I write, from time to time, about Africa. Indeed, I ought to give it its very own category, I suppose. From a safe distance removed, it is impossible not to find Africa compelling and fascinating, scary and sad.

The NY Times has written this morning about Uganda and the boy king. This is a far from gripping article about the 12 year old boy who sits the throne in Uganda. His name is King Oyo. It is a typical puff piece about young royalty thrust onto the throne at 3 1/2 and how he wishes he could be just like every other normal kid. He runs with his dogs and goes to school and his mother tries to resist the attempts of Parliament to remove him as king. *Yawn* The piece does note that Uganda is very poor but after we make our expected obesiance to that inconvenient fact, we move on the the leopard covered chairs and the business class plane trips.

Now, if you are the typical American reader (whatever that means) you will have turned the page in your NY Times, secure in the fact that Uganda, while poor, is a happy place where everyone loves their boy king. You can now turn your attention to the more interesting sports section.

But wait a second. What if you happened to read the NY Sun last night on the train home? Maybe you'd have a different take on Uganda. Maybe you'd be forced to ask yourself if the NY Times has even the barest beginnings of a glimmer of a clue about Uganda.

Uganda is a basket case. The Sun reproduced an article from the Telegraph, entitled, Broken Lives of the Twlight Children. Don't follow this link unless you need a good cry, ok? This is seriously horrible stuff.

Uganda's children are not all playing with dogs and running around with leopard skins. Some of them, over 20,000 children, have been kidnapped, tortured, raped, and forced to become soldiers in the "Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), Africa's most brutal rebel group led by a self-styled prophet called Joseph Kony." Here is some information about the LRA.

Since the onset of his campaign 18 years ago, the LRA has kidnapped 20,000 children, brainwashing and enslaving them for use as soldiers and sexual playthings. More than 10,000 have disappeared in the last two years.

Kony targets children, devoting his messianic energies towards the abduction, indoctrination and often murder of as many as possible.

The catastrophe inflicted is almost without parallel. At least 1.6 million people - virtually the entire rural population - have fled their villages for squalid refugee camps. The number of refugees has trebled since 2002 and exceeds the 1.2 million in Sudan's war-torn Darfur.

The conflict has being going on for 18 years. Where is the much vaunted United Nations in this? More people have been displaced here than in Darfur, which is getting a lot of press and attention. The UN is nowhere, instead suggesting that other NGO's do a little more.

[T]he UN has passed five resolutions in as many years on the protection of children in armed conflicts, including specific calls for action in Uganda, but the rate of abductions is higher than ever. "While the extreme abuses of children in northern Uganda are well documented and widely known, the international community has failed to find an effective way to protect them," it adds.

It says the 18-year conflict has cost the country £725 million. More than 20,000 children have been abducted by the LRA, made to kill their parents and forced into bondage as child soldiers, sex slaves and weapons porters.

Two million people are living in squalid and cramped camps for the homeless and malnutrition among displaced children is up to 21 per cent in some areas. "Many international appeals were made to the UN and world leaders, Ugandan children addressed the UN. "Each time their stories shocked audiences, each time they went home with hope. Their hopes turned to despair," the report says.

Denis McNamara, the UN special adviser on displacement, rejected charges that the UN has offered "too little, too late" suggesting instead that groups such as World Vision should increase their own staff in the countryside.

Once again, the UN rides to the rescue. By the way, I've left out a lot of the gruesome details, like about the boy who was forced to kill his own family by setting fire to their hut. It pains me to even write that last sentence. Go see for yourself, if you can.

The article in the Telegraph starts by telling you about a child named Simple who walks six miles into town to sleep on the concrete outside by the hospital to avoid being taken by Kony's army. The little girl is 12 years old. Can you imagine what it must be like to have to send your child out of your house for her own protection? And then not know if she was safe until she came back the next day?

And King Oyo wants to be just like a normal kid. He doesn't mean the kids who have to sneak into town to sleep, does he?

Posted by: Random Penseur at 09:42 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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Hey, y'all. I've been writing here since July 13 and in that short time, I have hit 1000 comments! Well, actually, 1003. Thanks for all of the great comments (and not so great ones, for that matter) that you all leave. It certainly makes it interesting for me.

Writer of the 1000th Comment is: [drum roll, please] Amber!

Thanks, Amber!

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I am pretty sure I came out the loser on the following exchange with the Girl Child, aged 3 3/4. I think that by conceding her logic system, I may have really erred. I'll let you all decide.

Me: I hear that you were a real pill today. Why was that?

GC: Well, I can't listen every day. [Pause, then earnest explanation with hands waving for emphasis] I'd get bored.

Me: Oh. Well, you didn't listen today so that means you have to listen tomorrow, ok?

GC: Yes, Pappa.

By the way, before I got home, the nanny told her that she was going to tell us that the Girl Child was not to have any dessert that night because of the way she had been behaving and the Girl Child said to the nanny: "Don't tell Mamma and Pappa, ok? It can be our little secret."

I'm doomed, aren't I?

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From Jan, apparently a Canadian submarine, non-nuclear, off the coast of Ireland is in big trouble with 9 injuries and drifting with no power.

I did not know that the Canadian navy had submarines but actually, they have four diesel subs they bought from England in 1998. Here's the press release from the Canadian Navy. The press release gives the rationale for buying them and the specifications of the boats.

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It's been a long while since I've done one of these but today is a good day to do it.

Birthdays today, October 6:

*1820 Jenny Lind, the Swedish Nightingale and the most popular female vocalist of the mid to late 1800's. Probably the inspiration for the Teutonic Titwillow of Blazing Saddles, one of my favorite movies. First brought to NY to sing by P.T. Barnum.

*1846 George Westinghouse responsible for alternating current in US and thus the Age of Electricity. Also created the air brake for the trains.

*1887 Le Corbusier (beware the popups, but a great source of links) Switzerland, architect/city planner/artist (Urbanisme). I always hated the fact that he wanted to tear down the center of Paris and replace it with high rises. His only building in the United States is the Carpenter Center at Harvard (picture). This building was designed as the graduate school for architects at Harvard and the architect, as I recall from my studies, threw every decorative element he possessed in his bag of tricks into the building, including the tropical sun shades he had created for Brazil, in order to give the budding architects the chance to experience all of him and his vernacular. Not the best building but fun to visit should you be in Cambridge.

*1909 Carole Lombard actress (My Man Godfrey, In Name Only)

*1914 MY (maternal) GRANDFATHER!!! My grandfather was born twelve years after his father came to this country. My great-grandfather came with no money and no English but got a job very quickly. The street car conductor would tell him where to get off to go to work, at first. My grandfather was born in a lower east side tenement, with gas lights flickering on the walls, no electricity. My grandfather, born to immigrants with no money, graduated from Harvard University on a full scholarship and Columbia University School of Law. He went into real estate and eventually became one of the first corporate raiders, albeit without the kind of capital those fellows enjoy today. He is civic minded to the nth degree, serving on boards of educational institutions, symphonies, and historical societies. He has written books and published articles. He is, to my mind, the living embodiment of the American Dream. In short, my grandfather is my personal hero and I strive to model myself after him and live up to the very hard example he has set. I come up short, I think, but I do try. Knowing him has enriched my life and I look forward to having dinner with him tonight to celebrate. 90 years old and 100% there. Happy birthday!

*1914 Thor Heyerdahl Norway, anthropologist/explorer, sailed the Kon Tiki raft from Peru to Polynesia to prove his theory that American Indians could have been the ancestors of the Polynesians. His many expeditions are chronicled here

*1942 former Bond-girl and ex-wife to Peter Sellers, Britt Ekland, (IMDB bio) and pictures.

Deaths occuring today

* 1891 Charles Stewart Parnell leader of the Irish party and nationalist who gave the concept of the boycott by telling people to shun those who bought foreclosed farms. He was brought down by a sensational divorce case involving Kitty O'Shea, who you may have heard of.

*1981 Anwar Sadat assassinated Hosnai Mubarak becomes Egytian president

*1983 Terence Cardinal Cooke, age 62. He was a great Cardinal for the City of New York.

*1989 Bette Davis, 81.

*2004 Rodney Dangerfield, age 82.

Today

*1520 German reformer Martin Luther, 36, published "Prelude on the Babylonian Captivity of the Church," his famous writing which attacked the entire sacramental system of the Catholic Church.

*1781 Americans & French begin siege of Cornwallis at Yorktown; last battle of the Revolutionary War. The rumor is that when the British marched out of the garrison, after surrendering, their band played, "The World Turned Upside Down".

*1889 Thomas Edison shows his 1st motion picture, . Go check out some of the clips from other Edison films.

*1927 "Jazz Singer," (beware popups) first full length movie with a sound track, premieres in NYC. It is the story of a Cantor's son who doesn't want to be a Cantor. Al Jolson (born Asa Yoelson) starred.

*1973 Yom Kippur War begins as Syria & Egypt attack Israel. Here, I want to send you to Michael Oren's book, the best book I've read on the subject. It is an enthralling read: Six Days of War : June 1967 and the Making of the Modern Middle East. Oren thinks, and I agree, that you cannot understand the current situation in the Middle East without understanding this conflict. Even then, the aim of the invading Arabs was nothing less than the complete destruction of the Jewish people, as Oren demonstrates by, inter alia, quoting from Arab government documents and newspapers articles.

Whew, this was a long one, wasn't it? Maybe that's why it's been a while, it takes a bit of time to create these.

UPDATE:

Thanks to Mick for noting my mistake on the dates above. I corrected it.

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Well, I am keeping with my practice of giving my views on this before looking at any newspaper or other blog. My view is that Cheney won last night and I'm not sure that it was particularly close. Remember, if I'm changing presidents in the middle of a war, I need a good reason. Edwards did not give me a good reason last night, although I really liked what he had to say about Israel. To my surprise, I thought Cheney was a stronger supporter of gay marriage than Edwards was. Cheney seemed to have a better handle on the facts and figures and if he was wrong, well, he at least sounded confident and in command. Who would I like to see one heart beat away from the oval office? Last night, it would have to be Cheney.

By the way, I am going to go check out the factcheck.org or .com site he spoke about in relation to Haliburton.

Advantage: Cheney.

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How crushed do you feel when you open the desk drawer where you keep that little bar of dark chocolate (Break Glass for Emergency Use Only) and you discover that you finished it already and you forgot all about having done so? You've opened that drawer and are just shocked, and not in a good way, to find that there ain't no emergency chocolate in there.

I know I'm not alone on this one. Am I?

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Before I got involved with blogging -- both reading and writing -- I knew next to nothing about Australian politics. Now I am just slightly farther along on the continuim after reading people like Yobbo, Simon, Michael, and Chrenkoff. First of all, what the hell do they feed these people in Australia in order to produce such articulate political commentators? Where can I get some of that and it better not be Vegemite?

Now, you may think to yourself, "Self, why should I care?" You should care because Australia is a critical ally and partner in Iraq and in the WoT (War on Terror) generally. It is headed, at the moment, by John Howard and he is in quite a fight with Mark Latham, head of the Labour Party. I'd turn here for more of an explanation: Decision Time, an excellent piece.

I admit that I am finding the Australian campaigns to be much more interesting, or at least more entertaining, than the American one. The reason? We're not getting quotes like this one in our campaign (Mark Latham on John Howard):

Mr Howard and his government are just yes-men to the United States. There they are, a conga line of suckholes on the conservative side of Australian politics. The backbench sucks up to the Prime Minister, and the Prime Minister sucks up to George W. [...] In my book they are not Australian at all. They are just the little tories—the little tory suckholes.

I am not informed enough to have an opinion, unlike the blogger I took the above quote from, but I must admit I wish we had a more colorful campaign going on over here.

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I just got another cold call my secretary did not weed out. I love these.

Woman: This is Dee from R__ K___'s office and he'd like to drop you some information in the mail.

Me: That's nice. Who's R___ K___?

Dee: Well, he works with Wall Street. [Delivered in slightly reverential tone as if I am lucky to be getting a call from the flunky of a man as busy as this]

Me: What? The whole Street? Really?

Dee: Well, he works for Almond (actually another nut) Securities.

Me: Them? Pass. [Hang up]

Closing thought: Perhaps he pushes a broom on Wall Street.

Actually, I did an internet search on the real name of the firm and came up with a suspended license story. Ah, well.

Posted by: Random Penseur at 04:12 PM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
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1 Wow! I wonder what you missed out on!!! ;-)

Posted by: Mick at October 04, 2004 06:07 PM (Yd6SN)

2 lol... its the look on your face as you say it that would probably make me laugh hardest. hardest? - ah - you know what i mean

Posted by: standing naked at October 04, 2004 11:24 PM (IAJcf)

3 There's a Peanut Securities?

Posted by: Simon at October 05, 2004 01:45 AM (GWTmv)

4 I've GOT to stop hanging up on these people so quickly. Turns out they can be very interesting

Posted by: Elizabeth at October 05, 2004 11:11 AM (sCupo)

5 Well ya know RP, sometimes you feel like a nut and sometimes you don't.....

Posted by: Wicked H at October 05, 2004 11:47 AM (iqFar)

6 As I mentioned to someone else, my favorite "sell my stocks" cold call was one where I had just been playing squash the week before with the head of the caller's entire division. He hung up so fast when I mentioned this that I never got his name. . .

Posted by: RP at October 05, 2004 02:14 PM (LlPKh)

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I have lately been meaning to update my list of "Daily (practically) Reads" to include some new ones. One of them, the Diplomad is a blog by a bunch of conservative U.S. State Dept. Foreign Service Officers. It has a list of books they liked and I thought it looked pretty great. Here's the link to the list and here's one or two of their selections I want to run out and pick up:

Holy Madness, Romantics, Patriots, and Revolutionaries, 1776-1871, Adam Zamoyski: A great book, well-written, insightful and funny. You will never think of the French Revolution in quite the same way again after reading this tome. Zamoyski analyzes the European and other revolutionaries who were inspired by the American Revolution and tried to make some of their own -- generally with disastrous results. A definite must-read.

Thunder Below! The USS Barb Revolutionizes Submarine Warfare in World War II, Admiral Eugene B. Fluckey: A rollicking good read! You'll tear through this one. A superb account, published in 1992 (we re-read it this weekend), of the US Navy's submarine campaign against the Japanese Empire. It focuses on the remarkable achievements of the USS Barb under Fluckey -- it "sank" an enemy train, among other accomplishments. We don't want to give any of it away, so go read it. You won't be sorry. The most stunning thing to us was how incredibly young these American submariners were and the almost suicidal missions they went on without hesitation. A real testimony to the American fighting man and his will to win.

Happy reading!

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You all recall, I'm sure, that in late August, two famous paintings were stolen from the Munch Museum in Oslo, Norway. Well, now almost six weeks later, we have an update from the Police: They don't have a f**king clue who took the damn things.

"We have not had any good, concrete tips about where the pictures are. We are still optimistic but we need some time," said police inspector Iver Stensrud, head of the Organized Crime division of the Oslo police district. "There are no concrete leads or groups that are more interesting than others in the investigation. A reward is one of the things that is under continuous assessment," Stensrud said.

Translation? We have no idea what happened to the damn things and are so totally useless that we can't even agree on whether, 40 days later, it might make some sense to offer a reward to shake loose some information. We need some time because if we get fired now, our pensions may not have vested so you really need to wait to decide if we're incompetent.

I will eat my words with the greatest pleasure if these clowns turn these paintings up again. I fear I will not have to do that. I'm sure you know how this all makes me feel right?

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If you're looking for a post about the latest political kerfuffle, this isn't the one today. If you're looking for a throw back, 1950's kind of family values weekend, look no further than this report. It was, as my wife said, about as G-rated as a girl can get.

Saturday:

After breakfast, I read a Roald Dahl story, the Enormous Crocodile, to the Girl Child while my wife put the Boy Child down for his morning nap. Shortly after reading that, I passed out. I moved to the couch, lay down, and was completely unable to move, even as the Girl Child played the role of the enormous croc and came over from time to time to growl and try to eat my face. I think I just collapsed basically from exhaustion brought about by last week. I lay there, somewhat suspended between sleep and consiousness for anywhere between a half hour and an hour. When I got up, I took a shower, revived myself, and off we went.

We set off to go to one of the local church run pre-school fairs. It is their biggest fund raiser and is well attended. The weather cooperated with the rain holding off. There was a silent auction (we bid and lost) and rides and games. One of the rides was a great big slide. The kids climbed to the top and slid down in a bag and hit a huge puffy pillow at the bottom. The Girl Child wanted to give it a try. She had major problems getting to the top, though. One of the steps was broken and the way up was both steep and constructed from a slick industrial nylon. She did not give up, though, she kept trying until, with a little help from the guy at the top, she made it. She was quite triumpant and didn't even wait for the guy to help her get into position to slide down. She just put herself into her little bag and away she went. She loved it.

When we left, we drove by another church that was having a pumpkin patch benefit to raise money for their school. So we stopped and bought a couple of pumpkins to carve up for later.

We took the kids home for naps at that point and I went out to the gorcery store to buy all the necessaries to create a pot of chili. Well, almost all. There was no chipotle in adobo, which was a great disappointment to me and left the chili a little lacking somehow. Fall is here for sure and with it comes the need to cook things that simmer on the stove for a long time. Besides, I adore chili. While poking around in the freezer, just before beginning the chili making, I found that we had some Trader Joe's frozen dumplings, at least two different kinds.

So, when the kids awoke, they were very happy to be given dumplings for dinner. The Girl Child ate more than I would have ever expected a child of her age to eat and then came back after dinner and asked for more. The Boy Child was less enthralled.

Sunday dawned beautifully, although I admit to grumpiness. It passed. We loaded children into cars and headed up county about 40 minutes away to go to an apple orchard. At least, that's what we thought we were going to be doing, spending the day drifting from tree to tree and picking apples. No. Instead, the place was organized like a miniature county fair. It was great fun. There was a pumpkin patch and pony rides. We took a hay ride through one of the orchards and sang songs and just had a great time. We ended up buying some apples (Macoun, if you care) and pears and taking them home with us because we had exceeded the allotted time.

Then, driving back to the highway, we saw a sign for the Casafina warehouse sale. Casafina is an importer of Italian and Portugese hand painted ceramics. We are bad about these kinds of things and acknowledge that we possess little or no restraint. That said, we were pretty well behaved here and only bought a couple of things, including a wedding present for a friend.

After we got home and put the kids to bed, I worked for an hour and a half (got to remember to bill this), cleaned out the freezer, washed the kitchen down, unloaded and reloaded the dishwasher, took the recycling out to the garage, and washed all the new pottery stuff. A whirlwind of activity.

While I was doing this, the wife was out exercising outside where she reported a most unlikely sighting -- a Subaru sporting a Bush/Cheney sticker. A rare almost unprecedented occurrence.

When the kids awoke, we shoveled them back into the car to take over to my parents for dinner. My dad made Osso Bucco. It was the perfect end to the weekend. The kids put a silly cd on and danced with my dad while I cleaned up a little (after all, he did the cooking).

And to top it all off, the kids went straight to sleep. I should have bought a lottery ticket, you know?

Posted by: Random Penseur at 08:38 AM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
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1 Soudns like a wonderful fall weekend! All that kitchen cleaning made me jealous

Posted by: Elizabeth at October 04, 2004 10:28 AM (sCupo)

2 Holy cow. It's like a walking version of "Pollyanna" at your house! I'm envious

Posted by: Helen at October 04, 2004 01:34 PM (EELd2)

3 Sounds just lovely, RP. Hope you're rested & rejuvenated after this happy weekend!

Posted by: GrammarQueen at October 04, 2004 02:40 PM (gDEwS)

4 Wow! That just sounds like a wonderful time! You have a terrific family!!!

Posted by: Mick at October 04, 2004 02:42 PM (VhRca)

5 What a great weekend! Your missing chiles gave me the urge to mention how handy it is to freeze chipotles in adobo. When I get a can of them, I count the chiles, and puree them in the blender. Then I portion them in half-a-chile size dollops on plastic wrap and freeze. Cut between the lumps, wrap each individually in its surrounding wrap, and pop them in a freezer bag or box. I started doing this because we couldn't eat a whole can fast enough, but it has been very convenient. The little lumps thaw almost instantly in hot soup or stew.

Posted by: Terri at October 04, 2004 05:47 PM (SIz+V)

6 Thanks for the hint, Terri. I'll have to give it a shot. Thanks for all the nice comments, y'all. Actually, I feel not one little bit better rested than when I started the weekend. I think I need a vacation.

Posted by: RP at October 05, 2004 02:17 PM (LlPKh)

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Did any you see the news that there was a daring jewel heist in Paris at the National Syndicate of Antique Dealers 22nd Biennial? Protected by four security guards and several salespeople, two huge diamonds, worth $14 million, were lifted into thin air.

According to the reporter:

The French news media were quick to draw analogies with the country's famous fictional gentleman burglar, Arsène Lupin, and the caper might make Americans think of Cary Grant's dapper character in "To Catch a Thief." But the police say the real thieves, though skilled, are probably far less refined.

That's the French news media, you see, making those comparisons. That's probably why the most natural one did not occur to them. No, not the dashing Cary Grant, but the bumbling Peter Sellers from the Pink Panter movies is the one who comes immediately to mind. You wonder how they could have missed that film reference. Or, maybe you don't.

Detectives at France's Brigade de Répression du Banditisme say there is little chance of recovering the diamonds. They say the gems are probably somewhere in Eastern Europe or Russia by now. While it will be nearly impossible to sell such easily recognizable stones on the open market, they say, the diamonds can be recut and then sold. The police say there are also plenty of private buyers in Russia and the Arab world willing to accept a discount in return for leaving difficult questions unanswered.

I'm telling you, if the internationally famous detectives at the Brigade de Répression du Banditisme (or, Brigade for the Repression of Banditism) have already given up, then only Inspector Clouseau can crack this case!

Posted by: Random Penseur at 07:38 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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1 Do you have a rheum?

Posted by: GrammarQueen at October 01, 2004 02:29 PM (gDEwS)

2 Banditism??!! Or Banditry?

Posted by: Mark D. Firestone at October 01, 2004 10:05 PM (swj3R)

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I saw this misleading little blurb, buried in the middle of the NY Times this morning and wanted to highlight it:

BRITAIN: GURKHAS GAIN CITIZENSHIP Gurkhas, who have served with the British Army for nearly 200 years, won a court battle to settle in Britain and become citizens. The soldiers, recruited in Nepal, are continuing to demand equality in pay and conditions with their British Army counterparts. The right to settle in Britain is restricted to those who left the army after July 1, 1997, when the Gurkhas were rebased from Hong Kong to Britain. The Home Office estimates 230 soldiers and about 800 dependants will settle in Britain each year. Gurkhas have served in the army since 1815 when a peace agreement was reached by the British East India Company after it suffered heavy casualties during an invasion of Nepal. From a peak of 112,000 in World War II, their numbers have dwindled to about 3,400.

Why is it misleading? Because the Ghurkas who served in Hong Kong, while they may be permitted to settle in Great Britain, are excluded from citizenship (link has lots of pop ups so I reproduce relevant bits below).

Former Nepalese-born Gurkha soldiers who helped defend Hong Kong under British rule are fuming at London's decision to exclude them from a new law giving the crack fighters British citizenship, a spokesman said Thursday.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair said Thursday that serving and retired fighters of the army's famous Ghurka Brigade would be allowed to settle in Britain.

But the law applies only to those demobilised after July 1, 1997, the day Britain disbanded its Hong Kong regiment and returned the city to Chinese control.

"The law has been stacked against Hong Kong's Gurkhas, they have been deliberately left out," said Hem Thapa, an agent at Gurkha International, an employment agency that finds work for former Gurkhas who still live here.

"Those who went back to Nepal will definitely be making some noise about this -- many were definitely counting on Britain offering them citizenship."

Why can't the Brits treat these men properly?

UPDATE: Predictably, and I should have looked before posting the above, Simon has a great post on this subject.

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I stayed up past my bedtime last night with my wife to watch the debate. I was not impressed overly much although, on the whole, I liked Bush better. I am keeping in open mind, despite the oft quoted danger of having my brain fall out, but I know that I am going to need a reason to change presidents in the middle of a war and I was anxious for John Kerry to give me that reason. He didn't. You see, I'm still not really sure what he stands for. I know what he's against -- Bush. But what is he for? Lehrer asked him several times to give specifics about how he would handle things differently from Bush. I actually moved physically to the edge of my seat when he was asked this question because I didn't want to miss a single word. I sat back disappointed when he concluded his answer. There was no substance to the reply, it was just another attack on Bush. Kerry referred us to his website for the "details". Go see it yourself. I did, last night. I looked up the homeland security platform and walked away with no greater understanding than I had after the debate. Basically, it says on the website that they'll identify sensitive targets and do a better job guarding them. That doesn't make me feel safer.

Advantage last night: Bush.

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I am seriously looking forward to the Presidential debates tonight if, for no other reason, than because I am finally going to get to see the candidates square off against each other with no help from spin squads, partisan p.r. flacks, and web hit-men. No intermediaries to explain the positions. I am hoping for pure, unadulterated content straight from the horse's mouth. I want a hard hitting, no punches pulled debate. I do not want mealy mouthed equivocation or cheap shots. I want to know what each candidate's position is with no filter in place.

I am bound to be disappointed but a boy can dream, can't he?

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Hi, all,

Just a quick wave to let you know that I am still alive. Just facing some deadlines here at work. Left the house to catch that horrid 5:56 train again and I left in full night. The moon was out, sort of hidden by the clouds but illuminating them completely. It was beautiful but I just can't keep doing this. I am over committed at work (where I can't keep up with the new business), at home (where I'd rather be taking care of my children), or with all of the non profit stuff (where I have to learn to start saying, no, when asked to do more stuff).

I am definitely having one of those days in which I wonder, fleetingly, how far I can get with my car before American Express wises up to the fact that I've done a runner and cancels my charge card. Mexico? Through Central America? Maybe Argentina? If I stay away from places where the hotels, such as they are, can check with American Express, maybe further? If my next dispatch is bylined, "From the Road", you'll know what happened.

All suggestions as to destinations are welcome.

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1 i think out west i have always wanted to go...but have never been. have fun. ;-)

Posted by: standing naked at September 30, 2004 08:23 AM (IAJcf)

2 You've been quiet and I was wondering where you were my blog brother And, for what it's worth, you should know-you've got a good 45 days worth of Amex loving before they cut you off. Not that I've checked or anything, while entertaining thoughts of escaping to Africa...

Posted by: Helen at September 30, 2004 11:26 AM (2mqzj)

3 I had a great week in Wyoming. Flew into Salt Lake and took a nice drive north into Idaho and then followed the Snake River east into Wyoming and up into the Grand Tetons. Stayed in a lodge near Jackson Lake with no tv, no radio, no c*ll phone or blackberry reception. I would get up before dawn, drive up to a mountain top and watch the son come up over the mountains. Hiked within spitting distance of moose, elk, bison, and buffalo. Went rafting. Your weather window may have passed - but I gotta say - it was very, very, nice. Your girl child would love it. By the way . . . your blog prohibited this post until I deleted the correct spelling of a non land line phone.

Posted by: ivan at September 30, 2004 09:40 PM (xy2ZU)

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If you've ever spent any time at all looking at the history of the Revolutionary War in this country, you know that it was a damn close thing. If Howe had taken Philadelphia that winter of 1776, if he had pushed across the Delaware and taken the city, that might have been the end of our Revolution. After all, Howe had chased Washington out of Long Island, off of Manhattan, and across New Jersey to Pennsylvania. In that time of loss after loss, not only battles and skirmishes, mind you, but supplies and wagon trains with clothes and food, there was only one bright spot -- the Battle of White Plains. There, the Continental Army stopped the British and the Hessians cold. The Army escaped intact with a victory, of sorts, under its belt and it retreated in good order. It was the first time in this campaign that the Continentals could claim a victory, even if they were driven from the field.

You can visit the battlefield, or parts of it, in White Plains, NY. Have you ever visited an historical battlefield before? It is a place that is made holy, consecrated by the deaths of the men who fought and died there. Sometimes they fought for good reasons and died simply because of the stupidity of the men who led them. Sometimes they fought and died because they had to. Either way, it is a solemn thing to visit a battlefield.

I took the kids and set off to find the last remaining Revolutionary War battlefield in Westchester County on Sunday. It was deserted. The children and I were the only ones there. It was located in the middle of a residential neighborhood. It is called, Miller Hill.

The actual monument plaque is:

I enjoyed the visit very much. It was transporting to stand in the the lines where our forefathers stood and waited for the Hessians to charge with bayonets fixed. The lines looked like this:

and like this:

There is something transformative about the laughter of children. Even the laughter of children at a former battle field. I was happy to leave the past behind to watch the Girl Child and the Boy Child chase each other around the sun dappled field, stopping to hold hands and share pretzels. I think the kids had a good time, even if they didn't really understand what happened there. In fact, for more information generally about the Battle of White Plains, go here. The Girl Child, thanks to some of the historical fiction I have lying around the house, is familiar with the concept of Dragoons and was not a little bit disappointed when she didn't see any at the field. The Boy Child was also disappointed, but that was because we ran out of pretzels, I think.

After we left the park, we stopped quickly by Gen. Washington's headquarters, a national historic monument and park. I snapped a quick shot of it through the fence (the place was closed):

All in all, it was a lovely way to spend a morning.

Posted by: Random Penseur at 09:02 AM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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1 Lovely pictures! Sounds like a terrific time, too. I think it's wonderful that you're giving your kids an awareness of the history around them. You're providing them with a strong foundation with which to appreciate and respect their heritage. If more parents did that, more children would grow up to value their country and what it stands for.

Posted by: Mick at September 28, 2004 01:48 PM (VhRca)

2 Thanks, Mick. I think sometimes that my wife and I had kids so as to have a built in audience for lectures!

Posted by: rp at September 28, 2004 02:18 PM (LlPKh)

3 Fabulous pictures, RP. I echo Mick's sentiments, too. I thought I had kids so that I can embarrass them in public. I'll have to check the manual. Heh.

Posted by: Margi at September 28, 2004 03:18 PM (MAdsZ)

4 Getting into the outdoors is a great way to relieve some stress. It's also great to introduce your kids first-hand to the concept that history is all around us -- it's not just in a book somewhere. And even if your kids don't listen to your lectures, they are at least absorbing your enthusiasm. Nice story, and I hope your coming week is better than last week!

Posted by: JohnL at September 28, 2004 03:27 PM (Hs4rn)

5 great pictures i agree. i have never been there, but i think i will put it on the list of places to go. thanks for the tip. glad you had a good time.

Posted by: standing naked at September 29, 2004 08:29 AM (IAJcf)

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I know it was very quiet here today. The thing is that I woke up this morning at 3:40 in a total sweat. I was absolutely convinced that every decision I've taken in the past month, or more, on every case I'm responsible for, was utterly wrong and I had totally screwed up millions of dollars of litigation. It was horrible and I was terrified. I also admit to worries that I had defaulted on a zillion different things. This is how stress manifests itself sometimes for lawyers; in night terrors. I could not get back to sleep and I was not awake enough to think about things rationally. It was pretty fucking horrible. I got up and I went to work. At my desk by 6:15 a.m. And I worked very hard today with no time outs for blogging. I didn't accomplish everything I wanted to do but I got enough done that I ought to be able to sleep tonight.

All that said, I wish I had had the Girl Child's career vision when I was younger. She told me the following tonight:

GC: Pappa, I know what I want to be when I grow up.

Me: What's that?

GC: A doctor. [Pause] And a super hero. Although, it's hard work being a super hero.

That may be, but it beats being a lawyer. At least, it does this week.

Posted by: Random Penseur at 09:55 PM | Comments (7) | Add Comment
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1 Too funny. My son is alternately Spiderman and Superman. Occcasionally? A firefighter or a Rescue Hero. Just ask him who he is today. I once thought I wanted to be a lawyer. IReading your posts give me a warm fuzzy feeling that I made the right choice

Posted by: Elizabeth at September 28, 2004 01:08 AM (Sqjve)

2 Second guessing yourself is a problem for many of us. I'm sorry you had such a bad night. I hope your sleep is sound tonight. And I love the confidence of little children. The Artist use to want to be a vet, a horse-trainer, an artist and I don't remember what else! Of course at one point she weanted to live together with me and the rest of the family forever. She no longer has that as a dream. I miss that.

Posted by: Rachel Ann at September 28, 2004 02:21 AM (cOAtt)

3 Random...my job has suffered time to time as well due to blogging. It has panicked me at times. Blogging is fun, but not at the expense of our jobs. That being said, I've often awoken in the wee hours of the morning, sure that all my decisions have had dire consequences. Mostly concerning my children, not my job. "They are grown," you say. Yes. I still suffer at 3:40 in the morning. There is nothing that brings grey hair on as quickly as watching the decisions of 20-somethings you raised. In other words...I relate. In more ways than one. :-) As the girl-child said, it's hard work being a super hero. :-)

Posted by: Amber at September 28, 2004 03:11 AM (zQE5D)

4 I think it would be easy to be a super hero. What's to it? A pair of tights, some hair gel. The ability to leap tall buildings in a single bound. No problem! I totally understand about the tossing and turning at night, though. Hoep you're feeling better today...

Posted by: Helen at September 28, 2004 04:59 AM (xKCn6)

5 i myself am currently employed as a super hero. it is hard work, but i find it extremely gratifying. and there was not as much school to attend as there is for a doctor. hope your week gets better RP....

Posted by: standing naked at September 28, 2004 09:06 AM (IAJcf)

6 Feeling much better today, thank you all very much. But, the day is young.

Posted by: RP at September 28, 2004 11:15 AM (LlPKh)

7 DAMN YOU and your thoughtful posts! You're totally RUINING my image of all my NY lawyers being claw-footed cyclops' that have NO SOULLLLL!! Kidding. Totally. And I'm very sorry that you're stressed. I'm sure that this means the transaction/deal/whatever it is will go off (seemingly) effortlessly, because you've done all of the "what if" planning beforehand. Hug your support staff. ::: wink ::: ::: grins :::

Posted by: Margi at September 28, 2004 03:15 PM (MAdsZ)

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I stumbled across the following article and was both amused and a little shocked. The efforts the Brits will go to these days to protect the rights and easily offended sensibilities of those less fortunate than us is exceptional. If you advertise for help wanted, "hard working" may not be a requirement for the job, because you may be discriminating against the lazy:

A businesswoman has been banned from asking for 'hard-working' staff in a job ad because it discriminates against the lazy.

Beryl King was told by a Jobcentre that her advert for warehouse workers discriminated against people who were not industrious.

Beryl, 57, told the Daily Mirror: "I couldn't believe my ears. Has our world gone mad?

"I've been running my business for 27 years and it's getting harder to find people who want to do a fair day's work for a fair day's pay.

"How long before someone says you can't pay people for working because it discriminates against those on benefit who are paid for not working?"

Beryl, who owns two job agencies in Totton, Hants, offered £5.42 an hour for "warehouse packers who must be hard-working and reliable".

The Southampton Jobcentre is investigating. A spokesman said: "Words such as 'hardworking' can be accepted if used with a clear job description."

Posted by: Random Penseur at 09:46 AM | Comments (8) | Add Comment
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