Life takes us in many strange directions and wonderful discoveries. It never turns out the way we thought it would.
Sunday, December 30, 2012
Jack's Africa: To Save Wildlife, and Tourism, Kenyans Take Up Arm...
Jack's Africa: To Save Wildlife, and Tourism, Kenyans Take Up Arm...: To Save Wildlife, and Tourism, Kenyans Take Up Arms - NYTimes.com
Saturday, December 29, 2012
Friday, December 28, 2012
Thursday, December 27, 2012
Jack's Africa: 13 Moths In Solitary Confinement In A South Africa...
Jack's Africa: 13 Moths In Solitary Confinement In A South Africa...: Dear Langley: When I was growing up in the 1950's there was a show on television called Alcoa Theater. Each weel there was a segmen...
Tuesday, December 25, 2012
Christmas Day 2012
My dear friends it's Christmas morning. I'm up early.When we were children, Christmas eve was spent at home with our mother and father. We would get to open one present each. We would eat fancy European cheeses, sausages, and crackers. I would have a little shot of bourbon with mom and dad. My sister and I would then go to bed and get up around 3:00 AM to open the rest of the presents. Dad would take us out during the day while mom cooked the traditional turkey dinner. OK now we have a South American Christmas with la Noche Buena. We eat around midnight and open gifts. Copernicus got a big leather dog bone. I got a new electric razor. Elena got a beautiful leather suitcase, a Dyson heater, and a new television that will be delivered tomorrow. Elena loves You Tube and Netflix. The new television will connect right to the internet and she can watch all the things that she loves. This has been a year of great achievements but also sad and hard times including the loss of Cassi. Elena will sleep late and rest today.
Monday, December 24, 2012
Jack's Africa: Puntland Forces Rescue 22 Hostages Who Had Been He...
Jack's Africa: Puntland Forces Rescue 22 Hostages Who Had Been He...: Puntland Forces Rescue 22 Hostages Who Had Been Held Captive For Nearly Three Years
Sunday, December 23, 2012
Saturday, December 22, 2012
Friday, December 21, 2012
Jack's South America: Hundreds plunder supermarkets and face the police ...
Jack's South America: Hundreds plunder supermarkets and face the police ...: Hundreds plunder supermarkets and face the police in Bariloche - Terra Brazil
Brasilian Company Wins The Right To Use The IPhone Name
Brazilian company wins right to use iPhone name
Comment on this story
It's not your Apple's iPhone.
A Brazilian company has begun
selling smartphones in Brazil with the iPhone brand after winning the
legal right to use the name in Latin America's biggest country.
Adding insult to Apple Inc.'s injury, the phone runs on the Android operating system from archrival Google Inc.
Gradiente SA said in a statement
that it filed its request to use the iPhone brand in 2000 when it
realised “there would be a technological revolution in the world of
cellphones with the convergence of voice and data transmission and
reception via mobile Internet.”
In 2008 Brazil's government gave Gradiente the right to use the brand on its cellphones.
Brazilian trademark office
spokeswoman Maratan Marques said Gradiente requested permission to use
the brand before Apple did and has the exclusive right to use it through
2018.
Brazil
Apple spokeswoman Maria Parra Rodriguez said the company had no
immediate comment. Phone calls and emails to Apple Inc.'s headquarters
in California went unanswered.
Gradiente said on its website that it started selling its iPhone on Tuesday for 600 reals ($300).
It runs the relatively old 2.3
version of Android and its features include a 3.7-inch touch-sensitive
screen, Bluetooth, dual chip capability, 3G, Wi-Fi and camera. Its
appearance is similar to that of Apple's iPhone.
The Brazilian company said it did
not use the iPhone name until now because its “priority was to conclude a
corporate restructuring process that ended earlier this year.”
“In Brazil, Gradiente has the
exclusive right to use the iPhone brand,” the statement said. “This
company will adopt all the measures used by companies around the world
to preserve its intellectual property rights.”
A company official said Apple had
not contacted Gradiente and she didn't know of any attempt by Apple to
contest Gradiente's use of the iPhone name.
The
executive, who insisted on speaking anonymously because she was not
authorised to speak to the press, added that she did not know if
Gradiente would try to stop Apple iPhone sales in Brazil.
Major cellphone operators and retail outlets advertised Apple iPhones on their websites Wednesday. - Sapa-AP
If I Truly Believed That The World Was Going To End Today
Perhaps the world will end today. If I truly believed that I would have taken Elena last night to Ruth's Chris Steakhouse in San Francisco for our last meal. I would have drank the whole contents of my bottle of Johnnie Walker Blue Label. I would have watched my three favorite films of all time. Two films are from Argentina with the titles of A Man Facing Southeast and The Secret of Your Eyes. The third film is a Brian de Palma science fiction film from 2000 with the title of Mission to Mars.. I would have given loving goodbyes to my sister Marianna, my niece Kelly, Anna Claudia Chagas, Luah Fontana, Pedro R, Peres, neto, PhD, Joao Santos, Djenane Santos and my grand daughter Bianca. Elena would not have gone to work today. We would have spent our last hours together giving each other love and comfort. I would hope that the end would be quick and painless. Ah but the alarm will go off at seven this morning. Elena will get up and go to work. I will begin my day of work that ends with cooking dinner. The world will still be here at midnight!
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Elena and I Enjoyed An Incredible Day On San Francisco's Peninsula
I took Luah to the airport a little after 5:00 AM. It was cold outside; in the low 30's Fahrenheit. Luah was excited about going to New York City. I got her to United and we checked her baggage. I was hungry afterwards.I went to Gunther's and had a great early morning breakfast of chicken fried steak, scrambled eggs, hash brown potatoes and sourdough toast washed down with copious amounts of coffee. (I will take my cholesterol medication tonight!) Afterwards I came home. Elena slept late and deserved it. She had a day off and it was a beautiful winter day with lots of sun. She got up and walked the dogs. I went to the swimming pool and swam 1.5 hours. I came home and Elena cooked us pasta for lunch. We then went out and did errands. We got a gift for a baby shower. We went to Elena's office. I hung a plate in her office. It is from Colombia before the Spanish came. It was a sign saying that a doctor was giving medical care. Elena and I then took Copernicus to Linda Mar Clinic. Stitches were taken out of his head. We then went to a farmer's market and bought a few things. We then went to Lunardi's to get some more food. It was wonderful to be together and outin this beautiful weather.
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
A Solution To The Tragedy In Connecticuit
OK everyone I have been in deep agony since the tragedy of Friday in Conn. Certainly we can make some changes to gun control laws including making sure that any one who buys a gun, even at a gun show or from a private individual gets one heck of a background check. We could, for example, make it just as hard to get an assault rifle as it is to get a machine gun. The real answer to the problem is to spend a heck of a lot more money on mental health. We need to identify troubled people and help them long before they destroy themselves and others.
Sunday, December 16, 2012
Running Into An American Hero At Mazzetti's Bakery
I always love a cup of coffee and a sweet on Saturday morning. (The sweet is a cake donut now due to calorie limitations.) I went to Mazzetti's Bakery. I prepared a coffee and ordered a cake doniut. Space was limited so I took a seat across from a distinguished-looking older man. We started to talk. I found out that his name was Ed. He had graduated from the University of California Davis in 1950. He was in Air Force pilot training when the Korean War started. He was trained to fly the F-86 Sabre jet. After graduating and getting his wings, he was sent to Japan. He picked up his jet fighter and flew it to a base in South Korea. He soon found himself flying missions over North Korea and into" Mig Alley." Ed was soon surprised to find that as soon as a Mig pilot saw a Sabre Jet they turned tail and made a run for Manchuria where US planes could not follow. His hopes of becoming an "Ace" by shooting down several Migs was thwarted. Instead he was ass
igned to bomb and strafe targets in North Korea. He knocked out so many locomotives that he thought that he should get locomotive symbols on the side of his airplane. Ed was ordered to stay above 1,000 feet when making these ground attacks. One day he went down lower and made a bombing run. After he pulled up he noticed pain in one of his legs. He soon realized that shrapnel from one of his own bombs had hit him. He was able to fly his plane back to base and land it. When he was taken to the hospital the doctor told him he was lucky that the shrapnel had not punctured an artery and caused him to bleed to death. Ed was awarded a Purple Heart for his wound. Ed left the Air Force when his enlistment was up. He worked as an engineer. He married and raised children. His grand children describe him as a true hero. I agree with them. Ed is 83 years young and an incredible man who I admire very much.
Saturday, December 15, 2012
Friday, December 14, 2012
A Beautiful Christmas Night In Pacifica
Wednesday was one day in the life of the Earth. Participants were supposed to go out and make photos of things going on in their area. Elena and I went out to photograph things going on in the night. We took pictures of Christmas lights decorating houses. One house was really special. It had the most beautiful decorations of all the house that we saw. Even more fascinating was the fact that the owners, Adam and his wife, stood in front of the house dressed as Santa and Mrs. Claus. They welcomed all who came with a gift of a candy cane. They took pictures with all visitors. It was a special moment.
Thursday, December 13, 2012
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
Jacob Zuma's Lavish Presidential Palace
THE UK's THOUGHTS ON ZUMA
We read and know all about this and tend to treat it as dirty laundry in our own backyard ~ but it makes news overseas with who knows what consequences on tourism, investment et alAnd don’t we look like turkeys for allowing it to happenThanks for sending it BarbaraLoveUK gives £19million aid to South Africa - its president spends £17.5million on his palaceIt is a nation racked by poverty, where 13 million people survive on less than £1 a day, and two million have no access to a toilet.Yet as his people struggle in squalor, South African president Jacob Zuma has sparked outrage by spending £17.5 million to upgrade his rural family home.Lavish works – which include the construction of 31 new houses, an underground bunker accessed by lifts and a helipad – will cost almost as much as the £19 million British taxpayers send to South Africa in annual aid.Not quite right...South African president Jacob Zuma continues to have a lavish lifestyle despite many parts of his country struggling for survivalThe costly upgrade to Zuma’s once-humble home in the village of Nkandla includes Astroturf sports fields and tennis courts, a gymnasium and state-of-the art security systems, including fingerprint-controlled access pads.And nearby roads have benefited from a further £40 million of improvements.When African journalists revealed the astronomical cost of the work, Zuma’s ministers turned on the whistle-blowers, saying that revealing the details of ‘top secret’ documents was illegal.Originally the cost of the project, which began two years ago, was put at £500,000 – but it has since skyrocketed. South African taxpayers are footing most of the bill, although Zuma, a polygamist with four wives and at least 20 children, is said to be contributing £700,000 of his own money – a stretch on his annual £185,000 salary.However, he also receives a controversial £1.2million in ‘spousal support’ for his wives – despite recently calling on fellow politicians to tighten their belts – and pays only a peppercorn rent of £560 on the tribally owned plot in the Zululand hills where his mansion sits.Zuma has named his residence a ‘national key point’ – a status invented by the previous paranoid apartheid government – which means it is entitled to security measures ‘in the interests of the nation’.Bewildering: Work continues on Zuma's 'palace' as 31 buildings in his residence get given the go aheadLast week he was grilled in parliament about what he and his family were costing the nation, and struggled to answer, protesting that he was unaware of the scale of the work.‘All the buildings and every room we use in that residence were built by ourselves as family and not by the government,’ he protested. He did not know the amount spent on bunkers, claiming: ‘I don’t know the figures; that’s not my job.’Under pressure, Zuma has been forced to agree to two investigations: one to probe the spiraling costs at Nkandla, the other to see if there was a breach of parliamentary spending rules.Support: Zuma, pictured left, remains high in popularity in South Africa much to do with his friendship with Nelson Mandela (right)‘Nkandlagate’ – as the state-owned media have been banned from calling it – is just the latest scandal to engulf the 70-year-old African National Congress leader. In 2004 he faced trial with his financial adviser Schabir Shaik over racketeering and corruption claims for accepting tens of thousands of pounds in bribes from European arms firms.Shaik was imprisoned for 15 years, but Zuma’s case was ‘discontinued’ after complicated legal wrangling – even though a judge said there was ‘overwhelming’ evidence of a corrupt relationship between the two men. The following year, a 31-year-old HIV-positive woman accused him of rape. Although he was acquitted, Zuma’s ludicrous claim that he took a shower after sex to prevent contracting HIV made him a laughing stock.His personal life also came under scrutiny following the 2000 suicide of his first wife, who left a note describing ‘24 years of hell’ with him, and again after the illegitimate birth of another child in 2009. He accused the media of invading his privacy when revealing the scandal.Meanwhile, South Africa is in an increasingly parlous state, having had its credit rating downgraded following industrial unrest. Workers at the Marikana platinum mine were mown down and killed by armed police last month when they dared to demand better pay. A truck-drivers’ strike later led to more deaths, and last week thousands of farmworkers downed tools in protest at their £4.85 day-rate.Yet Zuma – who glories in his nickname ‘100 per cent Zulu boy’ – still has substantial support among the people, bolstered by his freedom-fighter credentials, having spent ten years imprisoned on Robben Island alongside Nelson Mandela.Britain is committed to spending an average of £19 million a year in aid on South Africa until 2015, mainly aimed at reducing HIV. But the Department for International Development is examining how it spends the UK’s aid budget, and recently announced plans to slash the controversial £280 million a year it sends to India.
Monday, December 10, 2012
Sunday, December 9, 2012
Friday, December 7, 2012
Wednesday, December 5, 2012
Our Dog Copernicus Is Out Of Surgery!!!!
Everyone Copernicus came home after a two-hour surgery to remove a small growth on his head. The doctors and support staff at Lind Mar Animal Hospital did an incredible job. He is resting and recovering. He will get good food and light workouts for the next week. He is an amazing little man and a real survivor!!
Jack's Africa: Sasol to invest $21bn in US gas plants - FT.com
Jack's Africa: Sasol to invest $21bn in US gas plants - FT.com: Sasol to invest $21bn in US gas plants - FT.com : 'via Blog this'
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
Monday, December 3, 2012
Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis: Trends in College Tuition vs. Bachelor’s Degree Wages; Interesting Demographics of Student Loan Debt History
Sunday, December 2, 2012
Saturday, December 1, 2012
Friday, November 30, 2012
Thursday, November 29, 2012
JacksMars: Sex On Mars
JacksMars: Sex On Mars: to undisclosed recipients The year is 2222 and Jack and Elena land on Mars after accumulating enough Frequent Flyer...
JacksMars: Lake Vida Bacteria: Antarctic Lake Untouched For 2...
JacksMars: Lake Vida Bacteria: Antarctic Lake Untouched For 2...: Lake Vida Bacteria: Antarctic Lake Untouched For 2,800 Years May Aid Search For Alien Life
Our Dear Dog Copernicus Grieved All Day Long
Poor Copernicus is deeply traumatized over the loss of Cassi. He escaped in the rain this morning. Then when I was getting ready to drive Luah to the BART station, he escaped again and got right behind the car. Luah warned me and held Copernicus. I put him in the back of the car and we all rode through the rain to the BART station. He stayed with me when I went to buy the final Christmas cards. We came home and he wanted to be by me every minute. Animals understand death and and love deeply. This has been such a sad time. Imagine how much more painful it is to be a parent who loses a child in a war like Afghanistan or Syria; or in a car crash.
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Monday, November 26, 2012
Sunday, November 25, 2012
JacksMars: Mars Dust Storm May Affect NASA Rovers Opportunity...
JacksMars: Mars Dust Storm May Affect NASA Rovers Opportunity...: Mars Dust Storm May Affect NASA Rovers Opportunity, Curiosity
Jack's South America: Swallowing Rain Forest, Brazilian Cities Surge in ...
Jack's South America: Swallowing Rain Forest, Brazilian Cities Surge in ...: Swallowing Rain Forest, Brazilian Cities Surge in Amazon - NYTimes.com : 'via Blog this'
JacksMars: Mars Rover Major Discovery - Business Insider
JacksMars: Mars Rover Major Discovery - Business Insider: Mars Rover Major Discovery - Business Insider : 'via Blog this'
Saturday, November 24, 2012
Our Dear Dog Cassi Was Eaten By 4 Coyotes
We just had a horrible tragedy. Elena took Copernicus and Cassi for a walk in an area that we nick named "Land's End." We have been walking dogs there for years with no incident. Today something horrible happened. Both dogs were off leash. Elena tried to get them back on leash. Copernicus came to her but Cassi refused to return. She was captured by 4 coyotes and eaten.The four coyotes then menaced Elena and Copernicus. Copernicus barked but was too smart to go and attack them. Elena started to scream and throw rocks at the coyotes. They left. Those four animals could have easily killed Elena also. This is a sad day for all of us.
Christmas Shopping On An Incredible Saturday
It's such a beautiful day that it feels like a late spring day in South Africa or Australia. Elena and I went out shopping. She got a new dress fr the company Christmas party. We also found some incredible chocolate mints at Macy's. Our next stop was Brookstone. Elena bought me a massage pad for the back of my desk chair.) I have it installed now and it's doing wonderful things for my back!) We then went to Gymboree and got some baby clothes for a baby shower. We had a healthy and low-calorie lunch at Cheesecake Factory. We then made the drive home. We are awaiting the delivery of Luah's new mattress and enjoying an incredible and unforgettable day!
Friday, November 23, 2012
A Personal Letter From President Obama
Elena was opening mail this evening and found a big surprise for both of us. It was a letter from President Obama. Enclosed was an inscribed picture of he and Michelle. Also included was a personal letter thanking me for all my help. I was so touched. As the old saying goes: "It made my day!1"
Thursday, November 22, 2012
A Dear Friend Comes Over For Thanksgiving Dinner
Elena, Luah and I were just most privileged to have Monty Heying share our Thanksgiving dinner. It has been my honor to know Monty for almost 40 years. Monty started with the sad problem of growing up in an orphanage. Despite this bad start he got a college degree from the University of Texas at Arlington. He passed the very tough examination for Certified Public Accountant. He volunteered for service during the Vietnam War in the US Marine Corps. He could have used his education and qualifications to get a soft office job. Instead he trained to be a combat infantry man. After completing his enlistment in the Marines, Monty went on to have a distinguished career in corporate finance. He raised two wonderful daughters and is now a grand father. His new adventure in life is his career as a writer. His goal is to share with others the hard experience of being an orphan. Elena, Luah and I realized how lucky we were to have parents who loved us and tried to give us a good start in life.
Jack's Africa: Naspers boss among Africa's 40 richest | Fin24
Jack's Africa: Naspers boss among Africa's 40 richest | Fin24: Naspers boss among Africa's 40 richest | Fin24 : 'via Blog this'
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
A Handwritten Christmas Card From A Sprint Employee
Yesterday I opened the mail. There was a small card from Overland Park, Kansas. It was handwritten by a Sprint/Nextel employee. He thanked Elena and I for being good customers of Sprint for so many years. It wished us a happy holiday. I was really touched that a big company like that took that time and effort to recognize humble customers like Elena and I.
Monday, November 19, 2012
The Movie The Wizard Of Oz 20 Years Ago
My friends I always tell you that what one remembers most is the little kind things that people do for you in life when you are "down on your luck," Elena and I had a wonderful time at Dr. Kelvin Choi's bowling party at the Sea Breeze Bowling Alley in Pacifica. After bowling quite a while and working up a sweat, Elena and I went to the bar in the bowling alley. She had a margarita and I had a diet coke.
We looked at the television. They were showing the Judy Garland film The Wizard of Oz on Turner Classic Movies. It brought back a memory from 20 years ago and I shared quite a story with Elena. I was living in Cape Town all of those years ago. Times were tough in South Africa. I lived in a barren studio apartment and was virtually destitute. I did not even have a television. I was alone and without a relationship. I only had one thing going for me at that time. I had a very rich Cape Town business man who was a dear friend of mine(. I am not goin
--
We looked at the television. They were showing the Judy Garland film The Wizard of Oz on Turner Classic Movies. It brought back a memory from 20 years ago and I shared quite a story with Elena. I was living in Cape Town all of those years ago. Times were tough in South Africa. I lived in a barren studio apartment and was virtually destitute. I did not even have a television. I was alone and without a relationship. I only had one thing going for me at that time. I had a very rich Cape Town business man who was a dear friend of mine(. I am not goin
g to embarrass him and mention his name.) Now most rich people are very tight with money and rarely have friends outside of their social class. Alli was an exception. He was a genuinely nice and generous man who was always helping others and doing acts of kindness for those less fortunate.
He was a gracious friend to me. He often invited me to his mansion where his chef cooked gourmet meals for us. He would take me to his study and show first run movies often only available in movie theaters. His staff took me shopping with them to various malls. I never asked Alli for money or a job with any of his companies. I just appreciated his friendship and wonderful company.
I remember the time around Thanksgiving and Christmas. One night I was sitting in my barren studio apartment. I was expecting another lonely and empty night. I was surprised t hear a knock at the door. I looked through the peep hole. Two of Alli's employees were thee. I opened the door and let them in. They were holding a portable television. One said to me: "You're an American. That great American film The Wizard of Oz is on television tonight. The boss wanted you to be able to enjoy it." They handed me a portable television. I thanked them several times and was so touched.
He was a gracious friend to me. He often invited me to his mansion where his chef cooked gourmet meals for us. He would take me to his study and show first run movies often only available in movie theaters. His staff took me shopping with them to various malls. I never asked Alli for money or a job with any of his companies. I just appreciated his friendship and wonderful company.
I remember the time around Thanksgiving and Christmas. One night I was sitting in my barren studio apartment. I was expecting another lonely and empty night. I was surprised t hear a knock at the door. I looked through the peep hole. Two of Alli's employees were thee. I opened the door and let them in. They were holding a portable television. One said to me: "You're an American. That great American film The Wizard of Oz is on television tonight. The boss wanted you to be able to enjoy it." They handed me a portable television. I thanked them several times and was so touched.
Sunday, November 18, 2012
The Movie Lincoln
My dad always loved and admired Abraham Lincoln.He felt that Lincoln was the personification of the great promise of the American system. A man or a woman could come from humble circumstances and rise to great office and success.He also kept the paper back three volume Carl Sandburg’s Lincoln right on his dresser. It now sits on the fireplace in our bedroom. I went to see the movie Lincoln yesterday. It’s a brilliant master piece without equal. It’s worth the price of a theater ticket and the hassles of going to the movies.
The movie shows that Lincoln was both a brilliant politician and a wonderful human being with great depth. His intelligence and political instincts kept the border states with the Union when the American Civil War broke out in 1861. By 1865 many of the politicians in the Union knew the civil war was won. They also were tired of the massive blood shed. They were prepared to offer the Confederates a deal where they could keep slavery if they surrendered and came back into the Union.
Abraham Lincoln used all of his intellect and considerable political skills to get the 13th Amendment to the US Constitution passed by a slim 2 vote margin. This amendment abolished slavery for all time. It was later ratified by some southern states after the civil war ended.
When Lincoln is called one of our greatest presidents, he earned the accolade. His brilliant intellect, political skills, and compassion held this country together.
Friday, November 16, 2012
Helping Others On A Rainy Day
It was a rainy and cool day. I did small things to help others. I bought some food at Safeway and contributed it to the food bank. I went over to see Ed at Pacifica Computer Pros and got a wireless Bluetooth mouse for Elena's new laptop so that she could work more easily on her laptop. I also ent to Kent Cleaners and got Elena's new slacks out of alteration. My final good act was to give my daughter in law the money to take an English test that she needed for a major scholarship application. It's wonderful to help others!
Thursday, November 15, 2012
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
JacksMars: SpaceX - Launch Manifest
JacksMars: SpaceX - Launch Manifest: SpaceX - Launch Manifest : 'via Blog this'
To Those Of You Thinking Of Retirement-Think Twice!!!!!
Yesterday was a beautiful day. I had Franmore Electric come out and do some electrical work on the house. They installed a light in the study and had to innovate when the light did not come with a switch. They had to fix a major problem with no electrical outlet of our auxiliary freezer. They installed a new sensor on a garage door light. They did an excellent and professional job. I then went to the post office and took care of mailing some Christmas cards. It was a long line and a lot of hassles. Now my back is out after all of the lifting I had to do yesterday to begin the process of defrosting the small freezer. This is not what I thought retirement would be. It is a lot of hard work and little appreciation.
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
Jack's Africa: The Fractured Rainbow
Jack's Africa: The Fractured Rainbow: Fractured Rainbow By Sibusiso Tshabalala Monday, November 12, 2012 Share on A while ago we saw the rainbow dance above ...
Monday, November 12, 2012
Veteran;s Day 2012
Yesterday was the official 94th anniversary of the ending of World War I. It was described as "the war to end all wars." Official statistics indicate that 16 million men and women died and another 20 million were wounded. The madness of the final few hours was that the combatants kept fighting right up to 11:00 AM on 11 November, 1918. The last soldier killed was a 40 year old British coal miner. If I had been there I would have sat down when I got up on the 11th of November and" let the clock run out." All of the poor survivors felt good about making it through this awful war. Little did they know that an epidemic of Spanish influenza was about to follow. It killed another 20 million people worldwide. Sadly this was nothing compared to the 56 million official war deaths in World War II and another 40 million who died in the Soviet Union due to purges, famines, etc. War still goes on today. At least the casualties are not what they were in these awful conflicts in the last century.
Sunday, November 11, 2012
Saturday, November 10, 2012
The Movie Flight
Most of you active movie goers went to see the new James Bond film Skyfall. I hear that it's a great film. I decided to "buck the trend" and went to see Flight. Denzil Washington is an incredible actor. He plays a pilot cursed by an addiction to alcohol and cocaine. He checks in to fly a passenger plane with 102 passengers from Orlando to Atlanta. He is drunk on duty and things go wrong from the start of the flight as he has to fight very heavy turbulence. Later in the flight as they are approaching Atlanta International airport, the rear tail assembly fails. It is like what happened to an Alaska Airlines flight in the 1990's going between Cancun and San Francisco. In the actual case and in the movie the plane goes into a power dive. In the move Denzil Washington pulls some brilliant airmanship and inverts the plane and glides it in 96 of the 102 people on board survive. The people on the real Alaska Airlines flight were not so lucky and everyone died. The rest of the film is Denzil's struggle with substance abuse and the investigation. I will not give away the ending but it's a powerful film.
California's Finest Public Servant Gets A Promotion!
http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?llr=vffyaadab&v=0012Q4V8GYbFiQw7HYsJpmKjs1WJ1pX9-X2bimvBMfpRcdIarNua9HETFdypCEpXKkM4fTGG5zx1WikuUQzehvWyVj7OiKEaqY8kkPT_kq69r0wh75hToIqM8FLrp-4E0pNBkRcaTRrKY0t2xvreW82Jyu9e9m7R4f267Y_gaadIv2D9ioKMJncXj2UVzLrZEZjrf4TMlgtKu3UlfnO8NShgwoOJ14JljQBJ6xv3_nf4VU%3D
Friday, November 9, 2012
Thursday, November 8, 2012
Life Returns To Normal After The Long Election Drama
Now life comes back to normal after all of the drama of the election. I was at home solving routine and mundane problems. Our two dogs have incredible ingenuity. They always find new ways to escape from our large back yard where they should be happy. They found a new way and we were coming up with all sorts off ideas on how to close off the new hole that they dug. I first went to the local Ace Hardware and got a big plank. That worked so so but there was space open where our smaller dog Cassi could sneak through. I decided to go to Lowe's Home Improvement. I found some heavy cinder blocks that one would normally use in their garden. I sent $16.00 for five of them. I hauled them home and hauled them up to the back yard. I put them in place. Lo and behold the dogs are now again confined to the back yard!!!!
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
My Election Prediction Came True
Now the shock is over and I realize that,for real Obama will be our president for the next 4 years. I predicted an Obama victory in the electoral college and a high probability of Romney winning the popular vote. I then put a caveat in that I thought that Hispanic voters were being under counted. If these voters turned out in force, I predicted that Obama would win both the popular and the electoral vote. Much to my surprise 4 million new Hispanic voters came on the rolls from 2008 to now. In my opinion they swung the election for Obama.
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Politics Is The Dirtiest Business There Is!
My late father was first sent to the Pacific to fight the Japanese. After recovering from a bout with malaria he was sent to General Patton's Third Army and fought in France, Germany, and all the way to what was then Czechoslovakia where his unit linked up with Soviet troops. My dad saw many people die and even toured a German death camp with General Patton. He gave me the following pearl of wisdom: "Son war is not the dirtiest business there is; politics is the dirtiest business there is." He was right!!!
Monday, November 5, 2012
Jack's South America: Hola From Puerto Iguazu
Jack's South America: Hola From Puerto Iguazu: Puerto Iguazu, Argentina November 5, 2012 We finally arrived in Puerto Iguazu home to Iguazu Falls one of the natural wonders of th...
Sunday, November 4, 2012
A Beautiful Sunday In Pacifica
What a beautiful day! Elena took the dogs for a long walk. We ate good meals,caught up on reading, and just relaxed. We gave up on watching things about the election .Now we are watching a Japanese animated feature from 1997. Please observe a moment of silence for the 108 American service people who died in Afghanistan between June and September, 2012.
Saturday, November 3, 2012
Friday, November 2, 2012
Thursday, November 1, 2012
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)