Monday, May 16, 2011

Are the Nuke Warheads Nearby? Worried??

President Obama is scheduled to make a speech this week which will include reference to relationships with Mid-East nations.  I hope mention about nuclear war materials will be made, and perhaps an opportunity will be made to offer reductions in the USA nuke arsenal -- as a gesture toward improving peace potentials.

I did some pondering today and am glad to share these notes with you.  A Ploughshare somewhat recent report says an estimated 2,200 nuke warheads exist in the USA and Russia arsenals.  Assuming that half of those -- 1,100. that is -- are on USA soil, it would mean that on the average, each of our 50 states would house 22 of them.

Can you imagine where the 22 would be placed in Florida?  Maybe 5 in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale area.  Then 5 in the Jacksonville Naval Base area.  Another 5 in the Tampa-St. Pete area because of MacDill AFB/Centcom headquarters.  Put 3 in the Pensacola/Elgin AFB area, another 3 in the Cape Canaveral area, and 1 in the Orlando area.

If the proximity of housing a nuke warhead makes the surrounding vicinity vulnerable as a target of enemy missiles, etc., would we in Brandon (10 miles from Tampa) feel danger because of the nearby target, or would we feel more secure because of its presence?

Or, would our attitude be this:  "As a defensive/security matter, the USA must have warheads and nuke warring capabilities, and they have to be positioned somewhere, but please don't put them in my neighborhood!"

If we have 1100 warheads, does that mean they all are housed on USA soil?  Or, has Canada agreed to have some of them installed in their home areas?  Likewise, Mexico?  Or, perhaps Panama, etc.?

Now, if we can get our fellow American citizens to fear nukes enough to have them eradicated, maybe we could then get the citizens in Pakistan, India, North Korea, France, Israel, Russia, etc., likewise fearful -- so the banning of nuclear arsenals could become fact.   For humanity's sake, of course.  But, hey!  Let us not forget that we're all humanity!!
                                                         -- Paul Dinnis

Saturday, May 7, 2011

The USA and Its Post-bin Laden Actions

Our fellow citizens of the USA have rightfully been exuberantly joyful over the extermination of the bin Laden who masterminded the 9/11 massacre.  I endorsed that action and the praise expressed about it.  At the same time, I have thoughts thereto, to share:

1  -- This "victory" should  not be regarded as a political party win;  I am a Democrat, an Obama admirer, but
        the praise should be regarded as the "USA team" team- effort.  Yes, the team happened to be
       peopled mostly by Democrats, but due credit also should be accredited to supportive Republicans and
       the "Bush people" who had struggled honorably with the bin-Laden  situation.

2 -- Understandably, many in Pakistan not only resent our killing of the man, but have felt their nation has
       been violated by the USA military invasion to get the man.   Indeed, what would be the reaction in the
       USA if, say,  the Canadian or Mexican or French military force were to stage a surprise attack on
      Toledo, Ohio to capture or kill a man they regarded as a foe?   The public opinion in the USA would
      be one of rank hatred generating aspirations of vengeance toward that invading nation.   So, let's be
     understanding, here.

3 -- We are concerned about the possibilities of Pakistani use of their nuclear weapons arsenal in wreaking
       retribution upon the USA.  And the anti-USA resentment spreads in most of the Mid-East Muslim
       nations which some day also may have nuclear weapons.  What, indeed, must or can the USA
      do about it?

4 -- My suggestion is that the USA take advantage of  what could be a Golden Opportunity.  And, that is
       to indicate to the peoples throughout the  Mid-East that our dreams  are that the USA can be an
      agent for Peace, an agent for Bettering the Lot of All Peoples.

      How on earth (!!) could the USA do THAT  ???    Here is how:  BY  PROMISING  TO  DESTROY
      ALL  OF  OUR  NUCLEAR  WEAPONS  -- NUCLEAR  BOMBS,   NUCLEAR  MISSILES, ETC.


5 -- Unheard of ?   Yes !!   Impossible ?   Yes, at this point in time, 2011.   But,  theoretically and
       ultimatelly possible ??    Yes, indeed -- when the time comes that the citizens of the USA
       desire to help ourselves and our fellow humans throughout the world continue to exist.

6 -- So, let us all join in efforts to promote Peace, promote Respect, promote Love -- for and among
       all peoples, everywhere !!!   LET  US  INITIATE  THE  ACTION  TO  BRING  EXTINCTION
      TO  THE  EXISTENCE  OF  NUCLEAR  WEAPONRY  ANYWHERE !!!

                                                                           --  Paul Dinnis

Friday, April 22, 2011

WHAT, INDEED, IS "THE AMERICAN DREAM" ?

There is no single concept of what "The American Dream" is, of course.  It is different from one generation' to a succeeding generation.  And, the Dream is different from one individual to another.

I dab a bit into history, especially family history.  Recently I had occasion to write about my two grandfathers, one of whom was a Civil War veteran from Ohio.  He died four years before I was born.

Anyway, after that war, he married and in 1867  horses-and-wagon made his way to Nebraska, where he acquired farm land by occupying it five years as per the Homestead Act.

I don't know that he and wife had a special dream, except probably to survive and live a "good life."
But, consider the opportunity factors:  readily available land,  various on-farm production possibilittes, and an expanding population that became an increasing market.

My other grandfather was not a war veteran.  He was an immigrant Englishman whose farm experience rather paralleled those of the  other g-father.

The war veteran raised crops (probably corn and wheat), some cattle and probably more than a few
pigs.  Our family yarn is that when the nearby railroad was built (probably in early 1890s) he proceeded to ship his pigs via railroad to the meat packers in St. Joe, Missouri,  with good monetary returns.

Both grandfathers retired our small Nebraska village, and their $$$-successes enabled them to
found the small-town bank, in 1901.  Whatever their earlier dreams might have been, what they achieved surely must have been epitomes of what others might envy.

Consider the circumstances as they followed pathways toward realizing "American Dreams," as compared
with the challenges USA young people and families in 2011.   Easily acqired property today?  No. Opportunities to exercise one's self-reliance and self-achieve, today?  Minimum.   A rather small-scale
social environment that encouraged good family life?  Today is different -- pressures of today are virtually
unmeasurably greater than in yester-century.  The world is smaller, our USA population rather compacted, and the pressures to achieve any sort of personal "American Dream" can be tremendous, especially as technologies keep changing the cultures. 

The grandfathers' era coped with the "demon rum" and alcoholism -- in big cities but not in the "rurals."  Today's era repeats that, plus the  burdens of potential drug addiction -- everywhere, city and rural.
As to wars, the Cuban fracas was minor, and WWI was a quarter-century in the future.  Comparison
with the recent and present warfare that cost us human lives and mountainous financial debts.  WW II,
Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya (?).

Define "The Amrican Dream" of 2011?  Whatever -- for each of our citizenry, one element of it surely has to be "mere survival," doesn't it?  Perhaps that is somewhat negative, but it is realistic, too, in this age
of potential nuclear warfare.

On the positive side, surely we all must help plant seeds of hope and nurture them.  How?  Well, emphasis on education must continuie.  The competitive spirit must be encouraged, but with full respect for the dignity and 'belief systems of our fellow man, regardless of whether they are our local neighbors or citizens in a far-off nation.

What's nost important here?  As "The American Dream" is being shaped by our young, they absolutely must  establish the self-confidence that they can and will succed, as have their forebears.

Merely  a hope for survival ? Well, that, of course -- but much, much more !!

                                                                                 -- Paul Dinnis

Thursday, April 14, 2011

A Salute to Andy Borowitz

The cloud hovers, and it is darkly.  I seem to have a nuclear warfare peril obsession, and it is not the kind of Magnificent Obsession that titled a book 70 years ago.  My friends do not share my fears, I think because they just are unknowing about them.  But what the heck, maybe they are right.  The Libya disaster gets messier.  Kobe insults. Washington de-inspires.  But wait!  There comes a different cloud.  It is white.  It doesn't have a tag on it that identifies it as having been birthed by one Andy Borowitz, but I know the facts -- he is responsible for it.  He is a satirist on the Slate staff.  I don't read him there, but my St. Pete Times
prints him, and how refreshingly does he make Springtime a reality.

His thing yesterday was hilarious, entitled "Exports deplete democracy."  It spoofed that our exporting democary in Afghanistan and Iraq, etc., drains our USA stockpile of it.  Our democracy originated in Greece, and the insightful Borowitz has a Congressional pol suggesting that "we must reduce our dependence on foreign sources of government."  As to a democracy shortage,he quotes the Wisconsin governor downplaying troubles his state has had recently, as saying that democracy is "overrated."

The newspaper piece indicates that Borowitz writes from Washington.  How would it be if we installed him,
along with the likes of funsters like Jon Stewart, Letterman, Leno, Colbert, Seinfeld, etc., etc. in Washington to operate the government?  I would make A. Borowitz the chief honcho, there, and how joy would
be the lot of so many more of us.  Our salute to you, sir!
                                                                                     -- Paul Dinnis

Wednesday, April 6, 2011

WHERE IS THE NUCLEAR WIT?

I wrote a piece recently (actually, it was a book), which had a basket-ful of ancient Gods and Deities convening again, in our time.  Theydiscussed current world crises, and the talk got pretty heavy.  One of them interrupted, adding a bit of humor tolighten things.

It worked.  After a bit of laughter, moods changed and the serious matters were dealt with again -- but more effectively -- because perspective became an ingredient along with a willingness to respect and to yield.

That God-Wit said that if today's religion units -- churches, mosques, synagogues, etc. -- have leaders who have a capacity to offset the serious with the laughable, they are indeed fortunate.

Think about it !!  Same situation, today.  Crises abound.  Nuclear leakage in Japan.  Warring in the Mid-East. Up-rooting of authority in Egypt, Libya, Yemen.  And, the time is over-ripe for nations to negotiate agreements to eliminate a world-wide catastrophe by de-fusing all  nuclear warheads and banning new production of them.

Well, it would be ideal if some sort of effective humor might arise, here.  The nuclear coin's Side A is a surface of research/development to enhance the positive facets of man's existence.  Unfortunately, the reverse Side B is a negative:  DEATH !

Ah, would that the temperament of  the world's peoples was suich that in-depth negotiations could be discussed and progress made toward destroying all existing nuclear warheads, and banning the manufacturing of any nuclear-war tools.

How, and from whence, is any welcome Wit to emerge?  I do not know.  I cannot envision any entertainer laughing as he juggles balls in the air, pretending that they are A-bombs.  Or, that a super-sexy-looking lady strutting seductively across the stage might be described as a potential in-person A-bomb.

Nor can any sort of light-banter be expected  from government leaders or politicians.  Or,  from the scads of lobbyists whose presences constitute a blessing or a plague, in the government halls.

Mention of the lobbyists stirs a thought.  Confront, say, the National Rifle Association about even limiting the proliferation of nuclear warfare materials in the world's nations.

What would the NRA reaction be?  Its members have a history of opposition to gun-control.  A dilemma, indeed!  Would they/will they be opposed to nuclear-arms control?

Woops !  We are in need of counter-blanacing commentary of some sort !  Suggestions, please.

                                                                      -- Paul Dinnis

Saturday, April 2, 2011

The Eternal Roller Coaster

Ah me, will it never stop?  I was almost finished with a "brilliant" blog on this theme when, a half-hour ago, our electric power went off -- and, true to this theme, I lost all the copy, and I have had to re-do the thing. It went something like this:  It's a great, spring-like day in Florida.  Major league baseball season opened last night, but local area Rays lost.  Tornado-like winds destroyed property two miles to our north, yesterday but no damage to our place.  Did creative work on my destroy-the-nukes cause, this morning, and it looks good.  I glance awhile at Facebook and it all sounds ideal -- friendly, neighborly, intimate chit-chat.  The Japan tragedy seems long ago and a world away.  Libya is a big question mark and the Mid East is awesome in wonderment (sp ?).  I'm thinking about creating a "No-Nukia" colony for the good people like you and me, and ours.  Wanta join?   Warriors makes us Worriers, don't they!  Are the Facebookers aware of all this?

But, the Sabbaths and the Sundays come, and tomorrow is Sunday.  Let there be prayers, let theire be peace, let there be hope.   Let us do our part!     

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Time "Marches On" ? No, It LEAPS !! Can We Ever "Catch Up" ?

Inevitably is a factor here, I believe. The various traditional aspects of the world's cultures and societies seem to be chipped away at, in a too-rapid pace.

Maybe "chipped away" is not as appropriate description as "subtly transitioning," at an increasingly too-rapid pace. But, it is happening.

Earlier, I mentioned this matter in the book I authored, "Our Critical Challenge World-Wide".http://emlanepublishing.com/ It has ancient deities and gods meeting a year or two ago, to discuss today's threatening perils and how to help all of us to cope.

The gods converse, and one says that young people in this 21st Century have a greater difficulty in successfully maturing from teenhood into maturity.

Not necessarily so, a colleague said; youth in all centuries have
had to deal with those troubling years.

But they basically agreed that roadblocks confronting today's youths are probably greater than ever, in history.

The changes cited that youth must contend with were numerous. The demand
that youth become better educated in order to compete and achieve as
technologies evolve, as years of life-expectancy increase and place more burdens, as peoples of different cultures and different religions meld into a tighter social mix, as life-styles change. Etcetera. Difficult, indeed, for our youth.

This has led me to a thought or two, that if today's youth have it rough
to happily cope, theirs is a venture somewhat paralleled by ours -- those of elderly years, that is.

You don't have to think about this matter. Just note it! Shortcuts now
make it so you don't have to trip to the library for deep research; you accomplish the same by leisurely reading the Kindle or iPad or whatever, in you hand. A century ago, adults saw friends maybe once a week, at church. Then came telephones for immediate contacting, and then the hand-held two-way radios. And television. And, lately, those gadgets
that you put in your hands and let fingers tap away to exchange text messages with friends.

Now, of course, you add the wonders of opportunities to pursue any and all types or research, via the computer. Ah, the wonders of Facebook, of Twitter, of Blogging!

I am "old hat." I remember well, suffering through a couple of years in high school being in daily typewriting class, learning correct use of this finger to manipulate one key, and aother finger to specifically be used
for another key. Practice led to improvement. I masstered the typing, realtively speaking, and it has served me well, and still does.

Contrast that with the example of my great granddaughter, now in middle school. She has not been exposed to a typing class. Do they teach it any more? She can relax in an easy chair, and use that wee hand-held gadget to communicate with friends. She hasn't had to learn fingering technique, but she deftly types letters on it quicker than I can type on my computer.
Furthermore, she doesn't have to learn proper spelling. An amazing
language of condensed/counter-mixed letters and symbols comes into existence. It is different. But it is effective communication!

Well, my g-granddaughter is coping well. She is good with that technical apparatus. With a computer, too. If anything, I conclude, her potential scope of achieving may, indeed, be broader than mine was, at her age.

Will she ever "catch up" I doubt it, if the "LEAPING" continues as we
hopefully prevent future nuclear warfare. But her being a part of that
constant effort to "catch up" will be a positive for our society.

Our role, in all this? We must find the means to avoid the perils of
nuclear warfare, via international agreements reached by humans who have respect for each other, and a desire for happy co-existence.