COMPLICATIONS

     Left overs here, from meditations while face down on an acupuncture table. Nothing is as simple as it used to be.

     The needles were set, some were wired, the ethereally peaceful music tranquilized my inner savage and it all created a sense that my being was on an infundibuliform* journey to some place deep and profound. More than sleep, something aspiring to full out bliss. It's that elusive place where certain things in life can place you and where one can, pretend at least, to achieve a kind of clarity. So, here we go.

the O factor

    Oprah is an extraordinary person. Enormously talented she has created a cultural empire. Interviewer, host, actress, business executive, visionary and social force. She is brilliant in all of those roles and she may well be a very good person.

     She speaks with passion and those who share her views are moved and inspired and those who don't cannot ignore her. But no matter any of that, it doesn't mean she should run for President.

    Even if she could win, she should not run. I hear some of my liberal friends or Democrats beginning to groan, and maybe even taking me off their invitation lists. She should not run, because even if she is only a notch below sainthood, she is not qualified.

   Yes, she is smart, powerful, influential, and beloved but she has no experience in that special arena in America we call governance.

    The embarrassing and unfit present occupant of the White House is a case in point. There were voters, and there still are, who thought his so called business experience was enough. If that were true why does almost 70% of all US citizens disprove of him and the job he's done? Why do our allies worry about his lack of skill, intelligence and his loutish behavior?  

    I'm not beginning to say Oprah would behave like the idiot to whom I referred, but there is a world of difference between what you can do in private business and life and what it takes to be the "leader of the free world." (That position by the way is presently occupied by Angela Merkel-It used to be the American President).

    There was a phrase we once used-a Statesman-modified to contemporary vocabulary a Statesperson. It connoted something of quality, intelligence, and even integrity of action and purpose. To qualify for that moniker is what qualifies someone for the role of being the Chief Executive and Commander in Chief. You need to prove your mettle in the hard, hard world of political experience, decision making, earning and maintaining trust, understanding the thrusts of history, the forces of a world with millions of moving parts, intelligence, security, economics,and the common good. 

    Oprah, in my opinion, is an exemplary woman but she doesn't have what it takes to be President, nor does Dwayne Johnson, or Mark Cuban, or Mark Zuckerberg, or George Clooney or Kid Rock.

    If any of them are serious, then they should run for office, House, Senate or a Governorship, or see if they qualify for a  challenging diplomatic assignment. Then and only then should this nation consider their candidacies. 

     We may be sick of politics as normal, sick of those who have occupied the stage the last 20 years, we may not like the options for 2020, but reverting into another "cult of personality" candidate will only take us further down the rabbit hole. 

     We the voters need to demand change in the ways of the House and Senate and the influence of big money and the beltway bandits that former a President warned us about. Ike had no political experience, but his leadership as Supreme Commander in World War II was as hard a training ground as ever. We have failed to heed his warning. 

     We don't need personality, with big social media influence, we need those kind of integrity and old fashioned political practices-compromise, negotiation and especially experience with reality instead of ideology. We certainly don't need another entertainer in chief, even if the ratings and popularity would be a natural improvement. Change the system, not the channel. We need a real leader, not a star.

it's not good for all

    We were delighted with the recent rain that swept the California Central Coast. It gave Lana the impetus to get the fava bean bed planted. (Frequent readers may recall our ecstatic love of favas)

But that same rain was devastating just a couple of hours south of us,

photo by Mike Eliason Santa Barbara County Fire Department

  I can't count the number of times we have driven under this over pass on the 101 near Montecito.

 photo by Santa Barbara County Fire Dept.

 photo by Santa Barbara County Fire Dept.

   Our heart aches for those who endured the Thomas Fire and now suffer through mud slides, more devastation and loss of life.

photo by Kenneth Song, Santa Barbara News, via Reuters

      And so indeed life is messy and complicated and a series of one moment after another. When we are fortunate and the moment is good we can celebrate and appreciate and be grateful. We can also know somewhere, in their own moment others may be afflicted, suffering and longing for a better moment. 

      It is complicated being a human being.

      *infundibuliform=funnel shaped.

    See you down the trail.

IS THIS TRUMP A TRICK

REMIND YOU OF SOMEONE?

The Donald

Nature's perverse humor

      I keep searching the side of the political coverage scenes, looking for a flash of Joel or Ethan Coen or George Clooney. Seeing them smirking around the edges of the political swamp would bring relief, this is all a joke.

    Warning bells are ringing. No less a traditionalist than conservative and Republican David Brooks laments and pleads for sanity arguing that neither Trump nor Cruz can be elected, he hopes.  Ditto for Sanders. They are not stable he argues so America will not take them on as long term companions. But the venerable Mr. Brooks is not convinced so he says he will spend the next few months in denial. He's not alone in the GOP, the Gagging Old Party.

    It's now an old joke-TV News has become all Trump all the time. There's far too much truth in that. It's the funny pages moved to the front page. The freak show moved to the big top. Donald is so colorful the modern journos can't help themselves.

    Ah, but they can.

Rachel pounds Flint 

    As so much of the media universe was making silly over the entirely over rated politically active Iowans and Donald Vs. Megyn, or basking in the annual Super Hype, Rachel Maddow did something different-real journalism. Like her or not, approve or disapprove of her tilt, she had the presence of mind and conscience to focus a big media light on an  unbelievable American disaster. 

    The story of lead contamination of 100 thousand Americans, including 9,000 children is symbolic of how broken, morally bankrupt and politically corrupt this nation can be. The story of Flint is something you'd expect in Russia or North Korea.

    Her town hall meeting was a tangible and credible effort at understanding yes, but also a beginning pursuit of doing something about it. Honestly, Flint is a helluva lot more important than the Iowa Caucus, New Hampshire Primary and the clown car media carnival they have fostered. And more honesty-crumbling infrastructure is not the exclusive problem of Flint.  How wide spread might it be? If you really want to know, pull up a map and begin counting every major city in America. When you've counted them all you'll have your answer.

KERMIT WAS RIGHT

   The modicum of good news in this post is the picture above. Moisture and green, in California. It hasn't been easy.

    We are sorry El Nino has produced serious problems elsewhere, but here on the California coast and into the high Sierra we are getting relief from four years of drought. Nothing is back to normal yet, but it is getting better. Lakes are no longer bone dry and the mountain snow pack is healthy. We have several more weeks in this rainy season and we are grateful for the additional moisture on the way.

       By the time the political circus comes to town out here our lovely green may have begun to fade into our golden season. The June primary here will be the end of the preliminaries and the eve of the national conventions. In the last few years the conventions have been nothing more than television programs, a sort of perverted telethon. There has been nothing to decide, so the delegates gather to party and offer up platitudes. This year could be a bit different.  We'll see. And how I hope I see the Coen's.

     See you down the trail.

IS OSCAR COLOR BLIND OR BLIND?

AVOIDING BEING WASHED UP

    Something is amiss in Hollywood and friction over the Oscar nominations is the smoke signal.

     The make-believe world of the film industry cannot use special effects to escape a few painful realities. Debate over to or not to boycott this years Academy Award presentation is  one plot turn. Another is will the Academy do something about its award deciding process?

      The Academy is made up of Branches, relating to the various skills and crafts of film making; directing, acting, cinematography, writing, design, editing, and etc. Membership comes only through a sponsor and though the Academy is private about who belongs, an LA Times investigation revealed statistics that show it is a predominately white male organization. Some say the representation of male and female membership is roughly equivalent to the percentage of people working in film, but there's no way to be sure. Even that however does not speak to a couple of other story lines.

       The film industry itself is a largely white enclave notably in the film studios and leadership, and mostly male as well. As George Clooney noted recently the current debate about the whiteness of this year's nominees goes mostly to the lack of African American talent but says little about Hispanic under representation that Clooney says is another problem.

       Close to the core of this friction is a legitimate debate-Many believe the Oscars should recognize achievement and not be about pushing for diversity. It is an award, not social engineering. That's touchy in this age of racial sensitivity and lingering racism. It's even touchier when one consider the majority of Academy voters are white and male. True, the Academy is the private club of an already self indulgent professional culture so in a theory, one can argue, they can run the club house however they wish. But this is the 21st Century and we know about colonialism, imperialism, feudalism, racism and bias. And after all who makes the industry important? Movie goers! The fans are the ultimate power here. 

         Though we are marketed to, hyped, pitched and hustled we decide fates and fortunes by deciding to watch or not. If we are more than white males, it would follow what we get should be about more than white males. And that is true, but the disconnects exists.

        Personally, I can't understand why Will Smith did not get a nomination for his courageous role in Concussion-based on  a real character who too was brave and historic. As I watched Straight Outta Compton I wondered why Oshea Jackson, Jason Mitchell or Corey Hawkins were not considered for supporting actor roles. I have yet to see Beasts of No Nation, but people whom I respect say Idris Elba was excellent in his role.

         Nothing against those who have been nominated. I've seen most of the nominees and indeed there has been masterful work. But I have to wonder if there were more women, more men and women of color in the process of selecting and eventually electing the winners, would we see more diversity.  I think so.

        The end of this drama is to be written. Will we see a large scale boycott? Will Chris Rock emcee or boycott? If he works, how will he handle the issue? Will a presenter or a recipient do a Marlon Brando?  Will viewers shun the telecast?  Will commercial sponsors show guts?  Could an ad agency advise a big sponsors to tailor a special message respecting the quality of the nominees but lamenting the lack of diversity? Perhaps the biggest mystery is what will the Academy do about fixing what is clearly a problem in a system that bears a lot of resemblance to a plantation?

A MOMENT OF PERSONAL PRIVILEGE 

    We pause here under our blooming Jade, a sign of good luck, prosperity and friendship to congratulate our eldest on the birth of her daughter, our first grandchild. Congratulations also to our other daughter, an RN who was part of the delivery process. Everyone is doing well, including grandmother who can't stop smiling. Grandad got the news on the tennis court and had to wipe away a few tears before he got back to playing. 

     God bless that little darling and all of her generation. It gives this boomer more incentive to care about justice, fairness, peace and planetary health.

      See you down the trail.

ENCHANTED AND ENCHANTING, NO HATE HERE! AND THE CLOONEY CONUNDRUM

ENCHANTING

    Pacific coast evenings are the stuff of novels or cinema.

    Cozy, eclectic and exquisite dinning with family,friends   and sometimes with "show biz" luminaries. Part of the unique vibe.

THE MONUMENTS MEN

     I don't understand why there is such a disparate range of reaction to George Clooney's latest project-The Monuments Men. I wouldn't nominate it for a film of the year, but it is a good film, entertaining and important. Important because it tells history, revealing a little known aspect of the larger destruction of WWII. But some simply do not like it and find faults that I did not see.  It's a great cast, with subtle but studied performances. The film moves by story line, a creative treatment of what actually happened. Had it not been for this special team the Nazi horror and the Allied bombing response would have extracted a cost that fortunately  we do not have to calculate.  Still the film has moments of poignancy as we contemplate what Germany under Hitler did, the barbarity of his mad plans and the extraordinary human toll. It reminds me of a good 1940's film. There is a kind of reminiscence of combat films I saw as a kid, but minus all of the shoot 'em up with more emphasis on the team played well by the entourage cast.

    Is a painting worth a human life?  President Truman asks that question but getting to the answer requires a bit of knowledge and Professor Clooney provides that in a history lesson, entertainingly delivered.  We are better because of knowing it. Thank you Robert Edsel for the book and Clooney and Grant Heslov for the screenplay and movie.

Here's a project

      I read once there are more original VW buses on the road in California than anywhere else. After 7 years of residency, I guess I agree having seen more in the last few years than maybe the previous 40 in Indiana. Most are in great shape, but occasionally you see a "project."

NO HATE HERE

     The regional office of the Anti Defamation League (ADL) responded quickly with a packed house community forum after a jerk crawled out of their rat hole. A cranky woman confronted a new pharmacist and said "you look like your Chinese. I don't appreciate you coming into our town taking jobs from white people."  The pharmacist was born in the Philippines and has lived in the US since he was 4. He had recently purchased the pharmacy. As THE CAMBRIAN columnist John Brannon reported, the man got two "nasty notes" in his mail box. It frightened his wife who cares for their 18 month child. 

      More than 100 people jammed into the auditorium of the Cambria Center for the Arts to affirm support for the man and his family and to discuss how to respond.

       The panel included, from left, history professor Emeritus and columnist Daniel Krieger, Commander Jim Voge of the San Luis Obispo County Sheriffs Department and a Cambria resident, Dr. Elizabeth Myer of Cal Poly, an educational expert in bullying and Catherine Ryan Hyde, author of Pay It Forward and 24 other books, representing the LGBT perspective.  Moderator Deborah Linden served ADL and as a former Police Chief in San Luis Obispo.

      As Commander Vogue and former Chief Linden affirmed, a hate crime incident is so out of character for Cambria. NO HATE HERE buttons, posters and bracelets are showing up around the village. Many have made a point to voice their support of the pharmacist. In more than one way, it takes a village.

      You can read The Cambrian editor Bert Etling's report here.

       See you down the trail.

SKULL TATT'S AND 40 K A PLATE ??!!

SKULL TATTOOS SEND A WEIRD MESSAGE

    The LA Times prompted the LA County Sheriffs office to

investigate a "secret clique" in the sheriff's gang unit.  Members wear a gun toting skeleton, which according to the Times, the members alter after they've been involved in a shooting. They are called the "Jump Out Boys."

     I understand the need for camaraderie.  I saw it work as I spent weeks with Army Snipers in training, followed FBI Agents through 16 weeks of preparation, embedded with tactical weapons teams, and covered countless other law enforcement or security and intelligence operations.  You go through things civilians never see and it does contribute to a sense of bonding.  There is an however here.

     Cliques, private creeds, as alleged in the Jump Out Boys, are wrong, and send a terrible message.  Yes, we ask cops on drug and gang task forces to deal with the dregs of our society and it is difficult and often dirty work.  The line between good and bad is hard to see.  Still, even when dealing with the dirtiest of dirt bags, or most foul of criminals, cops need to stay within the law and propriety.  They are the line of demarcation between true law and order, civility if you will, and the lawless degeneration of crime. 

      We don't know where the LA Sheriffs investigation will end. Nothing wrong with a tatt, unless it is a symbol for a 

code of a behavior in violation of procedure, policy and law.

I remember rooting out a federal employee-a postman-who

swore a secret oath and wore a tattoo of his allegiance to the Ku Klux Klan. He put that belief above the law that 

governed those of us who paid his salary. He openly advocated violation of some of those laws. 

       If we are a nation of law, we must behave that way, especially those who enforce the law. 

TOO MUCH $$

     One more thing has me venting today.  A $40 thousand

dollar a plate dinner at George Clooney's home?  Even though the attendees can afford it-they are all wealthy, it is just another symbol of the influence of big money in politics.

The Obama campaign will get a shot in the arm.  Romney's campaign also does high ticket fund raisers.  Most of the money will end up in commercials and advertising.  

    The need to raise and spend money has perverted the 

process and supplanted principle, intelligence, problem solving and vision.  What a helluva way to choose office holders!

DAY BOOK

CAT PLAY

The Further Adventures of 

Luke and Hemingway

 "Hey, you know I could sleep a lot better if you'd knock
off that scratching down there."
  "Oh yea?!  Well if you didn't hog the top deck all the time."

 "OK big boy!  I'm down on your level now.  Hey, look at me
when I'm talking to you."
  "I don't want another of those stare downs. But I can see you looking at me.  I just want to get up on the top deck."

 "I'm watching you.  See this right paw?  I can take you out with it."
 "I see it.  Big deal!  Keep the top deck. I'm going to take a nap."

 "Now if you'd please get that camera out of here....."

 "I've got a nap to catch up with....."

   "It's too hot in the sun.  He can have the top deck.

I just want this shady spot."

See you down the trail

EXTRAORDINARY-FILM & NATURE

REEL THOUGHTS
THE FILM THAT'S GETTING THE BUZZ

THE DESCENDANTS 

This is one of those films that opens by winning awards and creating Oscar buzz. It doesn't seem to be a big

film, nor even an important film until

it has you twisting between pathos and clever humor.

It walks a line and moves with deftness between

those two spheres, like the masks of the Greek muses, Thalia and Melpomene-comedy and tragedy. 

 You also find
yourself realizing that it is a film where "good and decent"

prevail even within dark and morbid moments. 

It is an important film, making points

about behavior and honor.

Even when you know where something may be 

headed, you find yourself either amused or surprised

and always entertained by how it plays out.

George Clooney is brilliant as a befuddled but good guy who must struggle between the poles of grief, anger, love and surprise.  This is probably a break out film for Shailne Woodley, a Simi Valley actress. She is beautiful and authentic as Clooney's eldest daughter.  Amara Miller as the younger sister and Nick Krause as Woodleys goofy boyfriend are superb.  Beau Bridges is enjoyable as Cousin Hugh. Judy Greer as Julie Speer plays a small but powerful role that could be remembered as one of the most elegant on screen portrayals of compassion and honesty, ever.
Then there is wonderful background story of land ownership, history and development in the beautiful Hawaiian islands. We left wanting to get genuine Hawaiian music. This is another masterful directing and 
writing product of Alexander Payne, probably best known for Sideways.  I think you'll see why it is getting
all the talk.  We attended a 4:15 Monday afternoon
performance and they had to turn people away.
Well done!

DAY BOOK 

ROCK AND SEA

There is a space in the interaction of

of the Pacific and those rocky beaches

where another world seems to dwell.

In the tide pools and on the rocks

are scenes of the eternal relationship.

 Tides and conditions must be right for 

the tide pools to mirror back the coastal scene.

 Rock and stone, often underwater, give up a

secret language or code and low tide.

See you down the trail.

GOOD MOON RISING & A GOOD FLICK

REEL THOUGHTS

IDES OF MARCH
One thing this film does extraordinarily well
is to put the viewer into the hubris and flow of a
a modern campaign organization.  Too many of the 
"low information" voters see only the candidate and
rarely give thought to the "industry and business" behind
the front man or woman.  I have known and covered
campaign consultants and staffers since the late 60's and 
frankly think many of them are more interesting than
the candidates for whom they worked.
The story line is engaging. The directing is superb. The acting is also top rate.  Ryan Gosling is the best of the lot
but Philip Seymour Hoffman, Paul Giamatti, George Clooney and Marisa Tomei all give you your money's worth.
Clooney, who directed, said when the film was 
originally scheduled, it was pulled because they thought it was too cynical.  It didn't "fit" with the incoming Obama 
administration.  Times have changed.  


HARVEST LIGHT OVER

THE SANTA LUCIAS

With apology to Creedence Clearwater Revival
I see a good moon risin'.
This presented itself as we sat at the dining room 
table the other night.
The Harvest Moon is the first full moon, closest to the autumnal equinox. It appears to have an orange glow and 
seems larger, because it is lower in the sky-in 
case you wondered.  
Regardless of science or astronomy,
there is something special in a Harvest Moon.
And as you have surmised, it is a Harvest Moon because
farmers could continue to work after sunset.
A great show!

Good light to you.
See you down the trail.