the other floors. He also suffered injuries during the Second World War; I recall that we shook hands with our lefts.

The Robert J. Dole Institute at the University of Kansas was created to promote the spirit of bi-partisanship.

Good for Bob Dole, and good for my son-in-law. And I am proud, too, to once have been a part of the governmental process, the machinery of democracy.

Visual clutter

Nov 12, 2009
5 comments

The discussion about wind farms has made me realize how much I tend to dislike outdoor "visual clutter" in many of its forms. Things I don't like include:

--billboards (a pet peeve; theoretically they were outlawed in 1965 by the Highway Beautification Act).
--cell towers, if too frequent or prominent, and of course they are getting more so

--litter, of course.
--large windfarms (as discussed)
--suburban/rural "sprawl" (ditto)
--traffic congestion, especially truck traffic
--actually, in a lot of ways, big cities (which I used to enjoy; my wife can't stand them now, either, and she grew up in New Jersey!)

I'm opposed to the "uglification of America." I am for scenic beauty, and I support good design.

Billboard in the country

Now, who would think that putting a big billboard like that along a lovely road helps their political cause?

But worse of course are the jungles of billboards near, say, O'Hare airport. Few of these are "informational," unless of course you make your main decisions on what liquor to drink or kind of car to buy while moving along in heavy traffic. Rather, they are ugly and distracting; they make the roads less safe.

In Britain, we saw few such in the countryside. I believe property owners are restricted to a single sign identifying their business: some rule like that.

I don't like "noise pollution" either, perhaps especially horn-honkers: a major gripe! But I think my visual sense is probably stronger.

Relatedly I guess, I like Apple computers. Great interfaces! The term "visual clutter" is often used in relation to interfaces. Designers work hard to reduce it.

Who wants a pilot to have a cockpit where he/she doesn't see the key indicators, can't find the right controls? Where things aren't in their expected place? Where they don't do what they "should?" Where they operate "backwards?"

On The Other Hand--for reasons I can't explain, I don't mind a messy desk. Actually, even more than that, I think that all of the important work, certainly all of the creative work, is done by people with messy desks! In this instance, I am not against "clutter," but for it.

Another new rural scene

Nov 11, 2009
7 comments

Windfarm

Here's another thing I saw sprouting in the cornfields (in addition to housing developments). Wind farms, they are called.

Some farmers had signs in their lawn protesting, but others obviously have sold land for this purpose. Apparently each windmill takes 1-3 acres. I saw dozens in southern DeKalb County (IL), but none in adjacent Lee County, on the roads I followed.

The company involved is apparently based in Florida. One woman I spoke with said that they would rather have their wind-farms in Wyoming, but there is some problem apparently with transmission over that great a distance. (Which doesn't sound right to me, but that is what she said).

In principle, wind power (and solar power) sound ecologically fine. In practice, it sure is ugly! But, when it is on a ridge line in the eastern mountains, and visible in every direction for many miles, it is even worse!

And in some places there have been problems from killing birds.

On the other hand, I guess farmers are having trouble making a living with crops alone.

I do wish our new house had a solar panel on the roof. Really, I think it should be required.

But on the other hand, I am glad there are no wind turbines nearby. Having a high former landfill is bad enough! And traffic, traffic is pretty bad, too.

dan s wang Updated: 3 hours ago
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Country By Design said:
At times I think we would all be better off without so much progress. If we all had room to... read more
on Rustic roads
DoctorD said:
The tower is very big, and very close. Right on US 12. It is the main thing you see pulling... read more
on Power Tower
dewitte said:
Gosh - how far is that tower from the house? If it's far away, it must be HUGE. If it's... read more
on Power Tower
Katiebell said:
When we were told to pray for our leaders this is probably not what Christ had in mind. And sadly,... read more
on The Prayer for Obama
DoctorD said:
The Christian Conservatives seem to be hoping that the Lord will smite Obama--or, that failing that, that one of their... read more
on The Prayer for Obama