(Up) Dated
There's a certain calm for me in finally getting to some of my months-old magazines, the news usually long past and the emotional side of the wording now toned down or appearing oddly out of place in its slant. Some of the articles still manage to remain fresh having caught a concern or story just before the tide of public popularity buried everything and made it a treasure to discover. But for the most part, the reporting becomes easy to skim and thus provides a greater sense of "catching up," at least one greater than the mounting pile of books also crying out for some attention. So if you're ready, here are a few quick updates to some of the posts of the past few months (the links are to some of the original posts of the update):
President-Elect Trump: This dealt with the post-election fallout in the U.S. (the lowest voter turnout in 20 years) and a surprise to much of the world. What I found more interesting however was a piece in Scientific American Mind on psychopathy, a field a bit more complicated than simply dropping the "y" in the word as explained in this excerpt from the piece. The term psychopath as defined on the 56-question scale ranges from confidence in leadership to such categories as being self-centered, coldhearted, and having fearless dominance. And while the entire article shows different tables (one graphic showing just the U.S. presidents had John F. Kennedy and Bill Clinton ranked number 1 and 2), the term psychopath encompassed such leaders as Idi Amin and Saddam Hussein as well as that of Ghandi and Jesus. And yes, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are there, as is Bernie Sanders (again, the link to the magazine only provides a small excerpt of the article but you should be able to find the entire issue from September 2016 in your local library).
Brexit: In an almost similar or perhaps prescient piece, the London Review of Books presented a piece on the difficulties England continues to face on its leaving of the European Union and the scrambling now taking place by all sides to see if the dust has actually settled both legally and among the population; the op-ed reveals the travails of a new leader entering the fray. Once again the people --at least those who voted-- have spoken and the result seems to be that running a government, even one the size of England, is far more complicated than imagined.
Being Robbed: Ah yes, this was one of those "it won't happen to me" things, that of being robbed while working out in a public facility (a continuing trend in the U.S. since cameras are not allowed in locker rooms). A thief enters such an area, whips out bolt cutters and snips the locks. In about 4 minutes, the thief has wallets, money and more importantly, key fobs to cars (a bonus if you have your garage door opener in your glove box as the thief now has house keys as well). In my case, the suspect was caught and charged (stealing my car almost guarantees him jail time if convicted since it jumps the level of crime to a second-degree felony, one of four charges now leveled against him). Should I ask for restitution (the cost of replacing the stolen items and such), it could add yet another felony charge onto the list (no trial date has been set yet...justice moves slowly in our court system). Advice to would-be locker room thieves...don't take the cars!
Bees: I had to throw this in because I was out just a day before our weather changed, watching a swarm of honeybees desperately searching for a few last blossoms on my ivy vines; I quickly drizzled honey (their food to tide them over the cold months) over many of the vines and hoped that they would take it back to their hive or down into the ground for their hibernation. They've got it tough, and now additional (not good) news about the continued use of neonicotinoids about which I wrote in a post titled Bee Nice: Neonicotinoids, more simply referred to as neonics, are a narcotic-like chemical that volume-wise is 10,000 times more toxic than DDT and is sprayed on our corn, wheat, soy and cotton, and of course, our gardens (neonics are in many of the insecticide sprays sold commercially on garden shelves). Even in tiny quantities, the chemical makes its way through the plants' leaves, into the flowers and then onto the pollen, quickly attacking the nervous system of insects and other pollinators, causing disorientation, paralysis and usually death. A study released by Nature showed a probable decline in wild bee populations and possibly the effects of neonicotinoids spreading into the ground soil as well...thus, what are you eating? A ban in Europe on the use of such neonics on many of the grains used for both human and cattle feed expired in 2015 and already England has revived some usage of the pesticide (its use continues in the U.S. as well since the EPA study is not expected to be completed until sometime in 2017).
Syria: The eastern portion of Aleppo is surrounded and now likely to fall according to news reports, and with this reporitng came word that the one children's hospital was also bombed and destroyed. In an area housing a population the size of Manhattan, people there have witnessed the boundaries of war change as an almost-impassive world watches. The current government is alleged to have killed nearly 200,000 dissidents and protesters (not counting those killed in the bombings). In Aleppo alone, hospitals are targeted and civilian deaths of all ages cannot escape the nearly 50 bombing runs happening daily. Nearly 5 million people have left their homes in Aleppo and other areas of Syria and left everything they held dear including in some cases, loved ones. The volunteer White Helmets are doing their best to rescue survivors of the cluster bombs but theirs is an uphill battle (and if you think that you could escape the wrath of cluster bombs, think again). Viewing just a few of these brave photos emerging from the area should make us rethink just how much we as outsiders will tolerate, regardless of which side is viewed. When babies and innocent people are "in the way," does war become any different from the random killing of terrorists? As one Red Cross doctor wrote to the BBC: Those people paid the cost of this terrible war which they had nothing to do with and did not decide to be a part of. They were the most vulnerable of the vulnerable. And no side protected them. This is not about who is right, or who is wrong. Who is winning, who is losing. This is about people: flesh and blood, human beings. Bleeding, dying, being made orphans, every day. I feel so very sad, today. Please, there have to be some limits to this war. Syria almost seems to be turning into a mirror of where we are as a species at this point in time...good and bad.
Too Much Information: Yeech...didn't mean for this to be so depressing (makes one want to stop and bury one's head in the sand while singing "make the world go away"). So let's end on a good note (I think), that of having so much news. Overload. But wait, now comes NPR's (National Public Radio) best (sic) 309 books of 2016. This is not to be confused with the best food books of 2016 from a list compiled by Smithsonian. And of course, other lists of the best films and TED Talks and podcasts and ahem, blogs. Heavens, where's the time and now, where's the direction? How much do we want to read and listen to and see? Which way do we want to turn? Whatever path we choose, there will likely be almost too many choices. Time is valuable and life is proving short and even sorting and deciding what we want to do in our lives is getting complicated. For me, I recognize that conundrum in all of you...time is valuable and as such, I am humbled and grateful that you are taking a few minutes of your time to glance over this blog. My goal has always been to simply rattle those neurons inside each of us and to spur a few more thoughts in our heads, to laugh or get angry, to ponder or hit delete, to answer and to question. It is my hope that perhaps just an inkling of this blog might push you to explore other arenas. There is much out there, far too much for any of us to totally grasp. And amidst all of the bad news, there is still far more good out there. We need to remember that, to reach out from the rubble and to extend a hand. We are alive, we are fortunate and many are not. We can change that...let us begin, let us continue. And thank you...
President-Elect Trump: This dealt with the post-election fallout in the U.S. (the lowest voter turnout in 20 years) and a surprise to much of the world. What I found more interesting however was a piece in Scientific American Mind on psychopathy, a field a bit more complicated than simply dropping the "y" in the word as explained in this excerpt from the piece. The term psychopath as defined on the 56-question scale ranges from confidence in leadership to such categories as being self-centered, coldhearted, and having fearless dominance. And while the entire article shows different tables (one graphic showing just the U.S. presidents had John F. Kennedy and Bill Clinton ranked number 1 and 2), the term psychopath encompassed such leaders as Idi Amin and Saddam Hussein as well as that of Ghandi and Jesus. And yes, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are there, as is Bernie Sanders (again, the link to the magazine only provides a small excerpt of the article but you should be able to find the entire issue from September 2016 in your local library).
Brexit: In an almost similar or perhaps prescient piece, the London Review of Books presented a piece on the difficulties England continues to face on its leaving of the European Union and the scrambling now taking place by all sides to see if the dust has actually settled both legally and among the population; the op-ed reveals the travails of a new leader entering the fray. Once again the people --at least those who voted-- have spoken and the result seems to be that running a government, even one the size of England, is far more complicated than imagined.
Being Robbed: Ah yes, this was one of those "it won't happen to me" things, that of being robbed while working out in a public facility (a continuing trend in the U.S. since cameras are not allowed in locker rooms). A thief enters such an area, whips out bolt cutters and snips the locks. In about 4 minutes, the thief has wallets, money and more importantly, key fobs to cars (a bonus if you have your garage door opener in your glove box as the thief now has house keys as well). In my case, the suspect was caught and charged (stealing my car almost guarantees him jail time if convicted since it jumps the level of crime to a second-degree felony, one of four charges now leveled against him). Should I ask for restitution (the cost of replacing the stolen items and such), it could add yet another felony charge onto the list (no trial date has been set yet...justice moves slowly in our court system). Advice to would-be locker room thieves...don't take the cars!
Bees: I had to throw this in because I was out just a day before our weather changed, watching a swarm of honeybees desperately searching for a few last blossoms on my ivy vines; I quickly drizzled honey (their food to tide them over the cold months) over many of the vines and hoped that they would take it back to their hive or down into the ground for their hibernation. They've got it tough, and now additional (not good) news about the continued use of neonicotinoids about which I wrote in a post titled Bee Nice: Neonicotinoids, more simply referred to as neonics, are a narcotic-like chemical that volume-wise is 10,000 times more toxic than DDT and is sprayed on our corn, wheat, soy and cotton, and of course, our gardens (neonics are in many of the insecticide sprays sold commercially on garden shelves). Even in tiny quantities, the chemical makes its way through the plants' leaves, into the flowers and then onto the pollen, quickly attacking the nervous system of insects and other pollinators, causing disorientation, paralysis and usually death. A study released by Nature showed a probable decline in wild bee populations and possibly the effects of neonicotinoids spreading into the ground soil as well...thus, what are you eating? A ban in Europe on the use of such neonics on many of the grains used for both human and cattle feed expired in 2015 and already England has revived some usage of the pesticide (its use continues in the U.S. as well since the EPA study is not expected to be completed until sometime in 2017).
Syria: The eastern portion of Aleppo is surrounded and now likely to fall according to news reports, and with this reporitng came word that the one children's hospital was also bombed and destroyed. In an area housing a population the size of Manhattan, people there have witnessed the boundaries of war change as an almost-impassive world watches. The current government is alleged to have killed nearly 200,000 dissidents and protesters (not counting those killed in the bombings). In Aleppo alone, hospitals are targeted and civilian deaths of all ages cannot escape the nearly 50 bombing runs happening daily. Nearly 5 million people have left their homes in Aleppo and other areas of Syria and left everything they held dear including in some cases, loved ones. The volunteer White Helmets are doing their best to rescue survivors of the cluster bombs but theirs is an uphill battle (and if you think that you could escape the wrath of cluster bombs, think again). Viewing just a few of these brave photos emerging from the area should make us rethink just how much we as outsiders will tolerate, regardless of which side is viewed. When babies and innocent people are "in the way," does war become any different from the random killing of terrorists? As one Red Cross doctor wrote to the BBC: Those people paid the cost of this terrible war which they had nothing to do with and did not decide to be a part of. They were the most vulnerable of the vulnerable. And no side protected them. This is not about who is right, or who is wrong. Who is winning, who is losing. This is about people: flesh and blood, human beings. Bleeding, dying, being made orphans, every day. I feel so very sad, today. Please, there have to be some limits to this war. Syria almost seems to be turning into a mirror of where we are as a species at this point in time...good and bad.
Too Much Information: Yeech...didn't mean for this to be so depressing (makes one want to stop and bury one's head in the sand while singing "make the world go away"). So let's end on a good note (I think), that of having so much news. Overload. But wait, now comes NPR's (National Public Radio) best (sic) 309 books of 2016. This is not to be confused with the best food books of 2016 from a list compiled by Smithsonian. And of course, other lists of the best films and TED Talks and podcasts and ahem, blogs. Heavens, where's the time and now, where's the direction? How much do we want to read and listen to and see? Which way do we want to turn? Whatever path we choose, there will likely be almost too many choices. Time is valuable and life is proving short and even sorting and deciding what we want to do in our lives is getting complicated. For me, I recognize that conundrum in all of you...time is valuable and as such, I am humbled and grateful that you are taking a few minutes of your time to glance over this blog. My goal has always been to simply rattle those neurons inside each of us and to spur a few more thoughts in our heads, to laugh or get angry, to ponder or hit delete, to answer and to question. It is my hope that perhaps just an inkling of this blog might push you to explore other arenas. There is much out there, far too much for any of us to totally grasp. And amidst all of the bad news, there is still far more good out there. We need to remember that, to reach out from the rubble and to extend a hand. We are alive, we are fortunate and many are not. We can change that...let us begin, let us continue. And thank you...
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