Posted inCurrent affairs

Oh, no. Iran embraces the euro!

Vacationing as I am on Maui at the moment, I’m not going to spend much beach time worrying about Iran taking a step toward selling oil in euros rather than dollars. But when I read about this in the Honolulu Advertiser today, I couldn’t help remembering how Willamette University economics professor emeritus Russ Beaton has told Laurel and me that the Iraq war was fought, in large part, to prevent OPEC from moving to a euro-based oil sales/trading system. Russ is a progressive friend of ours. He’s forgotten more about economics than I’ll ever know, and I don’t pretend to…
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Posted inRecreation

From maddening to Maui in eight hours

Aren’t vacations fun? You spend a week running around like crazy, getting ready to spend a week relaxing. Then when you get home, you spend another frantic week catching up on everything that didn’t get done while you were on vacation. Sometimes vacations seem like a net relaxation loss to Laurel and me. But that doesn’t stop us from meandering off to Maui most every year. As we did yesterday. After a semi-sleepless night spent worrying about what we’d forgotten to pack, we headed up to the Portland airport at the not so jolly time of 6:45 am. With terrific…
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Posted inSalem Tango/Dance

Salem, let’s Tango!

Come on, admit it: you have a Tango fantasy. You’ve seen Tango danced sensuously in movies. You’ve heard it called the original forbidden dance (it’s got some company now). You’ve pictured yourself in poses like… OK, my fellow Salem residents, you and I will never look like that. But we can still dance Tango. I’m doing it. And believe me, if I’m doing it, anybody can do it. So get yourself down to the Micah Building next Monday evening. Give Tango a try. Beginners are welcome. Not-beginners too. Here are the particulars: Argentine Tango Classes Every Monday, except holidays. 7pm…
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Posted inEntertainment

Colbert’s comedy makes George Bush cringe

Oh my God! Laurel and I couldn’t stop laughing at Stephen Colbert’s “tribute” to President Bush at the White House Correspondent’s Dinner last night. We watched his hilarious send-up of the Bush Administration’s absurdities today via the Internet. Links to complete video of Colbert can be found at Democratic Underground. The broadband challenged can read a transcript courtesy of the Daily Kos. Naturally I recommend the video, which includes a Colbert audition tape to be the new White House press secretary. You’ll never be able to look upon Helen Thomas the same way. The best part of Colbert’s performance was…
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Posted inSustainability

We check out of Sustainable Fairview

Today we cashed out of Sustainable Fairview, the 245 acre site in south Salem that, according to the local newspaper, is “envisioned to become a model of mixed-use and environmentally friendly development.” Hope so. But at 1:30 this afternoon I traded two shares in Sustainable Fairview Associates (SFA) for a check, shook hands with Sam Hall, the managing member of SFA, and brought to an end our sometimes satisfying but mostly frustrating experience as investors in this development. The property has been sold to a group led by Phil Morford, a Portland-area developer, and Gordon Root. Good luck to them.…
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Posted inCurrent affairs

Personal & political

It’s said that the personal is political. Absolutely. When I hear about a new Bush administration idiocy, I can’t help thinking of his misstep in my own personal terms. Take the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s ridiculous claim that marijuana has no medical benefits. They should have talked to me before they issued that report. I’ve got proof that marijuana is effective against depression: I lived in San Jose, a.k.a. the armpit of California, for four years—1966 to 1970—while I was attending San Jose State University. Never got depressed. Was happy to contribute to medical marijuana research ahead of its…
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Posted inRecreation

April beauty on the Metolius

Here are some images taken during our long late April weekend in Camp Sherman. Every morning I ride my bike a mile to the Camp Sherman store to buy the Bend Bulletin. It costs me thirty-five cents. The view of Mt. Jefferson over the Metolius is priceless. I pass this horse corral on one of my late afternoon dog walk routes. Black Butte is framed in the distance. I think this is called Johnson Meadow. It borders the head of the Metolius River, which springs full gush from volcanic fissures. The dog and I walk back to our cabin along…
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Posted inSalem

Salem Barbie

After I read the amusing Oregon State Barbies post over at Jack Bog’s Blog, the omission of a Salem Barbie was painfully obvious. Laurel and I gave it some thought: Salem Barbie comes with a bland wardrobe and sensible shoes. The navigation system on her white Jeep Cherokee is preset with her favorite destinations: Target, Big Lots, Tin Tin Buffet, Lancaster Drive, and the Four Square Evangelical Church of Jesus the Redeemer. Customize her ride with included bumper stickers: “Support the Troops,” “Stop Abortion Now,” and “My Child is a Honor Student at Christ the King Bible School.” Salem Ken’s…
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Posted inHome life

New DR Field and Brush Mower making my life more mulchy

Vive le difference. My wife is happy now that we have tile rather than carpet downstairs. I was content with what was there before, but I’m happy she’s happy. As for me, I’m thrilled that, when I mowed the tallish grass today, my new DR Field and Brush Mower didn’t leave clumps of cuttings all over the lawn. To Laurel, this earns a big yawn. But she wasn’t the one who had to keep going over the lines of grass clumps produced by my old side-discharge, three blade, non-mulching mower. I’d remow some clumpy cuttings, which would merely shoot the…
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Posted inCurrent affairs

Oregon is not a high tax state

Repeat after me, conservative politicians and right wing talk show hosts: “Oregon is not a high tax state.” Again: “Oregon is not a high tax state.” Good. Now say it on your own. Over and over. And don’t let me hear you say the opposite this election year, because it isn’t true. Yesterday I didn’t like writing checks and sending them off to the federal and state governments. But when I licked the envelope that went to the Oregon Department of Revenue it made me feel better to know that Oregon ranks 36th out of the 50 states in state…
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Posted inHome life Philosophy

On Easter, we worshipped at the altar of remodeling

We didn’t have to leave our house to have a holy experience this Easter. Laurel and I spend the morning tidying up the newly tiled “Dog Room.” Some people would call such an area the “Family Room,” but as we revealed in one of our Christmas letters, our life revolves around the original Wonder Pet. At night Serena sleeps in her dog crate. Or on the futon. Her choice. Now, if she has to urgently pee or poop the mess will be on tile rather than carpet. That actually was a prime consideration in our plan for remodeling the Dog…
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Posted inCurrent affairs

Oregon cougar plan a slap in the face to voters

In 1994 Oregonians passed Measure 18. It forbids sport hunters from using dogs to track and kill cougars. Yesterday the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission passed a plan that will allow federal hunters to use dogs to track and kill cougars. Not problem cougars that are threatening people or killing livestock. No, potential problem cougars. Cougars that are just hanging out, not bothering anybody. To me that sure sounds like killing cougars for sport. Slap! How does it feel, Oregon voters, to have a state agency say to you, “Thanks for telling us how you wanted cougars to be managed.…
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Posted inEntertainment

It’s obvious who should replace Rumsfeld

CNN reported today that retired Maj. Gen. John Batiste has called for Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld’s resignation, saying: We need a leader who understands team work, a leader who knows how to build teams, a leader that does it without intimidation. It’s obvious who should replace Rumsfeld: the marvelous troika of Ling, Ming-Ming, and Tuck. “What’s gonna work? Teamwork!” Talk about effective utilization of minimal forces. I've watched quite a few episodes, and these three little creatures are always fully capable of dealing with complex situations involving baby animals in trouble. In five minutes, max. They'll work, if not for…
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Posted inCurrent affairs Home life Tango/Dance

The Tao of Tango explains why politicians stumble

Life is a dance. I’ve just finished reading a little book, “The Tao of Tango,” that has some good insights about why we stumble. Both Taoism and Tango are all about yin and yang, following and leading, female and male energies. When these dualities aren’t balanced, missteps occur. Harmony goes down the drain. Shit happens. On our little personal dance floor of life, these stumblings are of little consequence except to us and those few with whom we come in contact. But when you’re a political leader, falling over your feet can bring a whole nation to its knees. Or…
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Posted inScience

Bad week for creationists and intelligent designers

Evolution was on the march last week, crushing the creationist crazies and intelligent design dogmatists. Will they now give up their anti-science jihad? Not likely. Unfounded religious beliefs are addictive, like other drugs. They relieve the anxiety that comes from living in a complex, mysterious, uncertain world. When the unknown can be banished with the wave of a faith-filled hand, that’s damn appealing. It's wrong. But still appealing. Myself, I prefer reality. And that’s what evolution is: real. More evidence of this has arrived via two breakthroughs: a transitional fossil that shows how fish evolved into land animals has been…
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Posted inHome life

Baby carrot community shaken to roots

Nice headline, if I may say so myself. Which, since this is my blog, I am. I should clarify, though, that by “community” I basically mean “me.” Nonetheless, this is a big story for baby carrot crunchers: the King of Baby Carrots, Robert Grimm, died recently. At age 54. Of a heart attack. When I saw this in TIME’s “Milestones” section I almost choked. On a baby carrot. I eat a lot of baby carrots. My wife makes me. At the age of 57 I still need babying. “This is why,” Laurel tells me, “married men live longer than single…
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Posted inCurrent affairs

Blowing off a Democratic fundraiser

Sorry, guy, when you phoned this afternoon and asked for a donation to the Democratic cause you caught me at a testy time. That’s why I ranted, “A pox on both the parties! More and more I’m moving to the center. Independents rule!” I understand why you hung up on me so quickly. You were looking for my Democratic wife and assumed that I was a kindred political spirit. Which, usually I am. But not to the extent of donating to the Demowussycratic Party. I’ll leave that to Laurel. I told the fundraiser that the Democrats are better than the…
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Posted inEntertainment

“Big Love” and semen scraping dragonflies

Laurel and I have become fans of “Big Love,” the HBO series about a Salt Lake City polygamist and his three wives. From my male perspective, the most interesting aspect of Big Love is the central question asked on the show’s web site: “Think having three wives is a dream come true?” We’re an episode behind in our watching, but I’ve seen enough of Bill’s life with mature first wife Barbara, shopaholic second wife Nicki, and youthful sexpot Margene to be pretty certain of my answer. “No.” Bill has triple the sexual variety of the typical husband. However, he also…
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Posted inScience Sustainability

Global warming is real. Debate over.

If you have any doubts that global warming is real, read the April 3 TIME magazine cover story and “Be Worried, Be Very Worried.” The evidence is in. The debate is over. Global warming is happening. Humans are the major cause of it. And we’re heading for disaster. Yes, there are still global warming deniers like Oregon climatologist George Taylor. But he’s been outed by Willamette Week and I haven’t heard any “global warming is a myth” craziness from George lately. Maybe he’s turned to arguing that creationism and intelligent design are fact, while evolution is fiction. Or that the…
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Posted inCurrent affairs

Immigration reform brings strange days

Strange political days have dawned when I turn on my car radio, hear arch-conservative Michael Savage ranting about how awful it would be to give amnesty to twelve million illegal aliens, and say to myself, Right on, Michael! Like I’ve said before, the right is right on immigration reform. And by “right,” I mean the rightest of the right. Not the Arlen Specter sort of Senate moderates, but the fire breathing House Republicans like Dana Rohrabacher who said people should be able to “smell the foul odor that’s coming out of the U.S. Senate.” It is indeed foul when Democrats…
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